I want you to open your Bibles
to Colossians 1. And while you're turning there,
I want to read a passage from 2 Timothy 4, in which Paul said
to Timothy, Preach the Word. Preach the Word. Preach the Word. For the time will when men will not endure sound
doctrine. But after their own lusts shall
they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears." Not only
the people want to hear what they want to hear, but the teachers
also have ears that attune to the compliments and the encouraging
words of the people. The teachers like to have their
ears tickled. I could be bragged on. And they'll
turn away from the truth. They'll turn away their ears
from the truth. And they shall be turned to fables,
religious fables, things that are just not so. As much fiction
as Esau's fables. But that's what they want to
hear. But you watch in all things,
he says to Timothy. And you endure the afflictions,
the afflictions of trials or persecution or whatever that
comes from preaching the Word. You endure them. Put up with
them. Don't let them turn you. Do the
work of an evangelist, evangelize, missionary. Go out and preach. Witness. Call men to Christ. and make full proof or fulfill
all the duties of your ministry." Fulfill all the duties of your
ministry. Now, I know the duties, just
from those exhortations there, the duties of what we call the
ministry are vast, vast, there are many. But there are two uppermost
on my mind today. two of them. And that is, number
one, the duties of the ministry, fulfilling what I believe God
has called me to do. Number one, to preach the gospel
of Christ, the gospel of his grace, the free grace of God
to sinners in Christ, because of Christ, through Christ. Preach
that gospel at Good News so clearly, with such simplicity and singleness,
singleness of Christ, that sinners, no matter who they are, sinners,
men and women who are sinners, know they are sinners, that they
will be encouraged, not discouraged, but encouraged to look to Christ. preached the gospel of Christ
and of his free grace and love and mercy. God loves sinners. God delights to save sinners.
He came into the world as seeking to save the lost. He came into
the world to down the cross for sinners, Paul said, of whom I
am chief. Sound the note. Sound it so clearly. Don't cover it up, lest the cross
of Christ be made of non-effect with your intellectualism and
your learning and your so-called wisdom and your oratory and your
all of these things. Preach it. Preach the gospel.
Call it the blood. Call it the cross. Call it the
mercy of God. Preach the gospel so plainly,
so clearly, that sinners, men and women who are sinners, who
have nothing, are nothing, know nothing, never will be anything,
apart from the grace of God, that they will be encouraged,
encouraged to look to Christ. And that they'll go away and
be comforted with a sweet assurance of their interest in Christ.
I know so many preachers that just can't seem, just can't seem
to preach clearly and plainly without apology, justification
by faith. That's right, by faith. All who
believe on Christ are justified from their sins, sins for which
the law could not justify. I have come to this conclusion,
said Paul, a man is justified by faith without the deeds of
the law. Preach it so clearly, just like
Moses when he lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, and there
all those dying people, they had nothing to recommend them.
God was not obligated to them. God owed them nothing. Moses
just lifted up that serpent and looked out over all those people,
whoever they were, old and young, learned and ignorant, all kinds
of people, men and women, boys and girls, and he just said one
word, Look! Look! Why can't we do that? No, we've got to say, now, all
of you out there that are awake and look, or those that have
distress of soul look, or those that are this, that, and the
other look. Now remember, after you look, you've got to do something
else. And after you look, you've got to do this, that, and the
other. And just a certain kind of look, now it has to be a single
look, it has to be a continuous look, it has to be a heart look.
It took us six months to tell those people to look to that
serpent. It would have. Moses just lifted up the serpent
and said, That's why you say, but you're leaning too hard.
No, our Lord delights to show mercy. Find me a thief and I'll
tell him there's hope for him in Christ. Find me a harlot,
find me a publican, find me a sinner, find me a drunk, find me a profane
swearer, find me a man of blasphemous tongue, just find me any old
son of Adam, any old worthless, good-for-nothing, low-down son
of Adam, and if he's a sinner, I'll just tell him to look to
Christ. Look to Christ! Rest in Him. Believe on Him.
That's all you got to do. What must I do to be saved? Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ." Now, I want to preach that gospel
so clearly and so plainly that no man will be confused. I know
some of you are sitting out there saying, well, I want to make
sure. I don't want to make a false profession. I want to be sure
this is the time. I want to look, look to Christ. That's what he said. Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ, and I'll shut up in a second. Look
to Christ. I'm weary of all the conditions,
I'm weary of all the different ways that we make the gospel
difficult. It's not difficult, it's look
to Christ. And I want to preach that. And that's the reason,
I don't know whether he was wise or not, but that's the reason
Mr. Spurgeon defended Mr. Moody. Mr. Spurgeon, you'd have to know
the background of this thing, but he preached a sermon one
time on Moody and Sankey vindicated or defended. Mr. Spurgeon lived and began his
ministry in England in the days of strong Puritanism and Calvinism
and almost fatalism and Reformed skepticism and all this sort
of thing. And people were burdened down
with and bowed down under all of these doctrines and requirements
and all of this cold, high church doctrine, and there wasn't any
witnessing, there wasn't any soul winning, there wasn't any
plea to sinners, there wasn't any preaching of justification
by faith alone, it was just all this. You read those old Puritans,
you get bogged down, you wonder if the mercy of God is for men
and women or for some special class of people. And Spurgeon
came in hollering, look, look to Christ, look to Christ. And
then Moody came over there, and Moody had a weak ministry, I
know that, but he did preach, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
And all these Puritans and intellectuals and fatalistic folks and Calvinistic
folks and all this got to shooting at Moody and denied him. And
Spurgeon said, well, at least he's pointing men to Christ.
He's not sitting around in a cold, old, musty, dusty, dimly lit
study, pouring over a bunch of Puritans. He's at least telling
men to believe on Christ. He said, that's the way men are
saved. That's the way men are saved. Why can't we have both? Why can't we have our studies
and our evangelism? Why can't we have our doctrines
and our truth and spirit, worship God in spirit and truth? I don't
know why we, I got, I got bones and meat. You know, our skeleton's
important. If I didn't have my skeleton,
I'd just splatter out all over the place up there, spread out,
have another carpet up there. But I tell you, if I didn't have
some meat and flesh, there's not too many folks that want
to look at the dry, bleached bones. So we got to have the
There's a skeleton of truth and doctrine. We've got to have foundation. We've got to have the joists
and the studs and all these things. And then we adorn the doctrine
of God our Savior in all things. So I want to preach and I want
to just cry out and believe on Christ. I'll teach you later.
Go make disciples and teach them. But you can't teach a man until
you've made him a disciple. That's the reason I don't think
Sunday school is for lost people. I'm in preaching service for
lost people. Don't bring your doubters and
rebels to my class. I'm teaching believers. Bring
them to the service and let them hear the gospel. They need to
hear the gospel. You can't teach a rebel. You can't teach an unsaved
man. He's got to be broken. He's got
to be converted. He's got to be brought to Christ.
And that's done with the preaching of the gospel. That's so. I'm
telling you the truth. That's the reason these churches are
building. Their churches on Sunday school are going at it the wrong
way. They've got the cart before the horse. God has chosen by
the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. And
when they're saved, then you teach them. Go and make disciples
and baptize them, isn't that right, Jim? And teach them to
observe all things that I've commanded you. That's right.
Teaching is for the church. Evangelism. I had people when
I was up there last week, some of our folks came up to hear
me, and they said, you preach better out here than you do at
home. You preach better out in meetings than you do at home.
You know what I'm doing? I'm evangelizing. I'm just ripping and snorting
and calling mourners, you know, and they like that. Here, you
folks have been saved. You've come to know Christ. We've
got to do some teaching. We've got to deal with some things
that I wouldn't deal with out amongst folks, you know, that
hadn't heard much preaching. I just talking about Christ,
you know, and how he died for sinners. But when we get in here,
we get the family, we've got to whip the kids, and we've got
to make them eat their peas, and they don't like them, you
know. We've got to teach them things, child. That's what you've
got to do from the pulpit here, folks. They're different places,
different stages of maturity. Here's the second part of the
ministry to which I am dedicated and devoted, and Paul said, make
full proof of it, fulfill all the duties of it, and that is
to preach the life of faith and the evidences of discipleship
so faithfully that no man will take for granted his relationship
with God. Now, is that possible? Can we
possibly do that? Can I look with faith to Christ
alone? Can I reach out with trembling
hands and with a broken heart and with a sinful soul, and lay
hold upon my Lord, and find rest in him, and peace in him, and
forgiveness, and mercy, and cleansing, and acceptance with the heavenly
Father, just by looking to Christ and Christ alone. And then can
I in turn continue to look to him, and continue to rest in
him, and continue to trust in him? and walk with him, and love
him, and give evidence that I've been with him, and not take for
granted these things, and live in idle presumption. I know the
scripture exhorts me to do that. The scripture exhorts me to examine
myself, whether I be in the faith. The scripture exhorts me to give
diligence to make my calling and election sure. The scripture
exhorts me every time I come to the Lord's table to be sure,
be certain that I discern his broken body and shed blood. Do
you? Do you? Do you? Can I look and ask myself,
are you looking? Can I believe and yet ask myself,
are you believing? Can I rest in Christ and continue
to ask myself, is it Christ in whom you're resting? Well, now,
that's what must be done. Because we have so many examples
and warnings in the scripture, examples cited and warnings set
forth concerning those who departed from the faith. And John said
they only gave appearance that they were looking to Christ.
John says if they had been of us, if they had been looking
to Christ, if they had been believing on Christ, If there had been
all of us who looked to Christ, they no doubt would have continued. No doubt. You see what I'm saying? And Paul said, Demas, my companion,
you know, Demas who preached with me and traveled with me.
Well, he left me, Paul said. He left me. And he left me why? Why did he leave me? He loved
the world. And Paul is saying there that
he didn't love Christ, because if any man loved the world, the
love of God is not in him. You know what I'm saying? So
that's what Paul said. He only appeared to be with me.
He said, he knew he wasn't with me. He only appeared to be looking. And that's what I'm saying. That's
what it says here in our text in Colossians. Did you turn over
there? Colossians 1.23. This is what it says. Colossians
1.23. If you continue in the faith,
Thus, thus, and thus, and thus, if so, if you continue in the
faith. Look to me, and be you saved. You will be saved if you're
looking. And that's the question. I told
my son this to a class a while ago, and D'Arcy and I were talking
about this last night, driving back from Russell, Kentucky. I know where salvation is. It's
in Christ. I don't have a doubt in my mind
about that. I know who the Savior is. It's
Jesus Christ the Lord. There's so many voices and confusion
around, so many preachers and churches and denominations, it's
confusing to anybody. But I know other foundations
can no man lay than that which is laid, Christ the Lord. I know
that. Jim talked about it in his prayer. That's where life
is, love is, truth is, beauty is, salvation, cleansing, atonement,
by whom we have received the atonement. Now, here's the question. I turned to her and said, my
question is, am I in healing? Well, that's the question. Are
you in healing? I know we're in the church, and
I know we're in fellowship with some folks that are in the church,
and I know we're in the doctrines and all that. Are we in Christ?
Oh, that I may win Christ and be found in Him! That I may know Him and the power
of His resurrection. That's what I'm saying. Salvation
is knowing Him. Knowing. It's in looking to Him.
Look to Him. It's in believing on Him. Believe
on Him. The question is, am I believing? No doubt about that. Let's look
at Colossians 1 a minute. Go back to verse 12, Colossians
1. The message of redemption is
clear-cut. It's so clear-cut, there needs
to be no confusion. Any confusion is man-made. Any
confusion around how God saves sinners and through whom God
saves sinners and for whose glory God saves sinners, any confusion
is not because of this word, it's because of people reading
it. That's where the problem is. And preachers, hucksters,
merchandisers of souls. Look at Colossians 1.12. Give
thanks unto the Father who hath made us meet, the word there,
sufficient to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints
in life. You got any problem with that? It's saying, salvations
of the Lord. You know what it's saying, Herman?
It's saying, God did it. He's saying, if you're sufficient
to live in glory, God made you sufficient. Who did? God did.
You didn't do it? God did it. The soul winner didn't
do it? God did it. God did. God made me sufficient. He gave me all of the need, all
of the necessities, all of the ability, all of the sufficiency
to live forever as a joint heir with Christ. God did it. That's
clear as a bell. And He delivered us, verse 13,
who did? Tell them that God. He delivered
us from the power of darkness, from the clutches of sin and
Satan and the bondage of the law. And he transferred us. He lifted the beggar out of the
dunghill. He put him on the throne. He
transferred us from this darkness, death, depravity and disease
to the kingdom of his dear Son. Anybody got any question about
that? Salvations of the Lord. There you were in the rotten
hog pen, in the mire, in the dung hill, and Almighty God came
down in Christ, through Christ, made you sufficient to be otherwise,
made you sufficient to reign. And he transferred you, he did
it, he transferred you from this bondage and slavery, he transferred
you into the kingdom of the Son of his love. He did it! And I'm
going to holler that till somebody says, I believe it. He did it. You didn't do it. Preacher didn't
do it. You didn't even cooperate. You rejected all the way. He
drug you and you're dragging your heels, that's right, like
an old stubborn donkey. And he made you willing in the
day of his power. Everybody's going to hell if
he can. That's right, God did it all, all right? Look at the
next verse, verse 14. Now, God the Father transferred
us from this kingdom of rottenness and depravity and darkness to
the kingdom of his Son, in whom, that is, in the Son, we have
redemption. You redeem something that's been
sold, sold under sin, the property of the law, the property of sin,
and the slave, you redeem a slave. And he, we have redemption where? Through his blood, his blood. He paid for us with his blood. And even the forgiveness of sins
is in Christ. Anybody have any problems with
that? That's where it is. God purposed it. The Son purchased
it. God promised it. The Son bought
it. God loved us and put his affection
upon us and would have us in his kingdom, and the Son came
down here through his obedience and the shedding of his blood
and his death, and he bought the slave, and he put him on
his shoulder and took him to glory." That's where it is. Now, who is he, verse 15? Who
is he? He's the image of the invisible
God. He's the image of them. He's
the firstborn of every creature. That's who he is. We'll talk
about who he is tonight. I won't dwell on that now. But
he's the express image of the Father. You've seen me, you've
seen God. That's what Christ said. God was in Christ. You
know the scriptures. For by him, this person in whom
we have redemption, forgiveness of sin through his blood, this
person, by him were all things created. He's the creator in
heaven, earth. visible and invisible, spirits,
the spirit world, spiritual world, the material world, I don't care
whether it be thrones, whose throne, dominions, whose dominion,
principalities, powers, all things were created by Him and for Him,
and He's before all things, and by Him they consist, in Him they
live and move and have their being. It all moves right now. the motion of the earth, the
moon where it is, the stars, the planets, the budding of the
trees, the sap coming up in the trunk, the flowers peeping their
way out through the ground and the leaves, my breath, the movement
of this hand, by him, by him, that's right. It's not a fly that flaps a wing. It's not in the purpose and power
of my Lord. That's right, and a snowflake
falls to the earth without my Father. Not a hair on my head
drops to the ground that he's not only aware of, but permits
it to fall. I believe that. You better believe
it, because that's the God of the Bible. And he's the head,
looky here, he's the head of the body, the Church, he's the
head, he's the President. He's the sovereign king. And
then in verse 19, For it pleased the Father that in him, this
same one we're talking about, in whom we have redemption, forgiveness
of sin, in him dwelleth, in him shall all fullness, fullness. What is this fullness? It's the
fullness of the Godhead. It's the fullness of God. Now,
don't ask me to explain the Trinity. I can't do it. I'd be a fool
for tribe. And you'd be a fool if you listened
to me. God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, and yet they're
one. God said, Let us make man. The
Father sent the Son into the world. When the Son was baptized,
the Father spake from heaven, said, This is my Son, in whom
I'm well pleased. And the Spirit descended on him
in the form of a dove. There are three that bear record
in heaven, the Word, the Father, and the Son, and yet they're
one. One God. And I don't fully understand
that, but it pleased the Father that all fullness, all the fullness
of the Godhead, all the full—and when I say fullness, I mean plump
full. This glass is not full. It is
not full. But if I keep pouring water in
it, and it comes to the top and begins to run over, you say,
what, it's full. What do you mean full? Can't
add anything else. Stop! Quit! It's full! Well, that's
Christ. All fullness, all holiness is
in Him. All of it. All of it. He said,
He's seen me, seen God. He said, Show us the Father.
I said, You're looking at it. Well, you're part of it, you're repping
it. No, no, no, no, no. Fullness. All fullness. Fullness of love. It's all in
Christ. All fullness of grace. All fullness
of redemption. Look across the page at Colossians
2.9. For in him dwelleth, and my friend, it's not passing through,
it's dwelleth, dwelleth, dwelleth, dwelleth. See that? That's where
fullness is. That's where it dwells. That's
where the Father put it. That's where it always has been,
is, and always will be. All fullness dwelleth in Him. And you are complete in Him.
Old John Flavel made this observation. God put everything in Christ.
Everything. Everything. Everything. All of
everything. All of everything's in Christ.
There's nothing to add because everything's in Him. And it's
yours. All things are yours through
a living union with Him. That's where it is. Outside of
Christ, you're a nothing. You're a nothing. I'm a nothing.
I have no love, no real love. I have no peace, rest, joy. Cleansing
outside of Christ. I'm a nothing because it's all
in Him. If all the fullness is here,
don't just look at anywhere else. And if I'm not here, I'm not
in the fullness. So Flavor says it's all in Him. It's mine if
I'm in Him. And I'm in Him by faith. By faith,
no other way. And that faith cometh through
believing what He says, His Word. And the word is made applicable,
or effectual, by the Holy Spirit giving me eyes to see these things,
and ears to hear these things, and a heart to comprehend it,
David. I comprehend this. You say, you're a fanatic, and
a radical, and a fool, narrow-minded. Call me what you will, but I
see it. Don't tell me I don't see it. Don't tell me that's
not what it says. I know that. You say, that's
what it says. That's not what it means. Yes, it does too. I
don't claim to be any special smartness or anything like that.
I just know this is where it is. That's what God said. What
God said. And God, I didn't see it on my
own. He revealed it to me. And look here at verse 20, and
the work's all done. It's in him, verse 20, and having
just done the great transactions done, Like Paul Edwards said
in his message, Christ didn't say it's done. He said it's finished.
It's finished. Finished. Totally complete. Totally
complete. And having made peace with whom? With the Father. That's who the
war was against. The cannons of heaven were turned
on us because of sin. But they'd been not only silenced,
but put away. And he made peace, and he, through
the blood of his cross, that's how he made it. And my friends,
don't call it a slaughterhouse religion, a bloody religion. Be careful. The precious blood
of Christ. Precious. Precious. Precious
blood of Christ. Without the shedding of blood,
there's no remission. You say, you're old-fashioned.
You don't know how old-fashioned I am. I go clear back to before
the foundation of the world. It's just one gospel, and that's
where it started. It was born in the heart of God.
It never changed. Different dispensations, it's
been revealed to different extent and different degrees, but always
the same gospel. And he made peace through the
blood of his cross by him, only by him, to reconcile. The word
reconcile means there was enmity. Reconciliation means there was
a separation. You're seeing separated you and
your God, and who reconciled me? Jesus Christ reconciled all
things, and left nothing that's not reconciled. He left nothing
that's not reconciled. I don't, not a, not a one. Old
Moses was in heaven when Christ died, and Paul was on earth,
and he reconciled them both, things in heaven and things on
earth. He reconciled the whole shebang, the whole, Barney, you
say, shooting match. He reconciled to God. The war
is over. Peace has been declared in the
body of His flesh through death to present you, you, every one
of you who believe, holy, me, holy, yeah, you, you and me,
holy. Not only holy, but unblamable. who can lay anything to the charge
of God's elect. You're looking in Christ now. If you could see me in Christ,
which you can't, but the Father can. He saw me in Christ before
the world began. He saw me in Christ on the cross.
He saw me in Christ even in my rebellion. He sees me in Christ
now, and he'll see me in Christ when I'm taken to glory. But
if you could see me in Christ, you wouldn't see one fault in
me. God can't. I'm unblameable. Unblameable, and not only that,
but unreprovable, where in his sight, not in mine, my sins are
ever before me, and not in yours. We're cut out of the same cloth. We're dug out of the same pit.
But in his sight, I'm unblameable. Now, here's what I want to look
at for a minute, four or five minutes, six or eight minutes. I want to look at it for a minute. I'm not raising any questions
concerning his ability to save, nor his willingness to save,
nor the sufficiency of his power to save. The question I'm raising
is looking at my own self as I look here in this Word, I'm
asking, is my hope and faith in Christ alone? Is it? Or I'll
give you five questions and I'll close. I'm going to write them
down. Some of you may have them. I
gave them several years ago. Number one, are my desires for Christ
and to be in Christ, are they genuine and sincere? Are they? Oh, how fatal the divided heart.
How fatal. Christ turned and he said, you
follow me because of the miracles. Why are you following Christ?
Why am I? You follow me because of the
loaves and fishes. I watched Oral Roberts last Sunday
night telling people to put their hand on their pocketbook and
God would fill it. Stomp their left foot, step on
the head of the devil. How many of you are making what
you think God wants you to make? Six people raised their hand
out of 10,000, and he was ashamed of them. He said, How many of
you don't believe you're making what God wants you to make, and
you feel like you ought to make more? Everybody raised their
hand. That's covetousness, that's idolatry, that's of the devil. That's right, I won't make any
bones about it. Why are you following Christ?
Are you following him for the loaves and fishes or the miracles?
Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and these things will be
added in God's good pleasure. But I want him. I've got to determine
that. I want Christ in sickness or
health, in poverty or wealth, in a palace or a dungeon. at
war or at peace, in poverty or plenty, I want Christ. Now, that's
got to be determined, because he's not going to bless a divided
heart. He knows covetousness. He knows it better than we do.
He knows greed. He knows that's pie in the sky
and a sweet by-and-by. I want Christ. Give me Christ
or I'll die. Secondly, are my desires for
Christ honoring to him? Are they honoring to Christ,
these desires I have for him? Are they honoring to him? What
do you mean by that? Well, I mean this briefly and
simply. The man who truly knows God is
holy and righteous and truly knows himself to be a great sinner,
he asks the question, Lord, can you justify me in such a way
that you yourself will be honored and justified. That's the question. How can he be clean, this born
of a woman? Now, you think, I want God to
save me. Now, believe me, and I know this
has got to be so, but not at the expense of his holiness,
because he's got to continue to be God. Whatever happens to
me, that's right, whatever happens to you, I want God to save my
children and your children, but not at the expense of his holiness.
And some folks got mad at me not long ago because I insist
on this. Now, I know every one of us do
our best to get our relatives into the kingdom of God no matter
what, and that's not right. You've got the wrong honorate
state. In other words, if my mother or father did not love
Christ and did not love his gospel, and in my heart I know they didn't.
I know that. for me to insist on them being
saved because of something they did. You see what I'm saying? Or some goodness they showed
to me. I expect to see my mother and
father in heaven some night. Why, I say? Well, they didn't
go to church and they didn't hear the gospel. But wait a minute. You know what you're doing? You're
compromising the glory of Jesus Christ. And you're showing who
you love the most. You love that mess of clay more
than you love Christ. Now, I'm dead serious about this.
If my sons and daughter and grandchildren and yours do not look to and
bow to and love the Son of God, they're going to perish. And
I'm going to say, Amen, because his glory is not going to be
compromised. I don't care who it is. Now,
we'd better get straight on this. Are my desires for Christ honoring
to him? I will not compromise his gospel. That's what preachers have been
doing. They've been compromising the gospel and compromising the
honor of Christ for the sake of flesh. And God hates that. He's not going to put up with
it. I'm not going to cease to love people and pray for people
and feel sorry, pity them. But the way is still Christ.
And if righteousness come by the law, Christ died in vain.
Don't you be guilty of saying that. God won't put up with that. The nearest thing to the heart
of God is his Son and the death of his Son. And thirdly, Are
my desires for Christ permanent? Are they permanent or only a
fit of emotion? I've seen this so much, a passing
fantasy. I see young people when they're
growing up expressing interest in the gospel and they come to
church and then they get about 18 or 19. They've got no use for God or
the gospel, the world is so beautiful to them. I see men and women
make professions in time of great spiritual blessings and soon
depart. Then I see people get in trouble.
They get in trouble in business or in their marriages or get
in trouble with too much drink and they make a profession of
faith, you know, a bit of emotion. A bit of emotion and then they
depart. I see people get sick. See, a lot of this, the preachers
make their headquarters down here in the hospital so they
can pounce on everybody that gets sick and get a profession
out of them. That's the time to strike, that's the time to
get a profession when a fellow gets down in his back. No, that
ain't the time, that's not the time, not the time. A young man whom I know had a
serious accident and was paralyzed, and he got interested in church,
and then he got better. And as long as his mind was on
his troubles and these things, he was really interested. But
then he leveled off and got better, and he wasn't interested anymore,
as far as God could bring him, and now he's through with God.
Most of the time, people, they've got to, I told this party, I
said, now, all this is over and all forgotten, and we're not
thinking about the body, we're not thinking about Our finances,
we're not thinking about anything, we're thinking about my sin and
God. Grace and mercy for a sinner,
whether I'm a crippled sinner or whether I'm a well sinner,
whether I'm an old sinner or a young sinner, whether I'm a
living sinner or a dying sinner, whether I've got a job or ain't
got a job. That's not the issue. God looks
on the heart. And that's where the business
is done. And that's the only place it's done. Listen to me now. I know what
I'm telling the truth. True desires for Christ have nothing to do
with health or wealth, either one. True desires for Christ
have nothing to do with sickness or health, either one. True desires
for Christ have to do with sin and grace. Listen to the public.
God be merciful to me, the sinner. Not the poor sinner. Not the
paralyzed sinner. Sinner! Mercy! God! Me! That's where it's done. Whether you're at the hospital
or whether you're well as a goat. But it's done right there. That's
right, that's where it's done. And that's where your desires
better be, permanent. All right? Fourthly, are my desires
for Christ leading me to seek Him? truly and diligently in
his word, in his house, and among his people. I was glad when they said to
me, let's go into the house of the Lord. I'm going to meddle
a little bit here, but I've been at this longer than some of you
have been living, and I know a little bit about it. I was
glad when they said to me, let's go into the house of the Lord.
I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the house of the Lord and to
dwell in the tents of the wicked. This thing of salvation has something
to do, and the giving of it and the
entering into it has something to do with those things identified
with God right now, right now. His word, he said, I'll bless
my word, my word will not return to me void. The preaching of
that word preaching of that word, the assembly of his people where
his name is preached and proclaimed, where his name is declared. If
you want a flower to grow, you put it not on the doorstep or
in the closet, you put it out there where rain, sunshine, oxygen. See that? If you want to be saved,
if you want to know God, I'll tell you where you better be.
You better be where God is manifesting his presence. where the sunshine
of his word is felt and where the dew drops and the rain and
the oxygen of his breath is brought in. And I'm weary, totally weary,
tired of hearing people brag on dead preachers and eight living
preachers. I'm tired of going in homes where
they've got Dr. Gill and Dr. Spurgeon and Dr. Owen, and they're sitting at
home reading those old dead preachers, and they don't like a certain
living preacher, or they don't like the way he preaches or what
he says, they're going to hell. Did you know that? They don't
care who they are. That's exactly right. Those Pharisees,
Charlie, did the same thing. They bragged on Moses. They had
Moses writing in their library and hated the apostles. They
had Abraham's writings, they had all the books, the musty-dusty
books that Abraham wrote, but they rejected the gospel of Jesus
Christ preached by the man God sent to them, John the Baptist.
It's easy to brag on dead preachers and hate God's message of the
hour. That's right. My desire is for Christ. I say
I want Christ. Then you'll love those identified
with him. Exactly right. That's exactly
why I'm telling you the truth. Paul said, you became followers
of us and the Lord, those who truly seek Christ, seek Christ
where Christ is found. He's not ashamed to call Cecil
Roach his brother, and I'm not either. See what I'm saying?
He's not ashamed to call Dick Jim, Paul, his brother, and I'm
not either. And if I ever am ashamed to call
them brother, I'm missing out on something." That's right,
missing out on something. Now, everybody's their own preacher. You know, the reason they can
brag on Dr. Spurgeon is that he's dead, and
you'd be amazed how a man grows after he dies, how good he gets,
how perfect. Just perfect. Bless Brother Barnard's
heart. I love him, but he ain't near
as sweet as they say he is now. He's been dead a long time. That's
right. There are folks that want to
hear Brother Barnard's taste and won't hear mine. He's dead.
I'll be glad when I'm dead and somebody hears my taste. All
right, number five. Will my desires for Christ find
no complete satisfaction? I mean complete. I'm not satisfied. No, sir, until I wake with his
likeness. Turn to Psalm 17, verse 15. This is one. I love this scripture
here. Psalm 17, verse 15. Listen to
it. As for me, David said, As for
me, I will behold thy face in righteousness. That's his. I shall be satisfied, fully,
totally, completely, when I wake with his likeness. Now, there's
peace here, but no real peace. There's joy here, but no permanent
joy. There's pleasure, but no permanent
pleasure. It's only in Christ. Everything
here is vanity. But in him, I'll be satisfied,
and I'm going to run that race and pursue that goal, keep my
eye on that object until I'm conformed perfectly to the image
of his Son. I hope those are helpful and
God will use them to bless you.