Alright, let's open our Bibles
together to 1 Peter chapter 4. I'm going to begin the message
tonight with verse 7, in which the Apostle Peter says,
"...the end of all things is at hand." Now, sickness and death are difficult
subjects for any of us at any time. But we're wise to consider this
subject carefully and prayerfully, because the Scripture says it's
appointed, appointed of God, that every man wants to die. And our scripture here says,
and the end of all things is at hand. Now we know that he's
not talking about the end of all things given to Christ. We
read in John 3 where the apostle says that the father loved the
son and had committed all things into his hand. And all things
are made by Him, and all things are given to Him. So the end
of those things is not at hand. The beginning of those things
is at hand. We're not talking about the end
of the all things for which we hope, and for which we look,
and which we anticipate through the sacrifice of our Lord. But
what he's talking about here is the end of this present existence,
the end of this present world, the end of my sojourn on this
earth. David said, Lord, help me to
know how frail I am. Job frequently talked about going
away. In a few years, I shall go the
way. from which I shall not return."
In a few days, in one place he said. In 2 Samuel, don't turn
to it, I've written it out here, the prophet said we must needs
die. We must needs die. And he said
we are as water spilled on the ground. Turn that glass over in the water
spill. And you can't gather it up again. That can't be changed. Death
is so, as far as this world's concerned, it's as final as spilling
water on the ground. And the ground just soaks it
up. Can't gather it up. But let me read this scripture
in Job, chapter 7, verse 1. Job said in chapter 7, verse
1, is there not an appointed time,
is there not an appointed time to man on this earth? Are not
his days also like the days of an hireling? Our bounds are set
The number of our months are with the Lord. Man is a few days
full of trouble, and he dies. Psalm 89, turn over there. This is the message of the Word.
The Word tells us that we're dying creatures. Psalm 89, verse
48. Psalm 89, 48. What man is he that liveth and
shall not see death? Shall he deliver his soul from
the hand of the grave? Tell me. The Bible tells us that we're
dying creatures. And here's an interesting scripture
over here in Genesis 5. In Genesis chapter 5, it names
all of these patriarchs It says in Genesis 5, verse 5, "...and
all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty
years, and he died." And verse 8, "...and the days of Seth were
nine hundred and twelve years, and he died." And verse 11, "...and
all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years, and he
died." Verse 14, "...the days of Cain were nine hundred and
ten years, and he died." And He died. It's that way all the
way through, that chapter naming all these. And our days of grace quarantine,
if by God's purpose and will they're a little longer, it'll
be said of all of us, and He and She died. Our bodies tell us, the Bible
tells us we die, and our bodies tell us we die. Sometimes we don't listen, but
they're telling us our eyes are failing, our ears are failing,
our strength is failing, we're weary. Our bodies are crying
out. We're dying men. Richard Baxter
said, I preach as one who may never preach again. I preach
as a dying man. to dying men. Our experience tells us we're
dying men. This morning I was thinking about
my family, my mother and father when I was a boy, mother and
father and brother and sister, and I had so many uncles and
aunts, fathers, people. None of them are left. There's
not anybody that I knew in my family as a boy. still is. Just my sister and I. They're
all gone. They all died. The end of all things is at hand. We look over this congregation.
We started meeting here 42 years ago. And our folks that met with us
then in their thirties, forties, and fifties, they're all gone. Empty places. And where they're
not empty, they've been filled by a younger person. And one
day, this pulpit will be filled by a younger person. See, life,
the Scripture tells us, is a vapor. I don't suppose there's anything without substance as a vapor.
You step out on a cold morning, blow your breath in the air,
put your hand through it. That's what the scripture says
life is. Life is a vapor, life is a shadow. Just as light is the shadow of
my hand. Nothing there, it's just, that's
these This life, life is a flower, blooms and soon dies. Life is a tale that's told. Have you read that where, I guess that's in the Psalms
or Proverbs, I can't remember, but it says life is a, maybe
Job is a tale that's told. What about a tale that's told?
It has a beginning, and an ending. Every tale that's
told, got to stop. I read years ago, legend, but a great and powerful king
had a personal entertainer. They called him a jester. You've
seen pictures of them. They wear bells on their hands
and feet and a clown's cap and they entertain the king. Well,
this king had the best of all the jesters, entertainers. Been with him a while. And he
called him in one day and he said, I have a present for you.
He said, I'm going to make you a knight. So in front of all of his people,
he did whatever they do and made him a knight and called him Sir
Fool. And gave him a gift. It was an expensive, handmade,
gold-headed walking cane. And when he handed it to the
jester, he said, Sir Fool, You're the world's greatest fool. If you ever find anyone a bigger
fool than you, give him that cake." He thanked him. Quite an honor. That was his
business, acting like a fool. And he was the best. Well, they
were together more years, and they both grew old. And one day
someone came to him and said, Sir Fool, Master wants you to
come to his chambers. He's very, very sick and probably
is dying. So the old fool went up to the
Master's chambers with his gold-headed walking cane and sat beside the
bed and the Master said, I wanted to bid you goodbye. I'm going
away. And Sir Poole said, you're going on a long journey?
He said, I'm going on a long journey. He said, well, Master,
when are you coming back? He said, I'll never be back.
This is goodbye. I'm going on a long journey and
I'll never return. Well, he said, Master, what preparation
have you made for this journey? And the old king was very quiet.
And finally he said, none whatsoever. The old fool frowned and wrinkles
creased his brow and he said, Master, you're going on a long
journey from which you'll never return. And you've made no preparation. The old king dropped his head
again and said, none. He took his cane and laid it
across his arm. He said, the cane is yours, master. You're a lot bigger fool than
I am. Peter says here in verse 7, listen,
the end of all things is at hand. There's some things to be done.
What are they? Well, let's look at them. Verse
7, Be ye therefore sober. Serious. Be serious about it. People joke about death and growing
old. It's not a joking matter. There's nothing as serious as
death. It's appointed unto men once
to die, and after that, judgment. The Bible talks about people
dying and standing before God. Be sober. Be solemn. Be serious and listen. Call on
God. Be serious. Don't take it lightly. Call on God. First of all, call
on God as a center for mercy and salvation. Be like the public.
in the temple, God be merciful to me, the sinner. Be like old
blind Bartimaeus who would not be silent, but cried, Jesus,
thy son of David, have mercy upon me. Be like the thief who turned
to the master and said, Lord, you're not going to stay there.
You're coming into a kingdom. Would you remember me? The end
of all things is that I am very close. Be serious. Call on God. Call on Him as a
sinner. Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. Don't call on the arm of the
flesh. Call on the name of the Lord. Call on the Lord. Watch unto
prayer. And then call upon Him not just
as a center for salvation, but as a center for forgiving grace
daily, for strength, for health, for
grace, for mercy, for daily provisions. You know, friends and family
and fellowship It's good. It's good. It's good to have
someone to hold your hand. It's good to have someone with
whom to talk. It's good to have someone from
whom to draw strength. It's good to have someone who's
been there down the road where you're walking. But the only
essential thing is to have Him. Him. You see, salvation and grace
and death is something we do alone. These things are something, the
end of all things is at hand. Be you, ye therefore sober, and
you watch unto prayer. Salvation, grace and death are
personal and private, the most private, personal things there
There is. You call on God. But I can't get my wife or my
husband or this one to do things spiritually with me. You call
on God. It's private, it's personal. The end of My life is at hand,
your life. Be you serious about it. Like Joshua said, if nobody else
serves the Lord, I will. If nobody else calls on God,
I will. If I have to call on God by myself,
I'll call on God. And I know well-meaning friends
and religionists won't leave people alone with God. They want
to help them. Help them. Always help them. Always do things in a crowd.
But these are not matters that are handled in a crowd. Our relationship
with God. Mercy, forgiveness, grace, sickness,
darkness, death. The old folks used to say, you
got to walk that lonesome valley. Gotta go there by yourself. Or
by yourself as far as people are concerned. But not by yourself. If you have Him. You gotta stand
the judgment trial. You gotta stand there by yourself.
No, I don't either. The arm of flesh won't be there
to support me, but the everlasting arm will. He will. That's the
reason. The end of all things is at hand.
And I've got to be serious before God and sober and solemn and
call on God. Call on God. Watch unto prayer.
Second thing, verse 8, and above all things, have fervent love
among yourselves. For love shall cover the multitude
of sins. Fervent love. Turn with me to
1 John 4. This is the gift of God, like
faith and grace and redemption. The love of God is shed abroad
in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. This is the experience of grace,
the experience of love. 1 John 4 verse 7, Beloved, let
us love one another. Don't let anything Interrupt
our love for him nothing will interrupt his love for us Let
nothing interrupt our love for one another you see love covers
a multitude of infirmities and Falls and failures and sins if
it's really love like we love our children And we love them with an uninterrupted
love And He says here, Beloved, let us love one another with
that kind of love. Love is of God. Love is a miracle. Love is a work of grace. Love
is the gift of God. Love is of God. It's shed abroad
in our hearts for the Spirit of God, and everyone that loveth
is born of God. You can't love if you're not
born of God, and He knows God. And he that loveth not knoweth
not God. God is love. And in this was
manifest the love of God toward us, because God sent His only
begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.
Herein is love. Not that we loved God, He loved
us. And sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins, He
loved us like we were, as we were. Beloved, if God so loved
us, we ought to love one another. Now, this is a special love of
the brotherhood, love of grace, family love. God loves His sheep. God loves men in Christ. The
love of God toward us is in Christ. God does not love people out
of Christ. The Scripture teaches that God's angry with the wicked.
The Scripture teaches that he that believeth not on the Son,
the wrath of God abideth on him. God pities me. God takes no pleasure in the
death of me. But His infinite, unchangeable,
immutable, everlasting love in Christ is on His family, His
sheep, His church, in Christ. And that's the way we love. David
said one time, your enemies are my enemies. We pity men. We have compassion
for them. We take no joy or pleasure in
their fall or in their demise or in their problems. We wish
them well as men, as blood brothers in Adam's race. But we love God's
children. We love God's children. Our Lord
said, I don't pray, Father, I don't pray for the world. I pray for them which thou hast
given me. Thine they were, you gave them
to me. And all thine are mine, and mine
are thine. And I love them to lay down my
life for their sake. He's always loved them. He loves
them now, you always will love them. And it's a love that's
infinite. And as He loved us, we'll love
one another. And it's not possible to have
that type of love for the enemies of God. Pity? Yes. Feelings? Certainly. Compassion,
yes, but love, that's right. So the end is near. Be serious. Call on God as a
sinner, as a believing sinner, as a needy sinner, as a weak
sinner, and love one another. Love him and love one another
as I've loved you. Verse 9, be hospitable. Use hospitality one to another
without grudging. He talks about people standing
before him in the judgment. And he said to them on the right
hand, I was hungry and you fed me. I was sick and you visited
me. I was in prison, you came to
me naked and you clothed me. And these on the right hand said,
Lord, when we ever see you hungry and naked, sick, in prison, in
as much as you've done it unto the least of these, my brethren,
you did it to me. And that's what he's saying here.
Practice the principles of grace. Use hospitality to one another, not of necessity,
not unwillingly, without grudging. The same hospitality and generosity
you have for those of your flesh and blood. Be generous. Reach out to the
family of God. Help those who are in need. Turn
to Galatians 6 and listen to this. The end is near. The end is near. Call on God. Be serious. Love one another. Be hospitable. Put in practice
the principles of grace which you've learned. Galatians chapter
6, verse 9. Let us not be weary in well-doing. In due season we'll reap if we
faint not. So as we have therefore opportunity,
let us do good unto all men, especially to the household of faith. Do
good to all men. Even unbelievers, we contribute
regularly to Community Kitchen. Our church sends a check every
month. We contribute to the East Step
Boys home, the old Ramey home. People come by here and we spend
a lot of money buying groceries. To my knowledge, in 47 years,
I've never received a thank you note. for one bag of groceries. Have you ever, Marty, you can't believe the people
she helps, the groceries she buys. People come by here every
day, sometimes two or three a day. She's been doing that for years
and years, forty years now. Would you believe not one single,
see her shaking her head, not one single thinking Nor has one
of them ever sat on these pews and heard the gospel. Not one.
That's hard to believe in. Literally, thousands of people. You say, preach, that's exaggerating.
That's not exaggerating, is it? I bet it's more than a thousand. Two-forty, some of you. I pity
them. Have compassion on them. But this family here is different.
There's a love and a return of love. There's an expression of
the deepest feeling and a return of that expression of feeling. You do good to all men. Don't
forget, don't get weary in well-doing. That's all right. And we'll keep
doing it. We'll keep doing it. That's the
Lord's blessed us and we'll use Well, we're going to get to that
right here in a minute. Look down to the next verse in verse
10. "...as every man hath received the gift." The Lord's been good to us. We've
been given the gift to preach, we preach. Mike's been given
the gift to sing, he sings. You men have been given the gift
to pray and read and teach, you do that. You've been given the
gift of skill with your hands, and you help one another. You
build, and you use your property, and you use your money. You've
been given money by God, and you send it to others. You have,
as you have received the gift, as every man has to receive the
gift, even so minister the same one to another as good stewards
of the manifold grace of God. What is a steward? Well, a steward
is a fellow who oversees somebody else's property. An old-fashioned
steward didn't own a thing. He was a trusted servant who
lived on a ranch, or a farm, or an estate, and he was in charge
of his master's property. When he paid off the helpers,
he didn't use his money, he was using his master's money. When he paid off the folks that
took care of the animals, it wasn't his money, it was his
master's money. He was a steward of the master's money. Well,
let me tell you something. You and I don't own one blessed
thing in this world. You say, that's mine. It ain't
no such thing. The earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof. It's His. He founded it. He built
it. He laid it on the floods. It
is not yours. You're a steward. I'm a steward.
Everything I've got, these clothes on my back and property or whatever,
money, not mine, it's his. And he says here, as you've received
the gift, you minister the same to one another. Distribute gifts. Let your hand be open and free.
It's not yours. It's not yours. It's His. Mine, I worked hard for it. Your skill to work was given
to you by God. Your knowledge of the mechanics,
or whatever your vocation was given you of God, the strength
was given you of God, the breath, everything. He couldn't make
you a moron. Just like that. So we're stewards. We don't own
anything. And it's His. It's His. He says in verse 11, if any man
speak, well here's, watch this now. The end of all things is
at hand. Be serious. Call on God. Love one another. Be hospitable. Be generous. Be a good steward. What would your Master have you
do? Be a good steward. If He wants you to have more
to give, He'll give you more to give. If He wants you to have
more ability to do various things, He'll give you more ability. But here's the fifth thing. And let us preach the truth.
Let us tell men the truth, the truth. Listen. If any man speak,
got anything to say, I'm called on to say more than most everybody
here with things regarding the things of God, but you're called
on to say something too. You have many opportunities to
speak, to speak in reference to this subject of death, judgment,
eternity, salvation, Christ, His blood, the Word of God? Well,
if any man speak, if he opens his mouth, let him speak as the
oracles of God. Now then, what are the oracles
of God? All right? Let's turn to three
scriptures. Here they are. Number one, Acts
7. Turn over here. What are the
oracles of God? It's pretty serious. We'd better
turn over here and see what it is. If we're going to speak,
let us speak according to the oracles of God, or speak as the
oracles of God. Acts 7, verse 37. This is that Moses which said
unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your
God raise up unto you of your brethren, that's speaking about
Christ, like unto me, him you shall hear. This is he that was
in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to
him in Mount Sinai, spake to Moses. and with our fathers. And he received the living, lively
oracles to give to us." What did Moses receive from Sinai
and gave to the people? The ceremonial law, types, shadows,
pictures of Christ. Didn't he? That's what he received.
That's what God gave him. God gave him the law. I know
that. But God gave him the dimensions for that tabernacle. For the
priesthood, God gave him every jot and tittle, dimension, direction,
plan for that tabernacle, for the veils, for the color, for
the material, for the priesthood, for the sacrifices, morning,
noon, and night, for the showbread, for the Ark of the Covenant,
for the mercy seat, for the lamp, for the incense, everything. So if anybody's going to talk,
let him be sure he talks about the articles of God, the Old
Testament pictures and types of Christ that were all fulfilled
by our Lord Jesus Christ. Moses said here, a prophet shall
the Lord raise up unto you. That's Christ. And he'll be a
priest like Aaron, a prophet like Moses, a king like David.
He'll offer His blood. He'll enter the holy place, not
made with hands, but heaven itself. He'll put the blood on the mercy
seat. Tell them about it. Well, I don't know about it.
Well, get busy learning. Had that Bible a lot of years.
Time to open it up. If you're going to speak, otherwise
keep quiet. But if any man speaks, let him
go back and speak what Moses taught. In the wilderness. All
right, that's not all. One more. Romans 3, 2. Aricles
of God. Romans 3, verse 2. Listen to
this. Romans 3, verse 2. Talk about
these old Jews. What advantage then, Romans 3,
verse 1. What advantage then have the
Jews? What advantage did that Israel have? What prophet was
there in circumcision, the ceremonies and Passover and all these things?
Much every way, chiefly, because then unto them were committed
the oracles of God. What did I read to start this
service? God spake to our fathers by the prophets. To Him give
all the prophets witness. And if we speak, we're to go
back and preach what Moses preached. He wrote of me. What Abraham
saw. What Isaiah wrote. What Jeremiah
wrote. What Nahum wrote. What all these
prophets wrote. They wrote the articles of God. The Old Testament Scriptures.
The articles of God. Every picture of Christ in the
Old Testament. The oracles of God, every word
these old men say about Christ. Want to speak? Speak the oracles
of God. Not through. Turn to 1 Peter
4, verse 11, that verse I just read. If any man speak, let him speak
as the oracles of God. What are we talking about here?
Well, look at Hebrews chapter 2. Hebrews chapter 2. These are every word in the New
Testament. Hebrews 2, chapter 2, verse 3. How shall we escape if we neglect
so great salvation, which at the first began to be spoken
by our Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him?
Who are they? Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Paul. James. Listen, God bearing
them witness, both with signs and wonders and different miracles
and gifts of the Holy Ghost according to His will. God put His credentials
and approval upon these men. And the message their Master
gave them, they preached. That's the articles of God. So
if any man speaks, verse 11 of my text, 1 Peter 4, let him speak. as the oracles of God. And my, you could preach several
lifetimes and never exhaust them. And if any man minister, read
on, let him do it as of the ability that God gives him. Whatever ability God has given
us, every man doesn't have the same
gift, I must not try to be what I'm not. I must not despair over
what I am. I must speak according as God
enables me, or do whatever He enables me to do. And we're all
ministers in the name of our Lord. If any
man preaches, let him preach what I said, the oracles of God.
If any man ministers, let him do it according to the ability
God gives him. And what's to be our objective?
Listen, that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus
Christ, to whom be praise and dominion
forever and ever. Amen. Time's short. The end is at hand. Let's be serious. Let's call
on God. Let's love each other. Let's
be generous and hospitable. This tells men the truth. Not
to hurt them. Not to wound them. Not to be
contrary. But with humility and meekness,
tell them the truth. The truth sets men free. And then here's the last one.
And beloved, through all of this, verse 12, think it not strange
when fiery trials, concerning the fiery trials which are to
try you. Don't be amazed by these trials. Don't be depressed. Don't try not to be. Don't be
surprised. These fiery trials which are
to try you, as though some strange thing happened to us. These trials are common to all. That's what Paul said in 1 Corinthians,
they're common to all men. It's the way of all flesh. Job
said, I'll go the way of all flesh. And they're not by chance, they're
ordained of God, and they work together for our good. And they're
to prove and establish our faith, and they're to teach us patience,
and they're to deliver us from the love of this world." Verse
13, but rejoice. And as much as you are partakers
of Christ's sufferings, that when his glory shall be revealed,
you may be glad with exceeding joy. All right, we'll stop there
and the Lord willing take up next Wednesday night at that
place.