Christ as Our Prophet Part 2

Driving home: But the hungry mouth, the open hand which lays hold of Christ is called in the Bible faith or believing.

Compares faith to a hungry mouth feeding on Christ, illustrating that faith is the instrument, not the Savior, just as a starving man praises the meal and giver, not his mouth.

Now, faith is not our Savior. Christ is our Savior. If I were to come to a starving man and give him a meal that was his physical salvation, he would not brag on his mouth for the rest of his life. He'd brag on the meal and the man who gave it to him.

0:27 - 0:44 Read in full sermon

Driving home: But the hungry mouth, the open hand which lays hold of Christ is called in the Bible faith or believing.

Compares faith to a hand laying hold of a life preserver, showing that faith is the instrument of deliverance, not the deliverer itself, just as a rescued man praises the preserver and rescuer, not his hand.

Faith is but the hungry mouth feeding upon Christ. Christ is our salvation, and so faith is likened in John 6 to eating of Him. If a man were drowning and I were to place a life preserver, one of those donut life preservers, and throw it out to him and he laid hold of it and I'd drag them ashore, he would not erect a monument to the hand that laid hold of the life preserver. He would be forever indebted to the preserver and the man who threw it to him.

0:45 - 1:16 Read in full sermon

Driving home: We are not his because we continue in his word. But we continue in his word because we are his.

Illustrates that running out of gas doesn't make the tank empty, but reveals it was empty to begin with. Similarly, a professing believer who repudiates Christ's word reveals that their initial faith was never genuine.

But the fact that I am his will be evidenced in that I do continue in his word. Someone would have said to me, take my car please and drive it down to Bloomfield. There's enough gas to get all the way down to Metuchen or some other place. Well, if I run out of gas right down here in Verona, it shows me something.

9:03 - 9:23 Read in full sermon

Driving home: There is no remaining in Christ apart from remaining in his words if what you've heard and the Son and you can't separate the two can't separate abiding in Christ abiding in his words the two and the Son are inseparably …

Martin recounts an encounter with a hospital chaplain who spoke of being 'born again daily' and preached a generic, Christ-less message. This illustrates the danger of professing Christ without adhering to the biblical doctrine of Christ, highlighting the need for discernment.

I remember an experience I had back about five years ago I was at my sister's capping down at Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia and there was a young man there who was the chaplain at the hospital very personable nice looking I mean the kind if they're going to make a film in which there's a preacher this is the kind of guy they'd choose you know I mean he's nice looking young and all the rest educated and he stood up and he read a little prayer I watched him slip it up on the pulpit he kind of sneaked it up like this for the invocation and it was a prayer that wouldn't have offended a Moh...

24:00 - 24:45 Read in full sermon

The point: Plead for mercy like the poor blind beggars, recognizing your helplessness before God.

Uses the example of the blind men crying 'Son of David, have mercy!' to illustrate that Christ saves poor, blind, helpless beggars who plead for nothing but mercy, emphasizing the humility required for salvation.

the Son except the Father reveal him you mean I've got to take the place of a poor blind helpless beggar before God and plead with him that he'll reveal his Son to me yes that's right that's right that's exactly what you've got to do just like those two men who when they heard that Jesus of Nazareth passed by they fell down and what was their cry Son of David have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy have mercy that's all they pled and the disciples said she's got no time for you it says they cried the louder saying...

31:22 - 32:07 Read in full sermon

The point: Take a clear, biblical stand on the burning issues of the day, such as the necessity of turning from sin and bowing to Christ as Lord for salvation.

Quotes Luther (gist) to emphasize that confessing Christ in any generation means boldly speaking on the burning issues of that day, based on Christ's and the apostles' words, and that silence on these issues is a denial of Christ.

Martin Luther said something that I want to quote this morning. I don't have the exact wording of it. This is the gist of it. He said, what it means to confess Christ in any generation is simply this.

41:15 - 41:25 Read in full sermon