"Hearken unto me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek
the Lord: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, end to the hole of the pit
whence ye are digged." Isaiah 51:1
Brethren. I say, don't ever forget what you are by
nature, and what you were when God called you to life in Christ. Though God has
so freely forgiven us of our sins that they shall never be remembered against
us anymore forever, the prophet here teaches us that we must not forget them,
lest we forget what the Lord has done for us by his loving grace.
Let us always remember
who we were, where we were, and what we were, when God saved us by his grace.
We were ourselves the fallen sons of Adam, rebels before God. We were lost and
ruined in this perishing world. Like Ezekiel's deserted infant, we were
helpless, polluted, and perishing. We were dead in trespasses and sins.
Physically, we were alive; alive to our lusts, alive to the world, alive to
Satan, alive to sin. But spiritually, we were dead, dead to righteousness, dead
to truth, dead to Christ, dead to God. In a word, by
nature, we are sinners. Sinners by birth, sinners by choice, sinners in heart,
sinners in practice, sinners against God, sinners against man, we were nothing
but perishing, hell-deserving sinners.
Remember also, your
merciful Deliverer. We could never deliver ourselves. No man or angel could
deliver us. But the God-man, Jesus Christ, he delivered us. There came the
Deliverer out of
Now, dear brethren, don't ever forget, "Salvation is of the
Lord." To the triune God alone we ascribe all honor, majesty, praise; and
dominion.