Are You a Big Sinner — E.A. Johnston

Listen to me, friend. This whole world's going to hell faster than a speeding bullet. I wish I could save you, friend, but I don't have that power. If I did, I'd go around all day long, all over this city, wearing myself out, just saving everybody I could come in contact with.

But I can't save you, friend. I'm just a mortal man, a sinner saved by grace. But there is a man in heaven who sits on a throne, and he's got nail prints in his hands. And in his hands, he has power to save.

He's got power to give repentance and faith to an old sinner like me. Jesus is still in the miracle working business, taking a sinner, pardoning sin, and saving him, and planting a disposition for holiness inside that same man.

And I'm telling you, only a thrice-holy God can perform a miracle like that, friend. But we have folks in our churches today who believe they can save you. When we started telling folks that they could get a slice of heaven by just doing it, what we asked them to do in our evangelism efforts, that's when we as churches became slaughterhouses of souls.

Only a risen Christ has power to save. Let me tell you what I'm talking about. I was taking a new members class in a big Baptist church where they require you to sit for several hours in a classroom to indoctrinate you to their beliefs.

And the room was full of adults who had been members of other denominations. But now they had decided to join this big Baptist church, and their religious backgrounds varied from Catholic to Lutheran to Pentecostal to Methodist, at least that's what some of them said they were when asked.

And the staff minister in charge of this new members class had us go page by page over a booklet that had a so-called plan of salvation running through it. And we were asked to agree with it. And then the staff minister, Hear me now!

And then the staff minister had us bow our heads and close our eyes as he said, Now, there may be some of you here who've never done this before, so if you agree with what we just went over, I want you to raise your hand if you want to be saved and have eternal life.

And I peeked as hands went up all over that room. Then he told them to put their hands down and open their eyes, and he welcomed them into the family of God. Now, I say all that, friends, because it so turned my stomach.

I had to get up and leave the room because I thought I was going to be sick, because I felt like I just witnessed a mass shooting. That minister might as well have taken out a high-powered rifle and executed those nice people one by one, for what he did was much worse than that.

He told them they were now saved individuals on their way to heaven because they agreed with him and did what he asked them to do. But he just butchered their souls. It made me so sick to my stomach. I've never been back to that church again.

Now, that's our modern evangelism today, friends. In a nutshell, that's how some of you got into a church. We get as many folks as we can to join our churches by merely making a mental flip for Jesus.

Then we baptize them and put them to work, and everybody's happy with that brand of religion that allows you to remain an unchanged individual who's never been awakened to your lost condition, never known Holy Spirit conviction, never know what it is to have forgiveness of sin through salvation in Christ Jesus.

We fill our churches with folks who are utter strangers to work grace upon the heart by the regenerating work of the Spirit of God, where it takes the heart of stone and makes it a heart of flesh. That's why we can teach Sunday school class on subject of the carnal Christian, and people can relate to it.

They know what it's like to be carnal, but they don't know the Lord Christ. I know the difference. I know what it's like to be a lost church member, for I was a lost church member for years, and I know the difference between man making his own converts with a man pleasing religion and one where God is actively at work disturbing souls.

I've been in meetings and pastimes. When I say pastimes, it's been some years ago, but I've seen what can happen to folks when the disturbing presence of Christ comes in power in a meeting. It can rattle you down to your bones.

I've seen people practically leap over chairs to get down front so they could get serious with God because God was getting serious with them. I've seen the faces of my audience change from looks of carelessness to looks of deep concern as the Spirit of God was dealing with them as I pressed the claims of Christ upon them.

I've had deacons get so mad at me that they cussed me, threatened me, and opposed me for preaching man's duty of repentance and man's necessity of regeneration. Oh, there's a lot of religious folks in our church today who will reject you and that message of the cross on Calvary the prince of glory died and on that ignoble tree he was crucified.

On that bloody cross, Christ bore the curse becoming sin for us that bloodstained Savior from sin can save. In Isaiah we read, Look unto me and be ye saved all the ends of the earth for I am God and there is none else that that bloodstained Son of God declares.

My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Listen friend, do you believe that this Jesus has power in him?

Do you believe he can save even you? I know you've never seen yourself as you really are a low down maggot of a sinner. Your wicked heart is as black as the ace of spades and in Job it says of you how much more abominable and filthy is man which drinketh iniquity like water.

That's the kind of person you are friend. You can't get enough of sin. You want more and more of it until you wallow like a hog in a pig pen and then you still want more. You want to get as filthy as you can in sin.

Well only Christ Jesus can wash away the stain of sin that stains your soul for all eternity unless you get your sins washed in his blood through the pardon of sin. I know I am a sinner and I need a substitute for sin in the person of Christ Jesus.

Listen to me friend, you're not a sinner because you sin rather you sin because you are a big sinner. Old time preachers knew what they were talking about because they lived in their Bibles. Sam Jones used to say that a Christian was someone who would quit their meanness.

I think that cuts it pretty close. If that's so, then how come there's so many good church members who can be as mean as snakes? Sam Jones also said a man who would do some things in New York City that he wouldn't do at home wasn't much of a Christian.

I think that cuts it pretty close. If that's true then, why do so many church members sit in hog wallows of indecency and filth and see nothing wrong with it? Let me ask you friend, are you a big sinner?

Or are you in need of a savior from sin? Jesus is the only remedy and refuge for sin but you must come to him and believe on him. He is the pearl of great price worth selling all for. But Jesus is not some mamby-pamby little savior handing out free tickets to heaven to all comers.

No sir! He is a risen Lord who has rights and claims on all followers of his. There's a bloody cross smack dab in the middle of the gospel and you can't get to Christ by high hurtling over that cross.

You must throw down your shotgun of rebellion at his nail-pierced feet and surrender all you are to all he is as Lord. He is Lord. He is a living Lord who has power in his hand to give repentance and faith to whom he gives it.

If you want to be saved friend then you must come and die. You must come take your place at the foot of that cross. You must kill your God that you've been serving and come clean with the God of the Bible.

Get out of your pig pen and dust yourself off and cast off your idols and throw them down and come in broken hearted confession to the Sovereign who has all power in his hands. Jesus says, If any man thirst let him come unto me and drink.

He that believeth on me as the Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. Listen to me friend. If God's been dealing with your soul through this message and you want to get serious with God in seeking forgiveness for sin if you realize what a big sinner you are and that you're sick with sin and you need the remedy for sin in the person of Christ Jesus I'm going to sing a hymn and I want you to come and surrender to this precious Savior the Lord Jesus.

He has power to save you friend. He can even save you. You come as I sing. Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus just to take him at his word just to rest upon his promise just to know the saith the Lord Jesus, Jesus how I trust him how I've proved him o 'er and o 'er Jesus, Jesus precious Jesus.

O for grace to trust him more. O how sweet to trust in Jesus just to trust his cleansing blood just in simple faith to plunge me neath the healing, cleansing flood Jesus, Jesus how I trust him how I've proved him o 'er and o 'er Jesus, Jesus precious Jesus.

O for grace to trust him more. Yes, tis sweet to trust in Jesus just from sin and self to cease just from Jesus simply taking life and rest and joy and peace Jesus, Jesus how I trust him how I've proved him o 'er and o 'er Jesus, Jesus precious Jesus.

O for grace to trust him more.