Jack Jurgens's Ministry Library

Gospel tent meeting with Peter Ramsay and Kory Crawford.

[0:00] We’re going to read in the New Testament this evening. We’re going to read in Romans chapter, three. And while you are looking up Romans chapter three, I would encourage you to read the entire chapter of Romans chapter three. We’re not going to read it all tonight. We’re just going to read couple of verses and then focus on just one verse. And you may not be very impressed with the verse that I’m going to focus on tonight, but if you read the entire chapter, there is awesome, amazing news in Romans chapter 3. But you have to go through the first few verses, and it’s a bitter pill for many to swallow, the.

[0:50] First few verses of Romans chapter 3. Not everybody likes Romans chapter 3. And in this one verse that we’re going to focus on, I want you to look for the most difficult word to say in the English language. It’s not because of the number of letters in the word or how many syllables are in the word, the English word. It’s the character of the word. It’s the nature of the word that makes it so difficult to say. Romans chapter 3, verse 9, what then? Are we better than they? So the apostle Paul is writing to a group of people and they thought, well, we have an advantage because we have the right religion. We’re better than the rest of the people. And Paul is making a solid, bulletproof case that no one is better than another group of people. Everyone is on the same level with God.

[2:00] What then, are we better than they? No, in no wise, for we have before proved, both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin.
Verse 10, as it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one.
There’s no wiggle room there, is it?
There are no exclusions. It doesn’t say except for the people go to the Wyckoff tent meetings.
No, it says, there is none righteous, no, not one. Verse 18, there is no fear of God before their eyes.
Verse 19, now we know that what things soever the law says, it says to them who are under the law.
So that’s the Jewish law, the 10 commandments that they would be familiar with.
Then it says that every mouth may be stopped.

[3:06] It’s awfully, have you been to a, I don’t know whether these conversations go on at Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts down here, but back in Canada, we have, you perhaps have never heard tell of Tim Hortons.
It’s a coffee shop that dots the country from east to west. And I don’t meet there with a bunch of people, but my brother does.
And they all go there and they meet at a certain time a day and they all chat and they discuss politics, and they discuss this and they discuss that and they have a round table discussion.
They must all be retired.
They’ll spend their entire morning.
They all have something to say.

[3:53] And you know, whether it’s laws being passed in Washington or in your state, we all have our opinions and we all have our mouths going. But this verse says that every mouth may be stopped. I have nothing that I can say. You used to have an old pump organ.
Now this is really, pump organs were well before my time, but I did buy an antique pump organ. So it wasn’t electric. You had to go like this and blow the air into it.
And then you pulled out all the stops and you could get the sound and you get the sound, all these stops on the organ and you pump, pump away to get the sound.
And then you, they were called stops, these little white things that you pulled out.
And if you press them all in, solid, press them all in, you could pump away and there wouldn’t be a squeak come out of the organ because it was stopped.
They were called stops.
And that’s what this verse says, that every mouth may be stopped.
People say, yes, but I don’t know that God is really being, mouth isn’t stopped, is it?
Whether there’s a little argument going on with God.

[5:16] But the Bible says that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God.

[5:31] Or brought under the judgment of God, accountable to God, brought under the judgment of God.
But I want to focus on the word, Do you know what that most difficult word is in the English language to say?
Guilty. Now, perhaps some of you are learning the English language and you’re trying to conquer the jawbreakers, the big, long words, multi-syllable, and you’ll say, I’ll never be able to wrap my tongue around that word.
Well, the harder than any of those words is the word guilty, guilty.
So I want to talk a few minutes about the word guilty.
The most difficult word to say in the English language. I’m not going to get you to practice it tonight.
You can do so in your head, but it’s good to get the phonetics down, but it’s even better to get the meaning of the word down.
And you don’t have to say you’re guilty to Peter or to Kory.

[6:35] But God wants to hear from your heart, guilty. I am guilty.
Not guilty comma, not guilty colon, not guilty semi-colon, not guilty question mark.
Me guilty? No, guilty, period.

[6:59] Have you ever said, God, I am guilty, period? I find the word really difficult, and I’ve been speaking English for a long time, and, I find guilty really hard to say, even on trivial matters.
Who walked across the kitchen floor with their muddy boots on?
Find it hard to say, guilty.
So hard.
You forget to turn the stove off? Guilty. I remember as a kid I was up, my bedroom was up in the attic, and I found it excruciatingly painful to say the word, guilty. The ceiling was slanted over my bed and I was on my back laying on my bed and I had my two feet pressed on the gyprock wall, the slanted gyprock wall, And I don’t know what happened, but one of my feet I must have applied too much pressure and one of my feet went right through the gyprock wall and, I Heard my father coming at the attic stairs.

[8:08] And he said did you do that?
Whoa, oh I Did my best to look as be as shocked as I possibly could the sudden appearance dead of that hole in the wall me do that? Foolishly! I tried to let on that I didn’t do it. I didn’t want to say I was a culprit. I I didn’t want to say what word!

[8:36] Guilty, so it’s hard, hard to say, guilty. It wouldn’t surprise me that someone’s here tonight, and you’d love to have all the blessings of a Christian.
You would love to be saved. You would love to be sure you’re going to heaven.
You would love to have eternal life.
You would like to have this ongoing relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Some of you have heard about the rapture and you’d love to be ready when the Lord comes.
You’re worried that you’ll be left behind. You’d love to be ready.
You want to be inside when the door shuts.

[9:23] You would really like to have this big matter settled once for all, it’s been hanging over your head, this spiritual matter.
You have a nagging worry inside. Nagging. Yes but I’m not right with God. You’d like to get this settled. You would like to have what other Christians have. You, know they have something that you don’t have, don’t you? You know that they have peace. You know they have found the meaning in life. And you want to get rid of that nagging feeling inside and just be able to say everything is right now with God and then get on with your life and live a life of fulfillment for God’s purposes.
You would like all the blessings of a Christian. So let me ask you, why aren’t you saved?
Why have you never trusted Christ?
Why are your sins not forgiven this evening? I might be speaking to someone, right now, who has never honestly said to God.

[10:35] Guilty. Just before we came here tonight, we visited Eleanor Zudema, 96, in the home.
And she was telling me, telling us about where she grew up and the church that they went to and, how they went to confession. And they had to confess their sins to another person.
You don’t have to confess your sins to another person. There is no mediator between God and man.
There’s no person on earth today that has a goal between you and God.
The Bible says very clearly, there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.
So no pastor, no priest is a mediator between God and man, only Jesus Christ is the mediator.
And so she was telling us how she used to, the religion, she had to confess her sins.
And she did that as a girl.

[11:51] But you know, you can tell somebody else you’re guilty, but that will never save you.
You need to tell God you’re guilty.
Have you a moment in your life, a moment?

[12:10] For all the Christians that I’ve met, it’s a memorable moment.
It’s not something that they can’t recall.
They can recall when they might not remember the date on that calendar or anything, but unless you’re stricken with dementia or Alzheimer’s, anyone that I’ve met can remember when Jesus became precious to them. May not remember the month, they may forget the year, but, they know there was a turning point in their life when Christ became precious to them. I’m not talking about parroting the word guilty. You could teach it, you could buy it, invest in a parakeet or a parrot and they’d say, you could teach them how to say guilty. Guilty, guilty, guilty. We’re not talking about parroting words. I used to go to a lot of funerals, and when in my former employment, the board of governors thought that that was the right thing for me to do, go to funerals of people who died, and then they might give to health care. Their family might give to health care. So I’d go to all these funerals, and I’d listen to people pray, our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
And then forgive us our trespasses.

[13:32] And they did it out of sincerity. But you know, I’m not talking about reciting a little prayer, saying guilty from the lips on.
Anyone who knows Christ, anyone who’s going to heaven has experienced, I am the guilty one.
We’re talking about guiltiness with contrition and brokenness.
Maybe some of you have said guilty comma. Oh, yes, I would. I can say guilty tonight, just like everybody else in the tent.
That’s guilty karma.

[14:10] Oh, yeah, we’ve all sinned. But can you just forget about everybody else tonight?
And can you say, I am the guilty sinner? Yes, I can say I am the guilty sinner, but there’s others that are a lot worse than me.
That’s not guilty, period.
Can you tell God, I am the guilty sinner that deserves eternal punishment, period?

[14:45] Or is it easy for you to say guilty comma or guilty colon, semicolon?
Or maybe you’re still at the stage where you’re saying, I don’t even see my guilt.
Am I guilty? Question mark.
People say, well, they’re guilty, but to their Lord, there were extenuating circumstances.
But see, all the comments, before you’ll ever have your sins forgiven with God, before you’ll ever be saved, before you’ll ever be right with God, You will say guilty, period. or you may use different words.

[15:31] But that will be the language of your heart. I am guilty, period.
Mouth stopped. Some are offended by Romans chapter three. They feel like the Bible is shaming them and trying to put them on a guilt trip and they have no desire to agree with God’s verdict of guilt.
You know, I’ve met quite a few Christians as others have as we travel around.
In all my years of meeting Christians, I have never met a true, blue, genuine, authentic Christian who was uncomfortable in saying or singing, I was a guilty sinner, but Jesus died for me.
That’s the last line of the lyrics of a Christian song. I was a guilty sinner, but Jesus died for me.
Again I ask you, have you ever been alone with God?
You don’t come to the front and tell us you’re guilty. But have you ever had an encounter with God?
So, God, I’m a guilty sinner. Shut it.

[16:40] I need to be saved. I need to be rescued because of my sins.
Or are you struggling with telling God you’re guilty?
That could be the reason why you’re not saved.
If you’re struggling with that, you know what the Lord Jesus said, Luke chapter five?
He said, I didn’t come to call the righteous.
I came to call sinners to repentance. Do you know what the theological term for repentance means?
Repentance is a theological term. It just means agreeing with God, guilty God.
You’re right, I am wrong, period.
Jesus said, unless you repent, you will all perish.
So do you have a moment when you were, Guilty, repentant before God. The Bible says in Romans chapter two, verse four, the goodness of God leads sinners to repentance.
Has God blessed your life? Has God brought Christian friends into your life?
And you say, what a blessing they are in my life.
I’m so glad that I know them.

[17:47] How good God is to give me a good friend like that. That’s what the Bible says, the goodness of God leads people to repentance.
God is at work in your life, and he’s wanting you to repent of your sins.
The Bible says in Acts chapter 17, God now commands all people everywhere to repent.
Hard to get out of that one. Everywhere, all people, everywhere to repent.
So let me ask you again. I’m harping away at it, but it’s surprising.
People come to a gospel service like this, and you think you’re making it really clear, and you’re afraid like you’re like a broken record and you’re strumming on the same string, hitting the same string.
Surprising what people don’t get in a gospel service.

[18:44] So if you forget everything I say, this opening part of the service tonight, I hope you will understand that if you’re ever going to be in heaven, you will have to face the reality of your sin before God, and you will have to tell God, I’m guilty.
I am guilty.
So there are a lot of arguments people have with God. They say, well, God’s, I’m guilty, but God’s standards are way too high.
No one’s perfect.
We all have our sins. We make our mistakes. We have our failures.
We have our wild, our wrong moments.
I’m bad, but I’m not that bad.
You ever have that little argument going on inside? There’s a lot worse than me.

[19:43] We need to get the organizational structure of the universe.
Clearly in our heads.
The pyramid structure of the organizational chart, God is in charge of this universe.
God has a final say. And God has said in his holy word that not one sin, Not even a white lie.
We’ll enter heaven. You cannot go to heaven with even your smallest sins, every sin.
God is, it’s glaring in God’s eyes. We dismiss as hell. Well, you know, this feeling they say it’s, you could drive 65, but I’m in a rush, I’m going to drive 80.

[20:38] Breaking the law, we say, come on, give me a break, and we do that with all kinds of sins.
But every sin that we have ever committed, not only the sins of our hands or our feet, but the Bible tells us even our thought life is sin that God holds us responsible for.
And it’s not just the bad things we do, it’s the good things we fail to do.
That’s sin too with God, according to the Bible, and you cannot be in heaven.
You can never be accepted by God with any sin. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
People say, well, that is, God’s requirements are too rigid.
There’s a little, let me ask you, is there a little argument going on in your heart?
You’re getting a little annoyed with me. Okay, sorry about that.
Just trying to tell you what the Bible says.
Because I had to face this.
Good living Kory had to face this, that all his righteousnesses were as filthy rags before God.
We all had to face that.

[21:59] And you will have to face it if you’re ever going to be right with God.
Say, well, God’s requirements are far too rigid. So sin means missing the bar. I wrote them down.
Wickedness or evil, iniquities or lawlessness, ungodliness, offenses, they’re all different kinds of words.
Transgression just means overstepping a boundary or a rule.
And as Jesus taught, we sin in our thoughts, our words, and in actions.
But God sets the rules.

[22:33] People say, but I think he’s an arbitrary God. Like he must be really nitpicking, nitpicking, to hold me responsible for something so minor, so much greater, far worse things in the world.

[22:52] It’s God’s universe, and sin is offensive to God. And why is it you can have rules and spores?
I had a personal example, Jared Knoppin, he was in a, way back now, 2012, some of you probably weren’t born in 2012, but he was in the Olympics in London and he was right from our little province.
We’re only 160 miles long, so it is a huge event when someone from Prince Edward Island makes it to the Olympics.
And he was the head of the relay team, the 100 meter relay team.
Oh, and we were down in our basement watching the screen and we, I couldn’t, I never watched, a football game, a baseball game, a soccer game in my life.
But when Jared from PEI was running in the Olympics, we were right in there.
Yes, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go.
And they got a bronze medal.
Oh, and they wrapped themselves in the Canadian flag, and they were so jubilant, and their faces were just beaming, and Joey and I were just, oh yes, we’re right up out of the sofa.
So happy that Jared, and then we saw them watching the.

[24:17] Oh, I don’t watch games, so I didn’t really understand what was happening.
Their smiles come off their faces, All of a sudden, the flag fell to the ground, and then we saw the relay team just fall to the ground in despair.
I said, what is going on?
Do you know what, they were disqualified, bizarre.
Oh, you know what, Jared from PEI, his toe just touched the edge of one of the lines, preposterous that they would rule out. How nitpicky can the Olympic committee be to disqualify them just because they touched the line.
I was so livid and wild. I thought, who are they to say that he didn’t, he has to give up his bronze medal.

[25:21] But no one quibbled. Here’s what, here’s what, here’s what Jared said.
I was, it was my fault.
We ran a great race. As soon as I saw the replay, I saw I had stepped on the line.
The rule is unforgiving.
I’m very upset. I’m sorry for costing my teammates a medal. One step, it’s a tough.
I take full responsibility. It was my fault.
That’s just a gate over in London. And no one quibbled, no one said, who is the Olympic committee? I didn’t see there was no big FBI investigation into the Olympics as to why Jared lost his bronze medal.
No, we accept rules every day. But when God has a rule that says, no sin will be accepted in my sight, we don’t want to say what Jared said.
Jared said it was my fault.
My friend, as I sit down and you listen to Corrine tonight, if you want to have your sins forgiven.

[26:33] Because there is forgiveness for guilty sinners. It’s available to you this evening.
We’re gonna have some refreshments afterwards if the weather allows us, but you could have a big smile on your face and peace and joy in your heart before you even partake of the refreshments.
All it takes is for you to be honest with God.
And the moment you are honest with God, about your sin, he will reach into your life and save you.
He specializes in saving guilty sinners. There is redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins, the Bible says.
The night we plead with you, don’t hold out on God.
Stop, who’s gonna win the argument? And then finally, how long are you gonna argue with God about whether you’re a sinner or not? Do you think you are really gonna win the argument?
Not a chance. So why not the night yield and say, I’m a guilty sinner, God?
There’ll be good news to flood your soul. That’s why Christ died for our sins.

[27:43] Thanks again, everybody, for coming out tonight, and I was thinking there as Peter was preaching about guilt just yesterday, Peter and I just drove an hour north to visit a maximum security prison there in New York State, and as we were sitting there at the table waiting for our visit, I watched as other prisoners came in, and their loved ones were waiting for, and they sat down at the side of the table and there was, you know, different interactions, maybe the wives of some, you know, some emotion.
And I was thinking in that waiting area, in that visiting area, they made a very clear demarcation of who was in prison, who was guilty.
They all sat on the same side of the table.
And we, as the free ones, free to leave at any time we wanted, we all sat on the other side.
You know, as we had our visit and as we got up and left, You know, I thought of all those prisoners having their shuffle back into their cells, many of them there, and they’ll never get out.

[28:45] And I was saying how nice it is. How, how, what a privilege to be free.
But you know, before God tonight, as we’ve been hearing, we’re all on the same side of the table.
We’re all on the side that is guilty.
And despite how we may feel, how we may live our lives, the freedom we think we enjoy, before God, we’re all guilty.
But you know, the tremendous thing about God’s salvation tonight is that God wants to reach across the side of the table and find the guilty one and not just set him free, not just say, here, walk out free. You know what he wants to do?
He wants to make you part of his family. He wants to like that prodigal father. He wants to give you his best robe. He, wants to bless you. He wants to give you a home in heaven. So how wonderful it is tonight for those who are saved. Those have that those have been saved from the guilt of sin.
And that’s what the gospel message is tonight. Freedom that is found in Jesus Christ.
And we’re gonna read about the Lord Jesus in the book of Acts tonight in chapter five.

[29:51] Acts chapter 5. We’ve been thinking of some different encounters and stories in this book. And here we have the disciples again, Peter and, and John, and they’ve, they’ve been having, they’ve been helping people. They’ve been healing people, preaching, and there’s been many followers of them. And so the religious people are not too happy about it. And they’ve, been put in prison. And just the next day, they’re out of prison and they’re preaching again. And that’s where we find them here them here in Acts chapter 5 in verse number 26, that the officers see them they’re preaching and they want them to give an account again of what they’ve been up to. And it says in Acts 5 in verse 26, Then the captain went with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people lest they should be stoned. And when they had brought them they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, Did we not God strictly command you not to teach in this name.
That’s the name of Jesus.
And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man’s blood on us.
It’s interesting that not too long ago when Jesus Christ was crucified and they rejected, he said, let his blood be upon us and our children.

[31:06] And it says in verse number 29, but Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God.
Rather than men. I don’t know who you’re obeying tonight in your life, whose path you’re following, but maybe you’re following your own path. And in a sense you’re saying, I’m obeying myself, I’m obeying what I think more than what God says. But Peter, what advice he gives and what advice they follow in their lives. We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to his right hand to be Prince and Savior to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are his witnesses to these things and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him. And when they heard this they were furious and plotted to kill them. Not happy hearing from the mouth of the preacher, you’re guilty. You’ve murdered, you’ve killed the son of God. And they were furious. Then one of the councils stood up a Pharisee named Gamaliel and a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. And he said to them, men.

[32:28] Of Israel, take heed to yourself what you intend to do regarding these men. For some time ago, Theodos rose up claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about 400, joined him and he was slain. And all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. After this, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census and drew many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. But now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone. For if this plan or For this work is of men, it will come to nothing.
But if it’s of God, you cannot overthrow it, lest you be found to fight against it.
Against God.
If this message, if this man who they’re preaching about, if this whole idea of Jesus Christ dying and being buried and raising and being risen from the dead, if this is just a story fabricated and distributed by men, he says if this plan is the work of men.

[33:45] Again. It’ll come to nothing. A few years will pass and we’ll hear nothing of it. But if it is of God, get out of the way.
Because unless you think you can overthrow God or fight against God, there’s no stopping it. You know what? I was a wise man that day. Because as that message was preached in Acts chapter 5 and through the book of Acts and from 2000 years ago until now, you know what?
No one’s been able to overthrow it, why? Because it’s not of men.
It’s a message from the God of heaven. These other men that they talked about, who we know nothing about, this Theodos and Judas of Galilee, it says they had followers for a time, but as soon as they perished, so went the religion, so went the teachings.
But this message that these men have, don’t fret about it, because the proof will be shown, evidence we will see, because if it’s of God, you’ll never overthrow it.
And friends, tonight, just in the last few minutes of this message, I’d like you to think about these two questions, or these two ideas that we have brought about, That Peter would declare, we ought to obey God rather than men.

[35:01] And as this other wise man Gamaliel, he would get up and say, this message, if it’s of God, there’s nothing you’re going to be able to do to overthrow.
And so tonight, I would just like you to think about who is it that you obey?
Who are you obeying? Or who will you obey? I remember, as most of us when we were growing up, there was generally a larger sense of fear to obey your father. My mother is not a tall woman, just maybe just if she’s lucky on a good day, just over five feet. And so when we disobeyed as children, you know, there wasn’t too much intimidation, not too much motivation to obey mom.
And even though sometimes she would get extra ambitious and maybe get out the wooden spoon, like you still could in those days, and she maybe would give us a few whacks with that, it still wasn’t as intimidating to obey mom with a wooden spoon, as it was when dad came home with his bare hand. And we’ve all been there, right? That oftentimes there’s a reluctance to obey, And there’s an intimidation and the one who has the most power, the one who is the most intimidated, that’s the one more obey.
I’m sure we’ve all experienced it. And maybe in your case, your mother hit harder than your father.
And that’s the one you obey. But the idea is there, right?
That there was a reluctance to obey. And this preacher, Peter.

[36:19] As he was told and the men told him something to do that was in a direct contradiction of what God had told him to do.
He posed a simple thought to them, which is more beneficial, obey man or obey God?

[36:37] Now you can go back right to the very first book of the Bible, one of the first chapters of the Bible, and you can see where we are today in this world.
If you’ve ever wondered why there’s disease in this world, You ever wonder why there’s war?

[36:51] Have you ever wondered why there’s poverty, why there’s famine, why there’s children starving?
You know the reason why?
Because way back in Genesis, the first chapters of the Bible, Adam listened to man, he listened to his wife.
He obeyed his wife, he listened to what she said over what God said.
And the result of that, absolute ruin, the fall of man. And Adam would, in a sense, almost blame God.
He said, and God would say to him, you have hearkened onto the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree, which I commanded you specifically not to do.
He obeyed man.
He obeyed his own thoughts, his own ideas, more than what God had said.
You know, we can put the blame on Adam and say, what a foolish decision.
Until now, this day, 2023, we are in the exact same boat because each day, day after day, we obey man rather than God.
And maybe tonight you can find yourself in that situation. And Saul, the king in the Old Testament, he will lament that fact as well. And he would say, I have sinned, I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and thy words because I feared the people.
I feared the people and obeyed their voice.
And the ruin that came to that king’s life, that that king’s kingdom in a sense, his reign.
Why? Because he would say, I did not obey thy word, O God.
I obeyed the voice of the people.

[38:15] In French, if there’s any way that you could more ruin your life, it’s to this. It’s to obey men.
It’s to obey, take heed to your own ideas, maybe even of what God is, of who God is.
And Peter, he would be so convinced in his own mind. And you could say, well, I’m obeying it because my pastor told me.
I’m obeying it because the priest told me. My parents told me.
Or I obey because my wife told me.
It’s better to obey God than to obey men, because God is the absolute voice of authority.
You know what it is the devil wants each one of us to do? You know the title that Jesus Christ gave the devil? The father of lies.
And he’s been lying, he’s been spreading his lies throughout this world, whether through false gods, false religions, whatever it might be, that you might obey men, that you might obey his voice, his lies, rather than God.

[39:14] Who will you obey? Who are you obeying? You may say, well, my, this is what I think.
This is how I think you get to heaven.
You’re trusting, you’re obeying your own thoughts, your own ideas, rather than what God says.
The conviction of these men’s hearts were to obey God rather than men.
Doing one leads to life. Obeying God leads to life.
Obeying men leads to death.
Obeying God leads to heaven and blessing. Obeying men, our ideas, our philosophies leads to condemnation and hell.
One offers hope.
To trust in God, what hope? to trust in the changing, fleeting opinions and ideas of men. Hopelessness.
No hope. Thou, in trusting in this, one comes with absolute assurance and certainty.
Obeying God, you have his word, you have his promises. If you ever doubt one day, just go back and look at the promises of God. If you trust men, obey men.
Uncertainty, hopelessness, despair.
This night, friend, if you’re following that path, if you’re obeying men, If you are in the pathway of man, of mankind’s ideas, of the world’s ideas, think about the treatment that you receive.

[40:41] What men, what the world has to tell you.
You’re never enough. You’ve never done enough. You might have low self-esteem but you just need to try harder. You need to work it out. You need to just try and you know what Jesus Christ says? He said there’s another coming and his objective is to lie, is to murder, is to kill.
And so often in life as we obey men’s philosophies and men’s ideas and our own thoughts we’re left like that poor beggar, that man in that story of the Good Samaritan, half dead and half naked, on the side of the road without any hope. That’s the treatment that’s given. The world will chew you up and spit you out when it’s done with you and it’ll leave you with nothing. And what’s the result? We’ve read of the result of a group of men as Gamaliel would get up and he would talk about some who obeyed men, who followed men, this Theodos and Judas of Galilee, what was the result? It says they were, scattered. They were dispersed. It came to nothing. That was the.

[41:54] Result. And friend, tonight, if you obey men rather than God, if you trust in man’s word, don’t trust my word. Trust God’s word. Don’t trust the preacher’s word. Look for for yourself what God says in his word and that’s why we desire to proclaim God’s Word today not not the opinions of a church of a religion of the preachers no the Word of God and it says it came to nothing and as that man that was a debt was half dead on the side of the road on his journey back from from from from from Jerusalem it says there that someone would pass him by there’s a.

[42:33] Priest that came. And he came and he saw him. He saw the man in his need. He saw someone that needed help. And what did the priest do? He carried on his way. And if you’re obeying religion, when you are half dead and half naked in this life with nothing, you know where religion will leave you? Right in the condition you find yourself. No hope. No peace. That is the the result of obeying men, of obeying religion, men’s philosophies, men’s ideas.
No true hope, no true purpose, no true peace.
But old friend, if you were to be able to do what those preachers did, what those disciples did that day and they purposed in their heart, we will obey God rather than men.
You know the treatment you’ll receive.

[43:30] God is a God of love. The Bible says he’s loved us with an everlasting love. Have you ever looked for true love in this world? You’re always left wanting. A broken heart, broken spirit, hurt feelings, friend the love of God. If you were to come to him tonight, his way, through Jesus Christ. He loves us with an everlasting love.

[43:59] Just back a few chapters in Acts chapter 3, they were preaching again and they would say the purpose of God sending Jesus Christ into the world, it wasn’t to condemn the world, no.
It says he sent Jesus to bless you. If you’re looking for a blessing tonight, if you’re looking to be blessed, there’s nothing that we could offer, we could provide or promise you. Nothing of real lasting value, but Jesus Christ came so, that you could be blessed. And even though, as he said here, as Peter would read the charge of them, he would say, you, killed him, you murdered him. God raised him up and he’s on the throne. Friend, if you were to obey God tonight, you’d be obeying the one who’s on the throne of heaven. He sits there, And on his right hand is his son, because we’ve read here, he says, he exalted his son, he rose him up victorious from the dead.
That’s the way that God, that’s the path that God’s offered.
He’s exalted his chosen one. What is the result?
The world will spit you up and chew you out, will chew you up and spit you out and leave you there with nothing. This is what God offers.
Forgiveness from the guilt that we’ve been hearing of. Forgive us for the guilt of sin.

[45:19] That you could go home tonight with this on your heart and your mind knowing in the courtroom of God under my account says forgiven not just forgiven for a time for all eternity how is it possible how is it that God can forgive the debt because someone has to pay the price.

[45:37] And what is the price of sin the bible says the price of sin is death we will all die one day why because each one of us has sin inside whether we want to admit the guilt or not.

[45:47] We will die. No clear evidence. We can try and prolong it, we can try and avoid it, but it is certain, it is appointed, the Bible says, unto men, once to die. Why?
Because we’ve all sinned. And friend, tonight Jesus Christ came into this world, the one who was cruelly treated and put on a cross, and there on Calvary’s cross he bore the price that your sins and my sins deserve. And it’s because of Christ, because of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, you can have your account tonight, completely forgiven. Every wrong man, not even that, he says your sins and your iniquities I will remember no more. I don’t know if you’re good with a compass or map, some of us are, but it says this, as far as the east is from the west, how far is that? Infinite. As far as the east is from the west, that’s how far God will put his sins away from you, away from him. That is the promise that is the result of those who who choose to obey God and what does God say he says repent and believe the gospel believe in Jesus Christ that’s what God’s heart is that’s what his desire is tonight who are you obey if you’d say well I’m not convinced you’d say I’d still want to go about my own way obeying my own thoughts my own purposes my own desires in this life I.

[47:10] I would just like you to think of the last words that we have read tonight in verse number 39.
He said, this message, this plan, this gospel is of men. It will come to nothing.
Here we’re reading in the book of Acts that the tremendous persecution, when Christianity was a very, very small religion, a very, had a very small following.
You look at a map today of all the Christian nations in the world.

[47:38] And you read what he says here, this plan, this message is of men, will come to nothing.
But you can go to every country in this world, and every country in this world, without a doubt, I believe you would find someone who is a Christian. Someone who is a believer. Why?
Because it says this, because if it is of God, if this message that we are preaching, If this Jesus Christ that these men are announcing in the synagogue, if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it, lest you be found to fight against God. I don’t know if you’ve been in any fights in your life. I remember two fights in high school I was in. I’d like to consider I won both of them, but who knows? But maybe you’ve been in a fight and you see the opponent and you size yourself up. You say, I got a chance. I remember in gym class, they would have a game where they put the medicine ball in the middle.
They’d have two teams and they’d disperse you by weight and size.
One being the smallest guy, 15 to the highest, and you had two teams.
And you know, so one was the small guy, 15, and you know, they call numbers close together.
You know, 10 from this team, seven from this team, and you go in the middle of your wrestling, you try and bring the ball to your son.

[48:51] You know, sometimes the teacher had a cruel sense that he would call number one from the one side and 15 from the other side.
As they come out to the middle, you know, maybe the 300 pound, six foot four guy, and then there was the other, you know, maybe five foot, 150.
His heart sank, why? Because he knew he didn’t have a chance.
And friend tonight, if you walk out of this meeting thinking that you can continue to obey yourself, this is in a very real sense, this is what you’re doing.
I’m fighting against God.
It’s my way over his way. And while you might have success tonight, you may be able to go home, feeling like you gained the victory, friend, at the end of your life.
When you stand before the judge, you’ll have to give an account. And in that moment, as we’ve been hearing tonight, every mouth will be stung.
Every mouth will be stung.
Though we don’t chance then to fight against God. Maybe you’ve been fighting against God your whole life, up until this very evening.
And you know it’s a losing battle. Because you’ve never found real peace, You never found real hope, real security in whatever path and whoever it is you are obeying or trusting in.
And from this very evening, this message that is not of men, it has overcome, it has persevered, It has redeemed the souls of millions of lost sinners.

[50:21] This message has changed my life and tonight God desires this, that you would put away the fighting.
You’ll never win the fight against the Almighty God, but oh in humility and repentance tonight you’d come to God and you just come to him and confess you’re tired of fighting.
You’re tired of the lack of peace when you go to bed at night. You’re tired of the guilt, of your own sin and this is what God desires you to do if you if you desire purpose in your heart to obey God today this is what he says the God who desires all men to be saved he says repent and believe the gospel trust in this one the, only one who will save the only mediator between God and men the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for us. He paid the ransom price to rescue you from your sin. If it’s of men, it’ll come to nothing. But if it is of God, you cannot, you will not, you never will, overthrow it. Friend, tonight the message of the gospel is a message that offers eternal salvation.

[51:41] If you would desire the security to be the assurance of I’m prepared for heaven, I’m not obeying passing philosophies, changing opinions, I’m not obeying my own thoughts that change with each day, with each hardship.
I know tonight you would look to God, look to His Son on the cross, who there took your sins upon Himself and could cry out these words, it is finished, and and he trusted him, and he’d be saved for all eternity.

Filed under: Gospel Series, crawford-kory, ramsay-peter