Acts

[0:00] The End The End The End

[1:30] The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End The End

[2:32] The End The End The End The End CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS

[3:42] CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS How so are they to get you?

[4:39] We'll choose the good and the Pokemon, the big red polsk, for five by five.

[4:59] Sunday. CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS

[6:02] CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS O death, O death, O death, O death.

[6:51] With the Lord's help, I will direct your attention to the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 4, verse 10. The Acts of the Apostles, chapter 4, verse 10.

[7:04] Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

[7:31] We are greatly blessed if we have a religion in which can be discovered certainty and a definiteness in our expression.

[8:19] Amen. And if we should be able to say, in respect to the Lord Jesus Christ, that he is the one whom God raised from the dead, and who hath done great things, be it known unto you all.

[8:47] How good it is, when grace is given, that we can speak with a measure of certainty and a measure of boldness and confidence, not that we would project ourselves, but the honor and the glory of God.

[9:09] And yet, as we view the circumstances of this case, it can be seen how God was over all, and God placed in the heart of Peter this overriding feeling that he desired to tell all by what means this impotent man was made whole.

[9:50] We can read various accounts in the scriptures of inquiries and discussions in respect to some of the remarkable things that the Lord Jesus Christ did.

[10:11] When the man that was born blind had his eyes opened, he became the basis of much discussion and much questioning.

[10:28] And though, surely, the people that asked the questions knew that Jesus had healed him, yet, how reluctant they were to be persuaded in respect to that truth.

[10:46] And the same thing obtains when we read through the Acts of the Apostles. It was necessary in that day that there should be definite statements, that there should be a complete absence of any suggestion, perhaps, or it might be.

[11:13] What obtained then is equally necessary today. Oh, how we need grace, and how we need men and women and even children to be raised up, that they may be so inspired with the Holy Ghost, moved by this gracious and glorious spirit, that they may be willing in the day of God's power to bear such a testimony and say, Be it known unto you all.

[11:50] Now, it was very necessary that this statement by Peter should be made known. The case of the impotent man was very remarkable.

[12:07] And how ready we are to look to second causes, and how ready we are to listen by nature to those words in the Apocrypha, Let us now praise famous men.

[12:28] I was rather struck coming down in the train, reading in Genesis about Rebekah and the ultimate birth of Esau and Jacob.

[12:49] And this struggle between the two children that was taking place within her was strange.

[13:03] Something she couldn't understand, something she couldn't follow. What struck me was what she did. Not what so many people would do today.

[13:19] Hire themselves to the nearest doctor to explain their condition. But the scripture says, And she inquired of the Lord.

[13:32] How instructive this is to the people of God. Shall we turn to men that they might diagnose our present condition?

[13:45] Or shall we follow Rebekah and inquire of the Lord? Now we are well aware, some by a painful experience, that even the best medical knowledge has sometimes been mistaken.

[14:10] We might say, Why is it being mistaken? Are we going to blame the people? It is a good thing if we can look higher than the people, by the doctors, and to observe that this is God's purpose being worked out.

[14:29] It was not the will of God that their case should be diagnosed satisfactorily, even though the lack of such correct diagnosis resulted in the death of that person.

[14:47] But that is just one aspect of it. We may have this, may have many things in our lives which we cannot understand.

[14:58] Oh, therefore, to follow the example of Rebekah and to inquire of the Lord.

[15:09] I will be inquired of by the house of Israel to do all these things for them. And this only serves, though, to remind us of the tendency of men to look to men.

[15:31] And in the case before us, surely the purpose and desire of Peter was to turn off the eyes of the people from himself.

[15:43] those doubtless would have said, what a remarkable matter this is. How remarkable this man Peter must be.

[15:56] and it was therefore, and it was therefore, under such circumstances, in order to divert attention into the right channel, that he says, be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him, doth this man stand here before you whole.

[16:37] when Peter was directing these words, whom ye crucified, to those that listened, would he really have excluded himself?

[16:59] was it not by his sins that the Lord of life and glory hanged upon Calvary's tree?

[17:12] The hymn writer puts the matter into a right perspective, surely, when he says, the Jews with thorns his temple ground, and lashed him when his hands were bound.

[17:36] But thorns and knotted whips and bands by us were furnished to their hands. They nailed him to the accursed tree.

[17:47] They did, my brethren, so did we. The soldiers pierced his side to screw, but we have pierced him through and through.

[18:03] Be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

[18:30] The case of the impotent man and his being made whole is wonderful, worthy of our attention. But, what is more worthy of our attention is the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth?

[18:54] Peter was well persuaded in respect to the truth. Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

[19:06] Some had said, can any good thing come out of Nazareth? earth. Nevertheless, the scriptures were clear, but the eyes had been blinded.

[19:23] Therefore, those things which were clearly written were not observed. but, as the Lord may help us this evening, we wish to bring this to ourselves.

[19:40] We shall not find a great deal of benefit if our application is merely confined to the context, is merely confined to the fact of this wonderful cure to this poor man.

[20:01] Surely, if we are to discover a real and true benefit this evening, we shall need to feel that by this same name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, we have been cured, we have been made whole, we have had our sins pardoned, we have found in him what is written, God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, how powerful and strong this name must be, as we prove it, so we shall echo more and more the words of

[21:01] John Newton, how sweet the name of Jesus sounds in a believer's ear, it soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds, and drives away his fear, heart, this name, this glorious and precious person of Jesus Christ had driven away fear in Peter's heart on more than one occasion, has this name driven away fear from our hearts on an occasion or two, and since this is so, are we now ready to speak in these words, be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, this is the name which is above every name, and there is none other name under heaven whereby we must be saved, the hymns that we have sung have been directed to this glorious name, may we not say that there is no name in heaven or in earth that will satisfy the need of the sinner, looking at our own cases, what has been the reaction of the name of

[22:52] Jesus Christ? There have been several texts revolving in my mind since I, just before I came to the service, people.

[23:07] And it was with some concern as to which one should be selected or God should select as a basis of our remarkable evening.

[23:23] But one that was much on my mind was this, in Matthew first chapter, thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.

[23:41] As we read in Luke, many had different views of who the Lord Jesus was. Many have various views of who he is today.

[24:01] Some have such poverty stricken views that they are ready to blaspheme the name of Christ.

[24:14] And I was very sad to read in the news today of the dreadful impersonation of the Lord Jesus Christ last evening.

[24:31] How solemn it is when men fail to recognize the mighty God. How dreadful it is to take the name of Christ upon one's lips in an unholy way, much less to impersonate him and that in a dreadful ungodly and humanistic way.

[25:02] But may it not bring us to consider what think ye of Christ? What think I of Christ? John Newton said it is the test to try both our state and our scheme.

[25:19] We cannot be right in the rest unless we think rightly of him. if we think rightly of him it will be because God has done something in us.

[25:35] Because God has quickened our souls into life. Because God has opened our eyes to see the state of danger that we are in and the destruction which every moment we are getting nearer and nearer towards and thus crying out what must I do to be saved?

[26:09] How should I escape the wrath to come? What a blessing friends if we can trace in our experience some sense of a view of God as a consuming fire it will make salvation necessary it will make salvation real and when the time of deliverance is appointed it will make Jesus Christ of Nazareth to be very precious very needful and our salvation a day will come when every knee shall bow to Christ as he is the judge of both quick and dead now that will be a solemn day every one of us here as well as everyone in the world and all through the ages will be brought to acknowledge that

[27:35] Christ is God the judge and Abraham said shall not the judge of all the earth do right now one revelation which is given to God's people when they see that God is holy that his law is holy and they also see this but if my soul were sent to hell thy righteous law approves it well has God's law so done its work in your soul that it crushed every bit of opposition in your pharisaic soul that would say well

[28:43] I don't know I have a few little bits of good that perhaps may save me from the burning lake but no when God the spirit comes into a person's soul in some measure they will be gradually taught this fruit and if my soul were sent to hell thy righteous law approves it well and what does the righteous law say the soul that sinneth it shall die whoso is guilty in one point is guilty of all oh how we have been slain sometimes by the law coming into our very being have we been like the apostle Paul he said I was alive without the law once but when the law came sin revived and

[29:45] I died and this is when we shall die having as it were kept the whole law endeavouring to do it and felt some satisfaction that we could say that outwardly we had kept the law and then God comes and he whispers and at the same time points to one small insignificant failing even in respect to the outward keeping of the law whoso is guilty in one point is guilty of all you know friends a point a point so small so insignificant that which we would brush to one side and perhaps we would say oh well of course

[30:45] I can't be absolutely perfect but that little blemish surely doesn't matter at all well now when God's law comes into your soul you will not be able to say that because God will slay all that kind of thing by his law and you will come to the spot where you're near despair and if there is ever a time when you feel near despair it is when you have trusted in your own righteousness for salvation when you have hoped that God would recognize you because of this and because of that now let us not be fool ourselves in this matter and say oh but we know better we know that we are saved by sovereign grace we have been blessed to sit under the truth so you may have been but this will not prevent your old nature having these thoughts this will not prevent the spirit of self righteousness arising in your spirit and this self righteousness must all be slain all be slain oh what should

[31:57] I do oh whether flee to escape the justice due to me when God strikes out at a stroke as it were our names well factually of course this cannot be to strike out our names out of the book of life but all hope that our name should ever be there seems to be a complete impossibility now having this effect of work taking place in our soul's experience we are being prepared being prepared yea being brought into the state that the man in the text was literally impotent impotent what does that mean well he couldn't do anything of himself he was without power he was without power to to do anything nothing could come forth from him what weakness and when we come to consider this in relation to the salvation of our souls what impotency is felt in the soul sometimes where is it going to bring us to well

[33:42] I don't know whether it says in the scripture just how long this man was in this particular case but there's one thing that seems to be fairly clear it looked as though he could never be out of the case he looked as though he could never be changed from the case and spiritually considered is this what we have felt perhaps some of you are feeling just like this now that your state of impotency is so chronic that there seems to be no prospect of ever escaping what about the name of Jesus

[34:49] Christ is that more than silver and gold in the narrative Peter fastening his eyes upon him with John said look on us and he gave heed unto them expecting to receive something of them then Peter said silver and gold have I none but such as I have give I thee in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk so this name of Jesus Christ transcends all that silver and gold can buy Peter was able to write about the truth of this no doubt from a very deep and powerful experience he says for ye know that ye were not redeemed by corruptible things as silver and gold from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers but with the precious blood of

[36:12] Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you who by him do believe in God that raised him from the dead and gave him glory that your faith and hope might be in God so the name of Jesus of Christ of Nazareth far transcends all the benefits of silver and gold now the scripture says money answereth all things certainly we may say so in respect to the means of time but when it comes to the things of eternity silver and gold plentiful as they may be will be insufficient and inadequate to redeem our souls from death and this is why the name of Jesus

[37:28] Christ of Nazareth is so precious Jesus is precious says the word to all know unto you therefore which believe he is precious now may we consider the question ourselves can we say that he is precious to us can we say that the name of Jesus is Christ of Nazareth is the name which is above every name you know there was a leaping in the womb of Elizabeth when she saluted Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus Christ when his name was mentioned there was something within that left when the name of

[38:32] Jesus Christ has been mentioned in your hearing sometimes when his name has been preached has your heart ever left has there been some upsurge you could not explain it but nevertheless it has been verily true in your own spirit has there been an outgoing of love you could not understand from whence it came but nevertheless you were sure that it was there a love to the Lord Jesus Christ a love to him on what account because here is all my salvation and all my desire David in those years gone by did he not look forward to this precious Christ that would come though my house be not so with

[39:35] God yet hath he made with me an everlasting covenant ordered in all things ensure well and the hymn writer describes it this covenant made with David's Lord before the sinner fell designed and sealed and ratified in all things ordered well that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth what has happened in your life and in mine by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth have we been born again by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth who procured the blessings of regeneration as well of redemption and sanctification for us it is good to examine us as examine ourselves the scripture says examine yourself to see whether you be in the faith now if we are in the faith then there will be something done by the name of Jesus

[41:08] Christ of Nazareth and this will take us back then to the very early days of the Lord Jesus to his babyhood Jesus Christ of Nazareth Nazareth and it is often the name of a town in which we are born or in which our early days are spent that attaches itself to us Jesus Christ of Nazareth now there was only one Jesus Christ of Nazareth and that Jesus Christ of Nazareth was born in a manger in a stinking stable in the most unsavory surroundings and yet there were some wise men shepherds to whom it was revealed that

[42:40] Jesus was born king of the Jews and they went and they worshipped and how great must that worship have been friends that they weren't disturbed by the surroundings the surroundings couldn't have been very palatable you know when those shepherds and wise men came to worship the Lord Jesus Christ and remember it was Jesus Christ they worshipped and not his mother Mary but how precious was the name of Jesus would they have said to the mother what is his name and she not be able to say she had already been commanded in respect to this thou shalt call his name

[43:49] Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins our sins are the things which make us impotent which make it so impossible to serve God which make it so impossible to cease from sin my grief my daily grief has been because I could not cease from sin well now what are we going to do about that are we just going to say it's a very sad case but there's nothing can be done about it and so I've got to put up with it if your soul is alive under God I am persuaded that you will not be able to look at things like that for long of necessity you will have to have recourse to that fountain which is open for sin and for all uncleanness plunge me in that crimson ocean thy atonement made for sin free me from all empty ocean make me feel the power within the power of what the power of the name of Jesus

[45:32] Christ of Nazareth or we may also consider it in relation to that fountain the fountain of Christ assist me to sing the blood of our priest our crucified king which perfectly cleanses from sin and from health and richly dispenses salvation and health whom he crucified whom God raised from the dead he gave his life a ransom for many that sin might be destroyed this fountain so dear he'll freely impart and locked by the spirit gushed from his heart with blood and with water the first to atone cleanses the latter the fountain is but one this fountain from guilt not only makes pure gives soon as felt infallible cure but if guilt remove it return and remain its power may be proven again and again what power the power of the blood of Christ now you see we cannot disassociate the blood from the man from the person so therefore as we consider that by the name of Jesus

[47:22] Christ of Nazareth when we speak of the blood of Christ that is so rich and free so full and so effectual we must mention the name of Christ and when we mention the name of Christ then surely we are referred to the words here by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth now you see guilt does return sometimes we fall into the same sin again we are overcome by the same weakness we are cast down as it were by the same snare but to be able to repair unto this fountain to be able to shelter under this name oh what a name is the name of

[48:22] Jesus Christ of Nazareth what does this name mean to us what is associated with it a man shall be a refuge from the storm we sometimes speak of a name but what comes before our vision when we speak of a name the person oh the person if we should speak among ourselves about an absent friend and we refer to them by name but what I say comes before our eyes it is the person the name conveys the person and as we think of this by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth does the person of Christ come before us is he in all his glory presented to our faith he is worthy to receive honor and power and glory in the chapter in

[49:48] Luke that we read there is reference to the mount of transfiguration and there there was that voice from heaven which said this is my beloved son hear him Peter bears this testimony follows it forth with the same definite wording be it known unto you all where he writes his second epistle and he says for we have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ but were eyewitnesses of his majesty for he received from

[50:50] God the father honor and glory when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased there are two occasions in the scripture when the father granted his benediction upon the son the first one was when the Lord Jesus was baptized and the second one though it was on the mount of transfiguration was on the occasion of when the conversation had been about his decease that he should accomplish at Jerusalem so we see the father rejoices in the son when the salvation of the people of

[52:00] God are spoken about is spoken about in the ordinance of baptism there is set forth the emblem of Christ's sufferings being overwhelmed in them and his overcoming as he came up out of the water how much this was in his mind how much was the salvation of his people to the fore and when Moses and Elias typifying the law and the prophets had conversation with the Lord Jesus Christ there was nothing else to talk about nothing else but that which he had come upon the earth to do how sickening it is to read from some supposed religious writers that the

[53:14] Lord was not sure of his mission even at the end oh what wrong thinking what ignorance is set before us from such men blessed be God that we can bear testimony we can say these words be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that when the Lord Jesus came upon this earth he came for a purpose and that purpose will be magnified in your eyes and in mine if he came for this purpose was the son of man God manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil and that he might destroy those works of the devil in me this will make it pertinent this will make it real this will make the name of Jesus Christ of

[54:15] Nazareth to be something to us and so the Lord God the Father was never more pleased when this was typified by action and typified in conversation the sufferings and the Lord could say I have finished the work that they gave me to do in respect to the keeping of the law and then he could say on the cross it is finished and he gave up the ghost holy ghost repeat that word full salvations in it now if we have felt that the law has been our schoolmaster has it brought us to Christ this is the purpose of it has it brought us to rejoice in the name of Jesus

[55:23] Christ of Nazareth Christ it is a wonderful testimony that John Newton gives he refers to his own experience at a time when he was in great need perhaps people have used these opening words not always realizing what follows Lord I cannot let thee go till a blessing thou bestow do not turn away thy face mine is an urgent pressing case and how does John Newton go on dost thou ask me who I am what would you answer after coming to the Lord

[56:25] Jesus coming to God through Jesus Christ when you have said Lord I cannot let thee go what would you say if God was to say to you who are you who are you dost thou ask me who I am ah my Lord thou knowest my name yet the question gives a plea to support my suit with thee once thou didst once a wretch behold in rebellion blindly bold scorn thy grace thy power defy that poor rebel Lord was I is that true is that true of you and me we shall have to know something about it you know we shall be very unwise to say well of course that's

[57:36] John Newton's experience I haven't been led this way let me say this friend it's essential that you are led this way because until you are led this way you won't think much of the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth that poor rebel Lord was I once a sinner near despair sought thy mercy seed by prayer mercy heard and set me free and Lord that mercy came to me how did he come by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth is that the way it came to you because if it came to you in that way then it has come to you in the right way there's no other way whereby we may be saved but through his name of

[58:42] Jesus Christ many days have passed since then many changes I have seen yet have been upheld till now who could hold me up but thou the name how are we held up by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth can we lay claim to that can we give glory to the Lord Jesus Christ in that I have been held up and I have been held on and my lot has been maintained by the name of the Jesus Christ of Nazareth when you've come to the end of your petition sometimes you have said have you not for Jesus Christ sake in the name of the Lord Jesus I ask these petitions therefore the name of Jesus Christ is so essential if your petitions are to prevail has that name continued until now oh blessed be

[59:53] God if we can trace in our little experiences certain times when the name of Jesus Christ has meant everything has exceeded everything to know by Jesus crucified by far excels all things beside all earthly goods I count but loss and triumph in my saviour's cross may we say be this religion mine what shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul we will leave it may the Lord enlarge your hearts and your meditation in thinking upon the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth and what it has meant and what it does mean and what it will mean to you and you'll never need it more than when you come to lay down your life and to enter through death dark veil oh how important will the name of

[61:11] Jesus be then if you are to get into heaven it will be through the name of Jesus Christ but it is a sure name a sure foundation and a sure passport into those heavenly portals where the wicked cease from troubling where the weary are at rest the Lord will the moon will preach here on Monday and next week let us close with hit number 135 June 111 and speak the name of Jesus Sam and believe her dear it soothed his sorrow soothed his mood and died away fear 135 111

[62:32] Gen ZANG CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS

[64:02] CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS Ghost The WeICH And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ the love of God and the fellowship of the eternal spirit abide with us. Amen.

[65:32] Amen.