You and I live in a day of much religion. I don't know if you even stop
during the day to think about it, contemplate it. You can't go anywhere without
seeing something religious on a sign or a billboard or a church. It's everywhere you go. It's
as much a part of our culture as farming or manufacturing or
the selling of goods. Men are everywhere promoting
their ideas and philosophies of religion. They're on the TV.
They're on the radio. They're in magazines, newspapers. Politicians quote them. They're
everywhere. They're everywhere. Religion is so interwoven into
our society that even irreligious men have religious views. You talk to a man who doesn't
go to church, who never read his Bible, who just has no interest
whatsoever in anything spiritual, and you start talking to him
about something spiritual, and he'll tell you what he believes. We live in a day of much religion. And yet, for all the religion
we have, men and women seem to walk more in ignorance, darkness,
and blindness to the very things which they're professing to promote
and to know. I'll never forget inviting a
man out to church one time. And he was sitting there in his
cut-off jeans, and he had him a big old long neck and he was
drinking it, and he was sitting there, and he said, what for? Nobody ever asked me what for. I said, well, we've got an evangelist
down here. I'd like for you to come hear
the gospel. He said, you wouldn't know the gospel if you met it
in the middle of the road. And I said, what do you mean?
And he said, well, if you know the gospel, why don't you tell
me what it is? And I think for the first time
in my life, I realized I didn't know the very things that I was
promoting. Totally ignorant of these things.
And yet promoting, just busy going about, going about, busy
trying to. For all the religion we have,
men and women seem to walk more in ignorance and darkness and
blindness than ever. Paul describes them over in Ephesians
chapter 4 verse 17. He describes them as walking
in the vanity of their mind. Now listen to this. This is an
accurate description not only of the days of Paul but in our
days. It's as accurate as if it was
written yesterday. Walking in the vanity of their
mind, having their understanding darkened, Being alienated from
the life of God through the ignorance that's in them because of the
blindness of their heart. Religion of this world is geared
to man. That's what it's all about. All
you have to do is turn it on. You don't have to take my word
for it. Just turn it on. Listen to it. Read their billboards. Nearly every church sign anymore
has sayings down on it. Just read those. The religion
of this world is geared to man, man's happiness. They're worried
about man being happy. I might be way off base, but
I don't ever remember reading a scripture where Christ was
concerned about man's happiness. He's concerned about his soul.
You fix his soul, he'll be happy. You don't have to worry about
it. They're geared to man's happiness, man's welfare. man's glory, man's
objectives, man's philosophies, and man's rights. Boy, if ever
there was a contradiction of terms, that's it. The religion
of this world appears in many forms and shapes and sizes. Intellectualism, ceremonialism,
legalism, sentimentalism, and inspirationalism. I just want
to inspire you. Then leave. Please. Religion appeals to men trying
to make them feel better about themselves, trying to get them
to reform their lives, attempting to get folks to establish their
own righteousness that they might please God. trying to get people
to reconcile themselves to God by their own will and their own
ways. And religion, my friend, might
very well be the largest industry in the world. At one time I thought
politics was, government was, but I believe religion has outgrown
government. I believe it's the largest industry
in the world. Do you know John Pictures the
destruction of the great whore in the book of Revelation, talking
about worldly religion, talking about those very things that
I'm talking to you about this morning. And John pictures the
destruction of the great whore and here's what he says, the
merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her for no
man buyeth their merchandise anymore. Isn't that something? And I tell you this, I was taken
in by it, swallowed up by it, practiced it. I was right in
the middle of it. But there come a time in my life
when God began to intervene in this boy's heart. And I began
to ask some questions that they didn't have answers to. They
not only did I find out that they didn't have the answers,
they didn't even know the questions. They were totally ignorant of
the things going on in my heart. But by the grace of God, He led
me to a preacher who did. And in God's own time, He taught
me some things, and I hope by His grace that He'll be pleased
to teach you these things that He's taught me. I've got several
things. We could go on for hours, but
I've got seven things this morning. that God's taught me, that He
taught me about me, and that He taught me about Him, and that
He taught me about the salvation of sinners. And I have seven
texts that I want you to look at in the Word of God concerning
these things, and I hope you'll follow me in the Scriptures this
morning, and that the Holy Ghost will be your teacher. Now, here's
the first thing. I know this by the Word of God,
and I know this by the person and work of Jesus Christ. Not
only do I know it because I read it in the Word of God, that it's
God's testimony, but I know it when I examine the person and
work of Jesus Christ. It stands out and declares this
to me. And I know it because I've heard
his gospel. And this is the testimony of
all those who preaches gospel. Now I want you to turn with me
over to Romans chapter 5. Now here's what it is that I
know. The whole world, this whole world,
I don't care where you go, go over to India, go up to the North
Pole, you go anywhere you want to go, this whole world is under
the condemnation of God. Now that's so. Let me quote you something while
you're finding your place there in Romans. John said, we know. This ain't just something I know.
I want you to know that these men who wrote this book knew
this. Over in I John 5, he said, and we know that the whole world,
life and wickedness, and we're of God. We know that. We know that. Do you know that? It'll change how you minister
to folks if you do. It'll change how you talk to
folks if you do. Is that part of your understanding
and part of your faith? I'm saying that God the Holy
Spirit testifies in the Scripture that man fell in the garden when
his daddy Adam sinned against God. He fell. I fell just as
he fell. Romans chapter 5 verse 12. Now
watch this. This is God's testimony. This
is the Holy Spirit's testimony to men. Wherefore, as by one
man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death
passed upon all men, for that all have sin. Death passed. How did it pass? It passed by imputation, first
of all, because he's our father. He's our representative. He's
the seed from which we would be produced. So death passed
by imputation, but death passed by the nature of our father Adam. All his seed, only thing that
Adam could produce was another Adam, and another Adam, and another
Adam, and another Adam. That's why each man don't stand
on an individual footing. He fell in his father Adam because
all Adam could produce was another Adam. All fallen man can produce
is another fallen man. And I know this is so, not only
from the Word of God. And now listen to this. Old Romans
5, verse 18, the first part of that verse. All through this
chapter, he deals with these two feral heads, Adam and Christ. Adam and Christ. All through
here. And he says this in verse 18, he said, Therefore, as by
the offense of one judgment, whose judgment, God's judgment,
came upon all men to condemnation. Ain't that what this is? That's God's own testimony on
the matter. But I also know this is so by
the person and work of Jesus Christ. You can turn back just a few
pages to the book of John over there in John chapter 3 and verse
18. He tells us, talking about the
Savior, he said, he that believeth on him is not condemned. But he that believeth not is
condemned already. How is he condemned already? He was condemned in Adam. He
was condemned in Adam. And there's only one way that
that can be reversed, and that is to be justified in Christ.
Is that right? So he that believeth not is condemned
already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only
begotten Son of God. Now watch this, verse 19, and
this is the condemnation. Here's the judgment. Light came
into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light. Do
I believe that this whole world is under the condemnation of
God? Absolutely. Why? Because they despised the
Savior. Do I believe men hate God? Absolutely. They hated God come into the
flesh. In Ephesians chapter 2, which
I read to you a little earlier, describing what it is to be dead
in trespasses and sins, Paul sums it all up in verse 3, saying
that in time past, we were by nature the children of wrath,
even as others. By nature. By nature. I don't know. You know, folks
have strange ideas, but babies are not born innocent and then
become sinners later on in life. I heard that all my life when
I was growing up. I heard that. But the scripture said they're
shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin. Psalm 51, 4. That's what God said. Children
do not live a righteous life or maybe not so much a righteous
life as a life in a vacuum where they don't sin and they don't
do anything righteous. They're just kind of out there
in limbo, people talk about. But they don't live this righteous
life until they reach a so-called age of accountability and then
choose which path they're going to go down. The Scripture said,
they're strangers from the womb. They're estranged from the womb.
They go astray. Now listen, as soon as they be
born, speaking lies. That's Psalm 58.3. And see, here's another thing.
Sin doesn't work from the outside in. It works from the inside
out. You hear what I'm saying? You
go get you a bottle of whiskey and you drink it all the way
down to the bottom. It'll make you sick. I guarantee
you it's going to make you sick. It's going to make you drunk.
It's going to affect the way you walk and the way you talk.
But it's not going to defile you. But what comes out of the
heart, that's what's going to defile you. That's what's going
to defile you. Listen to what our Lord said.
These Pharisees saw them, and they were eating with unwashed
hands, and they were eating on the Sabbath day, and they found
a thousand reasons. And our Lord said to them, He
said, it's not what goes into the mouth that defiles a man,
it's what comes out of his heart. Now listen to what he says here.
This is Matthew 15, 19. Out of the heart. Whose heart? Any heart. Out of the heart proceed
evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, theft, false witness,
blasphemies. These are the things that defile
the man. Sin's in him. It works from the
inside out, not from the outside in. And I tell you, preachers who
know this, they quit appealing to man's ability and will and
understanding because they know the truth about man. I know what
man is. He's a sinner. Well, my problem is this and
my problem is that. It may well be, but let me tell
you what your problem is. You're born in sin. That's your
problem. You hate God. You hate God. And there's only one way to address
a man as an ambassador of God, and that is as a condemned, guilty
sinner or a man justified in Christ. All right, here's the second
thing. The second thing I know, the second thing I want everybody
to understand under the sound of my voice, I want them to know,
is that because of man's sin, because of the nature of it and
the power of it and the love of it and the influence of it,
it is utterly impossible for any man to save himself or reconcile
himself to God. It's a fruitless effort. That
rich young ruler had every potential that religion looks for. And
he was rich. He was brilliant. He was a moral
man. He had every potential that religion
takes that microscope and looks for. They want a church full
of people like this, and they look for it, and they promote
it. And this man had it all. And the Lord sent him away with
his tail tucked between his legs, rejected. And the disciples turned
and looked at each other. They couldn't hardly believe
their eyes. This well-known, renowned man walking away from
our Lord. And they said, who then can be
saved? You know what the Lord told them?
With man it is impossible. Isn't that what He said? He didn't
say it was hard. He said it was impossible. It's impossible. Those to whom Noah preached before
the flood are described in the Scriptures as spirits in prison. Huh? Isn't that what Peter said? Bound by chains of darkness in
bondage to a fallen nature. I wonder if we really believe
that. Do you believe that God leaves a man to himself? I'm
not talking about God sending him delusion. I'm talking about
God leaving him to himself. Worst thing God can do to you
right now is leave you to yourself. Just turn you over to yourself. Do you believe if left to himself,
a man has no possibility of salvation? No possibility. If left to the working of this
religious world, that man has no possibility of ever being
saved. There are churches around here,
churches who actually profess to believe the doctrines that
I'm preaching to you this morning. who believe that men and women
are saved in Catholicism and saved in Methodism and saved
out here in all these churches around, that these churches are
actually saying something that caused these men to be born that
produced children of God. That's a lie, what that is. If left to the working of this
religious world, that man has no possibility of being saved. Man's in a pit from which he
cannot climb out. He's in the pit. He's in prison
from which he cannot break free. Listen to the apostle Paul. Here's a man of God. Here's an
apostle caught up to the third heaven taught by Christ Himself.
Listen to this cry, O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver
me from the body of this death? Huh? Only one way out. Only one way out. I thank God
through Jesus Christ, my Lord. That's it. There ain't no other
way. Ain't no other way. Oh, but now wait a minute, preacher. There's things out there that
a man can do. He's got Bibles and he's got
books and there's things out there that a man can do. Yes,
but the natural man, this is what God says about that, the
natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God.
What things? Here's one of the things right
here. He won't take that. He won't risk his faith alone
on this book. He won't do it. He won't seek
what God has to say to his heart in this book. He won't do it. What he'll do is he'll sample
things around and find a little something that appeals to him,
and then he'll go there and he'll take that. He's not going to
receive the thing, preaching of the gospel's foolishness to
them, which believe not, absolute, utter foolishness. Ain't that
what this says? The things of the Spirit of God?
He won't receive them because of foolishness to Him. Foolishness. But then it goes on and says,
neither can He be saved. He can't be saved, you see. Because
salvation comes through the things of the Spirit of God. The Jews had every advantage,
but our Lord said to them, you will not come to Me. that you
might have life. And mankind before God's prophet
was set forth as dead, dry bones. You can go read about it. Do we believe that? Do you believe
that your sons and daughters and close friends and neighbors
are hopeless, helpless sinners before the God of glory? Do I
believe that? I'll tell you, when you do, you'll
quit appealing to them and start appealing to God on their behalf. When you do, it'll change how
you make decisions for them, and what you make priorities
for them, and how you talk to them, and what you encourage
them to do. And then thirdly, I know that
God has determined to save a people out of Adam's condemned race.
I know this is so by the word of God. I don't know who they
are. I have no idea who they are.
But when I say he's determined to save a people, I'm not talking
about some unfulfilled desire on God's part, some helpless
passion. I'm talking about the sovereign,
unchangeable, and eternal will of God. It's what's called in
the scripture his determinate counsel. When I say God's determined
to save a people, he's going to save a people. You remember when they crucified
Christ, he said Pilate and the Gentiles and the Jews and the
whole outfit, they all got together to do what God determined before
to be done. You know what he said? Peter
told them at his message at Pentecost, he said he was delivered by the
determinant counsel and foreknowledge of God, and you took him with
wicked hands and crucified and slain. You know God created mankind
by the hand of a savior? You ever think about that? Huh? What's that tell you? That tells
me he determined to save a people out of these people that he created. Talking about the mind of enlightened
saints, Paul tells us that our Redeemer is the image of the
invisible God. He's the firstborn of every creature.
All things were created by Him and for Him, and He's before
all things, and by Him all things consist, and He's the head of
the body of the church who is the beginning. Ephesians 111 tells us that we've
received an inheritance in Christ, being predestinated according
to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel.
of His own will. God's determined to save a people
out of Adam's fallen race. And He's going to save them.
Every one of them. Religion has men and women going off into
hell for whom Christ died. That's not going to happen. Our Lord said over in John 6,
verse 37, He said, All that the Father hath given Me shall come
to Me. And him that cometh to me, I
will in no wise cast out." All right, fourthly, I know that this salvation is
100% by the free and sovereign grace
of God. 100%. Every part of it, the design
of it, the election of it, The accomplishing of it, the application
of it, it's all 100% by the grace of God. Turn with me to Ephesians chapter
2. I want to read you another portion of that. Paul was dealing here with the
statement in verse 1 of this chapter, you hath equipped them
who were dead in trespasses and sins. And then having defined the spiritual
death in great detail, he now moves to the good news. And he
tells us in verse 4, but God, who is rich in mercy, for His
great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in
sins, hath quickened us together with Christ. Now watch this.
By grace, ye are saved. When did God save us? This is
past tense. When did God save us? He saved
us when He gave us life in Christ according to His election before
the foundation of the world. He saved us. In time, He called
us. Isn't that what it says over
in I Timothy 1.9? God hath saved us, and then He called us with
a holy calling. The quickening of some is by
the free and sovereign grace of God. And this quickening might
be said to be in our election. Paul said of rejected Israel,
even so at this present time, there is a remnant according
to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it's no
more works. Otherwise, grace is no more grace.
By way of this covenant union, he goes on to tell us in Ephesians
2, 6 that he's raised us up together. Made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus. Saved us in Him. Sanctified us
in Him. Justified us in Him. By that
one offering sanctified us forever. Isn't that what it says? Reconciled us to God in the body
of His flesh through death. And this He did, Ephesians 2,
7, that in the ages to come, He might show the exceeding riches
of His grace and His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
For by grace are you saved through faith." That same grace by which
you were chosen is the reason for that gift of faith. Amen. Salvation is 100% by the free
and sovereign grace of God. All right, 50. I know that this
salvation which comes by the grace of God to chosen sinners
comes through the person and work of Jesus Christ. That's
the only way you can get it. That's the only way you can have
it. It's the only way possible for God to save sinners is through
His Son. All I hear about today is the
plan of salvation. Accepting the plan. Rejoicing
in the plan. Receiving the plan. Following
the plan. Isn't that what you hear? The
plan of salvation? talking to men who don't know
God, talking to them about receiving the plan of salvation. I read
an article in somebody's bulletin here recently. They was talking
about a missionary years and years ago over in one of the
Arab countries. And this missionary also had
medical training. He was nearly a doctor, not quite,
but almost a doctor. And they sent him over there
not only for his missionary classification, but also he could treat the sick. And this missionary went over
there in one of those Arab countries, and one of those Arab princes
was deathly ill. And they come and got him and
brought him over there to the prince's house, and he gave him
a thorough examination. He took out a piece of paper,
and he wrote down on there, he wrote out a prescription. He
said, here, you take this. You take this, and I'll be back
to see you in a few days. So he come back in two or three
days, and the man was worse. Now he's running a high fever,
and he's almost delirious. And the missionary said, did
you take the prescription that I gave you? He said, I ate every
bit of it. Every morsel of that paper you
wrote on, I hate it. Now that's the difference between
the plan of salvation and salvation in Christ. You can eat the plan
all day long, it ain't going to do you a bit of good. Salvation
is in the person. John said, now listen to this.
This is the record. This is. This is the record. That God hath given to us the
eternal life. And this life is in this book.
That ain't what it says. You can eat the book and not
have life. This book declares the way. It'll
point you to the Savior if you read it. But this is the record that God
has given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life,
and he that hath not the Son of God, whatever else he has,
hath not life. Paul was so emphatic about this,
he wrote to the Colossians and he said, In him, in Christ, dwelleth
all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. You're looking for mercy? Here's the fullness of mercy.
You're looking for grace? Here's the fullness of grace.
You're looking for holiness? Here's the fullness of holiness.
It's all in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,
and ye are complete in Him. There's no grace apart from Christ. Apart from Christ, God is a consuming
fire. All right. Sixthly, I know that it is the unchangeable
will of God that all His sons and daughters be begotten through
the preaching of the gospel. I know this is so. I know this
is so. But I don't want you just to
know that this is what I know. I want you to know that that's
what these apostles knew. Now listen to this, James 1.18. Of his own will, now he just
got through saying that every good and perfect gift cometh
down from the Father of lights. With whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning. That's what James said in the
verses preceding this. And then here's his first statement
after saying that. Of his own will begat he us with
the word of truth. Wherefore, my beloved brethren,
let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath. Peter said, being born again,
not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the Word
of God, which liveth and abideth forever. And then he tells us,
this is the Word which by the gospel is preached unto you. Turn with me to Romans chapter
10. If there was no other text except
this one, it would be sufficient for me on this point of doctrine. Romans chapter 10. Verse 14,
whosoever he says in the verse preceding, whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they
call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they
believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they
hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sinned? As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. I've thought about this as I
read that. I don't have beautiful feet.
I don't wear sandals. I don't have beautiful feet.
I don't want folks to see my feet. They're calloused. I've
got a broken toe that was never set. It's crooked. I've got ugly feet. I've got
corns, I've got dry skin, calluses. But I tell you this, they'll
be beautiful to every helpless sinner. Every helpless sinner to whom
God sends His gospel, they'll be beautiful. Oh, I tell you that, man. That man who spoke peace to my
heart, his feet was beautiful to me. He'd had a stroke, couldn't talk
clear anymore, but I'll tell you the words that he did say. His feet was beautiful to me. Standing before Justin, holy
God, is a guilty sinner whose mouth has been shut, his excuses all taken away, and there in his guilt and his
quietness and his mourning, God sends him a man to show him how
God can be just and justify people just like Him. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of
the gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation
to everyone that believes. Master gave to his servants a
bag of seed. Now he said, my field's right
down there. I'll show you where it is. You just get the bag,
put it on his neck, filled it full of the master's seed, told
him to go down and plant that seed. Go down there and plant
it. You reckon the master didn't
care if the seed come up or not? Huh? Master never would have given
him the seed. But he already had the ground plowed. He prepared
that ground to receive that seed, and he fully expected that seed
to produce heavenly fruit. That's why he gave him the bag,
and that's why he filled it with his seed. Now, you can go through
the scriptures, and I'm telling you, this point is so prominent
in the scriptures, all the way through the New Testament, talks
about it. And I know it's so. And then
lastly, I know this is so. that any man, any woman, any
boy or girl who hears this gospel and believes on the Lord Jesus
Christ shall be saved. I know what they are by nature.
I know if left to themselves, I know what they'll do. They'll
just get more and more religious. Evil men and seducers are going
to wax worse and worse. I know what they are by nature.
Your kids and my kids, I know exactly what they are. But I
know this, that man, that woman, that boy or girl who hears this
gospel, and this gospel be empowered by the Holy Ghost to enter that
heart and mind, and convince them of who Christ is, and why
He came, and what He did, and where He's at, that man, that
woman, that boy or girl are going to be saved. from the lips of the prince of
preachers, he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." You might not believe me, but
you can believe him. And again, he said, this is the
will of him that sent me. This is God's unchangeable, irreversible
will, that everyone which seeth the Son not seeth the empty promises
of religion, but every man who seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, he's going to be saved. And our
Lord said, I'll raise him up at the last day. Let me read you something and
I'll close over here. in Revelation chapter 22, the
very last chapter of the Bible. He tells us in verse 16, Revelation
chapter 22, this is our Lord speaking, I, Jesus, have sent my angel,
my minister, to testify unto you these things, now listen,
in the churches. Who did He send? He sent His
ministers. Where did He send them? In the
churches. He said, I am the root and offspring
of David, the bride and morning star. That is, He is the cross.
Now, verse 17, and the Spirit and the bride, they come. Come on. Come to Christ, and come as you
are, and come with a believing and an understanding heart, and
come now. Today is the day of salvation,
not tomorrow. And let him that heareth say,
Come. Him that heareth God's ministers
in His churches, let him get in harmony with God, and let
him say, Come. Come on! All knew the election of the
Thessalonians because they become followers of him and the Lord.
That's what he's saying, that he that hears say come. And then
he said, whosoever will, let him take of the water of life
freely. Don't hinder him. You've preached
the truth to him. You've told him where salvation
is. You've told him in whom salvation is. You've pointed him to Christ. You've declared Christ according
to God's own testimony. And if that man's willing to
come, don't get in his way. Let him come. Don't throw stumbling blocks
at him. Don't throw a bunch of ifs, ands, and buts at him. Let
him come on. Encourage him to come. Clear
the way. You know that old city of refuge?
That's what that was all about. The sinner getting to the city
of refuge, getting to Christ. They had, under the law of God,
that way had to be kept clear. No potholes, no rocks, no stumps,
no nothing in the way. And if I understand 1 Peter 2.2,
only newborn babes are willing. Only newborn babes have a hunger
for Christ. And that thirsty soul is welcome
according to the will of God. He's welcome. All that I can
find a sinner. I got good news for sinners.
Good news.