Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Proverbs chapter 15. Proverbs 15. As we continue going through
this blessed book, I never want to forget that Proverbs, parables, this
is the way that the Lord taught. This is the way He spoke. Scripture
says that without parables, He didn't teach. And I pray that this morning
we might hear, because this is the way that God speaks to His
people. Here is the voice of the Lord
Jesus. He said, my sheep hear my voice.
They follow me. I know them. This voice, blessed
by the Spirit of God, is how we hear. Verse 11, Proverbs 15,
the scripture sets forth hell and destruction. or before the
Lord? How much more then the hearts
of the children of men?" Now, as creatures of the dust,
and we all are, we know very little. We see very little. We understand very little. The Scripture says in 1 Corinthians
13, 9, for we know in part, and we prophesy in part. There are
things that I preach that I just don't understand the fullness. By faith, I believe it. There is one God. I know that. I know there is one God. And one God has manifested that
He is three Persons. The Father, the Son, and the
Holy Spirit. Now, I believe that. I don't
understand it. I know that whenever the Lord
Jesus Christ was baptized, By John the Baptist, I know that
the Scripture says that John beheld the Spirit descend like
a dove. And a voice was heard out of
heaven that said, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well
pleased. The Lord Jesus Christ being referred
to. The Lord Jesus Christ said to
His disciples, you see me? You've seen the Father. I and
my Father are one. One in purpose, one in will.
Two persons. I don't understand that. I believe
that. 1 Corinthians 13, 12, For now
we see through a glass darkly, but then, Face to face. Now I know in part, but then
shall I know even as also I am known." Our Lord knows what's
best for us to know at any particular time. John 16.12, He says, I
have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them
now. Lord, what is it that you are
pleased to withhold from my understanding, whatever he is pleased to withhold.
1 John 3, 2. Beloved, now are we
the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall
be. But we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like
him, for we shall see him as he is. So I know this according
to the Scriptures. Here we are this morning. God's
sheep assemble themselves together, recognizing all the time that
we know very little. We want to know. We desire to
know. That I might know Him. That I
might grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ. I want to hear His voice. I want to hear what God has to
say. I go through these Scriptures
and there will be times that I know that I'm wanting to take
the Scriptures as the Lord wrote them, as the Spirit of God set
them forth. I want to go through Proverbs.
I want to go verse by verse. I want to take every verse I
would desire. Hebrews. The Gospel of John. But then there's times that I'll
read something and my heart is impressed And I'll ask, and I'm
serious, Lord, is this where I'm supposed to be? I will try to read some times
at the house. I don't even know where to turn.
Lord, would you direct my heart? I know you do. I know that, Lord,
You order all things. Lord, You can direct. I'd like
to know where do I read? Where do I open? Do I just open
it? Lord, know it's best for me to ask. Ask. You have not because you ask
not. So I know as finite creatures we are but of yesterday. The Scripture says Job 8, 9 and
know nothing. Because our days upon earth are
a shadow. I know that. I'm just getting
older. Life's a vapor. Just a mist. I know we're ignorant. But I
know according to this scripture, Proverbs 15, 11, concerning the
Lord of glory, I know this. He knows everything. He knows
everything. His omniscience. That means God
knows. He knows all. Here is the fact
of His omniscience. His all-knowingness. The Scripture says hell and destruction
are before the Lord. How much more than the hearts
of the children of men. Now the word hell there, the
word is sheol, and it means not only the place of departed souls
who have died in rebellion against God. There's a place, there's
a temporary place right now. And the scripture refers to it
as hell. It's a temporary place. It's a temporary holding place. It is a place where the souls
of those that have not cried out for mercy before God Almighty,
it's those that have left this world without a substitute. The rich man and Lazarus, the
rich man fared sumptuously every day. Lazarus, scripture says,
he was just a poor beggar. He sat out in the streets, scratched
his sores that the dogs licked, scratched them with pieces of
pottery. And the rich man died and so
did Lazarus. Lazarus went to be in the bosom
of Abraham, a description security, peace in the name of the Lord.
And the rich man died and lifted up his eyes out of hell. And
we have in that description of what happened, we have an indication
of what hell is. Lifted up his eyes out of the
flames. He said, I'm tormented in this
place. A place where the worm, the scripture
says, dies not. And men are not consumed. It's
a different type of death. And souls are kept in that place
called hell. The reason I said it was temporary
is because the Scripture says in the day of judgment, God Almighty
is going to throw into the lake of fire Satan and hell. A removal of it. God's going
to do something with it. Now, here again, I'm just repeating
what the Lord says as an ambassador. I'm just a voice. I'm just saying
this is what God said He's going to do. So, hell. Sheol. It does mean that place, that
holding place of those departed saints, but it also means Death. Death. Physical, spiritual, eternal. Death with all of its consequences
are known unto the Lord. Whenever a soul leaves, I don't
know if you've ever been in the presence of someone. If you have,
you'll know what I'm talking about. Before a person dies,
there's a look about them when they're alive. There's a look
about them. Especially if they happen to
have their eyes open, they're looking back. I mean, you look
at them and they're looking back at you. But I'm telling you,
the moment a person dies, those eyes may be open, But they're
not the same. They're not looking back. It's
different. They're gone. The soul is gone. And that person, when that soul
leaves the body, when those eyes don't look back with life, I don't know where they are.
I don't know what happened. Oh, there are some things that
I do understand that are revealed in Scripture. I just talked about
it just a moment ago. The rich man and Lazarus, they
both died. And I can say with some assurity
that those that die in the Lord absent from the body present
with the Lord, those that die without Christ absent from the
body, they lifted up their eyes out of hell. I know that. But do you know? Outside of that,
I really don't know what happened. I don't know where they are. But our Lord knows. The Scripture
says that hell, shield, death is before Him. The Adam of every
person that's ever been created, made, He knows. a boy that went to school with
my kids in high school. He was on an excursion. He went over to the Mediterranean. They were in that area. It was
kind of a school thing. During that school-sponsored
thing, a storm came up and washed that boy off that boat and they
never found him. I don't know what happened to
him. We could only speculate what would happen to him, what
would happen to that body, what would happen to people in war
and explosions, atomic bomb dropped on Japan, just annihilation,
just disintegration. I don't know where every atom
is of every person, but Almighty God does. And in that day, And
that day when the trump of God sounds and God Almighty calls
back every person that has ever walked on this earth, God Almighty
is going to bring every person, every Adam, because He knows
where they are. He knows. Death is before God
Almighty. And in that day, He's going to
bring it all back. And every man, every woman that
has ever lived on this earth is going to stand before Him.
The Scripture sets forth Hebrews 4.13, neither is there any creature
that is not manifest in His sight. Living, unliving. But all things
are naked and open under the eyes of Him with whom we have
to do. God Almighty. Beholds hell. Hell. Death. The grave is before
the Lord. Secondly, destruction is before
the Lord. Hell and destruction. Now that
word there, destruction, the word is actually abaddoned. A-B-A-D-D-O-N. Abaddoned. That word right there really
is the key. to what is being said right here,
destruction. That word right there is actually
a name of Satan, Abaddon. And that word right there, destruction,
is setting forth that Almighty God beholds everything of rebellion
that's going on, of whom Satan is the Father. The workings of
Satan in this world and his followers of false religion is before the
eyes of God. And I'll tell you how Satan is
manifest in this world. Now, we know that there's a devil, but how is he manifest in this
world? Turn to Revelation 9. I'll tell you how he's manifested.
I'll tell you, this is Revelation 9, verse 1. Here's the manifestation
of Satan. We went through this blessed
book of Revelation. I'll read this and make a couple
of comments on it, not in the depth that we tried to go before. Revelation 9, verse 1 through
verse 11. And the fifth angel sounded and
I saw a star. fall from heaven unto the earth. And to him was given the key
of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless
pit, and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke
of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by
reason of the smoke of the pit. And there came out of the smoke
the locusts upon the earth. Under them was given power as
the scorpions of the earth have power, and it was commanded them
that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any
green thing, neither any tree, but only those men which have
not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was
given that they should not kill them, that they should be tormented
five months, and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion
which striketh a man. And in those days shall men seek
death. shall not find it, shall desire
to die, and death shall flee from them. The shapes of the
locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle, and on
their heads were as it were crowns of gold, and their faces were
as the faces of men. They had hair as the hair of
women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. They had
breastplates as as it were, breastplates of iron. The sound of their wings
was as the sound of chariots, many horses running to battle.
They had tails like in the scorpions. There were stings in their tails,
and their power was to hurt men five months. They had a king
over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose
name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue
hath his name Apollyon. Scripture sets forth that Satan
was cast out of heaven because of rebellion. Satan and one-third
of all the angels created by God, cast out of heaven. And
a key was given, that star that fell from heaven, a key of limited
authority, limited power, was given him over the bottomless
pit. There is no bottom to the pit
of man's rebellion against God. And this Scripture says that
Satan opened this pit with that key of limited authority. Satan
can do what God allows him to do only. And the Scripture says
when he opened up that bottomless pit, the smoke of deception came
out of that bottomless pit. And these locusts came out of
there. It was a description of false
preachers, locusts what they are, who crept in unaware. Locusts, you know, you think
of locusts, it just comes through the land and just devastates. It's just nothing at locusts. If they get a hold of a field,
they'll just wipe it out. I mean, it's just destruction.
Famine is what's created. So they're referred to as locusts. And these locusts, they're like
the wolves, deceivers. They're in sheep's clothing. These locusts, they sting men. These locusts were not real locusts. They weren't there to hurt the
grass and the trees. They were after and had power
over those that didn't have the seal of the Lord in their heads. Those that didn't have the mind
of Christ. New mind, new heart, new understanding. And they came
in the sting, but their sting is the venomous poison of false
doctrine. That's what they sting. That
free will works religion. And they have a leader. Who's the one that fell out of
heaven? Satan. Abaddon means destruction. In the Greek, he's called Apollyon,
or the destroyer. So back in Proverbs 15, verse
11, the Scripture sets forth that hell, death, everything concerning death and
destruction, Satan himself, who goes about as a roaring lion,
seeking whom he may devour. He's before the Lord. Almighty
God knows what's going on. Almighty God sees. Almighty God
directs. Almighty God orders. Hell and
destruction are before the Lord. Also, how much more then? the
hearts of the children of men. He who knows what shall happen
knows the source of it, because he knows all men. And this omniscience
of Almighty God, it exposes all false refuge. Turn with me to
Isaiah, Isaiah 28. God Almighty in His omniscience
exposes, sets forth, knows what will happen because He knows
the source of it. He knows. He knows. Men are not
hid. Isaiah 28, verse 14 to 18. Wherefore, hear the word of the
Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem,
because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, with
hell, are we at agreement? When men say, I know this, I
am right with God, I've made my peace with the Lord. I've
made my reconciliation by my decision, by my will. He said,
because you say. We have made a covenant with
death. I'm going to tell you something.
There's one covenant that David said, I have hope he has made
with me an everlasting covenant. ordered and sure in all things.
David said, this is all my salvation. What God purposed. What God willed. Because ye say, we have made
a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement. He
says, when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall
not come unto us. For we made lies our refuge,
and under falsehood have we hid ourselves. Therefore, thus saith
the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone,
a tried stone, a precious stone, a sure foundation. He that believeth
shall not make haste." I looked that up to find out what does
that mean? Shall not make haste. It means he shall not be ashamed.
He said, I've laid in Zion a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious
stone, sure foundation. He that believeth is not going
to be ashamed. Judgment, the Lord said also,
will I lay to the line in righteousness to the plummet, and the hail
shall sweep away the refuge, the judgment of God shall sweep
away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the
hiding place to all mockers To all those that scorn God's Word,
unbelieve, those that resist concerning the glorious report
of the Lord Jesus Christ. To all who leave this world trusting
in themselves that they are righteous, trusting in a refuge of lies,
a false refuge built upon the sands of man's impotent will
and ability and decision, to all that refuse the foundation
Himself. Christ, the chief cornerstone. No hope. No hope. The hearts of men are before
the Lord. No one hides from God. No one
resists. The books, the Scripture says,
are going to be opened. God Almighty knows You're not
fooling Him. Nobody's fooling Him. Oh, I read
these words and it causes me to think afresh. Lord, don't
leave me to myself. Lord, help me. God, have mercy on me. He that
cometh. To whom coming? To whom coming? To whom coming? Don't look back. Don't look back thinking, well,
I made my peace with God a few years ago. Let me ask you this. We're thinking of Christ right
now. Don't burden yourself over trying
to think back. How sincere was I? How sincere
are we now? Who is He now? His omniscience. Thanks be unto
Him who sees, who sees. He knows hell. He knows destruction. He knows the refuge of lies.
But I'll tell you this, thanks be unto Him, He sees the only
hope for a sinner. He who sees the false refuge
of a rebel also sees that new heart, that new mind, that He
has imparted to the objects of His mercy. He knows. Born from
above. Born of the Spirit. He who has
ever seen His people in electing grace and gave them unto the
Son who will surely live and die for them under His judgment,
being made what they are, sin, God Almighty sees. He knows what He has eternally
purposed to do. He beholds His people, objects
of His mercy who are in themselves dust. Oh, I am so thankful when I hear
this verse read again. I thought about it last Wednesday
night when we had the Lord's Supper. It is not how much I, or me,
I'm just going to talk about me for a second in closing. It's
not how faithful he's seen me as even the pastor of Katie Baptist
Church. If you only knew how many times
I'll leave this church feeling so empty, so helpless. Thank you, Lord. How many things
have distracted my mind today? Lord, how many Scriptures have
I read? How much have I looked for? And I see in me there dwells
no good thing. Leaving this church after being
here all day studying and just feeling great of myself just
doesn't happen. I'll just be honest with you.
How many times have I stood in this pulpit and tried to preach? Tried to pray? Tried to set forth,
and all the while knowing if that was the standard by which
I was going to be accepted before God. But he said this, when I see
the blood, I'll pass over you. Hell and destruction are before
the Lord. How much more? the souls, the
hearts of men. Lord, look upon me. You that sees and knows all things,
Lord, have mercy on me for Christ's sake. Lord, that which He has
done, Lord, that which He has imputed to me, look not, Lord,
on my righteousness, because I don't have any that's worthy
to be looked at. All of my righteousness is filthy rags. But to look upon Him. Lord, the
Scripture says, you know with our brain, He remembereth that we are dust. But Lord, as Peter said, when
the Lord came to him, he said, You love me." That last time he asked Peter,
he said, Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you. For
a believer, he knows that he has a heart
for Christ. It grieves him because of what
he sees in himself. And you realize as he goes through
this world, under the watchful eye of Him that knows all things.
I know I'm not fooling Him. I know that. I know this. It is by grace that I've been
saved. And know it by faith. Through
it by faith. For by grace He is saved through
faith. And that not of yourself. It's the gift of God. You whose eyes are upon all things,
hell, destruction, souls of men. Lord, thank you that you look
upon me in Christ and have mercy on me for Christ's sake. Amen.