Pressing the Claims of Christ's Lordship on This Perverted Generation That Doesn'T — E.A. Johnston

Sin, Hell, and the Danger of Clinging to Pet Sins

Unlike most other preachers, I'm not here to entertain you and make you laugh. Sin is no laughing matter, because it dishonors God and robs Him of His glory. And hell is no joke, but a literal place of punishment for sin.

Hell is for all eternity. And the fastest way to go to hell is to hug your darling sin. Animal trappers catch monkeys in Africa by dropping a nut in a bottleneck jar. The monkey will desire that nut so badly, he will contract his paw to squeeze it into that jar.

And then he will grab that nut and hang on to it for dear life. And try as he may, he cannot extract his hand from that jar so long as he hangs on to that nut. And that's how the trappers catch him, because he won't sense his danger because he's hanging on to that nut.

And that's exactly how the devil will get you, friend, good churchgoer that you are. You have a pet sin that you won't let go of. And it will drive you into the clutches of the devil in a dark infernal called hell.

You better listen to me today, friend, because I care about your soul. I don't want you to go to hell. It's too crowded enough in there already without you busting hell wide open when you die. I have a somber message of warning to you today, friends.

And dullness of hearing is what the devil wants for you, because he does not want you to hear this message today with clarity that brings conviction of sin because he doesn't want to lose his hold on you, that he is entrenched in your life with sin.

The Duty to Warn a Sin-Desensitized Generation

Well, that's the introduction to my message today, friends, that is entitled Pressing the Claims of Christ's Lordship on This Perverted Generation That Doesn't See Anything Wrong with Sin. That's a long title, but it's true.

And I pray that God will disturb somebody today with this message to keep them out of hell. Most preachers like to be accepted by their hearers so they won't preach any message that is disturbing to them or upset the good deacons if you don't have to, so they will only give you soothing messages that ease your conscience and keep you entertained.

But I'm not like most other preachers because God has called me and commissioned me to warn you that the soul that sinneth, it shall die. I have a duty to God to warn you about sin and its consequences, because whether you believe it or not, friend, God is a God who must punish sin.

I don't want your blood on my hands as written about in Ezekiel chapter 33 when I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die. If thou does not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thine hand.

I don't want bloody hands at the judgment, friend. I don't want your blood on my hands. The main problem with this generation is that everyone has become desensitized to sin. Turn on cable TV and you can watch the most perverted things and it won't make you blush.

Sin no longer shocks us. Sin no longer shames us. We can sit back and enjoy sin and still call ourselves Christians. And the blame is not all on Hollywood programming, but the blame needs to be shared with all pastors who quit preaching hard against sin and warning folks about a devil's hell and omitting the claims of Christ's lordship in the gospel.

Jesus had some hard sayings that he pressed on his followers, but we modern preachers ignore them today. We just tell folks that God loves them. And if you want to go to heaven, all you have to do is walk an aisle or raise your hand or repeat a prayer where you accept Jesus as your personal savior.

But that's not in my Bible, and it's a lie out of hell that has given millions a false assurance and has plunged them into a devil's hell. Jesus said, If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish and not that the whole body should be cast into hell.

But the church member or anyone else who hangs on to a pet's sin is like a monkey in his nut, and he'll surely be cast into hell and its torments. So says the Lord Jesus. Jesus said, No man can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve God and mammon. I guess that knocks out 90 of our money-loving, money-hoarding congregations, church members who trust in a bank account more than they trust God. Jesus said, There are few who are saved.

The Narrow Way and Christ's Exclusive Claims

Jesus said, Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction. And many there be which go in thereat, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

But most pastors today have broadened the way of salvation in ways Jesus never did. Jesus continually pressed his claims and demands on all followers of his. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.

And he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross and followeth after me is not worthy of me. Let me ask you, friend. Is Jesus sitting at your country club?

Or is he mingling with the homeless at the downtown mission? Have you been going your own sinful, self-satisfied way and asking Jesus to follow you? Or do you die to yourself and take up your cross and go where he goes, no matter how distasteful it is to your flesh?

The Cost of Following Christ

Jesus said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man seeking goodly pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Jesus, like that great pearl, is of inestimable value.

He's worth selling off for and losing off for so he may be gained. How can you follow a crucified Lord if you are hugging your favorite sin and you refuse to be completely done with it? That monkey in the jungle with his nut has got nothing on you.

Jesus said, If you want to follow him, then self must go the way of the cross and die. If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life, shall lose it.

And whosoever will lose his life for my sake, shall find it. Are you sitting on the throne of your life and ruling there? Self must be dethroned and another enthroned there. The Lord Jesus Christ, a crucified Christ, must have crucified followers.

Unconditional Surrender to the Lordship of Christ

Listen to me, friend, and listen to me closely. God demands unconditional surrender to the lordship of his blessed Son in your life and mine. If you're going to be saved, your rebellion must be squashed.

You must throw down your sin at a snail-pear's feet and be done with it. If you don't drop that sin, you will go to hell. You must come to the place in your life where you see your wicked heart for what it is and acknowledge to God that because the fact that you are a sinner, you deserve to go to hell.

You're not a sinner because you sin. Rather, you sin because you are a big sinner, even if you are the chairman of the deacons. Don't be like that foolish monkey with his nut. Drop the sin. Drop it now.

Now is the time to be honest with yourself and transparent with God. You must repent and throw down your shotgun of rebellion at a snail-pear's feet and own him as savior and lord. You must submit all you are to all he is, and he is lord.

The lordship of Christ is a reality, friend. And if you continue to keep going your own way, that is rebellion and sin. It's treason. And Isaiah, it states, all we like sheep have gone our own way. And sin is going our way when we know it isn't God's way.

Repentance and the Bread of Life

Repent before it's too late and come to a bloodstained Christ for forgiveness of sin. Jesus said, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never hunger. And he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

Listen to me, friend. The gospel is for the hungry, the weary, and the thirsty. Let me ask you. Are you hungry for God? Are you weary of your sin? Are you thirsty for Christ? Then come to him in utter surrender.

When you come to him, your life is no longer your own. Your time is no longer your own. Your money is no longer your own. Your body is no longer your own. Christ must be a complete master. He is Lord.

He is Lord. Let us pray.