Will you turn with me and your
Bibles to the 10th chapter of Mark. I've made this statement once
or twice from the pulpit here. Wouldn't it be amazing Wouldn't
it be amazing to see our Lord do a work in the heart of someone
famous? Would that not blow your mind
if the President of the United States all of a sudden one day
the Lord turned the light on in his eyes? And I don't know
if he already has or not, but I think there might be a difference
in him as there was in each and every
one of us. I think there might be a difference in many of the
so-called rich and famous that we want to listen to in this
world. Wouldn't it be amazing to see
our Lord do the work in the heart of a famous person, a rich person,
a well-known person, maybe the governor, maybe the president,
maybe the pope. Maybe one of you. We're all rich to some degree
here in this country that God has blessed us in. I'm reminded of discussions with
Brother Lance Heller and his wife Robin of the jungles of
New Guinea. My wife and I, I'm reminded of
a show that we used to watch called The Amazing Race, where
they would travel all over the country. Folks, I'm telling you,
our poor in this country are rich compared to people around
this world. Grown adults who drink water
that just a half a mile up the route from where it's coming
from, people are using it for toilet. We are all, in this country,
rich to some degree. We live in a country where the
Lord has blessed us with the ability to go out and earn more. He's given us, by His grace,
the ability to do things, to better ourselves. Isn't it amazing when He does
work in someone's heart right here? I can tell you this, to
see the Lord's work that He's done in my own heart has been
the most amazing thing that I can think of. I recall what John was like before
the Lord called me. When He revealed my condition
before His holiness, I wondered at His doings. I wondered at His doings with
me at all. When He first began to draw me
in love to Himself, I wondered, who am I that the God of all
creation would consider me? The words that you sing meant a lot to us. Music was good too,
but the words are what resonates in a person's heart. We sing
the song, Amazing Grace. I'm not ashamed to admit that
for the first two or three years I would sing that song and I
would break down in tears because I saw the amazing grace that
my Lord had for me. Last week we looked at a picture
of that amazing grace, a picture of salvation. The brazen serpent,
a picture of salvation to those who would look unto Him. Christ
Jesus the Lord, for that's what it was a picture of. As Moses
lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of
Man be lifted up. That's what the Lord's Word said.
And then Scripture goes on to call unto men, whosoever believeth
in Him, in Christ Jesus, should not perish, but have everlasting
life. That's what Moses told the people
in the wilderness. Look to this one. Look to this very one. But many died. Many died. Few were saved, but many died.
Many did not believe they were dead already. That they were
dead in trespasses and sin. That they loved darkness. and
the darkness that they were in, and they would not come to the
light. Our Lord says in John 3.19, right after He said, Whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. He
says, And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world,
and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds
were evil. For everyone that doeth evil
hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds
should be reproved. Who are the whosoever? Am I? Am I one of the whosoever? Were they just, this whosoever
that our Lord is talking about, the ones that were saved, who
looked to the brave, were they just somebody who was smarter
than me? Were they someone who just decided,
I'm tired of living the way I'm living and I'm going to start
doing it differently? Is that who the whosoever are? Did they choose to believe? Were they motivated by some self-help
speaker? That's what the churches are
in today's world. Self-help, motivating. Kathy
and I were members of what was called the cult, that was called
Amway. I would go to meetings and some
guy with a nice suit on, dressed nicely, would get up there and,
you can do it! I know you can sell some more
of this soap! I know you can! And if you just sell five more
boxes, you can drive a Cadillac just like me. That's what the churches of today's
world do. You can do it, folks. If you'll
just get up and come down to the front and pray a little prayer
with me, you too can be saved and be so much better. Is that what the whosoever are? Those who maybe heard something,
a motivational speaker, and got all wound up and went out and
bought a Cadillac like John did? When he didn't work? Didn't have
any money at all? I'm ashamed to say it, but yeah,
I did. It was used. It wasn't a brand new one, but
it was used. Kathy looked at me, I remember,
that's the stupidest thing you've ever bought. She was right. Who are? Who are the whosoever? Was it something supernatural
at work, maybe? Yeah. Absolutely. We read in Ephesians
2, 1, these very words, and I read these often because they are
so true. It says, and you hath he quickened. You, actually it says this, hath
he quickened was not actually in the original scripture, so
I'm going to read it with the original. And you who were dead in trespasses
and sin, wherein times past ye walked according to the course
of this world, according to the prince of the power of air, the
spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience, among
whom also we have all had our conversation, our walk, our type
of life in times past in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling
the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature,
it was natural, the children of wrath, even as
others. Was it supernatural? Are the
whosoever Those that maybe something supernatural happened to? But
God. Here comes the supernatural.
Here comes something that man cannot do, man cannot have anything
in part of. But God who is rich in mercy. For His great love wherewith
He loved us. You need comfort, folks. You're
in a world of hurt right now. You're in a world of darkness. You need comfort. Here's
some comfort for you. But God, who is rich in mercy
for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were
dead in sins, hath quickened, given life. have quickened us together with
Christ. By grace ye are saved." Sovereign
grace, a supernatural thing. Are you with me in Mark chapter
10? Look with me at verse 17, will
you? 17 and 18 we read, And when he was
gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled
to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit
eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why
callest thou me good? There is none good but one, and
that is God. That was very clear in the Old
Testament Scriptures. There is none good but God. The word Master Actually, the original word is
this, didos kalos. That sounds like Greek, doesn't
it? That's because it is. It means an instructor, or more
generally and more specifically, it means a doctor, a master,
or a teacher. Did you catch our Lord's words
in His answer? He says, none good but one, God
Himself. In 1 John chapter 5 verse 7 and
8 we read this, For there are three that bear record in heaven,
the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are
one. In verse 8 it says, just in case
you didn't believe verse 7, verse 8 it repeats it, And there are
three that bear witness in the earth, the Spirit, and the water,
and the blood, and these three agree in one. Now hold your place
in Mark and turn over to the book of John, if you would, chapter
10. There is one God. Three distinct persons, yes,
but one God. How can I explain that? I cannot. But God does in 1 Timothy 3.16. He puts it this way. He inspired
Timothy to write it this way. And without controversy, great
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh,
justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the
Gentiles, and believed on in the world, and then received
up into glory. That's the way God describes
it. came down and glory filled my
soul. There is only one good and I'm talking about every single
one who's walked this earth and that includes my grandmother.
There is only one good and that is God. And that's the one who is standing
right before that young rich man. That young rich man called
this one standing before him good. And he didn't even know
the meaning of it. Some are brought to know the
true and living God, but most are not. Are you with me in John
chapter 10? Look with me if you will at verse
23. I'll get there. And Jesus walked in the temple
of Solomon's porch, in Solomon's porch. Then came the Jews round
about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to
doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us
plainly. And Jesus answered, he says,
I told you, and you believe not the works that I do in my Father's
name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye
are not of my sheep. Notice He didn't say that you're
not My sheep because you don't believe. Our Lord's Word is important,
folks. We need to read it for what it
is. And it's very, very clear in Scripture right here that
they believed not because they weren't of His sheep. They were
never going to be sheep. They don't believe because God
hasn't given them the gift of belief. And He doesn't give His
gift to anyone but His sheep. If you don't believe me, read
on. He says, I said unto you, My sheep, those who belong to
the Lord Jesus Christ, My sheep, My people, those who I have chosen
before the world began, hear My voice. And I know them, and
they follow Me. And I give unto them eternal
life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them
out of My hand. My Father which gave them Me
is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of
My Father's hand." Did you hear that? No man. That includes us. I belong to
Jesus, He's going to bring me to Him. Who am I to deny my Lord His
prize? That's pretty hard for us to
understand, isn't it? But we are the prize of God.
We are the prize of the Lord Jesus Christ. No man is able to pluck them
out of my Father's hand, and then what does He say next? I
and my Father are one. The sheep of God are given life,
given faith. We will hear the voice of our
great Creator, for it is the work of God and His work is effectual. The Lord of glory is not one
who does something halfway. If He loves His people, He loves
them perfectly. If He died on the cross for you,
He died perfectly. If you have the righteousness
of Christ, you have perfect righteousness in Him because He was perfectly
righteous. There was no sin in Him. There
was no guile in His mouth. He never sinned. I've heard men
say that He was the greatest sinner that ever walked this
earth. They're wrong. My Lord and Savior never sinned
once. It was not His sin. Our sins
were put upon Him. He was made sin for us. Pause, because I want that to
sink in. That's why I cry when I sing
Amazing Grace, because my sins were laid upon Him. And perfectly, perfectly washed
in His blood. He has purposed it. Shall he
not do it? And all his desire, shall it
not come to pass? Now go back to our text, and
Mark, if you would please. What must I do to inherit eternal
life? Our Lord's going to tell this
young man, and I want you to read this very, very carefully. Look at verse 19. Thou knowest,
he says, the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not
kill. Do not steal. Do not bear false
witness. Do not defraud or defraud not. Honor thy mother and father.
Notice what it is that he gives this young man. You know what
you have to do to go to heaven. you have to fulfill the law. That leaves me out. I can't do that. I can't do that at all. What must I do? to be saved. What must I do to inherit eternal
life? I can't do those things. He gave this young man the law
of Moses and we know what God commands of us. All people know
the law of goodness. It is the law that is written
on the hearts of every man. For all have known the difference
between good and evil." Why do you think all the way back through
time people have been sacrificing something? I mean, some people
get really crazy about it and sacrifice their children, or
a virgin, or whatever. People have been sacrificing
stuff for ages. There are so many different gods,
even in the world when Paul walked this earth, that as Paul walked
along, he was noticing all these different statues that represented
this god, represented that god, and so on and so on. And he got
down to the last statue, and because they wanted to make sure
they didn't miss anything, there was an unknown god. And after he pointed that out
to them, that you folks are so vain, He preached to them about
the real and true unknown God, and that's the God of Scriptures.
The Lord Jesus Christ. The very one who has to reveal
himself to us because we just cannot and we will not come to
the light. Like this young man, most think
that they fulfill the law to some degree. Look at verse 20. And he, the young man, answered
and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my
youth. Look at me. See? I've done all
that since I was just a little kid. Isn't that what the world
based their salvation on? I'm saved. I know I'm saved because
I feed the poor now. I'm saved because I don't cuss
anymore. I'm saved because I don't smoke
anymore. I'm saved because of this. I'm saved because of that.
And it's all because of reasons that men do and it's not because
of what God has done. That's the difference between
the other Jesus that's being preached in the world and the
Jesus of the true and living God right here in His Word. You see, they don't understand
that the problem is that the law must be fulfilled perfectly. Not one sin can go unpunished. I'm not that bad of a guy. One little white lie is all it
takes. One little white thought. White lie thought is all it takes. The problem is this, that the
law must be fulfilled perfectly and this young man saw his own
righteousness and thought it was good enough. I've done all
that since I was a child. Our Lord says, there are none
righteous, no, not one. If you say there's no sin in
you, then you call God a liar. Is that not right? Isn't that
what the Lord's Word says? Our Lord says, all have gone
astray and come short of the glory of God. Salvation is not
something man can just choose to accept. In John 15, 16 we
read this, you have not chosen me, but I have chosen you and
ordained you that you should go forth and bring forth fruit
and that your fruit should remain. And then in verse 19 it says,
If you were of the world, the world would love his own. But
because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of
the world, therefore the world hateth you. In Romans 9, 16 we
read it this way, So then it is not of him that willeth. Did
you catch that? It's not your free will. It's not your so-called free
will. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that
runneth." It's not of your works, it's not something that you can
do, but God that showeth mercy. Salvation is of the Lord from
start to finish. It is all of Him or it is none
of Him. There is no in between. Grace
and works do not mix. Back in our text, we see a wonderful
thing, the grace of God being displayed. Look at verses 21
and 22 with me. Then Jesus, beholding Him, loved
Him, and said unto Him, One thing that Thou lackest. Okay, so here's
eternal life. This is what you need to inherit
eternal life. Go thy way, and sell whatsoever
thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure
in heaven. And come, take up the cross, and follow me." Would you look at our bullets
with me if you would? Everybody got a bullet? While you're opening your bulletin,
allow me to read that verse 22, which I forgot there. And he,
this young man, was sad at their saying, and he went away grieved,
for he had great possessions. In the top half of our bulletin,
you'll see an article written by Pastor David Edmondson. He's
the one who's pastoring the church there in Madisonville, Kentucky,
where our Pastor Gene is now attending. He writes, was the rich young
ruler that came to Christ saved? Was he saved? I answer, before
I answer, may I ask you a question? Does the Lord save those that
he loves? That's a good question to ask.
Does he save the ones that he loves? Absolutely yes. I know, writes David, that the
Lord told that young man, there is one thing that you lack, go
your way and sell all that you have and give it to the poor
and you shall have treasure in heaven. Yes, I know that the
Lord said to this zealous ruler, come, take up the cross and follow
me. Yes, I know that moral young
man was sad at that saying and went away grieved for he had
great possessions, but I'm telling you and I agree, that young man
was saved. I know that He went away sad
that day, but there had to come another day that He rejoiced
in His redemption in Christ. How do I know? I know because
God has never loved anyone that He did not save. And God has
never saved anyone that He did not love. Our Lord says in His Word, I
have loved you with an everlasting love. He has loved His people before
they were ever created in the womb, and He will love them for
eternity on, as far as it goes. David goes on to say, isn't that
what election is? It is God's love and salvation
going hand in hand. God foreknew us and predestinated
us to be His because He loved us. But He loved us in Christ. God called us because He loved
us and chose us, but He loved us and chose us in Christ. God
saved us because He loves us, because He chooses... I'm sorry,
let me go back. God saved us because He loves,
chooses, calls, and justifies us, but it is all in Christ. And because of His love for Christ,
God's elect will one day soon be glorified, as we read in Romans
8, 29-30. Folks, if I'm a child of God,
when God beholds His Son and loves Him, He beholds me and
loves me just the same. If God beholds and loves me in
Christ, He will always behold me and love me, because His love
for His Son and myself is eternal. Amen. Now if you would look at verses
23 through 27 with me. And Jesus looked around about
and saith unto His disciples, how hardly shall they that have
riches enter into the kingdom of God. Could it be our Lord was not
talking about riches of this world? Could He be talking about those
who are rich in their own righteousness? as
this young man was at that time. And his disciples were astonished
at his words, but Jesus answereth again, verse 24, and saith unto
them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches
to enter into the kingdom of God? It is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter
into the kingdom of God." Now that's just flat out impossible. You think those disciples, those
apostles, didn't think that very thing when he told them that?
We know they did because he goes on to say next, then Peter began
to say unto him, and they were astonished out
of measure saying among themselves, who then can be saved? Who then? It's impossible for
a rich man. Who? Who can go? Who can be saved? That's the
title for this morning's message. Who then can be saved? Can John? Can John be saved? If my righteousness
is stripped from me, if I can see that I have none
of my own, if I can be brought to my knees to see my own weaknesses
and see His strength and His righteousness, then maybe I can
be saved. Who then can be saved? With men it is impossible. With John it was impossible,
but with God all things are possible. His name is called Jesus, for
He shall, not might, not maybe. He shall save His people, and
if I'm one of His, I shall be saved. That's my only hope. In this life, as I walk through
this world and see the sin that is in this flesh, my only hope
is my Savior. Can I then be saved? Yes, if
I belong to Him. He says, all that the Father
giveth me shall come to me. He says, as we read in John 10.27,
my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and
I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which
gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck
them out of my Father's hand. Who then can be saved? Let me
tell you. All of the sheep of God can be
saved. All whose names were written
in the Book of Life shall be saved. All for whom Christ died. and shed His precious blood shall
be saved. Otherwise we don't need His blood. I don't know about you, but I
need my Savior's blood. All for whom He makes intercession
for right now. right now sitting on His throne
in glory, ruling over everything that is, bringing everything
that He has purposed to come to pass, to bring it to pass. All for whom He makes intercession
shall be saved. He says, I pray for them, not
for the world, for those that Thou hast given Me. Folks, salvation
is a miracle. And I don't care what the Catholics
say. Other than the apostles and Christ Jesus himself, man
cannot cause a miracle. A miracle is a supernatural event. Even the miracles that the apostles
performed were in the name of Christ. And it was only to prove
that they were sent of Christ. It was still Christ who brought
that miracle to pass. Paul never could do anything
of himself. He could only do it in the name
of the Lord and Savior Jesus. I can't do anything for you,
but my Lord and Savior can through the speaking of John, of His
Word, through the speaking of Pastor Gene, and many other men
that are used by God to speak. He sends His Spirit into His
people's hearts through the Word of God. Who then could be saved? Could
I be saved? I tell you this, If you belong
to the Lord Jesus Christ, you will be saved. He will have all that the Father has given
Him, no ifs, ands, or buts. Who is it? Who can be saved? Everyone that belongs to the
Father. Everyone who the Lord performs
a miracle in. That's what the new birth is. When the Lord told that young
rich religious leader, ye must be born again, he went on to
explain to him You hear the wind, but you don't know which way
it comes from. That is the work of God. Performing miracles. I've seen
it one time. Other than in myself, and I didn't
even know what I was looking at, and I didn't even know what
I was seeing in myself. But I've watched the Lord do a work in
my wife's heart. Oh, what joy that is. to see
the Lord transform, to take that old stony heart out of one of
His children and put a new heart, a new heart that believes Him.
It's a miracle. In your bulletins, if you've
looked, you'll see a different song that I want to close with. I would rather sing about that
miracle. If you don't mind, please stand
with me.