It is in the successive stages of his experience, that the believer sees more distinctly, and adores more profoundly, and grasps more firmly — the finished righteousness of Christ. And what is the school in which he learns his nothingness, his poverty, his utter destitution? The school of deep and sanctified affliction. In no other school is it learned, and under no other teacher but God. Here his high thoughts are brought low, and the Lord alone is exalted.

-Octavius Winslow

Did you know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is an offense to the natural religious man of this age? The message of Jesus Christ and Him crucified was not a message that was received in our Lord’s day nor is it a message that men by nature desire to hear or receive in our day.

The Apostle Paul quoted from Isaiah 8:14 said that Jesus Christ was a “rock of offense”.

Now, no one hates the Jesus of modern religion. He is a gentle, meek man who wants to save men. He came and died upon the cross for the sins of men and is hoping that men will choose him. The Jesus of modern religion is helpless, weak and cannot interfere with the sovereign choice of men. But this is not the Christ of Scripture. This is not the Son of God who was manifest in the flesh.

A.W Pink rightly said, “the Christ of modern religion no more resembles the Christ of Scripture then a candle resembles the noonday sun.”

Behold the Great Savior of men is the Son of God. He is one in power and will, and in all the attributes with the Father and the Holy Spirit. This same Jesus was made flesh and has come to “save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Our Lord Jesus did not come to save all men without exception, for if He did, then they would all be saved.

But behold the offense of Christ, and His cross is that Jesus died for those that the Father had given to Him (John 6:37-40). The offense is when Jesus declared in His High Priestly pray, “I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me, they were thine” (John 17:9).

This is an offense to the dignity of man that the scripture declares that all men are dead and depraved by nature (Rom.5:12, Eph 2:1). It is an offense to the will of man that Jesus said: “no can come unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him” (John 6:44; 1:12-13). It is an affront to the self-righteousness of man that “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags”, and that “there is none good no not one” (Isaiah 64:6; Rom3:10-11).

Yet it is none the less true, that unless God the Holy Spirit comes in power to quicken the dead sinner to life, that man will never come to Jesus Christ.

Does this offend you? It will unless God opens your heart and exposes your sins. When he quickens you, then you will see that we are an offense to God (Isaiah 65:5).

And only then will you see your need of the cross of Christ. Only then will a sinner cry unto God for mercy. Oh, how blessed is such a man who sees his need of Christ for this is the gospel: “I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” And all His people shall come to Him, and He will never cast them out. This is no offense to us who were chosen, redeemed, and called of God to faith in Christ.

-Fred Evans

Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits. (Song of Solomon 4:16)

In this chapter, our Lord Jesus is describing the beauty of His bride. He tells her that her garden is sweet to His smell and her fountain is sealed and unpolluted. He speaks of her purity and beauty which pictures to us the righteousness and glory of His church.

The people of God are not righteous in ourselves. We are not perfect by our merits or obedience. Our holiness is not a product of our nature; nor do we become more holy by our obedience to the law. The righteousness of the saints is a product of the obedience of Jesus Christ alone. The elect are made holy by Jesus Christ who alone has satisfied the justice of God by His blood offering on the tree.

Therefore in our text, we see the response and desire of every child of God. “Awake O north wind; and come, thou south.” The north wind brings the cold winter wind while the south brings the warm air of spring. Thus the believer boldly cries, “come either winter wind of trails or warm spring breeze of comfort.” Whatsoever our God has purposed in providence, let it come so that the Spirit of God may blow upon my “garden.”

Believer, behold that the design of God in providence is to blow upon the garden that Christ has planted. It is the trial of our faith that yields patience. It is the warm air of grace that manifests the Love of Christ to our hearts.

Our cry, in joy or pain, in sorrow or peace, is “Let the beloved come into His garden and eat his pleasant fruits.” May the Lord God be praised and magnified, for we are His people who are saved by His grace. It was the Father who loved us and chose us. It was the fruit of the Son’s work that made us righteous and redeemed us. It was the Holy Spirit who quickened us and who keeps us. It is God alone who is worthy of all the praise and glory for our salvation! O Lord, let the winds of trouble come or let the breeze of peace flow over our souls so long as you come and abide with us.

-Fred Evans

The best sermons are the sermons which are most full of Christ.

A sermon without Christ . . .
it is an awful, a horrible thing;
it is an empty well;
it is a cloud without rain;
it is a tree twice dead, plucked by the roots.

It is an abominable thing to give men stones for bread, and scorpions for eggs, and yet they do so who preach not Jesus.

A sermon without Christ! As well talk of a loaf of bread without any flour in it. How can it feed the soul?

Men die and perish because Christ is not there, and yet His glorious gospel is the easiest thing to preach, and the sweetest thing to preach; there is most variety in it, there is more attractiveness in it than in all the world besides!

-C.H Spurgeon

How many times have we heard someone make this statement after listening to a preacher or reading an article? I was reading an article in our local newspaper this morning in which a person made some statements concerning God and how good he is and how people should depend on him and seek him etc.

This person finished their article with this sentence; “I can only pray and hope that people will come to know God and EARN THEIR SALVATION.”

You and I could have lived with all the other things this person said concerning God. But then came the poison! Then came the words that will kill you dead! “Earn their salvation!” That last sentence was not only poison but it poisoned everything else that person said. 2% poison in rat bait makes the whole batch poison. Would any of us sit down to eat a little bowl of rat bait and try to carefully divide the 2% from the 98%? We would never think of doing such a thing. If there is one sentence of deadly heresy in a message or article or a conversation etc., refuse it all. A little leaven leavens the whole lump.

We have heard people say, “there are some things good about Catholicism.” There is nothing good about it. There is poison in that pot. Go and eat at the table of Catholicism and you will die. Do we expect the Holy Spirit to put his blessing upon heresy? He is the SPIRIT OF TRUTH. God is truth. Jesus Christ is Truth. Add a little damnable heresy to truth and the whole is poisoned. If you and I eat of it, we will die. Salvation is not earned, it is the sovereign and free gift of God. It comes to any believer freely by the grace of God through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ the Lord and only Savior (Rom. 3:24). I am certain the person who wrote the newspaper article felt like they were really encouraging people to trust in God. They had little or no idea they were poisoning to death the poor, miserable souls of those who believed what they were saying.

-Bruce Crabtree, Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church, meeting in New Castle, Indiana, USA

. . . It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. (John 19:30)

Have I then no work to work in this great matter of my pardon? None! What work can you work? What work of yours can buy Divine forgiveness — or make you fit for the Divine favor? What work has God bidden you work in order to obtain salvation? None. His Word is very plain and easy to be understood, “To him who works not — but believes in Him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5). There is but one work by which a man can be saved. That work is not yours — but the work of the Son of God. That work is finished.

-Horatius Bonar

Faith is not our Savior.

It was not faith that was born at Bethlehem and died on Golgotha for us.

It was not faith that loved us, and gave itself for us; that bore our sins in its own body on the tree; that died and rose again for our sins.

Faith is one thing — the Savior is another.

Faith is one thing — and the cross is another.

Let us not confound them, nor ascribe to a poor, imperfect act of man — that which belongs exclusively to the Son of the Living God.

-Horatius Bonar

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God”  (Hebrews 12:2).

The Lord Jesus Christ is “the author and finisher of our faith.” The faith of God’s elect begins with Christ giving us faith in Him by His sovereign will (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 1:1). This faith that is the gift of God, which is a definite and sure faith, looks back to the Giver, Author and Finisher of faith, Christ Himself. He is the only object of saving faith.

This faith of God’s elect is also called “precious faith” (2 Peter 1:1) because it is given to us as a purchased gift of the precious blood of  Christ (1 Peter 1:18-20). This special and saving faith is given sovereignly and exclusively to the church of Christ alone. His sheep hear His voice, His call, and they fall in love with Him and follow Him fully to the end of their journey in this life (John 10:27-30; Heb. 11:13).

Let us never diminish the importance of this precious and saving gift of God’s grace, faith in Christ (Rom. 4:16)

-Tom Harding, pastor of Zebulon Baptist Church, Pikeville, Kentucky USA.

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. John 14:1-4

What was it that would cause the disciples to be so troubled in heart as to need this word of comfort from Jesus? It was their sin. Peter was about to deny the Lord, and the rest of the disciples would forsake him in the hour of His greatest suffering. Even so, do our sins cause us much trouble. We who believe on Christ like Peter say, “Lord I would die with you!” We mean it with all our hearts, but let the Lord leave us to do it in our own strength and most surely we would deny him. At times, when Christ is near, we are able to walk on the waves of our troubles, but let Him hide his face and we begin to sink into despair (Psalm 143:7).

Here then is a word of comfort to such poor wretches who cannot save or keep ourselves, but are totally dependent upon God. Though your sin be ever so great and though your failures be ever so complete, Jesus said: “Let not your heart be troubled…” Sin does trouble our hearts, but here is the remedy; “ye believe in God, believe also in me.” Believer, in the very despair of thy sin, believe that God is just and holy. That thy sin surely deserves hell, but also believe on Christ who by His death has suffered the hell thy sin deserved (2 Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 40:2).

Remember that in the Father’s house are many dwelling places and that Christ has prepared them all. Believer thy surety of heaven rests not in your faithfulness or perfect obedience but in the faithfulness and perfection of Jesus thy surety. Have you believed on the Son of God? Have you trusted in Him alone? Then He has prepared a place in heaven for you and none will be able to separate us from it (Romans 8: 31-39).

Are you troubled by this world and the pains of this life? Are you oppressed by sin and vexed by Satan? Then rejoice for He who prepared a place will also come again and receive us unto Himself that where He is we may be also. Who or what then can separate us from Christ? God is pleased with us in Christ. Our sins are gone through His one offering, and now the Holy Spirit has made us righteous. Let not your heart be troubled.

-Fred Evans