Well, we thank Karl Varadian and we thank Harlan for singing so
well. That was powerful, wasn't it?
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound.
Wonderful to be saved and to have Christ in your heart and to
know that you have eternal life. And so that was a real blessing
to our hearts and we trust the Lord of blessing to all.
Here I'm going to get myself wired.
Up you're going to turn please to.
Romans and chapter 6, the book of Romans and the chapter 6,
please, and just read one verse for time's sake and they were
not going too bad. It's Romans chapter 6, a very
well known verse and spicy if even as you look, leave the
church here tonight as you walk out through the door, there it
is in the corner. And so we have it before us as
you leave the meeting as well. So we're going to look Romans
chapter. 6 and verse 20. Three and the Apostle.
Paul here and he says for the wages of sin is.
Death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
What our our title tonight is just death, our life.
That's really it, Death, our life and that's what we want to
speak on. So let's look to your Lord and
ask for his help. To my Father in heaven, I thank
you for being with us already for our sister singing so well
and well hearts have been touched already.
And I pray, Lord, your puts to anyone who's only converted
tonight in a meeting, you're speaking to them and we pray
that they might be saved. We need your help around the
word of God. Lord, come and speak to us.
Come and use your word. Come and use the preaches, the
gospel here tonight to the salvation of souls.
This is your work, your cause and for your glory.
So I ask for help and be with us in Jesus name, Amen.
Amen. Now you can see here.
The title. I did say the title.
Of our sermon tonight. Death or life?
It's a very, very simple title, and we're not speaking about a.
Multitude of things tonight. Just two subjects are brought
before us. Death or life?
And I pray tonight and be a prayer of our brethren here that
everyone's heart will be touched by these two truths because here
is a truth that affects everyone in this meeting.
There's not one person tonight excluded from the words of our
text. There's not one person outside
the meeting tonight that's excluded from the words of our
text because every one of us. Every one of us that's going to
face death, our life without exception.
There's no mental ground in this tonight, All right?
So don't be switching off. It's just all right.
I'm not going to. It's not for me.
This, this message is not for me.
It's for all of us. Every one of us, every one of us
in the meeting, everyone outside the meeting tonight, it's either
going to be death or life. So it stands to reason.
That we listen. And I want you tonight.
If you're. Unconverted because we're
dealing. With unconverted people tonight
in a meeting, I want you to listen.
I want you to listen for the short period of time for a
meeting tonight about these very, very serious things that
are brought before us here in this text.
Now, Apostle. Paul is speaking a.
Number of lessons here about sin in relation.
To the child of God, that's the context.
Really. That we're speaking about.
Once they were under. Dominion of sin and he says.
That in verse 17, they were the servants of sin.
And that's the case of everyone who is brought into this world.
They live in sin and they're servants of sin.
And maybe there's someone tonight in the meeting and
you're a servant of sin. You're held.
You're held by maybe immorality, you're held by drink, you're
held by drugs. Well.
You're a servant of sin. And he talked about time.
They were once were servants of sin.
He talked about them after being saved.
They were not to continue in sin.
That's very fundamental. When you get saved, you don't
continue in sin. Well, certainly not the message
I bring to the pulpit. It's not the message that our
brother Colin brings to the pulpit you turn away from.
Sin a new life. As you live for Jesus Christ
sins. Power is broken, dead to sin,
free from sin. Oh, would you be free from your
burden of sin? There's power in the blood.
And Paul's right into a people
who were once dead and sin. They were on their dominion of
sin, but praise the Lord, they're free.
From sin and then. All of us can't.
Actually equals the words of our tax.
The weights of sin is death, but the gift of God should turn to
life. Listen tonight, death or life.
That's it tonight. And I want to say a couple of
things now and there was a few subpoints underneath them.
The sentence pronounced there is a sentence pronounced here.
And the voice rings out and the and the verdict upon the Son of
Man is very, very simple, is death.
And. And if you can really imagine,
hear a court scene and people standing before it and they're
looking at the chance and they want to hear what's the verdict?
They've listened to all the evidence.
They've heard all that they've done wrong.
And what's he going to say? Well, this is the picture here.
We have the sentence pronounce it's death.
And I want to say that. Tonight, the death sentence.
The death sentence. Is placed upon mankind because
of her sin. They have sinned.
Listen tonight they have sinned against God, who's holy, who's
high, who's Lord, He's King. And they dare sin against them,
and they dare rebel against them.
And the sentence of sinning against God?
Death. Is divine sentence tonight and
Psalm 11 verse 4 says the Lord is in his holy temple, the
Lord's throne us in heaven, his eyes behold.
His eyes let us try the children of man.
Here's the highest. Court in the world I came.
Across today, the UK Supreme Court is the highest court in
the United. Kingdom, That's the highest
court in the United Kingdom. But I want to tell you this
tonight in this meeting, there's a higher court than the Supreme
Court. This gods, this gods, and you
may get off a lot of things if you've become before the Supreme
Court, but God here pronounces. He pronounces us, he says here
the wagers of sin, His death. He had warned about this, He had
warned Adam and Eve. Remember Adam, in the garden, He
says, in the day they eat us thereof thou shall surely die.
But notice the words, Adam. You can touch all the trees in
this garden, but you see the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil. You dare not look, you dare not
touch it. Because the day you touch this
tree, something's going to happen.
Here's what's going to happen. You're going to die.
The death sentence. Now what do you see this?
This is serious. That's.
Serious, When you sin against God, there are people that they
think sin. That's only a little white lie.
So it's only getting drunk a few times.
It's only saying a few bad words.
Hold on a minute here tonight. Sin is very serious.
It carries a death sentence, all right, The death sentence.
You don't have to go out and shoot anybody tonight to get the
death sentence you. Don't have to go out and rob
anybody tonight. To get the death sentence, you
have sinned against God. So death stands financial.
Upon it. That's a common for.
All people says Romans 5 verse 12, whereforest by one man sin
entered into the world and death by sin.
Notice the words. And so death passed upon all
men, for that all have sinned. Here it is the wages of sin is
death. This is a common, this is common
wages. It's true of all men, not just
some men, but all men. That's what the Bible says,
Death. Has passed upon all men and I
want to say this tonight and I'm speaking.
To anyone who's all converted in this meeting tonight, the.
Death sentence has passed upon you.
Maybe you never thought of God. Maybe you've never thought.
Of these things before. But the death sentence from God
has been placed upon. You.
Because of sure sin against him. That's what the Bible says.
Read it. Read the text yourself.
Read it in your own word. Here tonight in the Bible, the
wages of sin is death. Matthew Henry says every willful
Sinner ought to be told that he's a dead man.
I said many years ago, the great preacher Matthew Henry, and he
says they ought to be told. Ought to be told what?
You're a dead man. You're dead.
Walking Dead, of course. But you're dead.
That's that. That is a.
Sentence that's this is solemn. This is some here tonight.
The death sentence, of course, this.
Death sentence comes in different.
Ways the word. Wages here means.
Rations for a soldier. It's in the plural.
And they can get their wages, no doubt in different fashion.
But because because man has sinned against God, that this
death sentence has come upon them in different ways, and I
name them very. Quickly to you tonight.
Spiritual death, Spiritual death.
When Adam was alive, before he sinned, he walked with God, he
talked with God, he loved God, he enjoyed God.
But listen, after he sinned, after he sinned against God, God
says you shall surely die. And he did die.
He died. Spiritually, he died
spiritually. What do we find in Genesis 3?
He's hiding from God. He's among the trees and God
comes, he says, Adam, where are thy Adam?
And he's looking for the Adam. He's hiding.
There's something wrong. Something has happened to Adam's
heart. Something has happened to Adam.
Here's what happened to him. He's.
Dead. He's dead spiritually.
He doesn't want God anymore. He doesn't want him anymore.
He doesn't want to talk to him. He doesn't want to love him
anymore. He's hiding.
He's run away from God. Remember this tonight.
The unsaved person dead spiritually.
Ephesians. Chapter 2, verse one.
And you have the quickened who were dead.
Dead and trespassing sin. I met a boy that day and we're
talking about a mission and other not this one by the way.
And he was talking about people who were speaking about people
we knew. Which are not named publicly.
But how? They've sat on their mission
after mission after mission for years.
Not just one mission, lots of reason for many, many years.
And he says they'll never come to Christ.
And he says, well, you wonder what's wrong with them.
I'll tell you what's wrong with them.
They're dead, they're dead, they're dead in their trespasses
and their sin. You.
Talk to the Sinner tonight about the love of God.
You tell them about Jesus Christ.
You tell them that God's wonderful and great salvation
and they don't want to listen. They don't want to hear tonight.
They're dead spiritually separated from God and on
tonight on this meeting, that's where this.
Finds you here. The sentence of death.
This has been carried out already upon you.
Spercy dead. The Spercy dead that night.
No life within your soul. No life.
No love for God. And physical death, of course,
was entailed in this. Thou shall surely die the
sentence of death. That fell upon Adam.
They picked this up. Of course at the.
Prospect of physical death and I.
Didn't die immediately. God is merciful.
God could have wiped them out in a moment.
How dare he rebel against God? He did rebel against God.
How dare he sin against this high almighty God?
But he did sin against God, and God could have snapped them out
in the moment. But he didn't.
He didn't. But Adam, you're going to die
for this. So we did Genesis chapter 5,
verse 5. All the days that Adam lived
were 900. And 30 years.
Listen to these words. Listen to these words about
Adam. And he died, all right, He died.
And God could snap you out. In a moment, but.
He's patient. But you are going to die, except
Christ comes back first. We're going to die, you see, and
we know this. We see families today and
they're torn apart. Mothers have been taken away,
Fathers have taken away. Sons and daughters die, Husband
and wives die. We find this in families.
Death comes and takes away our loved ones.
Here's the wages of Sin is what is death.
See it all around us today with. Funerals and death.
You're going to die. The sentence of death has been
placed upon you. I know we have to go, even go
forward in this tonight, eternal death.
It's. A grave was just the end.
Some people could breathe. Or maybe a?
Little sainer relief here tonight.
And there are people who believe such nonsense.
I meet with people, call me for people and they say this, well,
I just believe this. I believe you live and you do it
and you can do whatever you want.
But you see, when you die, you're put into a hole in the
ground. And that's the.
End of you. I want to say it tonight to you
and this meeting. That's not the end.
There's eternity and there's
hell, and that's a teaching Bible, but God is bringing out
what Christ says, what the word of God says here.
In his word. It says in Revelation 20 verse
14 and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.
This is the second death. Now do you believe?
It now does anyone tonight believe there is a second death?
These people are taken and they're cast.
Into the lake of fire and he says.
Quite clearly, this is the second death, the death penalty.
It's going to be carried out, going to be carried out upon the
Sinner for all eternity. I carried out upon the Senator
in the place called Hell for all eternity.
Now, but I wonder. The Lord Jesus Christ.
When he was speaking. And he says in Matthew chapter
10 and Matthew chapter 10. And the verse. 28 and.
Fear, Fear not them which kill the body.
Notice what he's saying but are not able to kill the soul but
rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body and
hell. And these are the words of the
Son of God. He's full of love, he's meek,
he's kind, and then he's saying to these people fear him.
Don't be worried by fearing other people but fear him who is
up power, who's able to cast body and soul.
Into hell. The wages of sin is death.
Listen, the wages of sin is death.
And that's being pronounced by God, by the way.
That's what God has said, and I want you to see that there's a
sentence. Been placed upon you on a
diverted person tonight in this meeting.
You're going to die. You've died firstly, you're
going to die physically and you're going to die eternally if
you go on your sin. A divine sentence, got to say, a
sentence is not only a divine. But a sentence that is deserved,
we know here speaks about the. Terms of wages now.
We do know that. When you work, you expect to get
your wage. Of course you do.
Hope you do anyway. You get a new job if you don't,
but that's the way it works. Out you do the.
Wages. You get the money, the more
work. Generally, sometimes you get
wages. If you do overtime, well,
certainly you hope to get more wages and so on.
God's wages are the same. They are the same and the more
people sin, the more punishment, the more punishment and the more
they rebel and the more they reject the Lord Jesus Christ.
We find here they're going to receive more wages.
In Romans chapter 2, for instance, and verse 5 has said,
but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasures up
onto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of
the righteous judgement of God, who shall render to every man
according to his deeds. Listen according to his deeds.
And Paul here says of people that they're building up wrath.
Well, how they're doing this? They're sending against God
Daily, weekly, monthly. Yearly selling against God.
Listen, they're building up their wages.
Their wages. And eternal punishment he will
receive or she will receive their wages and they are
deserved. It was, see, it was a, one
particular man said if you do Satan's work.
You must be. Prepared for his wages.
And another one said it's not that God kicks people and he
casts bad people into hell and he will do this.
But he said this. But it is a place they have
worked hard to get into and they will receive everything notice
they have earned. The further wages I already
indicated. When you work, you earn your
wages when you receive the wrath of God and the punishment of God
for your sin, you'll receive your wages.
Here's the sentence pronounced The wages of sin is death the.
Wages of sin is death, and you're building up your wages
every day without Christ. Every day living for the world,
every day running after sin. Whatever that may be in your
heart and life that might. You're building up.
Your wages, the wages of sin, is death.
And when you receive. The wages at the end of time and
eternity. Then you will be deserved.
I want you to see that tonight. Solemn, we have to say.
Solemn. Words.
But we're talking about death. This is death.
This is right before us here tonight in this tax.
This is death. There's nothing nice about
death. Especially the all converted
person tonight. There's a death sentence placed
upon you tonight because you've sinned against.
God, don't be thinking. You're too.
You're not too bad. And all the rest of them the.
Weight of sin is death. Have you sinned?
Is there anyone here? Tonight in this meeting.
Who said to me, Noel? I have never sinned, Israel.
I don't believe there's one. We've all sinned.
Well, what You have sinned against God.
What's the sentence? The weight of sin is death.
What's the death penalty? So that's.
Death we find here in this, but then we want to know only the
sentence pronounced. I want to think about the
salvation provided. Now there's a word here that
changes the whole. Picture.
But I want to hear that. But you ever talk to some people
sometime and they're telling? You a whole story the way
they're going, the way they go and you're waiting for a wee
word coming in that's going to change the whole picture in the
conversation and they're telling you about someone but.
The whole picture changes. They've just changed.
The whole picture because they've brought in this word.
But hold on, there's a great but here the wages of sin is.
Death but. Here's the alternative.
The gift of God is eternal life. Like this is good news, The
force. Points.
Certainly, it's not good news. It shall be disturbing.
News it shall bring us down to the gutters shall bring us down
before God we we shall fear God tonight.
We have sinned against them. We're all to his wrath is going
to take us someday and cast it into hell.
But, but there's a but in this text, and there's a but in this
verse, and it speaks about a salvation that is provided.
And here's the good news of the gospel, the gift of God's
eternal life. Not amazing.
Deserve to be punished, we deserve to lose our soul and
deserve to be cast out of God's presence.
But. The gift of God's eternal life.
And that's good news, isn't it? Instead of death, there's life.
There's life in Jesus Christ. I want to say that tonight.
That's what we have come to preach and to say to people.
And he talks about this life, this salvation that like it's a.
Gift as a gift, it's something. And what you see tonight here,
it's something that's given to us and you.
Find that in the Bible, for instance.
In John 17 verse 2, the Lord Jesus said, as I has given him
power, speaking about himself over all flesh, that He should
give eternal life to as many as thy has given him.
So He talks about this eternal life and it tells us here as a
personal gift, as a personal gift from God to the centre is
called. Notice the title of this gift.
The gift of God, The gift of God, this great God.
Is holy, who's high this great God, that we have sinned against
them? But the gift of God is eternal
life. And notice here he gives it
according to the text, it's free.
Not amazing. You can.
Buy sound at. The at the at the throne of some
a judge in the country and they condemn they deserve to be cast
in the prison and the judge reach over and gives them
something freedom Mason. It's free.
You don't pay for this gift. You don't work for this gift.
It is the gift of God. You cannot work for it, for by
grace are you saved through faith and all of yourselves.
It is the gift of God. Not a works.
Lest any man should post somewhere told plainly here in
the Bible, it's not a works. I meet so many people and I
asked him I get into heaven to say it's how you live your life.
It's how you treat people. Like there's nothing wrong with
helping people. There's nothing wrong with
trying to do good. But I want to tell you.
Here tonight, you'll never get the gift of God by your works.
It's a free gift. As a free gift.
You don't work for it, you don't pay for it, you don't earn.
They'll get brownie points and say, well, I earn a religion
like Judaism, Islam, Buddhism. They're all based upon the.
Works all the works. Get all the works.
And then at the end you get all. The good.
Works on one scale. And the bad.
Works on another scale, and certainly you hope you outweigh
the good. Works outweighs the bad works.
I want to tell you tonight. It's not by works.
I want to tell you tonight that this gift of God is free, He
says. I give unto them eternal life.
You cannot earn it as a gift, as a gift of God, as a personal.
Gift from God to you. I'm asking you tonight, have you
received it? Have you received us?
The gift, Remember, it's either death or life.
God gives life, eternal life. It's a passionate.
Gift as well. You know, we, we show our love
when we, we buy gifts for one another.
Well, we, we're supposed to anyway.
It's not right for the husband, for the wives or whatever the
case may be and the grandchildren.
And we show our love by buying gifts to our family and others,
of course. Here's a gift full of the love
of God. That's full of it, That's full
of it, full of the love of God. He sent his Son into the world
to pay the price for our sin. And in first John 5 four verse 9
and this was manifested the love of God toward us because a God
sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live
through him and join us, right? And he says, listen, do you want
to see how God's love was shown, how it was manifested?
Here's how it was manifested. He sent his Son, only begotten
Son, into this world, that we might live through Him.
That's how it's fine. That's how it is.
Christ coming down the Son of God into this world.
Remember that great verse in John 3 verse 16.
For God shall love the world that he give his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believe in him should not perish.
But if everlasting life here's we find the passion, the love of
God here in this life, and this gift is full of love.
He give us son. He gave a son to die for us, and
that's what we find when we come to the Bible.
He paid the price. For our salvation.
He shed. His precious blood and.
Acts 20 verse 28 talks about being purchased with his.
Own blood, and I want you to see that tonight.
Purchase at the highest cost the blood, the blood of Jesus
Christ. How could we ever put any value
on the blood of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ?
What love He showed in coming to the cross.
Today for sinners like you and I.
That we might live. That we may have eternal life?
Never. You think God doesn't?
Love you never. You think tonight God doesn't
love us? He showed us love.
He sent the sun into the world to die for us, and so this gift
is full of passion. We sing that hymn.
I hear the Saviour say, Thy strength indeed a small.
Child of. Weakness, watch and pray find in
me. Thine all and all Jesus pet it
all, all to him I owe. Sin has left the Crimson stain.
He washed it white as snow. I tell you tonight, the love of
Christ, the love of God here is finding this gift.
Lord Jesus Christ, pet us all. In order that we ever get.
This gift. So we find here's a gift.
That's full of love that God loves us and so.
Marvels up our sister. Saying so well tonight.
Amazing Grace. How sweet.
They're saying amazing thing to be saved, to have this gift.
I saved a Wretch like me. It's a passionate gift full of
love. Tonight it's a permanent gift.
It's everlasting. None can take it away from you.
Because I came.
Across a story today by the woman, she had a watch.
I'm not against anybody who has a watch, but this watch was
185,000 designer watch. Well, there's some people were
watching her and the sore were. Going about to London.
With this watch and the Wheeler three people waiting around and
they waited on her chance and they got the woman threw her in
the ground and away with the watch.
So this. Price.
I'm sure somebody bought it maybe.
It was her husband. I'm not really sure.
But I'm taking it someone bought her this watch a great.
Gift, but it was snots from her. It was taken away from her.
Here's a gift that will never be taken away.
Remember the Lord Jesus Christ. Said in John 10, verse 28 And I
give unto them eternal life, and notice what he said, and they
shall never perish. And then there's any man pluck
them out of my hand. He said, hold on, I give them
eternal life. They're in my hand and there's
nobody, there's nobody able to pluck.
Them out of my. Hand he's holding on to us those
he saves and gives us gift. Well, it.
Doesn't mean people. Will try to pluck.
The devil may try to pluck out of.
Hands, but no man is able. No one is able.
And he said in verse 29, my father would give them me as
greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my
father's hand. Here's a salvation that's real.
I want to tell you tonight. Here's a salvation that's
permanent. You'll never lose it.
No one will ever snatch it from you.
They'll never snatch it from you, and they cannot lose it
either. I came across another story
today there about a woman and she had a great problem.
I don't know why she goes to this church or not but.
Listen to the story. She bought Hutton butter, a
beautiful. Expansive necklace four years
ago for her 30th and she said she.
Wore it every day. One day she put her hand on her
neck and I was gone, but she. Traced all her footsteps,
looking. For this anywhere she.
Says I can't bring myself to tell my hubby.
I just can't tell him. But here's what happened.
She lost it. How she lost it, I'm not sure.
But you'll never lose this gift. You'll never lose it.
We're foolish people. We don't claim to be perfect
even after we get saved. We're not.
But we're not the people we used to be.
But we'll never lose. It not wonderful.
Jesus saves to the uttermost. He saves to the uttermost and He
keeps us. He's not going to cast us away
when we feel when we fall. It's a permanent gift I give on
to them, eternal life. You'll never lose it.
No one of them. Christ can give you eternal life
tonight in this meeting. He can give it to you.
This gift is death or life, a pleasant.
Gift when you think of all the things.
Goes in for this gift. Your sins forgiven, peace with
God. You're going home to heaven.
Our sister were singing about heaven everlasting life is
wonderful. We have not hell, but heaven.
A mansion in my father's house are many mansions.
Christ said and hapoga 3 verse 18 I would yet I will rejoice in
the Lord. I will joy in the God of my
salvation. I'm going to rejoice.
I'm going to rejoice in the Lord.
You see Han salvation by just a pleasant, pleasant gift.
Don't thank the Lord. Jesus will spoil.
Your life, if you could see it now people think that you know.
Oh, boring old life. It's not a boring life.
The happiest people. And carried off tonight are the
children of the Lord. And in this meeting tonight, the
happiest people in this meeting are the children of the Lord.
If you have anybody you find and carried off that's happier on
me, you bring them and we'll have a chat with them.
We'll soon find out if he's happier me or any child of God
in this meeting. It's a happy thing to be saved.
This gift, everlasting life, a home in heaven, since forgiven,
and you can receive that today by turning from your sin and
repenting and trusting Jesus Christ.
Put your faith and trust in the Lord Jesus.
Lord, I don't want the wage of the sin.
I don't want to lose my soul. I want Christ who loved me, who
died upon the cross, and I come to him with all of my heart, and
I want you to save me. And I want you to give me this
gift. Do you think God will give it
you? You come without heart,
repentant heart, and faith in Christ.
By the grace of God, come to Him and He'll save you and you'll go
home tonight with a gift. You'll go home with this gift in
your heart. We're singing the other night.
What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since
Jesus came in to my heart. I say in closing tonight our
time is gone. We do.
Try to keep in time I sell her death or life, all right.
That's it. I hope you can understand what I
preached on tonight. I saw their death or life for
you. I'm a bigger right to eternity.
I say eternal death, our eternal life.
Christ makes a difference. He's the one who bore the wrath
of God, who can save to. Utmost come and.
Trust him and you'll receive life, a new life, eternal life.
There's life in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Come and trust them. We're here to help you.
You don't need us.
Of course you can set this matter between you and God, but
if you need us, speak to us. Death and life.
Look at the taxes you walk. Through that door tonight.
The wages of sin. Is death but the gift of God,
eternal life with the common trust Christ tonight hope you
will. May the Lord speak to your
heart, we're going to say.