Now here, when our Lord, in John
chapter 8, had spoken these words, there were two different responses
from the people. In John chapter 8, two different
responses. When he had spoken these words,
that is, the word of the gospel, when he proclaimed the gospel,
that redemption is in him, that everything that the Father has
is in the Son. That's where he's put it. He's
vested everything in Christ. And when he spoke in these words,
it says in verse 30, many believed on him. They received his word
and they believed the gospel. They believed it. They believed
it. And then he said to them, he
said, if you continue in my words. Now this thing of believing Christ
is not an isolated act. This thing of faith and repentance
is not an isolated act. In other words, it's not just
a decision. It's a state of being. It's a state of believing. It's
a state of repentance. It's a coming to Christ. It's
not I came to Christ, it's I'm coming to Christ. To whom? Coming.
Now that's so. I know we've whittled it down
today till you do this and you do that and you do the other
and you say goodbye, see you in heaven. But that's not what
the scripture teaches. The scripture teaches that those
who believe continue to believe and will believe. They have believed,
they are believing, they will believe. They have been saved,
they are being saved, they will be saved. They have repented,
they are repenting, and they will repent. John said, if they
had been of us, they would no doubt would have continued with
us, no doubt about it. This is what our Lord is saying,
if you continue in my word. Many believed on him. And he
said, if you continue in my word, then are you my disciples really
and truly. Not just professing disciples.
Not just decisionists, not just folks that have fixed themselves
up for heaven, but you are my disciples indeed, in truth, in
reality, if you continue in my word. This is the evidence of
real salvation, and that's perseverance, continuing in the faith. Continuing
in the faith. And he continued, and he said,
and you shall know the truth. As Cecil prayed, Christ is the
truth. All truth is revealed in Christ. Nobody can learn the
truth apart from Christ. because Christ is the truth.
Truth isolated from Christ becomes error. You don't arrive at Christ
through doctrine or truths. You arrive at truth through Christ.
You understand the scriptures as you know Christ. You understand
the purposes of God and the will of God as you know Christ. It's
revealed in him. A man says, I know the Bible,
but I don't know Christ. He's a liar, and the truth's
not in him. Any man who believes the Bible
says if he really believes it. Any man who knows the Bible knows
Christ, because Christ is the Bible. You can't separate the
incarnate Word and the written Word, because He is the Word
of God. You don't know the Bible at all if you don't know Christ.
The Bible is just a mystery to you. You shall know the truth,
which is Christ, and the truth shall make you free, free, free. And when these Jews heard that,
when these religionists heard that, they spoke up and said,
Well, we be Abraham's seed. We are not in bondage. What are
you talking about free? What are you talking about free? You shall be free. Well, we be
Abraham's seed. We are not in bondage to any
man. Here they are denying a fourfold bondage. And this is what our
Lord said to them. He says in verse 34, Whosoever
committed sin is the slave, the servant in bondage. in bondage. He's in fetters. He's bound. And there's a fourfold bondage
that these men are denying and people today deny, and that is
the bondage of Adam's transgression. In Adam, I died. When Adam sinned,
the fetters of death and condemnation and judgment were locked on me
and every member of his race. That's what Scripture says. Whereby
one man's disobedience Death passed upon all men. By one man's
disobedience, many were made sinners, the slaves of sin. Willing slaves, but slaves. And
these men were saying, we were never in bondage. We were never
in bondage. But I'm telling you this, every
one of us are born in bondage. We're born in bondage. We're
born under the bondage of Adam's transgression. Now that's so.
And I know there are a lot of people who deny that, who fight
that, who make war against it, but it's so nevertheless. And
there's so many ways that I could prove this to you if you had
an open heart in mind. I could prove it in your own
heart. Which is easier for you to do, to hate or to love? Which
is easier, easier, which comes easier? To sin or to do good? Which comes easier? Which comes
easier for you? to read the Bible or to read
the sports page? Which comes easier to you, to
remember the Scriptures or to remember some tale you heard
one time that's not very pleasant? Which is easier? What do you
dream about most, godly things or ungodly things? We are the servants, we are the
slaves of an evil, evil, evil nature. That's just so, in bondage
to Adam's transgression. Death passed upon all men. Judgment
passed upon all men. Condemnation passed upon all
men. We became sinners. I'll show
it to you and your children. First word, my grandson, who's
incidentally named for me, Henry Luke. You wouldn't think this.
The preacher's grandson. You know the first word he learned?
Mine. That's a fact. He didn't learn
daddy or mama first. Mine. First words he said. Probably the last one he says
too. Mine. Nobody taught him that, I don't
think. You don't teach your children to lie, but they know how, don't
they? You don't teach them to hate. They were taught that by
Daddy Adam, Grandpappy Adam. Passed on to us. A rotten nature. And we're in bondage to it. Boy,
you don't think you are? You're deceiving yourself. Any
man say he hath no sin, S-I-N, he deceives himself and the truth's
not in him. He's a liar. Now, I'll tell you
another bondage we're in, we're born under, and that's the law.
I know two ways about it. You can say what you want to,
but God hasn't repealed his law. His law stands as long as God
stood. His law is as old as God. That's
the law of truth and righteousness and justice and judgment. And
I'll tell you, everybody is born under the law, and what the law
saith, it saith to them who are under the law, that every mouth
may be stopped, and all the world become guilty before God. I've
broken God's law, and I've been arrested and put in jail by the
law of God. Man's not on probation. The trial
is over. Now, there's a fellow out on
bail downtown here waiting a trial in Kettlesburg next week, but
you ain't out on bail. The law's been broken and you've
been tried by the holy court of God and found guilty and sentenced. That's right. We've been sentenced.
The law pronounces a sentence, a curse upon us. I'll show you
that. Listen to this over here in Galatians. In Galatians chapter
3 it is. In Galatians chapter 3. Look
at this. Galatians 3.10. The law's already
spoken. It says, As many as are of the
works of the law are under the curse, for it is written, Cursed
is everyone that continueth not in all things which are written
in the book of God's law, to speak highly of it? No, sir.
To think well of it? No, sir. To approve of it? No,
sir. To do it. That's what it says, Joe. I know
you checked eight of them, but that other two is going to get
you. The other two, I heard that on
tape, to offend in one point is to be guilty of the whole
law. And that one point makes you a criminal. So they said,
we were never in bondage. Oh, yes you are. You can deny
it and curse it and swear against it, but it's so. You're in bondage
to God's law. I'll tell you another thing.
You're in bondage to the justice of God. God Almighty's justice
is going to be satisfied. He said the soul that sinneth
shall surely, surely, surely die. Now you'll never escape
God's judgment and God's justice. Not going to do it. Not going
to do it. God will in no wise clear the
guilty. He can't not be God. That's the reason Job asked that
question, how can man be just with God? It's because of the
righteousness of God and the justice of God. There's no way
that a holy God can pardon a guilty sinner apart from a sacrifice.
There's no way that a holy God can overlook the transgressions
of his creature just because he promises to do better or vows
to do better or swears to do better or decides to do better.
What's going to be done about what he's already done? What
he unwittingly will do. What he by omission will accomplish. what he in thought and imagination
shall do. God cannot look upon sin or walk
with sin. God must punish sin. He must. Adam must die. Sodom must be
destroyed. Must. There's no way around it.
God must. I know we like to look on God
as a long, white-haired, sweet, long-haired, white-headed, sweet
granddaddy up in heaven that's just going to do good by everybody.
Well, he's going to do justice by everybody, and justice is
good. He's going to do right by everybody.
You can put that down. God shall not the judge of the
earth do right. Yeah, he'll do right. He'll do
right. He's got to do right. So we're
in bondage to justice, and I'll tell you something else. We're
in bondage to these natures. Turn to Galatians. Let me show
you something. We're in bondage to our nature. And just to show you that, why don't you decide right now,
make a promise and a vow, that tomorrow you're going to think
nothing but good. You're going to say nothing but
good. You're going to do nothing but good. Call me tomorrow night. I'd like to know how you come
out. Now, you've got a nature. that
declared war on you. It says here in verse 17 of Galatians
5, For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against
the flesh. And these are contrary one to
the other. You cannot do the things that you would. I would
do good, wouldn't you? Paul said, When I would do good,
evil is present with I found that when I would do good, there's
another law warring in my mind, bringing me into captivity. To
what? My nature. Captivity. Captivity. So if you're sitting here tonight
talking about you are never in bondage like these old religious
Pharisees, never in bondage, let me tell you something. There's
a fourfold bondage that's astounding. All-encompassing. mind-boggling, a bondage, a bondage of Adam's
transgression. I'm a member of the human race.
And just like a bunch of rattlesnakes, no matter how young they are,
they're poisonous. No matter how little they are,
they're poisonous. No matter how old they are, they're
poisonous. They're snakes. And I was born in sin and conceived
in sin and shaped in sin and brought forth speaking lies.
And you were too. That's just so. And we're in
bondage to God's law. We've offended it. We've broken
it. We've transgressed it. We've walked it under our feet.
And we're in bondage to God's justice. His justice says, I
will punish sin. Every transgression and every
disobedience shall receive a just recompense of reward. And I'm in bondage to a nature
that I hate. Say, if you hate it, why don't
you get rid of it? I will in God's good time. I will in God's good time. But
I like this word. Our Lord said, If the Son shall
make you free, you shall be free indeed. Turn to Luke 4. He said something about this
when he described his mission into the world. He said something
about deliverance, liberty. He said in Luke 4, 18, The Spirit
of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach
the gospel to the poor. He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted,
preach deliverance to the captives, John, deliverance to the captives,
recovery of a sight to the blind, and to set at liberty the folks
that have been bruised by the fall, mangled by the fall, to
set them at liberty. Everybody in here ought to have
his ears pricked up ought to have his heart wide open, his
eyes dilated, his ears tuned. Is there freedom? Is there freedom from this bondage?
Yes, sir. There is liberty. That's what
Christ says here. I'll give you, first of all,
what liberty is, and secondly, what it's not. First of all,
what liberty is. Turn back to Galatians, that
scripture I read a moment ago about the law. Galatians chapter
3. First of all, in Christ we have
been redeemed from this curse of the law. That's right. Now let's look at verse 10. And I read this a moment ago.
Galatians 3, 10. As many as are under the works
of the law. And that's all of us are under the curse. We're
born under the law. Every creature in God's kingdom
is subject to the laws of God's kingdom. For it is written, Cursed
is every one that continueth not in all things written in
the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified
by the law in the sight of God, it is evident. For the just shall
live by faith, and the law is not of faith. The man that doeth
them shall live in them." You can't find salvation in the law,
but there is salvation to be found. Where is it? Verse 13,
it's in Christ. Christ hath redeemed us from
the curse of the law, being made a curse for us. For it is written,
Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree." The law requires
perfect obedience. Christ fulfilled it. The law
requires, under a pain of death and judgment, it requires perfect
righteousness, and Christ fulfilled it. The law accepts no alibi.
The law accepts no excuse. The law won't even accept repentance.
You say, I'm awful sorry I did that. Well, that's too bad. That's what the law said, Bill.
That's all the law can say. That's too bad. But now Christ
doesn't say that. Christ said, come to me in repentance
toward God in faith in me. But if you turn to the law and
say, I'm awful sorry I did that, the law says that's too bad.
The law accepts no shortcoming. It offers no hope. It says perfection
inwardly and outwardly. And my brethren, that's what
Christ did. Turn to Romans 3. Let me show you that. That's
what he did for his people. Christ hath redeemed us, freed us from
the curse, from the curse of the law. And here's how he did it. Look
at Romans 3, verse 19. Now, we know that what
things soever the law sayeth. And we're talking about the whole
law of God. I'm not just talking about the Ten Commandments. I'm
talking about the law of the mind and the law of the heart and
the law of the will and the law of action, the law of attitude,
the law of motive, the law of means, all these What the law
saith, it saith to them who are under the law, that every mount
may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified
in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But
now there is the righteousness of God without the law." What
does that mean, without the law? That God does away with the law?
No, sir. Without my obedience to it. There is obedience to
it, but not by me. Because I can't keep it. I can't
obey it. There's no possible way that
I can obey a law that's against me because of the weakness of
my flesh. But God sending his own son in
the likeness of sinful flesh condemned sin in the flesh. Christ
obeyed it. The righteousness of God without
the law is manifested. It's revealed being witnessed
by the law, by the word of God and the prophets. Even the righteousness
of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon
all them that believe, there is no difference, for all his
sin comes short of the glory of God. Turn to 2 Corinthians. Well, first of all, Romans 5.
You can go over this two pages. Romans 5 first. It says here
in Romans 5, verse 19, By one man's disobedience, that's Adam,
the many were made sinners. So by the obedience of one shall
the many be made righteous. You see, in Adam we died. Representation,
federal headship. It's so, imputation, impartation. In Christ, by his obedience,
by his righteousness, who represented us, who stood in our place, we've
been made holy. That's it. So he's delivered
me liberty. I can say, free from the law,
there is no condemnation. Jesus has died, and there is
salvation. Cursed by the fall, cursed by
the law, bruised by the fall, Christ hath redeemed me once
more. That's what he's talking about.
The Son makes you free. Free from the curse of the law, you're
free indeed. That's so. I'm free in Christ
from the curse of the law. There's no judgment. Let me show
you that. Romans chapter 8. There is now no condemnation
to them who are in Christ. Secondly, Christ hath redeemed
us or freed us from the condemnation of sin. Now, my friends, sin
may trouble me, and it does. And sin may grieve me, and it
does. And sin may vex my spirit, and
it does. But it cannot condemn me. Just
cannot. Sin cannot condemn me. In Christ
there is no condemnation. Look down here at verse 33. He
says in verse 33, in verse 32, He that spared not his own son,
but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with Christ
give us freely all things? What did Christ purchase? Why
did Christ die? Well, he died for our sins, according
to the Scripture. Then will God not give me what
Christ died for, freely? Christ died to put away the curse
of the law. Then will not God give me what
Christ died for? What Christ bought, do I not
receive? What Christ purchased, does God
not give? That's what Paul is asking here. He spared not his own son, but
delivered him up for us. Now, shall he not with Christ,
freely, give us what Christ purchased? Why, certainly. Then he goes
on and says, who can lay anything to the charge of God's elect?
I like that story back there in the same chapter I read a
moment ago. I started at verse 12, but preceding verse 12, there
was a woman who was found in the act of adultery, and these
religious fellows got her and pulled her and drug her along,
evidently by the arm or the hair of the head, and they thought
they could trap the master, and they threw her down at his feet.
They threw her down at his feet, and then they began to pick up
huge stones, because the law said that she should be stoned.
And they began to pick up huge stones, and they stood around,
flipping them from one hand to the other, you know, and behind
their back, and rubbing the stones and smile on their face. They
were going to bring judgment and condemnation upon that guilty
sinner. Who was guilty? Guilty. And our Lord stooped down and
wrote something in the sand. I don't know what he wrote. But
he looked up at those men standing around in that circle, and he
said, He that is without sin, let him cast the first stone.
And then he stooped down and began to write in the sand some
more, and they began to leave one at a time, the eldest to
the youngest. And in a moment the Lord stood
up and looked around, and he turned to her and he said, Where
are your accusers? Where are those that bring charges
against you? Doth no man accuse thee? And
she looked up and said, Looks like they're gone. No man, Lord. Now this is what I see in that.
I see that I'm surrounded by many accusers who are truthful. God's law, God's justice, God's
righteousness, God's holiness, all these things. But in the
presence of Christ and his perfect sacrifice, they all flee away. And I look up now, and that's
what Paul is saying, is he looks up. He's guilty. He's lying in
the dust at the feet of Christ, guilty, just as guilty of breaking
the law as this woman was. But in the presence of our Lord
and his love and mercy, all charges fade away. That's so. Who shall lay anything, he says,
verse 33, to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. Look at verse 34. Who is he that
condemneth? Who can condemn me? Well, I'll
tell you this, Paul's reasons for no condemnation is not the
fact he was a preacher or a church member or had been baptized.
He said, I'm not condemned because Christ died. That's why I'm not
condemned. Christ died. All right. Thirdly, free. We're free from
the curse of the law. We are free from the condemnation
of sin. Thirdly, we are free from the
ceremonial law. A lot of people would put you
back under it today. There are a lot of Sabbatarians
out there. There are a lot of what we call
separationists out there. There are a lot of legalists
out there. There are a lot of Pharisees out there, more than
there are gospel preachers. There are a lot of touch-not-taste-not-handle-not
folks out there, and if they can, they'll bring you in bondage
again. I'm free. I'm free. I'm free from the law,
ceremonial law, that law which lay in meats and drinks and holy
days and ceremonies and the washing of hands and the wearing of certain
apparel. I'm free. I'm going to show you some Scripture,
turn to Galatians 2. Now stay with me, I may be a little longer
than usual, but I think, brethren, if there's some freedom to be
had, I want in on it, don't you? I'm tired of being in bondage.
I want to be free. I want to be free. I don't want
to be free only, I can be, I tell you, political freedom is not
as important to me as spiritual freedom. I could be in a communist
prison camp and still be free, but I could live right here in
the United States and be in bondage. Galatians 2, look at verse 3. Neither Titus, who was with me
being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. And because of false brethren,
unawares, brought in, they came in privately, sneakily, he said,
to spy our liberty which we have in Christ. They will too, brother.
They'll come sneaking in to spy your liberty which you have in
Christ, that they might bring you into bondage to something
or someone Might be a convention, might be a denomination, might
be an ordinance, might be a ceremony, might be a holy day, might be
something else. But they'll come sneaking in.
That's Satan's business, to bring you back into bondage. He hates
freedom. He's in chains, you see. He hates freedom. He hates
free men. He hates the mercy of Christ
that brings men into freedom. But here's what Paul said about
those fellas. verse 5, to whom I gave place by subjection not
even for an hour. I wouldn't tolerate them for
sixty minutes, let alone for a week. No way that the truth
of the gospel might continue in you. Turn to Colossians chapter
2. Let's stay with it here now.
Paul said they'll sneak in, they'll come in and spy at your liberty,
they'll come in to bring you in bondage to something, and
you've been set free. from meats and drinks and holy
days and Sabbath days and ceremonies and rituals and the wearing of
certain apparel and all of this thing, the eating and drinking
of certain things on certain days. No, sir, Lent is foolishness. Friday fish is stupidity. Holy days and so forth, that's
right, contrary to Christ is my Sabbath. Christ is my rest. Christ is my freedom. Every day
is God's day. There's a special time about
the Lord's day. I know that, Sunday, to meet
and worship when the Church of the Lord Jesus meets together.
But, Vernon, if you're doing it for that reason, you're in
bondage. If you're keeping a day for the day's sake, you're in
bondage. Now, if you're keeping it for the Lord's sake, even,
it's different. But if you're keeping it for the day's sake,
because it's Saturday or Sunday, you're in bondage. You ain't
never been set free. Colossians chapter 2, listen
to it, verse 20. Wherefore, if you be dead with
Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living
in the world, are you subject to ordinances, touch not, taste
not, handle not? Huh? If you be dead with Christ,
if Christ has freed you from the—why are you still in bondage
to it? I'll tell you why, you've never been set free. All of these
things are going to perish with the using. Verse 22, after the
commandments and doctrines of men. Now, these things have indeed
a show of wisdom and will-worship. They look pretty. They look real
religious. It looks good to see a fellow keep a day, you know.
It looks good to see a fellow wear a black suit and a white
tie, you know, white and with a broad-brimmed black hat and
walk around with a great big Bible under his arm and look
religious. That looks good. It appears will-worship is what
it is. It looks good for a fellow to push back a certain food and
say the Bible's against it. That looks awful good. But not
a thing in the world but will-worship, false humility, neglecting of
the body and all the rest of it to the satisfying of the flesh.
That's what it is. Is that too hard? That's Paul's work. That's
right. Let's go to another one, 1 Timothy.
1 Timothy, chapter 4, verse 1 through 6. Now, I'm talking about freedom. God has freed us from the ceremonial
law. I tell you, if what we call the
Lord's table becomes a sacrament or a ceremony, you're in bondage. Baptism, the Lord's table, whatever
it is, if it becomes a means, if it becomes an end in itself
instead of a means of grace, you're in bondage. Now the Spirit speaketh expressly
that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith,
giving heed to seducing spirits. Doctrines of devils, isn't that
strong? Seducing spirits, seduced by
evil spirits and speaking lies and hypocrisy, having their conscience
seared with a hot iron. What do they say? Forbidding
to marry. Marriage is holy, the scripture
says. God ordained marriage in the Garden of Eden before the
fall. He made woman for man. For this cause shall a man leave
his mother and father. Somebody's put some holy significance
to not being married. He's a stupid fool. He's a doctrine
of the devil, is what he is. He's an evil spirit. That's what
Paul said here. Departed from the faith. Watch it right on, and command
him to abstain from meats. Doctrines of devils, that's right,
because it brings men into bondage. And anything that takes men away
from Christ and brings them back under these meats and drinks
and ordinances and elements and ceremonies is a doctrine of the
devil, because the devil is going to do his best to keep you from
resting in Christ. which God created to be received
with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth."
Every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused if
it be received with thanksgiving and sanctified by the Word of
God and prayer. Now, Timothy, if you put people in remembrance
of this, you'll be a good minister of Jesus Christ. And you young
men, if you can keep your folks from becoming Pharisees, you'll
be a good minister of Christ Jesus, because they'll sure be
a Pharisee if they can. They will if they can. Everybody's
going to follow will worship if he can. He's going to pick
out something to identify himself, something materialistic, something
human, something fleshy, something that appeals to the flesh other
than Christ. I'm free from ceremonies. Free from ceremonies. That's
free. Free indeed. And then we're free from the
dominion, forcefully, and power of Satan. There was a time when
we were under his bondage, Colossians 1. There was a time when we,
Colossians 1, we followed the prince of the power of the air,
the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience,
but it says in Colossians 1, verse 12, I give thanks to God,
the Father, which hath made us meet sufficient to be partakers
of the inheritance of the saints in light, who hath delivered
us from the power of darkness. from the power of Satan and have
translated us into the kingdom of his dear son. Satan can't
touch one of God's people without God's permission. We're not his. We're not subject to him. We're
not enslaved to him. We're not under his reign. We're
not under his dominion. We've been delivered in a twofold
way, both by price and by power, by price and by power. When a
strong man armed keeps his palace, his goods are at peace. But when
one stronger than him comes upon him, he spoils his good and drives
him out. Let me show you something. Turn
to Luke 11. Now, here's the difference. Here's the difference. Here's
false conversion and true conversion in Luke 11. A lot of people have
a lot of problems with this fellow called Satan. The reason they
do is because they've never been delivered from his dominion.
Look here in Luke 11, verse 24. Now watch this. The Lord said,
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through
dry places, seeking rest, and finding none, he says, I'll return
to my house whence I came out. My house. It's mine. It never
ceased to be his. He departed. He went out willingly. He left
on his own. He says, till his house and till
his goods, and he says, I'll go back. And when he came back,
he found it, the one verse said, empty, swept and garnished, decorated. Well, he went out and got seven
other spirits more wicked than himself, and they all come in
and dwell there, and the last slave of the man is worse than
the first. You see, that's when a fellow gets religion, John,
gets cleaned up. Satan just went out for a little
while. He departed for a little while. Fellow got religion, joined
the church, cleaned up. decorated, put him on a cross,
and all these things, you know, got fixed up, and Satan came
back, and now he's in worse shape than he was before. But now here's
true conversion. Look at verse 21. Go back a little
bit. When a strong man armed, armed with lies and deceit and
craftiness and subtlety, keeps his palace, his goods are in
peace. But when a stronger than he,
there's just one stronger than Satan, it's not your preacher
either. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. He
doesn't want it. "...Stronger than he shall come
upon him, and overcome him. He taketh from him his armor
wherein he trusted, and divides his spawn." He'll never be back.
He'll never be back. Christ delivers us from the dominion
of Satan, and then he delivers us from the sting of death. Death
can kill me, but it can't hurt me. It can't hurt me. Turn to 1 Corinthians 15. Death is no longer a curse to
the believer. The grave is no longer a prison
because Christ has set us free. 1 Corinthians 15, verse 55, says,
O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?
The sting of death is sin. Well, Christ has done away with
that, and the strength of sin is the law. And thanks be to
God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We don't have to fear death, because Christ has freed us from
the sting of death. Now let me give you some things
from which we have not been freed. I've preached too long already,
but will you be patient? What this liberty is not. Turn
to 1 Peter 2. I want to show you two or three
verses of Scripture. 1 Peter 2. What this freedom
is not. 1 Peter 2, verse 15, For so is the will
of God, that with well-doing ye may put to silence the ignorance
of foolish men, as free, free, free, but not using your liberty
for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. You
remember that verse now. You are a free man. But that
liberty is never to be used as a covering for maliciousness
and lasciviousness and evil. All right, let me read you another,
Galatians 5. Now this is important. Galatians chapter 5, let's read
verse, begin with verse 11. Galatians 5, 11. Now watch it. If I preach circumcision and
that's ceremonialism, anything having to do with the ceremony,
why do I suffer persecution? If I preach circumcision, the
offense of the cross is ceased. I would. They were even cut off
that troubled you. Brethren, you've been called
unto liberty, liberty, freedom, freedom from the ceremonial law,
freedom from meats and drinks and ceremonies and ordinances
and circumcision. Only use not liberty for an occasion
to the flesh. See what he's saying? See what
he's saying? But by love serve one another,
for all the law is fulfilled in one word, L-O-V-E, thou shalt
love thy neighbor as thyself. In other words, here's what the
apostles say. Number one, Christ does not free believers from
obedience to his commandments. That's right. Listen to this.
You're my friends. If you do whatsoever, I command
you. If you love me, keep my commandments. Turn to Ephesians
6 just a moment. Christ has not freed the husband
from being a good husband or the wife from being a submissive
wife. He's not freed the children from the law of the home. He's
not freed the citizen from the law of magistrates and being
a good subject and a good citizen. He's not freed you from paying
your taxes and paying your bills and honoring the brotherhood.
He's not freed you from being a good neighbor. He's not freed
you from being a good citizen and a good brother. Look at Ephesians
chapter 6. Children, verse 1, obey your
parents in the Lord. Honor your father and your mother.
God hasn't freed you from that. Verse 5, servants, be obedient
to your masters. God hasn't freed you from being
a good servant. Verse 9, you masters, do the
same thing to your servants. Treat them like your master treats
you, your master in heaven. God hasn't freed you from for
being a good boss or a good man to work for? We're just foolish if we think
that we think God has freed us from these responsibilities.
He's not freed us at all from these responsibilities of fulfilling
his commandment. This is my commandment, you love
one another. He's not freed us from that at
all. I kind of resent the term, the law is the rule of life.
I was reading Blessed Old John Flavel, and he says, we go to
Christ for justification, and Christ sends us to the law for
direction. That makes me cold chills running
down my back, you know. But there is a sense in which
the commandments of Christ are the rule of life. Christ is my
rule, but his commandments—and they're not grievous—his commandments—and
I'm not talking about the the law given on Mount Sinai, I'm
talking about the whole word of Christ, the word of Christ
which is the very person of Christ, the kingdom of Christ, the rules
of the kingdom, the laws of his kingdom, the commandments of
his kingdom, the ways of his kingdom, the principles of his
kingdom, the principles of Christ are my rule of life, Cecil. I
like that better, principles of Christ, Christ himself. But he didn't free me from obedience.
He didn't free me from subjection to his law, to his commandments,
to his principles. He didn't free us. We don't want
to be free. Secondly, he didn't free us from temptation or the
motions of indwelling sin. No, sir. Still there. It doesn't reign, but it remains.
Romans 7. Holy men, even the holiest of
men, have been in conflict over this thing. Now, you sitting
out there, you say, Oh, some of the thoughts that go through
my mind Why, they just, they're shocking. Well, join the gang. Yeah, welcome to the club. Some
of the things I say in my haste and impetuous, impulsive way,
just I shouldn't say them. Well, welcome to the club. About
time you got honest. Paul was honest. He said in verse
15 of Romans 7, that which I do, I don't approve of, and what
I would, that do I not, and what I hate, that do I. You mean you
too, Paul? Yes, sir. Verse 17, now there
is no more I that do it but sin that dwelleth in me. Verse 18,
I know that in me, that is, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. The will is present with me.
How to perform that which is perfect? I haven't found it yet. Verse 24, "...wretched man that
I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death?" Christ has
not freed us. He has freed us from the curse
of sin and from the condemnation of sin and from the power of
Satan, but not from the temptation and motions of sin, nor from
the presence of it. It is still there. And a man who boasts of having
no conflict with sin has every reason to suspect he is a stranger
to grace. It may be you think you're holy
because you don't know what holiness is. That may be your problem. I'm
just sure it is. Because any man that's ever got
a glimpse of God's holiness has got a good look at his nature.
Any man that ever gets a good look at God's holiness and God's
righteousness is no stranger to temptation and the motions
of sin. And I'll tell you, the more you
see of his glory, the less you'll see of your own. So the man who boasts of having,
I don't know anything about that spiritual warfare you're talking
about, then you're a stranger to God's holiness. The third thing, God has not
freed us from troubles and trials in this world. He said in this
world you'll have trouble, tribulation. He said count it joy when you
enter into trials. I'm not going to read it tonight,
but when you get home, just jot this down, Psalm 73. Boy, I'll
tell you, did David wrestle with this issue in Psalm 73. He said,
I'm trying to walk with God, and I'm having all kind of trouble,
and my neighbor's not walking with God, and he's blessed beyond
measure. Here I am, I'm trying to serve
the Lord Jesus Christ, and trying to honor Christ, and walking
in the gospel, and everything I have is bad, and this fellow
over here, his eyes bugs out with fatness, and he hates God,
and uses God's name in vain every breath. Something wrong with
that, David said. And the Lord, well, he said, have I cleansed
my heart in vain? I've been plagued all day. Well,
when I thought about it, he said it was too painful for me. Psalm
73, he said, Till I went to the sanctuary of God, and God showed
me I was looking at the wrong place. I ought to look at their
end and not their present state. You ought to look at their end.
You ought to look at what God is going to do in his judgment,
and then you won't envy. There are many a rich man in
hell who is going to say, I wish I had been born poor. Many a healthy man in hell is
going to say, I wish I'd have been afflicted. It might have
brought me to God.