The Jewish Final Solution to the World's Problem - God's Second Greatest Gift

[0:00] I'm very familiar with the maxim that the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, and I'm sure that includes preachers. But I do plan, my intent is, to have a Q&A this morning, following the content that we will be bringing, dealing with the subject of God's second greatest gift.

[0:20] I think it goes without saying what God's first greatest gift is. We will reserve that for next week, and that, of course, is wrapped up in the person of his son. Whom it is spoken being God's unspeakable gift.

[0:35] But this morning, I do want to focus upon God's second greatest gift, and the reason it is so important is because it is this gift that enables you to take advantage and be responsive to God's first and ultimate greatest gift.

[0:54] And in order to get a real firm handle on this, like we really need, I would invite you to go with me to Romans chapter 3. We will conduct a brief excursion through three or four of Paul's epistles, where he is emphasizing the giftedness of God.

[1:13] We are at that annual season, once again, where there is a great deal of flurry about gift giving. We see all kinds of catalogs made available, and retailers are wondering how much business is going to be done this year through online shopping as opposed to in-store shopping.

[1:35] And there are, of course, the gift wrappings and the trinkets and the parties and the holiday this and that, the good food and everything that goes along with it. And I dare say that even though most people really get into this idea of gift giving, not too many stop to even consider what's behind it all.

[1:59] Now, I dare say a great many people, if you've asked them, you give and receive gifts this time of year? Yes. Why do you do that?

[2:10] Well, it's Christmas. Yeah, I mean, but apart from being Christmas, why do you do that? Well, it's tradition. We've always done that.

[2:21] Ever since I was a kid, you know, we had a Christmas tree and gifts under the tree, and everybody buys and receives gifts, and we have gift exchanges and everything. Yes, but why? What's behind it?

[2:32] Where did that tradition begin? Well, no doubt it had something to do with the gifts of the Magi who came to the Christ child. And by the way, they didn't come when he was in a manger, as is usually depicted in the Christmas cards.

[2:47] We are aware that the only ones who came when Jesus was in the manger were the shepherds. But the Magi didn't arrive until sometime later.

[2:58] Jesus was approximately two years old, and they brought gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And the idea being, of course, you simply would not dare to come into the presence of acknowledged royalty empty-handed.

[3:18] So they brought gifts, those Magi who came from afar. And my persuasion is, they were Jewish. That's why they were there.

[3:32] They had come to seek the king of the Jews. That would have meant next to nothing to anyone who was not a Jew.

[3:45] But to those who were Jews, who came from the east, no doubt from ancient Babylon, where Daniel and his friends were exiled for those 70 years, where many people stayed and did not return to Israel, but stayed in Babylon.

[3:59] And I am satisfied, in my own mind at least, that those were Jews, and that's why they came, seeking the king of the Jews.

[4:10] So nobody makes so much of God's gift as does the Apostle Paul. And the reason he does so is because all of God's gift-giving is really predicated upon that ultimate gift, which we will study later, that was given on Calvary.

[4:34] And that changed absolutely everything. It was the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ that provided the Apostle Paul the opportunity to really spell out exactly what was involved and what actually took place in that cross and the significance of the empty tomb.

[4:58] Nobody does it so thoroughly or so minutely or so delicately or so profoundly as does the Spirit of God writing through the Apostle Paul.

[5:08] And the first reference we want to turn to is in Romans chapter 3. We'll be moving rather quickly. We'll be in Romans and Corinthians and Ephesians. All of these reflecting upon God's first and greatest gift, which, of course, is the Lord Jesus.

[5:24] And we are familiar, while you're turning there, with John 3.16, which tells us God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

[5:39] And I have taken some pains in time past to explain to you what that little word, so, is that is found in John 3.16 in our English Bible.

[5:49] It says, God so loved the world. It's a concept that is frequently misunderstood because we tend to associate quantity with just about everything.

[6:03] And the verse isn't talking at all about the quantity of God's love, nor does it even speak of it in that vein. God's love is of a particular quality, not quantity.

[6:18] And the little two-lettered word, so, in the English translation, is in the Greek word, utos.

[6:29] For an English spelling, it would be H-O-U-T-O-S. You can't hardly hear the H pronounced in Greek. It's utos.

[6:40] Utos. And it doesn't mean so. It means in this manner or in this way.

[6:51] It doesn't mean that God's love was gradual and increased in intensity over a period of time so that God's love was building up and building up and getting greater and greater and more and more love and finally came to the place where God could no longer withhold that love.

[7:11] He bestowed it upon the world through the death, burial, and resurrection of His Son. But the Greek language makes it very clear that it is not God having a quantity of love.

[7:22] Because, you see, God being omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, when God loves, He loves with the totality of His being.

[7:34] There is no measuring of it. It is a kind of love, not an amount of love. It is an issue of quality, not quantity.

[7:47] And it would be appropriate to translate it, for God's love was of such a kind that He gave His only begotten Son.

[7:58] There is something about God's love that is in keeping with His character, nature, quality, and makeup that just maximizes who He is and what He does and the way He loves.

[8:10] And here in Romans chapter 3, beginning with verse 19, and I realize we're leaving a lot unspoken, but we have to be selective for time's sake. The Apostle tells us in verse 19, Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to God.

[8:35] Because by the works of the law, that is, of course, the Mosaic law, the commandments, all 613 of them and what they involve, that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world, and we might add there that all the world, without exception, may become accountable to God.

[9:02] I want to focus on that little word, accountable. Accountable. And I do so because it is of this word, accountable, and accountability, that God's second greatest gift comes into play.

[9:25] And that has to do with your being made a free moral agent. All that means is you have a will.

[9:39] You have a will. You have a decider that is built inside of you. And that will is something that you alone are able to exercise.

[9:55] You make choices with it, good ones and bad ones. Some, we would all like to be able to do over. Because we don't always make the best use of our will.

[10:09] That's why all of us have a certain number of regrets. A certain number of do-overs. We'd like to have opportunity to run by and do them again. But we know we can't do that.

[10:21] So, it is because we have this thing called volition, that God is able, in a just and righteous way, to hold us accountable.

[10:34] Because we cannot plead, was my fault? I couldn't help it. Yes, it was your fault. We are accountable. We are moral beings.

[10:46] And we are accountable to God for the choices that we make, the actions that we perform. As I've often said in the past, although many people do not regard it as such, it is really a very, very serious business to be a human being.

[11:05] To have been made in the likeness and image of God. And to have, in some self-centered way, squandered the use of the volition that He has given us by making bad choices, which are ultimately injurious to us and injurious to others.

[11:29] So, when Paul talks about being accountable, he is right on track with what we're talking about. That all the world may become accountable to God. Because, and here's why, Because by the works of the law, no flesh will be justified or declared righteous in God's sight.

[11:47] For through the law comes the knowledge of sin. That's how we know we've done wrong. Because there are laws against doing what it is that we do that's wrong.

[12:00] And that's why we are often, at least those of us who don't have a conscience that is seared with a hot iron, as Paul was talking to Timothy, we have a conscience that convicts us when we do wrong.

[12:14] And it produces emotional pain. Emotional pain comes from guilt. And guilt ensues when we know we have violated a standard.

[12:27] And this is what he's talking about. Through the law comes the knowledge of sin or the awareness of sin. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested.

[12:41] And what's he talking about here? He's talking about the cross. Apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested. You see, when Jesus Christ was hanging on that cross, one could look at that scene of crucifixion.

[13:01] And if you understand what's happening, you would have to say, there on that cross is the righteousness of God put on display.

[13:14] That's why Jesus was there. not just because of our sin, but because God is righteous. And a righteous, holy God has to have scales that are morally balanced.

[13:28] And when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, the scales got out of kilter. And sin took over. And the curse of sin made itself felt upon every generation that followed, and every generation ended the same way.

[13:45] in death. We do not have any surviving previous generations that have not gone this way. Death is the end result.

[13:56] Always has been from Genesis 3 on. For through the law comes the knowledge of sin. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe.

[14:14] for there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Being justified as a gift.

[14:25] Now, here is that word that we need to focus on. Gift. Gift. Gift. Gift. If it costs you something, it's not a gift.

[14:36] It has to be free in order to be a gift. Can you imagine meeting who you think is Miss Wright and you pick out that perfect ring for her and you're going to give it to her on Christmas Eve and you're all prepared to get down on your knees and ask her for her hand in marriage and you flip open this decorative little box you've got and there is that sparkler and her eyes just beam and she puts out her hand and you slip it on her finger and say, will you marry me?

[15:24] And she says, yes. You say, thank you very much. That'll be $2,500 now.

[15:38] Wait a minute. What's wrong with this picture? Everything. It just doesn't work that way. Does it, guys? No, it doesn't.

[15:49] It just doesn't work. It's got to be a gift. And you know, if you don't hear anything else that I say this morning, and I hope you hear a couple of other things, but I'd especially like you to hear this, that out of all of the faiths and isms and religions and beliefs that exist in the world, and there are in excess of 2,500 tiny ones and large ones, out of all of those 2,500, there is only one, just one, that operates on the basis of the gift of God.

[16:32] It's called grace. Ere the other system demands some kind of legalistic input from the adherents, some hoops to jump through, some promise to make, some vows to take.

[16:50] Biblical Christianity is the only faith among all of the world's faiths that is by grace, through faith, plus nothing. That in itself distinguishes it from everything else.

[17:05] All other beliefs are dependent on something you have to do, some way you have to satisfy the establishment, or the founder, or whatever. Biblical Christianity is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.

[17:20] And the apostle here is emphasizing that this is a gift over and over and over in his epistles. It's a gift. And he does that because Paul writes after the fact.

[17:31] after the fact of the crucifixion, because that changed everything. That's what made this so prominent, this gospel, this good news.

[17:43] Never has the world heard anything like it before or since. This is the dispensing, the administration, the doling out of the grace of God.

[17:55] And we do it in massive quantities wherever we go by preaching the gospel of the grace of God, that Jesus Christ died for your sin, you can come to God through him.

[18:06] And there's no other way you can come because he was the only way God provided. This is the gift of his son. So, continuing on, verse 24, being justified as a what?

[18:20] As a gift. By his grace through the redemption, which is in Christ Jesus. And while we're in the neighborhood, come over to chapter 5, if you would, please.

[18:33] My Bible is just across the page. Romans chapter 5, in verse 12. Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.

[18:52] For until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of Adam's offense, who was a type of him who was to come.

[19:10] But the free gift, there it is again, the free gift. You know, I get the impression, and I realize that it is the Spirit of God that is behind what Paul is writing, but the Spirit of God is still utilizing Paul's vocabulary and Paul's personality to pen what he is writing here in the same way that he used that of Moses in the Old Testament and Matthew in the New.

[19:34] And Paul is so enamored with this concept, the gift of God. Wow! But the free gift is not like the transgression.

[19:47] For if by the transgression of the one, the many died, much more did the grace of God, than the gift, by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many.

[19:59] And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned, that's Adam. For on the one hand, the judgment arose from one transgression, that's Adam, resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand, here we are again, the free gift arose from many transgressions, that is, of all humanity.

[20:23] resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, Adam, death reigned through the one, much more, those who receive the abundance of grace, and of the gift of righteousness, will reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ.

[20:45] So then, as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so, through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.

[20:58] This is the universal redemption. Jesus Christ died for the sins of the entire world, no exceptions. That gives us a gospel to preach. That enables us to be able to tell people, Christ died for your sin.

[21:14] We beseech you, in Christ's stead, be you reconciled to God. And how is it that you appropriate what Christ did for all of humanity? You do that with an act of faith.

[21:26] It is an act of belief or trust whereby you put your case in the hands of Jesus Christ who died for you. That's your response to what God did in Christ.

[21:40] Jesus died for your sins. What are you going to do about that? What do you think of that? The only proper response is, if Christ died for my sins, he bought me and paid for me lock, stock, and barrel, and I want to deliver the goods to him, here am I.

[21:59] Thank you, Jesus, for dying in my place for my sins. I want you as my Savior. I know I can't save myself.

[22:12] I know you came to do for me what I couldn't do for myself, and you did so simply because you loved me. I don't understand that either, because I know me well enough to know I'm not that lovable, but God loved me anyway.

[22:35] God knows everything about you, and he still loves you. In such a way, that he provided a way for you to be with him forever.

[22:48] Amazing. It's called Amazing Grace, by the way. The law came in that the transgression might increase, and where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.

[23:02] That as sin reigned in death, even so, grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

[23:13] And a page over, Romans 6 and verse 17. But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed.

[23:28] What is that? Just a gospel. The gospel is a message of grace to be obeyed, to be received, to be acknowledged, to be embraced.

[23:44] That's becoming obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed. And having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.

[23:57] Oh boy, is it ever weak. We can succumb to temptation in the bat of an eye, in the stroke of a key on your keyboard on your computer. You can be into a porn site just like that, yielding to temptation.

[24:11] It's everywhere. Just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness resulting in further lawlessness, so now, present your members as slaves to righteousness resulting in sanctification.

[24:28] Who can do that? Anyone who is in Christ and who has a will. Do you have a will? Of course you do.

[24:40] The will is what you use to make all kinds of choices as to where you live, to whom you marry, the kind of car you buy, the groceries you shop for, the things you're interested in.

[24:55] All of these are expressions of your will, your volition. You're always making choices. We go through life making one choice after another. God has given you that ability.

[25:07] It's a wonderful gift. Volition comes with tremendous responsibility because we are accountable for what we do with it. when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.

[25:23] Therefore, what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? The outcome of those things is death. But now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit resulting in sanctification, and the outcome?

[25:41] What's the payoff? Eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but, and here it is again, please hear it, the free gift.

[25:53] The free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. You're doing so well.

[26:03] I like to hear the flipping of the pages. Come over to chapter 11. Romans chapter 11. Verse 25.

[26:18] I do not want you brethren to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, and thus all Israel will be saved, just as it is written.

[26:36] That verse is so pregnant. It's just begging to be delivered, and I'm excited to be the midwife, but not now. We'll save that for later.

[26:46] All right? All Israel will be saved, just as it is written. The deliverer will come from Zion. He will remove ungodliness from Jacob. This is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.

[26:59] From the standpoint of the gospel, they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God's choice, they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. And look at verse 29.

[27:10] For the gifts. and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, that is Israel's, so these also now have been disobedient in order that because of the mercy shown to you, they also may now be shown mercy.

[27:34] For God has shut up all in disobedience that he might show mercy to all, all, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God.

[27:51] How unsearchable are his judgments and unfathomable his ways. Next door to 2 Corinthians chapter 9, we're on this gift thing, and it is just replete throughout the New Testament, because that which gave impetus to it, that which brings it to light and gives it to surface, is the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and Paul is emphasizing that in 2 Corinthians 9, beginning with verse 6.

[28:26] Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. Let each one of you do as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

[28:46] You know, God is very generous and very giving, and he wants you to catch that. He wants you to be infected by that giving bug.

[28:57] That's what he's talking about here. And principally, this is the main reason that we have never put upon our people of grace for giving.

[29:08] We have never twisted arms for giving. We've never issued pleas and beggings for more money and a bigger budget and this and that, because that's just not the spirit of giving.

[29:21] God loves a cheerful giver. And when you give, you need to be able to give solely because you choose to.

[29:31] Hey, there's evolution again, isn't it? It's a decision that you make. You choose to give, not because you have to, but because you want to.

[29:44] And I don't know over the years how many times I've preached on giving. I guess the last I lost track of was I preached on giving six times in 45 years.

[29:58] years. And the reason it hasn't been more is because that's not what the text we're dealing with. When the text deals with giving, then we teach on giving.

[30:10] And when it doesn't, we don't. So, grace people have been phenomenally generous. And I am so glad it's not because we make appeals and wring the bucks out of you, but you just give out of a joyful heart.

[30:28] You give because you've been given much. You recognize that and you give out of gratitude, not out of necessity. That's what this passage is all about here. Paul says that each one is to give as he's purposed in his heart, not grudgingly.

[30:46] So, I've told folks, hey, if you go to put a $50 bill in the offering box there, and you say to yourself, I really wish I didn't have to do this.

[30:59] I could use this $50 for this or for that or for something. Well, I could even buy a tank of gas with this $50. Don't give it. Go buy your gas. Because if you give it with reluctance or you give it grudgingly, God is not pleased.

[31:18] God loves a cheerful giver. You need to be able to put money in that box and say, this I'm doing because I really want to, not because I have to.

[31:29] I'm just giving out of gratitude. A little give back of what's been given to me. That's what the passage is dealing with. And God is able to make all grace abound to you that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.

[31:48] precious passage. And I have one, no, two more left in Ephesians. These are all Pauline, and as I mentioned, the reason that is so significant is that Paul is the principal writer on the other side, or on this side, of the crucifixion.

[32:10] He is able to write about what God did in Christ from the standpoint of history, not prophecy. And it makes a lot of difference.

[32:21] Ephesians 2, and you're all familiar with verse 8 and 9, for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift.

[32:32] It is the gift. It is the gift of God. Not as a result of works that no one should boast. And the last reference is across the page in chapter 3.

[32:48] Chapter 3 of Ephesians. Mm, mm, mm. I don't know that I can read this again.

[33:04] This passage just really grips me. Boy, there is so much here. Well, I cannot reserve comment if I take the first part of it, so we'll just have to jump in.

[33:25] Marv, you've got to be a little bit disciplined. Paul is talking about the tremendous privilege that is given to him in verse 7 of being a minister.

[33:35] man. And, can't get away from this, can you? What's it according to? Look at verse 7. According to the gift of God's grace, which was given to me, according to the working of his power, to me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ.

[34:04] Wow! That is something. That is just, all of these reflect upon God's first and greatest gift. And the reason I call this, the reason I call this volition, this will that we have been given, God's second greatest gift, is because this is the thing, this volition, this is the stuff that God has given you that enables you to respond with your volition and your own free will to God's greatest gift, the person of his son.

[34:48] This means you have the ability. You not only have the ability, you have the responsibility. responsibility. In light of what God has done for you in Christ, you have a responsibility to give an answer.

[35:07] And if your answer is anything other than a positive identification and faith and commitment of yourself to Jesus Christ, then you are in the class that Paul described in Ephesians 2 when he referred to the sons of disobedience.

[35:28] Sons of disobedience were those who refused to commit their way unto the Christ who loved them and gave himself for them.

[35:39] They are characterized as sons of disobedience and in Ephesians 2 Paul says you know what, we were all that. Every one of us were a son or daughter of disobedience until the time came that we placed our faith and trust in Jesus Christ because believing is not only an act of faith, it's an act of obedience.

[36:04] Obedience to what God has done in Christ and our trust in Christ as our Savior is our response to it. This is something that many, many people do not understand.

[36:16] They understand, they know that, well, Jesus supposed to be the Son of God, said he was, the Bible says he was, he died on the cross, three days later he came back from the dead, and you know what, I believe all of that, I believe all that stuff, all that religious stuff about Jesus, who he was, and what he did, I believe all that.

[36:36] Good. I'm glad you do, because that's the first step. My second question now is, what have you done about it? believing it, and acknowledging it as a historical fact, doesn't mean anything.

[36:56] Don't you realize that the devil believes that way? Don't you realize that Satan himself knows all of those things about Jesus to be true?

[37:10] It is remarkable, and it's becoming even more so, as I travel about and talk to people, how many people really think they're squared with God because they believe there is such a person?

[37:23] All that does is increase your accountability. Death, burial, and resurrection of Christ provides us with information, with news, with the gospel, with good news to preach.

[37:38] And this is why it is so critical and so important. This is why we send missionaries around the world. It's to preach this message because it isn't just a historical fact that someone died on that cross.

[37:49] It is not only who died, but it is what your response is to that. God. And I don't know. It is entirely possible that every single individual here has already exercised their volition in a positive way and has made their commitment to Jesus Christ their response to what God did through Christ on that cross.

[38:18] God bless you dear one. You are in the body of Christ. You are a member of Christ's body of which he is the head and you are in fellowship with all of the saints who have likewise believed.

[38:38] but there is always that possibility that someone through either not adequately understanding or maybe just plain old rebellion the child of disobedience that says I hear all of that stuff about Jesus and about him dying for my sins but I want to keep control of my own life.

[39:08] I want to run my own life. I want to be able to call the shots. I want to be my own master captain of my own fate. I don't want anybody telling me what to do.

[39:20] Well if that's your attitude you've just characterized yourself as a class A child of disobedience but take heart because this preacher was once numbered among those in disobedience and you know what my response was?

[39:41] I guess I was kind of searching and looking and wondering and I I'd examined a couple of things a couple of far out things that didn't make much sense to me but that day on December the 8th 1956 about two o'clock in the afternoon Saturday afternoon Ellensburg Washington rodeo town is talking to this pastor this Baptist pastor and he's a guy that refused to marry my wife and me my first wife Barbara we married almost 50 years she was a believer and I wasn't and he wasn't going to marry us he said I couldn't do that because that's an unequal yoke and I said it's a what he said that would be an unequal yoke to marry a believer with a nun I never heard of anything such a ridiculous we're both human beings and she's female and I'm male what else do you need you know how to say the words just get out your little book and say it and we'll get on our way you know and he asked me if I was a

[40:56] Christian and I did some real quick mental meandering and I remember what the military stamped on my dog tags when I joined the army and they put a P there in the corner and the P was for Protestant and I said well yeah put me down for that I'm a Christian and this preacher didn't even know me for maybe 15 minutes and he shook his head and said no no I'm sorry but that's here was this guy telling me virtual stranger that I wasn't a Christian of course if he had known me there wouldn't have been any doubt but he didn't know me and I knew he didn't know me and then he asked me a question and it just floored me he said

[41:57] Marvin would you like to receive Jesus Christ as your savior and my first thought was well of course who wouldn't who wouldn't you mean are you saying he would have me yeah he not only would have you he wants you he died for you wow he died for me he died for everybody else what is my response to that and I said yes yes yes I would I would I would I would like that and he said well why don't you kneel down right here and I'll kneel down beside you we were in this tiny little

[43:01] Baptist church Main Street Baptist church in Ellensburg Washington December 8th 1956 like it was yesterday there wasn't anybody there but the preacher and Barbara and myself and he said you pray and you just tell the Lord what's on your heart what you want him to know well the only prayer I knew was now I lay me down to sleep but that doesn't seem appropriate so I stumbled through a prayer I told God I told God I knew that I'd done a whole bunch of things wrong and I knew that I didn't deserve his favor at all but if there's any way that he could see his way clear to take me I certainly wanted to take him and I just stumbled bumbled through that prayer I don't remember exactly what I said then the pastor prayed we stood up he shook my hand and I didn't know what to say

[44:08] I said well is that it and he said did you mean what you said when you prayed I said well yeah yeah yeah sure I meant it I was thinking you can't con God don't even try yes I meant it he said well then if you meant what you said God heard your prayer and God saved you and I said okay that's good thank you very much and he said and you and Barbara come back at 7 o'clock this evening and I'll marry you I said okay but you know that was held with suspicion by both Barbara and her mother because on the surface it looked like

[45:09] I just jumped through a hoop to get what I wanted and Barbara was really worried she was glad that I made a profession of faith but she thought if the only reason he did that was because that's what the preacher required in order to get married then I have just attached myself to a class A manipulator who will say whatever needs to be said to get what he wants and I'm in for a bumpy ride some other time I'll tell you how that was resolved but it was a cause of great consternation for her so I see all that to say this if you have never responded to what God did in Christ by receiving him as your savior you ought to do that right now and you can would you bow with me please father we don't know anybody's heart sometimes we don't even know our own heart because it can be deceitful and desperately wicked at times but we know that you know everyone's heart and you know whether there is a longing whether there is a search for meaning and fulfillment connection with yourself and we know you are more eager to meet that need than these dear folk are to have it met and our sincere prayer for anyone who may be here right now who's never made that decision for whatever reason may they be willing to be honest with themselves and honest with you and simply say God

[46:50] I just know that as the Bible says you sent your son to die for my sins I don't understand all of that but I do know I'm a sinner and I do know I could never make myself acceptable to you that's why Jesus came and with all my questions and doubts I know I just want to reach out and take Jesus Christ as my savior I want to invite your son into my life to give me eternal life and to cleanse me and pardon me that's what I want and there's no other way that I can provide it you'll have to do it and I thank you for being willing to do that Lord Jesus I want you and you've said you'll have me so here I am thank you for doing for me what you did and father for anyone who may have made that decision come to this incredible crossroads in their life where they've exercised their volition out of disobedience into obedience we pray you will surround them with your love your presence your assurance that they'll have the spirit of

[48:12] God bear witness with their spirit that they are children of God thank you for such a glorious wonderful gospel to preach we never tire of it and the world never loses its need for it in Christ's wonderful name amen