with me to the Gospel of Matthew
chapter 7. The Gospel of Matthew chapter
7. I want to begin reading in verse 21. Our Lord is speaking
here and I want you to notice the language that He uses. He
says, Everyone 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. So first I want you to consider
with me, those words, not everyone, not everyone. Sobering words,
those are. Contrary to popular belief and
modern day preaching, I declare to you this morning without any
reservation that God does not love everyone. The Lord Jesus
Christ did not die for everybody. That comes as a shock to many. There will be none in hell for
whom Christ died, yet hell would be full. Men declare that God
has made salvation possible. They say, but in order for God
to save a man or a woman, men and women have to exercise their
free will and have to decide and accept what God has done
for them. If that's the case, that makes
salvation of man and not of God. Preachers everywhere proclaim
that God has done His part. Now you have to do yours. Nowhere
in Scripture, I challenge you to show me where, do you find
such language, and this is nothing more than a feeble and evil attempt
of the pride of man to strip God Almighty of His glory and
His honor in the salvation of sinners. Nowhere in the Bible
does it say that God helps those who help themselves. I've looked
from cover to cover, can't find it. It's not in the Scriptures.
The scriptures teach quite the opposite. Philippians 1.6, the
Apostle Paul said, being confident of this very thing, that he which
hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day
of Jesus Christ. That sounds like to me, the salvations
of the Lord. Beloved God helps those who cannot
help themselves. That's why it's good news to
sinners. Paul said, this is a glorious
word. It's worthy of all acceptation
that Christ came into the world to save who? Sinners. He came to seek and to save that
which was lost. The great physician didn't come
to save those that were well. I've come to save those that
are sick. They're sick with sin. We're in bad shape unless God
does a work of grace in our hearts. Not everyone, our Lord says,
not everyone. It was Christ that said that.
It was our Lord that said that. So preacher, are you really telling
me that God doesn't love everyone? That's what we've been taught,
isn't it? I was taught that my whole life. I'm telling you that
that's what God the Son himself said. Look at it for yourself.
Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven. That's pretty plain, isn't it?
Now, the Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6, Know ye not
that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? He
said, Don't be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor
adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor
extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God. But that's not
who the Lord is speaking to here. He's speaking to those who call
Him Lord. There's a whole lot of church-going,
scripture-quoting, self-righteous people. Sadly, I say this with
sorrow in my heart, going to hell. Our Master says, in a most
definite and certain way, not everyone that saith unto Me,
Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. Is that
what your Bible says? In our text, our Lord's not talking
about murderers. He's not talking about thieves.
He's not talking about child molesters. He's talking about
people, as I said, that call Him Lord. He's talking about
professing believers, people who claim to know Him. He's talking
about those who brag about all that they've done for God. Well,
who will enter into heaven then, you might ask? Well, it says
right here in our verse that, "...he that doeth the will of
my Father which is in heaven." So, considering these words of
God the Son, it would be profitable for us to see what the will of
God is. Now, I want you to hold your
place here in Matthew and turn with me over to the Gospel of
John chapter 6. Let's see if we can find out
what the will of God is. John chapter 6, I want you to
look at verse 40. Hold in your place in Matthew
7. Again, this is our Lord talking, and He says, I think again, very
plainly, very direct, very simply, and this is the will of Him that
sent me, that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on
Him may have everlasting life, and I'll raise him up at the
last day. Now, we see from this verse that
salvation is not in doing something. It's in seeing something. It's
actually in seeing someone. Salvation is not in doing a work
of righteousness. It's in believing in and on the
righteous work that Christ did for us. Salvation is in a person. It's not in doing. It's in He
who loved us and gave Himself for us. He who took our sin,
who knew no sin. We, through Him, are made the
righteousness of God. No, salvation is not in doing
something. Fallen men and women are blind.
They can't see until God opens their eyes. That's what our Lord
told Nicodemus in John 3, isn't it? He said, barely, barely,
I say unto you, except a man be born again, he cannot see
the kingdom of God, much less enter it. God has to give you
life from above. He's got to give you that light
that we've been talking about in Genesis chapter 1 on Wednesday
nights. He's got to command that light
to shine into the darkness of men and women's hearts that they
may see. Unless a man's born again, given
a new heart from above, he can't see the Kingdom of God, much
less enter. The Apostle Paul prayed for God's
people at the Church of Ephesus in Ephesians 1. He said that
the eyes of their understanding might be enlightened. It's going
to take God enlightening the eyes of men's and women's understanding
that they may know They may know what was the hope of His calling
and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints
is. It's going to take a divine revelation. It's going to take light from
above before a man or woman ever sees it. Only God can open your
eyes. As we sung a moment ago, open
my eyes that I might see glimpses of truth that thou hast for me.
Oh, that's our only hope. And friends, a man who stands
to preach and does not preach clearly that salvation is the
work of God does not preach the gospel. In Paul's letter to Titus 3,
verse 5, he clearly and plainly declares these words. He says,
"...not by words of righteousness which we have done." That's pretty
plain, isn't it? But according to His mercy, He
saved us. We're saved by mercy. We're saved
by grace. We're saved in Christ and Christ
alone. The Bible clearly proclaims in
Romans 3.10 that there are none righteous, no, not one. Not a
single one. All men and women born of woman,
born under the curse of the law, there's none righteous, not a
single one. We have no works that are righteous, therefore
we can't be saved that way. Can we be saved by works of righteousness
that we've done? Not when we don't have any. All
our righteousnesses, Isaiah said, are filthy rags. Do we dare bring
our filthy rags before a thrice holy God and try to stand in
the merits of those? Oh no, don't do it. Oh, I beg,
don't do it. But according to what? His mercy. His mercy, He saved us. Mercy beggars is what we are.
Now look back at Matthew chapter 7, our text. I want you to look
at the next verse, verse 22. Verse 21, again, not everyone
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, we've seen that the will of God is to see and
to believe. And that takes a divine intervention
and revelation from God. Now in verse 22, he says, many,
many will say to 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?" Many, we'll say, the Scripture says.
There are many, many, many people who say, Lord, Lord, that are
not children of the living God. In that great day of judgment,
dear friends, when every man and woman stands before God Almighty
to give an account, there are going to be many who say, Lord,
Lord, haven't we prophesied in Thy name? Haven't we foretold
of divine things? Haven't we not preached the gospel
in Your name? Have we not in Your name cast
out devils? Have we not in Your name done
many wonderful works. You see the pattern there? Haven't
we? Haven't we? Haven't we? Haven't
we done great things for you, God? I want you to listen to
me for a moment. The gospel of Christ and the
salvation of sinners has never been, nor will it ever be, about
what we've done for God. The gospel is what God has done
for us. In the Sunday school hour, we
quoted the Scripture in Psalm. Not unto us, O Lord, but unto
Thy name. God gets all the glory. God gets
all the glory. Now, I want you to turn with
me to Romans chapter 9. I want to read several verses
here. Some of you know these verses. forwards and backwards,
but in light of what we're talking about this morning, I want to
read these verses with you. Now in verse 9, it talks about
Abraham and Sarah. You know their story. They were
way up in years. God had promised them a son.
He's 100, she's 90. They still don't have a son.
They take matter into their own hands and they try to have a
son through the bonds made, but that's not what God intended. That's what happens when we try
to do things ourselves. We mess it up. And then God gave
them a son, and his name was Isaac. And then in verse 10,
the Scriptures tell us about Isaac and his wife. And it says,
"...and not only this, but when Rebekah, who was Isaac's wife,
had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac." Now notice
this, verse 11, "...for the children being not yet born." are still
in their mother's womb, not having done any good or evil, unborn
children, that the purpose of God according to what election
might stand? Not of works. but of him that
calleth." And it was said unto her, the elder shall serve the
younger. In verse 13, this is those people
for a loop when you read this verse or you talk to them about
this. I've had people tell me, my Bible doesn't read that way.
And it's written, Jacob have I loved. This is God speaking. Jacob have I loved, but Esau
have I hated. And people would just say, well,
I can't fathom that God would hate somebody. Let me tell you,
the child of God can't fathom that God would love somebody.
Man, I look within myself, my own heart, see what I'm capable
of, the thoughts that go through my mind. I think to myself, how
could God love me? Oh, I don't have a problem with
the fact that He could hate. I'm amazed that He would love
any of us. Aren't you? Really now? If God's shown you
something of yourself, you'll agree. Jacob have I loved, but
Esau have I hated." And Paul anticipates the response that
men and women are going to have. He says, what shall we say then?
Is there unrighteousness with God? Is God being unfair? God
is God. He's a sovereign God. He does
what He wills. We say this all the time. When
He wills, how He wills, to whom He wills. That's what makes Him
God. Anything less than that is no
God at all. What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? Paul says, God forbid. For He
saith unto Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
So then it's not, okay, now pay attention, it's not of Him that
willeth. But I decided to follow Jesus. It's not of Him that willeth.
I exercised my free will and I decided to follow Jesus. It's not of Him that willeth. It's not of Him that runneth.
So what is it? But of God. But of God that does
what? Showeth mercy. Is that what He
did to you, Perry? He showed you mercy. Every child
of God will say the same thing. I'm saved because He chose. He decided. He exercised His
will, not me, to have mercy on me and to have compassion on
me. Now, I didn't deserve it. No,
sir, I didn't deserve it. That's what makes grace grace.
It's undeserved. It's unmerited. Read on. For the Scripture saith unto
Pharaoh, you know the story. Moses went before Pharaoh. God
said, you go, you tell him to let my people go free. Pharaoh,
it says over and over again in the book of Exodus, and Pharaoh's
heart was hardened, and the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart. And
it says, for the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, even for this same
purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power. Not your power, Pharaoh, my power
indeed, and that my name might be declared throughout all the
earth. Paul says, therefore, hath he mercy on whom he hath
mercy, and whom he will, he hardeneth. Well, my God doesn't harden.
Well, he may not, but he's not the God of this Bible, because
that's what the Scriptures say. And all God has to do to harden
a man's heart is just leave him to himself. Just let him go and
have his way. And he'll be hardened. Again,
Paul writes in verse 19, Thou wilt say then unto me, why doth
he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
You're telling me God's in control? God rules and reigns after the
counsel of his own will? Yes, he does. Then why doth he
yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
You're saying none can resist him will. Why does he find fault?
And what does Paul say? Nay, but O man, who art thou
that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to
him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the
potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel
unto honor and another unto dishonor? What if God, willing to show
His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering
the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction or to destruction,
that He might make known what the riches of His On the vessels
of mercy, which he had aforeprepared, afore, how soon afore, before
the foundation of the world, the vessels of wrath fitted to
destruction. One of my favorite verses in
all scriptures found in Ephesians 2 verses 8 and 9, for you are
saved by grace through faith and that is not of yourselves.
not of works, not of works, lest any man should boast. Men will
boast. Men will boast. Okay, back to
Matthew 7. I should have told you to stick
your marker there. Go ahead and do. I may turn you to another
place or two. Now I want you to look at verse
23. Verse 22 says, Many will say
to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied or preached
in thy name? In thy name we have cast out
the devil. Lord, in your name we have done many wonderful works. And what does the Lord say? and
then I will profess unto them, I never knew you." I never knew
you. Depart from Me, ye that work
iniquity. You see, the problem, friends,
with religion today is that sinners profess what they've done for
the Lord. We've preached in Your name.
We've helped people in Your name. We've fed the hungry folks of
the world. We've done this. We've done that. We've done many wonderful works. And the Lord said, I never knew
you. I never knew you. We don't hear
much today about what Christ has done for us by His grace
and by His mercy. True preachers profess the truth
of the gospel because they receive it from God. That's what this
book teaches. Very plain and simple. God saves
whom He will. I'll have mercy on whom I'll
have mercy. Men don't like that. Why? Because
men want to have something to do in this thing. They want to
have a part in it. But you don't. Well, I accept
Jesus. Let me tell you something. The
only reason any man or woman ever bows to the truth is that
God makes them willing in the day of His power. Our Lord said,
no man can come to Me that he might have life except Accept. The only way that any man or
woman can come to me is accept the Father which sent me." What?
Draw him. Man can't come. We don't have
the ability. Accept. Unless. But God. We don't hear much about that,
do we? We haven't done something for God. It's what God has done
for sinners. The message, the good news to
sinners is that Christ knows you. And He knew you before the
foundation of the world. Christ's words to these workers
of iniquity is simply this, I never knew you. That was their condemnation. He didn't know them. And in this
we see the election of God. This is what the teaching of
election is. Does God know you? Are you one
of His? If you are, He'll reveal Himself
to you. You might ask, well, how can
I know if He knows me? Well, the best way to answer
that is to ask you a question that our Lord Himself asked,
what think ye of Christ? Whose Son is He?" That's the
most important question that I could ask you this morning.
What do you think of Him? Do you love His Son? Do you love
the Son of God? Have you seen your desperate
need of God's Son? Do you see that He is the only
hope that you have? That He died for you? That He
paid your sin debt? Do you see that God's beloved
Son was made to be sin for you? He who knew no sin, that you
might be made the righteousness of God in Him? Do you have confidence
that Christ knows you? Well, I want to briefly show
you from Scriptures this beautiful doctrine of divine election.
You can write these verses down. I won't turn you to all of them
because we don't have the time. And I'll move as hurriedly as
I can. David said in Psalm 65, verse
4, he said, Blessed is the man whom Thou choosest and causes
to approach unto Thee. Election is God choosing and
God causing. That's not hard, is it? That's
what the Scripture says. Look at John 10 real quick, just
a few pages over. John 10, look at verse 26. John 10, 26. Again, the Lord
is speaking. He says, But ye believe not,
because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. Now it does
not say that you're not one of my sheep because you believe
not. It says you believe not because you're not one of my
sheep. Isn't that what it says? Only God's elect will believe
this Gospel. Those that He's predestinated,
predetermined for the foundation of the world to come and believe
and trust in His beloved Son. Look over at John 13. We'll just
go right through John here. Look at John 13 verse 18. The
Lord here talking to his disciples. And he says, I speak not of you
all. I know whom I have chosen that
the scripture may be fulfilled that he that eateth bread with
me hath lifted up his heel against me. Speaking of Judas Iscariot.
Look at chapter 15, verse 16. Ye have not chosen me. I have
decided to follow Jesus. Oh, really? He Himself says,
you have not chosen Me, but I've chosen you. And I have what?
Ordained you that you should go forth and bring forth fruit,
and that your fruit should remain, that whatsoever you ask of the
Father in My name, He'll give it to you. You've not chosen
Me. I've chosen you. But preacher John 3.16 says,
for God so loved the world. Oh, my. You know, there's not
one time that the word world is used in the Scripture where
it means all men and women without exception. Not one time. The Scripture says, for God so
loved the world, He means He loved His people in the world.
Why else would our Lord, look at John 17, why else would He
have said in John 17 verse 9, I pray for them, I pray not for
the world. If God so loved the world, would
He say, I pray not for the world, but I pray for them which thou
hast given me, for they are thine, and you gave them to me, and
now they're mine. He said, in another place, all
that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and I'll know wise,
cast him out. All that he gave me, all the
God's elect children, Acts 13.48 says, And when the Gentiles heard
the gospel, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord,
and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. How
many of them believed? All of them that belonged to
God before the foundation of the world that were ordained
to eternal life. Every single one of them. The whole world,
no, but all that were ordained to eternal life. Romans 8, you
know this passage well. For whom He did foreknow, He
also did predestinate. That word means predetermined.
To be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be
the firstborn among many brethren, and moreover whom He did predestinate,
them He also called. In whom He called, them He also
justified, gave life, paid their sin debt. In whom He justified
them, He also glorified." One day, all God's people going to
receive a glorified body without sin. What a day that's going
to be. That He might make known the
riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy which He had aforeprepared
unto glory. Romans 9.23, we read it a moment
ago. Romans 11.5, even so at this
present time. Also is there a remnant according
to what? The election of grace. Just a
remnant. Ephesians 1.11, Paul said, in
whom also we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated,
same word, predetermined by God according to the purpose of him
who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.
Who's in charge of this thing? Who's in control? Knowing brethren
beloved of the Lord, your election of God, 1 Thessalonians 1.4.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation
by our Lord Jesus Christ." God has appointed us unto salvation. 2 Timothy 1, 9 and 10, "...who
has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according
to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which
was given in Christ Jesus." When? Before the world began. Peter
said, you're a chosen generation. You're a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people. And let me
tell you straight up, election is not God looking ahead in time
and seeing who would believe and choosing them on the basis
of their decision. That's no more than a fancy way
of saying salvation is it works. That's all that is. Oh, the Lord
Jesus Christ says in the text of these work religionist words
that no one wants to hear. I never knew you depart from
me. Any effort by men and women to
achieve righteousness, even if it's done in the name of the
Lord, is but iniquity. Ye that work iniquity. Lord,
we've done this. Lord, we've done that. You're
working iniquity. You can't work your way. It's
a free gift. You can't purchase it. It's free. You don't deserve it. It's free.
You can't earn it. It's free. Oh, no one can work
or merit a free gift. There's nothing that a sinner
can do to earn God's favor. It's the gift of God. But these folks preached and
they ministered and they did many wonderful works, but their
wonderful works were in their own eyes and by their own actions. Now I want to show you one other
thing before I close. And it's in a parable in which
our Lord and Savior used to illustrate this important spiritual lesson.
If you'll turn with me to Luke chapter 18, Luke chapter 18, verse nine. And he spoke this parable unto,
notice who he spoke this parable to, unto certain which what? Trusted in themselves that they
were righteous and despised others. That's who he told this story
to. Those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and
despised others. Here's the parable. Two men went
up to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee. the religious
folks of the day, those who did everything right in the eyes
of the law. And the other was a publican,
a hated tax collector, one that cheated folks. I doubt there
were very few honest publicans. The Pharisee stood, noticed these
words, and prayed thus with himself. God didn't hear him. He did no
more than pray with and to himself. God doesn't hear this kind of
prayer. Listen to it. He said, God, I think thee that
I'm not as other men are. Extortioners, not me. Unjust,
no, not me. I'm not like them. Adulterers,
no. I thank you, I'm not even like
this publican. Look at verse 13, and the publican
standing afar off. Can you see him at the back of
the church with his head down low? He's standing afar off. He would not lift up so much
as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying,
God, be merciful to me, a sinner. The Lord says, I tell you. Now
you listen to me. I tell you, this man, which man? That publican. That's the man
that went down to his house justified rather than the other. For everyone
that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth
himself shall be exalted. Oh, I think about the words of
the Apostle Paul. He said, let this mind be in
you. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,
who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be
equal with God, but made himself of no reputation." God Almighty
in the flesh made himself of no reputation. took upon Him
the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men,
and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Do you
see those three crosses hanging on Calvary? That one in the middle,
that's God. That's God. And why is He hanging
there? To pay for His people's sin. Oh, many, many will say to me
in that day, Lord, Lord, Matthew 19, 30 says, but many that are
first shall be last, and the last shall be first. Friends,
you've got to be lost before you can ever be saved. You've
got to be brought down before God will ever lift you up. God
will slay you before He makes you alive. You must become spiritually
poor to ever be spiritually rich. You must be made a beggar before
God will ever set you among princes. That's just the way it is. This
is the way that leads to life. Enter ye in at the straight gate,
our Lord said in this same chapter, Matthew 7. Verse 13, for wide
is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction
and many, many, there it is again, many there be which go in therein. Because straight is the gate
and narrow, narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few,
few there be that find it. Our Lord said, I am the way.
I am the truth and I am the life, and no man cometh unto the Father
but by me." He is salvation. What do you think of Christ?
Is He everything to you or is He nothing to you? Oh, how I
pray that you give those questions considerable thought, and may
God enable you to see your need of Him.