Second Corinthians chapter number four I want to begin reading in verse number one in this particular passage. Just give me a moment To share this scripture with you What God has already done and what God will do I began studying? This particular y'all gonna stand anyway ain't you? And begin studying this particular passage well y'all can stand, but I'm giving my introduction I The other day, when I began to study out of this particular book, I better go ahead and read 2nd Corinthians chapter number four, verse one, therefore seen, we have this ministry. As we have received mercy, we think not, but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by the manifestation of truth, commanding ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But I'm interested in this verse. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. Thank you, you may be seated. I'm interested in this thought, the devastation of a hidden gospel. We understand this, we know this, if we are saved tonight, it is simply through the grace of an almighty God. It is nothing we have done, it is nothing that we could do, but thank God there was a day and there was an hour when someone presented the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ in our life. The gospel is simply the death. and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But as the apostle Paul is writing to the church of Corinth, he is writing to those that were saved that were on their way to heaven. But he is reminding them if we hide the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the devastation and the destruction that that brings upon the life of those that are lost. Let me say this introduction. Number one the Bible said in verse number one look at the determination of the Apostle Paul the Bible says Therefore seen we have this ministry as we have received mercy We think not in other words Paul said we don't give up we don't stop because of the mercy that we have received and Do you understand tonight? We all have valleys, we all have problems, we all have situations, but we realize and we understand that there is nowhere to give up, there is nowhere to throw in the towel, because if it was not for the mercy of the Holy God, we would either be in hell on our way to hell so we do not stop simply because of the mercy that we have received. That is the determination. Number two, there's the deception of the Apostle Paul. The Bible says, but we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty. I love this phrase, nor walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. Paul said we are instructed. Paul said it is our responsibility that you and I handle the word of God properly. Do you understand and do you realize it really isn't my opinion that that will make any difference. It really doesn't matter what you think about it or what you say about it, but it does matter what thus saith the Lord. That's why we go line upon line. We go precept upon precept. We do not pull a thought out of the Bible. We do not pull one verse and not expound what is around that verse. We must find out what thus saith the Lord. So there's the determination. We see the deception. But number three, look at the devastation in verse number three. Here's the message. Paul said, but if Our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. In other words Paul said that word to hide it means there's a veil that has been put over the message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. One Puritan writer said it's as if you're flipping the switch It's as if you're taking the candle and you're blowing the candle out and the room has become dark. Can I say it this way tonight? If you are saved, if you are a child of God, it is your job, it is your responsibility to reach out to a lost and a dying world because if we do not preach and if we do not testify the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, there is a devastation that will take place upon this world. And can we be reminded tonight that it's exactly what has happened in the modern day churches. We know the gospel, we hear the gospel, we even believe the gospel, but we have taken a blanket, we have taken break a cover, we have put a veil over the message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I wonder this evening how many neighbors do we have that are lost? How many family members do we have that are lost? How many friends do we have that are lost? We understand the gospel is the death and the burial and and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But if we are putting a veil over the message of the gospel of Christ, it means nothing to your neighbors. It means nothing to your whole family. It means nothing to your neighborhood. Listen to me and listen well. There is a devastation in this world, not because of Hollywood, not because of Washington, but because the children of God have hidden the God The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I say these four things and I'm done. There's an assault of Satan. Verse number four, what has he done? Whom the God of this world, that is Satan, he hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. Satan has went to his arsenal and he has taken the blindness and Devastated the men that are sinners and the women that have never put their faith in Jesus And he has covered their eyes to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ Do you understand and do you realize you say preacher? Why would they keep living that way? Why would they keep? behaving that way because they have been blinded. They cannot see what you see. They cannot see what we see tonight. Satan has reached into his arsenal and he has blinded the minds of them. But you believe not. Number one, there's the assault of Satan. Number two, there's the abuse of selfishness. The Bible said in verse number four, in whom the God of this world, what has he done? He's blinded the minds of them which believe not. Why? Lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. So notice verse number five, for we preach not ourselves, But Christ Jesus, the Lord, and ourselves, your servants, for Jesus' sake. You know what the Bible says has happened even in this day and even in this hour? Exactly what the man of God has already bestowed upon our ears. Instead of preaching the Bible, instead of going verse by verse, And line upon line, we tell a story about what we have done. We illustrate our testimony and we tell the world how good and how wonderful and how mighty we are. But it's an abuse of selfishness. My story will not change you. My testimony will not change you. Oh, but if we'd ever get to Calvary, if we'd ever get to the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ and tell a lost and a dying world that Jesus paid it all, it all to him I owe. Sin had left a guilty stain, but not the badness, not denomination, not religion, but Jesus washed me white as snow. It is not about me. It is not about you. It's all about Jesus Christ. There's an abuse of selfishness. Number three, look at the action of the Savior in verse number five. Watch this, for we preach not ourselves, Christ Jesus, the Lord and ourselves, your servants, for Jesus' sake. Watch this now, verse six is the illustration, but verse five must be applied. To preach simply means this, to lift up your voice as a trumpet, to let them know not through their eyes, but through their ears. I hear modern-day religions say, well, I'll just live good enough. I'll just live right, and they'll watch me live impossible. They've been blinded. That's why God said we ought to preach, because they may be blind, but they can still hear, and they can still listen. So Paul said it's not about just living right. It's not about just looking right. It's not about just acting right. We ought to lift up our voice as a trumpeter, and let a roasting down world know that Jesus is the only way to God. So watch verse number six, the action of the Savior for God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts to do what, Paul? To give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. Watch this, in the face of Jesus Christ. Paul said, they don't need to see your face. They don't need to see my face. We need to tell them about the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. I've never seen him physically, but I felt him on the inside. I've never seen him in person, but I've seen him on the inside. And when I look at the face of Jesus, I see pureness. I see holiness. I see perfection. When you look at my face, you see a sinner. You see somebody that's messed up. You see somebody that's failed. They don't need to see my face. They need to see the face of Jesus. We notice the abuse, the action, and the assault. Number four, and I'm done, look at the advantage of salvation. Verse number seven, but we, that's the saved, that's the children of God, we have what Paul said, we have this treasure. Treasure is not money in spiritual realm. Your treasure is not your house in the spiritual realm. Your treasure is not an expensive suit of clothes in the spiritual realm. The greatest treasure you have is the salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ. You may live in a shack down here, but thank God you have a mansion up there. You may not have a dollar down here, but thank God you have it all up there. Your treasure is living on the inside. So Paul said we have this treasure, that is our salvation, but notice where it is at. It is in earthen vessels. That's the same terminology as a brittle gem. in a jar of clay. You know what Paul said? Our treasure is on the inside. Our treasure's not living in this building. Our treasure's living in this body. This body's going back to dirt. This body's going back to the dust. This body's going back to the ground. But thank God, though my outward man is perishing, my inward man is being renewed day by day by day as a child of God. So watch this, the advantage, why? That the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. In my hands no price I bring, but simply to the cross I cling. You can articulate. You can have abilities. You can have every talent this world says is good. But it means nothing without Christ. It means nothing without God. There's no man good enough. There's no man able enough. You must have this treasure in earthen vessels and we can receive no glory. We can receive no applause. We can receive no accolades. It's all about the Lord Jesus Christ. So when I put a veil over the gospel, I'm telling the world that my message is more important than his message. When I hide the gospel, because it's on the inside of me, I'm telling the world, look at me instead of look at him. There's a devastation if I hide the gospel. My father preached here a few months ago. He was saved as a drunk. As a matter of fact, he had been drunk for three days when he got saved by the grace of God. But you know how he got saved? Six months before, two Baptist deacons went on soul-winning visitation. Somebody ought to say amen right there. And they went out to the neighborhood. They didn't know my father. They didn't have no idea who my family was. But as a 33-year-old man, for the very first time, My father heard the message of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what they did? They lifted up the veil. They took off the cover. I'm glad somebody was willing to go. I'm glad somebody was willing to tell. I'm glad somebody was willing to give the gospel to my family. So here's the devastation. If I hide the gospel, If I flip off the switch of the light of salvation, if I blow out the candle of the glorious gospel of God, it's not hid to me. I already know. I'll still go to heaven whether I win souls, whether I pass out gospel tracts, whether I tell one soul about God. But here's the devastation. It's hid to my neighbor. It's hid to my family. It's hid to my friends. If I had the gospel of Jesus Christ. I want you to stand with every head bowed, every eye closed, no one looking around.