Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. But during the coming holiday
season, one often sees the phrase, Wise Men Still Seek Him, on church
marquees and holiday greeting cards. We know that this is a
play on words, which has an obvious reference to the biblical account
of the wise men who, having seen the star of the Lord, traveled
from the east to worship the one who was born a king. The
implication of the phrase is that since these men discovered
this star in their wisdom and decided to seek out the Lord,
that accordingly men of the present time can and should do the same
if they are truly wise. Paul says in his letter to the
Corinthians, the world by wisdom knew not God. He said to the
Romans, there is none that seeketh after God. The fact is that these
ancient wise men did not seek Him because they were wise men,
nor did they make any discovery by the power of their own understanding,
but rather were given this knowledge of the birth of the King by divine
revelation. The Scriptures clearly state
that those who are wise consider the gospel to be foolishness,
and cannot believe it, nor will they seek to know Him who is
the source of all knowledge and wisdom. In fact, the Lord said
that He had hid those things from the wise and prudent and
revealed them unto babes. In the same fashion, we read
in the Scriptures that those among men who are considered
to be wise are the exact ones whom the Lord says, do not seek
Him. The preaching of the cross is
foolishness to natural men. The simple declaration of the
work which Christ has performed on Calvary does not seem complex
enough to satisfy the thinking of natural men. They desire to
bring their own works and duties of obedience into the mix. Surely
man must play a part in his salvation, they say. Therefore, wise religious
men set out to improve that message of a completed salvation in Christ
by employing every trick and gimmick of reason they can imagine
to try to persuade men to believe the gospel. The prevailing thought
is that men can be caused to decide to follow Christ if we
can appeal to their carnal understanding and reason. It is thought that
men with great skill of oratory and persuasion can thus convince
men to become believers by an act of their own free will. So
the gospel is offered by them as if it was on sale at Kmart
to the masses with the hope that some will be convinced to embrace
it and make a decision. Yet the Apostle Paul plainly
said that by the foolishness of preaching, the Lord would
save them that believe. The Lord uses the preaching of
the cross of Christ to bring to light the life and immortality
which He is pleased to bestow upon dead sinners by the work
of the Holy Ghost. This is none other than that
salvation which the Lord Jesus purchased for His elect, which
He does make manifest by causing them to believe it. He said,
except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
The need of dead sinners is not the persuasive words of the most
skillful of those who are called soul winners, but rather the
life-giving power of the Holy Ghost to awaken them from the
spiritual death which they are in by nature. Unless a man is
quickened by the Lord, he cannot hear the truth, nor will he ever
embrace it. But when the Lord is pleased
to give a man ears to hear it, he is then compelled to believe
it. because the words which the Lord speaks to him are life itself. And ye shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free. Without this work of the
Spirit of God, men will continue down the pathway of destruction,
completely oblivious and unconcerned with approaching judgment, even
though they might adopt a religious affiliation. Yet those who are
awakened by the Holy Spirit confess themselves to be sinners, and
cry out for mercy from the hand of a sovereign God. They cast
themselves at His feet and say, Lord, I believe. Help thou mine
unbelief. Wise men will not seek Him, but
those who are caused to see themselves as beggars by the Spirit will
indeed hunger and thirst for a morsel from His table. Lord,
evermore give us this bread, is their sincere desire. True
salvation is completely purchased by the work of Christ. Neither
by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered
in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption
for us. True salvation is wrought in
the behalf of the people given to Him before the foundation
of the world. God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the
truth. True salvation is dispensed by
sovereign grace alone. So then it is not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy.
And finally, true salvation is that which gives glory to none,
but him whose righteousness alone is accepted in the heavens, not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to
his mercy he saved us. Have you known this salvation?
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