going to ask you to take your
Bibles and turn with me to the book of Proverbs chapter 15. Proverbs chapter 15. I'd like to look at verses 28 to 33. And I've entitled this
message, The Evidence of Faith. Precious, precious faith. Faith that men are not born with. It's given unto you to believe. Without faith, it's impossible
to please God. In Mark, let me read this to
you. Mark 4, 33, 34. It reveals the way in which our
Lord preached often to the multitudes. Scripture says, And with many
parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear
it. Mr. Gill comments on that part
right there, as they were able to hear it. hearing but not understanding. But without a parable spake he
not unto them, and when they were alone he expounded all things
to his disciples. And his disciples asked him,
Matthew 13, 10, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? Why do you preach to the multitude
in parables? And the words of our Lord, Matthew
13, 11, He answered and He said unto them, Because it is given
unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but
to them it is not given. God is sovereign. Almighty God
does as He will. And if we understand anything
concerning His blessed Scriptures, it is by the grace of God. Knowing that the parables are
given to God's people, that they might know the mysteries of the
kingdom of God, I'd like for us to consider in the last few
verses of Proverbs 15, like I said, I'd like for us to hear what
does the Lord say today through these Scriptures. Now, you read
the Scriptures. You read the parables. And the
parables are written such that men can read them, and they seem
to pretty well understand. In fact, if I look up and talk
about moral virtues and their contrary vices, they're written
in a way that man by nature seems to think. And I understand. There are some things that are
set forth that make sense. But if we see not the glory of
Christ in them, we've missed them. Men read them and they don't
understand why, Lord, do you preach like that. Because it's
given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God. Unto them it's not given. Now,
I know the Lord gives life, gives faith. Faith, life, together. And before one of God's children,
before one of God's elect is called out of darkness, they're
just like everybody else. They're cut out of the same lump. Children of wrath toward the
Lord, even as others. But whenever the Lord gives a
sinner a new heart, when that man is given life, life from
above. Something is now different. Light is there, understanding,
the light of the glory of God in the face of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and it's manifested. They're taught. They're taught
something. Proverbs 15, verse 28. I'd like
to look at some of these things. And I pray the Lord bless these
Scriptures. Bless them to me. Teach me. I need to be taught. I need understanding. Here's the first thing I know.
And this is the evidence of faith. I know that first of all, that
the believer hears what God has to say. He hears it and hears
with some understanding. Verse 28 says, ìThe heart of
the righteous studieth to answer, but the mouth of the wicked poureth
out evil things.î The heart of one regenerated by the grace
of God. Righteous. Robed in the righteousness
of Christ Himself. Studying. He muses. He meditates. What does God have
to say? What does the Lord have to say?
What is God's answer? He studieth to answer. Answer what? 1 Peter 3.15 says this, Sanctify the Lord God in your
hearts and be ready always to give an
answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that
is in you with meekness and with fear, with respect, with reverence
before the Lord. Answer! A believer meditates. He wants to hear what does God
have to say. When these men stand up, when
they stood up last night, I want to hear, Lord, speak to me. Lord, help me. I want to hear
what God has to say. A believer meditates. He studyeth to answer. You ask a believer, What about man? What does Scripture
say about man? Not what the association has
to say, what, you know, so-and-so has to say. What does God have
to say about man? Here's what God has to say. Here's
what a believer studieth to answer Muses meditates on. All have
sinned and come short of the glory of God. I know that. How do you know that? That's
what God has to say. The Lord has set forth. The Lord
Jesus Christ told the group that was listening to him one day,
no man can come unto me except it were given unto him of my
Father. No man has the ability. Man by nature is lost. He's dead. He's dead. Dead in
trespasses and sins. He has no ability whatsoever
to reconcile himself back to God, to approach God, to come
to God, to exercise a free will. He doesn't have a free will.
He's dead. The heart of the righteous studyeth
to answer. You ask a believer, tell him
about yourself. Tell him about yourself. going
to say what Paul said, ìOh, wretched man that I am. I am what I am by the grace of
God. Study it. A believer answers
truthfully, heartily about manís inability. He studyeth to answer. according to God's Word. He studies
to answer truthfully about God's sovereignty. You've read. Turn
to Daniel 4. We've read this so many times.
I tell you, I heard Don Fortner make this statement on this Scripture
one time. He said, I don't know what Nebuchadnezzar
knew. But he said, I'll tell you what.
He said, no one ever gave a better confession than this one. concerning God's sovereignty.
This is what a believer believes about the Lord of glory. Daniel
4.35, all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he doeth according to his
will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the
earth, and none can stay his hand or say unto him, What doest
thou? A believer answers, meditates,
muses to give an answer concerning God's glory. What do they say
concerning God Almighty? Nobody can stop Him. No one resists His will. He doeth as He will. The army
of heaven, the inhabitants of the earth, He is God. God in heaven and earth. And
I love that. I love to speak of God's sovereignty. It's life. It's glorious. Those guys used to say, who's
running this show anyway? I used to think, that's right. He is. A believer. His study is to answer concerning
salvation. What about salvation? This is
what a believer is going to say. From God's Word. Jonah 2.9. Salvation
of the Lord. Almighty God before the foundation
of the world. Not by anything He saw in me
or anybody else. He chose according to His own
will. He chose to show mercy to whomsoever
He will. He chose them. Put them in Christ. Quoting Brother Scott again,
he said, where God put them, that's where He kept them. The
Lord Jesus Christ, the surety of God's sheep, who ever stood,
ever, ever answered, who was ever looked to by the Father, came into this world, made himself
of no reputation, walked before God Almighty, His law, obeyed
every jot and tittle, earned the righteousness that is imputed
to those that believe. He laid down His life for His
sheep. Who did He die for? He died for
His people. He laid down His life. No man
take my life from me. He laid down His life for His
sheep. In time, God providentially is going to get all that the
Father has chosen, given to the Son, given Him power that He
should do all things according to His will, that He should give
eternal life to as many as the Father had given Him. He gets
them under the sound of the gospel. And they hear this blessed truth
of God's grace and God's will and God's purpose, God's counsel,
God's salvation. And when it pleases God, He calls
them out of darkness. It gives them life. It gives
them faith. They believe it. and they have no confidence in
their flesh, they answer. The Lord of glory
gives His people a heart that studious to answer. But the mouth
of the wicked, back in Proverbs 15, 28, poureth out evil things. No heart for Christ. No heart
for His honor. No heart for His glory. No heart
for His salvation. It's all about me. They poureth
out. You know, you read that word. They poureth out. I looked it up. They belch. They belch. what they come out
with. It's a foul odor. You know, you
hear a believer hears men talk of self-will, self-I, I, I, I. You think, you know, that just
stinks. That has the foulest odor. It just omits disrespect. The believer He has a heart to
study what God has to say, and the mouth of the wicked just
belches out evil. Secondly, the evidence of faith. The believer knows according
to God's Word, and he rejoices that the Lord is near. Verse 29, the Lord is far from
the wicked, but He heareth the prayer of the righteous. He's
far from the wicked, not in presence as far as being omnipresent because
He's everywhere, but He's far from the wicked in favor toward
them. Far from them in grace and mercy. Show me your glory. That's what
Moses asked the Lord. Show me your glory. And looking
up again, looking up these words when that Scripture is quoted
in the New Testament. Show me your glory. Show me your
thought. Show me your opinion. Show me
what you think. What are your thoughts? And the
Lord's answer to Moses was, I will have mercy on whom I'll have
mercy. I'll have compassion on whom
I'll have compassion. Almighty God is far from the
wicked in mercy, grace, but to His people, the Lord hearing
the prayer. How close is he? He hears. He hears. Oh, I think I talked
to Todd many times about this. We talked about trying to pray. The word that I used, trying,
I meant it. I meant it. And oh, how often
have I thought of this Scripture Lord, if you marked iniquity,
who could stand? But just the desire to call upon
Him, speak to Him, that He hears, He knows. He heareth the prayer
of the righteous. Psalm 145, verse 18, The Lord
is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon
Him in truth, in the truth of the Lord Jesus, Lord, for Christ's
sake, asking the Lord, Lord, bless Your Word today. Lord,
help me bring back to my memory those things. Lord, I'm praying
for Your preachers, Your people. Lord, have mercy that He would
hear wonder of all wonders. Almighty God hears His people. Malachi 3.16, Then they that
feared the Lord spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened
and heard it. And a book of remembrance was
written before Him for them that feared the Lord and thought on
His name. Believer, be mindful. Someone might say, well, do you
really believe that God Do you truly believe? The believer meditates
to give an answer concerning Almighty God. He hears. He hears. He hears. Thirdly, the effect, the evidence
of faith. The believer rejoices in Christ. Before the Lord called him out
of darkness, he didn't. Nothing there to rejoice in.
Dead, empty, nothing. But he rejoices. Verse 30, the
light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart. And a good report maketh
the bones fat. According to Psalm 27.1, Christ
is the light. of His people. The Lord is my light. He, by His Spirit, gives His
people eyes to see. Eyes to see Him. Eyes to see
His honor and His glory and His majesty. They see. They see through a glass darkly.
But they see. And they desire to see. Paul
said, Oh, that I might know Him. Think he knew Him? Oh, that I
might know Him. That I might win Him. Be found
in Him. One of the men said that last
night. Oh, that I might be found in Him. That I might win Him. To see Him. The light of the
eyes rejoices the heart. Almighty God, seeing Him, they
rejoice in the hearing, they rejoice in seeing. Tell me one more time. Let me
tell you what a believer will never tire of hearing. Tell me
one more time how Almighty God chose to show mercy to me. Tell
me one more time. how He laid down His life. Tell me how Almighty God has
revealed that He was made sin. That He was made sin. As I said, hanging upon that
cross, the holy, harmless Lamb of God was made sin. And Almighty God dealt in absolute
justice and put away the sins of His people. Put them away.
Put away their guilt. Cast them as far as the east
is from the west. Behind His back. Tell me how God Almighty
called me by grace. Tell me how He keeps me by His
power. that He'll never leave me, because
I know something of what I am. I know something about it. Tell
me how He'll never leave me and never forsake me. Tell me that
one more time. The light of the eyes rejoices
the heart, and a good report maketh, and maketh, and maketh,
and maketh, and maketh, and maketh the bones It is well with my
soul. He is God. He's the Lord. A good report. That glorious
gospel of free grace. Tell me about God's purpose.
Tell me about God's counseling. Tell me about that covenant.
David says, all my salvation, all my desire is made with me
in everlasting covenants, ordered in all things. Sure. That report maketh, perpetually
maketh the bones. God's people be fat. That's a good word. That's a
good word. Satisfied. His bones, His people,
the message of the glorious gospel of free grace maketh the people
of God to be settled. Whenever somebody stands in this
pulpit, a pulpit where God has raised up the gospel, God's people
are listening for Him. You tell me about Him. Tell me
of Him, that good report. Who has believed our report?
Tell me one more time of Christ. Let me tell you another evidence
of true faith, saving faith. The believer rejoices in God's
correction. Verse 31, 32. The ear that heareth
the reproof of life abideth among the wise. And he that refuseth
instruction despiseth his own soul, but he that heareth reproof
getteth understanding." When the Lord is pleased to rescue,
save one from the error of His way, He reproves them. Kind, merciful, chastisement. He turns them by power. Turn me, Lord, I'll be turned.
Lord, you turn me. And He gives them a new ear,
a new mouth, a new heart. Gives them life. And it's a heart that desires
His correction. Psalm 119.71, it's good for me
that I've been afflicted that I might learn thy statutes. Lord,
thank You. Gabe told me years ago, oh, he
was a teenager, 15, 16 years old. He said, you know, Dad,
he said, the best thing you ever did for me is whip me. He said,
because I needed it. I knew that, and He knew it. Children love to know where the
lines are. That's what I used to tell my
kids. You want to know where the lines are. I am so thankful
that Almighty God would not leave me to myself, that He would not
leave me to do whatever comes to this Rebellious mind. You that have children, you know
what I'm saying. You just, this is where, this
is it. This line right here. This is
where you can go, yeah, but so and so, you know, you've heard
that. Yeah, but his, his, they gonna, yeah, but you don't belong
to them, you belong to me. And that's what I say. And the
reason I said that is because I said it. And I know, I know
what's best. God's people, ye that heareth of a proof of
life, abideth among the wise. You want to be, you that know
Him, you want to be where the Lord is. The all-wise God. And those made wise unto salvation. You want to be. You want to be. You that know Him, you want to
be with other sheep. You want to be there. I want
to be with God's people. I want to be where He's manifested
Himself. I want to be where He is set
forth, where He's honored. I want to be where Almighty God
is pleased to meet, where two or three are gathered together.
I'm in the midst of you. That is a wonderful thought. Man, I'm convinced that the Lord's
here. I've said surely there's two
or three here. Surely there are. I'm in the midst of you. The
ear that heareth the reproof of life. You're mine. I'm your God. You're my people. He bought with a price, the price
of the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And they abided
among the wise. Now, some go out from us because they were not of us.
For had they been of us, surely they would have remained. Some heard the things that the
Lord Jesus Christ said, and they said, That's a hard saying. Who
can hear that? That's a hard saying. They walked
no more with Him. And the Lord turned to His disciples,
and He said this, Will you go away also? And Peter said, Lord,
to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal
life. We're sure. You're the Lord. You can't run one of God's sheep
away from hearing the gospel. The ear that heareth the reproof
of life abideth among he that refuseth instruction, despiseth
his own soul. But he that heareth reproof,
getteth understanding. The rebel that refuses God's
correction He hates himself, hates God, hates himself. And
he truly desires death. I want to die. He that refuses instruction despises
his own soul. He won't admit that. tells us that it's so. And a
believer studyeth what does God have to say about it. But he
that heareth, he that obeyeth, he that heareth with a heart
of obedience, reprove, getteth understanding, possesses a heart
that's made anew by grace. And as I said a while ago, he
knows that he is what he is by the grace of God. And then, lastly, the believer,
one taught of God, shall continue to be taught of
God. Verse 33, ìThe fear of the Lord
is the instruction of wisdom, and the forehonor is humility.î By the grace of God, you shall
be taught of God. They shall all be taught of God. Isaiah 54, 13, All thy children
shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace
of thy children. This last verse that we looked
at this morning explains how the people of God are taught,
or with what attitude, let me say it like that, with what attitude
they're taught. The fear, the respect of the
Lord is the instruction of wisdom led by God's Spirit. There is an awe, a respect of
God in wise counsel. The believer hears it and he
respects it. God Almighty has given him respect. And as we hear of that respect,
we are chastened. We hear, we see again what we
are by nature. And consider again the indescribable
grace of God that will keep us. Can you imagine? But God would
keep you till now? The best discipline of the saints
is the abiding respect, kept that way, fear of Almighty God. Almighty God would keep His people
in respect of Him. And before honor is humility,
condescension, Meekness will bring you down. Waiting on God. I was thinking of the Scriptures
as an example of meekness. Our Lord said, I'm meek. I'm meek. Submissive. Remember when Abraham and Lot,
they had their herdsmen. And there was a squabble between
the herdsmen concerning the land, and Abraham came to Lot, and
he said, you know, we're brethren. We're brethren. This squabbling
and everything. You take what you want. I'll
take what's left. There's meekness right there,
waiting, submissiveness to God's providence, God's will. And Lot
set his eyes towards Sodom. Abraham took what was left. Meekness. The fear, the respect of the
Lord is the instruction of wisdom. And before honor, God's going
to bring a man down. He's going to teach him. Humbly. Meek. Before we enter into His
honor perfectly, Before we enter into that glorious place of eternal,
physical, we must, through much tribulation, enter into the Kingdom
of God. We're in this world, but we're
not of it. And a believer knows that. He's taught by God's Spirit. He studies to answer. I know
this is not my home. I'm taught that way. respect toward Him. While in
this world, the Lord is going to teach us. Oh, the mercy of
God to make us new. The believer will hear by a willing
heart what God has to say. He hears God speak. My sheep hear my voice. He speaks
through this Word. blessed by His Spirit to His
people. And He said, They hear Me. And
they hear Him. They hear. And the Lord hears them. They rejoice in Christ and have
no confidence in their flesh. They rejoice in His correction
because He loves them. And they know We're going to
be taught of Him. I pray that God Almighty bless
the words that we hear this weekend. Teaching. Lord, teach me. Lord,
help me for Christ's sake. Amen.