If you'll open your Bibles to
1 Corinthians 3. In verse 1 of 1 Corinthians 3,
the Apostle Paul rebuked the people at Corinth and called
them spiritual babies. He said, I could not speak to
you as spiritually mature people. as elders or full-grown men and
women in Christ Jesus, but as unto babes in Christ. And he gives two reasons for
this. First of all, he says you're not able to bear the meat of
the Word. Verse 2, he said, I fed you with
milk. I fed you with the easy, simple
doctrines of the Word because you were not able. Your lack
of maturity would not enable you to receive the meat of the
word. So I've had to give you the milk
of the word. You're not full grown in Christ.
He said, you're like carnal, natural men. You cannot receive
the things of the spirit. They're too difficult. So I had
to feed you with the milk of the word. Your lack of growth
and your lack of maturity prevented you from digesting the meat,
the strong meat of God's word. and I fed you with milk," he
said. And then the second reason why
he called them spiritual babies, the first reason is because they
couldn't take the hard, deep truths of God's Word, the meat
of the Word, and the second reason why he called them spiritual
babies is because there was envy and strife and division among
them. One of you, he said in verse
4, one says, I am of Paul. Another says, I am of Apollos. Another says, I am of Cephas.
There are divisions among you. You're divided into sects and
denominations and cults and movements, and you're following men. You're
not following Christ, you're following men. All of you have
your favorite preacher and your favorite leader. and your favorite
group and your favorite denominations. He says you're carnal. You're
like natural men. You're not behaving as full-grown,
spiritual, mature Christians. And then in verse 5 he says,
Who is Paul? Who is Apollos? The minister
is nothing. He's only a messenger. He's only
a minister. He is nothing. He is a voice
to deliver God's word. Who is Paul? Who is Apollos?
These men are nothing but ministers of the Lord Jesus Christ by whom
you believe, even as the Lord gave you the ability. It's the
Lord that gives us the ability to preach. It's the Lord who
gives you the ability to receive. It's the Lord who gives you the
ability to believe. He says in verse 6, I've planted,
Apollos has watered, but it's God who gave the increase. I
didn't save you, God did. I didn't quicken you, God did.
I didn't give you spiritual life, God did. And I can't give you
spiritual growth either. God will have to do that. I am
nothing. And Apollos is nothing. Verse
7, neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth
anything. Well, nothing. They asked John
the Baptist, Who are you? But he could have said, I was
supernaturally born. He could have said, I'm a man
of God, because he certainly was. He could have said, I've
been filled with the Holy Spirit from my mother's womb, because
he was. He could have said, I'm the greatest
man born of woman, because the Master said that himself. But
John did not say these things. They said, Who are you, John?
He said, I'm nothing but a voice. I'm a voice crying in the wilderness,
Prepare ye the way of the Lord. He that cometh after me, turn
your attention on him, not on me. Look to him, not to me. I'm not worthy to stoop down
and tie his shoes. He must increase and I must decrease. Verse 9 says, Paul says the minister
is nothing. Paul is nothing. Apollos is nothing. God gives the increase. We are
laborers together with God. That's true. God uses men. If you hear the gospel, it will
be from the lips of a man. If you hear the word of God,
it will be from the lips of his messenger. But we're nothing. We're labors together with God.
But you're God's vineyard. I sort of, sort of embarrasses
me. I do it occasionally myself,
and I'm embarrassed when I do it. When I hear a preacher talk
about my church, this is not my church. I hope not. This is God's church. You're
God's vineyard. I hear preachers say, My people,
I'll see if my people will do this. I don't have a people.
I'm one of God's people I trust and believe, and you are God's
people. That's what Paul is saying here.
We'll labor us together with God, but you're God's vineyard. You're God's property. You're
God's building. You're not my building. You're
God's building. I'm simply applying a little
mortar, but God puts the stones in place, living stones. You're God's building, not mine.
And verse 10, according to the grace of God given unto me, Paul
said, God Almighty has put me where I am. God Almighty has
put me in the place where I'm laboring. I'm laboring in the
field, in God's field, in God's vineyard, on God's building,
and it's according to the grace that He's given unto me as a
wise master builder I've laid the foundation, and another builder
thereon. But let him, every man, take
heed how he buildeth thereon. I have faithfully laid the foundation,
Paul said. I have preached Christ, and him
crucified." Paul was not a proud, haughty man. Paul was a humble
man. He said in verse 1 of chapter
2 of 1 Corinthians, look across the page there, "'Brethren, and
I, brethren, when I came to you, I didn't come with excellency
of speech or of wisdom declaring unto you the testimony of God.
I didn't put on display my learning and my intellect and my education. I didn't come to you with wisdom
of words. I determined not to know anything
among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with
you in weakness, human weakness. I was with you in fear. and I
was with you in much trembling." Who, he cried, is sufficient
for these things. And back in chapter 1, verse
17, he said, Christ didn't send me to baptize, but to preach
the gospel, and not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ
should be made of noneffect. The Bible is written in one-,
two-, and three-syllable words. The youngest child here, while
he may not see the mysteries of the gospel, he may not understand
the ways of the Lord, he may not be able to see into the will
of the Lord, but he can understand the words of the Lord. I listen
to many preachers and I ask the words they use, I don't even
know what they mean. The Bible, you check it. is written
in one-, two-, and three-syllable words that people use every day
and that people can understand. Why is it that ministers feel
like that they have to get in front of the people and use words
that people have never heard of? Paul could have done it. He was one of the most educated
men of his day, and yet he said, I didn't come to you with wisdom
of words. Why? Less The cross of Christ
should be made of non-effect. I'm not going to bring you words
that you don't understand and words that you don't know the
meaning of, simply because I want you to know what I'm talking
about, he said. I want you to understand what I'm saying. Now,
I want us to look carefully at verse 11, 12, and 13. In verse 11, Paul says, For other
foundations, for other foundations can no man lay, then that is
laying which is Jesus Christ." My friends, we must preach the
gospel. We must preach the true gospel. We must preach the only gospel. There is no other gospel. Woe unto me if I preach not the
gospel. And the gospel which we must
preach is the gospel of God. Not the Baptist gospel, or the
Methodist gospel, or the Presbyterian gospel, or the Catholic gospel,
the gospel of God. Not the gospel of ceremony, not
the gospel of ritualism, not the gospel of legalism, not the
gospel of sinner save thyself, the gospel of God. That's the
gospel we must preach. We must preach the gospel, and
we must preach the gospel of God. Turn to Romans chapter 1.
In the first chapter of Romans, Paul is writing to the church
at Rome, and this is the way he begins this epistle. Paul. Not Dr. Paul, or Reverend Paul,
or Father Paul, or Archbishop Paul. The strange thing is that
men who deserve honor seek it least. Men who really deserve
titles and recognition are those who care the least for them.
Paul, just Paul. Somebody asked me one time, why
do the people of this congregation call me Henry? Because it's a
title of respect and love and affection. They call the greatest
preacher who ever lived, Paul. I'd be a little reluctant for
them to call me Reverend Mahan, when they call Paul, Paul, and
John, John, and James, James. And another reason why they call
me Henry is that's my name. The Apostle Paul says, Paul,
a servant, a bond-slave. A bond-slave, that's all I am,
he said. I'm a bond-slave. I'm nobody important, I'm a bond-slave. I'm just a servant in the house
of the Lord. I'm not the master, he's the master. And I'm a servant,
I'm a bond-slave of Jesus Christ, and I'm called to be an apostle.
and I'm separated unto what? I'm separated to the gospel of
God. That's what I'm separated unto,
God's gospel, not Paul's gospel or man's gospel, to God's gospel. That's my mission, that's my
task, that's the beat of my heart. He said, I am a bondslave of
Jesus Christ and I'm separated to God's gospel. Now turn to
Galatians chapter 1, and Paul tells us where he got that gospel.
In chapter 1 of Galatians, he tells us that he had been converted,
he had been brought to knowledge of Christ, and the Lord had revealed
to him that he would be minister to the Gentiles, that God had
chosen him to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. And then he
says in Galatians 1, he tells them that if he or an angel from
heaven preached any other gospel, let him be accursed. And he said
in verse 11, brethren, I certify you, brethren, that the gospel
which was preached of me is not after man. I didn't learn it
in school, he said. Or he learned it in school. He
learned it in the school of the Holy Spirit. But he didn't learn
it in a college or seminary. Now, men ought to attend college
if they're going to preach, and they ought to attend the seminary
if they can't. They ought to get all the background and discipline
of the mind that they possibly can, but there's not a living
human being who can teach you the gospel. The Holy Spirit has
to teach you the gospel. And no one can give you the tools
or ability to preach. God has to give you that. And
Paul said, I didn't learn it from man. Verse 12, I didn't
receive it of man. This gospel that I preach, I
wasn't taught it by man, but I received it by the revelation
of Jesus Christ. That's where I got my gospel.
It's the gospel of God. It's the gospel of God. Turn
to 2 Corinthians chapter 5. I want you to look at this. 2
Corinthians 5 verse 18. And he says here in 2 Corinthians
5 verse 18, And all things are of God. all things are of God,
who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given
to us the ministry of reconciliation." That is, that God was in Christ,
reconciling the world unto himself. God was in Christ. This is God's
We are separated unto the gospel of God. We preach the gospel
of God. The foundation we lay is the
foundation of the gospel of God. Now, secondly, the gospel we
preach is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of a person. He is eternal existence. Three
questions I want to ask you this morning about this gospel of
Christ. Who is Jesus Christ? Now that's a legitimate, fair
question, because our Lord asked it himself on several occasions.
He said, What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he? Again, he said
to the disciples, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? And then he asked them, he said,
Whom do you say that I, the Son of Man, am? Who am I? Who is
he? Is he just a messenger of God?
Is he just another man? Who is Jesus Christ? And that
question is so important that when the Apostle Peter answered
the question, the Lord Jesus said, Blessed are you, Simon
Barjona. Flesh and blood didn't reveal
that to you. My Father revealed that to you,
and if my Father had not revealed that to you, you would never
have known the answer. And upon this rock I'll build
my church. Who is he? He's the eternal,
omnipotent, almighty, majestic, all-powerful, holy, gracious
God of heaven. That's who He is. Jesus Christ
is God Almighty. I am the Father of one. He that
has seen me has seen the Father. He is the express image of God's
person. He is the brightness of God's
glory. That's the gospel we preach.
The second question is, what did he do? What did he do? He came down here to this earth
as our representative. He came here as our substitute. He left heaven's glory and came
down here to this earth and robed himself in the likeness of sinful
flesh. He took our guilt. He took our
sin. He took our filth, He took our
transgressions in His body, in His body, and took them to the
tree, and there, under the wrath of the Father, He died for our
sins. As a man, he perfectly obeyed
the law of God, thereby imputing unto us, or reckoning unto us,
or charging to our count a perfect holiness. a perfect righteousness. The Lord Jesus Christ, in his
perfect life and in his substitutionary death, gave us a perfect standing
vote before the law and the justice of God. Now, the third question. Why did he do it? Why was it
necessary? Turn to Romans 3, and I believe
this verse of Scripture will answer that question. The gospel
we preach is the gospel of God. it's the gospel of Christ. Who
is He? The Eternal, Omnipotent, Almighty
God of Heaven, robed in human flesh. What did He do? He came
down here to this earth as our representative, died for our
sins. Why did He do it? In verse 25
of Romans 3, talking about Christ, whom God hath set forth to be
a mercy seat, a propitiation, through faith in His to declare
his righteousness for the remission of sins of the past, even the
sins of Old Testament people, through the patience of God,
through the forbearance of God. That is, Christ came down here
to be a propitiation, a mercy seat, not only for our sins,
sins of the present, but even sins of the past. Not only sins
of those who shall believe on him and do believe on him, but
those who look with expectation to his coming, Old Testament
saints. whose sins were under the blood
through the patience and forbearance and mercy of God, to declare,
I say, at this time, God's righteousness, not mine, His. Never at any time
do I stand in my righteousness, always in His, that He, that
God, might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus."
That's why he did it. That's why Christ had to face
the law as a man and obey it in order that God might be just
and justify him that believeth in Christ. That's why Christ
had to go to the cross and bear my sin and my guilt in order
that God, in his holiness and in his righteousness and in his
truth, might forgive me, justify me, an ungodly sinner. Almighty God cannot reveal one
attribute at the expense of another. Almighty God cannot act on one
attribute at the expense of another. That is, he cannot show his love
except in righteousness. He cannot show his mercy except
in truth. And so when he forgives me, he
forgives me because my sins have been paid for. When he accepts
me as holy, it's because in Christ I have a holiness. Now the gospel
we preach is the gospel of God, it's the gospel of Christ, and
my friends, it's the gospel of a free offer. Turn to Mark 16. Our Lord Jesus Christ had died
on the cross. He had redeemed all who believe
on him. He had paid for their sins. And
he told his disciples then in Mark 16, verse 15, he said to
his disciples, this was before he went back to the Father. This
was his great commission. These were the orders he gave
his disciples. He said to them, you go into
all the world, not just Jerusalem, but Judea, Samaria, the uttermost
parts of the earth. Not just Ashland, but Ironton,
Huntington, Chesapeake, not just the tri-state area, but all over
the United States, and not just over the United States, but even
to the shores of Spain, and to the green fields of Ireland,
and to the crowded cities of France and Mexico. You go into
all the world and you preach the Good News. You preach the
gospel, not just to the white man, but to all men. Not just
to the educated, but to the uneducated. Not just to the young, but to
the old. Not just to the rich, but to
the poor. Not just to the Jew, but to the Gentile. To every
creature. You preach this gospel. This
gospel of God. This gospel of Christ. You preach
this gospel to every creature. And I promise you, he that believes
it, he that believes it, and is baptized, that is, confesses
his faith. For you cannot separate faith
and obedience. You cannot separate faith and
conduct. As a man thinketh in his heart,
so is he. Out of the abundance of the heart
the mouth speaketh. And he that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved. And he who does not believe this
gospel, regardless of how moral he may appear to be, and I say
appear to be, regardless of how righteous he may appear to be,
regardless of how sincere he may be. He that believeth not
shall be damned. Now, that's how important it
is to preach the gospel. We must preach the gospel. We
must preach the gospel of God. We must preach the gospel of
Christ and his substitutionary work. We must preach the gospel
of a free offer. to every tribe, kindred, nation,
tongue, and people under heaven. It's the good news that Christ
died for our sin. You believe it, God says you
believe it, you'll be saved. God says you don't believe it,
you'll be damned. It's just that plain. Turn back
to 1 Corinthians 3 now. Let's look at the next verse.
Paul says we've got to preach the gospel. We've got to preach
the true gospel. Now then, verse 12. if any man
build upon this foundation, that is, Christ, gold, silver, precious
stone, wood, hay, and stubble. Now, if we preach the true gospel,
if we preach the gospel of God, if we seek not our glory but
His, if we seek to bring men not to ourselves but to Christ,
if we seek a real experience of Christ saving experience,
saving interest in Christ, if that's our motive, if that's
our goal, to bring men to Christ, not to ourselves, not even to
the front of our churches, not even to our church roll book,
but to bring them to a saving, vital, personal union with the
living Lord. If we preach the true gospel,
we're going to build, and we're going to build lasting, durable
material such as gold, silver, and precious stone. That's right. We're going to build that which
fire cannot destroy. Fire won't destroy gold. It'll
burn up wood. You see the difference in these
two materials? You have gold, silver, precious
stone. Then you have, on the other hand,
wood, hay, and stubble. You know what fire will do to
wood, hay, and stubble? And it's gone. But not gold. Gold comes out of the fire more
precious. Silver comes out of the fire
more precious. Precious stones, gold cannot
destroy. Turn to Isaiah 55, and that's
what will happen when we preach the true gospel. We don't have
to depend upon our methods. Isaiah 55, verse 11. Turn over
there a minute. We don't have to depend upon
our personality. We don't have to depend upon
the beauty of our building, or the attractiveness of our program.
or the ability of our singers, or the friendliness of our preacher.
When we depend on those things, we're bringing men to ourselves.
We're rallying them around our program, and our church, and
our denomination, and our religious movement. When we faithfully
preach the Word of God, the true gospel, And the Holy Spirit is
pleased to apply it to a sinner's heart. God says in verse 11 of
Isaiah 55, So shall my word be, that going forth out of my mouth
it will not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that
which I please. It shall prosper in the thing
whereto I sent it. Brethren, I believe I believe
that if we preach the true gospel of Jesus Christ, if our lives
are consistent, and they must be, if we conduct ourselves in
the proper way, if we are faithful ourselves to the word of God,
and we preach the word of God. I'm not talking about preaching
it in anger. I'm talking about preaching it
in love and compassion. I'm not talking about offending
people because of our own strange and unusual ways, but just be
people of God, sons of God, people who walk with the Lord, and yet
preach his word in its simplicity and in its truth and in its clearness. The Holy Spirit will use it,
and the Holy Spirit will bring our young people and our older
people not to us, but he will bring them to Christ. And their
faith will not stand in our wisdom, their faith will stand in the
Lord's wisdom. And their confidence will not
be in our flesh, but will be in him. I want you to turn to
John 4. Here's an interesting illustration. You know, the Lord talked to
this woman at the well, and she was brought to see that he is
the Messiah, that he is the Christ. In John 4, then she went and
told other people what she had experienced, what she had heard,
what she had felt, what she had seen. And they came out and heard
it. And they were converted. But
now listen to John 4, verse 42. And these people, verse 41, says,
"...may believe because of his own word." And the next verse
says, "...and they said to the woman, Now we believe, not because
of your saying. We've heard him ourselves." That's
what I want. I want to bring you the word
like the Samaritan woman did. But I don't want you to believe
anything because I say it." And I'm sincere in that. And they
said to this woman, we don't believe simply because of your
experience and your saying. We've heard it ourselves. And we know that this is indeed
the Christ, the Son of the Living God. I'm not a convert of any
man. The preacher who baptized me
may die and go to hell. My faith's not in him, it's in
Christ. I've heard him myself. I've seen
him with these eyes of faith. I've felt his power and his presence
in my own heart. I always get disturbed when some
church has a little problem and everything blows up and their
body goes in different directions. Some of them just don't go anywhere,
they stay home. Well, they ought to stay home
to start with. Their faith was in a man, in an organization,
in a doctrine, in a social club. Churches are nothing today anyway,
but poor men's social clubs, that's all in the world they
are, most of them. Our faith is in Him! We've heard
Him ourselves! And our faith's in Him. Now that's
the wood, that's the gold and silver and precious stones. That's
the precious stone, and that's the material that will endure.
It'll endure the fire, it'll endure the trial, it'll endure
the test, it'll endure tribulation. It'll endure anything, anything. It's gold, silver, and precious
stone. But now watch verse 12 again.
If any man build on this foundation the gold, silver, and precious
stone, but wait a minute, there's some more material mentioned
here. There's wood, hay, and stubble. Now, my friends, if
we don't preach the true gospel, if we have a little young people's
organization here where everybody comes in order to play on the
basketball team, and everybody comes in order to have a part
in the wiener roast, And all the young people come because
somebody else comes here, you know. I go to church there because
somebody else goes to church there. And they have such an
attractive building, and they have such a short, simple service,
and they have such beautiful music. If we don't preach the
true gospel, if we bring men into a religious experience,
if we bring men into any kind of faith, if we bring men into
any kind of religious organization, and they're not brought to a
person And they're not brought to a personal, vital union with
Christ. And they're not brought to a
living, saving relationship with God. If they're brought for any
other reason, we are building wood, hay, and stubble. And it's going to be consumed.
It's material that cannot stand the fire. It cannot stand the
fire. And verse 13 tells us there's
going to be a fire. It's going to be a time of testing.
It says here, Every man's work shall be revealed. Every preacher's ministry is
going to be tried by fire. Every church's ministry is going
to be tried by fire. That Sunday school class you
teach is going to be tried by fire. What are you teaching them? Well, we'll find out one of these
days. We'll find out what you've taught them. We'll find out what
they've been building on. We'll find out what kind of material
they are. My converts! If you'll turn to
Matthew chapter 7, I'll show you something. You hear people
run around saying, well, by their fruits you shall know them. You
know who said that? Christ said that. You know who
he was talking about? Preachers. That's exactly who
he was talking about. In Matthew chapter 7, verse Fifteen,
he says, beware of false prophets, false preachers. They come to
you in sheep's clothing. They'll come to you acting like
a minister of God. But inwardly, they're ravening
wolves. They're hucksters. They make
merchandise out of you. They're seeking their own glory.
You shall know them. How? Well, you certainly can't
know them by their outward lies, because They're clothed in sheep's
clothing. He said, I'll tell you how you'll
recognize them, by their converts. You'll know them by their fruits,
the fruits of their ministry. That's their converts. When I
go somewhere and preach for 10 or 15 years, don't ask me what
I've preached, ask them what I've preached. Don't look at
me, look at them. You'll find out whether or not
I've preached the gospel. If I've built gold, silver, precious
stone, it'll endure the trial, and I'll tell you what trials
in a moment. If I've built wood, hay, and stubble, they'll fall
along the wayside, they'll crumble, they'll quit, they'll depart.
You'll know my ministry by the fruit of my ministry. That's
what Christ said. You'll know them by their fruit. Now then,
every man's work's going to be tried by fire. Now brethren,
we're not talking here about the fire of judgment at the great
white throne. It's true that there's going
to be a judgment, and people are going to cry, Lord, did not
we do this, that, and the other? And he says, I never knew you.
But we're talking about a trial right here in this life, right
now. That's what we're talking about. You read these verses again,
they're going to be revealed right now in this life. Wood,
hay, and stubble, or gold, silver, and precious stone. Now listen
to me. A man listens to me preach. And he listens to the gospel
I'm preaching. He listens to my way of salvation
that I'm declaring, which I claim will meet his spiritual need,
which I claim will redeem his soul, which I claim will bring
him into communion with the living God. He listens to my message,
my gospel. And then the days turn into weeks,
and the weeks turn into months, and the months turn into years.
And with these days and weeks and months and years come what?
Trial. And Peter calls them, turn to
1 Peter 4. Peter calls them, what kind of
trials? Fiery trials. Tried by fire. Tried by fire. 1 Peter 4, verse
11. Listen to it. 1 Peter 4, verse
11. 12. Beloved, think it not strange
concerning the fiery trial, which is to try you, as though some
strange thing happen unto you. What kind of trial? Fiery trial. Now turn to 1 Peter 1, verse
6. Here it is again, 1 Peter 1,
verse 6. wherein you greatly rejoice,
though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through
manifold temptations, that the trial of your faith, being much
more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried
with fire, might be found unto the praise and honor and glory
of the Lord Jesus Christ." Now, what are some of these trials? I'm preaching to you, and I believe
the gospel, the true gospel of Christ. Somebody else is preaching
to somebody else. Now, when this whole day is over
and when you've made your profession, when they've made their profession,
both professions are going to be tried. And the one that stands
is gold, silver, and precious stone. The one that doesn't stand
is wood, hay, and stubble. First of all, after a man is
converted, what professes to be? was the trial of inward sin
and inward lust and inward guilt. I claim to be a child of God.
You do too. And yet every day I'm more aware
of my imperfect love. I don't love God with all my
heart. I'd be a liar if I said I did. I don't love my neighbors
myself. Of course you don't. I am aware
of my sinful imaginations. I think things that I should
not think. I am imperfect in every way. Every day I am made more aware
of my own nature. And it doesn't get any easier,
it doesn't get any better. Now then, will the faith that
I claim, will it stand under this kind of trial? Or will it
crumble? I say faith in Christ will. faith
in Christ. I say if you're in Christ, you
can stand under the fiery trial of inward imperfections and inward
guilt and inward sin. But I say if a man is resting
in his own merit and in his own profession and in his own decision
and in his own self-righteousness, when these things become greater,
he's going to finally throw up his hands and say, The old wood won't stand it,
the hay and stubble, but the gold will. Then will come another
trial. There will come the trial of
outward sin. What happens when an Abraham
lies? What happens? He did. Twice. What happens when an Abraham
lies? Does he lose his relationship with God? If he's wood, hay,
and stubble, he does. If it's a false gospel, he does.
If he's grounded on Christ, if he's vitally united with Christ,
he doesn't. He weeps over his sins. What
happens when a David commits adultery? Is he no longer God's
child? What happens when Simon Peter
denies his Lord? Is this the end? It's the end
if the gospel of works is our foundation. It is the end. It's the end, if it's the gospel
of self-righteousness that we're trusting and building upon, it's
the end. We have held ourselves, and we
have failed, and we have fallen. And that's it. And it's impossible
to renew them unto repentance. But brethren, if our confidence
and faith is in Christ, and not in ourselves, We regret these
things, and we weep over them, and we beg for God's forgiveness,
and we confess our sins, and we want to be like our Lord.
But we can stand the fires of outward sin. And then there'll
come, listen to me, every man's going to, every man's work's
going to be tried by fire. The fire, the trial of inward
sins, the trial of outward sin, and then the trial of time. This
is the toughest one of all. just plain time, that's all.
A man who is a new creature in Christ, he'll continue in the
faith. He'll continue in the faith.
He that endureth to the end shall be saved. He that is in Christ
will not only stand the test and trial of time, but Christ
will be more precious to him at the end of his life than Christ
is to him right now. I've kept the faith. John said
if they had been of us, they no doubt would have continued
with us. I see so many people departing
from Christ in what they call their old age. I say they never
knew him. They couldn't stand the test
of time. They couldn't stand the fiery
trial of time. Going will go right on. Silver,
precious stone, will go rattle. It'll become more precious as
the years go by. Wood, it rots and it decays. Hay, it grows away. Stubble, it's gone. Can't stand the test
of time. Where will you be fifteen years
from now? In the house of God, you better
be. That's all I got to say. Where will you be twenty years
from now if God allows you to live? Will you be rejoicing in
Christ? You better be. That's one of
the trials. That's the fiery trial that our
so-called converts must bear. Time. And then there's a trial
of great disappointment and sorrow. Turn to 2 Samuel with me. 2 Samuel
chapter 18. 2 Samuel, chapter 18. David had a boy named Absalom. Amnon was already dead. The boy
that Bathsheba bore was already dead. And here is son Absalom. His pride and joy, God took him
away. And you listen to the last verse
of this chapter, chapter 18, 2 Samuel, verse 33. And the king
was much moved. He went up to the chamber over
the gate, and he cried. And as he went, thus he said,
O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom, would God I had
died for you. O Absalom, my son, my son. What would you do this morning
if God killed your husband? Would you praise his name or
curse him? If you were wood, hay, and stubble,
you would fall along the wayside. But if you were gold, silver,
and precious stone, God could take your husband and all your
children, and you'd say with Job, Blessed be the name of the
Lord. That's one of the five trials
that our converts are going to stand. What if God took your
child right now? You're a parent sitting here
with only one son. If God took him tomorrow, would
you be here next Sunday to worship God? Or would you grow bitter? If you grow bitter, you don't
know God. You've got a false religion.
You're building on a phony foundation. You're a child of Satan, and
you've never been a child of God. If you think I'm hard, you
buy your Bible and find out what the truth really is. God took every one of Job's children,
every one of his children, even his wife, cursed him. And all
his friends turned against him. And old Job sat on the ash heap,
scraping his balls. A broke, a man totally bankrupt,
with no friends and no family. And he said, I'll trust him. That's a Christian, and nobody
else is a Christian. That's the trial. That's what
he said over in 1 Corinthians. You say, well, my congregation's
not that strong. They better be. They better be. You're not preaching the gospel
to them if they're not. And then there's a trial of sickness.
Now, you listen to me. Every man's work's going to be
tried by fire. God's going to try it. And the wood, hay, and stubble
will be destroyed. And the gold, silver, and precious
stones coming out on the other side of that fire, more precious
than ever. What if God takes your health?
Right now, God can find you the wheelchair for the rest of your
life. A child of God will say, roll me down to the house of
God and let me praise the Lord. That's a fact. What if God takes away your health?
What if you have heart trouble, cancer, leukemia? I don't care what it is. God's
the giver of life and God takes life. That's what scripture says.
I am the Lord. You going to praise his name?
Are you going to praise his name? That's the fiery trial, and our
converts are going to have to stand it, or they're as phony
as we are. In death, he said, I knew no
pain. I knew no pain. When I started reviving, the
pain came back. But he said, when my life was
slipping away, And the heart was failing, and the respiratory
system was failing. He said, I knew no pain. Secondly,
he said, I knew perfect peace. It was so peaceful. The old infidel
had taught his son that there is no God, and the son was dying. And the old infidel stood by
his bed as the boy screamed and yelled and cried, and he said,
son, hold on, hold on. And the boy stopped screaming
for a minute and looked up into the face of that father, that
unfaithful father who had taught him there is no God. And he said,
Dad, there's not anything to hold to. Nothing. Will your faith stand the test? The trial, the fiery trial, they're
coming. Oh, they're coming. They're already
here. And if it won't, if I was you, I'd ask God to give me saving
faith. Our Father used this message
for thy glory. Thank you for a revelation of
thy dear Son. There is nothing in this life
but Christ. Everything else will fade and
pass away. But Christ is the same yesterday,
today, and forever. Thank you for the living rock.
Christ Jesus, in His name, Amen.