How Can a Sinner Approach God?

The message that I'll be bringing
to you today will be perhaps the most important message that
you will ever hear. I believe that. I'm convinced
of it. I'm going to speak to you on
this subject. How can a sinner approach the
living God? How can a sinner approach the
living God? And I want you to take your Bibles
and open them with me to the book of Romans, chapter 10. We're going to look at the first
four verses. of Romans chapter 10. Now will
you take your Bible and follow along and let me speak to you
on this subject. How can a sinner approach the
living God? Paul said in Romans chapter 10
verse 1, Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for
Israel is that they might be saved. That's my desire, that's
my heart's desire and that's my prayer to God for my people
Israel is that they might be saved. Now the problem is, these
people thought they were saved. That's the problem. They thought
they were saved. Paul knew they weren't. And he
was praying to God and desiring in his heart that they might
be saved. But they thought they were. After all, they were Israelites. They were God's chosen people.
They were Abraham's seed. And after all, they had the law.
The law was given to Israel, the prophets. They had the ceremonies.
They had the sacrifices. And they were religious people.
They're religious people. They kept all the holy days and
the sabbath days and the feast days and they had their ideas
about what salvation was. They felt they were saved. And
most religionists today are confident that they're saved. Now there's
many different ways of salvation as there are definitions of salvation. What is salvation? Well some
people say salvation is to believe in God. to believe that Jesus
Christ died on the cross. That's salvation, to believe
in God and believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross. But
wait a minute. James said in chapter 2, verse
19, Thou believest there's one God, thou doest well. The devil believes and trembles.
But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? So salvation is not just to believe
there's one God, because clearly the scripture says the devil
believes there's one God. And the devil believes Christ
died on the cross. He tried hard enough to keep
him from that cross. He tried every way he knew to
keep him from the cross of Calvary. So this evidently is not salvation
just to believe there's one God. And then some people say to be
saved is to reform your life. To begin to live right. To turn
over a new leaf. to eat the right things, and
drink the right things, and go to the right places, and do the
right things. But our Lord said this, it's
not that which goeth into the mouth that defileth a man, it's
that which cometh from the heart. For out of the heart proceeds
murders, and evil thoughts, and adulteries, and blasphemies,
and these are the things that defile a man. To eat with unwashing
hands didn't defile anyone. And did not our Lord say this
to the Pharisees, the most religious moralists of his day? He said,
even so, you outwardly appear righteous unto men. How did they
appear righteous unto men? By the things that they did,
by the food that they ate, by the places where they visited. They appeared righteous unto
men, but he said within, on the inside. You're full of hypocrisy
and full of sin, iniquity. So salvation evidently is not
just to eat the right things and go to the right places. It's
not that which goes into my body that defiles me, it's that which
is already in there and comes out through my mouth. And then
others say, well, to be saved is to be a disciple of Christ.
Judas was a disciple of Christ. He was not saved. To be saved
is to be a preacher, or a deacon, or a church member. Judas was
an apostle. He was one of the twelve chosen
apostles, and he didn't know the Lord. He was a church member.
If to be saved is to be a church member, then Judas has to be
saved. But our Lord said he's the son of perdition from the
beginning. And then others say, well, to be saved is to be baptized.
Well, Judas was baptized. So was Simon Magus, to whom Peter
said, your heart's not right with God. Washing the outward
flesh doesn't cleanse the soul. The soul is washed in the blood
of the Lamb, not in the waters of the Jordan. And then Demas
was baptized. And Paul said later, he hath
forsaken me, having loved this present world, and the thief
on the cross was never baptized. Yes, we have as many different
ways of salvation as we do definitions of salvation, but the Bible is
clear on what it is to be saved. This is what Paul wanted for
these people. He wanted them, first of all, to know God. My
friend, to be saved is to know God. We have this on the authority
of God's Son. He said in John 17.3, and this
is holy ground, John 17. This is the priestly prayer of
the Master. And he said in John 17.3, this is eternal life. That they might know thee, the
only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. So salvation,
first of all, is to know God. It's not just to believe in God
or about God, but to believe God. to know him. This is what
Paul is talking about when he said in Philippians 3, O that
I may know him and the power of his resurrected life. Eternal
life is to know God. As John said, our fellowship
is with the Father. We have communion with God. God
is not a myth. God is not a historical character. God is not somebody up there
in the great blue yonder, the wild blue yonder. God is a living
person. One with whom, like Enoch, I
walk. One with whom, like John, I talk. One who lives within,
to know God. And then salvation, according
to the scriptures, is to be in Christ. John said, this is the
record. God hath given to us eternal
life. And that's what I'm interested
in, aren't you? Eternal life. And that's not just the length
of it, that's the quality of it. It's a new life, it's a divine
life. It's the life of holiness, it's
the life of God. Everybody's going to live eternally,
but eternal life is to know God. And this is eternal life, John
said. God has given us the record,
he has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
It's not in the law, it's in his Son. It's not in the baptismal
waters, it's not in church membership, it's not even in the preacher's
hand. It's in his Son. And he that
hath the Son of God hath life. And he that hath not the Son
of God hath not life. Paul wrote later and said Christ
in you, that's the hope of glory. To be in Christ and Christ in
you is to be accepted in the beloved. That's salvation. And
then salvation according to 2 Corinthians 5.17 is to be a new person. Therefore
God said if any man be in Christ he's a new creature. He that
loveth not knoweth not God. If you know not how to forgive,
then you are not forgiven. This is what the scripture says.
The fruit of the Spirit is love and joy and peace and meekness
and long-suffering and patience. These are the marks of a redeemed
person. A man or woman who is saved is
a new person, a new being. Not just a professor, but a new
person. Not just a new proselyte, but
a new person. Not just a new addition to the
church, but a new addition to the family of God, a family member. We are baptized into the body
of Christ by the Holy Spirit. We become one with the Son of
God. And if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he's none
of His. All right? To be saved is to be under a
new government. Under a new government, the Lordship
of Jesus Christ. That's what salvation is. It's
coming to know and to recognize and to submit to the Lordship
of the Son of God. You're not your own, he said.
You don't belong to yourself. You are bought with a price.
He said, if any man come to me, he's got to come to me as Lord
of his life. If he loves father, mother, brother,
a sister, husband, wife, even his own life more than me, he's
not fit to be my disciple. If any man put his hand to the
plow and turns and looks back, he's not fit for the kingdom
of God. He that taketh not up his cross and followeth after
me cannot be my disciple. If thou shalt confess with thy
mouth Jesus to be Lord. Not just confess that he died
on the cross. Satan knows that. Everybody who
was there knows that. That's a historical event. That's
recorded in the history books. Josephus wrote about it. Salvation
is not just to believe that. It's to bow to his Lordship.
If thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus to be your Lord,
and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. is to be a new person under a new government.
And God says, I'll not just write my law on tables of stone. He
said in Jeremiah 31, I'll write my law on their hearts. Now,
the believer doesn't pray because he has to. He prays because he
loves God. He loves communion with God.
The believer doesn't live an honest, godly life because he
has to, because it's a rule, because it's a law, because it's
a statute. He does it because he loves God.
The believer doesn't worship God and pray to God and witness
for God because he's required to. We don't live by laws. Do
you have a set of laws on the wall of your home by which the
family members abide? You say, well, no, our home is
a home of love. Then why do you want to put laws
on the walls of God's home and ask his family to live by law? God's family live by love. They
do what they do because they love God. And anybody who has
to have a set of rules and regulations and laws to regulate and rule
over his life to tell him what he can and can't do and can get
by with and can't get by with is not yet brought into the family
of God, into a living, loving relationship with Christ. When
our Lord sat down and talked with Peter about preaching the
gospel, on what did he base it? He said, Peter, do you love me?
Peter said, yes, Lord, I do. He said, then you feed my sheep.
He said three times, Peter, do you love me? And Peter finally
was troubled because the Lord asked him three times if he loved
him. He said, Lord, you know everything. You know I love you.
Then he said, you feed my sheep. And our Lord said two or three
times in the scriptures that the whole law is summed up in
these two. Thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and thy neighbor as thyself. And on these
two hinge all the law. It's a family of love. It's a
home of love. It's a relationship of love.
That's what it is to be saved. And Paul knew the condition of
these people. Turn back to Romans 10 there,
and stay with me a moment. Paul knew the condition of these
people because he had been in the same condition. Religious,
but lost. Thought he was saved. Because
he was an Israelite. Because he had the law. Because
he went through certain ceremonies. Because he did certain works.
Because he had the prophets. Because this, that, and the other.
But he didn't know Christ. He didn't know God. He'd never
been born again. He'd never been brought through
regeneration to a living, vital union with Christ. And he says,
brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that
they might be saved. I bear them record. Now look
at verse 2. I bear them record. I know them, because I've been
there. He said they have a zeal of God. They have a knowledge. They know there's one God. They
know there's one God, and they have a certain enthusiasm about
that one God. a certain enthusiasm, but they
do not know who God is. They have a zeal of God, they
have a certain enthusiasm about God, but it's not according to
knowledge. Not according to knowledge. They're
ignorant. They're ignorant of who God is,
and how a sinner may approach God, and how a sinner may have
fellowship with God, and how a sinner may be accepted of God.
And most men and women today are laboring in the same darkness. and plagued with the same ignorance.
They know there is a God, and they have an enthusiasm for God.
But the chief ignorance lies in this. They know nothing of
his holiness. They know nothing of the degree
of his holiness and the degree of their sinfulness. Now this
is important. Paul said, I want these people
to be saved. I bear them record. I know them. They have a zeal,
an enthusiasm for God. They have a certain knowledge
of God, but it's not according to true knowledge. They know
nothing of His holiness, and they know nothing of their sinfulness. Look at verse 3. They're ignorant
of God's righteousness. That's where the ignorance lies.
They have a zeal for God, they have an enthusiasm for God, but
they're ignorant of God's righteousness. What are we talking about here?
Well, we're talking about two or three things. They're ignorant
of God's holiness, how holy God is. They're ignorant of God Almighty's
holy law. They interpreted the law in the
light of outward actions only and not inward thoughts. They
interpreted the law as a legal matter and not a spiritual matter.
And then they were ignorant also of God Almighty's accepted righteousness
that righteousness on which a sinner could approach him. What God
had promised, what God had purposed, what God had provided, the righteousness
of his son. They knew nothing of that. And
they were going about, consequently, going about to establish their
own righteousness, and would not submit to God's righteousness.
Now here's the ignorance. Men do not know how holy God
is. We reached up and brought God down. We've called him all
kind of foolish names, the man upstairs, or somebody up there,
or the good lord. What do we mean by good lord?
Is there a bad lord and a good lord? Is that what we mean? There's
just one lord. And yet we've given him all of
these names. The scripture says holy and reverend
is his name. The scripture says that he is
the ruler of heaven and earth. The scripture says God's in his
holy temple, let all the earth keep silent. In Exodus 3, verse
5, he said to Moses, come not hither, take off your shoes,
for the place on which you stand is holy ground. He said in 1
Samuel 6, 20, who is able to stand before this holy Lord God? And I'll tell you like Isaiah,
when Isaiah saw the holiness of the Lord, he said, when King
Uzziah died, Isaiah 6, 1 through 5, he said, when King Uzziah
died, I saw the Lord. high and lifted up. His train
filled the temple, and the cherubims and seraphims covered their faces
and covered their feet, and they cried, Holy, holy, holy is the
Lord God of hosts. And Isaiah said, When I saw his
holiness, I cried, Woe is me! I am a man of unclean lips, and
I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. Isaiah saw God's
holiness And when he saw God's holiness, he saw his sin. Also,
David. David spoke of God's holiness. He says, when I consider thy
heavens, the work of thy hands, what is man that thou art mindful
of him? Listen to Daniel. Daniel said,
I saw the Lord, and my beauty, my comeliness, melted into corruption. Job said, I've seen the Lord.
I've heard of him, but now mine eye has seen him. I hate myself. I abhor myself. I repent in sackcloth
and ashes. Paul said, when the law of God
came in its holiness, old Paul died. I died. And this is what
people are ignorant of. They're ignorant. They have a
zeal for God. They have an enthusiasm for God,
like these Israelites of old. But Paul said it's ignorant.
They don't know the degree of his holiness. They don't know
the degree of their sinfulness. Or they would not even entertain
the thought that they could approach unto God's presence. They don't
know. And when we see His holiness,
and when we see our sin, the question automatically comes,
what is man that thou art mindful of him? The question automatically
comes, the one Job, asking Job 15, 15, what is man that he should
be clean? Or he that's born of a woman,
that he should be righteous? Behold, the heavens are not clean
in God's sight. How much more abominable and
filthy is man that drinketh iniquity like the water? When we see the
degree of God's holiness, infinite, immutable holiness, so holy that
even the cherubims of heaven cover their eyes and their faces
when they're in his presence, holy is God. And how sinful is
man? The question automatically arises,
how then can man, the sinfullest of creatures, lower than the
beast of the field. How can man be just with God? Behold the moon, it shineth not.
The stars are not clean in his sight. How can man that is born
of woman be justified before Almighty God? How can he be accepted? How can he approach unto a holy
God? Well, Paul said that's the question. And these Israelites,
you know what they were doing? He said, being ignorant of God's
righteousness, they're going about to establish their own
righteousness. Going about. I thought about
our day when I read that. Going about. Much activity. Much
enthusiasm. Much organization. much promotion,
we're just going about, going about, all of this activity,
ever working, ever learning, ever organizing, ever doing,
ever serving, all these things, never coming to knowledge of
the truth. I think about the Lord as He sat there in the chair,
and Mary was sitting at His feet, and she was listening to Him,
and feasting her eyes upon Him, and enjoying His presence, and
learning from His words, and Martha came charging in from
the kitchen, and she was busy, She was busy working around the
house and doing all these things, and she said, Lord, don't you
care? Don't you care that my sister has left all the work
to me? Here I am working, taking care of you, and entertaining
you, and serving you, and my sister sits there at your feet
and does nothing. Don't you care? He said, Martha,
Martha, you're anxious and troubled about many things, but Mary hath
chosen the good things. That's our problem. We're going
about. What are we going about to do? What are you doing? What
are you doing? You religious people are so busy, busy, busy
with all your going abouts and your activities. What are you
trying to do? Will you wait a minute? Answer me. What are you trying
to do? Well, I'm trying to get to heaven, praise Jesus. I'm
trying to get to heaven. That's what I'm trying to do.
I'm trying to get saved. I'm trying to miss hell. I'm
trying to get God to accept me. I'm trying to get God to look
with favor upon me. I'm going about all this work
trying to find peace in my heart. Friend, would you be offended
if I told you that you're going about it the wrong way? You're
going about it the same way that these people here in Romans chapter
10 were going about it and Christ said of them that they were ignorant
of God's righteousness. You're going about it the same
way that the people in Matthew 7 who stood at the judgment and
said, Lord, we preached in your name and cast out devils and
did many wonderful works. And he said, depart from me,
ye workers of iniquity. I never knew you. Going about,
going about. To establish what? Your own righteousness,
your own merit, your own works, your own foundation of acceptance
before a holy God. And the scripture plainly says
that in the flesh no man can please God. The scripture plainly
says, not by works of righteousness which we've done, but according
to His mercy He has saved us. And the scripture plainly says,
by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified. And the
scripture plainly says that your righteousnesses in God's sight
are filthy rags. And yet we continue. Let me tell
you something. All the religious works and deeds
and law-keeping and good works that have ever been done by all
the religious people of all the world and all generations wouldn't
save one sinner. That's right. And he had to save
not by works, but by the grace of God. Not by what they've done,
but by what Christ has and is doing and shall do. He said,
I want Israel to be saved. Well, they think they are, but
they're not because They have an enthusiasm for God, but it's
ignorance. It's based on ignorance. It's
built on ignorance. How do I know? Well, they're
ignorant of God's righteousness, the way a sinner approaches God.
And they're going about with all this activity and holy days
and sacraments and communion and ceremonies and rituals and
ordinances, trying to establish a righteousness on which God
will accept them. And they have not submitted.
Now listen, here's the key. What's wrong? They have not submitted
themselves. To submit is to be in subjection. It's to surrender. They have
not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God. Verse 4.
Christ is the righteousness of God. Not your church membership,
not your baptism, not your good works. Christ is God's righteousness. Now you turn to Romans 3 verse
19. Let me read you some scripture. Now we know that what things
soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law,
that's you and me, that's every human being, every son of Adam,
that every mouth may be stopped. It's time we stopped our mouths
and opened our ears and our eyes and listened to God and quit
listening to our heritage or tradition, that every mouth may
be stopped and all the world become guilty, guilty before
God. And because they're guilty, look
at the next verse, therefore by the deeds of the law, Works
of the flesh, energy of the flesh, shall no flesh be justified in
God's sight. Now, you may be justified in
your sight, in the sight of the preacher, in the sight of the
church, in the sight of your fellow man, but none in God's
sight. He sees your heart. Man looks on the outward countenance,
God looks on the heart. Now, he says, but now, the righteousness
of God, the holiness of God, acceptance on the part of God,
without the law, and if I ever have it, it'll have to be without
the law, is revealed, even the righteousness of God, which is
by faith of Jesus Christ unto all that believe. For there is
no difference. All that sin and come short of
the glory of God. That's why Christ came into the
world. A dear man who died just a few weeks ago, whose funeral
I preached, been listening to me on television, 76 years of
age, and he said to me, you know, preacher, I never knew why Christ
came into the world. I knew he did, but I didn't know
why. I didn't know why he came. I didn't know that he came down
here as my representative, as my substitute. He came down in
human flesh, made of a woman, made under the law to redeem
those born under the law. That as a man he was tested and
tried and tempted in all points as I am, yet without sin. That
before the holy God he worked out for me a perfect righteousness,
a perfect obedience. In every jot and tittle of God's
holy law he kept it perfectly for me on my behalf. and imputed
unto me, because I believe on him, and that he went to the
cross of Calvary, and because God said in his word, The soul
that sinneth shall die, and he died. The wages of sin is death,
and he died. And there on that cross he bore
my sins in his body on the tree, that I might be made the righteousness
of God in him." Yes, that's why he came. To work out for us by
his obedience and by his life a perfect righteousness. And
my friend, there's no way to God except through Christ. He
plainly says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. Philip said,
Lord, we don't know where you're going, how can we know the way?
And he said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh
to the Father but by me. The scripture plainly says, seeing
that we have such a great high priest who is seated at the right
hand of the Father, who by one offering hath perfected forever
them that are sanctified, let us come boldly into his presence. Let us come boldly, confidently. God will accept me, yes he will,
the chief of sinners, not on the basis of what I'm doing,
on the basis of who Christ is, my substitute, my savior, my
representative, my mediator, the one who pleads for me. He
is my substitute. There's one mediator, one foundation,
one righteousness now then. Submit yourself to him. As many
as receive him, to them gave he the right, the privilege to
become sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. Now
this message is on cassette tape. How can a sinner approach God?
On the other side will be next week's message, and you can have
both of them for three dollars. If you want them, write to me.
The address will be given to you by the announcer. How can
a sinner approach God? Two messages. We'd be glad to
send them to you. Until next week, this is Henry
Mahan bidding you a very pleasant, good day.

How Can a Sinner Approach God?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

How Can a Sinner Approach God?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Henry Mahan

Books by Henry Mahan

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book