Place: Lurgan Baptist 19:10:2003

Reading: Ephesians 2:1-10 John 3:16

THE WONDROUS STORY

5. ITS FREE AND ALL ARE WELCOME

A large prestigious church had three mission churches under its care. On the first Sunday of the New Year all the members of the mission churches came to the big city church for a combined Communion service. In those mission churches which were located in the slums of the city, were some outstanding cases of conversion …., thieves, burglars and so on, but all knelt side by side at the Communion rail. On one such occasion the pastor saw a former burglar kneeling beside a judge of the Supreme Court of England …. the very judge who had sent him to jail where he had served seven years. After his release this burglar had got saved, and became a Christian worker. Yet, as they knelt there, the judge and the former convict, neither seemed to be aware of the other. After the service, the judge was walking out with the pastor and said to him, “ Did you notice who was kneeling beside me at the Communion rail this

Morning ?” The pastor replied, “ Yes, but I didn’t know that you noticed.” The two walked along in silence for a few moments and then the judge said, “ What a miracle of grace.” The pastor nodded in agreement, “ Yes, what a marvellous miracle of grace.” Then the judge said,

“ But to whom do you refer ?” And the pastor said,

“ Why to the conversion of that convict.” The judge said, “ But I was not referring to him, I was thinking of myself.” The pastor, surprised, replied, “ You were thinking of yourself, why I don’t understand. “ Yes,” the judge replied, “ it was natural for the burglar to receive God’s salvation when he came out of jail. He had nothing but a history of crime behind him, and when he recognised Jesus Christ as his Saviour he knew there was salvation, and hope, and joy for him. And he knew how much he needed that help. But look at me. I was taught from earliest infancy to live as a gentleman, that my word was to be my bond, that I was to say my prayers, go to church, take Communion and so on. I went through Oxford, took my degrees, was called to the bar and eventually became a judge. Pastor, it was God’s grace that drew me, it was God’s grace that opened my heart to receive it. I’m a greater miracle of His grace.”

Perhaps there is something to the judge’s insistence upon his life being the greater miracle. But in both cases it was God’s free, unearned grace and certainly not works which brought salvation. You see, God’s salvation is free and all are welcome and nowhere is this better expressed than in the text that we have entitled,

“ The Wondrous Story.” Notice these five words,

“ that whosoever believeth in Him,” do you see here:

(1) A PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPOSED

“ That whosoever,” my …. that word “ whosoever,” is used 179 times in the Bible and means the same thing every time, “ absolutely, positively, unconditionally anyone.” The response of the little boy when he was asked what the word “ whosoever,” meant, is delightful.

He said, “ It sort of means everyone else and me.” That, indeed, is the scope of it. “ Whosoever,” is one of the great words of the Bible. Do you recall what the Lord Jesus said to the woman at the well ? “ Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.” ( 4:13-14 ) Do you remember what He said to Martha ? “ And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believest thou this ?” ( 11:26 ) Do you recall Paul’s remarkable statement in the book of Romans ? “ For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” ( 10:13 ) As one writer said,

“ Whosoever is a Scriptural word of immense importance. It is general and particular. It embraces all and touches all. It lays its hand upon every one and says Thou art the man.” Now who does the Bible speak of when it talks of “ whosoever,” ? My …. it speaks:

(a) OF ALL CLASSES OF PEOPLE:

You see, God is no respecter of persons. When it comes to God’s salvation, both the rich and poor meet, for God’s offer is to all classes. The book of Proverbs says,

“ The rich and poor meet together, the Lord is the maker of them all.” ( 22:2 ) One Sunday morning, a number of years at the Calvary Baptist Church in Washington D.C. the pastor, Dr, Greene received into church membership on the same morning, the Hon Charles Evans Hughes, a Chinese person and a washerwoman. As he stood before this unusual group, do you know what he said ? He said, “ My friends I will have you notice that at the cross of Christ the ground is level.” My …. financially you may not be well off, but the same offer God makes to the rich, He makes to you. You may not have a university degree, but the same offer God makes to the college graduate He makes to you. “ Whosoever,” includes the cultured and the illiterate, the millionaire and the pauper. My ….

“ whosoever,” means all classes of people. It means you

(b) OF ALL COLOURS OF PEOPLE:

Perhaps one of the greatest songs ever written is the children’s song,

“ Jesus loves the little children,

All the children of the world

Red and yellow, black and white

All are precious in His sight

Jesus loves the little children of the world.”

My …. do you see that “ whosoever,” means people of every race, country, colour. “ Whosoever,” means the white man, black man, red man, yellow man, and the mixed man. The Jews of Christ’s day thought that God only favoured them. They felt that they had some kind of a monopoly on God. Not so ! For God’s offer of salvation is to both Jew and Gentile. “ Whosoever,” speaks of (a) (b)

(c) OF ALL CONDITIONS OF PEOPLE:

Are you like Nicodemus this …. ? Are you religious but not saved ? Well, “ whosoever,” includes you. Perhaps you’re like the woman that the Lord Jesus encountered at the well of Sychar ? Have you tried the pleasures of this world but still you’re not satisfied ? Well,

“ whosoever,” includes you ! My …. this word embraces the lowest, the meanest, the grandest and the purest. George Whitefield while preaching in his Tabernacle in London one evening, cried out, “ the Lord Jesus will save the Devil’s castaways.” At the very time he shouted these words there were two abandoned, sinful women walking outside. They heard his words looked at one another, and said, “ That must mean us.”

There and then they were gloriously saved. One of them wrote a note and gave it to the great preacher. Sometime later Lady Huntingdon said to George Whitefield, “ did you not go a little to far when you said the Devil would save the Lord’s castaways ?” Without saying a word, Whitefield pulled out the note that had been given to him and let her read it. It read,

“ Mr. Whitefield, two poor lost women stood outside your Tabernacle today and heard you say that the Lord would save the Devil’s castaways. We seized upon that as our last hope, and we write now to tell that we rejoice now believing in Christ and from this hour we shall endeavour to serve Him Who has done so much for us.” My …. do you think you are too sinful to be saved ? Do you think you are too far gone to trust the Lord ? Listen, for this word “ whosoever,” speaks of (a) (b) (c) ! I heard about a certain man named Mr. Kline. He was discouraged, defeated, dejected, and convinced that life just was not worth living, because no-one cared for him. One Sunday evening he walked past a church when a service was in progress. As the congregation sang, he caught the strains of that familiar hymn.

“ Saved by grace alone, this is all my plea

Jesus died for all mankind

And Jesus died for me.”

His hearing, however was not good, so when the congregation came to the words, “ Jesus died for all mankind,” he thought they sang, “ Jesus died for old man Kline.” “ Why,” he said “ that’s me.” Stopping in his tracts, he turned and entered the small church. There he heard the simple message of the gospel as the preacher presented the good news that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Mr. Kline believed and was saved. My …. do you realise this …. that

“ whosoever,” means you ? Whoever you are ! Wherever you are ! However you are ! Whatever you have done ! Richard Baxter said, “ thank God for that word whosoever. If God had said there was mercy for Richard Baxter, I am so vile a sinner, that I would have thought He meant some other Richard Baxter, but when God says whosoever, I know that includes me, the worst of all Richard Baxter’s.” (1)

(2) A PRINCIPLE THAT IS EXPRESSED

“ that whosoever believeth ….,” ( 3:16 ) You see, while God’s offer is to “ whosoever,” there is one condition. Any one can come, but they must come on God’s terms and not their own. Any one can be saved but it is important to understand that there is only one way to be saved. All can be saved but all must be saved God’s way. You say, “ what’s God’s way ?” Through faith in Christ. For the unchanging principle of Scripture is that a person is saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Do you see how the text puts it ? “ that whosever believeth,” ? Now that word “ believeth,”

(a) DENIES THE OTHER WAYS:

To be saved ! My …. there are not several ways to be saved. James Proctor who sought all his life for peace with God and cleansing from God left a scribbled note on his desk, with these lines to indicate his faith in Christ.

“ I’ve tried in vain a thousand ways

My fears to quell, my hopes to raise

But what I need the Bible says

Is ever only Jesus.”

How is one saved ? “ Not of works lest any man should boast.” ( Eph 2:9 ) Even our best works are coloured by sin and can never approach the radical righteousness which God demands. My …. no matter how high we climb our moral ladder, it is not high enough. Salvation is “ not of works.” Imagine that an airplane flies over the South Atlantic ocean and crashes a thousand miles from any coast. In the plane there are three individuals a great Olympic swimmer, an average swimmer, and someone who cannot swim at all. The Olympic star calls out “ Follow me …. I’ll get out of this,” and takes off with an impressive crawl, heading for the tip of South America a thousand miles away. The other two follow him. In about thirty seconds the non-swimmer goes down. It takes about thirty minutes for the average swimmer to go down. But the champion swimmer churns away for twenty five hours, covering an impressive fifty miles. Terrific ! Only 475 more hours to go. He’ll be there in nineteen days if he does not slow down. My …. the truth is our paddling, or swimming will never do, no matter how “ good, “ we are. The distance is too far, and we are too flawed. We can try, but all our works will be no more beneficial than rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic ! The Bible says, “ Not by works.” Our text does not say,

“ Whosoever lives a good life, whosoever keeps the ten commandments, whosoever reforms his life, whosoever is sprinkled, or baptised.” You see, this word

“ believeth,” (a) but it:

(b) DECLARES THE ONLY WAY:

“ that whosoever believeth,” ( 3:16 ) If there is no faith there is no salvation. What is faith ? Forsaking all I trust Him. My …. faith is the thing that God honours. The Bible says, “ Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou shalt be saved.” ( Acts 16:31 ) “ To as many as received Him …. that believe on His name.” ( Jn 1:12 ) My …. do you realise that your sins will never be forgiven, you’ll never be saved from hell, you’ll never have peace with God until there is faith in the lord Jesus Christ ! During the 1900s Blondin was a world-famous acrobat. Born in France in 1924, Bloindin became well known while still a child. As he grew older, his skill and showmanship brought him fame throughout Europe and America. Once in an unusual demonstration of skill, Blondin carried a man across Niagara Falls on his back. After putting his rider down he turned to the large crowd and asked a man close by. “ Do you believe that I could do that with you ?” “ Of course,” the man answered,

“ I’ve just seen you do it.” “ Hop on,” said Blondin,

“ I’ll carry you across.” “ Not on your life,” the man called back. You see, here was a man who believed he could do it, he just would not trust him to do it. My …. is that you ? Do you believe Jesus Christ is who He says He is ? Do you believe He died for your sins at

Calvary ? Do you believe He rose again and lives to day to be your Saviour ? Have you trusted Him to save you ? Do you see that word “ believeth,” ? It’s the same Greek word that is translated “ commit,” in ( 2:24 ) My …. that’s what it is to believe in Christ, its to commit yourself unto Him ? Have you done that ? Have you said, “ Jesus I will trust Thee, … with my soul ?”(1) (2)

(3) A PERSON WHO IS EXALTED

Did you get the last two words of the five ? “ that whosoever believeth in Him,” ( 3:16 ) My …. God has no plan, no program for this world or any other, no purpose in the universe or in time or eternity that does not centre in His Son. Here again we are brought back to the Lord Jesus. For He is the one who saves people from their sins, writes their names in life’s eternal book, secures for them a place in the family of God and a home in heaven. “ that whosoever believeth in Him.”

“ In Him, ( 1 Jn 5:20 ) “ In Christ,” ( Eph 1:3 )

“ In whom,” ( Eph 1:7 ) are terms that are used time and again in the N.T. What then does it mean to be

“ in Christ,” ? Well, my …. in Him we have:

(a) A NEW POSITION:

The Bible says, “ if any man be in Christ he is a new creature, old things are passed away behold all things are become new.” ( 2 Cor 5:17 ) That he is radically, fundamentally new. “ Without Christ,” a sinner spiritually dead and a moral bankrupt. “ In Christ,” a saint spiritually alive and a joint heir with Christ.

“ Without Christ,” one is, has and can do nothing.

“ In Christ,” one is, has, and can do everything. My …. have you been translated out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s dear Son ? Are you “ in Christ, ?” You see, you can be in the church, but not in Christ ! You can be in the club, but not in Christ ! You can be in some society but not in Christ. Are you “ in Christ ?” Have you a new position ?

(b) A NEW POSSESSION:

“ In whom also we have obtained an inheritance,”

( Eph 1:11 ) A man worth 20 million dollars died and left all to his only descendant, a young nephew. However, no-one knew where the young man lived. The lawyer traced him to Colorado but there the trail ended. So he contacted a detective agency for help. The head of the agency said, “ I’ll put my best detective on the case. She is young, sharp, opportunistic and aggressive. She’ll find your man.” Three weeks later, she contacted the lawyer. She said, “ I’ve found your man.” “ Great,” the lawyer said, “ When will he be back ?” She answered, “ Right after the honeymoon.” That is one way to get in on an inheritance. But we do not have to use trickery or cunning for this inheritance, both here and hereafter becomes ours when we trust Christ ! A:B:

(c) A NEW PRIVILEGE:

“ In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him.” ( Eph 3:12 ) What a privilege, undeniable access into the very presence of God. (c) “ that whosoever believeth in Him.” A dear old Christian memorised much of the Word of God. When she came toward the latter of her life her memory began to fade and she lost all of the Scriptures except one. In the closing days of her life the only Scripture she knew was “ I know whom I have believed ….,” The closer she came to death the more her mental powers left her and finally she got down to this. “ I know whom.” Finally, she got to one word, “ Him,” and she left this world saying, “ Him, Him, Him.” She had lost the whole Bible and yet in that one word she had all she needed for life, death, eternity. Him ! Do you know Him, …. the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour ? Salvation is a matter of taking God at His Word and trusting Christ as your Saviour. That’s all, nothing more and nothing less. “ What shall you .… called Christ ?”