Good morning, everybody. Turn with me to Lamentations
chapter 3. Before we read, let's look to
the Lord for a prayer. As we come before you this morning,
Lord, we pray that you would bless the reading of your Word. We pray, Father, that you would
bless the preaching of your Word. Give us an understanding. Oh, Lord, give us a heart for
the Gospel. Teach us, Lord. The word of Scripture
says without you we can do nothing, and we know that to be true.
Oh, help us this morning. Bless the word to our hearts.
Encourage us, Father, that we might truly honor and praise
your holy name as the only true God. Help us to love Christ,
for it is in his name we pray. Amen. Lamentations chapter 3 was written
by Jeremiah. He starts out by saying in verse
1, he says, I am the man. Like I said, Jeremiah wrote this, but this is our Lord speaking. There's only ever been one man. It doesn't say, I am a man. That's
what Jeremiah would have said if it was written of himself
alone. But Christ says, I am the man. And as we read this, I've read
this many times and it never ceases to amaze me the persecution
that our Savior went through on our behalf. So as we read
each one of these verses, I'd like for you to think about what
he's saying. What he really went through in his suffering. Not only on the cross, but from
the time he was born. His whole life he went through
suffering. And that's the thing we need to keep in mind. So let's
read this together. I'm not going to read the whole
book, or the whole chapter rather. because it's quite long, but
I would encourage you, when we stop reading, that you read on,
because what he says in the first 22 verses, it appears when you
read it that there's no hope, but from verse 22 on the end
of the chapter, It just takes the opposite turn
and states exactly that great hope we have in God himself.
So let's read it. I am the man, it says, that hath
seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me and
brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against
me he has turned. He turned his hand against me
all the day. My flesh and my skin hath he
made old. He hath broken my bones. He hath
builded against me and compassed me with gall and prevail. He hath set me in dark places
as they that be dead of old. He hath hedged me about that
I cannot get out. He hath made my chain heavy.
Also, when I cry and shout, He shutteth out my prayer. He hath
enclosed my ways With hewn stone he hath made my paths crooked.
He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret
places. He hath turned aside my ways,
and pulled me in pieces. He hath made me desolate. He
hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow. He hath
caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins. I was
a derision to all my people and their song all the day long."
And I believe that scripture there is quoted in the New Testament.
The Lord quotes it in one place. So we know this is about Him,
that He is writing this. He hath filled me with bitterness.
He hath made me drunken with wormwood. He hath also broken my teeth
with gravel stones. He hath covered me with ashes.
and thou hast removed my soul far off from peace, I forget
prosperity. And I said, My strength and my
hope is perished from the Lord. Remembering my affliction and
my misery, the wormwood and the gall, my soul hath them still
in remembrance, and is humbled in me." I recall to my mind, therefore
have I hope." And to end what I'm going to read, this is where
the text changes. To this point, he's declared
what the Lord has done to him in the way of bearing our sins,
but he says, This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because
his compassions fail not. We read Scriptures like that. We hear the Word of the Lord
being made sin for us. But to be able to enter into
that. Thank you for that reading. Turn with me to Romans 6, please. Romans chapter 6. We'll plan to pick up the study
that we had last time. Paul, in writing to the church
at Rome, sets forth this glorious continuation of
the truth that a believer was baptized into Christ. That is, he was placed within
Him eternally. There has never been
a time when a believer was not baptized, placed within, chosen
in, elected. You can never set a time on that. It says before the foundation
of the world in that That is just an open-ended statement
that we just cannot come to the fullness of the understanding
of that. There has never been a time that Almighty God did
not look upon His elect in mercy and compassion, because nothing ever started
with God. Therefore, we realize that God
Almighty who does not change, put all that he everlastingly
purposed to show mercy to, he put them in Christ, gave them
to Christ, their husband, before the foundation of the
world, in order that he might die under the judgment and wrath
that Brother Neal just read of Almighty God, thereby putting
away their guilt. Gave the Lord Jesus Christ a
bride. When the Scripture says, speaking
of in the book of Genesis, And we always relate it to Adam when
the Lord said, And God said, It is not good that the man should
be alone. We will make him a help that
is fit for him. And God gave him a wife. I like what Brother Scott said.
Someone asked him or told him one time, Jesus Christ was never
married. I beg to differ with you. God
gave him a wife. Chose him a wife. Gave it to
him. Precious. And knowing that all
things in the everlasting covenant of God's grace were ordered and
sure. That's what David said. He hath
made with me an everlasting covenant. Contract. A contract of grace. ordered, arranged, ordered in
all things, and sure, that is, guarded. God guarded these. These are precious truths that
Almighty God would give the Lord Jesus Christ, a people. And all of these things were
arranged. Their justification? They're
setting apart. They're sanctification. They're
adopted. They're adoption. These things
were all arranged. And these things are guarded.
These things are immovable. These things are unchangeable. Almighty God does what He does,
and God Almighty who doesn't change, nothing that God does
changes. God does not change. These things are sure. If God
has been pleased to show mercy to you, God's going to show mercy. And I'm telling you, it's not
going to change. In due time, the Spirit of God
called God's people, calls them, called them, calls them, shall
call them. out of darkness by his Holy Spirit
and reveals to them what he has done. And right now, you that
believe, you are in a process. You are in a process of learning
something about what he has declared. You are learning. You are learning
more. That is what Paul meant, growing
grace. Grace doesn't grow, but our understanding of it does.
We progress, grow in grace and in the knowledge. If someone's not growing, something's
wrong. Something's wrong. A child that
doesn't grow, something's wrong. A plant that doesn't grow. An
animal. If something is alive, it grows. It's growing. You're growing. We're learning. I need to learn something today. I'm a creature that is totally
at the mercy of Almighty God and His teaching by His Spirit.
Teach me something. I cannot tell you how many times. This is an honest statement.
I'm not trying to sound religious. I'm honest with you. I can't
tell you how many times I've said, At that desk right there,
just say, Lord, I don't know what this means. Would You help
me? Would You teach me something?
You said that You'd send another Comforter, and He will lead you
into all truth. Teach you. Teach you. Lord, would
You teach me something? How He teaches me is, I may look
it up in a dictionary. and call Brother Scott and ask
him how he does it. He does it powerfully and effectually
and teaches. And I learn. And I'm thankful
because I need to learn. I want to learn. I desire to
learn. Growing. Well, the Apostle Paul has set
forth that we were baptized into Christ. And we know that. We
know that. We know that He chose us in Him.
And in the process of God's timing, when it pleased God, that's what
Paul said, when it pleased God who called me out of darkness.
When it pleased God to open my heart and reveal His Son in me. Well, there's some evidences
and some things that happen, you know, and we start this morning
in verse 12. And we hear this after reading
in verse 11, Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, to
its penalty, and to its judgments, and to its guilt, but alive unto
God. And then he says in verse 12,
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should
obey it in the lust thereof. Sin, though its debt and its
guilt has been paid by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ for
all that God Almighty baptized into Christ, put in Him. I keep
doing like this. It's kind of the way I think.
I think to put down into. That's my picture of my mind. To be baptized. We baptize. You
go down into the water. You're covered. You're placed
within. Covered over. Enveloped by. Those that have
been placed, baptized into the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ paid
their debt. Paid it by His own blood. But
were still plagued with the presence of it. How did He pay my debt? Turn with me to Psalm 40. Psalm
40. and verse 12, how did he put
away my debt? How did I actually find myself
to be justly dealt with, Almighty God? Psalm 40, verse 12. For innumerable evils have compassed
me about. My iniquities have taken hold
upon me." Now notice what he said. My iniquities. Now who is speaking here? Who
is this? This is the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is Him speaking. He said, My iniquities have taken
hold. That is, they have reached me
is what that word means. They have taken hold. They have
reached me. so that I am not able to look up. They are more
than the hairs of mine hand, therefore my heart faileth me."
I am forsaken, he said, because of mine iniquities. The one that
said this was the holy, harmless Lamb of Almighty God in whom
there was found no iniquity. He who did the will of the Father
without shadow of turning? He said, mine iniquities have
taken hold of me. How did Almighty God put away
my guilt? I'll tell you how He did it.
He was made Marvin. Made sin. Rebellion. I was crucified with Him. He
was made to be what I am by nature. God Almighty dealt with me to
the extent, this is more than just saying He paid for the effects. No, I'm telling you what He did.
He absolutely was made what His people are. Sin. Paul says, let not sin And that
word sin right there, remember I told you there's two words
for sin. One means the heart of, the source of, and the other
one is the effect of. This is the source of. That's
what this word is. Let not the source. Let not. And when he just said it, you
know, you read Scripture sometimes and it's almost like it's just
kind of giving you kind of a good little Word of kind of a, you
know, well, why don't you kick this around? Let not, like I'm
almost kind of pleading with you. I looked up the word, let
not, and you know what it is? No! No! That's what it is. No. No sin. No to sin. Let not. Therefore, let not sin,
the heart, the source of, the hamartia, that which produces,
let not therefore reign in your mortal bodies. Let it not rule
as the commander or the king in your mortal body, in you.
That's what it is. Don't let the source reign in
you, that you should obey it, that you should listen to it
attentively, that you should submit to it in the lust thereof.
Yield not to its commands. We are selfish, selfish people. Selfish. I want what I want. God's honor. God's glory. God's character. I want what
I want. That's what I want. This is the old flesh. I don't
care. I just don't care. I'll have
what I'll have. I'm going to have what I'll have. And I'll say to him, I don't
care what you have to say. Let not a believer desire to
live a life of honor, consistency, dignity. the thought of living
in an undignified, disrespectful way. They don't. Paul says, let
not sin reign. Don't let it have dominion. I know that sin is in our flesh,
but it's not the Master. It is not the Master. The excuse
in our mind is, What Paul had originally asked in verse 1 of
this chapter, shall we say, shall we continue in sin that grace
could abound? Well, I know we've been saved by grace, so therefore
it doesn't matter. Yes, it does. If it doesn't matter, I'm going
to tell you something, you have one nature. If it doesn't matter,
you have one nature. You don't have two. If it does
not matter, something is desperately wrong. Let not sin, where there
is no struggle or opposition toward it, There sin reigns. That's just for the believer. When he sees the effect or the
manifestation of sin, he doesn't just say, it's no big deal. It is a big deal. It's a big
deal. He sees it in him. He sees the
effect of it. He sees it there. Paul says,
there is in me that dwells no good thing. in me. I see it. I see the presence
of it. He struggles against it. He hates it. A believer, whenever
Almighty God does something for a man or a woman, I'm going to
tell you something. Old things pass away. There's
a difference. Let me illustrate that. Turn to Luke 19.1. Let
me show you what happens. Luke 19.1. When God does something
for somebody, I understand the struggle somewhat
of the flesh because I see it in myself. I hate it, but let
me show you what happens when the selfishness of our old flesh
is confronted. Luke 19, verse 1. Jesus entered
and passed through Jericho. Behold, there was a man named
Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans. He was rich.
He sought to see Jesus, who he was and could not, for the press,
because of the people, because he was little of stature. And
he ran before and climbed up a sycamore tree to see him, for
he was to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place,
he looked up and saw him, and he said unto him, Zacchaeus,
make haste, come down, for today I must abide at thy house. He
made haste, came down, received him joyfully, and when they saw
it, they all murmured, because that he was gone to be a guest
with a man that was a sinner. And Zacchaeus stood and said
unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to
the poor, and if I have taken anything from any man by false
accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This
day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is
a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man is come to
seek and to save that which was lost." Listen, let me tell you,
whenever Almighty God gives a man or a woman a new heart. It's
no more me, my, this, my, you, this, mine, I won't this, I'll
tell you what they do. They see the glory of Christ
and the good of others first. And they'll take sides with Almighty
God against themselves. Let not sin reign in your mortal
bodies. Neither, verse 13, yield ye your
members as the instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but
yield yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the
dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. Don't
yield. Neither yield. Don't present
or exhibit your members. The word there actually means
parts of your body, your members. That's what it means, parts of
your body. But I understand in this sense. Let this mind be in you that
was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought
it not robbery to be equal with God, made himself of no reputation,
took upon Him the form of a servant made in the likeness of man.
What whatsoever your hand findeth to do, do it with thy might."
Honor. Honor. Is there any honor? Is there any respect? Having
been taught by God's Spirit of His everlasting love and purpose
to do you good, if God has done something for you, I'm telling
you, me, mine, mine, and for me, and this is mine, and I want
this, and this, that, you know, I'm telling you, no, no, no,
no. Neither yield your members as
instruments of unrighteousness. Paul said in Philippians 4, 8,
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things
are honest, whatsoever things are just, Whatsoever things are
pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are good, report. If there be any virtue, if there
be any praise, think on these things. Neither yield ye your
members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin. Verse 14, For sin shall
not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but
under Grace. The believer knows that there
is a battle within. He knows that. But I want to
tell you, this is not a hopeless struggle. This is not. Victory
is in Christ. Victory is in the Lord Jesus
Christ. Romans 8, 36, 37, For thy sake
we are killed all the day long. We are accounted as sheep for
the slaughter. We die daily, is what Paul was saying. They
and all these things were more than conquerors through Him that
loved us. There is no greater truth, surety,
than this statement. Look at verse 14. For sin shall
not have dominion. It shall not have dominion. It's not your owner, is what
that word dominion means. It's not your master. Sin is not your sovereign. Sin
shall not have dominion. Listen, and I'll plan to deal
with this, Lord willing, next Sunday. But sin is not the believer's
husband. Sin is not our dictator. In the garden we played the harlot,
the adulteress. And there we married ourselves
to sin. and rebellion in Adam, but no
more, no more, no more, no more. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. God's purpose, God's power, God's
grace secures that truth. Sin shall not And the confidence
that we have of that is this, you are not under the law, but
you are under grace. To be under the law means to
be under the obligation to fulfill the law of God as a condition
of my salvation. There are only two ways that
a man can, in his mind, come to the conclusion that there
is any salvation at all, and it all has to do Both of them
are going to have to do with obedience. Obedience. Obedience. One of them is my
obedience. The other is the obedience of
another charged to me. Well, I can tell you right now.
Now, look, this little fickle thinking that I've done a few
things that are good. I've come to church. I brought
my Bible. I prayed once. Listen, let me tell you something.
If you are sitting and thinking that there's something that you've
done and you've picked out a time or two to be pleasing to Almighty
God, here's the way it is. If everything that you've done
ever, if you deviated not in one act, I'm talking about in
one thought. If you deviated in one thought
from the glory of Almighty God, I can't even imagine the extent
of that thought. I have no earthly idea at what
extent I have rebelled against Him. Start entering in to the
extent of my rebellion. And whether or not I've ever
done anything that would even remotely be pleasing to Him,
there's not one good thing the Scripture says. God saw all men
back in the book of Genesis, and everything that ever came
out of their mind, brothers and sisters, every imagination, every
imagination, Every thought. Nothing came out of their mind.
Nothing came out of their minds that wasn't continuously evil,
evil. Well, I have that possibility. I have no hope whatsoever. Sin shall not have dominion over
you because you are not under the law, but you are under grace,
under grace, under the grace of God. Believers are not under
the obligation to conform to the demands of the law for their
salvation. They are under grace. But does
that mean they are lawless? God's people are not lawless
people. They are honorable people. I am telling you the truth. God's
people are honorable people. You tell me that a man or a woman
could come up to you, claim to be a believer, and treat you
disrespectfully, lie to you, cheat you, manipulate you for
their good and for your demise. I'm going to tell you something
right now. Something is wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Sin is not the
governor. the sovereign, the king, the
master. What? Paul says in verse 15,
what then? Shall we sin because we are not
under the law but under grace? God forbid, because we are not
under the law. We are not trying to establish
a righteousness before God. But I tell you this, there is
some consistency. I don't want to cheat you. Freddie, I don't want to cheat
you. I don't. Neil, Mark, I don't want to cheat you. But I'm telling
you, because I don't want to cheat you is not an establishment
of my righteousness. The reason I don't, I pray this
is so, is that because God has given me a heart that desires
some honor before Him, but as far as establishing in righteousness
before God, because I've tried to be honorable to you, I have
nothing to stand on there. But if there's a new heart there,
I want to do you fair. I want to be fair with you. Honorable
before God Almighty for you. Because we're not under the law,
are we antinomians? That means since we're under
the grace of God, is there no boundaries? In our rebellion,
you think, well, anybody would know that. No, they don't. An
unbeliever thinks that way. It doesn't matter. Yes, it does
matter. I don't know a believer that thinks like that. Shall
we sin because we're not under the law, but under grace? God
forbid a goat or a tare may give verbal allegiance to that thought
of, you know, well, we're under grace. It doesn't matter. But
not a believer. They just don't. A regenerated
saint is not looking for an excuse to sin or rebel against Almighty
God, but he's desiring strength to avoid it. Somebody might say,
well, you're just preaching law. No, I'm not. I'm not preaching
law. I'll tell you what I'm doing. I'm telling you how a believer
acts. Preaching law means this, I'm going to tell you something
that you can do to establish a righteousness before God. That's
law. That's preaching the law. That
means that I'm going to tell you how to act in order that
God would be satisfied with you. That's law. This is the evidence
of a believer. This is how a believer acts. And when you find these traits
not to be there. You've got serious reasons to
doubt some things. Serious reasons. Sin doesn't
have dominion. Do we sin because we are under
the grace of God? No. Know ye not, verse 16, that
to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, His servants ye are
to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto
righteousness. All men present themselves willing
servants to something or someone. We want to serve. Paul declares
here that wherever a man's heart is, that is your master. Wherever your heart is, that's
your love. I have said often that I've got
people in my family that I love dearly. I mean, they're members.
They're actually, by blood, members of my family. And I may not have
seen them for a year, but if there's no communion, if there's
no fellowship in Christ, give me about ten minutes And we've
talked about everything that I know to talk about. I can only
tell you, I mean, there's only certain things that I can, you
know, that we can... Well, how you been doing? Oh,
we've been doing good. Everybody feeling okay? Yeah,
we're doing okay, you know. How's Scott and him doing? He's
doing good. He's doing good. People at church? Yeah, yeah. I have nothing else but for a
believer, to whom you yield yourself servants to obey. You get two
people together, and if Christ is their life, just give it a
minute, and that's what they're going to talk about. If I find
somebody, and there's somebody that they're an artist or something,
I can talk with you. I can talk about art for a few
minutes. I can tell you everything. Have you been painting that much?
Yeah, a little bit. Not too much. You don't paint as much as you
used to. No, I don't. No. To whom you give yourself,
this is a good indication about a man or a woman's state. What
is your love? What is your love? To whom you
yield yourselves servants to obey. Does a man delight in evil? Does he enjoy evil companions? Despise the word and glory of
Almighty God? Then yielded himself to the master
of sin. But a man or a woman that hungers
after righteousness, they hunger after God's honor and fellowship. Do you treasure? Do you treasure? That's not unscriptural. Paul
says we have this treasure in earthen vessels. This is a treasure. Do you treasure the gospel of
Christ? I'm just asking you a question. Do you find yourself often mulling
over in your mind I'm not trying to put you on the spot and just
say, well, I don't think like that sometimes. Do you find yourself
at times just thinking of His message, His glory? I want to
be there. I want to hear. I want a fellowship. I want to hear what God's got
to say. Why? Because Almighty God has
given you a heart after Him. You sound like a servant of righteousness. That's how they talk. I mean,
you read in the Scriptures in the book of Acts, and it says,
and they went from house to house, and what did they talk about?
They talked about Him. That was their heart. I know. I know that it's sin. Know ye not that to whom ye yield
yourselves servants to obey His servants, You are, whether sin
unto death or obedience. You know, Paul recognized, he
saw in himself, and every believer does, he saw the presence of
sin. Now, he said, I want you to just
look at this. Turn over one page, probably in my Bible it's one
page, to Romans 7, 25. I thank God through Jesus Christ
our Lord, so then with the mind, I serve the law of God, but with
the flesh, the law of sin." You know, Paul, thankfully, was honest,
very honest. The Spirit of God makes a man
honest. A woman is honest. He said, I serve the law of God. With the new mind, a man thinks
after Christ, hungers after Christ, but with that old flesh, it's
after sin. You know, it's like a man that's
married, honorably married, but he's flirting with another woman. He's married to her. And it's
legal and it's bonding, but he's flirting. Paul said, I see the
law of sin. You think that pleased him? He said, Oh, wretched man that
I am. What disrespect, he said, I see. That new man, a willing servant
of Christ. Verse 17, But God be thanked
that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from
the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered unto you.
Let's give thanks, Paul says, where thanks is due. God be thanked
that your slavery is past. There was a time when every believer
was lost in trespasses and sins. But you hath equipped who were
dead in trespasses, wrathful toward Almighty God, children
of wrath, haters, despisers of God, just like everybody else,
in unbelief, willing servants. of sin, completely dominated. But how does one know that he
is no longer a servant of sin? Paul says you obeyed from the
heart. Salvation is a heart issue. There is a new heart. There is
a new desire. There is a new mind. There is
a new will. There is a new pleasure. There
is a new love. Say it the way you want to say
it. There is a new creation there. You obeyed from the heart. You
heard attentively from the heart the gospel. You heard it, it
just wasn't words to you. A believer hears these words
of these commandments right here. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. And a believer says, I don't want sin to have dominion over
me. I don't want that. I don't want that. I know it's
there. I see the presence of it there.
But thanks be to God that the guilt of it is put away. Thanks
be to God that He was made me, made sin. It wasn't just words. Justification by grace. Lord
willing, I want to deal with this more fully. I'm trying not
to get into the next chapter right now. But justification. You didn't do it. That's what
he says. Justification. No record of. You say, but I know I'm a sinner.
I know I'm a sinner. I know in me there dwells no
good thing, but I'm telling you before the law of Almighty God,
if we ever get a hold of the word justification, that Christ
was made sin, made me, and that in justification, Almighty God
declares that no record of sin. There's a big difference in the
word justification and pardon. And they're both so justified. freely by His grace, salvation,
sovereign grace. Being, verse 18, then made free
from sin, you became servants of righteousness. Being liberated
from the power of sin by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ,
by a new heart, slaves of righteousness. Where do you want to go? Wherever
He sends me. Why do you want to go? Because
He would have me go there. Lord, what would You have me
do? That's what Paul the Apostle said. Lord, what would You have
me to do? What would You have me to do?
What's right in Your sight for me? Freed by the grace of God
from the master of sin to whom I was married. Freed because
God chose to free me. If the Son make you free, you
are free. Verse 19, I speak after the manner of men because of
the infirmity of your flesh. For as ye have yielded your members
servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity, even
so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. Paul says I am using human terms
because we understand the concept of slavery. I mean, I can understand that.
He said, I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity. As you have yielded your members,
servants, to uncleanness, to iniquity unto iniquity, unrighteousness
to unrighteousness, now yield your members, servants, of righteousness
to righteousness unto holiness. For when we were the servants
of sin, you were free from righteousness. That means to say, we were not
a slave to God's righteousness. When we were slaves to sin, we
were not slaves. Somebody is the master. Somebody
is in control. There is going to be one strong
master. Before conversion, our master
was sin. This refutes that false theory
that we so explicitly set forth of man having a free will. I'm
telling you, if Almighty God liberates a man, He's liberated.
He doesn't liberate Himself. He doesn't walk out of that state
of rebellion. What fruit had you then in those
things wherein you're now ashamed? For the end of those things is
death. What was produced? What did you
produce? Or what benefit did you acquire
in those things of which now you're ashamed? for a believer. Are you proud
of the way that you were? Are you proud of the way your
thoughts were? Ashamed of them. Ashamed of the
way I thought. The end of those things is death.
The natural man, one destitute of a new heart, cannot produce
anything. Righteousness. But now being
made free from sin, and become servants to God, you have your
fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life." Now that you've
been liberated without any works of righteousness, I keep thinking
about that show that I saw where those soldiers came in and surrounded
this Japanese concentration camp and set up that line of fence,
got those machine guns and had it all planned out. And they
came in at a certain time and liberated those American soldiers. And I thought, you know what? Those soldiers, those captive
soldiers were glad to see those guys. What hope did they have? They were dying. They were in
that concentration camp. They didn't have enough to eat.
They were in a horrible, deplorable environment. Those soldiers came
in. They couldn't walk. They carried
them out. They helped them. They gave them
food. And I thought, boy, what a glorious, you know, simple,
simple type picture of liberty in Christ. He who has bound the
strong men, led captivity captive. He said, you're mine. He fed
them and clothed them and gave them, you know, like that prodigal
son. You know, that's my son right there. You give Him the
best. I have everlastingly loved Him. Now, being made free from
sin, you are servants to God. Servants to God. Man sees what
Almighty God has done for him. He said, I want to be with you.
You are my Master. You are my Lord. For the wages
of sin is death. Pay off. Sin deserves death. Why? Because it's rebellion.
Transgression of God's law. Saying to God's Word, Your Word
is not worth hearing. That's what sin says. I don't
want to hear what you think was really in the heart of Adam's
rebellion against God. Your Word is just not worth hearing. Your Word is not worth obeying. That's what he said. The wages
of sin. The wages of sin is death. It
would be unjust for God to not give a man or a woman What is
deserving to this? Justice. That's justice. The
only way that God can show mercy is that God be just. You see
what I'm saying? God's got to be just. He's got
to put away the guilt of sin to show mercy. God being just,
mercy comes out of God's justice. I mean, it's just all part of
it. I can't separate. How can God show mercy to me
except to be just toward His Son? That's what you read, Neil. I'm the man. I have seen the
affliction. I'm the man. That's what he said
for me. The wages of sin is death with the gift of God. This is
a gift. It's not an offer. It's a gift.
Eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Salvation is of the
Lord. Salvation is of God. That's what
Simeon said. Simeon was in that temple And
they brought in the Lord Jesus, the baby, eight days old. He took that infant, the Lord
of glory, made flesh, born of a virgin, came in. He held that
child and he said, Lord, now You can take me as it pleases
You, according to Your will. Why? Mine eyes have seen Your
salvation. Salvation is not an offer. Salvation
is a person. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. And
all that He's called out of darkness, they have a new heart. They have
a new love. They have a new desire. They
have a new will. They have a new pleasure. Sin
is not their master anymore. It doesn't have dominion over
them. It doesn't rule them. They see the presence of it.
But one day, when it pleases Him, Almighty God will separate
them from the body of that death. They won't be there anymore.
And they'll forever, forever sing as the book of Revelation
reveals, the four and twenty elders casting their crowns,
the crown of Christ Himself, His glory, His honor. That's
their crowns. They'll say, You're worthy. You're
worthy. You've redeemed us. Called us
by Your grace. Kept us. Thank You. Thank you. Thank you. All right, Gary, you
come.