How good is your vision? When is the last time that you had your eyes tested? I have worn glasses since I was in the fourth grade (a long, long time ago). I was shocked back then when I put on my first pair of glasses and I could actually read the restaurant and gas station signs along the street. Without my glasses, I could only see the vague shape of the sign and I couldn’t even begin to read the signs. Now 40 years later I have 20/20 vision – with my glasses on.
The message tonight is 20/20 vision and God gave me this title because of Exodus 20:20. But before I read that verse, I want to point out that in Exodus Chapter 20, God gives us the 10 Commandments. In case you have forgotten them, here you go:
1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make to yourself any graven image.
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother.
6. You shall not kill.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.
Most of us have not only broken a commandment here or there, but most of us have broken all of them! Jesus said that if you look at a woman and lust after her, you have already committed adultery with her in your heart (Matt. 5:27-28). He also said that if you are angry with someone without cause, it is the same thing as murder. The Bible also tells us that if you hate someone, God considers that the same thing as murder. We are to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. None of us have perfectly done this. You may not physically make a graven image, but I ask you tonight, have you made an image of a god in your own mind? A god that overlooks your habitual sin? If so, this is the same thing as a graven image. God is Holy and He calls us to be holy. Does that mean we are perfect? No, not even close. But if you are a Christian, you should hate the sin you once loved and love the God you once hated.
None of us have kept the 10 Commandments. None of us! None of us are righteous. We are all guilty before the one and only Holy and righteous God. James 2:10 tells us that if you break one commandment, you have broken them all. I am guilty of breaking the commandments. You are guilty of breaking the commandments. We have all broken them. You and I are guilty, guilty, guilty.
So maybe you are out here tonight and you say “so what?” “Who cares?” “It’s no big deal.” “Everybody does it.” Maybe you are listening tonight and you really understand that you have broken God’s Law, but you think that it is no big deal. Why does it matter? It matters because it matters to God. Our Heavenly Father is perfect and He demands perfection. He is so Holy and so righteous that he cannot tolerate sin. Sin is such an affront to Him, that it must be punished. All sin must be punished and it will be punished, whether you believe it or not. Whether you believe in Him or not.
If you die without Jesus Christ being your Lord and Savior, then you most definitely will find out about God’s justice on Judgment Day. You will understand His punishment for your sins. If you die in your sins as an unrepentant sinner, then you will suffer the wrath of God for all of eternity. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commands all men everywhere to repent: Because He has appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he has ordained; whereof he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead (Acts 17:30-31). But after your hardness and impenitent heart you treasure up to yourself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God (Romans 2:5). Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord (Romans 12:19).
After God gave the 10 Commandments, this is what it is says in Exodus 20:18-22 And all the people saw the thundering, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed and stood afar off. And they said to Moses, Speak with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said to the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may before your faces, that you sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was. And the LORD said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, You have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
Please notice Exodus 20:20 – the 20/20 vision verse: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that you sin not. Fear the LORD. You want 20/20 spiritual vision? It starts with the fear of the LORD. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. The fear of the LORD leads to life (Proverbs 19:23). Serve the Lord with fear and trembling. And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matthew 10:28).
Earlier we went over the 10 Commandments and hopefully you understand that none of us have kept them. In fact the Bible says that there is none righteous, no not one. We have all broken the 10 Commandments. So what can you do? Should you go around cowering and constantly being afraid that God is going to require your life from you and then send you straight to Hell after you die? If you are an unrepentant sinner you should be fearful!
But tonight, if you recognize that you are a sinner, if you realize that you have broken God’s Law and that you deserve to be punished, then you understand that you spiritually need 20/20 vision, but that you don’t have it yet. So how can you get it? Maybe for the first time in your life you really understand the fear of the Lord. Many people try to tell you that the fear of God means reverence or respect. It means these things, but it means so much more. It means FEAR OF THE LORD! Many times in the Bible when men encountered God, they literally fell to the ground as dead men. In other words, they were literally scared half to death. Fear of the LORD means FEAR!
If you understand this, truly understand this, then hopefully you realize that you need help. You cannot be righteous enough on your own to appease our righteous and Holy God. You cannot make yourself right with Him. You can squint all you want to, or pull your eyes back to tighten them to make you see better, but you still cannot meet God’s perfect standard. You need to put on spiritual glasses. You need to put on the Lord Jesus.
Jesus walked this earth a little over 2,000 years ago. He was fully God and fully man. He was born of the virgin Mary and the Holy Spirit. He did what you and I could never do – He perfectly kept the 10 Commandments. Not just in His words and His actions; He also kept them to a higher level. He never lusted, hated nor was He ever angry without cause (when He was angry with the money changers in the temple – it was righteous anger over the way they were prostituting God’s Holy Temple). Jesus always did the will of God the Father; even over His own will. He loved God with all of His heart, soul, mind and strength.
Then Jesus willingly laid down His life for guilty sinners like us. He was beat beyond recognition. He hung on the cruel cross for six long torturous hours, bearing God’s wrath; God’s anger over our sins while He hung there. God made Him, who knew no sin, to be sin on our behalf. He died on the cross, was buried and rose from the grave three days later. He now sits victoriously at the right hand of God the Father and God offers eternal life to everyone who repents by turning away from their sins and puts their faith in Jesus. Yes repentance means that you are sorry for breaking God’s Law, but it is more than being sorry. You must confess and forsake your sins. For godly sorrow works repentance to salvation not to be repented of; but the sorrow of the world works death (2 Corinthians 7:10).
Oh tonight, recognize that you have violated God’s Law. Admit that you are a sinner. Cry out to Jesus to save you. Surrender your life to Him tonight. Truly turn your life over to Him. Jesus said that you must be born-again. You are born again when you stop trusting in your own goodness, your own self-worth and put your trust in Him and in Him alone. Repent and believe the Gospel. Turn from your sins and turn to Jesus. Turn and live. Put on the Lord Jesus and God will spiritually give you 20/20 vision (through the Holy Spirit). God will no longer see you as the sinner that you are. He will see you through the righteousness of Jesus. It is the great exchange. You give Jesus your sins and He gives you His righteousness.
But this does not give you a license to sin. People who are counting on a one-time prayer that they uttered years ago and have lived for the devil ever since then, will split Hell wide open when they die. Remember Exodus 20:20 – we are to fear God and sin not. That doesn’t mean that you become perfect. But it means that when you do sin you confess your sin. Your sins bother your conscience. You ask God to forgive you and you are constantly are becoming more Christ-like. Not under your own power, but through the power of the Holy Spirit that now lives inside you.
2 Corinthians 5:17 says: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. I guess I have always focused on the last part of this verse. But now I keep going over the first part. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. If you are in Christ, if you are saved (He abides in you and you abide in Him), then you are a new creature. If you are not a different person than you were before you said the sinner’s prayer, then according to this verse you are not saved. If any man be in Christ; everyone that is in Christ is a new creature.
Do not be deceived tonight. No change, no salvation. If you are not truly saved, if you have never really repented by turning away from your sins and put your trust in Jesus; you will go to Hell when you die. Please, please get right with God tonight. You don’t know when you will take your last breath. Please come to Jesus. Come to the living water. Come to the One who can wash you clean. Come to Jesus and be saved. Repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ our Lord and be made right with God. Do this tonight. Don’t put this off. Be saved tonight.
(This message was proclaimed in the open-air on the square in downtown Springfield, MO on July 11, 2014)