It is so good to see you. It's so good to be here right
now. Every time that I'm here, I'm happy. I'm very happy to
be with this congregation. I can't help but think of Brother
Don and how that generation brought so much comfort to all of us,
knowing that there were men here preaching the gospel. I was just thinking how forward
I am to, I'm looking forward to worshiping with him again,
and Brother Henry again, and Brother Scott again, and a whole
bunch of brethren. It'll happen. But anyway, I'm very honored
to be here, and I'm very excited about this, this message because
I believe I can remove myself from it, really. You never get
away from realizing what's happening. If you're called on to preach,
you know you're standing here. You know that people are listening.
And I just I'm going to get out of the way today. I'm going to
try to get out of the way today. A man made the statement one
time, I'll tell you who it is. Brother Henry made the statement
one time that In the preaching of the gospel, he said, you have
to have the meat and potatoes. You have to have the meat and
potatoes. Every time you preach, you gotta have the meat and potatoes
of the gospel. But he said a little ice cream is nice every now and
then too. And that's what I feel like I
have. I feel like I have a little dessert for us today. This is an old outline from generations
past. If you are a student of messages, there
are some outlines that get carried over generation to generation.
I don't know if you've ever heard six stubborn statements. Rolf
Barnard preached it, and then Don and Henry preached it, and
then everybody I know has preached it. I've preached it four or
five times, and I think I'll preach it again. Well, this is
one of those. That's not this particular outline. But this is one of those outlines
that is from generations past. And it just blesses my heart
so much. I feel led to bring it to you
today. And if the Lord will let our minds get a hold of this,
I believe our hearts will be very blessed. I really do. Our text will come from Matthew
11. Matthew 11, one line specifically will be our focus. It's that
line is in verse 19, Matthew 11, verse 19. It says, the son
of man came eating and drinking, and they say, behold, a man gluttonous
and a winebibber. a friend of publicans and sinners. That's our line. It's our subject
matter, the friend of sinners. I could not have picked a better
scripture reading before this message than what Brother Rex
read. His prayer, he thanked the Lord
for being the friend of sinners. And that's what we're gonna look
at, the friend of sinners. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
friend of publicans and sinners. And if you really think about
that, he is not the friend of the righteous, the self-righteous, the worldly fleshly righteous.
He's not. But he is the friend of sinners. In James 2 verse 23, God said,
Abraham is my friend. Abraham's my friend. Who was
Abraham? Abraham was an idol worshiper.
Spent his whole life worshiping idols until God called him at
the age of 75. All right, now let's think about
Abraham for just a second. You know the story of Abraham. After God called him, not before,
but after God called him, he was unfaithful to his wife. He did not believe God. He did not have faith in God's
word to him. God told him that he was going
to give him a son. He said, wait, you wait, I'm
gonna give you a son. Abraham did not wait on the Lord. Instead, he took matters into
his own hands and he tried to perform the work of God for him. God promised to give him a son
and Abraham said, I'll just go ahead and accomplish that work
for God in Ishmael. Isn't it amazing that the man
who is called the father of the faithful wasn't faithful? He wasn't faithful
to God. He wasn't faithful to his wife. He pled works to God. That's what Abraham did. He pled
works to God. His own works. He said, surely
Ishmael is the one you were talking about. He said, I was going to
have a son. Well, here he is. In his own flesh, in his own
doing, he did not believe God. That's interesting, isn't it?
Well, why does the scripture say that he was faithful and
believed God? Here's the reason why. He was
in Christ. That's the reason why. He was
in Christ. It's because Jesus Christ was
faithful for him. Jesus Christ was faithful to
him. And the Spirit of God did a work
in him and caused him to believe God in spite of himself. He was
made to believe God by God. And then God counted his own
work in Abraham for righteousness. Is that not amazing? God counted
God's own work in Abraham for Abraham's own work of righteousness. Why would God do that for Abraham?
Why would the fullness of the Godhead in the person of the
Lord Jesus Christ do that for Abraham? Here's the reason why.
He is the friend of sinners. He is the friend of sinners in
Christ. And that's the key. That's the
key to the whole thing in Christ. Outside of Christ, God is angry
with sinners. In God's own word, he said he
hates sinners, isn't that what he said? Outside of Christ. Outside of Christ, he must punish
sinners. He must condemn sinners and damn
sinners and cast them out. But in Christ, Christ is the
key. Christ is the pivotal key to
it all. Christ is everything. All because
of what Christ did for sinners in Christ. Redeemed sinners are
called the friends of God, the friends of God. This is so amazing
to me. In John 15, the Lord said, you
are my friends. You're my friends. He said, from
henceforth, I call you not servants for the servant knoweth not what
his Lord doeth. But I have called you friends
for all things that I have heard of the Father I've made known
unto you. That's what you do to your friend.
You tell him, you confide in him. How amazing it is to hear and
realize and know that the Lord Jesus Christ is the friend of
sinners. Every sinner that the Father
chose and gave to him. Now, what we're going to look
at here, this is proof of the fact that our Lord is indeed
the friend of sinners. And this is what I want us to
see, okay? This is that outline I was telling you about. I want us to see how he was the
friend of sinners. Seven ways, okay? I have seven
I'm repeating, I don't have them. Somebody else had them generations
before me. I'm repeating seven ways that
prove that Jesus Christ was the friend of sinners. And I'm so
excited to tell it to you. I just, I love this. I thank
the Lord for this, all right? I have a scripture for each one.
We'll just go right through them. All right, here's the first one.
Romans 8, turn with me to Romans 8. Romans 8 verse 1, it says, There
is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,
who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do
in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own son
in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, and the sinner margin
in my Bible says, by a sacrifice for sin. He condemned sin in the flesh. How do we know that Christ is
the friend of sinners? Here's the first way we can know.
He came in the likeness of them. He came in the likeness of them.
Now think about this. Think about this. He could have
come in any likeness he wanted to. This is God. This is Emmanuel. He could have come in any likeness
he wanted to. If he wanted to, he could have
taken upon himself the nature of angels. But he didn't do that. Hebrews
2 tells us that he chose to take upon himself the seed of Abraham. The seed of Abraham, he was willingly
numbered with the transgressors. He came to this earth in the
likeness of sinful flesh. That just, that amazes me. That's the first way we can know
that he's the friend of sinners. He came in the likeness of them.
He came in the likeness of them. That's how he chose to come into
this world. That's how he chose to identify himself to this world. All right, number two. Go to
Luke 15. Luke 15. Verse one says, then drew near
unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And
the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, this man receiveth sinners
and eateth with them. How many times did the Pharisees
and scribes murmur over that? They were constantly just They
were just put out constantly, weren't they? How do we know
that Christ is indeed the friend of sinners? We know it because
he spent all of his time on this earth in fellowship with them. How much time did he spend
with Gamaliel and all the fellows over there at that seminary college
that Saul of Tarsus studied under? He spent all of his time on this
earth in fellowship with sinners. He walked with sinners. He talked
with sinners. He ate with sinners. The religious people were constantly
shocked. How can your master spend his
time with them? What's he doing with them? He spent his time with publicans
and sinners. He spent his time with the lost. He spent his time with the sick. He spent his time with the the
actually poor, the literally poor. He spent his time with
the outcast. You know, they a man would was
blind, he'd receive sight, and then all of a sudden everybody's
mad at him and they cast him out and the Lord would come to
him. the forsaken, the shunned, the
condemned. It was those who were known,
all right? It was those who were known.
They had reputations. You know, Danville's not that
big a town. Does anybody in Danville have
a reputation? You know anybody with a reputation? Those who
had reputations of being murderers, Harlots. Don't you love that story in
John 8 when those Pharisees caught that woman in the act of adultery
and brought her to the Lord to be judged according to the law.
And you know, our Lord stooped down and started writing in the
sand, writing in the dirt. And whatever he was writing convicted
those Pharisees. And one by one, he sent them
all away. And then he stood up and he looked
at that woman and he said, is there not anybody left here to
condemn you? No, Lord. He said, neither do
I. Is that amaze anybody? Neither do I. Go and send no
more. Is it not amazing that a holy
God can do that? How is that even possible? In
Christ. In the Lord Jesus Christ. That
woman at the well in John 4 had already had five husbands. And the man she was with at that
moment was not her husband. And this is what the Lord said
to her. He said, if you knew who it was who was speaking to
you right now, you would ask of me living water and I would
give it to you. And you'd never thirst again. I'd do that for you. The Lord is so much more merciful
than we are. So much more merciful than we
are. Saul of Tarsus. Think about that man for just
a minute. Saul of Tarsus. The Lord said he's a chosen vessel
of mercy to me. How do we know that Christ is
the friend of sinners? It's because while he was on
this earth, he was not ashamed to call them brethren. That's
how we know. He spent his time on this earth
in fellowship with them. All right, number three. Look
right here in Luke 15, verse three, it says, And he spake this parable unto
them, saying, What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he
lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness
and go after that which is lost until he find it? And when he
hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders rejoicing. And
when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors,
saying unto them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep
which was lost. I say unto you that likewise
joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth more than
over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance. How do we know that Christ is
the friend of sinners? It's because he preached the
glorious message of the gospel to them. To them. His message of deliverance and
redemption was to them. It was concerning them. It was
for them. All of the good news that he
had was for sinners. It was all for sinners, lost
sheep, sinners, not those who see themselves to be righteous.
I don't need, I don't need repentance. I've got it from my youth up.
I've got it. In Luke chapter four, he stood
up and he read Isaiah 61. And this is what he said. The
spirit of the Lord is upon me because he's anointed me to preach
the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted,
to preach deliverance to the captives, to give sight to the
blind. All the good news that he had
was for sinners. That's who the gospel is for,
sinners, sinners. Number four, turn with me to
Luke 22. Luke 22, verse 31. And the Lord said, Simon, Simon,
behold, Satan hath desired to have you that he may sift you
as wheat. But I have prayed for thee that
thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted,
strengthen thy brethren. How do we know that Christ is
the friend of sinners. It's because while he was on
this earth, he prayed for him. While he was on this earth, he
prayed for them in John 17. He said, father, I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but I do pray for them. Them
which thou hast given me, they are thine. All mine are thine,
and thine are mine, and I'm glorified in them. I'm glorified in them. Those who are forgiven much,
they love much, don't they? Number five, turn with me to
John 15. John 15 verse 13 says, Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. How do we know that Christ is
the friend of sinners? He died for them. How do you
know? He died for them. While he was
on this earth, he died for them. Romans 5 verse 6 says, when we
were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for, who
did he die for? The ungodly. That's me. Hi, my name is Gabe Stoniker
and I'm ungodly. In my flesh, I'm ungodly. When we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us. 1 John 4 verse 10 says, Herein
is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent
his son to be the propitiation, the bloody victim. The propitiation. You know, a lamb of the first
year, innocent lamb. The bloody victim. The innocent
victim. The covering atonement. The innocence. He sent his son to be the propitiation
for our sins. The Lord Jesus Christ proved
his love for sinners by dying for them. He proved it. How do
you know he's the friend of sinners? He died for them. He proved it. Having loved his own, he loved
them to the end. All the way to the end. Number
six. Turn with me to Romans 8 again. Romans 8 verse 31, it says, What shall we then say to these
things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? He that spared not his own son,
but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also
freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemneth? It
is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for
us. How do we know that Jesus Christ
is the friend of sinners? It's because he arose for them. He ascended for them. And he is right now seated on
his throne making intercession for them. Intercession means in treating
for favor, pleading for favor. He pleads to the father for favor
toward us. Based on what? His blood and
his righteousness. His blood and His righteousness.
Hebrews 7.25 says, He is able to save them to the uttermost
that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession
for us. You know what that means. That
means here we go. Okay, we got right now till it's
time to go home. And let me tell you what every
person in this room is going to do. We're going to sin. We're going
to sin. We're going to try to pray, and
in the middle of it, we're going to sin. We're going to try to preach,
and in the middle of it, we're going to sin. We're going to
just try to go about our day, and we're going to sin. And every
time we do, Jesus Christ says, Father, I paid for that one. Father, I paid for that. Father,
my blood is on that. Father, I bore that. Father,
I suffered agony over that right there. Father, that is what caused me
to sorrow even unto death right there. That's what it is. I plead
the blood. My righteousness be on him. That was in me. That was in me. That was dealt with on the cross.
That one was on the cross. That's intercession. That's what intercession is.
He ever lives. to all day, every day, make intercession
for his people. That's a friend. That's a friend. We have a friend that will stick
closer than a brother. That's a friend. He forever,
forever lives to do that for his people. So how can we know
that the Lord Jesus Christ is the friend of sinners? Number
one, it's because he came in the likeness of them. Number
two, he spent all of his time on earth in fellowship with them.
Number three, he preached the glorious message of heaven's
gospel to them. He preached parables. Why do
you preach in parables? It's not given to them, it's
given to you. Number four, he prayed for them.
and the effectual fervent prayer of the righteous man will avail
much. Number five, he died for him.
Number six, he arose and he now makes intercession for him. And
here's the last one, number seven. Turn with me to John 14. John 14 verse one, it says. Let not your heart be troubled.
You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are
many mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place
for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself that
where I am, there you may be also. How do we know that Jesus
Christ is the friend of sinners? It's because he said he would
come back. to forever receive them to himself in glory. He prepared a place for them
in glory. That's how. That's why we know. First Timothy 115, it says, this
is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Paul said, you
better believe this. You know, we say you better believe
it. You better believe this. Christ came into this world to
save sinners. Sinners. Knowing that, you know
what that makes me want to say? I'm the chief. I'm the chief,
if that's who you came to save. We're the chief. Save us, Lord. We're the chiefs, right? We don't
want to be. We wish we weren't. But we can't
help it. We are what we are. We acknowledge
what we are. We don't excuse it. We condemn
it. But we acknowledge it. We confess
it before you. And because that's what we are.
We thank God for our friend, don't we? Thank God for our maker, defender. Redeemer and friend. Christ Jesus, our Lord, our Savior,
our friend. Amen.