Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. We sometimes hear men contrast
the God of the New Testament with the God of the Old Testament.
We are puzzled by such contrasts since the Lord, who is both the
God of the New Testament and the Old Testament, clearly tells
us that He does not and has not changed. For I am the Lord, I
change not. Therefore ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. He who formed the earth out of
the dust is exactly the same one who is the author and finisher
of our faith. He who gave the law to Moses
is the same one who fulfilled that law in its jot and tittle
by his sinless life, and satisfied its claims against his elect
by his offering of himself once and for all as the spotless Lamb
of God, whose blood was shed for the remission of their sins.
He who brought the plagues upon Egypt is the same one who healed
the lepers and gave sight to the blind and restored the lame
and halt. He who created the devil and
his angels is the same one who cast them out of the Gadarene
demoniac and who spoiled those principalities and powers and
triumphed over them. He who ordained the death of
the first Adam is the same one who vanquished death as he rose
from the tomb on the third day. But our God is in the heavens.
He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. There is no conflict
between the actions which the Lord demonstrated in the Old
Testament and then manifested in the New Testament when we
understand that He works all things according to His purpose.
He did not create the world as an experiment to find out what
would happen to His creation, but rather that He might set
a stage upon which He would demonstrate the glory of His grace in the
redemption and calling of a people which He loved from before the
foundation of the world. Salvation is not by chance, nor
can it be bargained for by the free will of men. Rather, the
salvation of unworthy sinners is designed by Him who does all
things well and knows the end from the beginning. He who has
designed the salvation of His people will also bring it to
pass. He has demonstrated the principle of blood redemption
by the institution of the sacrifices made by the high priest. Yet
we read in the scripture that those sacrifices could never
take away sin. So we conclude that these Old
Testament sacrifices were never intended as a true sacrifice
for sin. but only a type and shadow of that perfect sacrifice,
which would forever make atonement for those for whom it was shed
and to whom it was imputed. The only salvation which is provided
for any of the sons of God, regardless of whether they lived in Old
Testament times or New Testament times, is that which is manifested
in Jesus Christ the righteous. The truth of God is the same
in all eras. Even as the psalmist says, his
truth endureth to all generations. Most religions of the earth teach
that there is a life after death. Most men simply believe that
they cannot surely die, having embraced Satan's lie to Eve.
They envision either a reincarnation into another form to dwell upon
the earth, or life in a place generally referred to as heaven,
where they expect to rejoin all their loved ones and dwell in
perfect peace doing the very things which they most love to
do in this life. They plan to sit in rocking chairs
on the front porch and reminisce over the past, or sit by a lazy
stream and fish for hours without a worry in the world. Their notions
of bliss are tied to the carnal enjoyments of this world. Yet
the reality is that hell and destruction awaits all of those
who are not found in Jesus Christ in the Day of Judgment. This
is a terrifying truth to those who will be reanimated to stand
in His presence and told to depart, most especially those who trusted
in the false religion of their fathers and who despised the
gospel of His free grace, disdaining the person who obtained eternal
redemption for his elect. Yet as terrifying as this prospect
may be, that man whose heart has not been changed by the new
birth and made a new creature would find no enjoyment at all
in that place which Christ is going to prepare for his own.
That place is one which is centered upon him who is the truth. Unless
a man is given a pure love of that truth, he would be most
miserable in his presence through the ages to come. The mind and
heart of a man is not changed at death. Only that which is
carnal passes away. If he loves the way of Christ
in the present time, then the grave cannot swallow that, nor
remove him from the hand of him who loved him before he drew
his first breath. That one which is the delight
of the saints in the present time is the same one in whom
they shall delight forever. For God hath not appointed us
to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who
died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live
together with him. Wherefore, comfort yourselves
together and edify one another, even as also ye do. If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at forthepoor at windstream.net.