Now We Believe

Q: What does the Bible say about belief in Jesus Christ?

Belief in Jesus Christ involves more than acknowledging His existence; it requires a personal faith that involves casting oneself upon Him. The Bible distinguishes between mere belief in the historical facts about Jesus and a deeper, saving belief that involves trust and reliance upon Him. For instance, James 2:19 points out that even demons believe in God and tremble, yet this belief does not save them. True belief is described in Romans 10:10 as a heart-level acknowledgment that leads to salvation. It is about casting one's soul onto Christ and trusting in Him for forgiveness, as seen in the personal encounters with Jesus in the Gospels. It's this reliance on Christ that, according to John 4:39-42, moves one from 'believing in' to 'believing on' Him, which is essential for salvation.

Q: Why is it important for Christians to have personal faith?

Personal faith in Christ is essential for salvation and spiritual transformation, as it signifies a relationship with Him rather than mere intellectual assent. Having a personal faith in Christ is fundamental to the Christian experience because it represents a genuine relationship with Him. As Paul Mahan pointed out in the sermon, real salvation is not about having knowledge of Christ or the doctrines of grace; it's about knowing Him personally and experiencing His transformative power in one's life. In John 4, the Samaritans affirmed their faith not just because of the woman's testimony but because they heard Christ for themselves, emphatically stating, 'Now we believe' (John 4:42). This highlights that personal faith leads individuals into a transformative relationship, marked by an eagerness to seek and abide with Him, which is vital for spiritual growth and assurance of salvation.

Q: How do we know that God's grace is sovereign?

God's sovereignty in grace is evident in Scripture, where He chooses who to save, influencing their hearts to believe. The sovereignty of God's grace is deeply rooted in Scripture, illustrating that salvation is entirely God's work. Ephesians 1:4-5 indicates that our election to salvation precedes even our faith, affirming that it is God who initiates and enables belief in us. Through passages like Romans 8:28-30, we see the divine orchestration of salvation, where God predestines, calls, justifies, and glorifies His chosen ones, ensuring that His grace is not contingent upon human effort. This perspective aligns with the Five Points of Dordrecht (TULIP), particularly the 'Unconditional Election' aspect, reminding us that our salvation is a result of God's sovereign grace, not human choice or merit.

Q: Why should Christians seek to hear Christ personally?

Hearing Christ personally assures believers of their faith and deepens their relationship with Him, leading to transformative spiritual growth. For Christians, seeking to hear Christ personally is vital for assurance and spiritual maturity. In the sermon, Paul Mahan emphasized the need to have a personal encounter with Christ, as exemplified by the Samaritan woman who experienced a transformative revelation and was compelled to share her testimony (John 4:28-30). When believers seek Christ personally, they move from a secondhand faith to a direct relationship where they can hear His voice and feel His presence. This deepens their reliance on Him and encourages them to persist in their faith journey, fulfilling the promise in Jeremiah 29:13 that assures seekers will find Him when they search with all their heart.

Hardly contain myself, Joe. Good
choice. Good choice. Turn with me to
James, chapter 2. Book of James, chapter 2. Do you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ? I would venture to say that most
people would say yes, that they believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, but I didn't ask that. I said, Do you believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ? Most believe. Every person in
this room, I believe, would say, young and old, would say they
believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. They believe
he lived, died, and even rose again. believe in his miracles,
his works, his word, and so forth. Most people believe in God. James chapter 2, look at verse
19. James says this, Thou believest that there is
one God, thou doest well. We believe that God is God. We here, we here believe in one
God. Sovereign. And we do well to
believe that. Because there is one God. And
he is most certainly God. But look at the next line here.
It should strike us. The devils believe.
and tremble. And the devils believe and tremble. Believing in the existence of
God is not salvation. Believing in the life and death
and resurrection of Jesus Christ is not salvation. Believing in
the doctrine of sovereign grace is not salvation. belief on a person. Casting one's soul on a person. Casting your sins on the Lord
Jesus Christ. Laying your hands, confessing
your sins on the head of the scapegoat is salvation. And an acquaintance with or hearing
him speak to you personally is salvation. John chapter 2. Now turn back
over there. John chapter 2. John chapter 2. It's not of the
hearing of facts with the ear and believing with the head that
says, but it's hearing with the heart. Believing with the heart. Look at John chapter 2 again. We've already looked at this,
but look at it again. John 2 verses 23 and 24. Now, when he was in Jerusalem
at the Passover and the feast day, many believed in his name.
In his name. When they saw the miracles which
he did. I know my wife and I know a young
couple here in town whose child was miraculously delivered from
drowning. She was unconscious. She was
under the water for a length of time and they thought she
was dead and they pulled her out of the water and people were
praying for her and she recovered consciousness and she now lives. They saw the miracle. But they don't believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ. They believe in, like most people,
they believe in Jesus because of the miracles. Because you
attempt to tell them the truth and they won't have it. But they believe in Jesus. But Jesus, verse 24, did not
commit himself unto them, because he knew all of them. Salvation
is Christ committing himself unto you. It's Christ formed
in you. It's him coming in and taking
up his abode in you. That's salvation. Salvation is
Christ in you, the hope of God. And you know what happens once
he's in you? You cast yourself on him. Joe is like Moses who was in
the rock, but that rock was on top of him, covering him. Well, he knew all men. It says
he knew all men. He needed not that they should
testify of him. Look at verse 25. He knew what was in man.
He knew what was in man. And there is in every man and
every woman, including us, all of us here. There is in us a
preoccupation with things, with flesh. That which is flesh is
flesh, with the belly, with desires, with that which
is sin. And he knows all men and women.
He knows us. He knows me. He knows you. He
knows what's in you. He knows what's in me. He knows
if there's true faith in you. Not head knowledge, in fact,
but if there's true heart faith in you. How does he know that?
Because he gave it. Faith is the gift of God. Well,
can we know our own self? Paul said, yes. He said, no,
we're not our own self. How that Christ is in us, except
we be reprobate. We're back to John 4 now. And
here's the title of the message is, Now We Believe. Now we believe. Now I believe. I want you to,
it would rejoice my heart if somebody, after this message,
somebody in here, young or old, would say, Now I believe. Now I believe. Romans 10 says, With the heart
man believeth, not the head. With the heart man believeth
unto salvation. And with the mouth confession
is made. Just like these. You're going
to see it. John 4, look at verse 27. It says, Upon this came his
disciples. Now, remember, the woman that
he was talking to. She left, went into the city.
He revealed himself to her. She left, went into the city.
And right after she left, the disciples came back. Verse 27. And it says they marveled that
he talked with the woman. They said, why are you talking
to her for? What are you doing talking to
her? They knew who she was. She was a notorious sinner. They knew who she was. Everybody
knew who this woman was. They'd seen her around town.
And they said to him, or they thought to themselves, what's
she doing talking to her? Yet they wouldn't ask him that. They'd quickly forgotten
where they came from, didn't they? Hadn't they forgotten?
They had forgotten where he found them. Peter and James and John
half naked. On those boats out in the water,
cussing. Toiling all day, not catching
much fish, just cussing God. Spitting and cussing. Peter and
James and the boys, you know. That's all Longshoremen do, is
spit and cuss. Like teamsters, isn't it, Jeff?
That's all they do. Like construction workers, isn't
it, Rick? That's spit and cuss. That's all they do. never given
God a thought. All men by nature about do. They wake up in the morning,
phew, Monday morning, phew, walk in the Word and cuss God. Don't
they, Henry? But God. God Almighty came walking
by their boat and called them and saved them
and revealed himself to them and taught them and changed them,
but they forgot the pit they were dug from. And they'd already
become a little bit self-righteous, thinking they were something.
They're thinking now that we're something now. You're still nothing. Nothing. That's the reason the
Lord, after He arose from the grave, Peter went back to fishing.
Peter went right back. Just as soon as the Lord had
gone, where'd Peter go? As soon as the Lord took his
hand off of him, what did Peter do? He went back to fishing and
cussing and spitting. Didn't he? And that's the reason
the Lord, when the Lord appeared to him, the Lord called him again.
And Peter came and he said, Simon. He reminded him, called his old
name. Jacob. What's your name, Stan? Jacob. Yet they marveled that he was
talking with this sinner woman. There was a woman that came here
recently and was telling me of her husband, how he did not attend
church because he had been divorced. Well, this woman here had had
five husbands. the head of the church came to
her. None of the other places would have
her. So he came to her. I told her,
I said, I told this woman, I said, you ought to see the show of
hands in our congregation of Edna Boyd. It's certainly not anything to
be proud of. But this man receive its center. That's all. And somebody else told me one
time they wanted somebody to come to church, but he had tattoos
all over his arm. Oh, man. I thought I wanted to
say, Henry, roll up your sleeves, would you? Man, we all got a big tattoo
on us. You remember the scarlet letter
in that movie? A, that's what we've got written
all over us. Adam. Is that the impression that the
world gets of religion? If it is, I don't want any part
of that. I believe that's the impression
that most churches give, so-called churches give. Like that sign
we saw in that place down the road. For those of you who didn't
hear this, we went to a place here in town. so-called church,
and they had big signs, one on each side of the room that said,
go out where the sinners are. And you know, after I was in
there a little while, I thought, man, that's just where I want
to go. That's exactly where I want to
go. I don't belong with these people. And that's what the Lord
did, didn't he? He came down where the sinners
were. And that's what we've got today,
a bunch of so-called churches, a bunch of gotten-saved, born-again,
holier-than-thou religions, non-sinners. Ain't no sinners anymore. And they won't let you in unless
you straighten out. Well, God Almighty came down here, and
he said, I've not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance. He said, I've come to seek and
to save the lost. He said to the religious, he
said, publicans and harlots are going to get into heaven before
you will. He said the common people, common
old sinners heard him gladly. They were smiling the whole time,
religiously. You've seen them, haven't you? The common people heard him gladly. And the proper sign that we ought
to display on our church house is not that. We ought to pull
it up for everyone to see. No good people allowed. Sinners
only. This man received sinners and
eateth with them. He's a, why, he's a, they said
in this day, he's a friend of publicans of sinners. Boy, Zacchaeus
would have said, yippee. This woman would have said, ain't
it great? He made the religious fighting
mad. He made the sinners exceedingly
glad. Well, this five-time divorced
woman, after hearing Christ, there's 28. She left her water
pot. I don't think she said, now y'all
keep this from me. Stand right there and watch it.
Don't let anybody have it. She went running into town. It broke. Running into town. And she was
excited, and that's what the gospel do to an old sinner. It
excites you. See me get excited, and I'm still
an old sinner. If I quit getting excited, I've
gotten like these disciples. If I quit getting excited, it
hasn't touched me, has it? I'm convinced, but it hasn't
touched me. Song says, he touched me, and
now I am no longer the same. Verse 28, she dropped her water
pot, went in her way into the city and said to the man, come,
come, come see a man. Come see a man. The Lord revealed
to you and you got, you'll tell it was enthusiasm. She didn't
say, Now, come see a man. And I know it's a man because
he was here in the flesh. Come see a man, which told me
all things that ever I did. Is not this the Christ? This
is the Christ. Come see a man. If you ever hear him speak to
your heart, the Lord exposed her innermost thoughts and intents
of her heart. That's what the Word does. The
Lord told her all about herself. The Lord told her her true need
and created a need within her of Him. And the Lord revealed
to her that He was the water of life she needed and was missing.
The Lord revealed to her the Christ who had come. I am. The sinner's substitute. the
Christ, the Lamb of God, the Christ, the righteousness of
God, the Christ. He revealed the Christ. And,
buddy, if he ever does that to you, he'll drop you a water pot.
He'll drop you a water pot. And you won't care if you have
a pot to draw from, if you have Christ. And you'll tell everybody you
know. Everybody that'll hear you, you'll tell them. You've
got to come hear this gospel that I'm hearing. You've got
to come see this one I've seen. That happen to you? Look at verse
30. Then they went out of the city
and came unto him, these Samaritans. They came to Christ. When they
heard her, they left, and they went to see him. All right? Verse
39. Jump down there. And so many
of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the sake
of the woman, which testified, he told me all that ever I did.
Many Samaritans believed on him. Samaritans. Now stop right there. Samaritans. Who are Samaritans? You're looking at Samaritans. Samaritans. Christ is the Savior
of Samaritans. As a matter of fact, He's called
the Good Samaritan. Who's a Samaritan? What's a Samaritan? Huh? Well, a Samaritan, listen
to me, a Samaritan were those people, when the Jews were taking
captivity into Babylon, everyone that Babylonians came in and
captured Israel and took the Jews into captivity, took them
out of Jerusalem, out of Israel, and they wanted to leave. It's
about like setting up a tent in the house you own. You don't
want it to fall down, so you put in a renter. You put somebody
in there in the meantime just to care for the land. people, Gentiles, they were pagan people,
they put them in Israel. They populated, that's what they
populated the town, the city with. Judea and Galilee, that's
what they populated with these pagan people, all right? But
they were living in Israel. They were living in Judea. But
they were half-breeds. They were Gentiles living in
Israel. They were Gentile Jews. They
were a mixed race of people with heathen roots. They were heathen
at the root, but here they were in Israel. They were a people
brought into Israel, but they were Gentile, a people without
real ties to the land. It was not their land, but they
lived in it. And it says these Samaritans
heard Christ gladly. Do you get the picture? What's
a Samaritan? Well, that's me. I'm a Samaritan,
you see. I'm a Gentile by birth, but I'm a Jew inwardly. You know what I'm talking about?
He is a Jew, not one outwardly, but inwardly, Scripture says.
See, I'm a Gentile outwardly, but I'm a Jew inwardly. I'm a
Gentile by birth, but I'm a Jew by new birth. See, I wasn't born
a Jew, but I was put in the family of the Jew by the king. I'm a sinner by birth and practice.
I'm a son of God by grace and mercy. I was drafted in, Samaritan.
I'm a man with no real ties to this land, but don't call it
my own. that I look for a city whose
builder and maker is God." You're looking at a Samaritan,
and Samaritans hear him gladly. I'm a creature of the flesh,
yet a child of the spirit. I'm a fish on dry land. Is that you? Though outwardly
I'm influenced by the flesh, that which is flesh is flesh.
Yet I see in my members another law, which delights in the law
of God after they hear it. I'm a half-breed. I'm mixed up. I'm a Samaritan. And I've heard
him gladly, who says, I'm going to take you out of this place
and give you your own land. Oh, wretched man that I am! Who
shall deliver me? Then one day I heard Christ come
to me and say, in the gospel, in the form of a preacher of
the gospel, say, Come see a man. I'll tell you all about yourself.
And this is the Christ. This is who you need to hear.
This is who you need to believe in. And I came and I saw and
I believed. And I heard him gladly. Now remember, I said, You must
hear him speak to you. You must hear Him say unto you.
John, you and I love that verse in Psalm 35. It says, Say unto
my soul, I am thy salvation. I'll never forget when I first
heard that. I've never forgotten the verse. Never forgotten it
when I first heard it. He said to my soul through that
verse, Psalm 35. Say unto my soul, Lord, I want
you to say to me personally, I am thy salvation. Lord, give
me this water." If Christ comes, he'll tell us, I am the Christ. Say unto my soul. If one person
in here would say that, say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. If you would ask. If you knew,
you would ask, and he would have given. Oh my, and he speaks. How does
he speak? Not a voice on the hill. I've
sat on many of them. Not the posture you sit in either,
cross-legged, cross-eyed. That won't do it. But you sit before him at his
feet, and he speaks through an instrument. He speaks through
a man, a preacher. That's what the world calls foolishness.
There's a reason not very many are coming here this morning.
Fruitless preaching? You don't hear a preacher? What
do you do for a living? I'm a preacher. Preacher. Oh, what a funny thing. Off-scouring, ridiculous, most
useless task on earth, preacher. What are preachers good for? You're not going to hear the
gospel without a preacher. and not be saved. Preacher is the most useful task
on earth. And he speaks through a preacher.
He pleased God by the foolishness of preaching. And not just any
preacher will do. You know, I think Phyllis really twists that verse in 1
Corinthians. woman that says it pleased God
by the foolishness of preaching. And so they carry on all kinds
of foolishness. But it's not the preaching of
foolishness. It's the preaching, which Peter
said, by the gospel. The preaching of the gospel.
The gospel. The word. The preaching of the
word, which by the gospel is preached unto you. The word of
his power. The Word is God's voice. Christ
is God's Word. Christ is. God speaks through
the preaching of his Son. God spoke in times past, the
Hebrews said, unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these
last days spoken unto us in a different language. Son. The Word was made flesh. And those who preach the word,
that is Christ, his person and his word. Christ, our righteousness. Christ, our substitute. Christ,
the Lamb of God, which only takes away our sin. Christ, the believer,
the sinner's satisfaction and substitution. Christ, the Lamb
of God. Christ, the water of life. Christ,
the way, the truth, the life. Christ, the door. Christ, Christ,
Christ. And the Holy Spirit is the one
who preaches this message through a man. Like I'm speaking right
now through this microphone. Can you hear me? Jerry, can you
hear me? OK, listen to this. I'm the speaker. That's exactly what the Holy
Spirit does. And this right here is a preacher.
And the Holy Spirit, though, must speak. You've got to hear
him speak. You got to hear Christ speak,
and he convinces of sin. He convinces of righteousness,
our need of righteousness. He convinces of judgment that
will be judged outside of Christ. Or in Christ. And he draws the
Spirit, the Holy Spirit draws us to Christ. He calls, that's
the call of God, preaching the gospel. He calls, he grants repentance
of broken heart. He gives faith, I believe. He
gives a voice, Lord have mercy. He gives all of His things. You
must hear Him speak. Well, these men, all right, back
in a second, these men heard this woman speak, okay? And they
believe, they believe. And even though you have heard
A man—many of you have heard God speak through a man, not
necessarily this one. That doesn't matter. A man, the
microphone doesn't matter, but this is why I get another one.
I got another one right down here. This is not important.
This is not the only microphone I can use. That's not the important
thing. I got another one right down
here. If this were put together, Then I'll get another one. That's
not the important thing. But the fact is, you heard the
gospel through a man, didn't you? That you believe. But you heard
him speak through a man. We despise not small things.
Or small preachers. Why does God do it this way?
Why does God use me? Well, number one is to unbless.
The Lord, remember that rich ruler that came to the prophet
who was a leper? Remember that? He was a leper.
And Elijah said, told him to go dip in the water of Jordan.
Remember that he told him to go down and dip in that old muddy
water in Jordan. And what was his name? I'm forgetting
his name right now. Somebody tell me real fast. What
was the name of the leper? Naaman. Thank you. Naaman the
leper. You've forgotten too. Naaman
the leper came and he said, well I thought you'd tell me some
great thing to do. You want me to dip in that old
muddy water? You want me to take off my robe? in my armor and
my crown and my this and that and the other and get naked and
go down in that dirty old stream. He said, at least let me go up
to the beautiful baths, Roman baths or wherever you know and
dip in one of those places in privacy. No, go down in front
of everybody and get in that old muddy water, take your clothes
off, get naked before everybody and get down, go down under,
get muddy water all over you. We heard about Elijah, didn't
we? In an old rough garment, you know, a little bald-headed
fellow in an old steep-skinned garment. Get over there and wash
your neck, Jordan. He was indignant. Who do you
think? If you're going to hear the gospel,
you are. And I'm not going to ask beneath
me to sit and listen to him tell me I'm a worm. You're going to
be saved, you will. You've got to come down to the place
of the worm and the dust, and get buried in some nature basilica
and say, I'm a nothing, a nobody. You're a man who's nothing himself,
saying that you're nothing. And you might say, that's right! And Betty, when you come up,
you realize, hey, I'm a nothing, but He saves nothing. And plus, God uses preaching
because it humbles us. Secondly, so you'll esteem preaching
the rest of the days of your life. That's how it saves you, Steve.
preaching the gospel. If you didn't use that, you'd
never hear another preacher. Now, you wouldn't go hear a preacher.
Why do that? Right? You understand? You follow me?
Why go hear that preacher? I got saved up on the hilltop,
reading the scripture. I don't need a preacher. See? But if we're fed, you continue
to be fed and grow by the word and by through a preacher. It's
The main thing is it humbles us and brings us down. Samaritans came to him. Now,
they heard a woman. They heard a woman. Manila heard a woman standing,
didn't they? He heard a woman. And a lot of
people have heard some of our women. They've heard a woman. Now, you're a woman. Well, yes,
I am. I'm sorry about that. I can't
help it. Well, you're just an uneducated preacher. That's right.
I'm sorry about that. But you're going to have to come
see this man. You're going to have to come
hear this gospel. Who do you think you are? I don't
think I'm anything. I'm just a woman. But come see a man. Come see a man. Don't come see
this preacher who you are nothing. You come see somebody who is
something. I'm just a nobody trying to tell everybody about
somebody who can save anybody. Well, they came to him. They
did. They heard this woman made believe in what they do. They
came to him. Verse 40. They came to him. Samaritans
came to him. They besought him. Look at this.
Oh, there's so much in this verse. Verse 40. Are you looking at
it? Are you interested? This is what,
if you're a Samaritan, y'all, this is what you do. You come
to Him. And they besought Him. They besought
Him. Like those disciples on the road
to Emmaus, John, remember? And they said, they constrained
Him. Oh, stay with us. Stay with us
a while. Come here and eat with us. Stay
with us a while. That's what they were doing. They heard Him.
They heard her, and they were interested. They believed that
this must be the Christ. And they came, and they heard
Him, and all their hearts burned within them, and they said, God,
stay with me. Stay with us. Don't leave. So
what did they do? Stay two days. Christ, I didn't
mean to. I just thought of it. hung around this earth about
two days. A day is a thousand years. A thousand
years is a day. He's abode with us in the person
of His Word, His gospel. He's been here. And in our hearts
burn within us as He opens up the Word unto us by the way that
we're known unto Him. He's known of us by the breaking
of bread. Isn't He, John? How many times have you heard
him gladly? Him speak to you, John. Him say
to yourself, John, abide with you. And that's what you'll do
if you're a Samaritan and you're deceitful. You'll be like Jacob. If you're
a Jacob, that's what you'll do. I'm not letting you go. You broke
me. If you're a Jacob, you will. All Jacob's red-haired and say,
don't leave me. Our Samaritans hear him gladly. It's not a chore to come here
to the gospel. It's the joy and the joys of the heart. That's
what Samaritans, you Samaritans love, hear him gladly. The Jews don't. The Gentiles
aren't interested in that other thing. What Samaritans do. You see that? He saves Samaritans. And they besought him to tarry
with him, and he abode today. And verse forty-one, and many—and
I'm going to quit. I am. I'm going to quit. He abode
with them. And if you seek him with all
your heart—how many times have I quoted that verse of Scripture? Young people, how many times
have you heard me quote that Scripture? Seek the Lord. Seeking me, you shall find me
when you search for me with all your heart." Not a double-minded,
not a double heart. Half a heart for this and half
a heart for that. My son, give me thy heart, he said. A double-minded man or woman
is unstable in all their ways. They don't know where they're
going or what they're doing. Martha was cumbered about with many
things. She didn't know. She got upset. She was all—she had
a root of bitterness sprang up in her. She was mad at her sister.
She was aggravated at everybody. Mary had chosen the best part,
and he said, It'll not be taken from her. One thing needful. She's chosen it. Have you seen
the one thing needful? He said, Sit me, and you'll find
me, and you'll search with all your heart. He said, when you pray, go home
and get in your closet. Don't come on Sunday and wait
and let the preacher pray for you. Go home in your closet before
the Lord. You and him personally. When
the Christ has come, say this, when the Christ has come, he'll
tell me all things. Please tell me all things. I
am thy salvation. If you knew, you would ask. And he'll abide with you. He'll
speak to you. Very well. You're looking at
a man who hasn't spoken to you. You're looking at an old Jacob
who's still walking with a limp. He touched me. You're looking
at one who's had his heart smitten. I got a scar, Barbara. I got
a scar. It's going to always be there. When the hand of God touches
you, It leaves a divine imprint. Well, they said in verse 41 and
42, many more believed because of his own word. You see, I believe,
Henry, I believe these other ones were believers, too. I believe
they were. It says they believed on him,
didn't it? Didn't it say that in verse 39?
They believed on him for the sake of the woman. I believe on him. I've heard him speak, and that
through an instrument. And many more believe because of his own
word. They came to him personally, and they heard verse 42, and
said unto the woman, Now we believe. Now we believe. They heard him
speak, and they said, Now we believe. Not because of your saying. We've
heard him ourselves. and know that this is indeed
the Christ, the Savior of the world. Now, listen to me, young
people. I grew up in a church like this. I grew up in a church like this.
I met like Andrew there. I grew up and became Jennifer's
age. And then I became who's next in line? One of the others'
age. I became Kevin's age. I grew up in church, heard the
gospel, heard the gospel, heard the gospel, heard the gospel. My parents, both believers. My
sister was a believer. I think my older brother was
a believer. Others were believers. I heard
the gospel through these ears. And I believe in the doctrines
of grace. I believe in the doctrines of
grace. could argue it with you. Oh,
God's sovereign. If you asked me in school, you
know, I'd say, oh, that's not really, you know, God's creation,
evolution's not true. Oh, no, man in that free will,
I'd argue that. But I had not yet believed in
the Lord Jesus Christ. I hadn't met him. About twenty-one years old, I
guess it was, at the hearing, and hearing, and hearing, and
hearing, and God used a woman. About that time, she was a young
girl, a long time ago. She was young then, seventeen.
I was a court man, like this little man's court name. And I came to hear the gospel. And one day, He's talking to me. I said, He's talking to me. My eyes opened. I didn't see
any beauty in Christ. I didn't see my need of Christ.
I didn't see myself. I didn't see my, I didn't see
anything. I only had eyes for her. And I, like that thief on the cross.
looking at her and then all of a sudden I was looking at him.
And I saw him. And I heard him say unto me,
and I saw him. And that was not without seeking
though. And let me go back to where I started there and said,
if you seek me. When he began this work on me,
he began an interest and I read everything I could get my hands
on. I attended every meeting that
there was. I went everywhere the gospel
was preached, seeking, seeking. And he found me, and I found
him, and we were married, and we're living happily ever after. He spoke to me, and now I say,
now I believe. I believe, not because of her. She was being worked on earlier
than myself. She, I believe, she believed.
And now I believe, I could say, now I believe, Mindy, not because
of you. I've heard it myself. Not because
of Mom and Dad. I've heard it myself. And I know
indeed that this is what I need. This is who I need. This is the
gospel. I'm a sinner. I need this gospel. And I'm going to stay right here.
I found home. Man, I believe. Now, you've heard
me tell you of the Christ, haven't you? You're going to have to
hear the Christ. You're going to have to hear
Him yourself. You have to hear Him yourself. All
right. Brother Joe, you got another
hymn picked out? in number 205. Stand as we sing. Number 205. First and the last stand. Stand. Free from the law, oh, happy
condition, we must have plenty. It's. If you're really seeking, you come out tonight and sit again to hear His voice. Like that little boy sat on the
front row one day with his hands cupped around his ear. His mother
said, what's wrong, huh? He said, well, the preacher said
that Christ calls people. He said, I want to hear it. Well, he calls the preacher of
his word. He's seeking by the preacher through the word. He
speaks through the word. If you're really seeking, really
call him. Come back out tonight. And we're
going to prepare your heart. There's preparation involved.
There's a cutting of the ear. In preparation, read his word
and ask him, Lord, speak to me through this. And we're going
to look tonight at John chapter 4. It's in the bulletin. We're
going to finish up John 4, verses 43 through 54. You come tonight,
read that this afternoon if you're going to seek him, and come out. All right, let's sing. This is salvation once more. Christ hath redeemed us once
for all.

Now We Believe

What does the Bible say about belief in Jesus Christ?

Why is it important for Christians to have personal faith?

How do we know that God's grace is sovereign?

Why should Christians seek to hear Christ personally?

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Featured Preachers

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Now We Believe

What does the Bible say about belief in Jesus Christ?

Why is it important for Christians to have personal faith?

How do we know that God's grace is sovereign?

Why should Christians seek to hear Christ personally?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

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