God Loves… Himself

Let me tell you that God sets before you Christ upon gospel terms, which are these three. First, God in the dispensation of the gospel propounds Christ to lost sinners as the only necessary and all-sufficient means of salvation. Christ is the only necessary means of salvation. “Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” {Acts 4:12} And Christ is the all-sufficient means of salvation so that we need none but Him. “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” {Heb.7:25} Hanserd Knolly (Baptist, 1645)

Gospel preaching sets forth Christ upon Gospel terms. This should be shouted to the heavens and to the ends of the earth (so to speak), but there are ways, terms, and methods that the Gospel should be preached and without those the Gospel is not preached. A man can stand in the front of a building (regardless of how many listen to him) and say many true things about the Bible and about God and still not preach the Gospel. A man can stand in front of a congregation of people Sunday after Sunday and say many biblical things and many moral things, but he can be without the Gospel. A man can say many true things about Christ and many true things that are true of the Gospel, but that man can still miss preaching the Gospel of the grace of God. It is also true that a man can set forth many of the distinctives of the orthodox teaching on justification and of the cross and not preach the Gospel.

It is an absolute part of Gospel terms to show that Christ and Christ alone is the only necessary and all-sufficient means of salvation. In our easy day of desiring to be nice rather than to stand for truth, Christ is seen as a one way of salvation and it is thought that those who say He is the only way are narrow and judgmental. As has been said long ago, we should be amazed that God has provided a way of salvation instead of being upset that He has not provided more. We should also be utterly amazed that God has saved some sinners rather than complaining that He does not save them all. While not all will argue about the sufficiency of Christ on the face of it, many will argue about the absolute necessity of Christ. Yet, this is the only way that the Gospel can be proclaimed in truth. If Christ is not absolutely necessary for salvation, then there are other ways of salvation and other ways of glory. If Christ is not absolutely necessary for salvation, then there are either other ways of grace or there are now ways of merit. In those cases, then, those are not ways God has revealed.

The absolute necessity of Christ alone for salvation appears to be a minority view in our day among the professing Church even. What we must see is that unless Christ alone for salvation is preached then we are preaching another gospel according to Scripture. We must also see that Christ alone is the all-sufficient means of salvation as well, which is really a twin truth to the absolute necessity of Christ alone for salvation. If Christ is not all-sufficient, then there is something else that is sufficient or contributes to His sufficiency. If Christ is not all-sufficient, then it is but a short step to conclude that He is not absolutely necessary for salvation.

For many it is okay to preach Christ as long as He is not preached as the only necessary means and the all-sufficient means. But the Lord Jesus Christ cannot be preached in truth and reality unless He is preached as the only necessary and all-sufficient means of salvation. If the cross was not necessary and all-sufficient, then Christ is not the only necessary and all-sufficient means of salvation. If the imputed righteousness of Christ is not absolutely necessary and the self-sufficient means of salvation, then Christ is not either. If the mediatorial work of Christ in making intercession for His people is not the necessary and self-sufficient means of salvation, then Christ is not either. If the Divine nature of Christ taking human flesh to Himself is not the necessary and self-sufficient means of salvation, then Christ is not either.

The denial that Christ is the necessary and all-sufficient means of salvation is really demonstrative evidence that a person does not believe in the Person or work of Christ and the Gospel of grace alone. There is no preaching of the Gospel at all if Christ is not preached as absolutely necessary and as the all-sufficient means of salvation. Not only is there no Gospel preached where those things are denied, there is no Gospel where those things are not clearly and plainly taught. The ramifications of statements like this are enormous in our day and in all days. This reaches to ecumenical issues. This reaches to theological “differences” between Calvinism and Arminianism. This reaches to those who proclaim to be historical in their theology and yet are not openly declaring that Christ is all-sufficient and that anything less is not the Gospel of Christ alone. If it is not by Christ alone, then it is no real Gospel at all.

God’s gracious and free promises do not exclude the means he has appointed to attain the mercies therein promised. It pleases the Lord to tie his creatures to the use of means when he affords it them, though he will sometimes work without it. Now the ordinary means which God has in His infinite wisdom appointed to convert sinners, and also to build them up in Christ, is the word preached. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” {Rom.10:17} This word of the gospel, God will have preached to every creature in all parts of the world. {Mk.16:15} None are exempted or prohibited from hearing the gospel preached, but everyone that has an ear is required to hear. “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” {Rev.2:7} And let such as neglect the hearing of the word of God {preached by such as are called and sent of Christ} consider what the Lord says in Proverbs 1 from the 20th verse to the 32nd. But albeit some of you see it is that which you ought to do and that you had need to do, to wit, to seek the Lord. Assenting to what you heard in the first use of the doctrine that there is much worth, beauty, and excellence in Christ. And that poor lost undone sinners stand in need of Him, notwithstanding how to obtain Christ, you know not as yet. Hanserd Knolly (Baptist, 1645)

There are many important things about Gospel preaching that are being ignored today or perhaps people have lost what it means to preach the Gospel. The first point that Knolly sets out is that God uses preaching to convert sinners and to build sinners up, but specifically He uses preaching the word. Without trying to denigrate all forms of evangelism, we should exalt the preaching of the Scriptures as the way God has set out as His revealed way to bring sinners to Himself. True evangelism will work with and look to preaching when there is biblical preaching to be found, but that is not always the case. This is also not saying that preaching is the exclusive way God draws sinners to Himself, but it appears to be the main way that He has ordained to do so. But again, if there is no biblical preaching to be found, then that is no excuse for believers not to be telling and teaching sinners the ways of God.
It might not be the worst thing to point out that when preaching is weak and biblical preaching is hard to find, God has sent forth a strong judgment whether people recognize it or not. If the main way God speaks to people is through preaching, when He withholds preaching from the people that is a very strong judgment upon them. If people need water to life and someone withholds water from them, then all will recognize that as a very, very serious situation. But when God withholds what He uses to convert people and build people up in the faith for eternal issues, then that is far more serious.

We might also not be amiss in pointing out that not all preaching of the Bible (verses of the Bible, topics from the Bible, and so on) is biblical preaching. A person can preach a text of Scripture in conservative manner and set out conservative topics and yet miss the main point of the text and of the Bible. The main point of the Bible is the glory of God in Christ. When men do not preach the greatness and glory of God in Christ, then they are not preaching in a biblical manner. When men do not preach a thorough God-centeredness of a text, then they are missing the point of the text.

It should also be pointed out that biblical preaching will point out the truth of human beings and the sinfulness of the nature of human beings as their actions that flow from those natures. As Knolly says, “poor lost undone sinners stand in need of Him.” But when preachers do not preach in such a way that sinners see themselves as lost and undone, then those sinners don’t see their real need of Christ. Indeed there are many who will preach about man’s need of Christ, but they teach that men need Christ in order to be healed, in order to be rich, and in order to lead a full life. But they don’t set forth the awfulness of man in his sin and his dire need of new life and a Savior.

The last thing (mentioned, though not last in importance) left in this is to point out is that biblical preaching sets out the “worth, beauty, and excellence in Christ.” So many so-called sermons focus on morality, social issues, and perhaps some historical matters regarding a text. But God shines forth His glory in Christ. We must preach Christ if we are to preach about God and His Gospel. Regardless of how much a man preaches about biblical things and regardless of how well he exegetes a text and regardless of how well he keeps in line with his confession, if he does not preach the worth, beauty, and excellence of Christ that man is not preaching in a biblical manner. The Gospel cannot be preached unless Christ is being preached in His fullness and glory. The Gospel cannot be preached unless men see their utter lostness and sinfulness and utter helplessness before God. The Gospel cannot be preached until the glory of God in saving sinners by grace alone is set out. There is not much Gospel preaching in our day. We should seek the Lord that He would raise up men who do not fear the frowns and disapproval of other men, but instead they would fear God and preach His truth in His way.