Okay, if you take your Bibles and turn to Psalm 14 and look at verse number two,
Psalm 14 and verse number two, the verse reads, the Lord looked down. The title for
the sermon this morning is the Lord looked down, the Lord looked down. Now
this is to bring our remembrance to the fact that God is looking on this earth,
God is looking at this world, God is looking upon you believer, God is looking
at this ungodly world. And sometimes in these challenging times, these
difficulties, these struggles, these fears, there might be this idea well God is not
looking at us, God you know is far from us, but what we see now the Lord looks
down, God is looking at the world, God is looking at mankind, he's looking at the
righteous and he's looking at the wicked. And so let's pick it up here in verse
number one, Psalm 14 verse 1, it says, the fool have said in his heart there is no
God, they are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth
good. Now the Bible's speaking here about a fool, a fool, and it says that the fool
is someone that says there is no God. And you know the name we give the fool today
is the atheist, the one that claims that there is no God, that things came into
existence because of a Big Bang or without a God, you know these people
according to the Bible, these people according to God, they are fools. And if
you look up the dictionary definition of a fool, the first one is a person who
acts unwisely or imprudently a silly person. Now think about that, that's what
they are, these atheists, these scientists, they claim there is no God, they are
people who act unwisely, a silly person, the dictionary says. And here the second
meaning for a fool is, you know this is a medieval term, a jester or a clown, a
jester or a clown. So think about the atheists you may know, the atheists that
you've crossed paths with. The dictionary tells us that they are a jester or a
clown, they're a clown. When they start, you know, talking and they think they're
wise, don't they? They think they have it all worked out, they think they know
that there is no God, the dictionary says that they are a clown.
The Bible says they are a fool, that they are silly people who act unwisely. And
two of the most famous fools or atheists or whatever you want to call them that
we know about in this day and age is, one of them is Richard Dawkins and the
second one is Stephen Hawking. Stephen Hawking passed away a couple of years
ago, he passed away into hell, now he knows, now he's no longer an atheist of
course, now he knows there is God, in fact he's facing the wrath of God every
moment of his life right now. But these are two men that the media, you
know, highlighted, these are two people that had a great reputation in the world.
And these are the words, let me just read to you from Richard Dawkins first of all,
Richard Dawkins, he's famous for his book called The God Delusion, but his words
is, I'm just quoting him here, it says we cannot of course disprove God just as we
can't disprove Thor, fairies, leprechauns and the flying spaghetti monster. Okay so
he's saying look we can't disprove there's a God, just in the same way we
can't disprove that there's a flying spaghetti monster or disprove that
there are fairies or a Thor, you know, a God-man or things like this. And so what
he's saying is it's just as stupid or just as silly in his eyes to believe in
a flying spaghetti monster, well it would be equally silly to believe that there
is a God. That's the perspective that Richard Dawkins takes. Now those words
might seem intellectual, they might seem one of wisdom, in fact I've heard many
people when I've gone knocking the doors and they speak about God as a flying
spaghetti monster, they get that from Richard Dawkins, but God calls this
person a fool. Richard Dawkins, as far as God is concerned, that man is a fool. The
second person that I mentioned is Stephen Hawking, who passed away as I
said two years ago, the cripple in the wheelchair, you know, his
computer system will talk for him, I mean I don't even know if the computer
system was even representing his real thoughts, but you know, he'd
talk like this, there is no God, if you know what I'm talking about, that cripple
in the wheelchair, and he said these words and his quote is, I believe
the simplest explanation is, there is no God, no one created the universe and no
one directs our fates, this leads me to a profound realization that there
probably is no heaven and no afterlife either. Wow, so profound, so foolish, the
Bible says this man is a fool, and look I don't feel sorry for these atheists that
go to hell, you know, right now they are facing the judgment of God, right now
listen, by their words, even though this man has passed on by his words, by
his theories, he's leading many hundreds, thousands of people into hell,
you know, he's convincing people that there is no God, and yet the only one
that will save them from hell is of course the Lord Jesus Christ, and so the
Bible tells us that atheists are fools, that they are unwise, they are imprudent,
they are silly, they're jesters, they're a clown, and you say well that's a bit
harsh Pastor Kevin, how could you say that about these atheists, well these are
the words of God, he called them a fool, right, he called, not only that, what else
did he say there in verse number one, they are corrupt, they have done
abominable works, hey the God Delusion book by Richard Dawkins, that's an
abominable work, when they when they have their speeches and they speak out
against God, these are abominable works, and then it says there is none that do
of good, and you know these atheists they think they're good, they think they're
the gift to mankind, that you know somehow you know they've got this vast
intellect where they can work out, you know, a system where there is no God, and
yet the Bible says that they have done no good, there is none that doeth good,
now we use this phrase there is none that do of good quite often in relation
to the entire world, but if we keep it in the context of that verse, it's
actually speaking about the atheists at this point in time, okay, it will then
expand on to other things, but how does one become an atheist, how does one
decide to deny the existence of God, and the answer is actually found in the
Bible, if we turn to Romans chapter 1, please turn to Romans chapter 1, and we
see this downward spiral of someone who becomes an atheist, now it's not that an
atheist becomes a Christian so much, it's not that, you know, when someone is born
into this world, when they grow up into this world, it's not that they have to
learn that there is a God, the atheist has to actually learn that there is no
God, okay, but they started with understanding that there is a God, if you
look at Romans chapter 1 verse 19, the Bible says, because that which may be
known of God is manifest in them, for God have showed it unto them, so the Bible
tells us here that God has shown the truth unto us, but then look at verse
number 20, for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal
power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, the Bible's telling us
here that the creation of the world is sufficient evidence for us to know of
God, not just know of God, but know of his eternal power and Godhead, you see
the fact that we exist, the fact that we, you know, so complicated, you know, our
design is so complicated, you know, the human eye is beyond comprehension how it
operates, each of our cells operate like little cities, you know, just
one cell in our bodies, we are such complex creatures, you know, we have the
ability to think, to rationale, to love, to have emotions, this all proves to us
not just our creation, but the creation of the animals, the world, geography, our
earth, all of these are to show us the power and the Godhead, you know, of God,
and so we are without excuse if we are to deny God because of what we've seen,
the Bible's making it very clear that we can believe in the Creator because we
have seen the creation, we can take the creation in, and so one does not have to
learn how to believe in God, he must learn how to not believe in God, and
that's the process that the atheists have gone through, let's keep reading in
verse number 21, because that, now notice next words, when they knew God, did they
know God, the atheists? Of course they know God, they knew God, they could see
the creation, there was no excuse for them to deny the existence of God, they
know there's a God, yes Richard Dawkins and Stephen Hawking, what I'm saying is
they know there is a God, they know it's the God of the Bible, because that when
they knew God, verse 21, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. These
men and these other atheist scientists are vain in their imaginations, their
foolish heart has been darkened, but listen, when they knew God, they glorified
him not as God. You know I was doing some research and seeing, you know, reading
through some of the quotes of atheists, and quite often, you know, they won't
necessarily come out and deny God in of itself, or of himself, but they will then
rephrase God into something else, you know, they will think that potentially
God is is everything, you know, or God, you know, the the mind of God is
everything there is to learn in the universe, everything there is to learn in
nature, they would think of that as God, and so by extension what they're trying
to describe is that they can become like gods, you know, if they can learn
everything there is to learn of the natural world, if they can learn
everything they believe, they can learn about, you know, you know, the planets and
the solar systems and everything that we can learn of science, then they think
that they've reached a level of godhood, and of course that is the lie of the
devil. The lie of the devil in Genesis 3, when he convinced Eve to take of that
fruit, he said to her that she can become like gods, okay, and that is the search
that these atheists want, they want to deny the existence of God, and then they
want to think of themselves as God, or someone that's on this journey to become
as gods, no different to any other religion that's out there like Mormonism
or other things that that teach you can become like a god, and so, you know,
these atheists are full, they've denied God, and they glorified him not as God.
Verse number 22, the Bible says professing themselves to be wise they became fools,
hey there's the fool, the fool that have said in his heart there is no God, they
thought they were wise, they thought they had this great intellect and knowledge,
but they got into a point where they, because they did not glorify God for who
he is, they became fools, they denied the existence of God, and then it says in
verse number 23, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made
like to corruptible man and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things.
So it's telling us here that they make God out of anything else, anything that's in creation,
you know, instead of there being a creator of the creation, it's like creation becomes
that image of God, and so they defy the, they defile the thought of God.
If we drop down to verse number 28, Romans chapter 1 verse 28,
and even, look at this, and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge,
hey did they have the knowledge of God, yes, did they like to retain that knowledge though,
did they like to think that there is a God, no, they did not like to retain God in their
knowledge, look at this, God gave them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not
convenient, and so God can give these atheists over to a mind that's reprobate, a reprobate
mind, that's a rejected mind, they've rejected God, so God says right, well if you reject me,
you cross a certain line, well I'm going to reject you, and so they receive this mind
of rejection, and then it says at the end of verse number 28, and do those things which are not
convenient, and what are some of those things, notice this, verse number 29,
being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness,
full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, does this sound like a group of
people you want to hang out with, you know if you've got some atheist friends, or you go to
a university and you've got an atheist professor, hey the Bible says that atheist professor is full
of these things, being filled with unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness,
maliciousness, full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, look verse number 30,
backbiters, haters of God, haters of God, listen there's no such thing as an atheist,
an atheist is someone who hates God, they know God exists, but instead of making the decision
to know God, instead of making the decision to seek out God, and to have the fear of God,
and the knowledge of God, they've made a conscious decision to be a hater of God,
can you imagine that, hating the God that created them, it keeps going,
despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
or disobedient to authorities, you know, and so we need to understand brethren,
that you know God looks at these fools, he looks at these atheists, and you know he thinks of them
as foolish, no wisdom, and that's how we ought to think about them, you know if there's a
television show about you know some documentary, you know and you know something about the natural
world, and they put on one of these atheist professors, one of these atheist scientists,
brethren just switch the channel off, switch that program off, otherwise you're going to be
listening to the ramblings of a foolish man, okay, don't waste your time listening to the fools,
when you can listen to the word of God, the truth of God's word, through the preaching of God's
word, or just by picking up the bible yourself, but back to Psalms 14 for me, Psalms 14,
let's keep going, verse number two, and this is where we get the title for the sermon,
the Lord looked down from heaven, upon the children of men, to see if there were any
that did understand and seek God, you see God is looking to find somebody that is seeking him,
you know he wants to be a blessing, he wants to guide and direct people that want to know
salvation, that want to know the true God of the bible, he's seeking to find that person,
and he's looking down from heaven upon the children of men, you know God is watching us,
every moment that we live our lives, God is watching, God is watching the wickedness of this
world, you know the wickedness of our governments, he's watching the effects of this coronavirus,
or if it doesn't exist, whatever situation you think, God is looking down, he knows the truth
of all these situations, and it says that to see if there were any that did understand and seek
God, now if you can keep your finger there, please go to Romans chapter three,
Romans chapter three, and I want to show you where the book of Romans pulls what we just read
from Psalm 14 and applies it to the gospel message, but if you can go to Romans 3 chapter 10,
Romans 3 chapter 10 takes what we're about to read here from Psalm 14, and it says here,
as it is written, there is none righteous, no not one, so we saw that in reference to the atheist,
but now we want to take that truth and apply that to the broader level, to every man that lives on
this earth, the bible says there is none righteous, no not one, but look how it says in verse 11,
there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God, there is none that seeketh
after God, the reason I wanted to show you these passages, first of all is that nobody can be saved
by being a good person, it doesn't matter how good of a person you are, you know, the bible tells us
that our righteousness are like filthy rags, you know, you cannot work your way to heaven,
you are not good enough, the bible just told us there is none righteous, that means there is none
that does right, you know, 100% of the time, no not one, and so, you know,
there is a teaching in the Christian world known as Calvinism or predestination, now I believe in
predestination as the bible defines it, we read a lot about predestination, you know, predestination
steps or the teaching that God has given us, a lot of that comes from the book of Ephesians,
so I want us to go to Ephesians now, please go to Ephesians, now, you know, you may want to keep
your finger in the book of Romans, but please go to Ephesians chapter 1, and there are those
that say, well see, no one seeks after God, you know, there is none that understand, there are
none that seek after God, you know, nobody's going to get saved by seeking after God, it's only,
you know, the predestined will of God for you to actually get saved, okay, that's the view that
they will take, that without God predestinating you, without God electing you to be saved,
you cannot be saved, is the thought by this teaching of Calvinism, and so it has some
ramifications on how you think about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, you know, because if God is the
one who has already chosen who he wants to save and who he doesn't want to save, well that would
make sense if Jesus were to come and die on the cross, then that would mean when Jesus Christ died
that he only died for those that God wanted to save, and he didn't die for the sins of those
that he did not want to save, and so what they'll say is, we are incapable of seeking after God,
we are incapable about believing the gospel unless God first does a work in our hearts,
and you know, this is the predestined, well if you're predestined, God will make you saved,
God will get you saved, God will give you that new spirit, God will make you a new man,
God will allow you to go for a born again experience, and then once you are born again
they will teach, then you can believe the gospel, but whether you believe the gospel or not,
it doesn't change the fact that you're saved, they think you're already saved,
and because you're already saved, you will eventually believe on the gospel,
but that's why I want to turn to Ephesians 1 verse 11 for me, please go there, Ephesians 1
verse 11, because it couldn't be any clearer than what we see here, and it uses the term
predestination here, or predestined, Ephesians chapter 1 verse 11, the Bible reads,
in whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated, there it is, are we
predestinated? Yes, do I believe in predestination? Yes, I do believe it in the context of how we find
it in the Bible, the Bible doesn't tell us we're predestined to be saved, what does it say here?
It says, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things,
after the counsel of his own will, that we should be the praise of his glory.
What are we predestined to do then, are we predestined to be saved? Is that what it's saying?
No, it's saying we're predestined that we should be the praise of his glory,
once we are saved, your destiny as a Christian is that you would be the praise of his glory,
that God will glory in praising, in seeing you become more Christ-like, by seeing you walk in
the Spirit, by having that new man, by being saved, and as we grow in the Lord, as we grow
in the Bible, in Bible knowledge, you know God is praised, his glory is demonstrated on that behalf,
but that's for someone who is saved, it's not saying here someone is predestined to be saved,
no, once we are saved we are predestined to be the praise of his glory, but let's keep going,
verse number 12, that we should be to the praise of his glory, notice the next words,
who first trusted in Christ, who first trusted in Christ, hey what comes first in the salvation
process? Is it that we're predestined to be saved and others are predestined not to be saved,
is that what comes first? No, the Bible says what comes first is our trust in Christ, hey that's
like saying we believe on Christ, when you believe on Christ, when you believe his death burial and
resurrection, that means we have trusted in his death burial and resurrection, we're not trusting
anything else, we're not trusting our good works, we're not trusting our church, we're not trusting
some false god, no we're trusting Jesus Christ, and when we believe on Christ it means we are
placing all our faith and trust on Jesus, that he has done all the work, his death, his burial,
his resurrection, he's paid for all our sins, and that through Christ we can have eternal life,
and so the first thing is that we trust in Christ, look at verse number 13, Ephesians 1 13,
in whom ye also trusted, look at this, after that ye had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation, so how is it that we've trusted what we thought we heard, the gospel, that's what it's
saying there right, we heard the word of truth, the gospel of our salvation, look at this, in whom
also after that ye believed, so after we believe on Christ, what happens, ye were sealed with that
holy spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the
purchased possession unto the praise of his glory, there is the praise of his glory,
the resurrection, the completeness of our salvation, not only when we're saved by believing
on Christ, but that time as we become more Christ-like, to the time we receive our new
resurrected bodies at the rapture, that would be the fullness of the praise of God's glory,
we would no longer have any sin in us, no sinful nature, and we can worship God, we can serve God
without any sin in our lives, but notice the process, we have to hear the gospel,
that's how we believe, and then once we believe, it said, sorry,
it said in verse number 13, in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy
spirit of promise, so the holy spirit, do we work on us, get us saved, and then we could believe,
like Calvinism teaches, no, we first believed, then we received, by believing we're born again,
we receive the holy spirit of promise, and that is at the down payment for our eternal redemption.
If you can please go back to Romans and go to Romans chapter 10 and verse 14, Romans chapter 10
and verse 14, and I love this passage, a very famous passage, we often preach about this one
in our church, because it shows us the process of salvation, it shows us how somebody calls upon
the name of the Lord for salvation, in Romans 10 verse 14, it says, how then shall they call on him
in whom they have not believed? You see, we can only call upon the Lord, we can only call upon
the name of the Lord for salvation unless we have first believed, we cannot do that until we have
believed, right? And then it says, and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?
So before they can believe on Christ, they have to hear something, what do they have to hear?
And it says here, and how shall they hear without a preacher? You see, for them to be saved, they
have to hear the gospel, they have to hear the word of God from a preacher, and then, you know,
I've had people say, oh, hold on, are you saying only preachers can get people saved?
And by that question, they think of preacher as a pastor, as a church worker, listen, anybody,
any saved person can be a preacher, you can be a preacher if you're saved, okay? Because all you
need to do is take the gospel, go to someone that you love, someone that you know is lost,
preach unto them the gospel, and you are a preacher of the gospel, because you're preaching
that person the word of God, it's not standing up behind a pulpit, that makes you a preacher,
it's preaching God's word. When you preach the gospel, you are the preacher that Romans 10 is
speaking about. Look at verse number 15, and how shall they preach, except they be sent?
As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring
glad tidings of good things. But they have not all obeyed the gospel, for Isaiah saith, Lord,
who have believed our report. And look at verse number 17, so then faith cometh by hearing and
hearing by the word of God. So notice those two things, how can someone come into faith on Christ?
How can someone believe on Jesus Christ? Well they have to hear, okay, from the preacher,
and what it is that they need to hear? The word of God. Faith comes by hearing the word of God,
and the only way they can hear the word of God is through the mouth of a preacher.
So it is not, once again, the Calvinist says no, the Holy Ghost just saves you,
then you're on this journey to finally believe. Once you believe, then that proves that you were
actually one of those chosen people, you were predestined to be saved. Whereas the Bible makes
it, it teaches it differently, doesn't it? It says here that the preacher must go bearing the
word of God, bearing the precious seed, preach unto someone to hear the gospel of glad tidings,
the gospel of peace, and then that person, once they hear it, they can believe, and then they
can call upon Jesus Christ to save them. All right, so the preacher must use the Bible,
must use the word of God, and you know another name for the Bible is the sword of the Spirit.
So don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying that the Holy Spirit plays no role. In fact, being born
again is being born of the Spirit, the Bible says. The Holy Spirit does a work, revives that
Spirit of man unto God, and so in order for someone to be saved, yes the Holy Spirit must work,
but the Holy Spirit also needs the preacher, needs the preacher using the word of God,
the sword of the Spirit, okay? If you don't use the word of God, if you're not using the sword
of the Spirit, you're not going to be able to get someone saved, and the Holy Spirit, unless he has
the preacher bearing that word, will not be able to get someone saved. We need both the Spirit of
God and the preacher bearing the gospel in the word of God, then that person who can then hear
will believe and call upon the name of the Lord. All right, back to Psalm 14 and verse number 3.
Psalm 14 and verse number 3, the Bible reads, they are all gone aside, they are all together become
filthy, there is none that doeth good, no not one. So now we get to this broader concept, okay? We
saw that the foolish, the atheists, yes there is none good in that category, but there is none good
overall, all right? They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy, there is none that
doeth good, no not one. And this is where, you know, we use our famous passage in Romans 3-12,
which says they are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable, there is none
that doeth good, no not one. We often like to quote that one when we go door to door, so when
we use the Romans road, we'll often use that verse to show people that there is none good, no not one.
And as I said to you, Isaiah 64 verse 6 says, but we are all as an unclean thing and all our
righteousness are as filthy rags, okay? So when you're not saved, when you don't have that born
against spirit, you haven't caught upon them the Lord, any good you try to do, yeah it might look
good in your eyes, but in God's eyes they are filthy rags. And if you're trying to get to heaven
based on how good your works are, boy you're just going to God, hey God, here are my filthy rags,
you know, have a sniff of those rags and God's going to reject you. You will not be able to go
to heaven for those that are trusting in their works. And by the way, it's not just trusting in
Jesus and works, no, it's trusting Jesus 100% without works that will get a man saved. And so
the Bible once again did say there is none righteous, no not one. So there was one though
that was righteous. There is one that we can say is definitely righteous and in Mark chapter 10
verse 18, you know, we have the story of the young rich ruler coming to Jesus and he calls Jesus
good master. But then Jesus says these words to him, it says in verse number 18,
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one that is God.
So what do we learn here by these words of Jesus? There is only one that is good,
not man. And that one that Jesus said was God, God, okay. So when he's asking this young rich
ruler, and listen, was Jesus good? Did Jesus go doing good things? Most people would say absolutely
he was a good man, you know. And think about this though, if he's asking the young rich ruler,
why callest thou me good? Don't you know there's only one good which is God? What is Jesus saying
about himself then? You know, what is he trying to get the young rich ruler to think about
if only God is good and he's calling Jesus good? Well this confirms like once again many
ways that we can confirm the deity of Christ in the Bible. Jesus is God. Jesus is God the Son.
You know, the Trinity has God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ
the Son of God was manifest in the flesh. He is just showing this young rich ruler, hey you're
speaking to God. There is only one that's good and that's God and you're speaking to him. You know,
God the Son of God. And the Bible says in Psalm 34 8, oh taste and see that the Lord is good,
blessed is the man that trusteth in him. You see, God wants you to taste and see
that the Lord is good. And the Lord is good. Our Lord God is a good God, okay. But what it takes
is for you to draw nigh to him, what it takes for you to seek after him, to learn the gospel,
to believe on Christ and you can taste the goodness of God when he saves you from all
your sins. All your burdens have been placed on Christ, your iniquities, your trespasses and sins
put on Christ. He's paid for them all. And when you can understand that Christ has paid for your
present sins, your past sins, your future sins, he promises you a home in heaven, eternal life,
once saved always saved, you can understand the goodness of God. That God is good. And in Psalm
107 verse 1, the Bible reads, oh give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good. And it says,
for his mercy endureth forever. God's mercy will endure forever. That's why he's good.
That's why you always have an opportunity to go to God and ask him for salvation. Okay,
he's not going to remove that opportunity. If you're seeking after him, you want to know,
how do I get to heaven, Lord? He's going to give you the mercy to forgive you of your sins
through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. You see, the sacrifice of Christ, yes,
it happened 2,000 years ago, but all of man's sins from Adam to the last man that takes a breath,
all of those sins that were done by mankind was all put on Jesus Christ, my sins, your sins,
and all we need to do is believe on him, trust him, call upon Christ to save us from our sins.
And so the Lord is good. Psalm 14 verse 4, Psalm 14 and verse 4
reads, have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread
and call not upon the Lord? So now we turn our attention to the workers of iniquity,
and God once again is saying, hey, they've got no knowledge. Okay, they're foolish, they've got no
knowledge. But these workers of iniquity, these people that hate God, and hate the people of God,
it says here, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord. So it's talking
about people who persecute the children of God, who afflict the children of God. Now keep your
finger there, and actually, no, you stay there, you stay in Psalm 14. I'm going to read to you
from Psalm 53, because this is one of the Psalms that is almost identical to Psalm 14, almost
identical. You can almost say they're the exact same Psalm, but there are some differences. And
you know, and I want to read to you from Psalm 53, but you follow along in Psalm 14. Okay,
so Psalm 53, and you follow along just to show you how consistent it is. It says,
The fool have said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable
iniquity. There is none that doeth good. Verse number two, God looked down from heaven upon the
children of men, to see if there were any that did understand and did seek God. Verse number three,
Every one of them is gone back. They are altogether become filthy. There is none that
doeth good, no, not one. And then verse number four, Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
who eat up my people as they eat bread. And then it says this, They have not called upon God.
I want you to notice that. So in Psalm 14, what did it say? It says here and call not upon the
Lord, right? In Psalm 14, but then in Psalm 53, it says, They have not called upon God.
So let's get a few thoughts there. It says God in 53, the Lord in Psalm 14, because the Lord
is God. God is the Lord. And this is important because when we talk about our salvation,
and I'll just read to you the passage, I know you probably turn away from from Romans,
but it says in Romans 10, nine, If thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus. You see,
in order for you to be saved, it's not just that you believe Jesus was a good man, that Jesus was
a good prophet. No, you need to believe or confess the Lord Jesus. Who is the Lord Jesus?
The Lord Jesus then says, And shall believe in thine heart, that God have raised him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved. And then we read verse number 13, it says, For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord, shall be saved. Again, who's the Lord here in the context of Romans chapter 10,
as we saw in verse number nine, the Lord Jesus. In order for you to be saved, you need to call
upon the Lord, and that Lord is Jesus Christ. So when we see in Psalm 14, referring to calling upon
the Lord, and then in Psalm 53, calling upon God, we have another passage of Scripture,
which confirms the deity of Christ. Jesus is God. Jesus, you know, the Son of God makes up
that Trinity, you know, God, there is one God and God in three persons, the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Ghost. And these three are one, but these three are not one another that they are,
they are not the same. Okay, the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit,
but they make up that one God. Okay, so Jesus Christ, the Lord is God. And then,
if we can go back to Psalm 14, Psalm 14, and verse number five,
Psalm 14, and verse number five. Actually, before I read that passage, I did want to show you,
read to one other passage here. And you know, these are writings of Old Testament
Psalmists. And it says in Psalm 86, verse five, for thou, Lord, art good. Now we saw that already,
who's good? God, right? For thou, Lord, art good, look at this, and ready to forgive,
and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
Wow. So when we see the Psalmist speaking of salvation, he speaks about those that call upon
the Lord, those that call upon God, the only one that is good. So my question to you then,
brethren, is how did the Old Testament saints get saved? Well, by calling upon the Lord. It
was the Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now they didn't know the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
but when they called upon the Lord, they were calling upon Christ for salvation. You see,
salvation in the Old Testament is the same as salvation in New Testament. It's by grace,
through faith, and not of yourselves. It is a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.
Okay, so salvation is the same in the Old Testament as it is in the
New Testament. Now back in Psalm 14, in verse number five, Psalm 14, verse five,
it says, there were they in great fear, for God is in the generation of the righteous. So what we
notice in verse number five is a change in direction. We're talking about in verse number
four, the workers of iniquity. And again, what were the workers of iniquity doing? They were
eating up people as they eat bread. Okay, so what that means is, in the same way you would just,
you know, get a loaf of bread out and eat it, not give it much thought, you know, these people
of iniquity, you know, in the same way are trying to destroy or consume the people of God. They
don't think of the people of God much more than your daily bread. Okay, they don't think highly
of the people of God. And so when we get to verse number five, we have this change where
they finally realize that they're going to face the wrath of God, that God is going to judge them
for their wickedness. And in verse number five, it says, there were they, that's the wicked,
in great fear. You see, the wicked will not continue forever in their wickedness. At some
points, God will judge them. At some point, God will rain down his wrath upon them. He could start
on this earth by someone who receives that reprobate mind that's rejected by God. Hey,
otherwise, it will definitely happen in the lake of fire. Okay, and so one day they will have a
great fear of God. And like I said, Stephen Hawking, that cripple in hellfire, he's got
a great fear of God right now, okay, as he burns in the wrath of God. And so it says in verse number
five, there were they in great fear, for God is in the generation of the righteous. See, God is
looking at the righteous. God is looking at those that have the imputed righteousness of Christ,
that walk in his ways, okay, those that are saved. God is looking down at his children.
And please, you know, never get to the point where you think that God has forgotten me,
that God is not looking at my turmoil, that God is not looking at my suffering. Hey, God is looking
down at you. He is the God in the generation of the righteous. You know, if you're saved,
God is there with you in, you know, you are in his presence. And these wicked people will one
day understand that, okay, they will come face to face with the wrath of God. Look at verse number
six, Psalm 14, verse six. Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his
refuge. Now let's understand this. When it says verse number six, ye have shamed, that's against
speaking about those that are in great fear, once again, speaking about those are the workers of
iniquity, okay, because in contrast, it says, because the Lord is his refuge, that's speaking
about the believers, the believers who have their safety, their trust, their refuge in the Lord God.
And so verse number six, once again says, ye have shamed the counsel of the poor. And so when we
think about the poor, you know, Jesus puts it in these words in Matthew chapter five, verse three,
it says, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. And so for you
to be saved, you must come to a point where you are poor in spirit, you realize that spiritually,
you're not in a good place, that spiritually, you need to be born again, that you need Christ,
you need his imputed righteousness, you need his salvation. And that's someone who is poor in
spirit. And God says that person will receive the kingdom of heaven. You will enter into heaven.
And when that millennial reign of Christ comes, you're going to be ruling and reigning with
Christ. And so we are the poor in spirit. But look, the workers of iniquity, or as we saw in
verse number one, the atheists, the foolish people that deny God, it says that they shame the counsel
of the poor. You see, when we seek the counsel of God, you know, when we come to the Bible,
and we seek wisdom in this book, or we speak to one another in fellowship, we go to our brothers
and sisters, we speak, we have counsel, one with another, the Bible says that they, the workers of
iniquity, those that are haters of God, they seek to shame that counsel, they seek to shame us,
as we go and seek our refuge in the Lord. And let me just show you this quote from Richard Dawkins,
once again. And this is what he thinks about our God. He says, it is, it's a horrible idea
that God, this paragon of wisdom and knowledge, power, couldn't think of a better way to forgive
us our sins than to come down to earth in his alter ego as his son, and have himself
hideously tortured and executed so that he could forgive himself. So God, I mean, sorry,
Richard Dawkins thinks that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is, it's a horrible idea.
That's what he thinks. Hey, but when we are seeking counsel, when we're seeking refuge,
when we're looking for protection and salvation from our sins, we turn to Christ, and we look at
Christ, and we rejoice in his sacrifice, we rejoice in his resurrection, and we're looking
forward to the coming of Christ. You know, we're thankful that he died in our place, we're thankful
he shed his blood for us, we're thankful for everything he's done for us. Richard Dawkins
brings that counsel to shame. You know, he says that it is a horrible idea that God would sacrifice
his son in our place. And, you know, it just shows you the heart of the wicked, it shows you the
heart of the fools. But once again, brethren, God looks down, God sees, God sees the wicked,
God sees the righteous. Please don't forget that these wicked people that say such things,
you know, there's a special place in hell, in the deepest and darkest places of hell for that
Richard Dawkins. Okay, for those that deny God, those that have been given over to a reprobate
mind, there's a special place in hell for them. You know, it's going to be the worst place of
the wrath of God. Let's go back to Psalm 14 and verse number seven. Psalm 14, verse seven,
we're almost done now here. And it's the last verse, it says, Oh, that the salvation of Israel
would come out of Zion, when the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall
rejoice, and Israel shall be glad. And notice that, this is a psalm of David, an Old Testament
saint, you know, and these crazy ruckmanites, you know, these hyper dispensationalists who say that
people are saved in the Old Testament by works. Hold on, is that what was David trusting in his
works for salvation? What did he say in verse number seven? Oh, that the salvation of Israel
would come out of Zion. Think about that. You know, he was asking for the salvation of Israel
to come from Zion. And this is also quoted in Isaiah 59, verse 20. I'll just read it to you.
If you guys can please go to Romans 11. Please go to Romans 11. And I'll read to you from Isaiah 59.
You go to Romans 11. I'll read to you from Isaiah 59, verse 20. The Bible reads, And the Redeemer
shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord. So who
comes to Zion? The Redeemer. Hey, that's the Saviour, the Saviour, the Redeemer, okay. Now
you're in Romans 11, verse 26. You know, who was David looking for? He was looking for the Redeemer.
He was looking for salvation. He was looking for the Saviour. Romans 11, 26. It says, And so all
Israel shall be saved as it is written, there shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall
turn away ungodliness from Jacob. You see, out of Zion comes the Deliverer, comes the Redeemer.
Who is the salvation of Israel? Of course it's Jesus Christ, okay. Jesus Christ who died for us,
and by his death he has turned ungodliness away from Jacob, okay. Ungodliness away from the
believers because he became sin for us. He took on the curse that, you know, we should have received.
He took it upon himself so we don't have to face God and judgment day with our sins. No,
our unrighteousness, our ungodliness has been turned away. And then it says in verse number 27,
For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. Hey, that covenant is the
New Covenant. That's the New Testament when Christ's blood was shed when he died, the death
of the testator ushered in that covenant when he will take away our sins. Now don't forget,
once again, just because Jesus Christ did die 2000 years ago and that's when the New Covenant
came into effect, his death paid for every sin though from Adam, once again, the first man to
the last man that takes breath on this earth. Now some will say, well hold on, it says here in
Romans 11 26, all Israel shall be saved. You see, it's just for the Jews. You know, God only cares
about the Jews. Jesus only came, you know, his desire was just for the Jewish people. He didn't
have any desire to see the Gentiles saved or ridiculous things like that. But this is why,
when we read Romans and we get to this point where it says all Israel, this is chapter 11.
Okay, the expectation is that you would have read chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. Okay,
and so to understand what Romans 11 26 is speaking about, we need to go back a couple of chapters
in Romans 9. Please go with me to Romans 9 and verse number 6. Let's understand what all Israel
is. Is all Israel those of Jewish descendancy? Is that what all Israel is or is it something else?
Romans chapter 9 verse 6, it says, not as though the word of God have taken none effect,
for they are not all Israel. Hey, who are not all Israel?
Which are of Israel. So not every Jewish person, not every Israelite, makes up all Israel. Have
you thought about that? That's what Romans 9 is telling us. So when we understand all Israel in
Romans 11, the expectation is that you would have already understood what all Israel is
in Romans chapter 9. Now let's have a look. Who is all Israel? Verse number 7,
Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children. But in Isaac shall thy seed be
called. That is, they which are the children of the flesh, those are the physical descendants,
these are not the children of God. Does that make sense to you? Not all the physical descendants
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are the children of God. Not all Israel make up all Israel.
Just because you're Israeli in the flesh, does not make you a child of God. Does not make you saved.
Verse number 8, that is, they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children
of God. Look at this, but the children of the promise are counted for the seed. Okay,
who are the children of God? Well let's just drop down the same chapter, verse number 29,
let's keep reading.
Romans 9 29, and as Isaiah said before, except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed,
we had been as Sedoma and had been made like unto Gomorrah. Verse number 30,
what shall we say then? Look at this, that the Gentiles which followed not after righteousness
have attained to righteousness. How? Even the righteousness which is of faith. Hey,
even the Gentiles can have the righteousness of Christ, the righteousness of God, forgiveness of
the sins. How? Of faith, by faith. Okay, verse number 31, but Israel which followed after the
law of righteousness have not attained to the law of righteousness. Look, you know some of those
Jews are following after the laws, the Old Testament laws, they think that their salvation
is by that, some of those Jews where they did not obtain righteousness through that.
Verse number 32, wherefore, because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of
the law, for they stumbled at the stumbling stone, as it is written, behold, I lay in Zion
a stumbling stone and rock of offense and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Hey, Jews, Gentiles, whosoever believeth on him, on Jesus, shall not be ashamed because you're
saved. You become a child of God, you know, you make up all Israel, Jew or Gentile, those that
believe on Jesus Christ, they should not be ashamed. Hey, just because you're born physically
as a Jew, you know, does not guarantee you anything. In fact, it guarantees you,
just like anybody else, damnation in hell should you reject the law of Jesus Christ. You know,
Judaism is a road to hell, Jesus Christ is the way to heaven, the leaf on Jesus Christ.
And in conclusion, brethren, Romans 10 verse 12 says, for there is no difference between the Jew
and the Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. What a great promise from God, salvation,
we hear the gospel, we understand what Jesus has done for us, we place our faith on him.
And if you're listening to this video, you know, I just want to quote to you John 3 16,
the most famous verse in the Bible, which says, for God so loved the world that he gave his only
begotten Son, that's Jesus who died for us, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish,
but have everlasting life. What I promise, if you can place your faith and trust on Jesus,
the promise of God is that he will give you eternal life. That means you can't lose it,
it's eternal. Once something has been, that gift has been given to you, the eternal gift,
you can never lose it. If you could lose it tomorrow, it was not eternal, was it? It was
temporary. No, God promises us eternal life. Once you're saved, once you believe on Christ,
you call upon Jesus as Saviour, you'll always be saved. You will always have that promise
of salvation in accordance to the word of God.