A BRAND PLUCKED OUT OF THE FIRE
ZECHARIAH 3:1-3
A. "IS NOT THIS A BRAND PLUCKED OUT OF THE FIRE?"
1. In reading the first three verses of the third chapter of Zechariah, one cannot help but recognize the great controversy between Christ and Satan:
a. Satan, the accuser of the brethren, is ever ready to expose the weakness of God's children - Rev. 12:10
b. The Son of God, on the other hand, seeks to cover His children with the robe of His righteousness - Isa. 63:10; 1 Cor. 1:30
2. The outcome of this controversy is the important point in this lesson:
B. A BRAND PLUCKED OUT OF THE FIRE
1. The accused:
a. "He shewed me Joshua the priest" -
(1) The spiritual leader of Israel - Ex. 28:29
(2) He wore the breastplate with the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.
(3) Also, the Urim and Thummim, symbols of light and justice - Ex. 28:30
b. Condition of the accused -
(1) He appeared in filthy garments - Zech. 3:3; Isa. 64:6
(2) That meant that the high priest was sinful and defiled: this, the adversary of God's people knew and used against Him - Matt. 15:19; Isa. 6:5
2. This experience shows that the devil watches the lives of God's people:
a. He knows when God's professed people are beset with open or secret sins.
b. He is ever ready to expose them to discredit God's plan to save man from sin.
c. He says to the world, "behold the sins and shortcomings of God's children!"
d. That is what he did with the sins of King David and his son Solomon.
e. That is what he did with the sin of Hezekiah when the messengers from Babylon came to hear about the miracle of healing.
f. "Satan stood at his right hand" -
(1) The role of Satan, in this instance, is very similar to his attitude in the experience of Job.
(2) Going about and seeking whom he may devour - 1 Pet. 5:8; Job 1:7
(3) "Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" - 1 Pet. 5:8
C. A BRAND PLUCKED OUT OF THE FIRE
1. "The Lord rebuke thee, Satan":
a. Satan may attempt to hide the fact that he himself is under sentence for murder - John 8:44; Ezek. 28:12-18
b. The saints, that he seeks to accuse day and night, will pass judgment upon him - 1 Cor. 6:1-3; Rev. 20:1-6
c. He also ignores the fact that God has found a ransom for sinners - Job 33:24
2. "Take away the filthy garments from him":
a. We have seen already that all our righteousness is as filthy rags - Isa. 64:6
b. All are under sin - Gal. 3:23; Rom. 3:23
3. "Behold I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee":
a. God has a way to free us from the guilt of sin - Isa. 6:5, 6
b. There is an open fountain against all uncleanness - Zech. 13:1
c. The precious blood of Jesus Christ is that fountain - 1 John 1:7-9; 1 Pet. 1:18, 19; Rev. 1:5
4. "Set a fair mitre upon his head":
a. This was always the crowning act in the consecration of the high priest for his office.
b. This means that God had accepted the consecration of the man for the office of the priesthood.
c. When the battle is over, God will have all those washed in the blood of Christ receive a crown of glory - 2 Tim. 4:7, 8
"THOU HAST SOLD THYSELF TO DO EVIL"
1 KINGS 21:20
A. "AND AHAB SAID TO ELIJAH, HAST THOU FOUND ME, O MINE ENEMY? AND HE ANSWER, I HAVE FOUND THEE, BECAUSE THOU HAST SOLD THYSELF TO WORK EVIL IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD."
1. This was the last meeting that Elijah had with Ahab:
a. What a meeting that was!
b. The vineyard of the murdered Naboth was the meeting place.
2. The conversation included the Lord's final sentence upon the wicked king:
a. Who had sold himself to work evil.
b. By becoming an accomplice to a brutal murder of an innocent citizen, Ahab should have protected.
B. THOU HAST SOLD THYSELF TO WORK EVIL
1. Sold thyself:
a. The phrase "sold thyself" indicates that Ahab was a party to the crime committed deliberately to satisfy Ahab's selfishness.
b. There are instances when people do wrong ignorantly; but that was not the case of Ahab; he knew better.
2. The exceeding sinfulness of Ahab is indicated:
a. By the fact that Ahab was the chief officer of the law in Israel; it was his highest duty to protect the citizens of his country.
b. As a king, he represented all the people and when he became a party to the murder of Naboth, he implicated the whole nation.
c. He violated the oath of office - 1 Ki. 14:16; 16:2, 3
3. Sold out:
a. Adam and Eve sold out when they yielded to temptation - Luke 4:5, 6; Gen. 3:1-22
b. Cain sold out when he murdered his brother - Gen. 4:1-9
c. The ten sons of Jacob sold out when they sold their brother into slavery - Gen. 37:28
d. Judas sold His Lord for thirty pieces of silver - Matt. 26:14-16
e. Esau sold out when he bargained away his birthright for a mess of pottage - Gen. 25:30-34
4. The price of the sellout:
a. The price is incomprehensible.
b. When we sell out to sin, we break connections with God - Rom. 8:6, 7; Isa. 55:1-3
c. We become the tools of Satan - Rom. 6:16
d. We become the enemies of God - Rom. 8:6, 7
C. THE PLAN OF REDEMPTION
1. There is hope for those who have sold themselves for nought unwittingly:
a. "For thus saith the Lord, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money" - Isa. 55:3
b. All this because we have nought to pay for our redemption.
2. The price paid for our redemption is beyond estimate; it is priceless:
3. It includes:
a. Complete pardon from sin - Isa. 55:7; Luke 15:11-32
b. Deliverance from the power of sin - John 8:36; Acts 26:18
c. Heaven will treat the redeemed as if they had never sinned - 2 Cor. 5:17
d. Immortality, eternal life, awaits them in the world to come - John 3:16; Rom. 6:23
4. Sold out:
a. What a tragedy for the sinner!
b. What a travesty upon justice!
c. How amazing is God's love to find a ransom for our redemption - Isa. 35:10
5. Beloved, what is your reaction to the message of this hour, based upon the words of Elijah to Ahab?
a. Are we guilty of selling out to the devil?
b. And when we see that we have made a serious mistake by selling out to the devil, do we know the remedy God is ready to apply to redeem us?
UNTENABLE EXCUSES
A. "THEY ALL WITH ONE CONSENT BEGAN TO MAKE EXCUSE" - Luke 14:16-24
1. To better comprehend the subject before us, it is important to note that:
a. The feast or supper was of a spiritual nature.
b. Had it been of a physical or material nature, there would not have been such unanimous excuses.
2. A banquet:
a. That does not involve financial obligations, on the part of the invited guest, will not be turned down readily.
b. The human heart is not so self-denying as to refuse a free meal.
B. LET US CONSIDER THE IMPLICATION OF OUR SUBJECT TITLE -- UNTENABLE EXCUSES
1. The great supper or dinner:
a. Is the plan of redemption - Isa. 55:1, 2, John 7:37, 38
b. The guests were, to begin with, the Jewish nation - Rom. 9:1-6; Matt. 10:6; 15:24; 21:33-41
c. The Son of man, a son of Abraham, was sent by the father to save the lost sheep of the house of Israel - Matt. 15:24
(1) They had the form of the truth - Rom. 9:1-7; 2:20
(2) Theirs were the fathers, and the covenants, and God's promises - Rom. 9:1-5
2. In view of these facts:
a. The invitation to the supper, to begin with, had been given to Israel, as a nation -
EXAMPLE -
(1) God sent messengers to Israel, while they were a nation, to bring God's banquet to them - 2 Chron. 36:15; Acts 3:26; 13:46
b. It was when they rejected the gospel of Christ that the apostles went to the Gentiles, who gladly received the truth.
c. With these facts in our mind, we shall be better able to analyze the untenable excuses.
C. "AND THEY BEGAN TO MAKE EXCUSES"
1. Webster offers the following definition for the word "excuse"
a. "To make apology for"
b. "To endeavor to remove blame"
c. "To seek to extenuate"
d. "To seek or obtain exemption or release for one self"
2. The unappreciative guests used every concept of Webster's definition:
a. They formally apologized for their not coming to the banquet.
b. They endeavored to blame their environment for not coming.
c. In this manner they brushed aside the invitation.
3. These excuses are untenable for the following reasons:
a. The kingdom of God, the plan of salvation takes precedence over all else - Matt. 6:33; Luke 12:31
b. Even if their excuses had been legitimate, preparations could have been made that there would have been no conflict between the points in question.
c. It is very wrong to make salvation secondary to earthly enterprises; it indicates indifference to God's effort to save us from sin.
d. Their excuses were, however, so flimsy and without a reasonable basis that that in itself indicates their total lack of interest in the gospel invitation.
e. Their excuses were an underhanded rejection of the invitation.
4. This is the sad state of many souls, who are indifferent to the gospel invitation:
a. They seek to hide behind anything that seems to cover their excuses.
b. But we must keep in mind that rejection of the gospel invitation is fatal to the rejecter.
c. By rejecting God's mercy, they shut themselves out of the divine banquet hall in God's kingdom.
"HOW MUCH OWEST THOU TO MY LORD?"
LUKE 16:1-17
A. OUR WORLD IS LOADED WITH DEBTS
1. Financial obligations:
2. Moral shortcomings:
Matt. 6:12; Rom. 3:19; Isa. 24:1-19
B. "HOW MUCH OWEST THOU TO MY LORD?"
1. Very few persons ever stop and think of their indebtedness to God:
a. They forget that they are not their own - 1 Cor. 6:19; Rom. 14:7
b. They seem to be unaware of the fact that, at best, we all are unworthy stewards of God's goods - 1 Pet. 4:10
c. And that some day we shall have to give an accounting of our stewardship - 2 Cor. 5:10
2. A prayerful study of the Bible shows that our obligations to God are sevenfold:
a. We have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That means that we are deeply indebted to God - Ps. 130:1-3; Luke 5:4-9; 18:13
b. We are indebted to Christ for paying our debts with His own life - Isa. 53:1-12; Rom. 8:31-33; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 2:20
c. Our talents and our possessions are the Lord's - Matt. 25:14-30
d. Our very lives are but the gift of the Lord - Rom. 14:7, 8; Dan. 5:23; Acts 17:25
e. We have made, at different times, vows to God and that is a solemn obligation to Him - Ps. 50:14; 56:12
f. Our knowledge of His holy will obligates us to Him - Rom 1:14-17; Jas. 4:17
g. The God-given opportunities obligate us to God to use them wisely and to God's glory - Luke 14:16-25
EXAMPLES -
(1) Hezekiah failed to glorify God at a time when he could have done it to God's glory - Isa. 39:1-8
(2) Moses failed to glorify God at a time when he could have directed his people to the Lord - Num. 20:11-14
(3) Daniel did glorify God in Babylon - Dan. 1:8; 6:10
C. WHY THIS QUESTION?
1. What Christ did for us brings our obligations to Him into sharp focus:
a. He gave himself for me; that obligates me to Him - Gal. 2:20
b. I am a poor sinner, a blood bought trophy of God's grace - Acts 20:28
c. We all are, by creation and by redemption, the Lord's.
d. He did everything to save us, and He still pleads our case before God - Heb 7:24-26
2. Solemn questions demand solemn answers:
a. That was true when God questioned our first parents - Gen. 3:9
b. It was true when He asked Cain about his brother Abel - Gen. 4:9
c. And that will be true when the King asks the wedding guest as to why he entered without the proper wedding garment - Matt. 22:12
3. Questions serve a threefold purpose:
a. They are to arrest our attention; to get us to stop and think!
EXAMPLES -
(1) "Whose shall those things be, which thou hast prepared?" - Luke 12:20
(2) "Whence camest thou? and whither goest thou?" - Gen. 16:8
b. They demand an answer. That is why questions are asked.
c. They are to bring about a change in our attitude to God and men.
EXAMPLES -
(1) "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" - Acts 9:4.
(2) "What doest thou here, Elijah?"- 1 Ki. 19:9
4. Friends of mine, have you ever attempted to find an answer to our opening text?
a. How much owest thou my Lord?
b. Have you ever attempted to straighten out your account with God?
c. There is, to my knowledge only one solution to our indebtedness, and that is found in Christ alone - Rom. 8:1-3
d. Is that your answer?
IMMORTAL DECISIONS
PSALMS 119:30-32
A. HISTORY RECORDS MANY AWE-INSPIRING DECISIONS
1. National decisions:
a. Abraham Lincoln and the slavery question.
b. Franklin D. Roosevelt and World War II.
c. Harry S. Truman and the Atomic Bomb.
2. Personal decisions:
a. Moses and the throne of Egypt - Heb. 11:24
b. The rich young ruler - Matt. 19:16-22
B. IMMORTAL DECISIONS
1. "I have chosen the way of truth":
a. There are but two ways to choose from - Matt. 7:13, 14
b. Both are open to our own free choice - Deut. 30:15; Josh. 24:15
c. The false way appeals to the natural mind more than the narrow way -- less inconvenience and more company - Matt. 7:13; but it is the way that will lead to destruction -