Open your Bibles with me tonight
to 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 Let's read the first seven verses
of this chapter together Up to this point the Apostle has been
writing with regard to the ministry the excellence and the benefit
of an established gospel ministry. And it continues on that same
subject here in 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Therefore, seeing
we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint
not, but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking
in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but
by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every
man's conscience in the sight of God. But if our gospel be
hid, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this
world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest
the light of the glorious gospel of Christ who is the image of
God should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves,
but Christ Jesus, the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus'
sake. For God, who commanded the light
to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts to give
the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in
earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and
not of us. The title of my message you have
in verse one, this ministry, not my ministry, this ministry,
our ministry together as workers together. Fellow servants in
the cause of Christ his church his gospel his kingdom and his
glory therefore seeing we have this ministry as We have received
mercy That is to say we have this ministry Because we have
received mercy what a great mercy that God should give us this
ministry and As we have received mercy, we faint not. Since the day that I first came
here to preach the gospel to you, better than 34 years ago
now, meeting in that little room at the Kentucky Utilities Building,
I don't know that I've ever told you this. I went back to the
motel and called my wife, and I said, I'm certain this is the
place God has for me. I'm certain this is the place
God has for me. If they call me as their pastor,
we're moving to Danville. And, uh, that's the way it's
been. I had been confident since the day I first came here. This is the place divinely appointed
for me to labor in the gospel. And I've never had any question
concerning it. When I've been asked to give consideration to
going somewhere else, I've never even considered the possibility
or the thought of doing so. And I'm fairly certain I won't
tomorrow. That's just not something I give any thought or consideration
to. This is what God's given us together. This is the work God has trusted
to our hands together. I'm always very reluctant to
speak publicly about the various aspects of our work in the cause
of Christ for the furtherance of the gospel. I'm reluctant
to do it for obvious reasons. It's impossible to speak about
the work God's given us without calling more attention to ourselves
than I want to do. And I'm fully aware that some
Perhaps many will misunderstand and deliberately misunderstand
my reasons for doing so. When the message has been posted
for a little while, you're likely to see a lot of yak or nasty
stuff on the internet concerning it, but that's all right. I don't
pay any attention to that stuff, and I hope you don't. But I'm
confident that you should know, as best you can know, what you
can concerning the ministry God's given us. As you know, Shelby
and I just returned from Great Britain, where the Lord has graciously
opened many, many doors of utterance for the gospel before us in recent
years. We could not take these trips
were it not because of your generosity and the generosity of other friends
beyond this congregation who make it financially possible
for us to do so. For that, I'm very appreciative,
and your willingness to share your pastor's labors and time
with other people. I know lots of folks would complain
about such. I've never heard a complaint
from any one of this assembly about me going somewhere to preach
the gospel. And I thank you for that. And I can't tell you how
many times I was told in the past two weeks, be certain you
tell the congregation in Danville how much we appreciate the loan
of their pastor. From from the beginning I've
tried to instill in our mindset the sense that we have a greater
responsibility than just our responsibility of ministering
the gospel within these four walls. We have a responsibility
to preach the gospel to every creature in our generation as
much as it lies within our power to do so. A responsibility But
oh, what a better word, a privilege. Privilege. I often say to someone,
I've got to get ready to preach. I've got to preach tomorrow.
I've got to preach so many times this week. And I always wish
I could say it another way. I get to. I get to come up here
and preach the gospel again. I get to preach the gospel of
God's free grace. We have a great responsibility,
but what a great privilege. Now, Let me remind you of some
of the ministries God has opened before us and just laid in our
laps. We have the privilege of supporting
missionaries who faithfully preach the gospel of God's grace. I'm
often asked when I talk about our missionaries, Brother Walter
and Betty Gruver down in Mexico, Cody and Winner in Mexico, Cliff
and Marty Heller in Lansing, Robin Heller in New Guinea, Brother
Parks down in St. Croix and the pastors we support
within the United States as we're able to do so, and the widows
of men who faithfully served our God. We continue to try to
assist in their livelihood. God's given us that privilege,
and people often ask me, well, do your missionaries preach what
you do? And I'm a little bit offended by that, but I recognize
people Don't know what they're talking about a lot of times
and they presume that's not the case And my response is if they
didn't we wouldn't support them if they didn't preach what's
preaching this pulpit I would not allow the congregation to
support them. I I simply wouldn't do it I wouldn't
receive offerings from somebody else say we'll we'll send it
to them if they didn't preach the gospel of God's free grace
these past 34 years God has allowed us to be influential and useful
in in the establishing of other gospel churches. The church in
Rock Valley, Iowa, where Brother Joe Terrell is pastor, began
because Brother Herm Roseboom contacted me many, many years
ago. and ask if we would start sending
videotapes up there. I went up and preached two or
three times, and he said, if I buy the equipment, would you
send the videotapes? And in those days, he wanted
us to record everything, all the announcements, the special
music, the scripture reading, the prayers. And when we'd stand
to sing, they'd stand to sing. When we'd read scripture, they'd
read scripture, and the messages. And that was when they first
came out with VHS equipment. And God established that work
there. Brother Joe Terrell, after they met together about two years,
went up there and started pastoring. And first they were meeting in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and then just across the border in
Rock Valley, Iowa. The Sovereign Grace Church in
Pennington, New Jersey, up there in Princeton, where the Clay
Curtis is, met together watching our videos and hearing the gospel
of God's grace, and then called Brother Clay. The church in San
Diego, where Brother Eric Richardson is pastoring now met for I think
they said five years met five years Sunday morning Wednesday
night every week watching videos have a pastor in when they could
I went up preached for them a couple of times a year for two or three
nights and then they called by the Richardson Richardson at
Richard's as pastor and just Just so what a great privilege
what a privilege there are other folks around the world numerous
small groups who meet together and watch the videos of our services,
some of which I'm aware of. They get the DVDs every week
from here and meet and worship that way. The church in Taylor,
where Brother Darwin Pruitt is, I commend those folks so highly.
After their pastor of 40 years went to glory, Brother James
Watson, Clay Curtis's grandfather, They met together every Sunday
for eight years and Almost everybody in the congregation got the same
videos. They got the same things at their
own home So they they could sit at home and watch them and many
of them live better than hours drive away but they saw the need
and the value of of the time and effort of meeting together
as a public assembly, maintaining the witness of the gospel. And
then they called Brother Darwin as pastor, and God is so blessed
that work since Darwin has been there. The Lord has graciously,
graciously allowed us to have a hand in those things. Most
of you are aware that Brother Larry maintains several web pages. Not many folks are aware of how
they're used. The message is preached here.
And by other men, I haven't counted in a long time, something over
60 or 65 men, the messages are aired every week. And they're
heard literally around the world all the time. I had looked at
it in a long, long time. One day last week, somebody asked
me about it. I looked. I think there have been 879,000
messages downloaded. That's a lot of sermons around
the world. Is that fairly accurate, Larry? 879,000 sermons. Larry posts
everything that I write, sermon notes, bulletins, hymns, books,
everything on DonFortner.com and then has the Grace eBooks
webpage, make books available to folks literally free of charge,
volumes of books. We put together the ultimate
index. I say we. I gave him some stuff
and Larry got other stuff and put together the ultimate index
and continues to add to it all the time. I give it to preachers and anybody
else who wants it. If you don't have it, you ought to get it.
It's a library that would take any man a lifetime to collect
and most couldn't afford to do it if they could find the books
and put it together for folks to use in Bible study, used by
lots of folks literally all over the world. I have no idea how God uses those
things, but used all over the world. We send out books, CDs,
DVDs, tapes. You men air the television broadcast
here locally and down in Harrodsburg every week, two or three times
a week, and various assemblies meeting together in various parts
of the world. There's a group in the Isle of
Wight, the farthest most northern point in Scotland, A man and
his wife and another man meet together. They've been doing
so for years, watching videos. Folks in Ballymoney, North Ireland,
folks all over this country meet together, watch videos, and pray
to God or send them a pastor. We have the folks in Wasilla,
Alaska, and they meet together every week in a public place
and meet, pray God or send them a pastor. And I'll be honest
with you, if I thought that this is what God had for me, if I
thought that I'm 63 years old and I've got grandchildren, live
over in Lexington, if I thought God had me go to Wasilla, Alaska,
I'd be going tomorrow. If I thought God had it for me
to go to Ballymunny, North Island, I'd be going tomorrow. I can't
imagine why anybody would look upon a challenge as something
they don't want to do. I just, I can't imagine that.
But, uh, the, these are places where God's open doors of utterance
for the gospel and we do what we can to help them and to assist
them. Now it's hard to imagine, but
I've been going to England now every year. Uh, Russell told
me the other day for eight years, I didn't realize it'd been that
long. And for the last six or seven of those years, going twice
a year, preaching various places. This time we went first to Robert
Street Baptist Church in Gorno, where Brother Norman Wheeler's
pastor and his wife Hilda, meticulous, detailed lady, takes care of
everything. Very small, old congregation, most of the congregation fairly
old. At one time a large, thriving
congregation, but now a very small group. They often watch
the videos, but have a regular services as well, and Brother
Norman preaches to them and the other men there in the congregation
do. We got in on Thursday, wore out, just wore out, and got a
good night's rest Thursday. But from that on, we were pushed
all the time. Jet lag bothers me more now than
it used to. But we didn't sleep much more than two to four hours
at a time from then on. But that night, we got a good
night's rest, and I preached at Robert Street Friday, Saturday,
and Sunday morning, and just had very, very good meetings,
just good meetings, that congregation, so thankful that God opened that
door of fellowship and ministry and influence a few years back.
On Sunday afternoon, we took flight over to Belfast and then
drove up to, or rode up to, Ballybunny, Brother Russell Smith and Stuart
Boyd picked us up at the airport and I preached at Ballet Money
on Monday night and Tuesday night. They couldn't get the meeting
hall on Wednesday night, so Wednesday night we didn't have service
and I preached on Thursday and we had just outstanding services
there. And they have just today been
able to rent the meeting hall on a regular basis. They met
this afternoon for the first time in that place and I got
a note from Brother Boyd that said there were seven present
today, they had a very good service, they meet and watch the videos.
As far as I know, I said to Susan this morning, she was the first
one here, as far as I know, from what I can read in history, and
I don't pretend to know everything, so it's just limited to my limited
knowledge, I can't find any record, any record, of a solid gospel
ministry in the country of Ireland in its history. Not a one. Not a one. And oh, how I pray
God might be pleased to establish a gospel ministry in that place.
Send a preacher to preach those folks. You join me in the prayer.
Same thing in Alaska. You live there. I don't know
of a solid gospel ministry that's ever been found in that state.
And I pray that God will be pleased to establish such. Well, after
the meetings in Valley Money, we left there on Friday. and
drove back to Belfast and caught a plane going over to London
to preach at the West Ham Baptist Tabernacle, where Brother Reuben
Danlotte is pastor. And I won't mind him hearing
this. I was apprehensive about going. I'm always apprehensive
about going places where I don't know anybody. And I didn't know
him or his family or the congregation. I knew the background had been
typically Reformed Baptist, and I know what my reputation is
among those folks. But I went, and Friday night
we had a good service, a good time of fellowship, and Brother
Reuben and I hit it off well, just had a delightful, delightful
visit. He and his wife and his children
just I love the gospel of God's grace and I'm just so thankful
I went. I told the man a few minutes ago back in the office
the only reason I stayed the extra Sunday was because I felt
very strongly that this was of God and I stayed and I'm so thankful
I did and I'm full of hope and expectation of what the Lord
may do in the future in this relationship. I preached there
on Saturday afternoon, we had their annual Thanksgiving service,
not Thanksgiving like we have it. The British don't celebrate
that. But they have been having a Thanksgiving service there
for I think 173 years now. And I was privileged to be part
of it. And then Sunday morning and Sunday night, and had just
very, very good services. The Lord willing, I will go back
to Mexico in December. And been doing that every year
for a while now. Visit our missionaries there,
several of the churches and pastors. And the question may be asked,
why? Why the bother? Why the labor? Why go to all
the trouble and the expense? You have the answer in verse
one of our text. Therefore, seeing we have this
ministry as we have received mercy, we faint not. May God, the Holy
Spirit, graciously, constantly sustain us with grace and inspire
us with ever increasing devotion to the cause of Christ. I hear
much talk from preachers that's languishing and despairing. What
a bad day to live in, how bad things are, how terrible things
are. I wish I could get all of my
brethren together and say, fellas, shut up. Just shut up. Quit murmuring. This is the day
God made for us. This is the day for which God
made us. There's never been a better time
for Don Fortner and you men and women of Grace Church to serve
God than this day. never been greater opportunities.
Admire what opportunities God's given us. Whenever a local church
loses perspective and loses her burden for the work of the gospel,
whenever a church fails to see her responsibility as a gospel
church, whenever a congregation allows petty strife to turn it
aside from the weighty matters of eternity and is divided in
its obedience to the glory of God, the gospel of God, and the
people of God. That church is headed for trouble,
if not ruin. Now I'm preaching this message
for these reasons. I want to inspire in you and
me relentless thanksgiving to God. I get tired, more so now
than previously. But I labor every week, Shelby
will verify this, And you men who've traveled with me, it doesn't
matter whether I'm traveling or whether I'm here, I labor every
week in the cause of Christ in the preaching of the gospel to
the point of exhaustion. I do it every week. And sometimes
I get a little down in the mouth about the way things are received,
about the lack of interest folks have in the gospel, and I get
tired. And I try to remember, oh, what
a privilege. God could stop it like that. Like that. God's given us a great
privilege. Don't ever, don't ever think,
well, I've done my part. Oscar, you and I haven't begun
to start doing our part yet. Not yet. Not yet. Not until our
labor is over. I do this. I preach this message.
to warn you of the danger of neglecting the privilege and
responsibilities God's given us. And I want to encourage commitment,
devotion, faithfulness, and zeal in this work. With those things
in mind, let's take a brief look at the passage we read earlier,
2 Corinthians 4, verses 1 through 7. Therefore, seeing we have this
ministry, This service, that's what the word means. Every child
of God is God's servant. And every child of God is given
a ministry, a service in his kingdom. Our service, our ministry
is a common task. We labor together in the work
of the gospel. Paul doesn't say, I have this
ministry. He says, we have this ministry. Here is an apostle that if there
was ever a special apostle other than our Lord himself, it was
this man, Paul. But Paul says, we, right into
the Corinthian church, that church that if you were looking for
examples of what a local church ought not be, Corinth would have
been it. He writes to that local assembly
and says we have this ministry. We together had this ministry
What is this ministry of which he speaks? Well, look back a
couple of chapters and let's let Paul answer for himself in
chapter 2 verse 12 Our ministry is to preach Christ gospel That's
our ministry And we may do many things. Local churches have many
opportunities to do things. But this is the ministry God's
given us. Ours is to preach Christ's gospel. That's it. The reason this local
church exists is to preach Christ's gospel. It's not to provide a
place for families to get together and have fun. It's not to provide
a place for academics. It's not to provide a place for
political rallies. It's not to provide a place for
folks to get together and see one another. It's not a place
for folks to connect. We exist to preach Christ's gospel. Look at chapter two, verse 14.
This is a ministry with astounding consequences. Now, thanks be
unto God, which always causes us to triumph in Christ and make
it manifest the savor of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savor
of Christ in them that are saved and in them that perish. To the
one we are a savor of death under death and to the other, the savor
of life unto life. Does that mean what it looks
like it means? Yes, it does. Yes, it does. Everyone to whom
God gives us the privilege of preaching the gospel, you hearing
my voice now and those who hear it by whatever means God allows
this word to go out. This word will either profit
your soul or harden your heart. It will either be blessed of
God to your everlasting good, or it will be that means by which
God seals to you everlasting damnation. We are a sweet savor
of God. Both in those who believe and
in those who believe not. Both in those who are saved by
God's grace and in those who are damned by God's judgment.
This ministry requires utmost sincerity. Paul says in verse
16, who is sufficient for these things? For we are not as many
which corrupt the word of God. Many who who deal deceitfully
with the Word of God. They open the Scriptures and
make it say what they want to. That's what it means. They make
the Scriptures say what they want it to. But as of sincerity,
as in the sight of God, or as of God in the sight of God, speak
we in Christ. We labor with this constant weight
upon our hearts. What we're doing, we're doing
in the sight of God as we speak of Christ Jesus, the Lord. This
is a spiritual new covenant ministry. Look at chapter three, verse
six. Who have made us able ministers
of the new covenant, not of the letter, but of the spirit for
the letter killeth. But the spirit giveth life. This
is a spiritual ministry, not a letter ministry. This is a
spiritual ministry, not not a carnal ministry. This is something that
is given to us in the new covenant, in the spirit of God, a ministry
of God's grace. So what's the difference between
letter ministry and spirit ministry? If you ever find out, you'll
find out. that will be hard to discern
whether the preaching is just carnal dogma, carnal word, letter,
carnal law, work, or spiritual grace. Not of the letter, but
of the spirit. Not of law, but of grace. Not
of duties and ceremonies and rituals, but privileges and opportunities. What a privilege. What a privilege
God's given us in this place. To meet together as often as
we want to in a comfortable place, to hear the gospel of God's free
grace, to worship him in spirit and in truth. I can't imagine
willfully neglecting such a privilege. I just can't imagine it. This is a ministry that's glorious. Look at verse 7. Thought about
this for a long time this afternoon after I prepared this message
If the ministration of death Written and engraven in stones
was glorious So the children of Israel could not steadfastly
behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance
Which glory was to be done away now? How many of you would like
to have seen what you saw at Mount Sinai? Man, I'd like to
have been there I'd like to have seen that. Moses came down off
the mountain with such a glorious glow to his face that he had
put a veil over his face. And they couldn't stand to look
at him. And they were astounded. God spoke and the earth quaked. Man, what glory was displayed. But that was a ministration of
death to be done away. Now watch this. How shall not
the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? Does that mean what I think it
does? Is this in which we are engaged here more glorious than
that? That's what it says. That's what
it says. This is a glorious ministry. Not because of you, not because
of me, because of God, our Savior, and the gospel he's given us.
It is the ministry of righteousness. He calls it in verse nine, administration
of righteousness. Not the kind of righteousness
most churches administer. The kind you write in a book
and check off with a pen. Not the kind of righteousness
most folks think about. The kind that men see and say,
boy, isn't he a good Christian. No. No, I'm not talking about
your righteousness. Administration of God's righteousness
in Christ. Righteousness freely bestowed
upon us and imputed to us in Christ our Lord and imparted
to us in the new birth. This is administration of liberty.
Verse 17, look at verse 17, chapter three. Now the Lord is that spirit
and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. I'm often asked, what kind of
rules do you all have for this thing or that? And I often anticipate
what the response is going to be when I say none. You mean
you all don't have any rules? No. Well, how do folks know how
to live? I had a dear friend, very dear
friend, he won't mind me telling you this, he wrote to me this
week Ask a couple of questions. Is it right for a child of God
to have tattoos? And then another question is,
he lives on the West Coast, out there on the left side of the
country, where there are a lot of sodomites. And he said, it
would be wrong for a believer to move among those folks with
such wicked influence. And I wrote to him a very brief
answer. I said, I suspect that the fact that you asked the question
answers it for you, doesn't it? And he wrote me back, he said,
that answers the question. That answers it. How do you know what
to do? My soul. If you need me to tell
you how to live, they need to lock you up somewhere. If you
need me to set rules for you, grown up folks, no. Laws made for the rebel, not
for the believer. Laws made for the lawless, not
for the lawful. Believers live in liberty. The liberty of grace. Liberty
to worship God, liberty in giving, liberty in serving Christ, liberty
in life. We have this ministry as we have
received mercy. Oh, what mercy. God would commit
to our trust the gospel of his grace. What mercy that God would
save such things as we are. That mercy that God would allow
us to serve him and his people in our generation. Paul said
unto me, whom less than the least of all saints is this grace given
that I should preach among the Gentiles, the unsearchable riches
of Christ. The work of the ministry is work. It's work. And if a pastor can
do the work without work, he's not much of a pastor. It's work. It involves labor. It involves
sacrifice. It involves commitment. But oh,
what a blessed privilege of grace. What a blessed privilege of grace.
I have often said to my only grandson, I pray that God will
be pleased to save you by his grace. And it is my earnest desire
and prayer that having saved you by his grace, God might be
pleased to make you a preacher of the gospel. It's the highest,
noblest, most honorable thing under the sun. Oh, what a privilege. And for you who labor with me
in the blessed work of the gospel, God has given us this privilege. what mercy we've received from
him. Having received mercy, we faint
not. Those scandalized, maligned,
and abused, lied about, and despised, we faint not. Mona said to me
going out of the service recently, I can't remember when, a few
weeks back, she said, do you know what folks say about you
on the internet? I feel so sorry for you. Well, I'm aware of a
little bit of it. When I'm made really aware of
it, I'll say publicly so other folks can really have something
to talk about, I generally respond by saying I've been kicked by
bigger jackasses and it doesn't bother me too much anymore. No,
I don't pay attention to that. We faint not. That's not going
to affect anything. That's not going to change anything.
We keep doing what God's put in our hands to do. Look at verse
2. But we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty.
not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully. A politician once said, words
are intended to cover what a man thinks. That pretty well describes
the way preachers use words, but not God's servants, not God's
people. We've renounced the hidden things
of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, not handling the
word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth,
commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight
of God. Now, this is what I do in preaching
the gospel. I leave my questions in my study.
I have lots of questions when I read this book, like you do
about a lot of things, but I don't bring them here. I don't bring
them here. I bring to the pulpit that which I know God has taught
me and preach the gospel of God's grace with simplicity. With such
simplicity and clarity that I dare speak the word and give it to
you just as it is here with such plainness that you look at it
and you say, well, that's the only thing that makes any sense.
No way to make anything else out of that. That's exactly what
the book means. Commending ourselves to your
conscience in the sight of God. That's the way the Word of God
is to be preached. No dishonesty, no hypocrisy,
no pretense, no show, no desire for man's approval in our actions,
in our motives, or in our doctrine. Look at verse 3. But if our gospel
be hid, It's hid to them that are lost. In other words, Paul
says, we don't preach these things in a closet. We don't seek to
cover up what we believe in and just slip it in the side door
here and there. I had a preacher tell me once when I was a young
man. He said, now, Don, son, you can preach these things,
referring to the gospel of God's grace, the doctrines of grace.
You can preach them in such a way that folks won't know what you're
talking about. I said, what's the point in preaching it? If
folks don't know what you're talking about. Oh, yeah, you
can cleverly disguise it so you can, folks won't hear what you're
talking about. That's not the purpose of preaching.
The purpose of preaching is to instruct folks. If our gospel
be heard, it's heard to them that are lost. In other words,
the only person who doesn't understand what we preach are folks who
are lost. Well, you can't say that. I didn't.
God did. Read it again. If our gospel be heard, it's
heard to them that are lost. in whom the God of this world,
the God of this world, I know who he is, do you? He's our God,
the God of this world, hath blinded the minds of them who believe
not. Why? Lest the light of the glorious
gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto
them. God sends folks a strong delusion
that they should believe a lie, for we preach not ourselves,
but Christ Jesus, the Lord, and ourselves, your servants, for
Jesus' sake. We preach not ourselves. We don't preach about ourselves,
for ourselves, or from ourselves, or by ourselves. But we preach
Christ Jesus, the Lord. We preach for Him, about Him,
by Him, from Him. We preach Him. We preach Christ
crucified. And ourselves, your servants,
for Jesus' sake. That needs to be briefly commented
on. God's servants. God's servants. I'm not talking
about hirelings. I'm talking about God's servants.
God's servants do not labor as men pleasers under the rule of
the people they serve. Pastors are not under the rule
of churches. Read Hebrews 13. Pastors rule
the churches where God has put them and rule by the word of
God. But pastors serve them. I am responsible to rule my house. That's my responsibility. Now,
I know that's out of sync with this generation, but I plan to
stay out of sync with this generation. I'm responsible to rule my house.
That doesn't mean that I abused my wife and my daughter when
she was under our roof. Oh, no, no, no. No, no, no, no.
I'm responsible to govern the house for the glory of God, for
the cause of Christ, and for the benefit of my house without
consideration to how things affect me. That's my responsibility. That's my responsibility. And
I'm not going to give it up. I don't care what society says.
I'm not going to give it up. Not for anybody. Not for anybody.
And if the rule is done well, she doesn't want me to give it
up. You see, a man rules his house not for his benefit. not for his comfort, not for
his welfare, not to please himself. He rules his house and provides
for his house for the benefit of the household, for the good
of the household. That's how pastors are to rule
the church of God. Look at verse 6. For God, who
commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in
our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Jesus Christ. God alone, God alone can make
our ministry effectual. As he revealed Christ in us,
so he alone can reveal Christ in those whom we serve and to
whom we preach. Who's sufficient for these things?
Paul said in chapter three, verse five, our sufficiency is of God. Now, look at verse seven. Here's a very good description
of the gospel. We have this treasure. This treasure. Oh, what a treasure. What a treasure. Truth. Light. The gospel of God's grace. This treasure. This treasure. Folks down the road in any direction
don't have it. Your neighbors and family and
friends don't have it. We have this treasure. The treasure of
the gospel. We have this treasure. God teach
me to see it as a treasure. We have this treasure in earthen
vessels. That's a good description of
you and me. Broken pieces of clay, earthen vessels. What do you do with a broken
clay pot? You sweep it up and throw it away. But Bobby, God
has taken such broken clay pots as we are and put in us the treasure
of his gospel. He's trusted to the hands of
this congregation the treasure of the gospel. For what purpose? That we may
carry it to the ends of the earth. Our master says, go ye therefore
into all the world and preach the gospel. What right do you
have to press your religion on other folks? God commends it. God commends it. Take it into
all the world. God commends it. Teaching, baptizing folks who
believe and teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commended you. And lo, I'm with you always.
Our mandate, our mission is clear. The commander of our work is
Christ himself. We have this treasure in earthen
vessels. Now watch the reason. Why on
this earth has God been pleased to put the gospel in our hands? Why would God Almighty trust to me? of all men this
work. Why? Why would God trust to you
of all people this gospel? Why? Why would God give us the
word? Why? So that if anything's accomplished,
if anything meaningful takes place, If anything benefits immortal
souls, if anything is useful, that the excellency of the power
may be of God and not of us. God takes men who catch fish. Now, some folks try to make it
out as though fishermen in that day was a noble profession. Well,
noble to fishermen, but I haven't spent much time around those
folks, but I remember I used to go visit Brother Larry and
his brother down in Florida and spend a little time on the docks,
and I think they referred to those fellows as fish heads,
didn't they? Nothing wrong with that, but it's not exactly what
you would train your son to do. Not exactly what you would prefer
that he do. You want to be a doctor or a
lawyer or an engineer or something else. Just be something noble
so folks look up at him and be proud of it. But our savior comes
to fishers. Fellas who Fish heads. Fellas
who smelled like fish all the time. Fellas who made their living
catching fish. Taking them to market. Going
back and catching more fish and taking them to market. Fellas
you find on the boat. And he said, follow me. I'll
make you fishers of men. Now, you're talking about something
noble. You're talking about something honoring. You're talking about
something glorious. God's made us fishers of men. Us. That the excellency and the
power may be of God and not of us. God make us faithful to our
last breath with relentlessly increasing zeal in this blessed
work. Amen.