Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church,
located at 905 Yadkin Street in Kingsport, Tennessee, would
like to invite you to listen to a message of sovereign grace
by their pastor, Gabe Stoniker. And now, Pastor Gabe Stoniker. We are going to look today at
two verses from Romans chapter 9. two very clear, very important
verses from Romans chapter nine. It's verses 15 and 16, which
say, for he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have
mercy. And I will have compassion on
whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. Those are two clear verses of
scripture, aren't they? It's of God that showeth mercy. He said, it's not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth. It's of God that shows mercy. AND HAS MERCY ON WHOM HE WILL
HAVE MERCY AND HAS COMPASSION ON WHOM HE WILL HAVE COMPASSION.
NOW, MERCY, WHEN WE SAY THE WORD MERCY, WHAT THAT MEANS IS NOT
GETTING WHAT WE DESERVE. IF HE HAS MERCY ON US, IT MEANS
WE WILL NOT GET WHAT WE DESERVE, WHICH IS A FOREIGN CONCEPT TO
THE NATURAL FLESH, Most people think that they will
be allowed to enter heaven because they're going to get what they
deserve. They believe they deserve it and they will be rewarded
with what they deserve. Not realizing that according
to the word of God, the only hope that any of us have is if
we don't get what we deserve. That's the total opposite, isn't
it? We know, I'm sure you know, that
there are many types of religions out there. And I'm sure you know
that there is false religion. The word of God talks about false
prophets. AND FALSE RELIGION. THERE IS
CHURCH AND PREACHING AND ALL THOSE THINGS THAT ARE FALSE. THEY'RE WRONG. AND TO BE QUITE
HONEST, IT MEANS LIES. IT'S LIES. I WISH IT WASN'T SO. I WISH EVERY MAN STOOD AND PREACHED
THE TRUTH OF GOD'S WORD. IT'S THE ONLY WAY A MAN CAN PREACH
THE TRUTH IS IF HE'S PREACHING THE TRUTH OF GOD'S WORD, WHAT
GOD HAS TO SAY. But false religion has lied to
men and women, telling them that they have the ability to earn
salvation, that they have the ability to somehow live a life
or do certain things that God will be pleased with and will
accept them based on what he sees them doing. AND THEY HAVE
THAT ABILITY TO EARN ETERNAL LIFE AND EARN A SALVATION. AND IT'S NOT UNTIL THEY DO THOSE
THINGS THAT GOD SEES TO BE WORTHY THAT THEY WILL RECEIVE THAT SALVATION. AND I WANT TO JUST VERY PLAINLY
TELL US THAT THAT LIE IS NOT TRUE. ACCORDING TO GOD, ACCORDING
TO GOD'S WORD, THAT IS NOT TRUE. God is the one who gives life. God is the one who gives salvation. Jonah found that out. Jonah,
who he put in the belly of the whale, when he came out, he said,
salvation is of the Lord. It's not of man. It's of the
Lord, totally of the Lord. Without my help, without my consent,
WITHOUT ME MAKING ANY DECISION TO LET HIM SAVE ME OR ANY OF
THOSE THINGS. SALVATION IS OF THE LORD. LISTEN
TO THIS VERSE. IT'S TITUS 3, VERSE 5. IT SAYS, NOT BY WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
WHICH WE HAVE DONE, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS MERCY. HE SAVED US. by the washing of regeneration
and renewing of the Holy Ghost. He did it. He did it. Salvations
of the Lord. The Apostle Paul has proven that
to us through everything he said in this chapter. In the first
few verses of chapter nine, he said, my deep desire is that
God would save my brethren according to the flesh. My family members,
my, my friends, my community. And he said in verse four, they
are religious. They're all religious people.
He said there Israelites to whom pertain at the adoption and the
glory and the covenants and the giving of the law and the service
of God and the promises. And what he was saying there
is they hold a copy of the law. Just like people do all over
the place, the word of God, the commandments of God. He said,
they hold services, they have their rituals and their ceremonies,
and they do all those religious things, but he said, it hasn't
done them any good. He's saying my heart breaks because
they're still lost. They have all those things, but
they're still lost. Now, why is that? It's because about three quarters
of the way into verse 11, the apostle said, salvation is not
of works. It's not of what man holds. It's
not of what man does. It's not of works. If you look
here at verse 11, he said, the children being not yet born,
neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of
God, according to election might stand not of works. But of him
that calleth, it was said unto her, The elder shall serve the
younger. As it is written, Jacob have
I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? God forbid. FOR HE SAYETH TO
MOSES, I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I WILL HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL
HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I WILL HAVE COMPASSION. SO THEN IT IS
NOT OF HIM THAT WILLETH, NOR OF HIM THAT RUNNETH, BUT OF GOD
THAT SHOWETH MERCY. NONE DESERVE IT, THEREFORE IS
THERE UNRIGHTEOUSNESS WITH GOD? GOD FORBID. ALL DESERVE WHAT THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST BORE FOR HIS PEOPLE ON THE CROSS. IF YOU WANT TO SEE
WHAT EVERY MAN AND WOMAN ON THIS EARTH DESERVES FROM GOD, WHEN
THEY STAND BEFORE HIM IN THE JUDGEMENT, JUST LOOK AT THE CROSS
OF CALVARY. LOOK AT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST,
BECAUSE HE BORE WHAT HIS PEOPLE DESERVED ON THAT CROSS FOR THEM. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, WELL, THIS
IS WHAT I HAVE COMING TO ME. THIS IS WHAT I'VE EARNED. Every man and woman will bear
that judgment. The gospel is how Christ bore that judgment
in the stead of his people. So here's the first thing I want
us to understand. We need mercy. We need mercy. That's the first thing I want
us to really get a hold of. WE NEED MERCY. WHEN GOD STARTS TO MOVE ON HIS
PEOPLE, WHEN HE SENDS HIS SPIRIT INTO THE HEART AND SOUL OF HIS
PEOPLE AND REVEALS HIMSELF AND REVEALS THEM TO THEMSELVES AND
THEIR SIN AND HIS HOLINESS, THAT IS THE FIRST THING THAT A SINNER
BEGINS TO SEE. I NEED MERCY. I NEED MERCY. OVER IN MATTHEW, CHAPTER NINE,
I JUST LOVE THIS CHAPTER AND THESE VERSES. IT SAYS IN MATTHEW
9, VERSE 10, IT CAME TO PASS AS JESUS SAT AT MEET IN THE HOUSE,
BEHOLD, MANY PUBLICANS AND SINNERS CAME AND SAT DOWN WITH HIM AND
HIS DISCIPLES. ALL THESE PUBLICANS, WHICH A
PUBLICAN WAS KIND OF LIKE MEMBERS OF THE MAFIA, VERY BAD PEOPLE. PUBLICANS AND SINNERS CAME AND
SAT DOWN WITH HIM HE RECEIVED THEM. VERSE 11, AND
WHEN THE PHARISEES SAW IT, THEY SAID UNTO HIS DISCIPLES, WHY
EDITH YOUR MASTER WITH PUBLICANS AND SINNERS? BUT WHEN JESUS HEARD
THAT, HE SAID UNTO THEM, THEY THAT BEHOLD NEED NOT A PHYSICIAN,
BUT THEY THAT ARE SICK. GO YE AND LEARN WHAT THAT MEANETH,
I WILL HAVE MERCY. For I'm not come to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance. He said, go learn what that means.
I will have mercy and not sacrifice. What he's saying is it's not
what you're going to do for me. It's what I'm going to do for
you. And that's the truth. That's the truth of the word
of God. Again, this false religion has men and women convinced that
it's all about what they're going to do for God. People go to a
church service and they sit and listen to a man who is not preaching
the truth of God's word. He's preaching his own opinion.
And he convinces them that I've got to start doing things for
God or else I'm not going to be saved. WHEN THE SCRIPTURE
SAYS THAT ALL OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESSES, ALL OF OUR DEEDS OF THE FLESH
BEFORE GOD ARE FILTHY RAGS, NONE GOOD, NO, NOT ONE. MAN AT HIS
BEST STATE IS ALL-TOGETHER VANITY. THERE'S NOTHING WE CAN DO FOR
HIM OR OFFER HIM THAT WOULD BE PLEASING AND SATISFACTORY TO
HIM. IT'S ONLY WHAT HE HAS PROVIDED FOR HIS PEOPLE THAT HE WILL BE
SATISFIED WITH, AND THAT'S THE BLOOD OF HIS OWN SON. It's not
about my good deeds and me, you know, helping my neighbor. You
think about the difference in that and the death of his own
son, the sacrifice and bloodshed of his own son. There's nothing
that I could do that would ever compare to what he provided for
me as my substitute, as my surety. So he's saying, it's not what
you're going to do for me. It's what I'm going to do for
you. AND WHAT I DID DO FOR YOU. SO, VERSE 13, ROMANS 9, VERSE
13, HE SAID, GO YE AND LEARN WHAT THAT MEANETH. I WILL HAVE
MERCY AND NOT SACRIFICE, FOR I AM NOT COME TO CALL THE RIGHTEOUS,
BUT SINNERS TO REPENTANCE. SINNERS TO REPENTANCE. AND TO
PUT THAT VERY PLAINLY, WHAT HE SAID IS, I HAVEN'T... came to call the bad ones. There
are some people in this world who see themselves as being one
of the good ones. And there are some people in
this world who see themselves as being one of the bad ones.
And for those people, this gospel is good news. The word of God
is good news. He said, I did not come for the
worthy ones. I came for the unworthy ones.
And when God reveals the truth to a sinner, they will say, I'm
not as worthy as I thought I was. He will reveal to them what they
truly are. And they'll say, I'm actually
undeserving. I'm not deserving. I'm undeserving.
But then the gospel will come and say, Christ came for the
undeserving. and that'll bring comfort to
the heart. There's a very dear man who many, many years ago,
his son was standing in a courtroom and he was about to be sent to
prison. The judge gave sentence against him and he was about
to be sent to prison. And this man, his father, asked
if he could say something to the judge and the judge allowed
him to do it. And this man said, your honor, is there any room
for mercy? And the judge said, sir, based
on what your son has done, he doesn't deserve mercy. And the
man said, yes, your honor, that's so. I know that's true, but if
he deserved it, it wouldn't be mercy. And that's the truth of
mercy. If we deserved it, it wouldn't
be mercy. Mercy is for the undeserving. Mercy is for those who truly
need mercy. Mercy is for those who have no
other leg to stand on, but receiving mercy. Mercy. I pray that's us. I pray that's
me and you both. I pray you need mercy because
I'm gonna tell you, I need mercy. Oh, we need mercy, whether we
realize it or not. Either way, we need mercy. Over
in Psalm 51, This is where Nathan the prophet came to David after
he had committed adultery. And Nathan the prophet came to
David and said, thou art the man, you have done this. And
David realized what he had done and what he was. It says in Psalm
51, verse seven, David cried, have mercy upon me, O God, according
to thy loving kindness, according unto the multitude of thy tender
mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my transgressions
and my sin is ever before me. David said this, he said, against
thee, thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight,
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest and be clear
when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity
and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth
in the inward parts and in the hidden part. Thou shalt make
me to know wisdom. He's saying you demand perfection,
but I was conceived in sin. Sin is all that I am. But he
said in verse seven, if you purge me with hyssop, I'll be clean. You wash me and I'll be whiter
than snow. Hyssop is what they dipped in the blood and sprinkled
on the mercy seat. He said, if you cover me in the
blood of your lamb, the blood of your sacrifice, I'll be clean. I'll be clean. He was crying,
Lord, I need mercy. I acknowledge my sin. My only
hope before you is that you'll wash me in the blood. I pray
God will reveal that to us today. I pray God will reveal that to
us today. We need mercy. We need mercy. Salvation is not
about any decision we made years ago. Salvation is not about any
commitment that I have promised God. I'll make a vow to you and
I'm going to do. It's not about any of those things.
It's about receiving mercy. Mercy. All right. That's the
first thing. We need mercy. The second thing
I want us to see is this. Mercy only comes one way. We need mercy. AND IT ONLY COMES
ONE WAY. IF YOU LOOK WITH ME BACK AT OUR
TEXT, WHICH IS ROMANS 9, VERSE 15, IT SAYS, HE SAYETH TO MOSES,
I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I WILL HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION
ON WHOM I WILL HAVE COMPASSION. SO THEN IT IS NOT OF HIM THAT
WILLETH, NOR OF HIM THAT RUNNETH, BUT OF GOD THAT SHOWETH MERCY. MERCY IS IN GOD'S HANDS. IT'S IN GOD'S HANDS. JUST LIKE
THE INSTANCE OF THAT MAN'S SON. I TOLD YOU HE WAS STANDING IN
THE COURTROOM. THAT WAS IN THE JUDGE'S HANDS. IT WASN'T IN THE
HANDS OF THE SON. IT WASN'T IN THE HANDS OF HIS
FATHER. HE WAS IN THE HANDS OF THE JUDGE. MERCY IS NEVER IN THE HANDS OF
THE ONE WHO NEEDS MERCY. NEVER. NEVER. The one who needs
mercy is always at the mercy of the one who's able to give
it. And that's how it is for us. That's how it is for you
and me. We are sinners in need of mercy. And we are at the mercy
of whether or not he will give it to us. We are at his mercy. WE ARE AT HIS MERCY. WHAT THAT
MEANS IS THE BALL IS IN HIS COURT. THAT'S WHAT IT MEANS. AGAIN,
THIS FALSE RELIGION WILL TELL MEN. IT'LL STAND UP AND SAY,
NOW, THE BALL IS IN YOUR COURT. ALRIGHT, THIS THING IS IN YOUR
HANDS. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? NOT ACCORDING TO GOD. NOT ACCORDING TO THE ALMIGHTY
GOD. REVELATION 118 SAYS, HE HIMSELF SAID, It's in His hands. Salvation
is in His hands. Life is in His hands. We are
in His hands, whatever He does with us. He's gonna go on down
in Romans 9 to say, doesn't the potter have power over the clay
to make whatever kind of vessel He wants to make? He's the potter
and we're the clay. We are at His mercy, totally
at His mercy. You know, again, to prove the
point of this false religion that says you need to decide
whether or not you're going to be saved. You know, you need
to make this decision on whether or not you're going to be redeemed.
This is in your hands. That would be like telling somebody,
asking, do you have a mortgage at the bank? And they say, yes,
I have a mortgage at the bank. And then telling them, well,
you need to decide whether or not you're going to be out of
that mortgage. You need to decide whether or not you're going to
be set free. So they go to the bank and say, okay, I've decided
I don't owe you anything anymore. I don't have a debt to you anymore.
Now, how do you think the bank will respond to that? They will
say, I don't care what you've decided. You owe your debt to
us. And this is the almighty judge
of heaven and earth we're dealing with. And we don't decide whether
or not we still have a sin debt to him. It's not in our hands. It's in his alone. Verse 16 says,
it is not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth. Men and women do not have a free
will. Only God has a free will. Only
one man has a free will. And that's God almighty. OUR
WILL IS BOUND TO SIN. THE ONLY THING THAT MAN HAS THE
ABILITY TO DO IS SIN AGAINST GOD. ONLY GOD HAS A FREE WILL. AND MEN BELIEVE THAT IF THEY
RUN AND DO THIS AND RUN AND DO THAT AND IF THEY GET ON FIRE
FOR JESUS AND ALL THOSE THINGS, OUR LORD SAID, IT IS NOT OF HIM
THAT WILLETH, NOR OF HIM THAT RUNNETH, It doesn't matter how
much a man thinks that he can do for God. It is totally of
the Lord. It is totally of the Lord. The
message of the gospel is not do. And I pray the Spirit of
God will make this effectual to us right now. If you've never
realized this before, I pray the Lord will make it known right
now. The message of the gospel is not do. This is what you need
to do. Men say, what must I do? The
message of the gospel is not do. It's done. The message of the gospel is
Christ already did it. What must I do? Christ already
did it. Just believe on Him. Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Nothing
to do. Believing is not doing. Believing
is believing. THERE'S NOTHING TO DO. REST. REST. VERSE 16 SAYS, IT'S NOT
OF HIM THAT WILLETH NOR OF HIM THAT RUNNETH, BUT OF GOD THAT
SHOWETH MERCY. MERCY IS OF GOD. IT IS HIS TO GIVE AND HE GIVES
IT TO WHOEVER HE DESIRES TO GIVE IT TO. HE ONLY GIVES IT ONE WAY. MERCY
ONLY COMES ONE WAY. VERSE 15, HE SAID TO MOSES, I
WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I WILL HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION
ON WHOM I WILL HAVE COMPASSION. HE'S QUOTING EXODUS 33 RIGHT
THERE. AND OVER IN EXODUS 33, MOSES
WAS PLEADING TO GOD ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE. AND HE WAS JUST
BEGGING GOD FOR THEIR LIFE AND THEIR SAFETY AND THEIR SALVATION.
AND IN EXODUS 33, VERSE 17, THE LORD SAID TO MOSES, I WILL DO
THIS THING ALSO THAT THOU HAST SPOKEN. FOR THOU HAST FOUND GRACE
IN MY SIGHT, AND I KNOW THEE BY NAME. AND MOSES SAID, I BESEECH
THEE, SHOW ME THY GLORY. AND GOD SAID, I WILL MAKE ALL
MY GOODNESS PASS BEFORE THEE, AND I WILL PROCLAIM THE NAME
OF THE LORD BEFORE THEE, AND WILL BE GRACIOUS TO WHOM I WILL
BE GRACIOUS, AND WILL SHOW MERCY ON WHOM I WILL SHOW MERCY. HE
WAS SAYING, I'LL SHOW YOU MY GLORY. It's in the fact that
I'll be gracious, I'll show mercy. And he said, thou canst not see
my face for there shall no man see me and live. And the Lord
said, behold, there's a place by me and thou shalt stand upon
a rock and it shall come to pass while my glory passeth by that
I'll put thee in the cliff of the rock. and will cover thee
with my hand while I pass by, and I'll take away my hand, and
thou shalt see my back parts, but my face shall not be seen.'
Moses said, Show me your glory. And God said, Here it is. I'll
have mercy. And here's how I'll do it. I
will put you in the hiding place of my rock. And that rock is
the Lord Jesus Christ. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, HE SAID,
WHILE THE BRIGHTNESS OF MY GLORY, MY JUDGMENT, MY HOLINESS PASSES
BY, I'LL TAKE MY JUDGMENT OUT ON YOU. I'LL POUR MY PUNISHMENT
FOR YOUR SIN OUT ON YOU WHILE YOU'RE HIDING IN THE SAFETY OF
THE ROCK. I'LL BEAT THE ROCK FOR YOUR SAKE
WITH YOU HIDING IN IT. BY TAKING OUT JUDGMENT ON THAT
ROCK. AND THAT ROCK IS THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST. MERCY IS NOT GETTING WHAT WE
DESERVE BECAUSE GOD HID US IN THE SAFETY AND THE PROTECTION
OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. ALRIGHT? THAT'S WHAT MERCY IS,
NOT GETTING WHAT WE DESERVE. AND GRACE, HE SAID, I'LL HAVE
COMPASSION. THAT MEANS GRACE. GRACE IS GETTING
WHAT WE DON'T DESERVE. BECAUSE HE HAD MERCY ON US IN
CHRIST, AND BECAUSE CHRIST RECEIVED WHAT WE DESERVED FOR US, HE SAID,
I'LL BE GRACIOUS AND I'LL SHOW COMPASSION AND I'LL GIVE MY PEOPLE
WHAT CHRIST DESERVES, WHAT CHRIST EARNED. THE REWARD. HE GOT THE JUDGMENT. WE GET THE
REWARD. HE GOT THE JUDGMENT THAT WAS
OWED TO US, WE GET THE REWARD THAT WAS OWED TO HIM. THAT'S
GRACE. MERCY AND GRACE. GOD SHOWED MERCY TO US WHEN HE
GAVE CHRIST WHAT WE DESERVED. AND HE SHOWED GRACE TO US WHEN
HE GAVE US WHAT CHRIST DESERVED. SO HERE'S THE THREE THINGS THAT
I WANT US TO SEE. OH, WE NEED MERCY. NUMBER TWO,
MERCY ONLY COMES ONE WAY. IT COMES AT THE HAND OF GOD THROUGH
THE SUFFERING SUBSTITUTION OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST FOR US.
AND THE THIRD THING IS THIS, HE DELIGHTS TO SHOW IT. HE DELIGHTS
TO SHOW IT IF YOU NEED MERCY. AND YOU'RE HOPING AND PLEADING
AND BEGGING GOD FOR MERCY, KNOW THIS, HE DELIGHTS TO SHOWETH,
TO SHOW IT. MICAH 7 VERSE 18 SAYS, HE RETAINETH
NOT HIS ANGER FOREVER, BECAUSE HE DELIGHTETH IN MERCY. LAMENTATIONS 3 SAYS HIS MERCY
AND HIS COMPASSION, HIS GRACE, THEY'RE NEW EVERY MORNING. THEY
START OVER EVERY MORNING. HE SAID, ALL THAT THE FATHER
GIVETH TO ME SHALL COME TO ME AND HIM THAT COMES TO ME, I WILL
IN NO WISE CAST OUT. SO IF YOU NEED MERCY, YOU COME
CRYING TO HIM, LORD, I'M A SINNER AGAINST YOU. I NEED MERCY. I
SEE IT ONLY IN THE BLOOD OF YOUR SON. WOULD YOU PLEASE GIVE IT
TO ME? HE SAID, ALL WHO COME IN THAT
WAY, THEY'LL HAVE IT. THEY'LL HAVE IT. I PRAY THE LORD
WILL MAKE THAT TO BE A BLESSING You have been listening to a
message by Gabe Stoniker, pastor of Kingsport Sovereign Grace
Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. If you would like a copy of this
message, or to hear other messages of sovereign grace, log on to
our website at ksgctn.org. If you would like to come and
worship with us, our service times are Sunday morning Bible
study at 10 o'clock a.m., worship at 1045 a.m., and 6 o'clock p.m.,
Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. Please tune in next week for
another message of God's free and sovereign grace.