Good morning. Delightful to be
with you. Pray for me that God will be
pleased to make his word effectual. Turn back, if you will, to Romans,
Romans chapter 5. I appreciate Lindsay reading
that. Paul here in Romans 5 sets before
us a picture of the reign of sin through the first man, Adam.
And the reign of sin ends in death. That alone, that by itself
is not a pretty picture. Death by sin. Adam and all of
his descendants, they inherit from him their fallen nature. Like father, like son, you've
heard the expression. All Adam's children are like
him, born into this world dead in trespasses and sins. Look
again at verse 12. Wherefore, as by one man, that
is Adam, sin entered into the world and death by sin, so death
passed upon all men, no exceptions, no exceptions, for that all have
sin. Every family tree you shake. A lot of folks spend a good deal
of time searching their roots, their ancestry, their family
tree. And I suppose that's all right.
I've never been too interested in that sort of thing, and for
good reason. I'm afraid of what I might find.
I have a picture among family pictures on a wall at home. Among
them is a picture of one distinguished-looking gentleman that my aunt gave me.
And I asked her, because I didn't know who it was. She said it
was my great-grandfather. As I say, he was very distinguished-looking. And she said he was a music teacher,
was a music teacher. On the side, his main occupation
was bootlegging. So I don't need to search any
further back than that, but no matter whose family tree you
shake, no matter whose it is, fallen Adam is going to come
tumbling out. Death by sin, Paul speaks of
here in Romans 5, and not physical death alone. That's included,
but more than that, and worse than that, what can be worse
than physical death? Spiritual death. And what a picture
of helplessness that is. Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 wrote,
in Adam, our father Adam, all died. And the picture doesn't
even end there, it gets even worse. Because it ends, this
spiritual death ends, apart from the grace of God, it ends in
eternal death. Eternal separation from God,
not to cease to exist, but to exist eternally separated from
God, from salvation, from grace, from hope. Our Lord said, a great
gulf fixed, and there's no crossing over from one place to the other.
And that's not the whole story, though, that Paul gives us here
in Romans 5. It doesn't stop there, does it?
And I'm so thankful for that. That's not the complete picture.
Because onto this scene of battle, if you will, where death reigns,
another comes. Another one steps forward. He
that was from the beginning with God. He who is himself the God-man. He steps upon this field of battle,
the last man Adam. He who alone has the authority
over death and hell. He that is mighty to save, he
who by himself, by himself. In Isaiah we read concerning
our Lord Jesus Christ that he trod the winepress alone. Of all the people there were
none with him. I looked and there was none to
help, there was none to uphold. Therefore mine own arm reached
out and brought salvation unto me. He who hath trod the winepress
alone, he who by himself, can you picture him? O child of God,
does this not bring comfort to your heart? To know on this field
of battle where death reigns, he who is the resurrection and
the life comes forward, he who by himself purged our sins, purged
our sins, got the job done. He that is Jesus Christ by whom
eternal life and grace reigns, reigns over sin, superabounds
over sin and death with grace that ends in everlasting life. See him made of a woman, made
under the law, being sent forth by God to redeem them that were
under the law. He said, I come not to destroy
the law. The law, the precept of the law,
must be honored. It must be fulfilled. It can't
be set aside. And he said, I come to do that.
I come not to destroy the law, but to fulfill it. And he did
so by living a life before God of sinless perfection. Now think
about that. That's a term, an expression
that's tossed around a lot. There are people who even claim,
people in this world, professing Christians, religious folks,
who claim to live a life of sinless perfection. I've never met one. I've never met one. I've met
many who claim that, but I've never met one who actually has
sinless perfection. Living above sin? Oh, no. They make some rules. Touch not, and taste not, and
wear not, and go not. And they fulfill those, they
observe those, and call that sinless perfection. Oh, no. Sinless
perfection is to have never had a thought, a sinful thought,
ever enter your mind. To never have committed a sinful
deed. never had a sinful act, a sinful
motive, to do always those things in word, in act, in thought,
do always those things that honor God Almighty perfectly. That's sinless perfection. And
Christ said, I come to do that. I come to fulfill God's law.
And He did so by living a life as he alone could of sinless
perfection before God. Only one man ever did that. Remember
in John 17? He prayed, Father, I've finished
the work that you gave me to do. I've honored your law. I've honored your law. I've fulfilled every precept
of your holy law. But justice demands more than
that, doesn't it? Not only the fulfilling of God's
law, not only the keeping of the precept of God's law, but
justice demands satisfaction. God's law says the soul that
sinned, it must die. And again, by one man, by one
man, the last Adam, the law's penalty is paid in full, as we
sing. As we sing, and rightfully so,
scripturally so, Jesus paid it all. Think about that. Jesus paid it all. Then why do I worry whether or
not I'll be saved from God's wrath? If I'm in Christ Jesus
and He paid it all, if I'm in Him, then I'm complete. and I
shall not come into condemnation." Listen to what he said. Lindsay
taught about it this morning. He cried upon the cross, it is
finished. It's finished. He purged our
sins. He then and there, not contingent
upon what I do with it in time, What Christ did upon the cross
is no way dependent for its success upon what anybody does in time. Oh, no, no. When He said it was
finished, it was finished right then, right there. And God proved His everlasting
satisfaction with the death of His Son when in three days after
that He raised Him from the dead and gave Him a name, highly exalting
Him above every name. At that name, the Lord Jesus
Christ, every knee shall bow without a doubt. Without a doubt,
and every tongue confess that He is the Lord Jesus Christ to
the glory of God the Father. If it's finished, then I'm secure
believing on Him. If it's finished, I'll not come
into condemnation. If Jesus Christ brought in an
everlasting righteousness and obtained my redemption, and put
away my sin, that I'm safe, trusting in Him. I must go free. And there's no better picture
of that in Scripture, and one with which you're very familiar,
and one of my favorites. You remember, that night in the
garden, they come to take Him, and He steps forward. I believe
in front of His fearful disciples, as the great shepherd of the
sheep, as their mediator. He steps forward and asks the
question, Whom seek ye? Who do you want? Jesus of Nazareth. You remember their reaction.
That's all He said. Jesus of Nazareth. I am He. I am He, Christ said. And they
fell down at His feet. Who's in charge? Who's in charge? I hear people all the time. Preachers. Talk about Christ wanting His
way. If Jesus Christ had His way,
they said. Larry Brown. Who's stopping Jesus
Christ from having His way? Who? Because if there's someone,
if there's any power on earth among men, from hell among demons. If there's any power that can
prevent the King of Glory from having His way, we need to bow
down and worship them. Oh, but it's not so. Whom seek
ye, Jesus of Nazareth, I've told you that I am He. I am He. Therefore, therefore, let these
go their way. That feels good. That feels good. I hear my glorious substitute
saying to the justice of God, you've found me. Awake, O sword,
against the man who is my fellow. Smite the shepherd. Oh, but the
little ones, the sheep, must go free. If you've found satisfaction. in punishing the shepherd, then
the sheep must go free. You can't have both. Payment
God cannot twice demand, and He doesn't. He doesn't. He's
faithful and just. Payment God cannot twice demand,
first at my bleeding surety's hand, and then again at mine. Oh, what music! to this sinner's
ears to hear the great shepherd say, let these go their way. Justice, you found me. Justice,
smite me. Justice, find satisfaction in
me. But in doing so, the sheep must
go free. Oh, glory to His name. Look at
verse 15. Just these few words. Speaking
of The last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ, speaks of grace by one
man. Grace by one man. It's a woman with an issue of
blood who had spent all of her living upon physicians, but was
none the better, but rather grew worse. And she thought, I must
get to Him. I've heard concerning Him that
He's able to heal all manner of diseases and He has done so.
I must get to Him. Listen, listen. Your greatest
need this morning is grace. It's not a better job. It's grace. It's not even physical health. It's God's grace. And there is
only one source. by which it can be obtained.
There is only one source by which grace flows from the throne of
God into needy sinners. That's what happened with that
woman with the issue of blood. Remember, she pressed through
the crowd. What a picture. What a picture.
She knew her need was, I've got to get to Him. I've got, if I
don't get to Him, I'm going to die. Nothing else matters. Nothing
else matters. Nothing else is as important
as this. I must get to Him. And she pressed
through. Oh, when God gives a sinner grace. To press through. Oh, just to
press through all the religious nonsense that goes on. To press
through and to come into real everlasting Contact with the
Son of God. Oh, by faith to touch the Son
of God. You know what happens. You know
what happens when a sinner touches the Son of God. Just as happened
to that woman. Virtue flows out of him. Healing power flows out of him
into her. Oh, in her there was only disease
and sickness. Oh, but him, he's full of grace
and truth. And she was healed that very
moment. Oh, the vilest offender that
truly believes, listen, that very moment. My, so what grace,
what power, what virtue by this one man, Jesus Christ, the vilest
offender that truly believes that moment from Jesus, a pardon
Look what it says concerning what we are by nature in verse
6 here in Romans 5. It says we're without strength,
ungodly. Death passed upon all men. In
Adam all got hurt. No. In Adam all died. If our wound was slight and it
could be cured by a slight cure. But death requires a miracle. That death requires a miracle. If I'm dead, I'm entirely helpless. This is how one hymn writer put
it. It took a miracle to hang the world in place and it took
a miracle to put the stars in place. Oh, but when God saved
my soul and cleansed and made me whole, it took a miracle of
love and grace. Can these bones live? Can Lazarus
live? How so? How can they live? How can those who are dead in
trespasses and sins, how can those who love darkness rather
than light, how can they live? The answer is not in themselves,
only in He, this one man. This one man by whom grace comes
to needy, helpless sinners only if he comes to where they're
at. Oh, I'm so thankful that the
arm of God's grace is very long, aren't you? It's very long. It reaches all the way down. It reaches all the way down. My arm is not shortened, he said,
that it cannot save. It reaches as far down as necessary,
finds that sinner in the pit of his depravity, his death,
and picks him up and says, live. Lazarus! Lazarus! Let's work this out together. Oh no, Lazarus is no help. Lazarus
is dead. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself
says, live, live, come forth. What's the sinner's condition?
How does the Bible, God's Word, diagnose men? By nature, sin
reigned, we read here, sin reigned unto death. That means, apart
from God's grace, I can't see. I'm blind to my need of grace
even. I'm blind to my need of grace.
Really? Exactly so. If God Almighty doesn't
get me lost, I'll never know it. I'll never feel it. And what comfort can a Savior
bring to those who've never felt their woe? A sinner is a sacred
thing. It's a rare thing. Only God the
Holy Ghost can make him so, can make him aware, can make him
realize, make him to know that he's the sinner. Have you ever
been there? Have you ever been there? Have
you ever felt that I'm the sinner? There's not another like me in
the world. Our Lord said that the religious
folk in His day, the Pharisees, asked Him the question one time,
are we blind also? He said, if you were blind, you
would have no sin. If you were blind to your self-righteousness,
you would have no sin. If you were blind to your own
works, you would have no sin. Oh, but now you say, we see.
We don't need you. We're not sick. We have Abraham
for our father. We don't need a physician. Oh,
for a sinner, for a real sinner that needs a real Savior. The
Bible says, I can't even hear. The gospel, the glorious message,
the good news of salvation by God's grace alone. That good
news of salvation, by nature we're deaf to it. Because again,
we're dead. That is a picture of complete
inability, is it not? Death, death. And that includes
my will. That sacred cow, the wheel, enslaved
to my fallen nature too. Our Lord said, ye will not come
to me. Brother Scott Richardson said,
your wheel is like a frog in a snake's belly. It may wiggle
a little, but it can't get out. It can't get out. Man may be
religious, and he can work to weave a robe of his own righteousness.
But left to his so-called free will, our Lord said, ye will
not come to me. Ye will not come to me. Oh, God,
please don't leave me to my will. Don't leave me to my fallen,
depraved will, my enslaved will. Because if you do, I'll never
come. I'll never see my need. Oh, but
if by your mighty grace you're pleased, as old Newton wrote,
to teach my heart to fear, Get me lost. Show me my needs. Strip me, strip
me in order to clothe me. Get me lost and then I'll be
found. We don't use gimmicks, as you
don't hear, that are so prevalent in our religious world today.
Calling for decisions and the so-called altar call. Not long
after I moved to Sylacauga, I was in one of the stores there, and
the lady asked me, where are you from, why did you come, blah
blah, and I told her, oh yes, she said, I went to that church
one time, I remember that church, that's the strangest place I've
ever been in. They didn't have an altar. She said they didn't
have an altar. I mean, she said to me, don't
you have an altar? I said, no, we don't need an
altar. We're not going to offer any
animal sacrifices there. Christ is our altar, but it just
blew right by. She said, how are people going
to be saved if you don't give them a chance, Bobby? I said,
lady, salvation is not by chance. Salvation is by the deliberate
purpose of God Almighty and the salvation of sinners. Salvation
is by grace alone. Through faith alone, in Christ
alone. That's the only thing that gives
sinners a good hope. Lost men need life. And that
doesn't come by decision or walking an aisle. Look at our daddy. Look at Father Adam after he
fell. Man, he used to hear God's voice
in the cool of the day. And Adam would come out, and
as the old hymn said, he walks with me. Imagine that, Merle. God Almighty. God Almighty condescending
to have fellowship with man. Oh, he walks with me. And he
talks with me. And he tells me, he tells me
that I am his own. Oh, what joy. What joy we share. But after Adam fell, After he
disobeyed God, he hears God calling. God hasn't changed. God's the
same. God can't change. But Adam hears
the voice of God, Adam, and he runs and hides. That which
was once his joy and delight, his very purpose for living,
now he hears the voice of God and he tries to hide. Imagine
that. Imagine that. What happened to
him? Looks like Adam's will is not
what it once was. Because he doesn't will to come
out and commune with God. His will is to hide from God.
He is so fallen that he actually thinks he can hide from God Almighty. And so do his children. They
think they can hide from God. And many try to hide in religion. In churches, they think that
their fig leaves, as Adam did, can cover their sin. But God
says concerning them all, they're filthy rags. That's what he told
the Pharisees. All of your righteousness is
filthy rags. He told the people, accept your
righteousness, exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees,
you shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. Before
God accepts me, before God accepts me, I must have, listen, I must
have a perfect righteousness, Sam. Before God Almighty accepts
this sinner, I must have a perfect righteousness. Where can I get
it? If not, I'll be cast into outer
darkness forever. Secondly, here's the cure. Considered the need, but now
the cure by grace. Here's the cure. Free grace. Free grace. Unmerited, undeserved,
unearned. This is the true grace of God. Grace, this is the only grace,
Merle, that's going to help a sinner like me. Grace that doesn't offer
to save me. That won't help me. I'm dead.
I need more than that. Oh, I need grace that doesn't
attempt to save me. Oh, but grace that saves. In
Titus chapter 2, Paul wrote about the grace of God that brings
salvation. That brings salvation. That's
what grace has done. Look, if you will, in 1 Corinthians
chapter 6. 1 Corinthians 6. I know this is a familiar passage,
but let's look at it for just a moment. 1 Corinthians 6. Paul
speaks about what we were before grace. And then he speaks of what we
are now, after the experience of God's amazing grace. And in
verse 9 of 1 Corinthians 6, he writes, Know ye not that the
unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived,
neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor adulterers, nor infeminate,
nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covenants,
nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit
the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. And such were some of you. ungodly,
without strength, without ability, without a desire, without a will,
without a need to come to God. Such were some of you without
hope. Oh, but, oh blessed, blessed
little word, but ye are, ye are right now, ye are washed Be ye
sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus
and by the Spirit of our God. Oh, there is a fountain filled
with blood, drawn from Emmanuel's veins, and sinners plunge beneath
that flood. Do what? They lose all. Oh, my soul, they lose all their
guilty stains. Justified. Justified from all
things from which we could never be justified by the law of Moses. Not all the blood of beasts on
Jewish altar sling could give the guilty conscience peace or
wash away the stain. What would you give to lie down
in your bed tonight and before you doze off to have peace with
God? What would you give to lie down
And before you doze off to know that I am His, and He is mine
forever, to know that there is nothing, no matter what tomorrow
brings, no matter what that day may bring forth, no matter what
sorrow or trial or darkness or pain, there is nothing that can
separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. What would you give to have peace
with God? Oh, but Christ the heavenly Lamb,
Takes all our sins away, a sacrifice of nobler name and richer blood
than they. Last of all, the place of God's
grace. Grace by one man, Jesus Christ. Not by the preacher. I saw on
the news a week or two ago, the Pope was in town. And he had declared a year of
mercy. He was giving his priest special
authority for 12 months of mercy. Oh, this sinner needs more than
the Pope or any of his little priests can give me. I need God's
great mercy and grace. This mercy and grace doesn't
come by priest or preacher or church. nor by man's merit, man's
work, man's worth, or man's will, but one man, Jesus Christ. Through this man, grace abounds
over the sin of the first man. Through this man, all who believe
are justified from all things. The law was given by Moses, but
grace and truth came by this man, Jesus Christ. Through one
man, Adam, came the sin that poisoned all men. Through this
man, Christ Jesus, comes the antidote that bears all my sins
away. The river of God's grace runs
deeper than the river of all my sin. Grace that can pardon
and cleanse within. Oh, but there was a fountain
open and the blood of God's own Son purifies the soul and reaches
then the stain has gone. The grace that is in Christ Jesus
isn't a bandage that just covers my sin. The grace of God in the
person of the Lord Jesus Christ bears all my sins away. Bears all my sins away so that
in that day, in that day, when I'm ushered into the presence
of God Almighty, I'll have no sin. My soul. In those days, and in that time,
saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for,
and there shall be none. You can't find what doesn't exist.
And the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found, for I will
pardon them whom I reserve. Look up, child of God. Look up
to that fountain. of God's rich, ever-flowing,
everlasting grace. Look upon that throne of grace
and there sits grace personified, grace that reigns, grace that
abounds, grace that is in Christ Jesus. In Him dwelleth all the
fullness of the Godhead bodily and you're complete in Him. If
I'm not complete, He must not possess all fullness
and grace. Oh, but he does, doesn't he?
Now we see, Paul wrote, now we see through a glass darkly. Oh,
but then, then, face to face, face to face, oh
my soul, In Revelation chapter 9, John said, Lo, I look, and
behold, there was a multitude before the throne of God that
no man could number. A multitude of redeemed sinners,
all clothed in white robes, all clothed in the perfect righteousness
of Jesus Christ, all waving the palm leaf of victory, and all
singing the same song unto Him that loved us and washed us from
our sins in His own blood. To Him be glory forever and ever. My soul, what a miracle of God's
grace. But look, look. Can you believe
this? Can you believe this? There stands, there stands Larry
Kress. Larry Kress. Who's he? He's nothing. He's nobody. Oh, but my soul, there he stands. There he stands with that multitude
of redeemed sinners. Can you believe that? Can you
believe that? I was listening to Brother Dave
sing on a CD. I listen to it often. In the
car driving here this morning, he said, Oh, I am so glad that
God saves all sinners. I'm surprised and amazed. how
he sets them free. And I hope this is true. But
the biggest surprise in God redeeming old sinners is that he would
save an old sinner like me. Oh, by faith, I see myself redeemed
before the throne of God, singing salvation to our God that setteth
upon the throne and unto the Lamb. Only faintly now I see
with the dark may veil between. Oh, but a blessed day is coming,
it's getting closer all the time, when His glory shall be seen. Face to face with Christ my Savior,
face to face how can it be, when with rapture I behold Him, Jesus
Christ who died for me. Grace by one man, grace by one
man, Jesus Christ. God bless you. God bless you.
Thank you for your attention. It's a joy to be with you.