One of the most difficult truths to have people believe is that God truly does love them, sometimes there are people that in their minds they have been used and violated and many times the question is God why? Why God if you love me could you allow these things to happen to me? If you are real, why didn’t you stop these things from coming about? And with these questions in the midst of the minds of a lost and dying generation the answer is as such, God didn’t do those things people did, and for the most part even good people experience bad things but the wonderful truth of this is that God in His glory not only will restore and strengthen but He has the power to heal as well. Beloved people are more valuable than what they see themselves to be and their lives are so priceless that it cost Jesus His life.
As we look upon a people that are broken and in ever need of Christ they ask what kind of God is this that you serve, what manner of Messiah is this that you proclaim, I as a man of gratefulness and gratitude of all He has done cannot express fully of the hands which were pierced and the feet wounded for my transgressions nonetheless He saved me as He wants to save you.
Christ beloved is a rare Jewel, but men know not His value; Christ is the sun that ever shines bright, but today men are hard to perceive His brightness, nor walk in His light. He is like a garden full of sweets, like a hive full of honey, a sun without spot, He is the fountain that ever flows never quenched or dry. Beloved no man can ever fully grasp His glory, His worth, His importance, no tongue can fully declare. Jesus is the source of all good, of all excellency, He is the mirror of perfection. Beloved Jesus is all together lovely. He is tangible like a rose without thorns, His eyes gleam with tenderness and His heart gushes love, the love that some of us need this morning. See beloved the Christian is fed by His hands, carried by His heart, the Christian is nursed by His bosom and guided by His eye, instructed by His word and warmed by His love. Some maybe never experienced this and some may need to be reminded of the everlasting love of Christ.
Romans 5:12-21
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. 15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. 16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. 17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. 19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
1st point “Why are we called sinners”
We sin because we are sinners we are not sinners because we sin, we beloved are the seed of Adam who disobeyed God and in that we have inherited the curse of death and the bible tells us that we are born into sin as sinners. Our scripture this morning gives us tremendous insight of the grace brought into contrast with sin and the obedience of Christ being set against the disobedience of Adam. In our scripture the Spirit of God is seeking to show us what we are first and then how it was we came to be what Christ died for.
At the beginning of our Christian life we are concerned with our doing and not with our being; we are more distressed of what we have done rather than who we are. We think that if only we could rectify certain things we would be good Christians and we set out therefore to change our actions. But the results are not what we expected. We discover to our dismay that it is more than just a case of trouble on the outside, in fact the more serious trouble lies on the inside. We try to please the Lord but something within that we start to see that doesn’t want to please Him. We begin to try to humble ourselves, but again something in our very being that refuses to be humble. Again we try to be loving and find that something inside wants to be unloving. We smile and try to look gracious, but inwardly we feel decidedly ungracious. The more we try to rectify the matters on the outside the more we begin to realize that we have trouble in the inside deep seated.
We come to this conclusion that we are members of a race of people who are constitutionally other than what God intended us to be. All because of the fall of man; Adam. (Being of Hispanic decent) So unless we change our parentage there is no deliverance for us. But it is in this very direction that we shall find the solution to our problem, exactly how God has dealt with it. And that beloved is the birthing of being born again in Christ Jesus.
2nd Point “The Divine way of Deliverance”
Beloved how could a holy God be satisfied with unholy children? He cannot so God has made provision; adequate provision that we should be set free from sins dominion. Now seeing that we were born in Adam how is it that we could get out of Adam? There is only one way, since we came in by birth we must go out by death and have a rebirthing. To do away with bondage we must do away with our old lives and begin to embrace the new. Bondage to sin came by birth, deliverance to sin comes by death to self and life in Christ in which was provided to and for us in Christ Jesus.
Some may ask me how is it that one can be re-born again? What is this you are talking of Pastor? To die to the old fleshly desires and be re-born into the new birth that is given to us by repentance of sin and beginning to walk with and through Christ? Is was sin that has kept us from God, not that He hated us but that He hated our sin, but we have a bridge we have a connection to get to God, and that is Christ.
What is crucifixion? A medical doctor provides a physical description: The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man is quickly thrown backwards with his shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression at the front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square wrought-iron nail through the wrist and deep into the wood. Quickly he moves to the other side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms too tightly, but to allow some flex and movement. The cross is then lifted into place.
The left foot is pressed backward against the right foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven through the arch of each, leaving the knees flexed. The victim is now crucified. As he slowly sags down with more weight on the nails in the wrists, excruciating, fiery pain shoots along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain--the nails in the wrists are putting pressure on the median nerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid this stretching torment, he places the full weight on the nail through his feet. Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between the bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue, cramps sweep through the muscles, knotting them in deep, relentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps comes the inability to push himself upward to breathe. Air can be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He fights to raise himself in order to get even one small breath. Finally carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood stream, and the cramps partially subside. Spasmodically he is able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in life-giving oxygen.
Hours of this limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as he moves up and down against the rough timber. Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart. It is now almost over--the loss of tissue fluids has reached a critical level--the compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues--the tortured lungs are making a frantic effort to gasp in small gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through is tissues. Finally he can allow his body to die.
All this the Bible records with the simple words, "And they crucified Him." (Mark 15:24). What wondrous love is this? Just as Nicodemus some may ask how one can be re-born again, by accepting Christ as your Lord and Savior as you repent of sin. After all He has done for us why not serve Him? Being born-again is as such:
John 3:1-7
1 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him." 3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." 4 Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 "Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'
So now we look at the wondrous divine deliverance provided for you and I this morning through the tremendous sacrifice of Christ on the rugged cross for our freedom because of Adam. See beloved we are sinners not because we chose but because Adam fell, now we can become more than conquerors in Christ because of what He has done dying for us, taking our place. The reality this morning beloved is that we need this deliverance, we want this deliverance, we crave this deliverance. This morning Jesus wants to set us free of this bondage placed on us from Adam and God provided someone to take our place that we could be set free and that man was Christ.
3rd “When is the right time”
“Today is the day of salvation”
This seems to be the most critical part yet the most important part of any man’s life, the decision. This brings us right back to the very place of Adam or Christ. Adam was presented with a choice and in that choice he choose death, this lead to separation from God and an estranged heart that was disappointed in life’s choices.
Christ could’ve by all means while praying in the garden said “Father these people are just going to reject Me, curse Me and mock Me, I want no part of this world”, and in that He would’ve been perfectly correct, but no, He said, “not My will but Your will be done”, and that led to what we have heard this morning of us being dead to sin because of Adam to having life in Christ and with that we could make the most life changing decision or the most regretful one, this morning beloved the right time is the time you have left, I encourage you to come before God and be blessed by inheriting the life of Christ rather than the curse of Adam, repent and receive Christ and be set free from that bondage in Jesus name.
There was gentleman in Philadelphia who was a teacher of a class of boys every Sunday night. He was requested to go and see one of the kids who was sick. The gentleman hastened to his side and inquired if he needed food or medicine. The boy replied, “no captain, that is not what I wanted you for but I need to ask you two questions. Didn’t you tell us the other night how Jesus Christ died for every fellow? Yes, I did, Jesus Christ tasted death for every man. I thought so. Now I’ve got another question, Did you tell us that Jesus Christ saves every fellow that asked Him? Yes, for everyone that ask receives. Then I know that He saved me because I asked Him, then the boys head fell back upon his pillow of rags and went to be with the one who he trusted saved him from hell, Jesus Christ.
