I've entitled this message, Calling
on the Everlasting God. And I believe somebody's going
to do that this morning, maybe for the first time. Wouldn't
that be a blessing? Verse 33, and Abraham planted
a grove. in Beersheba, the well of the
sevenfold oath, we considered that last week. There's only
one place that life grows, and that's in the oath of God, the
covenant of God. And he did what he had done some
40 years before when God first spoke to him. He called upon
the name of the Lord. And here is the first time we
read of this description of God. The everlasting God. First time in the Bible we read
of this. The everlasting God. God. Now, the scripture says the invisible
things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen. Even his eternal power and Godhead. Now, everybody in this room and
everybody outside of this room is born into this world knowing
that somebody created the earth and the universe. You're born
with that knowledge. Now, I realize that men through
sin put that out of their mind, but everyone is born knowing
that somebody made this world and nobody made him. That's intuitive knowledge. It
makes sense. It's logical. Anything else is
irrational. Anything else just didn't make
sense. It makes sense. But everyone is known, born into
this world, knowing that God is eternal. He never began to
be. There was never a point in which
He began to exist. He's always been. Now somebody says, that's deep.
Well, I won't deny that, but it's so. It's just so. This is who God is. He is everlasting. Now, would you turn with me for
a moment to Exodus chapter three? This is when God made himself
savingly known to Moses. Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro,
his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. You remember he had
fled from Egypt and he'd been in this desert for 40 years as
a shepherd. And Moses kept the flock of Jethro,
his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock
to the backside of the desert and came to the mountain of God,
even to Horeb, and the angel of the Lord, That's the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's not a created angel. The
angel of the Lord, the Lord's messenger appeared unto him in
a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. And he looked and
behold, the bush burned with fire. And the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I'll now turn
aside and see this great site. Why the bush is not burnt now,
this simple yet glorious picture of who Jesus Christ is, is seen
in this burning bush. Now, the first thing that I would
notice about this burning bush. is it did not need the wood to
keep burning. It continued burning. It did
not need the energy of that wood to keep the flame going. It could go on forever. Now what that lets us know is
that Jesus Christ is eternal God. He has no needs. He is independent. Now you think of how dependent
you and I are. I can't even express it enough.
But Jesus Christ is utterly independent. He has no needs. He needs nothing
outside of himself. Like that fire didn't need the
energy of that wood to continue burning. Jesus Christ is independent
God. The next thing that I would notice
about this bush is it could not be consumed. Jesus Christ in his perfect humanity
could not be consumed by the wrath of God. He consumed the
wrath so that it was all gone. Now what a glorious picture we
have of Jesus Christ, the independent God, perfect humanity, which
cannot be consumed. Now, Verse 13 of the same chapter. Well, let's begin in verse 11. And Moses said unto God, who
am I that I should go into Pharaoh and that I should bring forth
the children of Israel out of Egypt? What qualifications have
I for something like that? And he said, certainly I'll be
with thee. What other qualification is needed?
I'll be with thee, and this shall be a token unto thee, when I
have sent you, when you brought forth the people out of Egypt,
you shall serve God upon this mountain that you're standing
on. And Moses said unto God, behold, when I come unto the
children of Israel, and shall say unto them, the God of your
fathers has sent me unto you, and they shall say to me, what's
his name? What shall I say unto them? And
God said unto Moses, I am that I am. He never was, and he never will
be. This speaks of his eternal self-existent
substance. I am that I am. Not a was, not a will be. I am, this is speaking of God's
eternal isness, the isness of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am,
that I am, this is Christ speaking from the bush. I am, that I am,
and he said, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel,
I am has sent me unto you. And God said, moreover unto Moses,
thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, the Lord
God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
the God of Jacob has sent me unto you. This is my name for
how long forever. This is his everlasting name. And this is my Memorial unto
all generations. The isness, and I'm not even
really sure if that's a word. I don't know if you could look
that up in the dictionary and there'd be the word isness. I'm not sure.
But the eternal isness of the Lord Jesus Christ. He never was, He never will be. He eternally is. This is His eternal name. The one who inhabits eternity
dwells in the eternal present. There's no yesterday with him. There's no tomorrow with him. Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus
Christ, the same. He is eternal God. From everlasting
to everlasting, he dwells in his isness. I am that I am. Now you can't say that of any
creature. You can't say that of any mere
man born of woman. You think of how much you've
changed in so many different ways over these years of time,
but that could never be said of Christ. You know, everything that can
be said of God, the father is said of God, the son. God, the father said to God,
the son, thy throne. Oh, God is forever. Thou art the same, and thy years
shall not fail. Unto us a child is born, and
that happened some two thousand years ago, but the Son is not
born. He's given. He never came into being. He
is eternal God. I love when I guess I loved when
Philip said, show us the father and we'll be satisfied. And you
know, really, that was a very dull question on his part. He's
looking at the father. He didn't know it. Show us the
father and we'll be satisfied. And Lord said, have I been so
long time with you and yet hast thou not known me? He that hath seen me hath seen
the father. With regard to Jesus Christ,
whatever he is, he always was and whatever he is, he always
will be being eternal. He is necessarily immutable. What's that word mean? It means
he can't change. He is incapable of change. I am the Lord, I change not. Now, He's not bound by time the
way we are. We live in time, don't we? You
remember yesterday, a little bit of it anyway. You're in the
present right now and you have no idea what's gonna happen five
seconds from now, or a minute from now, or tomorrow. We're
called upon, boast not thyself of tomorrow for thou knowest
not what a day may bring forth. We're in the present, but we're
entrapped in time. He's eternal. There is no yesterday
for him. There is no tomorrow for him. He's not bound by time. He's
not bound by space the way we are. I can't be two places at
once. He is because he is omnipresent. You cannot go anywhere where
He is not. You know, I've heard people say,
I've even heard preachers say, hell is the complete absence
of God. No, it's not. No, it's not. He is everywhere. He doesn't have any limitations,
except if you would call this a limitation, the limitation
of His attributes. What do I mean by that? Well,
he cannot lie. I don't know whether I'd call
that a limitation, but he cannot lie. He cannot change. He cannot be unjust. He cannot
not be good. He cannot not be what he is. Now in that sense, I suppose
if you want to call that a limitation, you can call it that, but that's
no limitation. This is who he is. He has no limitations of power. He's omnipotent. Whatsoever the
Lord pleased, that did He. He has no limitations of knowledge
because He knows everything. He's omniscient. He has no limitations
of needs because He's independent. He has no limitations of decisiveness
because He doeth according to His will all the time. He is such that he never worries
and he never responds to anything. That's all we do. Not him. He never responds. Listen to
this scripture from Isaiah chapter 46, verses 9 to 11. Remember
the former things of old, and that's talking about eternity.
Well, how can I remember eternity? Well, you can't as far as you
weren't there consciously, but you know that God is eternal. Remember the former things of
old, for I am God and there's none like me. Amen? Nobody like Him. Declaring the end from the beginning. And from ancient times, the things
that are not yet done saying my counsel shall stand and I
will do all my pleasure. Now, listen to this. This is
important. I know maybe you've heard this before, but maybe
you'll hear it for the first time. God doesn't do something
because it's right. It's right because He does it. That's all that is needed. He has no standard over His head
that He has to live up to. He's God. And whatever He does
is right. And it is right because He does
it. Thy throne, O God, is forever. It said of Christ, thou art a
priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Remember what
it said of Melchizedek? He had no beginning of days nor
end of life. He didn't have a mom and dad
the way you and I do. He abideth a priest of God continually,
an eternal Priesthood his name shall endure forever. His salvation
is called an everlasting salvation He is said to be the lamb slain
from the foundation of the world God says because of him behold,
I've loved you With an everlasting love a Love that had no starting
point A love that had no beginning and will certainly never end. He chose us before the foundation
of the world. He saved us and called us with
a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to
His own purpose and grace, which were given us in Christ Jesus
before the world began. While on Judgment Day, He's going
to say to His people, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit
the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. He is the everlasting God. We read in the pages of the New
Testament of eternal judgment. Eternal judgment. We read of
eternal redemption. We read of eternal salvation. We read of eternal inheritance. We read of the eternal gospel. Now, the name Abraham called
was the name of the everlasting God. Eternal, and if you call
upon God, you're calling upon him who is eternal, everlasting,
with no limitations. Moses said in Psalm 90, before
the mountains were brought forth or ever thou had formed the earth
and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God,
a thousand years, but as yesterday when it's passed and as a watch
in the night. The writer of the Hebrews said
all the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
Now somebody says, this is just high theology. No, it's not.
It's who God is. Don't make it that way. This
is who God is. And anybody who knows God knows
he's everlasting. Anybody who preaches the gospel
knows that salvation was accomplished before the foundation of the
world. And that lets us know how little
our works have to do with it. Nothing. for the children being
not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the
purpose of God according to election might stand not of works, but
of him that calleth. The preacher said in Ecclesiastes
3.14, I know that whatsoever God doeth, and in salvation what
God doeth, Come on now, is salvation what God does or do you put your
fingerprint on it? Well, if you're saved, you know
it's what God did. You know that. I mean, no one
has to argue you into that. That's your experience. I know
that whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever. Nothing can be put to it. You
can't add anything to what he has done. And I like this just
as much, nothing be taken from it. What that means is there's
nothing I can do to mess it up. There's nothing I can do to mar
his glorious salvation. Now there's only one proper response, worship. This is who he is. Now, what
I want us to, spend the remainder of our time on is this thing
of calling upon the name of the everlasting God. Calling upon his name. Now, when
the Lord first appeared to Abraham in Genesis 12, you know what
he did? He built him an altar. He knew there's no approach of
this God apart from the sacrifice of Christ. No way I can come
into his presence apart from the blood of Jesus Christ. He
understood that. And he called upon his name right when God
revealed himself to him. That's what he did. And now this
is 40 years later and he's doing the same thing. He's calling
upon the name of the everlasting God. Now would you turn with
me to Romans chapter 10. I was thinking about this passage
of scripture. I ought not go very long without
preaching on this passage of scripture. Romans chapter 10. Verse 13. We're given this glorious
promise for whosoever. Whosoever. Are you a whosoever? You are a whosoever. It doesn't
say if the elect call on his name. It doesn't say if those
who believe call on his name. I'm so thankful for the word
of God, the way it states it, everything. Whosoever. I'm a
whosoever. I fall into that demographic.
This is a go-to verse for me. Whosoever. Whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord, just like Abraham did. shall be saved. Now I'm interested in that, aren't
you? I want to be saved. I want the Lord to save me. Well,
it says here, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved. Now let's see what led Paul to
making this statement. He says in verse one of chapter
10, brethren, my heart's desire And prayer
to God for Israel is that they might be saved. Now there's two things I want
to point out about that verse. Whatever being saved means these
people were not saved. These people he's praying for,
he's praying that they might be saved. They were not. saved. But Paul wanted them to
be saved. He said, my heart's desire and
my prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved. Now
listen, listen to me. I'm not interested in getting
you to believe the same way I do. That's not what I'm interested
in. I'm not interested in getting you in the accurate doctrinal
position. I'm not interested in any of
that. Number one, I wanna be saved.
Number two, I want you to be saved. Salvation is of the Lord. Now, this is what I'm interested
in. I'm interested in you being saved. Now, let's go on reading. He says regarding these people
who were not saved, that he wanted to be saved. He said, I bear
them record that they have a zeal of God. These people are not
atheists. These people are not irreligious. They have a zeal for God, but
not according to knowledge. Now I'm not saved by my knowledge, but I'm not saved apart from
knowledge. If God has saved you, if God
has saved me, there is something we will know. Salvation is called coming to
the knowledge of the truth. Paul talked about those who were
ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the
truth. Paul said in Titus 1.1, the faith
of God's elect is the acknowledging of the truth, which is after
godliness. Now, write this down. You're
not saved by what you know. You're saved by Christ. You know
that. You know that, don't you? That's
saving knowledge. But let's go on reading. Here's
what they were ignorant of. And it says that not according
to knowledge. Here's what they were ignorant of for they being
ignorant of God's righteousness. Saving knowledge. is a knowledge
of God's righteousness. Several things that means that
cannot be separated. You know something of his righteous
character, and his righteous character is expressed in his
righteous law. You see, when you see God's righteousness,
You see his law is so righteous that you can't keep it. If you
think you can keep it, you're still ignorant of God's righteousness.
You're clueless. You're clueless. There's an ignorance
in an unsaved person in God's utter righteousness in sending
them to hell. If God gives you and me what
we deserve right now, he will send us to hell. And you know
what? Nobody's gonna charge him with
injustice. This is a sobering thing to think
about, that if God would send me to hell, I guess the last
thing I would heard outside of hell is all of creation clapping
hands, saying he's getting exactly what he deserves. God's righteous
in my condemnation and your condemnation. But oh, his righteousness in
my salvation. My sin put away his righteousness
given to me where the very righteousness of God demands my salvation. Now they're ignorant of God's
righteousness and here's what proves it. They go about to establish
their own righteousness. Now, if I do this, God will save
me. If I stop doing that, God will save me. If I start believing
this, God will save me. Now, what that is doing is trying
to obligate God. Here, I've done this, now you
do that. Doesn't work. Doesn't work, he's God. You're
not gonna be able to manipulate him. You're not gonna be able
to Force him to respond to something you've done. He's God, whatever
he does is right. Don't sit in judgment of him.
Don't say, well, I don't agree with that. Well, it's true whether
you agree with it or not, but you're in trouble when you stand
in judgment of God. God's God, you're nothing. Amen? God's God,
you're nothing. But sin, you are sin. They've not submitted themselves
under the righteousness of God, either his character, his law,
his damnation or salvation. For Christ is the end. Christ is the aim. Christ is
the termination of the law for righteousness. Now, please hear
this. If you are righteous before God,
it will be because Jesus Christ is your personal righteousness
before God. Christ is the end of the law,
the goal of the law, the purpose of the law. You know what the
law shows me? That I can't keep it. All it does is condemn me. All
it does is expose me. We ought to try to keep the law.
I won't get it. I won't get it. You got to keep
it. Keep it. Well, I try to keep it. Baloney. You sure have failed in your
efforts at it, and I have too. Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Now, don't Miss that to everyone
that believeth. And he's going to go on to talk
about that now. Let's, let's go on reading. Four, Moses describeth the righteousness,
which is of the law that the man, which do with those things
shall live by them. Now here's what the righteousness
of the law requires. Perfect continual obedience. Every second of every day. That's the righteousness the
law requires. Somebody says, well, God's too
strict. No, you're just too sinful. I'm just too sinful. That's the
problem. Problem's not with the law of God. Problem's with me
and you. But, verse six, the righteousness, which is a faith. Beloved, there's a righteousness.
that has nothing to do with your obedience to the law. It's called
the righteousness of faith. The righteousness which is of
faith speaketh on this wise, say not in your heart, who shall
ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above. The righteousness of faith says,
don't say, what can I do? To get Christ to respond to me. You know, all that is, is another
form of salvation by works. That's all it is. What can I
do to get Christ to look down and respond to me? Don't say that. Quit thinking
that way. Those are wrong thoughts of God. Or, verse seven, who shall descend
into the deep, that is to bring up Christ again from the dead.
Don't say, what can I do to make what he did work for me? Isn't
that the message of false religion? What can I do to make what he
did work for me? You can't do anything to make
what he did work for you. Verse eight, but what sayeth
it? What sayeth this righteousness
which is of faith? Let me say this, the word is
90. You don't got to go on a long
journey to find this word. It's so close. Right now, I'm
saying this to everybody here, I'm saying this to you young
people, it's real close, it's real near. How near? The word
is nigh thee, even in thy heart, thy mouth, and in thy heart,
that is the word of faith which we preach, that if thou shalt
confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus. Now, what does this word
confess mean? It means to agree with God. It means to speak the same thing. That's literally what the word
means, to speak the same thing. When we talk about a confession
of faith, that means everybody who has this faith says the same
thing. There's no difference. You know, someone says we all
believe, we just believe different. No, no, no, no, no, no. If you
believe, you believe the same thing God does. You are in agreement
with God. You're in agreement with every
believer. We confess with the mouth, the Lord Jesus. Now here's what this confession,
this is what this agreement is. He's the Lord. He's the Lord. You know what
that means? That means He's your Lord. That
means He's everybody's Lord. He's the Lord of creation. He
spake the world into existence. He's the Lord of providence.
Everything that happens, He's the cause of. Everything. He's the Lord of salvation. That means if you're saved, it's
because He willed your salvation because He's the Lord. You agree
with that? All of God's people do. He's
Jesus. Thou shalt call His name Jesus
for He shall save His people from their sins. You know what? It's true whether I agree with
it or not, but I agree with that. Don't you? I confess that that's,
that's my gospel. And shall believe verse nine
in my heart that God has raised him from the dead. I believe in my heart that God
raised him from the dead. Now that word heart means the
whole man. I believe it intellectually. Not only do I believe it intellectually,
I'm thankful from my heart. This is the way I want it with
my will. God raised him from the dead
and I know why God raised him from the dead. God was completely
satisfied with what he did. That's why raising from the dead.
The only way your conscience is ever going to feel clear is
by the resurrection of Christ from the dead. Somebody says,
I've got a clear conscience about this. You're a liar. Nobody believes
that. Nobody, I don't. Anytime you
hear me say, well, I've got a good conscience about that, I'm lying.
The only thing that gives a believer a clear conscience, a good conscience,
a satisfied conscience, is the resurrection of Christ from the
dead. God is satisfied with what he
did. Now look what it says. If thou
shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe
in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou,
thou, you, me, shalt be saved. For with the heart, now I need to say this, how many
times have you wondered whether you believe in your head but
don't believe with your heart? You ever wondered that? Do I
believe in my head but I don't really believe with my heart?
Well, let me remind you what the heart is. The heart is not
some kind of ethereal, ooey-gooey. The heart is your understanding,
your affections, and your will. That's what the heart is. With
my understanding, I understand that Jesus Christ is the only
righteousness I have. I love my affection. I love that Jesus Christ is the
only righteousness I have. I wouldn't want it to be any
other way. With my will, this is all I want, is that with the
heart man believeth unto righteousness. And what you believe in your
heart, you will confess with your mouth. With the mouth, confession
is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever
believeth on him shall what? shall not be ashamed. Now, I think it's interesting.
I read 16 different English versions of that verse. Five of them say,
whosoever believeth will not be ashamed. 10 of them say, whosoever
believeth shall not be put to shame. Both are true. Whosoever believeth shall not
be ashamed. Whosoever believeth shall not be put to shame. And
one translation covers both of them. Whosoever believeth shall
not be disappointed. Four, verse 12. There is no difference
between the Jew and the Greek. Now listen to this. There ain't
no difference between me and you. Ain't no difference. There's no difference, all have
sinned and come short of the glory of God. You take the smartest
person and the dumbest person, no difference. You take the most
moral person and the most immoral person in the sight of God, there's
no difference. There's such a vast difference
between the everlasting one and us. There's just no difference
between us. For there's no difference between
the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich unto
all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. Whosoever, are you one
of them? Whosoever shall call, help. Help me, Lord. Save me. Shall call on the name of the
Lord. That's who He is. Not just any
old idol named Jesus, but the name of the Lord, the everlasting
God, the immutable one. You know what I call upon His
name? What I'm saying is, Lord, save me as an act of your sovereignty. Give commandment concerning my
salvation. Save me by your justice. Save me by your holiness. Save me by who you are. Save me by your power. Save me
by your wisdom. You're called upon the Lord to
save you. You're saying, I can't save myself. Save me. By your grace, save me by your
mercy. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved. Now, if I call on the name of
the Lord, you know what that means? I shall be saved. I am saved. In the mind and purpose of God,
I've always been saved. In the eternal counsel and purpose
of God. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved. Now let me give you another scripture
that says the same thing. The Philippian jailer, he comes in after seeing God
open up the jails, serves, he says to Paul and Silas, what
must I do? to be saved. Now this question
is important. He didn't say, what must I do
to save myself? He said, what must I do to be saved? And we're given a command. Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Now listen to me. God commands
you to believe. Somebody says, well, what if
I'm not elect? What if I'm, well, I don't know the Christ died
for me. How do I? God command you right now, where
you are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. And your right
comes with his commandment. That's where your right comes
from. He commands you to believe. And you know what? You ought
to believe the truth, shouldn't you? You ought to believe the
truth. Believe on the Lord, the one
whose will is always done, Jesus the Savior, the Christ, God's
prophet, God's priest, God's king. Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ and thou shalt be saved. May God give everybody in this
room the grace to call upon the name of the Lord, the everlasting
God. Let's pray. Lord, how glorious you are. We ask in Christ's name that every man, woman, and boy
and girl in this room, even now, would call upon your name in saving faith. How we thank
you for the gospel of thy son. In his name we pray, amen.