Now, according to this Bible, there is but one gospel. Paul said in Galatians 1, verse 6, I marvel, writing to
the church at Galatia, into which some false prophets
had come preaching a mixture of grace and works. And Paul
said, I'm amazed that you so soon, so soon, after Christ's
death, burial and resurrection, after the visit of the apostles
themselves, in just a few years, I'm amazed, I marvel that you
so soon remove from him that called you into the grace of
Christ unto another gospel. so soon, which is not another,
but there be some that trouble you and would twist, pervert,
change the gospel of Christ. But though we or an angel from
heaven preach any other gospel unto you, then that which we
have preached, let him be accursed. As I said before, I say it now
again, if any any person, priest, any other gospel is just one. Unto you, then, that you have
received, let him be anathema, let him be accursed, let him
be condemned, let him be damned when the Lord comes. That's how
serious it is in 1 Corinthians 15. Paul says this one gospel,
more of the brethren 1 Corinthians 15, I declare unto you the gospel,
the gospel which I preached unto you. You say you're intolerant. No, it's not intolerance at all. It's just truth. It's trying
to contend for that which God says. The gospel which I preached unto
you, which you receive, wherein you stand, by which you are saved,
this one gospel. Now, over in Romans 1, Paul defines
that one gospel. Now, this is important. According
to the word of God, there's one gospel, only one. And Paul was so strong on this
point that he said, if anybody else, if anybody preaches any
other gospel, even if it's an angel from heaven, let him be
under the wrath of God, the curse of God. And here in Romans 1,
Paul defines that gospel. He said, verse 1, Paul, and I'm
a bond slave of Jesus Christ, a servant of Jesus Christ, I'm
called, called of God to be an apostle. I'm separated under
the gospel of God. So this gospel is the gospel
of God that we're talking about. It originated with him. It's
not the Baptist gospel or the Catholic gospel or the Protestant
gospel. Let's don't get all up in the
air about our sectarian position and our denomination. This is not a gospel that originated
with some little church group. It's God's gospel. God purposed
it and planned it and decreed it and designed it, and God did.
This is God's gospel. I tremble when I even talk like
that, but this is the gospel of God, born from the heart of
God, designed for the glory of God, meant to accomplish the
purpose of God. It's God's gospel. Verse 2 says it's the gospel
which he promised the four by his prophets. He said, I'm an
apostle. But this gospel didn't originate
with the apostles. It is the gospel which God promised
by the prophets. Who were the prophets? Moses
was a prophet, Enoch was a prophet, Noah was a prophet. These men
preached the same gospel. God has never changed his way
of saving sinners or redeeming sinners. I'm not a dispensationalist
in the sense that that Almighty God has ever attempted to renew
and regenerate and restore men's souls anywhere except through
Christ. And he said this gospel, verse
3, is concerning his son. That's what this gospel is all
about. It's God's gospel. It's the everlasting gospel.
There's only one. from eternity past to eternity
future. And this gospel is concerning
not what you do, but what Christ did. It concerns Christ. The gospel concerns Christ. When
a man stands in the pulpit and says, Don't you want to go to
heaven? Don't you want to see mother again? Don't you want
the family circle to be reunited? Don't you want to be blessed
physically and materially? Don't you want your bodies healed?
Don't you want that? Well, if you'll come down front
and make a profession and accept Jesus as your personal Savior,
you'll go to heaven when you die and a less standing thing
just as I am and come forward. He hasn't preached any gospel
at all. There's no gospel in that. The
gospel doesn't have anything to do with what you want to do
or what you want to have or what you want to accomplish or what
you want to be. The gospel is concerning his Son, his eternal
glory, his eternal stewardship, his eternal grace, his incarnation,
his coming into the world, not your going to heaven, his coming
into the world from heaven. Here's meeting the law, here's
satisfying the law, here's dying on the cross, here's burial,
here's resurrection, here's ascension, here's intercession, here's mediatorial
work, here's will, here's plans. The gospel is concerning Christ,
it ain't concerning you at all. It's not a plea, it's a proclamation.
That's exactly right. And most people who sing and
pray never touch the gospel. They talk about it, they use
the word gospel, but they never actually present the gospel.
I'm telling you the truth. Look at verse 3. It's concerning
his son, Jesus Christ our Lord. That's who we're talking about.
Jesus, name of humiliation, son of Mary, Christ, the anointed
one, the appointed one, the Messiah, our Lord, eternal God, creator. which was made of the seed of
David according to the flesh." That's who we're talking about.
But declared, he wasn't made to be the Son of God, he was
declared to be the Son of God. It's just one gospel. All right,
now watch this, listen to me. All preachers and churches do
not preach this gospel. There's a gospel of salvation
through the There is a gospel of salvation in the ordinances.
Now, you know this is true. You know this is true. There
was a man who made this statement recently. He said, I go to Mass,
and I'm not picking on Catholics or Baptists or anybody else.
I'm picking on the human race with all of its twisted, perverted
views of salvation. He said, I go to Mass every day
and I take the bread and the wine and I take Jesus Christ
into my body every day. He said, that's my hope. The
salvation is not in the wafer and the wine. Salvation is not
in the church. Salvation is not in your morality.
We tell our, we don't, but people tell their children, now you
be good and God will take you to heaven when you die. Well,
I want them to be good, but God's not going to take them to heaven
when they die because they mind mama. We tell little children, now
be good and you'll be an angel someday. We brainwash them from
the time they were little children into thinking that salvation
is in doing something good. Well, if I do the best I can,
surely I'll go to heaven. The best you can is vanity. Salvation
is not in a decision. Let me tell you something. I
tell you this morning, come to Christ. Come to Christ. Come unto me, he said, and I'll
give you rest. Come unto me, and I'll give you peace. Come
unto me. But don't you move a muscle. You come to Christ, but don't
move a muscle. Because coming to Christ is not
a physical move at all. It's not coming to the front,
it's not coming to the place, it's not making a decision Coming
to Christ is a heart submission, surrender and reception of Christ
right where you are. You can come to Christ in your
car. You can come to Christ in a well. You can come to Christ
in a cave. You can come to Christ in a church.
You'll be hindered a whole lot, but some people have before. But coming to Christ is not a
physical move. And we have associated and made
it synonymous with coming down an aisle. And you may wonder
why I close the service abruptly like I do, or just pray and say,
Go home. I am so weary, and a lot of other
people are, of people associating salvation with the front of a
building and with a preacher's hand that I just run the other
way. Coming to Christ, but don't move a muscle. Salvation is not
in a decision, it's not in family ties. Do you know twice Solomon
said this? There's a way that seemeth right
unto a man, but the end thereof is death. There's a way that
seems right. And God said through Isaiah,
My way is not your way. But every preacher has a gospel. Every church has a gospel. Every
believer of some sort has a gospel, a gospel which he believes, a
gospel which he preaches, a gospel for which he contends, a gospel
by which he'll live, and a gospel by which he'll die. And Paul
called it, you know, twice Paul called the gospel he preached,
my gospel. Let me just read it to you, don't
turn, I want to move quickly, but he said in in Romans 16.25. Now to him there is a power to
establish you according to my gospel, my gospel, my gospel. And again in 2 Timothy 2.8, he
said something very similar. He said this, 2 Timothy 2.8,
he said, Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was
raised from the dead according to my gospel, my gospel. Why
don't he call it, you say it's the gospel of God, why don't
Paul call it his gospel? Because he was saved by it, because
he believed it, because he loved it, because it was committed
to his trust, and because he was determined to preach it.
My gospel. All right? I'm going to give
you about five or six points of my gospel. This is the gospel
according to Henry Mahan. Nothing wrong with that. You've
got a gospel. You've got a gospel, you believe.
A gospel, you'd die for it. And I've got a gospel, I believe,
and I'd die for it. I'm going to preach it. As Brother
Jim Foster once said, come flame or flood, this is my gospel.
Number one, my gospel exalts a sovereign God. My gospel does. My gospel exalts a sovereign
God. absolutely, immutably, infinitely
sovereign. He's sovereign in creation. In
the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. I won't
argue with any man or debate with any man. God created all
things. He's sovereign in providence.
My Lord Jesus Christ said, not a bird, not a sparrow, worthless
as they are, falls to the ground without my father. The hairs
of your head are numbered. God subtracted that one right
there. God Almighty knows. He's sovereign in salvation,
known unto God. Now, you hold on to your seat.
I'm going to tell you something here. Known unto God are all
his works from the beginning, all his works. And salvation
is his glorious, redemptive work. And salvation is his greatest
work, if his works can be called one greater than the other. And
known unto God are all his works. He says we're his workmanship.
Are you with me? He declared the end from the
beginning. Now here's what I'm saying. And
I want to be understood what I'm saying. I believe this. God has determined from all,
before the morning stars sang together, before the sons of
God shouted for joy, before the foundation of the world, God
determined to have a new heaven and a new earth. Known unto God
are all his works from the beginning. God determined to have that new
heaven, new earth populated by a people like Christ. Now, that's
right. I'm talking about before the
old world was made, he determined to have a new world. Before the
old heavens were made, before he made the stars, he determined
to have a new heaven and earth wherein dwelleth righteousness,
known unto God all his works from the beginning. He declares
the end from the beginning. He's already declared the end
from the beginning. In the beginning, God created
all that. God has determined from the beginning to have a
kingdom wherein dwelleth perfect righteousness, that every enemy
shall be put where he can do no more harm. With that in his purpose and
with that in his eternal design, he then created the world as
we know it now, and man who fell. And all of this is simply to
accomplish that. That's what I'm saying. known
unto God are all his works from the beginning. And I'm saying
this, before God ever laid one foundation stone, one foundation
pillar, for all the galaxies and all the world and all the
sun, moon, God determined that Christ should be glorified and
have preeminence as the Redeemer of the people. In the beginning,
his Redeemer was chosen. and his way of redemption, for
he was the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world.
And his people out of every tribe, kindred, nation, and tongue unto
heaven were chosen in that Redeemer." Do you see what I'm saying? I'm
saying my gospel does not recognize a God who changes. He never changes. He's the same. I'm the Lord,
I've changed nothing. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday,
today, and forever. He never changes. His will never
changes. His design and purpose never
changes. What God determined in eternity,
he will accomplish in the future. He is absolutely, immutably,
infinitely, unchangeably sovereign in everything. That's the God
I'm talking about. Secondly, my gospel. Not only
not only exalts the sovereign God, but my gospel recognizes
a total, complete fall of the human race. Now, I'm talking
about David total. I'm not saying that man in the
Garden of Eden was wounded, he was slain. I'm not saying that
he lost the sight of one eye, he was totally blinded. In Psalm
14, verse 2-3, now listen to this. Psalm 14, verses 2 and
3. It says here, listen to this,
the Lord God, the Lord God looked down from heaven, and God speaks
sometimes as a man, he talks about the Lord and this sort
of thing, he's speaking in language we can sort of comprehend. The
Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men to see
if there were any that did understand and seek God. They're all gone
aside, they're all together become stinking, is the word. That's
what is in your center reference. There's none that do us good.
In Adam, all died. Now, please understand, I'm saying
died, dead. I'm not dead physically, I'm
not dead mentally. We're dead spiritually. We're
born dead in trespasses and sins. The carnal mind is enmity against
God. The natural man receives it,
not the things of God. The heart is deceitful and desperately
wicked. Man at his best faith is vanity. The wicked go astray from the
womb, speaking lies. Can the Ethiopian change his
skin as a black man with a black skin? He can't change his skin,
not by willing or any other way. Can the leopard change his spot?
No. Neither can you do good. Not
one hit of good, not one jot or tittle of good, not one thing
pleasing to God. We're dead, and we must be quickened
because we're dead. misunderstood by today's religious
generation, and I know it's not popular, and I know that they're not going to receive
it. But sinners are totally incapable of believing on Christ. They
have not the living Christ. I'm not talking about the Christ
of their imagination, the Christ who is my personal that sort
of thing, you know, the modern religious jazz and jargon. I'm
talking about to comprehend the living God and his eternal purpose
in redemption and the substitutionary work of Christ, enabling God
to be both just and justifier, and a living union with Christ
Jesus in eating his flesh and drinking his blood and feeding
on him. This modern world has no capability
of even understanding that. They can't understand it. How can you understand if I tell
you heavenly things? Man's dead. He's dead, that's
what I'm saying. He's not dead physically, he's
not dead naturally, mentally, carnally, but his mind is dead
to God. He can't comprehend. He can comprehend
a false God, but not the living He can comprehend a false gospel
but not the true gospel. He can comprehend a way of works,
he cannot comprehend a way of grace. It's no more a monkey
can understand it as quickly as a dead sinner. I'm telling
you the truth. Yesterday you said it's taking
it too far. A dog can understand it as quickly as a dead sinner. He's totally Christ said that,
our Lord Jesus Christ picked one of the wisest, most brilliant
rulers of his day, Nicodemus, who sat with the Sanhedrin, who
sat with the highest men in the Jewish nation. And he said to
Nicodemus, you're not born again, you can't see the kingdom of
God. You can't understand it. He said, how can you understand
heavenly things? You can't even understand earthly
things that I've spoken to you. Can't understand. Neither do I. I wish I could
describe what spiritual death is. I can't because those who
are born again know what it is, and those who are not can't understand
what it is. But it's just there. We're dead. Dead. Spirit. Thirdly, my gospel is based on
a covenant of grace, a covenant. Now, this congregation is not
afraid of that word. Some places, they are strangers
to it. But the word covenant appears
in the Bible over 250 times. Covenant, covenant, covenant.
Here are some of God's covenants. He made a covenant with Adam.
He made a covenant with Noah. That's right, he made a covenant
with Noah. After the flood, he made another one. He said, put
the rainbow in the sky, and he said, I won't destroy the world
by water anymore. He made a covenant with Abraham.
The Lord God made a covenant with David, a covenant, an agreement. There are a lot of preachers
who hate it so badly they call it contract. God entered a contract. Well, I'm not too disturbed by
that word contract. But a covenant, an agreement,
this covenant I'm talking about is an everlasting covenant, and
it's the one David referred to in 2 Samuel 23 on his deathbed. He said, God hath made with me
an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure, and this
is all my salvation and all my desire. And this is a covenant
Jeremiah talked about in Jeremiah 32, 38 through 40, when he said,
I'll put my law in their hearts, that they might love it, write
it on their minds, that they might think on it, and I'll never
depart from them to do them good, and they'll never depart from
me. That's my covenant God said I'll make with my people. I want
you to look at this in Hebrews 7. Hebrews 7, this covenant. Hebrews 7. Turn to Hebrews 7.
Verse 22, Hebrews 7.22, Paul talks about Christ was made
a surety. You know what a surety is? It's
a guarantor. It means just exactly what it
says, certain, sure, surety. And you know, one time when Jacob's
sons were down in Egypt, Joseph, who he thought was dead, and
then was it Reuben that he kept down there, and then he wanted
to take Benjamin? And Jacob said, No, you're not
going to take Benjamin. Joseph is not, and Simeon. Simeon
is not. And you're going to take Reuben?
No. So Judah stepped out and said,
Father, let me take him. We're going to starve to death
if we don't go down and get some food. Let me take him, and I'll
be surety for him. I'll be certainty, surety, guarantee. I'll bring him back. If I don't
bring him back, I'll take the blame. Me and my family." Now,
is that all right, Father? He said, That'd be fine. That'd
be fine. But you bring him back. If you
don't, we'll hold you responsible. That's a surety. The Lord Jesus
Christ is a surety. of a covenant. What covenant? Not Adam's covenant, not Noah's covenant. He's the
surety of that everlasting covenant, God's covenant. And I'll tell you this, your
salvation is no stronger than your surety, because you're going
to fail. You can't come back where you
said you don't know the way back. And you know the reason we have
a certain salvation, a sure salvation? Because he is our surety. Hebrews 7.20, now Hebrews 8.6,
right across the page. But now, hath he obtained a more
excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a
better covenant a better testament. You see, the word testament and
covenant is used interchangeably. Testament is the same thing as
covenant. Jesus is assured of a better covenant, and he's the
mediator. What's a mediator? He's one who
intercedes for another. He's the in-between, God-us. Christ is our mediator. He's our intercessor. He's the
one that says, Father, accept him for my sake. Forgive him
for my sake. Bless him for my sake. Look upon
me and him in me. All right, one more verse, Hebrews
13. My gospel is a covenant gospel.
And I'm not bashful or ashamed. It's become more covenant the
more I study this book. In Hebrew 1320, now the God of
peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that
great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting
covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will.
You know, when Eisenhower died and the fellow spoke at his funeral,
he read that verse of scripture. And I thought, I wonder how many
people, even the fellow reading it, knows what he's reading.
Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead, how did
he die? On a cross as a substitute. Our
Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of these sheep, I'm the good
shepherd, the chief shepherd, the great shepherd, I know my
sheep, and they hear my voice. Through the blood, the blood,
not the works, the blood. of the everlasting covenant,
eternal covenant, make you perfect. That's how you make perfect,
that's how you're perfected, through the blood, by one sacrifice
of he hath perfected. That's that covenant. Our Lord
Jesus Christ said to the Father, I'll bring them home, and not
one will be lost. I pray not for the world, I pray
for them whom thou hast given me. Fourthly, my gospel declares
the incarnate God. That's my gospel for I'm preaching,
one for which I contend, and the one, listen to me, I believe
so much that if you don't believe it, I believe you're lost. I
believe you're lost. You say, I'm not going to sit
here and listen to that. That's the reason I'm preaching
this. I want you to go somewhere else if you don't believe that.
That's right. Because this is the gospel, the
incarnate God. I'm saying this, turn to Matthew
1, Matthew 1. Listen to this, Matthew 1, and
she shall bring forth, verse 21, a son, and thou shalt call
his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.
Now, all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken of the Lord by the prophet, Behold, a virgin shall be with
child, and bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name
Immanuel, which is being interpreted, God with us." That's what God,
Jesus Christ, is God. The Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten
of the Father. John 10.30, I and my Father one. 2 Timothy 3.16, great is the
mystery of godliness, God was manifest in the flesh. 2 Corinthians
5.19, God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself. You mean
your God became an infant? Yes, sir. He tabernacled in the
flesh. I can't explain it, but I know
that Jesus Christ is God Almighty. In the beginning was the Word,
the Word was with God and the Word was God, the Word was made
flesh. Your God walked on this earth,
tabernacle in human flesh, yes. There was a time when his Shekinah
glory was revealed in a tabernacle in the wilderness. And your God hung on a cross
in human flesh, yes sir. That's not just an example or
a martyr or a reformer, that's God in human flesh. God was in
Christ. Your gospel gets stranger to
me all the time. It is strange to an unregenerate
man. It doesn't make sense. If your
gospel makes sense to the unregenerate, it's not God's gospel. If your gospel can be comprehended
by a natural mind, an unbeliever, it's not God's gospel. God's
gospel is a mystery. Grace is the mystery of Godliness. All right, fiercely, my gospel
is the gospel of an effectual and effectual, successful, complete
salvation, accomplished by God's Son. My gospel is the gospel
of an effectual. I'm talking about he got the
job done. Successful, complete salvation accomplished by God's
Son through a perfect life, an atoning death, a glorious resurrection,
and his mediaeval prayer and intercession. He did it all. He paid it all. He accomplished
it all. Turn to Romans 3. In Romans 3,
listen to this, Romans 3, it says here in Romans 3, verse
25, talking about Christ, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation
through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for
the remission of sins that have perished, even of Old Testament
Saints, through the forbearance of God, to declare at this time
God's righteousness, that he might be just and the justifier
of him which believeth in Jesus." I'm saying that by his perfect
life, we are sanctified. I'm going to work on that tonight.
By his substitutionary death, we are justified. By his exaltation,
the right hand of God, we are accepted and seated and entered
the with air, glorified in Christ. He did it all. There's nothing
for me to pray or to give, nothing for me to contribute. I'm saved
by the grace of God through the work of Christ. In the sixth
place, my gospel is the gospel of an invincible Holy Spirit,
an invincible Holy Spirit, who conquers, who quickens, who begets,
who convicts, who calls, who reveals Christ to those whom
God determined to save. A conquering, invincible spirit. I'm not saying that the Holy
Spirit cannot be resisted, I'm saying he cannot be resisted
effectually. I'm not saying the Holy Spirit
cannot be vexed and grieved and resisted. I'm saying the Holy
Spirit will, in God's time, have his way. He will quicken whom
he will. There may be resistance and there
may be no resistance, but it will go down. The walls of Jericho
will fall if he ever lays siege to them. You have to be quickened
who were dead in trespasses and sins. 2 Timothy 1, 8 and 9. called
us with a holy calling. Romans 8, 29, whom he foreknew,
he predestinated to be conformed to the image of his Son. Whom
he predestinated, he called. Whom he called, he justified.
Whom he justified, he glorified. That's effectual. That's invincible. Here's the last one, number 7. My gospel is good news. It's good news to those who will
hear it. to those who will believe it,
to those who by his grace will receive it, and by his grace
persevere and repent toward God and faith in Jesus Christ. If
I stood up here today and told you something to do in order
to be saved, that wouldn't be good news. You'd just put your
coat up and go out the door and get ready to pray if I was telling
you something to do. If I got up here this morning
and told you, now God's waiting on you to meet him halfway, or
to take a step, and you take a step, he'll join you, he'll
meet you. Well, you just might as well
say, well, that's it for me. That's it for me, because there's
no good in my flesh, and in the flesh no man can please God,
and oh, wretched man! But when I stand up here and
say, God decreed it, and Christ Jesus accomplished it! And the
Holy Spirit says, come! You say, here I come. I believe. I believe. That's good news.
God opens a door. And you know, I can give you
this. Scott Richardson and I worked on this together one time years
ago, and I brought a message on it. But I'll tell you how
I know that my gospel is a big gospel. I'll tell you how I know. Number one, it's the only gospel
that really glorifies God. gives him all the glory. Now,
come on! This gospel is the only gospel that really gives God
all the glory. Secondly, this is the only gospel
that is true to the Old Testament promises. God chose Israel. He took not on himself the nature
of angels, but the seed of Abraham. It's true of the Old Testament
types. It's the only gospel that really enables God to be just
and justifying. a complete payment by Christ. Fourthly, it's the only gospel
that gives real hope to a real sinner. A free gospel is the
only gospel that gives real hope to a real sinner. Fifthly, it's
the only gospel that will keep a man safe. You can't keep yourself. I can't keep you. The Church
can't keep you. He can keep you. We're kept by
the power of God through faith. And then last of all, this is
the only gospel that really allows a sinner to have any assurance.
My assurance is not in my profession or in my feelings or in my association
with a church. My assurance is in Christ. As
long as he is God's son at God's right hand as my mediator, then
I am safe and secure in Christ. Let's sing Amazing Grace, Mike,
how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was
lost, but now I'm found. I was blind, but now I see. Amazing
Grace, what number?