Sermons on important subjects by Rev. Paul C. Jong

 Sermons on important subjects by Rev. Paul C. Jong 

If We Do Things by the Law, Can It Save Us?

< Luke 10:25-30 >
"And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?' He said to him, 'What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?' So he answered and said, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.' And He said to him, 'You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.' But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?' Then Jesus answered and said: 'A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.'"

What's human's biggest problem?

They live with many mistaken illusions.

Luke 10:28, "Do this and you will live."
People live with many mistaken illusions. It seems that they are especially vulnerable in this respect. They seem to be intelligent but are easily deceived and remain unaware of their evil sides. We are born without knowing ourselves, but we still live as if we do. Since people do not know themselves, the Bible repeatedly tells us that we are sinners.
People talk about the existence of their own sins. It seems that people are incapable of doing good, however, they are inclined to characterize themselves as good. They boast of their good works and show off, though they say they are sinners with their lips.
They don't know that they neither have good in them nor the ability to do good, so they try to deceive others and sometimes even deceive themselves. "Come on, we can't be completely evil. There's got to be some good inside of us."
Consequently, they look at others and tell themselves, "Gosh, I wish he hadn't done that. It would have been better for him if he hadn't. He would have been much better off if he talked like this. I think it is better for him to preach the gospel in such and such a way. He was redeemed before me, so I think he should act more like one who has been redeemed. I was redeemed just recently, but if I learn more, I will do much better than he does."
They sharpen the knives in their hearts whenever they are hurt. "You just wait. You will see that I am unlike you. You may think that you are ahead of me now, but just you wait. It is written in the Bible that those who come last will be first. I know it applies to me. Wait and I will show you." People deceive themselves.
Even though he would react the same way if he were in the other person's place, he still judges him. When he stands at the pulpit, he suddenly finds himself stuttering helplessly because he is over conscious of his attire. When asked if people have the ability to do good, most people say by their lips that they don't. But in their hearts, they are under the illusion that they themselves have the ability. So, they try hard to be virtuous until they die.
They think that they have 'goodness' in their hearts and that they have the ability to do good. They also believe that they themselves are good enough. Regardless of how long they have been religious, especially among those who have achieved greater progress in the service of God, they think, 'I can do this and that for the Lord.'
But if we take the Lord out of our lives, can we really do good? Is there good in humanity? Can we really live doing good works? Human beings do not have the ability to do good. Whenever they try to do things on their own, they commit sin. Some push Jesus aside after believing in Him and try to be good on their own. There's nothing but evil in all of us, so we can only practice evil. By ourselves (even those who have been saved), we can only sin. It is the reality of our flesh.

What do we always do, good or evil?

Evil

In our praise book, 'Praise the Name of Jesus,' there is a song that goes like this, "Without Jesus we only stumble. We are as worthless as a ship that crosses the sea without the sail." Without Jesus, we can only sin because we are evil beings. We have the ability to do righteous works only after being saved.
The Apostle Paul said, "For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice" (Romans 7:19). If a person is with Jesus, it doesn't matter, but when he/she has nothing to do with Him, he/she tries to do good deeds before God. However, the more the person tries, the more he/she practices evil.
Even King David had the same innate nature. When his country was peaceful and prosperous, one evening, he went up to the roof for a stroll. There, he saw a tempting picture and fell for sensual pleasure. What was he like when he had forgotten the Lord? He was truly evil. He committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed Uriah, her husband, but he couldn't see the evil in himself. He made excuses for his actions instead.
Then one day, the prophet Nathan came to him and said, "There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had numerous flocks and herds. But the poor man had nothing except one little lamb. And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd but took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him" (2 Samuel 12:1-4).
David said, "The man who has done this shall surely die!" His anger was greatly aroused, so he said, "He has so many of his own; he could surely take one of them. But instead, he took the poor man's only lamb to prepare food for his guest. He should die!" Then, Nathan told him, "You are the man." If we do not follow Jesus and be with Him, even the born-again can do such evil things.
It is the same for all people, even the faithful. We always stumble and practice evil without Jesus. So we are thankful again today that Jesus saved us, regardless of the evil in us. "I want to rest under the shade of the Cross" Our hearts rest under the shade of the redemption of Christ, but if we leave the shade and look at ourselves, we can never rest.