Participants: Pr. Furman Fordham II
Series Code: FDOF
Program Code: FDOF000041A
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00:16 Hello, and welcome to Foundation of Our Faith.
00:20 My name is John Dinzey and it's a pleasure for me 00:22 to be with you during this moment 00:24 to bring to you a message that comes from God's Word 00:28 through God's chosen vessel today. 00:30 And I would like to present to you our speaker, 00:33 is Pastor Furman Fordham and he has been used by God 00:38 in different places of the world 00:40 including Melbourne, Australia, Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas. 00:46 But currently, he serves as senior pastor 00:49 of the Riverside Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:51 in Nashville, Tennessee. 00:53 Now Pastor Fordham has been used by God 00:56 also to co-author a book with Eddie Polite, 01:00 called Mission Driven Ministry. 01:03 And I would like to highlight this for a moment 01:05 because it is his passion to help a church 01:08 come from just maintenance 01:10 to have a mission minded outlook 01:16 and so this is what has... 01:19 God has used him to bring about 01:22 in his ministry in a powerful way 01:24 because he depends, Pastor Fordham depends 01:27 on the Holy Spirit. 01:29 And He has been praying much for God 01:31 to using him during this hour 01:33 and we hope that you are ready with your Bible 01:36 to study the message "This Gospel", 01:39 that is the title of the message, "This Gospel". 01:41 So we encourage you to get your hearts ready 01:45 for God's blessing through Pastor Fordham. 01:47 Before that we have a song by our musical guest, 01:52 musical evangelist Sister Chavvah Lister. 01:55 Sister Chavvah Lister is a person 01:57 that is passionate about her relationship with Jesus Christ 02:01 and she hopes that her music will draw people 02:05 to cling to Jesus Christ 02:06 so that they too will love the Lord 02:09 with all of their hearts. 02:10 She also not only sings but she also writes music 02:14 and as a matter of fact, 02:16 she is part of a songwriting team for the music 02:20 her group called Fighting Chance 02:22 to which she also is a member. 02:25 Her husband of course, is also a member of God's mission team. 02:29 He is a senior pastor 02:31 of the Orchard Park Seventh-day Adventist Church 02:33 and they have been blessed with two wonderful children. 02:36 I would like to encourage you 02:38 to stay with us during this hour 02:39 because we are going to be blessed. 02:42 These are God's chosen servants 02:44 and we now encourage you to join us in prayer 02:46 wherever you may be around the world. 02:48 We ask for you to pray with us. 02:50 Let us pray. 02:52 Our precious and wonderful heavenly Father, 02:56 we thank You Lord for this hour. 02:57 The hour has come for You to speak through Your children. 03:02 We pray that You will use Pastor Fordham. 03:04 We pray that through him, 03:06 you will bring a message that will touch our hearts. 03:09 We pray as well that you will use Sister Chavvah. 03:12 Bless her and use her as you have in the past. 03:15 To not only touch our hearts but to draw us close to Jesus. 03:19 And we pray that in all things 03:21 Your name will be honored and glorified. 03:24 We ask You Father for these blessings in the holy 03:27 and blessed name of Jesus. 03:30 Amen. Amen. 03:32 At this time it is a pleasure for me to tell you 03:34 that the song you're about to hear 03:35 is called Orphans of God. 03:37 May God bless you. 03:54 Who here among us 03:58 Has not been broken 04:02 Who here among us is without guilt or shame 04:09 So oft abandoned 04:13 By our transgressions 04:17 If such a thing as grace exists 04:21 Then grace was made for lives like this 04:29 There are no strangers 04:33 There are no outcasts 04:36 There are no orphans of God 04:44 So many fallen, but hallelujah 04:52 There are no orphans 04:56 Of God 05:05 Come ye, unwanted and find affection 05:12 Come all ye weary, come and lay down your head 05:19 Come ye unworthy, you are my brother 05:27 If such a thing as grace exists 05:31 Then grace was made for lives like this 05:35 There are no strangers 05:39 There are no outcasts 05:43 There are no orphans of God 05:51 So many fallen, but hallelujah 05:58 There are no orphans 06:03 Of God 06:07 O blessed Father, look down upon us 06:15 We are Your children, we need Your love 06:22 We run before Your throne of mercy 06:30 And seek Your face 06:34 To rise above 06:40 There are no strangers 06:44 No outcasts 06:48 No orphans of God 06:53 So many fallen, but hallelujah 07:01 There are no orphans 07:07 There are no strangers 07:11 No outcasts 07:15 No orphans of God 07:20 So many fallen 07:24 But hallelujah 07:32 There are no orphans 07:36 Of God 08:00 Isn't that good news? 08:02 Thank you so much Chavvah for the gospel in song. 08:06 There are no strangers, 08:09 no outsiders, no orphans with God. 08:13 Once again we praise the Lord for the gospel in the song. 08:17 Thank you Chavvah, 08:18 and thank you John for your introduction. 08:21 Welcome to the Dare to Dream family 08:25 and to our Foundation of Faith Program. 08:30 I am so excited about the opportunity 08:34 to share God's Word together with you. 08:37 The portion of scripture 08:39 that the Lord has put on my heart 08:41 is found in Matthew 24 08:45 and I want to read verse 14. 08:47 I'm going to read this 08:49 from the King James Version of the Bible. 08:53 Matthew 24:14 and it says, 08:58 "And this gospel of the kingdom 09:02 shall be preached in all the world 09:05 for a witness unto all nations and then shall the end come." 09:12 And this gospel of the kingdom 09:15 shall be preached in all the world 09:18 for a witness unto all nations 09:21 and then shall the end come." 09:24 I have been entitled our message today, This Gospel. 09:29 Let's bow our heads together. 09:32 Hover over me Holy Spirit, 09:35 bathe my trembling heart and brow. 09:38 Fill me with Your hallowed presence, 09:40 come o come and fill me now. 09:43 Fill me now, fill me now, only You can fill me now. 09:49 So fill me with Thy hallowed presence, 09:52 come, please come and fill us now. 09:58 In the name of Jesus we pray, amen. 10:02 This Gospel, when I grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, 10:08 I attended a Seventh-day Adventist Church 10:12 that recited this verse every time we had worshiped. 10:18 Every Sabbath, every Saturday at the conclusion 10:22 of what we called our Sabbath school, 10:25 and just prior to our Divine Worship Service, 10:30 the congregation would stand up 10:32 and we would recite together 10:34 and this gospel of the kingdom 10:37 shall be preached in all the world 10:39 for a witness unto all nations, 10:42 and then shall the end come. 10:44 It was like our rally cry. 10:47 It was galvanizing the members, reminding them of the mission 10:52 to share the gospel with the entire world. 10:56 Even the name, our church's denomination, 11:00 Seventh-day Adventist, Advent, 11:04 it talks about the soon coming of Jesus Christ. 11:08 And we were a part of this worldwide movement 11:12 wanting to prepare individuals for Christ's return. 11:16 That's the blessed event that we're looking for, 11:19 it is what our hearts are yearning for, 11:22 and each worship service we recited this verse. 11:27 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached 11:30 in all the world for a witness unto all nations, 11:34 and then the end shall come. 11:36 We would go out and we would share pamphlets, 11:39 and we would share brochures, and we would knock on doors 11:43 and ask people if they would take Bible studies, 11:46 invite people to church. 11:47 We were trying to do our part to share this gospel 11:53 believing that soon and very soon 11:56 that we would be able to hasten our Lord's return. 12:00 We were committed to preaching this gospel 12:03 so that the entire world would know 12:06 and then the end would come. 12:08 I find myself wondering, why is it taking so long? 12:13 Why has the end not come? 12:15 Why have we been preaching, and teaching, and sharing, 12:19 and evangelizing, 12:21 and still no second coming of Jesus. 12:24 I do not suggest that I have the precise answer, 12:28 I do not suggest that I have the entire answer 12:31 but I do wonder 12:32 if this portion of scripture suggests an answer. 12:37 The Bible says, "And this gospel of the kingdom 12:42 shall be preached in all the world 12:44 for a witness unto all nations, 12:47 and then the end will come." 12:49 And this gospel... 12:52 Notice Jesus didn't say and "A gospel" 12:58 or "Your gospel" 13:01 or "My gospel" 13:04 or "Any gospel," 13:06 He said, "And this gospel." 13:09 I wonder if part of our problem in Christendom 13:15 is we are going out sharing information, 13:19 well intentioned stories, 13:21 we are doing our best at outreach and evangelism, 13:25 we are giving doctrinal communication, 13:28 but I am concerned 13:30 that we may not be preaching this gospel. 13:37 The reality is that many individuals are clueless 13:41 when it comes to what exactly this gospel 13:46 is that Jesus was referring to. 13:50 Author Caesar Kalinowski in his book The Gospel Primer, 13:55 talks about how he interviewed a group of pastors 13:59 and simply asked them what is the gospel. 14:03 And he was amazed 14:04 that their answers had nothing to do 14:08 with creation, sin, Jesus Christ, the cross, 14:15 or His coming kingdom. 14:18 They share a lot of positive information, 14:22 a lot of encouraging information, 14:24 a lot of biblical information, 14:27 but if preachers of God's Word are not clear on the gospel, 14:32 might it be true that even our members 14:36 are not clear on the gospel, 14:38 and Jesus has said, before He comes 14:42 this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached 14:47 in all the world for a witness unto all nations. 14:50 I want to make sure 14:53 we understand this gospel. 14:58 The gospel simply means good news. 15:02 Right away if what you're preaching and teaching 15:05 is not good news, 15:07 I suggest that you're not preaching 15:09 and teaching the gospel. 15:11 Good news is not that if you don't do this, 15:15 you are going to hell. 15:16 Look, if you do that, you are going to hell, 15:19 that's not good news. 15:21 Good news is not what you have to do 15:25 or what I have to do, 15:27 good news is what somebody else has already done. 15:33 I am on a quest to find this gospel 15:38 and I believe that we find it first 15:41 all the way back in the beginning of the Bible. 15:45 All the way back in the Garden of Eden, 15:48 that is where we find 15:51 the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ. 15:55 That this gospel that is supposed to be preached 16:00 for a witness to all nations. 16:02 I want to take you all the way back to this gospel. 16:08 The good news of the kingdom of God 16:11 is best understood when it's contrasted 16:15 with the bad news of the kingdom of this world. 16:20 You know, good news is best understood 16:23 in contrast to bad news. 16:26 If I share with you 16:28 that I just got out of the hospital, 16:31 that's good news. 16:33 But it's good news 16:34 because I was sick and I was suffering, 16:38 it's the context of the bad news 16:41 that helps you embrace and understand the good news. 16:45 Well, the bad news was that Adam and Eve 16:49 had been tempted by the dragon, 16:52 by Satan, by the devil, 16:54 by that serpent in disguise, 16:57 they had been tempted in Genesis 3. 17:01 With his very subtle and alluring words 17:04 that if they ate of the fruit of that tree 17:08 that they would not really die. 17:12 You remember the story in Genesis 3, 17:16 Adam and Eve are in the garden 17:18 and everything that they experience 17:21 is wonderful and good. 17:24 Can you imagine an existence where everything is good? 17:30 They have no experience with disappointment, with loss. 17:36 They have no experience with back pain, 17:40 or headaches, or heartaches. 17:42 They don't even have an experience with a traffic jam 17:46 or seeing someone suffer the loss of a loved one. 17:51 Everything they experienced was good. 17:56 And then Satan is suggesting that, 18:01 this warning that they were given to refrain 18:05 from eating of the tree of the knowledge 18:08 of good and evil. 18:10 Satan is suggesting that that warning 18:13 is not to be believed or received 18:17 the truth he says, 18:19 is that God knows that if you eat of it 18:22 you'll become come like Him, 18:24 knowing good and evil. 18:26 Suggesting that evil is something worth knowing, 18:29 suggesting that God is trying to hide from them 18:33 something that they would desire to have for themselves. 18:37 Satan is suggesting for the first time 18:40 that there is something about God that isn't good. 18:45 He's suggesting that God doesn't have the best interest 18:48 of His creatures in mind, 18:50 that He's trying to scare them 18:52 away from partaking of this fruit. 18:54 Suggesting that if they eat, they will die 18:59 and Satan is saying, if they eat, they will expand 19:03 and then they will increase, and they will become like God. 19:07 Satan is challenging them to distrust God. 19:12 And the bad news is that they bought it. 19:18 Moment that they made that decision to distrust God 19:25 and to put their trust in Satan, 19:27 the moment that they set their minds to disobey God, 19:32 all of the goodness that they experienced vanish, 19:37 their relationship with one another 19:41 is now becoming unhinged. 19:44 They're blaming each other and accusing each other, 19:47 they have a new feeling that they never felt before. 19:51 This guilt and this shame 19:53 and now they're experiencing fear. 19:55 They did not know what this death thing was 19:59 but they're scared to death because it's about to come. 20:03 And here they are standing before God now 20:08 worried about what He is going to say. 20:11 He has come and He is looking for Adam and Eve. 20:15 They are hiding in the garden in their fig leaves 20:19 in an effort to cover up their nakedness. 20:24 And they come before God, 20:26 and when He asks them what they've done, 20:28 they blame each other, they try to justify, 20:32 they do whatever they can to escape this condemnation. 20:36 But they know that the penalty of death is about to come 20:41 and it's at this precise point 20:44 in the context of the bad news 20:48 that Adam and Eve hear good news. 20:53 Follow me in Genesis 3 20:55 and listen to what the Bible says 20:58 beginning with verse 15. 21:01 The Bible has God speaking not to Adam and Eve, 21:06 but speaking to the serpent who did this. 21:10 The Bible says beginning with verse 14, 21:14 "And the Lord God said to the serpent, 21:16 "Because you have done this, 21:18 you are cursed above all cattle, 21:21 and above every beast of the field. 21:23 Upon your belly you shall go, 21:25 and thus shall you eat all the days of your life." 21:28 And I will put enmity, resistance, 21:33 some tension between you serpent, 21:37 between you Satan, 21:39 I will put some tension, some resistance, 21:42 some enmity between you Satan and the woman 21:48 and between your seed and her seed. 21:52 God is saying, I'm going to put some tension, some resistance, 21:56 some animosity, some enmity between you Satan 22:01 and between the woman, 22:03 and between your seed Satan, 22:06 your offspring that which you produced 22:11 and between the woman's seed, the woman's offspring, 22:16 what the woman produces. 22:19 What is happening now to Adam and Eve, 22:23 they were expecting to receive words of death 22:28 but they actually are hearing words of life. 22:33 The woman is going to have a seed. 22:37 Whatever this death penalty is, 22:42 it either has been averted, 22:45 or avoided, or put on pause 22:49 because the woman's going to have a seed. 22:53 She's going to procreate and then the Bible says 22:58 that that seed, a specific seed, 23:02 a certain seed, 23:04 I will put enmity between you, Satan and the woman, 23:08 and between her seed, 23:11 between your seed and her seed. 23:13 It a specific seed, an individual seed, 23:18 a particular seed. 23:21 The word seed can be plural, talking about a bunch of seed, 23:26 we have many seeds, 23:27 or it can be singular, a particular seed. 23:32 This is speaking of a particular descendant, 23:37 a specific descendant. 23:40 God is announcing that the woman 23:44 will have a specific child, 23:47 and that child 23:49 will actually crush, and conquer, 23:54 and will actually destroy the head of the serpent 24:00 that just conquered and crushed Adam and Eve. 24:05 What I'm wanting us to understand is that 24:09 while Adam and Eve are standing before the tribunal of God 24:15 awaiting the condemning sentence of death. 24:19 The first thing they hear are words of hope 24:24 that a child will be born, that a Redeemer will come, 24:29 that a Savior will appear. 24:32 The Bible says in further prophecies 24:35 that His name shall be called Jesus, 24:39 for He will save His people from their sins. 24:43 Emmanuel, God with us, 24:47 this is the first prophecy of good news 24:53 and it comes in the garden 24:55 when Adam and Eve are facing certain death. 25:00 They are being told 25:04 that the woman will give birth to a child 25:07 and that that child will conquer 25:12 that that child will crush the head of the serpent. 25:18 The very serpent that conquered them, 25:23 that beguiled them, that tempted and corrode them 25:28 will be corrode and conquered by a descendent of them. 25:34 This is a prophecy that someone else is going to come 25:41 and he's going to conquer the kingdom of Satan. 25:47 What I want us to see 25:49 is that the gospel is the good news 25:52 that Jesus is going to pay our penalty. 25:58 Notice what happens next in the story. 26:01 The Bible says that that the serpent is going to be 26:05 engaged in this volatile battle 26:08 with the woman and her descendants 26:10 and there will be enmity and resistance. 26:13 But then the Bible says 26:14 that one descendant is going to crush the serpent's head, 26:19 going to bruise his head. 26:21 When you bruise the head of a snake, 26:23 you've conquered it and you crushed it. 26:25 But in the meantime, it says 26:27 his heel will be scraped or scratched. 26:32 What did the Bible say in Isaiah 53? 26:35 "He was wounded for our transgressions." 26:39 He was bruised for our iniquities. 26:42 This is a prophecy letting us know 26:46 that while Jesus comes to save, 26:49 He will be scratched, He will be scraped, 26:53 He will get damaged in the scuffle. 26:57 Because the way that Jesus would save, 27:01 is by laying down His life 27:04 for the lives of His children. 27:08 The good news of the gospel 27:10 is that Jesus is paying our penalty, 27:17 it's seen more forcibly. 27:21 When we go 27:22 to Genesis 3:21, 27:28 the Bible says, "Unto Adam and his wife, 27:34 the Lord God make coats of skin, 27:40 and clothed them." 27:44 Adam and Eve were standing 27:48 in their fig leaf garments. 27:52 The garments that they made 27:54 in an effort to cover their nakedness. 27:58 And now the Bible says in Genesis 3:21 28:02 that the Lord God made garments of skin, 28:06 coats of skin and clothed them. 28:10 Not exactly sure what a garment of skin is, 28:13 what a coat of skin is, 28:16 He may have made them a leather jacket, 28:19 or a sheep skin coat. 28:22 This is referring to the skin of an animal. 28:29 That means that something died 28:35 and it was not them. 28:40 What I need us to visualize is that Adam and Eve 28:44 for the first time are taking a lamb, 28:48 and they are seeing that a knife is being raised 28:53 and it's landing at the throat of the lamb. 28:57 As the blood gushes out and the life gushes out, 29:02 they have visual evident 29:05 for the first time in history of what death is. 29:10 And it dawns on them, it was supposed to be there's. 29:16 The Bible is preaching, 29:19 it's prophesying 29:22 that Jesus is gonna pay our penalty. 29:27 The Bible says, 29:28 "He's the lamb slain from the foundation of the world." 29:33 All throughout Old Testament history, 29:36 those that came to worship would bring a lamb 29:39 and they would bring a spotless lamb, 29:42 a blameless lamb, a sinless lamb, 29:47 and they would place their hands 29:49 on the head of the lamb. 29:51 They would confess their sin, confess their shame, 29:56 all in a way to transfer the guilt of the sinner 30:02 on to the head of the eventual sacrifice. 30:06 And this took place year after year. 30:10 Thousands of lambs slain, thousands of bulls slaughtered 30:15 all forecasting one specific sacrifice, 30:20 that seed that would come, 30:23 who would crush the serpent's head, 30:25 and would get his heel scraped. 30:28 And when Jesus emerges, John says, 30:32 "Behold, the lamb of God 30:35 who takes away the sin of the world." 30:37 Jesus came to pay our penalty 30:43 and that's the gospel 30:47 and it's good news. 30:51 You imagine that you've been busted 30:55 for some heinous sin, 31:00 you and I concocted a plan 31:02 to set up target practice outside of an elementary school 31:07 and when the children come out, 31:09 we shoot them down in cold blood. 31:13 I remember quite a few years ago, 31:15 I was pastoring in Charleston, Missouri 31:19 not too far from Paducah, Kentucky 31:22 nearby where this program is being taped. 31:26 And it was the first school shooting, 31:28 that massacre that took place in Paducah 31:31 where lives were gunned down needlessly and violently, 31:37 and the individuals were apprehended 31:40 and taken to court and tried. 31:43 Now you imagine that we are those individuals. 31:48 We are standing in court with our orange jumpsuits on, 31:53 handcuffed, and standing before the judge 31:57 guilty of this crime. 32:01 Then the judge gives the sentence, death penalty. 32:07 There's nothing that we can do, we deserve the condemnation 32:11 and the bailiff is about to take us out 32:15 so that we can make our way to the electric chair. 32:18 But then imagine that the judge stands up, 32:25 takes off his robe 32:28 and tells the bailiff to handcuff us 32:34 and to handcuff him instead 32:37 because he, the righteous judge 32:42 is going to pay our death penalty. 32:46 That wouldn't be good news, that would be great news. 32:51 Amazing news, phenomenal news, 32:54 and the gospel is good news. 32:59 Jesus is paying our penalty, 33:03 the penalty that we justly deserve. 33:06 We chose to separate ourselves from God, 33:10 we chose to distrust Him, 33:12 we chose to live life on our own, 33:15 and the just penalty, the wage of sin is death, yet, 33:22 God in Christ 33:24 is choosing to die for us. 33:30 Imagine that we go out to eat and rack up some huge bill 33:35 and realize that we have nothing to pay 33:38 and someone drops down their American express card. 33:43 All I'm trying to say is Jesus is paying our penalty. 33:49 Adam and Eve in the garden 33:52 were receiving the prophetic preached gospel 33:57 that Jesus was gonna pay their penalty. 34:00 And that is this gospel that must be preached 34:05 in all the world for a witness unto all nations, 34:09 and then the end will come. 34:11 People need to know the good news 34:14 that our penalty has been paid. 34:17 I don't have to pay my penalty 34:20 with laborious works of service. 34:23 I don't have to buy my efforts at goodness, pay for my wrong. 34:29 I don't have to convince God that I deserve salvation 34:34 by trying to live according to His holy law. 34:38 No, the good news of the gospel 34:41 is that my penalty has already been paid. 34:47 But there's more. 34:49 The good news of the gospel is that He pays my penalty 34:54 and provides my righteousness. 34:58 Go back to the Garden of Eden scenario. 35:01 Adam and Eve are dressed 35:05 in their fig leaves. 35:09 These fig leaves are symbolic of their effort 35:14 to cover their nakedness. 35:20 Nakedness is not something 35:23 that should just be understood 35:25 from a physical perspective, 35:28 this is a soul nakedness. 35:30 The Bible said in Genesis 2 that they were naked already, 35:35 they just weren't ashamed, 35:36 now they are naked and ashamed. 35:40 They feel guilt, and shame, and embarrassment not 35:45 because they are unclothed 35:48 but because they are unrighteous. 35:52 So in an effort to make themselves righteous, 35:58 in an effort to make themselves holy, 36:02 in an effort to make themselves fit to stand 36:07 before the all searching eye of the King of kings 36:12 and the Lord of lords, 36:13 they start working with their hands 36:18 to cover their unrighteousness 36:21 believing that they can make themselves righteous. 36:27 And Genesis 3:21 says 36:31 that God, knowing that these fig leaves 36:36 would wither away in a week or two, 36:42 knowing that their sin would not be sufficiently covered 36:47 by works of their own righteousness. 36:51 God, knowing that nothing can make us righteous, 36:57 save the spotless garment of Jesus' righteousness. 37:04 God made coats of skin 37:10 and clothed them. 37:13 This means that God literally 37:16 is skinning the animal 37:21 and then putting the skin on them. 37:26 I hope that you are seeing the good news of the gospel. 37:30 Not only did the animal pay their penalty 37:37 but the animal skin is covering them, 37:41 it's clothing them. 37:44 Jesus is the lamb slain 37:47 from the foundation of the world, 37:49 His death pays our penalty 37:52 but Jesus is also that holy one, 37:56 that all righteous one, the one who never knew sin 38:02 and never gave into sin. 38:04 He was tempted in all points like as we are, 38:08 yet without sin, He is the one that could say 38:12 when Satan was coming, he has nothing in me. 38:16 Jesus' death pays our penalty, 38:20 but Jesus' life provides our righteousness. 38:27 And God strips away 38:31 Adam and Eve's fig leaves 38:35 and covers them 38:37 with the garments of the lamb that was slain. 38:42 This is the gospel. 38:45 The Bible is saying 38:47 that I'm not saved by my righteousness, 38:50 by my efforts, by my attempt to holiness. 38:55 No, I am saved, Romans 5:18, 19, 39:01 "Because of the obedience of one, 39:05 Jesus lived righteously 39:07 and He clothes me with his righteousness." 39:11 What does Isaiah 64:6 say? 39:15 Our righteousness is filthy rags. 39:20 The best that I can provide 39:24 is called filthy rags. 39:27 My church going, my tithe returning, 39:32 my Sabbath keeping, 39:34 my health reform, 39:37 my efforts at morality. 39:39 The Bible says, 39:41 "Our righteousness is filthy rags." 39:44 But the Bible says in Isaiah 61:10 39:49 that He clothed me 39:51 with the garments of righteousness. 39:55 We are like that prodigal son 39:58 filthy because of our sins 40:00 and filthy because of our stains. 40:03 But when we come home to the father 40:06 he says, "Bring the best robe." 40:10 And he covers us with His righteousness. 40:17 Malachi 3:1-3 talks about 40:23 how we ought to be these Levites 40:26 who will offer Him 40:28 and it's offering of righteousness 40:31 and we offer Him this offering of righteousness 40:34 because He purifies us, and He purges us, 40:39 and He covers us and clothes us 40:43 so that we can offer an offering of righteousness. 40:49 The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 1:30, 40:53 "He is our righteousness. 40:56 He is our sanctification." 40:59 The good news of the gospel is that He pays my penalty 41:06 and He provides my righteousness, 41:10 and that is this gospel 41:14 that must be preached in all the world 41:18 for a witness unto all nations, 41:21 and then the savior will come. 41:25 And if we're honest with ourselves, 41:29 as Christians too frequently 41:32 we've preached a different gospel. 41:35 We've given people the impression 41:38 that Jesus may have paid for their past sin 41:44 but it's their responsibility now 41:47 to live for Him. 41:48 That we must live righteously, 41:51 that we must live holy in our own power. 41:55 If you appreciate what Jesus has done for you, 41:58 you must live righteously, you must live holy. 42:02 I want you to know, that's not good news 42:06 because the truth is, 42:07 I can't live righteously 42:11 and I can't live holy. 42:15 The Bible is communicating 42:19 that Jesus' death pays my penalty 42:25 and Jesus' life provides my righteousness. 42:30 Let me share it with you in Romans 5. 42:34 Take your Bibles and go to Romans 5 42:37 and I want you to see 42:38 how this gospel is communicated in verses 6-8. 42:43 I'm in Romans 5 42:46 now in the New King James Version of the Bible. 42:49 Verse 6 says, "For when we were still without strength..." 42:56 Still unable to produce righteousness, 43:02 still unable to live holy, 43:06 still unable to live consistent 43:10 with God's Ten Commandment law of love, 43:13 when we were still without strength, 43:17 in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 43:23 Christ died for the wretched, the raunchy. 43:29 Christ died for the unrighteous, 43:32 He paid our penalty, it says in verse 7, 43:36 "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, 43:39 yet perhaps for good man 43:42 someone would even dare to die." 43:44 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, 43:49 in that while we were yet sinners. 43:52 I don't know if you are grasping this. 43:55 God shared His love with us. 43:58 God demonstrated His love with us. 44:00 And while we were yet sinners, 44:03 we were still rebelling against Him, 44:06 still fighting against Him, 44:08 still apathetic toward Him, still angry at Him. 44:12 While we were in the midst of our illicit activity, 44:17 Christ was in the midst of His salvific activity. 44:22 God demonstrated His love toward us, 44:25 in that while we were yet sinners, 44:28 Christ died for us, 44:30 that's the paying of the penalty. 44:34 But then the Bible says in verse 9, 44:38 there's much more having now 44:43 been justified by His blood 44:47 that's Him paying the penalty, 44:49 that's Jesus' death 44:51 much more having now been justified by His blood. 44:56 We shall be saved from wrath through Him, 45:01 for if when we were enemies, 45:03 we were reconciled to God through the death of His son 45:07 much more having been reconciled 45:11 we shall be saved by His life. 45:15 The death pays our penalty, 45:18 the life provides our righteousness, 45:22 and friend of mine, that's good news. 45:28 I find myself more and more, not just praising God 45:33 that He paid my penalty, 45:36 but praising God that He provides my righteousness. 45:41 He is promising to put His robe of righteousness on me 45:46 and put His Spirit in me. 45:50 Bible says in Ezekiel 36 45:55 that He's going to put a new heart within me 45:59 and a new mind within me. 46:02 He's gonna put His Spirit upon me 46:05 and cause me to keep His commandments and do them. 46:10 Christ is my righteousness. 46:15 The good news of the gospel is that He paid my penalty 46:20 and He provides my righteousness. 46:24 One final aspect of the gospel that is good news 46:29 is that He promises me 46:32 everlasting life now. 46:36 Go back to the Garden of Eden, 46:40 Adam and Eve are no longer standing fearful, 46:45 worried about their condemnation, 46:48 Jesus is going to pay their penalty. 46:51 No longer are they covered 46:54 in their attempt to make themselves righteous, 46:57 their fig leaved garments, no. 47:00 They've been clothed with the skin of that lamb 47:06 Jesus has provided their righteousness, 47:11 but they have also been exited out of the garden, 47:16 told that they have to leave this garden home. 47:21 Cherubim, angels with flaming swords 47:24 are put at the entrance to the garden 47:27 to guard its way while Adam and Eve are banished 47:32 to live throughout the rest of the earth 47:35 separated from access 47:38 to the garden and the tree of life. 47:41 God had said, "Dust you are and to dust you shall return." 47:47 Adam and Eve have to live with the reality 47:52 that their life is going to end in death. 47:58 The wage of sin is death, and they are going to die. 48:05 But the gift of God 48:10 is eternal life 48:13 and it comes through Jesus Christ. 48:16 Not only does He pay our penalty 48:20 and that's the good news of the gospel, 48:23 the good news of this gospel, 48:25 not only does He provide our righteousness 48:28 and that's the good news of the gospel, 48:31 that's the good news of this gospel. 48:34 But He promises them everlasting life 48:38 and He promises it now. 48:44 Bible says that he that hath the son 48:46 has everlasting life 48:50 and would not come into condemnation, 48:54 but has passed from death to life. 48:57 That's what Jesus could say, 49:00 "Do not fear those who attack the body 49:04 and kill the body, 49:06 but cannot kill the soul 49:09 because we have everlasting life. 49:13 What Jesus has promised is as good as gold. 49:18 God calls things that are not as though they were 49:22 and He promises us everlasting life. 49:26 And when God promises it, I have it. 49:31 That's why John the Revelator 49:34 at the close of scripture 49:39 articulates his vision, thus saying, 49:42 "I saw a new heaven and a new earth." 49:47 For the first heaven 49:49 and the first earth were passed away 49:51 and there was no more sea. 49:53 John is on the Island of Patmos when he gets this vision. 49:58 He's been placed there 49:59 because he was preaching the Word of God. 50:02 He's on an Island of Patmos prison 50:06 almost like our Alcatraz, 50:08 he separated from all of the Christians 50:11 on the mainland 50:13 and all he surrounded by is the sea. 50:17 But in this vision he sees a new heaven and a new earth, 50:22 and the first heaven 50:23 and the first earth had passed away 50:26 and there's no more sea, 50:28 no more distance separating him from the mainland, 50:32 no more distance separating him from his homeland. 50:37 And God is saying to John, 50:41 "I'm going to make a new heaven and a new earth, 50:45 and the old heaven and the old earth 50:47 will pass away with all of its sin, 50:50 and all of its suffering, 50:51 and all of its shame, and all of its degradation. 50:55 And there will be no more distance, 50:57 no more separation between my people and Me." 51:03 But the Bible says 51:04 that, that New Jerusalem showed to sin 51:10 and it's going to be like a bride adorned for her husband 51:15 and the tabernacle of God, 51:17 the dwelling place of God is gonna be with man 51:21 and we're gonna be with Him. 51:23 We're going to be His people and He's going to be our God. 51:27 We're going to be reunited in this relationship with God. 51:32 And as John continues to share his vision 51:36 in Revelation 21 and then Revelation 22, 51:39 he describes the tree of life 51:44 that will be in that new heaven 51:46 and that new earth. 51:48 That tree of life is symbolizing 51:52 that the human family 51:54 will now have access to everlasting life. 52:01 Because the good news of the gospel 52:05 is that He pays our penalty, 52:08 He provides our righteousness, 52:12 and He promises us everlasting life, 52:17 and we have it as a gift now. 52:23 And the gospel, 52:25 this gospel of the kingdom of God, 52:30 the new reign of God, 52:32 the power of God to conquer Satan's kingdom 52:37 and to wrest us from his rulership 52:40 to take off those chains that have bound us 52:44 and restricted us 52:45 and that take us down to death. 52:48 He has thrown them away 52:51 and initiated the entrance into His everlasting kingdom. 52:57 The good news of the gospel is the good news 53:01 that Jesus has come and He's paid our penalty. 53:06 He's provided our righteousness, 53:09 and He promises us everlasting life now. 53:15 And He gives it to us as a gift. 53:22 Wages of sin is death, 53:25 but the gift of God is eternal life, 53:32 and it comes through Jesus Christ. 53:35 This is the gospel, 53:39 this is the good news that men, and women, 53:44 and boys, and girls are hungering for 53:47 and thirsting for. 53:49 Sinners who are beaten down 53:52 and broken down 53:54 with the damaging consequences of sin, 53:57 sinners who are on their way to death 54:02 don't need a gospel 54:04 that demands what they must do, 54:06 when it's something they haven't the power to do. 54:10 They don't need a gospel that banishes them to hell. 54:14 They don't need a gospel that defines righteousness 54:18 as something they must produce. 54:21 That is bad news, horrific news, 54:24 negative news, bondaging news. 54:30 But the good news of the gospel, 54:34 this gospel that Jesus loved us so much 54:40 that He paid our penalty. 54:44 That Jesus understands our frailties so much 54:48 that He provides our righteousness 54:52 and that Jesus said, 54:54 "I will that they be with Me where I am." 55:01 That He wants to live with us 55:04 forever and ever and ever. 55:08 So He promises us everlasting life. 55:13 This gospel is good news 55:17 and it must be preached, 55:21 has to be preached in all the world 55:25 for a witness unto all nations, 55:28 and when this good news is preached, 55:31 when people know that God is a God of love, 55:35 God is a God of redeeming power. 55:38 God is a savior who took care of the sin problem. 55:43 When this gospel is preached in all the world 55:47 for a witness unto all nations, 55:49 men will want Him to come. 55:54 Oh, I pray that you would join me 55:57 in preaching this gospel. 56:01 Not another gospel, 56:04 not a water downed gospel, 56:07 not a works oriented gospel, 56:10 not a legalistic gospel, 56:12 but this gospel, 56:14 the good news of the kingdom of God. 56:20 I invite you to pray with me. 56:21 Dear heavenly Father, 56:23 oh, Lord, we thank You for this gospel 56:27 and we ask that the good news might perform its work in us. 56:33 Oh, God make us appreciative that You have paid our penalty. 56:38 Oh, Lord, allow us to experience 56:41 you providing and producing our righteousness 56:46 and we praise You 56:48 that You have promised us everlasting life 56:51 and we have it now. 56:54 Now empower us 56:56 to share this gospel of the kingdom 57:03 to all nations 57:06 so that the end may come. 57:09 In the name of Jesus, we pray. 57:12 Amen. 57:14 I trust that you appreciate this gospel. 57:20 And I encourage you to go and share this gospel. |
Revised 2017-11-28