Let's take our Bibles and turn with me to the book of 2 Corinthians chapter six. 2 Corinthians chapter six. I'd like to deal with verse one this morning. And the verse Verse 1 is actually a continuation of Paul's last statement, the last verse found in chapter 5 in verse 21. He says in verse 6, verse 1 of chapter 6, we then, we therefore, we moving the thought forward, is what he's saying. Well, what thought had he set forth? Well, the Apostle Paul was moved by the Spirit of God to declare an unimaginable, indescribable truth of God's grace to his elect people concerning the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it was concerning God's grace. He penned in verse 21 of 2 Corinthians 5, he said, He, for He, that is the Father, hath made, that is to make or to do, it's the same word, that was used when the Lord made water to become wine. It actually was wine. As Brother Scott would say, it wasn't water with a post-it note on it. You've heard him say that. It said wine. No, you look at that and say, no, that's water. No, He hath made Him that is the Lord Jesus Christ, sin. The word there is hamartia, it's a word, again, I've told you I don't speak Greek and I don't speak Hebrew, I don't speak, you know, these, but I have a concordance and I can look them up. And what the word, when it said, He hath made him sin. Hamartia is the word, and actually what it means is, to miss the mark or to err. He made him to miss the mark. He made him to err. For us, that is all that the Father hath given him. He hath made him a curse. That's what Galatians 3.13 says. He hath made him a curse, who knew no sin, holiness himself, who was of pure eyes than to behold iniquity. He was made to err, that we, His elect, who are nothing but sin, whose righteousnesses are as filthy rags, that we might be made, that is, that we might become something that we were not in ourselves. What is that? The righteousness of God in Him. Not as if we were the righteousness of God. Not virtually. That means it almost was, or it looks like it was, or it's a great facsimile. No. We were made in Him the righteousness of God. eye hath not seen, ear hath not heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man, that which God hath prepared for those that love him." And to have the scriptures declare that here is, this is the grace of God. He who knew no sin was made sin. As I've said before, and I cannot help but say this every time I say this, I hold my breath when I say this, but it's the truth. Hanging thread upon that cross was sin. And God dealt with him. God dealt with him. indescribable justice and judgment and wrath of Almighty God where the law found sin, it dealt with it. That we, God's elect being born in Adam, polluted from the crown of our head to the sole of our feet who have no soundness in us Nothing spiritually healthy about us might be made the righteousness of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. That truth that Paul had dealt with, verse 21, the actual grace of God toward the vessels of His mercy, that verse of Scripture sets forth the grace of God. Romans, I'll read this for you, 8.3, says this, For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh. Now, in 2nd Corinthians 6.1, we then, being, that truth being set forth, we then, as workers together with Him, beseech you also that you receive not the grace of God in vain. Now I want you to notice something. I'm going to just deal with this verse of scripture for a few minutes this morning. I want us to look and notice if your Bible has italicized words in it. The word as, the words with him, and the word you are all in italics. That means that they were added by the translators to try to be a help. As I've heard it said often, a lot of times the word, they do help, but sometimes they don't give you the exact. Here's what was actually said. Apostle Paul was saying, we then, workers together, beseech also that you receive not the grace of God in vain. The words, as workers together, is really just one word, and this is what it means. This is what that definition, those three words, one word, means. It means to work together, it means to help in work, and it means be a partner in labor. Well now, with that being the true definition, and trying to apply those words and their definitions as Us, being workers together with God, helping in the work or being partner in labor, is really giving us more honor than we're due. So, that the Spirit of God did send forth and commission heralds of the gospel is absolutely true. Matthew 10, 16, behold, the Lord said, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. He said in Matthew 28, 19, go you therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. And even the Apostle Paul declares in 2 Corinthians right here Chapter 5 and verse 20, now then, we are ambassadors for Christ as though God did beseech you by us. But the work is totally His. And we are not assistants in being the Lord needing us as far as the proclamation of the gospel. Now even in, I looked at this passage of Scripture, 1 Corinthians, you just hold your place there, turn back to 1 Corinthians chapter 3 and just look at this verse of Scripture for a second. 1 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 9, now that says we are laborers together with God. Ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building. It says we are laborers together with God, but now we miss exactly what the apostle is saying if we fail to read the verse prior to verse nine. Look at verse eight. Here's what scripture says. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one, and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. Now, we, the ones planting and the one watering are laborers together. The scripture says with God, but actually when you look at the, I looked up the meaning of that, the literal, Young's literal translation states this, for we are of God, fellow workmen. So, God's people, called of the Lord, ordained of God, commissioned of God, sent of God, are actually instruments in God's hands. Called and commissioned and actually responsible as laborers and servants of the Lord to do His bidding, His direction. But when it comes to us being co-with the Lord, You know that we're not. There's one God and we are His workmen, His servants. So the Apostle is not declaring that God Almighty and His creatures, His servants, His people are cooperating in bringing about His eternal will and purpose as though the Lord's will couldn't be done without us, but the truth that the Lord does use men and these laboring together as instruments in the hands of God is absolutely true. But we don't deserve any praise. We don't deserve any honor. We don't deserve a pat on the back. The scripture says in Luke 17 verse 10, so likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which you're commanded to do, this is the Lord speaking, say, We are unprofitable servants. What does that mean? No merit due. Unmeritorious is the word. We have done that which was our duty to do. So as being workers together in that first part, I want to get to that part about receiving not the grace of God in vain. That's what I'm going to actually focus on for a moment. But I wanted to deal with that we then as workers together with Him We are His workman service, not cooperating with as though He needed us. So the Apostle Paul is stating that we as workers together, concerning the Lord, concerning His commission, he said, I beseech you also that you receive not the grace of God in vain. There's some things that I know for a fact that that doesn't mean. Receiving the grace of God in vain. The apostle is not insinuating, and you know this but I'm going to bring it out, that the grace of God as meaning the regenerating grace of God could be received in vain. or that God's grace could be repelled or resisted by a man who, according to his own will and power, could just say, no. No. I grew up, I told you that, talking about, you know, well, this was an old brother, so and so. I know the Lord's dealing with him, because, man, I could just see the whites of his knuckles. He was hanging on to that. like he was resisting God, like he had some kind of power. Listen. Receiving the grace of God in vain does not mean that man or woman possesses the ability or the will to resist Almighty God whenever the Spirit of God is pleased to come in regenerating grace. He comes in power. He comes and he quickens that sinner that before was dead in trespasses and sins. A sinner that can't do anything. He has the ability to resist God? He's dead. He's dead. That seems to be something that the world and its religion misses. I'm missing that. What do you mean you're dead? I mean, you're unable. I mean, you're incapable. I mean, again, the only thing I can relate it to that we can understand is that if we're sitting here preaching, if I'm preaching a funeral and there's a corpse here, what can that corpse do? Nothing. I can talk to it, I can encourage it, I can admonish it, I can beseech it, I can do whatever. I can sing 97 verses of Just As I Am, I can do all that. But it's not going to do anything. It's going to be there. It's dead. So when the Apostle Paul said, receive not the grace of God in vain, that does not mean that you have the ability to resist it. Whenever God comes in power, He comes and removes a heart of stone and gives a heart of flesh. He gives a new, a sensitive heart. He gives a new spirit, a new will. And that man is now willing in the day of God's power. Why? Because he's alive. Whenever a believer believes Why does he believe? Because God gave him faith. He doesn't believe in order to receive faith any more than a child cries in order to become alive. Something has to be there first, and so receiving the grace of God. in vain doesn't mean that I have the ability to resist God. We are, 2 Peter 1, 4, we're a partaker of the divine nature. God comes in regenerating grace according to His eternal will and purpose before the world began and in time when it pleased God through the preaching of the gospel, the truth, this message right here. The declaration of the grace of God, which if you come right down to it, the declaration of the grace of God is the declaration of Christ. That's the declaration of the grace of God. He comes in regenerating grace and he births the vessels of his mercy from heaven. God Almighty gives them life and they believe. And they have a heart for him now. He made them new in Christ Jesus. And they were born from above, not of blood. Just as I've said before, just because my mom and daddy were believers doesn't mean I'm a believer. God may be pleased to save, The child may be pleased to save all in a home, but that's not necessarily so. Not of blood, nor the will of the flesh. Again, that's what I've been dealing with. Nor the will of man, but of God. So I know that receiving the grace of God in vain doesn't mean that I have the ability to resist God. I can hear His call. I hear the message. I understand it. I perceive it, but I just don't want to. I just don't want to come. I just, I got some wild oaks to sow and I'm going to get saved just before I die. I mean, I used to think that. I did. I thought, you know what? Just before I die, I'm going to give my heart to Jesus. And you know, I want to go to heaven, but I just don't want to, you know, I'm just not ready to make that commitment now. And somebody said, well, that's the stupidest thing I'm telling you. That's the way I thought, Chuck. Secondly, to receive not the grace of God in vain doesn't mean that I can effectually receive God's grace and then lose it. It doesn't mean I have the ability, first of all, to resist it. It doesn't mean that I can receive it. you know, and have it and be regenerated and then lose it. John 10, 27, 28, my sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Now, what does that mean? That means that a sinner regenerated by the grace of God will not be lost. He will not be lost. You cannot get rid of it. You think, who would want to get rid of it if you ever truly had it, but that's the mindset. Send away his day of grace. He was just so bad, God took it away from him. No one can be truly regenerated and then become unregenerate. Can you imagine the slur upon the ability or the wisdom of God? They say God desired that that sinner be saved. They say, you know, the scripture says God's not willing that any should perish. No, they're only quoting half a verse. God is long-suffering to us-ward, Peter said. Who are the us-ward? Well, just go back to the first part of that chapter and you'll find out he's talking to God's elect. elect. God's elect. He's long-suffering to usward, not willing that any of us should perish. That's what he's talking about. He's talking about God's elect. So when you quote a half a verse, you know, you give the wrong impression. So if somebody could be converted and then lost, it would mean God's not powerful. God's not all-powerful. He couldn't keep you. Well then, if it doesn't mean that I can resist it first, or it doesn't mean that I can have it and then lose it, well then, what does it mean? To receive not the grace of God in vain. Now, remember, He's talking about, at verse 21, that glorious declaration of what God Almighty has done for his people set forth concerning the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, the grace of God that declares Christ the servant of Jehovah concerning God's everlasting covenant of grace to send his only begotten son into this world to seek and to save his people from their sins. It was totally by the grace of God that the Father made Him to be sinned. I was going to say, can you imagine? I think you can't. I can't either. But that God the Father made Him sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God. That truth, that truth, that declaration, of Christ's glory is that glorious declaration of the grace of God that is not to be received in vain. Now basically, let me come down to this. This is a warning. This is a warning. It doesn't mean that man has the ability to resist it. It doesn't mean that man can possess it and then lose it. It's a warning. Warning. Receive not that truth when it says, in vain, in an empty way, without faith. God commands all men to repent. Now that's the truth. I'm going to tell you something. Every person in this congregation this morning is commanded to repent. I'm telling you right now, Almighty God has declared every one of us to repent. You might say, well, you're just trying to make this so narrow that only a certain few. Let me tell you what I'm saying right now. God commandeth every man to repent. God commands every man, I beseech you that you receive not the grace of God. That declaration of the grace of God, this is what God did. And the Apostle Paul was moved by the Holy Spirit. Don't you receive that in an empty way. Don't receive that in an empty, vain way. Almighty God has saved His people. He saves His people the only way they can be saved. The Lord Jesus Christ says, I am Now the next word that's getting ready to come out of my mouth qualifies this truth. The way. I looked up that word, the, Mark, and you know what the first thing it says about it? Definite article. Definite article. I am the way. That means that there is no other way. I am the way. How do you get to Franklin, Tennessee from here? There's a bunch of ways. I can tell you the closest way to get there, but I can tell you there's a lot of ways. You can go by way of New York City if you want to. You'd just be driving a long time. But if there was one way, this is the only way you could go. This is it. I can get off this pulpit in numerous ways. I can go that way. I can go this way. I can try to go over this pulpit if I want to. But when it comes to salvation, there's one way. This is it. This is one way. I am the way. I am the way. I am the truth. I'm the truth. I am the life. Now listen to this. No man cometh unto the Father but by Me. He is exclusive. He's exclusive. And because of Him being the only way, that means no other. No other. Well, I thought you could... There's no other. I thought I had to, there's no other. That congregation told me that there's no other. There's no other. Hebrews 12, 14, 15 says, follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Let me tell you the literal. Follow by faith. after the Lord Jesus, our peace and holiness before God. Without which, that is without Him, no man shall see the Lord in peace or dwell with Him. Looking diligently, lest any man fail of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness spring up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. Now, looking diligent, lest any man fail of the grace of God. Now, let me clear something up in closing. No man can, when it says fail of the grace of God, not that any can fall from the free grace and favor of God, that's eternal. We already established that. But what the apostle's talking about, some who profess to embrace that gospel and later depart, looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God. He just, he wasn't kept is what he was saying. How can that be? 1 John 2.19, they went out from us, they were not of us for him. If they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us, but they went out that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. So Paul is telling the church, This is the truth. God the Father made Him sin for us. Here's the grace of God. This is the grace of God. I will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious. He made Him sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Now Paul says, or the Spirit of God says through Paul, you receive not the grace of God in an empty way. Don't receive. Don't get. Don't have to yourself. God's people, when they hear that right there, let me tell you what they do in their heart. They fly to Him. Lord, keep me. Lord, don't let me be found to be one like in the Song of Solomon, when Shulamite, when the Lord Called her and she said, I'm already in bed, I'm taking my shoes off. You know. Carnal men boast of there being no ability that they'd ever walk away from Him. If God doesn't keep, save and keep, those that profess to believe and have no heart for it, they will. they will manifest that they were not of us. Paul warns us, again, the Spirit of God warns us, don't receive God's grace in an empty way. And a believer will say, Lord, God forbid that I should receive in an empty way that which you've said, Lord, I come. Lord, help me. Lord, save me. Lord, don't pass me by. Like those apostles saw me, appeared as though he'd walk by, they go, pass me not, O gentle Savior. Hear my humble cry while on others you call. Don't pass me by. Lord, don't leave me to myself. Lord, I know there's been others that's left, and Lord, there's no difference in me or them if you don't keep me. Don't receive the grace of God in vain. I pray that God bless this to our heart, that He'd quicken us, refresh us, and cause us to again call upon Him in need concerning His mercy for His glory and our good.