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Henry Mahan

His Glorious Return

2 Peter 3
Henry Mahan • September, 4 1994 • Audio
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Message: 1164a
Henry Mahan Tape Ministry
6088 Zebulon Highway
Pikeville, KY 41501

Sermon Transcript

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All right, let's open our Bibles
again to the book of 2 Peter, the 3rd chapter. I have an ambitious task, but a joyful task. I want,
if I am able, to comment on all of these 18 verses. And I pray
that I won't dwell too long on each verse, because I want us
to look at all of them and talk about His glorious return. His glorious return. Now, Peter begins this portion
of the epistle, chapter 3, with this statement, this second epistle.
Beloved, I now write to you. This epistle, this second epistle,
I don't know about the first one, but I know the second one
was written in Peter's old age. This was shortly before he was
to be martyred. Peter also was crucified. It
is said that he was crucified upside down. Someone said because
he refused to be crucified in the fashion likened to his Lord. But over there in Chapter 1,
right across the page, verse 14. You see that he wrote this epistle
in his last days. He says in verse 13 of 2 Peter
1, Yea, I think it meet, as long as I'm in this tent, this tabernacle,
to stir you up, by putting you in remembrance, knowing that
shortly, very shortly, I must put off this tabernacle, even
as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. You remember when that discussion
took place between the Lord and Peter in John 21? The Lord told
him how he would die. Go back now to my text, chapter
3, the second epistle, Beloved, I now write to you. Beloved,
to whom is the epistle written? It's so very important, so very
important when you're studying the Bible to find out who's speaking
and to find out to whom they're speaking. And this epistle is
written to the beloved, written to the beloved. Back in chapter
1, back in chapter 1 of 2 Peter, he tells you about these people
to whom he's writing. This is the 2nd epistle general
of Peter, 2 Peter, verse 1, chapter 1, Simon Peter, a servant and
an apostle of Jesus Christ," this is a salutation, to them. To whom? To them that have obtained,
like, precious faith with us. Those are the ones to whom this
epistle is addressed, to people who believe, to people who have
obtained. Faith is the gift of God. Paul
said, I obtained mercy. I didn't earn it. I didn't deserve
it. I obtained mercy. He said that
two or three times. Peter said, we've obtained faith. And I'm writing to people who
have obtained the same faith that I've obtained. Like, and
it's precious. I told you a few weeks ago, there
are not a lot of things in the Bible referred to as precious.
He's precious. His blood is precious. His promises
are precious. The death of a believer is precious.
And I'll tell you, If you have faith, it's precious, it's rare,
it's valuable, it's God-given. Now watch the next line, this
same verse, chapter 1, verse 1. I'm writing to those who have
obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness
of God and of Jesus and of our Savior Jesus Christ. This faith
is in Christ, by Christ, through Christ. It's through the righteousness,
look in your margin there, where the little letter 2 on most of
your Bibles, it's the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. It's His righteousness, not mine
and yours. It's His. All right. That's the people to whom he's
writing. All right, back to chapter 3. This 2nd epistle, Beloved,
I now write to you. And here's the reason for writing.
He said, I write to stir up your pure mind by way of remembrance.
Do you have a pure mind? You smile. Our minds aren't exactly
pure, are they? We think things we shouldn't
think. Things fly through here at the most unusual, unpredictable
time that is so unwanted. But the word here is not mind
without sin and without distraction and without failure. The word
is sincere. That's what it is. I write to
you that I may stir up your sincere mind. You can't stir up a mind
that's not sincere. You see, our minds, while they're
not free from sin and free from imagination and free from unwanted
things, I tell you this, they're sincere. Peter said to the Lord,
even after he denied Him, he said, you know I love you. I
may not act like it sometime, but I'm sincere. I'm not a phony. I'm not a phony. I'm not a hypocrite. I am not. I do believe. I do
believe in Christ. I do believe the Word of God.
I do worship God. Not like I want to. Not like
I ought to. Not like I will someday when
I'm free from this flesh. I do pray. I do worship God. Don't you? You got a sincere
mind? Sure you have. Sure you have. It's sincerely
in love with Christ. It sincerely worships God. It
sincerely believes God. It's got a lot of things it ought
not have, but I tell you this, we're not phonies. We're not
playing games. We're not hypocrites. And that's
who, that's the people to whom he's writing here. He said, I'm
writing to you beloved, beloved of God, beloved of, he calls
them frequently beloved. And I'm writing to stir up, to
encourage, and we need to be encouraged, we need to be exhorted,
we need to be stirred up. And by way of remembrance, remembering
what? Remembering the promises of God,
remembering the grace of God, remembering the mercy of God
to us. Why do we need to be stirred
up? I'll tell you, we're human. He knoweth that we're dust. He
knows that we're frail, remembereth that we're dust. We need to be
exhorted, we need to be encouraged, we need to on a regular basis
read the Word and hear the Word taught and remember the promises of God
and the grace of God and the mercy of God because we're human.
And I'll tell you, because of the enemy, I will tell you, Satan
goeth about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may trap, entrap,
snare, like a person traps a bird. Satan wants to trap you. That's
right. That's what Scripture says. He's
a roaring lion. We wrestle against, not against
flesh and blood, but principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness,
spiritual wickedness in high places. And I'll tell you another
reason why we need to be constantly stirred up to remember the grace
of our God, the mercy of our God, the blood of our Savior,
the righteousness of Christ, the things of our God, is because
of the cares of this world. Oh my, we're just so many things
to divide our attention, to take our minds off the gospel. Especially
in this day when we're so busy, everybody is so busy. And I tell
you, we haven't arrived yet. Got a lot to learn. Look at Paul
in Philippians. Look at what he said in Philippians
3. This is perhaps the greatest preacher. human being, whoever
lived. This is the greatest, the greatest
leader, man used of God on a plane with Moses and David, Abraham,
Paul. But listen to what he says in
chapter 3, verse 12 of Philippians. Not as though I had already attained,
I haven't arrived, I'm not already perfect, but I follow after. If that I may lay hold," the
word apprehend is lay hold, apprehend a criminal, you lay hold of him,
arrest him. "...that I may lay hold upon
that for which also I am laid hold of by Christ." I haven't
arrived. I don't have the answers. But I press forward towards the
prize, the mark of the prize of the high calling of Christ
my Lord. Peter said, this epistle, beloved, I write to you to stir
you up, to encourage you, to exhort you, to keep you from
getting indifferent, careless. Of course, you're human, and
this nature is just, it's like a river. It'll follow the line
of least resistance unless there's some exhortation, encouragement. Look at verse 2, that you may
be mindful of the words that were spoken before by the holy
prophets. This is what I want you to remember. Remember what the prophets wrote
about in the Old Testament. They wrote of Christ. They wrote
of the promised Redeemer. They wrote of Him who would come.
And I want to stir you up to remember the commandment or the
words of us, the apostles of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The words of the Old Testament and the words of the apostles
in the New Testament. Look at Hebrews 1. Hebrews 1,
a moment, verse 1 and 2. God, who at sundry
times and in different manners spake in times past to the fathers
by the prophets, God spoke to our fathers by these prophets,
Moses and Elijah and Jeremiah and Isaiah. He spoke with the
prophets. And the prophets told about Christ. And then verse
2 says, He hath in these last days, now we're going to see
this word a lot more. He hath in these last days spoken
to us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things,
by whom he made the world. Now turn to chapter 2, verse
1, Hebrews 2. Therefore we ought to give the
more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at
any time we should let them slip away, like water runs through
a net or a sieve. For if the word spoken by the
prophets through the angels was steadfast, back in the Old Testament,
and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of
reward, 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, the apostles that heard him? This is what
Peter is saying over here in 2 Peter 3, verse 2. He says, I want you to be mindful
of the words spoken by the prophets. God spake by the prophets. The
prophets told about the coming Redeemer, the coming Messiah,
the coming Lamb of God, the coming Christ. And then along came the
apostles, and they gave us the commandments of our Lord, the
commandment of of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior. So this
is what we're doing here each large day in the Bible classes
out here on Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night. We're
bringing to your remembrance. I'm not telling you anything
new. I'm telling you what they said, what the prophets said,
what the apostles said. I'm not trying to be clever or
unique or original. I don't have anything to add
to what they said. But I want you to be mindful and remember
what they said about Christ. Now, what's this verse 3 and
4? This is talking about the scoffers.
Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days.
The last days. People ask me this question.
Are we in the last days? Yes. Decidedly. We've been in the last days for
1900 and some odd years. According to the scripture, the
last days have been since Christ came. They're called the last
days. Now, go back over there to Hebrews.
Did you notice what it said in Hebrews 1? We're in the last
days. We've been in the last days since
Christ came. It says in Hebrews 1, verse 2,
God hath in these last days spoken to us by son, from the creation
of the world, to Moses, about 2,000, 3,000 years. From Moses
to the coming of Christ, 2,000 years. From the coming of Christ
to this present day, approximately 2,000 years. These are the last
days. This is the last days. And you take even before the
creation back into the eternity. This is a small part of time,
these 2,000 years. These are the last days. And
look at 1 Peter 1.20. All of the apostles referred
to the days from the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to this
present day as the last days. They said they were in the last
days. 1 Peter 1.20. Listen. Our Lord was barely ordained
before the foundation of the world, but He was manifest in
these last times. for you who by him do believe."
Since his manifestation, we've been in the last days. One more
scripture, 1 John 2, verse 18. Listen to this one. 1 John 2. This is John speaking.
Now, we've heard Paul, we've heard Peter. Now listen to John.
1 John 2, 18. Little children, it's the last
time. It's the last time. And as you've
heard that Antichrist shall come, even now there are many Antichrists.
whereby we know it's the last time. Whereas someone else comes
along and says, well, brother man, are we in the last days
of the last days? I think so. I do not know. But I do know Peter gives us
here two strong signs of the last days of the last days. Two strong evidences of the last
times of the last times. Verse 3, knowing this first,
that there shall come in the last days scoffers, scoffers,
making fun, ridiculing. Number one, walking after their
own lust. Number two, making fun, mocking,
scoffing at the promise of His coming. There are two strong
marks of the last days of the last days. Men will make a total
mock of sin, total ridicule of sin. Integrity, basic integrity,
basic honesty, basic morality will be scoffed at and mocked.
And secondly, they'll make a mock of Christ. Well, where is he
coming? You talk about this Jesus, where
is he coming? Everything continues like it
is from the creation. He's not going to come. And I ask you this, two things
are rapidly disappearing in this day, rapidly in this day, and
this has not been the case really prior to this day like it is
now. One is integrity, any kind of integrity. Any kind of honesty. Any kind
of honesty. Our legislatures, our Senate,
our Congress, our presidents, our leaders, our people, our
folks in command, folks in the churches. It's a seething cesspool of iniquity. Everywhere you turn, no trust. At least the world in bygone
days, back in the Victorian age, in England and back in the Scandinavian
countries and back in Germany and even in this country, back
in the olden days, there was a little bit of honesty and truthfulness
and some form of morality and some recognition, at least, of
God's commandments. But not today. Not today. They walk after their
own lust. And here's the thing, they make
it legal. They make it acceptable. This is acceptable. And people
who believe in some form of natural affection, they're laughed at. People who believe in some form
of honesty and integrity in the home, in leadership, in the schools,
in the churches, they're laughed at. Everybody's doing it. That
makes it right. These are the last days. And then this mocking of the
person and work of Christ, it's His eternality, His incarnation,
His sonship, His glory, His return. It's a joke. I have a friend out in California.
I spent some time with him just a month ago in a conference out
there. He's a well-known man. He's been quite a leader in spiritual
things. He's Mr. Harold Camping. I preached at their conference
out in California, first part of August. Five nights to at
least 600 people ever surfaced. Mr. Camping believes that Christ
is coming back this year, 1994. He wrote a book on it. He's recognized. He's known all over the world.
He has 37 radio stations and television stations and shortwave
stations. And for 38 years, God has used
him to bring a lot of people to a knowledge of the gospel.
I mean, the gospel of grace. He's a grace man. He came out
of Christian reform. And he's a He's 73 years old,
and like I say, he's well known. He was on Larry King Live for an hour one
night a few months ago talking about his book. He believes Christ
is coming. He's in 1994. In fact, it's coming
Tuesday, the day after tomorrow, September the 6th, end of the
world. I sat and listened to him on the second row for four
straight hours, an hour each day for four days. Listening
to what he had to say. I'm listening. I'm listening.
I want to hear what he had to say. CNN was there, you know,
with their cameras and this sort of thing. And they make fun of
it. You say, what do you do? I don't make fun of it. Christ
may come Tuesday. I hope he does. My soul, I hope
he comes. I'd be glad if he come right
now, wouldn't you? Mr. Caffey may be wrong. I don't
know, but I'm not making fun of him. He's been a man God used,
and a lot of people have heard the gospel, a lot of people have
profited by his faithfulness for 38 years, and he really believed. He told me, he was walking along
out on the walk one day through the woods, and he said, brother
man, he said, he called me pastor, he said, Pastor man, I think
I'm right. I said, I hope you are. I hope
you are. But seeing him, making fun of
him. I'm not making, are you making fun of him? No sirree,
no sirree. Others have predicted his coming.
Your old dad thought he was coming in his lifetime. He didn't think
he was going to die. He told me, I'm not going to die. But
he did. But this generation, and this
is what makes me believe we are in the last days, and I don't
know when Christ is coming. I know he's coming. I know he's
coming. I know it's going to be the end
of the world when he comes. And I don't know when, but I believe,
like Peter says here, we've got two evidences that we're in the
last times of the last time. Men are walking in a way of flesh
like never before. In a way of, this world is about
to explode. Lust and evil and wickedness. Wickedness. And making fun, where
is this coming? That's mocking, that's scoffers.
What he says is they're scoffers and making fun of Christ, making
fun of the gospel. But I tell you this, there's
one gospel, and that's the gospel of a sovereign God, the gospel
of a fallen race, the gospel of a Redeemer, a covenant Redeemer
who came to save and elect people. And he came to save them by satisfying
the law. And I tell you why this generation
doesn't want the satisfaction of the law, because they are
themselves lawbreakers. They have no regard for the law.
They have no respect for God's law or man's law or anybody's
law. So why would they want a Redeemer? And justice. Christ satisfied
God's justice. He died. The wages of sin is
death. The soulless sinner shall die.
I've sinned, I've got to die. God's justice has got to be satisfied.
I know that. But this generation, the criminals
are turned loose on the street. There's no justice. A man beat
a young lady to death down here in Greenham, and he got 20 years,
or he only served 8 or 6. Killed her with his bare hands. They rape little children and
put in jail for a year or two and talk to in the psychiatric
ward and turn loose to rape more. No justice. Justice says deal
with sin. Deal with it. And this generation
mocks Christ because they're lawless. They mock Christ because
they hate justice. They do not want justice. They're
scoffers and mockers. That's what Peter said. And that's
the reason I believe we're in the last days. And it can only
get worse. It can only get worse. All right, look at verse 5. Now,
here's their problem. Here's their problem. He says,
"...this they willingly are ignorant of." Now, they're ignorant, and
it's a willful ignorance. It's a willful ignorance. Now
listen to me. People who make a mock of sin, and make a mock
of God's righteousness, and make a mock of God's Son, they're
doing that against clear revelation. The heavens declare the glory
of God. God has written his law on every
heart. Every man here has got a conscience.
Everybody in the heathen hut and tot has a conscience. And
God's written his name on creation, he's written his law on our hearts,
our consciences. And he's written his word and
given it to us. This Bible here, it's a unique
book. It wasn't written by liars and
bad men, it condemns them. It wasn't written by good men
because they said they were sinners who needed a savior. It has overcome
the barriers of time. It goes back 3,500 years. Where
are the books written by men that go back 500 years or 600? It's overcome the barriers of
nationality. It's read by every nation under
heaven. It's translated into 1,500 different languages. I
don't read Chinese books. Chinese don't read our books. The Filipinos don't read the
Russian books, and the Russians don't read the Filipino books,
but they all read the Bible. It's loved by children, it's
loved by old men and women. I don't read children's books,
they don't read the classics, but they all read the Bible.
It tells one story. Forty men of God over a period
of 1,500 years wrote this book, most of whom never heard of each
other, never saw one another. They heard of one another, they
never met one another, and yet when this book was brought together
from Moses 1,500 years back to John on the Isle of Patlas 1,500
years later, it told the same story about a man who would come
and redeem a people. Oh, the translations, I know
that, have messed up a few places here and there, but it's the
same story. And they're ignorant of it, but
it's a willful ignorance, I'm telling you. It's not because
they haven't heard, it's not because they haven't seen, it's
because they will not believe. I won't. I like my way. But I tell you, our way has gotten
us in a mess. I tell you, somebody said to
me the other day, they said, I'm glad I don't have children
to raise in this day. Well, we've made it. This country,
Used to be really something. I tell you, back in the 30s and
40s, I'd like to turn the clock back to that time, when a fella
could take a bunch of newspapers and sit them on the corner in
a chair and put a cigar box by it, and people, and walk off,
go home. And people come put their money
in there and take a paper, and it wouldn't be one single paper
missing. And that wasn't a bunch of church
people either. That was just integrity. Folks didn't have
to sign Their names on contracts in their blood, let's get some
of my blood and sign it here and guarantee I'll pay it. They
shook hands. There's a country of some intelligence.
I know there was a lot of things shouldn't be in, but at least
basically I'm talking about, basically. And that's gone. Basics
are gone. Scoffing, mocking. My gospel
is mocked. It's mocked by the churches in
this town. the gospel of a sovereign God, a God of grace, a victorious
Savior, a King. People laugh at it. Mr. Campion says the Lord may come
Tuesday, and they laugh at him. Well, he may, bless your heart.
He may. I hope he does. Well, I'll tell you what they're
ignorant of, three things. Number one, verse five, they're
ignorant, willingly, that by the word of God the heavens were
of old. God created the heavens and the earth. That's what they're
willfully ignorant of. They don't teach our children
God created the world. They teach them it just happened
to, I don't know, come from somewhere. Woke up one morning, here it
was. Secondly, They said all things have continued as they
were from creation. Verse 6 says the world that then
was being overflowed with water perished. God destroyed this
world one time by a flood. Thirdly, and the heavens and
the earth which are now by that same word. What does verse 5
say there? "...willingly ignorant that by
the word of God the heavens..." Who is the word of God? It's
Christ. Christ is the word of God. "...in the beginning was
the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God, and
all things were made by him." This same word, listen, this
same word, by the same word, things are held in store. "...by
him all things are held together, reserved unto fire." against
the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. Someday Christ
is coming, maybe Tuesday, I don't know. Maybe. But he's coming. And the world
will be destroyed again. He said so. Now watch these next
verses written to the believer. Be not ignorant of this one thing.
One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as
a day. Beloved, who are these beloved? The elect, strangers,
born again. Time is nothing to God. God is
timeless. We think of these young people
sitting here, look at me, and I'm 68 years old, and I think,
boy, he's an old codger, you know. They think 40 is old. But honestly, it's not very long. And you'll be 68 before you know
it. I walked in this pulpit here
40 years ago. I think how many times I've walked
through that door. Unlock that door. One day I won't
unlock it. One day somebody else is going to unlock it, and I'll
be gone. Place thereof shall know it no more. But our life
is like a vapor. It's timed something to us, but
not to God. A thousand years to God is but
a day. But a day. He promised the seed
of woman 4,000 years ago before He came. He promised Israel the
land. He promised the Gentiles to the
Messiah. 4,000 years. Time's nothing with God. I want
you to watch this, verse 8, that one day is with the Lord as a
thousand years. God is so meticulous and so perfect
in His planning and dealing with each minute detail in everything,
that one day, one day in time, is as if He took a thousand years,
each minute a year. while God works everything out
everywhere in every life according to His purpose and His plan.
So one day, 24 hours, is to God as a thousand years. He so perfectly
works every detail in every life. But the
thousand years is but as yesterday. And verse 9 says, he's not slack
concerning his promise. What's his promise? In Christ
the promises of God are yea. All the promises of God are in
Christ. As some men count slackness, but he's longsuffering to us.
Who's he writing to? Beloved, obtain like precious
faith, who have the righteousness of Christ, and not willing that
any of us should perish. but that all should come to repentance,
and they will. For the sheep I have I must bring,
all that my Father giveth me'll come to them." This is saying
that God Almighty, beloved, don't you be ignorant of this, that
time is nothing to God. And this man thinks his Lord's
coming Tuesday, well, maybe. But days, there are no days with
God, a thousand years is a day. Maybe he's coming 100 years from
now, 10 years. Maybe he'll get horribly worse,
I don't know. But I tell you this, every believer,
every one of his elect will be brought in before he comes. Not
one of them will perish. Not one of them. And you may
be like Saul of Tarsus, 45 years old before God saves you. You
may be like Abraham, you may be 75 before God calls you. He
called Abraham, he's 75. But he'll call you. But the day
of the Lord will come, here we'll wind it up with this, the day
of the Lord, His conclusion, it'll come, it'll come suddenly
as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass
away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent
heat and the earth also and the works therein will be burned
up, like that, when Christ comes. Brethren, let me tell you something,
don't get taken up with predictions Don't get taken up with events
and advents, get taken up with Him. It's not the coming of the
Lord I'm expecting, it's the Lord who's coming. That's the
key. It's the Lord! It's the Lord! I often use this illustration. When I came back from the service,
when the war was over and I'd been gone two years, and my mother
and father were expecting me home, they're expecting me. And they didn't care if I came
by boat or train or plane. They didn't care if I came with
a band or a tank. They didn't care if I walked
the road. They didn't care if I brought a bunch of fellas with
me or came alone. They, my mama, want to see her
boy. That's all she's interested in. Coming home. And that's, don't get taken up
with millenniums. And somebody said, we're in the
Great Tribulation. I don't care. If we are, we are. I'm going
to do what God called me to do. I'm going to preach right now.
This afternoon, we'll get in that car and go to North Carolina.
Preach tonight. Preach Monday, Tuesday. You're
going to do what you're going to do. I'm going to look to Christ,
believe on Him. I'm not going to change my schedule,
whether we're in the tribulation or not. Well, what if the Lord
comes Tuesday? Well, so what? I hope He does.
I'm still not going to change what I'm going to do. Yes, you
better get serious. I am serious, aren't you? Good
night of life. I don't know anything to change.
I'm trusting Him, don't you? Believing on Him. Now, seeing these things shall
be dissolved, all these things that we're playing with, what
manner of persons ought we to be in conversation in godliness? I'll tell you what we ought to
be. We ought to be looking for His coming, and hastening unto the
coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall
be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat.
We, according to his promise, look far, expect a new heaven
and new earth, wherein dwelleth holiness and righteousness."
Won't you be glad when sin's all gone? Doubts and fears and
misunderstandings and trials and troubles and sickness, pain
and death. Won't you be glad? Oh, I'll be
glad when Jesus comes. And this is all finished. Wherefore,
beloved, seeing you look for such things, be diligent that
you may be found in him, Oh, that I may win Christ and be
found in Him without spot and blameless. That doesn't mean
without spot on your part. It's by His grace I'm without
spot or blemish. Be in Him without spot or blemish. The Church can't make you without
spot or blemish, but Christ can. And account that the longsuffering
of our Lord is salvation. That's what He's doing. He's
saving His people. And when He saves the last one,
He'll close the book on this world. Even as our beloved Paul,
also according to the wisdom given unto him, hath written
unto you, as also in all his apostles, speaking in them of
these things, in which some things are hard to understand." They
are. I know that. It has to be revealed. But what
a lot of men, what they don't understand, they'll twist. That's what he says. And the
unlearned and unstable take these things and twist them as they
do all the Scripture to their own destruction. Ye therefore,
beloved, seeing you know these things, the grace of God, the
blood of Christ, the mercy of God, the righteousness of God,
don't get taken up in this perverse generation. Don't fall into their
way of talking and living. Beware lest you also, being led
away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness.
But grow in grace in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ. to whom be glory both now and forever. And Peter closes
that chapter with, so be it. So be it.
Henry Mahan
About Henry Mahan

Henry T. Mahan was born in Birmingham, Alabama in August 1926. He joined the United States Navy in 1944 and served as a signalman on an L.S.T. in the Pacific during World War II. In 1946, he married his wife Doris, and the Lord blessed them with four children.

At the age of 21, he entered the pastoral ministry and gained broad experience as a pastor, teacher, conference speaker, and evangelist. In 1950, through the preaching of evangelist Rolfe Barnard, God was pleased to establish Henry in sovereign free grace teaching. At that time, he was serving as an assistant pastor at Pollard Baptist Church (off of Blackburn ave.) in Ashland, Kentucky.

In 1955, Thirteenth Street Baptist Church was formed in Ashland, Kentucky, and Henry was called to be its pastor. He faithfully served that congregation for more than 50 years, continuing in the same message throughout his ministry. His preaching was centered on the Lord Jesus Christ and Him crucified, in full accord with the Scriptures. He consistently proclaimed God’s sovereign purpose in salvation and the glory of Christ in redeeming sinners through His blood and righteousness.

Henry T. Mahan also traveled widely, preaching in conferences and churches across the United States and beyond. His ministry was marked by a clear and unwavering emphasis on Christ, not the preacher, but the One preached. Those who heard him recognized that his sermons honored the Savior and exalted the name of the Lord Jesus Christ above all.

Henry T. Mahan served as pastor and teacher of Thirteenth Street Baptist Church in Ashland, Kentucky for over half a century. His life and ministry were devoted to proclaiming the sovereign grace of God and directing sinners to the finished work of Christ. He entered into the presence of the Lord in 2019, leaving behind a lasting testimony to the gospel he faithfully preached.

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