Chapter 2. Paul says in verse 15 of 2 Thessalonians
2, therefore brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions
which you've been taught, whether by word or our epistle. Why would
he say at this point, stand fast and hold the traditions? Because
he's just given them some frightening news. Look back up in the first
part of the chapter. He says, Now we beseech you,
brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our
gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in
mind, or be troubled. So again, he's talking about
things that are troubling. Neither by letter, or by spirit,
or by word, or by letter from us, as that the day of Christ
is at hand. and let no man deceive you by
any means, for that day shall not come except there come first
a falling away, and that the man of sin be revealed, the son
of perdition." So he's telling them right now that some frightening
news to the church. He's saying that first you're
going to see a falling away, and you have to wonder if you're
one of those people you have to think, I wonder, is it going
to be me? And so he's saying, stand fast, hold to the traditions
which I've taught you. The falling away is the following
a different way of salvation, a different message altogether,
or even an altering of what they have been told. But it's still,
whether a gross departure from what they had known or whether
it's a minor departure, it's still a falling away. And secondly,
he says that the man of sin be revealed. So who is this man
of sin? This is referring to Antichrist. Let's keep reading here in verse
4. He says, referring to Antichrist, who opposeth and exalteth himself
above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that
he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that
he is God. Remember ye not that when I was
with you, I told you these things." So, this Antichrist, we don't
know much about Antichrist other than it could be a man, it could
be many men, it could be a nation, and it could be a spirit of error.
It doesn't matter. What it is is opposed to God
and His Christ. And it says that he seeks to
appear like God, that he seeks to appear as God. Now, this could
be referring also to today's religion, because the gospel
that we believe and that we preach is opposed to what all other
religions preach and say away how man is saved, and that's
salvation by works, whether it's Christian religion, whether it's
Muslim religion, or whether it's, you know, one of the Eastern
religions. They're all some form of, if you do this, if you do
these good things, then you'll be rewarded and go to heaven.
And so, this would be anti-Christ, so you could look at it that
way. So, if you look just at Eve's experience with this, man
sought to be like God in the garden. How much convincing did
it take for when Satan spoke to Eve and said, you know, the
fruit's good, did God not say that you could eat of any tree
of the garden? It didn't take much. All it took was just a
little bit in her and she went after it. So we sought to be
like God, to gain this knowledge, to understand good and evil.
And it could also be looked at as man is his own Savior. That's
what most Christian religion preaches today, that you choose
to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. You choose to
believe. I was explaining just to a man
that I worked with the other day that he had asked me generally
what we believed, and I was trying to explain to him what the gospel
was. There was nothing that I said that he disagreed with. I'm sure
he said much of it he had not heard before, but he didn't disagree
with it because clearly the Bible teaches those things. But in
the end, he had to twist it in the end to put his own little
twist on salvation, but saying, but you have to choose to believe.
That's your part. And so this is man's, whether
it's a big part or a little part, even just the simple act of choosing
to believe all those things that are true. This is man's hand
and works in salvation. And so, if you'll pick back up
and read in verse 5, Paul says, Remember not when I was with
you that I told you these things, and now you know what withholdeth
that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of
iniquity doth already work, only he who now letteth will let until
he be taken out of the way. And then shall that wicked be
revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his
mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all
power and signs and lying wonders." So this working of Satan giving
the power to this Antichrist, whatever the Antichrist is, this
is all for the purpose of robbing God of His glory. Satan hates
God, and Satan hates what God's glory is, and so in doing that,
that's Satan's work against God and His glory, to try to rob
Him of His glory. So all these things, whether
it's adding or removing from the gospel, this is the work
of what Satan is called the adversary. He is our adversary. and this
is fueled and perpetuated by him. So, and often he's at work
and we never really even perceive it. And this is the frightening
thing, I think, in reading this is if it's just a red devil with
a pitchfork yelling, you know, it looks evil and looks bad,
yeah, you're going to stay away. You don't want to be near something
like that, but Satan comes in forms and in powers and that
we don't even realize or perceive, and that's the frightening part
of it, and I don't want to be deceived. And so that's why Paul's
telling the church this, but he says, but now, in verse 10,
and with all deceivableness and unrighteousness in them that
perish, why? Because they receive not the
love of the truth, that they might be saved. And this is my
subject and my fear tonight. Receiving not the love of the
truth, which would seem to give the implication that you can
receive the truth and not be saved. So what does that mean?
What is receiving the love of the truth mean? So, the points
that I have tonight, I have three questions I want to answer. First
is, what is the truth? In order to receive the truth
or receive the love of the truth, I have to know first, what is
the truth? Then secondly, what is it to receive the truth? And
lastly, what is it to receive the love of the truth? So, the
last one is given as the reason why those who perished did not
were not saved because they didn't receive the love of the truth.
So what is the truth? Well, first, the truth is not
subjective. It has many facets when you look
at it. You know, if you look at me standing
here, you see me from the front and you say, well, that's Andy.
But if you're standing behind me, you see a different view
of me. Now, it's still me, it's just a different view of me.
And so no matter how you look at me, I'm still me. That doesn't
change. You're just seeing a different
side of it. And such is the truth. We see the truth is all in agreement. There's no one part says this
that disagrees with this. It all has to agree or it's not
the truth. And that's how you see a counterfeit
is if something appears to say one thing here, but is it the
opposite over here, then we can't say, well, that's the truth.
The Lord said, if a house be divided against itself, that
house cannot stand. So this can be applied towards
the truth in that if there's opposition for the grounds for
the truth, then those things can't be. So what is the truth
and can we really know it? Can we know it through this book,
this physical book we have here? There's many versions of this
book. Some say one thing, some say
something a little different, but are they all saying the same
thing? At this point, man becomes the judge. He says it's not the
original and starts to question this book and brings doubt into
question. And are we doubting what the
scriptures are? So at this point man has to decide what God has
willed, what God has done, and what God can or can't do, because
he has to decide whether it's true or not. If this is so, where
we have to do this, then we probably should just go ahead and leave
now, because nobody can be saved. If it's up to what you think,
what I think, what this person over here thinks, we're never
going to be in agreement. So you're going to have many truths
that don't all say the same thing. The truth is the truth, and it
stands as the truth. This is God's Word. That is,
and it's our responsibility to read it, to know it, to study
it, but most importantly, to believe it. Not just to verify
it because I say it's true, therefore then I will believe it. Our responsibility
first is to believe it, and then those other things come. His
word is His record of Himself. And that's what's amazing about
this. We pick this book up each week and we read things, but
when you pick it up, you realize this is actually God revealing
Himself to men, inspiring them to write. This is who He is,
this book. His word is His record. Every
word of God is pure. Let God be true, and every man
a liar." So if I find fault with this, let me be the liar, not
the book. This is God's true word. The
scriptures are our only authority and grounds for belief of anything.
If they are true, then what do they say? What is the truth that
is in this book? If you will, turn with me over
to John chapter 1. In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was
in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him,
and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was
life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth
in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. Now go over
in verse 15. John bare witness of him, the
same one we read about this light and the word. This was he of
whom I spake. He that cometh after me is preferred
before me, for he was before me. And of his fullness have
we all received. And grace for grace, for the
law was given by Moses. But grace and truth, that's the
question we're trying to answer here tonight. Grace and truth
came by Jesus Christ. So, we read here that the Word
was with God in the beginning, the Word was God, and that grace
and truth came by Jesus Christ. Well, what truth did He give
unto us? What truth did Jesus Christ give unto us in this Word,
because He is the Word? He says, Search the Scriptures,
for in them you think you have eternal life, but they are they
which testify of Me. So what He's saying is, not only
is He the Word, but this Word testifies of Him and who He is. And so looking at that in light
of it, if He is the Word, and the Word testifies Him, and the
Word is God, please understand the implication of this, of not
believing or denying the truth of the Scriptures, this book.
You're not only questioning His record of Himself, but you're
denying God Himself. This is His revelation of who
He is, His Word. He says He's the living Word.
Living Word is not up for opinion. Living Word is not up to scrutiny
from you or from myself. The truth is what it is, whether
we agree with it or not. And the truth is, God is not
like we are. God has never lied. God has never
changed. He's never done anything but
that which is good and that which is right. He's totally different
from you and from me. Thou thoughtest that I was altogether
such a one as thyself." When I read that, I think we try to
find something in God or in Christ that we can identify with, but
really we're so different because all we can know is a life of
sin. All we can know is a life of self-serving, but yet he came
in the form of a servant. He lived a life without sin,
so there's nothing that I in my flesh can identify. He's not
like you or I, nor can he be. We once were made in His image.
We were upright. We knew only good at that time.
We communed with God. We desired to be in His presence
and to do His will. But man fell. because he desired
to be equal with God, knowing good and evil. He wanted to know,
be a little bit higher than where he was. So it's taking that next
step. He disobeyed and his spiritual
nature died. So now man has no life. Because
he told Adam and Eve, in the day that you eat thereof, you
shall surely die. And so their bodies didn't die,
but their spirit did. So they lost all their spiritual
life and discernment. And thus, we no longer want to
be with God. What's the first thing that Adam
did whenever they fell? He hid. He didn't want to be
with God. He didn't want to be seen by
God. He didn't want to be exposed. He blamed God when he was found
by God. So all these things, what a change
we see. Before, we didn't see any of
these things, but after his spiritual nature died, he had no communion
with God. They were nothing alike at that
point, and so everything was contrary to one to another. And
every offspring ever since, Adam, who opens their eyes, is born
dead. As the grass withereth and the
flower fainteth, soon we will be twice dead when our flesh
and our bodies die. This is the truth about men.
We are condemned to death and in slavery to sin. And it sounds
awful. And what's even worse is that
we didn't even know it. And we were dead and had no idea. The scripture says in order to
worship, you must worship in spirit and worship in truth. Well, truth is the facts. These are the facts of this book.
That is truth. But without spirit, which we
know is dead, we can't worship. So there's nothing you can do.
So you can have the facts. How do you worship then? Well,
how can I worship when my spiritual nature is dead? I must be born
again. This is the only way because I'm already dead. Turn over a
few pages to John chapter 3. There was a man of the Pharisees
named Nicodemus, ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus
by night and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher
come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest
except God be with him. And Jesus answered and said unto
him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God. And Nicodemus said unto
him, how can a man be born again when he's old? Can he enter into
the second time into his mother's womb and be born? And Jesus answered,
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born
of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee
that you must be born again." So what he's saying here is that
You can't obtain this. You have to be born again in
order to enter the kingdom of heaven. When he says flesh is
flesh and spirit is spirit, there's no way flesh can work its way
up to spirit. There's no way that can happen.
There's no life there. These are two separate events.
So the flesh living is the flesh living. It'll only ever be flesh.
And it can never do anything that pleases God, understands
God, or can do anything. The Spirit has to be given of
God and must be birthed in you again. And so, in order to be
in the Kingdom of God, you must have this. Let's go on reading
in verse 17. For God sent not His Son into
the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him
might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not
condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already. because
he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation,
and this is the story of our history. This is the condemnation
that light has come into the world and that men love darkness
rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone
that doeth evil hates the light, neither comes to the light lest
his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth, not good things,
it says, but he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his
deeds might be made manifest that they are wrought in God.
God must give you and I what we don't have and what we cannot
obtain. You're dead. You didn't even
know it and you weren't looking to do anything about it. God
has to be the instrument, the life-giving. What Don read in
Ezekiel 37, the dry bones, those bones weren't looking to be anything
more than what they were. They were dead. They couldn't
hear, they couldn't see, they couldn't feel. They were dead.
But when the Lord breathed upon him through the preaching of
his gospel, he breathed life into them, the bones were alive.
And so it says in verse 21, he that doeth truth cometh to the
light. So, who is this? The light is
Jesus Christ. So to know the truth, I must
come to Jesus Christ in order to know the truth. The scriptures
declare His glory. He said, they are they which
testify of Me. If I am to know the truth, I
must know something of Jesus Christ. And in seeing Him as
holy, pure, faithful, the express image of God, the Holy One, I'll
say with Isaiah, when I see him and see him as he is, woe is
me, I'm undone, for I'm a man of unclean lips, and I dwell
in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the
King, the Lord of hosts. You see, only in seeing God as
he is, well, it's only then I can see my wretchedness, my shame,
and the stain of my sin. And it has to be in that order,
because no man in wallowing in his own sin ever came to a knowledge
or a desire to see God, because we've done that since our birth,
since our physical birth, and never came to God apart from
Him birthing us again. I've sinned with every breath,
every thought. I have, but there's nothing that
I do that is not sin. I'm dead. But that wasn't revealed
until me, until he birthed me again. And you know what I found
out? I'm naked. I'm exposed. I've got nothing.
All my wickedness and failure are on display for God. And I
have nothing to bargain and there's no hiding place. All of this
has been shown unto me. And what's even worse, it's been
this way all along and I never even knew it. And that's where
our shame and our hatred for what we are and what we do comes
from. We see these things in light of who God is and then
He births us again and we see that. It's awful. This is what
being born again. It's not being baptized and clean
living. Being born again to this world,
you're really someone who annoys everyone else because you try
to be holier than thou and do all these things. Being born
again is seeing that you're a sinner. and seeing that you have no hope.
This is what being born again is. You have to have a new heart
and new eyes to see. You have to have ears to hear.
I see Him in light of Him, and therefore I'm exposed. I wasn't
seeking this being born again. He sought me, and He had to give
it to me. Why did He give it to me? Well,
the Scripture says it's according to the good pleasure of His will.
Is that really enough? Is that the only answer we're
given? That's the only answer God needs, so it's enough for
me. You know, we need to stop worrying about why one is chosen,
why another is not, and hear the good news. We were condemned
sinners. We were people that are on death
row ready to die. And what this Good News of the
Gospel says, there is therefore now no condemnation to them who
are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after
the Spirit. In His person, when He says, I am the way, the truth,
and the life, He's the way. He's the only way to God. There's
not ways. I'm not a way, not ways. He's
the way. He is the way which is the only
means for forgiveness for sin, by the shedding of His blood
on the cross. This is the only way that you can be made clean,
is to be under His blood. He says He's the truth, that
His death really cleansed my sin. That's the truth, that when
He died, I really was made justified before God. And His rising again,
the life, well that's my life, because I'm now united to Him.
If you'll turn over to Colossians chapter 3, Let's look at a few verses here. Colossians 3. If ye then be risen with Christ,
seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right
hand of God, and set your affection on the things above, and not
on the things of the earth. For you are dead, we've already
talked about that, you're dead, and your life is hid with Christ
in God. When Christ, our life, shall
appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory." So you see,
He's actually my life. If I'm united to Him, when He
died, I died too. And when He was raised again,
I was raised with Him. So as He lives, I live with Him. So He's the life, but He's also,
He's my life. This means no condemnation. God
can commune with me again in Christ. I don't have to worry
about that. There's no more hiding. There's
no more anger. All has been forgiven and all
is forgotten. The Spirit and the Bride say,
come. Just come. That's it. He's all you need. You see, He's rich. There's no
debt that's too great that He can't pay. He's merciful. He came to save sinners. The
people that, by this world standard, don't want to have anything to
do with those people, but sinners are the ones He came to save.
Just come and look to Him for all that God requires. Abel was
accepted because he brought the lamb. He looked to the lamb for
everything that he needed to give to God for his sins. He
didn't look to what he did like his brother Cain, because what
he did when Cain brought those things, he was saying, I can
provide enough, something I can do to pacify God, and it wasn't.
Cain was rejected. This is the truth. Jesus Christ
came to save sinners. And them that come unto God by
him, he is able to save to the uttermost. Question, how do you
receive it? As the words of men? Is this
something that we have an opinion on, that we judge and try to
come to what the truth is? Or do you receive it as it is
in truth, the word of God? So what is it? So that is what
the truth is, what we just described there. What is it to receive
the truth? Well, in order to know what it
is to receive the truth, I'm going to tell you about two types
of people who will not receive the love of the truth. First
would be the person you would say is willful, open rejection. When you tell them, no matter
what, they will not hear or accept the truth. You say, all men have
sinned. All are guilty before God. There's
nothing that you can do. There's no works that you can
provide for God to do anything for you. It means nothing to
Him. They hate this truth because their whole life is built and
based on the works that they've done. That's their grounds for
salvation. They reject this truth. They want nothing to do with
that. So that's one type of person. Another type of person is the
intellectual, willful open rejection. Have you ever tried to explain
what you believe or who you believe to someone who would consider
themselves, by the world's standards, educated? They look at you kind
of like you're crazy. They say, you don't really believe
that, do you? They use this as a rule book,
as a guide book, as a moral guide, but not as something to be believed
literally. But yet, they look down on you.
They laugh in disbelief. Turn over to 1 Corinthians 1. It's a familiar passage in verse
17. Christ sent me not to baptize
but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the
cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching
of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. but unto
us which are saved, it's the power of God." So you see what
he's saying here is the preaching of a cross, you tell this person
who willfully open rejects it, they don't believe this, but
it said, remember this, they're the one that it's foolishness
to them that perish. So that's what the scripture
is saying. So I don't... that's why there's no sense in
getting mad at someone. We can't go into talking to someone
with the intent to try to convince them. If you can be convinced
of something, a stronger argument may convince them otherwise.
We have to have the birth of the Holy Spirit. So I don't get
mad at someone when they don't understand or don't believe it
because they can't. Look at where Christ found me.
Where did Christ find you? You may have not believed it
at first, but yet in his mercy he birthed you again and gave
you the ability to hear and to rejoice and to believe. David
said, I was envious of the foolish when I saw the prosperity of
the wicked. They're not in trouble, they're
not plagued, they have more than their heart could wish. Until
I went into the sanctuary of God, then understood I their
end. Remember this, the preaching
of the cross is foolishness to them that perish. So the first
type of person was willful open rejection, and the fearful part
here is the second person. This person is someone who has
eyes, but they see not. They have ears, but they hear
not. This person hears and can logically see, yes. The Bible
says that. It is in fact true. They can
tell you about what doctrine is in it. You can't read the
Bible and deny that it teaches that God elected a chosen people
before the world began and he sent his son here to die for
him and them only. You can't read the Bible and
say differently than that. Reading, critical thinking, and
objectivity will render this. You can purposely think and blind
yourself to it and say, I'm not going to believe that no matter
what it says. That's not what this is talking about. This is
talking about someone who says, yeah, I agree with that. The
Bible does say that. This is receiving the truth because
they're given the same book that we are. They can read it just
like you or I can, and they accept this as, yeah, that's true. James
2.19 says, Thou believest that there is one God? Thou doest
well. The devils also believe and tremble. And so, when the devils saw Christ,
when they were in that man, they said, What have we to do with
thee, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you come here to destroy
us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. So you figure,
how much more knowledge do they have of the truth of who Christ
is than even you or I do? They've seen Him. They've seen
Him in a glorified state and they know who He is. So they
have the truth. They've received the truth, not
in a way that's willful and that they accept it and it's great,
but they know what the facts are. They know what the truth
is. This person would not argue with what's preached and may
sit week after week listening. How is this person's faith different? How is their understanding any
different than what these demons is? May God deliver us from that
blindness. What complacency is here? What
danger is here from just seeing it as, yes, that's true. I'll
read you a little passage of scripture. It says, nevertheless,
many of the chief rulers believed on him. It says they believed
on him. But because of the Pharisees, they did not confess Him, lest
they be put out of the synagogue. For they loved the praise of
men more than the praise of God." You see, they had a love, but
their love was misplaced. Their love was not in Him, and
therefore they didn't confess Him. They may have believed who
He was, that He said He was, but they didn't believe in Him,
the man, as their Savior. The Lord said, he that won't
confess me before men, I won't confess you before my Father.
And this is the danger of just viewing this as the truth, as
without a love for the truth. So I need to know what it is
not only to receive the truth, I need to know what it is to
love the truth. Because that's really what this is about. Love
is the issue. Facts can be a known apart from
a love of the truth. Many may know the facts, but
where is love in this knowledge? How can I know that I have a
love of the truth? Well, have you seen the face
of the Lord Jesus Christ? and in seeing Him who He is as
God and man, what do you accomplish? Do you see how obnoxious you
are and what everything that you do before God is sin? That
you're a sinner, not that you sin sometimes and that sometimes
you're not, and not that you were, wow, you were a big sinner
in your past, but you're different now. You see yourself as a sinner
every day, and that's all that you'll ever be, unclean, undeserving,
and far from God. No reason for Him to help you.
Well, in seeing if I know if I have a love for the truth,
do you find a need of election being not only a fact that God
chose some before the foundation of the world to be saved, but
seeing election as, that's the only way I've got a chance. That's
the only thing that can save me at all is election. You rejoice
in that. Do you rejoice in having a need
for mercy? I've got great guilt. I need
to have my sins covered. I need to have the blood of Christ
shed for me. It's not just a fact that it was. I need it shed for
me. Do you rejoice in the fact that you're given a new nature
and a new heart because yours is corrupt? It's crooked. It
can never be made straight. I rejoice in the fact that I've
been given a new heart. This is not just a fact that
the scripture teaches this. This is something that I am and
that I've been given. Do you find a need of Jesus Christ
to stand for you? because you can't. If you had
to stand on your own, you'd be obliterated before God. I find
a need and rejoice in the fact that He can even stand for me.
Do you rejoice in finding a need for His righteousness as your
own to present you holy, unblameable, and unreprovable in God's sight?
I rejoice in His righteousness. It's not just a fact that His
righteousness does that. He actually does that for me.
It's not just for somebody else. What this is about is, where
do you find your joy? There are many things that we
find joy in in this world that will eventually wither and fade
and go away. It'll eventually all be burned
up. The scripture says, now unto Him who is able to keep you from
falling and to present you faultless before His presence, The presence
of His glory with exceeding joy. So what does that tell you? That
tells you what His joy is, is to present His people before
Himself faultless. That's where His joy is found.
That's where my joy is found too, is seeing myself as presented
faultless and Him doing all the work. I don't have to do anything.
He does it all. The person that believes this
will not only receive the truth as true, but they're going to
love it. This is the best news that you've ever heard. I don't
even like that we use the word gospel. The gospel means good
news. That's what it really means,
the good news. God found a way to be just and to justify. I wouldn't be okay if He was
just just because then I would be put down in my sin. And I
wouldn't be okay if He just justified me because then I know it probably
wouldn't last because He's not just. He could just change His
mind whenever. But if He can be just and justify me, that's
what I need. I had no hope before. Now this
is all I've got. The Lord Jesus Christ is not
just a Savior. He's my Savior. He's my God and
He's my friend. He's my King. He's my life. I was dead before. I didn't even
know it, but now He's my life. I can look to Him as truly my
life. This is receiving a love for the truth. This is not just
understanding it. It's seeing Him as the object
of my love. What is the greatest commandment?
The greatest commandment, the Lord said, is to love the Lord
thy God with all thy heart, all thy soul, all thy strength, and
thy mind. What then would be the greatest
defense to God? The greatest defense to God would
be not to love the Lord with all thy heart, soul, strength,
and mind. To not love him after seeing him, I ought to be blotted
out of his book. What a great weight and burden
of accountability is upon you who know this commandment to
love the Lord thy God and who know the truth. God the Father
will not suffer his Son, whom he gave to be a sacrifice and
to be slaughtered, to be viewed as anything less than all in
your salvation. That's why receiving the truth
or knowing the facts results in no saving. But those who love
the Son, who worship the Lamb, and who bow to the knee of the
Christ, that's who he saves. If you've been saved by Him,
you will love Him. And if you don't love Him or
don't understand what I'm talking about, it might be that you really
don't know Him. It might be that you know the
facts. Facts won't save you. When I get to glory and stand
before God the Father, I don't want to start thinking about
what facts that I know, because I know in my own experience,
when I'm in a nervous situation, I have to think of something
I was supposed to remember. I can't remember anything. And
so I want to look to Him. He's the one I love. He's the
one that I stand in. Facts won't save you, but Jesus
Christ will. Ask the Lord to bring you down,
to crush our pride, and to make us know that we're a sinner,
that we're dead and we have no life, and see His Son as life.
If you will, I'll close with one scripture in Luke chapter
7. start reading verse 40. Let's back up to 39. or 37, sorry. And behold, a woman
in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat
at meet at the Pharisees' house, brought an alabaster box of ointment,
and stood at his feet behind him, weeping, and began to wash
his feet with her tears, and did wipe them with the hairs
of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him, the Lord, saw it,
he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet,
would have known who and what manner of woman this is that
toucheth him, for she is a sinner. Jesus answering said unto him,
Simon, I have somewhat say to thee, and he said, Master, say
on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors, one who
owed five hundred pence, the other fifty. When they had nothing
to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which
of them will love most?' Simon answered and said, I suppose
he whom he forgave the most. And he said unto him, Thou hast
rightly judged. And he turned to the woman and
said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered thy house, and
thou gavest me no water for my feet, and she hath washed my
feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
Thou gavest me no kiss, but this woman since the time I came in
hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not
anoint, but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore
I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she
loved much. But to whom little is forgiven,
the same loveth little. He saith unto her, thy sins are
forgiven. So in this passage we have two
people, well three people, the Lord, we have Simon the Pharisee,
and this woman, the sinner. And both Simon and this woman
knew the facts. He was a prophet. He said so
within himself. That's obviously why he invited
him there, because he knew that the Lord was some sort of great
prophet in the land. And so, to one, he was a guest. He was the guest of Simon the
Pharisee. But to the other, he was her Lord, whom she loved,
whom she looked to, and whom she sought out, and whom she
relied upon for any forgiveness that she would maybe be given.
One loved, the other didn't. It was something else. And only
one left that house with the Lord saying unto her, Thy sins
be forgiven. Can you imagine what it would
be like to hear the Lord say that to you here tonight? You
are to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.
He promises that in His Word. May God give you and I the grace
not only to receive the truth, but to receive the love of the
truth to the saving of your souls. Paul said, if any man love not
the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema maranatha. That means
slaughtered as a beast upon the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
See, the issue here is love. Love is the only issue, and love
is our only remedy. We are to receive the love of
the truth.