Appreciate that song, True. Often think that's why we call
that a special, isn't it? Just a song to praise our Lord
and Savior. Open your Bibles with me to 1
Corinthians 4. 1 Corinthians 4. Verse seven. Our willingness will serve as
our text this evening, and I've also taken the title from this
passage of Scripture. Do you have 1 Corinthians 4,
verse seven? Here we read, for who maketh
thee to differ from another? And what hast thou that thou
didst not receive? Now, if you received it, why
dost thou glory as if thou didst not receive it? The title is this, Who maketh
thee to differ? Now before we get into how men
differ, it's important to note that there
is a way in which we're all the same. A way in which there is no difference. Turn to Romans 3. Romans chapter three, verse 19. What is it? What is it that we
all have in common? Verse 19. Now we know that what
thing soever the law saith It saith to them that are under
the law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world
become guilty before God. What is it that we have in common?
Well, we read right, we're all guilty. We all stand guilty in
the sight of Almighty God. Let's read on. Verse 20. Therefore,
by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in
his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 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 who believe, for there is no difference. What is it we have in common?
How is it we're all the same? Look at verse 23. For all, every last one, all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Is that clear? Is that clearly written in scripture? All have sinned. All have come
short of the glory of God. There is no difference. No difference. All have sinned. All have come
short. What was the question in 1 Corinthians 4, 7? Who maketh thee to differ? It's important to know we differ,
but it's also important, it's vital to know who makes us to
differ. If you listen to the scripture
reading, we heard the answer, who makes us to differ. God told
Moses, he said, I'm going to bring one more plague, one more
plague, on the Egyptians, and then he said this, verse seven,
against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his
tongue. Against man, against beast, for
what reason? What was the purpose in all that?
He goes on to tell it, he said, that ye may know that, listen
to this, that the Lord Doth put a difference between the Egyptians
and Israel. Who maketh thee to differ? Almighty God. The Lord makes
thee to differ. The Lord put a difference. Do I need to be told that? Is
it enough to just hear that once? Do I need to be reminded of that
often? Oh, how quickly, how quickly
we forget, don't we? How quickly we forget. And not
only that, not only do we forget, our vanity and pride would convince
us otherwise. It would convince us that it's
up to me, right? This world, would tell us that
we make the difference. The false religion of this world
would tell me that I make the difference. That's what they
say. They say it's up to me, it's
up to you to make a decision. How often have you heard this? God cast his vote, and the devil
cast his vote, and now, Earl, now it's up to you. Is that the case? If it were,
it would make my decision, it would make me as powerful as
God. My vote would be of equal weight. Who maketh thee to differ? Again, lifted up in pride, man
says, I do. And this thing of pride is, oh,
it's a dangerous, dangerous thing. Turn to a few scriptures with
me. Turn to Isaiah chapter 14. Isaiah 14, beginning with verse 12. How art thou fallen? from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning. How art thou cut down to the
ground, which did weaken the nations? For thou hast said in
thy heart, I will ascend unto heaven. I will exalt my throne
above the stars of God. I will sit also upon the mount
of the congregation in the sides of the north. I will ascend above
the heights of the clouds. I will be like the most high. Yet thou shalt be brought down
to hell to the sides of the pit. Back in Genesis 3, turn to Genesis
3 verse 5. Satan told Eve, he said, for
God doth know that in the day you eat thereof, you remember
that, God put Adam and Eve in the garden to dress it and to
keep it. And he said, everything in this garden is yours, except
one thing, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Don't eat of
it. For in the day that you eat thereof,
thou shalt surely die. And Satan told Eve, he said,
God doth know that in the day that you eat thereof, again,
that fruit that God said, don't eat of it, in the day you eat
thereof, thou shalt surely die. That's what God said. Satan said
this, he said, your eyes shall be open and you will be as God's,
knowing good and evil. Who maketh thee? Who maketh thee
to differ? The Pharisees, they were taken
up with their self-righteousness. They were the keeping of the
law. God's word says this, therefore,
by the deeds of the law, shall no flesh be justified in his
sight. Pride says, look what I've done.
Pride says, look at me. Proverbs, turn to Proverbs 6. Look at verse 16 of Proverbs
6. These six things doth the Lord
Hey, yea, seven are an abomination unto him. And what's the first
one? What's the very first one to
make the list? A proud look. Is it any wonder Solomon would
write later there in Proverbs 16, pride goeth before destruction
and a haughty spirit before fall. Who maketh thee to differ? Again, pride says, I did. Self-righteousness
says, I did. Did man make the difference? Does man make the difference?
What's scripture declare? I know what man says, but what
does scripture declare? It says this, the Lord, the Lord,
the Lord put a difference. Not by works of righteousness,
which we have done, but according to His own purpose and race. According to His mercy, He saved
us by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy
Spirit. Who maketh thee to differ? The Lord saved us. Again, not
by works of righteousness, which we have done, but wholly and
completely because of His mercy and His grace. The motive and
the reason for our redemption is found in God, not man. Could there be anything more
foolish than to think that God would accept us on our merit. God's on the throne. God's in
the heavens. God's exalted above all things.
What could man possibly have to offer unto God? We were driving this weekend
and down toward Blacksburg in Virginia, These just farm after
farm after farm, and you see these cattle. I mean, just as
far as you can see. And you think, who do those belong
to? The cattle upon a thousand hills,
they're His, aren't they? It's all His. Not our merit, but God's mercy. By our works. What works could
we offer unto God? What are our works? What are
our best works in the sight of God? Filthy, filthy rags. What about our deeds? Is it our
deeds? What does scripture say? By the deeds of the law shall
no flesh be justified. And by nature, we depart farther
and farther and farther until God is pleased to put forth his
hand and grab ahold of us and lay hold of us. Kind of like
Peter. Remember that when he went out
there and he started walking on the water and he took his
eyes off Christ just for a minute and he began to sing. Help me. And what did the Lord do? He
reached out his hand and he grabbed ahold of him. I just can't, I
try to picture that in my mind. He's sinking. He knew what it
was like to be out on those rough seas. And the Lord reaches forth
his hand and just holds him to himself. No calls. You reckon he found
one reason to boast in himself about that event? Enough time
passed probably, but the Lord saved him. Who maketh thee to
differ? We see this in the Old Testament. Turn back to Exodus 11. Exodus 11. Verse 5. Verse 5 of Exodus 11. And all
the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die from the firstborn
of Pharaoh that sitteth on the throne, even to the firstborn
of the maidservant that is behind the meal. And all the firstborn
of the beast, and there shall be a great cry throughout all
the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it nor shall be
like it anymore. Again, against the children of
Israel shall not a dog move his tongue against man and beast
that ye may know. Again, what's the purpose of
all this? He said that ye may know. Know what? This sounds like something
we need to know, doesn't it? That ye may know. What do I need
to know? Again, that the Lord doth put
a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. What did He do? He put a difference. He put a
difference. Why did He do it? Was it for
any good reason? I mean, had the children of Israel
done something special that they deserved Him being merciful to
them? Think about that. Even after they delivered, they
continued to just murmur and complain and find fault again
and again against God, against Moses, his prophet. In Deuteronomy 7, it says this,
Thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God. The Lord God hath
chosen thee. He hath chosen thee. You're a
chosen people. Chosen thee to be a special people
unto Himself." Where He is? Think about that. A special people
unto Himself above all the people upon the face of the earth. The Lord put a difference. The Lord didn't set His love
upon you or choose you because you were more in number than
any of the people. For listen, you were the fewest
of all. Why'd he do it? Verse 8 of Deuteronomy 7 says
this, this is why he did it, because the Lord loved you. The Lord loved you. The Lord
loved you and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn
unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty
hand and redeemed you out of the house of the bondman from
the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Why did he do it? For his love, his love for his
people. Who maketh thee to differ? Now back to our text in 1 Corinthians
4, 7. Again, it says... I want us to go home with this
question burning in our head. And the answer is, well, who
maketh thee to differ? You know, we read in Scripture
that the potter, he takes a lump of clay. Somewhere around the house, Two
ashtrays. I think that's what they are.
The boys made them when they were in first grade. One's blue
and one's orange. And you know they are exactly
what they made them to be. The potter. Think about that. He takes a lump of clay and he makes one vessel to honor. He makes it a beautiful
vessel. And then he takes another lump
of clay and he makes it a vessel of dishonor. He makes it something
that's worthless, just to be cast into the drought. Now, would
anybody in this room argue that that clay is what determines
what is going to be made? That's foolish, isn't it? Imagine
if we just put a lump of clay right here, and we come back
Sunday, what's it gonna look like? If nobody touches it, it's
gonna look like that same lump of clay, maybe a little drier
than it was. Who has power over what that lump of clay's made?
It's the potter, isn't it? Turn to Romans 9, Romans chapter
9, Look beginning with verse 13. As it is written, Jacob have
I loved, but Esau have I hated. Verse 14, what shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with
God? Is that unfair? Is there unrighteousness
with God? What's the reply? God forbid.
For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have
mercy. I will have compassion on whom
I will have compassion. So then, it is not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. For the scripture saith unto
Pharaoh, even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I
may show my power in thee, and that my name might be declared
throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom
he'll have mercy, and whom he will, he hardeneth. That will say then unto me, why
do ye yet find fault? Who hath resisted his will? Nay,
but O man, who art thou that replies against God? Shall the
thing formed say to him that formed it, why have you made
me thus? Hath not the potter power over
the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor and
another unto dishonor? What if God, willing to show
his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering
the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction? and that he might
make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy
which he had aforeprepared unto glory. Even us, even us, whom
he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentile. Vessels of wrath, And yet, it's
an amazing thing that there would be, it's not surprising there's
vessels of wrath, but isn't it amazing to think there are vessels
of mercy? That God was pleased to, listen,
vessels of mercy, recipients of his mercy, recipients of his
love, recipients of his grace, who maketh thee to differ? God, Almighty God, chose a people. He chose a people unto himself. The Lord Jesus Christ came in
the fullness of time and redeemed those people unto himself. And the Spirit of God goes forth
and calls and regenerates his people. Who maketh thee to differ? In 2 Timothy 1, I won't have
you turn there, but we read this, that he saved us and called us,
not by works, but by his purpose and grace, given us in Christ
Jesus, when? After he seen how good we were
gonna be? No, no, before the world began. Now back to 1 Corinthians 4,
7. Who maketh thee to differ from
another? And what hast thou that thou
didst not receive it? And if you received it, why do
you glory as if thou hadst not received it? Scripture says this, to as many
as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of
God. You know, everything a man has,
everything a man has, in gifts, in grace, whatever it might be,
it is of the Lord. Consider this a gift. I was thinking about this, a
gift. As far as I know, maybe there's more, but I know there
are at least two components to a gift. There's giving of that gift,
and then there's receiving of it. Consider what he gave. Consider
that. Consider what He gave. God the
Father. What did He give? He gave His
only begotten Son. That's what Scripture says. For God so loved the world, He
gave. We read this, unto us a child
is born, unto us a son is given. Almighty God gave His Son. What did the Lord Jesus Christ
give? He gave His life. He gave His life as a ransom. He died and made atonement for
our sin. That sacrifice, that atonement
for His people. Galatians 11 says that He gave
Himself for our sins that He might deliver us from this present
evil world according to the will of God the Father. That's what was given. Consider what the believer has
received. Now, these are just a few here. What have those of you who know
the Lord, those of you to whom the Lord has been revealed, what
have we received? Well, this thing of receiving. Scripture says a man can receive
nothing. Nothing. He can't earn it, he
can't buy it. A man can receive nothing except
it be given him from heaven. What have we received? Scripture
says this, whosoever believeth in him shall receive the remission
of sin. Think about that. Our sin put
away. We receive an abundance of grace. Galatians 3.14 says we receive
the promise of the Spirit through faith. Galatians 4.5 says we
receive the adoption of signs. We've received an inheritance. A true inheritance, a true inheritance,
that's a gift, isn't it? We don't earn an inheritance. No, it's a gift. It's to be received. We receive the promise, listen,
not just of any inheritance, but an eternal, eternal inheritance. We receive a crown of life. I
don't believe that's a, I don't think that's a big gold crown
either. Crown of life. We receive the word which is
able to save our souls. We've received the forgiveness
of sin. We've been turned from darkness
to light, from the power of Satan to God, that we might receive the forgiveness of sin by faith,
an inheritance among those that are sanctified, set apart, Isaiah
40 verse 2, we received of the Lord double,
double for all our sin. Where sin abounded, and it did
abound, didn't it? Grace did much more abound. What have we received? Eternal
life, eternal life He gives, and he gives, and he gives, and
he gives, and his people receive. Turn to Mark chapter 10. Mark chapter 10. beginning with verse 29. Actually, look back at verse
28. Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we've left all and have followed
thee. And Jesus answered and said,
Verily I say unto you, there is no man that hath left house,
or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children,
or lands, for my sake and the gospel's. but he shall receive
a hundredfold now in this time, houses, brethren, sisters, and
mothers, and children, and lands with persecutions, and in the
world to come, eternal, eternal life. Eternal life in his son. Well, the next question from
our text here, have you that you didn't receive. Listen to the words of this hymn. Not have I gotten, but what I've received. Grace
hath bestowed it since I have believed. Boasting excluded,
pride I abase. I'm only a sinner saved by grace. Well, in closing, I ask you this. Who maketh thee? Who maketh thee
to differ? And what do you have? What do
you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do
you glory? Why do you glory as if you did
not receive it? You know, to glory in any mercy,
favor, or blessing received from God as if it wasn't received,
isn't that contrary? Isn't that absolutely contrary
to the grace of God? To God alone, to Almighty God
alone should all the blessings of nature, of providence, and
grace be credited. Because it's all his. It's all his. Who maketh thee? Who maketh thee to differ?