Earlier this morning, I got to
thinking about Mark Hinson and the first conversation you and
I had a long time ago. We both had darker
hair and a little more of it. Mark said to me, I want to tell you what got my
attention when I first came to hear you He said, you're the only preacher
I ever heard in my life speak honestly about himself. I don't know whether you remember
that or not. Well, I want to be honest with
you. I try to be honest with God. Ralph Barnard used to say,
honest folks don't go to hell. And I don't want to go to hell.
And I want to be honest with you. And I want to be honest with
myself. I'm reasonably confident of some
things with regard to myself. Some things that give me joy,
peace, comfort in this world. I am fairly confident. that I'm chosen of God, one of
His elect. I'm pretty confident that I have
been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, the Son of God
who loved me and gave himself for me. I'm pretty confident
I'm one of those whom God has called. Now, those are good things
to be confident of. I've been born again by the mighty
operation and grace of God the Holy Spirit. I was dead in trespasses
and sins, but God came to me when I could not and would not
come to him, gave me life, called me to faith, gave me faith, brought
me to Christ, spoke peace to my heart. Now I have a good hope
through grace regarding these things. I hope I'm not presumptuous,
but I have a measure of confidence, an assurance before God that
these things are so, that I'm a child of God, heir of God and
joint heir with Christ, that heaven's eternal glory is my
final home. And I have assurance of these
things For this reason, first, I believe the Son of God. I have no confidence in my flesh. And the longer I walk in this
world in faith, the more I know, or at least
hope I know, about this book and the grace of God and spiritual
things, the less confidence I have in this flesh and in me. No confidence in the flesh. No. No confidence in anything I think
or say or feel. or experience in this flesh,
no confidence of anything in me to give me acceptance with
God. My only hope is the blood and
righteousness of God's dear Son. And I have a measure of confidence
that these things are so because, blessed be God, He still
speaks to me. by his word. You remember how Paul spoke to
the Thessalonians? He said, knowing, brethren, beloved,
your election of God? And he said, this is how we know
it. Our gospel came to you not in word only, but in power, and
in demonstration of the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance.
Oh, I thank God. When I read or hear the gospel
of his grace, he still speaks to my heart. Sitting there this
morning listening to Lindsay describing the mediation of our
Lord Jesus Christ, I thought, oh God, thank you for letting
me hear that. Moves my heart to God. It's amazing to me, having said
that, how much other things move us so easily. We love, I don't
know why it is, we love every form of controversy in the world,
I think. I think we're just drawn to it
like fireflies are drawn to fire. You'll recall a few weeks ago
I wrote an article on the passion of Christ. And that's a bit of
an unusual article for me. I felt strongly inclined of God
to do it. I'm glad I did it. But I was so disappointed in
the response to that article. Let me tell you why. I had been
writing about the grace of God, redemption by Christ, God's goodness
and mercy, forgiveness, free justification, God's chastening
love of his own. And seldom do I ever hear comment
concerning those. I got more letters and more comments
from folks around the world about that thing of the passion of
Christ. Both folks who loved it and folks who hated it than
about anything I've written in years. Isn't that a strange thing? We get moved by the same things
that move everybody else in the world. Oh, I thank God he takes
his word, Bobby, and still speaks to my heart and moves me to him. My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest
rain, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. These things give me some
confidence that I am indeed one of God's. And now I have a confession
to make. Turn with me to Galatians chapter
5. There is a terrible terrible
struggle within my soul. A never-ceasing, tormenting trial
in my spirit. An ever-increasing, heavy, heavy
burden on my heart. I have a new heart, a new will,
a new heaven-bent nature created in me by the grace of God. A
nature that longs for and seeks perfect conformity to Christ. But I cannot do the things I
would. Galatians 5, 17. The flesh lusteth against the
spirit, and the spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary the one
to the other. So that you cannot do the things
that you would. I cannot do the things I would. As Paul put it, I find a law
in my members that when I would do good, evil is present with
me. I find in my soul iniquity, transgression,
and sin. Now let me speak honestly. God
don't let me be a hypocrite. I find in my members iniquity, transgression and sin. Far more hideous and ignominious than the most
profane acts of ungodly men walking the streets of this world. Far
worse. Far worse. I try to pray, but honestly I don't know much
about prayer. I've been trying to work on preaching to you about
prayer, maybe I will soon, but most of what I call prayer is a vain repetition filled with
personal lust asking God to do what I want done. I try to worship God, reading
his word, asking him to speak to me, but most of that which
is in any way connected with worship is so marred by my pride-filled
heart that it can hardly be called worship. As soon as I think God
is speaking to me now, pride swells in my heart. As soon as I think maybe I've
spoken to God in prayer, pride swells up. I want to be completely free
of earthly care. I want to trust God in all things. But I find myself constantly
plagued with unbelief and selfish resentment toward
God every time His will crosses my will. Every time His providence interrupts
my plans. And that's called rebellion. We make pretty words for things.
We try to excuse things. You know what envy is? You look at
somebody and you're envious of their name. You look at somebody
and you're envious because they're getting more attention than you
are. You know what envy is? Envy is hatred of God. I want to be content. Discontentedness is despising
God's gift to you today. Is that fair enough? Is that
honest? worry. I try not to show it, but there is in me so much questioning
of God's wisdom and goodness and providence. Fear I'm not going to show you that
I'm afraid of anything or anybody. I don't know that any man's ever
seen fear in my eyes. I don't intend to let it happen.
When I was a little boy, I wouldn't. Well, my mother did a few times.
But that's it. I don't let a man see fear in
my eyes. But oh, my soul. I walk with
so much fear. And fear is contempt of God's
power. Covetousness, nothing but proud
rebellion against God. These are the things that torment
me. They just torment me. The things I'm talking to you
about this morning, you're not going to hear most places, in
religious circles anyway. I hear men talk about becoming
less and less sinful, and more and more holy and good, getting
progressively better all the time, more holy today than they
were yesterday. They talk about holy people,
holier people, and the holiest of people. You know in this book
the word holy is used in a relative sense only one time? Just one
time. In fact, in the prophet Isaiah,
the self-righteous man says, stand by thyself. Don't come
near me because I am holier than thou. I don't know anything about
this thing of progressive holiness, what folks call progressive sanctification. The doctrine is that a man or
woman, once they are converted by God's grace, The Lord just
sort of leaves them there and they pull on their own bootstraps
and keep stretching themselves in the exercise of prayer and
religious devotion until they get good. And after a long process of slight
failures and better increases, they get more and more holy until
at last they're ripe for heaven. And glorification is but the
final step of sanctification. Now, if that doctrine is so,
I'm going to tell you something. I don't know anything about sanctification,
or grace, or salvation. Nothing at all. For that doctrine teaches that
there is the possibility that if you really attain to spirituality,
if you really discipline yourself, if you really work at it, and
you're really humble, then you will at last arrive at humble,
sinless perfection, and God will take you into heaven. Nothing
could be further from the truth. Such doctrine is contrary to
this book. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,
and the truth is not in us. Not only that, if we say that
we have not sinned. And when John says, if we say
that we have not sinned, 1 John chapter 1 verse 10, he's using
exactly the same kind of language of exactly the same people. Self-righteous
religionist, described as a harlot back in Proverbs chapter 7, when
she takes a fella and ties his hand to her bed. She's married,
but she's a harlot. She takes a fella and ties his
hand to her bed, and she says, I haven't sinned. I've done good. And it's talking
about religious works. If we say, after we get done
praying, after we get done giving, after we get done preaching,
after we get done with the life of sacrifice and missionary work,
if we say, I have a saying, we make God a liar and his word
is not in us. The fact is, Listening to this
preacher right now, trying your dead level best to get some hold
on a word from God for you. You're full of sin. Right now. And sinning in what you're doing.
So I believe that's a sin. Everything you are is sin. Everything you touch is sin. Everything you think is sin. Everything you do is sin. Every breath you take is sin. Because you are sin. And me too. And honesty therefore
compels me to acknowledge that this pretense of holiness is
totally contrary to my experience. I have, I believe, over the past
37 years, grown a little in faith and grace in the knowledge of
Christ. But my sin has not diminished,
not one iota. Folks who knew me when I was
a boy, my sisters, I was talking to two of them some time back
about this very thing, trying to communicate something of the
grace of God to them. Oh, but you're not like you used
to be. They observe outward things,
and the outward acts of sin, they're not what they used to
be. For one thing, I'm 54 years old. I can't do things I used
to do. But I restrain the outward acts.
I cover that up good. But the inward evil, the lust,
the selfish pride, the arrogance, the rebellion, the enmity against
God's purpose and will. No, it's nothing less. It hasn't
diminished. I'm redeemed. I'm justified. I'm sanctified in Christ. But
I confess, oh my God, I confess with aching heart. I am nothing
but sin. I know that in me, that is in
my flesh, dwelleth no good thing. Turn to Romans chapter 7. Now folks who refuse to acknowledge
what I'm trying to preach to you, and folks who do not understand
that the believer is a man who is a sinner still, when they
get to Romans chapter 7 verse 14, they say, well, what Paul
is doing here is he's reverting back to the time when he was
an unbeliever, and he's telling you about his lost estate. Nothing
could be further from the truth. Paul is writing by divine inspiration
and is writing in the present tense. When he was a Pharisee,
he didn't think like this. When he was a Pharisee, he didn't
experience this. But now he's a believer, and
this is what he says. We know that the law is spiritual,
but I am carnal, sold unto sin. For that which I allow not, that
is the things that I would not permit. That which I do not rather,
I'm sorry, that which I do I allow not. For what I would, the things
I want to do, that I do not. But what I hate, that I do. A case will drive any psychiatrist
nuts. This is it. The thing I hate,
I do. The thing I want to do, I don't
do. That can't be. Well, let's read on. If then
I do that which I would not, I consent to the law, it's good.
Now then, it is no more I that do it. It ain't really me. Well, Paul, you said it was you.
Yeah, I know, but I'm talking about me, the old fella. That
ain't really me. You know, but sin that dwelleth
in me. For I know that in me, that is
in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing. For to will is present with me.
But how to perform that which is good, I find not. The good that I would, I do not. The evil that I hate, that I
do. Now if I would do, now if I do
that, I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth
in me. I find then a law that when I
would do good, evil is present with me. But I see another law
in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing
me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the
body of this death. Now, let me wrap this up. Come
back to Psalm 73. I'm trying to tell you what my
soul's greatest trouble is. And I am reasonably confident
that what I'm telling you about myself, some of you can relate
to. You're in the same boat. And you wonder, how can I live
like this? Where can I find any comfort? Well, give me your attention
for just a few minutes. I believe I've got something
that will help you. The believer is a person with
two natures. Two distinct, directly opposite
natures. constantly at war with one another. Not just two principles, though
certainly two principles. Not just two attitudes, though
certainly two attitudes. Two totally different natures. The one's called flesh. The other
called spirit. The one is that which is born
of atom. The other is that which is born of God. Now listen to
what John says about these two natures. Hold your hands here
in Psalm 73. Just listen to it. Whosoever
is born of God doth not commit sin. Now I've read that in every
language that I can find to read it in. And ones I couldn't read
myself, I got some help and read it in those translations. You
know what it says in every language? Whosoever is born of God doth
not commit sin. Now commentaries everywhere,
you pick them up and read them, they say what that means is if
a man is born again he doesn't habitually practice sin. That
is not what that text says. Or what that means is if a man
is born again he doesn't sin all the time. That is not what
that text says. If a man is born again, he doesn't
constantly say it. That is not what that text says.
And to make you say that is to deny what John said in 1 John
1 verse 10. He says, Whosoever is born of
God doth not commit sin. Do you remember what Paul said
back in Romans 7? It is no more I that do it, but
sin that dwelleth in me. That which is born of God is
spirit. Now listen to what John says. He doth not commit sin, for his
seed remaineth in him. And he cannot sin, because he
is born of God. There's a new man. Crazy isn't
that fella? The old man not any better. The
old man hadn't improved. The old man not killed. The old
man going to die. But he's still there. And getting
worse all the time. But there's a new man in him.
And that new thing in him cannot sin. That's born of God. It's
called being made partakers of the divine nature. It's called
Christ in you. The hope of glory. So the believer
is a man or a woman two in one, flesh and spirit, corrupt and
holy, utterly sinful and utterly sinless. Now this fact is never
more clearly displayed than in the life of David, the man after
God's own heart. We read the psalm earlier, David
He's not a young man now. Young men don't think like this.
Young men, they may get it up here, but
they don't think like this. Dave is an old man now. He's
got a house full of rebels. His wife, Michael, despises him. Laughs at him, despises his God.
His sons hate him and hate his God. One of them tried to kill
him, tried to take his throne. Another one wanted to kill his
brother and take his throne after David was dead. And David looks out and starts
thinking about his neighbor. The fellow, I'm just going to
inject my own thoughts, the fellow who pastures over yonder in some
heathen land. He's king over there where they
worship. Stumps and stones and moons and
stars. And look at him. His eyes bug
out with fatness. He's got everything his heart
could desire. Boy, he gets together at Thanksgiving table, has to
put the extra leaves in the tables. All of his children and all of
his grandchildren are sitting there and they're all laughing
and having a good time. He doesn't have any fear. No
bans in his death. He doesn't have any enemies.
He doesn't have any sickness. He doesn't have any sorrow. Everything
goes his way. Everything going his way. Everything.
And he blasphemes God all the time. And David said, when I
looked at that, I've known that man all my life. He'd been king
over yonder and he's a lad as long as I've been king here in
Jerusalem. And I've been walking with God. And I thought it's a useless
thing to serve God. It hadn't got me anything but
trouble and pain and heartache. And then I said, oh, I don't
dare say that. I went to the house of God and understood their end. The reason that fella is like
he is, is because God's determined to kill him. And God's left him alone. And
he just won't leave me alone. Bless his name. He just won't
leave me alone. He won't leave me to myself. And then David tells us three
things and I'm going to take his words from my own. I hope you can too. He says first, I'm a sinner. Look at verse 22. So foolish was I and ignorant I was as a beast before thee though I am saved by God's grace
I am still a terribly foul sinful creature I've seen Christ and like Isaiah
I cry woe is me I'm undone Just like Job, I repent in sackcloth
and ashes. Once I have heard of you with
the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee, wherefore
I abhor myself. I have had a few trials in my
life, but none like this. A few heartaches, but none like
this. I was foolish. David couldn't have used a stronger
word. It's the same word used to describe the rebel, heathen,
atheist in Psalm 14, the fool, as said in his heart. The word
foolish means one who forgets God and loves evil. And the man who said this, God
says, is a man at my own heart. David says I was ignorant, ignorant. My speech, my thoughts, my actions
betray ignorance. I started to say how often I
act like an ignorant man, how seldom I don't. Ignorant, ignorant. almost immediately. Our response
to anything we see in the news, our response to anything we hear
of what we call bad things, tragedies, our response to anything that's
painful that we experience, anything we experience that's just contrary
to all of our well-laid plans, our response betrays ignorance. Our immediate response always
betrays ignorance. And when I say always, I realize
there are some exceptions, but Bill, there ain't many. There
ain't many. And David goes on to say, I behaved
as a beast before God. A beast cares nothing for anything except
what's on this earth. He'd go to the hog pen, watch
the hog rooting around in mud to get him a few roots. That's
what he was talking about. He'd talk to that hog about stars
in heaven and the angels of God. He prefers the mud and the roots.
I was as a beast before that. Had no natural appetite for anything
except the earth. No natural appetite for anything
except that which is harmful. No natural appetite for anything
except evil. Constantly ignoring everything
heavenly, eternal, and spiritual. Let us never be content with
our beastly attachment to this world. But let us never be so
proud and foolish as to deny it. And then David says, being as a wild beast, groveling
after things here below, so short-sighted. This is how I stand before God, confessing my sin, making myself naked before Him,
bare before Him. I'm speaking, my God, to you.
Now remember what David's saying here. Well, he's saying to God
in his closet. This is the cry of a man after
God's own heart in his closet before God. He says, Lord, I feel myself utterly vile, foolish,
ignorant, beastly. Spurgeon said, he that hath fellowship
with God will sometimes feel the devil within him till he
thinks himself a devil. William Cowper struggled so much. And he was a man given to, they
called it in those days melancholia. He was a manic depressive all
his life. He always struggled with depression. And the depression works on his
brain, as it always does. He couldn't see things clearly.
He had the right doctrine. John Newton was his pastor. Right
before his death, Cowper said, I fear I'm a castaway, shut out of God's heaven, doomed
to eternal hell. And just before he died, his
eyes lit up with a sparkle of life. And he said, I'm not castaway
after all. But all his life long, he thought
there was nothing but evil in him. You see, the old nature doesn't
change. When God saves a sinner, he gives
us a new nature. But the old nature doesn't change.
Adam is still Adam and flesh is still flesh, though Christ
reigns within. Grace conquers Adam. Grace rules
Adam. But grace doesn't change him,
and grace doesn't cleanse him. The flesh lusteth against the
spirit, and the spirit against the flesh. And this warfare is
a warfare from which there will be no truce so long as we live
in this world. A warfare that will continue
until we drop this robe of flesh and rise and reach our mansions
in the skies. That's my painful, honest confession. But I've got something else to
say. Look at verse 23. Though I am a vile, sinful man, Christ is still mine. He's still mine. Nevertheless, I am continually
with thee. Thou hast holden me by my right
hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy
counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. I'm sinful. Shamefully sinful. But God is faithful. Gloriously faithful. Therefore trusting Christ, my
God and Savior, I can say with joy and confidence, nevertheless
I am continually with thee. Now this is a glorious thought. If you're a believer, listen
to me, listen to me, I know folks get a hold of this and they'll
run wild with it and they'll, oh if that's so then let them do
what they want to with it, I'm talking to you. If you're a believer,
if you're in Christ, your sins shall never be charged to you.
Be they ever so great ever so many, and ever so constant,
and they will never separate you from the love of God that's
in Christ Jesus our Lord. Blessed is the man unto whom
the Lord will not impute sin. Now here are the pillars upon
which my soul rests in fine comfort. Divine Perseverance. Nevertheless,
I am continually with thee. God Almighty perseveres in the
exercise of His grace immutably. We are one with Christ. And not
until the Lord God Almighty forsakes his own son in heaven will he
forsake my soul. Near, so very near to God, nearer
I cannot be. For in the person of his son,
I am as near as he. Our security doesn't depend on
us. and our faithfulness. It depends
on God and His faithfulness. I hear folks talk about perseverance,
and they preach perseverance as though somehow God's grace
hinges on my continuing to give Him my strength. No, no, no, no. Our security
depends on His perseverance. And our perseverance depends
on God continually giving us his strength. I want you to get
this, and I'll wrap this up. I made this statement at a Bible
conference more than 20 years ago, and what an uproar it stirred. But this is comforted to my soul.
I can't describe the comfort. Have you attention? My relationship with God Almighty
does in great measure determine what I do. But what I do does
not to any degree determine my relationship with my God. Did you get it? My relationship
with God does in great measure determine what I do. But what
I do does not, to any degree, determine my relationship with
God. And then David says, thou hast
holden me by my right hand. Right hand is a place of honor
and strength. When David says, the Lord holds
me by my right hand, this man who is a king, He is saying my
honor is no honor, and my strength is no strength. I here am in
God's hand, and He holds me by my weak, dishonorable right hand
all the time. He has held me. He is holding
me. He will hold me, and no man can
pluck me from my Father's hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy
counsel, with your spirit, with your word. And afterward, receive me up
to glory.