I’m sorry that we missed the Ask an Atheist a Question Event that just ended because I have a question for you. Are you damned? I know this is a strange way to start the message, but I want you to really think about this. Are you damned? No you say? How do you know? What are you counting on? Your own goodness? Are you positive that you are not damned because you are basically a good person? How do you know that you aren’t damned?
Please listen to the following verse: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned (Mark 16:16). This is Jesus speaking and He says that if you believe in Him that you shall be saved. So do you believe in Jesus? Are you one of His people? Jesus came to save His people from their sins. Are you saved? Have you surrendered your life completely to Him? Do you believe in the living Son of God?
Belief in Jesus is more than just intellectual knowledge. Believing in Jesus is surrendering your life to Him. You stop living your life for the pleasures of the flesh or for worldly gain. You stop living your life for the devil. When you believe in Jesus with saving faith, you willingly bow your knee and confess with your tongue that Jesus is Lord. Have you done this? Do you continue doing this? Do you deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow Him? Do you have a cross to bear? What is Jesus asking you to give up? What is Jesus asking you to do tonight? Again I ask, are you sure that you are saved?
Jesus said that we will know His disciples by their fruit – in other words by their works. Don’t misunderstand this, your works cannot save you, but faith without works is dead. You can’t earn your way to Heaven. We are saved by God’s grace alone through faith (belief) in His precious Son. You cannot work your way to Heaven, but when you are saved, you will have works because you are so grateful for God’s great grace and mercy. You are so grateful that God saved you out of your trespasses and sins that you want to please Him. Without faith, it is impossible to please God.
When you are truly saved, you want to serve God. You recognize that you have passed from death to life. You understand that you really deserve to go to Hell and suffer everlasting torment, but you know that you will never go there because you have repented and put your faith in Jesus. You believe in Jesus Christ our Lord and because of your belief in the risen Savior, you will serve Him. You willingly deny your own selfish desires and you seek His godly desires. Your cry, your prayer is for God to make you more Christ-like.
When you are saved it now grieves you when you sin. It breaks your heart when you sin against our Holy, righteous God. When you believe in Jesus, you want to follow Him, wherever He leads you. You want to go where He wants you to go. You want to say what He wants you to say. Your desire is to please God. Your desire is to serve God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength. You now want to love God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength. When you are saved, you love others because God loves us. So I ask you: does this describe you tonight? Do you know that you know that you are saved? Have you turned from your sins and turned to our Lord Jesus?
Remember Mark 16:16: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. If you believe in the Lord Jesus, if you have surrendered your life to Him fully and completely, then you are saved. Your life will show it. But if you have not surrendered your life to the Lordship of Jesus, then you are damned. He that believes not is damned. Oh, this should petrify you tonight. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31). This should cause you to lose sleep at night. If you are not a follower of Jesus tonight, you are damned.
You are damned for eternal punishment. You are damned for all of eternity. You are damned to be tormented in Hell forever and ever. You are already guilty. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? (Matthew 23:33). Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation (Mark 3:28-29).
For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation (John 5:22-29).
If you believe in Jesus Christ, then you have everlasting life. But if you have not repented and put your faith in Jesus, in other words you are still an unbeliever, you do not have everlasting life. You are still spiritually dead. You are still dead in your trespasses and sins. You are already condemned. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil (John 3:18-19).
See if these apply to you: And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man (Mark 7:20-23). We are condemned already because we have all sinned against God. If you are not a follower of Jesus Christ, then these verses apply to you. You are still an unrepentant sinner. You are already condemned by Almighty God.
If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Savior, then you are already under God’s wrath. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him (John 3:36). For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them (Romans 1:18-19).
But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience (Ephesians 5:3-6).
Are you damned tonight? And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death (Revelation 21:6-8).
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:11-15).
Are you damned tonight? Are you headed for the lake of fire? If you have never repented and put your trust in Jesus, then you are a guilty sinner, you are dead in your sins (the soul that sins, it shall die), you are condemned, you are under God’s wrath and you are damned and you are headed for eternal damnation.
On Judgment Day, you will be without excuse. You will not be able to plead ignorance. You have been warned tonight. You have been warned that you are guilty and on the great and terrible day of the Lord you will have no excuse; you will have no defense. Your mouth will be stopped. Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God (Romans 3:19).
Do not foolishly continue stumbling around in darkness. Come out of the darkness and into the light. Jesus Christ is the Light. Our Lord came to save His people from their sins. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. You can be saved tonight. You can pass from darkness into light. You can become a new creature in Christ. You can be seen as innocent instead of guilty because Jesus was the propitiation for our sins. Your sins can be forgiven. You can be seen through the righteousness of Jesus if you put your faith in Him. Oh, trust Jesus tonight and be saved. Come out from under God’s condemnation. Come out from under God’s wrath. Come out from God’s damnation. Come to Jesus and be saved for whosoever comes to Him, He will in no wise cast them out. Repent and believe the Gospel.
(This message was lifted up on the square in downtown Springfield, MO on November 6, 2015)