Good evening. It's good to be
with you all. Thankful for the opportunity. Abby didn't get off work till
about 4.30, so we had to take off without her, but thankful
to have Brady to drive me. Turn with me to Mark chapter
16. Mark 16. Look at verse 15, Mark 16, verse
15. And he said unto them, the Lord spoke unto his disciples. He said unto them, go ye unto
all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved. But he that believeth not shall
be damned. This is the command of our Lord. Preach the gospel. Preach the
gospel to every creature. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1,
17, he said, Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach, to
declare the truth of his word. Preach the gospel to every creature. You know, there's much that goes
on in preaching the word. There's the work of supporting
missionaries. These men that go to distant
lands and preach the gospel. We broadcast these messages. Every message I know of that's
preached here is is put on sermon audio or some type of social
media and put out there for the world to hear. We don't hide
this gospel. We want men to hear it. There's
the work of evangelism, men that travel to preach the gospel,
not just distant lands, but here in our own nation to declare
the truth of the word. Paul told Timothy, he said this,
he said, watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work
of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. All these different
ways in which God's word goes forth. Men witness. Again, we don't
keep this hid. We don't try to keep this gospel
to ourselves. We're thankful the Lord's pleased
to reveal it to us. Why would we hesitate to share
it with others? I want you to think about this.
So this thing of witnessing. Remember that man in the tombs? Remember what happened? He was
a wild man, wasn't he? He cut on himself. He ran around
naked through the cemetery. They didn't know what, the people
didn't know what to do with him. Apparently they tried to bind him with chains
and that wouldn't even, wouldn't hold him. And then one day the Lord in
mercy came to him. He had mercy on him. And I want
you to think about this. What a mess that fellow was before
the Lord was pleased to cross his path. But the Lord took those
demons out of that fellow and cast them into a bunch of swine,
and they ran down in the ocean and drowned. And the next thing
we read of, that fellow was found sitting. Never found him like
that before, did they? He was clothed. He was in his
right mind. He was sitting at the feet of
the Lord Jesus Christ. And he chased after the Lord. The Lord went and got on a ship.
And that man came to him that had been possessed with those
devils. And he prayed that he might be
with him. He wanted to follow the Lord wherever he was going. but the Lord suffered him not.
He said to him, he said, you go home to your friends and this
is what you tell them. He didn't give some big long
speech or memorize a bunch of things. He said, you just go
home and tell them what good things the Lord has done for
you. Gosh, we all ought to be able
to do that, shouldn't we? The Lord was merciful. Tell them
how great things the Lord had done for thee, and he had compassion
on you. And he departed, and he began
to publish throughout Decapolis and how great things. Well, he
did just what the Lord told him to do. He went and told what
great things the Lord had done for him. And it says this, that
men, when they heard that, they marveled. marveled at what had
been told him, the command, go ye into all the world and preach
the gospel. What is this gospel that we love? What is this gospel that we preach? And I've just a few points to
say, and I'll be brief, but the first one is this, this gospel
declares salvation for the lost. That's who this message is for,
it's for the lost. The Lord Jesus Christ came into
the world to save sinners. In Psalm 14, two, let me just
read it to you. It says, the Lord looked down
from heaven upon the children of men to see if there were any
that did understand, if there were any that did seek after
God. What did he see? Did he see some
that were going to be really, really good and those he was
going to save and some that were really going to be bad and those
he was going to send to hell? That's what men say. What God's
words say. It said when he looked down,
it said this is what he saw. They were all going to side.
They are all together become filthy. There is none that doeth
good. Not one. When those self-righteous
scribes and Pharisees saw the Lord eating with those publicans
and sinners, they said to these disciples, how is it? How is
it that this man eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners? And
the Lord replied to them. And he said, I came not to call
the righteous. Huh? Who'd he come to call? Sinners. He came to call sinners to repentance. In Ezekiel 34 verse 16, it says,
I will seek that which was lost. I'll bring again that which was
driven away. I'll bind up that which was broken.
I'll strengthen that which was sick. What about the fat and the strong?
He said, I'll destroy the fat and the strong. and I will feed
them with judgment. Matthew wrote this, he said,
the son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. This gospel we preach, second,
it is the gospel of the grace of God. Turn with me to Acts
chapter 20. just over a few pages, Acts chapter
20. Look at verse 24 of Acts 20.
We read here, None of these things move me,
neither can I my own life, dear, so that I might finish my course
with joy and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus
to testify the gospel of the grace of God. It's not by works
of righteousness. not by works of righteousness
which we've done, but according to His mercy He saved us. By the washing and regeneration,
by the renewing of the Holy Ghost. Listen, the reason for redemption
is not found in man. The reason for redemption is
found in God. It's found in His Son. It's found
in Christ. It's foolishness. to think that
a man can come to God apart from Christ, bringing anything before
the Lord apart from the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's
not man's will. Paul said, listen, Paul whom
God called, he said he's a chosen vessel. Think about that, a chosen
vessel. And he said this, I know that
in me, That is, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. To will is present,
but how to perform that, I find not. It's not man's will. It's not man's merit. It's not
man's works. Not by works of righteousness,
which we've done. It's not by man's deeds. What's
scripture say about that? By the deeds of the law, there
shall be No flesh justified in His sight. By nature, we wonder further
and further from God until He's pleased to put forth His hand
and draw us to Himself. And the Lord saves His people,
not by works of righteousness, but wholly and completely by
His mercy and by His grace. It's the gospel of His grace. That word goes all the way through
scripture. And it says this, salvation is
of the Lord. It's all of Him. Call His name
Jesus. For he shall. Well, what shall
he do? This gospel declares he's done
something, right? He shall. Do you know the answer
to that question? What shall he do? What shall
the Lord Jesus Christ do? God's Word declares he shall
save. There's no room for error, is
there? There's no maybes, no mights.
He shall. He shall save. Who's He going
to save? You know it, don't you? His people. What's He going to save them
from? Their sin. That's the truth, isn't it? That's
what God's Word says. Matthew 1.21 says, Don't we rejoice
in that? Doesn't that just cause the heart to rejoice? What other
gospel could there be? Third, this gospel, it is concerning
His Son. We declare Jesus Christ the Son
of God. Mark 1, verse 1, turn there with
me, just back a few pages. Mark 1, verse 1. the beginning of the gospel of
Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Scripture says this, whosoever
shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. We make distinctions in this
world, we do. We see things, listen, there's
white and there's black, there's rich, there's poor, there's young,
there's old. We could just make a list, couldn't
we, of how we distinguish people. Scripture says this, whosoever. Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. In Acts chapter 4 verse 12 it
says, Neither is there salvation in any other. There's no other
name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. Nothing. No thing, no person,
no matter how strong, no matter how powerful, not kings, not
princes, not ministers, not preachers, not anything. Listen, none but
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ can save. He and He alone. His person, His blood, His righteousness,
it's all of Him. God determined it. God purposed
it. God decreed it in his counsel,
in his covenant. He declared these things. He
determined to save a people, a chosen people out of every
tribe, kindred, tongue, and nation. He determined to do that. And
he appointed his son to be the salvation of his people. He determined he would save them.
He determined when he would save them, how he would save them.
Salvation is of the Lord. We're saved, we sing that song,
saved by the blood of the crucified one. By him and none other. In no other way. That's the only
way a man or woman or young person will ever be saved. That's in
Christ. we must be saved in him and by
him. No other name, no other name
under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. And the Spirit of God performs
a, no way to describe it, but a divine operation in the hearts of his people.
I've heard I've heard men foolishly say that they have led men to
Christ. That's foolishness. Only God can lead a man to Christ. Only the Holy Spirit can lead
a man to Christ. Scripture says as many as are
led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Only the Father can draw a man
to his son. That's what our Lord said in
John 6 verse 44. He said, no man can come to me
except the father which hath sent me draw him. This gospel, it declares salvation. Salvation to the lost. It's the
gospel of his grace. It's the gospel concerning his
son. It's the gospel of peace. In Romans 10 verse 14 we read,
How then shall they call on him of whom they've not believed?
And how shall they believe on him of whom they've not heard?
And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they
preach except they be sent as it's written? How beautiful are
the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. This gospel, God's gospel, is
a gospel of peace. We need peace, don't we? Ephesians
2, we read this, that we were by nature We weren't the children
of peace, were we? We're the children of wrath.
David wrote in Psalm 7, he said God's angry with the wicked. I don't know where man comes
up with some of the things he says. Man says that God loves
everybody. I don't read that in scripture. We don't need to be listening
to man, do we? We need to listen to God's Word. What does God's
Word say? It says this, that he's angry
with the wicked. Every day. It says he hates the
workers of iniquity. The wrath and judgment of God
has been upon man since the day Adam fell in the garden. Why? One tiny little word, sin. Our sins have separated us. And listen, God has to be, God's
the one who has to be reconciled. He's the offended party. There
has to be peace, peace in heaven, peace toward men. And the Lord
Jesus Christ came down here and he removed that cause of enmity. that cause of wrath. He took away the sin of his people. He bore it. He suffered unto
death. He bore the sins of his people. And he died for the sins of every
believer. Every one of his sheep, every
one of his And everyone for which He died
will receive Him, will come to Him. He died for the sins of
all of His sheep. And because He died for us, there's
peace. Peace with God. Peace from Heaven.
Goodwill toward men. Fifth, this Gospel. It is the Gospel of eternal salvation. If God's pleased to save a man,
that man, that woman, that young person is saved eternally. Turn with me to 2 Thessalonians
chapter 2. Second Thessalonians 2. Look at verse 13, Paul writing to
the Thessalonians. He said, we're bound to give
thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord,
because God hath from the beginning, chosen you to salvation through
sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. Those
whom he has loved eternally, those whom he's loved with an
everlasting love, those whom he loved and sent his son to
be a propitiation, a sin offering for us, a sacrifice He saved. He saved. Turn with me to another
scripture. Turn to 1 Corinthians 15. Look beginning with verse one. Moreover, brethren, I declare
unto you the gospel, the gospel which I preached unto you, the
gospel which also you have received, the gospel wherein you stand,
the gospel by which also you're saved. If you keep in memory
what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain, for
I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received,
how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures."
He said, you received it. You received it. The Lord Jesus
Christ He came into this world. He created this world. The world
was made by Him, and yet the world knew Him not. Scripture
says He came into His own, and His own received Him not. But
as many as what? Received Him. As many as received
Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God. Even
to them that believe on His name. which were born. This is quite
a birth, huh? Not of blood, not of the will
of the flesh, not of the will of man, but of God. Sadly, there are those who will
not receive. They have no interest in Him. Will not receive Him, will not
receive His word. No use for it. But I tell you
who will, his sheep, his elect. Have you received his word? Acts
2 41 says this, they gladly received his word and were baptized. It's this gospel. It's the gospel
you receive. It's the gospel in which you
stand. To stand in it means to continue
safe and sound. It means to stand unharmed. It means to stand ready, prepared. without wavering, without hesitation. Think about Moses there in the
children of Israel, there at the Red Sea. What was the command? What do we do? Well, we find
ourselves there often, don't we? What are we going to do? What was the command? Stand still. I'd like to really get a hold
of that. Just stand still and see the
salvation of the Lord. It's of Him. It's all of Him. Stand still. Martin Luther said
that. He said, here I stand. I can
do no other. The gospel you receive. The gospel
wherein you stand. The gospel by which you are saved. The means of salvation. The gospel
of Christ is the, this is what scripture says, the power of
God unto salvation. And it's powerful. Power to speak
life to a dead sinner. Power to open those blind eyes
to see. Power to reveal Christ and Him
crucified. Power to declare salvation through
Christ and Christ alone. Power to raise our vile bodies
and make them like His glorious body. That's power, isn't it? And then last, This gospel, there
is but one. There's no other gospel. There
is one gospel. Galatians 1 verse 6 says this. Let me just read it to you. He
said, I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called
you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel. which is
not another. There be some that trouble you
and would pervert the gospel of Christ, but though we, or
an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than
that which we've preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I again,
if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that which you've
received, Let him be accursed. What is
this gospel we declare? Who is this gospel we declare?
It's Christ. And it declares salvation for
the lost, salvation for sinners. It's the gospel of grace. It's
the gospel of his dear son. It's the gospel of peace, the
gospel of eternal salvation. And there is just, there's just
one. And this world, This present
evil world sees these things as foolishness. Well, what's scripture say about
that? The preaching of the cross to
them that perish is foolishness. But unto us which are saved,
what is it? It's the power of God. And listen,
those that hear this gospel, those that love this gospel,
those that believe this gospel, those that are saved by the power
of God, if the Lord's been pleased to
save a man or pleased to save a woman, you can't keep that hid. You
might keep a lid on it for a little while, but you can't keep that
hid for long. Turn back with me to Matthew 16. I'm sorry, Mark chapter 16. He said unto them, verse 15,
go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature,
and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. but he that believeth not shall
be damned. He that believeth and is baptized.
Baptism, it's a picture of the Lord's death, His burial, His
resurrection. Baptism's a picture of being
buried with Christ. Our sins washed away by the Savior's
death as our substitute. It's a picture of His resurrection. We die in Christ, huh? And we're
risen, risen to walk with Him in newness of life. And it's
for, baptism's for a particular person, and it's for believers,
huh? The answer of a good conscience
toward God. Well, go ye into all the world,
preach the gospel. He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved. Lord bless his word.