If you want to follow along,
turn to Paul's epistle to the Colossians chapter 1. Now, when I say Paul's epistle
to the Colossians, I should qualify that by saying Paul's epistle
to the believers at Colossae. These epistles were not written
to certain cities. They were written to believers
who assembled together in certain cities. Colossians chapter 1. Are you
there? If you're following along. Colossians
chapter 1. I'll just read three verses. Verse 21. And you that
were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works,
yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through
death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable
in His sight, if ye continue in the faith grounded and settled,
and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye have
heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under
heaven, whereof I, Paul, am made a minister." Do you see those
words? I'm going to pose my title in
the form of a question this morning. And it probably, when I give
the title, you're probably wondering, I wonder which way he's going
with this when you hear the title. And I recognize titles are not
essential, but sometimes they can be helpful. Maybe just to
help you remember something. So I pose my title in the form
of a question. Delighted or disturbed? Delighted or disturbed? Now in these three verses I read
to you, I have no doubt that most everyone here would say
there are some things there that clearly delight me. But I ask
you, is there anything here that disturbs you? So that's my question,
delighted and disturbed. And as I go through this message
this morning, I pray, my prayer is, my desire is before God that
you might understand why I give this the title that I did, more
as we get into it. The truth that our Apostle, and
I say our Apostle because Paul was the Apostle to the Gentiles. That doesn't mean he preached
exclusively to Gentiles. But that was his main authority
was toward the Gentiles. And the truth that our Apostle
conveys here is, first of all, it's glorious in its expression. Rebels reconciled. Isn't that
glorious? Do you know what it's like to
have been a rebel? and yet to be reconciled to God. So I say that the truth our Apostle
conveys here is glorious in its expression. Secondly, it's comforting
in its instruction to present former rebels holy and unblameable
and unreprovable. Where? In His sight. Isn't that
comforting? If that doesn't comfort you,
and you profess to be a Christian, you're not a Christian. And I
don't say that judgmentally. I say that because I care about
your soul. What you profess is a false profession. That doesn't
comfort you. So it's comforting in its instruction.
Thirdly, it's solemn. It's solemn in its warning. If
ye continue in the faith, Grounded and settled. A lot of people
talk about continuing the faith because they still hold to these
things quite loosely. No, if you continue in the faith
grounded and settled and be not moved away from the hope of the
gospel. Which you have heard. Now if you've never heard it,
you ain't never been there. And a lot of people have heard
it and still ain't there. But Paul's talking to a people
who have heard it and have arrived. So it's solemn in its warning.
Number four, it's profound in its direction. If you continue
in the faith, grounded and settled, here's the profundity of its
direction, and be not moved away from the hope of the Gospel. It's not just the Gospel. The
Gospel is a message. It's a proclamation. But it's
a proclamation about a person. And the person is the hope of
the Gospel. So it's glorious in its expression.
It's comforting in its instruction. It's solemn in its warning. It's
profound in its direction. It's humbling in its reminders. It reminds us of our past. That's
humbling. When you're reminded of what
you sometime were, that will humble you. But not only that,
it's humbling in this past reminder, but it's humbling and it reminds
us of our present. Because God brought me there.
I didn't choose this. As a matter of fact, it's not
just that I didn't choose it. I desired the exact opposite
of this. I was against this. I didn't
want this. And yet God Almighty in free
sovereign grace came and arrested me and brought me to His Son. What a humbling reminder. And
it's also humbling as a reminder of our future. Because one day, one day we will recognize by
experience The very fact that we are what? To present you holy and unblameable
and unreprovable in His sight. I have difficulty grasping that
right now. I believe it. I know it to be
true. But I have difficulty experiencing
that, Joe. Because I look at me and I don't
see that. I don't see that. So it's humbling
in its reminders of our past, our present, and our future.
Sixthly, the truth here is inclusive of all believers. I said all
believers. Old soldiers in the faith. Old soldiers in the faith. This
truth applies to you. You've been here. You've been
in some other place, Jason, and you stand for the truth, and
you've stood there for years, in spite of all the insults,
and the malkings, and the jeers, and the so-called friends who
don't want to have anything to do with you anymore. And you
come to the place where you don't want to have anything to do with
them anymore. And you've stood for the faith,
and you've stood for the faith. This still applies to you. All
three verses apply to you. But this truth is inclusive of
all believers. It applies to new converts to
the faith as well. It applies just as much if ye
continue. These things are true if ye continue
in the faith, grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the
hope of the gospel which ye have heard. The scope of these verses is
long. It's way out there. It is beyond human sight. But
even faith now being given to us, it is limited not in itself,
but it is limited by our finiteness. We don't grasp the scope of this,
the length of it. But the scope is long nonetheless.
The periphery is vast. It's way out here. Matter of
fact, it stretches so far in the periphery, we can't even
see it all at one time. You have to look here a little
while, or there a little while, look at this a little while,
that a little. You can't take it all in at one time. The scope
is long, the periphery is vast to God's electing love in Christ
Jesus. Paul put it this way in Ephesians,
if you want to turn there, Ephesians chapter 3, Listen to what he says in Ephesians
3, verses 14. He says, for this cause, I bow
my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul felt this constant sense
of humility before God. Of adoration before God. Oh, God help you this morning
if you're here in this small group and these things have become
mundane unto you. God help you. God help you. For this cause I bow my knees
unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family
in heaven, some of them's already there, and in earth is named.
Some of us are still here. That He would grant you according
to the riches of His glory to be strengthened with might by
His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your
hearts by faith. That ye, being rooted and grounded
in love, not L-U-V, But L-O-V-E, that loves the truth of God above
everything else, may be able to comprehend with all saints
what is the breadth, and the length, and the depth, and the
heighth, and to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge. So you're not going to know it
fully, completely, especially not here. Maybe then we will grasp it to a greater
degree then. I don't know if we'll grasp it.
I don't know. But yet, and to know the love of Christ which
passes knowledge. In other words, God's given us
a little foretaste of something that's beyond us. It's this love
of Christ. To know the love of Christ which
passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness
of God. But look at me! Look at what
I am! Now unto Him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly
above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh
in us. Unto Him be glory in the church by Jesus Christ throughout
all ages, world without end. Amen. What a glory! What a glory! Human superlatives
of language cannot exhaust this truth. They just can't. I could
come up with all these, I hear some men preach and I think,
oh, I wish I had that mastery of the language. They seem to
have this mastery and I think, I feel for you folks. I sometimes
do. And don't come to me and criticize
me after, later. I mean, please don't. You don't
know what it's like to stand here and to know that you're
speaking for God Almighty, unless you've stood here and had to
speak to a group of believers for God Almighty. Human superlatives
of language cannot exhaust this truth, yet we praise and adore
and worship the triune God for His merciful compassion even
when words fail us. I sat here and I preached to
some of you for 30 years. When I say this with all the
sincerity I can muster, with all the care and love in my heart
that I can muster, and that's not very much sometimes it seems.
But I wonder, where's your joy? Where's your adoration? Where's
your worship? If you're just coming here to
hear me and Joe preach, you're missing out. We're coming here
to worship and adore and appraise our God. I preached to some people for 30
years and you rarely see a smile on their face when you talk about
the glories of God in Christ. It's like, what? But then again, I guess I'm too
judgmental. Maybe so. Maybe so. But God is worthy of praise nonetheless. And even when words fail you,
or facial expressions fail you, maybe you can't muster up an
amen. That's not what I'm talking about. What I'm talking about
is the heart swells forth in sublime adoration and praise. And if this has really happened
to you, when we sing these songs, you can sing it like the rest
of us. You don't have to sing well. Just sing it and look at
the words, and when you sing them, say, I know what that means. When the heart swells forth in
sublime adoration and praise, I heard Henry Mayhead say one
time, and I won't get it exactly right, but he said, if I ever
start to lose interest in these things and a joy toward them,
I'll start to fear as to whether I miss Christ or not. When it
becomes mundane to sit and talk about the praises of our God,
what's wrong with me? What's wrong with me? These three
verses, if that's all we had, are enough to rejoice a saved
sinner's soul. Even though it's glorious in
its expression, comforting in its instruction, solemn in its
warning, profound in its direction, humbling in its reminders, it
applies to every one of us all the time. All the time. The heart absent of this is void
of this love. I say if it's absent of it. I
might think you're absent of it, maybe you're not. Don't say
I'm judging too much here, because you're wrong. The heart that
is absent of this is void of this love. It's void of love
for Christ, and it's void of the love of Christ for His people.
If this doesn't rejoice your soul, you're lost. Yeah. And I say that trying to
warn you. Just hope that maybe per adventure,
God will grant to you repentance to the acknowledging of the truth.
And I don't care how long you've professed to believe these things. God shows everybody they're lost
before He ever saves anybody. So I don't care how much you
professed you've been saved, you believe these things, has
God Almighty ever showed you what a rebel you are by nature? Because every one of us comes
through that gate. Every one. Now that's introduction. It's almost by that clock, ten
minutes to twelve, so are you prepared to stay here a minute?
I've got two pages, not one as normal. I hope you brought a
sandwich with you. I will try to answer three questions
this morning. I will pose the first one now.
Number one, why this constant reminder of our former condition? Not just here, but especially
here. In light of the glories, but
why this constant reminder? But it's all throughout Scripture. Almost every epistle, actually
every epistle in some way will constantly remind you what you
used to be. What you used to be. What you
used to be. And sometimes it will remind
you what you still are by nature. Why this constant reminder of
our former condition? It's not a bludgeon. It's not
a scare tactic. People use this as a scare tactic
in false Christianity. Oh, you remember what you used
to be? You better not be that anymore. Right? No, it's not a bludgeon. It's
not a scare tactic. Think of it. And you that were
sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works,
this is not a warning. Verse 23 gives a warning. This
is not a warning. This is a positive statement
for it's connected to and invariably joined with, yea I should say
even married to as it were, yet now hath He reconciled in the
body of His flesh through death. Now the first state is not a
positive state, but our first state, as negative as it was,
is connected to a positive thing. Do you see it? And if you lose
sight of that, maybe that's why you're so spiritually melancholy. It's not a bludgeon. No, it's
a positive statement. It's married to it. Look at it.
And you that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked
works, same sentence, yet now have you reconciled in the body
of His flesh through death, to present you holy, unblameable,
and unapprovable, in His sight. Grace! God's great, real grace,
true grace. All the superlatives, you know?
Definite grace. Saving grace. Independent grace. Sovereign grace. Free grace.
Radiant grace. All of that. And I still haven't
exhausted what grace is. Unmerited grace. Let me keep
going. Don't have time. Better go on. Grace is seen in
its true light. In its splendor. When we view
the objects of grace. For what they really are by nature.
And you. And you. And you. who were sometime alienated and
enemies in your mind by wicked works. So grace is seen in its true
light and splendor when we view the objects of grace and we view
what grace has wrought, yet now hath He reconciled. And as we
even then view even more and view what grace is presently
working to present you. and unblameable and unreprovable
in his sight. Who am I to even be allowed the
privilege of standing here and speaking to you about these things? Oh, to be reminded of all this,
right? No, not just reminded what you
used to be, where you was, but reminded of all this. So again, no, I'm not done with
this part yet. Still answering this question.
Why this constant reminder of our former condition? We were
alienated. Alienated. In other words, an
outsider. Not of this realm Paul speaks
of. Not of the realm. Estrangement. You know what estrangement is,
don't you? Two people are married and they can't get along anymore.
They usually end up, what? Divorced, don't they? Don't they? Why? Because there's an estrangement.
They can't get along. They don't see eye to eye. They
don't agree upon things they thought they used to agree upon.
Whatever it might be. They don't like the same things.
They don't enjoy the same things. They don't hate the same things.
That matters too. Because two cannot. That's God's
Word. Cannot. C-A-N-N-O-T. Cannot. Two cannot. Do I say it again? Two cannot walk together except
they be agreed. So if you as a believer go out
and marry an unbeliever, don't expect anything else other than
total chaos in your life. And as Henry Mahan said, the
primary thing though is this, somebody ain't agreed with God.
And therein is the real problem. Somebody ain't agreed with God.
Because if you agree with God and take sides against yourself,
it don't matter who else stands with you or not. We were alienated. That's estranged. But our alienation was not neutral. It was combatant. And you that
were sometime alienated and enemies. We weren't just neutral. We were
combatant. These are the people God reconciled
in Christ. Do you see that? I was against God. I was against
His Christ. I was against His Gospel. I was
against His people. And at the time, I didn't even
know that. I was so against all of it, I didn't even know I was
against it. That's how bad I was. I tried to convince myself I
wasn't against it. And of course, I joined myself
up with a bunch of other people that were against it. But we
all said together, we're not against it. We love God. And
then I found out we were all liars. The real thing that hurt that
I found out I was a liar Yet now has He reconciled. And we were against His God,
against His Christ, against His Gospel, against His people in
thought and in deed. And you that were sometime alienated
and enemies in your mind by wicked works. All of this we did out
here was because of what was in here. And let me tell you, anything
you do out here still today, even as a believer, that is contrary
to God, His Gospel, His Christ, His people, everything, that's
the nasty, ugly flesh, the same first part of verse 21 you used
to be. Just as despicable as it ever was. Just as God-hating
as it ever was. Yet, now, Pathy reconciled. Do you see that? I pose my second question. What
was the grounds of this change? We're concentrating on these
verses right here. Don't say, well what does some other passage
say? Get a hold of what this says, then worry about them other
passages. You hear what I'm saying? Get a hold of what this says.
But what about John 3.16? Get a hold of this passage. Then
start considering John 3.16. What is the grounds of this change?
That is from alienated and enemies, an active combatant against.
From alienated to enemies to holy, unblameable, and unreprovable
in His sight. What's the grounds? What's the
foundation? What's the deep and wide well
gushing forth and abounding with such a change of venue? Huh? If God Almighty saved you by
His grace, you're in a different venue now. The foundation of this, the grounds
of this is found to be in nothing Nothing. Nothing of ourselves. And you that were sometime alienated,
and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled
in the body of His flesh through death. And it doesn't say if
you continue in the faith, then He'll present you holy. No, it
says to present you holy, unblamable, and unapprovable in His sight,
then if you continue in the faith. Do you see that? Even your faith
is not the grounds of it. Do you see that? Now as I say,
I wish before God when I was in school I'd have learned, studied
a whole lot more than I did. But I'm not too stupid to at
least understand plain English when it's right there in front
of you. I'm not interpreting this. I'm reading it for what
it is. And simply making a couple comments
on it. This is the grounds. How is it
done? How is this change done? What's
the grounds, the foundation of it? in the body of His flesh
through death. According to Romans 5, He reconciled
us by His death even when we were yet enemies. He doesn't
wait to your friend and then reconcile you. He didn't die
to make it possible to reconcile you. Then if you become His friend,
then He really reconciles you. No, He reconciled a people while
they were yet enemies. Go back and read it yourself.
Romans 5 verse 10. 2 Corinthians 5 verses 18 through
21. Let me read those. 2 Corinthians
5, verse 18, And all things are
of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ. In
other words, he's saying, you had no part in this. That's what
I'm trying to emphasize here. Remember, my second question
I pose is, what's the grounds, the foundation of this? And all
things are of God who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ
and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation to wit. In
other words, Paul, I'm going to explain exactly what I just
said to you. So there's no misunderstanding
here that God, W-A-S, what's that mean? Past tense. Right? that God was in Christ. Reconciling the world unto Himself. And look at what this reconciliation
extended to. Not imputing. What's that? Past
tense. Not imputing. That is when Christ
did the reconciling. Even during the reconciling,
God was not imputing this world He died for. Right? reconciled
the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and
hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." Somebody
says, well, I want to get on to that. No, stop a minute and
get a hold of that first. Pray God He allows you, enables
you to get a hold of that first. We in our fast food society,
we want to get to the end right now, don't we? Huh? We got our microwaves and
this-a-wave and that. I want it all right. Just get
to the end and sum it all up for me. I don't even do that
when I preach to you. Don't expect God Almighty to
do that for you. Get a hold of that first part first. Now then,
we as ambassadors for Christ, Now then we are ambassadors for
Christ as though God, he says as though God, not that God is,
but as though God did beseech you by us, we pray you in Christ's
stead, be ye reconciled to God. Now who's he talking to? The
world of unbelievers? No, he's talking to a bunch of
believers. These Corinthians still had a lot of arms that
they were raising up against God. I want to do this way, this
ain't my way. Paul writes this epistle and
says here's the way God says to do things, now do it. And
he says lay down your arms against God. Quit fighting against God. You're a believer. Lay down your arms. Now I realize
most everybody wants to concentrate on that part. But if you go back
then now to Romans chapter 10, you'll find out that everyone,
all these enemies that Christ died to reconcile, that He did
reconcile when He died, He says the next phrase in that same
verse is, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that,
but we glory in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we
have received the reconciliation. So He even makes sure you receive
it. Right? It's right there in plain language.
That's the foundation. Reconciliation is never something
we do. But it is something we receive.
And Christ assures we receive it. Aren't you glad for that? Isn't
that the way God saved you? Because if He didn't save you
that way, You ain't saved yet. Oh, the melodious sound. Think
of it. Go back to Colossians now. Oh, the melodious sound. The sweet, yet powerful sound
of amazing gospel language. The sound of the one and only
gospel. Every other message, as Paul
said, is nothing but a perversion of the gospel, and it's worthy
of hail, both in itself and for those who preach it. You know
what he says? Oh, the sweet yet powerful sound
of amazing gospel language, the sound of the one and only gospel
that declares a persisting, previously wrought work. Doesn't that sound
contradictory? A persisting, yet previously
wrought work. I might have come up with those
little words, but the doctrine is described right here. A persisting,
yet previously wrought work. Yet now, that's persisting, right? Hath He reconciled? That's previously
wrought. You see it? That's the mystery
of the Gospel truth. And how? In the body of His flesh
through death. This is not something we believe
to try to get. It's something we believe that's
done. That's the difference between this perverted gospel out here
that's being preached and the gospel of the grace of God in
Christ Jesus. Does this not constrain you to
love? Well, if I believe that and I do this, it's because you
don't believe it. That's why. Right now you think that way
because you don't believe it. Because if God ever brings you
to believe it, it will constrain your heart to love. Does this
not flood your heart and mind and soul with joy and worship
and adoration for Christ? If it don't, you haven't experienced
what Paul is saying in Colossians 1, 21-23. Period. But now I pose
my third and last question. Does the warning Or verse 23,
think about what I've just said. My first two questions that I
posed to you. And David, I don't mean this
braggly, but I answered them for you. I answered them for
you from this book. In light of those two questions
and their answers, does the warning of verse 23 disturb you or does
it delight you? Huh? Come on now. Now I put it
negatively for a reason. Warnings, listen to me, warnings
are never the problem. Warnings are never the problem. The state of the person warned
is the key. Now turn with me to Jeremiah.
Chapter 6. I'm going to give you just a
moment. Go back and find it. Jeremiah chapter 6. I'm going
to show you two different passages. The first one is one verse. Jeremiah
6 and 10. The next one is Psalms chapter
19. Warnings are never the problem. Does this warning, if you continue
in the faith, does that disturb you or does it delight you? Jeremiah chapter 6 verse 10.
Everybody there? Get close. Jeremiah 6.10, To
whom shall I speak? And give warning that they may
hear. Behold, their ear is uncircumcised,
and they cannot hearken. Behold, the word of the Lord
is unto them a reproach. They have no delight in it. So when you read verse 23 and
you're not delighted in verse 23, you're disturbed by 23, that
warning disturbs you, maybe angers you just a little, maybe just
gets under your skin. Right, here's why. Because look,
turn to Psalm now, the 19th Psalm I should say. And we'll show
you the exact opposite of that realm, that pole. That venue,
if you will, as I said. Psalm 19. You'll hear a few pages there
on Psalm 19. Are you there? Verse 9. The fear of the Lord
is clean. Isn't that a good statement?
Profound. The fear of the Lord is clean.
And I don't even have time to deal with that. Enduring forever
the judgments of the Lord. Colossians 1 verse 23, a judgment
of the Lord? Isn't it? The judgments of the
Lord are true and righteous? How much so? Altogether. More
to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter
also than honey in a honeycomb. He's already set the scene. He's
already laid it out. It's sweeter than a honeycomb.
You hear the warnings of God. Does it tick you off? Does it
make you angry? You've got a problem. And I pray God, He solves that
problem for you. Look, more to be desired are
they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than
honey and the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is thy servant
warned. And in keeping of them there
is great Reward you see the two different poles Do you see the
two different? Now let me read it again if you
continue in the faith Grounded and settled does that disturb
you or does that delight you? the believer here such a warning
as if you continue in the faith grounded and settled and being
reminded that My first question? Remember my first question? And
being reminded of how he arrived at one place from the other,
his heart floods with delight. God brought me out of the first
place into the second place. And look at what he's already
just told these very same Colossians in the same chapter, verse 9,
for this cause. We also, since the day we heard
it, heard what? Go to chapter 1 verse 4. Since
we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of love which you have
to all the saints, and those two prerequisites are always
there. For this cause we also, since
the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you and desire that
you might be filled with the knowledge of His will and all
wisdom and spiritual understanding, that you might walk worthy of
the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful at every good work and
increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all might
according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering
with joyfulness, giving thanks unto the Father which hath,"
what? "...made us meet." You remember
what Earl said then? I don't remember anything else
about that message you preached. But I remember him saying this.
He has qualified us. God qualified you. Helped by
Christ's reconciliation. Giving thanks unto the Father
which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance
of the saints in light. How did you get from the sometime
to where you are now? God Almighty did that. And look,
who hath delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated
us into the kingdom of His dear Son. This was the work of God
in its beginning. And Paul said, when I first heard
of it, I rejoiced. It's Him. In whom we have redemption through
His blood, even the forgiveness of sins. Who is the image of
the invisible God. I'm still going here. This is
Christ, the firstborn of every creature, for by Him were all
things created, that are in heaven, that are in earth, visible, invisible,
will be thrones, dominions, principalities, powers, all recreated by Him
and for Him, and Joe preached on that. But look, and He is
before all things, and Joe mentioned this too, but look at it, and
He is before things, and by Him all things consist, they're all
held together. So if I must continue in the
faith, and continue I must, How can I expect that to ever be
done? Well, Paul says it. In Philippians 1, verses 1-6,
he said, The first day I heard your faith, I rejoiced, even
until now. Being confident of this very
thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you, We'll perform
it until the day of Jesus Christ. How did you start in faith? If
you started by your own will, your own accord, then you're
left up to you. Go right on ahead. Knock yourself
out. But if God Almighty started you
on this path, God Almighty will keep you on this path all the
way to the end. And if He didn't start you on
this path, you will fall by the wayside somewhere or another.
Or you'll be like those who one day, never fall necessarily,
Joe, by the wayside per se, in a manifest way, but you will
get up into the pearly gates, as men say, and expect to enter
in, and Christ will say, no. I never knew you. You see, if you read verse 23, and it disturbs you, you've got
a problem. They ought to make you rejoice
if you're continuing the faith. Well, if God started me on this
path, God will keep me on this path. You see, the way we must
finish is equal to the way we started. Right? If God Almighty took you
out of the dregs of where you were. If He really did that,
and He brought you, delivered you from the power of darkness,
and He translated you into the Kingdom of His dear Son, and
He did that even while you were still there not wanting any of
it, then bless God, He's got the power to keep you where you
need to be. Right? So I say again, the way
we must finish, must finish. This is true only of those who
continue in the faith. Christ didn't die to reconcile
anybody who never believes and doesn't continue. He died only
for those. Now we're getting into some doctrine
and theology here. No, we're stating the truth.
The way we must finish is equal to the way we, of absolute necessity,
must need to start it. For by grace are you saved through
faith. And that not of yourselves. So
you think it's going to be of yourself to continue in the faith? See, if you got angry when you
read that, if you're a little perturbed, it's because at best,
you've lost sight of how you really was brought from where
you was. Or at worst, you never was really brought from where
you thought you were. Do you see where I'm coming from now?
Remember my title? Delighted or Disturbed? That delights me. I'm happy to
hear that. One who has never started that
way will certainly be disturbed when he hears that he's got to
finish that way. If you continue in the faith,
grounded and settled. Oh, I realize you may be very
doubtful about yourself, but do you doubt Christ? I'm not
a lick. I don't doubt Christ. I'm not
a lick. Is that old hillbilly saying,
not a lick? That's weird. I actually said that. If you
continue in the faith, grounded and settled, and be not moved
away from the hope of the gospel. So then my summary is this, to
be brief. A worked up, contrived, human
faith will fail. Yes sir. But a God-given faith
will flourish even under, yea, especially under trials. Especially under. It's not, well,
I got a strong faith when things are going good, but I don't know.
No. Trials is when you're going to find out what kind of faith
you really got. Turn to 1 Peter. Peter says it. And I'll read
this in close. 1 Peter 1, verse 1. Peter, an
apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout
Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, elect, according
to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification
of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of
Jesus Christ, grace unto you, and peace be multiplied. That's
the way it always comes. Grace first, then peace. Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according
to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively or living
hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance
incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved
in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith
unto salvation." Do you see that? If you continue in the faith,
it's not something God now left up to you. He didn't leave it
up to you to get started in it. He ain't going to leave it up
to you to continue in it. Ready to be revealed in the last
time wherein ye greatly rejoice. He didn't say you ought to be
rejoicing in it. If you can't rejoice in that, you don't know
it. wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need
be, ye are in heaviness through many temptations, that the trial
of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth,
though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and
honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom having
not seen, ye love." If you don't love Him, you don't know Him.
and have He not seen your love? In whom, though you see Him not,
yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory,
receiving the end of the..." That's present tense. "...receiving
the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul." So I
ask you the question again, delighted or disturbed? Does what I said
to you this morning just rejoice you? Or are you a little bit
angry at the preacher because he mentioned these verses? You've got to answer that in
here, in yourself. I can't answer that one for you.
But your answer to that says a lot about who you really are.
It says a lot about whether you're really in Christ Jesus or not.
Father, teach us Thy Word, Thy truth, bow us down constantly
to Thy Son. And Lord, not only that, not
only bow us, but Lord, cause us to be reminded of where we
were, that which brought us away from that, what brought us to
where we are now. Lord, that we might rejoice in
You, worship You, and adore You in songs of sublime adoration
and praise. In Christ's name, Amen.