A Summons to Repentance and Faith

Introduction: The Importance and Source of the Gospel Question

0:02 During the course of these summer months, I have chosen to break off the regular course of verse-by-verse exposition of the Word of God and have directed your attention to some of the most basic, some of the most elementary issues of the Christian faith, particularly as they relate to our own individual relationship to the God of the Bible and to His salvation in Jesus Christ. And for the past several Lord's Days, we've been addressing ourselves to a question which again has brought us within the orbit of these very elementary concerns.

0:43 The question has been, what is the gospel?

0:49 And I have first of all tried to underscore in your minds the importance of the question or the issues raised by that question. What is the gospel? Well, you might ask, why? Why should I be concerned as to what is the gospel?

1:06 The answer is, for this simple reason. The gospel is the only remedy God has given for human sin. For your sin. For my sin.

1:18 And if we are ever to be extricated, brought out of the ensnarement of our sin, it will be by means of the gospel. For the scripture says, the gospel and only the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. And so if you have even an ounce of concern about the matter of your own soul and your own sin and your own relationship to the God of the Bible who made you and who one day will judge you, then this question is not a question of abstract academic concern.

1:55 What is the gospel? You and I must be concerned because of the magnitude of the issues. And then we have considered the only proper source for our answer to that question. And it is in the words of Isaiah 820, to the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

2:21 And we must go to the scriptures, the scriptures alone. But the scriptures in their comprehensiveness, if we would answer the question, what is the gospel? And then we have been attempting to give the substance of the answer, having seen the seriousness of the question, the source of our answer. Now, what is the substance of the Bible's answer to the question, what is the gospel?

The Substance of the Gospel: God, Sin, and Christ

2:48 And I have suggested that the answer can well be conceived of in terms of a bridal party. You have the bride and groom who are central, and then flanking them on the left hand and on the right, you have the best match. And perhaps some ushers, the maid or matron of honor, and some bridesmaids, all of whom together, comprise the bridal party. But when we seek to answer from the scriptures the question, what is the gospel?

3:17 There is no question, but that central, the bride and groom of that answer is the person and work of Jesus Christ. But the person and work of Christ in the gospel, do not come to us in isolation. They always come with the attendance. And so the gospel message is a message about God, about sin, about Jesus Christ, his person and work, and also about repentance and faith.

3:51 Thus far we have studied from the scriptures this aspect of the answer. The gospel is a message about God, his existence, the fact that he is created, creator and governor, provider and sustainer of all his creatures and all his universe, that he is our lawgiver and ultimately will be our judge. Until you take seriously what the bible says about God as creator, God as sustainer, ruler, governor and judge of the world, the gospel will never make sense and it will certainly never be good news. But the gospel is also a message.

4:31 It is a message about sin. For Jesus Christ is essentially a savior from sin. Thou shall call his name Jesus, we are told, for he shall save his people from their sins. And so the gospel comes with that indictment that we have offended God, we have broken his law, that we fell in Adam, that we are bound by our sins, that we are chained by our lusts, that we are in a state of guilt and of condemnation and stand under a canopy of perpetual wrath from the Almighty.

5:08 It is in that context that the message comes announcing the truth concerning the Lord Jesus. And then last week we looked at the bride and bridegroom. That is the person and work of Christ which are central to the gospel. And we demonstrated from the scriptures that the gospel is called preaching Christ.

5:29 It is a setting forth of who he is. It is a setting forth of what he has done on behalf of sinners. The gospel is essentially proclaiming Christ as the only and perfect savior of sinners. And one point I did not make sufficiently clear last week and I want to mention it as we conclude our review and move to the fourth ingredient of the gospel.

5:56 And that point is this. That though the gospel is a proclamation of the person and work of Christ, the uniqueness of his person as the God-man, the perfection of his work as incarnate, crucified, risen and exalted, central to the message about the person and work of Christ is that of his atonement upon the cross, the death that he died in the room and stead of sinners. And though in our teaching we mention the incarnation, his person, his work, his resurrection, the gospel is sometimes called a preaching of the cross.

6:39 I remind you of the words of the apostle in 1 Corinthians 1.18 and verse 23 in which he says, For the word of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. Verse 23, But we preach Christ crucified. Notice he does not say, The word of the manger, nor the word of the tomb, nor the word of the throne.

7:03 The gospel is called the word of the cross. Granted, it is never the cross divorced from the manger. The cross is the crucifixion of the Son of the living God. It is never the cross apart from the resurrection and the exaltation.

7:22 But central to all of the saving acts of our Lord is the message of his cross. The apostle underscored this again when he said in 1 Corinthians 2, And I determined to know nothing among you save Jesus Christ. What? Incarnate?

7:39 No. Resurrected? No. Exalted?

7:43 No. He said Jesus Christ and him as crucified. When he reminds the Galatians of his preaching, he says, O foolish Galatians, chapter 3 and verse 1, Who hath bewitched you before whose eyes Jesus Christ was set forth? What?

8:00 Not incarnate, not risen, not exalted, but crucified among you. So if the bride and the bridegroom of the gospel are its message concerning the person and work of Christ, the heart, the bloodstream, the nerve center of the bride and bridegroom, of the person and work of Christ, is the message concerning his death upon the cross, that death that displays sin in all of its ugliness, that death that displays the holiness of God in all of its awesomeness, that death that displays the love of God in all of its limitless boundaries,

8:43 that death that displays the only ground upon which a holy God can accept death. O my dear people, evaluate any professed announcement of the gospel by the place it accords to Jesus Christ and him as crucified. Now so much for review and appendix to review. We come now this morning to the fourth element that is to be found in the biblical gospel.

The Gospel's Summons: Repentance and Faith

9:17 What is the gospel? Not only a message about God, a message about Christ, a message about sin, a message about Jesus Christ in his person and work, but the gospel is a message containing a regal and gracious summons to repentance and faith. The gospel contains a gracious and regal summons to repentance and faith. And I've chosen my words carefully.

9:50 It is a gracious summons to repentance and faith. That is, it is a summons that comes out of the heart of God as the God of grace. It comes to us in a context of proclaiming a salvation that is all of grace. So it is a gracious summons.

10:14 It bristles, it oozes in its every pore with the grace of the living God. That the God against whom we have sinned should summon us into the way of pardon and acceptance is sheer, unmixed grace. But it is not only a gracious summons, it is a regal summons. If you look up the word regal in the dictionary, you will find the definition, that which pertains to or partakes of the quality of royalty.

10:49 If someone has a regal bearing, he carries himself like a king. And oh dear ones, this summons is not only gracious, but it is regal. It bears upon its very face all of the awesomeness of the throne of the living God. The summons to repentance and faith is not the whimpering of peal or the shriveling whine of a defeated deity.

11:22 Sometimes you get that impression. As though the summons to repentance and faith was the shriveling whine of a defeated deity who somehow, someway, would love to get the attention of some of his creatures. No, no. This is a gracious, but a regal summons.

11:44 It comes from the throne, even the throne of the exalted Christ. And it comes with all the overtones of his royal majesty. It comes from King Jesus. And it is a message containing a gracious and regal summons.

12:07 A summons, an order or a command with legal authority. You get a summons, that's not just an invitation to a birthday party. That is an authoritative statement concerning the fact that you better appear at a certain place at a certain time. And the gospel contains a summons.

12:27 Not mere entreaty, though it is that. Not mere exhortation, though it is that. It is divine summons. It is almighty God sending forth an announcement that bears the stamp of his own mighty authority.

12:44 And it is a gracious and regal summons to repentance and to faith, as we shall see. Well, having exegeted the sentence, now then, let me proceed, first of all, to establish the fact. Why do I assert that the gospel is a gracious and regal summons to repentance and faith? Well, we want to establish the fact that this is precisely what the scriptures force upon us.

13:15 And first of all, we shall look at the instructions of our Lord, and secondly, the example of apostolic preaching, in both of which we shall see that their understanding of the gospel included this gracious and regal summons to repentance and to faith. First of all, then, the instructions of our Lord himself with reference to the proclamation of the gospel. Will you turn, please, to the 24th chapter of the gospel according to Luke. Luke chapter 24.

Christ's Instructions on Gospel Preaching

13:49 The setting of this portion is that of the post-resurrection appearance of our Lord to his own. And Luke tells us in the first chapter of Acts that during these forty days subsequent to his resurrection and prior to his ascension, that our Lord was giving instruction to the disciples concerning the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. The kingdom of grace and of power is to be established in new dimensions visibly upon the earth. And our Lord is concerned that those who have primary building responsibilities in that kingdom, namely the apostles,

14:33 will have a clear and definitive understanding of what the nature of that kingdom is, how it is to be built up, how it is to be extended, how it is to be consolidated, how it is to operate. And since it is a kingdom of grace, it is extended not with the sword. This has been one of the great heresies that has plagued the church, that God has given the church any other weapons other than spiritual. Paul said the weapons of our warfare are not carnal.

15:04 And Almighty God never intended that his kingdom should either be extended, defended or promoted with the sword. No, no, never. And so our Lord, conscious that that kingdom will be extended by the proclamation of a message, is concerned that his apostles have a clear understanding of the constituent elements of that message. So we read in Luke 24, beginning with verse 44, And he said unto them, These are my words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must needs be fulfilled which are written in the law of Moses and in the prophets and in the prophets

15:49 and in the psalms concerning me. Then opened he their mind that they might understand the scriptures. And this was essential. Remember in his earthly ministry with them, again and again, when the Lord talked about his death as being essential to the establishment of his kingdom, they couldn't understand this.

16:12 It says this saying was hid from them. They didn't understand. Peter opposes him and says, Lord, you'll never die. Now he opens their minds and gives them understanding concerning the great and broad principles that were taught in the Old Testament, but to which they were blind.

16:31 So he opens their minds to understand the scriptures, that is the Old Testament scriptures, and said unto them, verse 46, Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer. And you see they had no problem believing that Jesus of Nazareth should suffer. This was no problem even to the unbelieving Jews, but that Messiah should suffer. This was the big hang up.

16:56 In their minds, Messiah shall come and conquer. He'll set up a kingdom. He'll take the Roman armies and put them beneath his feet and he'll liberate his people. But that Messiah, that Christ, should suffer.

17:11 This was the great stumbling block, you see. That's why the preaching of Christ crucified. Not Jesus crucified. The Jews believed that.

17:20 Jesus of Nazareth. But don't tell us he was Christ. He was Messiah. That's the stumbling block, you see.

17:27 Not a denial of the fact that Jesus suffered, but that it was Christ who suffered and in so suffering he fulfilled all that was predicted of him. Now our Lord opens up the scriptures and pauses them to understand them. Thus it is written, thus it was necessary that Christ should suffer and rise from the dead the third day and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all the nations beginning from Jerusalem. Ye are witnesses of these things.

18:01 You see what our Lord has done. He has shown these apostles that their great task in preaching the gospel is to proclaim the facts that cluster around his cross. The necessity of his death. The nature of his death.

18:16 The reality of the death that he died. Secondly, they are to proclaim the truths that cluster around his open tomb that Christ should rise from the dead the third day. Then they are to proclaim that repentance which is unto the remitting of sins and this is to be preached among all the nations. In other words, the gospel which our Lord instructs them to preach is a gospel which has as its crowning blessing now get this the remitting or the forgiveness of sins.

18:53 Whenever the gospel is preached and it sets forth any other thing as the crowning primary blessing held forth it is not the gospel of Christ. It is not peace. It is not joy. It is not a la some of the groups in our day the penetration of the structures of society the alleviation of the problems of poverty and ignorance.

19:21 Nor is it even the establishment of Christ's kingship in culture. A la some of our Calvinistic brethren who talk about our cultural mandate and make that central. The central blessing is this the forgiveness of sins. Man's controversy with God is ended.

19:44 He said you are to preach remission of sins. That's the cardinal blessing. And how is it to be attained? On the basis of the sufferings of Christ by the hand of a living Christ in a way of repentance.

20:02 And any gospel that does not set forth divine forgiveness as the central blessing the ground of it the death of Christ the giver of it a living Christ and the way to it repentance is not biblical gospel. And the most humble lay person the most uninstructed new convert with Luke 24 before him has a solid foundation upon which to evaluate any professed preaching of the gospel.

20:44 If there's a bypassing of Christ crucified something's wrong. If there's a bypassing of a living Christ who confers the salvation something's wrong. If there's a bypassing of that repentance which is unto the remission of sins something is wrong. This is the gospel authorized by the Son of God.

21:07 So then you see my assertion that the gospel contains this gracious but regal summons to repentance and faith is established by the instructions of our Lord Himself. Well then, what about the apostolic example? Did they understand their Lord in the way that I have said they ought to have understood Him? Well, let's very quickly look at the preaching of Peter and then at the preaching of Paul the two great preachers whose sermons are recorded in the book of the Acts.

Apostolic Example: Peter's Preaching

21:41 In Acts chapter 2 we have the record of the first sermon preached after the descent of the Spirit in power. And in the midst of this sermon Peter having made the accusation to these Jews they were guilty of the blood of the Son of God having then proclaimed that God had exalted this same Jesus whom they crucified and put Him in the place of absolute sovereignty and lordship. Verse 36 Then we read in verse 37 that they were pricked in their hearts and cried out, What shall we do? Here is a word, a question that has to do with the whole area that we are talking about this morning.

22:25 What directions, Peter, will you give to us? We see ourselves to be what you have said we are. We are the murderers of the Holy and the Righteous One. We put Him to death.

22:38 But we now see that it is God the Father who has exalted Him. He is what He claimed to be. We thought Him to be an impostor. The Father anointed Him with the Spirit demonstrating that He was the Christ.

22:52 His miracles attest to the reality of His credentials. He is now the exalted Lord. What in the world should we do? We have been all wrong.

23:03 And Peter's answer is, verse 38 And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you unto the remission of your sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Then he mentions the sure promise that stands behind that overture of mercy. For to you is the promise, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto Him. Peter gives this regal but gracious summons to repentance implied in it of course is faith as we shall see later.

23:46 But here the dominant note is repent. If you would come into the way of having your sins remitted and that repentance must not be one that is a surface repentance. It must be so deep and genuine that the ones who profess to have it are willing to be identified with the Jesus people who own Him as Messiah and are willing if necessary to have from the hands of those who kill the Son of God the same treatment. That's why he says repent and be baptized.

24:20 Not that there is any efficacy in the baptism. Not at all. The baptism is simply the outward evidence of the genuineness of the repentance. If you've turned from attachment to the creature to attachment to the living Lord then that attachment will be so real that you're willing to die for Him.

24:41 Identify yourself with His people upon the repentance, the change of mind with reference to your sins. Well this is again the message that Peter preaches further on in chapter 3 and verse 19 bringing his sermon to a conclusion. Repent ye therefore and turn again that your sins may be blotted out. No repentance, no blotting out of sin.

25:08 Chapter 10, verses 42 and 43. Here the emphasis is upon faith. Peter is preaching in the household of Cornelius and he says in verse 42 And he charged us to preach unto the people and to testify that it is he who is ordained of God to be the judge of the living and the dead. To him bear all the prophets witness that through his name every one that believeth on him shall receive remission of sins.

25:40 What's the central blessing he holds for? Remission of sins. How are they to come into possession of it? By believing upon him.

Apostolic Example: Paul's Preaching

25:48 Upon him and in no other way. What about the apostle Paul? Turn to Acts chapter 13. Listen to the apostle preaching at Antioch.

25:58 Speaking of the Son of God. For this is what precedes in both Peter and Paul's sermons wherefore they come to the exhortation to repent and believe. They've been setting out the truth concerning Christ. Now he says in verse 38 of Acts chapter 13 Be it known unto you therefore brethren that through this man is proclaimed unto you what's the cardinal blessing?

26:24 Remission of sins. How do I come into possession of it? And by him. You see he's a living Lord.

26:31 That's why he can confer that forgiveness even now. By him every one that believeth is justified from all things from which he could not be justified by the law of Moses. There's the simple gospel. The unborn pure gospel of the grace of God.

26:52 The apostle holds forth forgiveness of sins to all who will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. And then these familiar words in Acts chapter 16. This jailer is gripped with a sense of the presence of God. He knows that he's no longer dealing with a couple of religious fanatics but having witnessed the shaking of the prison having seen God seeing the manifestation of the power of God.

27:20 He knows he's in the presence of the God of those two missionaries. He's sensing something of the despair. He cries out sirs what must I do to be saved? Acts 16 and verse 30.

27:34 And the answer is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved thou and thy house that is you believe and you will be saved your household believes they will be saved. And to this end Paul then goes into the house and speaks unto them the word of the Lord. The only way people get saved is to hear that message and hearing it to believe. And having believed he and his household were then baptized.

28:05 Paul tells us in Acts 20.21 that the whole substance of his preaching there at Ephesus for some three and a half years could be found ranged under two dominant themes. Acts chapter 20 and verse 21. If you back up to verse 20 I shrank not from declaring unto you anything that was profitable but teaching you publicly and from house to house testifying both to Jews and Greeks repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

28:38 Now you see this implies very strongly that they had to know some basic facts about God or there could be no repentance to an unknown God. Paul preached him as the God of creation the God who gave his law the God against whom they had sinned. And so he says I preach that you should have a change of mind with reference to that God and that there should be faith that has peculiar reference to the Lord Jesus Christ. And so we see in passage after passage and this is by no means been exhausted that when I made the assertion that the gospel is a gracious and regal summons to repentance and faith

The Necessity and Inseparability of Repentance and Faith

29:21 I was simply asserting what our Lord gives us by way of instruction in Luke 24 and what the apostles give us by way of example in their preaching recorded in the book of the Acts. And we may conclude then from the materials we've looked at two things. The absolute necessity of repentance and faith unto salvation and secondly the absolute inseparability of repentance and faith unto salvation. Are repentance and faith necessary?

29:53 The apostles in our Lord say yes. Absolutely. He that believeth not shall be damned except he repent he shall perish. Are they inseparable?

30:05 Yes. For all true repentance is permeated with faith and all true faith is permeated with repentance. There is no faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Without repentance toward God there is no true repentance toward God without faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

30:24 Having established then the fact that this is an essential part of the gospel now secondly let me expound what repentance and faith are. And of course this can only be a brief exposition but I trust God helping me that we shall strike to the heart of the issues. What is that repentance? Which is unto life?

Defining Repentance Unto Life

30:48 When Paul said he preached repentance toward God what was he talking about? When Jesus said repentance unto remission of sin should be preached among all the nations what was he talking about? Well I know no better definition of repentance that brings together all of the basic strands of biblical evidence I know of no better I say than that given in the Shorter Catechism in answer to the question what is repentance unto life? We read repentance unto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner out of a true sense of his sin and an apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ does with grief and hatred of his sin

31:32 turn from it unto God with full purpose of and endeavor after new obedience. What is repentance unto life? To state it more simply and more succinctly even than the Catechism repentance is the involvement of the whole man in relationship to the whole of his sin. Repentance involves the whole man in the relationship to the whole of his sin.

32:06 It involves my mind thinking about my sin what God thinks about my sin. He has indicted me as guilty. He has declared me to be defiled. He has declared me to be in bondage to my sin.

32:25 Repentance involves my mind thinking the same thoughts God thinks about my sin and my condition in a state of sin. I give up all excusing. I give up all evading. I give up all attempts to water down the issue.

32:46 God says I have sinned and I am guilty and in repentance there is the judgment of the mind saying with David in Psalm 51 against thee and thee only have I sinned that thou mayest be clear when thou judgest. What is he saying? He is saying God I agree with you. You said that what I did was sin.

33:07 Sin against you. Lord I agree from the heart that that is precisely the case. But sin not only involves me it involves the mind acknowledging the reality and the nature of sin. It involves the affection.

33:22 There is in the words of the shorter catechism grief and hatred of our sins. 2 Corinthians 7.10 says Ye sorrowed with godly sorrow unto repentance and no man's feet ever walk in the way of repentance without being wet with the tears of godly sorrow. I am not talking about physical tears.

33:46 That would be a salvation of works to say that I must have some measure of tears either one spoonful or a thousand or an ocean. But we are talking about the disposition of heart for the scripture says God saves only such as be of a broken and a contrite heart. Nobody was ever happified into the kingdom. No one was ever jollified into vital union with Christ.

34:14 God would sound the chord of grace in the human heart. He starts with the base note of humiliation. That's why the first beatitude is what? Blessed are the poor in sin.

34:25 Repentance involves not only the mind in its judgment acknowledging the reality and nature of sin. The affections sensing something of the grief and hatred of sin as offensive to God and that which opened the wounds of Christ. It involves primarily the will. There is a turning from the sin unto God.

34:49 Hence God says let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the Lord for he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon. Again the scripture says he that covereth his sin shall not prosper but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. There is no true repentance without the action of a renewed will setting itself against sin. Saying to sins that were as darling as right hand and right eye be gone by the grace of Christ I am done with you.

35:33 Now without that repentance there is no salvation. It is this deep this pervasive change of mind with reference to God to sin, to myself and to his standard of righteousness. And we could multiply examples from the scripture I shall only give one or two quickly in the interest of time. When the apostle describes the conversion of the Thessalonians notice the rich words with which he describes it in 1st Thessalonians chapter 1 he says in verse 9 For they themselves report of us what manner of entering in we had unto you how ye turned

36:17 unto God from your idols to serve the living and the true God and to wait for his Son from heaven. That is repentance. Turning unto God as our creator as our law giver as our redeemer as the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth from whom we have come and to whom we owe all things turning to him but from our idols that is everything else that is claimed our allegiance and we turn not just to get but to serve. Turn not just to take the benefits of his grace but to give ourselves to be the bond slaves of the God of grace.

Defining Saving Faith

37:01 If that is the essence of repentance without which there is no salvation what is the essence of faith? The best definition of saving faith I have ever encountered is that given by professor Murray. Saving faith is self commitment to Christ. In all the perfection all the beauty of his person and the perfection of his work as he is freely and fully offered to us in the gospel.

37:29 Faith is self commitment to Christ in the glory of his person and perfection of his work as he is offered in the gospel. The object of faith is Christ. That is why he said faith is like drinking if any man thirsts let him come to me and drink. It is like eating he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood.

37:52 It is like coming him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out. And like repentance the whole man dealing with the whole of his sin faith is the whole man embracing the whole place. Faith is not a matter of accepting some notions about Christ's person and work. Faith is not just having nice woozy feelings about Jesus.

38:20 Faith involves the whole man. The mind receives the truth about him. That is why Paul says how can they believe unless they hear? And what do they hear?

38:34 They hear the gospel. The gospel that sets forth the glory of Christ as the God man. The humiliation of Christ unto death upon the cross for sinners. The gospel of a risen Christ.

38:46 The gospel of an exalted Christ. And faith must have knowledge. If thou shall confess with thy mouth Jesus to be Lord. That involves knowledge.

38:58 And believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead. That involves knowledge. Faith is the response of the whole man to the whole Christ. The mind receives the truth about him.

39:11 Secondly, the affections run out to him. Having by the illumination of the Spirit discovered the truth, discovered the glory of God in the face of Christ, the heart runs out to him. That's why the same Bible that says he that believeth not shall be damned says if any man love not our Lord Jesus Christ let him be damned. 1 Corinthians 16.22

39:35 All true faith begets love. And there's no such a thing as a person who believes on Christ who doesn't love him. And according to Jesus there's no such a thing as love to him that doesn't produce obedience. For if a man love me he'll keep my commands.

39:54 You see it's the whole man not only the mind receiving the truth about him the affections running out to him but the will being brought graciously subject to him. Having beheld his glory we fall at his feet like Thomas crying my Lord and my God. Falling before him as did Saul of Tarsus crying Lord what wilt thou have me to do? That's saving from sin.

40:21 Faith in the words of the Shorter Catechism faith in Jesus Christ is a saving grace whereby we receive and rest upon him alone for salvation as he's offered to us in the Gospel. How is he offered? He's a whole Christ prophet, priest and king. Prophet to teach us priest to forgive and intercede for us king to rule over us and central in the Gospel his work as a priest.

40:52 His kingship is not central his prophetic office is not central it is Christ in his work of atonement that is central but listen it is Christ in his work of atonement and when you receive him you receive a prophet to teach you and a king to rule you as well as a savior to forgive and to pardon. We must never turn the Gospel into a new legalism and tell men that the central message is bow to his throne and put his kingly office to the front no Christ in his word no it's Christ upon the cross Christ off the cross upon the throne but it's Christ upon the throne as the bleeding lamb

41:37 we must proclaim him Jesus Christ and him crucified believe on the Lord Jesus Christ the whole man embracing a whole Christ and without such faith there is no salvation. Having then established the fact that the Gospel is a gracious and regal summons to repentance and faith having briefly expounded the nature of saving faith and repentance unto life I want to conclude this morning with two fundamental observations and exhortations the first one is this

The Unrestricted Universality of the Summons

42:18 note the unrestricted universality of this summons and I'll explain for you kids what I mean by those two 25 cent words note the unrestricted universality in this summons it is unrestricted in its universality of command and unrestricted in its universality of promise unrestricted means there are no restrictions placed on it no fences around it no hedges around it it's as broad as the infinite mercy and grace of God and it's universal it comes to all men in all times in all circumstances

43:01 wherever the Gospel comes look at Acts 17.30 how anyone can see one stick of a fence around this command of God is beyond me the Apostle Paul is preaching there on Mars Hill and he says in verse 30 the times of this ignorance God winked at but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent wherever the Gospel comes it comes with a message about God a message about sin a message about Jesus Christ His person and work but it comes with this unrestricted universal command

43:44 repent and believe the Gospel this is a faithful saying worthy of all acceptation it's worthy to be accepted in the ghetto in the high places of society worthy to be accepted in the jungle in the bush on Main Street that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners 1 John 3.22 says this is His commandment that we should believe on the name of His only begotten Son so you see there is an unrestricted universality in this gracious and regal command it's unrestricted in its scope as a command

44:27 but thank God it is unrestricted in its universality of promise what does John 3.16 say for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him may not should not perish but have everlasting life Revelation 22.17 the Spirit and the Bride say come and let him that heareth say come and whosoever will him come and take of the water of life freely O beloved what could be more unrestricted in its universality of promise whosoever will let him come let him come

45:12 let him come the Apostle Paul showed this in his preaching in Acts 13.38 and 39 notice how he takes the universality and uses it as a barb to the consciences of his hearers and presses it home as closely as is possible to do with human language verse 38 be it known unto you therefore brethren that through this man is proclaimed unto you remission of sins that by him every one that believeth is justified could anything be more unrestricted in its universality you say Pastor that's so plain why in the world are you laboring the point

45:55 and working up a sweat on so hot a day because my friend the gospel is at stake and in the history of the church there have been two great errors at this point on the one hand there is the error of hyperism where people said no no since God has a people whom he's chosen from eternity and those were the people for whom Christ died and we believe those truths with every fiber of our being we're not embarrassed about them they're taught in the same bible expounded this morning I would not be honest if I quote John 3.16 and underscore the unrestricted universality of promise but did not with equal vehemence preach John 6.37 all that the Father giveth me shall come to me

46:38 which means a people have been given and some have reasoned well if a people have been given and they are the ones for whom Christ died then they are the ones for whom Christ died and we cannot give the universal offer of the gospel we must find people who show an evidence of being interested in the gospel awakened sinners alarmed sinners concerned sinners oh my friend what tragic results have come from that people sit back in their indifference blaming their impenitence upon God don't let anyone ever say that he heard in this place that your unbelief and your impenitence were looked upon as sickness they're not sickness it's moral evil and wickedness

47:20 for almighty God commands you to repent he commands you to believe with unrestricted universality in the day hyperism takes over in this church may God send a bomb on it or cause someone to plant a bomb in it and scatter us to other places but there's a second grade error that says look you can't preach the gospel freely unless you actually believe that Christ died for every single human being you've got to believe in a universal atonement who said so? show me one verse in the bible where the apostles when preaching said to people Christ died for you I can produce many of them my friend don't be so quick to say that

48:03 you scour the book of Acts from chapter 1 verse 1 to the end of chapter 28 and find one verse in apostolic preaching where they had to say to men Jesus Christ died for you before they could invite them into the blessings of the gospel you'll look in vain for there's not a verse I don't my friend don't be angry just go to your bible why it's so my friend just calm down simmer down spend a few hours this afternoon reading every sermon in the book of Acts you'll be saying the epistles ah yes in the epistles he said Christ died for you he's writing to who? to those that are sanctified in Christ Jesus loved from eternity chosen in him

48:46 you see the epistle says this the second great error is to say unless we believe in a universal atonement that is an atonement that doesn't really atone but only makes salvation possible for every man we can't preach the gospel freely who said so? has it been preached freely this morning? unrespected universality all to believe all to repent why? because the object of faith the substance that faith feeds upon is not whether or not Christ died for me in particular the issue is this am I a sinner?

49:24 and is Jesus Christ an able and an available savior? and thank God the answer of the bible is clear on those two points you are a sinner and Jesus Christ is not someone who helps you save yourself we preach Christ as a savior who's done everything who does everything to save and we admonish you cast yourself upon him give yourself up to him believe on him repent of your sins in the day this pulpit teaches universal atonement may God also send a bombshell and blow it to pieces because it's a short step

50:07 from robbing the atonement of its efficacy to giving up the atonement in its entirety in the theory of the atonement it says Christ did not actually stand in the room of a definite number of sinners historically historically it can be proven that's the grandmother of rationalism and liberalism now some good godly men have held it but they have started the ball rolling in the direction of the relinquishment of all that is precious in the atoning work of Christ so I say note the unrestricted universality of the summons both the universality of the command the universality of the promise

The Awesome Seriousness of the Issues

50:52 that we may be preserved on the one hand from hyperism and on the other hand from a theory of universal atonement then I conclude by asking you to note the awesome seriousness of the issues at stake in the summons my friend if you found a summons at home today calling you before some august gathering of legal men before some high court of the state or of the nation you wouldn't go out of your house whistling Dixie on your way to meet so exalted so elevated a body of men committed to uphold the laws of the land you'd say this is serious business and my friend listen

51:35 the summons to repent and believe does not come from fellow mortals it comes by means of our lips but it didn't originate with us the summons comes from the throne of the god of the universe it comes from the exalted lord who has commanded us to preach in his name and therefore it comes with awesome seriousness because because the scripture says the hour is coming when Jesus Christ will come in his glory 2 Thessalonians 1 verse 8 and in flaming fire he will take vengeance on them who know not God

52:20 and now get the next phrase and obey not the gospel obey not the gospel you see the gospel does not come merely holding forth blessings it not only comes with entreaty it comes with divine command and if you do not obey the gospel it says that Jesus Christ will come and in fiery vengeance consume you as one who not only despised the only remedy for your sin but the gracious command to embrace you and to embrace that remedy

53:03 oh dear people you see why we guard this pulpit from all clowns you see why at times we may wax vehement in our denunciation of the shallow gospel preaching of our day it's because we're dealing with life and death heaven and hell you see why we plead why we argue why we study simplicity why we try to illustrate and qualify and hedge up the truth in the gospel and make it accurate and precise you see why we labor

Conclusion: Embrace the Gospel and Proclaim It

53:47 in the word and in doctrine because dear people though the gospel is a blessed message good news so much so that God says get up on a high mountain say to the nations behold your God it's the kind of thing that causes an apostle to say who is sufficient for these things we're the saver of life unto life and death unto death and oh beloved as I close this morning I want to leave teaching and go to entreaty we've looked at what the gospel is a message about God about sin about Christ about repentance and faith that's what it is but my friend it is not that for you to study it in objectivity it is that for you to embrace it

54:32 to believe it to be saved by the Christ whom it sets forth I plead with you this morning in the name of my sovereign Lord repent and believe the gospel some of you dear children who've heard the gospel for years and you say oh I believe it oh but you haven't believed on the Lord Jesus Christ you haven't said Lord Jesus I rest upon you alone for salvation I take you to be mine Lord Jesus I am yours some of you adults visitors perhaps who've come amongst us you're not here just to learn some things about the gospel and we make no apologies for saying

55:15 we're not content that you've merely learned some things only one thing will give us rest is to know that God has made the preaching effectual to the bringing of your heart into an eternal marriage with the Christ who's set forth in the gospel what is the gospel? this message we've preached is the gospel may God help us as individual believers to love it to study it to proclaim it in every judicious opportunity that God gives us and even in some injudicious ones as well and those of you upon whom the Lord's hand is resting to prepare for the work of the ministry never get beyond this gospel

55:59 grow in your understanding of its beauty grow in your understanding of the harmony of the work of the Father, Son and the Spirit lead your people into ever widening paths ever deepening dimensions of its glory and its beauty but never budge from these essential landmarks it's a message about God a message about sin a message about His Son and a summons to repentance and faith and as you pray for your pastors pray that by the grace of God we shall so love this gospel and preach this gospel in the day we budge from this gospel that God will silence us that God will silence our tongues

56:43 and bring others to be an instrument of blessing and grace to your hearts let us pray