They Cry Peace - When There Is No Peace

The greatest blessing that Almighty
God can give to a nation, to a community, to a church, or
to a people, is to give them a truthful, regenerated, godly,
sincere minister of the gospel. And the greatest curse that God
can permit to fall upon a nation, a community, a church, or a people,
is to leave them in the hands of an unregenerate, blind, unfaithful,
insincere preacher. One of the greatest blessings
that God can give is to give us men who fearlessly and boldly
and for God's glory proclaim His word. Now there have been
false prophets and false preachers down through the ages. Our Lord
called them wolves in sheep's clothing. He said, Beware of
false prophets, they come to you as wolves in sheep's clothing. Inwardly they are wolves, outwardly
they behave themselves like ministers of righteousness. I want you
to take your Bible with me and turn to several passages of scripture
that deal with false preachers and false prophets. First of
all, in Jeremiah chapter 5, verse 30. Now listen to this scripture.
Jeremiah 5, verse 30. an astonishing and horrible thing
is committed in the land. What is this horrible thing,
this astonishing thing? The prophets prophesy falsely,
and the priests rule by their own hands, and here's the astonishing
thing, and my people love to have it so. But what will they
do when the end comes? Our Lord is saying that the prophets
are prophesying falsely, and the priests are ruling with their
own hands, and the amazing thing is that people like it that way.
But he says, what will they do when the end comes? And then
in Jeremiah 23, verse 1 and 2, the Scripture says this, Woe
to the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture,
saith the Lord. Therefore, thus saith the Lord
God against the pastors that feed not my people. You have
scattered my flock and driven them away." I was looking in
the book of Ezekiel the other day, and I found these two verses
of Scripture. They are amazing. The application
to this day is absolutely astounding. I want you to listen to this.
In Ezekiel 34, verses 2 and 3, the Son of Man speaks against
the shepherds of Israel, speaks against the false prophets. will
be to the shepherds of Israel that feed themselves, that do
not feed the people. Should not the shepherds feed
the sheep? They feed themselves. They don't
feed the sheep. They eat the fat from the sheep
and they wear the wool from the sheep, but you feed not the flock. You take the fat from the sheep
and you take the wool from them, but you don't feed them. woe
unto these shepherds, woe unto these pastors, woe unto these
false prophets. And then over in Romans 16, verse
18, the Scripture says, They that are such serve not our Lord
Jesus Christ, but they serve themselves. They serve their
own daily. And by good words and fair speeches
they deceive the hearts of the simple. By beautiful speeches
by fair words they deceive the hearts of simple people. And
then in 2 Timothy chapter 4 verse 3, listen to this, the time will
come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their
own lust shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears
who will turn away their ears and their hearts from the truth.
Now selected for my text today from the book of Jeremiah, chapter
6, verse 14. They have healed also the hurt
of the daughter of my people, slightly saying, Peace, peace,
when there is no peace. Jeremiah is speaking against
these false prophets, these false teachers. He is speaking against
these who do not feed the sheep. And he says, they have healed
the hurt of my daughter, slightly saying, peace, when there is
no peace. Now he charges these false prophets
with three crimes. First of all, he says in verse
13, they're covetous men. Every one of them, every one
of them is given to covetousness. What is it that a false prophet
or a false preacher covets? Well, first of all, he covets
the praise of men. They love the praises of men
more, our Lord said, than the praise of God. The apostle Paul
said, if I please men, I'm not the servant of Christ, my business
is not to please men. My business is to please the
Lord, to preach the word, to preach for the glory of God,
not to please men or to seek their praises. Another thing
that these false prophets covet is money and material possessions. That verse I read to you from
Ezekiel 34, verse 2 and 3, you write that down and go back and
read it later. He said, they eat the fat of the sheep They
take from the sheep the fat, and they wear the wool that they
take from the sheep, but they don't feed them. And that's the
way so many false preachers and prophets are in this day. They
receive salaries from their churches, they drive automobiles furnished
by their churches, they live in houses furnished by their
churches, they eat food furnished by their churches, but they don't
feed the sheep. They don't feed them. And then
not only do they covet money and material possessions, But
these false preachers and false prophets, our Lord says, they
covet titles and high-sounding phrases. He says they love the
uppermost seats in the synagogue. They love greetings in the marketplace. They love to be called master,
teacher, reverend, doctor, bishop, archbishop, superintendent, master. These men love titles. They love
the honor that comes from men. They love the greeting in the
marketplace, and they love the high seats in the synagogue.
They are covetous men, coveting money, coveting possessions,
coveting fame, coveting personal glory, coveting titles, and the
praise of men. Now, another charge he brings
against them is this. Every one of them is given to
covetousness, but not only that, they deal falsely with my people. Oh, they deal with the people.
And they speak to the people, but they do it in a false manner.
Now how does God deal with his people? How does the Lord God
of heaven deal with his people? He deals with them through his
word. That's how he speaks to us. Through the word of God we're
convicted of sin. Through the word of God our thoughts
and our actions and our motives are judged. Through the word
of God Christ is revealed. Through the word of God the gospel
is received. Through the word of God we grow
in grace. and in the knowledge of our Lord
Jesus Christ. God always has dealt with his people with a,
thus saith the Lord. Not what the minister thinks,
not the traditions and customs of the fathers, but here the
prophets, the true prophets of God came to the people and they
said, thus saith the Lord, thus saith the Lord, thus saith the
Lord. That's how God dealt with his
people. Listen to these scriptures. My word shall not return unto
me void. My word, God said. Now, the words
the preacher speaks may not accomplish anything, but God's word always
accomplishes something. God's word, if it is preached
in its purity, it will not return void. His word is the savor of
life unto life and death unto death, but it does not fall on
the ears of people and return to God void. It will accomplish
that whereunto he has sent it. Listen to this scripture. Desire
the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby. How
does a Christian grow? He grows on the word of God.
Listen to this scripture. All scripture is God-bred, is
given by inspiration of God. And all scripture is profitable
for doctrine, for correction, for reproof, for instruction
in righteousness that the man of God might be mature and perfected
in Christ Jesus. Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God Almighty.
We cannot grow on traditions and rituals and ceremonies. We've got to grow by diligent
use of the word of the living God. Wherewithal shall a young
man cleanse his way? By taking heed to the word of
God. And these false prophets do not
preach the word. You can go into average church
today and sit down. And if you hear one, two, or
three verses of scripture, it'll be an amazing accomplishment.
They do not use the word of God. The people in the pews do not
carry the word of God because the preacher never preaches from
the word of God. They're dealing falsely with
my people, God said. My people must be dealt with
from the scriptures. That's how I speak to you. We
speak to God in prayer. He speaks to us through the word.
His word, not my words, His word. Then listen to this. He said,
they're covetous men. He says, they deal falsely with
my people. And listen, he says, and they
heal the hurt. They heal the bruises. And they
cry, peace, when there is no peace. I was in a revival meeting
one time in Ashland, Kentucky. Another man was preaching, and
God was blessing. People were being convicted of
sin. People were being shown their guilt before God. They
were seeking the Lord. They were crying for mercy. They
were receiving Christ. And one night, after the message
was preached, a young man came forward, about 19 or 20 years
of age. He was a church member, had been
a church member for years, an unsaved church member, a professing
Christian, but did not possess Christ, didn't know the Lord.
But he came forward and he told the minister, the evangelist,
that he was lost. And the evangelist talked with
him for a few moments, and another young man walked up, who was
a church member. And said to this young man, you're
not lost. You believe the Bible, don't
you? You believe Jesus Christ died on the cross, don't you?
You're not lost, you're just disturbed. That's all, you're
just having doubts and fears. You're not lost. Peace. Peace. There was no peace, but he was
giving peace. There was no joy, but he was
trying to give joy. There was no comfort, but he
was trying to comfort. This young man was disturbed
about his relationship with Christ. And here was a church member
trying to soothe him and comfort him in his misery. And the evangelist
very wisely said to the young man doing the comforting, young
man, the only person who will try to convince a lost man he's
saved is another lost man. Now, I'm not God. I'm not the
Holy Spirit. And I cannot tell you that you're
born again. I cannot tell you that you're
saved. I cannot tell you you're a child of God. And the moment
I try to begin to tell you, the moment I begin to try to tell
you that you are saved and you are a Christian, is the moment
that I'm stamping myself and identifying myself as a false
prophet. These men say, peace, peace,
when there is no peace. God says, I have convicted, I
have bruised the people. I have warned the people, and
the false prophet comes along and says, everything's all right.
Now, my friends, the preacher is sent to preach. The preacher
is sent to warn men. The preacher is sent to exhort
sinners, not to tell men that they're all right, not to tell
men that they're saved, not to tell men that all is well between
them and God. Only the Holy Spirit can do that.
Paul says, I have planted, Apollos has watered, but God gives the
increase. God gives the increase. When
Paul left those people, he said, I'm pure from your blood. I have
not ceased to warn you, day by day, with tears, house to house,
I've warned you. I've kept back nothing profitable
unto you. I have not shunned to declare
unto you the whole word of God, but I've not tried to give you
peace. That's got to come from God Almighty. The preacher cannot
give it to you, and when he does try to give it to you, he is
branding himself as a false prophet. They are crying, peace, they
are healing the hurt, they are soothing the conviction, they
are healing the bruise, they are pouring ointment over the
top of the sword, instead of letting God deal with it through
his word and by his Spirit. And they are crying, peace, when
there is no peace. Now, my friends, let me take
the scriptures. and show you God's way of dealing
with sinners. God's method of grace. Before
the Holy Spirit speaks peace, and I can't do it. The Spirit
of God has to speak peace. And before the Holy Spirit speaks
peace to a man's heart, God will give that man a foundation for
peace. God will give that man a reason
for peace. God will give that man some reason
to expect peace. And here are five things that
the Holy Spirit will show every man who has true peace with God. This is God's method of grace.
I know this. Now you listen to it. I'm not
giving peace. The Holy Spirit has to do that.
But I'm showing you what takes place in a sinner's heart when
God speaks peace to that heart. First of all, this, before any
man can speak peace to his heart, he must be made to see, he must
be made to feel, He must be made to acknowledge and to weep over
his actual sins against God Almighty. Every man who has peace with
God has wept over and mourned over and grieved over his sins. That's right. Listen to these
men who found peace with God. Listen to David, Psalm 51. My
sins are ever before me. O God, against thee and thee
only have I sinned. and done this evil in thy sight,
that thou mightest be justified when thou condemnest, that thou
mightest be just when thou chargest me with guilt. I'm a sinner.
My sins are ever before me. O God, purge me with hyssop,
and I shall be clean. Wash me, I shall be whiter than
the stone. Listen to Job. I abhor myself. I hate myself. I repent in sackcloth
and ashes. Once have I spoken things too
wonderful for me. I'll not speak again, for mine
eyes have seen the Lord." Listen to Isaiah. He found peace with
God, but we hear him saying, Woe is me! I'm a man of unclean
lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips.
This is acknowledging sin. This is feeling sin. This is
grieving over, weeping over sin. Listen to Paul. Oh, wretched
man that I am! I'm the chief of sinners. I'm
less than the least of all the saints. Listen to the publicans
who found mercy. God be merciful to me, a sinner. My friends, salvation is for
sinners. It's not for righteous people,
it's not for moral people, it's not for religious people, it's
not for good people, it's for sinners. Salvation is for sinners. When the angel announced to Joseph
that Mary would bring forth a son, conceived by the Holy Spirit,
he said to Joseph, and thou shalt call his name Jesus. or he shall
save his people from their sins. The Son of Man has come to seek
and to save the lost. This is a fateful saying and
worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners, of whom I am chief. Romans 5.8, God commended
his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us. 1 John 1.8 and 9, if we say we
have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If
we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Preachers are giving men a word
of peace, men who have never felt their guilt, who have never
taken their place as sinners, who have never repented of their
sins, who have never acknowledged their sins. They say it is no
longer the sin question. Oh, yes it is. Christ said, if
you die in your sin, you cannot come where I am. The scripture
says, be sure your sins will find you out. Isn't that in the
word of God? It is the sin question. For those who believe on Christ,
it has become the son question. But for every person listening
to my voice who has not received Christ, it still is the sin question. And before a man can speak peace
to his heart, he's got to come to see and to know and to acknowledge
and to feel his sins. Grace is for the guilty. Now
the second thing. Before a man can speak peace
to his heart, not only must he feel and acknowledge his sins,
but he will feel and know the foundation of sin. Not only what
he has done, but what he is. The Holy Spirit will reveal to
him original sin, the nature of sin. Now let me ask you some
questions. Why do you think evil thoughts? We know we do. Now why do we think them? Why
is it easier to do wrong than to do right? Why is it easier
for you to read a novel or a fiction magazine than to read the word
of God? Why is it that it's easier for
you to talk with a neighbor than with God in prayer? Why is it
that we murmur and complain and covet and envy and hate, and
are filled with jealousy. Why is it that children who are
brought up in godly homes turn to the way of the flesh? Why
is it? Something's happened. Something's happened, not to
the outside of man, but to the inside, and I can tell you what
it is. It happened back in the Garden of Eden. It happened when
man failed. It happened when Adam sinned
against God, and Paul gave an account of it. He said in Romans
5.12, by one man, sin entered this world We weren't created
this way. We were created in the image
of God. We were created holy, perfect,
and upright. Something happened. Why do men
love darkness rather than light? Something wrong. Why is it we
call bitter sweet and sweet bitter? Why are stolen fruits sweet to
the taste? What happened? By one man's sin
entered this world, and death by sin, so death passed upon
all men. Spiritual death. We died. We
lost contact with God. We lost communion with God. We
lost the desire for God. That's what happened. Look at
the world of nature. Storms, floods, earthquakes. How many people were killed in
this earthquake recently in Guatemala? Droughts, famines, wild bees,
insects, suffering, sorrow. What happened to this world?
It wasn't created that way. What took place? I'll tell you
what took place. Something happened in the gardening.
And when Adam fell, the whole creation was subjected to vanity,
the scripture says. And God said in Genesis 3, 17,
Adam, cursed is the ground because of you. When you dig a furrow
and plant your seed, thorns will come up, briars will come up,
weeds will come up. It didn't used to be that way.
When you plant your fruit tree and it grows up, the worms will
get your fruit, and the blight will get your fruit. and the
drought will kill your garden. Thorns and thistles will come
up. By the sweat of your brow, you'll earn your bread. What
happened? Sin visited this world and contaminated it. It not only
contaminated us, but it contaminated the ground. Look at man, created
in the image of God. Now what's he look like? Weak,
deformed, mentally, emotionally, spiritually diseased, old and
gray, bent and broken, dead and dying. He wasn't created that
way. What happened? And Adam all died. That's what happened. And my
friends, when you look into your heart, you are made to say with
the apostle Paul, even you who are born again, the things I
would do, I do them not, and the things I would not do, I
do. I find a law that when I would
do good, evil is present with me. So I'm saying that a man
not only repents for what he's done, But he repents for what
he is. And these false prophets that
eat the fat of the sheep and wear the wool of the sheep and
don't tell the sheep the truth, are deceiving them. Original
sin. And then the third thing, now
I want you to stay with me. Before you can speak peace to
your heart, you've got to come to see what sin is. Not only
your outward sins, but the condition and nature of your heart. But
here's the third thing. Before a man can speak peace
to his heart, he must be able to see that even in his best
duties, even in his best performances, even in his good deeds, there
is sin and there is evil. Now, my friends, when the Word
of God deals with our hatred, when the Word of God deals with
our anger, when the Word of God deals with our lust, when the
Word of God deals with our covetousness, when the Word of God deals with
our blasphemy and our outward sins, like Adam, what do we do? We run to our good works and
we try to balance the account. Or we run and try to make a fig
leaf apron to cover our nakedness. But when we come to see the real
holiness of God and the real righteousness of God, it will
reveal to us that even in our good works and even in our so-called
righteousness, there is sin and selfishness. Let me ask you this. Can you worship God as he's worthy
to be worshiped? Have you ever taken inventory
of your prayers, how much selfishness there is in our prayers? Have
you ever taken inventory of your good deeds, why you do them?
Are they totally motivated by the glory of God, or isn't there
a lot of self in it? And when there's self, there's
sin. Isaiah said, all our righteousnesses are filthy rags. Bishop Riles
said, our best duties are nothing but splendid sins. God could
justly damn us for the best prayer we ever prayed because there's
so much flesh in it. And then again he said, even
our repentance needs to be repented of. Examine your worship. Examine
your prayers. Examine this so-called love.
Do you really love your neighbor as you love yourself? Do you
really love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength?
Do you really do all in word or deed for the glory of God
alone? Well, if you don't, it's sin. Whatsoever is not of faith is
sin. Anything short of holiness is
sin. Anything short of righteousness
is sin. So my friends, when we're convicted
of sin, we're convicted of the sins of our outward flesh, the
sin of our heart, and even the sin of our best duties and our
so-called righteous works. Now the fourth thing, before
a man can speak peace to his heart, he will also grieve over
one particular sin. And I'm going to hit myself broadside
now, and everybody listening and everybody watching. And that
one particular sin, that is the chief sin, the great sin, the
horrible sin, is the sin of unbelief. Israel could not enter the land
because of unbelief, and Paul said, lest they be found in you
an evil heart of unbelief." Cannot all of us cry right now, Lord,
I believe, help my unbelief. Can we not take our place with
a centurion at the feet of Christ and say, Lord, help my unbelief? All things are possible to them
that believe, but we don't believe. Too much unbelief. Will the Son
of Man, when he comes, find faith in this world? Faith in And then
the fifth thing, before a man can speak peace to his heart,
he must savingly lay hold on Jesus Christ, his righteousness
and his sacrifice. Listen to it. Come unto me, and
I'll give you rest. There's rest to be found, but
it's in Christ. Come to Christ. To as many as
received him, to them gave he the right to become the sons
of God. There's the privilege for us to become sons of God,
but that privilege is ours through receiving Christ. not my righteousness
is, not my righteousness, not my work, but is. In Christ I
have all things. I hope you'll join us next Lord's
Day at the same time for the message over this station. Until
then, Henry Mahan, bidding you a very pleasant good day.

They Cry Peace - When There Is No Peace

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They Cry Peace - When There Is No Peace

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