THE GOSPEL INVITATION
A sermon delivered by Robert Sholl
Imagine if you will, going to the mailbox one day. In that mailbox you find an invitation from the President of these United States. The invitation requests your presence at State Dinner where you will be the guest of honor. Surely we would be honored by such an invitation. I would imagine most of us would not even think of turning down such an invitation. Many would rush out to buy a new set of clothes. We would tell our friends and shift our priorities. All of our efforts would probably be put into responding to that invitation.
But the fact of the matter is that very few of us will ever be invited to dine with the President, much less as his special guest of honor. There is however, a much greater invitation extended to all men. A head of state has not extended extend this invitation but the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, Almighty God. The Gospel Invitation is the greatest, most stupendous, the most undeserved thing that has ever been extended to man. Indeed what a marvelous thought that God bids us come!
That invitation is put forth very clearly in the closing verses of our New Testament. In Revelation 22:16-17. Here it is said:
16 "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
So as the great vision given to John is being closed out we have the final invitation of God’s Word. The Bible which begins with the creation and fall of man and in which we find God’s scheme of redemption, in Christ, revealed throughout the ages, this same Bible ends with a final invitation to come. This morning I want us to look at some thoughts associated with this very magnificent passage.
The first thing that we notice is that there is indeed an invitation to come to water of life. This invitation implies certain things. It implies that men are separated from it. I have yet to receive an invitation from a place I was already at. Man is in a spiritual wasteland, a spiritual desert. He lacks the things essential for eternal life. Why is this? The answer is sin. Our sin has separated us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). Because we have been separated from God by our own sins and transgressions, something else is implied in God extending the invitation. In Romans 5:8 it is said, "8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us". In 1 John 3:1 the inspired writer tells us " Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!". The fact that an invitation is extended demonstrates God’s love for mankind. God was under no obligation to extend this great invitation to mankind. We do not deserve it and cannot merit it (Titus 3:4-5). In fact if we were to get what we deserve, it would be not be an invitation to the water of life, but it would be eternal condemnation. This is the case because all have sinned and the wages of sin is death (Romans 3:23, 6:23). So the invitation was not extend out of obligation, but out of God’s love and His grace (Ephesians 1:7).
The second thing we might look at is the importance of the invitation. How important is the invitation? Most of us would agree that the importance of an invitation is in part determined by what it’s an invitation too. Our passage in Revelation 22:17 tells us. It says, "Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely". I think it is interesting that physical water is very important to physical life. Although man can go for long periods without eating, he cannot go long without water. Water is a necessary requirement for life. That incidentally, is why men, who are so desperate to find extraterrestrial life, search so diligently for it on other planets. In John 4:13-14 Christ makes a comparison between this spiritual water and literal water. There he says:
"13 Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."
So the spiritual water that is necessary for spiritual life and happiness is to be obtained only from Christ Jesus. Yea, there is salvation in no other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men wherein we must be saved (Acts 4:12). The provision that God has made for us through Christ ought to thrill the hearts of us all. God did not just make minimal preparations for those who come to Him in faithful, sincere, loving obedience. The inspired writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 2:3 that " how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation". Note God did not provide us a small or trivial salvation. It is a great salvation in every way! It is a salvation unto eternal life, from eternal damnation, purchased by the blood of Christ, and is offered to all. So when consider the greatness of the invitation to come to the water of life, to come to salvation, we can see the great importance of the invitation. Therefore we should give very serious and sober consideration.
The third aspect of that invitation is the identity of those who invite. Not only is the importance of an invitation determined by what it’s an invitation to, but also who invites us. We all know that from everyday experience. An invitation from the boss is often given more weight than one from a co-worker. So who extends the Gospel invitation? Referring back to our passage in Revelation 22:16-17 we find:
16 "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!"
So here we see four persons that invite. The first is Jesus (through His angel). The only begotten Son of God invites man to come. Christ came from heaven, became flesh, suffered the reproach of sinful man. Lawless hands crucified him in order to make atonement for our sins. In His personal ministry on this earth Jesus invited men and woman to come. Indeed He came to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). Out of His great compassion for people, He invited them to come. One the most beloved passages in the New Testament is that of Matthew 11:28-29:
28 "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
Friends if you are looking for rest for your soul, peace with God, forgiveness of all of your past sins. You need to look unto Jesus. If you are looking for a way to purge your evil conscience, you need to look no further than Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). Consider the following passages with reference to Christ:
Romans 5:1: "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have with God through our Lord Jesus Christ"
Hebrew 10:22: "let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water"
We need to given the more earnest heed to the invitation, because Christ extended it.
Not only does Jesus bid us come, but Vs 17 tells us the Spirit says come. The Holy Spirit, who revealed and confirmed God’s Word, invites us to come. He does this in the same manner that He did in the book of Revelation and throughout the Old and New Testaments, through the revealed Word given to inspired men (Ephesians 3:5). The gospel invites and it was by the Holy Spirit that the gospel was preached. As the writer says in 1 Peter 1:12 "To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into". We are called by means of the gospel. In 2 Thessalonians 2:14 we read that "whereunto he called you through our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ". So it is through the inspired Word that the Holy Spirit bids us come to the water of life.
The third that invites is the bride. Who is the bride? The bride is the Lord’s church. Paul in Ephesians 5: 22-23 makes that very comparison. There the inspired writer sets forth the analogy between Christ’s relation to the church and the husband’s relationship to the wife. In that comparison the church is presented as the wife. As the husband is the head of the wife, Christ is head of the church. Christ loved the church and gave himself for it, so ought the husband love his wife. Indeed a whole sermon could be presented on this subject alone. But bride, who is the church, bids people to come to the water of life. This is the great mission of the church. That is reason for Paul’s commandment to Timothy that "the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy 2:2). Indeed as we read throughout the book of Acts that is precisely what we see the church of the New Testament doing.
The fourth that invites people to come are "those who hear". Individuals who have heard in a manner that will respond to the gospel are authorized to invite. I recall that before I was baptized many years ago, I had a discussion with a friend of mine. We both knew what the plan of salvation was and what we needed to do. As we were discussing these we both mutually encouraged each other to respond to the gospel. I believe this is very thing that God tells us in this passage. I recall a man named Cornelius, the first Gentile convert, in Acts 10. Cornelius was instructed by an angel to send for the apostle Peter. Peter was to speak the whereby he would be saved. This Cornelius did, but notice what that in Acts 10:24 we are told that "Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends". Is that not exciting? He was not content just with hearing the gospel for himself, he called his close friends and relatives together. He was concerned not only with his salvation but his loved ones as well. So all those who hear the invitation are authorized to invite others to come.
The final point we would like to discuss with regards to this great invitation is who is invited to come. Note in Verse 17 it says "And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely". This refers to the person who is thirsting after the great spiritual refreshment. The one who seeks after pardon, purity and the great blessings that are found in Christ Jesus. It is really the persons that are described in the sermon of the mount in Matthew 5:3- 10:
"3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
The one who can come, is the one diligently seeks after God and His will. The one who realizes his spiritual poverty, the one who seeks first the kingdom of God and its righteousness. If anyone desires the water of life, God says he may come. It is not just for some who where predestined for it. It is not God’s will that any should perish (1 Timothy 2:4). But we should also note what the passage does not say. It does not say:
Come whoever is perfect and sinless
Come whoever from this point on lead a sinless life
Come whoever has not committed this or that sin
That is not what the text says. Sometimes we get the idea that we have just sinned to much for God to forgive us. If there is anything that refutes this idea it is the apostle Paul. We are told in 1 Timothy 1:12-16:
"12 And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, 13 although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 14 And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. 16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life."
Paul’s conversion is a pattern, it demonstrates that the vilest of sinners and the most rebellious of people can obtain mercy and be saved, if they truly desire it. But doesn’t the Bible refer to sins that just cannot be forgiven? The Bible speaks of two types of sins that cannot be forgiven. They do not refer to sins that if repented of (and God’s Word obeyed) cannot still be forgiven. The first is the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit, found in Matthew 12:31-32. It is described as a sin that will not be forgiven, or an eternal sin (Mark 3:29). This has reference to the determined, final rejection of what the Holy Spirit has spoken to us through the inspired Word and the confirming miracles by which the Word was proved to be from God. Why can this sin not be forgiven in this world (age - footnote ASV) or the one to come? Because by speaking against (ultimately rejecting) those things that the Holy Spirit did, revealing and confirming the Word, one has rejected the only means by which salvation is made possible (by the gospel - Romans 1:16). In other words one could reject Christ, or God and speak against them, but later on be convinced by the testimony of the Holy Spirit (which is the Bible) that Jesus is the Christ, that the Bible is the Truth. Many during the ministry of Jesus rejected him, but later were convicted by the inspired testimony of the Apostles. Then having believed the testimony, obeyed it and received the remission of sins (see Acts 2). However if one rejects that testimony (such as attributing it to Satan, as the Pharisees did in regard to the miracles performed by Jesus) then one has cut himself off from the only place where salvation is offered. The other sin that many worry about is the sin mentioned found in 1 John 5:16. This sin is termed a "sin unto death". If a brother is engaged in this sin, we are not even to pray to God about it. Is this a specific sin or is it a type of sin? Like so many things in the Bible, we need to look at the total context of any given passage. In this great epistle, John has already addressed the issue of forgiveness for the faithful child of God in 1 John 1:7-10. In 1 John 1:9, John tells us that if we confess our sins, he is faithful to forgive us. Therefore the sin which has forgiveness, is the one that will be confessed (which implies repentance). The converse is therefore true; the sin, which the Lord will not forgive, is the one, which will not be confessed. Unforgiven sin results in spiritual death (Romans 6:23). So the sin that leads to death is the sin that will not be confessed to the Lord. This of course entails a determined and continual rebellion against God.
As we close this morning we ask the question; are you thirsting for righteousness?
Have you out of godly sorrow repented of you sins?
Have you renounced all your sins and are you resolved to all God requires of you?
If the answer to those questions is yes, then you are in truth, thirsting after eternal life. There is no sin that cannot be covered by the blood of Christ, if you will subscribe to His gospel and obey it (Hebrews 5:9). Oh how great and wonderful God is that he has made salvation possible for all. He has provided the means and has shown us the way. All we have to do is to respond by doing what He has told us to do, in the way He has told to do it and for the reasons He told us to do it. God made a statement to Israel in the long ago. That statement is still just a true for us now as it was for them then. In Isaiah 1:18-19 God says:
"18 Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land; But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword"; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
If you are not a child of God, I am compelled to make your situation perfectly clear. If you are outside of Christ you are lost (Ephesians 1:7, Acts 4:12). If you die in that state you will be eternally lost. To remedy that situation, having heard the gospel (Romans 10:17), you must come as a penitent believer (John 3:16, Luke 13:3, Acts 2:38), confessing the name of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:10, Acts 8:37). Then upon that confession be baptized into Christ, into His death, in order that your sins be forgiven (Acts 2:38, 22:16, Romans 6:1-4). Then when you come up out of that watery grave your sins are forgiven and you will be ready to walk in the newness of life. The old things have passed away, behold all things are new.
If you were once faithful child of God, but have wondered away, we beg of you to turn back to Christ. Stop doing that which is wrong and start doing right. And then you can again know the joy of salvation.