Gospel—K. Fournier
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First I want to read a verse and Peter.
I think it's first Peter.
This verse was.
Polluted by the children in Sunday school not so long ago.
First Peter 4.
And the last half of verse 17, first Peter 417 raises this very important question and very sobering question. What shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel?
I think we get an answer to that question in the 73rd Psalm. Let's turn to that Psalm 73.
In this Psalm, David contemplates the wicked and the ungodly.
Verse three I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
And then verse 12, behold, these are the ungodly who prosper in the world. They increase in riches, has troubled him. They wonder how come they're so well off. I'm seeking to please God and I'm not doing all that well.
Verse 14 All day long I've been plagued and chastened every morning. So he suffered. I suppose we could save some persecution. Verse 60 Now he contemplates this and says, when I thought to know this, it was too painful.
For me, until I went into the sanctuary of God and understood I there end and you know, it's the end that counts accountants. They say it's the bottom line that's important, but it's the end of the past. It really is important young people and.
We have to remember that we might have a great and joyous time in this world, but what about the end of our course? Well, Peter, or rather David says in verse 18, well, let's look at verse 17. He, he, he thought about this and he was too painful for me until I went into the sanctuary of God, God in the presence of the Lord.
Began to think about it, and the Lord revealed to him the end of those.
Who were in such a case? Verse 18. Surely they always set them in slippery places. Thou casteth them down into destruction. How are they brought down into desolation? As in a moment, and are utterly consumed with terrors? I believe that's the answer to the question posed by Peter. What shall the end be of those who obey not the gospel?
Now you might be wondering, you know, here we've been at camp, which is four days.
And.
Here we haven't yet another gospel mean. Lord had four gospel means. Why should we have another gospel mean haven't had enough gospel? You know one of the young people at the prayer meeting, I think it was last night.
I prayed.
And made this statement that we who know the Lord never tire of hearing the gospel. It's true. And if it troubles you, if it bothers you, if you're tired of hearing the gospel, I have a verse for you. It's in the end of Second Corinthians.
2nd Corinthians 13.
And verse 5.
If you don't enjoy.
Hearing the good news of salvation, hearing what God has provided for a ruined man, I can lift the poor Sinner up out of the dunghill and set him among princes. If you don't enjoy hearing that story.
Then you better consider this verse. Second Corinthians 1330, Fifth verse five. Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. Do you really know Christ as your Savior? Can you say that Christ died for my sins? Can you say He bore the judgment that I deserved on account of my very own sins there on Calvary's cross?
It's important that you be able to say that.
You know, why do we, why do we worry about this? Aren't we all Christians here tonight?
00:05:03
There was two prayers in the prayer meeting tonight for the gospel that mentioned the possibility that they're just one here tonight in the audience. Just one. It hasn't yet accepted Christ as his or her own personal Savior. And you, my friend, might be that one.
Ponder it, examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. What a question. Two questions. One, we've had answered much of the envy of the those that obey, not the gospel. Utter terror and destruction.
So the second question, examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. It's not a question, it's a statement, but it's a good question to put your to yourself, prove your own selves and so on. Well, let's read the rest of it. Prove no, prove your own selves. No, you not your own selves, how the Christ Jesus Jesus Christ is in you, except you be reprobates.
If you know not the Lord Jesus as your own personal Savior, you are, as it says here, reprobate.
I want to tell you that it's not safe. Brother said this the other night. I think it was the first gospel night at the prayer meeting, Brother said to the one who was going to speak. Don't assume they all belong to Christ. Don't assume they're all saved. I'm going to tell you a story.
It's a very sad story took place in Hemet here recently. There's a young man named Bobby had been coming to the meetings in Hemet for nine months. He came with his relatives. He came faithfully and they brought him. And I don't it seems like he scarcely missed a meeting, Prayer meeting, reading, meeting, Gospel high school, breaking of bread. He was always there.
Not in fellowship, but it seemed like he was just one of us, you know?
Seeing the hymns had a reasonably happy expression on his face. He would say, well, he's probably he's probably saved well now on large day morning, he came with a young lady, went to the morning meet to high school.
And in between meetings, he was out outside there in the parking lot. And I, I asked him, I said, Bobby, who's this? Who's this young lady that you brought this morning? Oh, that's a friend I met at school. Oh, that's nice. I said, Does she know the Lord Jesus as her savior?
Anybody said he was just like this, he says. I don't know.
I thought, wow, what a response. So I was relating this to somebody and they said, well, doesn't that make you wonder about Bobby? And I said to him, it sure didn't. And that was the very question I put to him. I said.
Well, Bobby.
How about you? Do you know the Lord Jesus as your own personal Savior? Exactly the same response.
I don't know.
It was a fleppant response. It was like, what difference does it make? You know? Why do you bother to ask?
Well, you sought to be faithful in speaking to him.
The Lord knows, then they're his. Maybe he was in a bad mood or something, but I just can't imagine that kind of a response for someone who really knows and loves the Lord Jesus. And yet for nine months he scarcely missed a meeting. Now, how is it with you young people? Are there those who've been faithful at the meetings but yet have never made it their own? The gospel message is to you.
Isn't going to do your you any good.
Mother and father are saved and you're not. It's a blessing to be raised in a Christian home as I was privileged to to have. And many, if not most of you have had that blessed experience too. But doesn't save your soul. You need to know Christ personally as your own personal Savior. You need to accept Him. And so I would hope that you could give a positive response to that question.
Now I know there's none here tonight that haven't heard the gospel several times.
And I doubt if there's one here that couldn't tell others plainly enough the way of salvation. But the real question is not if you know these things, but do you know them in your heart? And have you made them your own? Have you made Christ your very own Savior?
Well, the Lord has his way of getting to us, let's say.
00:10:01
We have to do with God about our sins. Let's turn to the book of Habakkuk if you can find it.
When I was a kid we had a Bible Lotto game and we used to memorize the the minor prophets because they.
Are the hardest books to to learn.
I don't mean we memorize the whole book.
We just memorized the book, the names of the books, but name Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah Malachi or Habakkuk if you'd rather chapter one and verse 13.
Says.
I'll wait till I don't hear any more pages, but everybody found Habakkuk. 113 speaks of God says thou art a purer eyes, and to behold evil and cance not look upon iniquity.
So that God is holy and he cannot allow sin in his presence. And so how is a hell bound?
Hell deserving Sinner ever going to come into the presence of God in peace.
Requires the work of another, because we, as otherwise hopelessly lost and held deserving sinners, cannot merit salvation, cannot merit presence of God. It has to be done through the work of another. And that's that perfect one.
The blessed Lord Jesus who came to give himself as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. Now how about our sins? Do they trouble you? Your sins bother you? Want to look at some verses that have to do with sins? But I want to tell you a story about a fellow whose sins really did bother him.
And pardon me if you've heard the story before, but I, I hope it is, is worth repeating. It has to do with an inmate up at the conservation camp where we go there in Hemet. His name is Eddie. He, Eddie was a Puerto Rican.
And he came to this country, became quite interested in fishing. I used to like to do night fishing. And so he and four of his companions, 1 winter night, I think it was in November, maybe December, went out on the on the jetty there in Los Angeles Harbor out of San Pedro is a huge jetty. You can walk on it for a mile at least. I walked on island.
Years ago, anyway, they packed up their lanterns, their fishing gear.
Their Nets and all that. They were after lobsters as well as whatever else they could catch at night. Hike all the way out to the end of the pier or the jetty and we're busy starting to fish.
But as they were fishing, Eddie looked back up on the jetty and he saw sitting up there a boy there wasn't there when he hiked out there. And and you know, they should have registered with him that hey, something's going on out there in the in the seas because that boy got up there somehow or other well.
He he just sort of dismissed it from his mind. And so they went about their fishing, the five of them.
When, without the slightest warning, one enormous wave, tidal wave I suppose we would call it, or a tsunami, came roaring over the jetty. And I mean roaring because it washed all five of these folks out into the harbor.
Stripping them mostly of of their all their gear, but also some of their clothes. Well, this is a winter time. The water was anything but warm. Two of them could scarcely swim.
Here's 5 floundering out there in the water, three of them trying to help the other two and.
In a, in a, in a bad way, because it sees was it were exceedingly rough, even though this was inside the jetty. And So what they tried to do of course was a struggle back and they had their winter clothes on, they struggled back to the rocks.
And help the two that could barely swim back. They know Senator got back to the rocks when the next wave came, just like the first. Washed them all out into the harbor waters. Same thing. So they struggled back again and begins to shed some of their clothes so they could swim better and help the others even though it was very cold.
Well, Eddie, one of these five, the one that I knew.
Begin to think about his sins.
00:15:02
I don't know if he'd ever gone to any kind of a Sunday school or anything like that before. I don't know.
But I know he knew that he was a Sinner. Let's look at a verse.
In Romans.
Everyone could quote this verse, no doubt. Romans 323.
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Now, do you think that would suffice if you were to just admit that I happened to be one of the all and everyone has sinned and so we're all sinners? Is that all that God requires that you do to admit? You're part of Adam's race and we're all sinners?
Well, I think that's the first step at least.
Let's turn back to Numbers chapter 21.
This is the story of the children of Israel in the wilderness, and they were complainers like we would have been, I'm sure.
And they?
Complained constantly against God and against Moses. First four of Numbers 21. They journeyed from the Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea to come to the land of Edom. And the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way in the people speak against God.
Against Moses. Wherefore have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there's no bread, neither is there any water, and are so low that this light bread. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, and much people died. Therefore the people came to Moses and said.
All have sinned. Is that what they said? No, they said we have sinned. Now that's a little closer to what God wants to hear from your lips.
But.
You know, if you just say, well.
I born into a family and.
We're all sinners in our family. It's not quite what he wants to hear. Let's hear what the Prodigal Son had to say.
Luke 15.
This is a wonderful story for use in the gospel.
About this certain man that had two sons.
They were quite different, as my two sons are.
And.
One of them decided he wanted to venture out on his own when he did. And we know this story. We won't read it all but part of it. We know he went into a far country, spent all that he had, began to be in want. It doesn't say that one ever, ever ceased as long as he was there.
Well, there's a There's a critical verse in this story, the 15th of Luke in.
Verse 17 When he came to himself, I believe this is when the work of the Spirit of God began in his soul began to cause him to realize that he made a dreadful mistake in deciding to to leave his father's house.
Came to his South and said and began to think about where he came from.
And what it was like for when she came. But most importantly, let's read what he said to his father in verse 21. Not quite exactly the same speech he had prepared, but similar He said to his father. Well, let's talk about what he didn't say first. We're all sinners in that country. Our web is full of nothing but sinners. All of us were there sitting. No, he didn't say that.
And he said what you need to say, my friend tonight, he said.
I have sinned.
Have you ever said that? Have you ever said that?
To God, I have sinned, and it's important that you do that because there can't be any repentance until there's recognition that I've sinned. How can I turn from sin if I don't think I've sinned? But you know in your heart you have sinned. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and as soon as you admit that you are one and have sinned, your candidate to be saved.
00:20:18
I have sinned, he said. And we know the rest of that story. His father welcomed him back into his house with open arms.
And the Lord is willing and anxious to save you. He wants you to come to him and acknowledge to Him that you have sinned.
Well, Eddie was beginning to think those kinds of thoughts. He knew he had sinned, and he also knew he had sinned against God, because all sin really is against God.
Well, two things were happening. That was one, he was beginning to get worried about his condition and that he was about to meet God, but he was also getting very cold. Hypothermia was setting in, I suppose you could say.
And along comes the next wave. It's not maybe not quite so intense as the one before, but still enough to wash them off the rocks. So since they shed most of their stuff, they begin to swim as best they could towards shore. The long ways though, they were out at least a mile.
But the closer they got, the less the intensity of the waves. Little by little they struggled up enough off the rocks to get out of the of the hazard of those waves. By then they were practically naked. I don't know how many cars they had to drive there, but they only had one set of keys left among them. And.
Eddie convinced his friends that the only thing to do is to go find somebody.
That could give them the gospel.
And they by now was the sun was about to come up. They went their way up to Norwalk and found a little Chapel and they were able to rouse a godly man who led them to Christ. I know Eddie for sure was saved, but I think he believes his friends were saved too.
Now what's God going to have to do to bring you to himself? Our brother Doug said.
The other day that God has a plan for each of us, but he also said don't give God a bad time about it.
Yield to him.
The little hymn that we sometimes.
Says, says, let's see. Yield to him in simplicity. Yield to him your heart. Peace through all eternity shall be your part. Once you do that tonight, yield to him, Say to God, as you know it's true in your heart. I have sinned and receive Christ by faith. Thou shalt confess with thy mouth.
Jesus as Lord and believe in thine heart that God has raised him from the dead. Thou shalt be saved. That's a simple story of salvation.
God has to go to extremes sometimes to bring us to our senses, to bring us to Him. I want to tell you another story.
First, let's read a verse in Job.
33.
And verse 14.
God speaketh once we ate twice. He had man perceiveth it not.
There was a Japanese fellow at work that this, this wasn't the story I was thinking about that this fellow was scheduled on a flight to South America, Delta flight, I think it was. I'm not sure what it was. But anyway, at the last very last minute, his his reservation was changed and he didn't take that flight, but that flight went down.
All aboard were killed.
He was a Japanese fellow, David Watson Navi, his wife was a believer. And I said to David, God speaking to you.
Wasn't long after that he was scheduled to take Los Angeles Airways. That was a helicopter that used to fly from Disneyland to Los Angeles.
And for some reason, that flight was changed, his ticket was changed, and that helicopter went down, killing all 18 aboard.
So I quoted this verse to David. I said, you know God spoke once to you already, and now he's spoken again. God speaketh once, yeah, twice. Yet man perceiveth it not. He admitted God was speaking to him.
00:25:16
But I wish I could say receive Christ as his Savior. I can't say that he has. We had assurance his wife was saved. But what is God going to have to do to get your attention, dear young people?
I want to tell you another story. This was a fellow that I knew through work.
He was born over in Beaverton.
That's just West of Portland.
In a Christian home where the Bible was read regularly. His name was Terry. He was a bright young man. In fact, his parents told me that he actually learned to read when he was three years old, and he learned to read by reading the Bible. That is in the family. I suppose they read around and they would help him. And little by little he picked up words. Pretty soon he picked up verses.
It was only three years old. Amazing.
And what a privilege to be raised in the Christian home where the Scriptures are read daily.
Well, the parents recognize that Terry was a bright young man, and so they arranged for for his education. I don't know where he went to undergraduate school, but he he eventually went to Stanford and and got his doctorate in rock physics.
Rock physicist is one that likes rocks like you know, these are igneous rocks, mostly some sedimentary rocks there on top of the mantle.
Rock physicist takes a little cores out of rocks and likes to measure things in those rocks for whatever reason. And eventually where I worked, we hired Terry because we were interested in measurements that he liked to make in rocks. Because if you can determine rock samples, how acoustic waves travel through rocks and little samples, then you can extrapolate that into the Earth. And when you make seismic measurements, you can make some predictions about what kind of rocks the size of the waves pass through.
So it's quite interesting to make those measurements. Terry was very adepted at doing that sort of thing and in the theory became quite quite well known in the scientific community for his ability to to deal with rocks. He also became an avid rock climber.
Andrew could relate to that. He gave us a little demonstration this afternoon of some of that sort of thing. It was kind of fun to watch him and his Co climbers.
Terry engaged in a lot of rock climbing.
And.
One day he and four of his three of his friends.
Launched out on a trip across the northern Cascades. I think they probably took the boat up to Lake Chelan and drove way up there as far as you can go and hiked a lot further. Not exactly sure if that's where it was but it was on the eastern side of the northern cast cases are exceedingly rugged and so they they were headed for.
Some really technical climbing, but in the course of getting there they had to traverse some trails that were certainly not hazardous.
Kendrick This was in the summertime, maybe early summer, when the snow hadn't all melted, but there wasn't any snow where they were hiking, or at least not on the trail. There were three of them, two fellows. Terry was the 3rd, 4th behind Terry, walking just along. This is a Cliff they walked along.
And without the slightest warning, not a not a sound was heard.
The rock the size of Terry came off that Cliff and the 4th man in the in the in the line. He looked up and he gave a shout. It's too late. It snuffed out his life in an instant.
No warning whatsoever.
Now, Terry was born in a Christian home. I was privileged to meet his parents after that and talk to them. We visited in their home there in Beaverton.
And of course, they were shocked beyond measure. What had happened, they could not understand. How is it that our Son, whom we've raised in the truth of the gospel, they felt sure was saved?
00:30:08
Why would God do this?
Well, I knew Terry pretty well, but I never did discuss spiritual things with him. I regret that. I think it's unfortunate.
But I don't know that I would have said that he was a Christian. I fear that those with whom he associated.
Were no help to him spiritually.
And the scripture does tell us evil communications corrupt good manners.
Those with whom we associate have their effect on us, and we know that, and so we need to use good judgment in whom we choose as our companions.
Let's read another verse in Job.
Chapter 36.
And verse 18 Job 3618 Because there is wrath. Beware, unless he take thee away with his stroke, and a great ransom cannot deliver thee.
What is God going to have to do to get your attention? Terry's life was snuffed out and I wouldn't want to say but they were saved or not, the Lord knows. Perhaps the Lord wanted to keep him from going into further departure from him, and so he took him home by this extreme action. I don't know, it could be.
But maybe He refused those tender offers of mercy that have been extended to you repeatedly, many with from your youth. And have you refused them? Have you not accepted Christ as your own personal Savior? You know we don't have any guarantee for tomorrow.
All we have is today and we don't even know if we have the rest of that. The Lord is coming, and He may come before this day is over.
And so it's such a vital thing, dear young people, to have to do with God about your sins. And our prayer is that you won't be able to sleep tonight until you've answered at all important questions as to your sins before a holy God. You have sinned. You know that. Have you confessed that to the Lord? Have you repented of those sins? Repentance is a change of mind. It's not doing anything. It's simply.
Seeing God as that holy one who cannot look upon sin.
And seeing yourself as a sinful 1 does not fit for God's presence. Owning that before God and turning to Him and accepting Christ by faith, that's the way of salvation. That's what Paul preached. Repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Well, we haven't read a lot of scriptures and we have told a few stories, but I do want to read one poem before we close.
Those who you know of you who know my son Fell, know one thing about him. He preaches a short gospel message, and I've never heard anyone complain about that. And so I want to read this poem in closing.
It's entitled. What will you do without him?
And this is the way it reads. It came from Echoes of Grace several years ago. I just might make a pitch, incidentally, before I read this poem that men at the jail loved these Echoes of Grace gospel papers.
So if you have any that you'd like to find a place for, we can use all that you'd like to send to him it but I want to read this one poem. What will you do without him is the title. What will you do without him? When death is drawing near, without his love, the only love that casts out every fear. When the shadow valleys opens.
Unlighted and unknown.
And the terror of its darkness must all be passed alone.
What will you do without him?
When the great white throne is set, and the judge who never can mistake and never will forget, the judge whom you have never here as friend and Savior sought, shall summon you to give account of word and deed and thought.
What will you do without him when he has shut the door and you are left outside because you would not come before?
When it is, no use knocking, no use to stand and wait. When words of doom toll through your heart a terrible too late.
00:35:09
Fellows at the jail can relate to to what it's like to stand before a judge. And of course it's said that if you're really innocent and if the case is obvious, you should ask for a trial by court because the judge will see to it that it's obvious that you've been falsely accused. It's no big problem. But then they say if you're really guilty, you better get yourself a good.
Journey and ask for a trial by jury because if you have a clever enough attorney like Johnny Cochran or someone, maybe they can get you off.
Well, let's suppose this case. Let's suppose you are guilty.
That you're not giving any any option, That you have to stand before a judge. You're not offered a defense attorney. But not only that, the judge you have to stand for knows everything there is to know about you.
That wouldn't be a very comfortable circumstance. That's not a court you'd want to have to be in, but is a court that you well be in, my friend.
If you reject Christ as your Savior.
Shall not the judge of all the earth do right? Abraham said.
In First Timothy it speaks of the Lord as the righteous judge.
He's the all knowing judge. He's the one that will have no option.
But to condemn you to hell if you reject his offers of mercy? Oh, we have a merciful God. We have a merciful Savior. He wants to save you tonight. He wants to make you His very own. Won't you receive Him by faith and know what it means to go on your way rejoicing? And again, I say our prayer tonight, is that not?
One, if there is only one here tonight, doesn't know Christ as his or her own personal Savior, that you will have no rest tonight until you accept Him, owning your sinful condition, receiving Him by simple faith. Let's pray.