the heart of men, the things
that God had prepared for them to live. But perhaps our eyes and ears
will be opened to see and hear something, some new things, what
God had prepared for his people. Philippians chapter 1. Philippians chapter 1. Our text is going to be verse
six this morning. I'm looking for some faces of
recognition. This is the exact same text that
we preach from Wednesday night, exactly the same. To write the
same things to you, to preach the same things to you, to me,
is not grievous. You'd think if it got old to
anyone it'd get old to me, wouldn't you? To study the same thing
and preach the same message again? This is not the same message.
Oh, it is. It's the same. I'm going to say
the same basic thing, but I took that message Wednesday night
and laid it aside and got several pieces of blank paper and started
all over again. because of how blessed I've been
in the study of this one verse. I can't get out of these few
verses. So be it. Philippians 1, 6 says, being
confident, I am confident of this very thing, that he which
hath begun a good work in you will perform it, or will finish
it, until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1, verse 6, being
confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good
work in you will perform it, will finish it, until the day
of Jesus Christ. Now, I do not want to give anyone
a false sense of I'm not trying to tell someone that they are
saved. Only God can speak peace to the
heart and assure the heart. But there may be someone in here
who is struggling with what is going on with themselves, with
what is going on within. Everyone here struggles at times.
Everyone struggles at times as to whether true conversion has
begun. Whether or not everyone in here,
most everyone, asks themselves, am I a true child of God? And
this message may help you. I hope it will. When God begins
to deal with someone, When God begins to deal with someone savingly,
it becomes quite obvious, and there are many clear evidences
of that. It's like the building of a building.
This is what God likens this thing of salvation to, building
a spiritual house, building a building. This is fresh on my mind right
now. We are at work right now on a building. When you begin
to build in earnest, and you do not, you're not just looking
at the blueprints. When you begin to actually build,
you actually see some results, don't you? Things begin to go
up, the building begins to rise. And when God begins to build
up a man or a woman or a child in faith, when God begins to
regenerate, I have renovated homes before. Renovated, not remodeled. There's a difference. When you renovate a home, you
tear out the old and you build new. When God begins to regenerate,
and that's what he does, he creates all things anew. And it's obvious
that a new form is taking shape. A new form is taking shape, regeneration. Now, I'm talking about this work
of salvation. Has God begun a work in me? Ask
yourself that. Are you interested this morning?
Has God begun a work in me? Is this a work of God? If so,
will it finish it? How do I know this is God's work?
How do I know? OK, are you interested? I am. I am. Three questions I want
to ask you, talking about this work of salvation, and they're
much the same. If you're taking notes and took
them Wednesday, continue to take them, because these are different.
But they're similar. Question number one, whose work
is this? Whose work is this? Number two,
what is the work, and how has it begun? What is this work and
how is it begun? Number three, and finally, how
long will it last? How long will it last? Well,
our text says, being confident of this very thing, that he which
hath begun a good work in you will perform it or finish it
until the day of Jesus Christ. Whose work is it? If there's
one thing I'm confident of, it is God must build the house.
It is God must say. God, that's who does this work
of salvation. He which hath begun a good work
in you. Turn to chapter 2 of Philippians. Look over there at chapter 2.
A similar verse says, verse 13,
It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his
good You see, the Scripture says it's pleased the Lord to make
you his people. For the pleasure, for the love
he had for a people, and the pleasure of having them, making
them his people, God determined a purpose to do a work to save
them, to make them his people, to give birth to them, to regenerate
them. This is God's work. It is God
which worketh. in you, both to will and to do
of his good pleasure. Salvation is of the Lord." We
can't labor this point too much, can we? Can't I preach this too
much? Salvation is of the Lord from
start to finish. This is not a cooperative effort
between God and man. Can I say that enough? Does our
generation need to hear this? This is not a cooperative effort
between God and man. This is not God doing something
and we do the rest. It's not God starting the work
and us finishing, is it? No. God is called the author
and the finisher of the faithful. The author and finisher. And
Ephesians 2.10 says this, it says, His workmanship. His workmanship. 1 Corinthians
1.30. Of God are you in Christ, or
in the church, or in the beloved, accepted in the blood. Of God.
This is God's work. Why do I preach that all the
time? Why do I say the same things
over and over? Why do we continue to labor this
poem, huh? Why say all of this? Why? Why dwell on this? Because it
gives God all the glory. That's why. And that's why we're
here. That's why I stand up in here
this morning, to give God all the glory. Why do we sing? So
that it might touch our hearts, so that people will be impressed.
We sing to the glory of God. Why do I preach? Why do I preach?
To convince men and women of something? Not primarily. Primarily
to the praise of the glory of his grace. Why do we continue
to say over and over and over again, salvation is of the Lord?
Because it is. And because it gives God all
the glory. And number two, it points men
in the right direction. It points men and women to the
God who alone can and must save us, right? I'm not asking anyone in here
to do anything. I'm declaring God, the God who
must do something. And if He is so pleased by me
merely declaring who He is, He'll do something for you. That's
the way He works. By me merely declaring who He
is, that's how He works. We don't call on men to do anything. We declare God and call on Him
to do something. And if He is so pleased, He moves
in a mysterious way, in a mighty way. And also, this reveals all
the heresy today. You'll hear a lot of preaching
today. You're going to hear a lot. We
get bombarded with it, don't we, Sally? On the television,
on the radios, in the workplace, we're just bombarded with preaching
and preachers and people. Heresy. By me constantly declaring
who God is from this Word, you'll know the truth. and the truth
that sets you free. You won't be open to every voice.
You'll hear his voice. You won't worship idols. You'll
worship the true and living God. So God says, preach the word.
Be instant in season and out of season. Continue to preach
it. Well, they've heard that before. Preach it. Same things. Yes, they heard it. But I'm going
to let them hear something more. They haven't heard it all. Preach
the word, be instant or consistent, in season or out, whether it's
popular or not. You know, preaching is not very popular today. We're
having share sessions. I've heard your father talk about
this quite often. Me and today have replaced preaching
with share sessions. Let's all get together and share
something. What they really want to do is share their opinions
and their thoughts. Well, there is a way that seems
right to everybody. Everybody's got their thoughts
and opinion. And the scripture says, thou thought it. Thy thoughts
are not like my thoughts, God said. And your ways are not like my
ways. God says everyone must sit and
hear me declare my word. And that's how I say it. preached
the word in season and out of season, he said, my sheep are
going to hear my voice. This is my voice when I preach. God says, this is my voice when
a man stands up and preaches the gospel, the person and work
of Christ. He said, my sheep hear my voice.
I know them. I'm not worried about the goats.
They'll be taken care of. The sheep will hear my voice.
preach the gospel, this I know my sheep, they'll hear my voice,
they'll follow me. They'll come. Just declare it. Just declare it. Because I'll
call, and they won't refuse. They'll hear, they'll call, or
they'll come. All right, look at Isaiah chapter 28. Go back
there to Isaiah chapter 28. This is God's work. This thing
of salvation is God Almighty's work. His and His alone. God's work. It begins and ends
with God. God starts it, God finishes it,
and does all in between. Now, I know it's so. I have spoken to people until
I was blue in the face. And perhaps you have to. There
have been times when I've witnessed, so to speak, and spoken to people
concerning the gospel. Times when I've had seemingly
good scriptural recall, many scriptures, to bring out to someone,
spoken to a person, hours on end, to no avail. Nothing. You know yourself. You speak to your children or
you speak to someone, a loved one, that you want so badly for
them to know and believe as you do. To know the one you know
and love the one you love. To believe what you believe and
love what you believe. You want so badly for them to
know and understand and you speak to them for hours on end and
do everything within your power to make them understand. You
can't. Can you? You can't. Why? Salvations of the Lord. Now, far from making you despair
and cease doing what you're doing, this should make you hope. Because
in God's good time—in God's good time—do what you're doing. Instruct
your children. Have them under the sound of
the gospel whether they want to be here or not. If God's pleased
to save He's going to save them. He's chosen by the foolishness
of preaching. You're doing your responsibility. Yes, you are.
But God must save them, right? Rest in that, Deborah. Rest.
Be at peace. They're hearing the Word, which
is able to make them wise unto salvation. They're hearing it.
If God's pleased to save them, they're going to be saved, whether
they're fifteen or twenty-five or forty-five. or laying on their
deathbed at 75. God must save. God must save. Isaiah 28. Isaiah 28. You see, with man this is impossible,
except the Lord build the house. They labor in vain that build
it. Salvation, as I said, is the building of a spiritual house,
a people of God, a church. That's what the church is called.
That's what you are called if you're the church. spiritual
house of God. Isaiah 28, verse 16, "...therefore
thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation
of stone." God Almighty purposed to save
a people before there was people, before the world began In the
mind and the purpose and the will of God Almighty, he purposed
to create a world, put people on it. Those people were going
to fall in that purpose, and God purposed to save some of
them for his glory, to the eternal praise of his glory. That's why. That's what it's all about. And
he says, the first thing I'm going to do in building up this
building, this spiritual house here, is lay a foundation. I'm going to lay the foundation.
Now, all of this is very, very familiar to me right now in that
we're building a home, and the first thing in building that
home that we did was we laid the foundation. Because that's
the most important part of the building, isn't it? According
to the foundation, so is the building. So as the foundation
goes, so does the building, right? If the foundation stand is sure,
so will the building. Right? If you've got a good,
solid rock, solid foundation, and build on it, the house is
not going anywhere. It's going to stay there. Build
it on the rock. God says, I'm going to build
a spiritual house of people, and they're going to stand. Where
are they going to stand? On a rock. I lay in Zion," that's
the church, a foundation, a stone. This is where God starts, and
I'm not going to tell you who it is. I hope you'll know. If
the work has been begun, you know already without me telling
you who that foundation is. If God's begun a good work in
you, I'm confident that you already know who this is talking about,
and by the time this is over with, you'll want to shout it.
I know! Our foundation—foundation must
be sure. If you've got a good one, you've
got a safe haven. Look at it. Read on. He says
a foundation—a stone. Stone is solid. Stone is eternal. Stone is unchanging. Stone is—oh,
stone. What else can you say about stone?
Rock solid. A tried stone. Look at that.
A stone that's been proven to be perfect. Stone made ready
by the master builder and brought to the site. A tried stone. A proven stone. One that has
been found to be pure and perfect without flaw, without crack,
without blemish. One that you can build a house
on. Not aggregate, but solid rock. Read on. A precious cornerstone. Oh, a
valuable stone. This stone is solid diamond. Pure gold. Precious silver. Precious silver. It says a sure
foundation. A sure foundation. This foundation
is a surety, a sure foundation. It's going to hold up. God said,
this foundation that I'm going to build the whole building on,
it's going to stand sure, and the building's going to be built
on it, and it will stand sure. Nothing's going to fall. Not
one breaker, not one board is going to fall out of the building.
Why? The foundation stands sure. Look at verse 17. God's got to
use some instruments. Look at verse 17. Judgment also
while I lay thee the line, and righteousness to the plummet.
God says, I'm going to get the line out. I'm going to get the
plumb bob. I'm going to chalk a line. Everything's
got a fit to it. Not quarter-inch. Not a length. Right on the line. Line upon
line. Line upon line. Precept upon
precept. Precept upon precept. Going to
pull out the plumb bob and it's got to be straight. Got to be
perfect to be accepted. All right? Line and the plumb bob. Got to
be perfect. Guy says, I'm going to build
a building, not going to be a crack in it, not going to be a flaw,
it's going to be perfect. Building a holy and righteous
building just like me. It's going to be perfect, because
I'm perfect. It won't take anything imperfect. What's the line to plumb up? Do you know? Keep that in mind, righteousness
and judgment. Turn to John chapter 17. John
chapter 17. Remember those words, okay? Judgment
and righteousness laid to the line. laid to the plummet. I told the folks Wednesday night
that I was getting ready to build a building a few months back,
and a fellow was helping me. And he said, well, let's start.
And I said, well, wait a minute. We're going to stretch some lines
here. He said, I don't need lines. We're just going to build a shed
here. I said, when we got through with it, it'd sure be a shed
all right. And it might stand. It might
not. It might, it'd probably leak. The roof, everything would
be off. You got to lay some lines, don't you? Well, I've learned
that recently more than ever, more than ever. And if you're
going to, if you're going to build a plumb, flush and square
and level building, you're going to have to use a line and a plumber
and lay it all to it. And if it meets, if it fits to
the line and it fits plumb, that building is going to turn out
all right. It's going to turn out good. The roof's not going
to leak. That's not going to shift. It's going to be right
there. No cracks, no leaks, no runs,
drip your air. John 17. Now, this work of salvation
is God Almighty's work. And when I say God's work, I
mean God the Father. He purposed it. God the Son,
who purchased it. And God the Holy Spirit, who
applies it. It's the work of the triune God. God, these three are one. It's the work of the triune God.
Look at John. Let me read this to you. Christ
said in John chapter 5, he said, My Father worketh hitherto, and
I work. The Father works, and Christ
said, and I work. And I work. Look at John 17,
verse 4. Christ is praying to the Father.
He says, I have glorified thee on the earth. I have finished
the work which thou gavest me to do. The Son has a work to do, just
like the Father. The Father, listen to me now,
the Father willed and purposed and planned this work of salvation,
He chose a people, gave these people to His Son in that will
and that purpose and that covenant, gave these people that He had
willed and purposed and chosen to His Son. You get tired of
hearing that. And if it were just a doctrine,
you would. But if this is a personal God choosing persons, In other
words, God Almighty, before the world began, choosing you out,
out of the mass of humanity, choosing you from among a whole
nation, choosing you from among a whole bunch of cronies just
like you, old friends and so forth, choosing you out of your
household. You might have a brother or sister
just like you. to set his love and affection
to save you. Now that makes it different,
doesn't it? Choosing you. Me? Yes, you. God has chosen you
from the beginning. Now that makes it more than a
doctrine, doesn't it? That makes it cause for praise. Me? And you say with David, who am
I? And what is my house that you
have shown? done this for. You say with Mephibosheth,
when you, you tipple, you are brought to the table to sit at
the king's table, you say with him, who am I, what am I that
you should look upon such a dead dog as I am? Here I am sitting
up at the king's table. It becomes more than a doctrine
election does. It becomes a person choosing
a person like you. But that's the work of God. Isn't
that a great work? Oh, bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all who is within me, bless His holy name. God chose me from
the foundation of the world. Me! Look at all He could have
chosen. He chose me. God willed it, purposed, planned
your salvation, and gave you to His Son. Oh, He gave you to
somebody, a fit man. John is a fit man in the wilderness.
He can do the job. If you want to build a building,
a good building, and you want somebody to build it for you,
get a good man. That's what I did. I wanted somebody to help me
build my house. I called the best man I knew.
He's a good man. That's what some recommendations
have come. He's the best there is at it,
and he is. God said, I'm going to build
a house. I'm going to save a people, and I'm going to give them to
a good man. He's a good builder. He's the
best there is. He'll get the job done. He gave
them to the Son, and look at what he said. He said, I have
finished the work thou gavest me, verse 4. I have glorified
thee on the earth, and that's the principle work Christ came
to do. That's the thing that Christ
came to do as a man. I have glorified, lo, a body
thou hast given me. Lo, I come to do thy will, O
God." What is God's will for you? That you might glorify Him,
that you might praise Him, that you might worship Him, that you
might live for Him. That's God's will for you. We've
all come short of that glory, haven't we? We've all failed
miserably to glorify God, to live for God, haven't we? Not
this man. This man, when he cometh into
the world, saith, Lo, a body hast thou given me, I come to
do thy will. I have glorified thee on the
earth as a man. And God said it from heaven.
There's a man, a glorious man who lived for my glory, who magnified
the law and made it honorable, who magnified my name, who made
me honorable. There's a man I approve of. Listen
to him. He's got salvation. He's the
only one I'll accept. He's the only one I'll approve
of. That man I'll approve of you in and through and because
of that man." Listen to him. Oh, I'm all ears, Lord. I'm all
ears. Hear ye him. Christ said, I've
done it. I've finished the work. Christ
came to establish a righteousness. How many times in six years that
I've been here have you heard me say this? How often? I venture to say that nearly
every message I mention is putrid righteousness. Huh? Wouldn't you say that? Have you
heard me say it? Some of you who haven't been
coming very long, how often have you heard me talk about Christ
establishing a righteousness? Is this just some doctrine I'm
trying to expound? Am I just trying to impress you
with my doctrinal knowledge? Folks, it's the wedding garment.
It's the robe you must wear. If you are the son of God, you've
got to have this garment on. You've got to have this robe
on. It's the wedding garment. It's what the Father allows.
It's the dress code of heaven, this righteousness. And we can
work all we want, live a life as long as we can, and do the
best we can with the works of our hands, and work us out a
little robe, a little righteousness, a little goodness, and put it
on. And it's like a fig leaf. It
won't cover anything. I've told you it's like those
hospital garments. It may look good up front to
most people, but God sees you for what you
are. God can see right through it. It's not good enough, God
says. It's evil at the heart of it.
The motive's not right. You've got to have a righteousness
to be accepted. I've got to have a perfect righteousness. God's got to see me perfect. Holy hell. With man, it's impossible. I can't do anything. I can't
do anything without sin in it. Can you? Who can? Who's going to get into heaven,
then? That's what Psalm 24 asks. Who shall ascend unto the holy
hill of the Lord? Well, he'd have to have clean
hands. My hands are sinful. I've never done one single deed
that didn't have the taint of sin in it. Have you? That's who
God says is going to get into heaven. He'd have to have clean
hands. He'd have to have a pure heart.
God says, I don't just look on the outward countenance. I look
on the heart. Oh my, the heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked," the scripture says. Who can know
it? My heart condemns me. Does yours? My motive's not perfect. My thoughts aren't perfect. Does
yours? Can you say that? He that has
never lifted up his soul unto vanity, never lived a moment
on this earth of vanity. Never lived an idle moment, but
done everything you've done for the glory and the praise of God.
Who can say that? Who has never, it goes on to
say, sworn deceitfully, or that is, never spoken a word of complaint,
murmuring, nothing but praise and thanks to live all your life,
every minute, every thought, every word, every deed to the
glory of God. Who can say that? Man. Walking into heaven. A man. Who can get—who can walk
into heaven like that? Well, look at him. There is a
man. Well, who is that man? He's the King of glory. He's
not just a man. He's the God-man. Jesus Christ
is his name. He hath established a righteousness
as a man. There's a whole bunch of men
and women following him. How can they come in? He's got
them covered. They all got robes. They all
look just like him. Not by works of righteousness,
which they had done. They didn't make these robes.
He did. He made them all. He did all
the sewing, Jerry. He did all the sewing. He did
all the covering. But he had to die. not only just
live a perfect life and impute that or charge that or cover
the accounts of all his people, he had to die. God says, I'm
holy, I'm just. I'm a just God and a Savior,
but I'm just God. I will by no means clear the
guilty. The soul that sinned must surely die. And without
the shedding of blood, which is death, there should be no
remission of sins. Christ said, I came to die. I came to die that they might
live. And he shed his precious blood
to die for their sins as a substitute. And then the Holy Spirit. This
is the work of God, the Holy Spirit. Look back at chapter
16. All right, look back there briefly. Chapter 16. It says
in John 16, verse 8, Christ said, When he has come, when the Holy
Spirit has come, he will reprieve the world of sin. You remember these two words?
Righteousness and judgment. Do you remember that in Isaiah
29? Righteousness will I lay to the lion, and judgment to
the plummet, justice. Remember that? Christ said when
the Holy Spirit has come, he'll teach you. Look up there at verse
13. The spirit of truth, he'll treat
you truth. He'll guide you into all truth.
He shall not speak of himself. We're not just having a Holy
Spirit revival here this morning. We're having a Christ-centered
preaching message. You see, where the body is, that's
where the eagles are gathered. Where Christ is preached, that's
where the people of God are. He'll guide you in all truth.
He won't speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that
shall he speak. He'll show you things to come.
Read on. Verse 14. He shall glorify me, Christ said. He'll glorify me. He shall receive
of mine. The Father says, you teach the
children about the Son. The Father says to the Spirit,
you teach all of my children. They shall all be taught of God
the Holy Spirit. And every man that hath heard
and learned of the Father cometh to Christ by faith." It doesn't
come to talk in the tongues. It doesn't come to roll around
on the floor in holy laughter. It doesn't come to be a fool.
It comes to Christ. That's what the Holy Spirit of
God teaches. All things that the Father hath,
he says, he shall take of mine and show them unto you. What
have I been doing up to this point? He's taking the things
of Christ and showing them to God. Huh? Haven't we? The things of Christ. This is
where the Holy Spirit of God is. This is how he works. The truth. You know the truth. The truth will set you free.
Free from every wind of doctrine that comes along to make you
stand. You won't be tossed through. You'll stand. You're on a rock.
free from every man that comes along. Let a man come in his
own name, him you will receive, not if God teaches you the truth. You'll stand on Christ, the God-man,
and no man will fool you. All right? It sets you free from
superstition, religion, and traditions of men, and wise fables, and
this and that and the other, and makes you stand. Stand. Well, all right. And it says
here in verse 9 through 11, it's all in reference to Christ, so
sin, righteousness, and judgment, all concerning the Lord Jesus
Christ. He teaches His people this. Sin,
what sin is, and this is missing in today's preaching. And what
righteousness is, and this is missing in today's preaching.
Isn't it? Do you know what righteousness
is? Do you know who the I gave it
away. Do you know what the righteousness
of God is? You must be righteous. You must have a right. Do you
know? Hey, a good work has begun in the end. That's the way he
teaches all his children who the righteousness of God is.
Other people are going about to establish their own and have
not the foggiest idea what the righteousness of God is. Right?
Well, what is this work, and how has it begun? Secondly, what
is this work, and how has it begun? Well, the Scripture says in Ephesians
2, the Scripture says, "...you hath he quickened who were dead
in trespasses and sins." The Scripture says that in Adam all
died. Doesn't it? Those of you who
understand this or are knowledgeable of Scriptures know that, that
it says that. It says also, in Christ shall
all be made alive. Christ said, I am come that they
might have life. Well, back to Isaiah 29 real
briefly, would you? Would you turn back there with
me again, and I think you'll rejoice in this. We did Wednesday
night. And I studied it again, and I
rejoiced all over again. And the same thing. Isaiah 29,
remember God said, God said, I do a work. And there
in chapter 28, he said, I lay in Zion a foundation of stone,
a tried stone, and so forth. And he says up in Isaiah 29,
and I want you to ask yourself if this work has begun in you.
If it has, I'm confident God will finish it. Verse 14, it
says, Behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among
this people, a marvelous work and a wonder. And it's so wonderful,
a marvelous wisdom, and the wise men won't understand it. They'll
understand that their prudence shall be hid. I want to reveal
it to the slaves and hide it from the wise prudent. Is that
familiar? At any rate, he says it's a marvelous
and a wondrous work. And back in chapter 28, it says
in verse 21, if you want to look, it says there, he's going to
do his work. It's a strange work. It's a strange work. A strange
act. You ever seen that? Verse 21
of Isaiah 28, his strange work and his strange act. A marvel
and a wonder. One day, John the Baptist was
in prison, and he sent two of his disciples
down to where the Lord Jesus Christ was preaching, and he
said, Go ask him, Are you he? Are you the Christ? Or do we
look for another? Do you remember what Christ told
the two disciples to go back and tell John? He said, you go
tell John this. The blind are having their eyes
open. The deaf are hearing. The dead
are being raised. The poor are having their gospel
preached. Look here in Isaiah 29, verse 18. It says, In that
day, the day of the Lord, the day of salvation, shall the deaf
hear the words of the book. Now, a dead man is deaf. He can't hear anything. His ears
can't hear. You can scream at him. He won't
get mad. It won't bother him. You can cuss him out. It won't
bother him. You can flatter him. It won't
impress him. He's dead. Do what you will. He's dead. He can't hear you.
He can't hear you. Well, the first work that God
Almighty does when he raises somebody from the dead, is he
gives them ears to hear. You see, we have ears. Everyone
in here has an ear, two ears. Some of you have very big ones.
They should be good ones. But the ear we're talking about
right now is on the inside. It's a spiritual ear. Everyone
in here is hearing what I'm saying this morning. Some are hearing,
and others aren't hearing. He that hath ears to hear, he's
going to hear it. And what God does, this first
work he does, is the deaf ears, those ears that didn't hear before,
finally are open, and they hear. I sat in some of the places where
our young people sit, just like Andrew there. Take Andrew, for
example. Sunday after Sunday, after Wednesday, after Sunday,
after Wednesday, after Bible conference, after special meeting,
after preaching, after preaching, preaching, preaching. It's all
I ever heard. But I'll just be honest with
you, Andrew. It's like, I got tired of this. I ought to go
to this preaching again. One day, I was sitting there hearing
the preaching. And I heard the preaching. I heard. You know what I'm talking about?
I heard. What'd he say? God's God? I don't answer to him. I heard God's voice. It's his
words, Sammy. It's a preaching of the word.
I heard it, finally. I'd read it, and heard it, and
heard it, and I finally heard it speaking to me. Speaking to
me. God said, I'm God, and you're
in my hands. I can do with you what I want
to. He is God, isn't he? And I'm nothing, aren't I? I
heard what I was. Blessed God, I heard who Jesus
Christ is. It's the truth. You know, the
fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And that's what I
heard first, that God's God. And that's why I keep saying
it over and over again. That's why I begin every message practically
with who God is. Say you said that before a preacher.
I'm going to keep saying it until everybody hears it. Because the
fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Until every knee bows
and every tongue confesses in here and declares he's God, beside
him is none else. And worship him as such. Hear
the Lord's beginning of wisdom. Then we hear what we are by nature,
sinners before this holy God and righteous God, and we hear
the gospel. Oh, and it sounds—it's good news. It's a sweet sound
to a sinner's ear. Look, read on. It says, "...the
eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity." Read on. Every
eye that has a Bible, go look at that verse 18. You'll get
a blessing, if you will. It says, if God will, you will. The eyes of the blind shall see
out of obscurity. Don't you see, son? Son, don't
you see? Listen to me. I'm trying to show
you something. Don't you see that... I don't
see that. Well, look here. Let me show you this. See? See? I don't see. I just don't see. I don't see that. I don't see
like that. I don't see. One day. You know,
I didn't see. One day, when Christ came by,
like yourself, that blind man, one day, Christ came by, and
he anointed my blind eyes, his spit out of his mouth, and anointed
my blind eyes, and I see. Oh, I saw men first as walking
as trees. I didn't see real clearly. I
saw! And the preacher said, Do you
see, son? I said, I see! I finally see! And everybody
said, I see! I see! I finally see! You all, nearly everyone in here
has seen or read the story about Helen Keller. The story is called
The Miracle Worker. It gives the glory where it's
due. It gives it to that teacher, that woman who worked so hard
on that little girl. That little girl, Helen Keller,
was born deaf, couldn't hear, dumb, and mute, and blind. She couldn't see, she couldn't
hear, she couldn't talk. And this worker This woman came
and worked with her diligently, diligently, until one day, one
day, it all broke through to her. And that little girl fell. Oh no, her eyes, her outward
eyes were not open. She was still blind to the day
she died, but she saw with the understanding. Her ears were
open. She heard what the teacher was
saying. Oh no, she never received her physical hearing, but she
heard with the understanding. And she spoke. And it's the same
way with every dead, born child of God. He raises them from the
dead. One day in God's good time, through
the preaching of the gospel, it all breaks through. That hard
heart, those deaf ears, those blind eyes, and they see. And
you remember the story when she was out there running her hands
under water. Remember that? The little girl saw and understood
when she was running her hands under water. She said, water,
water. The teacher spelled out water. When did that woman at the well
sing? When she saw who Water was. Huh? Water! I'm here to tell you this
work of God, this work is, oh, it's a miracle. It's a miracle. They shall all be taught of God,
and blind eyes see, and deaf ears are open. Look at verse
18, it says this, "...to see out of obscurity." You know,
there was a time when I heard remote passages of Scripture
read, obscure, seemingly obscure, meaningless stories out of the
Scriptures. I saw them and heard them built
on, and it didn't mean anything to me. Until one day, I saw. out of obscurity. I thought you
would go over to some obscure passage back in the book of Exodus
and start talking about a tent out in the desert. What's the big deal about a tent
in the desert? Oh, I see. Do you see? I see in every covering
on that tent, I see in every piece of furniture in it. I said,
every post and every socket and everything in it. I said, glory. Oh, I heard a story about a snake
on a pole. Saw that, read that, heard it,
read it. What does that mean? Is that
the symbol for the American Medical Association? A snake on a pole? Oh, one day I saw I saw, and
you heard it. I heard and read and saw a story
about a woman that hung a piece of red line out her window. Well,
what's the big deal about it? Why wasn't it gray? Why wasn't
it blue? What gives that line good? One
thing I saw, it had to be red. It had to be red. That line is what saved her,
and red's the only thing it'll do. Oh, I heard a story about
a little maiden that made a little journey with her mother-in-law,
and she married some fellow called her kinsman-redeemer. Lovely
little story about marriage, a beautiful romantic story. Oh,
one day I saw it. That's the most glorious story
I've ever heard in my life. Oh, I read a story, and I heard
a story one time about a crippled fellow who was brought into the
king's house and made to sit up at the table. Little fella
named the Fiddler's Shelf. Whew, man, I saw—that's my favorite
stuff. Did I say Boaz was it? No, that's
my favorite. That's my—I always told him about
rocks. I saw a rock. Trees! Skies and seas! River! River! There's a river. Talks about the river. I hear
stories about lions. I hear stories about eagles,
about birds, about lambs. They shall see out of obscurity
and out of darkness. They shall see God causes the
light to shine out of darkness into their hearts, that they
might see the light of the glory of God in the face and everything
I've been preaching right just thus far is talking about Jesus
Christ. Did you see? When I said a light
out of the window, did you see? Hang around and we'll preach
on that. I preached it before. I'd be glad to do it again. Huh? They'll say, did you see that
triad stone, that foundation stone, that sure stone? Do you
see? You say, I think I see. I'm confident that he that hath
begun this good work, that's how he begins it. He opens the
eyes, he opens the ears. I hear that. I hear that and
I rejoice. I rejoice. I see Christ. I see
Christ. Thank God I see Christ. the glory
of God in the face of a person. How long is it going to last?
Well, our text says this. Our text says that I'm confident
that he which hath begun a good work in you will finish it. He'll finish it. And what God
does is forever. What God does is for a faithful
is he that calleth you. He'll do it. He's calling you this morning?
Has he called you? He's calling me. I'm not giving
some invitation for you to come down here and shake my hand.
There's nothing. Shake my hand back there. Come down here. I'm
not calling on you to do anything. I'm asking you, in the course
of this message, are you seeing? Are you hearing his voice? Is
he calling you? He's calling me, and I'm going
to come. To whom coming? There was a time
when he called me, and I came to him by faith, and I believed
by his grace, the gift of God, baptized, confessing his name
like he says to do. But I keep coming. Every time
I hear the gospel, like Brother Tim James says, I get saved.
I keep coming back to Christ. Here I come, Lord. Jesus, Lord,
I come. I come. Is he calling you? He's
calling me right now to faith in Christ. I believe, Lord. I
see a little more clearly right now than I did before I came
in here. I see Christ, who he is. I see the Scriptures for what
they are, the wisdom and the power of God. I hear his voice
a little clearer. It's right here. I'm hearing
it over again. And whoever hath begun a good
work will finish it. Will finish it. God will someday... Now Christ, when he hung on that
cross, he said, it's finished, isn't it? And it was. Everything necessary for our
salvation, justification, sanctification, Christ finished it. He did it
all. He's all. Christ is all. And you are complete
in Him. Christ said, I've finished the
work. I've glorified you on the earth. I've saved the people
you've given me. I've saved them. I've done what
is necessary to save them. And God Almighty sends the Holy
Spirit just to round them up. That's what the Holy Spirit does.
How does He round them up? With a cord, with a rope, a lasso. And it's what I've been doing
this morning. Chords of love, chords of a man, Scripture says.
Tell you about someone who's done it all. And the sheep hear
his voice. Shepherd, the Lord is my shepherd. And they come. They come to Christ. Until all
the sheep are gathered, this work is not done. Ephesians 1
talks about God's purpose to gather in one all things, even
in Christ, which are in heaven, which are on earth. God's going
to go, and until all the elect, all the sheep are brought into
the fold, the work's not completely finished. Oh, you're saved, but
the work, the whole work is not completely finished. But there's
coming a day when God says to his Son, are
they all here? God says to the Holy Spirit. by way of illustration. Are they
all here? And he shall say, Behold, I and
the children which you have given me, of all which thou hast given
me, I have lost nothing. They're all present and accounted
for, sir. And God's going to say, Well,
wrap it up. Fold it up like a vesture with
a chaff in it. All of those who love not the
Lord Jesus Christ, fold them up, wrap them up, and cast them
in the lake of fire. And he's going to say to us,
Come on, children, let's go home. He's going to create a heaven,
a new heaven and a new earth. The former shall not be remembered,
nor come to mind. He's going to put us in it. Not
the work, but the rest. And he himself is going to come
down. I kind of believe I know who it is. It's going to be a
man. Jesus Christ. And he's going
to sit on the throne, and I'm going to sit at his feet, and
it's all finished. God says, it's over. Let's all
just rest happily ever after. And let's sing. Let's sing a
song. Let's do that. It is finished. I wish we had
that, don't you, Nancy? It is finished. The battle is
over. It is finished, and Jesus Christ
is Lord. It is finished. The end of all
conflict. Jesus Christ reigns and rules
among his people. Number sixteen will sing the
number sixteen. Has a good work begun in you.
Did you hear this message. Did you see Christ in this. You see your need.