My text this morning is Genesis
3 and verse 9. Genesis chapter 3 and verse 9. And the Lord God called unto
Adam. What amazing mercy. or condescending
grace. Adam had willfully rebelled against
his God, sinned against his maker, robbed his gracious benefactor,
and despised his Lord. All of these things Adam did
with a willful, deliberate heart. He was not deceived as Eve was. but he willingly chose the path
of rebellion. He willingly despised his maker. He willingly robbed that which
belonged to God alone. He willingly said, I will be
my own God, step aside. And now when Adam had taken of
the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, immediately
his eyes were opened. to behold that he was evil. Immediately
his eyes were opened to see that he was a naked sinner before
a holy God. And he began to sow fig leaves
of his own making and make himself an apron by which he might hide
from God and stifle his conscience and silence the accusations of
a guilty conscience. But God came and God spoke. It would have been great mercy
if God had just left him alone. If God just didn't kill it, if
God just didn't send him to hell, that'd be great mercy. But God
wouldn't leave him alone. You see, the Lord God set his
heart upon Adam. The Lord God was determined to
be merciful and gracious to Adam. And so the Lord God came. In
the cool of the day, he said unto Adam, that's mighty, mighty,
infinite mercy. He came and called to Adam. Can you imagine what terror must
have been in Adam's soul at that moment? He heard God say, Adam,
just as he had said before. He called his name just as he
called his name many times before. But now, There's guilt in Adam's
heart, guilt in Adam's soul, guilt in Adam's mind, and he's
afraid of God. He's afraid of God. He fears
God. And Adam takes Eve by the hand,
and they run and hide and cringe down behind some great tree in
the forest. And there they're huddled up,
squatting down, hiding from God. God said, Adam, Adam, where art
thou? Where art thou? Now God knew
where he was. Problem was Adam didn't know
where he was. God knew what his condition was, but Adam didn't
know what his condition was. God knew what he had done, but
Adam didn't know what he had done. So the Lord God spoke these
first words to the first sinner and the first day of sin in the
world. And this is what he said. Where
art thou? Now, this is the question which
God asked Adam when he'd eaten of the forbidden fruit and become
a sinner. He asked because Adam must be
convinced both of his sin and of its consequences. Otherwise,
he would never return to his God. Because fallen Adam could
not and would not seek the Lord, the Lord came seeking Adam. Sin
drove him away. Grace would retrieve him. Sin
ruined him. Grace would redeem him. Sin had
brought him into despair. Now grace comes to bring him
hope, hope of pardon, hope of life, hope of everlasting mercy. In his infinite free grace, the
Lord God did four things for Adam. And these four things he
always does for sinners when he saves them by his grace. We'll
just notice these by way of introduction. In this third chapter of Genesis,
here are three things God did for Adam, or four things rather,
and four things he does for every sinner whom he seeks and saves
by his grace. First, the Lord sought Adam.
He sought Adam. Adam didn't seek the Lord. The
Lord sought Adam. When Adam was lost and hiding
from God, when Adam wanted anything but to see God, he wanted anything
but to know God's voice. He wanted anything except God. God came to Adam. In verse 8,
they heard the voice of the Lord walking in the garden in the
cool of the day. And Adam and his wife hid themselves. They hid themselves from the
presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. And
it was the Lord who said, Adam, where art thou? Secondly, when
the Lord came to Adam, he exposed his sin, his guilt, and his just
condemnation. Now this is what Genesis 3 is
about. This is what the conversation between God and Adam is about
that takes place here. In verse 11, the Lord God said
to Adam, Who told you you were naked? Who told you you were
naked? You've always been naked up to
this point, but it's never bothered you before. There's never been
any kind of guilt associated with that nakedness before. There's
never been any kind of a fear of me before. Who told you you
were naked? Did you eat of the tree? Did
you eat of the tree? And it wasn't because God didn't
know, He knew. He exposed Adam's sin. And I'm telling you that if God
ever shows you mercy, if God ever saves you by His grace,
first thing He's going to do for you, is he gonna make you
to know and own your sin, your guilt, your corruption, your
depravity of heart, your just condemnation. And this is what
took place. The Lord God said to Adam, you've
eaten the tree. You've rebelled against, you've
robbed my throne. You've robbed me. You've done
me wrong. Your heart's enmity against me. And Adam's then given a curse. He's given a word from God that
describes what's going to happen. He said, Adam, you're dead already. Your heart's dead. You're spiritually
dead. You're corrupt. You're defiled.
Your conscience tells you so. Your heart tells you so. Look
at you, Adam. You were made in my image and
after my likeness, but now you cringe before me. Now the Lord
God tells Adam the punishment that must fall upon his sin,
the consequences and result of his sin in verse 17. The Lord
said to Adam, because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy
wife and hast eaten of the tree of which I commanded thee, saying
thou shalt not eat of it. That is, this is the result of
you rebelling against me. Cursed is the ground for thy
sake. I'm going to send a curse throughout the earth. Your sin
is going to affect the entire universe. Your sin is going to
corrupt and pollute everything. Verse 18, Thorns also and thistles
shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat the herb of
the field. In the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread till thou return unto the ground. For out of it
was thou taken, for dust thou art, and into dust thou shalt
return." In other words, Adam, you're
going to die. You're going to die. Judgment's
on you. The curse is upon you. You can't
escape it. You can't escape it. And then
so as to make Adam know the horrible consequences of his guilt, the
Lord God drove Adam and Eve out of the garden. He banished them
from the garden. He banished them from his presence.
He banished them from the symbol of his glory, his presence, his
peace, and his acceptance. He banished them from the garden.
I'm telling you that when the Lord God comes seeking a sinner,
The first thing he does, he makes that man to know he's a sinner.
The reason why you do not seek Christ is because you don't need
him. The reason why you do not call upon Christ is because you
don't have any need of Christ. You feel no sense of any need.
Your heart is completely satisfied with what and who you are. If
God ever saves you, you're going to find yourself a bankrupt,
helpless, depraved, justly condemned sinner. And if God doesn't show
you that, he'll never save you. He'll never save you. God always
puts a man in the dust before he lifts him up by his grace.
Thirdly, the Lord God revealed Christ to the guilty sinner,
giving him through Christ a hope of life and pardon. In verse
15, we had the first gospel sermon. The Lord said to Satan, I'll
put in me to hatred between thee and the woman. You're gonna hate
the woman, you're gonna hate her. And between thy seed and
her seed, all of your sons and daughters are gonna hate all
of her sons and daughters. I'll put enmity between the elect
of God and the non-elect, between the reprobate and the believing.
I'll put enmity so that there will constantly be persecution,
abuse and hatred. Cain's going to kill Abel and
Cain's sons are going to kill Abel's sons all the way through
history. That's the way it'll be to the
end of time. More than that, the seed of the
woman is coming, one particular seed. The Lord Jesus Christ,
he who is himself God the Son, come in human flesh. He who is
made of woman, made under the law, to redeem them that are
under the law. And it shall bruise thy head.
When the seed of the woman comes, he's going to put Satan out of
business! Crush his head! Break his usurped
dominion! Destroy his power! so that Satan
no longer deceives the nations of the world. And that's what
our Lord said when he came to the cross. He said, now is the
prince of this world cast out and thou shalt bruise his heel.
You're going to crush his heel in nailing the Son of God to
the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ was put
to death in his human body. He was made to suffer the horrible
shame, ignominy and pain of the cross, of the death of the cross.
But he lives forever. His head is not crushed. His
head is exalted and he's given power and dominion at the hand
of God. Adam and Eve understood very
well what this promise meant. In chapter four, we read in verse
one, and Adam knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bear a
son. She bear Cain. And look at what
she said. I've gotten a man from the Lord. Literally, she said, I've gotten
the man from the Lord. This is the one the Lord promised.
She was mistaken. Oh, how she was mistaken. The
promise wouldn't be fulfilled for 4,000 years. But she thought
she had gotten the promised Messiah, the promised Deliverer, the promised
Redeemer who would crush the serpent's head. The Lord God
revealed to Adam the Lord Jesus Christ and the hope of mercy
through him. And if God's pleased this day
to show you grace, He's going to do for you what
I can't do, what no man can do. If God's pleased to bring you
this day to the Lord Jesus Christ, if He's pleased today to give
you life and faith, He's going to show you who Christ is and
what He did. He's going to show you. I mean
show you. He's going to open your heart and cause the light
of the glory of God in the face of the crucified Christ to shine
into your soul. And you're going to know who
He is. You're going to know. And then fourthly, The Lord God
clothed Adam and his wife Eve with the skins of an innocent
victim, a victim who had been slain in their stead, a victim
who had been killed instead of them. Look in verse 21. Unto
Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins
and clothed them. Some folks debate as to whether
or not Adam knew the gospel I expect he did. He taught it to his son
Abel, and Abel worshipped God just like Adam did with a blood
sacrifice. You see, God killed an innocent
animal. I have no question the animal
was of the lambs. I have no question the animal
was one of the sheep of the herds of God. And he took that innocent
animal's skins, whose blood had been shed and made coats by which
he would cover the guilty sinners. The first blood that was ever
shed upon the earth was the blood of a sacrifice for guilty sinners.
And with the skins of that slain animal, the first guilty sinners
were clothed. Thus, from the very beginning,
Adam was taught and we are taught that God is infinitely and immutably
holy. He will by no means clear the
guilty. He will not forgive sin without
a suitable sacrifice, without a satisfactory offering. He will
not pardon sin. He will not let the sinner live
until God himself has a sacrifice that has satisfied his justice. That's what Joshua told the children
of Israel in his day. He said, choose you this day
whom you will serve. As for me and my house, we will
serve the Lord. And the children of Israel said,
we'll serve the Lord too. Joshua said, you can't serve
him. He's holy and he won't forgive your sin. He's holy and he won't
forgive your sin. And yet, at the same time, as
God declares his holiness and his justice, He assures us of
a suitable substitutionary sacrifice for sin. Here's a lamb, an innocent
lamb. I'll take his life for your life. And I will replace the filthy
rags of your self-righteous fig leaves with the robe of his innocent
life. That's what God does for sinners.
Oh God, do that for sinners today. Do that for sinners today. Cause
men and women this day to have their hearts evil exposed, but
cleansed, urged away by the blood of Jesus Christ, your son. And
cause that perfect righteousness of Christ to be imputed in their
own consciences to their hearts so that men who are themselves
guilty sinners this day hear from God through Christ the voice
of pardon through His shed blood and perfect righteousness through
His righteousness. That's how God saves. The Lord
God made His Son to be a sacrifice for sin, the Lamb of God that
taketh away the sin of the world. He punished His Son in the stead
of His people. And now the Lord God by Jesus
Christ pardons the guilty, forgives the sinner, accepts the ungodly,
and He takes the holy, righteous obedience of Christ. And just
as He imputed our sin to Christ, He imputes His righteousness
to us. That's what God does when He
saves a sinner. Now today, I want to speak to
you as one who speaks in God's stead. I pray that it shall be
so. And I want to press this question
home to your heart. It's the question which God asked
of Adam 6,000 years ago. And now I ask it of you, every
one of you, who are the sons and daughters of Adam. Where
art thou? Where are you? As I was preparing
this message, I asked myself, Don, where are you? Where are
you? Not where are you physically?
Where are you in relation to God? That's the question. What's
your condition? What's your condition? I hope I'm being honest with
you. I don't take that for granted. I do not presume that while multitudes
of others are deceived, I cannot be. As I seek a message from
God for you, I seek a message from God for my own heart. This
is the question. This is the question. The issue's
got to be settled. Settle it now. Where are you? Where are you? I'm going to this
morning, I hope God will give me your heart's attention and
give me the ability to tell you a few things about yourself. And by telling you a few things
about yourself, I'm going to answer this question. I'm going
to answer this question for every one of you. Here are three categories,
three places where men are found. Everybody here fits in one of
these three places. Number one, some of you are far,
far off from God in the broad, broad road that leads to destruction. Some of you are in the path of death. Oh,
you think everything is well. You think everything's going
to turn out all right. You think that you're safe, perfectly
safe from all harm. but you're ignorant, you delude
yourselves. I recall when Jackie Gleason
died, on one of the news reports just
before his death, someone had an interview with him and asked
him about facing God. And the old fool said this, I,
like Jackie Gleason, like to watch it, but it's what he said.
And it revealed the fact that he was an old fool. He said,
well, if the man upstairs don't ever call God the man upstairs,
don't you do it. Occasionally, I'll bite my tongue
and listen to ignorant people speak that way, but not often,
and I sure won't around you. Don't you ever call God the man
upstairs. Don't blaspheme his name. He's not the man upstairs.
He's God Almighty. He's God Almighty. Speak of him
as such. He said, if the man upstairs
has a sense of humor, everything will be all right. Mr. Gleason, I'm afraid, learned
far too late that the God of glory demands
holiness, righteousness, atonement, and a heart of faith. I'm afraid
he learned too late that the wages of sin are eternal death.
You see, wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth
to destruction. And most everybody goes in that
way. The wise man said, there is a way that seemeth right unto
a man. Oh, I know that you think you're
in the right way. I know you think that God's going
to accept what you bring. I know you think in spite of
everything I say to the contrary, in spite of everything this book
says to the contrary, in spite of everything that God's servants
you've ever heard preached say to the contrary, you really do
think that God's going to accept you just like you are. I'm telling
you, that way that seems right to a man will land you in hell. The ends thereof are the ways
of death. You mean preacher God won't accept
sincerity? No, he won't. You mean preacher
God won't accept sacrificial giving? No, he won't. You mean
preacher God won't accept Bible reading and church attendance?
No, he won't. You mean God won't accept morality and charity and
kindness and works of philanthropy? No, he won't. He won't accept
any of it. There's a way that seems right
to a man. It's the way of works religion. That's the way that
seems right to me. It lands you in hell. The ends
thereof are the ways of death. And most people are in that broad
way of destruction. I'm afraid many of you who hear
my voice are in that path that leads to eternal ruin. You're
without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel,
strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and
without God in the world. You're not saved. You're not
justified. You're not born again. You're
not sanctified. You're not redeemed. You're not
called of God's grace. You're not converted by his spirit.
You're not prepared to beat God. You're not prepared for heaven.
Your sins are not forgiven. You don't have the spirit of
Christ. You're in the way that is leading to destruction. Fall
from God Almighty. Let me describe you. I'll tell
you plainly who you are. I'll identify you. Those who are in that broad way
that leads to destruction, those who are far off from God, are
every one of you. Every one of you from this place
to that place. Every one of you who live for
this world. Every last one. You who live only for this world, are far off from God. Now I'm
telling you, I hope God will enable you to hear me. I hope
God will give me power to tell you with plainness and speak
to your heart. Your only concern, your only real concern is for
this life, happiness and comfort in this world. You live like
beasts who have no undying soul. Your treasure is all upon the
earth. Your heart's attention is swallowed up by the perishing
things of time. I'll tell you what a man worships.
I'll tell you where his God is. I'll tell you where your God
is and what you worship. What's the constant theme of
your thought? Huh? Come on now, be honest with
yourself. Be honest with yourself. Inhale,
it'll be too late to be honest. What is the constant theme of
your thought? That's your God. That's your
God. What is that which is on your
heart and on your mind most persistently? That's your God. Who is it? What
is it? Where is it? Whatever it is,
buddy, that's your God. Don, that's your God, whatever
it is. You live for pleasure, for money,
for respectability, for influence, for property, for business, and
you never give any serious thought to anything else. You live as
though there was no God, no resurrection, no judgment, no eternity, no
heaven, no hell. You may be very religious, but
you're a practical atheist. You care for nothing but the
things of this world. You care nothing for the things
of God, and I tremble for your soul. A man's life consisteth
not in the abundance of the things he possesseth, I fear that as you harden your hearts, your hearts will yet be hardened
more than the heart of Satan himself, for you neither believe
nor tremble. And unless you're awakened by
God's almighty grace, you're going to perish forever in hell.
That's fact. If you love this world, you're
going to die with this world. Will you hear me? Will you hear
me? If you love this world, you're
going to die with this world. Those who are far off from God,
secondly, may be described like this, especially you here. It may be that you have a form
of religion. but it's nothing but a form.
Nothing but a form. Oh, you may profess to be a Christian.
You may even regularly go to church on Sunday. You might even
go to church two or three times a week, but that's all there
is to your religion. Nothing else. Sin doesn't bother
you. It's no struggle to you. Righteousness
is of no importance to you. Your religion is all form. It's all words, nothing more.
You're satisfied with that. You don't want it to change.
You've convinced yourself that everything's well when nothing
is well. Your religion doesn't interfere
with your life. It doesn't affect your life and
you want to keep it that way. There's no heart in it. You don't
seek Christ. You have no zeal for Christ,
no concern for the will of God, the glory of God, and the cause
of God. Like the church described in
Revelation 3, you have a name that you live, but you're dead. Now I'm telling you, it doesn't matter what your religious
form and ceremony may be, It doesn't matter. It doesn't make
a bit of difference on this earth or in heaven above whether you
profess to be a Catholic and you're a devoted Catholic or
whether you profess to be a Baptist and you're a devoted Baptist.
It doesn't matter one bit on this earth whether you're a staunch
Calvinist or a staunch Arminian. It doesn't make a hill of beans
difference. If your religion is nothing but form and words
and ceremony No life, no heart. Your religion is worse than worthless. It's damning. It's damning. God speaks to you continually,
but you won't hear his voice. His daily mercy speaks to you,
but you pay no attention. His providential warning speaks.
You won't hear it. You won't hear it. You won't
do it. Go to the funeral home. Neighbor died. Young man, strong, healthy young
man, gone like that. Shed a few tears and think, well,
boy better get ready to die. You never know when it's coming.
And you walk out of the funeral home. and you forget that it
ever happened. You forget it. I'm sure Oscar,
some of you others, have watched cattle. When you kill them, they
used to slaughter cattle in West Virginia. We'd get several at
one time, slaughter them on Thanksgiving Day. You just take, shoot one
of those cattle, all the cattle look up and they're disturbed,
drag the cattle out of the field to go right back to eating the
grass. Doesn't bother them. They go right back to the earth
where their hearts are, and that's the way you are, who live afar
off from God. God speaks, he warns, what you
want to hear. He allows you to hear the gospel preached with
plainness and clarity, but you won't hear it. You won't pay
any attention. You won't hear what the Word of God has to say.
I warn you of death, judgment, and eternity, but you're not
concerned. I speak to you of wrath and judgment and eternal
damnation, but you're not moved. I tell you of the greatness and
the beauty and the glory and the grace of Christ, but your
heart's unaffected because you're dead. There seems to be no place in
your heart for Christ. A place for everything but him.
Isn't that amazing? Isn't that amazing? There's no room for anything
but business and pleasure and entertainment, the devil, sin,
the world. We've got plenty of room for
that, but no room for Christ. Like the end in Bethlehem so
long ago, there is no room in your heart and soul for the Son
of God. I fear for you. I fear for your
immortal soul. For what shall it profit a man
if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what
shall a man give in exchange for his soul? I may seem like
one who stands up here three times a week and walks, even
as Lot did to his son's-in-law. But I've got to warn you, my
heart's prayer and desire to God for you is that you might
be saved. I delight to see men and women
getting along well in the world. I'm thankful for that. I see
young couples getting married, Karl and Mark, I'm so happy for
you. I'm just tickled to death for
you. Barry and his wife sitting back there, got a young baby.
I'm tickled to death for you. I want the best for you. But
don't you let this world choke out the word of God. Don't you
do it. Some of you young people, you
watch your parents, you watch them. And gradually over the
years, the world, the care of the world, the deceitfulness
of riches has choked out the word of God. I've seen it. I've
lived long enough now, Merle, to see it many times over, many
times over. And I'm telling you, if you seek
this world, you may get it, but you'll perish with this world.
I'm telling you, if you love this world, God may give you
everything the world has to offer and kill you with the world.
Don't you do it. Don't you do it. Secondly, there's
another class here. Where art thou, God says. Some
of you are described over Mark chapter 12. Turn over there if
you will. Mark chapter 12. Some of you are near the kingdom
of God, but not yet in the kingdom. What do you mean, pastor? Well,
there was a fellow like this over here in Mark. One of the
scribes came to our Lord Jesus, and he was an interesting fellow. He came to the Lord and the Lord
asked him, said, which is the first commandment of all? And
that scribe responded properly. And then the Lord Jesus, hearing
his answer, when he saw that this man answered discreetly
in verse 34, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom
of God. Thou art not far from the kingdom
of God. There's some of you like that. Like Agrippa, you're almost persuaded
to be a Christian. You appear to be earnest and
sincere. You seem to truly have an interest
in your souls, an interest in Christ, an interest in the gospel.
You're not careless. You're not indifferent. You're
not hardened. You're not offended with gospel truth. My soul, if
you were, you wouldn't come hear me preach it. No matter how plainly
it's declared, you're not offended by it. You don't get upset when
you hear it preached, but your soul is at a deadlock. You don't choose the world, but
you won't choose Christ. Like Israel in the days of Elijah,
you're halting between two opinions. You would not be lost, but you
will not be saved. You would not deny Christ, but
you will not close with Christ. I fear and tremble for you, you
who are so near and yet so far away. I fear for you as much
as I do for those who are farthest off from God and totally ignorant
of the gospel. You see, you're like the Gibeonites.
The Gibeonites were with Israel, but they had no right to Israel's
inheritance. The Gibeonites walked along with
Israel. They were in the train with Israel.
They followed the caravan with Israel. They walked in Israel's
path. But they didn't have Israel's covenant. They didn't know Israel's
God. They didn't have possession with Israel's inheritance. They
had no lot nor part with them. You're bound to the company of
God's elect. You have some light, but you
have no saving knowledge. You have some feeling, but you
have no saving grace. You have some noble desires,
but no saving faith. You're not profane, you're not
vile, you're not wretched, you're not cursed by men, you're not
an off-scouring of society, but you're not a child of God. The
Lord describes you again, I think, over in Matthew chapter 25. Here's a good description. See, the Lord's given you the
precious talent of gospel truth and gospel knowledge. You hear
it. You hear it. I dare say there's not a man
or woman here who does not believe the gospel doctrine that I declare
to you. You know it so. The word of God speaks it plainly.
God's given you the talent. He's given you this precious
gift. What do you do with it? You take
it and tuck it away and hide it in the earth and do nothing
with it. Verse 25 of Matthew 25. Go back
up to verse 24. He which had received the one
talent came and the Lord said, and he said, Lord, I knew thee
that thou art a hard man reaping where thou hast not sown and
gathering where thou hast not strawed. And I was afraid and
I went and hid thy talent in the earth. Lo, there is that
that is thine. There thou hast that is thine,
verse 26. His Lord answered and said unto
him, you wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap
where I sow not and gather where I have not strawed. Thou oughtest
therefore to have put my money to the exchanges, at least put
it on the stock market, at least do something with it, put it
in the bank, let it draw a little interest. Then at my coming I
should have had received mine own with usury, but you despised
it. You didn't do anything with it.
You've heard the gospel and do nothing with it. You know it's
so, but you do nothing with it. You've heard the message of God's
grace, but you do nothing with it. Nothing with it. Therefore,
take the talent that is from him, and give it to him that
hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath
shall be given, and he shall have abundance. But from him
that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. and cast the unprofitable servant
into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing
of teeth. What does that mean? That means that man or that woman
who is favored of God in providence to hear the gospel faithfully
proclaimed to hear the gospel declared with clarity, who does
nothing with it, would be better off never to have been born.
Better that you should be born in the darkened tribes of Africa
than that you should be born to hear the gospel and not believe
it. Better that you should be raised
as an outright heathen and perish as a heathen than that you should
be raised under the sound of the gospel and perish within
the sight of the door of life, despising that door. That's what
it means. I tremble for you. I say to you,
choose you this day whom you will serve. The time may come
when the Lord God will come to you. like he did to that barren
fig tree. You remember it? God's planted
you in his vineyard. Here you sit. Here you sit. You're
hearing the message. Here you are. You're receiving
the labors of God's servants and of God's people. You receive
the benefit of their constant care. That's like that fig tree
planted in the Lord's vineyard in the parable. He came and saw
no fruit on it. He said to the gardener, he said,
what's that doing there? Why does it come to the ground?
What's it doing taking up space in my vineyard? It's useless.
Cut it down and burn it. It's a useless fig tree. And I'm like that gardener, I'm
praying, Lord, let it stand another year and I'll dung it and I'll
care for it and I'll water it. And then if it brings forth no
fruit, come cut it down. Come cut it down. Times come
for decision. I'm calling right now point blank
to you to make a point blank decision. Times come for you to decide,
will you or will you not serve the Lord Jesus Christ? If you
go on in your indecision, you're going to perish like the rich
young ruler. You read Mark chapter 10, and you'll see that rich
young ruler He wanted Christ. He wanted him. He wanted salvation. Yes, sir, he did. He wanted eternal
life. He was zealous and interested
enough in his soul that he came to the Lord Jesus, risking his
reputation, his family, and his friends by talking to him. He
came to him. He wanted all these things. And
there was no lack of compassion in the Lord. Scripture tells
us when he went away, the Lord Jesus loved him. had compassion
upon him. But that rich young ruler perished
for one reason. He wanted his riches more than
he wanted Christ. Is that right, Lindsay? That's
it. He refused to bow to the rule of Christ. That's all. That's
all. Folks say, well, believe on Jesus
and you'll Be saved, yes sir, that's true if you truly believe
on him. But I'm telling you that faith in Christ is something
more than saying I believe in little Jesus. Yes sir, faith
in Christ is submission, surrender of the heart to the claims of
the sovereign Lord. Will you or will you not surrender
to the Lord Jesus Christ right now? That's the issue. Wishes and good desires, good
feelings, convictions and emotions are all good in their place,
but they'll not save. In the springtime, it's encouraging
to see the buds and the flowers on the trees, but you can't eat
the buds, you can't eat the flowers. Unless that tree brings forth
ripe fruit, it's of uselessness to us. It's of no value to us.
The wayside hearers in the parable listened. They heard that the
Word of God didn't take any root in them. The stony ground hearers
listened and received the Word with joy. Boy, that's it! The Word sprung up quickly, but
it had no depth of earth, and they perished. They were not
saved. The thorny ground hearers brought
forth something like fruit. They endured for a while, but
the Word of God was choked out by the world, and they were not
saved. Only those who receive the word into good ground, into
a broken believing heart, bring forth fruit and are saved. So a pastor, I have many things
that encourage me. I hear the word of God and tremble.
So did Felix, but he died. But I enjoy hearing good sermons. So did Herod, but he was lost.
But Pastor, when I die, I want to die the death of the righteous.
So did Balaam, but he died the death of the wicked. I say that if you go on in your
unbelief and your persistent rebellion, if you go on in your
indecision, if you go on denying Christ, refusing to close with
the Son of God, you're going to perish just like these did.
of a preacher. I know the truth. I believe everything
you preach. So did Judas Iscariot, but he
perished. He perished. The issue is not
what you believe or what you experience. The issue is who
you believe, who you worship, who you know. But there are some of you in
a far worse condition than these who are halting between two opinions. Some of you here, forgive me
if I speak plainly, I'm concerned for your soul. Some of you here
were once thought to be pillars in the house of God. And now you're only occasional
visitors, just occasional visitors. You once seemed to value the
gospel. Now you get weary of it. You once seemed to love the sweet
sound of Christ and him crucified. Now it's boring to you. You once cherished the word. Now it lays on your coffee table
and gathers dust. Till you get ready to go to church,
when you put on your Sunday sport coach, put on your Sunday Bible
and go to church. Used to read the word, study
it, meditate in it, delight in it. Now it lays on the dashboard
of your car and rots in the sun. Huh? You know if I'm speaking
to you, you know if I'm speaking to you. You began well, and you ran well. But you're like Lot's wife. She
looked back. You know why she looked back,
Wes? That's where her heart was. She looked back to the place
where she left her heart, and she perished with that place. And I'm telling you that you
who have begun to go back to this world will perish with this world unless
God stops you in your way and you turn now and return to him. Oh, there's mercy even for you,
mercy even for you. He says, return unto me, return
unto me and I'll have mercy upon you. The Lord God declares, seek
you the Lord while it may be found. Call you upon him while
he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way
in the unrighteous man, his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord.
And he will have mercy upon him and to our God, for he will abundantly
pardon. Oh, you still keep up a form
of religion. But there's no heart in it. I don't doubt you had a tremendous
experience, tremendous profession. But your religion's like the
fig leaf aprons that Adam made in the garden. The only purpose
is to hide from God, that's all. And some of you here use religion
for that purpose. You're hiding from God. You're
trying your best to stifle your conscience. You're trying your
best not to hear anything that's said that might prick your heart.
I hope God will enable you to hear what I'm saying so that
it sticks you right in the heart." I said, well, somebody sure told
the preacher about me. I hope somebody told me about
you. I hope God told me about you. One of the most amazing awful,
sobering, serious things in all the Word of God is this fact.
Men and women can go a very great way in religious
profession, in religious knowledge, and in religious experience,
and yet be lost at last. Where art thou? God, don't let
me be numbered among such men. Don't let me perish standing
at the door of the kingdom of God. You know Judas Iscariot? You talk about familiarity. Judas
Iscariot walked up to the Son of God. There he is, the door
of life. He knew what it looked like,
he knew where it was, and he had the hinges turned. There
he is. He walked up and kissed the door
and went to hell. God, don't let it happen to me.
And don't let it happen to you. Quit playing games with God,
my friend. Quit playing games with God. Don't do it. Don't
be so foolish. Don't be so foolish. There's a third group. I'll be
brief here. Perhaps you less need my words
than the others. Some of you, by the grace of
God, are in Christ. Some of you are. You're in Christ
like the branches are in the vine. You're in Christ like the
limb is in the tree. You're in Christ like the tree
is in the earth. You're in Christ like the cornerstone,
the foundation stone is in the building. You're in Christ like
the member is in the body. I mean, you're in Christ by a
vital union of living faith. Somebody asked me one time, Don,
what on earth do you mean when you say a vital union? Something's
vital when you can't live without it. That's what I mean. Something's
vital when it's essential to life. Something's vital when
it's necessary, not for your well-being, but for your being. If you're in Christ Jesus by
the grace of God, by God's eternal purpose, God's regenerating grace,
by God's almighty call, if God has made you to be in Christ
Jesus, then you have a vital union of faith, a living union
with Him. You can't live without Him. You've
got to have Him. Is this the state, condition
of your soul? Is Christ so vital and precious
to you that you can't live without him? Is Christ the one thing
you must have? Do you live with him, upon him,
by him, and for him? That's the vital union I'm speaking
of. Christ's blood, his cross, his intercession, his righteousness,
his grace, his glory, his greatness, his being. These are the things
you delight to think about and delight to hear. While you live,
your chief desire is to live unto the Lord, and when you come
to die, your only desire is to die with the Lord. And after
death, your only hope is to be with Him forever. Do you trust
Christ? Do you love Christ? Is your heart
committed to Christ? If your heart is truly seeking
Him, you're in Him. You're in Him. If you truly in
your heart believe Him, you're in Him. If truly in your heart
you love Him, you're in Him. If truly you bow to Him, you're
in Him. And God Almighty has put you
there. God's put you there. If you're in Christ Jesus, let
me give you a few words of comfort and assurance from the Scriptures.
I'll send you home. I know this, we're living in
a world full of trials, troubles, and heartaches. We're yet in
the wilderness. We haven't yet reached our home.
Sin still strives for dominion. Satan still seeks to be our master. The world still allures us and
charms us. We still struggle with pride,
unbelief, and carnal passion. Constant fighting's without,
constant fear's within. Our evil hearts are treacherous
and deceitful. Oh, the deceit and the treachery
of my wicked heart. But I have this word of comfort,
this word of assurance. notwithstanding all these things. I'm here to tell you that if
you're in Christ Jesus, you shall never perish. Never. You see, God who has begun a
good work in you will never allow his work to be defeated or overthrown. The triune God who has made for
you an everlasting covenant ordered in all things and sure will be
faithful to his covenant. You have a Savior who's able
to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him. His blood
will never lose its power. His righteousness will never
fail to make you acceptable and well-pleasing in God's sight.
His grace will not fail to preserve you, protect you, and provide
for you. Nothing in heaven, earth, or hell shall ever be able to
separate you from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus our
Lord. These things are matters of assurance, confidence, If
God be for us, who can be against us? There is no condemnation
to them that are in Christ Jesus, not now, not tomorrow, not ever.
Christ Jesus is ours and we're his and we have nothing to fear,
nothing to fear. I would also say to you, if you're
in Christ Jesus, grow. Grow in the grace and knowledge
of the Lord Jesus Christ. I want that for you. I want that
for myself. Oh, you'll never improve your
standing before God. I hope you're not so ignorant
as to imagine that. But grow, grow in grace and in
the knowledge of Christ. Grow in likeness to Him. I mean
simply, ever seek an increasing knowledge of Christ. How little
we know Him. How little we, if we knew him
better, we'd love him better. How little we know him. No wonder
Paul said, oh, that I may know him, that I may know him. The
knowledge of Christ is the surest way I know to keep control of
your heart and your passions in this world. If you'd grow in grace, Seek
a clearer knowledge of your own heart as well. Oh, may God teach
us to know the wickedness, the deceit, and the treachery of
our hearts. Don't ever put confidence in your heart. Don't trust your
heart's feelings, your heart's experiences, or your heart's
assurances. Trust this book and God's Son
who's fulfilled this book. If you would grow in grace and
in the knowledge of Christ, seek to be like Christ. Looking in myself and looking
around me, I see many things, but I see many things lacking.
And I'll tell you what I see lacking more than anything else.
We don't lack truth. We got that. I don't have any
question about that. We got truth. God's taught us
the gospel. We don't lack proper ordinances. We got that. What we lack above
anything else is likeness to Christ. That commitment of his heart.
his humility before God and his boldness before men, his faithfulness and his gentleness,
his kindness and his love. Oh, God, make us like Christ. That we may walk before you.
For the glory of Christ and the good of your people, for Christ's
sake, amen.