Gospel—Don Mackewich
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Well, thank you very much, Jim, and thank you for the introduction and good evening and welcome. Welcome everyone. Thank you for being here tonight. How was supper?
It was delicious, wasn't it? Maybe we should give them a round of applause for.
Hey, and thank you for coming. We know that on a Saturday evening, you have lots of choices as far as what you can do with your time, and we're thrilled that you have chosen to be here tonight. So thank you very much. We're honored, and we want to value your time for everyone who is here. Thank you very much. So we're going to get started right away with song #40.
There should be a white song sheet that looks like this. Flip it over to the very back.
It's a song that I heard growing up and I love this song. Probably familiar to.
Most of you and as we sing it, everyone is welcome to sing, so please join us.
Jesus loves me this song.
When all I'm saying.
Is strong.
You have to strongly.
Yeah.
So.
It is also my hero Marshall. Great nights in my sin that I love that soul.
Yes, yes, yes.
Yes, I love me.
Well, she's transplanted.
The Bible tells me so.
So.
It is as much may not make.
Where I go from this shining light on time. You're still watching where I live.
In transport.
Yes, because I love speaking.
Tells me so.
It will take me all my life.
She touched the last week. Yes, she has lost me.
Yeah.
Well, if you could hear the singing that I'm hearing from up here, it just sounds beautiful. Thank you very much. I love that course where it says, yes, Jesus loves me. I want to sing just the chorus one more time. Let's sing it. It's just so precious.
Yes, Jesus loves me.
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You can just go ahead and put the song sheet on the chair or the table by you will use it again at the end.
We're going to pray and ask for the Lord's help. So if you just bow your head and close your eyes.
Lord Jesus, we are so excited, so thankful that tonight we can present clearly the way of salvation. We pray that tonight each one would have listening ears and open hearts. We pray that the Word would go forth with power and blessing. And we pray that tonight there would be ones whose lives are changed as they accept you as their own personal Savior, that there would be joy in heaven tonight.
As ones accept you as their own personal savior, we ask this in your worthy and precious name. Amen.
When we present the gospel, we'd like to say a few things up front. We want to let every single person know.
That God loves you. I also want to let you know that we love you too. I don't know everyone in the room, many in the room, I don't know. But you are precious and you matter to God, says We open up the scriptures tonight. This message is for everyone. This message is for the ones on this side of the room. This message is for the ones on this side.
The room. This message is for the ones in front of me. This message is for the ones who are listening to this recording all around the world. The gospel is for you as we present tonight. It's not my thoughts, it's not my feelings. It's what does God say in His precious word, the Bible.
This is our source. This is what we anchor to.
And if you have a Bible tonight, love for you to participate and open it. If you have an electronic device that you use, you're welcome to use that. And if you don't have a Bible, no worries. I just ask that you listen. We're excited to be able to present the gospel. It is life changing. It has changed my life. It has changed the life of my wife. Two of my children have accepted the Lord Jesus as their Savior, many in this room.
It has changed their lives.
Many who are listening to this, their lives have been changed by it as they've met the Savior and tonight yours can be too. Do you have a Bible? I'd like you to open it up to Romans chapter 10, Romans chapter 10 and verse 17. So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. So what we preach tonight is not my opinions, it's not my thoughts is what does God.
In his precious word, the Bible, a man named Peter many years ago, who's recorded in Scripture could say, Lord, to whom shall we go?
The answer Thou hast the words of eternal life. I'm sorry the Lord said that, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life, and we believe and are sure that thou art the Christ, the Son of the living Gods, living God. So tonight we present to you the words of eternal life and we are sure we're not hoping that this is the right message for you tonight. We can say with 100% confidence as we present the scriptures tonight that Jesus.
Is the Savior you need. Thomas could say how could we know the way Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me in John 17 verse 17, it could say thy words are true. So what we present tonight is not speculation. This is not something that we found on the Internet last night.
This is comes from God's Word, the Bible.
And that's true, and it's precious, and it's changed many lives in this room. And tonight it can change.
Yours. We're so glad that you're here. We ask that you would listen very carefully tonight. I don't know the needs of everyone here, but I know that many in this room.
There's three things that are going on, and I say this in Love and Justice using a gardening illustration.
Last Friday we went to the store to buy some seeds to plant in the garden. OK, we'd like to try to have a garden. We'd like to grow some crops, and we'd like to have some flowers too, right? Probably like many like you do. But before we can put the seeds in the ground, before we can put the anything in the ground, what we have to do is we have to get out our shovel and dig the ground over, right?
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Otherwise, if I just put the seeds on top of the ground, birds are going to probably come and take it, right?
So I have to go over a few things in love. I have to, as a word, get that shovel out. And I need to dig over, dig over the ground. OK, this is going to be painful perhaps for some, but it's necessary. Does that make sense? It's necessary. And one of the first things we have to bring out, let's get that shovel out, so to speak, is that the Bible tells us we all.
Have sinned. There's no one in this room.
Who, if they were honest with themselves, could say I'm a perfect person?
I've never told the lie, I've never stolen from anyone, I've never been disobedient from my parents.
Could you say that?
No. So we need to bring that up at the front. But the good news is that those sins can be forgiven.
The sins are going to be like a weight. Those boys and girls that are here in this room tonight who attend school, probably a lot of you carry backpacks, right? And sometimes those backpacks get loaded up with books because you want to take them home and study. You're the type of ones who study, right? Don't just walk home from school every day or go to the school bus with no books, right? Most of the time you probably have a book or something and you take it home and sin is going to be like.
A backpack that just gets heavier.
And don't try to brush it aside or don't try to hold to hold that it's there. OK? If you try to do it, it's like taking a beach ball. Ever taking a beach ball and try to put it underwater. You might be able to keep it underwater for a short time, but what happens is it pops out somewhere else. It doesn't go away. Our sins aren't going to go away on our own.
Also tonight there's ones in this room who have an emptiness in their heart. They've tried what this world has to offer and they find that it doesn't satisfy. Maybe that car that you wanted to have and you have now, you enjoyed it for a little while but doesn't satisfy. Maybe you've been trying to find happiness and entertainment watching the local hockey team, the local baseball team. Maybe you've tried to find entertainment.
Through collecting things what this world has to offer.
It doesn't satisfy. You can ask Solomon Ecclesiastes 2. It reminds us, here's one who tried it all and it didn't satisfy. You can ask what's called the prodigal son in Luke chapter 15. He went off in search for the good life and he ended up saying it didn't work. You can ask the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, one of the wealthiest people in the world, and his marriage has just ended in divorce.
That aching that you have.
I can tell you how you can get that filled tonight. Are you going to speak about the H word tonight?
I have to. I do it in love. There is really a hell. I've got some good news coming, but I need to bring this out first. Jesus spoke of hell. It's not something we can say well, it doesn't really exist.
It is real and the Bible tells us of a man in Luke chapter 16. Let's turn to that real quick.
Again, this is all in love. I got to dig the garden first before we plant the seed, right Luke? Chapter 16.
Verse 20.
Four, I'm going to give you the past, the present and the future. The past. It says, Son, remember that thou and thy lifetime receiveth thy good things, and likewise Lazarus, evil things. But now he is comforted and thou art tormented. And besides all this, between US and you there is a great goal fixed, so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot.
Neither can they pass to us that would come.
From thence, 3 quick things, the past, the present, and the future. It says, Son, remember tonight. If you do not accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and you do end up in this bad place, your memory will still be there. You will remember what you've heard. You will remember that your parents tried to reach out to you with the gospel. You will remember the neighbor who invited you.
You will remember forever and then what does it say about the present it says.
But now thou art tormented. Awful place. We don't want anyone to go there.
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And what does the future hold that says and there is a great goal fixed so that they which would pass from hence to. You cannot. In other words, no getting out.
So now we might be thinking, oh, this, this does not sound good. I came to hear something else. Know again, in love. We get the shovel out, we dig the ground over three things #1 Those sins that you have, those aren't going away on your own.
That emptiness that you feel that is not going to be satisfied by this world, nothing in it, no person, no object, and hell is real. Say then we need someone or something. We need a savior. And that's who we present to you tonight. I remember years ago getting a Christmas card and it said this. It said if our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology.
God would have sent us a scientist if our greatest need had been money.
God would have sent us an economist if our greatest need had been pleasure.
God would have sent us an entertainer, but.
Our greatest need.
Was forgiveness, so God sent us a savior. Turn with me to Luke chapter 20. It's going to get good Luke chapter 2.
We've turned over that ground, so to speak, and now we're going to put the seed in those sins that we have.
That longing that's in our heart, the reality of heaven being, I'm sorry, the reality of hell being a real place. Luke chapter 2 and starting with verse 10.
And the Angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy.
Good tidings of great joy tonight here in Saint Thomas, which shall be to all people.
Not just the ones on this side of the room, not just the ones on this side of the room, Not just the ones that are on this side of the room. Not just the ones who are listening to the recording tonight, verse 10, good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people. This message is for you tonight. Wonderful, isn't it? What is the message for unto you?
Is born this day in the City of David.
Which is Christ the Lord. Did you catch that? Our greatest need is a Savior, and approximately 2000 years ago a Savior was born. Who is that person? That person is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, and that's the one we're going to present to you tonight. He is the Savior.
Salvation is not a process. Salvation is not a ritual. Salvation is not being baptized.
Salvation is not going to church. Salvation, how we can have our sins forgiven, how we can have that emptiness in our heart filled, how we can avoid going to hell is found.
In a person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and it's unto.
All people marvelous isn't it? So Jesus was born nearly 2000 years ago and we share the good news with you. He lived here on earth, but he came with a reason, an intent, and he came to die Well who did he die for? The good people, the Canadians, the Americans, the ones that have lots of money, the ones who have a good education, the ones who have the last name that.
Some privileges that others don't, the ones of a certain color. He came first to die for sinners. It says in First Timothy 115. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. And how does that happen? We need to read about what took place on Calvary's cross. Would you turn with me to the Gospel of John? The Gospel of John chapter 19.
In the Gospel of John we get the true account.
You get it in Matthew, Mark and Luke as well. All the scriptures are true. I'm just pulling it from this gospel.
About this one named Jesus because Jesus was the one who died on Calvary's cross. John chapter 19 and verse 16.
Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away. And He bearing his cross, went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha, where they crucified him and two other with him on either side, one, and Jesus in the midst. There were three crosses there. Jesus was the one in the middle.
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Jesus was dying as a substitute for you and me.
I'm a school teacher and in a couple weeks I'm going to have a substitute teacher.
Not anybody can be a substitute teacher, someone who's going to fill in for my students. They need to be able to do the job, they need to be willing to do the job, and they need to be approved. It can't just be anyone. Well, our situation, we needed someone to die for us. We needed someone who could take the penalty for our sins. And you know who that was?
That was Jesus. He's the only one who is able to do that.
He was willing to do his Father's will, and God would be satisfied completely with the work that He did. So He was the one who went to Calvary's cross, and He was the one who bore the punishment for the sins that you and I have committed. It says in first Peter chapter 3 verse 18, Christ also hath once suffered for sins that just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God.
It's through Jesus tonight.
It's through Jesus tonight, continuing on in John chapter 19, verse 28.
John chapter 19 verse 28. After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scriptures might be fulfilled, said.
I thirst now there was set a vessel full of vinegar, and they filled the sponge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said it is finished. And he gave up, bowed his head and gave up the ghost. It is finished. Tonight we proclaim that here in Saint Thomas and around the world, stop trying to do something.
The work has been done, Jesus.
Came into this world and died on the cross.
There's nothing left for you to do and there's nothing you can do. He has done it all, and tonight you're going to hear how you can be saved through him.
But moving along to chapter verse 33. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was dead already, they break not his legs, but one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came throughout blood and water.
When Jesus was on the cross, the soldier thrust the spear into his side and the blood came out. Tonight I want to let you know it is the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, that cleanse us from all sin. It is the blood that makes us clean. It is the blood that forgives. We are so grateful for the blood that was shed on Calvary's cross.
Verse 40 then took they the body of Jesus.
And wounded in linen clothes, with the spices, as the manner of Jesus to bury. Now in the place where he was crucified, there was a garden. And in the garden of new supplicor, wherein was never a man yet laid, there laid they Jesus. So Jesus, who died on the cross, for you and me, placed in the garden, placed in the tomb, turn with me to the Gospel of Acts. The only one who could die for us was Jesus.
Acts chapter 13 and verse 26 Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God to you is the word of salvation sent tonight. This message is for you.
When I was younger, when I was in my sins, it was for me. Now I can gladly share it with you.
Verse 28. And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they pilate that he should be slain.
And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a sepulchre. And that's where we left off. But listen to this verse 30. But God raised him from the dead.
Oh, it's the Easter weekend and the news that we can proclaim is Jesus is not dead, He is alive. My Savior is alive in the glory, and tonight he can be your Savior too.
Jesus has conquered death. He has risen. He is alive.
Verse 33.
Verse 32 And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us, their children, and that he hath raised up. Jesus says also in Acts chapter 5, verse 30, The God of our fathers raised up. Jesus Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince.
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And a savior.
Praise the Lord, tonight we proclaim to you a risen Savior. He is not dead. Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. It says in Revelation 118, I am he that liveth and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And have the keys of hell.
And death, what I just presented to you was the gospel message.
We're going to review this as we start to wind down. Each one of us is here in our sins unless we know Jesus as our Savior. But the good news is those sins can be forgiven. Tonight you're here with an empty heart, a heart that has not been fully satisfied and never will be unless you know Jesus as your Savior tonight. The good news is Jesus can fill and satisfy your heart.
Tonight, some of you are here.
And you're on your way to hell. But the good news is, Jesus has a home in heaven.
And he invites you to spend eternity with him.
Jesus was our substitute. He died on the cross for you, and he died on the cross for me.
Imagine going into a prison as we start to end. I give this word picture and in the prison there is a person who has been convicted of murder and has a life sentence. And there he is in the prison with his prison clothes on, eating the prison food with no chance of escape, no chance of parole. And in this scenario.
You're given the opportunity to tell this prisoner it's been approved.
That if you wear my clothes, I can take your clothes and we can exchange places. Would that be a good idea for the prisoner to do that? You would say it would be foolish if he didn't. He'd have the opportunity for freedom. He'd have the opportunity to start over again. Think of yourself. Think of what Jesus is offering you tonight. Those sins that you have, that emptiness in your heart that you have the realization that without Jesus.
You're on your way to the lake of fire tonight. Jesus says, come unto me. All you that labor and are heavy laden, I will give you rest, I will forgive you of those sins, I will satisfy your longing heart and you can come and you can enjoy eternity with me. You and I both know that your sins aren't going to go away on your own. You and I both know that what this world offers will not satisfy you.
And you and I both know that.
Doing nothing just brings you one day closer to the bad place. Tonight I'll ask you, would you like to do what many in this room have done?
Would you like to do what many who are listening to this gospel message have done? Here's what they've done. They've accepted the Lord Jesus as their Savior. He might be wondering, how can I do that? How does that happen? Well, the good news is you can do it right where you are. I'll walk you through it. OK? The work has been done. There's nothing that we can do right where you are sitting, right in the chair that you're sitting at, right at the table that you're at.
You can simply bow your head.
And in your heart, you can talk to God just like I'm talking to you.
You can talk to God and you can put it just in your own words.
And if you want to follow along with me, you can even do it too, Lord Jesus.
I believe that what the Bible says about me is true.
And I am a Sinner and I deserve what's coming. But I believe you died for me and I accept your gift of eternal life. Please wash my sins away.
In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.
Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. What must I do to be saved? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as we close with the song, if you have any questions about what you've heard if something doesn't make sense.
If it differs from what you've heard, please don't just walk out of here saying whatever, Talk with someone, talk with someone. Would you do that? We'd love to have you join the family. The family of who? The family of those who?
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We're in your shoes at one time, and now we belong to Jesus. In closing, could we sing on #27?
Starting with verse three, it says He bore on the tree the sentence for me, and now both the surety and debtor are free. Hallelujah, thine the glory. Hallelujah, Amen. Hallelujah, thine the glory. Amen, Amen. Would you stand with me? We'll start with verse 3.
He bore on the tree.
The sentence for me and noble.
Hallelujah.
One final verse before I pray, and then we're dismissed.
John, 836.
If the Son therefore shall make you free.
Ye shall be free indeed. Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter. Let's pray.