Gospel—Neil Adkins
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Past 26.
It's a very familiar portion. We've all read Paul before King, Agrippa.
And he put before him.
The history that he had when he persecuted the Christians.
And he lays out a faithful testimony. We will pick it up in verse 23, that Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should show forth light unto the people and to the Gentiles. And then we skip down to verse 26.
For the king knoweth of these things, this is King Agrippa.
Before whom also I speak freely, for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him.
For this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, believeth thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.
Then Agrippa said unto Paul, almost without persuadeth me to be a Christian.
I wonder if there's somebody in the room tonight.
That is almost persuaded.
You know I have two things on my heart tonight.
The first would be.
Gospel harden young people and maybe even older ones too that have heard it hundreds, probably thousands of times and still rejecting, maybe saying, almost persuaded and the other.
Would be to.
Maybe meeting hardened?
Christians.
Ones that are saved, but their hearts are hardened.
I have those two things on my heart this evening.
We trust it'll be from the Lord when Wally called me up to.
Take the gospel it was.
With much fear and trembling.
And.
After he called me, I said I'd pray about it and went to the dinner table and my family wanted to know what was wrong because I was kind of Gray in the face.
And so they asked and I told them and they their simple answer was just say no.
But I do feel that there's something.
That the Lord would have us put forth this evening, and we just pray that there would be ears.
To hear and that it would be an exercise.
And an encouragement to the speaker's heart as well as those that are in the audience.
Maybe we could just look to the Lord for help.
Well, we just had some and and acts before us about.
Ones that are almost persuaded and I'm just wondering.
You know, with hearts that are hardened.
And we know what our hearts are like. Our brother Dean had a message with a little about the heart and kind of like to take that up a little bit further.
Maybe we could turn to the very beginning of the scripture and to see what hearts were like, maybe we could turn to Genesis. Genesis chapter 6, I believe.
Verse 5.
This is this is before the flood. We're going to pick up what man's heart was like before the flood and just directly after.
And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
So we see early on what the heart was like, and we don't have to look any further, do we, than our own hearts. We know what's in our own hearts apart from the goodness of God, the grace of God. We know what our hearts are like. We wouldn't want a book opened up.
So the rest of our family and our brethren here could see what our hearts are like. We know, don't we?
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Let's turn over to a portion right after the flood, Genesis 8, verse 21. We'll pick it up in the middle of the verse for the imagination.
Of man's heart is evil from his youth.
So this is after the flood and we see the proclamation. It's evil from his youth.
Now we know what our hearts are like. They're evil from the youth.
And that's God's view of it. I wonder if we could turn to Romans 5 verse 12. And this is what started off early in the garden with Adam, as by one man sin entered into the world.
And death by sin, and so death.
Passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. It's quite a solemn verse, isn't it? We have the word death here two times.
And you know, we just had word this afternoon of a death.
Our Sister Carol Witty passed away.
A couple days ago apparently, but I just wonder.
If we could tell you that you had a couple minutes left in this scene.
What would your heart be? What would your reaction be?
You know, death is a solemn thing.
I was introduced to to death at an early age, my dad.
Was an assistant to the pathologist.
And he would always tell me to knock before I come in. It was in a place that I really wanted to go that much.
But I would come in every once in a while when I shouldn't and there would be metal trays that would be pulled out.
And bodies with sheets over them, with their toes tagged Death.
Solemn thing.
And it says here.
Death.
Passed upon all men the sentence of death. Young person here tonight.
How many times have you heard the Gospel?
How many times? And yet maybe there's one or more that can say almost persuaded.
Or they can say yeah I heard that before but really had no effect.
And justice kind of passing by, passing off as a Christian.
But not, you know, the last few moments.
Of a person's life.
I believe puts forth.
A person's state of soul.
Peace. Is there peace?
Or is there absolute horror and fear?
There should be horror and fear.
If you have not taken the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, you know there's a there's a tract and I hope you'll excuse.
Reading part of it, but it's affected me greatly.
And.
It's.
It's written a long time ago.
And I'll just read part of it.
And it's about the two words that we had in Romans 5 and death.
Death.
Many preachers.
Are giving up the old ideas about the fall and total depravity of man.
People are not often plainly told that they are guilty sinners before a holy God. The sermons of our forefathers, who used to press this so constantly upon their hearers, are looked upon as relics of the dark ages. There is, however, one preacher left of the old school.
He speaks today as boldly as ever.
Not popular, but the whole world is this parish and he travels over every part of the globe.
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Speaks in every language under the sun. He visits the poor.
Calls upon the rich and preaches to people of every religion.
And many of no religion.
But the subject of this sermon is always the same.
He's an eloquent preacher.
Often stirs feelings which no other preacher could reach, and brings tears into eyes that seldom weep. He addresses himself to the conscience and to the heart.
His arguments? None, none are able to refute.
Nor is there any heart.
That has remained wholly unmoved by the force of his weighty appeals.
Most people hate him, for many quayle in his presence, but in one way or another he makes everybody hearing. He is neither refined nor polite. Indeed, he often interrupts the public arrangements and breaks in rudely upon the private enjoyments of life. He frequents the shop.
The office. The mill.
He appears in the midst of legislators and intrudes upon fashionable and religious gatherings that most inopportune times.
Can anybody here?
Here, tell me what that preacher's name is.
Depth step.
It's a solemn thing.
Young person tonight, what would you do if you presented with the last few moments?
Is there peace in your life?
If you bowed the knee, you know there was many brothers praying tonight.
For the souls of the young people, it's an encouraging thing to see.
But yet, you know, we're all taken up in so many different things. But it seems like that old preacher death is one of the few things. Sometimes it really gets our attention.
We see it every day like we have here or almost every day we go down the street.
And there's a procession going by and we think about it.
But you know what's really sad is to see how the world.
Deals with death.
I wonder if anybody here has heard the word fanatology? Fanatology.
It's the study of death.
And as far as I'm concerned, I think it's straight from the devil.
You know there was an article in the paper and you have to forgive me.
Of bringing in a track, but I trust it was from the Lord.
In this article because it really puts what the world thinks of death and how they explain it away.
And this article.
What caught my attention, it was a high school very close to our house, not where our boys went. It was a very rich high school on the other side of the tracks, Los Alamitos High School.
And they were teaching a course.
In thanatology study of death.
And you know, is this right after?
Gone over this track and it really hit home.
The teacher.
She said that she had just lost her father and that it was a life affirming class. It was more than any other class that she had taught. And it gives you the ability to be grateful and appreciate the time. We do, we do have, and you know as I read the article that it was not one mention.
Of the Lord.
More of what is after death.
And she went on to say.
The best thing that she could teach in this class was to these young people was to seize the day.
Seize the day.
Live each day as if it's your last.
So if you get hit by a truck, you've lived each day with happiness and you can say I'm sorry and I love you.
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Sad commentary. That's the best the world has to offer.
That's how they can explain away death. Don't really worry about it too much, just live each day to the fullest you can.
And they interviewed a couple of the kids in the class. One of them said society doesn't really teach you or tell you much about death.
She said. You just see it on TV.
And so the teacher summed it up. She says people need to realize that death is just part of life. It's something they perhaps don't look forward to.
But they need to realize it will come at one time and that's a comfort and a reassurance from being prepared.
Being prepared, it says in the scripture, prepare to meet thy God. Not one mention of God was in that article.
Prepare to meet thy God and you know young people, what's really.
Exercise and concern me is that.
Year after year you can come to Lassen, you can go to your home assemblies, you can hear the gospel, the good news from the Scripture.
And have a lot of truth.
Have a lot of truth.
But you haven't made it your own.
You know, there's a, there's a hat that we've seen here and it's, it's a humorous hat, it says.
Seen it?
Been there, seen it and done that, but you know if you haven't.
If you if you've seen it.
And you haven't done it. What good is it? You know, you can sit here for all these years and you're no better off in your soul than these poor kids in this class.
If the Lord were to come.
If we would hear the shout in a few seconds and it's very possible.
And you haven't made it your own and you're sitting in your seat and there's nobody left.
You'd be no better off.
Than those kids in that class with all.
The truth.
All the privileges you've had and if you've rejected it.
No, better off. You know, we talked a little bit this morning.
Life is but a vapor. It is, isn't it? It just seemed like a few days ago I was playing basketball out on the courts.
Now I can hardly get around to it. Life is a vapor.
We don't know what's ahead of us either.
Like Dave with the accident today, got up this morning.
Last thing he ever would have thought of would have been that he was going to be in a cast tonight.
Prepare to meet thy God.
What else does the scripture say?
Maybe we could turn to Hebrews 9, verse 27.
And as it is appointed unto men wants to die. But after this the judgment. It would have been wonderful if somebody could have stood up in that class.
Quoted a verse like that.
It would have stopped the teacher I'm sure dead in her tracks.
Prepared to meet thy God, it is appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment.
So it's a solemn thing.
To have your hearts.
Gospel Hardened.
After all these years.
And you know, there's another, there's another exercise that I had tonight and we'll, we'll pick this up again in a few minutes.
But it's it's a burden that I have and it's for young people.
That are saved.
And that are meeting hardened.
You know, I can just go back just a few years.
Say that I've been there and done that.
And you know, I would, I would just warn.
The young people that are here tonight.
It might not take just a little bit to get off course and to get a little downstream away from God's Word.
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But sometimes it's years, years before you come back.
And there's scars to your scars.
There's a price to pay.
You know, sometimes we can sit in meetings and be really indifferent.
Talk. Just do anything that comes into our heads.
But what are you going to do with the opportunity that you've had?
One to hear the good news of salvation. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. It's a promise. You can't have promises like that in the world.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. It's as simple as that.
Gospel.
Means good news, and it's simple.
And you know, for those that are saved.
I would just plead with you.
Not to harden your hearts.
And I want to look at some scriptures that I've had on my heart all week. And you'll have to excuse me for bringing in a little bit of.
An address to mix in with the gospel, but it's something I trust is from the Lord.
Maybe we could turn to 2nd Kings? Second Kings 22.
It's about King Josiah.
It's an encouraging story. I just don't want the whole message tonight to be of death. It's a solemn thing, but I want there to be encouragement as well for the many that are saved here tonight.
And it really is an encouragement to me.
And many here, we've talked about it to see how many.
Are going on for the Lord.
It's a vast majority, but I would I would just send would like to put these scriptures before us here in Second Kings 22.
About maybe some that their hearts are hardened.
To the meetings into God's Word.
The first verse, chapter 22 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 30 and one years in Jerusalem.
And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord.
And walked in the way, in all the way of the David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.
At an age. A young age.
He didn't turn to the right or to the left. He didn't have to go the hard way like some of us have gone.
Consistency. He didn't turn to the right or to the left. I don't think he deviated a whole lot in his life. And it came to pass in the 18th year of King Josiah that the king sent Chaffin, the son of Isaiah the son of Mushulam, described to the House of the Lord.
So we see that.
At the age of 16, he sought after God.
I put that before you young people tonight. Are you seeking after God and His things?
Or has the world so clouded your thoughts?
That you really can't say that you're seeking after God. You know, I think of that, that him turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full, and his wonderful face.
Look full in his wonderful face, and what happens? The things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus.
And we have here a faithful king that at a young age.
He sought after God and so in verse 13 he says, go ye inquire of the Lord sought after him and for the people and for all of Judah concerning the words of this book that is found.
Maybe we'll go down.
To verse 19.
And what? What does the Lord say? It says because thine heart was tender.
And thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord.
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Things.
That were going to come in.
The Lord put that aside because why? Because his heart was tender and now has humbled thyself before the Lord. That's what I would put before you tonight.
Is your heart tender?
Have you wept over the scriptures before?
You know, I used an illustration one time. It's a week, but it's.
It came to my mind at the time and that is 2 plants.
Two plants. It was at a Sunday school picnic one time.
And there was one that was withered and there was another plant that was full.
And we took out of a bag a pot.
And poured water on the plant that was full.
And it said the word of God.
And the other plant, it was withered and on the pot it said the pleasures of sin for a season poured onto the planet, the withered plant.
That's what your life, your heart will be like if you leave the Word of God out.
Dried up and hard and hardly the the word of God has an effect on it.
We know it's true, don't we?
But.
King Josiah, his heart was tender and he humbled himself.
And you know, there were some verses that I had before me in the Psalms. You won't have to turn to it, but.
To have.
A heart that was tender and humbled before God, I believe.
This verse Psalm 6618 If I regard sin iniquity in my heart, he will not hear.
If we have things in our lives.
That we have not judged and we have not confessed to the Lord.
We're not going to have a tender heart.
And it says plainly that he will not hear.
There's another verse in Psalms that talks about a clean heart.
Clean Heart.
Another one that says harden not your hearts.
And in Joshua there's a scripture that says, incline your heart unto me. And in Exodus.
35.
21 I believe there's a verse that talks about the heart that was stirred up and made willing. I wonder if there's there's hearts here that need to be stirred up.
And made willing I speak to myself, believe me.
We need to be stirred up and to have our hearts tender. David talks to Solomon, his son.
He tells him if you have a pure heart, a willing heart, he will be found of the excellent advice to a son. Pure heart and a willing heart.
So I would just put a few of those scriptures out to you as well as to my own heart that we would, we would have a tender heart, but we can't if the world is filled it up.
And we the things have become dim of the Lord's things.
You know.
Back to the track.
The preacher of the old school.
I really, I really believe that death brings out reality when it has it before you.
Our Sister Carol Weighty, she worked down at our work.
Wonderful testimony.
She had complete peace about where she was going to go and everybody knew it.
As the many parts in her body started to shut down over the last month and 1/2 or so, she had peace. She had peace. Young people, can you say that tonight that you have peace in your soul?
It's a wonderful thing to have, but what an awful thing if you're a child.
The parent of the Saints that have been in the meeting for year after year.
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And you've rejected it. What an awful thing. I can't imagine a worse thing.
Than to hear the cry, the shout, and they'll be gone and you'll be sitting in your seat.
And just like that one verse.
Lord, Lord, open unto me too late.
Too late, all that truth.
All that liberty and rejecting it. There's a verse that says God commendeth his love.
Towards us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. You know, if you were going to put, if you can look forward to see and see your tombstone and what will be written on it, you know, there's a verse in Hebrews that says died without mercy.
Died without mercy? Is there somebody here that if the Lord came right now or you were taken, you could say that you died without mercy and have the privilege of hearing the word, the gospel?
Or would it say in Hebrews 11/13 died in faith, died in faith. Let's turn to second Peter one verse 11 in connection with that diet and faith.
Two Peter, 111.
For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. An abundant entrance if you die in faith and you're going on well.
That's an abundant entrance.
And that's what you can have tonight, an abundant entrance. You know, there was an old brother in our assembly and brother Dan Jacobson, over 90 years old and went to be with the Lord just a short time ago.
And I went and visited him, our family along with other relatives about a week, week and a half before he passed away.
This is a brother that whoever would come over.
And he was dying. His life was slipping away. He would share with them a little bit of the word of God.
Just a little bit of the word of God, just a little nugget for him. They go away and they'd say that was worth it. That was worth it.
And so we were over there and quite a bit of the family had already left and he motioned for me to come over and he said he said it's real. It's real and me being.
Thicken the head. Took me a couple seconds to figure out exactly what he meant. It's real.
Getting out to the car, it hit the full force of it. It's real. Death is real. It was right before him, but he also had the glory before him. The glory.
What a wonderful thing.
And he was about ready to have an abundant entrance.
Death was real.
There's a verse in Deuteronomy says, oh, that they were wise.
That they would consider their latter in young people. I would put before you tonight. Oh, that you were wise ones that have not taken the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior.
Or that you were wise that you would consider your latter end? And what would it be on your deathbed when everything else it doesn't matter, doesn't matter?
What do you have for reality in your life?
Died in faith.
Wonderful.
There's there's a book that I've enjoyed, BT puts it out as well as the track that I read.
It's the last words of remarkable people.
And I don't want to set forth any man up here tonight other than our Savior, but.
It really struck home and I'm going to read maybe two or three.
And you can figure out for yourself if you can put died without mercy or died in faith on these.
This was a man named William Hunter, and he was a martyr.
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In 1555.
The sheriff told him, if thou wilt recant, thou shalt live, If not, thou shalt be burned.
I will not recant, God willing, was the reply. He then prayed, Son of God, shine upon me.
The very last thing that he said, Lord, Lord receive. My spirit died in faith.
You know, we read and I think Acts 7 about Stephen died in faith beholding the glory. And that's part of our brother's wish here this week at camp that you would see a little bit more of the glory, but I would see a little bit more of the glory.
It just amazes me to talk to some of the young people here. Makes me ashamed to see that, the way that they're going on.
At that age compared to what? Where I was?
It's wonderful.
There's another passage.
Doesn't have a date on it.
A friend saying to him just before he died, minutes before, how hard it is to die.
Oh no, he replied. Easy dying. Glorious dying.
I have experienced more happiness in two hours today when dying than in my whole life.
I have long desired that I might glorify God in my death.
For the next sentence, just kind of you just shake your head.
But oh, I never thought that such a poor worm as I would come to such a glorious death.
Died in faith.
One last one. This was a doctor in 1521.
A little before his death, worn out with fatigue and weakness, he began to read. The New Testament should give you a clue right there. He began to read.
And on pursuing.
Through the 5th, 6th and 7th chapters of Matthew's Gospel, he threw the book from him with much violence, exclaiming either this is not the Gospel or we are not Christians.
Solemn.
Throwing the book away minutes before he passed into a lost eternity.
He wasn't a Christian.
Died without mercy. Put it on his epitaph.
Is there one here tonight that is wavering back and forth?
You're not guaranteed. You've heard it so many times. Maybe you're sitting in your seat still saying.
Yeah, I've heard that. But you know, before we close.
There's one.
One thing that I would want to bring up and.
I would be remiss as putting forth the gospel if we did not put before.
The audience tonight about the precious blood.
Of Christ.
You know.
What speaks to the world? What speaks to the world? Power, money You think of of gold comes to my mind. Gold.
And there's over, this was taken a few years ago, this statistic that that was over I think 100 and maybe 20,000 tons of gold bullion stored up.
I think 50,000 tons were by private parties around the world and the rest were held by governments. And you know, I believe 24 karat gold is the most purest form and they call that 1000. Fine, that speaks to the world, doesn't it?
Pure gold like that.
But even as pure as that is.
There's an impurity in it and you cannot compare it with what we have as being said, the precious blood of Christ.
Washing away every stain of sin.
And there's a couple verses.
That will go over real quick.
First, Peter.
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11.
And there's the verses I'm going to read. There's going to be just a couple thoughts that we want to take out.
First, Peter 119 It says with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
That's the one that we would seek to put before you tonight.
A lamb without spot. And the old preacher death. How could it speak any louder than when our Savior hung on the cross? And stroke upon stroke upon stroke?
Of judgment was poured out.
Could never speak any any clock clearer or louder or plainly than that when he was on the cross.
Precious blood, The precious blood. And there's another in Hebrews 9.
Verse 22 The last part Without shedding of blood, there is no remission.
We also have.
In Ephesians.
17 It tells us about redemption.
With his blood.
In Ephesians 213 I believe it talks about that were brought nigh.
That song that tells us nearer we could not be.
It's brought us right into his presence. That's what that blood has done.
And the last one in Colossians tells us that we have peace. We have peace.
And I would just beg and plead with any young person that's here tonight that doesn't have that peace.
Consider the latter end.
And could you say that the Lord left you here?
And you were on your deathbed that you would have peace with God.
Because of that precious blood that was shed? Or would you be as lost as those poor kids were in that class that were being taught thanatology, the study of death? Seize the day. Quite a difference.
Died without mercy, died in faith.
It's your decision tonight and we could just bow our heads.