If you remember last week we
looked at the centurion who had his servant that was sick and
he also had this palsy, this paralysation of the body and
this servant was near to death and the Lord Jesus spoke the
word and the man was healed. And as these miracles, as I've
said, continued, there was a multitude found around the Lord Jesus Christ.
And there were those who came to him, pressed him, and nothing
happened to them. But there were those who came
to Christ, and they came with faith, believing and trusting
in who he was and what he was able to do. And those experienced
the joy of having their their illnesses, their sicknesses,
their diseases forgiven or cleansed, sorry, or healed. We see here
a different approach of the Lord Jesus Christ. These men came
to the Lord Jesus with a friend of theirs, one who was sick of
the palsy. a man who unable to move himself,
unable to bring himself to the Lord Jesus Christ yet was carried
by his friends. as they come to the Lord Jesus
they find that there was no room for them to enter into the building
enter into the place where he was and so they take matters
into their own hands using their creative minds and they find
a way they would not be hindered by the fact of the crowd and
so they enter in through the roof and they let their friend
down to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Lord Jesus
seeing their faith says unto the sick man thy son
thy sins be forgiven. We see there that Christ deals
with the greater sickness rather than dealing with the sickness
of the body rather than dealing with what can be seen of men
he deals with the salvation of the person's soul. to the horrifying reaction of the scribes calling
Jesus that he has spoken blasphemy then Jesus heals the man saying
to him what is easier to say thy sins are forgiven or to say
take up thy bed and walk and so Christ showing that he is
God by having the ability to forgive sin then demonstrates
that the forgiveness of sin was a reality by the making of the
man walk, the healing of the man. So again we have another
miracle of the Lord Jesus Christ which speaks not only of his
ability to heal but who he is, the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ,
that he is God manifest in the flesh and he has the authority
to be able to forgive the sins of his people and the ability
to heal at a word. And so as the Lord Jesus Christ
is preaching, as he preaches the word unto them, there is
a crowd around about him. I've been reading a book we sang
around the Lord's Supper hymn by John Kenick. If you read the
life of that man, friends with George Whitfield and John Wesley,
he went ministering around the countryside. And there were times
when he would preach in a chapel. Such was the crowd that he would
have to climb in through the window or he would have to walk
across the shoulders of the people to enable him to get to the pulpit. He was not demonstrating his
ability with miracles. He was not performing tricks
or using entertainment to entice the people to come and hear him.
All he was doing was just as the Lord Jesus Christ did here,
preaching the word. And as the preaching of the word,
as the word was preached, the Holy Spirit accompanied the word
and multiple people were given hearing ears to hear the word
and to believe the word and to obey the word. And so the churches
in those times, in the early 1800s, were filled with people
hungering and thirsting after righteousness, filled with people
hungry for the true living word of God. And many ministers, even
William Gatsby, experienced a great blessing of the Lord in the ministry
of the Word and people, multitudes came to hear and the Lord did
wondrously in those days and those days are history. That doesn't mean that they should
remain in history. God is sovereign and it is His
disposal to be able to move in such a way again. And I wonder
as we read the scriptures and as we read that it was noise,
it was made known that the Lord Jesus Christ was in the house
as he preached the word to them. I wonder if it's our prayer,
does our soul, our spirit stir within us as we read those things
that, oh that the Lord Jesus Christ was in this house. that
he was blessing and moving and bringing multitudes to salvation
and bringing them to the conviction of their sin and their desire
to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. As we look at our neighbours,
we look at the state of this land, what can put it right?
Can the schemes of man put it right? No. It is only the moving
of the spirit of God, the advancement of the gospel that will bring
about a stabilization of the downward spiral by which this
world, this land of ours is heading into. There were some men once
with the evangelist D.L. Moody. And he said to them, they
were inquiring as to the success of his ministry. And he asked
them, look out of the window, what do you see? And as they
looked out of the window, they said, we see people going about
their business. We see buyers and sellers. We
see people on their journeys, just going about, nothing extraordinary,
just daily life. And they turned to him and said,
what do you see? And he had tears streaming down his face. And
he said, I see people going to hell, people who have no concern
for their soul, people who have never heard the gospel, people
who are totally taken up with the things of this world. And
his concern was that they were totally lost and without hope. I wonder if that's how we feel
or we see when we drive to chapel on a Sunday morning and we see
the queues to get into the boot fair. We see the queues to get
into the village fates. We see the multitude, the great
traffic jams that are coming into Hastings because people
want to go to the beach, they want to go to the shops. Do we
truly have that concern? Do we truly believe that every
single one of those people if they are outside of Christ are
totally lost and does it bring us any concern? Christ as he
saw the multitudes he was filled with compassion He had a concern
for them. Yes, their material needs. He
provided for their material needs. He was touched with their state. He was touched with their condition.
I wonder if we are. I wonder if we really have that
desire for the Lord to work and to move and to gather in a people. I was speaking to somebody the
other day and they were saying, you know, well, the Lord will
bring them in. We don't have to do anything.
The Lord will bring them in. And I said to them, well, do
you really want that? You know, if you're a hyper-Calvinist
and you elevate the sovereignty of God, then are you a hyper-prayer? How long do you spend in prayer
pleading with the Lord that he would move in the village? That he would move in the town? That he would move in your area?
Or do you just say, that's God's business. That's God's work.
It's nothing to do with me. People use these things as an
excuse for laziness. Laziness in prayer. Laziness
in Christian living. that God does stir his people
to pray and may he stir us to pray that he would move and gather
in a people into this place that our neighbours may be brought
to a conviction of sin that they may have a concern just like
these four men who carried their friend and brought them to the
Lord Jesus Christ. May we be like these four men,
have a concern to bring those who are unable, unwilling, bring
them to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. This man was born
by four. Of the four people here that
have a concern, that are carrying sinners in prayer, that they
may come to salvation, that they may come to the feet of the Lord
Jesus Christ. May it be that there is more
than four here, that we are convicted that God lays people upon our
hearts, that we may see the evidences of our requests. If you've ever heard of Ian Paisley,
Ian Paisley after he took over the church there in Ireland,
Many people left and him and the elders of that church they
began to pray. They decided to think of the
worst outward sinner in the town and they began to pray specifically
for that man. One day he came in, a drunkard,
a wife beater, an irresponsible husband One day he came into
the church, sat under the ministry of the Word and went on his way. They continued praying for him.
Then one day he came in again, sat under the ministry of the
Word and was gloriously saved. He was a transformed man, left
the drink, and began to follow faithfully the Lord Jesus Christ
and committed himself to the church. Born by fault. Had a concern for the salvation
of others. A desire that others may experience
what they have experienced in their life, the forgiveness of
sin, the joy of being reconciled to God through his beloved son,
the Lord Jesus Christ, the joy of living a life filled with
the Spirit of God. A desire that others also would
experience that. Who are we bearing? Who are we
carrying? Who are we bringing to the feet
of the Lord Jesus Christ? Have we seen any evidence of
the uttermost? May he give us that true heartfelt
desire for the advancement of his kingdom. May he lay upon
our hearts, our spirits, people that they may be saved. May we
look like D.L. Moody. You may not agree with
his theology but may we have that heart, that concern for
the salvation of souls. May we look at the world and
weep. Oh that God would move again and bring about the salvation
of multitudes of people. He was born of four. Jesus saw their faith. He saw their faith. Their faith
in him. Their enduring faith. You know
sometimes we pray once and then we give up. But enduring faith
is perseverance at the throne of grace. We can't expect that
we can say that someone is laid heavy upon our heart and we pray
for them once. If something is truly laid upon
our heart, it is a continued repetition at the throne of grace,
seeking that the Lord would move. And these men, nothing would
stop them. a crowd about the Lord Jesus
Christ was not going to hinder them. Their friend was of more
value to them than a crowd riled about and so they climbed to
the top of the house. They persisted, they endured,
they persevered out of love to their friend and faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ. and they laid their friend down
at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith itself is not a
work, but faith is a gift. We're not born with true living
faith in God or in Christ, saving faith. The scripture tells us
that faith itself is a gift given to the Lord's people. Ephesians
chapter 2 verse 1 it says and you hath he quickened you has
he made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins. In verse 8 for by grace are you
saved through faith It is not of yourselves, it is the gift
of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. So faith itself is a gift given
by God to enable someone to believe and trust in the Lord Jesus,
to turn from their sin. In the book of Galatians, in
the fruit of the Spirit, Chapter 5 verse 22 it says, But the fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness
and faith. meekness and temperance, against
such there is no law. And we see this type of faith
in these four men who came to the Lord Jesus Christ. The true
faith is the gift of God, it's the evidence of the Spirit of
God indwelling in the heart of a person. We see that they had
love. They had love to Christ, they
had love to their friend. We see, we do not know whether
they had joy or peace, but we see that they had long suffering,
a long temper. They endured the crowd. They
persevered in the opposition. They were gentle. Inner kindness
and inner love to suffer for their friend. Goodness. Outward action of benevolence. And we see that they had faith
and outward evidence of spiritual life, meekness and temperance
against such there is no law. And we see then in the lives
of these four men that they had that true faith that Christ was
able to witness. Jesus sees their faith and so
if faith is a gift of God then Christ sees the work of God in
these four men who bring their friend to the Lord Jesus Christ. The work of the father in the
lives of these people. The scripture tells us no man
can come unto the father, unto the son except the father draw
him. And so what Christ is witnessing
in these people is the evidence of the drawing influence of God
the Father bringing these people to the Son the Lord Jesus Christ
and that is faith. And so God is the source of all
true living faith. So when he sees their faith he
sees the Father's hand and the Spirit's work in the lives of
these four men. And Jesus then forgives the sins
of the person. Jesus saw in the hearts of the
scribes their unbelief. He was able to understand the
very thoughts and intents of their hearts. Why does this man
speak blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God
only? And immediately when Jesus perceived
in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves he said unto
them why reason ye these things in your hearts? And so Christ
is able to see the evidence of the Spirit of God working in
the lives of four men then he is able to see the unregenerate
unbelief in the lives of these scribes. Outward appearances
may appear different It may appear on the outward that these scribes,
they are the ones that are forgiven. They are the ones full of faith.
They are the ones who know the scriptures. But it's not so when
Christ delves into the inner recesses of the heart and he
sees the intent of the soul. He sees faith, true living faith
in men who have destroyed the building to let down their friend.
And then he finds unbelief. in the hearts of the scribes
who question and reason who he truly was. The scribes then remained in
their sin, but the man was forgiven. And the reason why they questioned
the Lord Jesus Christ, because they understand that it is true
that only God can forgive sin. that it is all sin is against
God and it's therefore only God who can declare that someone
is forgiven and somebody is not forgiven. And so because they
are viewing things from the outward appearance, that they are seeing
a man before them declaring that someone's sin has been forgiven,
they cannot truly see what is going on in the heart of that
man. And so the forgiveness of sin is an unseen work. It's a transaction between Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit. It is the changing of that state
of that soul, that sinner, before the law of God. It's an unseen
work that takes place when the soul is redeemed, when the soul
is justified. And so for Christ to say your
sins are forgiven behind all that he says is a great transaction
that takes place. That this man who was in sin
is now out of sin. This man who was once in the
darkness is now out of this darkness. This man that was once now dead
in trespasses and sins has now been made alive through Christ
Jesus. And that transaction cannot be
seen with the human eye, although it was done. As soon as Christ
said, son, your sins are forgiven, that was done. It was completed. But they wanted to see evidence. And so Christ says to the man,
get up and walk. proving that that is the external
evidence to what has taken place within the soul of that person,
that Christ has the ability to forgive sin but also he has the
ability to say get up and walk, that the getting up and walking
stamps the authority of Christ's word and the forgiveness of sin. So immediately the legal standing of that man
before the law of God altered. If you think of going to court
you're standing before the judge and the judge goes through your
case and then he takes his hammer
and he whacks it on the desk and he says not guilty immediately
from that very moment you are cleared of all debt of everything
that was contrary against you against the law you are cleared
and so just as Christ says it is done your sins are forgiven
it's though he takes the hammer and he slams it on the desk and
he says not guilty not guilty. Now how can that be? How can
Christ forgive sin before he has even gone to the cross? It is the cross of the Lord Jesus
Christ, it's his death upon the cross that enables a sinner to
be forgiven The scripture tells us that Christ
was slain before the foundation of the world. That God the Father
chose a people before the foundation of the world, gave them to his
beloved son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who was at that moment in time
living a perfect and a spotless life so that they may be able
to be redeemed, that they may able to wear the robe of righteousness
of the Lord Jesus Christ. How can it be? we know that God's
word cannot fall to the ground. If God has decreed something
to take place it is as good as done. So before the foundation
of the world when the Lord chose a people for his own glory they
were as good as saved. But Christ had to come in physical
form to pay the debt that they owed to God. So although Christ hadn't died
upon the cross, had not rose again, it was going to happen. And nothing could hinder that
eternal plan of God, that God's people would be redeemed from
sin and from slavery. And so Christ can say, son, thy
sins are forgiven thee. In salvation, we are not born
by four, by three. God the Father, chose a people
before the foundation of the world. He gave them to his son,
the Lord Jesus Christ. He knew them, he knows them.
My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they are known of me. Christ knew every single person
that he was living for and would die for. because they were given
to him by the Father. Jesus says, when I ascend, the
Holy Spirit, the Comforter, he will come. And it is the Holy
Spirit, the Comforter, that makes known the things of Christ or
the things that the Father has done in Christ Jesus. He reveals that truth. He reveals that we were chosen
before the foundation of the world. He reveals that we are
found in the Lord Jesus Christ and that our only hope is in
the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the seal by which we are
sealed to the Lord Jesus. He is the down payment, the deposit
that has been granted that we may know that we are Christ's. In Ephesians chapter one it tells
us there. In whom ye also trusted after
you heard the word of truth remember that faith comes by hearing and
hearing by the word of God that after you heard the word of truth
the gospel of your salvation in whom also after that you believed
you were sealed with the holy spirit of promise and so as we
saw that faith is the gift of God that faith is the evidence
of the spirit of God indwelling in a in a person that that spirit
of God prepares the ground, prepares the heart of the sinner to receive
the word, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. But he doesn't
just pass by. He himself is the evidence that
we have that our hope in Christ is not futile and not passing. For you are sealed with the Holy
Spirit and promise which is the earnest of our inheritance and
to the redemption of the purchased possession and to the praise
of his glory. In life if we pay a deposit that
secures that thing for us. Sometimes you have to pay a deposit
on a car or deposit on a house and that sets aside that thing
as yours until final payment. God has given us the Holy Spirit
as a deposit, as the seal of His love bestowed upon us that
although we have experienced eternal life, the gift of eternal
life, yet we still struggle with flesh and blood, yet the Holy
Spirit of God is given to us as a deposit that our salvation
is secure, that we have been set aside by the Lord we are
saved in Christ Jesus and so in salvation we are born by three
Father, Son and Holy Spirit paralyzed as we are yet the Spirit
of God breathes life into us and we are carried through salvation
it's not of works lest anybody should boast it's the gift of
God but in life we are born by four. The Bible tells us bear one another's
burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ. Father, Son, Holy
Spirit and the Church are what carry the people of God through. I wonder if you've ever experienced
that. There are times when life is so busy, so hectic, so stressful
that you scarce have time to pray, you scarce have time to
meditate upon the word yet you find that you've been carried
through. You find somehow you've managed
to have the strength and the ability to persevere. and you
find that someone had been praying for you. There were times when we were
in Kenya we wondered how did we continue? How did
we persevere? How did we remain? And it wasn't
by our own prayers. but we could sense that we were
being carried by the prayers of other people. There were others
who were interceding for us at the throne of grace. Father,
Son, Holy Spirit and the Church of God all united in bringing
people, believers, to the Lord Jesus. So we are born of three
in salvation, we are born of four as we walk through this
world. That perfect number one in each
corner to enable us to go through life. Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. He says to him, get up and walk. And he got up, picked up his
bed, and he walked. When that man was brought to
the Lord Jesus Christ, Christ saw the evidence of faith, the
evidence of the Father's work in the lives of those men. The
man gets up and walks, he carries his bed. There is the evidence
of Christ's work in that man. Under in our lives have we got
up and walked? We may have experienced what
it is to have our sins forgiven but we're still lying on the
bed. We haven't exercised that obedience, we haven't exercised
that faith to get up and walk, to declare that what has taken
place in you is the work of the Spirit of God. manifesting itself
by a holy life by obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ and so
true faith is seen in our lives it must be. because it's the
work of God in the heart therefore it must manifest itself externally
just like the man. Take up your bed and walk. Obey
the Lord Jesus Christ. Your sins have been forgiven
therefore live a life of faith and obedience to the Lord Jesus
Christ. In your own strength you won't
do it. but you were born by three in salvation and you'll be born
by four as you walk in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. Why?
Because the church, the people of God will be praying for you. So may the Lord then give us
that concern, just like these people. A concern, lay on our
hearts a burden for the salvation of sinners, that we may bring
them to the Lord Jesus Christ. And may the Lord give us that
desire to obey him, to walk worthy of our calling. And may he give
the church that sensitive spirit to the promptings of those who
need our prayers. How often, as I've said to you
before, we pray for ourselves. But may the Lord direct us and
guide us to pray for other people, to bear one another's burdens
in prayer, and so fulfill the law of the Lord Jesus Christ. And they came to him bringing
one sick of the palsy, which was born by fall. When Jesus
saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy
sins be forgiven thee. Amen. May the Lord help us as we close
this service by singing hymn number nine from Hymns of Worship.
O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer's praise, the
glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace. Hymn number
nine from Hymns of Worship to the tune 858. Thousands hung to sing our great
Redeemer's praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs
of His grace. Jesus, the name that charms our
fears, that bids our sorrows cease. His music in the sinners' ears,
bids life and health and peace. God of cancer save, He sets the
prisoner free. His blood can make the foulest
flee, His blood I've had for me. He speaks and listens to his
voice, new life that then precedeth. The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
the humble profane. Hear Him, ye deaf, ye phrase,
ye dumb, your listened tongues e'er born. Ye blind, behold, your Saviour
come, and make ye lame with joy. My gracious Master and my God,
Blessed my soul proclaim, To spread through all the earth
abroad The honours of thy name. Almighty God, we do give Thee
thanks for that way that has been made for the forgiveness
of sin. We thank Thee, Lord, that by
Thy Spirit we are able to be sealed unto that great and terrible
day. We thank Thee, Lord, that enable
us by thy spirit to walk worthy of our calling and help us then
Lord to exercise that faith to take up our cross and to follow
the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that thou dismiss us
with thy blessing and now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God the Father, the fellowship and communion of the
Holy Spirit to be with us each now and forevermore. Amen.