I am not saved

 

COLERAINE INDEPENDENT METHODIST CHURCH

SUNDAY 24 NOVEMBER 2024 – MR KEITH LINDSAY

JEREMIAH 8 VERSES 17 – 22

I know many of you have heard sermons by D L Moody who lived during the 1850/60’s.  A preacher in Chicago.  A well known business man came into his meetings with his wife.  The wife was a believer but he was not.  Quite often God spoke to him in those meetings and Moody sensed it.  He always replied “my business partner is not a Christian, if I came to Christ he would ridicule me.  I am going to retire soon and will move away, then I will come to Christ.”  One night Moody heard knocking at his door.  The wife of the businessman was standing there asking him to come as her husband was lying at the point of death.  She wanted him to speak to him before he went out into eternity.  Moody went and talked to him, urging him to trust in Christ as Saviour.  Moody left the man and a number of days later the man began to recover miraculously.  He returned to the meetings and Moody said to him “now the Lord has touched your life why don’t you confess Christ as Saviour?”  Again the man responded “my business partner is not a Christian, if I came to Christ he would ridicule me.”  A number of months later the man relapsed and was again lying on his deathbed.  Moody was sent for again.  He knew he had made an empty profession in the past.  Moody pleaded with him to get right with God.  The man replied “it is too late.”  Moody responded “It is never too late because scripture says ‘him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.’”  The man replied “the harvest is past, the summer is ended and I am not saved.”  He continued to quote those lines until he took his final breath and went out into eternity.  Jeremiah 8 verse 20 contain some of the most  solemn words in scripture.  The saddest words that came from any man or woman.  “I am not saved.”  Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet.  He went amongst the people pleading for them to turn from their sin.  He was called to be a prophet during the darkest days of Israel’s history.  He was rejected by so many people.  He was called the weeping prophet.  We live in a world today that is exactly the same as Jeremiah’s day.  This day is more advanced than then but many don’t want to heed the truth of the gospel of God.  So many do not realise they have to stand before God one day and give an account for what they have done on this earth.  Judgment will fall on them but they don’t care.  So many don’t realise they will not live forever.  They have no time for God.  One time as part of my Faith Mission training we had to do pub visitation.  We went into the pubs and asked permission to give out tracks.  One day I sat beside a woman.  She told me she had 16 children and none of them were sinners.  I replied “you must live in heaven because the bible says there is no sin in heaven.”  She started to name all her children and listed all the sin they were involved in.  The bible says “if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1 verse 8)  In our chapter Israel was in her wanderings and captivity.  They were living in sin and God was dealing with them.  We find that cycle throughout scripture – people at loggerheads with God.  God had to teach them, bring them to the place through some trials to teach them who he was, how much he loved them and how he wanted to save them, to bring them salvation.  When COVID hit whoever thought the world would stop?  We never thought it would happen.  We though God would speak to hearts and many did get saved but so many rejected God.  They were in fear about what would happen, afraid and asking so many questions but as things began to get normal again God was left behind.  We are not saved – what terrible words.  What an awful cry from the heart of any sinner.  Many could be listening to this message or reading these words and they are not saved.  God has spoken to you maybe in days past or even is now.  God will use this to speak to hearts because they are not saved.

A progress of time.  The harvest is past.  As these people are sitting they see the tragedy of the scene before them.  The harvest is gone.  There is a sudden realisation, a reality of the fact that they are in a foreign land, away from God and his temple.  Their sins had separated them from God.  Have you that realisation that you are not saved?  These people were concerned – would they not be?   We ought to be concerned if we are not saved.  There needs to be concern in our soul.  Jesus said so many people will gain everything but will not look after the soul.  They will forge a career, raise a family, earn a good living, watch their grandchildren grow up but still will not think of their soul.  We read of many in scripture who came to the Lord because of the concern they had – Nicodemus, the woman with the issue of blood for instance.  Are you concerned about your soul?  The physical harvest is past for this year.  Many have brought their fruits and decorated our churches.  They came to give thanks for God’s provision for another year.  God has been faithful in providing the physical and spiritual needs.  The harvest was past for these people.  One day it will be the final harvest.  The wheat and tares are growing together presently but on that day there will be a division, when the tares will be bundled up and cast into the fire for all eternity.  A spiritual harvest for the world.  The progress of time.

The passing of opportunity.  The harvest is past, summer is ended.  What a destiny for people.  For the spiritual harvest to end and still not saved.  Verse 20 is a Hebrew proverb “one season of hope after another has passed but the expected delivery never came.”  Hope was gone.  The harvest was past.  People were lost because of their sin.  They were hoping that God’s wrath would cease but as times goes by they think God is late.  Maybe there will be another opportunity, chance.  The harvest is past, the summer has come and gone.  The Israelites problem was not of no concern but concerned too late.  Like the rich man in Luke 16 they do nothing for eternity.  He realised his danger too late, his prayer was too late, his concern about his family was too late.  He saw the danger but it was too late.  It was enough to torture you for ever and ever.  The harvest is past and the summer is ended.  For many we can say the summer is ended in our lives.  For some of us that summer is nearly over.  The middle part of our years is over.  The years go over so quickly and that is so true. A year goes in so quickly.  Still people reject and neglect to trust Christ as Saviour.  There is a day coming when we will stand before God.  He will not be interested in what church we attend or how many times we attended our church or the money we put in the plate or how many times you prayed.  What have you done with my son Jesus Christ?  It doesn’t matter what way we are dressed.  The most important thing is not the outward but the inward, getting right with God.  It is sad to think of so many people who refused God.  It is too late, no going back, no second chance.

The peril of delay.  Here are people in hopelessness.  Jeremiah 9 verse 1.  There is hope in a world.  We are still in the day of grace.  His offer of mercy still stands to come and put your trust in Christ.  We are so privileged to have the gospel, to have churches open in our part of the world.  The privileges we have will result in much more being expected of us.  People forget what the Lord has done for them.  May God help us to keep on praying, trusting, going, sharing that gospel message in the mission field we are in.