Gospel preaching on 1 Timothy 3:16

… I trust everyone tonight can sing this song that we've sung, Wounded for Me, Dying for Me, Risen for Me. You know, if Christ be not risen, those of us who are saved, we'd still be in our sins of all men most miserable. But tonight we have a living, risen, glorified Savior to present to you tonight. If you're here, still in your sins and without Christ and without God. That's what we have to present to you tonight. And then it says living for me. If you're not saved, you don't have one in the glory living for you. But if you're saved and you know Christ as your Savior, then that man in the glory is living for you, dear friend. And then the last stanza, coming for me, coming for me. You know, the Lord Jesus may come before this meeting ends tonight. And what would happen to you if we were to be raptured from this meeting hall? Would you be left behind? Oh, I trust that you know the Savior and you wouldn't be left behind. Just before I read my text tonight, I'll tell you about a little five-year-old girl. A little five-year-old girl went to the conference with her mother and daddy. And in the afternoon, her mother and daddy went to lay down for a few minutes. And then they decided to take a walk. And this little girl came to her mother and daddy's room. And mother and daddy were gone. Where's my mommy? Where's my daddy? They're gone. Where are they? And her heart started going just like palpitating. My mommy and daddy is gone. What's happened? Well, we know what she thought. She thought the Lord Jesus had come and taken mommy and daddy to heaven and she was left behind. Maybe you've thought that way before. But that little incident was to exercise that little girl to trust Christ as her Savior. And that night at the gospel meeting, she made an open confession of Christ. And so if you've never made an open confession of Christ, you've never really taken Him as your Savior. We just pray tonight this might be your night of nights to turn from the darkness and from the distance and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith-believing. God help you to do that. Maybe you're here from the community or maybe you're here from one of the meetings. Maybe you're one of the children of the saints. I don't know everyone here, but God knows your heart. He knows whether you're saved or not. And if you're not saved, why not come to the Lord Jesus Christ tonight and be eternally saved? He says, come unto me all ye that labor and the heavy laden and I'll give you rest. C-O-M-E, come. That's all He asked of me. He did all the work. There's not for me to be. There on Calvary's cross, He died for everyone and all He asked me to do is C-O-M-E, come. C stands for children. O stands for old people. M stands for middle-aged people and E stands for everyone. How simple the gospel message is, dear friends. So come to the Lord Jesus Christ tonight and be eternally saved. God help you to do it. Let us turn to 1 Timothy chapter 3. 1 Timothy 3. 1 Timothy 3 and verse 16. And without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. Dear friends, I'm here tonight to tell you there's no controversy about it. It's clear and plain. If you're a lost sinner, you need a Savior. And that's the purpose of this gospel meeting tonight, to present the Savior to you. There's no controversy about it whatsoever. Without controversy, great is the mystery of piety, of godliness. I remember being in one of the cities in Canada not too long ago. And a dear man said to me, Mr. Costin, I don't comprehend it. And I turned to that dear man and you know what I said? I don't comprehend it either. I don't comprehend it, but I do apprehend. I lay hold of it by faith. And tonight, if you lay hold of this gospel message by faith, you take the Savior as your Savior, you can go on your way rejoicing, knowing that your sins have been given and you're on your way to heaven. So you don't have to understand it. We don't understand everything. We don't understand electricity, some of us. We don't understand many things, but we accept them. And tonight, as a lost sinner, if you're in this audience without Christ, why not lay hold of Christ? In fact, he wants to lay hold of you and all of your sins and degradation. And he will. He will. All you have to do is come to him and take him as your own personal Savior. Great is the mystery of godliness. Not only is this mystery great, but dear friends, we have a great Savior, a great salvation. And how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? You don't even have to reject, but just to neglect the welfare of your never-dying soul and if you die without Christ, you'd be lost for eternity. And the Lord Jesus one day will turn to some and says, whither I go, ye cannot come. And dear friends, if you die in your sins, you can't go where the Lord Jesus is. No, no. If you die in your sins, you'll be buried in your sins. And if you're buried in your sins, you'll be raised in your sins. And you'll have to stand before God naked in all your sins. Why? Because you're so bad? Or because you're so good? No, because you didn't avail yourself of this so great salvation that's found in and by and through the Lord Jesus Christ. So what a great Savior, what a great salvation that we have to offer to lost sinners tonight without Christ. You say, what is this mystery of godliness? Well, here's what it is. God was manifest in flesh. That T-H-E is in brackets. There was no flesh in the Lord Jesus. We heard about that this afternoon. He's that man out of heaven. So how wonderful that we have such a one, God, coming out to mankind in the person of His beloved Son. Now why did the Lord Jesus come down here? Why was God incarnate? There's some reasons why we want to look at tonight and taking them up in a gospel way. The first reason that the Lord Jesus came into manhood was to do the will of God. That's the reason that He came into this scene. Lo, it was written, it is written in the volume of the book, I come to do Thy will, O God. And when a sin offering is not mentioned, He says, I delight to do Thy will. Isn't it wonderful the Lord Jesus coming into manhood was for the express purpose to do the will of God. But oh how wonderful, in the will of God, in God's will was the cross of Calvary. Oh, that the Godhead planned that back in eternity, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, that the Lord Jesus would come into manhood and go to the cross of Calvary and glorify God in doing so and bringing sinners in the place of blessing. Oh dear friends, He was manifest in flesh to do God's will. Oh yes, to save us, save sinners, that's true. But most of all and foremost was to glorify God and do His blessed will. Another reason that the Lord Jesus came into manhood was to reveal the Father. And dear friends, if you're not saved tonight, you can't call God Father, oh no. You don't have that relationship to Him. But you can have that relationship to Him if you trust the Savior. Then you can know what it is to call on God as a loving Father. Isn't it wonderful the Lord Jesus coming down to reveal the Father, to declare the Father? Why, He told the disciples about the Father's love, the Father's heart, the Father's counsels, the Father's works, the Father's house. Oh dear friends, you want to go to the Father's house? In my Father's house are many abiding places, many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you and I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am there you may be also. And if you don't have a relationship to God the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ, you're outside the pale of blessing. You're still in your sins and you're lost. But how wonderful that you can come into relationship to the Father through and by our Lord Jesus Christ. Oh dear friends, what a loving Father we have, those of us who are saved. We can talk to Him, we can pray to Him, we can praise Him through and by that Blessed One who came into manhood. Another reason that He came into manhood was to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Oh dear friends, on the cross of Calvary, not only did He bear the believer's sins in His own body on that tree, but He has taken away from the Holy Eye of God all that is offensive. He has made propitiation for sin that you and me and sinners can have the access in order to be saved. God can come out in blessing to His creatures through our Lord Jesus Christ. How wonderful the Lord Jesus taking away from God's Holy Eye all that has insulted Him, all that has offended Him. So now He can come out in blessing. He can come out in blessing to His creatures. And if you're here tonight without Christ, you're His creature, but you can become His child by putting personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Another reason the Lord Jesus came into manhood, His incarnation, was to call sinners unto repentance. That's the reason He came. You know when He was here, He ate with sinners, He dined with sinners, He loved sinners. It was said of Him, this man, receive his sinners. Isn't that wonderful? Him that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out, He could save. And so tonight, if you're a sinner without Christ and without God, this man receives sinners. Won't you come to Him tonight in all of your sins and say, Lord Jesus, I'm a lost sinner. Lord Jesus, I want to be saved. Lord Jesus, I take Thee tonight. I lay hold of Thee by faith and take Thee as my Savior. Oh dear friends, He loves sinners. Oh dear friends, He wants to save you tonight. If you're here, boy or girl, man or woman, doesn't matter what station of life you may be in, what your occupation, what your profession is, if you don't know Christ as your Savior, I'm here on the authority of the Word of God to tell you, this man receives sinners. And if you're a sinner, you can be saved. But if you're not a sinner, you'll have to go to hell and die in your sins. Die in your sins without Christ and without God. But if you're a sinner, you're a candidate for heaven. Think of that. Christ didn't come to die good people, He came to receive sinners. So you can be saved by trusting the Savior tonight. Repentance of your sins. Repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. To be sorry for your sins. That's the message the Apostle Paul preached, the Apostle Peter preached. And so tonight you must be sorry for your sins. To forsake your sins. Be converted. Have your sins blotted out and come to the Lord Jesus Christ and be eternally saved. If there's one sinner in this audience tonight, if there's one sinner here, it would be worth every effort put forth that you might be saved. And as our brother prayed in the prayer meeting, there'll be rejoicing in heaven over one sinner that repents. The angels of God will rejoice over one sinner that repents of his sins and comes to the Lord Jesus Christ. Another reason our Lord Jesus was incarnate was to destroy the works of the devil. And we know even in His earthly ministry, in the various occasions that He occasioned Satan, why He binds Satan. He binds a strong man and spoils his goods. Even in His earthly ministry. But on the cross of Calvary, when He died, why He defeated Satan. Sin and death and hell. Satan all vanquished by the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. And so now dear friends, Satan's work has been annulled. And you can come to Christ tonight and be saved if you'll just turn to Him. Just turn to Him in your sins and take Him as your own personal Savior. Another reason, and we go on to the next point, another reason that He came into manhood was to bring many sons to glory. You want to go to glory? Well, He's bringing many sons to glory. Oh, I know sometimes we sing free is the ticket, start off today, sinners to glory, nothing to pay. And that's true, that's certainly true. But in another sense, we're not going to be there sinners, we're going to be there sons of God. Are we not? Sons of God by adoption. Bringing many sons to glory. You want to go to glory? Well, I trust the Lord Jesus Christ, because He is, as we've sung tonight, He's coming again soon. You know, as we said, He may come before this meeting is over. Maybe morning, maybe evening, maybe noon, but He's coming again soon. He's coming soon, hallelujah, He's coming soon. We'll meet Him in the air and all His glory share, hallelujah, He's coming soon. What about it, dear friends, if He were to come tonight, would you go up? When He says, arise, my love, my fair one, come away? Would you be raptured from this meeting hall and in the glory, translated to heaven? Well, if not, why not put your faith and trust, just simply trust the Savior tonight? Just simply trust Him as your own Lord and Savior tonight, because He wants to bring you to glory. Bringing many sons to glory. The Lord Jesus was God, manifest in flesh. Then it says in that verse, justified in the Spirit, or justified by the Spirit. Every act, every word, every thought, every deed, every miracle, every parable, everything the Lord Jesus did, the Holy Spirit puts His approval on it. And we even know in His baptism, the Spirit of God comes down on Him as in the form of a dove, there, when the heavens were open. Why? God the Father waited 40 years for that moment. God the Holy Spirit waited 40 years for that moment, 30 years, excuse me, 30 years for that moment. The Lord Jesus waited 30 years for that moment. And the heavens cannot control Himself. This is my beloved Son. Dear friends, God our Father is well pleased with His beloved Son. And those of us who are saved, we're well pleased with Him too. And if you come to Him and take Him as your Savior, you too can say the same thing. You'll have the same testimony about this altogether lovely One. The blessed, the blessed Christ of God. Oh dear friends, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of God bears witness to this blessed One. Why? In Romans chapter 1, which is the Gospel of God concerning His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Why? There the Spirit of God reminds us that He is the Son of God with power because He raised Jairus' daughter from the dead. He gave a widow's name, her son, back. Why? He raised Lazarus from the dead. And dear friends, He can raise you from your sins tonight, your dead and trespasses and sins, if you're here without Christ. And there's One that can quicken you and give you life if you just turn to Him in faith believing, is none other than this One who was justified by and in the blessed Holy Spirit by coming down on the Lord Jesus there in His earthly ministry. Not only that, it was said of Him, He was seen of angels. Did you know angels had never seen the Lord Jesus Christ before? Well, He was too holy for us to look upon in the glory. We're trained to cover their faces. We're trained to cover their feet and trained to do fly. And when the Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem's manger, they could say, there's our Creator. He was seen of angels. Isn't that wonderful? They had never seen Him before. There's the One who made us. And maybe millions of angels, a whole multitude of heavenly hosts, say, glory to God in the highest and peace on earth and goodwill towards men. Think of that. But you know, dear friends, there's no salvation for angels. There's no salvation for angels. And yet angels were interested in the work of redemption. They're ministering servants to the heirs of salvation. They were interested in His sufferings. They ministered to Him before He went to the cross of Calvary. And yet, angels don't need to be saved. But listen, dear friends, if you're here tonight without Christ, you need to be saved. Salvation is for poor lost sinners, men and women and boys and girls. And you can be saved by trusting the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Savior tonight. So God help you. God help you to trust this blessed One, the Lord Jesus. Not only was He seen of angels, not only at His birth, but on other occasions, and from then on out, as it were. But it says here, He was preached. He was preached unto the Gentiles. You might say, why does it say He was preached unto the Jews? Why? The grace of God cannot be contained in Jewry. But it has to go out to a Gentile thirsty world, does it not? Preached unto the Gentiles, the unsearchable riches of Christ. The unsearchable riches of Christ, the Apostle Paul could tell us about. And you know, in the beginning of the dispensation, there was a man who was lame in his ankles. Lame in his ankles. He was made whole, wasn't he? Leaping and praising God. There's water to the ankles in connection with the Gospel. Then there's Stephen, he's praying for his enemies. The Apostle Paul, lo, he prayeth. Peter's on the housetop at the hour of prayer. There's water to the knees. And then later on, dear friends, they were first called Christians at Antioch. Thousands of others coming in the blessing through trusting Christ as Savior. Water to the loins. And then when we get the epistles, the unsearchable riches of Christ, there's waters to swim in. And so if you come to Christ tonight, dear friends, oh, what a wealth of blessing you'll come into if you'll just trust the Savior. Oh, how wonderful to know Him. Oh, it's life and peace and joy to know this blessed one as your own personal Savior. Why not come tonight, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Just like Peter told us, the house of Cornelius, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Excuse me, the house of Stephanas, the Philippian jailer, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Truly, dear friends, tonight, if you believe in your heart of hearts, turning from your sins, and believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, you can be saved before you leave this place. You can be saved in your seat. There was a man in Bluefield, West Virginia, a few years ago. He said, I was saved in my seat. Well, you can be saved in your seat tonight. It doesn't matter where you are. You can be saved right where you are. You can come to Christ as a poor lost sinner and take Him tonight as your own personal Savior. Have your sins forgiven, and be on your way to heaven. Preached unto the Gentiles. How wonderful, the Gospel going out, not to the Jew only, but also to the Gentiles. And then it says, believed on in the world. Believed on in the world. This word believe is mentioned 99 times in John's Gospel alone. It doesn't mean like, I believe I'll go to a meeting tonight, or I'll turn up at a meeting as people do sometimes, that sort of thing, or I believe I'll get home on time, or I'll get to my job on time. It doesn't mean that. It really means to be fully persuaded. This word believe. To be fully persuaded. And dear friends, we don't want you to be partway persuaded. We want you to be fully persuaded. Like the Apostle Paul preaching to King Agrippa. Not just to be almost persuaded, but to be fully persuaded by trusting the Son of God tonight. Like that blind man who the Lord Jesus healed. He says, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? And he said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And he said, I am he that speaketh unto thee. And he worshipped him as the Son of God. So how good to be fully, fully persuaded in our minds. You know, not just partway measures, but to be fully persuaded. Anyone have any doubts in his heart? Anyone have any doubts in his heart? To be fully persuaded. Anyone tonight in doubt about your salvation? Anyone have any doubts in his heart, on his mind? Certainly believe on him, and you'll be fully, fully persuaded. And doesn't it say in 1 Peter, to them which believe, he is precious. Maybe adding a little word there, but he is precious. And we've been learning some of his preciousness yesterday and today. Concerning that blessed one who came into manhood. Who was incarnate. The manna coming down from heaven. And many other aspects which we'll take up during our Bible reading. And so certainly if you believe on him, if you believe on him, you'll find him precious too. He's altogether lovely. Like the woman in the Song of Solomon. She was asked, well what is that more than another beloved? And what did she say? That thou shalt charge us. He's the chiefest of ten thousand. And then she talked about his head, and his hands, and his feet, and his countenance. And then she got to the top rung of the ladder, and she couldn't say any more. And she says, he's altogether lovely. This is my beloved, this is my friend. I don't know who your beloved is, I don't know who your friend is, but this is my beloved, and this is my friend. Who's none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. Is the Lord Jesus dear to your heart tonight? Oh, I trust that he is. I trust that you know him, that you know him as your own personal Savior. Don't worry about the fellow seated beside you, or the woman seated beside you, or the girl or boy beside you. You must answer to God yourself. You're responsible. You're responsible to God. And he'll hold you responsible. You'll remember that the gospel was preached, even though it's been preached many times before, tonight. If you sit under the sound of the gospel and turn a deaf ear, you'll remember that. Just like that man in hell, who lift up his eyes, and what did Father Abraham say to him? Son, remember in thy lifetime. Oh dear friends, God has given you, maybe a lifetime of opportunities. Maybe a lifetime of opportunities, I don't know. I remember a man who was 65 years old. 65 year old man, and his son got converted at a gospel meeting. And he came home one night and he said to him, Daddy, are you saved? Daddy said, well, I joined the church. But Daddy, are you saved? Daddy says, well, I was baptized. But Daddy, are you saved? Well, I go to Sunday school. But Daddy, are you saved? No. And that young fellow and his daddy got down on their knees. At age 65, this man was. And that man got gloriously saved. And the last five years of his life, he was a changed man. And I know who that man was, because that was my daddy. That was my father. How wonderful that was, was to lead your own father to a saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Any daddies here tonight that are not saved? Any mummies in the audience that have never truly trusted Christ as Savior? You know, we can't take it for granted with an audience of this size that everyone is saved. That everyone knows the Savior. We just can't take it for granted. This is why the gospel is proclaimed, for your consideration. Any mummies that Daddy's not saved? Any boys or girls? Any aunts or uncles? It doesn't matter who you are, what you are, if you're not saved, tonight is your night to come to the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. And have your sins forgiven. Leave this meeting hall tonight rejoicing, singing, oh happy day, oh happy day, when Jesus washed my sins away. My dear friends, not only will heaven rejoice with you, I'm sure all of us here are saved. We too will rejoice with you if you'll turn to Christ tonight and be saved. To be fully persuaded. To really believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. And then finally, he says, received up, received up, not just into glory, which is a lovely preposition, but received up in glory. You say, what does that mean? It means that the Lord Jesus received a glorious reception when he went back to heaven. Is it any wonder when Psalm 111 says hallelujah, and Psalm 112 says hallelujah, and Psalm 113 says hallelujah, I'll praise the Lord in the authorized version, when that precious, impeccable Christ, having finished the work of redemption, ascends and takes his seat in unchallenged supremacy at the right hand of the Master on high, no wonder to me. Oh dear friends, the world would not have him. The nation of Israel would not have him. Away with him, we'll not have this man reign over us. They took him outside the city, outside the gate, to a rubbish dump where they burn garbage. Galbraith, a place of a scourge. He was given the most despicable, the most despised, the meanest place in the whole world. The Lord Jesus was given that low place. But oh dear friends, tonight I'm here to tell you that God has given the Lord Jesus Christ the highest place in the universe. There he is tonight, the man in the glory, crowned with glory and honor and majesty and splendor. And Psalm 21 says he has a crown of pure gold on his head, a royal diadem decks his brow. And those of us who are saved, we say amen. We say rightfully so. He deserves every honor, every diadem that our God and Father could give him. And you know something? The gospel radiates from that blessed one there in the glory. Not so much from the cross anymore, it's about the one who was on the cross. Oh yes, he was there on the cross. He was crucified. He was despised and put to shame on that cross. But now dear friends, he's in the glory. And the light of the knowledge of the glory of God shines in the face of Jesus Christ there at God's right hand. Wonderful. The gospel emanating from above, telling sinners from above that God is light and God is love. Because the glory of God is radiating from that blessed man in the glory. While the apostle Paul, when he got converted, he saw a light from heaven. Later on he said it was a great light. And then later on he said it was a light above a noonday sun. That light just got brighter and brighter and brighter all the time, didn't it? Because of that blessed one at God's right hand, the Lord Jesus Christ. How wonderful. That one who was rejected down here has gone up, received up in glory. And there he is, maintaining, supporting the whole scene of resurrection and new creation there at God's right hand. And yet not only that, but he wants to receive you as a lost sinner tonight, if you're not saved. Why not come to him tonight? He waits in the glory there to impart peace to your heart. Peace to the conscience and joy to your heart, if you'll just turn to him there in the glory and say, Lord Jesus, I take thee tonight as my Savior. Lord Jesus, I take thee as my Lord. I come to thee in all of my sins. And dear friends, you think he'll turn you away? Oh dear friends, him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out. He won't turn you away. He'll take you in. He'll take you in and you'll be eternally saved. You'll know what we're talking about here tonight, about this blessed one, the Lord Jesus Christ. His administration is from the glory. And not only that, it doesn't mention this verse, but as we've already said in the beginning of our meeting, he's coming, he's coming again soon. And where will you be? What about your position? Where will you be in relation to that blessed one when he returns? Oh, I trust if you're here tonight without Christ, you're still lost. Why not turn from your sins and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith, believing. And then you can enjoy, you can enjoy this altogether lovely one. You'll know what it is to be linked up, linked up with that man in the glory. Not only will you have part in him, but you can have part with him if you'll just trust him. Oh, it's just precious to know that blessed one, just to be linked up with that one who loved sinners, that one who died on the cross of Calvary. And so tonight, if you're not saved, he wants to save your soul. We're going to sing a hymn in closing, sing a hymn in closing. And if you've never been saved, right in your seat, right in your seat, you can take the Savior. You can turn to someone and tell them that you are trusting Christ tonight as your own personal Savior. If you want to linger behind, we'll certainly be happy to talk to you. Any of their brothers, any of their brethren will be happy to talk to anyone here tonight who doesn't know the Savior. Why not come to him tonight and be saved? Shall we sing together number 110? 110. Oh, happy day that fixed my choice on thee my Savior and my God. Well, may this glowing heart rejoice until its raptures all abroad. Happy day, happy day when Jesus washed my sins away. Oh, may that be true of someone here tonight who is not saved. Come to the Savior and then it'll be a happy day for you to know what it is to have your sins dealt with, knowing that your sins are gone through trusting this blessed one, the Lord Jesus Christ. Number 110 together. …