I'm reading from Matthew chapter
seven. In these two messages today, I'm not preaching experience.
I'm preaching an encounter with Christ. I'm not preaching feeling. I'm preaching a faith that's
born of God and found in the heart. I'm not preaching time and place. I'm preaching a meeting with
the Redeemer in which the Holy Spirit is pleased to reveal to
a man's heart Christ as his Lord and Savior. And he's thoroughly established
and grounded and settled, never to be moved away from Christ.
whatever the circumstances, whatever the environment. God will not
forsake him, and he'll not forsake his Lord. That's what I'm talking
about. Now, let me just read you a verse. You hold Matthew 7 there a moment,
and let me read you a verse that I used on television in a taping
a few nights ago. It says in the book of Psalms,
happy, happy is the man. that hath the God of Jacob for
his help." Why did David say that? Happy twice blessed is the man
who hath the God of Jacob for his help, the God of Jacob. Well,
three reasons why David said that. First of all, the God of
Jacob is the God of divine election. He loved Jacob. not for anything
he saw in Jacob, but according to his own will and purpose,
he loved Jacob. He said before Jacob was born,
I love him. In fact, Jacob had a twin brother
named Esau, and God said, I hate him, but I love Jacob. Before the children were born,
before they'd done any good or evil, before they were in this
world, God said, I love Jacob. I've chosen Jacob for my own.
I've elected him, set my everlasting love on him. He's always been mine, he'll
always be mine. That's the God, happier than
man's got that God for his refuge. God of purpose and power, God
of election, the God who cannot fail, who sets his love on an
object of his affection and never leaves him. But secondly, David
said that because the God of Jacob is not only the God of
divine election, but he's the God of divine revelation. He
met Jacob, Jacob the supplanter, the cheat, conniver. But at Bethel, the
house of God, Jacob had an encounter with his Lord. He met him head
on. And his Lord revealed his affection
for Jacob and showed him the way to glory, showed him a ladder
right up to the throne. That's Christ, John, that latter's
Christ. And I'll tell you this, if God
elects a man sometime in his life at the house of God, Jacob
said, this is barely the house of God. I've seen God face to
face. And that's what's going to happen to you if you're one
of his elect. He's going to meet you like the Samaritan woman.
He's going to cross your path. Like Zacchaeus, he's going to
cross your path. Like Matthew, he's going to encounter
you. He's going to meet you head on. I'm not talking about this peanut
God of 1986. I'm talking about the God of election, the God
of power, the God of purpose, going to cross your path and
whittle you down, strip you, break you, humble you. break
you like a wild ass's coat. One, he doesn't break you, but
one time. Preachers have to save them and re-save them and re-dedicate
them, re-consecrate them and re-confirm them and re-this,
that, and the other. But God meets one of his sheep,
he breaks him. He rides him. And he doesn't
have to be broken again. He's broken once and for all.
He may get a burr under his saddle once in a while, but he's busted.
That's right. When God meets him, The Lord
doesn't play games like we preachers do. He's not a beggar, he's a
king. And everybody he meets, he meets
them on purpose, and he meets them in power, and he meets them
in his spirit, and he brings them to himself. And thirdly,
David said that, happy is the man who has the God of Jacob
for his refuge. He's the God of election. He's
the God of divine revelation, and he's the God of a new name.
He met Jacob one night again, and he wrestled with him. And
he said to Jacob, as he touched him, he said, you're not Jacob
anymore. You're not chief, supplanter. You're Israel. What's that mean?
Prince of God. Son of God. Oh, what God can
do. What God can do for Jacob. What God can do for chief and
a supplanter. and a trickster, what God can
do. But it takes God to do it, that's
what I'm talking about. It just takes God to do it. You
make all your professions and learn your doctrine, join the
church and get religion, walk the aisle and carry on your morality
and legalism, ritualism, ceremonialism, brag about the fact you're different
from everybody else, but you're just different outside, you're
not different inside. God makes you different inside.
And that's what I'm reading here in Matthew 7. Now, in Matthew
7, and I'm just continuing where I started this morning, Matthew
7, 21, our Lord said, Not everyone, not everyone that saith unto
me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now, brethren,
scriptures like these, if carefully considered, will take all the
pretense and professionalism out of anybody who tries to preach
the gospel. It just takes all the pretense
out, all the professionalism. How can we be presumptuous? How
can we be so cocksure regarding the matter of even our own salvation
when God says things like that? Oh, John Newton said, "'Tis a
point I long to know, and oft it gives me anxious thought."
Do I love the Lord? Do I love the Lord? The author
of hymns and the author of sermons and letters and the author of
Messages. I love the Lord. Am I His or
am I not? Not everyone that says unto me,
Lord, Lord, is going to enter the kingdom of heaven, but he
that doeth, he that doeth the will of my Father. What is the
will of God? What shall we do that we might
work the works of God? Believe on him whom God has sent. Well, many, many will say to
me in that day, in the day of judgment, many will say to me
in that day, Lord, Lord, Have we not prophesied in your name?
In the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus, they say.
Be healed in the name of Jesus. We come to you in the name of
Jesus. I hear that so much, and I hear
him say at the judgment they're going to cry the same thing.
We prophesied in your name, and in your name we cast out devils,
and in your name we did many wonderful works. And then will I profess unto
them, I never knew you. I never knew you. Depart from me. Get out of my
sight. With your works of iniquity. Of iniquity. Now, when I consider
scriptures like that, or when I consider this fact, that out
of all the people who left Egypt, they claimed two or three million,
only a few that were over twenty years of age, two in fact, entered
into that blessed land of Canaan, only two, Joshua and Caleb. And
Paul, if he's the author of Hebrews, follows that with this warning,
take heed, brethren, take heed, brethren, lest there be found
in you an evil heart of unbelief, in you, of unbelief. They could not enter in because
of unbelief. Or when I consider scriptures
like these, our Lord said this, He said, many are called, called
with common grace, general call, hearing the law, law written
on their conscience, seeing the handiwork of God, even hearing
gospel preachers, Everybody I preach to isn't saved. Many are called,
but few are chosen. Or consider words like these.
The Master said, Strive to enter in. Strive to enter in. Make it your business to enter
in. Give diligence to make your calling and election. Sure get
serious about this. Will you get serious about this? Now's the time to get serious
about it. Solomon said in Ecclesiastes,
remember now thy Creator and the days of thy youth, while
the evil days come not. Old age, when you say, I've got
no pleasure in these things. I don't hear anymore. I don't
understand. I can't get it together anymore.
I'm just not interested. I'm just, I'm just happy. Strive to enter in. I will not
let thee go till you bless me." What's wrong with that? He got
a blessing. He got crippled along with it, but he got a blessing.
But God'll have to cripple you to bless you. He just has to. If you don't
want to suffer with Him, you don't want to reign with Him. Many will stand without and seek
to enter in when once the master has shut the door, and they'll
not be able. I want to knock now, not then.
I don't want to be standing out there knocking then. I want to
knock now. Or consider this scripture, narrow is the way. Narrow is
the way that leadeth to life, eternal life, divine life, and
few there be that find it. Our master set forth four ultimatums. He said, except you be born again,
you'll never see the kingdom of God. Whatever is included
in this business of being born again, and I don't think it's
what they're saying today from the average pulpit. It's not
walking an aisle, I did that. It's not doing good works, I
tried that. It's not getting religion, I
tried that. It's not going down from Mormonism to Baptist doctrine,
that's not it. It's not learning what we call
the doctrines of grace, I know that. The new birth is of the
Spirit of God by the Word of God to a new creature in Christ.
It's the reign of Christ within. The reign of grace is the reign
of Christ. Where grace is not, Christ is
not. And where Christ is, grace is. And he said again, except
your righteousness exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you won't enter the kingdom of God. If you don't have a perfection
with which God is delighted, with which God is well-pleased.
And God, to my knowledge, never said, I'm well-pleased with anybody
but Christ. He said, this is my Son in whom
I'm well-pleased. Now, if I want to be in the good
pleasure of God, I've got to be in Christ. If I'm to have
a righteousness with which God is well-pleased, there's just
one source, and that's Christ, His righteousness. And that's
the one I must have, and that's the perfect righteousness. And
that's the righteousness of which the pulpit and the pew today
is ignorant. They're ignorant of God's righteousness.
They're talking about a personal holiness that's accomplished
by their own doings. And this perfect righteousness
with which we're clothed and with which God is well pleased
is of no doing on our part at all. That robe was woven, every thread
in it, from the life and blood of the Son of God. And it's His,
it's His righteousness. And He said again, except you
be converted, converted, conquered, turned around, you won't enter
the Kingdom of God. A conquering by Christ, a turning
around, a change, not only of manners, but of motive, You see,
that's what this thing, I know, and he said again, except you
repent. And this thing of repentance and regeneration and conversion, it's a work of God. It's a miracle
of God's grace. It's something that God has to
do for us in soul and spirit. It's not something that you can
argue a man into, or persuade a man into, even instruct a man
or educate him into a religious, you can get him into a religious
position, but not into regeneration and repentance. A man convinced against his will
is a man unconvinced still. But God makes him willing. Thy
people shall be willing in the day of thy power. Power, the
power of God. Not by might, nor by human power,
but by my Spirit, saith the Lord. This thing of regeneration, this
thing of repentance, conversion, what happened to some of you
and what I say happened to me is a miracle of grace. Not something
I planned, it's something God planned. It's not a course I
pursued, it's a course that He brought me along. He brought
me. He constrained me. He arrested
me. He met me. He met me in religion. like he met Saul of Tarsus. And
this thing of conversion, repentance, and regeneration has more to
do with the heart than it does the hand. Today's religionists
emphasize the outward deeds and duties of men, and God emphasizes
the heart. When Samuel went down there to
anoint a king over Israel, he looked at the first son of David,
and he said, Surely the Lord's anointing is before him. Look
at the size of this boy. Look at the beauty of this boy. Look at the gifts and talents
of this boy. Look at the countenance of this
boy. Look at all these things. And God said, Samuel, look not
on his outward countenance. Don't be fooled by his deeds. Don't let him fool you. Man looks
on the outward countenance, God looks on the heart. And he said,
David is a man after my heart. David is a man whose heart beats
with God's heart. David is a man who knows the
heart of God. David is a man whose heart is
knitted to the heart of God. He said that twice about him.
He's a man after my heart. It's not the hand, it's the heart
that's important in this thing of conversion. And conversion,
I wish folks could see this, but they can't. It has to be
revealed. Conversion not only has more
to do with the heart than the hand, but it has more to do with
the attitude than the action. I want you to see this over in
2 Samuel 6. I want you to turn over. This
is one of those beautiful passages of Scripture. I could just camp
here when I was preparing this message. I just sat here and
looked at this in 2 Samuel, chapter 6. Now, here's this man David,
and he's the new boy on the block. I'm telling you, he's the king
of the whole square. He's won the victories, he's
got the people singing his praises, he's on top of the mountain,
he's enthroned as the king, he's God's man, he's everything, he's
the leader, everybody's bowing and scraping. I don't reckon
he had an enemy in the kingdom. top of the heap. And so they
brought the ark back out of captivity, and it says in verse 14 that
David danced before the ark. Now here's a parade bringing
the ark. Here's the priest carrying the ark. That's an honor that
God gave to these designated men to carry that ark. And here
are the other priests walking along with them, and here are
the soldiers, and here are the people on all sides of the street,
and there's the king out in front in a linen ephod, dancing with
all his might, the king of Israel. Out there, taking the place like
our master washing the disciples' feet of a common slave, dancing
before the ark. No crown on his head, no armor
around his chest, no sword. That's where we'd have been,
carrying the swords, you know. Had somebody carry it far as
properly. All he had on was a linen ephod, and he danced before the
ark. And so he came home, and verse 16, look at this, as the
ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michael, Saul's
daughter, looked through the window and saw King David leaping
and dancing before the ark, and she despised him in her heart. David became famous, and it went
to his wife's head. David got wealthy. And his wife
got proud, and it disgusted her to see her husband, the king,
acting that way in public. So when he came home, she just
had to say something. Verse 20, And David returned
to bless his children, his household, his family, not his children,
but his family's household. And Michael, the daughter of
Saul, came out to meet him. And listen to the sarcasm. It
just drips. I see. Oh, how glorious was the
king of Israel today. who uncovered himself today in
the eyes of the handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain
fellows shamelessly, openly uncovered himself. Aren't you ashamed of
yourself, she said. And David said to Michael, It
was before the Lord who chose me before your father in all
his house, to anoint me appoint me ruler over the people of the
Lord, over Israel. Therefore will I play before
the Lord, and I will yet be more vile." That's attitude, that's
what I'm talking about. I'll even humble myself more
than this. You ain't seen nothing yet, he
said. He said, before God, David's
nothing. Before God, David is a worm.
Before God, David is a maggot. Before God, David's throne is
in the dust. before God I'll be yet more vile
in his sight. And I'll tell you this, of the
maidservants you've spoken of, of people who have any wisdom
and understanding, people who know the living God, I'll receive
more honor." Get it? So Michael, the daughter of Saul,
had no child until the day of her death. This thing of regeneration,
repentance, has more to do with attitude, attitude. And then
it has to do with motive. Turn over to Matthew 23. It has
more to do with motive than works. In Matthew 23, our Lord talked
about these Pharisees and religious folks, and oh, they had a lot
of works. They were always working. He said in verse 23 of Matthew
23, you tithe, woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, you tithe, you pay
tithe of mint. anise, cumin, all these little,
even not only your money, but your herbs, your gold and silver
and your clothes. But you've omitted the weightier
matters of the law, judgment, mercy and faith. You see, that
has to do with motive. It's not what you do, it's why
you do it. It's not how much you give, it's
how you give what you give. It's not what you do, it's why
you do what you do. What's the motive behind it?
For God's glory? Generous giving can be generous
sinning, do you know that? Prayer can be great sin. These
solemn gatherings, the so-called worship, can be times of iniquity
if it's not for the glory of God, if it's not motivated out
of a love for Christ. He said in verse 25, you make
clean the outside of the cup. You work on the outside of the
cup. You just dress it up and fix it up and paint it up and
do all these things so you can impress somebody. But God looks
on the heart. He's not impressed. And I found this. I found that
even judgment, even judgment does not produce repentance.
No judgment. I hear preachers always preaching
the terrors of hell, just lashing the backs of the people with
the terrors of hell. I want to tell them, you're not
doing any good. You're not going to scare people into heaven.
And you're not going to scare them out of hell. You're wasting
your breath. Because God said in Amos 4, and I'll just quote
this, you don't need to turn to it. He said, I've given you
cleanness of teeth in all your cities. What's that? That's famine.
And watered bread in all your places. I'm starving you people
and yet you won't return to me, saith the Lord. And then he said
in verse 9, I smitten you with blasting and mildew when your
gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees increased, I sent
worms and destroyed them. I wiped you out with locusts
and palmer worms and yet you didn't repent. He said in verse
11, I've overthrown some of you like God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah. You were as a firebrand just
literally plucked out of the fire. Did you repent? No, sir. No, sir. And then he said, I've
killed your young men with the sword. I've sent you to war and
I've brought home just a few of your champions. But did you
repent? No, sir. Therefore, he said,
and you see this sign along the highway, prepare to meet God.
You've got to have this first part before you can look at that
part. Here's where that is said. He said, I've given you famine,
pestilence, palmer worms, I've overthrown you like Sodom and
Gomorrah, I've killed you young men, and yet you would not repent,
so prepare to meet thy God. That's what it says right there.
That's where that came from. So get ready to meet God. If
you look at this verse in Revelation chapter 16, This is one of the
shocking verses in the Bible. I don't know what period of time
this takes place, but it says here in Revelation 16, 9, that
men were scorched. They were burned. Revelation
16, 9, with great heat. And they blasphemed the name
of God, which had power over the plagues. And they repented
not to give Him the glory. Oh, but you listen. If God would
just visit our town with a plague, if God would just... It's just
like over there in San Francisco, this AIDS business, and people
say it's the hand of God. It may be. It may be the judgment
of God. And maybe they'll repent. Don't
you bet on it. God will kill every one of them,
and they won't repent. That's not the way clarion repentance
comes. The goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance. You've got
to meet more in God's will to repent. You meet God's love and
grace in Christ. I'm telling you the truth. So
if you had an experience back there and got scared into the
church, you better look for another one. That's what the rich man in hell
said. Hey, he said, Father Abraham. Sin lies with back to the earth
to warn my brothers. Why, if he went back from the
dead, he'd scare them, they'd repent. Abraham said, no, they
won't. Why, they won't repent, though
one rose from the dead. If they have the Scriptures,
if the Word of God does not lead them to bow to Christ, they'll
never bow to Christ. If you got scared into religion,
you missed Christ. That's your testimony, and I've
heard a lot of people give that kind of testimony. Others in
the war, you know, and the bombs went off and all these things.
All those fellows I was with got religion. All of them. That's time to get religion. But that's all it is. It's not
Christ. And you may not understand what
I'm saying, but you think it over and study it, look into
the Word, you'll find out it's so. Judgment does not produce
people right here with scorched, with burning heat and plague. And the God that sent them, instead
of crying for mercy and repenting, they cursed him. They cursed
him. So there's a repentance that's
not true repentance. I can give you several examples.
There's a repentance and there's a religious experience which
arises out of the fear of punishment. After Cain had killed his brother
Abel, God said to him, you're going to be a fugitive? drive
you here and there, and you're going to run, and all these things
are going to happen." And you know what Cain said? God, I'm
sorry I did this. I repent. No, he didn't. He said,
my punishment is more than I can bear. My punishment. There's no confession, there's
no guilt, there's no word of sorrow or remorse over his guilt. He's worried about his punishment.
What about Simon Magus, the fellow I told you about this morning?
Peter leveled his finger in his face and said, your heart's not
right with God, and told him the judgment of God. He said,
oh, he said, pray that this won't come on me. He didn't say, pray
that I may know Christ. He said, pray that this won't
come on me. There's a repentance that arises from a great trial
or sorrow. I want you to listen to Pharaoh,
Exodus 12. Why don't you turn over here? I want every one of
you to turn to Exodus 12. And now this is the same guy
that chased the Israelites and drowned in the Red Sea. This
is the same fellow of which God said, I raised you up to dump
you in the river for my glory. But I want you to listen to him
here in Exodus 12 when God killed his son, killed his firstborn,
sent a pestilence through the whole nation. Old Pharaoh's real
repentant. He really got religious. Exodus
12, 31, he called for Moses and Aaron by night and said, Rise
up and get forth from among my people, both you and the children
of Israel, and go and serve the Lord, as you said, and take your
flocks and take your herds, as you've said, and be gone and
pray for me, boys. Bless me. Y'all pray for me now. How many times I hear, say a
little prayer for me, preacher. It'll be a very little prayer.
Your boys pray for him, and as you go, he let him get just out
of sight, and he changed his mind. But he was serious there,
I believe, for a while. King Saul, you remember David
could have killed him, and David had his crews of water and his
spear and stood up on the hill, and Saul was down there. I want
you to look at that in 1 Samuel 26. This sounds a whole lot like
repentance. See, we're so deceived, we listen
to men's words and watch what they say and their actions. We say, well, surely, I believe
he's really been saved, do you now? He said in 1 Samuel 26,
21, then said, Saul, I've sinned. Oh, I've sinned. Return, my son
David. Return. I won't do you any more
harm, because my soul was precious in your eyes this day. Behold,
David, I played the fool. I've erred exceedingly. You know
how long that lasted, don't you? It lasted till the sorrow went
away. It lasted till the trial, till
time took the sting out of it. And I've seen this in hospitals,
and I've seen this at funerals, and I've seen it in funeral homes,
and I've seen it with people come under some traumatic experience
or some terrible accident, or a child gets sick and hovers
between life and death. I've seen them get so religious.
I've seen them talk like this, I've sinned, I've erred, I've
played the fool. Oh, pray for me. Say a little
prayer for me. I'm going to get started at church.
I'm going to do right. And when time kind of takes the
hurt out, it takes the repentance too. That's right. I try to tell the people around
here, and I tell those who are visiting, when some traumatic
event happens in a home, or to some person, comfort them and
help them, but don't talk them into a profession of faith. That
is not the time. That's right. You say, well,
can't God use these things? God can use what He wants to.
But I'm just showing you from the scripture all these illustrations
of people under some traumatic experience, or under some great
sorrow, or some great trial, or some great sickness, or some
great... get religious. They all get religious. What
else would you do? If you had some thought you was
going out in eternity, you'd try anything. I just know one
person that wouldn't do it. Brother Barnard told me about
a dance hall queen that he visited on her deathbed out in Borga,
Texas, way back in the early 20s, middle 20s. Barnard was
a young preacher in Borga, Texas, and this dance hall girl named
Dixie got shot in some kind of triangle in a dance hall, and
she said, send for the preacher. And so they sent for Brother
Barnard. He came down there and went through the saloon back
there in the back room where they had her on a bed. And she
had been shot somewhere through the chest. And the doctor was
standing there. She said, I want to talk to the preacher. So Barnard
took her by the hand and tears coming down her cheeks. And she
said, tell me about Jesus. Tell me about salvation. Tell
me about these things. And Barnard said, I sat there
and preached to her a little while. And then he said, she turned
her face to the wall for a few minutes. And she looked
back at him and said he just saw hell in her eyes. And she
said, preacher, ain't no use me trying to fool you or God
or anybody else. If I get well, I'm going to keep
on living just like I'm living. Even facing death. And she died.
But that's true. And then there's a repentance
that arises from emotional response to preachers. In Acts 24, this
fellow Felix, he listened to Paul. You know, it must have
been something listening to Paul. Preachers have persuasive ability. They really get to people. Powerful
preachers. Preachers with charisma. They
get to people. And Paul got to, he got to Felix. It says here in Acts 24, verse
24, that after certain days Felix came with his wife Drusilla,
who was a Jewish, and he sent for Paul. He heard him. He listened
to Paul preach. Boy, wouldn't you like to hear
that sermon? He listened to Paul concerning the faith in Christ.
And as Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come,
Felix trembled, trembled, trembled. But he never repented. Old Herod,
it says Herod did many things when he heard John. He's afraid
of John. He's afraid of John. It says that in the Bible. He's
afraid of him. And he did many things, but he never repented.
And then the multitude that followed our Lord because of the loaves
and fishes, he said, I know why you're following me, you've got
something to eat. And then there's a so-called
religious experience that rises out of a loss, a loss of benefits
or honor, demotion. I've seen a lot of Hollywood
stars get demoted and go into religion. As long as they could
be number one on the charts, they weren't in religion. As
long as they could ride down that lonesome trail and make
a million dollars in movies every year, they wasn't out witnessing
for Jesus. But when they got old as me and there wasn't any
demand for them, they all got religion. And he went around
to churches giving a testimony for Jesus. That's like old Esau. He sought repentance with tears,
but never found it. That's like Judas. He came back
with that money and threw it on the floor. And he said, I
betrayed innocent blood when I unhanged himself. Too late. Too late. When you're motivated by something
other than the Spirit of God, it's too late. God said, I called
and you refused. I'll mock when you fear coming.
He said, you'll call and I'll not hear you. You'll seek me
and not find me. And I'll laugh when your calamity
comes. Well, what is true repentance
and true experience and true regeneration? Well, I'll tell
you briefly. I'll give you several things.
Just name them. If you want to jot them down, you're welcome
to do so. But I know this. It's not an emotional thing.
It carries with it emotion, certainly, but it's not an emotional thing.
Emotion is not a barometer of the depth of God's dealing with
a man. Well, he must have got more than the other fellow did.
He cried more. That doesn't mean anything. Oh, how we're deceived
by outward appearance. And we get taken in all the time
by that. Did you know that? We just won't learn that regeneration
and salvation is heart business, and we just won't learn. We turn
these hucksters and conmen on television, we turn them on,
and they still get to you. You say, well, he just sounds
so sincere. Well, a man needs money. He is
sincere. He's got creditors four miles
long outside his door. He is sincere. His wife's got
to hock one of her diamonds, or sell her Mercedes. And he's
dead serious. He'll cry. He'd cry too. But real repentance and regeneration
arises, first of all, from a right knowledge of God. Now that's
where Isaiah's trouble started. He saw the Lord. That's when
that old boy came down. He said, I saw the Lord. And
Jeffrey, he hit the bottom. He said, I'm undone. I'm cut
off. There's no hope for me. I'm a man of unclean lips, and
I hang around with a bunch of people with unclean lips. That's
when Job got brought down. Even righteous Job got whittled
down when he saw the Lord. That's when Daniel said, my comeliness
melted into what? Corruption. I saw them all. And
that's where it starts. His majesty, His holiness, His
justice, His mercy, His grace, His love is so overpowering and
overwhelming and so infinite and incomprehensible. Who can
tell? Who can know? Who can fathom
the depths of God's riches? Power. That's what Nebuchadnezzar said.
He said, my understanding returned to me. He said, I realize that
the Most High God rules. He rules. He runs this show. He rules in heaven, the armies
of heaven, and among the inhabitants of this earth, and none can stay
His hand. I hear these preachers, won't
you let go and let God have His way? You're not doing much. to
stop God's way. I can tell you that. Not too
much. None can stay His hand. Or say
in the end, question His judgment. What a fool. So this thing of
repentance, that's where it starts. That's the reason I talk so much
or try to about the greatness of God. Until a man sees that,
he ain't seen nothing. Paul said repentance is toward
God. That's repentance is toward God.
It's not telling your wife you're sorry. It ain't telling your
neighbor you're sorry. It's not telling the preacher
you're sorry. It's repenting toward God. Against thee and
thee only have I sinned. And you got a right to cut my
head off and send me to hell. That's what I'm saying. And secondly,
repentance, true repentance and true experience of grace arises
from a right knowledge of my sin. Now, my friends, we got problems. When I preach
here in the church, I listen to a tape where he preached over
somewhere, and he said this, he said, It's bad to be a sinner,
but it's worse to be a sinner and not know it. He said, It's bad to be naked,
but it's worse to be naked and not know it. He said, It's bad to be dying,
but it's worse to be dying and not know it. And that's the problem
with my generation. They're unclean. And I'm not
talking about folks out there in the gutter. I'm talking about
folks sitting right here in these pews. In the sight of God, in
the sight of God, there's no goodness in you anywhere. God
talks about from the sole of your feet to the top of your
head. And I know there's some nice folks as folks go. That's
like one worm bragging on another one, you know. There's some pleasant
people as people go. When we go to comparing ourselves
with ourselves, we come up looking pretty good. But that's like
a lump of coal comparing itself to another lump of coal. I ain't
no blacker than you. See what I'm saying? But when
our sins are revealed to us in the light of that ball in the
garden, that imputed, imparted ungodliness that became ours
in our bloodstream, And we start looking at the holiness
of God. We talk about love. I like to
think I can love people. My love in the presence of God's
love is a bitter hatred. That's the way it comes out.
It's a love of self. You love them that love you,
Christ said. That's nothing. The worst fellow on earth does
that. You give to people from whom you hope to receive something
in return. That ain't nothing. Do that. That's just business,
trying to get people to tithe so God will bless them. Well,
that just makes good sense. I give you 10%, you'll give me
back 40 or 50, meet me in the office after church. Got a little
bit of investing to do. But it don't work that way. God's
not a bargainer. You may come to know Christ and
God will take everything you've got away from you. But He's going
to do what you need for His glory and your good. I'm not promising
anybody here that if you're tired, God will bless you. I'm not promising
anybody here that if you come to know Christ, your troubles
will be over. I'm saying to you, if you come to know Christ, your
troubles will just begin. You're going to have trouble
at work, you're going to have trouble in the home, especially if the folks
in that house don't know Christ. You're going to have trouble
on the job, you're going to have trouble in the flesh. You're
going to have trial and tribulation, you're going to have temptation
and sorrow, but He has overcome the world. And greater is he
that's in you than he that's in this world. I promise you
that. And we get a right knowledge of what we are. What we are. I know what I am. Before God. What a sinner. What
an awful, awful sinner. Paul said, Oh, wretched man that
I am. Somebody said, Well, that's before
he was saved. No, no, no, no. Paul got out of Romans 7 into
Romans 8. No, no, no, no. Oh, wretched
man that I am. Chief of sinners, that's me.
And then thirdly, this true repentance arises from a right knowledge
of the great things God has done for us in Christ. Oh, I'd like
to dwell here for the rest of the night. He loved us in Christ
before the foundation of the world. He chose us in Christ
as our sheriff and redeemer before the world began. He gave every
picture and type that John sang about in the Old Testament to
point us to Christ. Then he sent his beloved into
this world, born of a woman, made under the law to redeem
us who were under the law. And our mouths were stopped,
and we stood before God guilty. And he came down here and took
part of, and part in, and was numbered with transgressors. And He bore our sins in His body
on the tree. And He walked this earth as our
representative and fulfilled every jot and tittle of God's
perfect holy law. He was tried and tested in every
point as you are yet without sin. He did that for you, Doug,
for you and me. Oh, what great things. Let me
tell you about the great things that Christ did for me. He loved
me and gave Himself for me. He took my liquor. He took my
liquid. Bless the Lord, O my soul and
all that's within me. Bless His holy name, who forgiveth
all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases, who satisfies
my mouth with good things. Old Scott said, since I heard
the good news, I ain't heard no bad news. Glory be to Christ. I have a
perfect holiness in Him. God can't find any fault with
me in Christ. I have a perfect cleansing. I
don't have a sin on my record, because Christ paid it off. Not
one. Don't you bring one up. It ain't
none of your business. Who can lay anything to the charge
of God's elect? God's justified me. Who's he
that condemneth? Christ died for me, yea, rather
he rose for me, yea, rather he ascended to the right hand of
God and sat down and intercedes for me. And he's got some what
to offer. Oh, this repentance. And this
fellow that comes to see this, he doesn't need a set of rules
to carry in his Bible, tell him what he can, what he can't do. Well, let's see, can I do that?
Ah, elders will come see me. I think they're more afraid of
the elders than they are of God. Number four, this true repentance
and regeneration produces a well-grounded hope of our interest in God's
mercy through Christ. I tell you, when a man comes
to know Christ, When old Simeon was standing
in that temple, there was the law, and here was his linen robe,
and there was his phylacteries, and there was the Holy of Holies,
and all these things. He was surrounded by the Sabbath,
and deeds, and duties, and forms, and ceremonies, and rituals,
and all these things. And he brought in Christ, and
laid Christ in his arms. And he took one look at him.
Oh, he said, I'm ready to die. What the law couldn't do? What
the ceremonies couldn't do, what the washings couldn't do, what
the baptisms couldn't do, what the holy days couldn't do, what
the pardon couldn't do, Christ did it all. I'm ready to die.
I've seen the Lord. He weaned me from everything
else. I don't need to see anything else. I've seen God's salvation.
I've seen God's salvation. And that's what Paul said, I
know whom I have believed. It's not I know what I believe,
I know when I believe, it's I know whom. It's a whom. And I'm not really interested
in you bringing up a date or a time or a place when you had
an experience. That's not important. I think
too many people are trusting the time instead of Christ or
the experience. I'm not interested in that. That's
not important. I want to know this. Do you know
Him? Now, right now, I'm not talking
about last week or last month. I'm talking about right now. What difference does it make
back there? I know whom I have believed, and I'm persuaded he's
able. What's he able to do? Well, he's
able to say to the uttermost and to come to God by him. He's
able, secondly, to do all that he promised. Abraham said that.
He's able to keep us from falling. He's able to keep that which
I committed to him. He's able to present us faultless
before his throne with exceeding glory. And He's able to raise
our vile bodies from the grave and make them like His own. And
ain't nobody else can do that but Christ. And then fifthly, this true repentance
and regeneration produces a love for Christ. And like Brother
Gerald read in the study tonight, it produces a love for each other.
You want to know something that will bring unity and joy? and happiness and fellowship
and communion into a body of believers. Let them all love
Christ. Let them come to know Christ.
They will forgive and forget. They'll show mercy. They'll be
gracious. They'll be tender, kind. They'll be generous. They
just love to do it. They love each other. And love
is the solution. It's the solution. It's the love
of Christ that constrains it. That's the solution. Your problems,
when you come to know Christ, when people come to know Christ, their needs are met. They don't have to impress anybody.
They don't have to prove anything. They're just in love with each
other. It doesn't matter how high or how low they are, they
love each other. It doesn't matter how rich or poor they are, they
love each other. It doesn't matter how young or old they are, they
just flat love each other. Like in a household, you know,
you love that little terrible twos, and you love that 16-year-old
that's just starting to drive the car, whew, killing you. But you love him. You put up
with him. And you love that and it's married
and gone away from home. Don't know where, you know. Maybe
she don't even, he don't even call anymore, but you love him.
Huh? Well, you see, in a great house,
there are just many vessels. In a great house there are many
personalities. Some lovable and some, some of us ain't too lovable.
Some edgy and some not so edgy, but the love of Christ just covers
a multitude of infirmities. Just kind of covers them over.
You don't see them. I didn't see that. Do you hear
what he said? I didn't hear that. I read between
the lines. How'd you do that? I don't see
any print in here between the lines. Love accepts a person
like they are in Christ. That's right. That's that regeneration. That's what that is. And I'll
give you this and close. Regeneration and true repentance
presses upon me and you three goals. I have three goals, none
of which are attainable in this life. You mean you got a goal
that you can't reach in this life? Yes, sir. Three of them. Three of them. Number one is total commitment
to Jesus Christ. That's right. Total, total, complete
commitment to Jesus Christ. Number two is total perfect communion
with Jesus Christ. That's what I want. Number three
is total conformity to his blessed image. And David said, that'll
be mine someday, because I'm going to be totally satisfied
when I awake with his likeness. I shall behold his beauty and
righteousness. I'm going to look right into
the face of him in whose face I couldn't look now without dying.
I'm going to look. John, that's right, isn't it?
Those are the three goals. Total commitment to Christ. total
communion with Him, and someday total conformity to the image
of my Lord. You see, what I want you to do
is worship Christ, adore Him and love Him, and rest in Him
and believe in Him. Whatever the world says. And
He is the living Lord. They said, over years ago, we
sang a song, Jesus Saves, and I never will forget. Brother
Barnard wasn't as tactful as some of us try to be. But we
sang, Jesus Saves. He got up and said, it ain't
so. Now, that's the song later. That's embarrassing. He said, Jesus Saves. He said,
The Lord Jesus Saves. Isn't that right? The Lord Jesus. There's a message there. I called
it. It dawned on me what he was saying. It's not this little
peanut Jesus they're preaching. He can't save a flea. But the
Lord Jesus, he saves. He's able. I see that, don't
you? I see that. And you know, I preached
up that pipe when I was going to baptize Paul Thacker that
night. And I got through preaching. There's a few of you there. And
I said, Paul wants to confess the Lord Jesus tonight, didn't
he? And what was he saying? That
Jesus, that's the one I want to confess, the one you've been
preaching. I don't want anybody to misunderstand. That's the
Jesus I want to confess, because he can save.