Reformer or Redeemer?

Sovereign Grace Family Church iconSovereign Grace Family Church

2 views

0 comments

00:00
seated.
00:03
And this time I want to invite Brother Andy Montoro to come forward.
00:09
Andy is relatively new to our church, joined just a few months ago.
00:14
He and his wife Candy have been with us now for several months before that, had been visiting.
00:20
He and I met through a mutual friend Chris Arnson of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, who has interviewed me a few times, has actually been to our church here.
00:31
And Andy was his pastor when he was up in New York.
00:36
So he's been in the ministry for several years and has ministered not only up there but also down here at a church in Middleburg that I can't recall the name, but you can tell us later if you want to.
00:47
But has graciously been willing to take the pulpit for me this morning to give me the week off.
00:55
So I thank him for that and invite you to come on up brother.
00:59
I'm encouraged to hear you preach the word.
01:21
We will be in the Gospel of John, so if you have your Bibles and you'd like to turn there.
01:42
If I could, I'd like to make a few remarks before we actually look at God's word.
01:48
And the first remark is this, and perhaps the most glorious one of them all, is that if you and I are here this morning as the church of God and we truly are the people of God, then we are so blessed.
02:05
How often it comes to mind, and it ought to come to our minds, what the Apostle said when he said, Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us that we, we should be called the children of God.
02:22
Friends, if that does not make your soul light up and make your spiritual hair stand on end, then you need some help.
02:32
I also would like to say this morning that if you are here this morning as the people of God and we are gathered together as a church of God, then we are extremely blessed to have both pastors and elders that not only love the shepherd, the great shepherd, but love the sheep.
02:53
And I will assure you of this, my friends, I've been in many churches for many years.
02:59
A true pastor, elders that love not only the Lord Jesus Christ, but the sheep, is becoming more and more of a rarity.
03:08
And so if you and I are gathered here this morning, we ought to be thankful for those that not only care for the good of their own souls, but for the souls of those that God has put in charge.
03:22
And then the last remark I would ask you this morning is I do read from the New King James.
03:31
I've read from the New King James for many years, so as we look at some scriptures, if the words seem a little different, that is why.
03:38
All right, I'll ask you now to turn to the Gospel of John in the first chapter and we will read one verse together, and then I will ask us to pray and ask God's blessing one more time.
03:49
In the Gospel of John, the first chapter, in the 29th verse, we read this.
03:55
The next day Jesus saw Jesus coming towards him.
03:59
John saw Jesus coming towards him and said, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
04:09
Let's pray.
04:12
Our Father in God, again we come now to this time in our worship to open your word.
04:19
We thank you that we come to a living God.
04:23
You're not a God of wood, nor a God of stone, but you are the God who sees.
04:29
You are the God who hears, and you are the God that knows the very intents of our hearts.
04:35
And Holy Spirit, we now ask you to come and to do what only you can do.
04:40
That is to take the living word, the eternal word, the word that is forever settled in the heavens, and open our hearts, and open our minds, and oh God open our lives, that we might hear, that we might receive, and that our lives would be changed, and that we would become more and more like unto the Son of God who so loved us that he gave himself for us.
05:05
And Lord may this time be blessed by you, and may the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight.
05:16
For you are my rock, and my Redeemer.
05:20
We ask it in the name, the Son of God, even Jesus.
05:25
Amen.
05:31
If you were to ask most people the question that I'm about to ask, I am fairly confident that more often than not, the question would be answered incorrectly.
05:47
I will say that the answer would be given incorrectly, and perhaps it's by conviction, or perhaps it's by ignorance.
05:58
But I want to ask this question, and then I want to spend the time allotted to us this morning to seek to open up what is the truth.
06:09
So let me ask you this question this morning, and perhaps you've heard it before.
06:15
Is a person a sinner because they sin? Is a person a sinner because they sin, or does a person sin because they are a sinner? Now you might think that I'm asking the same question twice, but I assure you I am not.
06:43
I will also assure you this, I am not trying to set out a riddle, or joke, or any other thing.
06:53
I will also say the pulpit of the Lord Jesus Christ should never be a place where someone stands up for a joke or riddle.
07:03
And so I ask you to think about this question.
07:05
Is a person a sinner because they sin, or does a person sin because they are a sinner? And I will say this to you, that the answer that you give will reveal much of your understanding of God's revelation.
07:28
It's that fundamental, it's that essential that you and I would be able to answer that question correctly.
07:37
I will go so far as to say that the way you answer that question is a, if you will, a litmus test of your heart and your mind.
07:48
It's that foundational.
07:52
Now you might think, wow, why would you start like this? Why would you start with such a bold statement at the very beginning? Well if you will allow me some time, I pray that as we work through this, you will understand why.
08:10
So let me ask you to think, if you were to answer that question by saying that a person is a sinner because they sin, then you believe that actions determine the character.
08:27
You believe that actions determine the character.
08:32
If on the other hand, you would answer that a person sins because they are a sinner, then you believe that character determines actions.
08:48
Let me put it to you a different way.
08:50
One of these answers is stating that the fruit determines the root.
08:59
Answering it the other way, you are saying that the root determines the fruit.
09:07
The Lord Jesus Christ clearly stated that an evil tree cannot bring forth good fruit.
09:17
And that a good tree cannot bring forth bad fruit.
09:23
He was truly setting out that the root determines the fruit.
09:32
And so I ask you to think about that as we work through some scriptures because again, it is an essential understanding.
09:42
And I've said all these things to lead us to the text this morning when John the Baptist proclaims, behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
09:58
Just think for a moment how many centuries have passed.
10:03
Not just centuries, but millennium have passed to bring us to the point where John the Baptist could make such a proclamation, behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.
10:20
It's the reality, if you will, that the fullness of time had come.
10:25
The fullness of time that God had from all eternity set out.
10:33
This Jesus that John is proclaiming, this Lamb of God, he speaks of him as not only the Lamb, but he speaks of him of the Lamb that comes to take away the sin of the world.
10:51
I ask you to notice that what he says is behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
10:59
Not the sins, the sin of the world.
11:09
The Lord Jesus Christ did not leave his glory above.
11:13
The Lord Jesus Christ did not leave his, if you will, eternal resting place to come to this world merely to change the actions of men.
11:29
And I hope you'll see how this relates to that question in the beginning, that this one, this Son of God, this Lamb came into the world to do much more than just change the actions of men, but rather he came to save and to redeem from the sin of the world.
11:54
The scope of his coming is much higher than that of a mere reformer.
12:01
And I would suggest to you that if you and I believe that Christianity is nothing more than a reformation of actions, then you and I do not see the Lamb of God as he ought to be seen, but he must be seen as a Redeemer.
12:18
And there is a great distinction, friends, between someone who reforms and someone who redeems.
12:30
I'm going to ask you for a moment to consider a few things to lead us back to the thought.
12:39
Consider for a few minutes the difference, if you will, between a Redeemer and a Reformer.
12:48
If you consider what God has done up until this point, if you consider what God has done from the very beginning of creation up until the time when John the Baptist makes this glorious proclamation of the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of the world, you would have to agree that God had sent many, many messengers before the coming of this one.
13:18
Matter of fact, God at times sent angels, great, powerful beings from above, great and powerful beings that came and their task was to provoke men, and I don't just mean men, I mean men, women, people, to provoke them and to, if you will, reform them of the actions that they were involved in.
13:47
To either provoke them to do something or to not do something.
13:52
And so they came and they spoke, if you will, in many cases of reformation, of changing outward actions.
14:02
If you consider the prophets that God has sent all the way back from Noah and on, I would suggest to you that they also were sent by God and that many of the messages that they brought were messages of reformation, where they spoke to all kinds of people, all manners of people, every different station of life, of kings and of slaves and of young and of old, of how they ought to change the actions of their lives.
14:39
And so they too were those who came and spoke of reformation.
14:48
But now when we read in John chapter 1, when we read that John the Baptist makes this glorious proclamation of the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of the world, this Jesus of Nazareth, he is declaring one who is so much greater than merely one who reforms.
15:12
You see, my friends, there can only be one Redeemer.
15:17
There can only be one who would come into this world and actually not just change outward actions, but would change the inward heart and that that change in the inward heart would result in outward actions.
15:39
You and I are so blessed in our day, my friends, to sit here and to be able to comprehend the work of the Redeemer.
15:51
And that is what John is doing.
15:53
He announces the coming of the Redeemer, the coming of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
16:04
The actions of the Lord Jesus Christ, the person, the work of Christ is one that only he could accomplish, only that he could bring to pass.
16:21
Remember, my friends, even as the Lord Jesus Christ spoke, he said, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
16:30
You see, my friends, we don't need to be reformed.
16:33
We need to be redeemed.
16:36
We need to be changed in our hearts.
16:42
We need to be renewed and recreated.
16:46
And when John makes this proclamation, and sometimes it makes me crazy in my mind when people would think of Jesus and they would speak of him and think of him as if he's just another one of a long line of teachers or prophets or renovators or reformers.
17:06
My friends, he is so much higher than that.
17:08
I don't know about you, it makes my blood boil when I hear people say, why don't you try Jesus? You don't try Jesus, my friends.
17:29
Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
17:33
I would ask you to notice this also in verse 29.
17:37
His work would not only solve the condition of some, but the condition of the whole world.
17:49
This Redeemer came into the world for the world needed a Redeemer.
17:55
The whole world, the entire world, every single person.
18:06
Can you imagine how many people have lived, friends? Just try to contemplate that for a second.
18:13
How many people of every kind, of every kindred, of every tongue, of every nation, of every civilization that has ever walked upon this earth and had the breath of life within them? This one, this Lamb of God who comes into the world, comes to take on the issue of the sin of the whole world.
18:44
His person, his work is sufficient.
18:48
I want to be careful how I say this.
18:51
His work on Calvary's cross is sufficient for the whole world.
18:57
But it is effectual for those that believe.
19:07
And here's the way we have to approach this.
19:13
You see, friends, very few really understand what took place in the Garden of Eden.
19:21
And I don't say that and hesitate.
19:26
Very few understand what actually took place in the Garden of Eden.
19:31
Therefore, very few understand why when John says, Behold the Lamb of God, he's proclaiming a Redeemer.
19:41
Very few understand that the actions that took place in the Garden of Eden have caused a worldwide catastrophe.
19:55
And so, therefore, this Redeemer must solve the issues of the world, the entire world, and every part of it.
20:06
Very few really understand the whole biblical truth of imputation, of how the account of one is placed on the account of another.
20:23
Very few understand, if you will, what took place in the first three chapters of Genesis.
20:28
If you and I understand what took place in the first three chapters of Genesis, I assure you, you will be able to work through all the Bible.
20:38
And if you cannot comprehend at least some of the most fundamental truths that took place in the first three chapters of Genesis, my friends, the Bible will be a very confusing book.
20:52
So I'm going to ask you to consider for a moment what actually did take place in the Garden, and why, when John proclaims, The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, it goes all the way back to the very beginning.
21:10
If you would, just read a verse or two with me in Genesis chapter 1.
21:17
Genesis chapter 1.
21:19
And just read verse 26 and 27, and we probably have read them so many times in our own lives.
21:26
Genesis chapter 1 verse 26 and 27.
21:31
Then God said, Let us make man in our image according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
21:52
So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him, male and female, He created them.
22:02
You see, friends, Adam was the federal head.
22:08
He was that representative of all that would follow.
22:14
And when he was created, he was created in the image of God.
22:17
Now look in Genesis chapter 5 for a minute.
22:21
Genesis the 5th chapter.
22:24
And as we move to Genesis chapter 5, what has taken place is the great catastrophe of sin entering into this world as Adam willingly, knowingly, rebelled against God.
22:43
In Genesis chapter 5, we read, this is the book of the genealogy of Adam in the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.
22:56
He created them male and female and blessed them and called them mankind in the day that they were created.
23:02
Now look at verse 3.
23:05
And Adam lived 130 years and begot a son in his own likeness.
23:14
In his own likeness, after his image, and named himself.
23:21
What has happened? We read in Genesis 1 that God created Adam in the image of God and now we read in Genesis 5 that Adam has a son and he's created in Adam's image.
23:41
What has happened is that man has lost his ability to walk with God.
23:47
And man has been separated by God because of sin.
23:57
And is that not, if you will friends, the real meaning of paradise? You ever try to put together in your mind what the Garden of Eden looked like? I'm sure, I would hope it would present a glorious picture to your mind.
24:14
But let me suggest to you, you want to know what the real paradise was in the Garden of Eden? It was the ability to walk in harmony with the living God.
24:25
Regardless of all the outward beauty that the Garden of Eden, I'm sure, presented.
24:31
What was the real paradise was that man had fellowship with his creator.
24:37
And now, because sin has entered in, and we know the story that man was put out of the Garden of Eden.
24:46
Barred from, if you will, fellowship freely with God.
24:51
And so man now has to deal with sin.
25:01
And he has a son in his own image.
25:04
Now I'm not saying that we do not have the remnants of the image of God.
25:08
Of course we have, because there is no other way.
25:12
Do we still have dominion over the fish and over the sea? In many ways, yes.
25:19
Do we still have dominion over the creation? In many ways, yes.
25:24
Do we still have intellect? Do we still have the ability to think and perceive? In many ways, yes.
25:30
But my friends, what happened between Genesis 1 and Genesis 3 is the reason why John the Baptist makes that proclamation.
25:39
Behold the Lamb of God that comes to take away the sin of the world.
25:43
And it must be brought all the way back to the beginning.
25:46
When Adam, having disobeyed God, lost his fellowship with Him.
25:55
He could no longer walk with God as he did.
25:57
No longer could he walk and be naked and not be ashamed.
26:04
Let me say this to you, friends, and I hope you would agree.
26:08
When sin entered into this world, it was the most tragic event that this world has ever had.
26:18
You and I, sometimes we consider sin as boo-boos in my bed and I messed up and I made a mistake.
26:26
My friends, Christ didn't come into this world as the Lamb of God to take away mistakes.
26:35
He came into this world to redeem man from his lost condition because he is now ruined by sin.
26:44
What could be worse than to not know your Creator? Not know the One who opens His hand and satisfies every living thing.
27:05
You know what Augustine said? Augustine said that God created us for Himself and our hearts are restless until we find Him.
27:20
And so again I say to you, do not think so small of this proclamation of John the Baptist as he sees the Savior come.
27:29
And if you will enter the public arena and he says, behold.
27:34
I wonder sometimes if we would read, behold the Lamb of God who comes in to take away the sin of the world.
27:40
It's behold! Behold the Lamb of God! Behold the Son of God! Behold this One who does not come to reform but comes to redeem.
27:56
Consider the Apostle Paul.
27:59
And to my way of thinking, he's probably the greatest mind that ever contemplated the things of God.
28:08
But I want you to consider how Paul does not lose sight of this truth.
28:14
If you will, it's embedded within him by the Spirit of God.
28:18
Of drawing attention to the truth of why this One, this Jesus is the Redeemer.
28:26
And why this Redeemer goes all the way back in thinking and in truth to Adam.
28:31
You see my friends, in many ways there have only been two men in this world.
28:37
Adam and Christ.
28:41
And Paul brings this up in that great epistle to the Romans.
28:47
If you would, just for a moment, turn to Romans chapter 5.
28:51
Romans chapter 5.
28:57
And I'll ask you to read just a little with me.
29:01
Romans chapter 5 and look at it in verse 12.
29:05
And the point is that it wasn't just sins that entered into the world.
29:10
It was sin.
29:13
And that it was for that that Christ came.
29:16
Romans chapter 5 verse 12.
29:18
Therefore just as through one man, look, sin entered the world.
29:24
And death through sin and thus death spread to all men because all sin.
29:31
For until the law sin was in the world but sin is not imputed where there is no law.
29:36
Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses.
29:39
Even those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam.
29:46
Who is a type of him who was to come.
29:51
But the free gift is not like the offense for if by one man's offense many died.
29:58
Many died.
29:59
See friends, in the day you eat thereof dying you shall die.
30:06
A reformer doesn't bring back from the dead my friends, a Redeemer does.
30:11
Verse 16.
30:19
And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned.
30:23
For the judgment came from one offense resulting in condemnation.
30:27
But the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification.
30:35
For if by one man's offense death reigned.
30:40
Through the one much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life.
30:48
Through the one Jesus Christ.
30:51
Therefore as through one man's offense judgment came to all men resulting in condemnation.
30:59
Even so through one man's righteous act the free gift came to all men resulting in justification of life.
31:08
We could turn to 1 Corinthians and Paul will pick it up again where he talks about Adam and Christ.
31:16
If you will the first man and the second man.
31:22
And so again I say to you when John says behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sin of the world.
31:28
In many ways he could have proclaimed behold the second Adam who comes to take away the sin of the world.
31:36
The first Adam caused that sin to enter and the second Adam came to redeem men from the actions of the first.
31:47
It's only through Christ.
31:50
It's only through his person.
31:53
It's only through his work.
31:55
Never separate the person of Christ from the work of Christ.
31:59
And never separate the work of Christ from the person of Christ.
32:04
That is why he is the God man.
32:07
For there is no one who could redeem from the penalty and the judgment.
32:12
And if you will the implication of sin but the God man.
32:17
God manifest in the flesh.
32:24
Perhaps if you are thinking in the scriptures in your mind you will think of the sacrifices.
32:32
All the way back in the garden.
32:33
And forward all those sacrifices that you and I sometimes ponder about.
32:40
Over and over again of sacrifices of lambs and sacrificial animals.
32:46
And my friends they were in so many ways a teacher to us of what ultimately would come.
32:56
Particularly as it is in the Lamb because John says behold the Lamb of God.
33:02
Behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of the world.
33:06
You see my friends the blood of bulls and goats and animals.
33:11
They cannot redeem.
33:14
They cannot render to God what is rightfully God's.
33:22
They cannot change a heart.
33:26
They cannot change a world.
33:29
They cannot redeem.
33:30
No friends.
33:32
It's Jesus isn't it? It's only Jesus.
33:37
It's totally Jesus.
33:45
He alone can redeem a cursed world.
33:49
I wonder sometimes if we really got it right.
33:52
My friends this world is a mess.
33:58
And it doesn't need to be reformed.
34:00
It needs to be redeemed.
34:09
And that's where it leads us to this friends.
34:13
I'm not sure that there's any greater words than the words of John the Baptist.
34:18
Behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sin of the world.
34:24
It's the greatest news isn't it? It's the greatest news ever revealed to us.
34:33
Because of the condition of the world.
34:42
Remember what Jesus said about John the Baptist.
34:45
He said of those born among women there are none greater than John.
34:52
Now I'm not certain that Jesus was just saying John was the best preacher.
34:57
Or the best prophet.
34:59
Or the best teacher.
35:00
But what he means is this.
35:03
That John in the fullness of time progressively through history.
35:10
John is the greatest.
35:11
Look at the position that John is in.
35:13
He's proclaiming what the world has been waiting for.
35:17
The Lamb of God.
35:23
The fullness of time had come.
35:28
No more reformation but now redemption.
35:35
This one my friends who hung on Golgotha's cross.
35:39
He came to redeem.
35:43
He came to save.
35:46
If you will he came to buy back from the auction block of sin.
35:52
What has entangled this world since the beginning.
36:00
The Lamb a living sacrifice like none other.
36:04
Let me ask you a question.
36:06
How could anyone refuse such a one as Jesus? How could anyone not be overcome by the Lamb of God who hung on Golgotha's cross? Well I suggest to you that even the world itself knew of it.
36:30
Remember at the cross when the crucifixion took place.
36:34
And it says that the sun turned dark.
36:37
And it said that the ground quaked.
36:39
I say to you that even the whole world groaned.
36:44
Over the coming and over the death of the Redeemer.
36:55
And then we come to the resurrection of the glorious day.
36:59
But you see my friends how could anyone refuse? And not only did he redeem men from the sin of this world.
37:10
But I say to you he redeemed the world itself.
37:14
Remember what Paul says? He says that the whole creation groans.
37:19
Why does the creation groan my friends? Because this creation is ruined is it not? Is it beautiful? Yes it is.
37:27
Is it glorious? Is it full of splendor? Does it make us sit back in amazement? Yes, yes but it's still ruined.
37:36
Christ came and the whole creation itself waits for the final crowning of the Son of God.
37:46
It is true that the government of God is upon his shoulders isn't it? Why would anyone desire anyone else? Why would anyone desire a cursed world and refuse the Lamb of God? Why would anyone seek to merely have a reformation? Or have someone teach them of how they should change this in their life and change that in their life? My friends how much more glorious is that Christ comes and he takes our dead hearts and our dead souls and he opens our minds and he gives us new hearts and new minds.
38:29
You know friends I've been a child of God for 40 years and I can't get over it.
38:36
Can you? Why would anyone desire anyone else? How could anyone refuse such an altogether lovely one? Behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sin of the world.
39:07
I'd like to close with an invitation.
39:11
In consideration of this.
39:14
And so you see friends before I do that let me go back to the question that I asked in the beginning.
39:19
Is a person a sinner because they sin? Or does a person sin because they are a sinner? They sin because they are a sinner.
39:26
They sin because their hearts have been if you will ruined.
39:31
Twisted.
39:34
And this one this Jesus came and he came to take that twisted ruined darkened heart and put a new heart in it.
39:43
Isn't that what God promised? I will take out the heart of flesh and I will give you a heart of flesh.
39:49
I will take out the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
40:04
Let me ask you to consider this invitation.
40:07
I say this because so often I've heard this if you will invitation given as an extension of gospel hope.
40:18
Just for one final moment if you would turn to the book of Revelation the third chapter.
40:24
Revelation chapter 3.
40:30
And perhaps you've heard this over and over again.
40:33
And there is a glorious truth to it.
40:35
But I do believe that too often we twist the words of it and we take it out of context.
40:44
And I say this to us to highlight the glorious truth of the son of God.
40:50
In Revelation chapter 3 verse 20.
40:53
Perhaps you have said this a time or two or heard this a time or two.
40:58
Behold I stand at the door and knock.
41:02
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in to him and dine with him and him with me.
41:11
But I suggest to you that the one spoken of in verse 20.
41:17
Is not someone who has done all that he can for you and now it's up to you.
41:23
That's what the actions of a reformer do.
41:30
They seek to lead people to change their course of action.
41:36
To either go this way or that way or stop or go.
41:40
My friends it's not the truth of the one who hung on Golgotha's cross.
41:45
He did not come.
41:46
When Jesus died he didn't just do all that he could.
41:50
It's not just a matter of now you have to add to it.
41:54
My friends he redeemed us.
42:03
Behold I stand at the door and knock.
42:04
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in to him and dine with him and him with me.
42:10
Verse 21.
42:12
To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with me on my throne.
42:16
As I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne.
42:20
He who has an ear let him hear what the spirit says to the churches.
42:27
That verse, verse 20.
42:30
Spoken by the risen redeemer.
42:33
Is not speaking of one who in the way people want to explain it of one who's knocking at your door.
42:42
Begging you to open the door and let him come in so he can if you will peddle some of his goods.
42:48
My friends do not think of the redeemer in that way.
42:52
This is the king.
42:59
This is the king of glory.
43:05
This is not only the lamb but it's the lion from the tribe of Judah.
43:10
John the baptist could just as truly proclaim behold the lion from the tribe of Judah who takes away the sins of the world.
43:17
He could rightfully ever proclaim behold the lord of glory who comes to take away the sin of the world.
43:28
Listen, my friends, Christ demands.
43:33
Our allegiance.
43:36
Christ demands that we bow the knee.
43:41
And how sweet it is to bow to Jesus.
43:50
When he spoke those words on the cross and he said it is finished.
43:57
My friends, he did not finish a way of salvation.
44:01
He finished true salvation because he finished true redemption.
44:14
The sin of the world, friends, in closing is not to be found as so many think of it.
44:20
It's not to be found in lying and stealing and if you will covening and adultery and murder and all those great manifestations of the heart.
44:34
And really I would say this, it's a fool to think that in that day when God is pleased to remove each and every one of us.
44:46
That we are going to be, if you will, have set before us a whole list of things.
44:56
What did you do in this situation? Did you lie? Did you steal? Did you cheat? Did you do this or did you do that? My friends, there will only be one question in that day.
45:14
There will only be one question in that day and here I believe is the question.
45:19
What have you done with my son? What have you done with my redeemer? What have you done with my lamb? What have you done with my beloved? What have you done with what I have done? Having turned my back on my own eternal son.
45:44
What have you done with the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world? My dear friends, I say to you, if you are not in the redeemer.
45:56
If you are not a redeemed soul.
45:59
If you do not have a new heart and a new mind.
46:06
Come to Christ.
46:10
Run to Christ.
46:12
I know I get worked up.
46:14
I always do.
46:18
But how could you not? Sometimes I wonder us as the children of God.
46:24
We just passively worship Christ.
46:27
My friends, sometimes it ought to lift us up off the ground.
46:34
Sometimes we sing like we are dead birds.
46:40
We are talking about Christ.
46:42
We are talking about the lamb of God.
46:44
We are talking about the one who says that he bought us and that he owns us and that he will keep us.
46:49
Can you imagine, my friends, how we cannot sing amazing grace and glory.
46:57
When we have been there 10,000 years, bright shining than the sun.
47:01
We have no less days to sing his praise than when we first begun.
47:10
Do not take your last breath this morning, my friends.
47:15
Without the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
47:18
Amen.
47:37
Thank you, brother.
47:38
Let's stand and we'll sing as we prepare our hearts for communion.