Recovering the Gospel #1

Q: What does the Bible say about the gospel of grace?

The Bible teaches that the gospel of grace emphasizes God's work over human effort. The gospel of grace as taught in the Bible is centered on the work of God rather than the works of man. It reveals that salvation is a gift given to sinners who cannot save themselves, based solely on God's sovereign choice and the redemptive work of Christ. In Romans 10:20-21, Paul highlights how the gospel comes to those who have not sought it, demonstrating that it is not dependent on human initiative but on divine initiative. The gospel is about what Christ has done for us, rather than what we can do for Him. It emphasizes God's glory, asserting that salvation is all of grace and not of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Q: How do we know the gospel is true?

The truth of the gospel is confirmed by scripture and the historical reality of Christ's resurrection. The gospel's truth is rooted in the historical events surrounding Jesus Christ, particularly His resurrection from the dead. In Romans 1:4, it states that Jesus was declared to be the Son of God by His resurrection, providing a powerful affirmation of His divine nature and the validity of His ministry. Additionally, the gospel is affirmed through the prophetic writings of the Old Testament, which foretold Christ's coming, death, and resurrection (Acts 10:43). Thus, scripture serves as the ultimate foundation for the gospel's truth, fulfilling the promises made by God through His prophets.

Q: Why is understanding the true gospel important for Christians?

Understanding the true gospel is crucial for spiritual maturity and authentic worship. The true gospel of Christ is vital for Christians as it delineates the basis of their faith and relationship with God. Recognizing that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, helps believers understand their identity as new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Furthermore, the true gospel leads to genuine worship, which is about bowing before God in reverence rather than engaging in emotionalism or entertainment. Biblical worship is characterized by awe and submission to God's holiness and grace, reminiscent of how figures like Isaiah and John fell prostrate in worship upon encountering the holiness of God (Isaiah 6:5, Revelation 1:17).

I'm going to bring two messages
today on the same subject. The title of the message this
morning and again tonight will be, Recovering the Gospel. Recovering the Gospel. we might say reclaiming or rediscovering
the gospel. I don't know exactly how to preach
this message, whether to preach it in anger, or whether to preach
it in disappointment or despair, or whether to preach it in concern
or as a challenge. But I do know this, the most humbling and challenging
thing that we face today, you and I, in the pew and in the
pulpit, is the awful, awful fact, and
I'm not an alarmist, I'm a realist, that most preachers and professing church people
and Christians, or those who claim to be Christians, do not
know the Gospel. They do not know the Gospel of
God's grace. They do not know it. I listened carefully this week to 1990's champion, Billy Graham. He's the spokesman. He's the champion. He's the one
on the pinnacle. He's the so-called apostle of
the day. Heralded, acclaimed, respected,
admired to the degree that nobody publicly who has a large hearing
will say one word against him. But I carefully sat and listened
in my den in front of my television with my wife sitting over beside
me, and I experienced these emotions, anger, disappointment, Great,
great concern. And I looked over at her and
I said, is this God's prophet for today? Is this God's prophet
talking? Is this all we have in 1990 to
speak for God? Is this our Moses? Is this our
Isaiah? Is this our John the Baptist,
this compromiser? This fellow whose messages get
worse every year, not better. They get more like a little boy reading a recitation. He's pitiful. No fire, no concern, No pathos,
no understanding of this book. It just tore my heart out as
I sat and listened. Oh, they have what they call
a gospel, but it's another gospel. They preach and use the name
Jesus, but I tell you, my dear friends, it's another Jesus. impotent, flimsy Jesus, for which the average man would
have no respect, let alone worship or reverence. They preach a spirit,
it's another spirit. Paul said that. They'll come
preaching another gospel, another Jesus and another spirit using
these words. And he said, it's another gospel.
And he said, I don't care if it's an angel from heaven, if
it's your champion or somebody else's champion. Paul said, if
he preaches not the gospel I preach, let him be damned. You can't appease and get along
with all men and preach the gospel of God's grace, which is offensive.
Paul said, do I seek the favor of men or the favor of God? Do
I seek to please men or please God? If I please men, I am not
the servant of God. Today's gospel, oh, they have
a gospel. It's another gospel. They have
a Jesus, but it's another Jesus. That impotent God, Billy Graham
presents, And that impotent Jesus is not the Christ of the Bible, not the God of the Bible. And
that powerless gospel he preaches, which cannot conquer, which cannot
overcome, which cannot bring down the walls of Jericho, which
cannot accomplish the will of God, is no gospel at all. It's a salvation that won't save. Today's gospel, what they call
the gospel, all but ignores the person and work of my Lord. What they're stressing today
is the work of the creature, the righteousness of the creature,
the will of the creature, the works of the creature, not the
person and work of Christ. Now that's just so. Today's gospel is more concerned
with your will than God's will. Our Lord taught us to pray, thy
will be done. This gospel today is more concerned
with your glory than God's glory. Your reward rather than His.
Christ said, I'm coming and my reward is with me. As many as received him, to them
gave he the right, the privilege, to become sons of God, which
were born not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, not of
the will of man, but they were born of God. Today's gospel calls on men to
stand up and be counted. Raise your hands, stand up, be
counted. The gospel of the Bible brings
men to bow down and worship. And you know this, and I know
this, that most so-called worship services are nothing in the world
but times of entertainment, applaud, raise your hand, keep this thing
going, get the beat going, get the shouting going, get the whoopee
going, get all this flesh generated. And to the average one of those
preachers, a quiet, worshipful spirit is dead. They say that,
it's dead. Well, Isaiah was a dead man.
He fell at his feet. He said, I'm undone. Job was a dead man. He said,
I put my hand over my mouth. Not over my head, over my mouth.
And I'll never speak again. I've seen the Lord. John on the
Isle of Patmos fell at his feet as a dead man. When he saw the
Lord, he didn't do a handspring or a cartwheel. or start screaming
and shouting, he lay prostrate on the ground at the feet of
Christ. Today's gospel gives a man a title to heaven without
a love for the living God. Today's gospel emphasizes what
you should do for God rather than what God must, has to do
for you. That's what our Lord said when
the religious Nicodemus walked into His presence and said, good
master, we know your teacher come from God, we'll recognize
that. The things you do, no man could do except God be with him.
And our Lord said, you must be born again. Unless you're born
again, you can't see the Kingdom of God or understand the Kingdom
of God or discern the Kingdom of God or enter the Kingdom of
God. Before you try to do anything for God, God's got to do something
for you which enables you to love Him, which enables you to
believe on Him. A man that's not born again because
he believes, he believes because he's born again. We've got the
cart before the horse. We're telling dead men to speak
and God will give them life. If God gives them life, they'll
speak. We are telling dead men to stand
up and God will give them life. No, God has got to give them
life and then they will stand up. We need to call on Him, not call
on them. God do something for them so
they can know you. That is what Christ said to Nicodemus. Today's gospel comes as an offer. It's not an offer, it's a gift. God will give you life if. No. God will give you life and. Today's gospel says salvation
is an offer. I beg your pardon. It's a gift. You don't offer a gift to anybody.
You purpose the gift and plan the gift out of your love for
them and you bring them the gift and say, here it is. If there
are any strings attached, it's not a gift. Isn't that correct? If you require anything out of
that person in order to receive the gift, you sold him something. That's prostitution when you
give money for service rendered. That's right. And Almighty God
doesn't do that. He gives the gift freely. It
requires nothing of you. You respond to His gift. Today's
gospel substitutes human reason for divine revelation. Watch
these people on television. It will be good for you. They
don't open a Bible. They grab a little verse over
here somewhere But these women that sit around talking all day
on these talk shows and these preachers and their wives, they
don't read the Word of God, they tell you what they think. They're
human reason. We've got to go by revelation,
not reason. There's a way that seemeth right
to men, the end is destruction. Everything that seems right to
these con artists is destruction. They don't dare read Ephesians
1 or Romans 9 or Romans 8 or Romans 10 or John 17 or any of
these scriptures in their entirety. Today's gospel substitutes a
decision for regeneration. Today's gospel substitutes church
membership for divine union. You know what divine union is? I am divine, you're the branch.
I'm the head, you're the body. That's not church membership.
That's divine union with the living Lord. And because we are
His body, then we are in union with one another. This hand and this hand belongs
to the same person because it belongs to the same head. And that's the reason we're identified
together. And the only reason. Today's gospel substitutes a
profession of faith for perseverance. Today's gospel identifies a Christian
by what he does not do, rather than by what he is and whom he
knows. Come on now. Today's gospel identifies a Christian
by what he does not do. He doesn't drink, he doesn't
smoke, he doesn't cuss, he doesn't commit adultery, He doesn't steal,
he doesn't kill, therefore he's a Christian. No he's not. The
Pharisees didn't do those things and they weren't Christians.
A Christian is identified by what he is. He's a new creature
in Christ. And whom he knows, I know whom
I have believed. And what he does or does not
do is a result of whom he knows and what he is. That's right. You ever hear that preached? Then it's another gospel, because
that's the gospel. Today's gospel utterly ignores
the holy law of God. When do you ever hear these preachers,
any of them, particularly the champion, when do you ever hear
him preach on the holy law of God that must be satisfied by
the righteousness of the Son of God? or the justice of God
that cannot forgive a sinner without a debt being paid and
debt being suffered. Jesus Christ came to do something
not for us and toward God. He came into this world to bear
our sins because God is holy and just and righteous. He came
down to this earth Jesus Christ didn't become a man to show us
an example. He became a man to give us a
righteousness. He didn't die on the cross out
of frustration or as an example. He died on the cross toward God
that His blood might be a perpetuation, a sacrifice so that God can forgive
sin. God can't pardon a sinner without
that sinner being dead. dying under his law. Christ died under that law. This gospel today, so-called
gospel, presents an impotent God who waits to accept the least
effort of the creature, who wants to and is not able, who desires
to and can't, who has a will but you won't let him have his
way. Let Jesus be Lord. I beg your
pardon. He is your Lord. He's Lord of heaven and earth.
He has all power over all flesh. He is your Lord. God made Him
your Lord. He's Lord by decree. He's Lord
by design. He's Lord by death. He's Lord
by His place where He sits. That's exactly right. He's your
Lord. You recognize Him. You don't
make Him Lord. You bow to Him as Lord. Let every
knee bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord! And they will. There's my anger
now. I wanted to be calm. But it's frustrating, isn't it?
It makes you angry. Here's the opportunity. Today's
gospel is based on what men and women think rather than what
God says. The Bible as a source of knowledge
and a foundation for faith has long since been forsaken. What
governs the average religious meeting? Sentiment, emotionalism,
outward demonstration of flesh, and those things are passed off
on people as substitutes for inward peace, rest, and joy in
the Holy Ghost. Well, preacher, is there any
hope of the recovery of the true gospel in this day? Is there
any hope? I don't know. I really don't
know. and refreshing is of the will
of God. That's so. There have been times
of revival. There have been times of reformation. God raised up a Luther or a Calvin
or an Augustine or someone like that, a Spurgeon. There have
been times of revival. There have been times of refreshing.
God has been pleased in His sovereign pleasure to bless communities
and cities and nations at times in a most unusual fashion. God's
been pleased to do that. It's a sovereign will of God.
You're not going to bring about revival. I'm not either, unless
He wills it. And God at other times has left
men to their own wills for generations. You know, between Malachi and
Matthew, there were 400 years of total silence from heaven.
That's right. And it may be the next few years
will be total silence. I don't know whether God will be pleased to send a
revival in our day or a refreshing from heaven. I pray He might
be willing to. I tell you, if and when He does,
it will be through the recovery of the gospel. It's always been
that way. There was a man sent from God
whose name was John. There was a man sent from God
whose name was Martin Luther. There was a man sent from God
whose name was John Knox in Scotland. There was a man sent from God
whose name was Evans down in Wales or up in New England whose
name was Jonathan Edwards. But he didn't manipulate revival,
he preached the gospel. And revival came as a result
of the preaching of the character of God, the need of the sinner,
and the person and work of Christ Jesus. That's how revivals come. You're not going to have revival
through this silly emotional quartet singing. You get farther
and farther away from God through that sort of thing. It's when
somebody stands up and opens this book and tells men who God
is. And men are smitten. It's like at Pentecost. Peter
stood there and told, he said, you with wicked hands have crucified
the Lord of glory. They said, under God, what are
we going to do? It came not as a result of promotion. And entertainment came as a result
of declaring the trouble we're in. Look at Romans 1. I do know this. I do know this. Will you listen to me? God is
never without a true preacher. He may be in jail in Bedford,
but He's got the preacher. He may be preaching to a handful
of people, like John Fawcett, 40 miles out in the country. He may be in the largest church
in England, like Charles Spurgeon, but God's never without a witness.
The eternal covenant of grace and kingdom of God and kingdom
of our Lord Jesus Christ is never without somebody on this earth
telling me in the truth. That's exactly right. Maybe just
a simeon by himself down there in the temple, but he's waiting
on the Lord. And I'll tell you, here's one,
and there are some that believe him, in a little town called Ashland,
Kentucky. But we believe the Gospel. God's
revealed the Gospel. Here it is, listen, Romans 1,
verse 1, Paul. And there's a lot of significance
right there, just Paul. Why, I think of this generation
of preachers clamoring for acclaim. They get their makeup just right,
you know, and their hair fixed just right, blown and so forth,
and they get their rings all just right, and these huge flower
pots. They're all surrounded by, look
like they're coming, look like a wedding rather than a sermon.
Stepping out of a flower garden, you know, all in the bands and
all these things, and they're all, we're clamoring for acclaim
and recognition and applause. And this man here who had a claim,
who had recognition, he had it. He deserved it. He earned it.
He ignored it. It's not Dr. Paul. It's not Archbishop
Paul. It's not from prison to pulpit
Paul. It's just Paul. Just Paul. I am nothing. I'm unworthy to
be called an apostle, he said. I'm chief of sinners. I'm less
than the least of the saints. I am what I am by the grace of
God. Naught have I gotten but what I receive. Grace hath bestowed
it since I have believed." Just Paul, a servant. Not a district superintendent,
a servant. Not a scholar. A fellow said of me one time, he
said, he's not a scholar and never will be. Thank God. A servant. A bond slave. You know where
that came from? That came from the boring of
the ear in Numbers, Exodus 21 rather. When the slave A common,
ordinary slave choosing rather, instead of taking his freedom
in the year of Jubilee, choosing rather to stay with his master
because he loved him. Not because he promoted him,
because he loved him. And because he loved his master. And he said,
boy, my ear. And I'll be your willing, loving
slave. Charles Spurgeon never went to
college, never went to a university, never went to seminary, never
had a degree and was never ordained. And there was never a preacher
in the last few centuries like him. And one time he got the idea
that he ought to get some credentials. This is according to his own
testimony. So he made an appointment, by
that time he was quite famous and was preaching to 20,000 people
at times in the music hall. And he made an appointment with
a university president to enroll in the university. Did you read
about this? He made an appointment with the
president of the university to enroll in the university. The
president of the university came to see him and they were to meet
at another man's home and talk about Spurgeon entering the university. That's how big he was even at
that time. And the maid, the university
professor came to the house first, and the maid showed him to a
room. And when Spurgeon came a few
minutes later, another maid opened the door and showed him to another
room. And Spurgeon sat over here in
this room. for an hour waiting on the professor, the president.
And the president sat over in this room an hour waiting on
Spurgeon, and he never showed up. They were across the hall.
Finally, the president left, and Spurgeon sat there. And he
said he was so disappointed that the man didn't keep his appointment.
He did, but God's providence wouldn't let him see him. And
so he got up and walked out in the garden And he said, it seemed
that God spoke to him, Scripture in Jeremiah 45, and said to him, Seekest thou great things for
thyself, seek them not. Paul. A serpent. What's this now? Called to be
an apostle. It's not Paul an apostle. He's
not an apostle by nature. He's called to be an apostle. You don't make a man a preacher
by giving him a license to preach. You don't make a man a preacher
by giving him a piece of paper that legally entitles him to
preach. You don't make a man a preacher
by calling him to pastor a church. You don't make a man a preacher
by ordaining him or recognizing him. God makes him a preacher. Call to be an apostle. Call to
God to be an apostle. God will call him, God will teach
him, God will open doors for him. Call to be an apostle. God let Israel make a king. They kept saying, we want a king,
we want a king, we want a king. Well, he said to Samuel, let
them have a king. And they voted. They got a pulpit
committee together and appointed a king. He was an impressive
man. He stood that head and shoulders
above everybody. Good looking fella. Smart fella. His name was Saul. But they sure
got messed up. And then God said, I have found
David to be a man after my heart. Not yours. Mine. Not your emotions. David's a man after my heart.
I'll make him king. He's called to be an apostle.
What's this? Separated to the gospel of God. Whose gospel?
Separated to the gospel of God. Whose gospel? God's gospel. It's
the gospel of God. Paul called it in 1 Timothy,
the gospel of His glory. The gospel of the glory of God. The gospel of the glorious God.
It's His gospel. It came from Him. It was purposed
by Him. It was provided by Him. And it's
for His glory. It's His gospel. God thought it. Christ bought
it. The Holy Spirit bought it. He purposed it. The everlasting
covenant is just that. It's an everlasting covenant.
God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.
Thanks be unto God. I thank God for you, brethren,
beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen
you to salvation. He made with me, David, an everlasting
covenant. God purposed it. God purposed
this gospel. God executed this gospel. Please,
God, debruce him. In the fullness of time, God
sent His Son into the world. God applies this salvation. You
don't find God. God finds you. God's not lost.
It's said over there that Nathanael
and Philip and those fellows, it's said that he found the Lord.
He found the Lord because the Lord had found him. He is not found of the sheep,
the shepherd finds the sheep. Isn't that true? Salvations of
the Lord. Paul said, God separated me from
my mother's womb, was pleased to reveal His Son in me. God
sustains it. We are kept by the power of God
through faith. God perfects this gospel in us. He will raise our bowed bodies.
What am I saying? Well, I'm saying what the Scripture
says. I'm saying God, from all eternity, gave His Son of people,
out of every tribe, kindred, nation, tongue unto heaven, Jew,
Gentile, black and white, male and female, young and old, gave
them to Christ. And Christ came down here in
the fullness of time and became a man. And for those sheep, and
for that church, and for those jewels, and for those people,
and for that bride, He perfected a righteousness through His own
obedience. He went to the cross and died and paid our debt in
full. He didn't die as an example.
He didn't die as a reformer. He didn't die with a blanket
coverage to put away the sin of every son of Adam. He died
for His church. He died for His sheep. He died
for those who believe. Somebody says, that's not fair.
What's not fair about it? Well, I don't believe. Well,
why don't you believe? Well, I don't intend to. You
will not come to me that you might have life. If you wanted
Christ, you could have him. If you wanted a place in his
church, you could have it. If you wanted to be redeemed,
you could be redeemed. He said, are you weary and heavy
laden? Come to me. But you will not. So He comes to us. And in the
fullness of time, He'll quicken through the preaching of the
gospel. He'll quicken a man's heart. He'll regenerate him. He'll give him a new life. He'll
be born again. Born from above. Born of the
Spirit of God. Born by the power of God. Born
by the will of God. Born by the Word of God. He'll
be given new life through the Word. And that man will hear
the gospel. And he'll believe it. He'll believe it. And this gospel,
look at verse 2. It says, "...which he promised
to forward by his prophets in the Holy Scripture." This is
no new gospel. Somebody says, Brother May, what's
this new message you're preaching? This is no new message. Moses
wrote of me, Christ said. Abraham saw my day, to him give
all the prophets witness. David said to the Lord, said
unto my Lord, sit thou on my right hand. Christ is that rock. This is the gospel which He promised. You know, the average preacher's
got the idea that over here in the Old Testament, God said one
way, over here He says another way. They've got the idea that over
here it was loud, over here it's grace. But my friends, listen to me.
Isaiah 7.14 says, now to him give all the prophets witness.
Isaiah 7.14 says, the Lord will give you a sign, a virgin shall
conceive and bring forth a son, and I shall call his name Emmanuel,
God with us. And he said the government will
be on his shoulders, his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor,
the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace, the Everlasting Father.
And over here in Matthew, the angel came and said, Thou shalt
call His name Jesus, which is the revelation of what the prophet
said. Call His name Emmanuel, God with
us. Over here in Numbers, Moses smote a rock, water came out. Over here in 1 Corinthians 10
it says Christ is that rock. Over here Moses slew a Passover
lamb. Over here in 1 Corinthians it
says Christ is our Passover. Over here in Numbers chapter
21, Moses lifted up a brazen serpent. Over here in John 3,
Christ said, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up. Over here in the Old Testament,
the high priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year, not
without blood. Over here in Hebrews it says,
being a high priest of good things to come, entered not the tabernacle
made with hands, but heaven itself, not with the blood of bulls and
goats, but his own blood, and purchased eternal redemption."
It's the same story. There's a young lady up in Boston who's teaching a woman's Bible
class using our Old Testament studies. Starting with the fall,
going all the way through the Old Testament, showing Christ
our Passover, Christ our rock, Christ our brazen serpent, Christ
Abel's offering, all the way through. She wrote me this week
and said two ladies shook the class up when they stood week
before last and said, we don't believe in interpreting the Old
Testament that way. One of them is the wife of a
man trying to raise support to go to Japan as a missionary to
tell them a lie. My friends, the gospel concerns
his son. Will you hear me? The gospel
doesn't concern anything you think or do. The gospel is a
finished work. And it concerns his son, all
that he is, all that he's done, all that he's doing, all that
he will do. You make no contribution to the
gospel. The gospel is not an offer, it's
a gift. The gospel is not a proposition, it's the proclamation of the
person and work of Christ. The gospel is not a plea for
work to be done, the gospel is a presentation and revelation
of a work already done. Good news. I left the garden and I got,
Russell will be glad to hear this, I got a brochure that this
company wants to send me a Troy-built tractor, Russell. They've made
me an offer. But I've got to pay $40 a month
for it for the rest of my life. That's not good news. I wasn't
interested. When I found out there was a
catch, I wasn't interested. It wasn't a gift, it was an offer.
But I tell you this, my gospel is not an offer, it's a free
gift. Are you naked? Are you hungry? Are you weary? He meets every
need. And it says here, it's concerning
His Son. His Son, that's deity. Jesus,
that's the man, human. Son of Man, Christ, that's the
Messiah, that's the Emancipator, that's the Redeemer, our Lord,
that's the King. In other words, the Gospel is
concerning the Prophet, Priest, and King. His Son, Deity, Jesus,
my Prophet, Christ, my Priest, our Lord, my King. That's what
the And when you listen to this that's
going on today, do you hear that? Now come on, do you hear it?
I don't hear it. I hear them pleading for a decision
or pleading for a hand raise or pleading for somebody to say
a prayer or pleading for somebody to send them money and keep them
on the air. I want them off the air. I don't want them on the
air. I want them off the air. If God
wanted them on the air, God would send them money. You've taken that too far. I
am not. God is absolutely sovereign. If God wants me to preach in
New York City, I'll preach in New York City. And look at this, it says, He
was made of the seed of David according to the flesh. Christ Jesus, the sovereign,
eternal, omnipotent Lord, was made a man of the seed of David. Yes, a Jew. But I wish you'd
forget this Jewish organization over yonder in Israel claiming
to be the people of God. You're the people of God. This
is Israel. If those Jews are ever redeemed,
they'll be redeemed by hearing just what you're hearing this
morning, Jesus Christ and Him crucified, and they won't come
by a Jewish gospel, they'll come by the gospel of Christ. That's
right. And we're not going to win God's
favor by sending them some more bombs and guns and planes. And God's not going to set up
a Jewish kingdom on this earth. It will be a kingdom of Israel,
but Israel is the people of God. All Israel is going to be saved. When they went into Canaan, there
wasn't but two of them. That's Israel, those two. This
is Israel. You're the children of Abraham
by faith. I'm telling you the truth. And
these fellows can get their Israelite flags and get their charts and
draw all these things. Christ is coming to receive His
church, spiritual Israel. And they're not going to rebuild
that temple and they're not going to start sacrificing sacrifices. Forget it. That would be a shame and disgrace
to the gospel. He was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh, watch this, and declared to be the
Son of God with power by His holiness and by His resurrection
from the dead. There's your two proofs of His
deity. He was made flesh, and through
His obedience and through His righteousness, we have righteousness.
Through His death, we have an atonement. Through His intercession,
we have a priest. Through His person and work,
we have a hope. But He was declared, He wasn't made the Son of God,
He was declared to be what He always was. He is the Son of
God. And the way I know He's the Son
of God is by His holiness and by His resurrection from the
dead. That's what I'm going to preach on tonight. Take up right
there. God at the point of the day in
which you'll judge the world in righteousness by that man
Jesus Christ whom He raised from the dead and gave evidence to
all men. Many years ago, there was a young communist who
left an Eastern university and traveled to Mexico to spread
communism. This was years ago. He wrote
to his fiancÃ©e, breaking off their engagement. She wasn't
a communist. And he broke the engagement.
And this is what the letter said. There's one thing about which
I am in total agreement, and that is the cause of communism. Communism is my life. I work
at it in the daytime. I dream about it at night. Communism's hold on me grows,
not lessens, as time goes by. I don't desire to carry on a
friendship or a love affair or a business or a conversation
without relating it to communism. I evaluate people, books, ideas,
and actions according to their attitude toward communism. I'm
ready to live for communism and die for communism. You say that's
dedication. Put the name Christ in there
where communism is and you have the way I feel and the way many
of you feel. There's one thing about which
I am in total agreement and that is the cause of Christ, the gospel. It is my life. I work at it in
the daytime. I dream about it at night. Christ's
hold on me grows, not lessens, as time goes by. I cannot carry
on a friendship, a love affair, a business, or a conversation
without relating it to Jesus Christ. I evaluate people, books,
ideas, and actions according to their attitude towards Jesus
Christ. I'm ready to live for Christ,
and I'm ready to die for Christ. That's commitment. That's what
Paul's talking about. That's the glorious gospel. It's got to be recovered.

Recovering the Gospel #1

What does the Bible say about the gospel of grace?

How do we know the gospel is true?

Why is understanding the true gospel important for Christians?

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Recovering the Gospel #1

What does the Bible say about the gospel of grace?

How do we know the gospel is true?

Why is understanding the true gospel important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

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