I'm going to ask you to take
your Bibles and turn with me to the book of 1 John chapter
2. 1 John 2. Last Sunday, I began this passage
of scripture and before I finished it, I stopped. and said that Lord willing we'd
pick up there. I'm going to make a couple of
comments that I made last Sunday but I'm not going to elaborate
on those. I'm just going to make them and we'll go on and then
pick up and those of you that were able to be here will know
when that happens and those of you that are visiting with us
or weren't able to be here will know where we were. First John
I'm going to be looking at verses 21 through 24. But before I began
reading, what had happened was false prophets and false professors
were being found within the church. And this was during John's time. Now John is the last surviving
apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. And because of that dangerous
situation, those within that were either calling themselves
preachers or professors, because of the danger of that situation,
John related to the believers in verse 21, he said, I have
not written unto you because you know not the truth, but because
you know it, and that no lie is of the truth." What he's saying
is, I'm not writing to you because you don't know the truth, I'm
writing to you because you do know the truth of the glorious
gospel of God's free grace in the Lord Jesus Christ. And you
know that no lie, no lie, No lie is of the truth. You know what Almighty God has
taught you. And He said, what I'm doing is
I'm writing to you because you have the foundation of truth
in your heart. And you need to be warned again.
Peter did the same thing. Turn back a few pages to 2 Peter
1. 2 Peter 1 verses 12 and 13. Peter had been taught by the
Spirit of God the true pastor's responsibility to the flock. This is the comfort of every
pastor. If a pastor wants to know what
is his responsibility to the flock, Isaiah 40 verse 1 and
2 says this, Comfort ye my people. The Lord Jesus Christ told Peter,
when Peter and the other apostles in John 20, when Peter had said, after the
Lord had risen and appeared to him, Peter said, I go a fishing.
And as I told you, and you look it up, And He said, I go, the word go
there is I quit. I quit. I'm done. And but for the grace of God,
He would have. And I would too, and you would
too. But the Lord, who is faithful to His people, would not allow
what Peter's old man said he was going to do. Jeremiah did
the same thing. He said, I'm not going to preach
anymore in his name. But his word was within me like
fire in my bones. I couldn't quit. I couldn't.
Peter was taught, 2 Peter 1, 12. He said, Wherefore I will not
be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things,
though you know them, and be established in the present truth.
Yea, I think it meet, I think it fit, I think it's the right
thing, as long as I'm in this tabernacle to stir you up by
putting you in remembrance. The best thing that a faithful
pastor can do Be truthful to God's people. Tell them the truth. Tell them the truth. If it flies
in their face and goes against what they've always been taught. There's coming a day when men,
women are going to stand before God. I'm telling you. It's coming. And in that day, if I tell you
something that tickles your ears, It makes you feel good. Tells
you how good you are. And you stand before God and
God Almighty puts you in hell. Have I been a friend to you?
Paul asked that question. He said, you hate me because
I've been truthful? Peter knew the responsibility. He said, I know it fit as long
as I'm in this body. stir you up, put you in remembrance. He knew that his weak and frail
body was soon going to be separated from his soul and he must be
diligent, diligent in laying down a good foundation of hope
in Christ for the safety of the saints and for the glory. Look
in verse in that same chapter, 2 Peter chapter 1. Look what
he has to say in 1415, knowing that shortly I must put off this,
my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me. Moreover,
I will endeavor that you may be able after my decease to have
these things always in your remembrance. Let me ask you this, those of
you, those of us, me not as long as many of you, what memories
do you have? of what Brother Scott preached
here. 50 years. You can still see him
in your mind standing in this pulpit preaching the same message
week after week after week. Not deviating. telling you of
the glory of Christ, of the hope that's only in Him. This is what
Paul says, I know that I'm going to die, and it's not going to
be long, he said. And he said, I endeavor that
after my decease, after I'm gone, that you have these things always
in your remembrance. That's the best thing that I
could possibly do for you. And then he said that he was
firmly confident that the message of the glorious incarnation of
the Messiah was not some cleverly devised story that he and some
other apostles had made up, but they were eyewitnesses of his
majesty. Look at verse 16, continuing
where we were. For we have not followed cunningly
devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his
majesty." Peter was saying, we didn't make this up. This message
that we preach of the glory of God in the person of the Lord
Jesus Christ, this was God taught. The Lord taught us this. And
we saw it. We witnessed it. So, now, John
Back in 1 John, where were we? 1 John chapter 2. He said, John
is setting forth this glorious message, and he's telling them,
he said, now I'm telling you this, not because you're ignorant
of the truth, but I'm telling you this because you do know
it. I could tell somebody the Lord
had not taught to be on guard against false prophets. And what
do they know? Nothing. They don't realize that. They
don't know what a false prophet is. They don't know what a true
prophet is. They don't know anything. They're dead. John is saying,
I'm writing to you because you're believers. I'm warning you because
you're believers. Look at verse 22. Who is a liar? But he that denieth that Jesus
is the Christ. He is Antichrist that denieth
the Father and the Son. Now, who is a liar? But He that denieth. And it's
not that they deny that He actually came into this world. As I've
told you before, demons know that. Demons, they know who He
is. It's not that they deny that
He came. Somebody said, well, I believe
He came into the world. You know? As I've said before, I believe
that there was a George Washington. But what does that mean? He that
denieth in heart. He that denieth in word. He that
denieth in action. He that denieth honor unto the
Son as He's revealed in these scriptures. He that denieth love
to Him. He that denieth obedience to
Him. And denieth love to His people.
By this shall all men know you are my disciples. You have loved
one for another. He that denieth that, denies
what the Lord, what does the scripture say? He says you are
a liar. A liar. These preachers that
deny the glorious gospel. of God's sovereign grace. You
know what I'm talking about. I'm talking about electing grace
that God chose a people. I can prove that. 2 Thessalonians 2.13, bound to
give thanks all the way to God. For you, brethren, beloved of
the Lord, for God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the Spirit. before the foundation
of the world, Ephesians 1-4, chosen us in Him that we should
be holy and without blame. John 17-2, all power is given
unto the Son that He should give eternal life to as many as thou
hast given Him. God Almighty elected a people
that He was going to save. And men have no right to question
God on that. You say it's not fair, you know,
what does a broken pot have to say about it? That's all we are,
a broken pot. He that denieth the Son, denieth
what the Son came into this world to do, well what did He become?
Call His name Jesus. For He shall save His people. from their sins. I lay down my
life for the sheep, he that denieth the Son. He that denies the Father
what the Father has said concerning the Son. He that denieth what
the Spirit of God has revealed in these scriptures. Those that
are making merchandise of men's souls. What does the Lord say
about them? They're white and sepulchers
full of dead men's bones. Lying serpents. Let me give you
the best advice that I could possibly give you. Now you listen,
my advice from these scriptures will get no better than this.
Search the scriptures. That's right, Fred. Search the
scriptures and see if these things be so. If you didn't get the scriptures
I quoted a while ago, ask me after the service. I'll give
them to you. Read them for yourself, and you tell me what God has
to say concerning salvation and life in Him. Those are liars
that denieth, denies what God Almighty has to say concerning
the Lord Jesus Christ. What does the Lord have to say? They are anti-Christ. I've told
you, Brother Henry was the one I heard say, it's not that they're
anti-morality. They're not anti-religion. They're
anti-Christ. They're against Him. They're
against what God has to say concerning Him. So who is a liar? Well, humanly speaking, if you
want to get right down to it, Psalm 116.11 says all men are
liars. All men are liars. Well, when
did they start being liars? Psalm 58.3 says, the wicked are
estranged. That means they're strangers.
Strangers from what? Strangers from God. Born dead,
estranged from the womb, they go astray. They wonder as soon
as they be born. Speaking lies. I had four precious angel darling
children. They were all precious. You know. They appeared as though they
could do no wrong. They were just so sweet. But
you just give them just a little while. Some of you grew up with them.
Eric, you did. Jessica, you did. They're just like all of us.
They just give them time and they're going to manifest what
they are. Original corruption is the very root of all wickedness. John sets forth They're liars. They're liars. They lie on God. They lie to men. They lie to
you. They lie to me. And but for the grace of God,
we would go to the grave, believe in it, and then stand before
God. And what is the punishment? What
is the punishment for these liars? Now this, I mean, this right
here is where the rubber meets the road. There's a lot of people
There's a lot of men that are standing, and sadly, women too,
which is unscriptural. You know that. But there's a
lot of men standing in pulpits today. And what they're doing is they're
mimicking. Now where did they get the talent to mimic what
God's preachers truly do? Preach the truth. Where did they
get their, of their father the devil? Who said that? The Lord
said it. Who'd you say it to? The Pharisees. Those that walked
the straight and narrow as far as everybody else was concerned.
It was the Lord that set forth what they were doing was of the
devil. He said, you are of your father,
the devil. He was a liar from the beginning.
And you're doing the same thing he does. And what are they telling
men? They're telling men that they
can reconcile themselves back to God by their works. That's what they're telling them.
And the Lord says, not by works of righteousness that we've done,
but according to His mercy, He saved us. What's going to happen
to all that are standing in pulpits, preaching and believing this
lie? What's going to happen to them?
This is what the Lord has to say. You can turn with me. Revelation
21.8. This is what's going to happen. We can tell men that everything
is going to somehow work out alright. This is what God has
to say. Revelation 21.8. But the fearful, that is those
that fall away in the day of adversity, Because the Word being
sown on stony ground. The fearful. They are offended
because of the Word. That's what happened. They sprung
up quickly and it appeared to them for a while that there was
some sustenance there. But because there was no root,
they fell away. Offended because of the Word.
That's the fearful. The unbelieving. That is, the
mockers who make confession with their mouth but their heart is
far from Christ. This is what a liar does. He uses words that are scriptural. But the application of those
words, the truth of those words, he does not set forth. I can
tell you, I can say the word grace. And that word grace, unless
I set forth that word grace, meaning God Almighty doing something
for me that I cannot do for myself. If I make that word appear that
it's a gracious offer. I love Carl Born. And I'm going
to graciously offer him whatever I have that he needs. I'll graciously
offer it to him. But he's going to have to take
it. That's not what it means. That's not. The unbeliever. They
make a mockery of the confession of Christ. They make a mockery
of God's Word. The abominable. That's what Revelation
21 says. The fearful, the unbelieving,
and the abominable. People talk about things being
abominable. What does abominable mean? Here's what it means. Those who
stink, being found without the savor of the righteousness of
Christ. That's abominable. Those that
have a stench about them without Christ's righteousness. Murderers, despisers, and haters
of God. The Lord says, you've heard it
said, I shall not murder. He said, if you hate someone,
you've committed murder. in your heart. Whoremongers,
all unbridled and unnatural lust, but spiritually, those who find
pleasure anywhere else except in the Lord Jesus Christ. That's
a whoremonger. adultery. Sorcerers, prisoners
to sin who pretend and give the illusion of life and freedom. That's what it means. Sorcerers.
Idolaters, those who worship or give reverence to any other
but the sovereign God. And listen to this, the last
one. Liars. All liars. All liars. False witnesses against God concerning
God's Word. Let God be true, and all the
rest of us are what? We're liars. If I deviate from
this Word, if you deviate from what you believe concerning this
Word, here's what God Almighty has to say. We're liars. Who is a liar but he that denieth
that Jesus is the Christ? that denies that He is God's
prophet who came into this world for this purpose to save, to
seek, to teach, to call His people. The prophet is from God to His
people. And what does the prophet have
to say? Here's what he has to say. God
will by no means clear the guilty. Now listen, listen. God will
by no means clear the guilty. Who's guilty? All have sinned and come short
of the glory of God. Who then can be saved? Here's
what the prophet from God has to say, that there's life in
Him who has borne the guilt. And we're guilty. He borne the
guilt in Himself. He was made sin. I'm guilty. And for me to have
any hope, because God's just, the lie is that, you know, if
you just utter a few little words, you know, like mumbo-jumbo, and
somehow, The justice of God is going to be satisfied. No, it's
not. Without the shedding of blood,
there is no remission. Here's blood. When I see the
blood, I'll pass over you. If He died and put away my guilt,
I've got some hope. But I'm telling you, you can
go in the water all you want to. You can walk down this aisle
all you want to. You can stay right here at this altar and
just stay all you want to and just pray as long as you want
to. And when you get up, you're still guilty. Who denies that He's the prophet
from God to His people? He who denies that he's the Christ,
the Christ who is the appointed priest. I've got to have someone
to speak to God on my behalf. I need a priest. A prophet tells
me what God has to say. The priest is one who will answer
every demand. Now I know what the scriptures
has to say. The demand of God is, what is
it? What does God demand of me? Now listen, what He demands of
me for life is absolute holiness. Be ye holy, for I'm holy. That's the demand. I need a priest. I need a priest that's going
to meet that demand. That's what a priest does. A
priest is the one that offers the sacrifice for the appeasement
of him that's offended. I need one to answer for me. What did he do? He answered by
giving himself for his sheep. John 10, 15. Read it. I lay down my life for the sheep. He answered the demand for justice,
Pat. He answered. He answered. The
soul that's sinning is going to die. Christ was made sin for
us, for his people. But that's not all I need. I
need righteousness. I need my sin taken care of,
and I need holiness. And he lived. as the federal
head of his people and earned righteousness as their representative,
their federal head, and charges, imputes that righteousness to
them. And now, in Christ, I have no
chargeable guilt. Do I have guilt? Yes, I have
guilt. If we say we have no sin, we make God to be a liar. Anybody
in here that says they're not a sinner, we're liars if we say
that. I said we have no chargeable
gift. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin. Not going to charge you with
it. Why? It was charged to Christ. God's just. He charged it. It
was paid for. And I have righteousness. I'm
holy in Him. in Him, in Him. Anybody that
denies that Jesus is the prophet, the priest and the king, the
king that does what? Rules. Almighty God is ordering all
things as the king over His kingdom. He's ordering everything in this
world assuring that His people are going to be brought unto
the sound of the gospel and God Almighty is going to save them
through the preaching of the gospel. That's the means. It pleased
God through the foolishness of preaching. Paul said to the church
at Thessalonica, please the Lord through the preaching of our
gospel. 2 Thessalonians 2.14. Our gospel. Who is a liar? Who rejects? Who refuses to believe and preach
the truth concerning the Lord Jesus Christ? He's Antichrist. He's Antichrist. Who denieth
the Son? One that was spoken of by the
prophets, typified in the Old Testament sacrifices, and the
one beheld by the apostles and those that saw Him. Who denies
that He's the only mediator between God and man? He, the scripture
says, that denieth The Father, the Son, is Antichrist. He's not of the Lord. He's not the Lord's. But he that
acknowledgeth. Look at verse 23. Whosoever denieth
the Son, the same hath not the Father, but he that acknowledgeth
the Son hath the Father. He that acknowledgeth. He that
has communion with. He that believes. has the Father,
the Father of grace, the Father of mercy and compassion. And then lastly, verse 24, John is saying concerning what
I've just said, let that therefore abide in you, which you've heard
from the beginning, If that which you have heard from the beginning
shall remain in you, you also shall continue in the Son and
in the Father. John says, therefore, these things
that we've considered, these things that are of the truth,
keep in your hearts that which you've heard from the beginning.
Now, buddy, that's a tall order. Keep that in your heart, the
message of Christ's deity, and Lordship, Sonship, Messiahship. Keep that in your heart, which
you've heard. How am I going to keep that in
my heart? One way. Almighty God is going
to have to keep it. Kept by the power of God, through
faith. Lord, I believe. Help thou mine
unbelief. Lord, if you leave me to myself,
I'm going to perish. For I have no hope apart from
you. John sets forth, if what you've
heard from the first, from the beginning, the beginning of what?
Regeneration. That's when we heard. when the
Lord gave us ears to hear. If what you've heard from the
first remains and continues in you, it'll be so by the grace
of God. This is why a believer continually
cometh. He cometh to Christ. Lord, have
mercy on me. Lord, teach me. Lord, lead me
not to myself. David says, take not thy Holy
Spirit from me. You think the Lord would? You think the Lord would take
the Holy Spirit away from one that He's given it to? No. The
gifts of God are without repentance. But never forget that these things
that the Lord has promised that He's going to do. You look it
up in Ezekiel 36. He says, yet for these things
will I be inquired of. The Lord's going to speak to
His people. What does His people say? The Lord speak to me. The
Lord's going to save His people. What does a believer say? Lord
save me. The Lord is going to have mercy and compassion. What
do they say? Lord have mercy and compassion. God's people
continually are found to be making their calling and election sure. And if they're not, something's
wrong. Almighty God, give them a heart
to come, and to come, and to come, to cast themselves upon
the mercy of God. Lord, for Christ's sake, for
Christ's sake, and for the good of us, your people, for our comfort,
bless these words to our heart. Amen. All right, let's take a
break.