I've pastored the 13th Street
Baptist Church now for 36 years, since 1951. And during those
years, I have tried to preach to them and to all who would
hear by radio, television, tape, or whatever, the gospel of the
Son of God, the gospel of God's grace. I've tried to be true
in preaching the gospel. And something else I've tried
to do, I've tried to get into the hands of our people GOOD
READING MATERIAL. AND WHEN I SAY GOOD READING MATERIAL,
I MEAN MATERIAL OR BOOKS OR PAPERS TRUE TO THE WORD OF GOD, TRUE
TO THE SCRIPTURES. AND READING MATERIAL THAT EXALTS
AND MAGNIFIES JESUS CHRIST. IT'S NOT A SHAME TO GIVE HIM
THE GLORY AND THE PREEMINENCE. LITERATURE THAT GLORIFIES GOD.
AND THEN I'VE TRIED TO PUT INTO THEIR HANDS LITERATURE Now, most
of the books of theology and the commentaries are just too
weighty, too heavy, too intellectual, and the ordinary person cannot
understand them, cannot grasp them, the meaning of the verses.
They're too involved, too complicated. And I've written some commentaries
from the New Testament. The latest book they'll show
you now on the screen is the book of John. The book of John,
the gospel of John. This is a verse by verse commentary
in plain simple language on the gospel of John. and it has 212
pages and we're selling it to you for exactly what it cost
us to buy them from the company in England that's publishing
them. Evangelical Press in England is publishing this commentary
and it's $3. If you want it, we'll give you
the address at the end of the program. Many of you know the
address, but this book has just recently been published and I
want you to have it. Now, also our six volume set
of commentaries on the 21 epistles of Paul and other writers, Romans
through Jude. You know this one is $10. It
has six books. And it's being translated now
into French, Spanish, Portuguese. BEING USED BY MISSIONARIES. AND
IF YOU'D LIKE TO HAVE THIS SET OF BOOKS, IT'S $10. BUT I'M SHOWING
YOU THE BOOK OF JOHN RIGHT NOW. I'M KIND OF ENTHUSED AND EXCITED
ABOUT IT. AND MANY PEOPLE HAVE TALKED ABOUT
WHAT A BLESSING IT ALREADY HAS BEEN TO THEM IN HELPING THEM
TO UNDERSTAND AND REJOICE IN THE BOOK OF JOHN, WHICH PRESENTS
OUR LORD AS THE SON OF GOD. the deity of Christ. You know,
Matthew presents him as the king of the Jews, and Mark as the
servant, and Luke as the son of man, and John comes along,
in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God. All right, my subject today is
how do we preach the gospel? HOW DO WE PREACH THE GOSPEL? PAUL SAID IN I THESSALONIANS,
OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO I THESSALONIANS. HE SAYS IN CHAPTER 2, VERSE 9,
WE PREACH UNTO YOU THE GOSPEL OF GOD. HOW DO WE PREACH THE
GOSPEL? NOW THE APOSTLE PAUL LOVED THE
PEOPLE AT THESSALONICA. HE LOVED THEM VERY MUCH. THEY
MEANT A GREAT DEAL TO HIM. And by the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit, he wrote this epistle to the church at Thessalonica.
And in chapter one, right in the beginning, if you have your
Bible open to 1 Thessalonians, look at verse four. In the very
beginning, in verse four, he said this, brethren beloved,
brethren beloved, I know your election of God. I know you're
God's elect. That's what he's saying. I know
that God's chosen you to salvation. I know that you're highly favored
of God. I know that God's given you a saving interest in Jesus
Christ. I know this. I know this. Now, how did Paul know that these
people were the elect of God? I know he loved them, but did
it make him that prejudiced? How did he know they were the
elect of God? What was there about these people that caused
Paul to be so sure, so confident that they knew God? THAT THEY
WERE THE ELECT OF GOD. WELL, HE TELLS US. HE DOESN'T
STOP THERE. HE SAYS, I KNOW, BRETHREN BELOVED,
YOU'RE GOD'S ELECT. FAR, FAR. LOOK AT VERSE 5. SEE THAT LITTLE WORD FAR? FAR,
HE SAID, OUR GOSPEL, THE GOSPEL OF GOD'S GRACE AND GLORY DIDN'T
COME TO YOU IN WORD ONLY. IT DIDN'T COME TO YOU MERELY
AS RELIGIOUS FACTS. But the Word of God and the Gospel
came to you in power, in life-changing power, in regenerating power,
in the Holy Ghost and in much assurance. That's how our Gospel
came to you. It came not just to your ears
and to your mind and to your intellect, it came to your heart
and changed your lives and changed your hearts, changed your natures. It came in power. CONVICTING
POWER AND CONVERTING POWER AND REGENERATING POWER AND RECONCILING
POWER AND THEN IN VERSE 6 HE GOES ON HE'S GIVING REASONS WHY
HE BELIEVES THESE PEOPLE ARE THE ELECT OF GOD HE SAID YOU
BECAME FOLLOWERS OF US AND THE LORD YOU WEREN'T INDIFFERENT
TO THIS GOSPEL YOUR FAITH YOUR FAITH WAS NOT IN WORD ONLY, BUT
IN CONDUCT AND CONVERSATION AND DEED AND TRUTH AND ATTITUDE.
YOU BECAME A FOLLOWER. SHEEP FOLLOW THE SHEPHERD. THE
SHEPHERD GOES BEFORE THEM AND THEY FOLLOW HIM. AND THEN HE
SAID IN VERSE 7, AND YOU WERE EXAMPLES TO PEOPLE WHO LIVED
IN YOUR HOME NEXT DOOR TO YOU AND DOWN THE STREET AND IN YOUR
NEIGHBORHOOD, YOU BECAME AN EXAMPLE IN YOUR CONVERSATION, IN YOUR
CONDUCT, IN YOUR ATTITUDE, IN YOUR SPIRIT. YOU BECAME EXAMPLES. PEOPLE SAW THAT GOD HAD DONE
SOMETHING FOR YOU. THEY TOOK NOTE OF THEM THAT THEY
HAD BEEN WITH JESUS. THERE'S SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT
THEM. THEN VERSE 8, HE SAID, YOU BECAME WITNESSES, MISSIONARIES
FROM YOU, You couldn't keep it within.
You had to tell somebody about it. You had to send the gospel
to other places and other countries. And then you turn from your idols
to serve the living God. You recognized and bowed to the
Lordship of Jesus Christ in your life. Jesus Christ is your life
and is your hope. And you turn from your idols
to serve the living God and to wait for his coming from heaven. Now, these are strong evidences.
that a person indeed is the elect of God, that he has a saving
interest in Christ. And that's what Paul is saying.
He says, brethren, beloved, I know you're God's elect because only
God can do these things. Only God can bring these things
to pass. In order for a man to hear the
gospel of God's grace in power, in the Holy Ghost, in assurance,
in understanding, God has to reveal it to him. IN ORDER FOR
A MAN TO BECOME A TRUE FOLLOWER OF THE LORD, NOT A FOLLOWER OF
RELIGION OR DOCTRINE OR DENOMINATION, BUT OF THE LORD, SHEEP OF CHRIST,
GOD HAS TO DO SOMETHING FOR HIM. IN ORDER FOR A MAN TO BECOME
A NEW CREATURE, NOT JUST BY DRESSING UP, BUT INWARDLY, INWARDLY, IN
CONDUCT, CONVERSATION, ATTITUDE, GOD HAS TO DO SOMETHING FOR HIM.
IN ORDER FOR A MAN TO BE A FAITHFUL, TRUE WITNESS, a generous witness,
God has to do something for him. In order for a man to really
bow to the Lordship of Christ and give evidence of bowing by
turning from his idols, tearing up his blueprints, burning his
bridges behind him and turning to God, God must do something
for him. But you know what? Now listen
to me. And I know that's a tall order,
isn't it? You say, man, that's some Christian. That's a Christian.
That's a believer. THE GOSPELS COME IN POWER. HE'S
BECOME A FOLLOWER, AN EXAMPLE, A WITNESS, TURNED FROM HIS IDOL,
BOWED TO THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST. I CONTEND THIS. NOW YOU LISTEN
TO ME. HOLD ON TO YOUR CHAIR THERE NOW. GET A GOOD GRIP ON
IT. BECAUSE I BELIEVE THIS. SINCERELY
BELIEVE IT. GOD'S WORD TEACHES IT. I CONTEND
THAT WHERE THE TRUE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST IS PREACHED, THE
TRUE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST, WHERE THE HOLY SPIRIT GIVES MEN
AND WOMEN EARS TO HEAR, EYES TO SEE, AND HEARTS TO UNDERSTAND
AND BELIEVE CHRIST. THIS WILL ALWAYS BE THE RESULTS. YES SIR, IT'LL ALWAYS BE THE
RESULTS. THAT MEN WILL HEAR THE GOD. IF
GOD'S IN IT, If a messenger is sent of God and he brings a message
and the Holy Spirit inspires him to preach it and God has
a target for that error, I'm telling you, something will happen.
Something will happen. It always happens when the gospel's
preached in power. And Paul tells us why. It is
how we preach the gospel and the gospel we preach. Now, you
listen. It is how we preach it. It is how we preach it. AND IT'S
THE GOSPEL WE PREACH. AND I'M GONNA WORK ON SOME THINGS
TODAY. I WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO ME. I WANT YOU TO LISTEN WITH
AN OPEN MIND NOW. I SAY THAT WHEN THE GOSPEL IS
PREACHED IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, ANOINTED OF GOD,
THAT SOMETHING MAGNIFICENT, SOMETHING SPIRITUAL, SOMETHING SUPERNATURAL,
GOD'S GONNA DO SOMETHING, DO SOMETHING, ALWAYS. IT ALL DEPENDS
ON HOW WE PREACH IT AND WHAT WE'RE PREACHING. All right, Paul,
let's go to I Thessalonians. Now, he's... Verse... Chapter
1, he said, I know you're God's elect, and then he tells them
why. Now, he starts Chapter 2, Verse 1. Forward. We preach not
the gospel in vain. Paul said, I didn't preach the
gospel in vain. I didn't come down there in Thessalonica
and labor in vain. God sent me. I don't preach the
gospel in vain. The Father didn't establish His
covenant of grace in vain. He said in Isaiah 46, I've spoken
it, I'll bring it to pass. I've purposed it, I'll do it.
Our God's in the heavens, he hath done whatsoever he pleased.
God said, I'll do it. He didn't draw up the eternal
covenant of grace and counsel of grace in vain. It's going
to be done. The son didn't die in vain. CHRIST
DIDN'T COME TO THE EARTH IN VAIN, GO TO THE CROSS AND SUFFER IN
VAIN, GO TO THE TOMB AND RISE AGAIN FOR NOTHING. HE SHALL SEE
OF THE TRAVAIL OF HIS SOUL AND BE SATISFIED. THE PLEASURE OF
THE LORD SHALL PROSPER IN HIS HAND. HE SHALL NOT FAIL NOR BE
DISCOURAGED. AND THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT DOES
NOT CALL IN VAIN. SCRIPTURE SAYS IN ROMANS 8, FOR
WHOM HE FORE KNEW, HE PREDESTINATED TO BE CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE
OF HIS SON, AND WHOM HE PREDESTINATED, HE CALLED. AND WHOM HE CALLED,
HE JUSTIFIED, AND WHOM HE JUSTIFIED, HE GLORIFIED. THE HOLY SPIRIT
DOESN'T CALL IN VAIN. AND I'LL TELL YOU THIS, A TRUE
PROPHET OF GOD, A TRUE SERVANT OF THE LORD, A TRUE PREACHER
OF THE GOSPEL NEVER RUNS IN VAIN. HE NEVER PREACHES IN VAIN. IF
GOD SENT HIM, GOD SENT HIM FOR A PURPOSE. IF GOD SENT HIM, HE
SENT HIM ON AN ERRAND. HE NEVER PREACHES IN VAIN. IF
THE GOSPEL, THE TRUE GOSPEL IS PREACHED IN THE POWER OF THE
HOLY SPIRIT AND GOD IS IN A SITUATION AND GOD SENT A MAN, HE DIDN'T
SEND HIM IN VAIN. THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. PAUL SAID
THAT IN 2 CORINTHIANS 2. HE SAID, VERSE 14, WRITE IT DOWN. READ IT LATER. THANKS BE UNTO
GOD, WHO ALWAYS CAUSES US TO TRIUMPH IN CHRIST. FOR OUR GOSPEL
IS THE SAVOR, THE FRAGRANCE, THE ODOR OF DEATH UNTO DEATH
AND LIFE UNTO LIFE. FOR SOME IT'S THE SWEET SAVOR
OF CHRIST THAT'S LIFE UNTO LIFE. FOR OTHERS IT HARDENS THEM IN
UNBELIEF HARDENS THEM IN THEIR REBELLION AND HARDENS THEM IN
THEIR INDIFFERENCE, BUT IT ACCOMPLISHES WHAT IT'S SENT TO ACCOMPLISH.
GOD SAID, MY WORD WILL NOT RETURN UNTO ME VOID, IT SHALL ACCOMPLISH
THAT WHEREUNTO I SENT IT. What I'm saying is that if he
sends it, if he sends the man, if he sends the messenger, if
he sends the message, if he sends the word, it'll accomplish what
he sent it to accomplish, either to break the heart or harden
the heart, either to melt the heart or to mold it in its rebellion
and harden it and put it under a judgment and blindness and
a veil. That's what Paul said, we don't
preach the gospel in vain. Second, look at verse two. He
said, we're bold. We're bold in our God to preach
the gospel unto you. Bold. We not only preach the
gospel, not in vain, but we preach it boldly. Now listen to me,
will you? Paul didn't seek to please men. I'm not here before this television
camera trying to win friends and influence people to like
me, love me, support me, or applaud me. I'm preaching Christ. The
apostle Paul didn't seek to please men. He would never compromise
his gospel for your approval or for your applause or for your
appreciation. Paul said, I kept back nothing
profitable unto you. I have not shunned to declare
unto you the whole counsel of God. My friends, there's only
one way to preach the character of God, and that's preach it.
There's no way to beat around the bush and compromise and say,
well, you know, everybody's got a point. Yeah, but we're not
preaching everybody's point. We're preaching God's point.
Well, everybody's got his opinion. I know that. That's what's wrong
with us. We've got to quit preaching opinion and preach what God says. There's only one way to preach
man's fall and sin, that's preaching, just like it occurred and just
like it is and the same consequences. There's only one way to preach
the righteousness of Christ, and that's preaching. Nothing
else will do. There's only one way to preach
the blood of the cross, the substitutionary work of Jesus Christ, and that's
flat out to preach it. And there's only one way to preach
the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace, and that's to
preach it. And if it's foolishness to natural men, that's all right,
too. Thank God it's the wisdom and power of God to some. Paul
said in Acts chapter 20, I didn't covet your silver or your gold.
I didn't covet your approval or your assistance or your applause.
God will take care of me. I covet your soul. I DON'T COVET
YOURS, I COVET YOU. AND WHAT WE NEED IN THIS YEAR
IS MEN WHO PREACH THE GOSPEL WITH BOLDNESS WITHOUT COMPROMISE
AND FEAR AND COVETOUSNESS AND FLATTERING WORDS AND BEATING
AROUND THE BUSH AND TRYING TO GET ALONG WITH EVERYBODY AND
TRYING TO RAISE AN UMBRELLA EVERYBODY CAN GET UNDER. IT'S IMPOSSIBLE.
We've got to be true to God and to his gospel. There in chapter two, verse three,
listen to this. He said, we don't preach the
gospel in vain. God sent me, he'll accomplish
something. He'll accomplish something. It'll
be his glory too. He raised Moses up for his glory
and he raised Pharaoh up for his glory, but they both accomplished
his purpose. All right, in verse 3, he said,
we do not preach the gospel to deceive men. That's not our purpose,
to deceive men. Paul was in the gospel preaching
business. Now, listen to me. I don't want
to hurt your feelings, but I'm going to tell you the truth.
The apostle Paul was never in politics, never engaged in them,
nor never, he never promoted them. He was never in the school
business. He was not a denominational promoter. He had no money to raise. He
had no debt to pay. He had no budget to meet. You
say, what was wrong with him? He was God's preacher. He had
one occupation, one vocation, one profession, and that was
to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. He had nothing to gain
from any man but the glory of God and the salvation of sinners. HE HAD HIS NAME WRITTEN ON NOTHING.
HE HAD NO REASON TO CON ANYONE OR TO DECEIVE ANYONE OR TO COMPROMISE
WITH ANYONE. WOULDN'T THAT BE SOMETHING IN
THIS DAY IF THE PREACHERS OF GOD, AND THEY ARE, GOD'S PREACHERS
ARE, TOTALLY FREE FROM ENTANGLEMENTS, FROM ANY DEBT, from any promotion,
from any publications, from any politics, from any organizations,
men free in Christ to tell the truth about God. Think about it. But he that woreth
does not entangle himself. That's what the Word says. Does
not entangle himself. No budget to meet, no debt to
pay, no school to promote, Nothing to sell, just coming before the
people, preaching the good news, Christ in Him crucified. Maybe
God would bless, maybe He would. And then in verse four, he says,
we preach the gospel as a sacred trust. We don't preach it in
vain. We preach it boldly. We didn't
come to deceive, to con men, and we preach it as a sacred
trust. He said, I've been put in trust
with the gospel. Suppose my son, who has a two-year-old
daughter, only child, came to me and said, Dad, my wife and
I have to leave town for two weeks, and we're gonna leave
with you our little daughter. YOU KNOW WHAT SHE MEANS TO US,
YOU KNOW HOW PRECIOUS SHE IS TO US, AND WE'RE GONNA LEAVE
HER IN YOUR CARE, WE'RE GONNA TRUST YOU TO KEEP HER FOR TWO
WEEKS. WE'LL BE BACK." AND HE WALKED
OUT THE DOOR. OOH, WHAT AN AWESOME TRUST. WHAT
A RESPONSIBILITY. WHAT DEDICATION I'D GIVE TO THAT.
HOW I WOULD PROTECT HER WITH MY LIFE. I'D DIE PROTECTING HER. Well, I say unto you, the gospel
of Jesus Christ is a more awesome trust than even keeping that
little girl. It's a greater responsibility
and I plan to discharge it with all my ability and consecration
and dedication and pleasing you is of no consequence to me whatsoever. I'll die for that gospel. And
everybody knows it'll die for it too. AND EVERYBODY BELIEVES
THAT HE'LL DIE FOR IT. AND HE'D CUT OFF HIS ARM BEFORE
HE COMPROMISED IT FOR ANY REASON IN THIS WORLD. AND I'M TALKING
ABOUT BAR NONE. I MEAN, NOT EVEN FOR PEACE'S
SAKE. WE'VE GOT A PEACE, BUT I'LL TELL
YOU IT'S THE PEACE OF THE GRAVEYARD. THE GRAVEYARD'S AT PEACE TOO.
BUT EVERYBODY THERE'S DEAD. I THESSALONIANS 2, 5, HE SAID,
WE DON'T PREACH THE GOSPEL WITH FLATTERING WORDS. as a cloak
of covetousness? Do you know what Paul's saying
here? Now you listen to that. He said, I don't preach the gospel
with flattering words as a cloak of covetousness. You know what
he's saying? He's saying false preachers lie
to you and flatter you AND SPEAK SMOOTH, FLATTERING WORDS TO MEN
AND WOMEN AND BRAG ON THEM AND PRAISE THEM. WHY? AS A CLOAK
TO COVER THEIR REAL REASON, THEIR COVETOUSNESS TO GET SUPPORT AND
MONEY AND GAIN. THEY DARE NOT PREACH THE OFFENSIVE
GOSPEL. THEY'LL LOSE SUPPORT. THEY DARE
NOT TELL MEN AND WOMEN THE TRUTH. THEY'LL QUIT SUPPORTING THEM.
Might get fired, might lose their pastoreum or their salary or
their fine car or something like that. Might have to start depending
on God. Wouldn't that be something? catering
to the flesh to profit, that's dishonesty. Oh, that God would
raise up fearless, bold preachers of the gospel for our day who
have no one to flatter but God, no one to answer to but God,
no one to praise but God, no one to glorify but God, like
Paul says, nor of men sought we glory. But gentle as a nurse,
that's in verse seven, and affectionately, not hard, Not hard. Affectionately, we preached unto
you the gospel of God. What is this gospel that we preach?
Now, that's how we preach it. That's how we preach it. That's
how every one of God's preachers for the last 6,000 years have
preached the gospel. They've all been just alike.
They've all had the same message. They've all been just alike.
They've all been sent of God, and none of them's ever failed.
They've come in the power of God, in the power of His Spirit,
with His message. Some of them have died for what
they preached and what they believed. All of them have been persecuted,
hated, despised. Yes, right. Some have gone to
jail, some prison, some beheaded, but they've all preached the
gospel. They've never pleased men. They've always sought the
glory of God. What gospel did they preach?
All right, I'm gonna give it to you quickly in about six statements. This gospel, first of all, it's
the gospel of God. It originated with God. He planned
it, he purposed it. In his everlasting counsel before
the foundation of the world, he purposed to save a people.
He gave them to his son. He made Christ their surety,
the chief shepherd, the good shepherd, the great shepherd,
the mediator of the covenant, turned the mediatorial kingdom
over to Christ and said, my son, bring it home, bring it home.
It's the gospel of God. That's what Paul called it in
Romans 1.1. of God, dedicated, obsessed with, separated to the
gospel of God. God's gospel, not the Baptist
gospel, Catholic gospel. There's just one gospel. It's
the everlasting gospel. It's the one Moses wrote about
and Abraham believed, Isaiah wrote about and Paul rested in.
And secondly, it's the gospel of His grace, pure grace, not
works, pure grace, cannot be both. For by grace are you saved
through faith and that not of yourselves. It's the gift of
God, gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. There
are only two religions in this world. There are 10,000 cults
and sects and denominations, but there's just two religions.
That's right, two religions. And they go back to Cain and
Abel. CAIN BROUGHT HIS WORKS CAIN BROUGHT THE FRUIT OF THE
FIELD CAIN BROUGHT WHAT HE DID FOR GOD ABEL CAME THROUGH THE
BLOOD ABEL CAME THROUGH THE GRACE OF GOD RESTING IN THE SLAIN LAMB
AND THAT WAS IT PURE GRACE FREE GRACE SOVEREIGN GRACE ALL GRACE
Cain works and you're in one or the other. Doesn't matter
how you spell your name or how long you've been in it. You're
either trusting your works or you're trusting the grace of
God in Christ. It's the gospel of grace. And then it's the gospel
of his son, concerning his son. Who is Jesus Christ? He's the
creating God. All things were made by him.
Without him was not anything made that was made. He's the
incarnate God, the God-man. The Word became flesh and dwelt
among us. He's the obedient representative.
By His obedience, we're righteous. He's the crucified substitute.
He died just for the unjust to bring us to God. He's the risen
justifier. He is the reigning mediator,
and He is the coming King. Christ is all and in all, Alpha
and Omega, author and finisher of our faith. Look to Him. This
gospel, what is it? It's the gospel that enables
God to be just and justified and the only one that will. You
see, now listen to me. God is a holy God. God is holy. God is righteous, just, and true. And He'll never do anything in
which He has to compromise His holiness, perfect, pure, spotless
holiness and righteousness and truth. And the only way He can
justify you PARDON YOU, RECEIVE YOU, FELLOWSHIP WITH YOU IS FOR
HIS HOLY LAW TO BE HONORED AND HIS JUSTICE TO BE SATISFIED by
one who's able to do both. And that's Jesus Christ. And
by his obedience and death, he enabled God to be holy and still
have fellowship with us sinners. And then it's the gospel of the
glory of God. He gets all the glory. Let no flesh glory in
his presence. God gets all the glory. And then
it's the gospel of peace. Therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God. Now here's two messages. Why
men do not come to Christ, and how do we preach the gospel?
$2, we'll send them both to you on the same tape. If you want
the gospel of John, it's $3. If you want the commentaries,
21 epistles, verse by verse, $10. Till next week, God bless
you.