Good morning. Before I forget,
before the second hour of preaching, make sure you get a copy of the
bulletin. We're gonna sing the hymn on the back for baptism
this morning. So let's open this morning's service with hymn number
42 in your spiral, gospel hymns hymn book number 42. Let's all
stand together. Praise the name of Jesus, prophet,
priest, and sovereign king. To him render an oration, for
an homage to him bring. Let us praise the name of Jesus,
God incarnate from above, came to save His chosen people, sent
by God in command of Let us raise the name of Jesus, who upon Mount
Calvary shed His blood and sealed our pardon, died for sin to set us free. Let us praise the name of Jesus,
risen, conquering, gracious Friend, Advocate and Mediator, all our
hopes on Him depend. ? Let us praise the name of Jesus
? ? For he brought us to his home ? ? Come exalt his name
and worship ? ? May the Savior be extolled ? ? Let us praise
the name of Jesus ? ? Till we see him face to face ? ? And
throughout the endless ages ? ? Praise him for his love and grace ?
Please be seated. Good morning. I ask you if you'll open your
Bibles with me to Ephesians chapter 4. Tom, you read from Romans 15. I was looking at this passage
this morning and it goes along the same lines as far as the
body of Christ being one body with one head. Paul likened the members of that
body to different members of our body, caring for and supporting
one another. And we think of that in relationship
to a local assembly. But we can also consider that
in relationship to one assembly in its relationship to another. Ephesians chapter four verse
one. I therefore the prisoner of the
Lord beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation wherewith
you are called with all lowliness and meekness with long suffering
for bearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity
of the spirit in the bond of peace. For there is one body
and one spirit Even as you are called in one hope of your calling,
one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and father of all who
is above all and through all and in you all. But unto every
one of us has given grace according to the measure of the gift of
Christ. He goes on to tell us that the
gifts that God has given to the church is that of prophets and
apostles and evangelists and pastors and teachers for the
perfecting of the saints. And what a blessing it is that
the Lord has given through the prophets and the apostles his
word. And then he gifts men to declare that word for the edification
of God's church and for the saving of God's elect. And so we're
thankful for that. And I'm thankful for Billy and
Virginia. Where's Virginia? There she is.
Argoropoulos, good Greek name. Billy I met a few months ago. Went over four months ago, went
over and preached for them recently. And Billy pastors St. Pete Grace Church. And so I've
asked him, we're actually, Billy's gonna be baptized after the service
this morning. So he's looking forward to that. And I'll introduce Sean later. Let's let's pray together. Our
heavenly father, we thank you for bringing us here to this
place where you've promised to meet with us. Lord, we were very,
very hopeful and very thankful that you are faithful to your
promises and or that you inhabit the praise of your people and
that you walk among the candlesticks. Lord, we long for the windows
of heaven to be opened and for you to come down to manifest
your grace and your glory to the hearts of your people and
to knit those hearts together as one in Christ. Thank you for
Billy. And we asked Lord for your your
blessings on him and pray that you'd give us ears to hear, hearts
to believe. We ask it in Christ's name. Amen. This is a day that I have long So happy to be with you. So happy
to meet you brethren and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ. What a blessing it is to fellowship with God's people. You just can't beat it. And we
are a family. What binds us together is the
Lord Jesus Christ and his gospel. That's right. Our fellowship
is in the gospel. I need your prayers this morning.
Excuse me. I'm as nervous as a cat, but I'm trusting the Lord. to deliver me. I'm gonna read
in two places this morning. To introduce this message, first
of all, I want you to open your Bibles to Romans chapter 10. Romans chapter 10, begin reading
at verse 13, and God willing, when I finish here, we're gonna
turn over to John chapter six, and begin reading at verse 37. Romans chapter 10, and I wanna
begin reading in verse 13. I'm sure this is a very familiar
scripture to all of you. Paul tells the Romans in verse
13, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved. Isn't that a precious promise? But in verse 14, we have some
questions. How then shall they call on him
in whom they've not believed? How shall they believe in him
of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without
a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sent? As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. But they have not all obeyed
the gospel, for Isaiah saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then, faith cometh by hearing. and hearing by the word of God. There is no salvation apart from
faith in Jesus Christ. None. No salvation at all. Faith is coming to Christ. When a man comes to Christ, he
comes personally. himself to the Lord Jesus Christ. Then when he comes to Christ,
he comes to Christ as he is revealed in the scriptures or in the truth
of him. But the question has to be asked,
what has to take place before a man can actually Come to Christ. Now, the modern gospel tells
us that nothing has to happen. The modern gospel tells us that
anytime, anywhere, any place, all you have to do is just simply
say, Lord, I believe you died. Lord, I believe you rose again.
and Lord, you promised to save me, and I'm gonna take you at
your word, and I've called on you, and you better do it, because
you said you would. That has filled hell with more
people than you can shake a stick at. But something's got to take
place. Something's got to take place
before a man can come to Christ. With that in mind, turn to John
chapter six, please. John chapter six, excuse me. I got a little tickling in my
throat. Verse 37, John chapter six, verse 37. The words of the Lord Jesus.
He says, all that the father giveth me, shall come to me. And him that cometh to me, I
will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven not
to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And
this is the father's will, which hath sent me, that of all which
he hath given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it
up again at the last day. Look at verse 40. And this is
the will of him that sent me, that everyone which seeth the
Son and believeth on him may have everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the
last day. Then, excuse me, the Jews then
murmured at him because he said, I am the bread which came down
from heaven. And they said, is not this Jesus,
the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it
then that he saith, I came down from heaven? Jesus therefore
answered and said unto them, murmur not among yourselves. Now I'm getting to the text,
verse 44 and 45. No man can come to me except the Father which hath
sent me draw him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets,
and they shall be all taught of God. You see that word taught?
Every man, therefore, that hath heard and hath learned of the
Father cometh unto me. My thought this morning, if the
message has a title, it would be God's University. God's University. Scripture says they shall all
be taught. of God. When I look in verse 44, no man
can come to me. Now if that's all that verse
said, it would be pretty bleak if nobody
could come to Christ. But the next word says except. That's where the hope is. But
when we examine no man can come unto me, what the Lord Jesus
is trying to say is man is spiritually unable to come to Christ. He can't do it. He can't do it. It's not in his nature to come
to the Lord Jesus Christ. Why is this so? Well, first of
all, Man was ruined in the fall. When Adam partook of the forbidden
fruit, which the Lord had told him, he said, Adam, you can eat
of every tree that's in the garden, but the one in the midst, in
the day that you eat that, thou shalt surely die. And when Adam took of that fruit,
he didn't do it ignorantly, he willfully transgressed what God
said, willfully. And when he partook of that fruit,
he died spiritually. The fellowship that he had with
God was gone. The joy of that fellowship was
gone. His eyes were opened and he saw
that he was naked. The Apostle Paul made it crystal
clear in Romans chapter five and verse 12, for by one man's
sin, he's talking about Adam, for by one man's sin. Adam's entire posterity, was
plunged into spiritual death. Now that's right. For by one
man, sin entered into this world and death by sin and death passed
on all men because all sin. Now that's so. You say, preacher,
I shouldn't have to go to hell for what Adam did. Don't worry,
you won't. You were there. You were there. A man can't come to Christ because
it's not his nature to do so. He's blind spiritually. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2.14,
if our gospel be hid, it's hid to them that are lost, lest the
light of the glorious gospel of Christ, which is The image
of God should shine under them. Man can't come to Christ not
only because he was ruined in the fall, but David tells us
that he's born depraved, born wrong. Psalm 51 5, behold, David
said, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive
me. Everybody is born that way. Psalm 58.3, David said, the wicked
are estranged from the womb. They go astray as soon as they
be born, speaking lies. Did you know, you don't have
to teach your child to lie. He already knows that. If you
don't think that's so, you tell your child not to do something
and he'll find 500 different ways to disobey what you said. It's in their nature. You don't
have to teach a child to lie. Man's born wrong. He cannot come
to Christ. Not only was he ruined by the
fall, not only is he born depraved, but his heart's deceitful. Jeremiah
17, nine, the scripture tells us, the heart is deceitful above
all things and desperately, desperately, wicked, and who can know it? Jesus said in Mark 7, I believe
it's 19, from within and out of the heart, precedeth evil
thoughts, adultery, fornication, uncleanliness, lasciviousness,
pride, foolishness, all these evil things come from within
and defile the man. The heart is deceitful. When
it speaks of the heart, he's not talking about this here that
pumps blood. When the scriptures refer to
the heart, it talks about what makes you tick. It's your thoughts,
your affections, what you love. Your heart's deceitful. How many
times have you heard people say, follow your heart? Don't do that. It's deceitful above all things.
Not only that, but the scripture tells us that our mind is hostile
towards God. Romans 8 verse 7, the carnal
mind is enmity against God. And that word enmity means hostility. The carnal mind is hostility
to God. The carnal mind's not subject
to the law of God. Neither indeed can be, for they
that are in the flesh cannot please God. And then, because man's nature
is wrong, it's not in his nature to come to Christ, he will not
come to Christ. John 540, Jesus said, ye will
not. Come unto me that you might have
life. It's a pretty bleak situation.
Man can't come to Christ. His nature is not to come to
Christ. He's not going to come to Christ. If that's the end
of the story, we have no hope. But there is a rest of that verse.
No man can come unto me except The father which sent me draw
him. Praise God, hallelujah for them. Then Jesus went on to say,
it's written in the prophets, they shall all be taught. of God, taught of God. What does God teach to every sinner, to every one
of his chosen that he comes to? I think we can sum it up in three
things. First of all, in God's university,
you learn that God is holy. He's not like you. A lot of people
think God is all together like us. The common conception of
God is he's some long-haired, mealy-mouthed granddaddy who's
sitting up there in heaven just wringing his hands and just cannot
figure out why you won't let him have his way. But that's not the God of the
Bible. God of the Bibles, holy. Turn to Isaiah 6, if you would.
Isaiah chapter 6. I want to show you something. Isaiah chapter 6, beginning at verse 1. First thing
God teaches the man is he's holy. Verse one, it says, in the year
that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord. Now it's interesting
to note that Isaiah mentions that he sees the Lord in the
year King Uzziah died. Well, who was King Uzziah? Glad
you asked. Uzziah was a king and he was
really a good king. He did a lot for the nation of
Israel. But King Uzziah's heart got lifted
up with pride. And Uzziah decided one day he
was gonna go inside the temple. He had the incense in his hand
and he decided he was gonna go in there and offer incense. He thought that since he was
king, he could do what he wanted. He started in there and the scripture
says, Azariah, 2 Chronicles 26, Azariah saw him go in, went in
after him. And not only Azariah, but four
score priests. Now imagine this, there's 81
people going after him. Azariah said, Uzziah, it doesn't
pertain to you. This is none of your business.
You can't come in here. Don't come in here, Uzziah. God's
holy. This pertains to the priest.
Uzziah said, I'm king, I'll do whatever I want. No, Uzziah,
God's holy. And God smote him with leprosy. And he was leprous till the day
he died. God's holy, folks. He's holy. Isaiah said, I saw the Lord sitting
upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the
temple. Above it stood the seraphims, each one had six wings. With
twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet,
and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another and
said, holy, holy, holy. Why three times? God the Father,
God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
of hosts. The whole earth is full of his
glory and the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that
cried and the house was filled with smoke. What a sight this
must have been. What a sight. To behold the Lord You know, Isaiah wasn't the only
person that was awestruck when he saw God's glory. Daniel was that way. When Daniel was allowed to see
a vision, the vision was revealed to him and he looked, he fell
to the earth and he said, I lost my form and comeliness. What happened to you, Daniel?
I saw the Lord. I saw the Lord. Oh, if you ever see who he is,
you'll be like Isaiah. You'll be like Daniel. Revelation chapter one, John,
the apostle, gives us a description of Jesus Christ And he said his
hairs were white like wool. He was girded about the pamps
with a golden girdle, and his face was like the sun, shineth in its strength. And John said, I fell at his
feet as dead. John said, then he laid his right
hand on me, said, fear not, John, fear not. I'm the first and the
last. I'm the alpha and omega. I'm
the beginning and the ending. The first thing God teaches a
man is he's holy. The scripture tells us in, I
believe it's Psalms 7 and verse 11, the Lord judges the righteous,
but he's angry with the wicked every day. God hates sin. He abhors it. He detests it. He cannot look upon it. His eyes
are holy. And when you see him, you'll
see, get a glimpse of how holy that he is. They shall all be
taught of God. The first thing that you learn
in God's university is God's holy. Isaiah 6, 5, here's what happened
to Isaiah when he saw God was holy. He said, woe is me. You know, in the preceding chapters,
Isaiah is woe to this city, woe to that city, woe to that city. Isaiah sees the Lord and he doesn't
say, woe is this fellow, woe is that fellow. He says, woe
is me. Woe is me. What's the matter,
Isaiah? What's wrong with you, Isaiah?
He says, I'm undone. Because I'm a man of unclean
lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips,
mine eyes have seen the king, the glory, the Lord of hosts. Three years ago, I heard the gospel And I found out that I didn't know who Jesus
was. Moses asked the Lord, he said,
Lord, show me your glory. And God said, all right, I will. But I tell you what, Moses, let
me tell you this. You can't see my face, for there
shall no man see me and live. Tell you what I'm gonna do, I'm
gonna put you in the cleft of the rock. And while my glory passes by, I'm gonna remove my hand from
your face And I'm gonna let you see my hide parts. That's all you take. I will make all my goodness pass
before thee. I will proclaim the name of the
Lord and I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. And the Lord said to me, son,
you've never seen my glory. And it tore my playhouse down,
Greg. It destroyed me. And oh, he brought
me to himself. You'll find out who he is. You'll find out, secondly, who
you are. There's no way you can find out
how holy God is without you finding out who you are. Scripture tells
us, Isaiah 64, six, all our righteousnesses
are as filthy rags and we do fade as the leaf. The scripture
tells us that there's none righteous, no not one, there's none that
understandeth, there's none that seeketh after God. All we like
sheep have gone astray and every man's went to his own way. Cursing
and bitterness are in their ways, the way of peace they've not
known. Verse 19 said, and we know that
what things ever the law saith, it saith to them that are under
the law that every mouth be stopped. When you see who he is, he'll
stop your mouth. Every mouth be stopped. You'll look at yourself for who
you really are. You'll see yourself in God's
mirror. Paul said, I had not known sin except the law had
said, thou shalt not covet. You'll find that you stand on
the broken commandments of God. But you're lost and you're undone.
God teaches. He's holy. God teaches. that you're not, but oh, he teaches
who his son is. Aren't you glad for that? He teaches who Jesus is. Peter said in Acts 4.12, neither
is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name
under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved. Salvation is Christ. It's not a creed, it's not a
building, it's not walking an aisle, it's not believing facts,
but salvation is a person. John 17 verse two, Jesus said,
this is life eternal. What is it? That men might know
thee, the only true God. Salvation's knowing God. It's
a personal relationship with God. This is life eternal that
men might know thee, the only true God in Jesus Christ. whom
thou hast sent. I read to you earlier in John
6, 37, who are these people that God
teaches? Who are these people that come
to God's university and God teaches them? Well, if you look in verse
37, you'll find out who they are. All that the Father giveth
me. That's who they are. All that
the Father giveth me. shall come to me. The Lord Jesus Christ, the scripture says in 1 Peter
1, 18 through 20, that he was foreordained, a lamb slain before
the foundation of the world. Before there was me, you, before
there was anything, God Almighty determined to have a people for
himself. His purpose, His will. An eternal covenant was made. Hebrews 13 verse 20, now the
God of peace who brought again from the dead the Lord Jesus,
that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting
covenant. God purposed it. Christ paid
it. He paid it. He paid it with his
precious blood. A song I love so well, there
is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel's veins,
and sinners plunge beneath that blood. lose all their guilty
states. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. He paid the sin debt. I couldn't do it. He not only paid it, but he satisfied
God's holy law. One of the greatest mysteries
of the gospel, and the gospel is a mystery, is how that God
can be just and justify the ungodly. And he is satisfied. He's satisfied with his son's
sin offering. That's what he was, a substitute. He took our place. You know,
the Apostle Paul said it so well in Galatians 2.20. He said, I
am crucified with Christ. When Christ died, I died. Nevertheless, I live, yet not
I, but Christ liveth in me. When Christ died, I died. When
he arose, I arose with him. Oh, how blessed in the life I
now live in the flesh. Paul said, I live by my faith. No, I live by the faith. of the Son of God, who loved
me and gave himself for me. And oh, when God looks at me
now, he doesn't see Billy Argeropoulos, a sinner, in his sight. He sees me justified. He sees
me not guilty. Oh, am I a sinner? Yeah, still yet. But when God sees me, he sees
me justified. He sees me not guilty. The greatest
thing that can ever happen to you in your life is to know that
you're not guilty. There is therefore now no condemnation
to them that are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh,
but after the spirit. Yes. Christ is all, salvations
of the Lord from start to finish. But of him, 1 Corinthians 1.30,
are you made in Christ Jesus? It's very important. But of him,
are you made in Christ Jesus? Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
redemption. I mean, I'm complete in him,
Colossians 2.9. Ye are complete in him who is
the head of all principality and power. I gotta hurry. Jesus said, every man, verse
45, every man therefore that hath heard and hath learned of
the Father, he'll come, cometh unto me. You must have ears to
hear, and God gives that. The preaching of the gospel,
no one saved apart from the preaching of the gospel. If all you ever
heard is my voice, or today, if all you hear is my voice,
You'll be nothing better, nothing of any eternal value will be
done for you, but if through my voice you hear his voice,
you hear his voice. Paul said, 1 Thessalonians 1,
for knowing, brethren, your election of God, how you know it, Paul,
for our gospel came to you not in word only, but in power. and the demonstration of the
Holy Spirit. Salvation's a revelation. The
Holy Spirit reveals the person of Christ to your heart. Every man, therefore, that hath
heard and have learned of the Father, he'll come. He'll come. Psalm 110, verse three, thy people
shall be made, will it, in the day of thy power. That's right. That verse in John
6, 44, I promise I'm done. No man can come unto me except
the Father which sent me draw him. That word drawn in the Greek
is elkuo elko, which literally means to drag. That's what it
means. You have nowhere else to go.
Now that's right. You have nowhere else to go. Jesus said to the man, John 5,
wilt thou be made whole? Are you willing to be made whole? And the man answered, I'll have
a man. Every time I try to get up, somebody
steps in before me. He saw his need. He is willing
to be made whole. Let me tell you something, when
you find out who God is, and you find out who you are, and
you find out that Christ took your place, you'll come. You'll come. Thy people shall
be made willing in the day of our power. And then lastly, you'll always be coming to Christ. It's not a one-time thing. You'll
always be coming to Christ. You never graduate from God's
university. You keep coming. You keep coming. And you keep coming. The thing
about God's university is, Greg, there are no sigma cum laudes.
There are no cum laudes. There's not even any honorable
mentions. That's right. No bragging rights. Boasting is excluded. And praise God, one day we'll
see him as he is. We'll see him as he is. And I'll be able to behold him
with undimmed view. And behold his face. Let's bow our head. Our Father. Oh Lord, we thank you Lord for
who you are. High, holy, lifted up, seated
on the throne. Oh Lord, you loved us with an everlasting
love. Oh Lord, please give your people
ears to hear. eyes to see as only you can. We ask this in Christ's name,
for his sake. Amen.