Preaching salvation through Christ (Quality: Good)

[0:00] We find our text this afternoon in the chapter which we read, the 13th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles and the 38th verse.

[0:16] Verse 38. We have these words. Be it known unto you therefore men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins.

[0:34] When we read and meditate upon the Acts of the Apostles we see many evidences of the power and authority of the preaching of the Gospel.

[0:53] We see how the Apostles made great manifestation of the divine power of Almighty God in creating faith in the hearts of sinners and giving them repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

[1:17] And here in the words before us we have another manifestation of the public preaching of God's Word.

[1:30] For in the chapter before us we have the first recorded sermon preached by the Apostle Paul.

[1:40] And it occupies 25 verses. From verses 16 to 41 we have a complete testimony about the Apostle Paul preached the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[2:00] The Apostle Paul had visited the city of Antioch. And as his custom was, he went into the temple on the Sabbath day to hear the reading of God's Word.

[2:18] And with his companions he listened intently to the reading of the Holy Scriptures. And after the Apostle Paul was invited to preach the Word of God.

[2:38] And taking the opportunity of preaching God's Word, he sets forth in this sermon how the Gospel should be preached.

[2:50] And the marvelous effects which the preaching of the Gospel had occurred. So much so was the preaching of the Word received by the Jews.

[3:04] That many, many souls were influenced by the Word of God and turned unto God himself. And the whole, and we read that the next Sabbath day after the sermon was preached, came almost the whole city together to hear the Word of God.

[3:29] What an influence! What a power! What an authority there must have been in the preached Word. And when I read such things like this, I always ask myself, Why does not the Lord do the same work through the public preaching of the Word?

[3:54] Now I realize that there are many questions will arise. In that today, the ministry of God's Word seems to have no or little effects in the preaching of the Gospel.

[4:12] But apart from that, when Paul preached and the whole city came together to hear the Word of God, But when the Gospel is truly proclaimed, much opposition is given to the public preaching of the Word.

[4:34] The Jews, we read, saw the multitudes. They were filled with envy and spaked against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

[4:49] So Paul and Barnabas said to them, Seeing it was necessary that the Word of God should first have been spoken to you, But seeing he have pushed it from you, And judged yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, Lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

[5:12] So when the Gentiles heard this, They were glorified, that they brought glory to God, They glorified the Lord, And we read, As many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

[5:27] What a manifestation of God's divine power, In that, through the preaching of the Word, Sinners were called, The power of God was exercised, The sovereign mercy of God was displayed In the salvation of sinners.

[5:45] So from these words, I would like to understand, Or to set forth three precious truths, Concerning the preaching of the Gospel.

[6:02] Because in this chapter, If it was truly meditated upon, We would see many evidences, How the Word of God should be proclaimed, In the day and generation, In which we live.

[6:20] For there is anything, Absolutely essential, In our present day. It is the way, And the manner, In which the glorious gospel of Christ, Should be set forth, In the power, And demonstration, Of the Holy Ghost.

[6:41] We preach, We preach, Sincerely, Consistently, Week by week, With how little evidence there is, Of the fruits and influences, Of the Holy Ghost.

[6:57] So I wish to emphasize, Three things, From the words of our text. First we have, The universal proclamation, Of the Gospel.

[7:12] That is absolutely essential, In any ministry. There must be, The universal proclamation, Of the Gospel.

[7:23] And then we notice, Also, That the substance, Of true, Biblical preaching, Is the person, And work, Of Jesus Christ.

[7:36] Whatever we may proclaim, In the public ministry, Of the word, It is absolutely essential, That the person, And work of Christ, Should be set forth.

[7:51] And third, We have, The purpose, For which the Gospel, Is preached, Is that, Sinners, Might be converted.

[8:02] For there is the substance, And the reality, That we are sent forth, By the Holy Ghost, To preach, The word of God, And the object, Of preaching, Is to save, The elect of God.

[8:21] As Paul said, I endure, All things, For the elect, Sake, That they also, May obtain, The salvation, Which is in Christ, Jesus, With, Eternal glory.

[8:36] So, There is the universal, Preaching of the Gospel, There is also, The substance, Of the Gospel, That is setting, For Christ.

[8:46] And the third, Point, In each of us, Should have, A personal, Experience, Of what the preacher, Sess for, Namely, Whatever else, I may obtain, By the preaching, Of the word, If my sins, Are not forgiven, Experimentally, Through the precious, Word of God, Then everything else, Is vain, And feeble.

[9:18] So we have, First of all, The public, Preaching, Of the word. Now when the word, Is proclaimed, We have to set, Forth, A completed, Salvation.

[9:33] It is an, Historical, Fact, That Jesus, Christ, Came, Into the world, To save, Sinners. And as we meditate, Upon the pressure, Of God, We see, That salvation, Of the church, Has been completed.

[9:52] That Christ, Has performed, That glorious work, That he, Who knew, No sin, Was made, Sin for us, That we might, Be made, The righteousness, Of God, In him.

[10:08] And then, We are to set, Forth, That divine, Truth, Concerning, The person, And work, Of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

[10:20] So when we set, Forth, The gospel, Of Christ, The first thing, That we need, To emphasize, Is this, And that is, The solemnity, Of sin.

[10:34] Here is, Something, That we need, To emphasize, In the day, And generation, In which, We live, That all, Have sinned, And come short, Of the glory, Of God.

[10:50] That in each, One of us, There is that, Sin, Which we, Inherited, From our, Sin, From our, First parents, Original sin, We are born, With original sin, Within us, We are born, Transgressors, To God's, Holy law, For the script, Is declared, As by, One man, Sin, Entered, Into the world, And death, By sin, And so, Death, Has passed, Upon all men, In that, All of sins, Now, Recognize, This through, Each one of us, That we come, Into the world, A depraved, And a sinful, Creature, And as we grow up, The evidences, Of original sin, Are set forth, In our conduct, And in our conversation, In the world,

[11:51] And one of the most sad, Yea, One of the most horrible, Things in this world, Is to grow up, A sinner, Living without God, And without hope, In the world, But a sinner, That is under, Divine, Condemnation, What a state, To be in, That we are under, The scriptures, Declared, Through the sin, Of our first parents, And through the sin, That we, Accumulate, Throughout our lives, By our conversation, And by our deeds, Now a sinner, And these are, Solemn, And tremendous, Things, A sinner, Unredeemed, Is under, The wrath, And condemnation, Of God's, Holy Lord, Do you ever,

[12:52] Realize that, Experimentally, That you, As an individual, Is under, The wrath, And condemnation, Of God's, Holy Lord, So much so, That the scriptures, Declared, Cursed, Cursed, Is everyone, That continueth, Not, In, That continueth, Not, In the book, Of the law, To do that, If I cannot, Of myself, Obey, The holy law, Of God, Obey, The ten commandments, To accept, For the purity, Of, Life, Which the scriptures, Declared, Thou shalt love, The law, Thy God, With all thy heart, With all thy soul, With all thy mind, And with all thy strength, This, Is what we have to do, Under the law,

[13:54] And if we cannot, Perfectly, Fulfill, The holy law, Of God, We are under, The curse, Of almighty God, I know that, This is not pleasant, I know that, This is not pleasant, To preach, But nevertheless, This is the truth, Of the holy scriptures, That, Every person, Under the holy law, Of God, Is under, God's curse, And notice, My friends, If you are, Unredeemed, If you are not saved, By the sovereign, Grace of God, Then you will, Because you are under the curse, Will go to a lost, Eternity, That is the, Word, Of an eternal God, That you shall go, To a lost, Eternity, That you shall go, To hell, It's hell, Men disregard, This solemn truth, For contempt, Upon the word,

[14:55] Of God, But I am convinced, In my own mind, That if the law, Was preached, More continually, Then there may, In the goodness of God, A greater manifestation, Of the call, Of Jesus Christ, For when Jonathan Edwards, In North America, Preached the word, When he preached, On a lost eternity, From those words, In Deuteronomy, Their feet, Shall slide, In due time, It was accounted, One of the greatest sermons, That was ever preached, In the world, But disregarding that, It is also, The great effect, By which, Many hundreds, Of sinners, Were called, Into a glorious, Eternity, Through that sermon, We know that, In of itself, It is nothing, But when it is applied, By the Holy Ghost,

[15:55] When the words of God, Go forth, With divine power, And men realize, That they are under, The wrath, Of an eternal God, Then they are exalted, To flee, From the wrath, Which is to come, This is a solemn thing, To be born, Into this world, And I often wonder, Myself, As I meditate, Upon eternal, Punishment, Would it not, Would it be better, For many, That it would be better, For them, That they'd never, Been born, And yet, Being born, Into the world, As individuals, We must realize, The purpose, Of God, In the gospel, And might I say, My friends, Unless, There's true faith, In the redemption, That is in, Christ Jesus, We're lost, Lost, On our way, To a lost eternity, For by the works,

[16:56] Of the law, Can no flesh, Be justified, In God's sight, So when we come, Through the words, Of our text, It was Paul's, Prerogative, Paul's delight, To set forth, The glorious news, Of the work, Of Christ's, Redemptive work, That through, This man, Is preached, Unto you, The forgiveness, Of sins, And all that believe, In him, Are justified, From all things, Which they could not, Be justified, By the Lord, Of Moses, So the purpose, For which our Lord, Jesus Christ, Came into this world, Was to satisfy, The holiness, Of God's law, This was the first thing, That could happen, Before any sinner, Could be justified, Before any sinner, Could be redeemed, That the holy law,

[17:58] Of God, Must be satisfied, And Christ, Came for that purpose, To satisfy, And to fulfill, The holy law, Of God, And the Lord, Jesus Christ, Came, And said, I delight, To do thy will, O my God, Yea, Thy law, Is within, My heart, And the Lord, Jesus Christ, Walked, Throughout this world, In impeccable holiness, And true righteousness, Because he walked, Through this world, With the object, To set before him, In order, That the sins, Of his people, Might be redeemed, And the holy law, Of God, Should be satisfied, So when Christ, Came and satisfied, The holiness, Of God's, God's law,

[18:59] And, Was obedient, To God's truth, In every aspect, Those words, Can truly, Be fulfilled, It is a faithful scene, And worthy, Of all, Acceptation, That Christ, Jesus, Came into the world, To save sinners, The ground, Was made, The law, Was satisfied, The holiness, And majesty, Of Christ, Was revealed, In that, He satisfied, The Lord of God, And made those, That believe, In him, With the knowledge, Of sins, Being forgiven, For blessed, Is that man, Unto whom, God, Imputed righteousness, Without works, When Christ, Came, Satisfying, The holy law, Of God, The scripture, Set forth, That sublime truth,

[20:01] That the person, Who truly, Believes in him, By the operation, Of the holy ghost, Is created, In Christ, Jesus, Unto good works, And is set forth, To do, And obey, The will, Of an eternal God, So the Lord, Jesus Christ, Having satisfied, The demands, Of God's law, Designs, In his, In his resurrection, And ascension, To send forth, The disciples, To proclaim, The gospel, In its fullness, The gospel, And he tells us, In those, Well known words, In the 28th, Chapter, Of Matthew, He gave them, A divine commission, A commission, Which should, Ever be, Reiterated, In the experience, Of every person, Who is ordained, By God, To proclaim,

[21:02] The unsearchable, Riches, Of Christ, For Christ said to them, Go ye, Into all the world, And preach the gospel, To every creature, And lo, I am with you, Always, Even unto the end, Of the world, Now this divine commission, Must be fulfilled, In every person, Whom God set the path, And given the gift, And the ability, To preach the gospel, Of Jesus Christ, Is the goal, Irrespective, Of the consequences, Irrespective, Whether man, Will believe, Or not, His function, And his authority, Is to proclaim, The gospel, Of Jesus Christ, What a divine commission, But not only, Was he to preach, The gospel, And set forth,

[22:02] The forgiveness, Of sins, But it is also, To constrain, Those who hear, The word of God, To, To be obedient, To every, As of divine truth, Now there are many, Professing Christians, Who say, They must do this, And do that, But the true, Essence, Of godliness, People put a lot, Of things, Upon the nature, Of godliness, But the nature, Of godliness, In all its, Aspect, Is to obey, Obey, The word of God, That's the essential, Thing, In true godliness, Many of us, Many of us, Put this thing, And that thing, And the other thing, On the nature, Of godliness, But godliness, Is obedience, To the scriptures, We must be obedient, Irrespective, Of the consequences, To me, As an individual,

[23:03] Or to you, As an individual, You must, Obey, The scriptures, To set forth, The precious, Work, Of Jesus Christ, So when Christ, Said, Go ye therefore, And teach, All nations, Baptizing them, In the name, Of the father, And of the son, And of the holy ghost, This was the commission, That not only, Were they to believe, In the precious, Redeeming, Work of Christ, But they were, To be obedient, To God's word, In every aspect, Of their being, In other words, They should, Obey, The word of God, With respect, To baptism, Because the lord, Has a purpose, In the individual, Believer, In the, In the ordinance, Of baptism, So when he says, Go ye therefore, And teach, All nations, The minister, Is not to,

[24:04] Withhold, Any part, Or any aspect, Of divine truth, For to urge, Upon his hearers, The nature, And the essence, Of baptism, Because when we read, Other scriptures, We see, That baptism, Is identifying, Ourselves, With Jesus Christ, And if we read, The sixth chapter, Of, Of the epistle, To the Romans, We have, These words, Buried with him, By baptism, Unto death, That like, As Christ, Was raised, From the dead, By the glory, Of the father, We should, Walk, In newness, Of life, So baptism, Is essential, Not to salvation, But to be obedient, To God's words, That we may, Separate ourselves, Just as Christ, Symbolically, Died,

[25:05] And was buried, And was raised again, So symbolically, Shall we say, The believer, Is to be symbolically, With Christ, In the grave, And to be raised again, As it were, Symbolically, In the setting forth, Obedience, To God's words, So this was the prerogative, Of the minister, Not only to set forth, The work of Christ, But to set forth, The obedience, Of the believer, To every aspect, Of God's word, Teaching them, It says, To observe, All things, Whatsoever, I have commanded you, Lo, I am with you, Always, Even, Unto the end, Of the world, So when the minister, Is set forth, In obedience, To God's word, Universal declaration,

[26:08] Of the gospel, He sets forth, Christ, And him, Crucified, Now here, Is the very, Substance, Of the gospel, That when, Their foster, Paul, Paul, Paul, Preached, The word, Of God, He did not, Relay, Anything, Whatever, Upon his own, Ability, Or upon his, Own, Knowledge, But realizing, That God, Had, A path, To proclaim, The gospel, He realized, The solemn, Responsibility, That was laid, Upon him, Set, A path, By the spirit, Of God, To proclaim, God's holy word, God called him, As a messenger, To the Gentiles, God said, To him, That he had been, Separated, By his spirit, To proclaim, God's word, And Paul realized, The office, To which, He was called,

[27:08] When he said, Unto me, Who am lest, And the least, Of all saints, Is this grace giver, That I should proclaim, Among the Gentiles, The unsearchable riches, Of Christ, Here is what he was set for, And he was set for, A particular aspect, Of Christ's work, And if we read, 1 Corinthians 2, We see the nature, Of the Apostle Paul's, Ministry, When he proclaimed, The gospel, What a fear, What a trembling, Came upon him, As he set forth, In his preaching, The gospel, Of Jesus Christ, Because he realized, That in, And of himself, Whatever ability, That may be given him, To proclaim, Verbally, The gospel,

[28:09] Of Christ, He realized, That he could do, Nothing, Whatever, To the salvation, Of sinners, He may proclaim, The gospel, He may use words, On expressions, And other things, But he could do, Absolutely nothing, To save a sinner, Because his, Total dependence, Was upon, The grace of, The grace of God, So he says, And I brethren, When I came to you, Came not with excellency, Of speech, Or of wisdom, Declaring unto you, The testimony of God, For I determined, Notice how he put, For I determined, Not to know, Anything among you, Save Jesus Christ, And him crucified, For he was the very, Essence, The very center, Of the gospel of Christ, That this was, Absolutely essential, To his ministry,

[29:09] That he set forth, Christ, And him crucified, And notice the words, I determined, He was not called, By chance, Or by any other means, To the ministry, He was called, To preach, Christ, And him crucified, And lo and behold, To any person, That preaches otherwise, Because they're under, The condemnation, Of a holy God, But here is the, Apostle Paul, Though he was trembling, He says, I was with you, In weakness, And fear, And in much trembling, For he was called, To the highest office, In the world, To proclaim, The unsearchable riches, Of Christ, And he says, My speech, And my preaching, Was not with enticing, Words of men's wisdom, But in demonstration, Of the spirit, And of power, That your faith,

[30:10] Should not stand, In the wisdom of men, God, In the power of God, So when, A person is called, By divine grace, To preach, The gospel, It is the soul, Dependence, That he realizes, That he can do, Nothing of himself, But he realizes, That he has, The greatest power, In this world, As the sovereign, Operations of God, Are revealed, That he sent forth, To save sinners, From their sins, By the public, Preaching of the word, And by the way, In which the Holy Ghost, Applies that word, With divine power, To the souls, Of the hearers, The substance, Of the gospel, Is truly, Christ, And him, Crucified, And when we look, At the expressions, Given to us, In the scriptures, Concerning the, Crucifixion,

[31:12] Of Christ, We see, That it must be, The substance, Of the gospel, Did he not say, God forbid, That I should glory, Save in the cross, Of the Lord, Jesus Christ, By whom, He says, The world, Is crucified, Unto me, And I, Unto the world, No person, Is saved, Unless they, Understand, By the immediate, Influences, Of the Holy Spirit, Of God, As the word, Is proclaimed, And his soul, Is saved, Because through, The preached word, The power, Of God, Is displayed, Now the apostle, Paul, Was not called, To preach, The word of God, In, Without, Certain, Declarations, Given to him, He was not, Called, To study, Philosophy, Or to,

[32:12] Sit, At the feet, Of Gamaliel, He was called, To proclaim, Christ, And him, Crucified, And when we, Look at the way, In which, People are involved, In other things, In the material, Things of life, Especially, The ministers, Of God's word, They're concerned, About material, Things, When God, Has set him, Apart, To proclaim, The unsearchable, Riches of Christ, He was not, To be a philosopher, He was not, To be a teacher, He was to be, A preacher, Of God's word, And he was not, To join, In all the, Merriment, And social, Aspect, Of his heroes, He wasn't, To be concerned, As it were, With the, Comforts, And blessings, Of this life, He was, To preach, Continually, The word, Of God, And set forth, The person, Of Christ, Because, In the preaching,

[33:13] Of God's word, The greatest, Wisdom, Which almighty, God, Could conceive of, The greatest, Revelation, Of the eternal, Mind, Is manifested, In the way, And the manner, In which, The Lord, Jesus Christ, Was sent, By God, Into this world, In order, That the sins, Of his people, Might be revealed, He was not, Setting forth, The philosophy, Of man, But as it were, The truth, Of an eternal, God, So he speaks, How he sets, For God's truth, When he preached, Christ, And him, Crucified, He says, We speak, Wisdom, Among them, That are perfect, Yet not, The wisdom, Of this world, Nor of the princes, Of the world, That come to north, Thus he says, We speak, The wisdom, Of God,

[34:14] In a mystery, Which, Even the hidden, Wisdom, Which God, Ordained, Before the world, Unto our glory, Which none, Of the princes, Of this world, Knew, For had they known it, They would not, Have crucified, The Lord of glory, So the apostle, Paul, Having given, Been given, A divine revelation, Concerning, The ministry, Of God's word, So, To be faithful, In every aspect, Of divine truth, And he realized, The work, Which the holy ghost, Had given him, In that, The greatest wisdom, Of God, Is revealed, By the preaching, Of the word, Upon the hearts, Of men, And he says, These words again, I have not seen, Heareth not heard, Neither have it entered, Into the heart of man,

[35:15] The things, Which God, Hath prepared, For them, That love him, No human mind, Can enter, Into the inner, Experiences, Of a godly person, Because when a man, Is revealed, Unto him, The greatness, Of the gospel, The blessedness, Of that man, Whose sins, Are forgiven, That Christ, Imputed righteousness, Is laid upon his soul, And that work, Is done, For time, And for eternity, So after speaking, Of the carnality, Of the human mind, That they cannot, Enter into, The things, Which God, Hath prepared, For them, That love him, He says, For God, Now here, Is the internal, Work, Through the preaching, Of the word, That's manifested, In the soul, Of men, If you are, Regenerated,

[36:16] You have a knowledge, You have an experience, That the wise, Of this world, Can never, Never, Understand, When he says, But God, Hath revealed them, Unto us, By his spirit, For the spirit, Searcheth, All things, Yea, The deep things, Of God, So are you born again, That is the great, Question, In our lives, Have I been born again, By the holy spirit, Of God, I may be religious, I may attend, Upon a strict, Baptist chapel, All my life, But I can still go, Sad to say, To a lost eternity, Unless I have been, Born again, For unless a man, Be born again, He cannot see, The kingdom of heaven, And this is indeed, One of the most, Solemn subjects, Before us,

[37:17] Because if a man, Is born again, By the spirit of God, What does this, Truth do to him, Just ask yourself, Just think, In your own heart, If I am born again, By the spirit of God, If I have received, The greatest experience, That the spirit of God, Can do, Or work upon a soul, What is the, Outcome, What is the outcome, Of regeneration, Notice what happens, The person, We say, Is born again, It seems as it were, As if the almighty God, Put his hand, Upon the head, Of that person, And just as the, Old testament, Priest, Was separated, To do, A particular work, So the work, Of regeneration, As God, Symbolically, Put his, Hands upon the head,

[38:19] Of the person, Ordained to eternal life, What happens, First of all, He is given, Eternal life, Now there is no, Question, From the scriptures, Or exception, About this, Every person, Who truly, Believes in Christ, Has, Eternal life, He that believeth, On the son, Hath, Everlasting life, He that believeth, Not the son, Shall not, See life, But the wrath, Of God, Abided upon him, Notice, There is no alternative, You either believe, Or you do not believe, It is the work, Of the spirit of God, So the person, Is separated, By God, And he is given, Eternal life, Now not only, Is he given, Eternal life, But he is also,

[39:20] Given, The promises, Of God, That is laid down, In the holy scriptures, All the promises, Of God, Are yea, And oh, Amen, In Christ Jesus, Now this is a wonder, This is something, That the human mind, Cannot comprehend, Apart from a divine revelation, Is given, Given, All the promises, Of God, Now can we reflect, Upon the promises, Of God, Upon that, Particular, Individual, That's born again, And God has said to him, Notice the words, God has said to him, Thank you.