The title of this message this
morning is, A Book for the God-Fearing. A Book for the God-Fearing or
A Book of Remembrance. And I'm reading in Malachi, the
last book in the Old Testament, Malachi chapter 3 verse 16 says,
Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another. And
the Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of remembrance
was written before him for them that feared the Lord and that
thought upon his name." This book of remembrance was written
by the Lord for those who feared the Lord and thought on his name. Now it used to be a common saying
of someone that they were a God-fearing man or a God-fearing woman. Well,
not anymore. Sad to say, and fearfully it
is said that there is no fear. No fear. But it is still true
of God's true people. They all fear the Lord. If you
would ask me, the most prevalent characteristic of God's true
people, as opposed to those who merely say so, or those who do
not make any profession, is that God's true people fear the Lord. They fear the Lord. And only
those who do, only those who truly fear the Lord will hear
Him say in that day, fear not. In the day that Scripture says
men's hearts shall fail them for fear, in that day, the day
the Lord returns in the word of Scripture, it says He will
return to punish the world for their evil and destroy the world
with the brightness of His coming. Where is the person who trembles
at God's Word today, where is that person who hears the Word
of the Lord about His holiness, His justice, and their sinfulness
and guilt and shame? Scripture says that God looks
to those who fear Him. Listen to Isaiah 66, verse 2.
It says, To this man will I look, even to him that is poor and
of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word." Now the reason being
for this, the reason there is no fear of God before men's eyes
today is to be placed on the shoulders and the blame of religion,
false religion. It goes way back. Jeremiah chapter
23 says, "...hearken unto Me," the Lord says, "...hearken unto
Me. Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy
unto you. They speak a vision of their
own heart and not out of the mouth of the Lord. They say unto
them that despise Me. All men and women, Scripture
says, by nature, hate God, do not want a creator, do not want
a judge, do not believe in a holy and righteous God, the God of
the Bible. And this is what these false
prophets say to everyone without exception. They say, the Lord
has said you shall have peace. They say unto everyone that walketh
after the imagination of his own heart, no evil shall befall
you. I'm still reading from Jeremiah
23 verse 18. He says, Who stood in the counsel
of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard His word? Who marked
His word and heard it? That is, who heard Him say that?
I read on, verse 19, Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone
forth in fury. A grievous whirlwind shall fall
grievously upon the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord
shall not return until he hath performed it and executed it.
Those that fear the Lord, though, they fear Him. They think on
Him. They worship Him. In Malachi
3 it says, they feared Him and they thought on Him and a book
of remembrance was written for them. Those that fear Him, that
fear His name, they serve Him, His glory, His honor. A book
of remembrance was written for them. A book of remembrance.
In 2 Peter chapter 3, the Apostle Peter says to God's people, he's
writing to the beloved of the Lord, he says in chapter 3, I
write unto you to stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance. He said that you might be mindful
of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets.
and the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord." And he
goes on to say that scoffers and mockers will laugh in the
last days and say, where is the promise of His coming? And they
fear not God. And he went on to say in 2 Peter
3, the day of the Lord will come, and the elements shall melt with
a fervent heat. Well, Peter said, I want to remind
you of the words of the prophets. What all the prophets say, beginning
with Moses, the book of Moses, the first five books of the Bible,
and the prophets, and the Psalms, all the Word of God tells us
who God is and what we are. This book is a book of remembrance
to remind us of who God is and what we are. And what God said
in the beginning, the very beginning, in the garden, God said to the
first man and woman, ìThe day you eat, the day you rebel, the
day you sin against Me, you shall surely die.î And man did. He died. He died spiritually. He lost the life of God. He lost
righteousness. He lost holiness. He lost an
understanding of God. He lost the way to God. God borrowed
the way with a flaming sword. Man died that day. I remind you
what Scripture says. All have sinned and come short
of the glory of God, and the soul that sinneth shall surely
die. And all are dead in trespasses
and sin. And therefore, salvations of
the Lord. Man is dead. God must give life. Man cannot give himself life.
Salvations of the Lord. So this is a book of remembrance
to remind us what God said and what happened in the garden.
Shortly after the garden, I remind you. Let me remind you what God
said and did to this world. In Genesis 6, verse 5, God saw
the wickedness of man was great in the earth, that every imagination
of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And
God said, I will destroy man whom I have created. The whole
world has corrupted my way and is full of violence. Man hasn't
changed. God hasn't changed. The truth
hasn't changed. What God's Word says about man
hasn't changed. Man has not changed. He's dead
in trespasses and sin. And from his youth up, his thoughts
are only evil continually. Let me remind you, a book of
remembrance, let me remind you that what Jesus Christ said,
He said, as in the days of Noah, So shall the coming of the Son
of Man be. So then and now there is only
one place of safety in the day of Noah, in the day of Noah. God said to Noah, there is a
place of salvation, there is a place of mercy, there is a
place of grace, there is a place of refuge. When my anger falls
upon this God-hating sinful world, there is a place, an ark. Do you know what that ark is?
Do you know what the Ark of Noah represents, or rather who? It
represents the Lord Jesus Christ, because only in Jesus Christ
is the love of God, the salvation of God, the mercy of God, the
grace of God. This is why Paul wrote in Philippians,
Oh, that I might win Christ and be found in Him. This whole book,
in the volume of the book, it is a book of remembrance to remind
us, to write, to tell us of Jesus Christ, the ark of safety, the
salvation of God. Isaiah chapter 1, this book of
remembrance reminds us what the prophet said in Isaiah chapter
1. All of them say this. They don't
say anything good about man. But God says it's a sinful nation,
a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children
that are corruptors, that have forsaken the Lord and provoked
the Holy One of Israel unto anger. He doesn't say God loves all
of these nice people, but He says He's angry. In Isaiah chapter
3, it says that the show of their countenance witnesses against
them. They declare their sin as Sodom. They hide it not. Does that sound familiar? Today. Woe unto their soul, He
says, they've rewarded evil unto themselves. But, He says, but
God says, Say to the righteous, it shall be well with him, but
woe unto the wicked, it shall be ill with them." Who are the
righteous and who are the wicked? Let me remind you what this God
says about being righteous. It must be perfect. It shall
be perfect, Leviticus 22, 21, to be accepted. Perfect. Are
you perfect? Are you perfectly holy and righteous
in and of yourself, in your thought and word and deed? Let me remind
you what God's Word says about righteousness. Isaiah 64, 6 says,
Isaiah wrote, We are all as an unclean thing. All our righteousnesses
are as filthy rags. Our iniquities, like the wind,
have taken us away. But let me remind you what Isaiah
also said. In Isaiah 45, it says, Surely,
surely shall one say, someone is going to say, in the Lord
have I righteousness and strength. Even to Him, that is the Lord,
shall men come. And in the Lord, verse 25 says
of Isaiah 45, shall all the seed of Israel be justified, be made
righteous. Do you know what that means?
Do you know what he means then? God's people do. Jeremiah 23,
it says in verse 16, in that day, in his days, Judah shall
be saved, Israel shall dwell safely, and his name whereby
he shall be called is the Lord our righteousness. Do you know
what it means to be righteous? Paul said, Oh, that I might be
found in Christ, not having mine own righteousness which is of
the law. That is, me keeping the Ten Commandments,
because you can't do it. But that righteousness which
is of God, by faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, imputed to, reckoned
to, charged to the account of all who believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ. Let me remind you, this book
is a reminder, is a book of remembering that only in Jesus Christ is
anyone found righteous. Outside of Jesus Christ, God
is a consuming fire. God does not love all human beings. God is a consuming fire. But
Romans 8, the last verse says, the love of God is in Jesus Christ. All those found in Jesus Christ,
covered by Him, covered by His blood. Their sins paid for by
His blood. and having a righteous robe imputed
to them, covering their sins. Only those found in Jesus Christ
in that day, by faith in Him, will be accounted righteous before
a holy God. Do you understand that? And so,
God said, they that feared the Lord, holy, righteous, sovereign,
just God, who will by no means clear the guilty, They spake
often one to another. What did they speak of? Jesus
Christ. Paul said, ìI am determined not
to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.î
And the Lord hearkened and wrote a book of remembrance. Do you
remember when the Lord said to His disciples, ìThis do in remembrance
of Me.î And for those who feared the Lord and thought on His name,
and He says in closing, Malachi 3 verse 17, ìThey shall be Mine.î
The day I make up my jewels in my crown, I will spare them as
a man spareth his own son. Do you fear the Lord? I pray
that you do. Amen.