Gospel—C. Lunden
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General Meetings Wheaton, August 1975.
Gospel by Clarence Lundine.
Shall we open our meeting tonight by singing Hymn #2929?
A ruler once came to Jesus by night, and to ask him the way of salvation and light, the master made answer in words true and plain. He must be born again.
Came to Jesus by night to ask him my way of salvation and life.
Answers answer words from a place.
Be born again.
You must be born again.
I.
Love you.
Shall we also sing together in #26?
There is life in a look at the crucified One. There is life at this moment for thee then look Sinner, look unto Him, and be saved unto him who was nailed to the tree.
There is life in our life.
We turn to Luke 5, please.
We started the 36th verse of Luke 5.
Luke 5 verse 36.
And he spake also a parable unto them.
No man put as a piece of a new garment upon an old. If otherwise, then both the new make of the rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeeth not with the old.
And no man put us new wine into old bottles, else the new wine will burst the bottles and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles.
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And both are preserved. No man also, having drunk old wines straightway desireth new, for he said the old is better.
Turn to John 3, please.
The third chapter of John the first verse.
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, verily, I say unto thee.
Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.
Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old?
Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Verse 14.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness.
Even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Everlasting life for God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. Now turn with me to Numbers 21 for a few verses, please.
The fifth verse of Numbers 21.
And the people spake against God, and against Moses. Wherefore have he brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water. And our soul loveth this light bread. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they fit the people.
And much people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses and said we have sinned.
For we have spoken against the Lord and against thee. Pray unto the Lord that he take away the serpents from us.
And Moses prayed for the people, And the Lord said unto Moses, make thee A fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole. And it should come to pass that everyone that is bitten, When he looked at the pond, it shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole. And it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass.
He lived.
In the passage that we read in Luke's Gospel.
We are told that.
It isn't practical. It will not do, to try to put a new piece of cloth upon an old garment.
They're not compatible.
Because the garment would be made worse.
Dear friends, that speaks of man's character.
Before God is morally, man is bankrupt.
This we have to know before we would realize that we need a savior.
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His character is gone.
Is a moral wreck. Man is without Christ.
And dear friends, this is true of every living person that came into this world.
As mere men.
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, and there is no character before God.
Now we find also that.
You can't take and put new wine in old bottles.
Bottle is a vessel. It has capacity.
I suppose a large percent of the money that is spent today is spent for pleasure.
Man is seeking something that he doesn't have.
And by seeking it he will never find it.
Because he has a nature that's supposed to God in his ruin. Man is a fallen creature.
And he's far off from God. He's lost.
And so we find that.
The capacity he has is only for something that will last a little while.
It will not continue.
That which we have before us and Luke, is simply a bottle that's made of skin that was used in those days and it lasted one year, never to be used again.
And God likens that, my friend, to the capacity you have for joy, which wine is a picture of.
This world is mad after pleasure tonight, and they're on the road to hell because they've left Christ out.
And you'll never find joy, you'll never find happiness outside of Jesus.
You can't put new wine that's that new joy of the spirit of God into an old bottle.
Because then the bottle will be rent.
It'll break and both the bottle and the wine will go.
Oh dear friends, tonight, how simple the truth is.
That God would present to us here.
And as we read in John, we find that God was speaking the Lord Jesus was speaking to certain ones, and he would not commit himself to them in the second chapter, because he knew all men and he knew what was in man. But there was a man named Nicodemus.
Isn't it nice that God knows our names? That Jesus knows the names of his sheep? He had his eye upon Nicodemus?
And he wanted to have Nicodemus for himself, just as he wants you for himself tonight.
We have in the 90th Psalm eternal man to destruction, and he says return ye children of men.
Why did he turn man to destruction? Because he's holy.
Cannot allow you in his presence.
Unless.
You have been redeemed by the Precious Blood of Christ.
The God's heart yearns for you tonight.
And he wants you to be recovered, to be saved. And the only way that you can be saved, dear friends, is in the gospel that we would present to you tonight.
But first of all, we want to emphasize this point.
That there must be a new birth. Now I know that you can do nothing about this anymore, and you can do about anything about the first one.
No, you can't do anything about giving life.
Not one thing.
Norris God who gives life?
And that's why God is so quick to give us the answer in the following verses.
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Nicodemus was one who was an upright man.
He wasn't of the rabble of the gutter. No, he was an upright man.
Perhaps he stood next to the Apostle Paul. We don't know as far as his natural setting and the Flash was concerned.
He knew the law. He was a leader, a religious leader.
But he did have a conscience, and so do you.
And you know, dear friends, what God says to you.
In numbers 32 and 23, be sure.
Your sin will find you out, not sins. Be sure your sins will find you out.
Dear friends, some sin is keeping you from the Savior tonight.
It doesn't matter how religious you are, but be sure.
Your sin will find you out.
A positive fact that you cannot escape.
And so.
Nicodemus comes to Jesus.
But the Lord doesn't answer his question directly. He answers for his blessings.
And he tells him, Verily I say unto you, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, or anew, or from above.
He cannot see the Kingdom of God.
Now, dear friends, what is the Kingdom of God?
This which a man cannot see unless he's born again. Well, the Kingdom of God is that place where all that joy is found.
That new wine.
Its moral character is righteousness. First of all, do you have this?
I'm not Speaking of human righteousness, because we've already found out.
As we read the word of God saying, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, that you have no human righteousness. If you were to have any righteousness at all, it'll be that which God gives you and it'll be his own righteousness.
And he gives it to all those who believe in Jesus.
And that's the only righteousness that will avail you in that day to stand before God.
And what else do we have in the Kingdom of God? Peace.
And how do we get peace?
Knowing that.
The blood of Jesus Christ.
Cleanse it from all sins. Have you had your sins put away?
I'm not asking you, dear friends, if you've come to Sunday school all of your life, and even if you're at the table.
Sorry to have to say this.
I'm asking you Are you sheltered under the precious blood of Christ?
Do you know Jesus, your savior?
In the first chapter of Matthew.
We read, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.
Nicodemus was not yet saved from his sins. He needed a savior. With all his religion, he was lost.
You must be born again.
He asked the question.
He should have known from the Old Testament that it was necessary.
Many passages tell us that a new life was required even in the Old Testament.
And every Old Testament St. although they didn't know it, were born again because they believed in the word of God.
And so we find he asks the question, and the Lord answers him again in the fifth verse.
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water. Now that's the a symbol, a picture of the word of God.
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The water. You get that in the 5th of Ephesians we understand the meaning of scriptural words by scripture. The word is water.
That we have here water the word of God.
And so faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God.
Except.
A man be born of water and of the Spirit.
He cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.
Now we find first of all he couldn't even see it and now he can't even enter it.
Now we have the spirit mentioned. We said there were three parts to the Kingdom in its moral character.
Righteousness we get through believing in Jesus.
It's God's own righteousness that he gives to all who believe.
We have peace.
Annoying, God says when I see the blood. I'll Passover you.
But what is the third part? The spirit joy in the Holy Ghost. That's the Kingdom of God. That's that new wine that he speaks of in Luke. The joy of the Holy Ghost. So, dear friend, tonight you have these three.
Qualities these three things that are mentioned connected.
Connected with the Kingdom of God.
Not our Kingdom, of course, is everlasting.
What's connected with that Kingdom will never fail. Everything you have here, you'll have to turn in soon.
Your friends.
And if the Lord doesn't come, your body to be laid away.
Yes, you'll turn it all in. But there's one thing you can't lose. You can't lose Jesus. You're saved. You can't lose the Kingdom of God.
If you're saved.
But dear friends, you can't enter it unless you're born again.
Now we're reading the.
14 verse.
This is the way.
Nicodemus couldn't do a thing about getting a new life himself.
He couldn't provide that. Only God could. But this is what Nicodemus can do.
And I don't know. I have myself my own thoughts that Nicodemus was born again at this very time.
That's the way I feel about this chapter.
Because of what we have in the following verses.
Verse 14.
As Moses lifted up the serpent.
In the wilderness, Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.
That first whoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Now, dear friends, we come to the very heart of the basis of Christianity.
If you're going to be saved, dear friend, you're going to have to have a firm foundation for that salvation.
And it can be nothing but the cross of Christ.
When we speak of the cross, we think of the whole world.
The cross upon which he hung.
We think about.
All that he passed through under the hand of the Holy God for our sins.
But we think of that precious blood that was shed in death as the soldier pierced the side of that blessed savior.
And God has said, without the shedding of blood there is.
No remission.
And as that blood and water poured forth from the Savior side.
That was the means, dear friends, of your and my salvation.
And so there's no other way. No possible way. And the moment you believe this, dear friends, you have that new life.
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Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God, and faith brings you into remedial.
Contact an eternal contact with God.
Oh, how simple.
It wasn't simple for Jesus.
So all think of those hours that he suffered under the hand of God, put away our sins. Think of that precious blood of the man, the only man that had a right to live because he had never sinned. But he went as that perfect sacrifice in our place to take our place for those who believe that all of our sins might be put away, washed away in that precious blood.
Now we see the children of Israel passing through the wilderness, and they began to murder against Moses and against God.
And God sent fiery serpents among them. Why? Because they were under the law.
They have said all that the Lord has spoken we will do. God said, all right, do it, then do it.
What did they do?
Well, their history shows.
As we learn from the 7th chapter of Acts, the Stephens Apology as they speak of it.
That their history was one all the way through of idolatry.
They served their God, Mullet.
And yet they profess to serve the true God. Oh, there was always a remnant of faith among them.
That the nation itself had turned away to idols.
Where is Israel today?
Because of their turning away to idols.
But here in their history, we have this very, very simple picture, and God makes the gospel so simple.
That a wayfaring man know a fool need not err therein.
All they need to do and they were bitten by the serpents.
Was to look at something that had been provided for them.
A brazen serpent on a pole.
And everyone that looked lived.
Everyone that looked live now, dear friends tonight.
We're not asking you to know anything about the scriptures.
One verse will save your precious soul tonight.
God says, Verily, verily, I say to you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me half.
Everlasting life shall not come into judgment, but but has passed already from death unto light. No, we're not asking you to know all about Scripture. We're asking you to take Jesus Christ as your personal Savior.
Look and live.
That's how simple it is.
And all those who looked live.
And catch a picture some of those who were not bitten as they reached over.
And lifted the heads of those poor, smitten ones. Dear fellow Christian, is that what you're doing tonight?
Are you trying to lift the head of some poor soul that's been smitten by the serpent telling him to look and live? That's how simple the gospel is.
Oh, it's based upon that new life that God gives. It's based upon the work of Jesus at Calvary, when he shed His precious blood and bore all the judgment you and I deserve.
But now?
Dear friends, the scripture says.
If our gospel. I'm quoting from 2nd.
Corinthians 4 and three. If our gospel behead, it is hid to those that are lost.
Lost.
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Now you're either in one class or the other tonight.
If you're reading the 53rd of Isaiah in the sixth verse.
All we like sheep.
Have gone astray. Lost. That's what it means.
I remember in rounding up some cattle that who had gotten through the fence that they knew the way back and they went right through the hole that came through, but the sheep won't do that.
A sheep won't do that. Man's likened to a sheep.
When he goes astray, he will not come back.
Oh dear friends, what a picture we have of man.
That's why it says the Son of Man has come to seek.
And to save that which was lost, to save. And that's what we have in this passage in John.
He's come to seek and to save that which is lost. And the very reason for this Gospel meeting tonight is because the Son of Man is seeking.
That which is lost to save it. Are you one of those who are lost? Are you a prodigal tonight, gone astray from the father's house, far off?
The way off in the foreign country.
Morally, before God, at a distance like Adam behind the trees of the garden. Are you lost?
If our gospel behead its head to those that are lost, gone astray.
We, like sheep, have gone astray.
That the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Oh, have you given answer to this? Have you answered God for such love and goodness?
And providing A Savior that you who are lost might be saved, have you taken him? And said thank you, Lord Jesus.
Have you owned Jesus, your personal savior?
You know, dear friends, that Romans, one tells us.
That the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all unrighteousness.
It's revealed it hasn't yet been executed.
And way back in the days of job, we read.
Because there's Wrath.
Beware lest he take the away with a stroke.
Then a great ransom cannot deliver thee.
But a ransom can deliver the now.
Because we have in.
First Timothy.
26 I believe.
That he is a ransom for all.
For all that is all who believe.
It's for all, but only those who believe get the blessing.
Yes, beware.
Because there's wrath. Beware lest he take the away with a stroke.
Two young men were fishing.
In the northern waters.
They each have their boat.
Fishing for cars, as they often do in separate boats, Small boats. They were brothers. One of the brothers was saved, the other was lost.
And the one who was last used to make fun of his brother when he prayed at night, throw pillows at him, mock him.
As he prayed.
It's the older one who was.
Save and while they were fishing, one of the brothers.
As he stood up to fix, the lines fell over backwards into the water and he couldn't swim.
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His brother was some distance from him and he just out of the corner of his eye. He saw it. He dropped his lines and grabbed his arms.
George went down once he knew what it meant.
He came up.
He went down the second time. He knew if he went down once more, he wouldn't come out.
And just as he started down the third time, his brother took his finger.
Saved him.
He's lost.
His brother saved him.
Just by one finger.
As he went down, he held his finger up. His brother grabbed it.
You know what? David said. There's one step between me and Dad.
About you tonight.
You know that you're going to walk out of this room alive. Do you know it? You have no insurance.
No, dear friends.
Is one thing for you to do. Behold, now is accepted time. Now is the day of salvation, not tomorrow.
Thou knowest not what a day may bring forth, or a night either.
Do you realize what it would be?
To spend one moment in hell.
But your part will be eternity in hell if you reject Jesus.
There is no other name given under heaven among men whereby we must be saved and that precious name of Jesus.
Jesus.
Now what does this verse say?
For God so loved the world, Or you can quote it by heart.
I dare say there are souls here tonight, children, the Saints.
We can quote this verse by heart that are unsaved. You're sitting in your chairs, indifferent to the gospel, the grace of God.
What's going to happen if Jesus comes tonight?
As you sit there in your chairs, quoting from your lips, and you can do it.
John 316.
And yet you'll be sitting in your chairs when the rest are gone. You've never taken Jesus.
You've never received them as your own personal savior. You've talked about them. You've told others about him.
Young man was in the army.
When he got to arguing, he'd been brought up to know something of the truth. He got to arguing with an infidel.
And the infidel seemed to get the best of him. So he went home to get his Bible out, and he got saved.
He got saved.
He was going to tell the infidel something, but he didn't know enough to tell him to answer him. But he did when he got his Bible out.
Yes.
All we need to be awakened.
Both saved and lost, we need to be awakened tonight.
Oh dear friends, you and I are living in a day of prosperity.
A day when?
Everything is unstable.
Men cry peace, and at the same time there's the setting for wars at every hand.
Because there is no peace for the wicked, our God says.
And there will be no peace until Jesus comes. But you can have peace tonight.
In your own soul by taking Christ as your Savior.
For God so loved the world.
That he gave his own the begotten Son, That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And what does perish mean?
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To be transported from a happy state to an unhappy one forever. That's what Perish means.
It doesn't mean annihilation, my friend.
It means a complete change.
From this happy condition in which you find yourself tonight.
Sitting in the midst of prosperity and having the gospel of the grace of God.
Before you.
And God says you won't perish if you believe it, but you will otherwise.
He that believeth God said not his son into the world to condemn the world, but thought the world through him might be saved. That's the point I'm coming to saved.
Old men say, well, I I do believe, but but I'm not saved. I wouldn't dare say I'm saved. You wouldn't dare say it when God says says it. You wouldn't dare believe God.
You wouldn't dare believe what God says, Read it simply.
For the God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved, saved.
How can we be saved? That's the point.
Here's Nicodemus standing before the Lord Jesus and he tells him he must be born again.
And then he gives them the illustration that he knew only too well of the serpent on the pole. And what's that a picture of?
It's a picture of the place that Jesus took for you and me when he was made sin for us. Made sin. The one who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him all. What a savior if you thanked him for it.
Saved. Lost.
We were talking about being lost.
The God of this world has blinded the minds of them which believe not, not the heathen.
No, Those who've heard that's who Satan blinds. And you know when Satan blinds the mind after you have heard the gospel and you go out and reject it, that's when he blinds your mind.
Three steps to apostasy, dear friends. The 1St is the hardening of the heart.
And the next is sin, and then the wicked heart that departs from the living God.
Three steps in apostasy.
Constancy giving up a known testimony of grace for you.
And how can you be saved?
Turn to with me to the 16th chapter of Acts, please.
We'll start reading with the 25th verse.
And at midnight Paul and Silas, they were in prison, of course, prayed and sang praises unto God. And the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bands were loose. To the keeper of the prison, the waking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.
But while cried with a loud voice saying Do thyself no harm for we are all here.
Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved in thy house.
And they speak unto him, the word of the Lord.
And to all that were in his house, and he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was baptized he and all his straightway.
And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.
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Serves. What must I do to be saved?
You know, there were those who came to the Lord Jesus in the 6th chapter of John, and they said, what must we do that we might work the works of God? This is the work of God, he answered.
That you believe on him who may have sent.
We repeated, dear friends, that the gospel is simple for your soul tonight. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. And thy house was the answer to this Philippian jailer.
How do you know?
If it gets saved tonight, there might be assembly formed in your city too. There was here.
Wasn't there?
Or marvelous the work of God saves the soul, and not all assembly is formed.
That Philippines.
Well, what must I do to be saved?
Nothing. It's all done.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved in thy house. Don't leave that out.
Rahab didn't leave it out.
No. When she asked for mercy, she said I wanted for my house.
Are you asking?
God for mercy for your house, He will answer you. Yes he will.
Did you ever know God to disappoint faith? I never did.
Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be saved in thy hearts. This is what God says.
Now turn with me to Romans, please.
Romans 9, the 10th chapter.
I'd like to read the 13th verse first.
For whosoever.
Shall call.
Upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Now that's what we get in those verses in John saved.
Here whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. But on what basis?
Because he shed his precious blood.
Because he went to the cross of Calvary of that picture of the serpent on the pole.
He was made sin for us.
The one who knew no sin.
That we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Yes.
Believe.
Be saved. Oh, how simple have you done it? Have you taken Jesus as your savior? Thou shalt call his name Jesus, Jehovah's savior, for He shall save his people from their sins.
Oh, what a marvelous thing to have that load lifted.
Of sins, You've forgotten most of them, haven't you?
Yes, you've forgotten most of them.
They're all gone.
130 A 103rd Psalm.
As far as the East is from the West that far, he's removed our sins from us.
That's how far. You tell me How far that is, the scientists can't tell you.
But God knows.
And that's how far your sins are gone, dear friend, tonight if you've taken Jesus Christ as your own personal savior.
And in Hebrews the 10th chapter.
Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more.
And there doesn't need to be any more sacrifice, for sins are gone.
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And if Jesus isn't enough for you tonight, dear friends.
I'm sorry for you.
Because the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses from all sin.
And the soul who believes can say I'm saved, I'm saved.
In virtue of that precious blood that was shed at Calvary's cross. And God says, when I see the blood, I'll Passover you.
As he passed over you tonight, have you received him as your own personal savior?
Children, young people here have been sitting in these chairs year after year in the conference.
You've never taken Jesus, as you say.
You pass as a Christian. I heard one young person who saves that. I used to tell them yes, so they wouldn't bother me.
Are you doing that?
Why don't you come tonight?
Your mother and your father is praying for you and a lot of other people.
There were about 20 or 25 brothers in that room praying for your precious soul tonight. Won't you come now? Won't you take Jesus?
As we sing that little song.
Won't you take him as your savior?
#34
precious.
Precious Blood of Jesus shed on Calvary, shed for Rebels and for Sinners.
Shut for me.