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[0:00] All right, Matthew 9. Tonight I'm seeking to preach the Word of God and address the subject of the love of Jesus Christ for sinners.

[0:12] ! What that looks like.! How that we would do well to seek to get more of that in us, in our hearts. Matthew 9, 35.

[0:23] And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.

[0:39] When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them. Because they were harassed and helpless.

[0:51] Like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.

[1:03] Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Let me begin by asking you a series of questions.

[1:16] Do you love sinners? Do you love the wicked?

[1:28] Do you have a brokenhearted compassion for 20th century modern man, post-modern man, secular modern man, who thinks you are an idiot for believing what you believe and giving your life to what you're giving it to?

[1:51] Do you? Do you? Do you love them? Do you have a love for the ungodly?

[2:06] Do you love the disinterested? The arrogant? Thieves? Drunkards?

[2:19] Prostitutes? Do you love homosexuals? Do you? Do you love swindlers?

[2:37] Liars? Addicts? Prisoners? Children?

[2:50] The agent? Do you love people of other races? Different color skin?

[3:04] Different language? Different culture? Different food? Different clothes? Do you love idolaters?

[3:15] People of other nations? Other religions? Those people with dots on their forehead?

[3:27] Tonight we want to consider the love of Jesus Christ for those types of folks.

[3:42] Look at Paul's too. But here in Matthew 9 we see Jesus. And as you see here in verse 36.

[3:54] When he's out and about in the cities and villages among the people. It says when he saw the crowds. When he saw them.

[4:07] When he saw them. There's a real connection between the eye gate and the heart. When he saw them. He really saw them and he was moved by them.

[4:20] In John 11.33. Remember that when Lazarus died. Jesus made his way to Bethany. Albeit he got there a little late on purpose.

[4:34] Got there. Waited long enough for Lazarus to die. But he did come. And he found. That there was. Bethany was filled with sorrow. And there was.

[4:45] Lazarus family out there. And the scripture says in John 11.33. That. Jesus saw Mary weeping. And when he saw her weeping.

[4:59] And when he saw the Jews who came with her weeping. He groaned in his spirit. He was troubled. Another translation says he was deeply moved in his spirit.

[5:17] And the shortest verse in the Bible was. Jesus wept. He saw brokenness. He saw the ravages of sin.

[5:28] The curse on the creation. He saw people hurting. Miserable. Helpless. Hopeless. He was moved.

[5:40] And he wept. Well it says he saw them. Just like. We see here in Matthew 9. When he saw them. He's out among the people.

[5:53] And. He sees them. He focuses. He really looks. Now if you're like me. You can see people. But. Not be moved. You're not affected.

[6:04] So much. You can see. You can see. But not see. Sometimes we can see. Neighborhoods. Where.

[6:14] It's pretty rough. And. Maybe like. Jesus is talking about here. And. Maybe just glad we don't have to live there. Or.

[6:24] Even worse case. We might. Well that's. They've made a lot of bad decisions. And they deserve what they get. Terms of poverty. And.

[6:37] Maybe they're living off the government dole. There's been some bad decisions about. Having sex. Taking drugs.

[6:52] We can see them. And. Not be troubled in spirit. Not be moved with pity. And compassion. He sees them scattered.

[7:06] He sees them wandering. He sees them lost and confused. He sees them harassed and helpless. He sees them as sheep. Without any direction or purpose in life. He sees them wrapped up in career building.

[7:19] And barn building. And yet they've got dysfunction. Written all over their forehead. All their faculties twisted and broken. All their feelers.

[7:30] Marred. Twisted. Biased. He sees them living for this moment. Living for this present world. Jesus knew. Jesus knew. Jesus knew. Their condition.

[7:42] And he knew their future. And he was moved. With compassion. If you'll notice earlier.

[7:54] In that chapter. Chapter 9. Notice in verse 9. As Jesus passed on from there. He saw a man called Matthew. Sitting at the tax booth.

[8:05] And he said to him. Follow me. And he rose. He got up. And he followed Jesus. And as Jesus reclined at table. In the house. Behold many.

[8:16] Not just a few. But many. Tax collectors. And sinners. Came. And were reclining. With Jesus. And his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this.

[8:29] They said to his disciples. Why does your teacher eat. With tax collectors. And sinners. But when he heard it. He said.

[8:41] Those who are well. Have no need. Of a physician. But those who are sick. Go. And learn.

[8:52] What this means. I desire mercy. And not sacrifice. For I came. Not to call the righteous. But sinners.

[9:03] sinners. Jesus. Hanging out. At times. With. The worst.

[9:14] Of the. Of the community. People that were hated. People that were disenfranchised. People that were marginalized. People that.

[9:28] He certainly drew. Raised eyebrows. Among the religious crowd. And Jesus says.

[9:38] You need to. Go. Where do you go? But go. And learn mercy. Go.

[9:49] Learn. In your heart. Something. Of the love. Of God. And especially. As being. Demonstrated. Right before. Your very eyes. The love.

[10:00] Of the son. Of God. God. That he has. For real people. Real people.

[10:11] That are infected. With the fatal disease. Of sin. Terminal. Disease. Eating them up. Breaking them down. Destroying their lives.

[10:22] Infecting. Infecting. All of their decision making. And their perspectives. And their reality. Is all. Twisted. And biased. And goofed up. It's kind of like.

[10:38] What he prayed on the cross. Father. Forgive them. They don't know. What they are doing. Jesus. Gives them that. They don't know.

[10:50] What they are doing. Go learn something. Of the mercy.

[11:00] Of a holy God. Toward those. Who are created. In his image. You Pharisees.

[11:12] You're all wrapped up. In the mechanics. Of your sacrificial system. And adding all kinds. Of unauthorized. Minutia. To your religious system. Making sure.

[11:24] You dot all your. Religious eyes. And cross all your. Religious T's. Just right. You're bound up. In proving. And protecting. Your self-righteousness.

[11:34] And you have. No idea. What it is. To love. Lost people. Like the savior. Sinners. Does. If you want to turn.

[11:47] To Matthew 11. You'll see there. What Jesus reputation. Really was. He was a friend.

[12:00] Of tax collectors. And sinners. Would that be said of us. That we are a friend.

[12:16] Of tax collectors. And sinners. We don't know what to do with this. Do we?

[12:26] This behavior in Jesus. In getting so close to lost people. Communicating. Eyeball to eyeball. Demonstrating.

[12:37] Communicating. Such a compassionate love. For their souls. To be like Jesus. We really do have to rub shoulders.

[12:49] With the unrighteous. You have to get as close to the wicked. As a physician does. To his patients. In order to know them.

[13:04] And to communicate. A kindness. And a. Tender care. Toward them. And to be able to.

[13:17] Communicate that. Really communicate that. So we look at Jesus. And. His. His way. His approach. Three things. He was friendly. To all men.

[13:32] He was not mean. He was not harsh. If there was any. Real strong dealings. He's dealing with the. With the Pharisees. That were such.

[13:43] Hypocrites. And self-righteous. But with the crowds. That are broken. And hopeless. Wandering.

[13:55] He was friendly. He had an inviting. Approachability. About. His persona. The worst folks. In the community.

[14:06] Knew. They knew. Somehow. That they could have. A conversation. With Jesus. And not get. Body slammed. Or beheaded. They would.

[14:17] They would. Actually be. Reclining. At table. With a man. Who really. Cared. About them. They knew.

[14:30] They could bring. Their doubts. And their fears. And their disappointments. And their struggles. To him. And they would. Find somebody. Who's. Winsome. And open.

[14:42] And approachable. And would care. They knew. If there was anybody. On this planet. At this point.

[14:53] In time. In human history. That would receive them. With a gentle. Loving. Care. It was Jesus. He was not condemning.

[15:05] In the way he dealt. Approached the lost. He didn't come into this world. To condemn the world. He came. That this world. Might be saved. He talked straight.

[15:19] To them. But they knew he cared. He was genuine. In his love.

[15:31] He had a positive goal. He came to heal. Their disease. The disease. Of their souls. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus had time. And Jesus.

[15:41] Jesus had compassion. And he was friendly. Secondly. Jesus. Was not afraid. To recline.

[15:53] At table. With the worst. He was not intimidated. He was not afraid. Of sinners. He didn't avoid them. He didn't keep them.

[16:05] At arm's length. He could converse. With them. Over a cup of coffee. Or in this case. A whole meal. With anybody.

[16:18] Anybody. He was not a paranoid. Isolationist. Can you do that? Can you sit at lunch.

[16:29] With a homosexual. With an illegal alien. With a prostitute. With an addict.

[16:43] Thirdly. Jesus got close. But. Not compromised. He was not so. Relaxed. Around their sin. That it lost. Its offensiveness.

[16:55] He didn't let down. His standards. And he. Did not participate. In any of their sins. And care. Really has to be taken here. And young people.

[17:05] The ungodly. Are not to be our best friends. And that's not a problem. If you. Are clear. About your purpose. Jesus.

[17:16] Could hang out. Some. With lost people. Because his primary. Fellowship. Was with his disciples. Godly guys. That shared the same purpose.

[17:27] Had the same heart. And the fear of God. In their souls. And we need. Good and godly friends. Without cutting ourselves off.

[17:38] From lost people. Around us. So I'd say. By way of just. Some application. Thoughts. Be creative. Be alert.

[17:50] Work at penetration. Work at bridge building. How can I connect? Invite your neighbors. For ice cream.

[18:01] Out for coffee. To walk around the neighborhood. Speak to that person. On the job. If it's allowed. Take a co-worker.

[18:12] To lunch. Actually look at. And be moved. With compassion. With the barber. The businessman.

[18:24] The builder. Take a personal interest. In any and all. Offer to help your neighbor. In the fall.

[18:35] With his leaves. In the spring. Or in the spring. With repairs. Or in the winter. With the snow. Look for opportunities. To connect. To show.

[18:46] That love. Work extra hard. To meet lost people. And to. Show them. The love of Christ.

[18:56] Prepare a little bit more. For Sunday lunch. And if there's. A visitor. Be prepared. To take them home.

[19:07] To your table. Set up home. Bible study. Use something. Like a Christianity. Explored.

[19:17] That. Has it all laid out. Twelve. Studies. Through the gospel. Of Mark. And. Having preached. Through the gospel. Of Mark. In years past. And then come across. Christianity. Explored.

[19:28] I was just amazed. At how they put together. In. I mean. The most powerful. Things. Teachings. Of Christ. In.

[19:39] The gospel. Of Mark. In such a wonderful. Packaged way. And. We've taken a number. Of people through that. What great opportunities.

[19:51] To love them. Have a Thursday night. Set up. So that you have a Thursday night. Invite them for dinner. On you. Every Thursday night. Have your neighbors. Maybe two families in the neighborhood.

[20:02] Would you like to explore Christianity? Would you like to know. Who Jesus was. Why he came. What he did. Could we meet together.

[20:12] Each Thursday night. Have dinner on us. And as a starting point. Has an ending point. Ten weeks. And. You'll be amazed. At the things that you get to see. In the word.

[20:22] In the Bible. About what it's all about. Doesn't mean you have to become a Christian. Doesn't mean you have to join a church. It's just. Exploring. Christianity. Would you be interested?

[20:34] And I found often. If you just ask people that question. You might be surprised. They could. Want to do that. Maybe you could double up. Team up. Two couples here in the church. And provide the meal together.

[20:45] And maybe. A couple each know. Or two. In one of your neighborhoods. And. Every Thursday night. But get people in the Bible. Seeing black print.

[20:56] On a white page. Having them read. Or you read. And having them. Ask him. Did you get that? Do you understand what this is saying? The very words of Jesus Christ.

[21:06] Don't wait for the church. To organize some. Gospel outreach. What you see. In the New Testament.

[21:18] Is unorganized evangelism. The people just spoke of Christ. Wherever they were. They looked for opportunity. They created opportunities. Certainly use church activities.

[21:31] But don't resort to. To waiting for lost people. To come through church doors. Before you. Go and get them. Come and see. Go and tell. Come and see.

[21:42] Go and tell. Come and see. Go and tell. That's the. That's the whole. Way of Christ. In the New Testament. Charles Spurgeon. In a chapter.

[21:55] In his book. On the soul winner. He wrote this. Actually. It was a sermon. He spoke this. In a chapter. On how to induce your people. To win souls.

[22:07] He said. We want around us. Christians. Who are willing to do. All that they can. To help in the work. Of winning souls. There are numbers of people. Who cannot be reached.

[22:18] By the pastor. You must try. To get Christian. Workers. Who will. Buttonhole. People. You know what I mean. It's pretty close work.

[22:28] When you hold a friend. By the lock of his hair. Or. Or by his coat button. Come. So try to get it. Close quarters. With sinners. Talk gently. To them. Till you've whispered them.

[22:39] Into the kingdom of heaven. Till you have told. Into their ears. The blessed story. That will bring peace. And joy. To their heart. We want. In the church of Christ. A band of well-trained.

[22:51] Sharpshooters. Who will pick the people out. Individually. And be always on the watch. For all who will come. Into the place. Not annoying them. But making sure.

[23:01] That they do not go away. Without having had. A personal warning. A personal invitation. And a personal exhortation. To come to Christ. And Spurgeon had his bird dogs.

[23:15] I think they were his deacons. And when people came. New people came. In the morning service. They would immediately go to them. Befriend them. And invite them to come back. For the evening service.

[23:25] And then afterwards. Come to my house. For a spot of tea. And take them to their home. And have that type of fellowship. And ask them. About the sermons of the day.

[23:37] And what they learned. And where they were. You have to love people. Like Jesus. To want to do that. To have that kind of alertness.

[23:50] That kind of proactive. Passion. Where it's a priority. To us. It's got to be something. You pray about. Every day.

[24:00] God give me. This kind of love. This kind of compassion. For lost people. Give me eyes. To really see them. Let me penetrate. And meet people.

[24:11] And give me opportunities. Open doors. Make that a. A fervent. Passionate prayer. Every morning. Before you walk out.

[24:21] Of your house. Maybe today. Is a day. God give me. Somebody. Cross their path. Over mine. Will you turn to Mark. With me.

[24:32] Mark in chapter 10. We see. Another occasion. About Jesus. Mark 10. And verse 17.

[24:43] And as he was. Setting out. Setting out. On his journey. A man ran up. And knelt before him. And asked him. Good teacher. What must I do. To have. Inherit. Eternal life. I want to go to heaven.

[24:55] What can I do. Good teacher. Jesus said to him. So with something. Of a rebuke. Why do you call me good. No one is good. Except God alone.

[25:07] Jesus understood. That. That this man. Did not understand. Who he was. Or who God was. So he. Kind of. Put him back. On his heels. Then he takes him.

[25:19] To the law. On verse 19. You know the commandments. Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Do not defraud. Honor your father. And your mother. Takes him to the moral law.

[25:31] To help him understand. What sin is. But the guy says to him. In verse 20. Teacher. All these I've kept. For my youth. He didn't understand. The nature of sin. Or his own. Self-righteousness.

[25:43] He wants to go to heaven. But. But. He doesn't get. Those foundational.

[25:54] Understandings. Of the gospel. Verse 21. And Jesus. Looking at him. Ah. Jesus. Looking.

[26:04] He sees him. Jesus is doing that a lot. Isn't he? Really seeing people. Where they're at. But.

[26:16] This looking at him. Jesus. Loved him. It was a look. Of love. It was a look. Of compassion. Yeah.

[26:29] He was all goofed up. In his understanding. But he loved him. And he said to him. You lack one. One thing. Go and sell all that you have. And give to the poor. And you'll have treasure in heaven.

[26:41] And come and follow me. See. Jesus. Didn't. Let down on any standards. Of what it is. To be a follower of Christ. In fact. That's one of the most. Incredible.

[26:53] Prerequisites. To coming to Christ. That you ever see. In the. In the. Jesus giving. Go and sell everything you have. Give the money to the poor. And then follow me. And. You'll be on your way.

[27:05] But Jesus. Jesus was dealing with him. In ways that he didn't deal with. A woman at the well. Or. That he dealt with other people. He was really going after. This man's idol.

[27:16] Of love of money. His love of possessions. And he gave that requirement. In ways he didn't give it to others. And notice. The response in verse 22.

[27:26] Two disheartened by the saying. He went away sorrowful. For he had great. Possessions. Jesus.

[27:37] Knew that this man. Would love his idol of money. More than him. And that he was going to walk away. Put yourself in Jesus sandals.

[27:50] Here's a man that is. Standing right before you. You've come off your throne of heaven. You've laid aside your creator comforts. And dignities.

[28:01] Your splendor and glory. You've left all that. Laid aside your throne. Your crown. Your scepter. You've walked away. And you've come into this life of humiliation.

[28:15] You've lived 30 plus years. In humiliation and poverty. Under the law. In the cursed. Situation of.

[28:28] Of a human body. In the human world. A cursed world. That's. Wouldn't be a lot of fun. You've laid aside all that.

[28:40] For men like him. Think of the self-denial. Think of the humiliation. Think of what it cost Jesus. To be standing there.

[28:51] Saying that to this man. And here's this man. And he's trying to think. Do I want Jesus? Or do I want my money?

[29:03] Do I want Jesus in heaven? Or do I want my many possessions? Jesus. Jesus. Money. Jesus. Money. I'll keep my money.

[29:18] I'll reject Jesus. And it's in the face of that. Jesus. I mean to put it.

[29:32] Very. Matter of fact. He just didn't. He just didn't want Jesus. But Jesus looked at him.

[29:43] And he loved him. In spite of all that he had laid aside. For this man. Jesus loved him. This love of Jesus.

[29:58] Go and learn something of this mercy. And you see Jesus. No doubt he was grieved. By this man's decision. But he's not disgusted.

[30:11] I think that's maybe an area. That we need to explore about. Our attitudes. Towards sinners. When we see people that are. Broken.

[30:22] And making bad decisions. And they're living in disgusting ways. Are we grieved. With pity. True pity. Loving pity.

[30:33] And compassion. Or are we disgusted. You know the difference. And if you. If you dissect that disgust.

[30:44] I think you'll find some. Self-righteousness and pride. Like we would make. Those same decisions. If we were in their shoes. And at that point.

[30:57] There's not a bit of the grace of God. In our brains. Or our hearts. We're not acting. We're not thinking out of grace. We've not gone and learned something of mercy.

[31:11] We're not saying. Except for the grace of God. I would be just like that man. Making those disgusting decisions. Living off the government.

[31:22] Ruining people. I should be taken care of. We go to 2nd Corinthians with me. Just. To live the apostle Paul.

[31:32] Here's a man that. He knew something of what it was. To have the heart of Jesus Christ. And in 2nd Corinthians 5.

[31:43] He says in verse 11. Oh in fact. In verse 9. He says. Whether we are at home. Or away. We make it our aim. To please him. To please the Lord.

[31:55] Wherever we are. We make it our aim. To please God. For we must all appear. Before the judgment seat of Christ. So that each one may receive. What is due for. Receive.

[32:06] What is due for what he's done in the body. Whether good or evil. We're all going to be. Before the Bema seat. And we're all going to give an account. And verse 11.

[32:17] Therefore knowing. The fear of the Lord. Knowing the terror of the Lord. Knowing something of what that Bema seat. Is all about. We persuade others.

[32:30] Knowing something about. That terrible day. That day in which all mankind. Is brought before that great white throne. And there's sheep. And there's goats.

[32:40] And what a terrifying day. That will be for the goats. For the tares. For those that. Are going to be consigned. To an eternal perdition. What a terrifying day.

[32:51] That would be. And knowing something about that day. We cannot. Do anything. Other than seek. To persuade.

[33:02] Men. To do everything. We can do. To talk them out. Of. Going. Continuing down that road. To destruction. We know something.

[33:13] We know something about the reality of hell. We know something about the terrifying vengeance and judgment of God. Something. A little bit. We have the word of God. And we know it's true. And we know it's coming.

[33:25] And we cannot help. But warn them. And care for them. And wonder if it was me in their shoes.

[33:39] Would I. Looking at that. Objectively. Not want somebody to come and stop me. From going down that road. But then he goes on.

[33:52] And he says. But what we are is known to God. And I hope it is known also to your conscience. We are not commending ourselves to you again. But giving you cause to boast about us.

[34:04] So that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance. And not about what is in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves. It is for God. And if we are in our right mind.

[34:16] It is for you. In other words. He's being criticized. He's being slammed by false teachers. That are questioning his motives. And saying he's half bubble off center.

[34:26] He's. You don't want to follow this guy. He'll take advantage of you. He'll lead you down the wrong path. He says. If we are beside ourselves. It's for God. If we are in our right mind. It's for you. For the love of Christ controls us.

[34:38] The love of Christ constrains us. The love of Christ compels us. To care about you and your souls. It doesn't matter what folks are saying about me.

[34:49] They can scorn all they want. But I've. The love of Christ just moves me. It. I can't do anything else. And when I think of the love of Jesus Christ.

[35:02] For sinners like me. How can I possibly look at others with disgust? How can I possibly turn my face away? When they're making all these foolish decisions.

[35:17] That are destructive to their lives and others. The love of Christ. The love of Christ that would take a. A broken ruin.

[35:28] Sinner. Laying in his pool of blood. And pick him up. And wash him off. And dress him up. In clothes of righteousness.

[35:39] And make him a child of God. Place him. Adopt him into the family of God. Behold what manner of love is this. That we should be called the sons of God. Can you believe it?

[35:50] God would take rebels. And make them sons. What love is this? And it's this love. That God would rescue men.

[36:01] From such a terrible future. And give them. Such an incredible hope. Charles Spurgeon. We must hear the cries of those.

[36:16] Whom God has given to be born unto himself. By our means. We must hear them. Or else cry out in anguish. Give me converts or I die.

[36:27] Young men. And old men. And sisters of all ages. If you love the Lord. Get a passion for souls.

[36:39] Do you not see them? They're going down to hell by thousands. As often as the hand upon the dial completes its circuit. Hell devours multitudes.

[36:51] Some of them ignorant of Christ. And others willfully rejecting him. The world lies in darkness. This great city. Referring to London.

[37:02] Still pines for the light. Your own friends. And kinsfolk. Are unsaved. And they may be dead. Ere this week is over. Oh if you have any humanity.

[37:14] Let alone. Christianity. If you have found the remedy. Tell the disease about it. If you have found life. Proclaim it to the dead.

[37:24] If you have found liberty. Publish it to the captives. If you have found Christ. Tell of him to others. For our last text.

[37:35] Would you turn to Romans. And chapter 9. Romans and chapter 9. For us as Reformed Baptists.

[37:45] Calvinists. We love chapter. Romans chapter 8. The end of chapter 8. We have the five link chain. Guaranteeing that God will save. Every single one. That in eternity.

[37:56] He placed his. His redemptive love upon. He will not fail. To bring every one of them. To glory. He foreknew them in love.

[38:08] He predestined them. He called them. He justified them. And he will glorify them. To God's praise. What powerful sovereign grace.

[38:19] He will save them. And then we move into chapter 9. Maybe that's the chapter. That convinced you. Of the truths and realities. That God does have.

[38:30] An elect people. He will truly save. Every one of them. None but them. And every one of them. Will come to glory. God will not fail. In his saving purpose.

[38:42] And yet. Do we skip over. The first three verses. I am speaking the truth. Romans 9. I am speaking the truth.

[38:53] In Christ. I am not lying. My conscience. Bears me witness. In the Holy Spirit. Wow. Says three things. There. Help us to.

[39:04] Know how serious. He is. And. You really do need to. This is what he's. Really. Feels. What he thinks. What is it Paul?

[39:15] Well. Verse 2. That I have a great sorrow. And. Unceasing. Anguish. In my heart. Why Paul? Why are you.

[39:26] Grieved. Why are you. What's with this agony. Of heart. You live with. 24 7. And it's great. It's not little. It's a great sorrow.

[39:39] And it never stops. It's unceasing. It's in my heart. What is it? He says. Simply this.

[39:49] I could wish. That I myself. Were accursed. And cut off. From Christ. I could wish. That I. Would be.

[40:01] Sent to an eternal hell. For the sake of my brothers. My kinsmen. According to the flesh. They are Israelites.

[40:12] And to them. Belong the adoption. The glory. The covenants. The giving of the law. The worship. And the promises. To them. Belong the patriarchs. And from their race. According to the flesh.

[40:22] Is the Christ. Who is God. Over all. Blessed forever. Amen. Paul says. I've got this agony. Of heart. And it never goes away.

[40:34] Because I look out. At my fellow Jews. That are rejecting. The son of God. And I know. What their future. Looks like. They've had all these privileges.

[40:46] And they're spurning them. They're making stupid. Foolish. Wicked decisions. They're running from God. They're blaspheming. Haters of God.

[40:58] And it's killing me. People of my own race. People I. We speak the same language.

[41:09] We shop the same stores. We wear the same clothes. They're my people. But I know. They're going to go to hell. And it's killing me.

[41:21] And God has so put into my heart. Such a love for them. In fact. Notice in chapter. 10.

[41:32] In verse 1. Brothers. My heart's desire. And prayer to God. For Israel. Is that they may be saved.

[41:44] I have this love of Jesus. In my heart. And I can't do anything else. I can't feel any way else. I can't shake this agony of heart.

[41:55] It's a burden. All that they may be saved. He got it from Jesus.

[42:09] He got it from Jesus. John Calvin. was not a hyper-Calvinist.

[42:23] He said. Quote. If we have any humanity in us. Seeing men going to perdition. Ought we not to be moved with pity.

[42:34] To rescue the poor souls from hell. And teach them the way of salvation. Again. The godly will be filled with such an ardent desire.

[42:46] To spread the doctrines of religion. And indeed. Nothing could be more inconsistent. With the nature of faith. Than that deadness. Which would.

[42:57] Lead a man to disregard. His brethren. And to keep the light of knowledge. Choked up within his own breast. Christ. And again.

[43:08] Calvin urged. Let each one strive to attract. And win over to Jesus Christ. Those whom he can. Charles Spurgeon.

[43:21] If sinners will be damned. At least. Let them leap. To hell. Over. Our. Bodies. And if they will perish.

[43:33] Let them perish. With our arms. About their knees. Imploring them to stay. If hell. Must be filled. At least. Let it be filled.

[43:44] In the teeth. Of our exertions. And let not. One go there. Unwarned. And unprayed. For. Do you love sinners?

[44:02] Your neighbor. Regardless of color. Financial. Or social status. Religious status.

[44:15] The evolutionist. That thinks you are a boob. Can we. Not look. At people.

[44:26] Without a focus. Of the grace of God. Has the grace of God. Broken our. Cold. Stony. Selfish hearts.

[44:38] So that we love sinners. I close with this. Concerning William Carey.

[44:51] And the men. In that. Sarampore trio. And. He went there in. 1792. And. In 1804. The men.

[45:04] Working together. With Carrie. They drew up. What's called. The form of agreement. You can. Google it. I encourage you to do it. Form of agreement. 1804.

[45:15] And they. They put this together. It's an 11 point. Covenant. That they. Read together. Three times a year. Just to keep themselves.

[45:27] On target. In terms of. This is why we're here. In India. We've left England. We've sacrificed. Our lives. And our families. And. We are living here. In England.

[45:38] Carrie. Buried. Two of his wives. On the mission field. And a bunch of his kids. And this is why we're here. And. They would.

[45:50] Remind themselves. To keep the first things first. And these 11 points. Go like this. Number one. To set. An infinite. Value.

[46:01] On men's. Souls. That's number one. To set an infinite. Value. On men's. Souls. Number two. To acquaint ourselves.

[46:12] With the snares. With. Which hold the minds. Of the peoples. Souls. We've got to get to know them. We've got to. Understand. How they think.

[46:24] And why they think. And what their culture is about. And how they got there. We've got to take the time. And. And exert the effort. To get to know. What's behind their foolishness.

[46:35] And their idolatry. Why they're broken. How they got to where they are. What's driving. Their terrible condition.

[46:48] Number three. We must abstain. From whatever deepens. India's prejudice. Against the gospel. Got to avoid it like the plague.

[47:00] I've got to let go. Of any of my liberties. For the sake of. Of these Indians. Number four. To watch for every chance.

[47:11] Of doing the people good. Number five. To preach Christ crucified. As the grand means of conversion.

[47:23] Hold up Christ. Hold up the cross. Hold up. The son of God. He's the way. The truth. And the life. Number six.

[47:35] To esteem. And treat Indians. Always. As our equals. Blacks. Hispanics. Addicts.

[47:45] Women. Children. As our equals. We're not higher. We're not better. We're not smarter. The cross.

[47:57] The ground at the cross. Is just as level as it can be. And no matter who we are. We're no better than the next guy. Number seven.

[48:10] To guard and build up the host. That may be gathered. Those that do believe. To take great care. To nurture their faith. And edify them. In the.

[48:20] In their walk with Christ. And their growing. In their knowledge. Of. In the grace of God. Number eight. To cultivate their spiritual gifts.

[48:32] Ever pressing upon them. And their missionary obligations. Since Indians only. Can win India for Christ. Number nine.

[48:43] To labor unceasingly. In biblical translation. These people need a Bible. They need a Bible. They can read. They need a Bible.

[48:53] They can read in their own language. So they can read it. And understand it. And grow in it. And feed upon it. They need a Bible. Number ten. We as missionaries.

[49:06] We must be instant. In the nurture. Of our personal religion. We can't abandon our closets. We've got to be men of prayer. We've got to be men and women.

[49:17] Who are growing in grace. And mortifying sin. We've got to be men and women. That are drawing near to Christ. And feeding off of Christ. And living in the power of Christ.

[49:28] We must nurture our personal religion. And number eleven. To give ourselves without reserve to the cause. Cause in a capital C.

[49:40] To give ourselves without reserve to the cause. Quote. Not counting even the clothes we wear. As our own. That's love.

[49:53] Do we love sinners? Do we love Bremenites? Do we love? The people around us.

[50:04] May God give to us. And I'm begging him to give me. More and more of this. Heart agony. Of compassion. This pity. This Christ like love.

[50:15] This genuine love. And that God would use me. God give me more humility. Give me more friendliness. Give me more grace. Let me learn more of your mercy.

[50:28] Fill me up. And make me a man after the heart and image of Jesus Christ. So far to go. So unlike him. In so many ways. I've got to face.

[50:38] I've got to fight within me. Racism and materialism. And selfishness. I've got to fight all those kinds of things in me all the time.

[50:49] Pray for me. I've got sin abounding. I cry in agony just like Paul. A wretched man that I am. So much in me.

[51:00] So unlike Jesus Christ. So if you'd pray for me and Kathy as we seek to continue on. Jesus Christ. To his glory.

[51:10] John would you please close us in prayer. Let's pray. Oh Lord you have searched me and you know me.

[51:25] You know our thoughts from afar. And you know our hearts Lord. Just how much we needed this word tonight.

[51:40] And do desire by your grace. To be more like our Savior. So don't let us leave. And just be glad that we were in the house of the Lord today.

[51:53] And then to go back to our old ways. Change us. Don't let us stay the way we are. Forgive us of our sins.

[52:04] Cleanse us of our sins. Remove all the offensive ways that are in us. That we, of all people, should look down our noses at anyone else.

[52:17] And do teach us then. To view others from the perspective of grace. Ever abounding in the love of Christ.

[52:27] That he has for us. We do pray then that this body of believers. Would be more and more characterized. By the love of Jesus that we've heard of tonight.

[52:38] And that the sinners that we rub shoulders with. And that we ought to be rubbing shoulders with. And the neighbors that have been neglected. That they would be receiving from us.

[52:52] Expressions of the love of Christ. For them. So we spread our needs before you. We spread our weakness before you.

[53:03] We must do this Lord. We are disciples. We have no choice in the matter. We have said we would deny ourselves. Take up our cross and follow you.

[53:15] But we cannot. We cannot do this in our flesh. We can do nothing without you. But you have not left us to ourselves.

[53:26] And so we can do all things through Christ. Who strengthens us. So we look. We look together as a body. And we say Lord make us as a church.

[53:37] To reflect your love to the people around us. And give us to see sinners. With the walls broken down.

[53:49] Because of the love of Christ in us. To receive the gospel from us. And by your almighty power. To be changed. And to be saved from their sins.

[54:01] Lord we were the weak. And the helpless. And the harassed. And you came from heaven to save us. Thank you for your great salvation.

[54:12] Thank you for this day. We have lived another day to. Experience your mercy to us. Help us then. To show mercy on others.

[54:23] Even as we proceed. Go up our brother and sister. And do for them the very things that they have preached. And we pray for themselves. That these things might increase.

[54:34] And abound in them more and more. And that they would be wise. And winning souls. To the Savior. So help them.

[54:45]  Help us. And glorify your name through us. We pray in Jesus name. Amen. We are dismissed.