I invite you to open your Bibles, please, to the Gospel of Mark chapter 3. The Gospel of Mark in chapter 3, please. Let's begin our time of worship in the Word with prayer. Father, we rejoice that we do know that the Lord Jesus Christ was not simply a good or even a great man. He was and is the King. He was and is the Creator. He was and is the Savior. He was and is the Sustainer. He was and is the Head. Father, we rejoice that Jesus triumphed over the grave. You raised Him from the dead and He ascended up on high to Your very right hand. We want to rejoice this morning because we have access into Your presence through Him. We want to rejoice because of Your great love with which You have loved us. Help us this morning as we consider Your Word that we would allow Your Spirit to speak to us, that we would allow Your Word to come alive to us, that You would minister to us where we need it most. I pray, Father, for anyone here that's never trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, that today as the Word goes forth that Your Spirit would truly quicken them, make them alive, that they would see the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ, and they would embrace Him as Lord and Savior. For those of us that know Him, that know you, we pray, Father, You'd help us to allow the truth of Your Word to impact us, that we would always embrace the truth. We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen. Here in Mark chapter 3 we have a wonderful passage of Scripture that we did touch on a bit last week together. Did you know that there are people who still believe that the earth is flat? They actually have formed a society called the Flat Earth Society. You can actually look them up on the internet. They actually believe that the Earth is flat. Now, I don't know about you, but I live in the age in which there are actually pictures of the Earth from outer space via satellite. And when you look at said picture, you can actually tell that the Earth is, in fact, round. Did you know that? Have you seen such pictures? But yet, in spite of clear evidence to the contrary, there are people that still believe that the earth is flat. I find that to be shocking. There are people, now this is on a much more somber side, there are people who do not believe that the Jewish Holocaust took place in spite of personal testimony of many that were tortured during those years. Can you imagine holding a view with zero facts? And when confronted with the facts, saying, I don't believe you. Well, it tells us a little bit about human nature. Facts are supposed to rule our opinions, but sometimes people in their stubbornness remain resolute to believe in something in spite of the correct information. Here in Mark 3, beginning in verse 22, we encounter such a group. a group of stubborn-willed scribes who, in spite of the facts, continued to hold on to their own wicked, stubborn, rebellious opinion. And so this morning we entitle the message, Jesus Confronts the Stubborn Will. Jesus confronts the stubborn will, and listen to the context of this passage in Mark 3, verse 22. It says, "...and the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, He has Beelzebub, and by the ruler of demons He casts out demons. So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but has come to an end or has an end. No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house. Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men and whatever blasphemies they may utter. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation. Because they said he has an unclean spirit. Verse 30 just simply ties it up. The reason he launched off into this series of parables concluded with a great truth is because they said he has an unclean spirit. And so the first thing I want for us to point out is this. The foolishness of a stubborn will. The foolishness of a stubborn will. And I use the term stubborn here because of the context. The group who is being discussed in this passage is a group of scribes. A group of scribes. These are Jewish authorities. Authorities. I'm not talking about some guy. We're talking about Jewish authorities who are supposed to know how to interpret and apply the law. They are to know the Scriptures inside and out. I find it very interesting and important to the context here that they do not try to disprove the miracles of Jesus. Many people today try to disprove the miracles of Jesus. It has been an ongoing assault against the Bible for hundreds of years, probably mostly the last hundred plus years, that there has been this all-out assault against believing in the supernatural that is recorded in the Bible. That simply could not have happened. It could not happen that someone spit on the ground and made mud pies and then put the mud on someone's eyes and then they saw it. It just couldn't happen. That is outside of the realm of my logic. It's supernatural and therefore I will not believe it. That's the last hundred years or so that people have been like that. Note that the scribes did not try to disprove the miracles of Jesus. It would have been foolish to do so because just prior to this Jesus healed someone and the people saw it. They had no leg to stand on to say, oh, it's just hocus pocus, really people aren't being healed. They knew he was healing, and so they had to come up with a way to explain away the healings, not to be able to say, oh, he really doesn't heal, he doesn't have any power at all, there's nothing special about him at all. Instead, they had to come up with a different reason. And what they tried to do here, instead of trying to disprove the miracles, simply is trying to discredit Jesus by saying he's under satanic influence. Foolish. A foolish, foolish way. These men should have known the accompanying signs of the Messiah. They should have known the accompanying signs of the Messiah. These are Old Testament scribes. They know what the Bible says about the One who was to come and what would come with Him. Now, as a way of just making this point really come clear into our minds, I want us to turn to Matthew chapter 11. Matthew chapter 11 will help us with this quite a bit. You'll remember, I trust, the context of Matthew 11. The great forerunner of Jesus Christ, John the Baptist, had been preaching that Jesus was the one. He was the one that they were to follow after. In fact, they were supposed to repent. Why? For the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And he faithfully preached this message over and over, but it got him in trouble. And he finds himself in prison. and he's sitting in prison, and his insides are churning all around, and he's thinking, I know that with the Messiah, Israel is supposed to be freed from the bondage of other people's oppression. And here I am, the one who has been preaching the king and the kingdom is here, and the government that's supposed to be overthrown is keeping me in bondage here in prison. And so his faith is really being challenged. So John the Baptist simply sent some disciples to Jesus to ask him the logical question. And the way that Jesus answers this is very important for us to help us understand the validity that people should have seen in his claims as the Messiah. Matthew 11, beginning at verse 1. It says, Now it came to pass when Jesus finished commanding his twelve disciples that he departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities. And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and they said to him, Are you the coming one or do we look for another? Now, let's stop here for just a moment. Didn't John the Baptist already know that he was the coming one? Yes. He was preaching about it. In fact, you remember the time that he was with his disciples, John the Baptist's disciples, and Jesus walks by. Do you remember what he said? Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And he doesn't just leave it at that. He says, because God told me that the one upon whom the Spirit of God descends like a dove and remains on him, that's the one. So he didn't just say, I think that's the one. There was tangible evidence. And here's John the Baptist. His faith is waning. And he sends messengers with this question. And here's how Jesus responds. He didn't say, Oh, you slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have told you. He could have said that. That's not how Jesus responds to a man in distress. This man in distress. Look at what verse 4 says. Jesus answered and said to them, Go and tell John the things which you Hear and see. The blind see, and the lame walk. The lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear. The dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of me." Jesus really quotes numerous Old Testament passages from the book of Isaiah. that were all to point to the Messiah. He essentially compiles them all into this one little sentence and says, listen, here's an evidence from Isaiah of the Messiah, here's an evidence from Isaiah of the Messiah, here's an evidence from Isaiah of the Messiah, here's an evidence from Isaiah of the Messiah, over and over, just as, listen, John the Baptist, fear not, I'm doing all the things that the Old Testament says the Messiah was going to do. And we assume, based upon who John the Baptist is, when he hears the message, he says, well amen, I'm so sorry I had questioned you, Lord. I'm so sorry, I should never have thought that way. But here we have a different group that's before us. The scribes that would have known all those same things that Jesus just pointed out to John the Baptist. And as they're considering this and seeing what Jesus is doing, instead of saying, These are the signs that are accompanying the Messiah. This must be him. They say, no, no, that's not him. Now, this is not a unique circumstance for the scribes. You remember when the wise men came from the east and they were seeking to worship whom? The king. I want to worship the king. We saw his star and we're following a star. So in the process, they encounter Herod and Herod hears about what's going on. And Herod calls who? The scribes. And he says, where is this king supposed to be born? You know what the scribes said? They didn't say, man, I really don't know. I'm going to have to look that up. No, they said he was to be born in Bethlehem. They knew it. But you know what? Knowing something and applying that to faith is a completely different story. And so they know the truth. Oh yeah, Jesus is going to be born over here. But there's no exercise of faith in the information that they held on to. We call that a tragedy. That's the same scenario here again in Mark chapter 3. They're seeing Him healing people, restoring sight, preaching to the poor, helping the lame. People that are healed are healed 100% This is no Mickey Mouse operation that's going on. It's a big deal. And the crowds are thronging to Him. So everyone knows there's something to this. And the scribes foolishly choose to believe a lie. They should have known the accompanying signs of the Messiah. Here's a thought here. than draw the appropriate conclusion from the evidence they choose to blaspheme." Rather than draw the appropriate conclusion from the evidence they choose to blaspheme. Look back there again in Mark 3. The crowds are thronging to Jesus. He can't even eat because they're just up against Him. His disciples can't eat because they are crowded The crowds. Why are they there? Because they see the things He's doing. And the scribes, rather than recognizing this, this is the Messiah, they come up with another explanation. Verse 22 of Mark 3. And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, He has Beelzebub. It's a funny name, isn't it? Beelzebub. Lord of the Flies or Lord of the Demons. And really, the best one is that last one. The Lord of the Demons or the Ruler of the Demons. He has the Ruler of the Demons. And then he goes on. By the Ruler of the Demons, he casts out demons. In other words, Satan is indwelling you. Not a demon. That's bad enough. Satan is indwelling you. The chief demonic force is invoking His will upon you. Think about that for a second. They have gone from seeing what should have been accompanying signs of the Messiah to turning it from saying, I believe, which should have been their response, right? I believe, down on their knees. I repent. I'll follow you. That's the response that was called for to you are a devil. Stubbornness makes us do stupid things. The Bible tells us in John 3 and verse 19, and this is the condemnation, that light has come into the world and men love darkness rather than light. Why? Because their deeds are evil. Foolishness. It's stubbornness. It's a stubborn will that makes them make bad choices. Even when the light is presented, they say, I don't want what that is. I want what I have been in misery doing for the last however many years of my life. I just really love wallowing in feeling helpless and lost and having no purpose. I love this. Leave me alone. Don't show me the light. Don't show me a better way. A stubborn refusal to consider the facts will always result in foolish claims and foolish decisions. So many people have already made up their minds about the Lord Jesus. I'm talking about today. They've made up their minds about Christ and biblical Christianity. How many times have you heard people say to you, I don't believe in organized religion. Maybe a good response to that is this. I'm just proposing something. Oh good, neither do I. I don't believe in organized religion, but I do believe in biblical Christianity. Maybe you've been exposed to something that's false, but I can show you something that's true. That's why it's so important for us, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, that the things we stand for, they must be in accordance with truth. Because if we can always point them, thus saith the Lord, then we will always be standing on the foundation of godliness and Christlikeness. When we start to stand on things outside of thus saith the Lord, is when we look or we make ourselves standing upon a foundation that could be shaky. But a biblical foundation will always be a solid footing for us to say, hey, God says this. The stubborn will may still stubbornly refuse. But you know what? We can't necessarily change the stubborn will. The stubborn will sometimes has already made up their mind. But we need to reflect the truth of the Word to at least give them the opportunity to see what real, live, Gospel living is. The Gospel is alive. It's powerful. It changes our lives, not just at the point of salvation, but living out the Gospel changes our lives every day. It really does. The Gospel is not just unto salvation. The Gospel is something that is put into operation every day of our lives. It's the same concept that we regularly talk about, about walking in the Spirit, dying to self, and allowing Christ to live in our lives. Foolish, stubborn approaches to life result in foolish, stubborn decisions. Another principle that we note from this passage, when all the evidence points in a particular direction, it is foolish to deny the truth. Here's Jesus. He's doing what the Bible says the Messiah was going to do. And the scribes who know the Old Testament observe it. They see the truth in action. And they would rather reside in error. It's foolish to deny the truth. You know the evidence? The evidence points to a personal, loving God. Do you know that? The evidence points to a personal, loving God. Just a few verses of Scripture just to note mentally or if you're taking notes. Psalm 19, verse 1. The heavens declare. That means they speak forth. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows forth His handiworks. God is evidently on display every day. We can see the fingerprints of our great God in heaven. The facts are on our side, friends. There's no way to look at the world around us and say, oh, this one day magically happened when suddenly, out of nowhere, these things split, and this thing split, and there was this bang, and all this goes on. And suddenly, magically, all this order that has resulted from chaos. This makes so much sense. My wife has told this story a number of times. A number of times. My family was riding down the street. I was not. I was here. And they drove by a certain school and one of my children said, am I going to go to school there? And Amy said, no, probably not. And my daughter said, do they teach revolution there? And Amy said, yes, they do. And Drew said, what's revolution? And so Alexis, went on to say, that's when they say that a monkey became a monkey man and it became a man. And there was sudden silence in the car. Until my son actually understood what that was saying and he started bursting out in laughter about how foolish that is. A seven-year-old child can figure out how foolish that is. And yet, the great scholars of today think that that's how it works. Now, they are a little bit more sophisticated than their explanation. But ultimately, what they're saying is that a monkey became a monkey-man became a man over time. It just kind of happened that way. Some great cosmic force must have done this. Foolishness. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows his handiwork. Night unto night utters what? Knowledge. We can see it. The Bible tells us this in Romans chapter 1 verses 20 through 22. For since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes are what? Clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse because Although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became what? Fools. The Bible makes it so clear. The world around us makes it clear. There is a personal God. There is an orderly God. There is a powerful God. The evidence is clear. It's on our side. And so when the Bible makes this statement in Psalm 14 in verse 1, it is true, that the fool hath said in his heart, there is no God. The evidence points to an ultimate and appropriate conclusion. There is a God. But many today will deny it. Why? Because they have a stubborn will, has already made up their mind, and it results in foolish choices and decisions and opinions. Here's another principle that we want to note from the passage. When a stubborn person has the evidence stacked against them, they begin to malign the person pointing out the truth. When a stubborn person has the evidence stacked against them, they begin to malign the person pointing out the truth. Has this ever happened to you? You're just telling someone the truth, and they don't like it. They disagree. And so, instead of dealing with the facts, they start to change the subject and start talking about something else. But you did. It's just the way it is. And that's what these scribes have done. Here's Jesus. The evidence is obvious. I am the Messiah. Just pay attention. You know the Word. The Word declares clearly that this is how the Messiah will be, how He will act, and what He will do. He does it, and they say, you have Beelzebub. It's called deflection. Deflecting from the truth. We see that in these unbelieving scribes, but we can also see it in ourselves. I'm talking about every one of us. We all can struggle with this. 100% of us. Because there's not one person in this room, myself included, that doesn't struggle with pride. Think about this. If you can never have anyone correct your point of view, you really need to look out. If no one can ever say something to you and you say, you got a point there. Now you may not get it at the very second that they say it because naturally your defenses come up. But as you chew on it, meditate on it, pray about it, say, someone still had a point when they said that to me. I've had many people point things out to me and think, yeah, I guess there's some merit to that. If we can't ever humble ourselves to recognize that we have something wrong or a point of view that's wrong, then we are of all men to be pitied because we think that we are the end of truth. We're not. The Bible says this about wisdom that's from above, and I love this. This is a passage of Scripture that comes to me any time that someone gives me a critique or some thought to think about. James 3.17, but the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, ready, willing to yield. The King James version of that is easily entreated. Someone can say something, you say, yeah, let me think about that a little bit. Maybe there's something I need to change. It's full of mercy, it's full of good fruits, it's without hypocrisy, it's without partiality. They said Jesus was being controlled by Beelzebub because they didn't like the fact that his works were pointing out that they were following errors. They didn't like the fact that everything that they had worked on so long in building their reputation as really Jewish scribes and Orthodox scribes and people that were following this religion to the nth degree, they would hate for anyone to think there's a better way. And so instead of recognizing the truth that was offered, they start hurling accusations. They say he has Beelzebub, the Lord of the demons, or he has an unclean spirit. They were claiming that the spotless, sinless God-man was filled with uncleanness. Imagine that. That's blasphemy. God who took on human flesh and lived in perfection, you have an unclean spirit. It's just night and day. It's just clear as day to recognize these people are just deflecting away from their own condemnation. Stubbornness leads people to incredible foolishness. And I want to just kind of sit on that for just a moment because all of us can have the possibility and potential to be stubborn. And if we are, Just think, just observe from an objective view that we can have at looking at these people, because it's not us in the target here. We say, man, foolish. How foolish are they to see the facts and not believe them? There are times that facts are confronted to us. You know what we do? Well, I believe this. I know this. I'm going to do this. I've always done this. My mommy always did this. My mommy's mommy always did this. My uncles have done this. This is what we're going to do. Because this has always been the way it's been. That's foolish, isn't it? If the facts confront your opinion, what does that mean? It means your opinion is ultimately wrong and must be changed. And there should be obvious counteractions. In other words, if you recognize your opinion is wrong, then you have to make the changes that are necessary to go with it. So we see the foolishness of the stubborn will. And then as we transition a little further, and we're going to talk about this more tonight, the facts that Jesus uses to confront the conclusions of the stubborn will. I know this is kind of a mouthful there. The facts that Jesus uses to confront the conclusion of a stubborn will. He doesn't argue with them. He doesn't debate with them. He simply points out the facts. He uses a little bit of logic, some parables, very short parables, to give them a little thought about what they're saying. Does what you're saying really even make sense, is essentially what he does to them. We'll talk about that tonight, but this morning I want to present some facts that are often rejected. Just facts. Many stubborn wills over many years have rejected these facts. I just want to convey the facts for your consideration. Fact. God created the world. It's a fact. Genesis 1.1 says, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. That's a fact. There really isn't anything to argue about, is there? Because God's Word says it. Therefore, it's true. Fact. Man has sinned against God. That's a simple fact. The Bible says in Romans chapter 3 and verse 23, For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It's just the facts. Man has sinned against God. Another fact, sin has devastating consequences. In Romans 6.23, the Bible says, for the wages of sin is what? Say it with me. Death. The wages of sin is death. We're going to talk about this again in a couple minutes here as we look a little further down the passage. Fact. Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Jesus came into the world to save sinners. This is just facts. I'm trying to, as unemotionally as possible, present you with what is true. In 1 Timothy 1, verse 15, God's Word says this, Christ came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. That's what Paul said. The fact is, Jesus came to save sinners. 1 Peter 3 and verse 18 says this, For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, made alive by the Spirit. What did he do? He died. He placed himself in my place. He took the wrath that belonged to me, the just for the unjust, once for all. This is just a fact. Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Fact. God has made Jesus' righteousness available to those who believe. God has made Jesus' righteousness available to those who believe. It's just a fact. There's nothing necessarily that has to be emotional about the statement. It's just a wonderful fact. The Bible says this in Romans 3.22, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe. What's the result of belief in Christ? The righteousness of God. To whom? Anyone. To all and on all who believe. To state it maybe even more clearly, Philippians chapter 3 and verse 9 makes this fact come forth even more clearly. Paul says, "...and be found in him, not having my own righteousness which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith." Now what does it mean that Christ's righteousness is available? What does it mean that God is willing to apply Jesus' righteousness to one who believes? It's very simple. The only way anyone ever makes it into heaven is if they are absolutely 100% perfect. That makes me disqualified. Except for this truth. The fact that Jesus came into the world to pay for my sin and that He was willing to give His righteousness and place it on my account, so that based upon faith in Christ and having that righteousness put on my account, when God sees me, He sees absolute, total perfection. This is a wonderful blessing of God, and it is simply just a fact. There's also another fact that maybe on the more grim side, That's this, to reject the gospel of Jesus Christ is to accept the consequences of one's sins. To reject the gospel of Jesus Christ is to accept the consequences of one's sins. Listen carefully to this passage of Scripture. It comes right after the most prominent Bible verse that anyone knows. John 3.16, "...for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." Well, right after that, on the heels of it, in verse 17, here's what God's Word says, "...for God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is." condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. To reject the gospel of Jesus Christ is to accept the consequences of one's sins. Jesus didn't come to condemn. He came to save. But if a person will not trust in that one, one pathway that God has offered, grace through faith in Christ alone. If a person rejects that simple gospel, they will accept accountability for their own sin. What does that mean? Well, to state it with Jesus's words, look down in Mark 3 at verse 28. We look at the tragedy of a stubborn will. We already looked at the foolishness of a stubborn will, the facts that confront the conclusion of a stubborn will. Now the tragedy of a stubborn will. Look at verse 28. Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men in whatever blasphemies they may utter. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation. He who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation. This is the tragedy of a stubborn will. Presented with the facts. God has told us the truth that man is born in sin That sin has a consequence. That consequence is eternal separation from God and an eternal judgment in a place called the Lake of Fire. God's Word is very clear about all of this. God has provided a way by which a person can know that they do not have to spend a day separated from God or a day in judgment for their sin because of what Jesus Christ has done. He is willing to provide His perfect righteousness to anyone and everyone who will trust the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And here, Jesus is confronting these scribes who should have known the truth, that stubbornly refused, that instead of saying, these signs point to Jesus being the Messiah, say, these signs to us point to Jesus being filled with Satan. You can't get any further away from what Jesus is presenting than to say the one who is doing the deeds of the Messiah is Satanic himself. You can't get any further away. What is the unpardonable sin? Well, according to R. Kent Hughes, he does a good job of keeping this to a short discussion. Very simply, it is the ongoing continual rejection of the witness of the Holy Spirit to the divinity and Savior hood of Christ. It is the perversion in the heart which chooses to call light darkness and darkness light. It is continuing rejection of the witness of the Holy Spirit, whether that witness be a quiet witness in the conscience, the rational witness of the word, or even miracles and wonders. There's a lot bigger discussion we can have about this, but essentially, blaspheming against the Spirit is to take what the Spirit is teaching, trying to make clear and light to us and say, I don't want that. I don't want that. I don't need eternal forgiveness. I don't need eternal life. In fact, when you die, you die like a dog and you go in the ground. Or, I'm going to get another shot at this. Maybe I'll come back as a grasshopper. And hopefully I'll do really well then. And I'll come back as a human and have a chance to do it again. And I'll graduate to something better. I don't know what the various... There are so many different views on the afterlife and eternity. So many people don't care about it. It doesn't matter what everyone else thinks. It really comes down to just one person's opinion. For you, it's your opinion. Will you continue to reject the Holy Spirit's desire to woo you, to illuminate your mind so you'll understand the Gospel? Will you reject the revelation of the clear Word of God that just simply makes facts known? Here you are, hearing what God's Word proclaims as facts, You can allow the Spirit-inspired Word of God to form your view of truth, or you can reject it outright. But you must be informed as to the gravity of your decision. It is a decision with eternal impact. A continual rejection of God's truth results in eternal condemnation. I want us to turn to one passage of scripture just to give us a little flavor for what that eternal condemnation could be like. Revelation chapter 14, please. Revelation chapter 14. A continual rejection of God's truth results in eternal condemnation. And here in Revelation chapter 14, we have a sample. God is giving us a little sample of talking to another group of people that are not in this room that during a time in the future that they, instead of choosing to believe in God, choose to follow after someone else. They call it the beast. The Antichrist is another way to state it. But in the decision making process that they made to follow after someone other than Christ, God tells them they have sealed their fate and this is what their fate will be like. So in Revelation 14, we have a sample description of what eternal condemnation is like. In Revelation 14, verse nine, the Bible says this. That a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb. and the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever and they have no rest day or night who worship the beast in his image and who receives the mark of his name. This is just a sample from another generation that's future. The same reality could be said about someone sitting in the room today who hears What God's word has to say, which is man has sinned against God. Sin has eternal consequences. Jesus came into the world to save sinners. God has made Jesus's righteousness available to anyone who will believe. To believe on that is to wrap oneself, or to have God wrap oneself in the righteousness of God and have eternal life with God forever. Never to be worried about being condemned for a second. But to reject it is to embrace accountability for one's sins, which results in eternal condemnation, which is recorded here in Revelation chapter 14. That's this. The smoke of their torment arises day and night, forever and ever. It says that God will pour out His wrath without mixture. In other words, nothing else is mixed in. No happy day involved. No little relief breaks. It's the full weight of one's sin. Now, let me ask you a question, and it's a simple question. You have, on one hand, Jesus, who did what was necessary to pay for your sin. He says, I will take that on me and I will give you my righteousness. And you have option B. And you say, and God would say to you something to the effect of, if you don't want what I'm providing for you, you have this other option. You can embrace your sin, reside in your sin, and pay for your own sin. You know how long that takes? Well, the passage has told us. It takes eternity. Now, to the common sense mind, the logical mind, when presented with those facts, one is always going to pick letter A. Always. Okay, Jesus pays, and I receive His righteousness, and I spend eternity with God, never to be condemned, ever, ever, ever. Common sense always dictates in that direction. But remember, our biggest problem is our own stubborn will. Don't let the facts get in the way of a good argument. God's Word is clear. Crystal clear, you have the option to choose this day, life. Choose you this day, life or eternal death. The choice is yours. It is yours to make. Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. God's Word says, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. It really comes down to a very common sense situation. Ultimately, when we search for answers to these questions, we need to go to the right source. God's Word tells us that the Gospel is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes. You can choose to adhere to your own stubborn will. or you can choose to obey and believe the truth that is inspired by God. The decision is the most significant decision in this life. Here in just a moment we're going to sing a song and I'm not having a public invitation during that time but I will say to you there will be some men and women here after the song in the front Maybe today is a good day for you to shore up your understanding of where you stand before God for eternity. There are answers in God's Word. And there are men and women here that would love to show you from God's Word, you can know for sure you have eternal life with God. Just come down at the end of the song. They'd be glad to spend some time showing you the truth. Pointing out fact, fact, fact. to which I trust, you would respond, I believe, I believe, I believe. To which God would say, come to me, come to me, come to me. Let's pray together. Father, we don't want to be stubborn. We don't want to be stubborn. We don't want to choose our way over yours. I pray for each one of us, believers and unbelievers, that we would always see the truth of your word as the final authority and we would choose it every time. But now I pray specifically for anyone here that may be battling with this glorious opportunity to choose to believe what You have revealed as truth in the Gospel, that they can have eternal life with You. And I pray, Father, You give them so much passion for that, that they would come and speak with someone so they can see clearly, or even more clearly, what they need to do to be saved. Do this. We rely upon You. We know we can't save anyone, but You can. And we trust You will, in Jesus' name, Amen.