Matthew chapter five and verse
one. And seeing the multitudes, he
went up into a mountain, and when he was set, that is the
Lord Jesus, his disciples came unto him. And he opened his mouth
and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn,
for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they
shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger
and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed
are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the
pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are
they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when men shall
revile you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against
you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad,
for great is your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets
which were before you. Ye are the salt of the earth,
But if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be
salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing
but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye
are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill
cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle
and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it giveth
light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine
before men that they may see your good works and glorify your
Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy
the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but
to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till
heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise
pass from the law till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore
shall break one of these least commandments and shall teach
men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.
But whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called
great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, that except
your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes
and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of
heaven. Ye have heard that it was said
by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall
kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I say unto you
that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall
be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his
brother Raka shall be in danger of the council. But whosoever
shall say thou fool shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore,
if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest
that thy brother hath ought against thee, leave there thy gift before
the altar, and go thy way. First be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary quickly,
whilst thou art in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary
deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the
officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee,
thou shalt in no means come out thence till thou hast paid the
uttermost farthing. You have heard that it was said
by them of old time, thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say
unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her
hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. And
if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from
thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members
should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into
hell. And if thy right hand offend
thee, cut it off and cast it from thee, for it is profitable
for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy
whole body should be cast into hell. It hath been said, Whosoever
shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement. But I say unto you, that whosoever
shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication,
causeth her to commit adultery, and whosoever shall marry her
that is divorced, commiteth adultery. Again ye have heard that it hath
been said, of them of old time, thou shalt not forswear thyself,
but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths. But I say unto you,
swear not at all, neither by heaven, for it is God's throne,
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool, neither by Jerusalem,
for it is the city of the great king, neither shalt thou swear
by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black,
but let your communication be yea, yea, nay, nay, for whatsoever
is more than these cometh of evil. You have heard that it
hath been said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,
but I say unto you that ye resist not evil, but whosoever shall
smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee
at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak
also. And whosoever shall compel thee
to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee,
and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away. You have heard that it hath been
said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy. But I say
unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do
good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully
use you and persecute you. that ye may be the children of
your Father which is in heaven. For he maketh his Son to rise
on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just
and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love
you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the
same? And if ye salute your brethren
only, what do ye more than others? Do not even the publicans so?
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven
is perfect. Take heed that ye do not your
alms before men, to be seen of them. Otherwise ye have no reward
of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore, when thou doest thine
alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites
do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory
of men. Verily I say unto you, they have
their reward. But when thou doest alms, let
not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth. that thine
alms may be in secret, and thy father, which seeth in secret,
himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, thou shalt
not be as the hypocrites are, for they love to pray standing
in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that
they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have
their reward. But thou, when thou prayest,
enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray
to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in
secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain
repetitions as the heathen do, for they think that they shall
be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto
them, for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before
ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray
ye. Our Father, which art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be
done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead
us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the
kingdom and the power and the glory for ever. Amen. For if ye forgive men their trespasses,
your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive
not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses. Moreover, when ye fast, be not
as the hypocrites of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces
that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you,
they have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest,
anoint thine head and wash thy face, that thou appear not unto
men to fast, but unto thy father which is in secret, and thy father
which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. Lay not up for yourselves
treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where
thieves break through and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures
in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where
thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure
is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is
the eye, If therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall
be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy
whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is
in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness. No man can
serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love
the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, take
no thought for your life, what ye shall eat or what ye shall
drink, nor yet for your body what ye shall put on. Is not
the life more than meat and the body than raiment? Behold the
fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor
gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not
much better than they? Which of you, by taking thought,
can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field,
how they grow. They toil not, neither do they
spin. And yet I say unto you, that
even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the
grass of the field which today is and tomorrow is cast into
the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore, Take no thought, saying,
What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or Wherewithal
shall we be clothed? For after all these things do
the Gentiles seek. For your Heavenly Father knoweth
that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the
kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be
added unto you. Take therefore no thought for
the moral, for the moral shall take thought for the things of
itself. Sufficient unto the day is the
evil thereof. Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge,
ye shall be judged. And with what measure ye meet,
it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote
that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam
that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother,
Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye, And behold a beam
is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out
the beam out of thine own eye, And then shalt thou see clearly
to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. Give not that
which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your perils before
swine, lest they trample them under their feet and turn again
and rend you. Ask, and it shall be given you.
Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened
unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth,
and he that seeketh findeth. And to him that knocketh it shall
be opened. Or what man is there of you,
whom, if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he
ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much
more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things
to them that ask him? Therefore all things whatsoever
ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them, for
this is the law and the prophets. Enter ye in at the straight gate,
for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction,
and many there be which go in thereat. Because straight is
the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and
few there be that find it. Beware of false prophets which
come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening
wolves. You shall know them by their
fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles? Even so, every good tree bringeth
forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth
evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not
forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. Wherefore,
by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith
unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but
he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many
will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied
in thy name? And in thy name have cast out
devils? And in thy name done many wonderful
works? And then will I profess unto
them, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work
iniquity. Therefore whosoever heareth these
sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise
man which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. And
every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them
not, shall be likened unto a foolish man which built his house upon
the sand. And the rain descended, and the
floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, and
it fell, and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass, when
Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at
his doctrine, for he taught them as one having authority, and
not as the scribes. Amen. May God bless to us this
extended reading of his word this morning, but done purposefully,
as I've described, to give us some sense of the majesty and
the extensiveness of these words that the Lord spoke to his people. We're just going to go straight
into some thoughts upon these things now. I want to draw your attention,
if I may, to that final but one verse at the end
of chapter seven. It came to pass when Jesus had
ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine. The title of my thoughts this
morning is this, an astonishing sermon, an astonishing sermon. Let us never forget and let us
never understate this simple fact. God came into this world. He came to this earth and he
preached a gospel message. God came to earth and preached
a gospel message. The Lord Jesus Christ came into
this world and spoke words of peace, words of goodness, words
of grace, sovereign grace and mercy. He spoke of everlasting
life to men and women who were under the curse of death. That curse that came upon Adam
and Eve in the Garden of Eden, that curse that came because
of sin, because of the fall, because of disobedience, That
separation that was taking place, that was addressed by God Himself
in the person of Jesus Christ. He came and He spoke words of
grace and mercy. Let us never forget that. Let
us never undervalue the sermon. Let us never think that these
messages, I was reflecting upon this with a friend recently,
And he said, you know, this is really a very rare thing that
happens, that people come together and they sit quietly for 30 minutes,
for 45 minutes, maybe for an hour, quietly, listening to someone
speaking. and not saying anything and not
doing anything and just concentrating, just thinking, just meditating
upon these great truths that are expounded from the word of
God. There are many sermons preached
and without being overly judgmental or critical, there are probably
many of them which would have been better not preached. But
if we have the gospel of God's grace, if we have his word in
our heart, if we have been called to the sharing of these great
truths, what a blessing we have. how much we should remember that
these words were first spoken by Christ. They have been given
to men by the inspiration of God, the Holy Spirit. These truths
are heavenly truths. These are divine truths. This
is a message from on high. And never let us forget that
the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world and he preached a
sermon and what an astonishing sermon it was. Let us never forget,
thus saith the Lord. Let us not take for granted that
he opened his mouth and taught them saying. Let us always consider
that it was no small thing for God, the Son, the Eternal Word
to declare. But I say unto you, God has spoken. Jesus Christ has spoken. Let me try and emphasise that
point and give you some scale about this. The day that Jesus
saw this multitude of people gathering around about him and
sat down on the hillside and called his disciples around him,
the day that he opened his mouth and taught them, the sun and the moon and the
stars declared. I recognise that voice. The day that the Lord Jesus Christ
sat down and spoke these things, the earth and the sky and the
sea replied. We recognise that voice. The angels in glory stopped what
they were doing. They whispered to one another,
we recognise that voice. They listened in silence with
bated breath and the devils squealed, we recognise that voice. and they shuddered. You think I overstate myself? Jesus said, if these, speaking
of those who worshipped him, if these should hold their peace,
the stones would immediately cry out. Peter tells us in his epistle
that the angels desire to look into gospel truths. The angels long to hear these
things that the Lord Jesus Christ spoke that day on the hillside. They listened, they watched,
they beheld the Lord Jesus Christ at work
throughout the course of his ministry. The angels watched
and wondered. In Psalm 148, verse three, we
read this. Praise him. Praise ye him, sun
and moon, praise him, all ye stars of light. The sun shines and the planets
orbit our little star. in this little corner of our
little galaxy in the vastness of the millions and billions
of galaxies in the depths of space which have not even yet
been probed by the cleverest scientific instruments made by
men. And what are they doing there?
What are they doing there? They are singing the praises
of God. Our imaginations are too small. That demon-possessed man who
lived amongst the tombs that piece of coastline that
was called the place of the Gadarenes. In
Mark 5, verse 7, he cried out with a loud voice and said, What
have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou son of the Most High God? I adjure thee by God that thou
torment me not. The devils knew that voice. They
recognised the Lord Jesus Christ when he walked along the beach
towards them. And God the Father himself heard
that voice. And he says to his people, hear
ye him. This is my beloved Son, hear
ye Him. I tell you, that day that the
Lord Jesus Christ sat on the hillside and began this Sermon
on the Mount, all creation heard the Master's voice. They all
heard Him speak. And what did they conclude? God
himself is speaking. No wonder those in his audience,
in his congregation that day said it was an astonishing sermon. God himself delivered that sermon. The Lord Jesus Christ delivered
that sermon. And we are told that the people
testified that he spoke with astonishing doctrine. He spoke
of spiritual truth. He spoke of those who were spiritually
blessed because they mourned for sin. He spoke of a spiritual blessing
that came to those who hunger after righteousness and thirst
after God's grace and mercy. He spoke of purity of heart and
persecution in this world. He spoke of being salt and light
about the law's true meaning and extent and how we spend our
time and our resources and our labour He spoke of the heart of the
poor and the needy. He spoke about how we are to
interact and speak to God. He taught us how to pray and
he taught us to be anxious for nothing. Have you ever considered
how odd and absurd it is for us to pray to God for help and
then worry about the thing that we have prayed for. How absurd is that? Either don't
pray and worry or pray and don't worry. But don't do both. At the very least, that's a waste
of energy. We commit these things into our
God. But you see, the problem is we're
so weak. Never let us think that we're
strong. Because as soon as we start to
scratch at the surface of these truths, we discover that we are
so limited, so ignorant, so dull in our hearing and our understanding. so weak and so of little faith. And the Lord tells us that, O
ye of little faith. He warns us in this sermon about
hypocrisy. You know, we have our scale of
sins in this world and we've seen some terrible things in
the news recently about murders and young people being slain
and we hear terrible things about exploitation and abuse and we
encounter the troubles of this world. And we kind of have a
ranking of the things that are really grievous and not quite
so grievous and passable. Not good, we wish they weren't
there, but hey, that's life, that's the world. You know what
the Lord hates? You know what the Lord hates
more than anything else? Hypocrisy. Hypocrisy. See the number of times we read
in scripture about God detesting hypocrisy. You know how he describes
it? It's like vomit. I want to spew
you out. It turns his stomach. So for
all of the things that we think are bad in this world, and there's
plenty to think about, let us beware of hypocrisy in our own
lives, in the things that we say to God, in the things that
we say to one another. He speaks about trusting Him. He speaks about seeking the Lord
and our priorities. how we communicate with God and
how we interact with one another. He says in the 7th chapter of
Matthew verse 12, Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that
men should do to you, do ye even so to them, for this is the law
and the prophets. We've spent time, haven't we,
over the past few weeks thinking about some of these truths, some
of these lessons, some of these verses individually and in small
sections, and I'm really just endeavouring to draw some threads
together this morning. He speaks about entering in at
the straight gate and the narrow way that leads to life. And he
speaks about a broad path that leads to destruction. He speaks
about the few and the many, about life and death, about goodness
and corruption. He speaks about false professors
and those who are true in their faith and in their understanding.
He speaks about being wise and building upon the foundation
which is Christ himself. And he speaks about the foolishness
of those who build their lives without foundations and build
their lives upon the sand. This is what we might call a
wide ranging sermon. And yet it is full of gospel
truth. And though the Lord Jesus Christ
did not mention the blood or the cross or the sacrifice of atonement,
he left us in no doubt that following him was the only way of salvation. The means of that salvation was
yet to be revealed when the Lord went to the cross. There his actions would speak
louder than words, but his words to follow him are clear and stark
and simple. Our Lord and Saviour spoke astonishing
doctrine. And I don't think that any of
us could read these three chapters, listen to this sermon from beginning
to end, and doubt that these words were anything other than
astonishing doctrine. But he also spoke with astonishing
directness. He gave an astonishing delivery. There was power and authority
in his words. These things that the Lord Jesus
Christ spoke about weren't second hand. He didn't get them from
someone else. That was the problem with the
scribes. The scribes picked up these things from commentaries
and dusty old books and scrolls and the wisdom of dead men's
brains. And they kind of assimilated
them together and they passed them off as a few thoughts to
encourage and comfort and convict and probably whip. those that
would listen to them. The Lord Jesus Christ didn't
speak second-hand doctrine. No one ever spoke like Jesus
Christ. No one ever spoke like him. He
made astonishing statements. Now we've read them, I'm not
going to rehearse all these famous statements that we have in scripture
that are so memorable. But these are astonishing statements. But what I do want you to think
about is the use that the Lord Jesus Christ made of the word
me, or my, or mine, or I, because he spoke firsthand. He spoke
personally. Matthew 7, 21. not everyone that
saith unto me." This is Jesus. He's sitting on the grass on
the hillside there in Galilee. He's sitting down and he takes
to himself the authority and the responsibility of being the
doorkeeper into glory, into heaven, into eternal life. This man that's
sitting on the grass in front of us speaking is telling us
that he is God who makes the decision about who gets eternal
life and who doesn't. That's astounding. That's amazing. If we heard somebody speak like
that, we would turn our backs and walk away. We would say this
guy's nuts. Who could possibly take to themselves
such an authority, such a statement of magnitude like this? Not everyone
that saith unto me, says Christ, Lord, Lord, shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth the will of
my Father which is in heaven. Many will say unto me in that
day, This is Christ who's speaking there on the grass. And he's
saying, I'm the one that's going to be making the decisions in
that day which is to come. I'll be the judge of this. Many
will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied
in thy name, and in thy name cast out devils, and in thy name
done many wonderful works? And then I will profess unto
them. I never knew you. Depart from
me, ye that work iniquity. The Lord Jesus Christ explicitly
and expressly takes to himself this authority. He declares himself
to be the gate to heaven. He is the way to peace with God. He is the way to eternal life. He is eternal life. He decides who gets in, who gets
to experience it, and who doesn't. He's the judge, and he has power
to accept, and he has power to reject. But it's not arbitrary. If it
was arbitrary, if it was just at a whim, then we would say,
that's terrible, that's awful. But the Lord Jesus Christ goes
on to tell people how he will make those judgements, how he
will decide who gets in and who doesn't. Verse 21 says, whosoever,
Matthew 7, verse 21, Whosoever doeth the will of my
Father which is in heaven. The will of the Father. Who can do the will of the Father? Who can do all that the Father
requires? Well, let's cut to the chase. The only person who's ever been
able to do the will of the Father is the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay,
you can have your laws, you can have your systems, you can have
your religious traditions and your practices, you can read
these verses, you can talk about fasting, you can talk about prayer,
you can talk about your almsgiving, you can talk about your morality,
you can bring all of these things out, you can live your life as
best you can. The reality is, that every single
person knows that they're a sinner in their heart and the only person
who has ever been able to do the will of the Father is the
Son who came to do the will of the Father. Christ told his parents at the
age of 12, don't you know I've got to be about the will of my
father, the work of my father. Wist thee not that I must be
about my father's business? This is why I'm here. This is
my job. A 12-year-old boy, his parents
were frantic, running around, looking for him in the middle
of a city that was heaving full of people. I've got to be doing
my father's will. Fulfilling the Father's will
was always foremost in the mind of the Lord Jesus Christ. John
4, 34, he was speaking to the woman at the well and his disciples
came back and they had been away getting food because they assumed
that Jesus would be hungry. And Jesus saith unto them, my
meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his
work. John 6, 37, All that the Father
giveth me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will
in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven,
not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. John 17, verse 4, I have glorified
thee on the earth. I have finished the work which
thou gavest me to do. Let's not think about moral rules
or regulations or laws. What did the Lord Jesus Christ
do? When he fulfilled the will of
his father, he destroyed all our spiritual enemies. Sin. Satan. The world. death. He brought redemption. He gave salvation. This people that were committed
to him, for him to slay their enemies and give them liberty
and peace and freedom and salvation and grace and mercy. That was
the work that was given him to do. That was the covenant obligations
that were laid to him in that eternal dimension where God,
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit agreed together to accomplish
all that was necessary for the redemption and salvation of the
people loved by God from all eternity. The Lord Jesus Christ had this
work given to him to do. It was given to him. The Father
and the Holy Spirit gave him this work And in His God-man
capacity, He willingly, He voluntarily accepted to take upon Himself
every obligation of that covenant. And when He spoke to His Father
and He said, I have finished the work which thou hast given
Me to do, and when upon the cross He declared, it is finished,
He was saying that He had done the will of God. He had done
the will of the Father. Jesus, knowing that all things
were now accomplished, said, it is finished. And he bowed
his head and gave up the ghost. None can do the will of the Father
but the Lord Jesus Christ. But the wonderful thing is this,
that everyone does the will of the Father. who are in union
with Him in His fulfilment of that work. To be found in Christ,
to have Him as our Saviour and our Deliverer is to do all the
will of the Father, because the Father looks upon the Son and
He says, I'm well pleased. and all who are in Christ are
covered by that substitutionary work that he has done on our
behalf. Such is our union together with
him. The Lord Jesus Christ preached
an astonishing doctrine and he spoke with astonishing authority. And finally this, and then we're
done. He presented people with an astonishing
dilemma. It was as if he said, let me
put it bluntly, no man can serve two masters. No man can serve
two masters. The Lord always poses men with
a choice. Follow me or not. Believe or not. Enter or not? Trust or not? The Lord said, he that heareth
these sayings of mine and doeth them. And he sets that up in
contrast to those that hear these sayings of mine and doeth them
not. And there's the dilemma. Now
we know Because the word of God tells us that man's predisposition
to sin and rebellion will always render him incapable of choosing
the right path. It's just the way it is. We will
always follow our own way. We will always want our own will. Our desires, our lusts, our motivations,
the sin that is part and parcel of our being has so afflicted
and infected our soul and our mind that nothing that we can
do is separate from the sin, the evil nature that we possess
and therefore when this dilemma is set before us, it is a true
dilemma because we see that there is a destruction coming and yet
we cannot accept the Lord give us grace. Do that which is needful. But if the Lord's Sermon on the
Mount has taught us anything, it is that the only way to life
is through Christ as our representative. And the only way to come to Christ is experientially, experimentally
with faith. We have to trust in all that
he has done. And here's the thing. Grace once
given, grace granted, will persevere. Where the Holy Spirit gives that
gift of faith. Where the Holy Spirit deals with
that problem of sin. Where the Holy God in His triune
person so works upon an individual to reveal that everlasting love
of the Father. the power of the Holy Spirit
in his quickening grace, and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ
as the means and accomplishment of that way of acceptance with
God. Where this great work is revealed
in the heart of an individual, there will be peace in that heart,
peace in that life. and acknowledge that these things
are true. We will declare with the apostle,
we know, we know that these things are so because God himself has
taught us and he is faithful and he is true. What are we talking
about? About our own personal holiness
here? No, we're talking about the holiness
of God, the holiness that comes to us through Christ. Doing the
whole will of the Father is impossible. Our righteousness has to be more
perfect than the scribes and the Pharisees, and they were
meticulous about all of the rules and regulations, and the righteousness
that we require for heaven has to far exceed that. Where do
we get such a righteousness? in union with Jesus Christ by
faith, by trusting in him and those things which he has said
and those things which he has done. Progressive sanctification,
no. Progressive suffering, now that's
more like it. because we're not of this world
anymore. This world is contrary to us. If we have been given life, if
we've been given faith, if these things are our portion, then
we seek something different, we seek something better. We
long to be out of this body of sin, this weakness, and to be
present with the Lord, which is far better. Progressive trials
in this world, yes. To wean us away from the things
of the world, yes. Progressive hardship in this
world, yes. Progressive persecution in this
world, we must through much tribulation enter in. but he gives more grace
day by day. Grace sufficient for all our
needs. Grace that will meet the challenge
of the trials that we encounter. And we keep close communication
with the one who supplies our every need as we live our Christian
experience with the Lord. Remember that man that brought
his sick child to the Lord Jesus Christ in Mark chapter 9. He
said, Lord I believe, help thou mine unbelief. I think that's
one of the most poignant statements in the whole of scripture. You
can just look into the face of that man You see the distress,
you see the hurt, the anguish, you see the complete lack of
power that that man has. I've tried everything. I love
this boy. This boy is my own flesh and
blood. And I see the hurt that he's
having, and I see the torment that he's going through. I love
this boy. The Lord says to him, if you
can believe all things are possible. Oh, he says, I believe, I believe,
I believe. Help thou my unbelief. What a
prayer, what a testimony, let it be ours too. Let us join with
that man. And straightway the father of
the child cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe,
help thou mine unbelief. Go to the Lord with your needs. I've so much enjoyed spending
these past few months with you. It really does feel as if I've
been part of the congregation in a way that maybe even in the
past I've been aware that it's a passing thing to come and go.
And I dare say that Maybe you've been more familiar with me this
trip than you have on previous occasions as well. Maybe that's
a feature, a function of us getting to know one another and to trust
one another better. But you've kind of opened up
a little bit, some of you especially, and told me about some of the
hurts and the hardships and the trials and the difficulties that
you're encountering. And I've seen them firsthand. We need to go to the Lord with
these things. We need to take them to the one
who can help us. We need to take them to the one
who has promised to comfort us and to be closer to us than a
brother. He will help us to persevere
in the face of our trials, to persist in faith, believing that
these things are true. The blessed Saviour promises
that every needy sinner is welcome at his throne of grace and goodness. Enter by the straight gate, the
narrow way which is Christ himself. Seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto
you. Amen.