Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. The natural reaction of the flesh
is to recoil when the subject of God's unconditional election
of a people unto salvation is brought up, then to grow even
more angry when it is furthermore pointed out that He has also
created people unto destruction as well. Men consider such an
arrangement to be unfair, and they generally will vent their
spleen against such teaching, because they believe that God
must give everybody a fair chance and a square deal. They completely
reject the notion that he has the right to do with his own
as he sees fit, even though Paul declares the same in Romans.
Nay, but, O man, who art thou that replyest against God? Shall
the thing formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made
me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay of the same
lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom
he will he hardeneth." Men simply assume that God should have a
favorable regard to men because they believe that men have some
inalienable right or intrinsic worth. Yet the fact is that men
have nothing except that which has been given to them. And thus
they have no standing which is not the gift of God. For who
maketh thee to differ from another? And what hast thou that thou
didst not receive? Now if thou didst receive it,
why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it? Therefore
it is of the Lord's mercies that we are all not consumed. David
understood the vast divide that there is between the Holy Creator
and the sinful worms of the dust when he said, What is man that
thou art mindful of him, and the Son of man that thou visitest
him? Even as Job did when he said, What is man that thou shouldest
magnify him, and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? They
understood that not only is it not wrong for God to choose a
people whom he loved unto salvation, but rather a consideration that
his having loved any of the wretched and rebellious mankind is incomprehensible. Because of man's natural sinful
condition, he is completely dead insofar as any ability to comprehend
and receive spiritual truth. Nothing has to change for him
to perish. Apart from being born again,
he will die without any understanding or desire after God's truth.
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God. If it had pleased the Lord, he
could have never given any man the ability to see the glory
of the kingdom. Yet, as Daniel said, but there is a God in heaven
that revealeth secrets. To this end he does show to those
whom he has loved from before the foundation of the world the
glorious mysteries of the reign of Christ as the King and Savior. This is beautifully illustrated
at the wedding which the Lord attended in Cana of Galilee.
Here he performed one of his most astonishing miracles, and
yet he did so in almost complete secrecy. While many at the feast
enjoyed the wine which he made, only a few lowly servants and
his disciples knew how the wine came to be. They were all struck
by this secret knowledge. As John tells us, this beginning
of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth
His glory, and His disciples believed on Him. This was a glory
that was hidden from the guests at the waiting. During the Lord's
ministry, he gloried in the fact that the gospel was hid from
some and revealed unto others. In that hour, Jesus rejoiced
in spirit and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent,
and hast revealed them unto babes. All things are delivered to me
of my Father, and no man knoweth who the Son is but the Father,
and who the Father is but the Son, and he to whom the Son will
reveal him. Only those who are convinced
of their complete unworthiness to receive the least of His mercies
are given the great and precious truths of the gospel. Those that
entertain the notion that they possess something of worth in
themselves, be it free will, religious duty, or any form of
righteousness, are unfit vessels in which to place this most precious
truth. The common thread that runs through
every religion that men have devised is the notion that they
can approach God by and according to their own free will. In doing
so, they believe that they can strike a bargain with God, or
at the very least influence Him to pay heed to their requests
and good deeds. Those vessels which are prepared
by the Lord to receive the truth as it is in Jesus Christ confess
that they possess nothing which can gain them anything with God.
They confess that they are covered with sin from head to foot and
are in need of His mercy. They confess that they are worthy
of destruction. They confess that they believe
in the absolute sufficiency of the work of Christ as the Redeemer
of His people. What is your confession? If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at forthepoor at windstream.net.