It's good to see all of you this
morning, and before we begin, I'd like to say tomorrow, Linda
Brown will be going in to Bon General to have a hip replacement,
and she'll be there, she said, probably, did you say five to
six days, Linda? Three to five days, okay. Let's
take our Bibles and turn to the book of Revelation chapter 22. Let's read verse 12, Revelation
22, 12. And behold, I come quickly, and
my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work
shall be." Let's pray together. Our Father, this morning we Thank you that
we can be here. Realize that it is by the indescribable
mercy and compassion of you who has everlastingly loved His people
in Christ, chosen us in Him. from before the foundation of
the world, that we should be holy and without blame before
You in love. Lord, would You bless the Word
this morning and help us. It's so good to know that we
can hear what You have to say. Teach us, comfort us, for Christ's
sake. Amen. The Apostle John had been told
by the Lord, seal not the prophecy, seal not the sayings
of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. That
is, when all of the prophecies of this book, the hidden things,
are going to be revealed. Now, last Sunday, we set forth
that there was five things. We started in verse 11, but five
things that the Lord told John, don't seal this. Don't seal these. And the first one that we looked
at was the way that a man dies is the
way that he's going to spend eternity. No changing. No purgatory. He's not in a place
where he's going to be there for a while and then you go pay a priest to say some prayers
for you, get you out of a place where you've been for a while
after you've purged the few sins that you still had with you and
have to stay there for a while and suffer for a while, then
get out of that place The way a man dies is the way
that man is going to spend eternity. Here is the second truth. That
is what I want to deal with this morning. It was that verse we read. And behold, I come quickly. Three
things are revealed in that verse. The Lord is coming quickly. The second thing that is revealed
in that verse is this. And I want you to notice the
wording of this Scripture. Men talk about their rewards. Now you listen to what the Scripture
says. Listen to what the Word of God
says. My reward. is with me. And here's the third thing that's
revealed in that scripture. Every man's work shall be justly compensated. That means the proper payment
is going to be made. In this second truth that is
not sealed, there are three parts to it. And here is the first
one. Number one, the Lord is coming
quickly. He is coming shortly. He is coming
suddenly. He is coming without delay. Now, that truth Turn with me
to 2 Peter 3. That truth is mocked by men. It's mocked by men in their heart. If they don't say it outwardly, they say it inwardly. They say
it in their heart. Let's look at 2 Peter 3, verses
3 and 4. And saying, Where is the promise
of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep,
all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
And the Scripture says, For this they are willingly ignorant of. Where is the promise? I read 2 Peter 3. I wanted to
read verse 3 and 4. I didn't read verse 3. Let's
read verse 3. Knowing this first, that there shall come in the
last day scoffers walking after their own lust and saying, where
is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep,
all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
Now that's so disrespectful. Where's the promise? Let me tell you why it's so disrespectful.
This is what men say in their hearts. I don't doubt that they
say it openly, but in their hearts I know. Let me tell you why it's
so disrespectful. Because the Lord said in John
14, 3, And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come
again and receive you unto Myself that where I am, There ye may
be also." Now let me ask you something. Isn't that comforting? He who lies not said, and if I go and prepare a place
for you, in my Father's house are many mansions. And I'm going to prepare a place
for you. Eye hath not seen, ear hath not
heard. It's never entered into the heart
of man what God has prepared for those that love Him. I will
come back. I will receive you unto Myself. His coming is a sure thing. And the delay that men refer to in
their hearts. And I'll tell you, every person
that bows not to the Lord Jesus Christ as He's revealed in the
glorious Scriptures, this is what they're saying. Where is
this coming? Everything's just like it's going
to be. Tomorrow's going to be just like it was today. And Tuesday
will be like it was. And Wednesday will be like it
was. One of these days it won't. Why does He not come back? Well,
back in 2 Peter 3, verse 9, the Lord is not slack. 2 Peter 3,
9, concerning His promise, as some men count slackness. But
His longsuffering to us were not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass
away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat. The earth also and the works that are therein
shall be burned up, seeing then that all these things shall be
dissolved." Seeing that everything is going
to be dissolved. Everything. What you've got, what you're
working for, what you love, what you treasure in your heart, what
you've got to do, what you've got to have, where you've got
to be. Well, it's all going to be dissolved. What manner of persons ought
ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness looking for and
hasting under the coming of the day of God wherein the heavens
being on fire shall be dissolved and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat." The Lord is coming back. It could be today. A day when you think not. Watch, therefore, Matthew 24,
verse 42 says, what hour your Lord doth come." We're doing right now the only
thing that we can do in preparation for the return of our God. We
preach Christ. We set forth Him and pray that
the Lord blesses His Word to the salvation of His people.
Call them out of darkness. Here is the second thing that
I know. Back in Revelation 22.12, He says, My reward is with Me. portion of Scripture we know
this, that there is one Judge. And the reward that is given
according to this Scripture is His reward. Good or bad. That's what I look
that word up. It means good or bad. For mankind, it's the Lord's
reward. John 5, 22 says, For the Father
judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. And the reason is in verse 23
of John 5, that all men should honor the Son, even as they honor
the Father. He that honors not the Son, honoreth
not the Father which hath sent him. Listen to this verse in Acts
10.42, and He commanded us to preach unto the people and to
testify that it is He which was ordained of God to be the judge
of quick and dead. He commanded us to preach that.
He is the judge. All men will stand before Almighty
God. the Son, He who has eternally
stood as the surety of the sheep, He who was made sin that we,
His people, might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
He is the One before whom all men are going to stand." Now a believer hears that. And
they're assured of it. And they, even hearing that,
think to themselves, that will be fearful, respectful. God's people
don't think lightly of that. They think to themselves, but
for the grace of God, I will stand before Him who is the judge
who has the right to say, depart from me, you workers of iniquity,
I never knew you. The one who has the right to
say, well done, enter in. His reward is in His hand. It's His reward. But here's the
third thing that's revealed in this second truth. Concerning His reward is to give
every man according as his work shall be. Psalm 62, 12 says, Also unto
thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy. For thou renderest to every man
according to His work." That is, judgment to the wicked
and mercy to the righteous. I'm going to tell you something.
This is an amazing passage of Scripture. His reward is in His
hand to give to every man according to that man's work. No Scripture is more clear. on
the payment that is going to be rendered in the Day of Judgment
in, I think, Romans 6.23. For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord. There were two things that were
talked about right there. One of them was wages. The other
one was a gift. The wages of sin. Wages. Something owed because
of what someone has done for themselves. That's what the definition
is. Wages. Something owed because
of what someone has done for themselves. A man who is a sinner against
God and His Christ That is, all who hold to the
lie that they deserve salvation because of their own efforts
or works. All that refuse to bow to and
to believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ as He is revealed in the
gospel of God. Who hath believed our report? All that refuse to bow to Him. What they've actually done is
they have covenanted, and I'm going to show you this in Scripture,
they've covenanted with death. Isaiah 28, 15, because ye have
said, as I said a little while ago, if not outwardly, I know
that they've said this in their heart. Because you've said, nobody
will say this out loud, but I'm telling you, Every man, every
woman left to themselves says it in their heart. How do I know? Because God says they said it.
Because ye have said, we have made a covenant with death, and
with hell are we at agreement. Now, what the Lord has done here
is He has exposed the false confidence that men have in their works
of self-righteousness. Now, this is just the way it
is. It does not matter, as I've said
before, what shingle you hang on the outside of a building.
It doesn't matter, doesn't matter whether it's some kind of false
church, whatever it is, whatever has your heart. Whatever has your heart. What you've said is, I've made
a covenant with death and with hell, I'm at agreement. The scripture continues in Isaiah
28 saying, concerning what the deceived
say. When the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, it shall not come unto us, for we have
made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves."
Now let me tell you the amazing thing about that Scripture. The
deceived, according to this Scripture, admit God is going to judge men
for their sins. Now that's what they said. When
the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come
unto us." Ask an unbeliever, do you believe
that God is going to judge all men? Oh, absolutely. Sure do. But I will say, men say in their
heart, when it does come, it won't happen to me. Why? Listen to what the Word
of God reveals. That they're actually saying,
we've made lies our refuge, and they are just absolutely fine
with it. Ask any man or woman that sits. I've sat. I have set, many of
you here possibly never have, I have set under false free will,
works-oriented, self-righteous religion. And I have absolutely admitted,
I know some of you have done the same thing, I have absolutely,
if you'd ask me, Must a man do to be saved? And I'd start naming
off things that you'd have to do. I would tell you about my sincerity. You have to if you're when you
you walk down an aisle or when you you've got to be sincere. I have even doubted. There would be times that I was
sincere enough and I would start thinking back When I did it,
I didn't know if I was sincere enough. So therefore, I would
go ahead and maybe do it again because I didn't know if I was
really, really meaning it. Maybe I didn't mean it as much
as I should have. Maybe I ought to come down to
rededication. You know what that is, Ruthie. Come down to rededication. Rededicate. And you know what I'm saying?
I've made lies my refuge and I was okay with it. Oh, how deceitful is the human
heart. It's desperately wicked. It's deceitful above all things. It will lie to you and tell you,
you're okay. You've done what you needed to
do. I've sat there and I was at perfect
peace with it. It didn't bother me a bit. Is God going to judge? Oh yes,
He's going to judge, but it won't happen to me. Listen to the words
of our Lord in Matthew 6.23, But if thine eye be evil, Thy whole body shall be full
of darkness, if therefore the light that is in thee be darkness." If the light, that which you
think you possess, if it's darkness, how great is that darkness. If you sit here in the light
of the glorious revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, is being
your only hope. And you realize, but for the
grace of God, I would absolutely have nothing. If you, by the grace of God,
by faith, can cast yourself upon the mercy of God and believe,
Lord, it is not by works of righteousness that I've done. This is all my
salvation, David said. You made with me. an everlasting
covenant. You established salvation to
be based totally on Your mercy and compassion
to me. You chose to have mercy on me,
and I did nothing for it. You revealed it to me, and I
did nothing to merit it. That's by the grace of God. Because I'm telling you, man
by nature, he makes lies his refuge. Isaiah 28, 18 says, and your
covenant with death shall be disannulled, cancelled. And your agreement with hell
shall not stand when the overflowing scourge shall pass through. Then you shall be trodden down
by it. Malachi 4.1 says, Behold, the
day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, all
those that have not seen themselves to be poor in spirit and needy,
all that do wickedly, shall be stubble. And the day
that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, and
it shall leave them neither root nor branch, So here's the first thing I know. The Lord's reward is with Him. To give to every man according
as his work shall be. All that have covenanted with
death, this is your reward. Death. But the gift of God, Romans 6.23
says, The wages of sin is death. What you feel you are owed. But the gift of God, that is
the favor which one receives without any merit of his own. It was a gift. It was a gift. Somebody gives you a gift. I
want to do this for you. It was a gift. It wasn't something
you deserved. It wasn't something you earned.
It was a gift. Eternal life is not a wage that
is paid. It's the gift of God. It's not
earned by our own ability. It's not earned by our self-righteous
works. It's given. It's given. The faith by which
we believe is given unto you to believe. The gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord. The Scripture says, My reward
is with Me, and I will give to every man according to his work. If Almighty God gives you faith,
The Scripture reveals the work of faith. It's the evidence that
God has done something for you. It wasn't your faith. It was
the gift of God. It's given unto you, believe.
Remember the woman that had the issue of blood? What did the
Lord say to her? Woman, thy faith hath made thee
whole. Where do you think she got that
faith? From above. And the Lord reckoned it as her
faith. It was a gift. He gave it to
her. And that faith was evidenced. How? Because she said to herself,
if I can get to Him, if I could but touch the hem of His garment,
I'll be made whole. That's what every believer says.
She put no confidence whatsoever. She tried everything she knew
to do. She spent all of her money on doctors. She was none the
better in false religion, promises, life and happiness. Men are none
the better if I get to Him. That's what faith says. If I
can have Him. John was commanded to not seal
the sayings of the prophecy of this book. Don't seal this truth. The way a man dies is the way
a man is going to spend eternity. Don't seal this truth. Almighty God's reward is in His
hand. And He's going to give it according
to every man's work. Don't seal that. Don't seal that
truth. And we don't seal it. By the
grace of God, we don't seal it. May the Lord add His blessing
on the setting forth of the prophecies of this book for the sake of
His Son. Amen.