Sickness Of Sin And God's Cure

The Sickness of Sin and God’s Cure

MATTHEW 9:10-13

MAY 26, 2002

Parkersburg Baptist Church

GOD THE FATHER IS ALSO KNOWN AS THE GREAT PHYSICIAN. WE ALL KNOW THAT GOD KNOWS ALL AND SEES ALL. AS THE GREAT PHYSICIAN, I BELIEVE THAT GOD LAYS HUMANITY OUT ON THE EXAMINING TABLE AND LOOKS IT OVER.

GOD LIKE ANY GOOD PHYSICIAN GIVES MAN A THOROUGH EXAMINATION.

HE LOOKS INTO THE THROAT OF HUMANITY AND SAYS, “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN SEPULCHRE.” (ROM. 3:13a) JUST LOOK AROUND YOU TODAY AND YOU CAN SEE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION RUNNING RAMPANT IN OUR WORLD.

DEATH IN THE FORM OF ALCOHOLISM, DRUG ADDICTION, SEXUAL PERVERSION, GREED, MALICE, HATRED. ALL OF WHICH, WITHOUT CHRIST INTERVENING, RESULT IN DEATH. GOD LOOKS UPON MAN, AND IS SICKENED BY THE FILTHINESS OF OUR HEARTS AND MINDS AND OUR MOUTHS.

HE EXAMINES THE TONGUE AND EXCLAIMS, “WITH THEIR TONGUE THEY HAVE USED DECEIT. MAN IS FULL OF LIES. OUR WORLD IS FULL OF LIES. SATAN, AS THE FATHER OF ALL LIES, HAS DONE HIS TASK VERY WELL. LIES, ARE SOMETIMES SO WELL CRAFTED THAT THEY COME ACROSS AS THE TRUTH.

IT TAKES THE HOLY EYES OF GOD TO SEE THROUGH THE SMOKE SCREEN OF DECEPTION. THERE IS NOT A PERSON HERE TODAY UNDER THE SOUND OF MY VOICE, INCLUDING MYSELF, THAT HAS NEVER TOLD A LIE. WE ARE ALL GUILTY, ALL OF MANKIND IS GUILTY.

THE GREAT PHYSICIAN CONTINUES HIS EXAMINATION, AND PULLS BACK THE LIPS OF HUMANITY AND DECLARES, “THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS” (ROM. 3:13c).

WITH OUR LIPS WE CAN RUIN THE REPUTATION OF OTHERS.

THEN HE STEPS BACK AND TAKES AN OVERALL LOOK AT THE MOUTH OF MAN AND STATES, “WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS” (ROM. 3:14).

MAN IS PRONE TO CURSING AND BACKBITING. LOOK AT WHAT THE GREAT PHYSICIAN HAS EXAMINED FIRST. HE HAS EXAMINED EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THE MOUTH. OUR MOUTHS GET US INTO A LOT OF TROUBLE DO THEY NOT?

WITH OUR MOUTHS AT TIMES WE CAN DO MORE DAMAGE THAN IF WE HAD BEATEN SOMEONE WITH OUR FISTS. HOW TRUE IS THE KIDS RHYME, “STICKS AND STONES MAY BREAK MY BONES BUT WORDS WILL NEVER HURT ME”?

NOW, I HAVE BEEN HIT WITH ROCKS, I GOT STITCHES IN ABOVE MY RIGHT EYE WHEN I GOT HIT BY A BASEBALL BAT, BUT SOME OF THE WORST HURT I HAVE EVER FELT, IS FROM THE WORDS COMING OUT OF SOMEONE’S MOUTH.

WORDS DO HURT. WORDS CAN CUT TO THE QUICK. WHAT DOES THE BOOK OF REVELATION SAY ABOUT CHRIST, OUT OF HIS MOUTH WENT A SHARP TWO-EDGED SWORD.

WE WERE MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD. DON’T YOU THINK THAT SOME OF GOD’S ATTRIBUTES CAME ALONG WITH THAT. HE SPOKE THE WORLD INTO EXISTENCE. FOLKS, OUR MOUTHS ARE VERY POWERFUL TOOLS. WE CAN USE THEM FOR GOOD AND THEY CAN BE USED JUST AS EASILY FOR EVIL.

THE GREAT PHYSICIAN CONTINUES HIS EXAMINATION OF HUMANITY AND HE LOOKS AT THE EYES AND OBSERVES, “THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES” (ROM. 3:18). MAN LIVES AS IF GOD DOES NOT EXIST. WE CAN SEE THE EVIDENCE OF THIS, IF WE JUST TAKE A LOOK AT THE WORLD AROUND US.

GOD THEN LOOKS AT THE FEET, AND REMARKS, “THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD” (ROM. 3:15). ISAIAH 59:7 SAYS: “Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.”

HE NOW LOOKS AT THE HEART AND LISTENS TO THE HEART, AND SAYS, “THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS” (JER. 17:9a). HE THEN PERFORMS A COMPLETE CARDIOGRAM AND PRONOUNCES MANS HEART: “DESPERATELY WICKED” (JER. 17:9b).

WE CAN SEE FROM THIS DESCRIPTION OF HUMANITY FROM THE SCRIPTURES THAT MAN IS SICKLY AND NEEDS A CURE.

ALL OF THIS DESCRIBES THE CONDITION OF THE LOST, AND REGRETFULLY, IT MAY EVEN DESCRIBE THE CONDITION OF SOME CHRISTIANS. THIS CONDITION IS SOMETHING THAT CHRISTIANS ARE SAVED FROM, BUT THEY CAN HAVE A RELAPSE, THOUGH NOT TOTALLY FATAL TO THE POINT OF LOSING THEIR SALVATION, BUT RELAPSES CAN OCCUR IN MOST ANY ILLNESS, IF WE DO NOT FOLLOW THE DOCTOR’S ADVICE.

SIN SICKNESS STARTED SOME 6,000 YEARS AGO IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN. AND IT HAS TAKEN A DIVINE TRANSFUSION TO CURE THE SIN SICK PERSON FROM SUFFERING ETERNAL DEATH AND DAMNATION.

IT TOOK THE BLOOD OF THE HOLY LAMB OF GOD TO CURE OUR SIN SICK SOULS. ONCE THE BLOOD IS APPLIED WE WILL LIVE FOREVER. WE WILL WALK THE STREETS OF GLORY.

WE WILL LIVE IN THE NEW JERUSALEM A CITY 1500 MILES SQUARE AND 1500 MILES TALL—THIS SHOULD GIVE US SOME CLUE AS TO THE BIGNESS OF GOD. IT SHOULD CLUE US IN TO HIS MAJESTY AND POWER. THE TALLEST BUILDINGS OF MAN CANNOT EVER COMPARE TO THE HOLY CITY FROM HEAVEN.