Now go back to Hebrews 7 with
me. Hebrews 7. One verse is our text and subject. And what a verse it is. Could
not get past this. Hebrews 7, verse 25. Wherefore,
he, that is Jesus Christ, is able also to save them to the
uttermost. that come unto God by him, seeing
he ever liveth to make intercession for them." I hope this message
will be very plain, very clear gospel message. I hope to just
say it very simply. And we want to just take this
oft-quoted verse of Scripture and word for word, line upon
line, look at it. It says in verse 25, Wherefore,
he is able. Wherefore. My pastor always taught
us that whenever you see a wherefore, The word wherefore or therefore,
see what it's there for. It is saying, it's concluding
something that's just been said. It's summing up something that's
just been said. A great deal has been already
said about the high priest. That's what we've been looking
at. We're spending a good bit of
time on this, Brother Stan. Why? Because God did. Because
the whole Old Testament. You see, like the next chapter
says, here's the sum. If you want to deal with that
next Sunday, you can at chapter 8, continue the Bible study.
Because the whole Old Testament is about a high priest and a
sacrifice and a tabernacle. That's what the whole Old Testament
is. You've got to have them. A high priest. You've got to
have a high priest. That is, you've got to have a
man. We're men. And we've got to have a man to,
not a woman, but a man to go to God for us. One who is approved
of God. Not just anybody. Approved of
God. Chosen of God. That's what he
says all through the Old Testament. God is the one that chose the
high priest. represents the people. Come before
God, God who is holy, and they've sinned against Him. They're all
sinners. And they need a priest. I'm summing
it up here. They need a priest to offer gifts. You've offended somebody. You
want to be accepted. Gifts. Sacrifices. Offer sacrifices. Something to
pay for what I've done. Sin. This is what this is all
about. Somebody go to God in hopes that
God will be, the Bible says, propitiated. That God will be
satisfied. That God will accept. what is
offered on behalf of a guilty sinner. That's what this whole
volume of the book is about. A priest. And you know, even in heathen
religion, people have a man, don't they, that they think can
go to God for them. Every religion has some man.
They feel like they need a man to go, a holy man. It doesn't
matter what religion it is. Some man that will go to God
for them and represent them and someone
who has favor with God. Somebody could do something for
them. to God for them, don't they? Right now, at this moment,
there are millions all over, not just this country, but all
over the world who feel like they need a priest. They still
do. They feel like they need a priest. And they are confessing their
sins. They're putting their hope in this fellow that he has some
pull with God. That he knows something they
don't know. That he can do something for them to God. Wherefore? That's what this is
about. They're not able. They're not
able to do anybody any good. In fact, they do the opposite. They're physicians of no value.
They're priests of no value. They're priests that God will
not hear, that God will not accept. As a matter of fact, He calls
them all anti-Christ. But this man, we have a preacher. Got to have one. Where for? He,
not she, He, Jesus Christ, His only one, is able. He's the Great
High Priest. He keeps talking about this after
the order of Melchizedek. What is this Melchizedek? Well,
he didn't have a father, didn't have a mother. He's called the
King of Righteousness. He's called the King of Peace. He blessed the great patriarch
Abraham, the greater blessed the lesser. He, beginning of days or end
of days, He always was the high priest, always will be. Who is
that? That's Jesus Christ. The priest
forever, whom God accepts, whom God Almighty swore. God swore in His wrath that some
people will not enter. Swore, they're not coming in
here. But God also swore that this God Almighty swore from
heaven, not on a Bible, but on His own
name. This is my son, my beloved son,
in whom I am well pleased. This is the high priest after
the order of Melchizedek. This is the only one. This is
the way, the truth, the life. This is the one I accept. I will
accept everyone who comes to me by him." God swore his oath. of His covenant to immutable
death. Wherefore, since He's, that's
why that word is therefore. Wherefore, because of who He
is, He's able to save. Alright, let's look at each line.
He's able to save them. He's able to save. We're talking
about salvation. by Jesus Christ. Salvation of
sinners. Scripture talks about sinners. Scripture says this about sinners.
They are lost. Now, you know what lost means,
don't you? Have you ever been lost? Huh? Have you ever been lost? What does that mean? You can't
find a way. Can you? Our wives accuse us men of getting
lost all the time, you know, because we don't ask directions.
We never have been lost. Just temporarily, you know, didn't
know where we were. But we found it. Us and the GPS. That's not lost, is it? Lost
is lost. It means you're somewhere and
you don't know the way. You don't even know where to
look. And unless somebody comes and finds you, you're a goner. That's lost, isn't it? Christ said, I am come
to find them. My lost sheep. And what does it say? When He
asked them if they will do this? No. It says, when He hath found
them. puts them on his shoulder and
carries them all the way home. And says, and heaven erupts,
and he says, look, my sheep was lost, but I found them. To the praise of the glory of
his fetching, finding grace. He is able to save them that
are lost. One time, Brother Barnard asked
a woman, one of these religious women, everywhere he went preaching,
he was an evangelist, and the Lord used him to tear up people's
religious playhouses, tear up their idols. kill their free
will. And one of these religious women
one time said, he asked her, how long have you been saved,
honey? That's how he said in that North Carolina draw. Honey, she said, well, all my
life. He said, that's too long. You've
got to be lost. Don't you? For we found dead. Scripture says we're dead. Dead. Barnard used to say, graveyard
dead. Dead's dead, isn't it? Dead. If you're dead, what can you
do? What can a dead man do? He can't
take the first step. Barbara, he can't take the first
step. That's the reason the Lord let
Lazarus lay four days in the grave until even his sister said,
He's dead! He stinketh! There's no hope! Why? He's dead! Then he's not
able to give himself life? No. Stand back and see the salvation
of the Lord. He's dead. He's able. Christ is able. He's the only one able to save
them. Give life. He doesn't offer life.
You don't offer life. You give it. Blind. It goes on to say that blind,
deaf. Blind means you can't see. You've got to be given eye. Deaf,
lepers. It's worse. It gets worse. Scripture
calls sinners captives. Isn't it? Held captive. If you're
held captive, if you're in chains, in darkness, you can't get yourself
free. He's able. Don't know what it
is. Able. It goes on. Call sinners despisers,
rejecters of God. Christ said, you will not come
unto me. But you might have not. And he
went on to say, no man can come unto them. Will not and cannot. That's pretty hopeless in it.
Yes, in yourself it is. But he's able. Wherefore, he
is able to save them. Salvation is of the Lord. Since
they can't save themselves, it must be so, right? Since they
are lost, somebody's got to find them. Since they are dead, somebody's
got to give them life. Since they are lepers, incurable,
fatal disease, somebody's got to get rid of it. Since they hate God, somebody's
got to give them a new heart to love Him. Since their will
is obstinate, they will not come, somebody's got to make them willing.
He's able. He's able. Now, religion likes
this verse. People like this verse. I'll
quote it. And what they mean, what they
like about this and what they say is that God can do anything. They say that. My God can do
anything. Jesus can do. If you let Him. Isn't that what
they say? God can, if you accept his offer. If you let him into your heart. If God can, if you. Jesus can,
if you. God has done all he can do. Now it's up to you. Well, I say
that he's not able. If he's done all he can do, and
you're not saved, then he's not able, is he? Huh? He's done all he can do
to save you, and you're not saved? Then he's
not able to save you. You're praying to a God. That's
a God who's not able to save. Right? That's another Jesus. And I wouldn't trust him. That's
a God who can't save. That's another gospel. I don't
know why anybody would want that. That's not in the Bible either. If he's done all he can do, he's
not able. If now it's up to you, then that
makes you able to save yourselves. You don't even need him. That's another gospel. Paul called
it a perverted gospel. But now, listen, the gospel that's
saved, the true gospel, It's the gospel that says he's able. That means he's the only one
who has the right, who has the authority to do this. He said, all authority. In John
17, he said, all power, all authority is given unto me in heaven and
earth. He's the judge of the universe. The keys of hell and
death are at his side. It belongs to Him. Scripture
says salvation belongeth to the Lord. It's not something He throws
out there and whoever wants it will know. It belongs to Him. He giveth it to whomever He will. It's His will. It's up to Him. He's able. That means He has
a right. He alone has a right, has authority.
I have all authority, He said, given unto me in heaven and earth
that I should give eternal life. To who? As many as will let him? No, it doesn't say that. To as
many as God hath given me. He's able. He has that right.
He has that authority. He's able. That means he has the power.
He has the ability. Able. Ability. All power over
all flesh. We're talking absolute power. Over principalities and powers. And the devil's against you.
That's what they say in it. The devil's against you and God's
for you. Hold on a minute. They say, now
you cast the deciding vote. You're the deciding factor. Hold
on a minute, Brother Mack. What does Romans 8.31 say? If God be for us? What does the Scripture say about
principalities and powers and spiritual rulers in dark places?
Spiritual wickedness. Prince of the power of the air.
Christ said, right before He went to the cross, He said, now
He's judged. Now I'm going to crush His head. Satan, that desired you, He said
to Peter. No, he can't have you. Why? I've got to hold a hand. He's
under my power. He's able. He has absolute power
over demons, over devils, over men. and women and young people. He
has absolute power over their hearts. He can turn it with or
soever he will. They said give your heart to
Jesus. I'll tell you what Ezekiel 36 says. I'll tell you what the
Lord said. I'll give them a new heart. That's the one that he says that
you bring to him. The one he's given you. He's
given you your heart. Martin used to say, what will
he want with that old heart? That old wicked heart? I'll give
them a new heart. Have absolute power over their
hearts, over their minds, over their wills. He said, you will
not come unto me. But, blessed God, He's able to
make them willing in the day of His power, isn't He? You will
not, but yes, they will when He says, You will. Here's what
the gospel says. I will. God says, I will, and
therefore you shall. The other gospel says, He can
if you will. The gospel, God says, I will
and you shall. Power. Power. And this book, you know, we're
not talking about what God can do. We're not just talking about
what Christ is able to do. Brother John, we're talking about
what he's done. This book, Hebrews, starts out by saying, listen
to this. Listen to this. He said, when
He had by Himself purged our sins. That's the way the whole
book begins. It begins like it's finished
before it started. Doesn't it? He begins this book
declaring the end from the beginning, doesn't it? Purged. Put away
sins by the sacrifice of Himself. He did it. Hebrews 9.12 says,
when He entered into the holy place, By himself, what did he
do? Having obtained eternal redemption
for us. It's done. He did it. We're not
talking about what he can do. We're talking about what he's
done. Get them, fight them. When he said it before the world
began, when he declared it, this covenant, Brother Henry, it's
done. It's got to happen in time, I
know that, but it will be done. His will will be done in heaven
and in earth. Why? He's able. over the wills of men. The wills
of men. Aren't you glad? Aren't you glad
he's able? Old Darius, that king, hollered
at Daniel in that lion's den. He said, Daniel, is your God
able? Is your God able? Yes, he is. by himself. So he's able and
he does what he's able to do. He does it. He entered in. He's able to save them to the
uttermost. Oh, my. It gets good. It gets
better. To the uttermost. We read that
in Psalm 139. David said, if I go to take the
wings of the morning, the wind, the fresh morning breeze and
get in a ship and just go as far as I can from God thinking
I'm too far off, his arm's not short. Try to hide in the darkness so
it's all light to him. No matter how high I go, no matter
how high and mighty I may think I am, He's able to bring it down.
No matter how low you get, no matter how... We say to the gutter most. We
like to say that. He's able to say to the gutter
most. No matter how low, His arm's
not short. He's able. He and He alone is
able. The vilest, the lowest, the stinkiest,
the deadest, he's able. He and he alone is able. The
greatest illustration of this to me, one of the greatest, one
of the thousand greatest, is the thief on the cross. how he's
able to say to the guttermost or uttermost or the worst, the
chief of sinners, the thief on the cross, the greatest display,
one of the greatest displays of Christ's absolute saving power
and ability to save. That fellow was a thief and a
murderer. The worst. Despicable. Hardened death row
criminal. Death row criminal. You know
those fellows, don't you? You see them? Now, he was hanging on that cross
And I'll tell you how depraved he was, how hateful and willfully
rebellious he was. He's hanging there, and even
in his dying hour about to meet God, he looks over at this man
hanging here in his pain and starts mocking him. Everybody
else is, and he gets in on it. Mocking him. Two thieves, both
of them it says, mocked the Lord Jesus Christ. Yeah, he saved
others. You can't even save yourself.
That's what he said. That's what he said. And all of a sudden, all of a sudden, He looked over
and went, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. His mouth flapping, his
tongue flapping, you know, his hate in his eyes, just something
like grit in his teeth, you know, look at you, you know. A thief
and a murderer about to meet God, about to be destroyed by
God Almighty, and that man, seemingly helpless, hanging on that cross,
looked at him, turned and looked at him, and killed him! Just killed him! Just pierced
his heart! Looked right through him. Shut
his mouth. Stuffed his mouth immediately.
Put fear in his heart. And he saw hanging on that cross,
not a helpless martyr, not a Jesus that they took, saw the Lord
God of glory, King of kings and Lord of lords. And said, Lord. He saw the one hanging there
was in absolute control of everything there. And when it pleased that Lord
hanging there to do this, he looked on that most helpless,
hopeless case ever, hardened criminal hanging on that cross,
Changed it in a moment. Changed his heart. Changed his
will. Shut his mouth. Broke his heart. New creature. Brand new creature.
Born again. And then with the Word, he said,
today, you're going to be with me in paradise. He's able to
save to the gutter most. He didn't ask that thief to do
anything to him. He didn't say, will you accept,
I'm trying to save you. Oh, come on. I'm that thief. I'm that prodigal,
that boy I was talking about. I'm Him. You're looking at Him.
John, right? John Sheasley, Jr.? He's able
to save prodigals, anybody. He's the only one that is. Dad
can't. Mom can't. He's able, if He's
willing. If He's willing. Now, that's
our will. His will. And we come like that
leper, Lord. If you will, you can. He is able to say, the chief
of sinners, to the uttermost, that word also means evermore,
everlasting life, to the uttermost parts of the earth, to the ends
of the earth, I give unto them, Christ said, eternal life and
they shall never perish. Folks argue against eternal security
of believers, don't they? Eternal security of the saints.
They argue against once saved, always saved. And I say this
in answer to that. Well, it depends on who saved
you, doesn't it? It just all depends on who saved you. Whoever
did the saving. If man saved you, then yes, you
can lose it. If the Savior saves you, you're
saved. Aren't you? I don't know who
to say. I had to tell her one time, Charles Spurgeon was walking
along the streets of London and a drunk stumbled by. He said,
Mr. Spurgeon, I know you. You know
me? He said, don't believe I do,
sir. He said, I'm one of your converts. He said, you must be. You're not God's. He is able to save the uttermost
everlastingly. Christ saves you, they are saved.
He is able. The ends of the earth. Them that
come unto God by Him. Them. Jew, Gentile, old, young,
male, female, rich, poor, educated, uneducated. Them. Come. Them. Whosoever will. I caught you, preacher. You said
it out of your own mouth. Yes, I did. I'll say it again.
Whosoever will. Whosoever will, whosoever comes to God, he's
able to say. He will say. Every single person
that comes to God, he will say. See, there. There. They've got
to come, don't they? Yes, they do. Yes, they do. They've got to come. Now, here's
my question. Why do they come? He said in John 6, he said it
twice, didn't he? No man can come unto me. Don't argue with me. John Calvin
didn't say that. Jesus Christ did. No man can
come unto me except the Father which hath sent me. Draw him. Bring him. Huh? And he said,
you know what? I am he. I am come. They might come. I am come. I'm the great shepherd. I call
my sheep. What do they do? They come. Every one of them. He walked
by the shore, didn't he? And he calls whomsoever he will.
Whosoever will, they will. Because he called them. He walked by the shore and said,
Simon, Andrew, Jane, John, he called who he will. What happened? They came. They wanted him. Zacchaeus,
come down. What did he do? He came down.
He didn't ask him, would you let me in your house? He said,
I'm coming to your house. I'm going to abide there. Like
he owned the place. He does. They come. They come. All that the Father
giveth me shall come unto me. He's able to draw them. He's
able to call them. They come. He's able to make
them willing like the demoniac. The father of that child said,
No man can tame him. Nobody can do anything with him.
I know who can. The only one. He's able. I love
that verse in Mark 3, verse 13. Oh, how I love it. It says, He
went up into a mountain, and He called up unto him whomsoever
he will, whom he would, and they came. Come unto God. Them that come
unto God by Him. Those that come unto God. Not
church. A lot of people go to church. A lot of people come
to church, come to a concert, come to a play, come to a singles
meeting, you know. And they find what they're looking
for. This is for people who come to
God. This is what He does. This is how he draws them. This
is how the Lord, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, when
He does this work of salvation, He brings sinners to God. Why? What do they need? What are they
looking for? One thing. One thing they need. Mercy. Mercy. Forgiveness of sin. That's it. And that's what they're
looking for all the days of their life. That's what they keep coming
to God for. And that's why they come by Him. Because the mercy of God is in
Christ. The good news is all in Christ. It's all about Christ. Scripture
says they'll all be taught of God. The Father draws them. And they are all taught of God,
and every man that hath heard and learned of the Father, Christ
said, cometh unto me." They come by him. They come by faith in
Christ. And that's not even of themselves.
That's the gift of God. They come in Christ, by faith
in Christ, their only righteousness. They come to a holy God. By Christ. They come realizing that they're
not righteous. I'm not righteous. They plead
Christ as their righteousness. They come to God not accepting
Him. Oh my! No, no, no. Nothing could be further from
the truth. They come believing that they're unworthy to be accepted. Hoping, praying that God will
accept them in the Beloved. In Christ. not according to their works,
but His works. They come by Him. They come by
the high priest, an intercessor. That's what the last line says,
seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them. I'm talking
back again about the high priest, aren't I? He said all these other
priests died. And you know, they're still praying
to dead saints, aren't they? Why in the world would people
pray to dead people? They're dead! Staying, I don't
want me somebody dead! I need somebody alive! Don't
you? That's what Christ said when
John saw Him, when He revealed Himself to John on the Isle of
Patmos. One of the first things He said was, I am He that liveth
and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore! Amen! He ever liveth. He lives to make
intercession for them. Who's them? The last line of
Isaiah 53, the transgressors. Them. Them that not only were
sinners, are sinners. Isn't that good news? See, our
gospel is better. Because, see, we don't quit our
sinning, no matter how much we try. We can't. We don't. But he keeps making intercession
for them. That's why Peter said, to whom
coming? We keep coming. He's able to say his mercy to
those that come to God by him for mercy to the uttermost. the gutterman, the worst, the
chief. The older we get, the more sinful we feel. Not necessarily
outwardly, certainly not outwardly. It cleans a person, you know.
But still, we feel the depravity, the corruption of our person. Like David said, my loins are
filled with a loathsome disease. We feel that worse and worse
and worse, don't we, Brother Henry? Far from feeling like
we're getting better, we feel like we're getting worse, don't
we? That's who he intercedes for. That's who we come to. Brother Henry, Christ is better.
We keep coming. And he keeps forgiving. He keeps making intercession for
us. See, our faith doesn't save us. Christ does. Faith is the
effect of salvation, not the cause. Well, I hope somebody
hears this Well, whether you hear it there, I hope somebody
hears it here. Faith is not the cause, it's the effect. It's
evidence of salvation. It's not the cause. Life comes
before faith. Not of yourself. It's a gift.
Our prayers don't save us. But it says, Whosoever shall
call on the name of the Lord. I know it says that. Well, where
did that come from? Romans 10, 13. Where did that
come from? JL 232, which goes on to say, As many as the Lord
our God shall call. We'll call. What are you trying
to say, preacher? To God be the glory. That's what
we're trying to say. The salvations of the Lord. They
call. Yes, they do. They all call.
If they don't call, they won't be saved. Whosoever shall call.
Well, who will? Those He calls. Because they
won't call unless He calls them. I know that by experience. I look mad, mean. Many say, sometimes
you look mean. I don't want to look mean. I'm
not mad at you. Just frustrating really. You've got to talk to people.
You want people to believe this. You're not able. We're not able
are we? Can't you hear this man? No, he's deaf. Can't you see
that? It's right there. Not of him
that willeth. Not of him that runneth. Can't
you see that neighbor so-and-so? No, I don't see it like that.
But he's able to give. Eyes to the blind, ears to the
deaf. Did that to you, didn't he, Brother
Henry? Died in the war of Arminian. Free willer, weren't you? Thought
you were saved and sure for heaven as if you were already there,
but you were lost as a goose. But God came to you and said, Now, who
does the saving? Whose will is it? Our prayers don't save us. The
prayers of Jesus Christ save us. He ever liveth to make intercession
for us. We are eternally saved because
he lives eternally to represent us. We are saved because there
is a man seated with God, my representative. My covenant head.
My substitute. There's a man in glory. Remember
that message by Brother Herman Moore that a man in glory. The
gates of heaven opened up for a man. And you know what? There
was a bunch of people following him. Men. All of them. And women. Because
he became a man. Holy man. He's able to save the
uttermost. than that He calls, than that
come unto God by Him. All that come by Him are saved. My, my. He's able. He's able. You know, the Lord
wrote stories in the New and Old Testament. Stories of salvation. The stories He wrote so clearly picture salvation,
man's utter helplessness to save himself. And that only God can
do the saving. Stories like Daniel in the lion's
den. Remember? I just mentioned that. Daniel, you can't talk your way,
you can't talk to a lion, talk him out of eating you. Huh? You can't step on his head. You
can't tackle a lion. Huh? Isn't that what the Lord
said? Satan like a roaring lion. Seeketh whom he knoweth to devour.
And these pinhead preachers everywhere. Oh, you step on the head of the
devil. Not knowing that they're pawns
of his. That they're under his control.
Promising liberty to people that themselves are held captive.
So Daniel couldn't talk his way out of the lion's den. How's
he going to be saved from a lion? A man from being eaten by a lion? God's going to have to do it.
It's impossible with man. And I love that story. One of
my favorites. Three men in a fiery furnace.
Hananiah and Mosheel and Azariah. more often known as Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego. They were in this fiery furnace.
Scripture says that their enemy heated it seven times, so hot
that those that threw them in were consumed by it. Threw them
in, clothes and all. How are they going to get out
of that fire? It's impossible. That story is
impossible. There's no way. that they can
save themselves. They will be consumed. Oh no. No, no, no, no, no, no. You know
why? There's a man in there with them. You know what I believe he was
doing too? I believe he was covering them. He had a robe covering
them that the fires of hell couldn't get through. While he himself took the heat
flame. That's Jesus Christ. God wrote
that and they came out without even the smell of smoke on them. With not a blemish on them. Not
a smudge. Not even a black smudge. You know what Jude 24 says? He's
able to keep us from falling. Now unto Him. I'm going to end
this with this. Now unto Him. That's what it's
all about. Unto Him that is able. Able to
save to the uttermost. Able to call. Able to bring.
Achieve the worst. Able to save. That's right. Power
of the ability. Now unto Him that's able to keep
us from falling. We can't save ourselves. We can't keep ourselves from
falling. He's the one that picks us up out of the dung heap, set
us among princes. What's going to keep us from
going back to the dung heap? We're not able. He's able. Unto Him who is able to present
us faultless, without a smudge, without even a smell of sin on
us, before His presence and glory. Now unto Him be glory and honor
forever. Let's turn to hymn 201.