in the Gospel of Mark, chapter
12, and also recorded in Matthew's Gospel, chapter 22, the Lord
Jesus Christ was speaking to some religious leaders called
scribes and Pharisees. Scribes and Pharisees. These
were men who had spent most of their lives in religion, studying
the Bible. men who could perhaps quote long
portions of God's Word, who knew the letter of the law. And the Lord says to them in
verse 24 of Mark's Gospel and in verse 29 of Matthew chapter
12, He said, Do ye not therefore err because ye know not the Scriptures,
neither the power of God? He said in Matthew's Gospel,
you do err not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God. These men, as I said, these Pharisees,
these scribes were men who could perhaps quote lengthy portions
of God's Word. men who impressed and even intimidated
the average person with their piety, with their zeal, and their
supposed knowledge of the Scriptures, which the average person did
not know. And yet the Lord Jesus Christ,
after hearing them speak to him and ask him questions, said,
You do err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God. The Lord
told these men, you're wrong about all you believe because
you don't know God's Word and you don't know God. And without doubt, the source
of all error, then and now, the source of all error, all ignorance,
all false doctrine, all false notions about God, about man,
about salvation, the source of all superstition, he is not knowing
God's Word, the truth, and not knowing God. Paul, the Apostle,
was once one of these Pharisees. He was well versed in Scripture.
He was zealous of the law, he said, zealous of the law. He
was outwardly moral, he said, blameless. and pious, very devout,
devoted, zealous, traveling all over to spread his religion. And yet later he said that he
was ignorant of God's work and in unbelief. Later he said when
the commandment, when God's word came to him, truly came to him,
to his understanding, to his mind, to his heart, when God
sent the word straight to old Saul's proud, pharisaical heart,
he said, I died. It killed me. All his morality
died. All of his knowledge died, useless. He realized then and there he
knew nothing of Scripture at all. He realized he didn't know
God at all. And Saul was out trying to fight
against that way. You know, that way that people
believe, that few believe, not everyone, but just a few believe,
this way, all this belief about a sovereign king, a sovereign
Christ, one whom Saul thought to be just Jesus. This one that
Saul thought was just a man named Jesus who was in men's hands
to do with as they pleased. One day, in the Lord Jesus Christ's
good time, in His will and His purpose, He came down upon this
proud man's name Saul. Put him in the dust. He apprehended
him. The Lord of Lords, King of Kings
laid hold on this proud, religious, but lost man. Put him in the
dust. Put his face in the dust and
revealed his true, sovereign, all-powerful self to this man
who was fighting against him. And Saul was made to ask, who
are you? He didn't know who the Lord was.
Said he believed Him. Said he knew God. Did all he
did in the name of God. Didn't know God. Who are you,
Lord? The Lord said, I am Jesus. That's right. The one whom you
think is in your hands to do it, you now realize. Right then
and there, Saul who was changed to Paul, knew right then and
there the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ. He knew right then and there
this One in whose hands His breath was. He knew right then and there
that now He was in the hands of this Sovereign Lord who was
able to kill Him or make Him alive, able to save Him or damage
It is all according to his divine prerogative and will and purpose,
not Saul's, but the Lord's. He knew now that he was in the
Lord's hands to do with according to his free and sovereign will,
not vice versa. He realized then and there, Saul
did, that he had no will at all, that his life was subject to
the will of this sovereign Lord who worketh all things according
to his will. Yes, many today do err still,
not knowing the Scriptures nor the omniscience that is the absolute
power, absolute power of God. Or simply put, they do not know
that God is God and man is not. The only one who is God Only
one whose will is free, the only one who does as he will, with
whom he will, because he will. Only one can't be both. Only
one who reigns and rules and controls can't be both. Yes,
God is God. They do err not knowing the power,
the absolute power of God Almighty, that God is God. What does it
mean to not know the Scriptures? Though they can quote it, Like
these Pharisees, there are many today perhaps who may be able
to quote it, know the letter, the law, yet don't know it. The
Lord said this to some of those Pharisees. He said, you search
the Scripture. He granted them that they do
search the Scripture. They do read. They do study. They do search the Scripture. Over in the book of Job it says,
can a man by searching find out God unto perfection? No. God
must reveal himself. Can't by searching find out God?
God is spirit. We are flesh. He said in 1 Corinthians
2, What man knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of man
revealing? Even so, the things of God knoweth
no man but the Spirit of God. They are spiritually discerned,
revealed. God hath revealed them unto us
by His Spirit, Scripture said. The Lord said, You do search
the Scriptures, and in them you think you have life. Speaking
of these moral, religious fellows, you think you have life. You
think the law, he said, you think the law was written to tell us
how to live, to tell you how to live. Now listen carefully,
people. Though the law, though God's
Word does tell us how to live, that's not why it was written.
That is not its purpose. You do err in not knowing the
Scripture. Christ said, they are they which testify of me.
They, talking about the law, talking about the Old Testament,
Scripture. They are they which testify of me, Christ said. The
law was written, Paul later wrote, as a schoolmaster to bring his
people to Christ. The word was written, Scripture
says, Christ says, to tell us of him who is life. Not to tell
us how to live, but to tell us of the one who came to give life. I am come that they might have
life, Christ said, not to tell them how to live, not how to
attain life, but to give life. The word quickens, the word is
quick, that means life giving, the seed of God, in the power
of God, in the hand of God, according to the will of God, not in our
hands, His hands. The word, the law of God, not
written to tell us how to be holy and live a good life, Though
it does, that is not the purpose of it. That is not why it was
written, the word, the law, not written to tell us how to be
holy, how to be righteous in order to go to heaven. No, no,
no. Paul later wrote, by the law is the knowledge of sin.
He said sin by the law tells us how exceedingly sinful we
are. Paul said, I would not have known
sin, but by the law and the commandment, he said, which was ordained to
life, I found to be unto death. Do you understand what that means,
people? Anybody? Romans 7? Oh, preacher, thou
who teachest others the law, do you know what the law says? Do you know what Romans 10 verse
4 says? Do you know any verses in Romans
chapter 10 besides verse 13? Do you know what Romans 10 verse
4, it talks about the end of the law? The end of the law? Romans 10 verse 4 says, Christ
is the end of the law for righteousness. Go and learn what that means.
The Scriptures, Christ said, in the volume of the book it
is written of me. Lo, I come to do thy will, O
God. In the volume of the book, from
Genesis to Malachi, it is written of me. I come to do thy will."
All the Old Testament, every jot and tittle, every type, picture,
symbol, story, person, place, and thing testifies, prophesies,
somebody's coming to do what? Show us how to live? No! To live
to be life, to fulfill God's law for His people, to bring
in an everlasting righteousness for them, to take their sin upon
Him and give them His holiness, to save God's people from their
sins. Not to try to save, not to show
them how to attain it, but to give it. I am come that they
might have life, Christ said. Because I live, He said, they
shall live also. He didn't come to try, He came
to do something. And He did it, hanging on the
cross, His last words with a loud voice were, It's finished! What? The will, the purpose, the eternal will and predestined
will and purpose of God to save His people from their sins by
Jesus Christ. He didn't come to try, He came
to do it. I said, I came to do thy will,
O God. God doesn't try to do anything.
You see, you do err not knowing the Scriptures, why it was written,
of whom it was written, the purpose of it, the end, the fulfillment
of it, nor the power of God. You see, God doesn't try to do
anything. God doesn't need anybody. He's
God. God is God, doing according to
His will in heaven and earth. This is the power of God. Most
are ignorant of arguing. People argue things like this.
Well, how are we going to get people in if we don't do this
or don't do that? Well, people, if you and I are
going to do it, if it's up to us to get them in, then that's
how we'll do it. We'll try all sorts of tactics
and gimmicks and me. But now, hold on. Salvation is
of the Lord. God is God. God said, preach. He said to old Ezekiel, can these
bones live? Why, Lord, no, they can't live.
They're dead bones. The Lord said, Preach, Ezekiel,
and just watch me move. Preach. Christ said, If I be
lifted up, if I'm just declared, I will draw all men unto myself.
He said, Preach. Thus saith the Lord. Don't beg,
don't plead, don't bribe, don't try to Don't invite them. Declare who I am. He said, I
will work. I will draw. I have chosen. I have predestined. I will call.
I will justify. I will glorify. I will work.
Isaiah 43, 13 says, God said, I will work and who shall let
it? Who shall prevent it? Oh yes,
men do err not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God, the God
who is God. May he be pleased. to reveal
Himself to you today. It's up to Him. Amen.