Let us commence our service this
afternoon by singing together hymn number 296. Tune is Charmeth,
867. The wandering star and fleeting
wind both represent the unstable mind. The morning cloud and early
dew bring our inconstancy to view. Hymn 296, Tune Charmeth,
867. ? On which solemn feet it moves
? ? Earth, air, fish, and young stable boys ? ? That morning
can be early due ? ? Bring a ring of sunshine sweet
to view ? ? O cloud and wind and dew and snow ? Ancient hymn
of faith, heaven's song. O come, then, O Jesus Christ,
to Bethlehem. ? While you close that spring ?
? And I look to you, O come, in the day ? ? That's where I've
seen God at the stake ? We now and later must forget the work
of t'vary, thou'st reclaimed. which Him wills, which Him wills.
The water flowed down, reached down there, in deep distress
there, Captures will resort to, and
then sink to the ground. In the vict'ry's gloom we confess
Her calling, and down'stead passeth, And shall this cross for Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the Prophets of Isaiah and chapter 28. Isaiah's prophecy, chapter 28. Woe to the crown of pride, to
the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower,
which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are
overcome with wine. Behold, the Lord hath a mighty
and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and destroying storm,
as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth
with the hand. The crown of pride, the drunkards
of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet, and the glorious
beauty which is on the head of the fat valley shall be a fading
flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer, which when
he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he
eateth it up. In that day shall the Lord of
hosts be for a crown of glory, for a diadem of beauty, unto
the residue of his people, and for a spirit of judgment to him
that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn
the battle to the gate. but they also have erred through
wine and through strong drink are out of the way. The priest
and the prophet have erred through strong drink. They are swallowed
up of wine. They are out of the way through
strong drink. They err in vision. They stumble
in judgment. For all tables are full of vomit
and filthiness. so that there is no place clean. Whom shall he teach knowledge,
and whom shall he make to understand doctrine, them that are weaned
from the milk and drawn from the breast? For precept must
be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line
upon line, here a little and there a little, For with stammering
lips and another tongue will he speak to his people, to whom
he said, this is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest.
And this is the refreshing, yet they would not hear. But the
word of the Lord was unto them, precept upon precept, precept
upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little
and there a little. that thou might go, and fall
backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. 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, and with hell are we at agreement,
where the overflowing scourge shall come through, it shall
not come unto us, for we have 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 cornerstone, a sure foundation. He that believeth shall not make
haste, Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness
to the plummet, and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of
lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place, and your covenant
with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell
shall not stand. When the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by from the time
that it goeth forth it shall take you. For morning by morning
shall it pass over, by day and by night, and it shall be a vexation
only to understand the report. For the bed is shorter than a
man can stretch himself on it, and the covering narrower than
that he can wrap himself in it. For the Lord shall rise up as
in Mount Parisim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon,
that he may do his work, his strange work, and bring to pass
his act, his strange act. Now therefore, be ye not mockers,
lest your bands be made strong. For I have heard from the Lord
God of hosts a consumption even determined upon the whole earth.
Give ye ear, and hear my voice, hearken, and hear my speech. Doth the ploughman plough all
day to sow? Doth he open and break the clods
of his ground, when he hath made plain the face thereof? Doth
he not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cumin, and cast
in the principal wheat, and the appointed barley, and the rye
in their place. For his God doth instruct him
to discretion, and doth teach him. For the fitches are not
threshed with a threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned
upon the cumming. But the fitches are beaten out
with a staff, and the cumming with a rod. Bread corn is bruised,
because he will not ever be threshing it. nor break it with the wheel
of his cart, nor bruise it with this horseman. This also cometh
forth from the Lord of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel
and excellent in working. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Gracious and eternal God of heaven,
do solemnize our hearts as we bow before thy great majesty,
as we call upon thy great and thy holy name. For thou art in
heaven and we upon earth, and thy word exhorts, therefore let
thy words be few. For in the multitude of words
there wanteth not an equal. Lord, we come in all our need
as poor sinners, born in sin and shaped in iniquity. We've
sung together, O Lord, of the inconstancy in our hearts. The
dear apostle himself speaks of it in the Word. That which I
would, I do not, and that which I would, not I do. I find a law
within my members that when I would do good, then evil is present
with me. So we come, Lord, all our need
and all our insufficiency and we come and seek and hope to
find a portion for our soul. We come with that desire to touch
the hem of Jesus garment and to draw from that sacred fullness
that is in him. We come like the dear apostle
that I may know him in the power of his resurrection. Oh to know
the power of his resurrection, to revive and to renew and to
replenish our souls. May the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ and the love of God our Father and the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit rest and abide with us, we humbly pray thee.
And Lord, we pray to be delivered from the temptations of Satan.
and from the power and dominion of sin. O gracious God, guide
us, we humbly beseech thee. Teach us truth and give us love.
Guide us by thy counsel and afterward receive us unto glory. May we
keep our eyes on Jesus fixed. Thy servant Peter, O Lord, as
soon as he took his eyes off thee, he began to see. May there
be a lesson in that for us, to keep thine eyes on Jesus fixed.
Lord, we do pray that thou wouldst graciously bless us as a church
and as a congregation and work mightily, powerfully, effectually
amongst us, that we may see thy work and thy power and thy glory
as thou usest to be in the sanctuary. Oh, we do thank thee for that
new and living way for that eternal rock of ages that we've read
of in thy word. Behold, I lay in Zion a foundation,
a stone. Oh, we do pray that it may not
be to us a rock of offense, but that we may place our everlasting
all upon Jesus, the eternal rock of ages, that we may build our
hopes upon him. Guide us, O thou great Jehovah,
We're pilgrims in a barren land. We are weak, but thou art mighty.
Hold us with thy powerful hand, bread of heaven. Feed us now
and evermore. We do humbly beseech of thee. We pray, most gracious God, that
thou would remember our brethren, the deacons, and give grace,
wisdom, and help We thank Thee, Lord, that in these past two
weeks Thy servants have been helped as they've come in and
out amongst. And what a good thing it is, Lord, to hear a
good report. And we pray that there may be
signs to follow. We pray, O Lord, that Thou wouldst
go before us in each untrodden step, that Thou wouldst guide
us, O Thou great Jehovah. We're pilgrims in a barren land,
We are weak, but thou art mighty. Hold us with thy powerful hand. O Lord, we do pray to remember
us and to bless us and to revive us and to renew us. We pray,
O Lord, that thou wouldst bless the little ones and the children.
Bless them with that rich grace that is in Christ Jesus. Bless
them with the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom.
and bless our dear young friends and guide them and direct them
in that right way. The Lord direct your hearts into
the love of God and the patient waiting for Christ Jesus. Bless
parents, give them wisdom and grace and help to bring up their
children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Cause the prodigals
to return and our mighty grace to be seen in this. Lord, thou
knowest where each one is, and thou art able to turn the feet
to Zion's hill, and we pray that thou wouldst do so, that that
appointed time might roll on apace, and that we may be given
that grace to wait upon thee, to wait upon the Lord, for they
that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall
mount up on wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary,
and shall walk and not faint. Lord, we pray that Thou in Thy
great mercy would remember all of us in the path of life,
especially we would think of those in the midst of life. And
knowest, Lord, where they are, and Thou art able to bring them
to Thee. Lord, do hear us, we pray thee,
and do graciously hearken. Lord, we read in thy word how
that prayer was made and the church was blessed. We pray that
it may be so, that we may not be weary in well-doing, that
we may not be weary in prayer, in pleading with thee, as we
are exhorted to wait upon the Lord, for the Lord waits to be
gracious. And we pray that we may wait
for him to be gracious, that we may see thy work and thy power
and thy glory as thou usest to be in the sanctuary, that the
glory and light of the gospel may shine into this village and
the surrounding villages and hamlets, that they must fulfil
those wonderful gospel promises I will bring thy sons from far
and thy daughters from the ends of the earth. They shall come
from the north and from the south and from the east and from the
west. O Lord of hosts, O God of Israel, O thou that dwellest
between the cherubim, shine forth. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, the son of man, whom thou madest strong
for thyself, so will not we go back from thee. And O Lord, we
do pray. Remember those of us that are
in the evening time of life's journey. And Lord, we pray for
grace to wait upon thee, that we may renew our strength and
to look to thee and to cleave to thee. And as the outward man
perishes, may the inward man be renewed day by day. And we
pray to be made fruitful unto every good work and word and
way. we do humbly beseech of thee. We pray, O Lord, for all
thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls
of Zion, and wherever thy servants stand and thy people gather,
we pray there may be a reviving, that thou wouldst pour forth
thy blessed Spirit, that thou wouldst gather precious souls
unto Christ. All do hear us, Lord. We live
in such a day of declension and Lord faith when fail and mockers
and scorners arise and the spirit of Antichrist is so prevalent
in the day in which we live but thou sittest on the throne thou
are able to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think
and thou hast said in thy word open thy mouth wide and I will
fill it O gracious God, we would indeed open our mouths wide.
As one says, thou art coming to a king, large petitions with
thee bring, for his grace and power are such, none can ever
ask too much. O Lord, do hear us, we humbly
pray thee, and grant that we may be given a token to see those
prodigals returning. and that we may see thy blessing
upon the word of the Lord that has been distributed, that it
may be down to the honor, glory, and praise of thy great and holy
name. Do hear us, Lord, we humbly beseech
thee for thy great namesake. And pray for any and any trouble,
or triumph, or perplexity, sorrow, sadness, affliction, bereavement,
Lord, undertake for each one. we do humbly beseech them. We
thank thee that thou art a God, that hears and answers prayer.
We thank thee for the throne of grace. We thank thee for all
thy tender mercies, which are new every morning, and great
is thy faithfulness. We thank thee that there is a
God in heaven. Oh, we thank thee that thou art
God over all, and bless thee forevermore. and that all power,
Lord Jesus, is given unto thee in heaven and in earth. And so
we come in all our emptiness and poverty personally and collectively
as a body of people. We're not worthy of the least
of thy tender mercies. We thank thee that God so loved
the world, he gave his only begotten Son. Oh, we do thank thee for
the incarnation of the Son of God, for the holy life he lived
as a man, for everlasting righteousness brought him, for thy people. Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord our
righteousness. We thank thee for Calvary where
the lamb was slain, for Gethsemane where sin was laid upon him there. We thank thee that he took our
sins and he nailed them to his cross. and he gave his life of
ransom for all to be testified in due time. We thank thee that
he died for our sins and rose again for our justification and
has now bodily ascended into heaven and sitteth at thy right
hand. Oh, and when we come to the throne
of grace, may we have that sacred realization Tis he instead of
me is seen when I approach to God. Lord, what a comfort that
is, what a consolation that is. We have a great high priest who
is passed into the heavens. We have an advocate with the
Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, for through him we have access
by one spirit unto the Father. and we thank thee for that door
of hope that is open wide in Jesus' bleeding hands and side. Be with us, Lord, as we turn
to thy holy word. Come and open thy word to our
heart and to our understanding. Come and open our ears and our
eyes, that we might hear and understand, that we might see
that good and that right way. Lord, we ask For Jesus Christ's
sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 493. The tune is Requiem 685. Low
he comes, with clouds descending, once
for favoured sinners slain, thousand, thousand saints attending, swell
the triumph of his train, and with pleasure magnify his awful
name. Hymn 493, Tune Requiem 685. ? Mary was a little lamb ? ? Sittin'
by the fire ? ? Watching over me ? ? The little lamb was sleeping
? ? The little lamb was sleeping ? ? Silent night ? ? The bombs bursting
in air ? ? Gave proof through the night ? ? That our flag was
still there ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? God is gracious, kind, good,
gentle, kind, gracious and kind to me. In the air, in the air, shall
I dwell, shall I dwell, And I'll see you when the world
shall be mine. God save the Queen! God save
the Queen! God save the Queen! God save the Queen! ? Shepherds quake at the sight
? ? All shall be well ? ? All shall
be well ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, direct your attention to the chapter that we read the
prophecy of Isaiah chapter 28 and we'll read verse 22 for our
text. Isaiah chapter 28 verse 22. Now therefore be ye not mockers,
lest your bans be made strong. for I have heard from the Lord
God of hosts a consumption even determined upon the whole earth. The children of Israel were renowned
for their rebellion, for their murmurs against God, and against
his righteous ways, and against his truth. And we are no better,
and the day in which we live is no better. In fact, in many
ways I would say it's probably worse than it was then. These mockers, we notice that
Ephraim, the Lord, was angry with them because they were taken
up with wine and strong drink, they were drunkards. It says in verse 8 that they
are swallowed up with wine, they are out of the way through strong
drink, they err in vision, they stumble in judgment. What a solemn condition to be
found in. And then he asks this question
of them, Shall he teach knowledge? Whom shall he make to understand
doctrine? Them that are weaned from the
milk and drawn from the breast. To understand the doctrine of
truth. And he speaks of the way the Lord leads and guides and
directs his people, precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
line upon line. It seems to imply to us that
there's a gradual come into a knowledge of the
truth precept upon precept and line upon line and how we need
this teaching of the Holy Spirit in the heart so that gradually
the truth is open to our understanding and so that we no longer have
to drink milk but we can drink the strong meat or can eat the
strong meat as it says the apostle speaks of it in one of his epistles and in the midst of all these
solemn judgments and he speaks in verses 14 and 15 wherefore
he is the word of the lord ye scornful men that rule this people
which is in jerusalem And it was true at the time of Isaiah,
and it was true at the time when Christ came. Because ye have
said, we have made a covenant with death, and with hell are
we at agreement. When the overflowing skirt shall
pass through, it shall not come unto us. They believed that they
would be free from it. When the Jews crucified the Lord
of life and glory, brazenly said, his blood be upon us and upon
our children. See, it's the equivalent of what
it says here, shall not come unto us. For we have made lies
our refuge and under falsehood have we hid ourselves. That's
what the Pharisees did. And then, as a shining light
in the midst of these solemn judgments, we have verse 16. Therefore thus saith the Lord
God, behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone, a tried
stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation. He that believeth
shall not make haste. That stone is Christ, the glorious
person of the Son of God that was manifest in the flesh. And
when he came to this earth and lived as a man upon this earth,
there was a foundation laid. The door of hope is open wide
in Jesus' bleeding hands and side. Behold I lay in Zion for
a foundation. This is that eternal foundation
stone and the Apostle tells us that the Jews stumbled at it. They stumbled at the law, believing,
the Pharisees in particular, believing they could fulfil it
and honour it. magnify it, they believed they
were so righteous. Then when Christ came, they stumbled
at Christ. They crucified the Lord of life
and glory. You see my beloved friends, but
he says in verse 18, and your covenant with death shall be
disannulled and your agreement with hell shall not stand. when
the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be
trodden down by it. Of course the solemn judgments
of God, particularly upon the Jewish people, came when Tiberius, the Roman
Emperor, came upon Jerusalem about 70 years after Christ and
he utterly destroyed Jerusalem and the Jewish people and they
were dispersed throughout the nations of the earth. The solemn
judgment of God came upon them. You see, when they rejected Christ,
it says in verse 15, we have made a covenant with death and
with hell are we at agreement. That is in destroying the Lord
of life and glory. when the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, it shall not come unto us." You know,
in a sense, it's not just the Jews, but you think in the days
of Noah, when Noah was preaching the word, when Noah was warning
men and women that the Lord was coming to judge the world, and
that there would be a great flood, and the reason he was building
this ark was that he and his house would be safe. And we read
in the Word of God that Noah was a preacher of righteousness.
He warned men and women to flee from the wrath to come. What
did they do? They mocked him. They mocked
him. They set him at naught. They
laughed at him. We have a word in our text. Now
therefore be ye not mockers. mocking the word of the Lord. It happened, Peter speaks of
it in his second epistle, doesn't he? That men say, when is the
Lord coming? All things continue until now. And yet we don't see the solemn
judgements of God. They don't want to see. Man does
not want to see. Doesn't want to believe that
there is a God. The whole theories of evolution, etc. are formulated
by the devil to, as it were, put men and women off guard.
There is no God. When we die, that's it. That's
the finish. There's no such thing as a God. And that's the common
view today. You see, my beloved friends,
these things are written for our instruction. We have in verse 20, for those that are resting out
of Christ, we spoke this morning of a head knowledge of religion
and just resting in your chapel going, resting in your knowledge
of Holy Scripture. It's not sufficient. It's not
sufficient. for the bed is shorter than that
a man can stretch himself on it and the covering narrower
than he that can wrap himself in it. Where are you hiding? Speaks
here concerning a refuge of lies. Are you resting on your own righteousness,
your own ability to please God? You know friends, if we're left to
ourselves We rest on the most flimsy things for eternity. Eternity, tremendous sound, to
guilty souls a dreadful room, but oh if Christ and heaven be
mine. You see, what are you resting
on? Are you resting on your morality,
your uprightness, your upbringing, whatever it is that you may be
resting on. We rest on some strange things. If you're resting short of Jesus
Christ, I know you may say, I believe in Jesus Christ, I believe that
he died for the sins of his people, but did he die for you? Do you
have a personal knowledge of that salvation that Jesus has
wrought out? Real religion is more than notion,
something must be known and felt. Do you know and feel these things? So that the Lord by His Spirit
has brought you to see that you're a sinner. Has He brought you
to see that you're a sinner? For all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God. And has He brought you as a poor
sinner, a poor guilty sinner to Jesus Christ, the only Saviour
of sinners? Jesus the way, the truth and
the life, the precious blood of Jesus Christ that cleanses
from all sin. If you're resting short of that
sinner, you're resting short of heaven and you come under
verse 20, for the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself
on it and the covering narrower than he can wrap himself in it.
Anything short of the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ comes under that heading, but
it's shorter than a man can stretch himself on it, and they cover
him narrower than he can wrap himself in it. What are you resting
on? It's a solemn thought, isn't
it? Now, therefore, be ye not mockers, lest your bands be made
strong. What does it mean, lest your
Bands be made strong. The bands bringing you into the
judgment of God, bringing you into eternal damnation. Your
bands shall be made strong so that there is no escape. None
can escape the eternal wrath of God in hell. And there are
two destinations, my beloved friends. is the glory of heaven
which we spoke of this morning, and the other is damnation and
hell. There are those two things. The
word of God is very clear, the wicked shall be turned into hell,
and all nations that forget God. Therefore be ye not mockers,
lest your bands be made strong. For I have heard from the Lord
God of hosts a consumption even determined upon the whole world. You know the Apostle Paul when
he was preaching at Athens on Mars Hill and he says to them
there, for God hath appointed a time when he will judge the
world in righteousness. A day of judgment. God's appointed a time when he
would judge the world in righteousness. And as the Lord Jesus Christ
in Matthew 25 sets before us so graphically the Day of Judgment. And it says He shall separate
them. All nations shall be gathered
before Him. He shall separate them. He will
do the separating. He shall separate them. The goats
and the sheep The sheep are the true child of God, who've been
born again of the Spirit and brought to a saving hope in the
finished work of Jesus Christ. They are the sheep. The goats,
they know not our Lord Jesus Christ. They know Him not. Do you know Him? Are you following
Him? for I have heard from the Lord
God of hosts a consumption that is a, you know, they used to
call tuberculosis a consumption. It's something that destroys.
It's something that infects. A consumption even determined
upon the whole earth. When the Lord will judge the
world in righteousness. You know, the apostle in the
epistles, he constantly puts the brethren in remembrance of
these things. It says in 1 Thessalonians chapter
5, But of the times and the seasons, brethren, You have no need that
I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly
that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. I've
not counted them up. But how many times that is said
in the New Testament, that the day of the Lord cometh as a thief
in the night. When you're not expecting it,
when you're not looking for it, it creeps in and it's suddenly
there. and that will come upon this
earth the day of judgement as a thief in the night when they
shall say peace and safety then sudden destruction shall come
upon them as travail upon a woman with child and they shall not
escape they shall not escape oh my beloved friends think on
these things Remember there is an eternity. Remember there is
a day of judgment. Remember that you need to be
prepared for that day of judgment. And then he goes on and he says
to the Thessalonians, but ye brethren are not in darkness.
Are you still in darkness? Or are you fleeing from the wrath
which is to come? That's the exhortation given
us by John the Baptist, to flee from the wrath to come. You may
say, where shall I flee? To Jesus Christ, the only Saviour
of sinners. That's what it means to flee
from the wrath which is to come. But ye brethren are not in darkness
that that day should overtake you as a thief. Is it true? You're not in darkness. He's
speaking now to true believers, you're all the children of light
and the children of the day. We are not of the night nor of
the darkness, therefore let us not sleep as do others. You know
we've just spoken of that bed here that says in Isaiah that
it's too short to lay on and the covering is too narrow to
cover. Anything short of the blood and
righteousness of Jesus Christ can never save you. Anything
short of a revelation of Christ is the only thing that can save
you. Therefore let us not sleep, as
do others, but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep,
sleep in the night. They that be drunken, are drunken
in the night. But let us who are of the day
Are you, am I, of the day? Has the light shone into our
hearts? Has Christ, the light of life,
dawned in your soul? Have you been raised up to a
hope in the finished work of Christ? Let us who are of the
day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love,
and for an helmet the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed
us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who
died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live
together with him. Wherefore, comfort yourselves
together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. Comfort yourselves. moved from one Thessalonians
to two Thessalonians and in that first chapter of the second of
Thessalonians the Apostle he speaks very solemnly verse 7
and to you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus shall
be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming
fire taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey
not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you come under that? Them that know not God and that
obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Here he speaks
of what will happen to those that know not the gospel of our
Lord Jesus Christ. Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction. from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of his power, when he shall come to be glorified
in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe. Because
our testimony among you was believed in that day. Are you, am I, a
true believer in Jesus Christ? A true follower of Jesus Christ? You see, wherefore also we pray
always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling
and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness and the work
of faith with power. That the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ may be glorified in you. That is that you might live a
life consistent with the life of Christ. You know there's a
great emphasis in the epistles of our walk and of our conduct.
There's a great emphasis there. A true believer is a follower
of Christ. A follower of Christ. In my mind
it often goes to that word in the first epistle of John, chapter
2 verse 6. He that saith, he abideth in
him. or himself also so to walk even
as he will. How consistent is our life with
the life of Jesus Christ? That's what is being said there.
How consistent are we in our walk and in our conduct? Now let's pass on to the first
epistle of Timothy. And there in the first epistle
of Timothy, chapter 4, now the Spirit speaketh expressly that
in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving
heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, speaking
lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot
iron. What a terrible condition that is, your conscience seared
with a hot iron. And then he speaks of those that
forbid to marry and command them to abstain from meats which God
hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them that which
believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is
good and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving.
And you see these things my beloved friends are written for our instruction
They are. And 2 Timothy chapter 3, this
note also that in the last days Pera's time shall come. Now my
beloved friends, we're in those last days and the way things
are looking in the world today, we are coming to the end of time.
We see the spirit of Antichrist is so prevalent in those that
rule over us in particular. You see it in all the laws etc. that are brought in that are
absolutely contrary to God's holy word. For men shall be lovers of their
own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient
to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection. We
see all these things today in our society. truth-breakers,
false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that
are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than
lovers of God. And how many we see having a
form of godliness? How many we see in the day in
which we live that have a form of godliness but denying the
power thereof? from such turn away. You see
these things are written for our solemn instruction in the
days in which you live. May the Lord impress these things
upon our hearts and upon our minds that the Lord has said
that there is a consumption coming upon the earth when the Lord's solemn judgments
shall be poured forth upon the earth. In the second epistle
of Peter in particular, how the apostle there so solemnly speaks
in the third chapter of the great day of judgment that is coming. He says, This second epistle,
beloved, I now write unto you, in both which I stir up your
pure mind by way of remembrance, that ye may be mindful of the
words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and the
commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour, knowing
this first, that they shall come in the last days scoffers, walking
after their own lusts. Do we not see that in a most
awful way? in the day in which we live,
scoffers, walking in their own lusts, 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.
For this they are willingly, notice that, how he writes, this
they are willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the
heavens were of old, And the earth standing out of the water
and in the water is speaking now of the flood in the days
of Noah whereby the world that then was being overflowed with
water perished. But the heavens and the earth
which are now by the same word are kept in store reserved unto
fire against the day of judgment and
petition of ungodly men. Eternal perdition, eternal damnation,
that's what that means. And he says here, to the brethren,
but beloved ye, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day
is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as
one day. Time doesn't mean anything to
God, He lives in eternity. That's what's being said. The
Lord is not slack. Concerning His promises, some
men count slackness. but is long-suffering to us-ward,
he's speaking of the church, long-suffering to us-ward, not
willing that any should perish, not willing that any of those
that were chosen by the Father and redeemed by the Son and are
sanctified by the Spirit, he's not willing that any of them
should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day
of the Lord will come. Do not be deceived, the day of
the Lord will come, as a thief in the night, in the
which the heavens shall 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. What manner of persons ought
ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness. None of us know. But just consider
if you knew that tomorrow you're going to die. Definitely. What effect would that have upon
you? What effect would that have upon
you? Are you ready to die? Lord Jesus said, Be ye also ready,
for at such a time as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh. A time when you don't think that
it's going to come, just carry on in your own way. And he says here, Looking for
and hastening unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the
heavens being on fire shall be dissolved and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat. That is the consumption that
is spoken of in our text. Nevertheless we according to
his promise look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth
righteousness. Wherefore beloved seeing that
you look for such things be diligent that you may be found of him
in peace without spot and blame account that the long-suffering
of our Lord is salvation. This world only continues because
there are yet precious souls to be gathered unto Christ. When
that last vessel of mercy has been gathered to Christ, the
archangel's trump shall sound and the dead in Christ shall
rise first and we that are alive and remain shall meet the Lord
in the air. So, these solemn warnings that
we have set before us in God's Word of the nature of, you know,
friends, any one of us could die. What would happen to you
tonight if you was to die? Are you ready? Are you ready? Sometimes people die and There's
no reason the medical profession can find why they died. But they
just died. But there's an appointed time.
There's a time to be born and there's a time to die. And that
time has been appointed by God. As it is appointed unto man once
to die, so after death the judgment. There's a solemn warning to each
one of us there, after death, the judgment. It's a solemn thought,
isn't it? These things are set before us
in God's Word and my mind it just goes to the solemn account
in Revelation 20 of the end of time and the coming of Jesus
Christ and the day of judgment. It says in verse 11, and I saw
a great white throne, and him that sat on it, it's Christ. It's he that sits on that great
white throne, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled
away, and there was found no place for them. Sinner, there's
no hiding place in that great day, if you live and die out
of Christ. And I saw the dead, small and
great, stand before God. And the books were opened, and
another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the
dead were judged out of those things which were written in
the books according to their works. And the sea gave up the
dead which were in it. And death and hell delivered
up the dead which were in them. And they were judged, every man,
according to their works. And death and hell were cast
into the lake of fire, This is the second death. Whosoever was not found written
in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. If you
look at verse 6, Blessed and holy is he that hath part in
the first resurrection. What is the first resurrection?
You must be born again. It's when a poor sinner is brought
from spiritual death into spiritual life. That is the first resurrection. And it says here, blessed and
holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. On such,
the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of
God and of Christ. You see, my beloved friends,
how vital it is that we are brought to living, vital, saving faith
in Jesus Christ and become a follower of Him and of those who through
faith and patience inherit the promises. Now therefore, be ye
not mockers, lest your bands be made strong. For I have heard
from the Lord God of hosts a consumption even determined upon thee. whole earth, upon the whole earth. The world is going to be destroyed. The elements are going to melt
with a fervent heat. All these things, everything
material is going to be dissolved with a fervent heat, with great
fire. And the whole world will be taken. And then each one of us will
then appear at the judgment seat of our Lord Jesus Christ to give
account of the deeds done in the body. For we must all appear
at the judgment seat of Jesus Christ. We must all appear. You know my mind it just goes
to the Gospel according to John chapter 5 and how solemnly It
speaks there of the judgment of God. They're the words of
our Lord Jesus Christ. It says here, verse 21, For as the
Father raiseth up the dead, and quickneth them, even so the Son
quickneth whom He will. For the Father judges no man,
but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. That all men should
honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth
not the Son, honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. Verily,
verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth
on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into
condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily,
I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall
hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall
live. For as the Father hath life in
himself, so he hath given to the Son to have life in himself,
and hath given him authority to execute judgment, because
he is the Son of Man. Marvel not at this, for the hour
is coming, in the which all that are in the grave shall hear his
voice, and shall come forth They that have done good, that is
believers. They that have done good unto the resurrection of
life. And they that have done evil unto the resurrection of
damnation. You see my beloved friends, these
things are very clearly set before us. You've been clearly warned
of the wrath which is to come. You've been clearly warned that
we're either going to one of two places, either heaven or
hell. One is the place of eternal punishment, the other is the
place of eternal life and everlasting happiness. Now therefore be ye
not mockers, lest your bounds be made strong. For I have heard
from the Lord God of hosts a consumption even determined upon the whole
earth. May the Lord add his blessings. Let us now sing together hymn
number 349. The tune is Triumph 691. Jesus, shepherd of thy people,
lead us through this desert land. We are weak and poor and feeble,
yet we trust thy mighty hand. Great protector, by thy power
alone we stand. Hymn 349, Tune Triumph 691. ? O say can you see, by the dawn's
early light ? ? What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last
gleaming ? We protect her, we protect her,
by thy parallel wings stand. ? For thy sheep shall come desired
? ? With their mother ever parted ? ? Peace on earth, war in fire
? God shall love them from my heart. O thy children, O thy
children, O Samaritan, In thy boots and safely lodged,
I shall fret from danger free. They shall never more be judged,
Nor shall condemnation speak. Blessed Jesus, Blessed Jesus, Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each both now,
and forevermore. Amen.