Landmarks
Sermon for 10/12/97
Introduction:
A. Originally held in commemoration of soldiers killed in the Amer. Civil War (1868), its observance later extended to all U.S. war dead.
B. Coburn Corners observance of Memorial Day.
WBTU:
A. We have in our culture people who think that if an idea is old it is no good. I do agree that some old ideas are no good. However, there are many things in life throughout the ages that have remained constant. Things that have stood the test of time. One of those is Christianity.
B. Proverbs 22:28.
C. Gave each tribe, family a particular section of land. Boundary markers- Piles of stones. Something to mark the dimensions of people’s territory.
D. Deuteronomy 19:14- You shall not remove your neighbor’s landmark, which the men of old have set, in your inheritance which you will inherit in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess. Those who were greedy and stealers would take the landmark and move it to there advantage. Neighbor might slip over and move marker couple of feet to increase own parcel of land. Dishonest.
E. Throughout the past couple of decades people have been dishonest. They have been moving or even removing the landmarks of our nation, our communities, our families, and even the landmarks from our personal lives. It has happened gradually. Much like moving a physical landmark. People will notice. However, gradually it might not be.
F. Denominations and groups have moved and moved and eventually removed the landmarks from Christianity. Many in mainline denominations no longer believe in the old landmarks of Christianity. No longer believe in the Bible.
G. People keep asking what will get this nation back on track. It is a return to the old landmarks of Christianity. People believe that if we do this or that it will return this nation to greatness. The only way this nation can return to greatness and remain there is if people come back to the old landmarks of Christianity. This nation was built on those landmarks. Most people do even know that.
H. Need to get back to landmarks- Moral values, spiritual truths, biblical basics. Landmarks this nation was founded upon,
I. Henry Wilson, Vice President under President Grant, said in 1866- Remember ever, and always, that your country was founded, not by the best of all European races, but by the stern old Puritans who made the deck of the Mayflower an altar of the living God, and whose first act on touching the soil of the new world was to offer on bended knees thanksgiving to Almighty God.
J. John Adams, the 2nd President of the US said of the Founding Fathers - The general principles on which the Fathers achieved independence, were the only Principles in which that beautiful Assembly off young Gentlemen could unite… And what were these general Principles? I answer, the general Principles of Christianity.
J. John Adams also said in an address to the military, “We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
J. WE need to get back to the message of the gospel. Why? This is what will change people lives, Christ and his salvation.
K. Statesmen. Well, let us all go back to that old landmark. Let us stay in the service of the Lord. Oh, let us kneel and pray in the old time way. He will hear us and be near us, we’ll be given bread from heaven, tell the story of his glory, it will warn them, it will turn them, it will save this old world from sin and shame.
Well, I want to see a big revival in the old time way. Sinners turning, converts joining, Christians yearning, fire burning, He will hear us and be near us, it will warn them, it will turn them, it will save this old world from sin and shame. Well, let us all go back to that old landmark. Let us stay in the service of the Lord.
Well, let us go on down to the river in the old time way. Sons and daughters buried in water, coming up shouting, nobody doubting, He will hear us and be near us, we’ll be given bread from heaven, tell the story of his glory, it will warn them, it will turn them, everybody happy in the service of the Lord.
L. Jesus is described as a stone. Luke 20:17-18- Then He looked at them and said, “What then is this that is written: The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone? Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder.
M. Peter says in Acts. This is the stone which was rejected by your builders, which has become the chief cornerstone. Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
N. Jesus is the ancient landmark. Without him we have no guidance, no purpose, and no hope.
O. People today, even people in churches, are trying to move the ancient landmark. Get it out of the way. Move it, remove it. If is offensive to people. It is not socially acceptable. It makes no sense. Get it out of the way. Move it, remove it.
Thesis: Today we are going to examine three landmarks about Christ that people would like to move away.
For instances:
I. Move away the cradle of Christ.
A. People today would like to dispute the Biblical accounts of Jesus birth in an attempt to discredit Christ’s deity.
B. Christ was 100% man and 100% God. He was the Son of Man and the Son of God. The only way that could happen is through the virgin birth.
C. John 1:14- And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. When people explain away the virgin birth they are really saying that Jesus was just another person just like everybody else.
D. A group of Bible scholars have unanimously agreed that Jesus had a human father, but they are uncertain who it was. Thus, according to these scholars, Jesus was not born of a virgin, was not conceived by the Holy Spirit, was and is not literally the Son of God, but is in the same category with other great religious leaders who were conceived and born in the usual manner. The article states that the birth narratives found in Matthew and Luke are fictitious. The church fabricated the story about the virgin birth of Jesus in order to give Him more status, according to these scholars. The seminar admits there is some uncertainty concerning who the father of Jesus was. Some say Joseph, some say Mary was raped, but none are willing to accept the biblical narrative at face value. The biblical account of Mary’s miraculous conception by the power of the Holy Spirit is dismissed by these scholars as a theological statement having no historical validity.
E. You want to know why? They don’t believe Jesus was the Son of God.
F. I John 4:2-3- By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
G. The virgin birth means Jesus Christ entered into the stream of human life without mediation of an earthly father, born not as a result of intercourse but as a result of the supernatural. God.
I. Jesus Christ at his birth had a human connection, but he also had a divine connection. The Son of God and the Son of Man.
J. Behold the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, “God with us.”
K. Gabriel said to Mary. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
L. How stupid. It doesn’t make any sense for a virgin to give birth to a child. Everybody knows that is impossible. God with us. God cannot be with us because there is no way that God and man can both be in one person. It is all so ridiculous! It is beyond understanding! It is so unbelievable that is why it is called a miracle. With God all things are possible.
Transition: The landmark of Jesus’ birth people want to move away. It is unpleasant for some people to think that God would lower himself to become a man. However, Jesus Christ lowered himself for our salvation. This brings me to the next landmark that people would like to move away, remove.
II. The landmark of the cross.
A. You mean to tell me that a man who died 2,000 years ago upon a cross and then was buried and then raised again, this is what will save me. This sounds so stupid.
B. I Corinthians 1:18- For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
D. Christ has nailed our sin to the cross. Colossians 2:14- He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
F. When Christ went to that cross, he took upon himself the sin of the world; he was the perfect sacrifice for our sin. It is only through accepting this sacrifice can we be saved from sin and from hell.
G. 2 Corinthians 5:21- For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
H. Tell me the story of Jesus, write on my heart every word, tell me the story most precious, sweetest that every was hear. Is it truly precious? What a waste! He could have been so much more. What more could he have been? He gave his life for us. He suffered terribly. He died because of love.
I. The cross must be told so that souls can be saved. Some people say that the cross is too gross; it should not be brought up. Jesus would suffer, bleed, and died for us. Great movement to remove the blood. There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood loose all their guilty stains.
J. Blood of the covenant which is shed for you. Ephesians 1:7- In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. Ephesians 2:13- But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Hebrews 13:12- Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. 1 Peter 1:18- Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. I John 1:7- But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
K. A young woman once chewed out a preacher for preaching the cross of Jesus too vividly. It was alleged that such was causing her primary-age daughter to have nightmares. How horrible that someone, especially a child, would be bothered by our Lord’s crucifixion. Right? Or is it! We should be horror-struck and repulsed that such a thing happened on the face of the earth. God was! So much so that he turned His back on the appalling scene and the sun stopped shining. So terrible was this scene that the earth shook and the rocks split. Can we, then, preach the cross too much or too vividly? Crucifixion was an unspeakably horrible form of execution and punishment. There is no way that we can overstate its gruesome cruelty. But the true anguish of the cross of Christ was not the physical suffering which He endured; the atrocity of His execution was that the Righteous One, the holy and pure Son of God, bore our sins in his body on the accursed tree. Jesus endured the cruel death- blow of Satan for us. He suffered the penalty for sin and thus conquered and annihilated it.
L. That’s a nice fairy tale! But how do we know that for sure. Jesus was a man just like all of us. He just died unfortunately. For one man to take away all sin for all time is ridiculous.
M. The resurrection. He came back with the keys to death and hell. How did he do that?
N. Nails were driven through his hands and feet, but the wrath of God against sin was driven through his heart. Why? In order that we might be redeemed and live forevermore. Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!
Transition: People try to move away the cradle of Christ. People try to move away the cross of Christ. People try to move away the crown awaiting those who follow Christ.
III. Landmark of the crown.
A. 2 Timothy 4:7-8- I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
B. I Peter 5:4- When the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.
C. My friends, the king is coming back to reward those who follow Him.
D. As Christians we are looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. Titus.
F. When Jesus left, he said that he was coming back. His second coming will be personal, bodily and visible. Not something that we will miss. He has fulfilled all of his other promises, I am sure that he will fulfill this one. However, still many people want this moved away from them. They don’t want to think about the coming of the Lord because it scares them. They don’t think about the coming of the Lord because they have never believed in Him. What a miserable thing! I know that this world is agonizing and I know that there is something better. There must be something better because if there isn’t I want my money back.
G. 2 Peter 3:3-4- Scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word are reserved for fire until the Day of Judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
H. So many forget this. They don’t want to think about this, move it from their minds, because they will not get a crown. They will receive judgment.
I. John A Boor- I had an opportunity to work in a bakery while going to high school. I remember one particular day when the telephone rang and one of the ladies went to answer it. She put down the phone like it was hot and yelled, “He’s coming!” I wondered what in the world was going on. The ladies ran for their hair nets and men ran for clean aprons and clean caps. The boss told me to sweep the floor, and cover all the containers. There was a wild and excited look in his eyes. Everyone was running around like chickens with their heads cut off. I thought to myself, “Who is coming?” Suddenly through the front door entered a man in a suit with a case under his arm. As I observed him he began to walk around and check the bakery for any health hazards. I then realized that he was the state inspector for the Board of Health. After he left everyone breathed a sigh of relief and went back to work. One of the ladies told me that all the places of business always watched out for each other. The first one to see the inspector coming would then call the other business. They had a system of warning. When Jesus comes again there won’t be time to prepare a speech on all the good things we have been involved in. There won’t be time to tell him how our neighbors and friends hindered us in His service. There will be judgment> So then each one of us shall give an account of himself before God. God will not accept our excuses nor will He give us time to repent. Today is the time to prepare ourselves for His coming. Remember, “He is coming!”
J. What is happening today in many of our standard brand
denominations? One of the first exposes of the beliefs of our future
ministers was made by \italic{Redbook} magazine in August of 1961.
The publishers hired one of the top pollsters in the nation to survey
a full representation of seminaries which are supposedly preparing
men for Christian service in the Protestant churches. Here are some
of the results: Of the ministers in training, 56 percent rejected the virgin birth
of Jesus Christ, 71 percent rejected that there was life after death.
54 percent rejected the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. 98
percent rejected that there would be a personal return of Jesus Christ
to this earth.
Conclusion:
A. Remove not the ancient landmark.
B. Really behind all of this people are trying to remove Jesus Christ.
C. They did it to Jesus.
D. They are doing the same thing today.
E. We must hold high Jesus Christ. He is the only hope for this world.
F. Gloria Gaither- WE all need landmarks, stakes in the ground, altars that we build, when God met us. Times are hard, life is difficult, troubles come and doubts and we all need to be able to point back to a time and place where we know for sure that God met us there.
G. When we are dismayed, confused, defeated, bewildered by the stuff of life, we can always look back and point to times when beyond a shadow of a doubt we know that God met us there and we can be confident that he walks with us now.
H. The Lighthouse.
There’s a lighthouse on the hillside that overlooks life’s sea. When I am caught, It sends out a light, a light that I might see. I have a light that shines in darkness now and will safely lead me oer- and I know if it wasn’t for the lighthouse, I know my ship would sail no more.
Now everybody who lives around us says tear that lighthouse down. They say, “WE all know the big ships don’t sail this way anymore.” There’s no use in that old thing standing around.” But then my mind, it goes back to that stormy night when just in time I saw the light. You know it was the light from that old lighthouse, and it still stands up there on the hill.
I thank God for the lighthouse. I owe my life to Him. Jesus is the lighthouse that saves from the rocks of sin. He has showed his light around me that I could clearly see, if it wasn’t for the lighthouse where would this ship be.
