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. If you would like to turn with
me in your Bible to the book of 2 Corinthians chapter 7, 2nd
Corinthians chapter 7. Our message today is going to
come from the first part of verse 6. It says, nevertheless God that
comforted those that are cast down. God that comforted those that
are cast down. The title of our message this
morning is comfort for the cast down. The apostle Paul said,
our God comforts those that are cast down. That's precious, isn't
it? And that's wonderful news. If
you're cast down, wonderful news. Do you ever feel cast down? Do you ever feel that like I
do? cast down. There were times, I'm so grateful
for how the Lord moved on the hearts of these men who penned
the scripture. He brought honesty to his word. He did not hide any emotion or
any fault in any of these men. King David, a precious man who
the Lord said was a man after his own heart. There were times
when David said in the Psalms, Lord, are your mercies clean
gone? Is your mercy gone from me? He said, Lord, are you going
to cast us off forever? Lord, I feel cast off. I feel
cast down. i feel like a cast away do you
ever feel like a cast away not just down but cast down do you
ever feel that cast down if you do if you have the same experience
that i have and i want to show you three
things about that three things about being truly in the heart
cast down. Number one, I want us to see
the reason for it. The reason that we feel that
way. Number two, I want us to see
the mercy of it. The absolute mercy of it. And
number three, I want us to see the glorious promise at the end
of it. The promise at the end. Well,
first, here's the reason for our being cast down. If you want
to look with me at Psalm 36, it says in Psalm 36 verse 12,
there are the workers of iniquity fallen. They are cast down and
shall not be able to rise. The workers of iniquity, that's
sin. That's what iniquity is. Sin. Sin is the reason why you and
I become cast down. Sin. Sometimes you know how you
feel a certain way and you can't put your finger on it. You don't
know what's wrong and you don't know why you feel this way and
you wish you didn't feel this way, but you do. And here's the
root of it. Sin. It's always sin. Sin is in every single one of
us. Every human being on this earth
is covered in and filled with sin by nature. It's what we are. And it's the root of all of our
problems. All of our problems. It's the
root of all of our sorrow. It's the root of all of our sickness. The reason we get sick is because
of sin. It's not because of a germ. It's because of sin. And it's the root of all of our
pain. All of our pain, every time we're cast down, it has
something to do with sin. Sin on the inside, sin on the
outside, sin that we commit, sin that is committed all around
us. It always starts with sin. When Adam and Eve sinned in the
garden, God told them their consequences. He said, Adam, because of this,
cursed is the ground. Thorns are gonna grow. He tilled
the ground before he sinned. But he said, now you're going
to have to till the ground by the sweat of your brow. It's
going to be hard. And he told Eve, you're going
to travail in childbirth. It's going to be painful now.
Pain is going to come to you now. All because of sin. It's the root of the problem.
Sin. In Proverbs chapter 16, Verse
18 says, pride goeth before destruction and an haughty spirit before
a fall. Sin brings a fall. Pride brings
a fall. Knowing that sin is the problem,
it should not be any big surprise. Not at all as to why we're constantly
cast down. We're sinners. We are sinners. It explains why we're constantly
cast down. Now, most people believe, I am
right now saying we're sinners. And as I say this, many people
are going to hear me right now, and their immediate response
is going to be, no, I'm not. You have it wrong. You've pegged
me wrong. You don't know me. How can you say that? That's
a false statement. Many people will hear that and
say, I'm not a sinner. No, we're not sinners. Used to
be, but not now. That's a common response, a very
common response. Most people believe they have
risen above sin. There was a time in their life
when they'd fallen into sin, but they got control of it. Most
people believe they have gotten control of their sin and risen
above their sin, or they believe, okay, yes, I am a sinner, But
my sins are so small, they don't really matter. They don't really
matter. Well, if you want to look with
me at 1 John 1, 1 John 1 verse 10 says, if we say that we have
not sinned, Now, is he only speaking in the
past tense? If we say we have not sinned,
we'll look at verse eight. If we say that we have no sin,
have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Verse
10, if we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and
his word is not in us. The truth is not in us. His word
is not in us. If we say we're not sinners,
it starts with sin. All of our problems start with
sin. It's in every single one of us. That's just the fact.
But if we say that we're not sinners, if you ask somebody,
are you a sinner? If their response is, oh no,
Oh no, I'm not a sinner. If we say we're not sinners,
this is what the word says. We don't know God. We do not
know God. And we are calling him a liar. Which is horrible. That's a horrible
thing to do. That's a sin. Saying we're not
sinners is calling him a liar. Because he said, all have sinned
and come short of the glory of God. That's what he said. All
have sinned. And this scripture says his word
is not in us. So sin is there. It's there and
it's the root of our problem. It's the root of all of our problems.
And when we see that sin and when we feel that sin and when
we experience that sin, it casts us down. it casts us down but
listen to this that being cast down is God's
mercy to us that is God's mercy to us that wretchedness that
we feel because of our sin that's God's mercy to us Now, why would
we say that's God's mercy to us? That horrible feeling, that
cast down sorrow, why would we say that's God's mercy to us?
It's because when God goes to work on a heart, in salvation, in calling a sinner
to himself, when God goes to work on a heart, he begins the
work of salvation. by casting the sinner down, casting
the heart down. That's how he starts the work
of salvation. Let me show you that in John
16. In John chapter 16, it says in verse 7, our Lord said, nevertheless,
I tell you the truth. It is expedient for you that
I go away. For if I go not away, the Comforter
will not come unto you, which he told us before that was God's
Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit. He said, but if I depart, I will
send him unto you. And when he is come, he will
reprove. And that word means convince. He will convince the world, whoever
he comes to in the world, when he has come to the heart of a
particular center, he will convince that center of sin. That's the first thing. He will convince of sin, and
he will convince of righteousness, and he will convince of judgment.
Sin, righteousness, and judgment. When God begins the work of salvation,
he sends his spirit to a center, And God's spirit in mercy and
in kindness convinces that sinner of his own sin. His own sin. It happens that
way every time. Every time. Isaiah said, in the
year that King Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord. I saw the Lord. And he goes on to say, I cried,
woe is me. I'm undone. I'm so undone. In
the story of the publican in the temple, there was a Pharisee
and a publican in Luke 18. That Pharisee, he was so proud
of himself and he ended up falling. The Lord said he wasn't justified.
But the publican, that publican, he was smiting himself. That's
all he could do. He smite himself. He did not
feel worthy to even walk into the building. People are so,
you know, proud and they're ready to run right on up to the pulpit. This man didn't even feel worthy
to walk into the building. He could not lift up his eyes
to heaven. He stood in the back and he just
looked to the ground and he smote upon his breast crying, God be
merciful to me, the sinner. I'm a sinner. When a person is
not utterly convinced of his own sin, There is no beginning
of the work of salvation there. I'm going to repeat that because
that's important. This is important. When a person
is not utterly convinced of his sin, when you ask the question,
are you a sinner? If a person says, well, I don't
know. When a person is not utterly
convinced of his own sin, There is no beginning of the work of
salvation there, because when God's Spirit comes, the first
thing he'll convince of is sin. Sin, first thing. If there is
no casting down in the heart, no casting down in the soul,
that realization of sin, If there's no need to cry out for mercy,
God, I'm a sinner before you and I need mercy desperately. If there's no need for that,
there's no salvation. There is no salvation. If I do
not see myself as being in a place where I need to cry out to God
for mercy right now, right now, not 20 years ago when I was Baptized
or made a profession. I mean right now. If I don't
see that I need to cry out right now, there's no salvation. Salvation
is not a past tense thing. It's a right now. Save me right
now. I need union with Christ right
now. That's what salvation is. Union
with Christ. I don't need to used to have
a union. I need a union right now. I need
him right now." That's how God works on the heart every time.
Over in Acts chapter 9, if you want to look at Acts chapter
9, verse 1 says, Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter
against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest. Saul, who became known as the
Apostle Paul, he was breathing out threatenings and slaughter,
raging against God. That's who he was raging against.
in all of his sin. He thought he was doing God's
business. That's what he thought. He was in religion and he thought
he was doing God's business, but he was actually an enemy
of God, an enemy of God's people. He was a ringleader of religion
and an enemy of God at the exact same moment in time. And he went
unto the high priest and he, in verse two, desired of him
letters to Damascus, to the synagogues, that if he found any of this
way, any who were cast in there all on the mercy of Christ and
the blood of Christ. Whether they were men or women,
he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed,
he came near Damascus and suddenly there shined round about him
a light from heaven and he fell to the earth." God cast him down. First thing, God cast him down. I wish God would cast more people
down. I know that sounds so strange to hear, but I pray God might
cast more people down, me and more people with me. And the
reason is because there's so much mercy. What mercy it is
when God cast a sinner down. Well, verse four says, he fell
to the earth and he heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul,
why persecutest thou me? And he said, who art thou, Lord?
That's the response now. Lord, master. And the Lord said, I am Jesus
whom thou persecutest. It is hard for thee to kick against
the pricks, the prick of that word, the prick of my spirit,
convincing of sin. And he trembling and astonished
said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto
him, arise and go into the city and it shall be told thee what
thou must do. And the men which journeyed with
him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And
Saul arose from the earth, and when his eyes were opened, he
saw no man. But they led him by the hand
and brought him into Damascus." He was blind. God is going to
give him eyes to see the truth by blinding him first. That's
what God does. Man thinks he sees everything.
When the truth comes, first thing that happens is God makes him
blind. Oh, I'm so blind. Verse 9 says, he was three days
without sight and neither did eat nor drink. Empty. Spiritually
speaking, blind and empty. That's what God makes a person
to be. And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias,
and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias, and he said, behold,
I'm here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise,
and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire
in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold,
he prayeth." He's praying. This preacher in religion, leader
of religion, this famous preacher for the first time in his life
is truly praying. He went through the motions for
years and years, but now he's praying. He's blind, he's empty,
and he's begging God for mercy for the first time. Not like
that Pharisee in the temple, I thank you that I'm not as other
men are. I thank you for making me so religious. I thank you
for everything that I am. I thank you for how good I am.
This man right here, Saul of Tarsus, was crying, God, please
don't kill me for my sin. Please have mercy on me. That's
prayer. That's prayer. God be merciful to me, the sinner. Saved sinners are mercy beggars.
That's what they are, mercy beggars, and they never stop begging for
it. They never stop begging for mercy. What mercy it is to be
a mercy beggar. What mercy it is. The Apostle
Paul said from experience, we read it, he said from experience,
God comforts cast down mercy beggars. He does. Every soul
that God in love casts down over his own sin, over his own sin. Every soul that God cast down
over his own sin, God raises up every one of them. He knows
how to comfort those that are cast down. Over in Daniel chapter
4, a man named King Nebuchadnezzar he was lifted up in himself he
was lifted up in his pride lifted up in his sin and it says in
verse 29 at the end of 12 months he walked in the palace of the
kingdom of babylon and the king spake and said is not this great
babylon that i have built for the house of the kingdom by the
might of my power and for the honor of my majesty do you hear
all that pride You hear all that arrogance and that self? That's
what sin does. That's what sin focuses on. Me,
I, me, my. That's what sin glorifies. I,
me, mine. That's what he said. Had God
left that man right there, he would have died in that sin.
Had God just left him alone, he would have died in his sin.
But God in mercy cast him down. Verse 31, while the word was
in the king's mouth, he didn't finish saying what he was saying.
There fell a voice from heaven saying, O King Nebuchadnezzar,
to thee it is spoken, the kingdom is departed from thee. I'm going
to take it away. And they shall drive thee from
men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beast of the field.
You're going to live out in the field like a wild beast. They
shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall
pass over thee until thou know that the Most High ruleth in
the kingdom of men and giveth it to whomsoever he will. Everything that pertains to God,
he does it to whomsoever he will. Sovereignly, sovereignly in control. The same hour was the thing fulfilled
upon Nebuchadnezzar and he was driven from man and did eat grasses
oxen and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till the hairs
were grown like eagles feathers and his nails like birds claws.
He became a beast. At the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar,
lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned
unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honored
Him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion,
and His kingdom is from generation to generation. And he said, this
is what God revealed to me through casting me down. This is what
He revealed to me. Verse 35, all the inhabitants
of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he doeth according to his
will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the
earth, and none can stay his hand for saying to him, what
doest thou? He said, God convinced me of
that by casting me down. How merciful that is. How merciful
that is. God revealed to him. He's God,
I'm not. I'm not. Everything is in His
hands. It's not in mine. All authority
is in His hands, not mine. He does what He will. He saves
whom He will. He has mercy on whom He will.
And Nebuchadnezzar said, it took him casting me down for me to
see that. And he said, I'm so thankful
he cast me down. Because verse 36, at the same time, my reason
returned unto me and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor
and brightness returned unto me. My counselors and my Lord
sought unto me and I was established in my kingdom and excellent majesty
was added unto me. He restored me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol and honor the King of heaven. all whose works
are truth and his ways judgment and those that walk in pride
he is able to abase he is able to he is able to nebuchadnezzar
said he's done all things well after it was all said and done
he did everything perfectly in love and kindness and mercy.
He cast me down so he could perfectly in love and kindness and mercy,
raise me up, raise me back up. Do you know what raises up a
sinner who is cast down over his sin? This is it right here.
This is what God revealed to Nebuchadnezzar. This is what
God revealed to Saul of Tarsus. Seeing how the Lord himself was
cast down, how the Lord cast himself down that his sinners
might be raised up. Though he were rich, yet he became
poor. He cast himself down. Though
he was full, yet he emptied himself. The song says, of all but love
and bled for Adam's helpless, cast down race. Amazing love,
how can it be that thou, my God, would cast your own self down
and die for me? Amazing, amazing love. Psalm
55, over in Psalm 55, verse 22 says, cast thy burden upon the
Lord, he shall sustain thee he shall
never suffer the righteous to be moved cast your burden on
the Lord every sinner who begs Christ for mercy through his
blood Lord I need mercy I'm a sinner and I'm cast down over it every
sinner who cast his all on the Lord will receive that mercy. Every single one. Every sinner
who casts their all on Christ will be raised up. Cast your
all upon Him. He careth for you. If you are
cast down, labored, heavy laden, our Lord said, you come to me.
I'll give you rest. And I'll raise you up at the
last day. Do you want to be raised up?
eternally raised up? Are you a sinner who is cast
down over his own sin, begging to be raised up? You take your
cast down burden to the Lord and leave it there, and He will
raise you up at the last day. Till next week, may the Lord
bless His word to our hearts. 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 730 p.m. Please tune in next week for
another message of God's free and sovereign grace.