If you have a Bible, let's go
back to 1 John, to our text verse. And I hope you do have a Bible
and that you will follow along today. I'm going to speak to you today on the subject,
God is just. God is just. And as the message
developed, you will soon find out this is the heart of the
Bible. This is the heart of what God
has to say to us. And finding out that God is just
and coming to a real understanding that the God of the Bible is
a just God, will cause you not to turn to law. If God is going to be just, he's
got to give you what you deserve. This is a fearful thought, that
every sin and every disobedience must Every sin and every disobedience
must receive a just recompense of reward. You never want to
say, I just want God to give me what I deserve. You don't
want that, really. Always have this thought in mind,
God have mercy, and God be gracious to me, the sinner. And this is
what 1 John says. There are all kinds of errors
in all kinds of churches being preached today. How do you get
to heaven? By being good. Oh, really? Well,
there's none good. And God's gonna punish sin. You
know that you're not a perfect person. So we have a real dilemma. Darius, in the Bible, you've
heard the Bible story about Daniel. Daniel was a man of God, and
he was a great prayer warrior. And the enemies of God and Daniel
went to King Darius and said, we want you to make this law.
Back then when they made laws, they were real laws. Laws with
consequences. You break the law, things happen.
I hope we come back to that in this country to some degree.
But anyway, they made a law trying to get Daniel locked up, that
if they caught anybody praying to any other god other than the
king Darius, that they would throw those people in the lion's
den. Remember the Sunday school story? And so they caught Daniel
praying to his god and lay hands on him. took him to Darius, Daniel
admitted he was praying to God, even raised the windows and prayed
to God, wasn't trying to hide it. Darius said something like
this to Daniel, you broke the law. But Darius and Daniel were
great friends. They really cared about one another.
But Daniel had broken the law. And the Bible says that Darius
stayed up all night trying to find a way to release Daniel. And he couldn't find a way to
do it. He couldn't find a just way. Daniel broke the law and
had to go in the lion's den. The dilemma of Darius is the
glory of God. Hallelujah. Find out what that
means. Find out what that means. The
dilemma of Darius is the glory of God. How's God gonna save
you? How's God gonna save me? Well, first thing to learn is
that it is God who does the saving. So God is just. There's nothing
more fearful to the sinner who knows his guilt than the fact
of God's absolute justice. You can't cry enough, you can't
work enough, you can't turn over a new leaf enough, you can't
reform enough. What you have done, thought,
what you haven't done, that you should have done, is going to
receive a just recompense of reward. Don't be punished. There's
a punishment. Sin has to be punished. God's
justice. God, you see, is holy. In fact,
you'll find, especially in the book of Job, the wrestling with
this matter. The heavens are not clean, the
stars are not clean, the universe is not clean in God's sight,
because God is holy, holy, holy. That's what you find in the book
of Isaiah 6, the cherubims and seraphims circling the throne
of God, covering their faces, crying out, holy, holy, holy
is the Lord of hosts. God is holy. You're not. I'm not. So, if God is just,
how can he pardon my sins? The truth is that the justice
of God itself is a great barrier to the salvation of sinners.
The justice of God. That's why I would urge all of
you here today, don't be running to the Ten Commandments. They
will condemn you. The Ten Commandments will send
you to hell and quick. Not only have you not kept them,
nor I, we haven't even come close. Many of you in here don't even
know them. There's not salvation in works.
I would not go there. The justice of God. How can God
be just and justify you? Great dilemma. And when you began
to get hold of this, you'll get happy in your soul if you're
a Christian. There's only one way for that
barrier to be surmounted, and that is through Jesus Christ.
And you knew I was going there. Let Sodom tell you how just God
is. Read of Sodom and Gomorrah. You
want to know how just God is? Read the story in the book of
Genesis of Sodom and Gomorrah. You'll find out Read about Noah
and the universal deluge. You want to know how just God
is? Just read your Bible. God is
just. Let the cities where the earth
opened up and consumed all of those people who were sinning
against God, that's how just God is. And ultimately, let hell
tell you how just God is. really is because it's there
that we learn that God will by no means spare the guilty. In other words, every sin. Think
about this now for just a little while. Think about every sin
that you've ever committed. You don't even know how many.
We often sing the old hymn, count your many blessings, name them
one by one. How about this? Count your many sins. Himalayas
of sin. Himalayas of sin. If you think
about your sin, and sin has to be paid for, and God is just. There never has been or never
will be a sin pardoned without, listen to me now, without full
and complete vindication. Full and complete vindication. In other words, every sin must
receive a just recompense of reward. Don't worry about not
getting what you deserve, if that's what you want, because
you're going to get what you deserve. None of us want that. Fear the justice of God if you're
without a Savior today. If you're without a substitute,
without a Redeemer, you say, Pastor, I don't know what you're
talking about. I'm talking about this God of the Bible who is
just and holy and is going to punish sin. Say, I gather you're
a hellfire and damnation preacher. Oh, you are so right about that,
because that's what the Bible says. that every sin, and it's
going to catch up with you. With some of you, over the years,
it's already caught up with you. Your health is bad, you don't
have a house, you don't have a car, you don't have a family,
you don't have a life, because sin, you see, is the best detective
in all the world. Your sins will eventually find
you out. What is it that has thrown you
out to the world? Your sins. What is it that has
separated you and your God? It's your sin. Sin must be punished. What you need is a savior, a
substitute, a redeemer. You need a reconciler. You need
a mercy seed that can intervene between you and the justice of
God. So this is the riddle of the
law and the grand discovery of the gospel. The grand discovery
of the gospel. Boy, when your eyes are opened
and you see how God is just, first of all, it'll break your
heart, just and justifier of the ungodly. I was thinking last
night or this morning about when I was a little boy, eight, nine
years old, I began to clearly understand that there was something
bad wrong with me. and that God was holy, and that
God punished sin. I'm telling you, looking you
in the eye, God will punish sin. He will. The very justice which
stood in the sinner's way and prevented his being pardoned
has been by the gospel of Christ appeased. Justice has been appeased. Justice has been satisfied. When
Christ said on the cross, it is finished, it is accomplished,
He drank his people's damnation dry. He inverted the cup of justice. God was satisfied with Kent W. Clark in his substitute. My sins were paid for in the
blood and by the blood of Jesus Christ. Isn't that awesome? You know, I was thinking last
night, how so, Kent? I was talking to myself a little
bit. How justice is no longer the
sinner's enemy. Justice is no longer my enemy.
Because God came. Think about this. God came in
the person of Jesus Christ to satisfy justice. And think about
that. There is no way for you to go
to heaven except through God coming and dying in your room,
stead, and place. God in human flesh. And think
about what he suffered. Not only who was suffering, but
what he suffered. I read again the days of the
crucifixion of Christ and all that was leading up to that again
last night. And I thought, Lord, I'll never
be able to depict that tomorrow morning. I'll never be able to
open eyes to the fact that it was you who came. You know, like
the old Puritans used to say when they were reading of the
crucifixion of Christ, who can understand this? God punishing
God. It is a great mystery. It's a
glorious mystery. It's an awesome thought that
God so loved me that He came into the world to die in my stead. But that's the truth of it. Actually,
justice has become my advocate. Now some of you will know where
I'm going with this, and this is a glorious truth. I have had
people say about the message that I've been preaching for
53 years, You know, Clark believes in a limited atonement. I believe
in a glorious atonement. I do believe that whoever Christ
died for on the tree of the cross were redeemed. He didn't try
to redeem somebody. I'm getting goosebumps already.
He redeemed a people unto Himself. He paid the price. He set the
captive free. Justice is on my side. Justice is on my side. This is my only hope, my shelter,
and my shield. You see, it just can't be that
God can smite me now because justice prevents it. Actually,
justice comes over and says, the price for Ken Clark has been
paid in full. I'm not going to hell. And I'll
tell you why I'm not going to hell. Justice has been satisfied. There is no hell for me. God
can now be just and justifier of the ungodly. But pastor, I'm
a crack-smoking, heroin-using, alcohol-drunk. I know. Aren't we sinners? Isn't he holy? And isn't He just and justifier
of the ungodly? Isn't that good news to you?
Those of you who are in here and you have some conviction
about your sin, the Holy Spirit has brought Holy Spirit conviction
to you. You see yourself a sinner and
you feel under condemnation, I've got good news for you. God
in human flesh condescended, walked the Judean acres without
sin, and became your substitute, and satisfied the law's demands,
and drank your damnation dry on the tree of the cross. There
is therefore now no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus. Wouldn't it be a horrible thing?
I asked the Lord last night, Lord, let them see it. Let them
really see it. Wouldn't it be a horrible thing?
Wouldn't it be a horrible God if God punished Christ and then
punished you? Huh. Well, that wouldn't be just. And here's what it comes down
to. If God punished Christ for you, you go free. It's got to
be that way. Somebody said, well, God's waiting
to see what I do. God's not waiting on you, honey.
God's not waiting on you, hairy-chested big guy. God in grace, knowing you with
all of your sins. The Bible says God looked down
from heaven to see if there was any good. Finally, after looking
down through time, through his big telescope, here was the verdict. There's none good. No, not one. Amen. I'm about to. You see, damned I cannot be. Well, I think that sounds a little
haughty. Not because of me. But because
of Christ paying my debt and satisfying justice, I cannot
be damned. It's impossible for me to be
damned. And I know some of you religious
folks probably are sitting out there going like this, Pastor,
don't say that because we have heroin addicts here. You know,
if you say they have eternal life and once saved, always saved,
you know what they're going to do, don't you? Yeah, I do. They're
going to live for the glory of God because they've been regenerated. Suffer for my sins? I cannot. Somebody asked me, I've been
asked this several times in my life, why do you smile so much? Well, my friend, if you knew
that someone took your place, that someone died in your room
instead and there was no hell and that everything was working
for your good and for God's glory, what a great life! Amen. He already knows who's going
to win the Super Bowl. Sin had left the crimson stain. Sin had left the crimson stain,
but he washed it white as snow. I am without spot or wrinkle
before God. There is no fault found in me.
When it's time for me to die and stand before God's judgment
throne, I will stand in Christ complete. How about you? Will you stand alone? He will
answer for me when the roll is called up yonder. Can Clark hear
the voice of Jesus Christ? He's here, saved by my grace,
saved by my mercy, saved by blood, saved by my atonement, saved
because I propitiated for his sins on the tree of the cross.
He's here, present, and accounted for. You know how it's impossible
for me to go to hell? God's going to have to be unjust. I mean, if the price was paid,
how would you like this? I'll pick Macy's. You go to Macy's
and let's say you girls buy a new coat. And I find out, let's say Ms. Pam does it. She goes and buys
a new coat. I tell her I paid for it. I paid
for it. And then she gets a note from
Macy's saying, your husband did come in and pay for it, but you
also must come and pay for it. Miss Pam wouldn't like that,
and neither would I. There can't be two payments.
If Jesus made the payment, the price is paid. Say, oh, and this
is the way we do, especially young Christians. Yeah, but you
know, I have such vivid memories of using. I have such vivid memories
of my fornication and my sin. And God goes like this. I don't
remember any of those. I don't remember those. They're
not just blotted. Somebody said, all of my sins
are under the blood. No, if you took the blood off,
you wouldn't find your sins. They're gone. I don't know any
other way to put it. Your sins are gone. We used to
sing in Sunday school, gone, gone, gone, gone. Yes, my sins
are gone. Buried in the deepest sea, that's
good enough for me. You know, that's what the Bible
says. That's where I first learned
about atonement. That Jesus paid the debt. God
is just. How wonderful. And until God
can be unjust and demand two payments for one debt, He cannot
destroy the soul for whom Jesus died. Every spirit in heaven
Christ bought. And if He redeemed those who
are now in hell, they could have never come there. If Jesus died
for anybody that's now in hell, I know. If Jesus died for anybody
who's now in hell, there's something bad wrong. Because I guarantee
you this, if in your flesh dwells no good thing every single day,
think about that, that Jesus on the tree of the cross paid
for every sin that you as a child of God would ever commit. That's
why we don't use fear here as a tactic. You know, try to scare
the hell out of them. You know, you can't scare the
hell out of people. Because in your flesh dwells
no good thing. But boy, I can give you tremendous
hope. I can put a smile on the face of every former heroin addict,
every adulterer, every fornicator, every sinner. the blood of Jesus
Christ will make you white as snow, and you have status and
standing. You see, what good is it for
me to preach a redemption that doesn't redeem? What good is
it for me to get up here and say, Christ died as a redeemer,
and all of you who will let him, huh? That doesn't make sense
to me. But it does make sense to me
to preach this. God, before the foundation of
the world, chose a people unto salvation that He would save
by His sovereign, free grace. And Jesus Christ received those
people in the covenant of grace, went down to earth, and He paid
the price for every last one of them that God had chosen. He paid it in full. Somebody
ought to say amen to that. Amen. He paid it completely. You say, you mean 2,000 years
ago my sin debt was paid? Absolutely. You found out it
through this hillbilly preacher up from Lowe's, Kentucky, who
had a pet goat when he was a child. What a flimsy means God uses
to tell the most glorious truth. You know, as I was showing the
folks through yesterday, they were saying things like this.
This is amazing. This is absolutely amazing. They would say that over and
they were old folks too, a lot of them. Uh-oh, they're watching.
I didn't mean that in a bad way. They had such wonderful stories
to tell about here. And things got worse, and worse,
and worse, and they got where there was not enough people to
pay the gas bill. Pontiac got so bad that they
had to leave Pontiac and build a church in Clarkston. And there
they are up there. And then for 15, 20 years, This
place was a hellhole. And then God came. You know, God prepared this place
and planned this place for you before the world ever was. We
are not accidents here. The wonderful gospel of God's
free grace is on purpose for a purpose. You know, the second
part of the text says that it is an act of justice on God's
part to forgive the sinner who makes a confession of his sin
to God. I would call upon you to do that
today. And here's what justice says.
Sinner, I will go with you. When you go to plead for pardon,
I will go and plead for you. once I spoke against you. But
now I'm so satisfied with what Christ has done, I will go with
you and plead for you." So justice goes along before the judgment
throne of God. Justice, do you have anything
against this person? Is there any sin that has to
be paid? No, I'm on their side. I'm with
them. I have been recompensed. I have
been satisfied. My wrath has been propitiated. Jesus Christ has paid the debt. What an awesome thing for you,
you who have wasted most of your life, to be able to say, justice,
to hear the voice of God who will say to you, come just as
you are, without one plea. Redemption work 2,000 years ago
on the tree of the cross. You have no debt. You have been justified by the
grace of God. And here's what the scripture
says, and this is why I can preach this, because I know that justice
has been satisfied, Him that cometh to me. What hymn? Any hymn, Chinese
hymn, African-American hymn or her, fornicating her or him,
drunk him or her, crack using, heroin using, whatever using,
church using, trying to camouflage your sins. Oh, we so... Boy, we had a great service Wednesday
night. We let the cat out of the bag
here. We talk real talk here. We tell it like it is here. And
what a wonderful thing it is. We're not trying to cover up
anything. God came into the world in the person of Christ to save
sinners and to do it in a just way. Lord, you said, and those
of you who are sitting here, I would use this line with the
Lord, Lord, you said, he that confesses his sin and forsaketh
it shall find mercy. Him that cometh to me I will
in no wise cast out. I just double-dog dare you to
come to Christ, just as you are right now, come to Christ. Acknowledge
Christ. Confess Jesus Christ. You know
all of heaven goes crazy. when some old lost person in
here who has no hope comes to Jesus Christ. Heaven goes wild
up there. That's another one! And all that he died for will
come because the hound of heaven seeks him out. The Holy Spirit
of God. I know some of you are sitting
in here and you're going, he can't mean me. I've gone too
far and I've done too much. Oh, He's a greater Savior than
you are a sinner. How boastful you are about your
sins. How boastful you are. Look to Jesus Christ today. Praise
group, you can come. Say, well, pastor, it's just
two minutes after 12, I know, but there's still room at the
cross for you. right now, this morning, today. This is it. This is the heart
of the Bible. This is what it's all about,
how God can be just. That's why the old songwriter
wrote that song that I quote so much, Oh, what a wonder that
Jesus found me. When you first get saved, and
it ought to be like this to the last day on earth, I cannot believe
it. What a miracle I am. How awesome
is this? That there's no condemnation
to those that are in Christ Jesus. So the great question is this,
how can God go down into the coal mine of sin and lay hold of a dirty person
and not get himself dirty? And the answer is, through his
substitute, through his son in Jesus Christ. God is just and
justifier. Remember this, as long as you
live, remember this old guy preaching this, God is just and justifier. I just love to say it, and justifier. He is just and holy and justifier
of the ungodly. He brings down the gavel and
says, not guilty today, not guilty tomorrow, not guilty forever. I got a little excited there.