Greetings friends and welcome
to another broadcast of the Old School Primitive Baptist with
Elder Don Martin Sr. Stay tuned for another gospel
message of God's free and sovereign grace. What Brother Michael had
just said before us in his discourse about God A God that is the man
of war, a God of valor, a God of victory, that has defeated
death and hell for the elect's sake, for his
children's sake, for his beloved church's sake. I'm reminded of
this verse. that I just cannot escape getting
away from to just kind of, if it can ever be done, to enhance
more what you said. And it's found in Hebrews chapter
2 and verse 15. It says this, And deliver them
who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject
to bondage. Man by nature, born of woman,
is all their lifetime in an unregenerate state as non-believing, sinful,
depraved creatures. are in bondage of fear of death
all their lifetime. And if you don't believe it,
you go talk to someone who's not a believer in Christ Jesus,
the one who professes a faith and a hope in Christ, and start
talking about death and dying. And they will no longer want
to proceed in that conversation and say, oh, let's not talk about
that. But I'll tell you what, to those
that have been blessed with that blessed hope of life immortal,
beyond this time realm in which we live, we have no fear of that
monster called death, for he has been defeated by the valor
and the victory and the power of God Almighty in and through
Jesus Christ our Lord, whom Michael has just set before us as the
victor over all things. He has won every battle, every
war that has ever been set before him, in the heavens and upon
earth. I'm talking about there haven't
been wars in heaven the Bible talks about. Between the satanic
angels, the demons of hell that were those who had fell from
the their place in the lofty realms of heaven before God Almighty
and fell from the presence of God in rebellious defeat as God
had determined that that wicked and opposing foe be so created
that it accomplished his divine will in all things. Don't you
ever think for a minute that Satan just happened along and
surprised God and become this opposing foe in the spiritual
world above and in this time realm. Oh, don't you ever think
it for a minute. God had determined him to be
so. And the bottom line of the whole
realm of God's determined, predestined, and ordained purposes is that
God would take and manifest, as has already been said before
us, His power and His authority and His sovereignty in all things. even to the point to where Satan
came before God's throne and challenged God regarding Job
being a righteous man who eschewed evil and he was righteous before
God and he was a man who loved the Lord and a man who was a
man of righteous character. Satan's head to God that said,
well, you take and strip him of his earthly possessions, and
this man who you are so prized in, he will curse your name.
Of course, you know the whole realm of the Book of Job. If
you don't, you need to read it. Because it's an enlightening
book and it will never be exhausted in this revelation to man in
this time realm. You will see and learn new things
about yourself when you read Job over and over again. that
Job was taken and stripped of all his earthly possessions,
even his children were killed, and all of his servants and manservants
and all of his crops were destroyed, his animals were taken and stolen
and taken away from him. He had nothing but his wife left.
And even she, in despair, said, Oh, why do you cling on to this
God? Oh, just curse his name and die.
Job, by the grace of the Almighty that was bestowed upon his heart,
mind, and soul, he came back to that comment and he said,
although the Lord slay me, yet will I trust in him. Hallelujah
to the Lamb of God that is worthy of praise and glory in heaven
today. Satan appeared before God one more time. He said, Oh,
but you afflicted his body. You've taken away all the material
things and his children and all the grief and bereavement he
went through. He had ten children that he took and every one of
them was killed in a whirlwind that came and destroyed the house
that they were making merry in and tore up the house to smithereens
and killed every one of them. God said, so be it. You'll do
what you will, but you don't touch his soul. He later departed
from the presence of God, the Bible says, and the Bible says
that he was afflicted from head to toe. He was afflicted with
sores and boils that were seeping sores upon his whole body. The
pain and suffering that he laid night after night without rest
and sleep. He lamented before God continually and yet Did he curse the name of the
Lord God? But he was blessed with grace
to continue to hang on. Yes, God had taken and sent Satan
to do his work, his wicked work. But he proved, Job, by grace
overwhelming, the wicked works of the foe of the devil and his
angels, that where he will victoriously cause his people to triumph,
even in this time realm, by the grace of God. And there's nothing
so great that shall behold us and become us that God will not
give us grace to endure it. And for Jesus' sake in this time
realm. Yes, my stepfather departed this
past week from this immortal realm. And as many of our loved
ones that we have known here over the last couple of years
have departed and went on into that heavenly realm of immortal
glory. It's what our hope and our prayer
has been. as we have known them. We have known their character.
We have known what their hope was. We've heard the profation
of their mouth, which comes from their heart of that hope in Jesus
Christ, of which only the Spirit can cause to be manifested. Yes,
and to deliver them through the fear of death, which all their
lifetime were subject to bondage. Man, by nature, as I said, is
in a fear of death again. And I'm not going to stand here
and say to you that I have no hesitancy or fear to some degree
of dying. It's not that I wanted to die
today. I'm not telling you that. And you know why? and possibly
why you are not saying that you are desirous to die just right
today, is because God has not appointed us to die today. That's
why, but when he does appoint us on that particular designated
predestined appointed day, we will be raised. We will be willing,
we will be ready to depart from this life and go on to be with
him as he has divinely purposed. But until that time occur, we're
not given the grace to lay hold on that blessed hope to the degree
to where we are totally eradicated from the fear of it. Because
why? We have a flesh. But there's a part inside me
that is of the Spirit of the Living God that continues to
abide and says to me and whispers within my heart, mind, and soul,
and says, Oh, fear not, my child, for the King of Glory There is a part of you that is
going to live on forever in the immortal glory. It is going to
be like every last seed that we're going to encompass when
these bodies are changed incorruptible. Oh dear beloved, yes man lives
with the fear of death all their life until they're born of the
spirit. And then that fear becomes secondary. And then it becomes,
as we grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, it becomes further
back behind us. And then as we get older, we
become aged and realize the wickedness of this world around about us
and the heartaches and the things that have kept us in life's journey
down here in this pilgrim way. We find out that, yes, there
is something far beyond this realm that we call worldly life
here below. There's no suffering. There's
no weeping, no tears. There is no walkers up there. There ain't no wheelchairs up
there in glory. Oh, there's no glasses up there,
Brother Clive. We don't need these things. We
can see. of His holiness. We'll see Him
as the righteous King of glory, and we are clothed with robes
of righteousness given to us by God Almighty, because we have
been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Oh, what a glorious
aspect that is. And that wasn't really what I
started to talk about this morning, but Michael had provoked my mind
to that verse, and I just wanted to express a couple comments
about it. My main emphasis was to go to
Romans, and on chapter 3, is to paint you a picture. I don't
want to be lengthy, but I hope to make this in a timely fashion,
and not to let time just take us over to where I wear
you out. I want to take and set this before
you, this picture of man by nature. And then what the prophet Isaiah
had penned in his writings 700 and some years before the writings
of the apostle Paul in the book of Romans chapter 3. And then
I want to take and tell you about what the Bible says has been
fulfilled by the prophet Isaiah and as we as ministers of the
gospel. For the Bible says, as the Apostle
Paul says, and he penned these words, Woe unto me if I preach
not the Glory to me if I preach not the
gospel of Jesus Christ. And to preach the gospel of Jesus
Christ is to preach him in all of his totality. That in all
spiritual truth and all righteousness, it is all summed up in one character
and person and deity. and it is the person, the God-man,
Jesus Christ. And that is the message which
I have come with today. That's the message I hope I will
preach from this pulpit, and any stand that I am given the
opportunity to stand in, that there will be Christ in Him crucified,
Christ in His righteousness, Christ in an imputed righteousness
to those who are called, chosen, ordained, and appointed believers
in Christ by the determined, predestined purpose of God Almighty.
That's the message. In Romans chapter 3 and verse
10, let me read it quickly. As it is written, there is none
righteous, no not one. There is not one that understandeth,
there is not one that seeketh after God. They are all gone
out of the way, they are all together become unprofitable,
there is none that doeth good, no not one. How many folks are
there, according to the scriptures, in this world, in the natural
realm of the human race, are righteous folks? The Bible says
there's none. None. N-O-N-E. There are none. They all together become unprofitable. There is none that do us good.
No, not one. Their throat is as an open sepulchre. You know what a sepulchre is?
It's a grave. A sepulcher is a grave. Your throat, by the
natural realm of depravity, by the natural birth of our mother
in this time world, unregenerate, unsaved, not born of the Spirit
of God, by nature, our throat is as an open graveyard. I can
attest to that. Before God got a hold of me and
transformed this man's wicked heart and gave me a hope in Jesus
Christ, I had a foul, wicked mouth. I mean, the Lord's name
in vain was nothing out of the ordinary for me to use on a daily
basis. I had no idea what I was saying.
I was ignorant. I was lost and I was undone.
I was depraved and under sin's curse and dominion. The Bible
says their throat is as an open sepulcher and with their tongues
they have used deceit. Yes, with their tongues they
use deceit. They lie. They cheat. They extort. And
so did I as an ungenerous sinner. And it says that the poison of
asps is under their lips. The poison of a snake is under
their lips. They are ready to take and to
bite and to poison any and all that are in their way to keep
them from doing their selfish desires. And the Bible says,
whose mouth is full of bitterness or cursing and bitterness, their
feet are swift to shed blood. And yes they are. Man by nature
is swift to shed blood. He's a selfish creature and he's
determined to defend what's his and himself. And we hear about
it every day. We hear about men fighting all
the time and people being killed daily on the news. Basically
in Orlando area, the metropolitan area. society makes up the multitudes
that lived in that area. Destruction and misery are in
their ways, and the way of peace have they not known. They don't
know any peace. The Unsafe Center does not know
peace. The only peace that they know
is What may come by some little
material thing that they may acquire that may give them a
little satisfaction for a short season but nothing brings any
happiness or peace for very long. It all gets old, don't it? I
don't care what it is. You buy a brand new car, you
drive it for a month or so and the new smell inside wears off.
The tires start wearing out. Huh? The outside of it starts
fading. Things start wearing out. You
start seeing over wear on the upholstery, getting in and out
of it. Nothing lasts forever. It's all temporary. It's all
junk and trash, really, when you get down to it. Oh, yes. Yeah, I enjoy driving a decent
automobile. I enjoy the comfort of them.
Yes, I'm not saying that I'm not rejoicing in the blessings
of God's provision for us, especially in this nation. We're blessed
people. You've heard me say that before. We have lived in the
last few generations as the most blessed people God has put breath
in as far as prosperity, materialism goes. We're seeing it going down
the tube pretty quick there with the government situation, but
nevertheless, We're still the most blessed people among the
world's peoples. But the Bible says that there
is none that feareth God. There's no fear of God before
their eyes. And that is one of the clear
attributes of those who are outside the realm of the church of Jesus
Christ. Those who are outside the kingdom
of God. Those who are unregenerate characters. There's no fear of
God before their eyes. One of the first characteristics
that a man, a woman, boy, and girl experiences when God begins
to deal with their heart over their sin is they begin to fear
God, because they are brought to believe that He is who He
says He is, and He's the rewarder of them that diligently seek
Him. And He's also the rewarder of them who live in sin and degradation,
for He is a God of wrath. Now let me read you this one
verse of prophecy from Isaiah chapter 51. Excuse me, I said
Isaiah earlier, but it was Jeremiah. Jeremiah, the next book toward
the front of your Bibles from Isaiah. Jeremiah 51 verse 10. The Lord hath brought forth our
righteousness. I just read to you where the
Apostle Paul wrote in Romans chapter 3 that we are totally
depraved and we have these characteristics of depravity and there is none
righteous, no not one. But the Bible says, in Jeremiah's
prophetical writings, it says in verse 10 of 51, chapter 51,
the Lord hath brought forth our righteousness, listen, come and
let us declare in Zion the work of the Lord our God. That's why
I come to church today, for us to declare in the church the
work of our God. Not the work of man, not the
work of my desires and wills and my decisions and my thinking
upon the matter, but God's. For it goes on to say in the
third chapter of Romans, and regarding the condition of man
by nature, it says that everyone, in verse 19, is going to become
guilty. Listen to what it says. Now we
know that whatsoever things the law saith, it saith to them who
are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped.
Every mouth! Every mouth of mankind shall
be stopped from boasting about them having any type of goodness
or righteousness or moral character before God. The Bible says that
all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is
none righteous, no, not one, that every mouth might be stopped. And the Bible says, and that
the world may become guilty before God. The whole entire world lays
guilty before God by nature of being a sinner. None escape that
nature. You're born of it from your mother's
womb. Mama may have been a saint, a
virtuous lady who loved Christ and who demonstrated that in
her life all of her days, but you being born are born a sinner
from the bloodline of that depraved nature, from the curse of sin
brought upon all mankind, and unless you are called of God
in time and have been chosen of God to see Christ as your
Savior. your hope of eternal life, your
Redeemer, your redeeming Savior of your soul in a personal, intimate
way, you cannot get to heaven or glory on anyone else's experience. Mama's experience ain't gonna
wing you to heaven. The Bible says in verse 20, Therefore
by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in
God's sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. The law
of God brings forth the knowledge of sin. You look at the law of
God, the Ten Commandments. and all the other statutes and
testimonies and the elements of the law of God, the handwriting
of the ordinances. And you read over them and it
will reveal to you nothing but a wicked character. and sinful
by nature, helpless, hopeless, and undone. But listen to what
the Bible was on to say. Paul writes in verse 22, even
the righteousness of God. Well, let's start at 21, because
that's where he picks up. He says, but now. Oh, when Paul
writes in his epistles, and he starts off, and then he goes
and says, but now. Oh, when he says, but now, there's
a change coming about. You remember in, what is it,
Ephesians 2, when he talks about man's situation in depravity
as well, and he says, but now, God has shown forth mercy upon
us. And so we read here, it says, but now, The righteousness of
God without the law is manifested being witnessed by the law and
the prophets. Even the righteousness of God
which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that
believe. For there is no difference. For
all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But it goes
on to say, verse 24, being justified freely by His grace through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Being justified freely. Freely. It is free, and you can't
buy it, you can't earn it, you can't be good enough, you can't
do anything to deserve it. It is freely that which is bestowed
upon God's elect children through the ages and generations of time
and His church that they would be justified. For it says, whom
God has set forth to be a perpetuation, and that word means to be One
who is in your position or takes and is your mediator. One who
stands in your place. One who has taken your place
before God Almighty through faith in His blood to declare His righteousness
for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God. Now listen to verse 26 and I'm
going to close there. to declare, he says it again,
I say at this time, his righteousness, that he might be just and the
justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. I declare unto you
this morning, his righteousness I have none other to declare.
I have none of my own to declare. I've just proved to myself, and
hopefully to you that have ears to hear, you have none either
to glory in or boast about. And it is my prayer that God
would give you the mind and heart to realize that if you have any
righteousness at all, it is Christ's righteousness imputed to you. That means given over to you
as if it was your righteousness initially, as if you had performed
it. He has imputed it to us. It makes
us acceptable before the Father. And we have been in the mind
of God spiritually clothed with the robes of righteousness. And
God looks upon us as his elect children who have been blessed
to believe on Christ by the supernatural work of the new birth. We have
been blessed with these robes of righteousness. God looks upon
us, clothed upon and sees us acceptable among the beloved.
Because we are His church bride. And we're being prepared. And it will be without spot nor
wrinkle when He comes back to call that bride unto Himself. He's preparing us. We're being
conformed to the image of Christ. How's that being done? Well,
I believe it's done a couple different ways. by grace and
knowledge is one way. God is preparing His people.
He has preserved this book for us. I believe in the English
translation that this book that is from some 390 years has been
preserved for us to read it. To know what the will of God
is and to learn from its pages the revelation of God as He is
pleased to reveal it to us individually. You know why I say individually?
Because not one of us here are on the same level of the knowledge
of God and His divine revelation. Because we're all at different
places of maturity in the school of Jesus Christ. That's why the
preachers especially must be careful not to be judgmental
and critical of those who are maybe just new believers in the
person of Christ. They're babes. And what does
a babe know when they're little? They can't even walk when they're
newborn and up to about eighth or ninth or so month. And they
crawl around. So it is with God's people when
they come into the experience of grace and are born of the
Spirit. They know very little, but they
do know one thing. They know that Jesus Christ has
done something supernatural from the heart and mind and soul.
And they do know one thing, that the only antidote for their sin
is the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. That's
all they've got to know. They don't have to know about
any of this other high doctrine. They don't have to know the absolute
sovereignty of God. They don't have to know any of
the traditions and all of the Golden Age manifestations of
times past, of the doctrines, of the deep things of God. raised from the dead the third
day, and Him gone unto eternal glory, and has purchased all
that's necessary for us through His precious blood, and redeemed
us unto Himself by His atoning work on Calvary's cross. That's
all that's necessary. And upon that is what is built,
the salvation of God for His people. Upon that, upon that
gospel of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, And Him raised on
the third day. And Him seen among more than
500 brethren for 40 days after that resurrection. And that He
was seen by those who saw Him being taken up into heaven, taken
up into the clouds. And they were told, yes, you
men of Galilee, the gaze looking upward here, the same Jesus. As you see him so like matter
departs into the clouds, he's coming back again. I got good
news for you, brother and sister, he's coming back again. And if
I'm called away from this time world, which many of our loved
ones have been in times past, we can have that blessed hope
that we can await that time when our mortal bodies out here will
be changed and workable. We're going to be raised. We're
going to be raised just like that chorus that Michael said
about that arising day. We're going to be raised up in
a newness of life and to be likened unto Him, Jesus Christ. We're
going to see Him as He is. For we shall be what? Like Him. Amen? Amen. If God give you and
I pray with you, Gracious God, our Father, it is in the precious
and blessed name of Thy Son, Jesus, Lord, that I thank You
for this day. I thank You, Lord, for Thy goodness,
Thy mercy. I thank You, Lord, for Thy grace
and lovingkindness. I thank You, Lord, for the Word
of God that You preserved for us. I thank You for the glorious
good news of the Gospel. And Lord, what it means to thy
people and how that it never gets to be old as it is presented
into the ears of those which have been given the ability to
hear it and believe it. Oh, dear God, thank you for grace. Thank you for mercy. Oh, as unmerited
as it is, we have done nothing to deserve it and can do nothing
to earn it. And Lord, do we just praise your
holy name for your goodness and kindness to us. Be with those
who, Lord, are going through times of bereavement as we have
prayed earlier. Help them, Lord, through these
times of missing their dear loved ones as you have called away.
Yet we have that great and glorious revelation that death and hell
have been defeated. And that final enemy, Death shall
not have any claim to us when it come that time to be called
away from this time realm. In Jesus' glorious name, I pray. Amen.