Immortal, invisible. only why God only. Why that is a great him of worship
isn't it. Our sister. Violet birds. Introduce that him to me I've
never sung it before and. We were taking requests one.
Wednesday night she requested that I was leading the singing
didn't know the song. You're glad I learned it. God
only wise. Here in 1 Corinthians, the Lord
mentions wisdom, or what it means to be wise or unwise, a dozen
times, twelve times in fourteen verses. Wisdom is mentioned. Read verses twenty and twenty-one
with me again. Where is the wise? Where is the
scribe? one who purported to know the
Word. Where is the disputer, arguer,
gainsayer, debater of this world? Hath not God made foolish the
wisdom of this world? For after that, in the wisdom
of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. It pleased God in his
wisdom. It pleased him by the foolishness
of preaching. It saved them that believed in
that preaching. Wisdom, according to Webster's
Dictionary, wisdom is knowledge with the capacity or ability
to make good use of it. OK, knowledge, the ability to
make good use of it. Someone once said this in a very
clear way, knowledge is the horse, like a horse, and wisdom is the
rider. It doesn't matter how big and
strong and beautiful a horse it is, if you can't ride him,
it's no good to you. But wisdom here is knowledge
with the ability to make good use of it, have good discernment,
judgment, understanding, discretion, and put it to use, make good
judgments, dealings, and so forth. So he says, where is the wise?
He looks around at the world he lived in. And I look around
at our world and I say, where is the wise, truly wise person? Has not God, he said, made foolish, revealed the utter ignorance
of the so-called wisdom of this world? And we're going to see
that in a moment, if you stay with me, if the Lord will keep
you. Over a row of Romans chapter
one a chapter you might as well turn there I have. Romans chapter
one a chapter that we look at or at least quote all the time. I say it again. Romans one is
as clear a description of now. Of our generation. The condition
it's in and why. As of any generation ever. Romans
one look at verses nineteen through twenty two but they that which
may be known of God and he was talking about creation verse
eighteen and the scriptures they hold the truth of Bible or evil
purposes that which may be known of God is manifest in them it's
revealed to them God it showed it to them invisible things of
him. From the creation of the world
are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made that
these things reveal themselves don't they. That God is even
his eternal power and God had they are without excuse because
when they knew God that is these things clearly reveal a wise
creator they glorified him not as God as the creator. Owner
ruler neither were thankful. creator, one who makes all things,
and one who provides all things. And it's only right to give him
thanks in it, to acknowledge him. Read on. But it became vain
in their imagination, their thoughts. Their foolish heart was darkened. Read on. Professing themselves
to be wise, they became fools. utter and
complete fools. In verse twenty-eight there of
Romans one says, they did not like to retain God in their knowledge. They have a lot of knowledge,
a lot of things they learn, ever learning, Paul said in one place,
but never coming to a knowledge of the truth. Ever learning. But God is not in all of their
knowledge, they're not interested. So God, what does it say? What
does it say in verse twenty-eight? Gave them over to a reprobate
mind. If you have a margin, the reference
is, the meaning of reprobate is a mind void of judgment, or
as we would say, don't have good sense. Or in plainer language, don't
have a clue. I don't care how wise they seem
to be and this is what Paul is saying go back to our text and
first Corinthians one where is the why I don't see anybody why. In this world. Look at. I'm dealing with religion and
politics. But look at the best that our country has to offer
is running for the highest office in this look at. It's incredible, isn't it? And we will be faced with choosing
the lesser of all the evil ones, honestly. Well, where is the wise, he said,
in this world? Hath not God made foolish the
so-called wisdom of this world? He says they didn't like to retain
God in their knowledge. Imagine that. You imagine that. God, Scripture says, in whose
hands our breath is in all our ways. Yet, man, God who removes
the breath and you're gone. And yet nobody wants to think
about it. God, Scripture says, in whom
we live and move and have our being, who directs our steps,
our path, and everything about us. sins all thing I want to
think about it. That's utter foolishness and
God who scripture says is light. You don't know God you're darkness.
God who scripture says is wisdom Christ who is wisdom that means
if you don't know Christ I don't care what you know you're a fool
right. Hath not God made foolish the
wisdom of this world? According to God's Word in Psalm
14 and Isaiah 29, he quotes that there. It says, God looked down
from heaven. Now, this is a figure of speech,
you know. God speaks often in a language that us poor preachers
can understand. You know that, don't you? God
looked down from heaven. God in whose hands we are and
we live and move and have our being as a figure of speech.
It says listen to Psalm fourteen the fool had said a fool another
fool has said no God there is no God. And God says he looked
down from heaven upon the children of men to see if there were any
that did understand. Understand what. anything. The chief thing being that God
is. And that we're life is so vain
as Solomon wrote books on the study of vanity of vanity and
we live a few short years and then we're dead then what wow
only a fool would not. Stop and consider. Going to a
long home we're going somewhere we're not going to come back Did God look down, see if there
were any that seek God? He says, they're all gone aside. He goes on to say, these workers
of iniquity have no knowledge, none. And he quotes Isaiah 29
here in verse 19. He says, I will destroy the wisdom
of the wise, I'll bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Hath not God made foolish the
wisdom of this world? Let's just look at it just real
briefly, and then we're going to go look at true wisdom, okay? Christ, the power of God and
the wisdom of God. Hath not God made foolish the
wisdom of this world? Science, Paul of the Scriptures
calls it falsely so-called, doesn't it? The study of science, falsely
so-called, science means, the word means study of truth. Who is truth? What is truth? Well, science and medicine, these
are two fields of wisdom. The supposedly wisest men and
women are in these fields, aren't they? Just a few hundred years
ago, everybody thought this world was flat. The wisest man on earth,
and everybody believed it. So-and-so says, and he went to
school and he studied under the greatest men, and he says it's
flat. Oh, OK. I believe you. When thirty five hundred years
ago. God Almighty wrote in Isaiah
forty twenty two. That God sits on the circle. Of the earth. Had anybody been reading a Bible. They would have clearly saying. It's round. Had they just looked
up in the sky and they would see a round moon, a round sun, right? Or any mariner knows, any sailor
knows, as you watch a ship go over the horizon, it sinks, it
goes down. What's that mean? It's going over a hill. If something's flat, Ron, you
look at it, it rises, doesn't it? The horizon. If it's flat,
you go on a road out there in Kansas or wherever, and you look
at those roads that stretch for miles, they look like they're
going up, don't they? They're flat. If something's
round, ships on the horizon go down until you don't see their
mast anymore. other food is flat though experts
wise men say. That's just six hundred years
ago. Thirty five hundred years ago. Well God said it's right
well medicine. And then we're making foolish
the wisdom of this work has not God. He said didn't we read their
Romans one that invisible that clearly saying that which may
be known of them. medicine just a few hundred years
ago they say don't wash whatever you do. You'll get sick. You'll get these
germs or whatever if you wash you because your body's got this
protective. Honestly don't wash your wash
away the protective covering. The finest doctors and everybody
believes it. Shut all the windows. Don't breathe
any of that air. Don't go outside in the sunlight.
And what we're going to do to make you well if you get sick
is take all the blood out of you. We're going to bleed you to death.
That's a good picture of religion, isn't it? We're going to take
all the blood out of it. That's what's wrong with religion,
isn't it? No light, hadn't been washed, and no blood. That's medicine. Well, thousands
of years later, science, now we've learned better, haven't
we? Now we're wise, aren't we? Thousands of years later, our
scientists are now, they're above believing the world is flat.
Now what the wise men that we paid millions and billions of
dollars to do. Now they're looking at black
holes in space. Looking for the mysteries of
the universe in a black hole. Where is the why? You see what
he said? Where is the why? Medicine can't
cure the common cold. Can't even prevent it. Can't
even prevent it. The simplest thing of all. And
that's by design. God Almighty is showing man,
you're a totally helpless creature. Thank God for the strides that
man has made by his grace. Thank God for the technology
and so forth. But it hasn't made him any wiser,
has it? He's an utter fool. An utter
fool. Did you hear that? Hath not God
made foolish the wisdom of this world? He'll take these so-called
wise men and women and have them standing around looking at a
black hole. He'll take his people, Patrick,
and open their eyes, shed light on everything, not looking at
a black hole, looking in the face of a person, God himself. Man reveals his ignorance in
religion more than anywhere else. And this is why, he said, that
man looks in a black hole. Religion, man's utter ignorance
and foolishness, nowhere is more evident than religion. Thousands
of years later, men and women the world over, right now as
I speak, even in modern America, are still bowing down before
idols, and shrines and wearing little good luck charms and trinkets
and so forth. And going to men. Going before
just men and confessing their sins and asking these men to
do something for them with God. How ignorant can you be? Hath not God made foolish? Man's
not wise. Verse 21, he says, But after
in the wisdom of God, God in his wisdom, the world by wisdom
knew not God. The world by wisdom, by searching
the heavens. It says that in the book of Job.
Can man by searching find out God? No. No, he can't. By searching, you can't even
sit on a hill all day long with your legs crossed and your eyes
crossed. They used to call it navel gazing,
you know. Navel gazing, all you'll find
is lint. And all you'll get is aching
legs and see double with your eyes crossed. You won't find
God. And a man by searching oneself.
OK, you look deep within yourself then. Look deep within yourself. You do some soul searching. What
are you going to find if you do soul searching? You're going
to look, what you're doing is looking into a black hole. You can't find God that way.
What about ask me and you ask me and that's the thing to go
to the wisest man who studied in monasteries and so forth.
Go to them and ask them about God. I don't know. They're blind
leaders of the blind. Our Lord, I love this story,
the Lord in Luke chapter 10 and Matthew's gospel. He was he said
he just stopped one time and looked toward heaven, says he
rejoiced in spirit. He rejoiced. I think that means
he laughed out loud. He rejoiced in spirit. He said,
I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast
hid these things from the wise and the prudent. He hid them all and revealed
them unto the saints. Aren't you? Aren't you glad?
Don't you rejoice? God and his wisdom, the world
by wisdom, knew not God. Aren't you glad that it's not
by wisdom? If it if it was, if only the real, real intelligent
and smart people could find out God, I wouldn't know him, would
you? But God. reveals himself. He must reveal it. Chapter 2
of 1 Corinthians, we're going to look at that. He says, what
man knows the things of a man save the spirit of that man?
You don't know what I'm thinking, let alone God. You don't know
what I'm thinking until I tell you. What about God? Or you ask Brother Henry what
I'm thinking. He doesn't know either. I'm going to have to tell you.
Well, what about God? He must reveal himself. And here's the way that God is
pleased to reveal himself. Verse 21 says, It pleased God
by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe, that
is, those whom God Almighty gives this precious gift of faith,
repentance and faith, through this means of preaching, believing
the message preached. This is the means that God Almighty,
what I'm doing right now, and others are doing right now, this
is the means that God Almighty has always used to reveal himself, to give life. It's amazing, really. Also, we
have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of
the power that it might be clearly seen that this is of God. That's
to give life. Can these bones live, Ezekiel?
Well, speak to them. Preach to dead bones? That's
right. What the world calls foolishness,
and when he says the foolishness of preaching, I'm not a fool. I'm not a fool. What I'm doing
this morning is not a bunch of foolishness. There are men who
are utter fools. You see them, you hear them.
They're utter fools, aren't they? And what they're saying is a
pack of foolishness. What they're doing all over the land in the
name of God is utter foolishness and make God out to be less than
a man. They make the God in man's hands. What kind of foolishness
is that anyway? Well, but I'm not a fool. And
what I'm doing this morning is not foolishness. And I'm not
preaching a message of foolishness. And I'm not acting like a fool.
And you'll never come here, by God's grace, and see a bunch
of foolishness going on. People wallowing around and talking
like blooming idiots. all of this stuff and all these
statues and all that foolishness by God's grace. But all you'll
do, all you'll hear is this right here, is preaching, preaching. And the world calls this foolishness.
That's why it says the foolishness of preaching. It's not foolishness. God doesn't use foolishness.
But this is what the world calls foolishness. It goes on to say
the foolishness of God, that means what God is, what God uses, this preaching,
the world calls foolishness, and weakness, what the world
calls weakness. Well, this is the means that
God Almighty, now listen, that God Almighty uses, listen carefully
now, it's not preaching, that is the act of preaching itself,
or the preacher. You understand that? Oh, I'm
coming to understand that more and more all the time. It's not
by might or by power that is eloquence, charisma, persuasiveness,
personality, ability, skill, having a way with people, sway
with people, and all of that and so forth. Being a good speaker,
a good organizer, That's not it. Not the manner. It's not
the man. Not the man. Apparently, Paul
the Apostle had what some of the old writers called a terrible
eye condition, weak eyes, probably very nearsighted, and couldn't
see. They didn't have spectacles back
then. And other people had to write
epistles for him here. He couldn't see hardly. They
said his bodily presence is weak. Weak. And contemptible. And others said, the wise people
of the world said his speech is a vain babbler. He doesn't
talk with eloquent words and so forth. Paul said, I'm not
going to do that. I'm not going to do that. It's not the preaching or the
preacher. But it's the word. That's great. This is the means that God is
used but it's not the means that saves. It's the word. It's the word. The word of God
is the power of God. You heard me quoted on the radio
this morning if you listen. Hebrews four twelve the word
of God is quick. and powerful and sharper than
a two-edged sword. The Word of God. He upholds all
things by the Word of His power. Peter said, being born again,
born from above, given life from above by the Word of God. Not of corruptible seed, but
of incorruptible. The Word of God. And he said,
more particularly, this is the Word. It's not just preaching
the Bible. A lot of people say that. Peter went on to say, this is
the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. Oh, now
we're getting somewhere, aren't we? It pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching. Preaching what? The gospel. To
save them that believe. Well, what is the gospel? And once again this is the means
that God Almighty uses it's not gospel singing. No one has ever
been saved in the history of the world by gospel singing. No sir. Find me one in scripture. Find me one example and I'll
say I'm sorry. No sir. It pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching, preaching to save them that believe. And I've given
you many reasons before in God's wisdom why he chose this means. Number one, you have to sit down
and shut up to hear it. It's not everybody giving their
two cents. That's about all our opinion
and all is worth. And nobody if you pitched in
everybody and here's two cents for how much would you have three
dollars and forty eight cents I guess. But the preacher you have to
sit down with shut up it's humbling. That's it listen to a man somebody
may be younger than you somebody less education than you may be
less gifted at speaking than you. It is wise, the wisdom of God,
because this and this don't work at the same time. When one is open, the other will
shut. That's right. And faith cometh by what? Hearing. And God Almighty sends a man,
and he comes with the Word of God, carefully prepared, prayerfully
prepared. Word from God and the word of
God many arrows shooting many arrows. And I guarantee you those
of you who know the truth believe. You have come with questions
and amazingly miraculously. You didn't have to ask any of
them they were all answered for you. It's it's discerner of the thoughts
and intentions of the word of God. Preaching and. Because sheep are an animal that
needs to graze. He brings them together and makes
them lie down in these green pastures of the Word, beside
the still waters, and they congregate and feed off of the Word and
each other, and they need each other. And from that day forward,
they will always need to hear this preaching and to have this
fellowship of the saint, God and his wisdom. You see, heaven
is a congregation. of sheep. And this is where he
gathers them. He gathers his elect under the
sound of the preaching. And there are many, many other
reasons for this, the means that God has used, but he says the
preaching of the cross in verse seventeen and eighteen. The gospel
is the preaching of the cross. We used the whole message two instances
on that day. That was the whole message. What
is preaching of the cross? Two instances ago. Well, here
it is again. He says in verse 23, we preach
Christ crucified. See, we don't hold up blocks
of wood. We don't glory and we don't wear
them. We don't have them anywhere here. That's a I know that's a great
many of me in it. When Paul said I glory in the
cross of pride he's not talking about. A block of wood worship
in an image symbol. Beggarly no. He's talking about
the one who hung there and what he did. Christ crucified. The cross of Christ, the gospel
is Christ and him crucified. In chapter two, verse two, he
says, I'm determined, I'm determined not to know anything among you.
Everybody's taken up with a lot of things, but he said, this
is the one thing, Christ and him crucified. Christ crucified,
a man hanging on a cross, a man who was more than a man.
Hanging on a crotch, why was he hanging on a crotch? I read
the paper, Franklin News Post, and I don't know who writes their
religious things for them on the religious page in the middle
there. It's just a generic religious
article, you know. Do you read it? You read it,
some of you do, don't you? I don't know who writes that,
but whoever wrote it for Christmastime, They said that Jesus came to
bring in this new love and so forth. And they quoted what our
Lord said. He did quote that our Lord said,
I am come to bear witness of the truth for this cause. He
said, came I into the world to bear witness. That's what the
Lord said before Pilate. But that's not all he said about
why he came. Did. You remember what our Lord said
one time. What shall I say father. Save me from this hour. For this
hour for this call. Came. Into the world what. Lord. What I want what purpose
what is your real purpose for coming here and come here to
hang on. a cross. I am come, I am made flesh, and
to dwell among you, to walk a road that ends up with me hanging
on a tree at the hands of God Almighty, dead. Christ crucified. That's the
sum and the substance of the gospel, isn't it? Christ crucified,
that he was made sin, he was a substitute, a bloody sacrifice
for sin, to pay sin's penalty. that an angry God, a holy God,
and an angry God said, the soul that sinneth must surely die. So scripture says God made his
soul an offering for sin. It pleased God, the Lord, to
bruise him, to kill, to slay, to shed the blood of his own
son. You understand. Most of you understand
that. But the world. I challenge you to listen carefully,
do you hear anybody saying those very things today in religion? That a holy God, an angry God,
and offended God. Just God who will by no means
clear the guilty demands blood. And the guilty soul will die
for it and forever be punished. Unless. Somebody is your substitute.
Do you ever hear anybody say those things? Do you ever hear
words like mercy? The need, the most desperate
need of mankind, mercy. That means you're guilty. Grace,
gift, handout, a beggar. Propitiation. Propitiate, make
friendly, give a covering. Oh, the civilized world says
that's foolishness. Don't they? They say that's foolishness. And the reason being is right
here, this pulpit, not this one, but all over the land, pulpits.
They have said so long now, God is not like that. And since it
says that so clearly in this book, we'll make our own version
of it. It's too clear in this book,
so what we'll do is make all sorts of translations, you know,
take a pen knife and cut out what we don't like. And then
we'll have our own Bible that doesn't mention blood or no Jenner. Right. Until you have to say,
like Isaac of old, who was walking up that mountain with his father
to worship, and he said, Father, here's the wood and here's the
fire. Where's the lamb? You can't go to God without a
bloody lamb. God won't be worshiped, won't
speak to you, have anything to do, won't accept you, except
through the blood of a sacrifice, a bloody sacrifice. Where's the
lamb? Oh, God's people have a lamb,
don't they? They call it foolish, and they say, God is not like
that. God is only love. And millions of people, though
they wear this little emblem around their neck and in their
ears, hath not God made foolish? They wear this cross in their
ears, and the most vile, wicked people wear it around their necks.
It's just a good luck charm. around their neck. What is that
cross? It's an emblem of a man who hung there suffering the
wrath and judgment of God Almighty. God killed him, butchered him. Oh, that's a bunch of old barbaric,
that's foolishness. No, that's the gospel. Isn't it? Well, to the Greek, he said,
read on, I've got to hurry, Jews require a sign, verse twenty-two. Jews require a sign. Greeks seek
after wisdom. Jews represent religious people.
They want a sign. Show us a sign from God. Well,
last Sunday, didn't we see the greatest sign of all? Isaiah
seven. What verse? Fourteen. Behold a virgin. shall concede. I'll show you
a sign, God said, a virgin shall concede. Virgin born son, God made flesh. They seek a sign, though, still
seek a sign. Religion still seeks signs, miracles,
wonders, visions, tongues, and so forth. Our Lord said they're
evil. And evil, the greatest sign of all, the greatest thing
of all, which angels desire to look into, damn it. Angels desire to look into. Christ
made flesh. And yet, men and women are all
taken up with, well, if only we could talk like blooming idiots. Barbara, hath not God made foolish
the wisdom of this world? I got the spirit, blah, blah,
blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. What you got is an evil
spirit, you fool. But God Almighty revealing His Son. The glory
of God, the wisdom to his people. Greeks seek wisdom. Greeks, we want philosophy. Give
us a wise story. Give us something deep. It doesn't say that in him are hid
all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Something wise. If you'll read Proverbs 8, you'll
read something wise. Now, don't you rejoice that the
wise and the prudent so-called can read Proverbs 8 and go away
just as foolish and ignorant? And you read that, and who do
you see? Huh? You know who that's talking about.
The Jews, it's a stumbling block. Christ crucified, the cross of
Christ is a stumbling block to religious people, the Jews. The
Jews said, listen, the Jews said, When Christ came and they saw
him finally hung on a cross the Jews said we thought this couldn't
be the Christ. This couldn't be the Christ the
Messiah. We thought that he was going to come and set up a kingdom
you know and sit on the throne there in Jerusalem and we're
all going to reign with him since we're such special people you
know. And we're all good Jews, and
here he comes, our king, and he's going to sit on the throne.
We're going to reign with him. He's going to kill all these infidels,
and there's our king. But this man's hanging on a cross.
He's dead. John, that's where he ascended
his throne, wasn't it? That's where he led captivity.
That's where God put all things under his feet. You see that
the world doesn't see they still say modern Christianity still
says we think Jesus is coming to Jerusalem and set up a worldly
kingdom. But he said if they'd been listening
he said my kingdom is not of this world if it was we were
we would fight. He said, The kingdom of God comes
not with observation here or there. He said, It's standing
in front of you. And even the disciples said,
Show us the Father, show us the sign, show us this. He said,
I am that I am. Want a sign? Here I am. Want a sign? Want a miracle?
Want a wonder? Let's look at the I am. Christ. Crucified, though, it says the
Greeks think it's foolishness, a bloody sacrifice, an angry
God. How foolish. Because man, that's not the way
God is. God is love and man is good.
Man is wise. Man is evolving upward. Man is
evolving upward. Man's a little God is what he
is. He just needs educating. Is that right? He's more wicked
than ever. were not God to destroy him personally
man would destroy himself even man recognizes we're going to
destroy ourselves is something that happened. Why? Because we're
fools. We're not to call him upward.
Man started out upright. Scripture says. He didn't start
out as a monkey. He became one. He started out
upright. Doesn't Scripture say that? God
created man upright, but now he's crawling on all fours. That's
not God. But God. But God. Verse 24, unto them
which are called. They're called. How's God called? Right here. I don't believe that. OK. Stay
in darkness. But under them which are called. Bound to give thanks to God for
you brethren to love of the Lord. Aren't we? Thanks to God, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you. God's elect. I don't believe
that. OK. God's people do. I've chosen
you through sanctification of spirit and belief of the truth
whereunto he called you by our gospel. What is it? Here's a
man hanging on a tree. Look and be saved. All the ends
of the earth. He's God. There is none else. Neither is there any name. under
heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved, that at the
name of Jesus Christ, and him crucified, whoever looks is saved
forever." Christ, the call, Christ, the power of God, and I quit,
and the wisdom of God. And my, my, this deserves a whole
message by itself, doesn't it? Christ, the power of God. and
the wisdom of God. He goes on to say, and I will,
Winston and I will look at this more in depth, but he says the
foolishness of God, what God you Yeah, it's old, all right. It's
old fashioned, all right. It's as old as God. He said that,
didn't he? Search and seek out the old paths,
wherein is a good way, and you'll find rest. Old path. Way. Old way. Yeah, you understand
exactly what I say that, when I quote that. Christ said, I'm
the way. Old, ever with him from the old. And they call it weakness. It's only for the weak and the
ignorant. That's right. That's exactly right. But here's the power of God,
he says. He's able to save to the uttermost
man has tried for thousands of years to educate man upward,
govern him, keep him from. Whatever the changing and he
can't do it. What God does in one message, well, a combination
of several, but what God Almighty can and does do through this
right here. What God accomplishes through
a man's foot, that's no good. It's the power of God. Man spends billions and billions
and billions of dollars on psychiatry, self-help programs, seminars,
sending in all your money, and you'll have rest and peace. No,
you won't. No, you won't. But God says,
come, buy something without money, without price, and you don't
have to pay a man. Able to save the other most,
able to break the hardest heart, the most obstinate will. Able
to bend the unbendable knee. That's right. I've talked to
people who I'm blue in the face. I've given my best arguments.
And it doesn't work. Only to see God Almighty, unbeknownst
to me, use one word. that just break their heart and
mind. The strongest will bring it into
subjection, change the most obstinate mind, give lasting peace that
passes understanding, joy, turn lions into lambs, devils into
saints, strong men into weak babies, and weak babies into
strong men. That's wisdom. That's power.
Let me close with this illustration. Some of you read that story about
old John Warburton. John Warburton, a sinner saved
by God's grace whom the Lord later made a preacher. Well,
he lived back during the time of William Gadsby, the man who
compiled that hymn book in front of you, Gadsby's Hymn. Brother
Gadsby was a preacher himself. Apparently he wasn't a gifted
speaker, just a plain ordinary preacher. But anyway, story has
it, Brother Warburton tells the story, that when he was a young
man thinking he knew everything, he and some of his friends, and
there wasn't much entertainment back then except to go hear the
preacher or go to some play or whatever. And when preacher came,
everybody went traveling preacher, Brother Gadsby came to preach.
And it says Brother Warburton tells the story of he and his
friends went to make fun of him. He and some of his rowdy friends
got together and they said, we're going to go and poke fun, we're
going to bring this preacher down, we're going to stop him
and mock him and bring him down to nothing. Because he's just
an ignorant fellow. He says they went there and they
sat. Brother Warburton sat there.
That young man, that young agnostic man sat there and he said, I'll
listen to him a little bit. And he was writing this story
in his biography. And he admitted, he said, when
I heard Mr. Gadsby speak and open his mouth,
he said, I laughed. I thought he was so plain, so
homely. So ignorant. But he kept listening. And he kept listening. And God
broke his heart. He went in there, Barbara, to
make fun of this man, to bring this man down, and God used that
plain man preaching that message to bring him down. and made him
a preacher. Made him a preacher, like they
said of Paul, like Paul said of himself. Here's what men hear,
that he who once persecuted and despised now preaches the faith. Who can do that but God? That was me. That was me. I remember
telling one of my rowdy friends that everything my pastor preached
for years is that I could disprove it. You imagine that. Now, here I am. And no doubt, some young buck
said that about me. May God have mercy upon him.
And if God's pleased, Brenda, he'll bring that young buck and
set him down and break his proud heart. And he'll never be the same.
That's the power of God. All right, Brother Gabe, you
come sing a closing hymn.