The third verse, the third stanza,
praise the grace whose threats alarmed thee and roused thee
from thy fatalities. Praise the grace whose promise
warmed thee. Praise the grace that whispered peace. It's grace
that shows us what we are and shows us what a terrible predicament
we are in as people, as man. It's grace that puts us there
and then it follows it with a whisper of peace. It shows us this is
what's required, but it's okay because I've done it for you.
All in one breath. I'm going to have a tough time today.
I've been thinking about Joe a lot this week. It's his birthday
this week. Sorry. I knew this was going
to happen. And I'm not gonna talk about
Joe the whole time, by any means. Joe would not want that. But I'm gonna talk about it for
a second, because I know that I'm not the only one. It's okay to talk about people
we love, especially someone that, you know, was a brother. But
I miss him a lot. I really wish we could celebrate
his birthday. I wish we could go out to dinner
and talk until they kick us out. Or I should say Joe would talk
until they kick us out. And so I wanted to just say this
because I know we can commiserate, you know, like if anybody understands,
it's you. And I went through a lot of his
notes this week and actually this This message is heavily
based on one of Joe's sermons. And I just want to say that I'm
so incredibly thankful for that man. And so incredibly thankful
for the gift that he was. And so incredibly thankful for
him consistently preaching the gospel of Christ every week for
almost 40 years. We don't understand, truly, what
a blessing that is. So, again, this is where I got
here this morning. I was just kind of reminiscing
all week about Joe, and I went through a bunch of his sermons,
which has been awesome, because he writes just like he speaks,
so it felt like I was just hanging out with him. And that's where
I ended up this week, and this is the majority of his outline.
And it was a huge blessing to me, and I hope it is for you,
too. And now I'm gonna try to not cry anymore. 1 Timothy, again,
is where we're gonna start. And we're gonna hop around quite
a bit. First Timothy 314, although I
hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions
so that if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to
conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living
God, the pillar and the foundation of truth. It's that last line,
the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of
truth. Paul refers to the church here
as the pillar and foundation of truth. Now his point is obviously
not that the church decide what is truth. The church doesn't
decide what is truth. But that the church has been
given the truth. And God's church is the only
organization that exists that has the truth. And that sets
it forth. Therefore, the validity of any
church can be determined by its faithfulness to the truth. The truth teaches, or true churches
have the scriptures as their rule of faith and practice. Now, many churches claim this,
but they also, over time, or not even that much time, end
up relying on a lot of man-made rules. and trust in man-made
confessions, they prove to not hold to the Scriptures alone.
And there are two important points to this, that we believe the
Scriptures are a reliable authority in all matters of faith and practice,
and that we believe, number two, that it is the only authority
of truth in all matters of faith and practice. The scriptures
are literally the word of God. It says in 2 Peter, you don't
have to turn, 2 Peter 1, 21, for prophecy never had its origin
in the will of men, but men spoke from God as they were carried
along by the Holy Spirit. That's how this book was created.
It was penned by men, but authored by God. The Bible is not a collection
of traditions and stories invented by man. It's not recordings of
the prophet's dreams and nightmares. The law was not Moses' idea. All of the scriptures are what
they call God-breathed. Matter of fact, in 2 Timothy
3.16 it says, all scripture is God-breathed, and he's useful
for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness
so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every
good work. We do not mean that every word of scripture was dictated
word for word by God, although some of it was. Rather, we mean
that God sovereignly worked in the hearts of the men who wrote
the Bible so that they produced a work whose true author is God. Even though there was men who
penned the Bible, there is only one author. It is truly God's
word. And that's what the true church
of God has been given. And that's what it says here
in 1 Timothy. It says, the church of the living
God, the pillar and foundation of truth. how interested then we should
be in what it says, right? This is God speaking. I mean,
millions of people claim that they wish they could hear from
God. It's right here. Read the Bible. How ridiculous
it is to trust anything else. So-called Christian bookstores
are filled with writings. of men's opinions, and many men
will trust those over the scriptures. Men will trust the books of men
more quickly than the book of God. I mean, it is such a blessing. I mean, there are so many blessings. So blessed that we're here together
this morning to have each other, to be a part of God's church,
to have the word of God to turn to in all situations. I mean,
what a blessing. But then also, what a responsibility
to actually believe what is in here. What use is the Bible? It gives
us knowledge of salvation. 2 Timothy 3.15, from infancy you
have known the holy scriptures which are able to make you wise
for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. All a man needs
to know in order to have God's salvation is found in the Bible. It provides all the knowledge
we need for spiritual growth and maturity. Again, earlier
I read from 2 Timothy 3.16, it says, it's useful for teaching,
rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the
man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Christians need no other book. The work of men are only valuable
to a degree that might help us understand this book. And sadly,
most of the time, man's writings often obscure the meaning that,
you know, is meant from the beginning. They more obscure it than reveal
it. How authoritative is the Scriptures? All men and all ministers
are to be judged by the Scriptures. All preachers, Everybody, everything. It says in Isaiah 820. I'm gonna turn this time. It was too big to write down. Isaiah 820. To the law and to
the testimony, if they do not speak according to this word,
they have no light of dawn. And that's true for everyone.
To the point where in Acts 17 it says, Now the Barians were
of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received
the message with great eagerness and examined the scriptures every
day to see if what Paul was saying was true. We're talking about
Paul here. Like, he was the guy at that
point, and the Barians didn't just take his word for it. They
took what he said, and they looked to the word of God to confirm
it. Even Paul. Far from the view of many that
men are to believe for their seminary degrees or their religious
status, the Bible commends these barians for putting even apostles
and miracle workers to the test. Neither the appearance of authority
or the demonstration of miraculous power are to be taken as proof
that a man speaks the truth unless it is proven by the word of God,
by the Bible. Even our Lord, Christ referred
to the scriptures all the time. He carried his ministry according
to the written word of his father. So because we are part of this
church, God's church, the pillar of truth that we have, we worship,
well, we worship a different God than most churches. Even though the God of most people
goes by the same name, same characteristics as our God, a lot of them, there
are some vital differences that prove that we do not worship
the same God as many churches. Like others, we claim that our
God is omnipresent. He's everywhere. He's omniscient. He's omnipotent. He's kind. He's
loving. He's full of mercy and full of
grace. But unlike many churches, we
believe God to be absolutely just. Just means to treat everyone
according to what they have done, to bless those that are good,
and to punish those that are bad. He's just in condemnation. In
Exodus, it says, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the
guilty. But just as he's just in condemnation,
he's also just in salvation. In First John it says, if we
confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us
our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. So he's just,
both in condemnation and in salvation. And he's absolutely sovereign. This is a big difference from
modern churches. This means that he can do whatever
he wants. and actually does whatever he
wants. Humans hate that. We see things
differently than God. It's not even comparable the
way that we see the big picture compared to the way God sees
the big picture. We think, how can that be fair
if God doesn't save everyone? God is under no responsibility
to save anyone. It says in Daniel, I'm actually
gonna turn to Daniel 4.35. Daniel 4.35, it says, all the
peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. Actually, hold on,
I'm in the wrong spot. I think I wrote it down wrong.
Another mention of Joe. 435, I could have swore that was right. I have it written down here,
so I'll just read that. Then I praised the Most High, I honored
and glorified Him who lives forever, His dominion as an eternal dominion. His kingdom endures from generation
to generation. All the people of the earth are
regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the
powers of heaven and the peoples of earth. He does as he pleases.
And no one can hold back his hand and say, what have you done? We have such a lofty picture
of ourselves as humans. But if you really see who we
are in comparison to who God is, who could possibly say to
him, what are you doing? Or what have you done? Who can
question him? He has all authority over all creation. He has absolute sovereignty and
is just in the way that he wields his power. He has the power to
do whatever he wants to do. Who could stop him? Who can stop
God? God wants to save you, but you
won't let him? You'll actually hear things like that. You can't stop God. You can't
slow down God. You can't change his course.
Everything he does is perfect. The work he's done is already
finished. So it can't be undone and changed. He who Christ died
for will be saved, period. He has all authority or right
to do whatever he wants to do. Again, who can say to him, what
have you done? He actually does whatever he
wants to do. It says in Psalm 115.3, it says, I mean, it is
very simple in the way that it explains the sovereignty of God. There is no one equal to him. There's nothing close to his
equal. So what is going to stop him
from doing exactly what he wants? We hold a different view, not
only of God, but also of man, because of the scriptures. We see ourselves, and this is
common to say, and I don't know if we even fully understand the
depth of our sin, I don't think we do. We can't. But believers are shown that
we are utterly sinful. Most believe that a man is a
mixture of good and evil. A mixture of both good and bad.
They even go so far as to think that judgment will consist of
kind of a balance of the good you've done and the bad you've
done. And if you've done enough good, just enough to tip the
scales, then you get to go to heaven. That's not how this works. good deeds outweigh the bad,
then God will let you go to heaven. Listen to the scripture in Isaiah
64. It says, all of us have become like one who is unclean. And all our righteous acts are
like filthy rags. We all shrivel up like a leaf.
And like our wind, like the wind, our sins sweep us away. How can you read that and think
that we have anything to offer the creator and ruler of the
universe, God of all things, that my good deeds are going
to outweigh my bad and be good enough to satisfy him who only
accepts perfection? When I just read that all are
unclean It says our good deeds that you put on this side of
the scale are actually filthy rags. There is no this side of
the scale. Not for us. We have nothing to
add to it. But that side of the scale has
been filled just not by us. But we are utterly helpless.
By this, we mean that natural man is incapable of doing anything
that we can do to help our own case. In order to find God's
favor, one must come to Christ and trust in him, period. But listen to this scripture
that says about coming to Christ. This is John 6.65. This is why
I told you no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled
him. Apart from God, we are hopeless. We can't even come to Christ
apart from God. We are a dead man. How can a
dead man come or go anywhere? Without God, we have no hope.
There is no hope for any man apart from God. Not the church,
family, or preachers can enable him to do what he must. So we see God differently because
of the scriptures. We see ourselves differently
because of the scriptures. And we also see Christ differently
because of the scriptures. All believers recognize and wonder
at the great mystery of Christ. The mystery of both God and man. The Lord Jesus Christ is absolutely
unique. This is a quote from Joe. There
is none among men who are like him. A divine human. Those three words don't make
sense to us. A divine human. And among the blessed three persons
of the Trinity at the same time. He is the only one possessed
of human nature. And it's not difficult to prove
this in the scriptures, because that's where we go for the truth.
The scriptures declare it in Galatians 4, But when the fullness
of the time has come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman,
made under the law. He was fully human in his person,
made of a woman, and fully human in his responsibilities under
the law. And by God's perfect plan, he
was the one who could actually satisfy it. And that's where when we look
to our balance of good and bad, for God's people, that good is
full because of the fact that Christ was able to fully satisfy
that law. And the bad is gone because he
died to take ours away. He's done both. And it's not
just tipping the scales, it is fully loaded on the blessed side. He gave us his righteousness
and took away our sins. So if you want to look at a scale,
that's the way to look at it. Fully human in his person and
fully human in his responsibilities, even his enemies knew it. In
fact, that is the truth they stumbled over. He was so fully
human that they could not believe He was God. And we probably wouldn't
have either. We wouldn't have, besides the
grace of God, to see it. And most of all, His death proves
it. Because God can't die. But man can. He was so fully human, the very
fact that Jesus Christ dies is full proof that he was a man. And moreover, it says in Timothy
2.5 that he's still a man. For there is one God, one mediator
between God and man, the man, Christ Jesus. And there's no problem showing
from the scriptures that Jesus Christ is not only man, but he
is also God. Every believer in the Lord believes
Christ is God. Thomas worshipped him as saying,
my Lord and my God. You can't say that unless it's
true because God will not allow anyone else to be worshipped
or to even be called Lord and God. So there's only one God. He will not share that divine
glory with anything else or anyone else unless it's true. So either
Jesus Christ is God or it's blasphemy. If you look at Romans 10, nine
through 13, It says, if you declare with
your mouth, Jesus is Lord. It says it right there. And believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, then you will be saved. Jesus
is Lord. He is both man and God. It says, anyone who believes
in him will never be put to shame for there is no difference between
Jew and Gentile. The same Lord is Lord of all. They're talking about Christ.
Richly blessed in all who call on him. All believers see in
the work of Christ that is everything necessary for their salvation.
If his life as a man, in his life as a man, he lived without
sin so he could accept responsibility for the sin of his people. He
had to be a man. In his death as the substitute
for sinners, he rendered to God everything God required of those
sinners. He gave God his soul as an offering
for sin. It says in Isaiah 53 10, yet
it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief when
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed, he shall
prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in
his hand. He bore within himself the penalty
due to the sin of his people. He bore our sins on his body
on the tree. Now, if Christ gave to God all
that is required, then God must save everyone that the requirement
was met for. Otherwise, he wouldn't be just.
Once the price is paid, the debtor must be released. Once the sentence
is served, the prisoner must be set free. Our debt has been
paid. Our sentence has been served. God cannot demand more of the
people that Christ died for. If he did, then Christ wouldn't
be enough, and he is. All believers see Christ as their
righteousness, holiness, and redemption, all in him and in
him alone. All believers see salvation as
a true sign, or as truly of grace. which is the unmerited goodness
of God. Unmerited, undeserved, unearned,
in every way. In one of the songs earlier,
it talked about finding us lost as we just wander. We don't even
know we're lost. How can you help yourself if
you don't even know you're lost? unless the one who knows your
lost finds you and comes to find you and takes you to him and
brings you near. Turn to Romans 4, verses 1 through
8. It says, What then shall we say
that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter? If
in fact Abraham was justified by works, he had something to
boast about, but not before God. What does the scripture say?
Abraham believed God and he was credited to him as righteousness. Now when a man works, his wages
are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. However, to the man who does
not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked has faith and is credited
to him as righteousness. We believe in what the word of
God tells us, who God is, absolutely just in salvation, condemnation,
absolutely sovereign in his will. and carrying it out. We believe in the Word of God
tells us who we are. Utterly sinful, utterly helpless,
and without God, we are without hope. But most importantly, we
believe in what the Word of God tells us about Jesus Christ.
Who Christ is. Fully man in order to be our
substitute. Fully God, both in His perfection
and the righteousness that He earned and gives freely to His
people. Fully necessary, as there's no
salvation for God's people without Christ. And fully sufficient. Christ is all. Christ is all
that is needed. Christ is everything that is
needed. for God's people to be saved. All three of these truths
that we hold to, that we cling to in this word, this pillar
of truth, can kind of come together in one scripture, John 6, 40. It says, for my Father's will is
that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall
have eternal life and I will raise them up on that last day.
It says, for my Father's will, who God is, my Father's will,
He is just, He is loving and gracious, and He is sovereign
in His will. His will will be done. And what is His Father's will?
That everyone who looks, us, God's people, utterly sinful,
utterly helpless, but only hopeless without God. And because of this,
we are not hopeless. We have the one hope of Christ,
which is the perfect hope. It's more than hope, it's guaranteed. So who God is, for my Father's
will is that everyone who looks to us, that's who we are, and
then who is Christ according to the scriptures, everyone who
looks to the Son, Christ, who is man, God, perfect, necessary,
and sufficient. Everyone who looks to the Son
and believes in him shall have eternal life. There's no if, and, or but. Everyone who looks to the sun
shall have eternal life. Shall is a wonderful word. And he will raise them up on
that last day. I don't want anybody else in
charge of raising me up. I so, so look forward to the
day when that happens. And I can trust in it and rest
in it because it's Christ who's gonna do it. I can believe that and have no
worries. If I had anything to do with
it, I would be very worried. But I don't have to. None of
us do. None of God's people have to worry about this specific
moment of being brought in home, the good that he talks about
for his people, the salvation, the reason he came will be carried
out perfectly from beginning to end by our Lord Jesus Christ. So the pillar of truth in the
church is that we hold to God's word. And God's word is here
to spread the gospel, the gospel of Christ and him crucified,
who God is, who we are, and most of all, who Christ is, what he's
done, what he's finished, and that we can fully rest in what
he has done. Let's pray. Our Father, we come to you with
great thanks once again. We pray, Lord, that you'll be
with us as we go back to our regular lives. Help us to hold
on to your word as best we can. We get easily distracted. But
help us to look to your word, Lord. There is comfort there.
There is love there. There is rest there. And that's what we need. We thank
you, Jesus, for everything you are, everything you've done for
us. And we pray this in Jesus' name, amen. You can take out your hymnals
once again and turn them to number 677, nothing but the blood of
Jesus, number 677, and we'll stand as we sing.