Gospel Emboldened

I really have enjoyed being with you.

The Lord took Jacob on a long trip

to get to a place called Bethel.

And he had heart dealings with him

and he saw angels ascending and descending.

And the Lord brought me on a long trip

halfway across the country to Parker.

And I will just say, to me,

this is a house of God.

God.

He's wonderfully in this place.

And if you have been plagued

with the monotony of the regular,

just, I want to stir you up.

This is a special place that you have here.

Thank you for your ministry.

All of you in my own soul.

I came to Denver for the first time ever in 1974.

I was a Roman Catholic.

And my righteousness was my own.

Jehovah said, can you?

The Lord our righteousness.

It meant nothing to me.

In fact, I came with my brother,

two of my best friends,

and a Roman Catholic priest.

And we headed about 11 o'clock p.m.

toward Denver.

Where is it?

Where is it?

Where is it?

And went over the ridge of the mountain

and looked down.

Denver!

Sparkling, enormous city.

But Jehovah said, can you?

It meant nothing to me.

It was all Mark's righteousness.

But then, in 1976, I went to a fellowship of Christian athletes camp

at Central Michigan University.

Preaching of the word of God came to my heart.

Exposed my sin.

And Jehovah said, can you?

The Lord our righteousness meant all things to me.

And so now I come back to this big city of Denver,

and I have a message that's significant.

In fact, the message is, take your Bibles with me and turn to Romans 1, 16.

We'll just primarily focus on one verse here.

Romans 1, 16.

Look what it says there.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel.

Paul was approaching a big city as well, of Rome.

I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God

for salvation to everyone who believes,

to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Let's pray together.

Our Heavenly Father, we have prepared all the kindling,

and we ask that you would bring the fire.

Come, Holy Spirit, we pray.

May we leave this place and say like those on the road to Emmaus,

did not our hearts burn within us as the scriptures were opened?

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Constantine became the emperor of Rome in 311 A.D.,

and he provided Christianity with Caesar's protection,

bringing over two centuries of persecution to an end.

But then, 25 years later, after Constantine died,

one Julian, the emperor, nicknamed Julian the Apostate, the new Caesar,

he became the emperor.

And for Julian, hating Christianity,

he didn't return to the policy of persecution with sword and fire and lions

for fear that martyrdom would energize Christianity instead of crushing it.

Instead, Julian cunningly fought the church by writing treatises against Christianity

and by removing Christians from positions of influence

and by forbidding education of Christian youth

and by robbing Christians of their possessions.

But during a night battle in 363,

Caesar Julian was struck by an arrow at a venture.

And as he was there dying,

because it gave him a mortal wound,

legend has it that the last words were spoken in surrender

by Emperor Julian to King Jesus,

against whom he had fought bitterly all his life.

And he said,

Galilean, thou hast conquered.

And since then, arguably,

the influence of Christianity has dominated the Western world.

That was in 363.

But dial back with me about three centuries earlier to 57 AD.

Here, the Apostle Paul anticipated his soon arrival in,

not Denver,

but in a big pagan city named Rome.

That was the capital of Caesar's power.

And he, Paul,

was captain of just this motley

and pitiable-looking army of King Jesus.

You see, King Jesus was a rival ruler

who sought supreme allegiance

in the hearts of men

over the emperor Caesar,

who was Nero at that time.

And we see that Paul's lone weapon

as he approached this huge city of Rome

was this flimsy-looking little sling

of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And surely it seemed as he approached that big city

like he was on a fool's errand.

So these thoughts kind of warm our minds

to the first century conflict

residing in Paul's words

when he says there, 116,

I'm not ashamed of the gospel,

for it's the power of God for salvation

to everyone who believes,

to the Jew first,

and then also to the Greek.

That's a text we want to focus in on.

We want to do it under three main headings here.

Three main headings.

And the first is

Paul's gospel confidence stated.

The second is

Paul's gospel confidence reasoned.

And the third is

Paul's gospel confidence applied.

Three main headings

and we go to the table.

I hope this is an appetite wedding

hors d'oeuvre of the word

before we dine on the table.

So consider Paul's gospel confidence stated.

Look, he says there,

I'm not ashamed of the gospel.

He's saying,

I'm not embarrassed about it.

I'm not afraid it's going to bring me ridicule.

I don't shrink back

because of the gospel.

He says that because

he's kind of in the face of scorning here.

Think of the context.

Paul's writing from Corinth.

And if you could look directly

across the Adriatic Sea

to the Italian peninsula

where Rome resided,

there he would be looking at

the capital of world power.

It was the residence of all the great people.

The who's who of the globe.

That's what Rome was at this time.

There in Rome was the pomp and ceremony

of the Roman emperor's court.

In Rome there were senators

and philosophers and orators

and writers and intellectuals.

Rome was a very intimidating,

sparkling place.

And Paul, as he stood in his sandals though,

he had a message to bring to Rome.

And the message was to Rome that,

listen to this now,

the savior of the whole world

is a Jewish carpenter from Nazareth.

Jesus, who by the way,

whose life campaign climaxed

in his being crucified on a Roman cross.

And believe me,

those in Rome knew

what a Roman cross was

and the kind of humiliation it brought.

That was Paul's message

to this great city of Rome.

This sophisticated and learning city.

How would they respond to him

if you were thinking in Paul's sandals there?

Paul, as he approaches Rome,

thinks,

they're going to laugh me

and scorn me out of town.

And left to myself,

they're going to say,

look at this funny little man.

Look at this amusing fellow

with the hooked nose,

the bald head,

and the bowed legs.

What are you little man doing

coming to Rome?

Are you auditioning to be

the court jester of Caesar's palace

to tell us that Jesus

is the savior of the world

and all of us need to knuckle under

to his message?

Remember how Paul,

he had Athens in his rearview mirror.

How did the sophisticated

big city of Athens

treat the apostle Paul?

Well, in Acts 17,

in verse 18,

it says,

after Paul preached there

in the Areopagus

and then there on Mars Hill,

how did they respond to him?

They said,

wow, that's quite a message.

We need to really take that seriously.

It says that the Epicurean

and Stoic philosophers

called him an idle babbler.

They called him basically

a seed-picking hick.

It says in verse 32 of Acts 17

that they sneered at him

when he spoke about this idea

of somebody being raised from the dead.

He's telling us fairy tales

and stories.

Now understand,

the apostle Paul,

we think,

well, that didn't bother him

because he was a mighty apostle.

Well, no,

he wasn't a man of steel.

He wasn't invulnerable

to being scorned

and criticized.

He was really quite shaken up about it.

In fact, it says

in 1 Corinthians 2.1,

having gone from Athens,

he came then to Corinth

where it says

in 1 Corinthians 2.1,

he says,

I came to you in Corinth

in weakness,

in fear,

and much trembling.

Why?

Because his world had been mocked.

It had been rocked.

They had scorned him.

Yet still now,

when he came to Corinth,

even though he'd been criticized

and scorned,

his jaw was set.

For I came among you in Corinth

determined to know nothing else

but Jesus Christ

and him crucified.

You think after dealing

with the philosophers of Athens,

he would change his gospel message

and maybe start to use

some philosophy

and the wisdom of the world.

But no,

he wouldn't change at all.

He just came

with this little sling

of the gospel

standing before

the giant Goliath-like city

of Corinth

and then eventually Rome.

You see,

Paul was a man

of mighty intellect.

And he had the cerebral muscle

to be able to fence

and joust

with the greatest

of the intellectuals

of his day.

But Paul refused

to change his message,

to use worldly methods.

Though people looked

at his gospel,

it's just the hokey foolishness

of the gospel.

And he was tempted,

just like many in our day,

to bring a more palatal,

a more tasty message

to the unbeliever's mind,

to remove the offense

of the cross

and its related themes.

But instead,

Paul says,

I'm not ashamed

of this gospel

as he spoke it

in the face of scorning.

But we're looking at,

again,

that first main heading,

Paul's gospel confidence

stated,

yeah,

in the face of scorning,

but also,

look,

with a voice of daring.

With a voice of daring.

I'm not ashamed

of the gospel.

You see,

this wasn't spoken

with a Nicodemus-like sheepishness

who came to Jesus at night

so nobody would see him.

He wasn't cowardly and weak.

Jesus may have said

to Nicodemus,

are you ashamed of me?

Nicodemus coming at night

like this?

And Nicodemus may say,

no,

I'm not ashamed.

But he really was.

No, no.

Paul,

on the other hand,

he spoke this

with a voice of daring

when he says,

I'm not ashamed

of the gospel.

It was spoken

like a defiant David.

Must be a David here.

Is there a David here somewhere?

All right.

David was that little

pitiable runt of a boy

who in the valley of Elah,

remember he was looking up

the nostrils of Goliath

as he stood toe to toe

with him.

He was being taunted

and mocked by Goliath.

But David said there,

he said,

I am not ashamed

of this little sling

that I have.

You may have that big spear,

that big shield,

that big helmet,

but David tossing

the little pedal

up and down.

I'm not ashamed

of this sling

that I have here

because David said

to Goliath

in 1 Samuel 17,

because the battle

is the Lord's

and I will strike you down,

David says,

and I will remove

your head.

And that's what Paul felt like

as he was facing

the giant of Rome.

Like the giant of Denver,

like you all are facing.

He's not ashamed

of this gospel.

McLaren says this

in his commentary.

He says,

the danger of coming to Rome

and all the consequences

that could result.

He says,

the danger was an attraction

to Paul's chivalrous spirit.

Paul believed in flying

at the head

when you're fighting

with a serpent.

And he knew

that influence

exerted in Rome

would thrill

throughout the whole empire.

Paul knew,

like Julian eventually found

that the Galilean,

that he would triumph.

And so,

Paul,

armed with the flimsy

looking sling

of the gospel

and the smooth stones

of its key doctrines,

he made his approach

to Rome.

That's Paul's gospel

confidence stated,

our first of three main headings.

So come out with me

secondly to

the second main heading,

which is

the gospel's confidence

reasoned.

Paul's gospel confidence

reasoned.

You see,

Paul gives the reason

why he's not ashamed.

Four.

It is the power of God

for salvation

to everyone who believes,

to the Jew first,

then also

to the Greek.

So he's reasoning

why he's not ashamed.

There are three reasons

he gives here.

Notice.

First,

because it announces salvation.

I'm not ashamed

of the gospel

for it is the power

of God

for salvation.

That word salvation

is the Greek word

soterion,

which means

it brings deliverance.

It brings preservation.

It brings safety

from something

that's dangerous

and deadly.

In fact,

the same word,

soterion,

this idea of salvation,

is used

in the Greek translation

of the Old Testament,

Exodus 14, 13,

when Moses is standing

by the Red Sea

and all of the nation

of Israel

is behind him

up against the Red Sea

and the chariots

and the horsemen

of Egypt

are mowing down,

coming down

to mow them down.

And Moses stands

and says,

stand by,

says to Israel,

and you will see

the what?

The salvation

of the Lord.

In other words,

the deliverance

of the Lord,

the rescue

of the Lord.

Pharaoh's chariots

were pushing down

on them.

They were doomed

to be massacred.

They'd already endured

the whip of Egypt.

Now they were going

to have the sword

of Egypt run

through them.

But Moses takes

this pathetic looking

wooden staff

and he shows

the way,

the one way

of salvation,

the one way

of deliverance

that's going to be

blown open

by the Lord.

You see that picture

there of that

nation of people

standing before

this vast army

that's going to

mow them down

and massacre them.

This is kind of

a depiction

of the whole race

of humanity

standing in a

doomed state.

You ever watch

Lord of the Rings?

Tolkien?

Battle of Helm's Deep?

You ever see

the orcs?

And then the horsemen

coming down

led by Gandalf?

This is a picture

from Revelation 19.

And the Lord Jesus

will return

with all the hosts

of heaven

to mow down

not the orcs

but all of sinful

humanity.

That's us.

Do you see your face

in one of those orcs?

This is what is happening.

We are all in a doomed

state to be mowed down

by the hosts of heaven.

But with the gospel

of the apostle Paul

there is the one way

of escape

the one salvation.

Jesus said

I am the way

the truth

and the life.

No man comes

to the Father

except through me.

So listen

Paul is coming to Rome

and the sinners of Rome

were in a desperate situation.

They too

all of those inhabitants

of Rome

they are going to be destroyed

by the righteous legions

of God.

They need to see

the salvation

of the Lord

and Paul is bringing

the gospel staff

like Moses

opening the way

of deliverance

and so Paul is saying

why should anyone

be ashamed?

Why should I blush

or be embarrassed

about showing

these people in Rome

the one way

to escape

in safety?

They are all doomed.

I am bringing good news.

I am not ashamed

of the gospel

because it is

the power of God

for salvation.

I am going to keep

pacing forward

to what God

called me to do

to that leper colony

in Rome

that is doomed.

So Paul's gospel

competence

is reasoned

because it announces

salvation.

Secondly

I am not ashamed

of the gospel

because it contains

great power.

Look it says

for it is the power

of God

for salvation.

The word power

is dunamis

which means

strength,

ability.

You've heard

the word dynamite.

That's what it's from.

Dynamite brings

punch

and so

this staff

that he has

has power

in it.

You see

Paul had seen

the gospel

take down

giant Goliath

sinners

like himself.

Acts chapter 9

Acts 9 · chapter mention

he was a Goliath.

He was

persecuting

the church

and what happened

to him

on the Damascus road

he was taken down

by the gospel

in Acts chapter 9

Acts 9 · chapter mention

and on the island

of Cyprus

the pro-council

on Cyprus

was taken down

by the gospel

and in Acts 16

the Philippian jailer

was taken down

by the gospel

and the Corinth

synagogue leader

in the 18th chapter

was taken down

by the gospel

and listen to this

in 1 Corinthians 6

all kinds of people

murderers,

adulterers,

homosexuals

were taken down

by the gospel.

Didn't Rosaria Butterfield

write about the secrets

of an unexpected convert?

She was taken

the gospel

can save

it's powerful

it has power

to it.

John Murray says this

the gospel

is the omnipotence

of God

operative in salvation.

Charles Hodd

says this

the gospel

is that

through which

God exercises

his power.

But in what sense

does the gospel

have power in it?

Is it that there

somehow power

in the little ink

and the page

that is here?

No, no, no, no.

It's not that

the page

and the ink

has power.

Paul

writes there

in 1 Thessalonians

1.5

the gospel

does not come to you

in word only

but in power

he says

in the presence

of the spirit.

You see

the message

of the gospel

declares

and it unleashes

power

shielding anybody

who believes

from the wrath

to come.

D. Martin

Lloyd-Jones

ever hear of him?

This is your pastor

talking about

D. Martin

Lloyd-Jones.

Lloyd-Jones

was the queen's

physician.

He was a doctor

and he talks

about how

when he was a doctor

he would give

people a prescription

scribble it down

on a scrap of paper

that was to be

taken to the pharmacist

so that the

sick person

would get well.

Now was there power

in that little

piece of paper

and the ink

on the scratching?

No, no power at all

but the reality

is that

when it was

taken to the pharmacy

and the pharmacy

gave the

toxic

or excuse me

the tonic

and it was taken

in, it was ingested

it brought health

and likewise

this gospel

when we believe

in the realities

of the gospel

when we take it

into our souls

by believing

in the Lord Jesus Christ

the Holy Spirit

unleashes

a power

that imputes

a righteousness

Jehovah said

can you

his righteousness

is given to us

and then the spirit

of God gives

not only an imputed

righteousness

but an imparted

righteousness

with a new birth

that gospel

is the power

of God

unto salvation

so Paul says this

I am

I am not ashamed

of this prescription

that I carry

in my pocket

this gospel

because I know

what it can do

I know what it's done

for me and others

and I know

what it can do

for that leper colony

of Rome

this great city

that I'm approaching

right now

and though multitudes

may laugh at my message

and call me a stupid man

with a crumpled note

yet the apostle

is convinced

like it says

in 1 Corinthians

1

for the word

of the cross

is to those

who are perishing

foolishness

but to us

who are being saved

it is the power

of God

for it's written

I will destroy

the wisdom

of the wise

and the cleverness

of the clever

where is the wise man

where is the scribe

where is the debater

of this age

has not God

made the foolish

things of the world

wisdom

for since the wisdom

of God

the world

through its wisdom

did not come

to know God

God

was well pleased

through the foolishness

of the message

preached

to save

those who believe

so we are

bringing the gospel

to this area

of Denver

because it contains

great power

but also

because it saves

all kinds

it saves

all kinds

look to the Jew

first

and then also

to the Greek

this is summarized

to the Jew

first

because

it would come

to the Jews

who they knew

of a high priest

and a scapegoat

and a lamb

and a Passover

and Paul could preach

about blood

when it's smeared

in the doorpost

of your soul

the wrath of God

Passover

and the Jew

it's just

it's like

an olive branch

put back

in its original stock

but there can be

a foreign olive branch

maybe not like

a Palestinian olive branch

but maybe

an Italian olive branch

even for Gentiles

who Gentiles

they don't have

those categories

where the gospel

fits right in

like the Jew

who can be saved

but even for the Gentile

who has categories

like not high priest

and day of atonement

they have the idea

of Zeus

and Poseidon

and Hermes

and strange

pagan stories

but even

their souls

can be engrafted

into the saving stock

because the gospel

has the power

to make them alive

in Christ Jesus

the gospel can save

not only

whitewashed tombs

of Jews

who were

outward in their righteousness

but even open

cesspools

of unbelievers

who were

homosexuals

and thieves

and murderers

and adulterers

see the gospel

is the power of God

for salvation

first for the Jew

and also for the Greek

and there's nobody here

who ain't a Jew

who ain't a Greek

one of those two

you're one of those two

that is Gentile

it's able to save

all

so

this is

what we have

in Paul's

gospel confidence

reason

but now

with the time remaining

just consider

Paul's gospel confidence

applied

consider how we can

apply this

to Christian

witnesses

remember

last words

of our Savior

in

Acts chapter 1

Acts 1 · chapter mention

you're to be

my witnesses

to Jerusalem

Jumea

Samaria

all the most parts

of the earth

see all of us

are to be witnesses

we're to be

preaching the gospel

wherever we go

Chris may be

a principal

he's shrewd as a serpent

innocent as a dove

he's preaching there

and

our brother

Uriel

may be a carpenter

but he is to

find a way

to preach the gospel

there

and you think

well

you know how rough

these carpenters are

they're like Goliaths

they ain't gonna pay

attention to me

oh man

you got a sling

in your hand

Uriel

don't be ashamed

of the gospel

preach the gospel

of truth

but you may say

you know there are

some people

do you realize

there are some people

Jason

who say that

pastors are the ones

like the apostles

they were the ones

who were told

to be witnesses

so you're the guy

who's supposed

and all these people

can comfort themselves

in saying

are pastors the guy

who's supposed

to take the gospel

besides that

we're reformed

don't put a guilt

complex on us

for not preaching

the gospel

because our pastor

will do it

or besides that

God

God elected

before the foundation

of the world

those who would

be believed

and don't put it

on us

listen

the apostle Paul

is the one

who in Romans

Romans 9 · chapter mention

chapter 9

spoke of

Esau

I have hated

and Jacob

I have loved

he knew about election

but he said

that

oh I would

that I myself

would be accursed

if my countrymen

would be saved

so he brought

the gospel

brought the gospel

listen

do not take

the doctrines

of grace

as some kind

of a Novocaine

that anesthetizes

and numbs

your shrieking

conscience

when you're silent

didn't we say

in the Sunday school

class

he who

life and death

and the power

of the tongue

and the best life

we can bring to people

is by bringing to them

the gospel

of the Lord Jesus

Christ

and don't

don't think

yeah but if I

if I speak

in

my family context

or in my

professional context

they're going to think

I'm just some

some hokey

hilly billy

with this silly idea

you believe

the dead are raised

you've got to be

kidding me

you're trying to be

the court jester

of the Denver suburbs

well the reality is

we are not ashamed

of the gospel

it is the power

of God

for salvation

speak that word

there's an account

given

of a

man

whose name was

Howell Harris

it's in Dallimore's

biography of

Whitefield

and it was said

of a

very prominent

man in the

community

back in

England

it was said

of Howell Harris

that he was

a dice playing

drinking

gossiping

love making

fop

of a man

he was a dandy

everybody thought

he was

all that

in his culture

and society

but then

he came into

a church

on a

Palm Sunday

and he heard

the pastor

say this

if you're not

fit to come

to the Lord's

table

you're not

fit to live

and you're

not fit

to die

and that

little pebble

from the

sling of that

pastor

hit him

right in the

forehead

and it

staggered him

and he went

home

and within

three days

he fell

at the feet

of the Lord

Jesus Christ

by the power

of the gospel

what I'm saying

is listen

you don't need

to bring to

someone

Uriel

the whole

all of the

systematic

theology

because sometimes

we say

I don't have

time to give

the whole gospel

to somebody

sometimes it's

just one

pebble of truth

that we're

speaking

we're always

speaking seasoned

with salt

and everything

that we say

and maybe

it's just a

matter of

you're sitting

outside of a

construction facility

and you've got

your brown bag

and he's got

his brown bag

and you say

you know

why don't you

come to my

church on

Sunday

and the person

says ah

you know

it would be

so creepy

for me

I feel so

guilty

to go to

church on

Sunday

I'm just

going to

stay away

and he laughs

laughs

laughs

and maybe

Uriel

just says

this

well you know

if you're

not fit

to come to

church on

a Sunday

you're not

fit to live

and you're

not fit

to die

and that's

it

a little

piece

of the gospel

and that

and that

gnarly

faced

construction

worker

within hours

can be

fallen at

the foot

of the

Lord Jesus

Christ

so this

is this

is for

Christian

witnesses

isn't it

but also

this is

for Christian

ministers

and Jason

other men

who may be

elders in

this place

don't be

ashamed of

the gospel

MacArthur

long ago

wrote a book

ashamed of

the gospel

he talked

about a

generation of

ministers who

are cowed

and intimidated

by a

sophisticated

society

but people

are unwilling

to give

the old

biblical

gospel

because it's

unsophisticated

there's even

been something

recently

there's this

winsome

third way

ism

there are

people who

say

don't preach

the rough

edges of the

gospel to

people because

you'll offend

them

you'll turn

them off

don't talk

about the

absolutes of

the gospel

give the soft

sides of the

gospel

get them saved

and tell them

the tough

stuff later

don't talk

about

one pastor

would say

I never

preach about

abortion

or I don't

preach about

sexuality

or transgenderism

or homosexuality

and I try not

to use the

H word

the hell word

because some

people might

be offended

by that

you realize

that the

gospel has

certain bitter

elements of

it

you think of

even the

idea of

remember

COVID

and think

if it was

true that

if people

had O

positive

blood

and were

diabetics

that they

would die

for sure

maybe you

had a son

or maybe

your wife

had died

because she

had O

positive

and she

was a

diabetic

and she

had COVID

and she

was going

to die

but then

you

you

had gone

to a

Latvian

nutritionist

who had

a certain

formula

for health

and the

formula was

a prescription

that had

in it

listen to

this

certain herbs

sneeze

wart

toad flax

and goose

foot

embarrassing

stuff

but

but

but

your

your

your

wife

took it

and she

she survived

she lived

then let's

say

three weeks

later you

were in

the mall

here in

Denver

and you

saw someone

wheeling

the sun

you say

oh he

looks

he looks

like he's

very sick

yes he's

oh positive

diabetic

and he only

has maybe

hours to

live

I just

want him

to see

certain

things

that are

pleasant

and you

have in

your pocket

the

the

the

ingredients

of

of sneeze

wart

toad flax

and goose

fit

but but

you don't

want to

give it

because you're

so afraid

some pastors

are like

that

we need

to be

willing to

preach the

whole

counsel of

God

may it

be that

that this

church

as it

brings the

gospel

that it

would not

seek

and in

Holland

Michigan

there was

Hope College

was the

Christian

college

in order

to get a

place at the

cool table

at Hope College

you had to be

with it

and winsome

in culture

and society

and if you gave

hard things

then you were

one of those

old Neanderthals

or the Holland

Sentinel

I could print an

article in the

Holland Sentinel

as long as I was

nice and sweet

and kind

but if I ever

talked about

the judgment of

God

and the need

for repentance

they wouldn't

print my article

don't be like

that here

in Denver

be faithful

be faithful

in preaching

the gospel

do not

be ashamed

of the gospel

but also

there's a word

here not only

to Christian

witnesses

and to

Christian ministers

but there's also

a word here

to doubting

saints

to doubting

saints

and by that

I mean

sometimes

this being

ashamed of the

gospel

doesn't only

undermine

our own

evangelism

sometimes

it undermines

our faith

in our souls

being ashamed

of the gospel

because

you know

the deceiver

is ever about

he shoots

fiery darts

to set our

souls ablaze

and fever us

so that we'll

discontinue

believing the gospel

let me give you

a little

confession

I was watching

the History Channel

a while back

and it was about

the Great Wall

of China

and all the

centuries

of Chinese

history

and China

is Hindu

and there's

Confucianism

there

and there's

Taoism

there

all kinds

of religion

and I admit

as I watched

that I thought

to myself

really

I believe

that Jesus

of Nazareth

must be believed

by everybody

in the globe

if they're to be

saved

everybody

and I began

to think

wow

is that really

true

because there's

this vast

culture

they knew

nothing of

Jesus

could God

have ever

left them

in such

darkness

this must

be really

silly

and in this

fiery dark

thought

how foolish

and naive

you are

to think

that all

the world

has to believe

in a Jewish

carpenter

come on

Mark

my mind

was fevered

with disbelief

come on

Mark

born of a

virgin

come on

Mark

in a stable

with shepherds

and angels

come on

Mark

a Galilean

teacher

who was

barely a

blip

in secular

history

he was

nailed

to a

Roman

cross

and his

resurrection

verified

that he

was the

real deal

but who

verified

it

his own

disciples

you believe

that nonsense

Mark

is he ablaze

that was a

dumpster fire

of unbelief

you ever have

moments of

unbelief

like that

I do

but to come

back and

and to take

this passage

like this

and remove

the dart

of this

lie

by this

passage

by the

pliers

pull it

out

and say

I am

not ashamed

of the

gospel

it's

it's

the power

of God

for

salvation

come on

you're real

where else

are we going

to go

Christ

alone

has the

will

where else

where else

shall we

go

resist the

devil

he will

flee from

you

to doubting

saints

the power

of the

gospel

don't be

ashamed

of it

and don't

be ashamed

lastly

just to

lost

sinners

to

lost

sinners

you know

you might

be thinking

this is the

gospel

yeah I've

heard it

and I know

listen I

believe I was

saved in

1976

but you know

what

I need to

keep believing

the gospel

and listen

you believe the

gospel right now

today

I don't care

if it's the

first time

you've

believed

or the

10,000th

and first

time you

believed

believe

the gospel

right here

I believe

our

paths

have crossed

for a

purpose

somebody

here

I hear

even

but others

here

need to

hear the

gospel

there's

somebody

here in

an unconverted

state

you know

people have

this idea

of the

gospel

it's just

all sweet

God loves

you and has

a wonderful

plan for

your life

is that the

gospel Paul

wrote in

Romans

he begins

not with

God loves

you and has

a wonderful

plan for

your life

he begins

with this

the wrath

of God

is revealed

against the

unrighteousness

and ungodliness

of men

who suppress

the truth

and unrighteousness

listen the truth

the truth of the

matter is

you apart from

the Lord Jesus

Christ

you are in

desperate

trouble

you are part

of

a vast

race

of humanity

you and I

left to

ourselves

are orc

like

I'm telling

you that

the hosts

of heaven

are going to

be led by

a rider

who has a

sword coming

out of his

mouth

he will

slay all

of his

enemies

they're coming

they're coming

for you

and your

never dying

soul

and you

and I

left to

ourselves

will be

thrown into

the lake

of fire

which is a

place

which is

not a

happy

place

it's a

place

where we

will

weep

and wail

because we

cannot bear

another

moment

of the

pain

and sorrow

but we

will gnash

our teeth

because we

know that

we must

endure it

for eternity

and I'm

just saying

the Lord

Jesus Christ

is able to

save all

kinds

anyone

believe in

the Lord

Jesus and

you will be

saved

you need to

right now

take

take the

the blood

coming to

this table

this is the

blood

that is

emblemized

here

you must

take the

blood and

smear it in