All right, if you wish to follow
along, turn to Paul's epistle to the churches of Galatia, Galatians
chapter one. I'm still in the same few verses
that I've been in. I think if memory serves me correctly,
this will be the third message I've preached from these verses,
Galatians chapter one, verses 13 through 16. For you have heard of my conversation
in time past in the Jews' religion. how that beyond measure I persecuted
the Church of God and wasted it, and profited in the Jews'
religion above many my equals in my own nation, being more
exceeding zealous of the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased
God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me by
His grace to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among
the heathen, immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood. Now
our brother, the Apostle Paul, uses one word twice in our text. It's written out in the King
James Version as the Jews' religion. If you look it up in Strong's,
it says one of the meanings to that is one word in the Greek.
It's two, of course, in our English, the English here. It's Jews'
religion, Judaism. Now, I did this just to, I figured
it was already true. I've done it before, but it's
been a while back. But I took this right here and I Googled
the word religion. I seen some say that there are
2,400 religions on the earth. But then, of course, as is true
of Google, others said there's 4,300. So somebody's wrong. I mean,
right off the bat, what I read, somebody's wrong. I read on a
little more, checked a couple of little spots on down the line.
One said 10,000 religions. Well, I searched some more and
I found that you can search the number one religion. You can
search the top two, the top three, the top four, and on and on and
on. Take that Google right there,
it's on that phone there. You can search out religious
communities, religious towns, religious states, religious countries. I don't give a whole lot of counsel
As most men think of counseling, the reason I don't give a lot
of counseling is because most people who ask for counsel don't
really want it. They just want you to confirm
what they already want. They just want you to tell them,
yeah, it's okay. Usually when I counsel people,
they never come back for counseling ever again. But my counsel is
this, avoid the regurgitations of this unbelieving world's opinions.
Don't get on Google and look for an answer as to what religion
is. Just don't do it. If you want to confuse and confound
your mind, well then you knock yourself out. But don't do it. My first thought this morning.
Scripture is the only source of fact about religion. As I immediately pointed out,
2,400 religions, 4,300 religions, 10,000 religions, somebody's
wrong. Somebody's not doing the research
or somebody's adding to the research their own thoughts about the
matter. Don't look to this world's opinion about what religion is. Scripture, God's holy word, is
the only source of fact about religion. Now just a brief Bible
lesson, if you will. because my purpose this morning
is not to preach a Bible lesson or to simply give scriptural
facts, but a little foundation. The Greek New Testament, I'm
not talking about the King James Version or any other version,
I'm talking about the Greek New Testament, the received text. The Greek New Testament uses
six words that can be translated or is translated religion or
religious. The Old Testament, that is the
Hebrew and the Aramaic, in which I am told that the Old Testament,
especially for the Jews years and years ago, was written in
mainly Hebrew and Aramaic. Not one single word or phrase
is used for the term religion or religious. Now there are examples
of religion in the Old Testament and the New. They abound. They abound from the get-go.
As soon as Adam and Eve fail, they got religious. They decided
to do their own job to cover up their own nakedness. When
we fail in Adam, religion became a part of our whole psyche. And I don't care what you, I
don't care if you're an atheist, your religion may be Mother Earth. Huh? Mother nature, there is
no such creature. As I said, there are examples
in the Old Testament and New Testament, they abound. But in
the New Testament, you will read, especially, specifically in the
King James Version, you will read religion, religious, Jews'
religion, and let me stop just a moment. Turn to Romans chapter
nine. See again, I can't get away from
Romans nine. I was accused one time, that's
all I preach on is Romans nine. Let's turn to that, if you're
following along. Jews religion, that's what Paul,
Paul was saying, I was, as I told you last, I was gung ho in the
Jews religion. I was exceedingly zealous of
the traditions of the Father. So let me stop and answer the
question, what is the Jews' religion? Some say, well, it's animal sacrifices,
rites, and ceremonies, washings, incense. No. In the Old Testament,
under the old covenant, that was God's religion. God ordained
those things. You hear me? They were a part
of the old covenant to point to, to figure, to shadow, to
type the coming of the Messiah. Here is the Jews' religion. Here
is Judaism. Romans nine, verse 29. And as
Isaiah said before, except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a
seed, we'd have been like Sodom, we'd have been like Gomorrah.
Israel had no personal status or character in merit before
God. They were just as corrupt as
the Sodomites and the people from Gomorrah. And so am I. And so are you. And so are you. Here it is. What shall we say
then? That the Gentiles, which followed
not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even
the righteousness which is of faith, but Israel. Now we're gonna read, here's
the Jews' religion. Here's Judaism. Now yes, they
had the animal sacrifices, the rites, the ceremonies, the incense,
the sprinkling of blood, the hyssop. They had all of those
things, but they distorted things. they seeing them as the end rather
than the means. Here it is, here's the problem.
But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath
not attained, and I'm gonna add even to the law of righteousness,
they didn't even get what they were looking for. Why? Isn't that what it says? Wherefore?
For what reason? Because they sought it not by
faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. They stumbled at the very person
that the law was pointing to. You remember God told Moses,
no, strike that. God showed Moses the pattern
when Moses was in the mount. God showed Moses Jesus Christ
the Lord and what he would accomplish. Moses said, there's one coming
like unto me, coming after me. To him shall the people hearken. Moses knew it was all about Christ,
Christ, Christ. and every believing Jew in the
Old Testament that offered their sacrifices and went through their
rituals and went through their ceremonies, knowing these things
pointed to God's Messiah, they were God's people. But the Jews
in general, they made it out to be a tradition that if you
engaged in these things, you would attain righteousness. And
they never, ever did. And that's what Paul said. Wherefore,
because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the
works of the law, for they stumbled at not the law, the stumbling
stone. Christ himself was a problem
to them. Because after all, why would
I depend upon someone else when I can depend upon me? Why would I entrust myself to
someone else when I can trust myself? That's what Paul's talking
about when he says the Jews' religion. So again, in the New
Testament, in the KJV specifically, you have religion, religious,
Jews' religion, and you have another one that's never translated
religious, too, T-O-O, too superstitious. That's what the Apostle Paul
told the people on Mars, you're too, you're overly religious. And you look up Strong's Accordance,
you'll see that's the meaning that the KJV translators translated
superstitious. That's what all religion is outside
of Christ, is superstition. Why? Because superstition is
what you imagine in your own mind, not what comes from the
book of God. Too superstitious. It also is
translated in the KJV, devout and worship. Ignorance about religion, if
you read this book, ignorance about religion is inexcusable. On my part and on your part. There's the second thought part. Remember, the scripture is the
only source of fact about religion. Let me say this before I go to
the number two. It's okay to use Google to find
some references, but don't believe what they say about religion.
I'm just telling you. Don't believe them. They'll lie
to you. Why? Because those people putting
those things on Google, they are not believers in the Christ
of God. I've been dumb enough to look
up some of what they say, and it's not long before I realize
I am wasted by time. Number two, there are only two
religions in this world. Two. Not 2,400, not 4,300, not
10,000 plus. There are two. That simplifies it greatly for
us all. I'm not saying it's simple, but
it simplifies it. Just like the scripture, like
Paul talks about the simplicity, the singularity that's in Christ.
Why is it called, translated, simple? Because the old English
word meant this. It's something easy to grasp
onto. Simple. Isn't it simple that God put
all of his glory concerning salvation and redemption and justification
and sanctification and glorification and righteousness, everything
is found in one person. That's quite simple. He is not
simple, but that is quite simple. To find him, though he's never
been lost, To find him is to find him whom to know is to know
everything. Everything. If I know him, Joe,
I know it all, though I do not comprehend it all by any means. The precedent was set of old.
Turn to Genesis chapter four. Remember I said the scripture's
the only source of fact about religion. I said fact about religion. The precedent was set of old.
Of course, I've already mentioned that Adam and Eve became very
religious as soon as they'd fallen, but they only had one side. They
fell into what I would call false religion, human religion, man's
opinion. Let's sew fig leaves together
to cover our nakedness. It worked quite well for themselves. They could no longer see one
another's nakedness, but God could. The fig leaves did not hide their
nakedness from God, and he's the one in whose sight it matters
after all. Listen to Moses in Genesis chapter
four. First few verses, Adam knew Eve,
his wife. She conceived and bear Cain and
said, I've gotten a man from the Lord. She again buried his
brother Abel, and Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain was a tiller
of the ground. And in the process of time, we do not know how long
that was, But it was in the process of time it came to pass that
Cain, here's Cain, the one who later slew his own brother, murdered
him. In the process of time it came
to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering
unto the Lord. His depravity did not make him
lack religion, His depravity confounded his idea about religion. As a matter of fact, the Lord
even later, even after the sacrifices are offered, one type of sacrifice
by Cain, another type of sacrifice by Abel, and God in some way,
I do not know how, made it clear to Cain, I do not accept you
or your sacrifice. And Cain's countenance failed. He became angry with God, the
same God that he just offered up an offering unto. And God
told him, if you do well, shalt thou not be accepted? That lets
me know that his offering, as sincere as it was, as devout
as it was, Much of worship as it was and it was worship from
Cain's perspective But from God's perspective it was insult Insult
Let me move on in the process of time it came to pass that
came brought of the fruit of the ground and offering unto
the Lord and Abel he also brought of the first sling of the flock
and And note that next phrase, and of the fat thereof. And all throughout the Old Testament
economy concerning Israel, issued forth from Sinai, it's always
the fat goes to who? Never to the priests. The fat
goes to God. And what do you have to do to
offer the fat of an animal? Kill it. You got to kill it. You got to shed blood. And Abel, he also brought of
the firstlings of the flock and the fat thereof, and the Lord
had respect unto Abel and to his offering, but unto Cain and
to his offering he had not respect, and Cain was very wroth, and
his countenance failed. And somebody says, is that religion
or legalism? It's both. Both. All human religion has a legalistic
basis because it's based upon human effort. It's based upon
some kind of rule or law or commandment, whether it's a commandment given
by God and then distorted and made to be the traditions and
commandments of men, or whether it's some kind of rule or law
that men come up with on their own. Don't try to say, well,
what's legalism and what's religion? They're both and the same when
it comes to man. And I say that for a reason,
but let's move on. Remember, the precedent was set.
Here it is. There's God's way, and then there's
man's way. And man's way is antichrist. It's always anti-Christ. And we do have visitors here.
Some of you folks that's actually from what we call Sovereign Grace
Chapel, you heard me say this over and over again, especially
in the past few years, people are called up with, who's gonna
be the anti-Christ? Who is he? The book of God tells
us he will not be revealed till the Son of God is revealed. Go
back and read it. Antichrist is anybody that doesn't
believe It was me at one time It is to be against God's Christ,
and this is exactly what Cain was saying Because God's way
is this God's way in Christ because before these two boys ever offered
any kind of worship religion toward God. God had already told
them the seed of the woman shall crush the serpent's head. Messiah had been promised. And then the fact that God had
to make coats of skins. was a clear indication that someone
would have to suffer in another's stead if we're ever to have our
nakedness truly covered before God. Think about it. God's way
in Christ is this, fat, it's right here in the text, Genesis
four, one through five. Fat, blood, substitution, and
satisfaction. That sums up the whole thing.
Oh, there's much more, but if God ever allows me to get a hold
of that fat, it's God's. Blood is what makes atonement,
and when that is done, it must be done through a substitute
because my blood, my fat isn't worth offering to God. There must be a substitute. But when the substitute is offered,
there is satisfaction. This religious world that goes
under the auspice of man's religion, Antichrist, they'll admit to
fat and blood. They will even admit to substitution. But they will not bow down to
God in satisfaction. What Christ did can't be enough. I've got to add my little bit
in, whether it's a tomato or a stalk of celery. We're loving
God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength. And when
we say we do those things, we deceive ourselves because we
never have. We never have. There's God's
way in Christ. There's man's way that's antichrist.
You know what man's way is? You don't have to look up the
10,000, folks. Don't waste your time looking
up the 10,000 religions if there are 10,000 religions. Here is
summing up the other religion. There's God's way, there's man's
way. Anything and everything but God's way in Christ. That's
what it is. It's that simple. Anything and
everything but God's way in Christ. We don't mind even a whole lot
of Christ, but it can't be all Christ. Somebody says, I don't know if
I believe that. Then you're in trouble. You're in trouble, man. Think
about it. Here's another thought. There
are only two religions in this world. Man's way, and I'm not
gonna turn to it. You can turn to it and read it
later. Man's way, that is anti-Christ, that is being against Christ,
has three hallmarks, and our brother Jude gave them to him.
You can read it later, Jude, verses eight, nine, 10, 11. There
is Cain, Cain. I will not have God's way only. He still offered offering, did
he not? He still offered a sacrifice,
but no fat, no blood, no true substitution, and certainly no
satisfaction to God. Cain is this, and this is what?
Cain, Balaam, These are the three hallmarks of man's way. Cain's
way is I will not have God's way only. A little bit of God's
way is fine, but I gotta add in some of mine. Here's Balaam's
problem. What's in it for me? What's in
it for me? He wanted what people carry around in this.
Now, I was gonna open it up, pull one out, but there ain't
none in this one. Reward. reward. What's in it for me? What can
I stick in my pocketbook that's going to get my belly fed, which
is our God by nature. Which is going to get my back
closed, which is going to put a roof over my head. You remember
what the master himself said, don't you take care for them.
God knows what you need in those things. You seek first the kingdom
of God and his righteousness. He'll add all that to you. You,
by his grace, apply yourself to who Jesus Christ is and what
he accomplished at Calvary, and the rest of it, God'll drop it.
Listen to me, God'll drop it right out of the sky. Tommy and
Jody, he'll drop it right out of the sky. That's what, Balaam,
what prophet is it for me? What was Korah? Here's Korah,
we need to debate this. One group of people can't be
right. We're all holy before God. That's
what Cora said, wasn't it? We need to debate this. We need
to settle this issue. No, God's already settled it.
He settled it way back yonder when he said the seed of the
woman will crush the serpent's head. How much of that did we
do? Zero. Zero. He, the Lord Jesus Christ, bore
the wrath of the winepress of God Almighty alone. When he died on that accursed
tree, he died there by himself. He was not looking for our merit,
but was bringing satisfaction to God the Father for our demerit. Quora, we need to settle this.
Listen, people love to argue. Present preacher included. I thank God, like I've told some
of you, some of you visitors, you haven't heard this one. I
about got in a fight at a golf course one time. About had a
guy take a nine iron to my head. As I told him, I said, you're
ignorant concerning the truth of God. Well, that was just like
throwing a hair in the soup. But by nature we are. Oh, we're not ignorant about
religion. We got it all figured out down in here. And if we don't,
we'll get out Google. We'll start figuring it out. We need the truth of Jesus Christ
only. Think about this. Paul said to
the church at Corinth, our brothers and sisters there, 2 Corinthians
11, 13 through 15, I will not read it. He said that Satan's
ministers are ministers of what? Drunkenness, debauchery, and
drug abuse. Is that what Satan's ministers
are? No, they are ministers of righteousness. But there's a problem with that.
They're always ministers of man's righteousness, and not God's
in Christ. Think about it. Satan would love
to have you get caught up with, this is a preaching righteousness.
Okay, here's what's wrong about religion, and here's what's right
about religion. And you avoid the wrong, and
you take in the right. And when you think there's 10,000,
then you'll be busy all your life. And you'll be studying
and studying and studying and never coming to a knowledge of
the truth. And you'll be righteous. You'll
be avoiding all the bad things in religion and trying to gather
to yourself and your actions all the good things in religion.
God says my religion is found in one place and one person.
That's that man crucified on that tree at Calvary. Hmm. Think about it. Go back and look at it sometime.
Acts 16 verse 14. Paul went to a river bank, a
creek bank. And there was a lot of women
gathered there to pray. And it was said there was this
one woman named Lydia, which worshiped God. That word worship,
if you look it up in Strong's, is the word, same Greek word
used, translated sometimes religious or devout. She was devout. Devout toward God, right? That's what Luke records. Here's
the dilemma. Was she then okay? Because, I'm putting it in my
own words, because her heart was not gospel receptive, though
she was devout toward the true and the living God. Because if
you don't know Jesus Christ, you will miss God altogether.
Whose heart, who worshipped, which worshipped God, whose heart
the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken
by Paul. Somebody says, I don't like that.
Well, God loves it. God says, it pleased me. It pleased
God through the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. But it's not any kind of preaching. Read it, 1 Corinthians 1. It's
preaching Jesus Christ and him crucified. Crucified. Quite simple. and yet so complex
for us. Because I love to add in my own
thoughts about rules and laws and regulations. There's got
to be something to keep me in check. What brought me from the
grave of spiritual deadness? The power of God through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ. And if he can bring me out of
the grave, he can certainly keep me from walking in darkness.
We'll look at that in more detail here in a moment. Remember, scripture
is the only source of fact about religion. Secondly, there are
only two religions. One, it's Christ is all. The other one is everything else. Everything else. But here's a
third thought. God's way in Christ is absolute. That's what Cain found out. My
mind still has trouble grasping. Cain worked hard, there's no
doubt. Remember, the earth had been
cursed. Now it's going to bring forth
not just all this abundance, but thorns, briars, thistles,
Drought would come, and Cain's out there working in the heat
of the sun, growing all of these vegetables, whatever it was.
That was labor. You think Cain wasn't sincere?
You think Cain wasn't devout? He probably had more devotion
to Ellen than I do. But his devotion was wrong. It
had himself as the center and not Christ, not fat, not substitution,
not satisfaction. And somebody says, but why is
God so particular? Because God's gonna get all the
glory. And he ain't gonna share it with us based on merit at
all, ever, for any reason. What he will do one day is reveal
his glory in us. Isn't that something? In us. One day, I'll be done
with me. Are you that tired of yourself
yet? Now, when I was young, as Don Fortner used to say, I
had the bull by the tail on a downhill draw. And the older I get, The
more corrupt I realize myself to be, the more prone I am to
say, yes, I trust Christ. And let me have that. This can't hurt. Yeah, I can. I don't want to be like Cain
and end up saying my punishment is more than I can bear and have no hope. Because I must
acknowledge, just like Cain did, because I have no better than
Cain, my punishment is more than I can bear. Bless God, Jack, somebody bore
it for me. It's the whole thing. Somebody
said, you're just saying God excused the sin. No, God dealt with sin
in the person of His Son on that accursed tree. He made Him to
be sin. I can't explain this, just to
proclaim it. He felt my guilt and my shame
when He hung on that tree. Look at the Psalms. 23, 42, and I think 70. I'll
get that later if you really want those Psalms. He said, he
said, the Lord himself said, when he hung on that tree, Psalms
24, that was the psalm. When he cried out, my God, my
God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why did God forsake him? Because
he found sin in him. But not his own. Mine. Yours if you believe him. Yours
if you ever come to believe him and you don't right now. yours. But if you never come to believe
him, you got no reason to believe he hung there for you. Because
when he died on that tree, he finished it all up by this. It
is finished. And I'm told that some of the
Greek scholars say that there were bills of debt, like if someone
owed someone money and they paid that money off, they would stamp
that. In our English, it is finished. paid in full, testelestai, done. God never passes over sin. Joe talked about that Passover.
There was death in every house. No house excluded. There was
death in every house. Either it was the death of the
firstborn lamb or the death of the firstborn himself or herself.
But bless God, when that firstborn lamb was slaughtered and blood
was put, Joe, on there, God said, when I see it, I will pass over
you. So again, I say God's way in
Christ is absolute. I mean, it's so, it turned to
Romans nine. There I go again. Romans nine. It began with God, that is this
God's way, this way of absoluteness. It began with God according to
God's own dictates. God determined in the person
of his own self what all this must be. He didn't choose the
best way. He purposed the only way. You
know, you ever sing, I sang that song back when I was in religion.
Just suppose God searched through heaven. Yeah, huh? Couldn't find one willing to
be the supreme sacrifice that was needed. God help me, I was
singing that trash and claiming to worship God. What an insult
to God's son. Here's the way God puts it through
the Apostle Paul. What'd I say? Oh yeah, Romans
nine, that's right. Romans 9 verse 11, for the children
being not yet born, they're still in the womb. Neither. Neither. So there's two caveats
to this thing. Not one explaining the other.
There's two caveats. For the children being not yet
born, neither having done any good or evil. You see that? Well, let me read
the rest of it. Any good or evil that the purpose
of God according to election might stand, not of effort, is
not of works good or bad, but of him that calleth. Had it been
God excluded men because of evil that would be done, could be
done, might be done, I would have had to be left out. Left
out. What about you? You answer that
for yourself. What about you? What about good? What about good? I've never,
my pastor, your dad, your dad, stood in this place for years,
and he told us, I've never done one truly good thing in my life. Because everything I do is shot
full of me. It still has flesh there with
it. Not for the blood of Christ even
everything God don't just do something to you He had to do
something first for you He had to put away your sins by the
sacrifice of his son before he could ever a holy God could ever
say I'm gonna lay hold of that one Draw him or her unto myself
Hmm And I like what I keep remember the preacher's name. It doesn't
matter. He Said this one time, Jesus Christ, you see, if God
laid hold just of me, just of me, he'd have had to consume
me. Because in this short meeting
here this morning, I've thought enough evil for God to send me
justly to hell. And I haven't done enough good
to stand before a thrice holy God that even the angels must
cover their faces when they fly before his throne. And if God
were just to lay hold of me, he would consume me. And if I
were to reach up unto God, I'd still be consumed. But in the
person of the God-man, the one who hung on that awful, bloodied
tree, he has the right and the might to lay hold of me. And to lay hold of God. and to
bring me and God together, not like this, that's man's religion,
but like this, in himself. In himself. I was born and raised, oh Jesus
will bring you and God like this. So finally, Joe, I heard the
gospel and I realized it was Christ not bringing us like this,
it was bringing me to God Himself Remember Before they were born
Neither have he done any good or evil. Somebody said that's
fair. That's not fair. You're right. It's not fair Had
it been fair we'd all went to hell. I It's called, as the Apostle
Paul puts it, mercy and compassion, and God said, I'll have that
on whom I will. And then even further, and I
know this is tough, my flesh recalls even today to hear it. Verse 18, therefore hath he mercy
on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardness. Somebody says, explain that,
preacher. No. No. Paul anticipates somebody
saying, explain that. And he said, you're replying
against God. Read it for yourself. Isn't that
what he says? Thou wilt say then unto me, why
doth he yet find fault for who hath resisted his will? No, but
O man, who art thou that replies against God? See, God's not trying
to meet some standard. God is the standard. It's right
because God does it. And somebody says, well, if it's
right for God to do it, then it's right for me to do it. We're
not God. We're the creatures. He has the
right to command of us what he will. And as a matter of fact,
the master himself gave an illustration of this. And he said, I have
the right to do of mine what I will. I can have a man laboring
through all the heat of the day and give him one penny. And then
I can hire another man at the end of the day. He labors nothing
like the other guy did, and I still give that last man how much?
One penny. God does with us as he pleases.
Aren't you glad he pleased to show some mercy? And some compassion? And I'm glad it's not based,
now I'm glad it's not based upon any good or evil in me. Here's a second thought. Turn
to Philippians 2. Turn there if you're following
along. Philippians 2. I'm not going to state it exactly
as I wrote it down because I want to put it this way. The climax
of God's absolute purpose in Christ is not found when he converts
me. It's found, it has its climax
in the sacrifice of Christ on the tree. When did God save me? And I'm not afraid to use the
world. He gave me purpose and grace in Christ before the world
was. He gave it to me because if He
didn't give it to me then, I definitely ain't got it now. I don't have it now. Here it
is, Philippians 2. And I know the Apostle Paul is
here saying, Christ is our example. Conduct ourselves like he did.
That's the context of what he says here. But look at what he
says. Verse 5, for the sake of time. Philippians 2 verse 5,
let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who,
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with
God, but made himself of no reputation, took upon him the form of a servant,
was made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion as
a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death. And then here is the marvelous
thing. the death of the cross. He hung there in naked. Don't you believe that? Don't
you get on that Google, look up a picture of Jesus on the tree.
And they got that little loincloth. I'm not trying to be brash this
morning. He was naked. And he hung there
in open shame as a malefactor. as a criminal. That's the death he died. This is just from Walter. He
didn't get to just do like Jacob, just lay out his head, turn toward
the wall, and just give up the ghost. He had to suffer as a
criminal on the tree. Why? To redeem you and me. to
redeem you and me. Look at it. He humbled himself
and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Wherefore? God also hath highly exalted
him, and given him a name which is above every name, the name
of Jesus. Every knee should bow, of things
in heaven, of things in the earth, and things under the earth. I
think Paul's basically saying, trying, not trying. He is saying
everything without exception. I have often said, and probably
will mess up and say it again, you need to bow to Jesus Christ.
No, you will bow to Jesus Christ. You will. You either bow now
by his grace, or you'll bow under his judgment at the great white
throne. All flesh shall bow before this man, Jesus Christ. And I can't wait to see that
happen. Because it's not about me being
on the right side. Some of us will be on the right
side, some of us will be on the left side. Some of us will be
in good shape, some of us will be in really bad shape. But God
intends on honoring His Son to the full. Everything will one
day praise Christ. And think about it, even the
rich man that lifted up his eyes in hell, though he knew very
little, he still knew he did not have what he needed. Now, didn't he? He didn't realize
it before, but bless God, he certainly realized it then, didn't
he? And he asked Father Abraham, well, send Lazarus, somebody,
send somebody back to tell my brothers. I don't want them to
come here. I can understand that, can't
you? He said, no, no. He said, if
somebody raised from the dead, they'll believe. Now here's the
soul winning prowess of Father Abraham in glory. They have Abraham
and the prophets. Let them hear them. Why? Because that's God's ordained
way. You see, if God ever saves you,
you're going to hear the truth of the gospel through a sinner
just like me. He will be no better than me. He'll be a sinner saved by the
grace of God. God could have purposed to send
angels, but they'd have had no idea what they were really talking
about, would they? Being redeemed from darkness? Redeemed from
sin? No. But a fallen sinner could
say, there's mercy and compassion with God. Your sin, if you're God's, is
the one thing that can't keep you out of glory. Did you hear
what I just said? Your sin is the one thing that
can't keep you out of glory. The only thing that can keep
you out of glory is God's will. God's will. Here's another thought. I'm trying to move along, folks.
Remember, Paul wasn't here. It is experience, that is this
way of God, this absolute way. Turn to 2 Corinthians 10. I've
gotta move, I can't spend a lot of time. 2 Corinthians 10. This
way of God is experienced when the gospel of Christ conquers
a soul. I said conquers a soul. I've been in the way that a lot
of people call free grace, or reigning grace, or sovereign
grace, or Calvinism, whatever they want to call it. And I've
been in that way for many years. And I know, and I've seen, and
I'm afraid of it myself, this thing of intellectual salvation. I'm saved because I understand
this and I believe it. That's not it. Some of you here
in this small group of people were born and raised under preaching
of the gospel. And I dare say you probably believe
this. This is the time you can remember believing anything.
Could you say that's true of some of you, Ellen? You believed
it. Daddy preached it, right? Yeah,
took you with him and you played the piano when he'd go to meetings
in here and there, hmm? It's not it. Look at it. Paul
puts it this way to our brothers and sisters at Corinth, 2 Corinthians
10, verse three, four, though we walk in the flesh, we do not
work after the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare
are not carnal, but mighty through God to the what? pulling down
of strongholds. Casting down what we think. Do you see that? What we imagine. How many times did I say years
ago, and how many times have I had, well I know what I think,
I know what I believe, it don't matter. That's the very thing
God's gonna conquer when he does something to us. Now he did something
for us if we're one of his, but he also will do something to
us. And what is that? Conquer us.
And look at what he conquers. Pulling down strongholds, casting
down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself
against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every
thought, not in obedience to Christ, but to the obedience
of Christ. It's not about me obeying Christ,
it's about me bowing to His obedience. Though obey Him, God's people
do. But it don't start by you obeying
Him. No, no, no! Never ever! It starts by Him
bowing you to His obedience. what He did when He lived in
this world, what He did when He died on that tree, what He
did when He raised from that tomb, what He did when He ascended
on high, and what He is doing now as God set Him at His own
right hand. The most important obedience
in the world is His, not yours. Though your obedience is important. Because if all I got's my obedience,
Joe, I'm a goner. Here's another, got a couple
more. It's God's Spirit, now turn to Hebrews chapter nine. I've got to move quickly, but
I don't want to just skim over this. Remember, it began according
to God's dictates. It finds its climax in the sacrifice
of Christ. It's experienced when the gospel
of Christ conquers the soul, but listen. It is God's spirit,
not law, not ritual, not education, not ceremony, not catechism,
that reproves. Now I told you the wrong passage.
I didn't give you the last one. Turn to John 16. I'm sorry about
that. John chapter 16. Look at verse seven. I said it is God's spirit, not
law, not ritual, not education, not ceremony, not catechism.
That reproves John 16, verse seven. Nevertheless, I tell you
the truth. It is expedient. It's absolutely
necessary for you that I go away. For if I go not away, the Comforter
will not come unto you. But if I depart, I will send
him unto you. So there's no doubt. If he goes,
Comforter's coming. Right? And when he has come,
Will, do you see that? He will, not might, not shall
try, not shall make it available. He will reprove the world of
sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. Let's just deal with
the first one, of sin. Why? Because they don't believe
the law? All of God's people know the law is holy, just, and
good. Because they don't keep the law,
is that why we gotta be reproved of sin? You're not keeping the
law is not your greatest crime against God. You hear me now? I did not say it was not a crime
against God. And if you're not perfect in the law of sight,
you will perish as well as I will. But that's not our chief crime.
The law says thou shalt not commit adultery. Not everybody has. Not everybody has, but I'll tell
you one sin everybody's guilty of. of sin because they believe
not on me. That's the one sin we're all
guilty of. That's the one sin God's Spirit
must reprove us of. By His grace, I can believe Him,
but I still never keep the law. Here's the fifth thing. Turn
to Hebrews 9. That's where I had you a moment ago. Hebrews 9. This is amazing. It is the blood of Christ that
continues our sanctification and the service to the living
God. The blood of Christ. The blood of Christ. The blood
of Christ. It is the blood of Christ that
continues. And I said continue. God ever
first sanctifies you, and you know when he did that? When Christ
died on that tree. Look at Hebrews 10. He sanctified,
everybody he died for he sanctified, everybody he sanctified he perfected.
That is a legal accomplishment. But now we must have this thing
experienced. Now look at it, listen to what
I'm saying. Turn to Hebrews 9. It is the blood of Christ that
continues, continues our sanctification under service to the living God.
Not rules, not regulations, not threats. I've been there in man's
religion and was threatened all my life. I was five years old
when I went forward, prayed the prayer, was baptized, and even
went soul winning when I was a little fella. Did I not, Mom?
Went with her soul in it. That tall, had tracks in the
hand. Some of the women was afraid
to go up to one old guy's house because he was mean. I'm told,
I don't even remember, I marched right up there, knocked on the
door, said, come to church, here's a human track. Didn't have anything to
do with sanctification. Well, look at what the book says.
Verse 14. How much more shall the blood
of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself without
spot to God, purge your conscience from what? Dead works. All works
outside of Christ. All of them. You see, if it's
not God working in me both to will and to do of his good pleasure,
then everything I do is sin. It's sin. And the only reason
God accepts what he works in me both to will and to do is
because Christ atoned for my sin. But somebody says, I don't
see sanctification there. That's because I went to the
last part first. Look, verse 14. First part of the verse. No,
I'm sorry, verse 13. See, preachers lie even when
they're standing here preaching, don't they? Hebrews chapter 9 verse
13, for if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of
a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies. Now that is, it brings
about sanctification and it continues. Now it makes it better. Once
these things were sanctified, bless God they were sanctified,
the sanctified can get. But the sanctification had to
continue. Look. For if the blood of bulls
and of goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean,
sanctify to the purifying of the flesh, what's that mean,
preacher? It means this. I'll give you
an example of it from the Old Testament. Two sons, was it the
sons of Aaron? Maybe if I'm wrong, you can rebuke
me for it later, took what's called strange fire. What was
strange fire? It was any kind of coals, live
coal, live, red hot coals, that did not come off the brazen altar.
All fire in the worship, in the tabernacle, had to come from
the brazen altar. Somehow these boys got them some
fire somewhere else. Now it's just hot coals, but
it had been sanctified by God Almighty. It had been set apart
by God Almighty. It had been declared holy by
God Almighty, and it was just hot coals. But they went somewhere
else and got some, and attempted to enter into the tabernacle. You know what God did? This is
just the ceremonies and rites. This is just, this is the old
covenant. This is just the symbols and the types. God struck them
dead. You remember? struck them dead. Why? Because God had sanctified
that fire. Only the fire from off the brazen
altar. Those for the blood of bulls
and goats and ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean. What
did it mean? Common, just common everyday articles. A candlestick
made out of gold with 12, actually it was like an olive lamp, made
out of 12, had 12 things on it. But when the blood and all these
things were sprinkled by Moses and it was done, how many times
did Moses do that? When the tabernacle was first
erected and first erected only. He never went through that ritual
again. Why? Because they were already sanctified. Because they were already sanctified,
they remained and continued to be sanctified by God. So if you
messed around with it, God may kill you for it. You see it? Now he's using the old covenant
and its reality and applying it now to the new covenant and
its absoluteness. Look at it. Now read it as it
says, for if the blood of bulls and goats and ashes of an heifer
sprinkling the unclean sanctify to the purifying of the flesh
in a flesh in the ritualistic ceremonial way, it sanctified. Those things were sanctified.
You see them two little dots? See that, the end of that word
flesh? I'm not an English scholar by
any means. You can listen to me preach, you can tell that.
That's called a colon. Now the next phrase after that
is a full sentence, as well as the sentence before the colon.
So the colon connects the two together and the second is an
explanation of the first. But he's taking an example of
the old covenant and showing us the reality of the new. How
much more? You see it? I mean, that fleshly
sanctifying, Joe, don't even compare with this one. How much
more shall the blood of Christ? Somebody says, how does he do
that? How did he raise me from the dead? How did he make some
man preaching the gospel all of a sudden stir my boat and
knock me into the water and make me cry out, Lord, I perish. Save me. It's called the power
of God. Blessed God, if He's powerful
enough to bring me up out of the spiritual grave, He's powerful
enough to keep me in the way, to make me by Christ's blood
serve the living God, and put away what? Dead works. Now, I know, I was taught, well,
that's all those Old Testament ceremonies, that's true. But dead works are also works
that I do. trying to either gain God's favor
or keep it. Or keep it. How much more shall
the blood of Christ, folks, don't go to Google to try to figure
out how God does that. Just take it that he does because
his word says so. How much more shall the blood
of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself without
spot to God purge? He's gonna do it. How much is
this me doing? Nothing. Nothing. Purge your conscience from dead
works to serve the living God. But what if I mess up? He will
correct you. Go down to the next few chapters.
Well, preacher, you just can't let people go. You better let
them go. They're not yours. You didn't buy him. Joe, you
didn't buy him. Paul Pendleton, he didn't buy
him. Walter Pendleton didn't buy him. You're not my flock.
You're God's flock. And he bought you with his blood
and he'll keep you with his blood. I'm gonna sum it up with this.
Hebrews chapter seven, and I'm gonna just read it and then I'll
give you the statement. Hebrews seven. Verse 23, and they truly were
many priests. That is under the old economy,
that old covenant. And they truly were many priests
because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death.
They died, and they had to appoint somebody, or somebody was, I'm
sorry, wrong words. God had already appointed who
would come in and fill the spot by reason of death. But this
man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood,
wherefore he is able also to save. So who does the saving
to the utmost? Who does it? He does it. Saving
to the uttermost, the uttermost entirely, that is, or completely.
Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that
come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession
for them. Consider this. According to the
Apostle Paul, I'm not gonna take time to read it, Acts 20 verses
28 through 31, even the Apostle Paul warned that the local assembly
is no safe house from the errors of human religion. He said, men,
he said, I warned you day and night with tears, weeping, that
men of perverse minds, it will rise up even from among yourselves. Didn't know what he said? James
says they shall come in privily, slither in like a snake. This
is no safe house. Christ is our safe house. And I know one thing. You got
an assembly, you got a man, or you got men for that matter,
that's preaching Christ, preaching Christ, preaching Christ. When
the snake slithers in, he won't be long. He'll slither back out.
We had one slithered amongst us for over 40 years. Am I telling
the truth or not? For 40 years, he slithered around. his hand, Joe, hugged him. He ate at my house, I ate at
his house. And then he stands right in there in that room and
says that me and Paul and Joe were preaching heresy. The place is not the safe house.
This building's nothing. This is Sovereign Grace Chapel. This, those people that are members
here, they are the house of God. We're not Sovereign Grace Chapel.
This is Sovereign Grace Chapel. We're the people of God. We're
the elect of God. Now think about this. An octopus
may have eight different arms. And I did Google that. Of course,
I already knew it. But I did find out something. I've been
saying that octopus have tentacles. Google told me they don't. So
if you can find somebody that tells me I was right to start
with, we'll call them tentacles. But I'm going with what Google
said, they're not tentacles, they're arms. An octopus may have eight
different arms. Eight different arms, but they're
all still octopus. Right? They're all still octopus. You know what they say about
the old octopus too, you can pop one off, and you know what
he'll do? He'll grow it right back. You're not going to stop man's
religion. Now I'm not telling you don't
pull his arm off. Pull it off, but he'll come back. So you never, you never can say,
okay, I made it now. I'm here. I've arrived now. Even
our brother, the apostle Paul says, I have not arrived. I press
forward. Look at Philippians 3, and we'll
have a closing prayer. Here's the Apostle Paul's, this
is sound advice. It's not my advice either, it's
a God-inspired writer. Philippians chapter 3, just a
couple verses here. And notice what he says. Finally, my brethren. Now when
we say that, we usually mean we're winding down, right? Well,
if you read through the epistle, it comes over in chapter four
and gives another finally. The finally here is not a winding
down, this is the ultimatum. This is it. Finally. This is the final crescendo,
if you will. Finally, my brethren, rejoice
in the Lord. To write the same things to you,
to me indeed, is not grievous, but it's safe. But preacher,
you preach the same old thing over and over again. That's what
Paul said we need to do. Just keep reminding one another
over and over and over, what? Beware of dogs, beware of evil
workers, beware of the concision. We gotta warn against man's religion
because it'll creep right in the local assembly. It'll come
out of here. It don't have to slither in there,
it may come out of here. Beware of dogs, beware of evil
workers, beware of the concision. Now here it is. For we are the
circumcision which worship God in the spirit. Listen to me. I'm not against, hallelujah,
amen. But be careful. Because out here
is not where it's at. We worship God where? in the
Spirit. And notice it is a small s. Yes,
we must have the Spirit of God to worship Him, but this is correct.
We worship God inwardly. That's where we worship God,
in here. All this out here means nothing
if it's not down in here. That's what Paul's saying. It's
in here. For we are the circumcision which
worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and
have very little confidence in the flesh. Is that what he said?
In? Let me tell you something, folks. Sometimes the flesh can be pretty
smart, pretty persuasive, pretty logical. It may make sense out
there in the world, but we're not trying to please the world,
are we? Our desire is to please God who
called us out of darkness into light. Heavenly Father, may these
words not meant as rebuke per se, Lord, but myself or anyone
else needs a rebuke, may it do that. May it accomplish that
goal, but Lord, chiefly may it encourage us. May it strengthen
us. May it do so in spite of ourselves.
Lord, overrule our desires. Force upon us sweetly and mercifully
and graciously your purpose. In Christ's name, amen.