Is It of Heaven or Is It of Men?

Q: What does the Bible say about the authority of Jesus?

The Bible affirms that Jesus' authority comes from God, demonstrated in His teachings and actions. In Mark 11:27-33, Jesus confronts the religious leaders who question His authority. He responds by posing a critical question about John's baptism, highlighting that true authority is rooted in divine origin rather than human tradition. His actions in the temple, cleansing it and preaching with authority, illustrate His divine mandate. As the mediator between God and man, Jesus' doctrine is not from earth but from heaven, asserting His unique role as the Son of God.

Q: How do we know salvation is God's gift?

Salvation is portrayed in Scripture as a free gift from God, not based on human effort or merit. The sermon discusses that salvation is not a result of human will or works, but a sovereign act of God. Ephesians 2:8-9 emphasizes that we are saved by grace through faith, which is a gift from God, highlighting that our salvation relies solely on divine mercy rather than human actions. The speaker asserts this gift was predestined before the foundation of the world, indicating God's sovereign plan in individual redemption.

Q: Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

God's sovereignty reassures Christians that He is in control of all aspects of life, including salvation. Understanding God's sovereignty is crucial for Christians, as it affirms that He is in ultimate control, ensuring that His purposes will prevail. The sermon emphasizes that God planned, executed, and applies salvation actively, keeping believers secure by His power. This belief fosters a sense of trust and reliance on God's will, encouraging believers to rest in His authority amid life's uncertainties. Embracing God's sovereignty provides comfort that their salvation and perseverance are guaranteed by God Himself.

Q: What does the Bible teach about the fall of man?

The Bible teaches that the fall of man was total, affecting every aspect of humanity. The sermon argues that the fall of man, as represented in Genesis, was not partial but total, leading to humanity's complete inability to turn towards God without divine intervention. Romans 5:12 explains that through Adam's sin, death entered the world, and all are affected by this original sin. This perspective underscores the necessity of Christ's redemptive work, as only through Him can mankind have hope for restoration. The preacher emphasizes that if man could save himself, the atoning sacrifice of Christ would be rendered unnecessary.

All right, open your Bibles this
morning. I believe I have something interesting for you. Open your
Bibles to Mark 11, Mark chapter 11. Now the title of the message
is, Is it from Heaven or is it of men? Is it from heaven, or is it of
men? In Mark 11, 15, and they come
to Jerusalem, and Jesus went into the temple and began to
cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew
the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of them that sold
of. and would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel
through the temple. And he taught them, saying unto
them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations
the house of prayer?" House of prayer, preaching, worship. But you've made it a den of thieves. A den of thieves. And the scribes
and the chief priests heard it. And they sought how they might
destroy him, for they feared him, because all the people were
astonished at his doctrine. Now, you see how that started. Verse 15, they come to Jerusalem,
and our Lord did these miracles and cleansed the temple. declared my house as a house
of prayer. And the Pharisees and scribes
and chief priests heard it and thought how they might destroy
him. Now go over to verse 27, same chapter, Mark 11. And they come again to Jerusalem.
And as he was walking in the temple, same place he was in
a few days prior to this, sometime prior to this, and had driven
out the money changers and the con men. And there came to him
the chief priest and the scribes and the elders and they say to
him, by what authority do you do these things? By what authority
do you do these things? Who gave you this authority to
do these things? Now what follows in these next
two or three verses, what follows in these next verses is a revelation. I've read this scripture many
times and I've looked at it many times, but wasn't able to see
in it what I see in it relative to this present day. You get the picture, don't you?
Our Lord spoke with authority. acted with authority, cleansed
the temple, did these things, and here are these religious
fellows. And you have to take into account who these men were.
They were the chief priests. They were the chief priests.
They were the scribes. They were the fellows that translated
the scriptures, wrote them out from the original and so forth.
They were the elders, they were the leaders of religion of that
day. They said, now by what authority
do you do this? Who gave you the authority to
do what you're doing, say what you say? And Jesus answered and
said to them, I will also ask of you one question. You've asked
me a question. By what authority do I do what
I'm doing? I'm going to ask you a question.
One question. And you answer me. You answer me. When I ask you
this question, you answer me. And then I'll tell you. I'll
reveal to you my authority. I'll tell you by what authority
I do these things. I'm going to ask you a question.
Here's the question. The baptism of John. John the Baptist came preaching,
repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. Let the mountains
be made level and the low places high and the rough places smooth. Prepare you the way of the Lord.
Repent and be baptized. Confess your sinlessness. Look
for the Messiah. He was the forerunner of Christ.
Now, the Lord says to them, the baptism of John, the message
of John, was it from heaven or is it of me? Answer me. Answer me, he said. And they reason. And this is
what religious fellows do. They don't bow. They reason. They don't submit. They reason. You know, when God speaks, you
hear and you obey and you bow and you submit. But not natural
man's religion. He reasons. He's going to weigh
this thing and debate it and consider it. God said, Abraham,
get thee out of thy father's house, and from among thy kindred,
and go to a place I'll show thee. And by faith he went. He didn't
reason. He left, not knowing where he was going. Abraham,
take thine only son, thy son Isaac, to the top of the mountain,
and sacrifice him to me. And Abraham didn't sit around
and think, well, now what say we're going to say if I do that? He didn't sit down and think,
well, what's the heathen nations going to say? They sacrificed
their children to their gods, and here I'll take my son and
sacrifice him. I've condemned everything they've
said and done. Now what are they going to say?
Lord, now wait a minute, let's talk this over. No, sir. He obeyed God. He said, I have a question, and
you answer me, and I'll tell you. So they reasoned with themselves,
and here's what they were reasoning. They said, now, if we say that
John's doctrine and John's message and John's declaration and John's
baptism is from heaven, he's going to say, then why didn't
you believe him? If you'll pause just a moment
and turn to Luke 7, hold that right there now, turn to Luke
7, these are the very fellows, turn to Luke 7, verse 29. Luke 7, 29. Luke 7, 29. Here's John preaching. And Luke
7, 29 says this, And all the people that heard John, and the
publicans, the sinners, simple people, sinful people, justified
God. In other words, they said what
God's saying is truth. God says we're sinners and that's
true, that's what we are. They justified God. That's what
David did in Psalm 51, he justified God. He said, God's right. In every accusation and charge
that God brings against me, God is right, clear when he judges,
just when he condemns. They justified God, listen, and
were baptized with the baptism of John. They went down in the
water. They said, we're sinners, we're
dying to the old ways. We're rising to walk with God.
They were picturing also the death, burial, and resurrection
of the Christ who is to come, who is there. And they were baptized
with John. But, look at the next verse,
but, the Pharisees, steeped in tradition, steeped in religion,
confirmed in their theology and loggers, debaters of religion,
rejected the counsel of God. When they rejected John's message,
they rejected God. When they rejected John's declaration,
they rejected God's counsel, listen, God's counsel against
themselves. They were rejecting the fact
they were sinners. They said, we'd be not sinners,
we'd be not in misery, and we'd be not in condemnation. We have
one God, one Father, God Almighty. We have Abraham and Moses, and
they would not be baptized of John. I had to go back to my text,
go back to my text, and the Lord Jesus said, I have one question,
and you answer that question, and I'll tell you by what authority
I'll do what I do. John's baptism, John's message,
was it from heaven, or was it from me? And they reasoned, and
they said, now if we say it's from heaven, if we say it's of
God, he's going to say it. Why wouldn't he be baptized? Verse 32. But, if we say, John's
message was not of God, it's of me, of the earth. They feared the people. They
said, the people. All people counted John, that he was a prophet
indeed. They said, the people are going
to rise up against us. We're going to lose our grip. We're going to lose our position,
we're going to lose our power and authority over the people.
What are we going to do? So verse 33 tells me what they
did. And they answered and said, we don't know. We can't tell. We cannot tell. We refuse to
answer. We refuse to face your question
and deal with it honestly. We refuse to say, whether it's
of God or of me. And the Lord Jesus answered and
said to them, then neither do I tell you. Now, what if I do these things?
You'll go on in your darkness, in your blindness, and in your
confusion, because you won't take a stand. Now, I encounter this position.
This is the natural man's religious position. This is traditional
position. Traditional religious people,
it's their position. I encounter this all the time
as I try to preach the free grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
sovereign grace of God. You know my message. You know
my message. Last week, I mentioned this last
Sunday, I preached a message on television. I think it was
a pivotal message. I think it was a message for
the hour in which I declared what the scripture says. If God
loves everybody without exception, then what does the love of God
have to do with our salvation? If God wills the salvation of
every human being, if the almighty, eternal, omnipotent God desires
and wills and wishes the salvation of all men, then what has the
will of God got to do with salvation? If Jesus Christ died on the cross
and cleansed and redeemed and paid the debt of every human
being without exception, what does the blood have to do with
my suffering? If the Holy Spirit knocks at every heart's door,
tries to call everybody and can't, then what's the Holy Spirit got
to tell us? And I received an interesting letter. This person
who wrote this letter may be here today, I do not know, because
I answered it. But I'm just going to read you
part of it. very religious person, says in
the letter that they've been a member of the church where
they go since 1957. That's 33 years. This person
has a position in a religious organization, secretary treasurer,
high up, not in the church, in another organization. And this
person says your teaching today on the television was the most
complete on his power, in capital letters, his power, and his will
that I have ever heard. Thank you for telling what God
has revealed to you. God will bless you for sharing
what he has taught you. Most of the time when you're
on television, I'm seated in my Sunday school in church where
And I'm listening to a hard-lined, free-will Baptist preacher. He
knows nothing of the sovereignty of God. I've been a member there
since 1957. Thirty-three years. I hear him preach things constantly
that grieve the Holy Spirit. He puts too much emphasis on
man. This is what gave birth to this
message, the same thing my Lord said. I wrote to this person
and I said, I'd be interested to know how you can sit all these
years and listen to a man who preaches man's will and not God's
will. How can you, I wrote, I said,
how can you, how can you be identified with and support and attend where
you say the man hates the sovereignty of God and puts emphasis on man and
grieves the Holy Ghost. Please write me and tell me how
you can do it. I'm waiting to hear. And here's
the position right here. Also, I could give you several
instances of this. is a man up in Richwood, West
Virginia, who listens to me every Sunday and orders tapes regularly
and sends donations. And I wrote to a friend who lives
in Richwood, and I said, look this man up, because he says
what I'm saying is true, and I think you two fellows ought
to get together, because both of you believe the same, the
way he wrote me this way. So I looked him up, but said where he attends church,
they don't believe anything like we believe. And he's not going
to leave. Our Lord looked at his people
and said, I'm going to ask you a question. Is this of God, or
is it of man? Is salvation of the Lord? Is
God on the throne? Is God sovereign? Did God elect
a people? Did Christ die to redeem his
people? Does the Holy Spirit invincibly, irresistibly call
men to grace? Do men, by the grace of God,
persevere and are kept? Do they? Or is salvation of men
and by the will of men and the works of men? Now, you answer
me. You answer me. You take a stand,
and I'll answer you. One other scripture I want you
to turn to, John 7. You answer me, and I'll answer you. I reveal
to you some things, by what authority I do what I do. I reveal some
things to you, but you're going to answer me," he said. Is this
of God or is it of me? Turn to John 7, verse 16. Jesus answered them, John 7,
16. My doctrine is not mine. Now, how is he saying that? He
said, on another occasion, I came to do not my will, but the will
of him that sent me. He's the second person of the
blessed Trinity. He certainly has a will, of course
he does. I came not to do my will, but
he's speaking here, John, as the mediator. He's speaking here
as the representative. He's speaking here as the man,
Christ Jesus. Do you see what I'm saying? And
here, when he says in verse 16, My doctrine is not mine, in other
words, this is not of man, even the God-man, it's of God. My
doctrine's not mine. This is not what seems logical
and reasonable to me. I'm speaking as man, as man's
representative, as man's redeemer, as our Messiah. He said my doctrine
is his that sent me. That's what Christ is asking
these fellows. John's message, John's baptism. Was it of men? Is this some concoction
and thought of men? Is this some way of men? Or is
it from heaven? My doctrine didn't originate
here, it originated at the throne of God. Now read on. Now if any man will do God's
will, not man's will, God's will, if any man desires and he will
sincerely, he will, wills to do God's will, wills to know
God's will, wills to walk in God's will, wills to honor God's
will, if he wills to, he'll know I'll tell him. He'll know of
the doctrine, whether it be of God. Is it of God? Is it from
God? Is it from heaven? Or if I speak
of myself. That's what I'm saying right
here. This person or this 80 or 90 or 100 we heard from this
week. If any of them, I don't care who they are, if they will
to know this message, is it from heaven or is it of man? This
salvation, is it from heaven or is it of man? This redemption,
this life, is it the gift of God or the works of man? If a
person wills to know, he'll know. He'll know. I'll answer it. He
said, you answer me and I'll answer you. Verse 18, he that speaks of himself
is seeking his own glory, and that's what churches and preachers
are doing right now. They are speaking of themselves
and from themselves, and they are seeking their own glory.
But he that seeketh his glory that sent him, he that's passion
and persuasion and desire is to glorify him who sent him. That man is a true man. Christ
speaks of himself, and what he says of himself he says of all
his true servants, and no unrighteousness or self-vain glory is in him. But like the Pharisees of old, we preach this gospel of God's
glory, the gospel of God's grace, and we back men up. I'll ask
you a question. This thing of salvation from
Alpha to Omega, this thing of salvation quickening, calling,
regenerating, redeeming, justifying, sanctifying, glorifying, is it
from heaven or is it of me? Answer me. Well, you know, live
and let live, preacher. You know, I've been in this church
since I was a little girl. I teach Sunday school over there,
and I believe somebody needs to answer me. Answer me. Is it from God, or
is it from me? Answer me. Is it from heaven,
or is it of the earth? Answer me." Well, we can't tell. We won't tell. Now, I have several
questions. If you want to, you can take
these down, but here are some questions. Our Lord said, I'll
ask you a question, you answer me. By his authority, may I ask
some questions? Very briefly. The first one is
this. It's who is Jesus Christ? Who
is Jesus Christ? Is he from heaven, totally, completely,
or is he of the earth? And this is divided into three
parts. Number one, who is Jesus Christ?
Now, here's a big word. Who is Jesus Christ essentially? Who is Jesus Christ essentially? Essentially means this, his fundamental
nature, that which constitutes his basic being. Who is this
man, Jesus Christ? Who is he essentially? Who is
he, his fundamental basic nature, who is he? I'll tell you who
he is, he's God. He's God Almighty. Give nothing,
take nothing, he's God Almighty. Understand that? He's God Almighty.
Yes, he became a man, but he's God Almighty. In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Thy throne, O God, is forever. God was in Christ, reconciling
the world unto himself. He, the Church of God, which
he purchased with his own blood. He's God essentially. Second,
not Jesus Christ. Who is he covenantally? Covenantally. Who is he? Now, what's a covenant? Well, a covenant is a Call it
a contract, if you want, an agreement between two parties. All right? Everyone knows about the covenant
of grace, the covenant of grace. Was it between God and Christ,
or was it between God and me? Well, I'll tell you who Jesus
Christ is covenantally. He's the one with whom that covenant
was made. It was made with us in mind.
It was made on our behalf. It was made with us reaping the
benefits. But it was made totally and completely
with him. Now, I'm telling you the truth. You've got nothing to do with
it. You don't supply any of the requirements. You don't supply
any of the conditions. That covenant was made with him.
That's right, I'm telling you the truth. It was made with him.
God brought back from the dead that great shepherd of the sheep
through the blood of the everlasting covenant, our Lord Jesus Christ. The first Adam, he made a covenant
with him, and he represented us. And you know what happened
to that covenant. You know what happened to that
fellow. He failed us. But you didn't have anything
to do with that covenant, did you? No. But you were included in it,
and when he failed, you failed. When he sinned, you sinned. When
he died, you died. There was a covenant of grace
made only with the Lord from heaven, the second Adam. I'm
telling you the truth. And he represented you, he stood
for you, he was your surety, and he fulfilled in his life
and death and resurrection and intercession all that Almighty
God will ever require of you and command from you. That's
who he is. He's my covenant head. Who is he essentially? Yes, he
became a man. Yes, he came to the earth. But
essentially, in his fundamental basic nature, he's God, the everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. And covenantally, Jesus Christ
is everything that God designed and commanded and required of
his elect and his church and his sheep and his brethren in
that covenant, my head full filled. He's my righteousness, redemption,
sanctification and wisdom. Now, third question, who is he
to you? Answer me. Who is he to you? Well, Thomas summed up my feelings,
he's my Lord and my God. He's my prophet, priest and He's
the only mediator between God and men. He's other foundation
no man can lay than that which he laid. He's none other name
given unto heaven among men, whereby we must be saved. He's
Lord of lords and King of kings, and he's all in all, he's all
I need, Jesus Christ. For thank ye of Christ, that's
the question, that's the issue. There are other questions that
arise out of this person in work, but that You see, Christ didn't
come as an alternative. He never was an alternative.
Christ didn't come as a reformer. He didn't come as an example.
He came and lived and died and rose again and reigned as a charity,
a substitute, a sin offering to enable God to be both just
and justifier. You see what we're saying? Answer
me. Who is Jesus Christ? And I'll
tell you, when you answer that question, when you answer it
as it ought to be answered according to the Word of God, of the glories he'll answer and
give to you are indescribable. Isn't that right? If you answer it. But you've
got to answer it. And it's got to be positively,
and it's got to be openly. He said, if you're ashamed of
me, I'll be ashamed of you. If any man confess me before
me, and I'll confess him before the Father in heaven. But if
you deny me before me, and I'll deny you. There's some other
questions that arise out of the personal work of Christ in the
light of Jesus Christ and him crucified. There are a lot of
other questions. For example, was the fall of man in Adam,
was it partial or total? Answer. Now, this is the thing,
and I wrote to this dear person, I told you, and I said, I'll
be interested to know. I want to know how you can believe both,
how you can be identified. It can't be done. It just can't
be done. Now, was the fall of man partial
or total? If it was partial, then Christ
need not come. I'll make it all right. Is man
able to turn himself back to God? Well, if he can, Christ
need not come. If it's, as the preachers today
say, salvation is up to you. If it is, why did he die? They
say, God's done all he can do, now it's up to you. That's impossible. Do men deserve the love of God?
Do they? No. Well, the other side, do
they deserve the wrath of God? Yes. Does God owe us a Savior? If
God owes us a Savior, Christ is not a gift, he's a debt. Salvation
is not by grace, it's by works. Salvation is not sovereign mercy,
it's reward. I don't want to wear you with
these things, but I'm telling you this, just like these fellows
standing there, and they even have their religious robes on.
And the bald phylactor, as you know, and probably the chief
priest had his hat on. And they were standing there
with their rolls of scripture, and they said to him, by what
has I to you do what you do? And he said, I got a question
for you. John's message in baptism, was it of God or me? Well, we can't tell. Well, we
better tell. We better tell. We better find
out about these things. And when we find out, we better
raise our flag. My flagpole's broke over there
right now. I can't fly my American flag, but I feel so bad. I want
it flying right now, especially right now. When I watch these
demonstrators burning the American flag, I beg your pardon, I'd
like to shoot every one of them. I'm sorry. I'd like to put the
scouts around my belt right here. You would too. Some of you fellas
went through some things for this and some of you young men
have the same courage and all. But if we're willing to stand
like that for our nation, can't we stand like that for our God? I believe that's the reason I'm
preaching what I'm preaching. They called me from Channel 13
a week or two ago and said, we want you to sit in on a panel
to discuss some religious issues with some other preachers. I
said, I'll be out of town. I'm going out of town that day,
too. But I'm not being contrarian.
I'm just saying those fellas and I aren't worshiping the same
God. There's no way we can talk. I'm not here to discuss God's
character. I'm here to preach it. I'm not here to discuss what
Christ accomplished. I know what he accomplished.
I'm here to preach it. I'm not here to debate whether
John's message was of me and of God. It's of God. Salvation
is of the Lord. We're not here to debate that.
We're not here to sit around council tables and say we cannot
tell. I know. It's just we don't have
the courage to run that flag all the way
up. Say, this is what I know so.
Come hell or high water, I'll die for it. Answer me. Answer me. I don't want to wear
you, but one final note. And this, honestly, what I'm
saying is you've got to answer him. Like they said, well, we
can't tell. He said, neither will I tell you. No more. I speak to you no more. But one final note before I close. Salvation. Is it from heaven
or is it of me? Is it a free, sovereign, wonderful,
unspeakable, immeasurable, infinite gift of God? Or is it something
we do for ourselves? Salvation in its planning. Who
planned it? Did God plan it or did man plan
it? The Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. The
elect chosen in Christ before the world began, with whom took
he counsel? In its execution, Christ in the
Old Testament promised, prophesied, pictured, he came. Who sent him? Did we send for him or did he
send him? That death on the cross, was
it purposed of God? Was it an accident? In its application. Did I regenerate myself or did
God? Did I awaken myself or did God? Did I get myself out of
the grave or did God? I'm born of God. If I'm a believer,
you have to quicken who are dead in trespasses and sin, for by
grace are you saved through faith, and that's not yourself, that's
the gift of God. Right now, who keeps me in the
love of God? I'm kept by the power of God.
Even my sustaining power, even My perseverance. I don't do that. He does that. Do you know that?
God keeps me. If it left up to me, I'd leave
here. And you would too. Yes, sir. Yeah, you would. If
it left up to you, you would. That's right. Boy, I tell you,
the trials and temptations of Satan and the glitter and glamour
of riches and possessions in the world kept by the power of God, through
faith, but by the power of God. And who's going to wind this
thing up in its ultimate perfection? Who's going to raise us from
the grave and make us like Christ? I'm confident of this, that he
that hath begun a good work in you shall finish it in the day
of Christ Jesus. It's all of the Lord in his planning,
execution, application, sustaining power, ultimate perfection. Answer
me! Yes, Lord, it's from heaven. I'll answer. Will you answer?
Salvation, our message, is it from heaven or me? It's from
heaven. And whatever the consequences
are, whatever the results may be, whatever the cost may be,
whatever the price I must pay, as for me and my house, we're
going to serve the Sovereign Lord. Is that right, Mike? Is
that right, Tom? How about that, Terry? Old Martin Luther one day stood there
just almost by himself. There wasn't a soul for him.
If there were, they didn't tell anybody. But he was surrounded
by all these popes and cardinals and bishops. religious powerhouses,
and they said, you deny what you're talking about. He said,
here I stand. I can do no other. Salvation is of the Lord. One
thousand percent is from heaven. God will bless that, because
he said, I'll answer you. I'll answer you. And I'll tell
you where I got this authority. I know where he got it. He got
it from the Father. All right, let's sing a closing
hymn and receive an offering and go home. 209, number 209.

Is It of Heaven or Is It of Men?

What does the Bible say about the authority of Jesus?

How do we know salvation is God's gift?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about the fall of man?

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Is It of Heaven or Is It of Men?

What does the Bible say about the authority of Jesus?

How do we know salvation is God's gift?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

What does the Bible teach about the fall of man?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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