The title of the message this evening is this. The Word is Enough. The Word is Enough. There was a title of a James Bond film not so long ago called The World is Not Enough. Well, it seems to me, with the majority of so-called evangelical churches, the Word of God is not enough. They seek to add, and in some cases, go as far as to subtract what is in the Word of God. And where they do not go quite as far as to subtract, they're silent. Silence, in my book, is the same as subtracting. But the Word of God is enough. The Word of God should be enough. God has reminded us so many times that he has spoken, past tense, past tense. He continues to speak but by this word, that revealed word, that which he has spoken, that which he has breathed out. We're told indeed he's spoken by his son in these last days. We're told and warned severely in the the closing words of this book in Revelation 22 that there is indeed a punishment to be meted out on such as add to this word or even take away from this word. Those who believe God, those who believe God, they believe God simply. The faith, the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the gospel of God's grace is a simple faith. It's a simple faith. It is called the simplicity of faith in the word of God. There's nothing complicated about it. When the gospel becomes complicated, when it becomes complicated, The truth therein is crowded out. We've just been talking about our upcoming meeting on Tuesday, God willing, where we shall look at how one man stood up against such things. And why was he standing up? Why was Marlon Luther standing up and making a stand at great cost? for such truth, such simplicity, that a man is justified by faith alone on the Lord Jesus Christ. Because that which called itself the Church had placed so many things in the way of faith, that it crowded it out. Because you see, the Word of God to them was not enough. In fact, the Word of God was almost anathema to them. According to what has been spoken only, that is what we're to proclaim. That is what we're to proclaim. But if you go in most places tonight, if you go in most places across this vast city in which we live, to the shame to the shame of the professed church nowadays. Where is it? How many places can we find where God's word is sufficient? What God has said, what God has breathed out is sufficient only. We're just saying how firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in his excellent word. What more can he say? What more can he say than to you, he has said? For you who unto Jesus have, for refuge, have fled. There is soul sufficiency in this word and Sufficiency in him who is the the word incarnate who is the Lord Jesus? That is the substance, that is the basis, that is the only foundation of our faith. That's our only hope. It's found in what God has said, which indeed is revealing Him who is the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Logos. And in that person of the Lord Jesus Christ, in knowing Him solely and alone, do we have salvation. anything else that is not proclaiming what God has said anything else absolutely anything else is the teaching of men and is mere fables that's what the apostle calls it and we certainly do we not live in those days If the church was not in that age when the apostle wrote those words of warning to young Timothy, when he says, there will come a time when people will not bear sound doctrine. Heaping up for themselves, those who will tell them the things that they want to hear, having itching ears, they would rather than believe the almighty, all-powerful Word of God in the Gospel, the dynamis, the dynamite of the Gospel, that converts the soul, that indeed only saves the sinner. They would rather believe in fables. They would rather believe in the fables of mere men, mere men, whose words are no better. They have no more power to direct anyone to salvation. They have no more power to impart truth than Enid Blyton does. They have no more power than Hans Christian Andersen. They have no more power than all sorts of fables. They have no more power than 1001 Arabian Nights. And yet, and yet, this is what we are standing against today. This is what we are up against today. But let us stand. Let us stand where the likes of Luther stood. Let us stand where the likes of John Huss stood. Let us stand where the Covenanters stood. Let us stand where others the unnamed ones who were thrown into the flames, their children with them. Let us stand where they stood. We see here in Joshua chapter 2, jumping out of this verse, the all-sufficiency of God's Word, the all-sufficiency of God's Gospel. These spies have given the promise, they've given the oath made to Rahab of such a salvation that would visit her household upon their return if this scarlet cord is displayed from the window and all in that house would be safe and secure. We looked at this in detail last time when we met in October over these words. But something else jumps out to me this evening here. In verse 21 we see the response, see the simple response of Rahab. See the simple response of Rahab. It's not complicated. Then she said, According to your words, so be it. That's enough for me. Your word is enough for me. Yeah, I know we live in an age where, humanly speaking, a man's word is not his bond. you have to swear on this and swear on that you can't just say I'll do something and it's believed or can be believed but see Rahab is content here she is content to trust in what has been said to her personally by the spies in their promise of salvation She believes and simply lays hold on the word that came through God's servants. This promise to Rahab came from God through his servants. For she was one of his people. She was one of God's elect. The promise was to her. No matter how bizarre, which if you think about it, it was. A scarlet cord. A scarlet cord. I wonder, I wonder how many people, how many people observed, because we see that she let down the scarlet cord straight away. We don't know how long it was in between the Israelites coming back to conquer the land. What would the conversations have been? You're trusting in this scarlet cord. Why are you dangling a scarlet cord from your window? The simplicity of it. And yet, it may have seemed bizarre to those around. Foolish even. Foolish it does seem to others. As indeed, believing in Christ, the crucified and risen saviour, believing simply in him, is foolishness. It's utter foolishness to those who are perishing. It's utter foolishness. As the Church of God, we are to proclaim, we are to proclaim the unchanging Word of God. But the unchanging Word of God in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. across not just this city but various places many churches have fallen into this into this traditional pattern this pattern of it's almost like a ritual that Sunday morning we will will proclaim doctrine Sunday morning we call it the teaching service and Sunday night we call it the gospel service When the Word of God never separates the Gospel from the rest of the Word of God. It's the Word. It's the Word, period. It is the Word of God in the Gospel. Although we do live in an age of man-centered, will-worship, false Gospels, we know, we know that everything of the flesh shall amount to nothing. Nothing. Now that, in that sense, doesn't cheer our hearts that we should wish ill on others in their failure. But you know, there are places, there are places that are boasting of their great blessing here and great blessing there, and they're packed to the rafters, but yet they're proclaiming the words of man. the teachings of man, and they're filling their seats, to the most part, not with the sheep, not with the elect of God, but with goats, those who are not the Lords. True, God will do a work, and indeed there will be found his people, but there is much, there is much failure going to be known soon. they will see many of these people will fall away they will fall away because they're holding on to a false hope a false truth it is not the truth 1 Peter 1 23 tells us God brings his people to know his salvation by new birth and by that alone The Lord Jesus told Nicodemus, you must be born again. There's no such thing as a born again Christian. No such thing. No such thing. Everyone, everyone who knows the Lord Jesus Christ is born again. And unless you're born again, you don't know the Lord Jesus. You cannot, you cannot even see the kingdom. That's what he said. Yet people are willing to make exceptions and say, well, yes, they're good people, they believe in this and they believe in that, but they don't quite believe in this new birth thing. If there is no new birth, you can do nothing spiritual. It is to be born again. of the Spirit of the Living God. It is by the working of His Almighty Spirit. And He goes where He wills. Salvation is of the Lord. Those chosen unto salvation always, always, always respond to this all-powerful converting word. Trusting as Rahab did. Trusting simply. Taking the Savior at His word. Simply believing. Those who never believe are not the elect of God. But the elect of God, each one will be saved. Each one. They will believe this word. And so a way, I think this used to be the saying of someone once before, away with such people as Charles Hodge and his theological writings that people lord up today. He believes he would even, and I quote, say, yes, we believe in election, but we believe that there are some of the elect can fail to be saved. And there are some non-elect who believing can be saved. Utter nonsense. Hypothetical atonement. It means nothing. It's just that. It's pathetic. It's nothingness. No, all the elect of God will be saved. That's our confidence. If we haven't got that, we've got nothing else to believe. Let's pack up and go home. Let's do something else. but we we don't believe in ourselves we don't believe in our own strength we hold on to God we hold on to what he has said what more what more is there what more can he say than to you he has said Rahab Rahab saw it was sufficient she saw it was that was all she had in fact You see, she trusted, she heard in this word that which was her salvation. She heard in this word that which was indeed the irresistible voice of God's grace. As the Lord Jesus says himself, my sheep, no one else will. No one else will. As he's made it clear in the previous verse, Those who didn't believe, oh they're religious, they may even be church attenders, they may even be church elders and deacons, they may even be preachers. You do not believe this gospel of mine. They may believe another gospel, you do not believe. This is searching stuff, this is serious stuff. people we all know but how long how long must people go being disobedient to the truth of God if they have the spirit of God he says you do not believe because you are not my sheep not not you can't become one of my sheep because you don't believe no all of God's elect are lost sheep but they're sheep and they've been given unto Christ that's why they're called the sheep they've been given unto him by his father they've been entrusted unto him he said indeed all that the father gave unto me and he gave them and he gave you who belong to Christ to to his son from eternity My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. Couldn't be any simpler could it? Is there anything complicated about that? How often do you hear such words of the Saviour proclaimed in its simplicity today? There in the words of the Saviour is the truth that indeed he has come and he has come to redeem he has paid an atonement price for a limited amount of people my sheep he says in the previous verses the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep not for the goats and we see in the words of the saviour there is sovereign election. My sheep, my sheep. And we see irresistible grace. My sheep hear my voice. Only those who don't believe the doctrines of grace feel they need to place something on top, feel they need to push things along the way, feel they need to use terminology I don't care whether they say they believe in the doctrines of grace, whether they've got the works of Calvin on their bookshelves. If they don't stand where these men stood, if they don't stand where Charles Haddon Spurgeon stood, what's the point in quoting these men? They don't believe them because they don't preach such things. We know it is God's word. as He has spoken, which reveals Christ, God's Word alone, which reveals Christ, and then such as must be saved do believe. Once again, simple language, simple language the Word of God gives us. We read in the Book of Acts, as many as were ordained unto eternal life. Guess what they did? Guess what they did when God came by His Spirit? in almighty power in the preaching of the gospel guess what they did they did a course they did an alpha course Christianity explored they needed to go and confess their sin to a man they were called forward to make a commitment quite simple really as many as were ordained, as many as were chosen, as many as were purposed unto eternal life, believed. Believed. Because they are God's people. It is the revealed Word of God which reveals Christ by the Spirit of God. That alone. God's people's witness is used but ultimately God speaks by his word. Many preach a Christ who is not according to what is actually said. Read between the lines. Listen carefully. It's not what they say most of the time if not all the time. It's what they don't say We're just talking about this where we're not before the service It's not it's not what you can pick and find is bad. It's that which is silent This Christ, the invention of man, does not save. He can't save. He can't save, because he depends on man. Because he depends on something that you will do. But he depends upon something that you're invited to do, you're offered to do, and yet you cannot do. And so there is stalemate, spiritual stalemate. There is no salvation in this Christ that's proclaimed by the free will preachers today. He cannot save. As simply as Rahab trusted to say, according to your words, so be it. That's enough. That's enough. We, the church today, are to trust in nothing else. Nothing else than what the almighty saviour God has said. And if he's not said it, let's, and I'm going to use colloquial language. If he has not said it, let's keep our trap shut. making up all manner of terminology that means nothing, that does nothing. All it does is to confuse and deceive. That's sufficient. God's word is sufficient. It was sufficient for this woman, this object of God's grace, and it should be sufficient for God's church today. what he surely has spoken to preach the word to proclaim the glorious the glorious good news of the gospel of God's grace in his son the Lord Jesus Christ is to preach this word is to preach this word One and the same, as we said earlier, one and the same. As 1 Peter 1.25 says, but the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this, this, this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. There is no teaching service and a gospel service. We preach Christ. in season and out of season. There is no in between. Woe unto us if we preach not Christ. Why? Why simply speak what God has said? Because by hearing this, those who will be saved will hear God and believe. they will. He's promised us. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Secondly, we proclaim this one message of the Gospel, which Jude 3 calls the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. But how many people, amen this verse, quote the verse, And yet, don't quote it as it's really speaking. Notice the language of the Word of God here. We're told here to contend earnestly for something. And what is it? The faith. Singular. The faith. One faith. One faith. One and only faith. One Lord. One faith. One baptism. One God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. One faith. There's no grey area. One and only truth sent from God. God has spoken. If we all believe in one God and then we say there are many different Gospels, many different interpretations of the Gospel, then it is as good as to say there are many Gods. It's idolatry. Some people say Some people like to be clever and say, well, you don't have a monopoly. You don't have a monopoly of truth. Is that true? Is that statement right? You don't have a monopoly of truth. I think this book throughout its pages tells us that God's word has a monopoly of truth. Now, if we choose to ignore and misquote, misinterpret this book, that's one thing, but there is a monopoly of truth. It's what he has said. We do. God's elect are in possession of the truth. The truth. Not just truth. Not just some truth. We are in possession of the truth. If we are not, we cannot be saved. It's the truth that saves. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free. the truth man has tempered with this which is so simple at your words so be it you see the apostle paul speaking about those who have faith on christ he prays in that much misquoted in that much misquoted scripture to pray for all men for kings and all manner of men. And then people love to misquote the scriptures, do they not? For God desires that all men be saved. He's talking about all manner of men. All manner of men that he has from amongst all nations. As he said to Abraham, as he promised to Abraham. in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed but what what is what is it that he says what is it that's so important what is it that that goes hand in hand with it to come to the knowledge of the truth that's salvation the truth christ is that truth Christ is that way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through him. But no one comes to the Father except through the true Christ. The true Christ. He warns himself, his disciples of and us of many false Christs will come. They will be preached, they will be spoken of, but they're not the Christ. Many will say, here he is and there he is. Don't believe them. How many Christs have been proclaimed today? And they're saying, here he is, there he is, but it's not Christ. We trust in this word because we believe God will perform it. Simple as that. That's what Rahab said, isn't it? Rahab said, at your word. At your word. So be it. So it shall be. I believe. I believe your word. And she proved that she believed that word, did she not? by her obedience to that word, a simple obedience. Just a simple obedience and yet so profound. Placing that scarlet cord from her window. As Rahab knew, as Rahab knew there was no other word given. Where was Rahab's hope? She knew, she's already confessed to these men that the hearts, the hearts melted within all the people of Jericho. They were so fearful. They heard of the great things that were done by Jehovah God for his people when he took them out of Egypt with a strong arm and how he parted the Red Sea, how he dealt with the two kings, the other side of the Jordan. They were fearful. And they knew this great army of God's people was about to come and conquer the land. They even knew, she knew herself, she confessed, maybe not the people of her land, but she confessed that this was the God, this was the only God, and he will indeed conquer for his people. What other hope was there for her? What hope was there, other than what God says now? And so we are told God has spoken by his son. Rahab said, so it shall be. I believe those are words of faith. Those are words of faith, not a hope it shall be. So it shall be. And that's the one who's saved. That's the one who knows the Lord Jesus Christ. they cling to Christ they cling to Jesus they come to him as he draws them he comes to them and they come to him and they know that promise that he has promised that he will in no wise cast out they believe they believe he is their only hope And so we see the professed Church of Christ today increasingly, nonetheless, denying the Gospel truth and following after the writings of man. Why is this? It is clear that they do not believe. They do not believe in practice. They do not believe either believe in and trust what God has promised in his word. I can't find any other reason. I can't find any other reason why people should cherry pick bits of the Bible and then go and run behind the writings of false teachers such as Andrew Fuller and others like them, with all their mixed-up teachings, let alone the fact that they are false teachers. The confusion! There can be no other reason that such people are not content with God's Word. The Apostle Paul says he was content to proclaim and trust one message. The Apostle Paul, I think most people would accept, probably was the greatest theologian of the church, ever, other than the Lord. Yet he trusted, he was content to proclaim a simple message. Why is this? We're told that he came not with great swelling words, but he came and preached this one message. Christ and him crucified. Why is this? Why? We need to know why. Why did such a man see that that was all sufficient for him? That was all he needed to trust in. That was the only message he should trust in. There was nothing else that he should proclaim to lost sinners seeking where God's elect would hear this message. Why such contentment? Such peace? to trust in this message. Why? Quite, quite simple. That's been the recurring theme I've noticed throughout this sermon. Simple. Kind of like this man. But it's simple. The answer's simple. For he goes on to say, We read the full reading here in 1 Corinthians 2, 4 and 5. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the spirit and of power. Why is this? Because, you see, the enticing words, the wisdom, the clever words, the intellectual arguments, the nice way of packaging it all manner of terminology we use today this was worthless and he knew it was he says that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men But in the power of God, in the power of God Almighty, he was not ashamed of the Gospel. He was not ashamed of the Gospel, and so he proved this so. That he, like Rahab, said indeed unto his Lord, that the message that he entrusted him with, he said at your word, at your word, so it shall be and if it's good enough for him it should be good enough for us he was not ashamed of the gospel because he said it is this gospel of Christ of the true Christ of what Christ has fulfilled of what Christ has completed fully for his people at the cross at this perfect redemption at this all sufficient justification that he has brought to pass, not brought possible, brought to pass. That he is just and justifier of everyone who believes. It's the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. today those who preach another gospel are saying they are saying this they are saying this they would not they would shudder they would they would they would argue they say we would not say such a thing we hold God in such high esteem we are very religious we're very reverent but they are saying when they refuse to preach the simplicity of the gospel, they are saying, whether they like it or not, they are saying, when they accuse us, why do you only preach Christ? Why do you only preach the cross? They are saying, it surely is not enough. That's what they say. It's not enough. But for God's true people, this is all sufficient. It's not only something we cling to, it's something we're confident in. We've got confidence in this word. That's why we proclaim it. We only have one word, you see. One word of the gospel. One message to believe and one message to proclaim. So be it. So be it, Lord, we say, when this is all we hold to and all when we reject the teachings of man that are opposed to this. but to change in any way, or add one single thing, one single jot, and make salvation at all according to man's will, is to say, we do not believe it shall be according to God's Word. We do not believe God's Word is sufficient That's exactly what they're saying. Lastly, see a wondrous encounter. A wondrous encounter that we have with the Lord when we take him at his word. We see Rahab sent them away. That could mean many things in terms of expounding this word. She sent them away. She let them go, we're told. Let them go. Her heart was settled now. She was at peace now. Perfect peace. Perfect peace. She was content. she was confident she was confident her salvation her salvation has been won for her she sends them away she lets them go and you know my thoughts in looking at this were drawn irresistibly I believe towards the incident where Jacob had this great encounter with the Lord Jesus in Genesis 32. Turn with me to Genesis 32. This mysterious encounter. And yet we know that it is one of those wondrous appearances of our Lord Jesus Christ in his pre-incarnate state. He appears as a man. and he reveals himself to one of the objects of his grace. Jacob the supplanter, Jacob the cheat, Jacob the despicable liar. Has a new name as a result. Genesis 32 verse 24. Then Jacob was left alone. If we're to come to Christ, we come alone. We come alone. We come alone. It's between me and my God now. Yes, there is the wondrous fellowship that we enjoy tonight. There is a wondrous unity of joining together with like mind. But the reception of this salvation, the coming to know this saviour is a very personal matter. You come alone to Christ. And he was left alone and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the socket of his hip and the socket of Jacob's hip was out of joint as he wrestled with him. And he said, let me go for the day breaks. But he said, I will not let you go unless you bless me. To come to Christ is to say that I've got to cling to Christ. I've got to cling to Christ for all, for all I'm worth. I've got, I've got to have him. And so he said to him, what is your name? He said, Jacob. And he said, your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel. But you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed. Then Jacob asked, saying, tell me your name, I pray. And he said, why is it that you ask about my name? And he blessed him there. So Jacob called the name of the place. He knew the name. He knew the name. He called the name of the place Peniel. For I have seen God face to face and my life is preserved. observe two things here before we close christ came to jacob not the other way around christ ordered all events god ordered all events that jacob would be found there alone all events in his life he came to jacob first and then jacob was brought to be made willing in the day of christ's power Jacob was brought now to desire him who he had no desire for before. He was brought to desire to lay hold on him. This in short is how God's salvation in his son is received. Simply lay hold on Christ. Lay hold on Him now. Believer on the Lord Jesus. Lay hold on Christ again, continually. Lay hold on Christ. He will bless you with His salvation. You who know not the Saviour, if you will hear His voice in the Gospel, If you will be drawn to believe Christ, that this one was crucified for you, then take him at his word. For it is so, it is so. Everyone, everyone who sits here with a profession of faith, he has a story to tell of God's grace and mercy. and say I took him at his word and I found him not to fail me according to his word promising complete salvation perfect acceptance with God and total forgiveness of sin may we be content to solely and only proclaim this message because this is the only message that saves a sinner