The lesson tonight is concerning
the civil statutes found in Exodus chapters 21, 22, and 23. And as I said a little earlier,
these are too lengthy for me to read to you. So I'm just going
to speak of these things in general. In these three chapters, there's
a series of civil laws concerning all kinds of things and situations
that would surely arise among the people, and also the judgments
of God concerning these crimes. Now, I know that you're already
aware of that, and that any time we look at the law, that we look
at those things and we know what they are, we know what they're
saying, we realize that there's a punishment attached to them,
and so on. But what I want you to see is
that in each of these laws, the guilty party are required by
divine justice to either make a full and complete restitution
for the crime or to suffer the punishment demanded for the crime
because they couldn't make restitution. And I want to call your attention
also, as you read these laws, to the fact that God's justice
takes nothing into account except guilt or innocence. You know, somebody, the judge
brings somebody that's defrauded a government agency or something
up there, and why did you do this? What was your reason for
doing it? Well, we're so poor. Will God take that in consideration
if a poor man breaks the law? Or, I was divorced, so I was
kind of pushed into... God doesn't take that into consideration
at all. And I want you to see that as
we go through these things. It takes nothing into account
except guilt or innocence. Actually, the law of God forbids
any mercy or any consideration on the offender's condition at
all. Poor or rich, strong or weak,
male or female, young or old, wise or ignorant. Do you know
that there was sacrifices given unto the law for sins of ignorance? Sins that people didn't even
know they committed. There were sacrifices under the
law. In Exodus 23-2, he says this, Thou shalt not follow a
multitude to do evil. What's he talking about there?
He's talking about the majority. You come into court and we talk
around and the majority takes into consideration what's going
on. And he tells us here not to follow the multitude to do
evil. When this thing is plain, when
this thing is proven, and this guilt is assigned, we're not
to follow the multitude because the multitude wants to show mercy.
We're to follow God's law. Neither shalt thou speak in a
cause to decline after many that rest judgment. They want to stop
this judgment. And they're in the majority,
and they're doing it. But God says, My law demands
this, and this is what's going to be done. Verse 3, Neither shalt thou countenance
a poor man in his cause, that is, to make his poverty an excuse. Thou shalt not rest the judgment
of the poor in his cause. Keep thee far from a false matter,
And the innocent and righteous slay thou not, for I will not
justify the wicked." In short, here's what he's saying. But
a soul that sinneth shall surely die. That's what he's saying.
Now, I took the title of the message tonight from Exodus 21-24,
which begins this way, an eye for an eye. Isn't that what God's
law demanded? An eye for an eye. And one thing
is perfectly clear to me in as much as I've studied the law
of God, and that is that no man's crime will go unpunished. You
remember the infant that died over in Wichita Falls, and there
was suspicion made of this and that, and it went on and so on. And I went over to preach the
funeral, and I told them in my opening address at the funeral
that I wasn't there to condemn, and I wasn't there to justify.
I wasn't there to point fingers. But I said, there's one in heaven
that'll set this straight. This thing's gonna be set straight
one day. And that's what His law, it sets things straight.
And that's perfectly clear to me. No man's crime will go unpunished. It may go unpunished here, but
it's not going to go unpunished there. And I tell you, you all
know what the law requires. It requires thought, motive,
and deed. Even the word He said spoken
by angels. He said this over in the beginning
of Hebrews. You remember reading that passage? Even the word spoken
by angels was honored by God and stood fast. He honored it.
And every transgression and disobedience received a due recompense and
reward. And then you'll remember the
scripture when I quote it that follows that. He said, how then
shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? If their
word was steadfast. Now if God honored the word of
His ministering spirits, will He not do the same for Himself?
The holy law of God will not release the guilty until full
restitution has been made and its punishment carried out to
the full extent of the law. Lots of times the judges in our
courts will hear a case and it will have a maximum and a minimum.
You won't find that in God's law. There are no maximums and
minimums. It's all maximum. Here's the
punishment for the crime. And that's what has to be satisfied. It has to be carried out to the
full extent of the law. And then I'd also have you think
about this as we study these things. The same law and the
same justice that demands the punishment of the wicked also
protects, preserves, and justifies the righteous. If that law is
honored, if this man, if this law finds that man just, then
who is he that condemneth? Who's going to condemn him? That
law protects him. The holy law of God is all or
nothing. It's eye for an eye, tooth for
tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound
for wound, stripe for stripe. full restitution and punishment,
or full justification and righteousness. And before some well-meaning
deceived religionist comes along and persuades you to try to mix
law and grace, I want you to see this law in its true light. I want you to see what it is
they are trying to mix, and see the danger of it. Paul tells
us over in Galatians chapter 3 verse 10, he said, for as many
as are of the works of the law." What in the world is he talking
about there? He's talking about men and women who stand up in
the pulpit and tell their hearers that they can be just and they
can gain favor with God by keeping this law. That they can actually
produce a righteousness on their own by following after this law.
By keeping these, whatever it is that they've carried over
from the Old Testament, whatever it is that they do, they all
differ a little bit in those things. But tithing, I'll just
give you an example. They demand tithing from everybody.
If you don't do that, you've broken the law. But what about
the other statutes? If you're going to bring the
law from the Old Testament to the new, then you're going to
have to bring the sacrificial lambs. You're going to have to
bring the goats, the he goats. We're going to have to have a
priesthood. We're going to have to have all
those. You can't just reach in there and take a few things out
that you want to bring over. Sabbath keeping, all that type
of thing. As many as are of the works of
the law are under, and watch this, he calls it the curse.
The curse. For it is written, Cursed is
everyone that continueth not in all things which are written
in the book of the law to do them. Now, that's what these
statutes are saying. If you don't do these things,
here's the punishment. Here's the curse. If you do this,
here's what you're going to have to pay. If you do this, here's
what you're going to have to pay. All down through there.
It's written, cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things. which are written in the book
of the law to do them. In Romans chapter 2 verse 13,
actually in Romans 1, Paul talked about the heathen. He who had
no law, he was a law unto himself. His conscience telling him the
things that he needs to know. But in Romans chapter 2, he begins
to talk to the Jews who were very familiar with the law. And
here's what he tells them in Romans 2.13, for not the hearers
of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall
be justified. Are you with me so far? Do you
understand what I'm saying about the law? The law is not a request. God doesn't give these statutes
and say, now do the best you can. He tells them in detail. If Moses read these laws to the
people and he said, if you do these things, God will bless
you. But if you don't do these things,
curse you, curse you, curse you, curse you. He goes all the way
down. One chapter he says, bless you, bless you, bless you, bless
you. He's talking about the keeping, if you keep these things. If
you don't keep these things, cursed, cursed, cursed, cursed,
cursed. Not a request. The law is not
a goal. He doesn't set this thing up
there and say, now shoot for it, do best you can. No. It's
a command. It's a command. And it's a demand. It's a command of divine authority
which God Himself will recompense. And the law I want to say this
is in all of its statutes holy and just and good. There's nothing
in it that's contrary to the holy character of God. It's just
and right and unprejudiced toward all. But it's a curse to a sinful
man because he is a sinner that cannot honor this law as God
requires him to do. The nature of the law is holy. It's holiness and justice and
righteousness. The nature of a man is ignorance
and darkness. Read Romans chapter 3. Sinful
and ungodly. There's an unrighteous. But this
law, the nature of this law demands righteousness. But there's an
unrighteous. That law is not going to offer an unrighteous
man any hope. And I believe there's no other
word that so fully describes the condition of a fallen man
than this, ungodly. You know what that word means?
There's no likeness of God in him. He's ungodly, ungodlike. So the law then is a curse to
him, not because it's evil in itself or in its nature, but
because he is. He's the problem. Man is the
problem, not the law. Not God who gave the law, but
man who will not and cannot keep the law. Let me give you something
to think about concerning the law that might just change your
mind if you're here tonight and you're rebelling against what
I'm saying. Saying, this preacher don't know what he's talking
about. This law doesn't say those things. This law doesn't do this
thing. And I'm not to pray. Well, let's see. Let me give
you something to think about. As you read through even these
three chapters, now there's a whole lot more in the Old Testament
concerning the law of God, and we'll get into those things.
But just in these three chapters, I think it's chapter 22. My wife
and I were talking about it coming over here. You find three verses
in a row there in chapter 22. First of all, forbidding witchcraft. Well, surely to goodness you
wouldn't have to tell a godly man not to follow after witchcraft,
would you? Huh? You know what the second one
is? Tells him not to lie with a beast. And the third one tells him,
warns him about rank idolatry. Brother Don said this, There are crimes here forbidden
which would seem to place man below the level of a beast. Yet do not these same statutes
prove beyond all question that the most refined and cultivated
member of our race carries in his own bosom the seeds of the
very darkest and horrifying abomination. God would not forbid these things
and give these laws to his people if the potential to do these
things were not in the heart of those people. This law is
written to a depraved race, depraved people. God himself testifies
of man way back in Genesis. saying that he saw him as he
is, and he saw the wickedness of man, that it was great in
the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart
was only evil continually. Now the law is unchangeably holy
and just, and man is unchangeably wicked and evil. You remember
that scripture, I can't give you chapter and verse, but I
think it's in the book of Jeremiah where he said, Can the Ethiopian
change the color of his skin? Can the leopard change his spots?
Can you then that are accustomed to do evil, can you do good?
No more than they can change them spots. And no more than
he can change the color of his skin. That's not my intention
tonight to strip you of all your hope or leave you without hope.
Only to make you see that the law is no savior. And this is
what men are preaching. The law is your savior. The law
is your savior. Do this and live. Do this and
live. Do this and live. That's not
the gospel. That's not the gospel. The law
is not your savior. But it does in figure and pattern
point us to the Savior, and it lays the foundation for how God
can be just and justify a chosen sinner. Twelve times in these
chapters, you run on to these words, restore. Restore. You keep running on that word.
Somebody took something, then he tells them to restore. You'll
see this word, this phrase, Make it good. Make it good. You're going to find this in
there, especially when it comes to stealing and that type of
thing. Pay double. And then you're going to find
this, make restitution. You will find that all the way
through there, all the way through these statutes. Now, though these words vary
in their translations, They don't vary at all in the original. It's the same word each time. It's the same word in the original.
But that word has such a broad meaning, that word, and it primarily
means restitution, but it has such a broad meaning that he
gives it all of these things and they're all correct. They
all in one way or another speak of a full and complete restitution. What God requires from His people
is a full and complete restitution for their crimes and to be holy
men unto Him. You'll find that in the 23rd
chapter. Down toward the end, He requires
them to be holy men unto Him. In other words, to be sanctified
and to walk sanctified as holy men of God. To walk in a perfect,
unbroken, spiritual obedience in motive Thought and deed. But how can a man with such a
potential for evil? You can see his potential for
evil in the law. The law wouldn't forbid him to
do these things if the potential was not in. So here's the question. How can a man with such a potential
for evil walk? How can he walk in perfection
of holiness that God requires? How can he do that? How can sinners
be separated from sinners and live an unhypocritical life of
holiness before the Lord? Now, the Pharisees pretended
to keep the law, and our Lord said of them on many occasions,
Thou hypocrite. Isn't that what He told them?
You're hypocrites and blind. There's only one way. How can
sinners be separated from sinners and live an unhypocritical life
of holiness before the Lord? There's only one way. We must,
every one, be made holy by full and complete restitution for
all our offenses. And I briefly mentioned to you
last week that the law of the bondservant was the key to the
rest of these statutes. Our God has made us holy by the
obedience of Christ in voluntary bondservant. He is Jehovah's
righteous servant. And because of His love for His
Father, and because of His love for His captive wife and children,
He willingly agreed to be His Father's servant forever. And
He did this to honor His Father's name and to satisfy all that
that honor demands. What does God's honor demand?
What does it take to honor God's name? I want to honor his name. How can I honor that name? It
takes full and complete restitution and satisfaction to the full
extent of the law. Now, there's a word concerning
these things that I believe we need to consider, and that word
is double. Double. You remember I told you
a while ago these words all appeared over there, and one of them was
double. Turn with me to Isaiah chapter 40. I want you to see what this word
double has to do with this restitution. Now, Isaiah chapter 40 is speaking
of John the Baptist and talking about his coming onto the scene
and his preaching of the coming of Christ. He is the forerunner
of Christ. Isaiah chapter 40. Verse 1, Comfort
ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity
is pardoned. For she hath received of the
Lord's hand double for all her sins. Full and complete restitution
has been made. The only way that I can speak
comfortably to you when I preach the gospel is to preach to you
that full and complete restitution in Christ. There's nothing else
to preach, Russell. I don't care how much law I put
on you, it's going to leave you in tears because the law cannot
justify an unrighteous man. God must be just and justify
her. And here it says she received
double for all her sins at God's hand because double is what was
required. God's law requires full restitution
which is a two-fold requirement. God first requires a perfect
righteousness. That's what he requires. He gives
this law and he told them to keep it. That's what He requires.
He requires you to walk holy, sanctified unto your God before
Him. And the only way you can do that
is with a perfect righteousness. And then a full satisfaction
for our sins. Because we're sinners, we sin. If a man says he has no sin,
he's a liar and the truth's not in him. Isn't that what John
said? And if he says he hath not sinned, he makes God a liar. I tell you, may God the Holy
Ghost give you ears to hear this and a heart to rejoice in it.
We're made righteous before God by Christ's obedience to the
law as our representative. He was made of a woman, made
under the law. Huh? To do what? To do what? To save them that were under
the law. That's why he would become a man and was made subject
to the law of God. We're made righteous before God
by Christ's obedience to the law as our representative. Believers,
if you're here tonight and you're a believer, believers have no
righteousness except the righteousness of Christ imputed to them by
faith. You've got no righteousness.
I know sometimes we do things and it makes us feel good, but
that's just a smoke screen. That's all that is. That's that
old man whispering to you. That's what that is. You give
a little more one week and you did that week, boy, you feel
good. You feel, huh? And then it comes a week and
you don't give as much, then you feel bad. Why? Huh? Because you're trying to work
out a righteousness. That's all that is. That's self-righteousness.
That's all that is. Believers have no righteousness
except the righteousness of Christ, and that righteousness is charged
to their account. It's imputed to them through
faith. Listen to this. Isaiah said,
we are all as an unclean thing. As we get into these laws and
statutes, you're going to find out what these unclean things
were. That was a woman's minstrel cloth was an unclean thing. Or
a dead person, a corpse, that's an unclean thing. Or a leper. That cloth He covered it, that
was an unclean thing. Isaiah said, we are all as an
unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. The man after God's own heart,
the sweet psalmist of Israel, tells us to pause and consider
this. In Psalm 39, 5, that every man
at his best state Not his worst day. Not on his worst day. On his best day. The best prayer
he ever prayed. The best day he ever had. Man
at his best state is altogether vanity. Vanity. We're made righteous before God
by Christ's perfect obedience to the law on our behalf. and
also by the full and complete restitution accomplished by his
suffering and death as our substitute. He died for my sins. And in his suffering and death,
he satisfied the law. He satisfied divine justice. And there's absolutely no other
way Before, and this is what I want you to hear, before or
after conversion to walk in favor with God except by the blood
and righteousness of Christ that we have by faith. Enoch, the seventh from Acts. Enoch walked with God. You know,
you go over there to Hebrews chapter 11. That's the faith
chapter. He begins to give you these men
as examples of faith. He comes down to Enoch. And he
said, Enoch walked with God and was not. Because God translated him. They couldn't find him. Enoch
just walked right into glory with God. They couldn't find
him at church, but he left this testimony behind that he pleased
God. And then quick on the heels of
that is this sentence, but without faith it is impossible. Did you get that? Impossible
to please God. Well, how does faith please God?
Because it lays hold of that righteous, that righteous and
full restitution that the law required in the justice of God. Restitution, that's what I want
you to see here. Restitution is what is taught
and demanded in the law. That's what it demands, that's
what it requires, and it requires it without leniency. And Christ
is the key. He's the key. Oh, I tell you. Let me just ponder on that for
a minute. What a blessing it is to have
the keys. I thought as I read that this
afternoon, what a blessing. Let's just stop right here for
a minute and let's concentrate on this. What a blessing to have
the keys. Paul said Israel was going about,
going about, the whole entire nation of Israel, going about.
What were they doing? Trying to establish a righteousness. That's what they were doing.
How were they doing it? By keeping the law. In ignorance, out here
just floundering around. They were zealous and they were
doing this and doing that and traveling to this country and
that. Our Lord told them on one occasion, He said, you come to
sea and land to make one proselyte like unto yourself, and when
you've made him, he's two-fold more the child of hell than you
are. Does that remind you of anything you see today? Compass
and sea and land to make proselytes. And every time they make one,
they are two-fold more the child of hell than the man who made
them. It doesn't take zeal. It doesn't
take hearing. It doesn't take trying to keep
this law and produce this righteousness. It takes doing. Doing. Oh, let me just ponder this for
a minute that Christ is the key. Our Lord said to His disciples,
He said, many prophets and righteous men have desired to see these
things which you see and have not seen them, and to hear these
things which you hear and have not heard them. The Father in
His infinite wisdom, Christ gave Him thanks because He had hid
these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them unto
babes. We had a wise man to come into
our service the other day. Here's a man who's got many,
many diplomas and doctorates and all kinds of things. He's
got a, well, anyway, he is as highly educated as a man can
get. He's a philosopher on top of
it and all of these type things. But you know, he couldn't see
one thing that I said. And that's what our Lord said,
when those wise men got around Him and began to challenge Him
and walked away in ignorance and darkness, He said, I thank
Thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast
hid these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them
unto babes. Why? Because it seemed good in
His sight. And He's the Sovereign. He said
this over in the book of Corinthians, in 1 Corinthians chapter 2, he
said, I hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into
the heart of man. And anytime you see that word,
M-A-N, he's talking about mankind. Neither have entered into the
heart of mankind the things which God hath prepared for them that
love Him. But God hath revealed them unto
us. So let's just ponder that for
a minute. Oh, what a blessing. God give you the key. You can
understand these laws. What kind of depression would
set in on you if you could see this law for what it demands,
but no way to keep it. No way to keep it. Nothing to
look forward to but curse. Isn't that what he said over
there in Hebrews? I think it's chapter 10. He gets
on down there a little bit. And he said, if we sin willfully,
if we walk away from these things that we've heard and we lay them
aside, all of this gospel of Christ, and you lay it aside,
and you go back to this old law, he said, there remaineth no more
sacrifice for sin. Because this is the only one
God is going to accept. You put that down and there's
nothing left for you, but a fearful looking for of fiery indignation
and everlasting punishment. That's all that you have to look
forward to. But you have the key. And you're
hearing tonight, you're hearing the key. The key is Christ. Christ. He kept the law. He honored God's
justice. He made full restitution. And
as I think upon the work of our Lord and Savior. Oh, let a godly
humiliation fill my heart and mind. Christ is the key. Christ is the key. It wasn't
nothing I figured out. It was a revelation of God's
grace. Peter said in Acts 4, verse 11,
when he addressed those Jews, he said, This is the stone which
was set at nought of you builders. Here's the stone, God sent the
stone, God laid the stone, and you saw the stone and laid it
aside, which has become head of the corner. Neither is there
salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven
given among men whereby we must be saved." Do you understand
what I just quoted? I want you to think about it. Neither is there salvation in
any other, for there is none other name under heaven given
among men, whereby we must be saved." Christ is the key. And
they threw it away. They just threw it away. And
you say, well, that's not going to happen today. Don't it? Don't
it? I have folks coming here all
the time. And I show them the key. I tell
them about the key. I point them to Christ, and they
throw it away. And they go out their door. Throw
it away. None other name given among men. Christ is the key. If we truly
see and understand and embrace the person and work of Christ,
it's because the God of all glory and grace has caused it to shine
into our hearts. And it's all Christ. It's all
Christ. Say, well, I appreciate what
you have to say about His sovereignty, and I appreciate what you have
to say about His sacrifice, and now let's move on. Or if one
man said, I get it, I get it, now let's go. No, you don't get
it. You wouldn't be wanting to move
on if you got it. Christ is all. He's all. It's all Christ, and it's all
grace, and all others. Those who are close and those
who are far away are blinded by the God of this world. I love
this statement. I was listening. Brother Scott,
down at the church I used to pastor in Ball, Louisiana, came
down and brought a message one time, Will a man rob God, out
of the book of Malachi. And he talks about robbing God
of His praise and honoring, robbing God of His justice, His just
nature and so on, and His holiness. But here is what somewhere in
that message he said. He said, one drop of works. Now you think about this illustration.
One drop of works in an ocean of grace will pollute the whole
sea. It will pollute the whole thing. If you so much as be circumcised
out of all those things, isn't that a lot? Paul told that Galatian
church, those legalists come in there and they try to bring
in works and mix them with the grace of God. And he said, I'll
tell you this, if you so much as be circumcised, Christ will
profit you nothing. Nothing. It cannot be mixed with works,
he tells us in Romans chapter 11, otherwise grace is no more
grace. Christ is the key to restitution
and righteousness. And He'll be all your righteousness,
or He'll be none of it. He'll be all your Savior, or
He'll be no Savior to you at all. Listen to this verse of Scripture,
and I'll close. Paul said, therefore, being justified
by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. So when we come and we look at
these statutes, and we look at these laws, and we look at these
punishments, when we're looking at those things, let gratitude
fill your heart for your Savior, who's not only taken your punishment,
not only satisfied the law on your behalf, because we're guilty
of every precept. Guilty of it. Guilty before God. All have sinned and come short
of the glory of God. You remember the first of the
Ten Commandments that I gave you? Love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength. Well, here's what our
Lord told those people who trusted in the law. He said, if you break
this, you're guilty of the whole law. And if you break one of
the least of the statutes down here, then you're guilty of the
first one. And therefore, you're guilty
of the whole law. So I don't care which one you break, you're
guilty of them all. So when we read them, Let's let
our hearts be filled with gratitude that our Savior, as our substitute,
satisfied all the punishment that the law required, provided
us with a perfect righteousness, and thereby made full restitution
as it was required of God. Our Father, take this lesson
home to our hearts. Oh, how we need to think on these
things every day. They need to be fresh, be made
fresh to us. Fresh in our minds and hearts
as we walk and have fellowship. If we walk in the light, as our
Lord Jesus Christ is the light, we have fellowship one with another. And the blood of Jesus Christ
cleanseth us from all sins. Oh, let us rejoice in Him. Rejoice
in Him evermore. Use this message tonight. For
Thy name's honor and glory, I ask it for Christ's sake. Amen.