The Gift That Keeps On Giving

“The Gift that Keeps On Giving”

John 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

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I. The Activity of the Spirit – “All that the Father giveth…”

a. The latitude – “…all…”

The word “whosoever” appears 110 times in the NT and is God’s way of declaring the His invitation to us is “open ended” and all inclusive!

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Acts 10:43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

Romans 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

b. The love – “…the Father…”

Romans 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

c. The leading

John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him…

II. The Approachability of the Savior – “…him that cometh…”

BAPTIZING A DRUNK

A man was stumbling through the woods, totally drunk, when he came upon a preacher baptizing people in the river. He proceeded to walk into the water and bumped into the preacher. The preacher turned around and, though almost overcome by the smell of alcohol, asked the drunk, "Are you ready to find Jesus?" The Drunk answered, "Yes, I am." So the preacher grabbed the drunk and dunked him in the water. Then he pulled him up and asked him, "Brother have you found Jesus?" The drunk replied, "No, I haven’t found Jesus." The preacher, shocked at the answer, dunked him into the water again, for a little longer. Then again, he pulled him out and asked, "Have you found Jesus my brother?" The drunk again answered, "No, I haven’t found Jesus." By this time the preacher was at his wits end so he submerged the

drunk once more, and held him down for about 30 seconds until he began kicking his arms and legs, whereupon he pulled him up. The preacher again asked the drunk, "For the love of God have you found Jesus?"

The drunk wiped his eyes and caught his breath and finally said to the preacher, "Are you sure this is where he fell in?"

Let me assure you that there is a better way to find Jesus. He is accessible and approachable to all who will come to Him in faith. Nothing illustrates this better than the woman caught in the “act of adultery” in:

John 8:3 And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,

4 They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.

Two things stand out in this narrative. First, there is:

a. No condemnation – “…neither do I condemn thee…”

One of the reasons that sinners do not come to Christ is the “prickly” nature of the followers of Christ. Most Christians have more “spines” than a porcupine! We are judgmental and quick to condemn the behavior of others which more often than not can be found in our own lives. Paul addressed this issue in:

Romans 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.

WESLEY AND CRITICISM

ILL - John Wesley was a great English preacher of the 1700’s. He was considered a rather spiffy dresser. One Sunday morning he wore a bow tie that had long ribbons that hung downward. After the sermon was over a lady walked up to him and said, "Brother Wesley, are you open to some criticism?" He said, "I guess so. What would you like to criticize?" She said, "The ribbons on your tie are entirely too long and inappropriate for a man of God." And she took out her scissors and cut them off. A hush fell over the people standing there as Wesley calmly asked, "Now may I borrow the scissors for a moment?" As she handed them to him, he said, "Ma’am, are you open to some criticism?" She answered, "Well, I suppose I am." He said, "All right then, please stick out your tongue."

(From a sermon by Stephen Sheane, "A New Year, A New You")

ILL - When commerce had been reestablished with the converted cannibalistic people of the Fiji Islands, a merchant who was an atheist landed on the islands to do business. He was talking to the Fiji chief and noticed a Bible and some other religious paraphernalia around the chief’s house. He chided the chief for listening to the foolishness of the Christian missionaries. The chief replied, "Do you see that large white stone over there? That is the stone where just a few years ago we used to smash the heads of our victims to get at their brains. Do you see that large oven over there? That is the oven where just a few short years ago we used to bake the bodies of our victims before we feasted upon them. Had we not listened to what you call the nonsense of the Christian missionaries, I assure you that your head would already be smashed on that rock and your body would be baking in that oven!" There is no record of that merchant’s response to that explanation, but the account wonderfully reminds us that Christ meant it when He said that He would not turn anyone away even cannibals!