Christ the Saviour — Peter Brandon

Hello friends, greetings to you all. This is Harry Benton speaking and again it is my pleasure on behalf of the voice of Melody Victoria to welcome you to this half hour of radio fellowship. We are pleased to have your company today and it is our prayer as we faithfully present another program of times of refreshing that God will speak to your heart and you will receive a spiritual blessing through this program.

We are pleased to have Peter Brandon from England with us today. Peter is a gifted evangelist and Bible teacher and I'm sure you'll enjoy the message he will share with you later in the program. Now musically we open our program with Cliff Barrows and the Crusader Men singing the song entitled And Can It Be.

Friends at the time when Queen Victoria was celebrating her golden jubilee she received dignitaries from all over the world. Among those who came to honour her was a representative from Madagascar. After conveying the good wishes of his people he surprised her majesty by asking permission to sing for her.

Those assembled thought he would choose one of his country's native songs but they were amazed when he began to sing Rock of Ages Cleft for Me Let Me Hide Myself in Thee. The rendition was so beautiful that it brought tears to the eyes of the Queen.

The author of that lovely hymn was Augustus Toplady, saved at the age of 16 while attending a small evangelistic meeting in a rural district in Ireland. The sermon was preached by an illiterate layman who pointed the youth to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Rock of Ages, in whom he could hide from God's wrath and find peace and forgiveness.

As the young convert became established in his new faith he felt God's call and began studying for the ministry. Since he was very frail however his fiery zeal and inspired efforts soon put too much strain on his weak body.

Yet his faith never wavered for during his illness he composed the sole thrilling words of the now famous hymn Rock of Ages. Augustus Toplady died of tuberculosis when he was only 38 years but the lyrics he wrote firmly based on the scriptures still live on.

We believe Rock of Ages is a favorite with many of our listeners and we are going to play it for you now and following this recording Peter Brandon will.

Christ Wants to Save Those Who Cannot Save Themselves

Share his message with you entitled You're the One Christ Wants to Save. I want to introduce you to.

A lady called Mrs Hodson and she had been coming to some meetings that I was conducting and she said to me well I'm going to try and work this out. I said what do you mean Mrs Hodson? Well she said if I can keep it up I'm going to ask the Lord into my life.

I said when can I see you again? Well she said I'm going to give myself a 24-hour test. So I went back after 24 hours and when she opened the door I knew something was wrong. She said no good for me, come in.

She said I've tried to give up smoking, I've tried to give up swearing, I've tried to give up shouting at the children, I've even lost the temper with my husband. She said it's no good for me I shall never become a Christian.

I smiled and then I said well Mrs Hodson if you could give up swearing and if you could give up drinking and if you could give up this and that and the other you've saved yourself. You've got your own salvation do-it-yourself kit.

She smiled well she said isn't that it? No not at all. You see we are so weak we can't make it and that's why we need a saviour and I believe that there are scores of people like that. They feel that they can't make it just like that Abadonian that was swimming the channel breaking all records and he got three miles to the French coast and then asked to be pulled in and when he was pulled in he said I just can't make it and he failed.

And there are scores of people like that. They've tried to make Christianity, they want to change, they want to make themselves better but they've tried and they've fallen, they've tried and they've fallen and they just feel they can't make it.

Well I've got a message for you. You're just the kind of person that the Lord wants to bless. Now I want to relate a story and I want to link this with a number of scriptures and trust it might be a real help to you.

Helplessness and the Need for a Saviour

A young man was a wizard at maths and but he was hopeless at art. Isn't that strange you often find boys like that? But in those days before the war everyone had to have a little basin of art whether he liked it or he didn't like it and every time he went into the art class it was just like going to a dark tunnel where he saw ghosts and it was almost like a nightmare to him.

He detested it. Anyhow this time he went into the art class and he was determined to paint what was set before him and unfortunately the art teacher had a rose. He sat right at the back so that no one would see his masterpiece and he tried to paint this rose.

Well immediately he started he took hold of the paintbrush and held it like a cricket bat he had no idea at all and there he was struggling to paint this rose and then unfortunately a blob of paint came on the wrong place and he smudged it and he got into such a panic sweat was pouring from his forehead and unbeknown the art teacher had squeezed behind him and he was watching the pentamer and eventually he threw down the brush knew and knew that he was totally defeated and when he did that the art master slapped him on the shoulder and he said Johnson you are totally and absolutely helpless.

He looked up and agreed. Now he says what are you going to do with that masterpiece? It was like the world in its chaotic state. It was dark and void and darkness was upon the face of the deep. He said nothing but he screwed his masterpiece into a ball and threw it in the waste paper basket and quietly under his breath he said hooray glad to see the back of it and then he came back and the art master said to him right clean your paints get a new piece of paper and we're going to start again.

Now my dear friend God wants you to come to him and say Lord I can't make can't keep the commandment I can't give up my besetting sins and habits I'm a failure and when we're there he can bless us. One man who became the greatest Christian ever actually said oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me.

Do you feel like that? Then you're the person that the Lord can bless. So the boy cleaned his paints but that wasn't good enough for the art master so he said look get out of your seat and let me clean them and the art master cleansed the whole desk the paints until there wasn't a spot of paint on his paint box the desk was all nice and clean and then he got a new piece of parchment and when the desk was all cleansed mind you cleansed by the art master then he said to the lad now you sit here.

Cleansing from Sin Through Christ's Blood

Now that's exactly what the Lord wants to do for you. When Christ died on the cross he shed his precious blood and through the blood of Christ the scripture says the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us from all sin and through the death of Christ your inner life can be cleansed once and for all from all sin and that cleansing meets all the claims of God so that once you are forgiven you can have perfect peace.

And dear friends we do not want to make this cheap but we want to say this to you from our hearts God is longing to give you that forgiveness right now we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sin.

New Birth and the Holy Spirit

And then there was a new piece of paper you see he was going to start all over again and everything was going to be clean anew and the Lord wants to give you a new life. He wants to put the Holy Spirit within you.

And when the Holy Spirit comes into your life you are born anew born above you are a new creature. Therefore God wants to do those two precious things in your life. He wants to cleanse you from sin and he wants to put the power of the Holy Spirit within you so that you have the power to live a new life now that's a Christian.

It's not a repaired life. It's not a renovated life but it's a new life. And God wants to give that to you now. Now he said to the lad take hold of the paintbrush. And he did oh he said don't hold it like that.

You'll never be a painter holding a brush like that. And he showed him how to hold the brush. Then the art master slipped his hand over his and they started to paint. And the boy was so excited because he could see a rose coming that his eyes nearly popped out on his cheeks.

There he was a few moments ago trying to paint a rose and all he could see was confusion. Now the art master had his hand over his and the art master was painting it through him and a rose was beginning to come.

Christ Living Through the Believer by the Spirit's Power

That's Christianity. It's Jesus Christ reliving his life through you. It's the power of the Spirit working through your life. The scripture says in Acts 1. You shall receive power. After that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.

And those disciples who had been failures even Peter let down the Lord with a few nasty swear words. Didn't he. That same man was mightily transformed now he didn't transform himself. It was the power of the Spirit that transformed him.

And then suddenly the art master stopped and said laddie I can't paint whilst you're struggling. Let your hand go limp. Let it go like a piece of wet fish. Now he knew that language and so he gave himself unreservedly to the art master.

And then he was able to paint easily through the hand of the boy because the boy was totally given to the art master. Now that's what God wants from you. All your members yielded to him. And once we yield up ourselves to God fully and completely then God through Christ can relive his life through you.

Can I ask you a question. Have you fully given your life to him. Have you fully surrendered all your members to him so that the Lord can relive his life through you. Eventually the rose was painted and the boy looked and smiled with satisfaction at last I've done it.

And when the art master had gone he put his name at the bottom of the and then took it home. His mother was out to work because his father had died and he pinned his masterpiece on the wall so that obviously when the mother came in she could see it.

At half past five. His mother walked in and of course purposely he was doing his maths. He wouldn't look up. His mother looked at the masterpiece and looked at him. She looked at the masterpiece and there saw his name and looked at him.

And then as a broad cockney woman would say she said liar. He said. What do you mean mother. You didn't paint that. I did. And did you hold the brush. Yeah. And did you apply the brush to the paper. Yeah.

Did you really paint that. Yes. And then she said this. Well the days of miracles are not over. That's it. You see you can't live the christian life. But when you receive the holy spirit he gives you the power to live the life christ in you the hope of glory.

Crucified with Christ and Living by Faith

Paul could actually say this. I am crucified with christ. That's your old life gone. Nevertheless I live yet. Not I but christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the son of god who loved me and gave himself for me.

Coming to Jesus for Salvation and Rest

May I ask you two questions. If you haven't received the lord jesus why not receive him. Now. He says behold I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice and open the door I will come into him and sup with him and he with me.

And if you have have you yielded all your members to him so that jesus christ can relive his life in you.

Softly and tenderly jesus is calling calling for you and for me on the portals he's waiting and watching watching for you and for me. Come home oh.

Perhaps there is someone listening to this program today who has not yet come to christ for salvation. You have not acknowledged your spiritual need nor put your confidence in the one who died for you at calvary.

You are still holding out. Hope that you may do something on your own to make yourself presentable to god. Friends don't count on the good you have done to outweigh the bad so that god will smile on you at the judgment.

That's not the way it works. Salvation comes by faith and faith alone. Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 and 9 says. For by grace are you saved through faith. And that not of yourselves it is the gift of god not of works lest any man should boast.

God has made provision for your salvation through his son jesus christ. He took our guilt upon himself paying our penalty by his death he suffered bled and died for us. All the work is done. Jesus did it all and his resurrection guarantees its effectiveness.

Christ's Invitation to the Weary

My dear friends it is our prayer that you will open your heart to the savior's pleading voice. He says. Come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden.

And i will give you rest friends. As our program draws to a close we would remind you of our cassette.

Offer a copy of today's program is available to you free and postage paid. To obtain your free copy we invite you to write to this address times of refreshing post office box 66 lilydale 3140. Be sure when writing to include in your letter the number of today's program number 900 program number 900 and the mailing address again is times of refreshing post office box 66 lilydale 3140.

Today's presentation of times of refreshing is a radio missionary outreach of the christian brethren assembly to victoria and is made possible by god's provision through his people. Friends we thank you for being part of our radio family and on behalf of peter brandon and the voice of melody team this is harry venton wishing you god's richest blessing.

Goodbye for now and remember keep looking up.