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[0:00] You will find my text this morning in Proverbs chapter 8 and at verse 4. Proverbs chapter 8 verse 4 And to you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of man.

[0:20] In the first nine chapters of the Proverbs, the book of Proverbs, Solomon is extolling wisdom.

[0:33] He is singing wisdom's praise. But what are we to understand by the term wisdom as it is used here? Is it merely a characteristic, an attribute of deity, an attribute of God?

[0:50] Or is it being personified? It is more than that. Wisdom is here presented to us as a person.

[1:01] Whether he understood it or not, Solomon, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God, is speaking here of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[1:14] It is the Lord Jesus Christ who speaks here. Can you doubt it? The one who speaks here is one who has personal existence.

[1:31] We read in verse 30, Then was I by him as one brought up with him. I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him.

[1:44] This is one who enjoyed eternal communion with the Father before ever the world was. This is our Lord Jesus Christ, The one of whom the Father later declared, This is my beloved Son, In whom I am well pleased.

[2:05] This is the one, this is one who antedates creation. We find that in verses 24 to 29, When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding in waters, Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills was I brought forth, When as yet he had not made the earth nor the fields, When he prepared the heavens I was there, When he set a compass upon the face of the depths, When he established the clouds above, And he strengthened the fountains of the deep, When he gave to the sea his decree that the waters should not pass, His commandment, When he appointed the foundations of the earth, I was there.

[2:48] This is the word, the divine word, The Lord Jesus Christ, The one who is himself the agent of creation, By him all things were made, And without him was not anything made that was made.

[3:08] The one who is spoken of here as wisdom, Is the one who gives to the rulers of the earth, The authority that they possess. We have that in verses 15 and 16, By me kings reign, And princes decree justice, By me princes rule, And nobles, Even all the judges of the earth.

[3:30] This is our Lord Jesus Christ, Who declared all power, All authority is given unto me, In heaven and on earth.

[3:41] Without any question, Wisdom here is our Lord Jesus Christ, He is speaking. And in the words of our text this morning, We have the gospel call being sounded forth, A thousand years, Before Christ came to earth.

[4:04] We come this morning, To the last Sabbath morning of another year. How swiftly the years are going by. It is surely on such an occasion appropriate, That we should pause, And consider yet again, The call of the gospel.

[4:23] And I want you to notice, First of all this morning, To whom the call is addressed, To whom the call is addressed, Unto you, O men, I call, And my voice is to the sons of man.

[4:43] The call goes out to men, To human beings, To the sons of men. They and they alone, Are addressed in this call.

[4:56] It goes out to men and women, To human beings. It is not going out to angels, Not to cherub or seraph. They are of nobler nature.

[5:07] They are sinless creatures. But this call goes out, Not to those sinless creatures, But to the sinful sons of men. It goes out not to demons.

[5:20] Satan and all his hosts, Will perish eternally in hell. The call goes out, Not to them, But to man. The call goes out, To men and women, Unto you, O men, I call, And my voice is, To the sons of man.

[5:41] Men deserve also, To perish forever in hell. But the Lord Jesus Christ, Calls to them, In mercy.

[5:53] On them he has set his love. Verse 231 says, My delights wear with the sons of men. He delights in them, On sinners, On men, On human beings, On men and women.

[6:09] He has set his love. Unto you, O men, I call, And my voice is, To the sons of man. It is for men, That he came into the world, Two thousand years ago.

[6:26] The son of man has come, To seek and to save, That which was lost. It was for men and women, For sinful people, That he died there, At the cross of Calvary.

[6:38] He bore our sins, In his own body, Upon that tree. He bore, The punishment, Due to us, The reward, The just reward, Of our misdeeds.

[6:52] He died there, As the sinner's substitute, And made a complete, Atonement for sin. The Lord Jesus Christ, Shall rejoice eternally, It shall give him everlasting, Joy and delight, To have with him, In his presence, Throughout all eternity, Those for whom there, At the cross, He died.

[7:19] The sons of men, But this call, Is a general call, It is a call, That goes out, To all, Who have ever lived, To all men, Everywhere.

[7:32] Unto you, O men, I call, And my voice is, To the sons of man. It goes out, To all, Who are on this earth, This morning, If you're, A man, A woman, If you're, A human being, If you belong, To the race of Adam, This call, Goes out to you, It is a, A universal call, Wherever there is a, Guilty child of Adam, This call, Goes forth, To him, I do so want, To emphasize, This morning, The absolute, Freeness, Of the gospel offer, The gospel call, Every individual, On the face of the earth, Is included, Within this call, Your name, Is here, In this call, Read it in that way, Unto you, O men, Unto you,

[8:33] John, Or James, Or Margaret, Or Mary, Or whatever the name may be, Unto you I call, And my voice is, To you, John, Or Margaret, Or whatever the name may be, Read the text in that way, Your name is there, God just put it there, Not only is he put it there, He has put it in other parts, Of the scriptures also, Think of that great text, The most famous in all scripture, God so loved the world, That he gave his only begotten son, That whosoever, Nobody is excluded from that, That whosoever believes in him, Should not perish, But have everlasting life, Your name is there, Or think of those words, That are almost the last words, Of the Bible, Words which, Say to us, Whosoever will,

[9:35] Urinate, Whosoever will, Let him come, And take the water of life, Freely, It is, A universal call, Do I hear somebody say to me, But I'm too bad, To heed that call, I'm too bad a person, To become a Christian, To come to Christ, And be saved, I've committed sins, That are of the deepest dye, I look at my nature, And I see that it is corrupt, Through and through, There can be no hope for me, My friend, That is not so, You're wrong, If you think like that, Wrong as wrong can be, However far you may have gone, In sin, However, Far you may have gone, In sin, If you're a man, If you belong, To the human race,

[10:36] However, You may have degraded, The dignity of your manhood, This call, Goes out to you, The blood of Christ, Can make, The foulest clean, Don't dare say, That the blood of Christ, Can cleanse a lesser sinner, But that it cannot cleanse me, Come to Christ, Believe in him, And every stain, Will be washed away, And you will be whiter, Than the snow, Do thou with hyssop, Sprinkle me, I shall be cleansed so, Yea, Wash thou me, And then I shall be, Whiter than the snow, Or do I hear somebody say, This morning, I need to wait, Until I make myself better, Only then, When I've made myself a better, Made myself better, When I've improved myself somewhat, Can I come to the Lord Jesus Christ,

[11:38] Heeding this call, But the Bible, Nowhere says, That you must make yourself, Fit to come to Christ, Come to the Lord Jesus Christ, The gospel is a gospel, Of free grace, Of undeserved mercy, There is one way of salvation, And one way only, You have no contribution, Whatsoever, That you can make, To the acquiring, Of your own salvation, You must simply receive it, As a gift of undeserved mercy, By grace are ye saved, Just as I am, And waiting not, To rid my soul, Full of one dark blood, To thee whose blood, Can cleanse each spot, O Lamb of God, I come, Or do I hear somebody say,

[12:41] This morning, I'm too good, To come to heed this call, I don't need to be washed, In the blood of Christ, I don't need to be born again, I don't need to be converted, I've led a respectable, Decent, Upright life all my days, I do what I can, To help others, I'm a deeply religious person, My friend, This call goes out, To you too, You're a sinner, You possess, A sinful nature, You were shapen, In iniquity, In sin, Did your mother conceive you, You've committed, Countless sins, You need, To be, Clems, You need, Cleansing, You need, Forgiveness, You need salvation, Just as surely, As does the murderer, In his prison, Fell this morning, Continue to rely, Upon your own respectability, Live and die, Doing so, And you will forever,

[13:42] In hell, Be the companion, Of those scandalous sinners, Who now you despise, If they too, Refuse the gospel offer, The call goes out, To you, Unto you, To all men I call, And my voice is, To the sons of man, Or do I hear somebody say, I'm too young, To heed this call, I'm just a child, Yes, The gospel call, The gospel is for older people, Not so, The great majority of those, Who come to Christ, Come to them, While they are still young, If you're a young person, Here this morning, There's a special promise for you, The Lord Jesus Christ, Has written it into this very chapter, It's there on the 17th verse, Those that seek me early, Shall find me, The call goes out to you,

[14:43] Young man, It goes out to you, Young woman, To you, A boy, You, A girl, Come to Christ, And you will obtain life, Life in all its fullness, Life that is life indeed, You have life abundant, Here in this world, And in a world to come, Life everlasting, Or do I hear somebody say, I'm too old now, I'm too old now, To come, I've spent my life, For the frivolities, Of this world, I heard the gospel, Presented many times, But I resisted that gospel, I've left it off, Too late, Well it is a thousand pities, That you didn't come to Christ, Long ago, You are seriously at fault there, But I'm here this morning, To tell you, That Christ is calling you, To come to himself,

[15:44] There is still an opportunity, For you to come, Within a day and a half or so, You have entered into a new year, Are you going to let the opportunity, Pass yet again, And end yet another year, Still without Christ, When his call comes to you, Unto you, O man I call, And my voice is, To the sons of man, It goes out to everyone, It's a universal call, To whom it is addressed, But let us notice secondly, The earnestness of his call, The earnestness of his call, He, We see this first of all, In that he cries aloud, There as one says, Wisdom cries, Understanding puts forth her voice, It's a loud shout that is made, We're told in verse 3,

[16:46] She cries, She cries aloud at the gate, It's not the feeble whisper, That wisdom utters, It's a loud and an arresting cry, The Lord Jesus Christ, Has called loudly to you, And the gospel has enough, That call is sounded loudly, In your ear, Have you given heed to it, Haven't you heard him, Loudly call to you, He's called loudly, In providence, Look back over this past year, And indeed recall, Previous years, And as you do so, Do you not recognize, That the Lord Jesus Christ, Was loudly calling to you, In providence, Perhaps it was a sickness, That came to you, And you knew, That if that sickness, Were to prove, To be a sickness unto death, You would not be ready, To go, Not be ready to die,

[17:47] That you would perish, You were without Christ, Or perhaps it was, A sickness in your family, Through which God spoke, Christ spoke loudly to you, Or perhaps some disappointment, Things just didn't work out for you, And in that disappointment, You knew that God was calling you, To examine your ways, He was saying to you, There are far more important concerns, Than this matter, That is causing you, Such disappointment today, There's a matter, Of your eternal salvation, Or perhaps it was, In a bereavement, That he spoke to you, A family bereavement, Perhaps it was, In the passing of some friend, A friend far younger, Than you are, And you have said to yourself, When that friend was taken, If that had been me, I would not have been ready, To go, I would have perished, If I had been called, That is the voice,

[18:48] Of the Lord Jesus Christ, Loudly speaking to you, In his providence, Calling to you, Prepare to meet your God, Set your house in order, Come to me, That you might be saved, Surely, Surely the fact that he cries so loudly, Indicates his earnestness to you, We see the earnestness of his call too, In that he cries in many places, In many places, We're told there, In verse 2, That wisdom stands on the top of a high place, That wisdom goes out, Does it wear into the country, And stands on the top of the hills, And issues this gracious invitation, Also, Wisdom goes out to the country, And goes along the country, Byways and highways, Issuing this call to all, Who will hear,

[19:49] By the way, And the places, Of the past, Wisdom also goes into the city, Not just, Into the country, But into the city, Into the urban centers, Into the places, Where the throngs of people are, Places like London, And New York, And Tokyo, The great cities of the world, Wisdom goes to the city streets, The places, There, Where, People are passing by, And goes to the, Doors of the, Streets of the city, Knocking on the doors, Telling the people, The good news, We have that in verse 3, She cries at the gates, At the gates of the entry of the city, At the coming in, At the door, She goes to the gates of the city, In the ancient world, The city gates, Were the places, Where the merchants, Did their business, And where the judges, Dispensed justice, In all these places,

[20:52] Wisdom cried out, This glorious message, How earnest, Is the Lord Jesus Christ, In presenting the gospel call, He sends his servants, With his message, To every nation, And to every creature, He sends this message, To Jew, And to Gentile, To rich, And to poor, To black man, And to white man, To the educated, And to the ignorant, To the civilized, And to the savage, You've heard the message, Haven't you?

[21:27] Wherever you've gone, You've come to church, And you've heard it there, Loudly and clearly, Made known to you, You've turned to the Bible, And you've heard this same message there, You've heard it in your own family, Perhaps there's been one member, Of your family, Converted to the Lord Jesus Christ, And that person's witness, Has spoken to you, That's Christ calling you, In the gospel, You've heard it at your work, There's been a colleague of yours, A workmate, Chained, Noticeably changed, Converted to the Lord Jesus Christ, And you've said to yourself, I've heard the gospel message, Far, far oftener than he heard it, And I'm still unsaved, That's the Lord Jesus Christ, Calling to you, You've heard it, As you've pursued, Some sinful practice, You've said to yourself, As you've done so, I should not be doing this, I should not be here,

[22:28] This is a place of sin, This is a den of iniquity, You've realized, That you were on a broad road, That leads to destruction, That's the voice of Christ, Calling to you, In the gospel, How earnestly, How earnestly, He calls, Oh, how great must be the danger, When he calls so earnestly, He knows the awful destiny, That awaits those, Who do not heed this call, And so earnestly he calls, How great must be his love, When he calls so earnestly, As he stands today, On this last Sabbath day of 1990, With his arms of love outstretched, Waiting to welcome you, Oh, my friend, Are you going to allow, Yet another year to end, Without giving heed,

[23:30] To the gracious call, He utters, In the gospel of his grace, See the Lord Jesus Christ, Descend the mount of audience, He looks over the city of Jerusalem, If lying peacefully beneath him, If thou, he says, Had known even thou, At least in this thy day, The things which belong to thy peace, He knows that before long, The armies of Titus, The Roman armies, Will come, And there'll be terrible suffering, And destruction there, In the city of Jerusalem, How different it would have been, If only the people had given heed to his call, How often would I have gathered you, He said, As a chicken, As a ham gathers, Gathers her chickens beneath her wings, And you would not, You were just unwilling to come, That was his lament,

[24:31] That he wept there, He wept, Over the city of Jerusalem, Gather not those here this morning, Over whom the Lord Jesus weeps, How often would I have gathered you, And you were not willing, And you were not willing, Oh my friend, Won't the earnestness of the Lord Jesus, Won't his tears break your heart, And even on this last Sabbath day of the year, Draw you to himself, Heeding this call that goes out, The earnestness of the call, Those to whom the call is addressed, The earnestness of the call, And notice thirdly, What he promises, What he promises, He makes here marvelous promises, Look at verse 18, Riches and honor are with me, Durable riches and righteousness, He promises,

[25:32] Great riches, Look at verse 19, My fruit is better than gold, And my revenue than choice silver, Look at verse 21, I will cause those that love me, To inherit substance, As a great inheritance, For those who heed this call, I will fill their treasures, Their lack nothing, No good thing will he withhold, From those who walk uprightly, See verse 35, Those who find me, Find life, Life he gives, How can I sum it up, What is it that Christ gives, What are the riches that he bestows, Let me just briefly try, And sum up under three heads, First of all, Righteousness, Righteousness, He gives righteousness, Verse 18 says, With me are durable, Riches,

[26:33] And righteousness, There is none of us righteous, No, not one, We're all sinners, And if God could mark iniquity against us, None of us could stand, But if you come to Christ, If you heed this call, If you believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ, He'll give you righteousness, He'll impute to you, Count as yours, The perfect righteousness, Of his own son, And on the ground of that righteousness, You will find acceptance, With God, If you're a believer, In the Lord Jesus, If you're a true believer, In him, Then you're one of those, To whom God has imputed, In the righteousness of Christ, You're one of those, Whose sins have all been put, To Christ's account, And atoned for at the cross, And God has put to your account, The perfect righteousness, Of his own dear son,

[27:34] When he looks upon you, He sees you clothed, In righteousness divine, Standing before him, With a perfect righteousness, Of Christ, Reckoned yours, And not only that, But you have righteousness, Imparted to you as well, Not only does he credit, Righteousness to those, Who believe in Christ, But he works righteousness, In them, The work of his Holy Spirit, Within them, Makes them holy in character, The work goes on, As a process that goes on, So that the believer, More and more, Dies to sin, Steady dies to sin, More and more, And lives more and more, To righteousness, And the work which God begins, He always completes, If you've heeded this call, Then this marvelous work, Will reach completion, And one day,

[28:35] You will stand in God's presence, Perfectly holy in character, Sinlessly perfect, Even as Christ is, What a glorious destiny, Isn't that a marvelous promise, And he promises also life, I've read to you, Verse 35, Whoso findeth me, Findeth life, We all want life, Don't we, None of us should be content, With a mere existence, We want life, That is joyful, And satisfying, Life that is abundant, Life that is life indeed, And that's what Christ promises, I am come, You say, That men might have life, And that they might have it, More abundantly, True life is found, Not in the world, And in its trivial ways, Fading as the worldlings' pleasure, All is boasted, Pomp and show, Solid joys, And lasting treasure, None but Zion's children know,

[29:36] In Christ is found satisfaction, For the deepest yearnings, Of the human heart, And the life that Christ gives, Is life eternal, A life that consists, In knowing God, And Jesus Christ, Whom he has sent, It's a life, Of communion, With the God of heaven, And with his Christ, And that communion, Continues to deepen, As the days, And the years go by, And it is a communion, Of fellowship with God, A personal acquaintance with him, That shall last forever, And forever, He gives righteousness, He gives life, And thirdly, He gives glory, Glory, Verse 21 says, I cause those that love me, To inherit substance, There's a great inheritance, For the people of God, For those who heed this call, I've already spoken,

[30:37] Of the inheritance, That they have here, In this world, But there's a great inheritance, That they have in the world to come, It's an inheritance, That is incorruptible, That is undefiled, And that is unfading, It's reserved in heaven, For the people of God, It's incorruptible, It cannot perish, It cannot be ravaged, The hostile armies, That invaded the land of Canaan, The Old Testament, Inheritance, The inheritance of God's people, In Old Testament times, The terrible havoc, Ravaging that land, And a land flowing with milk, And honey, Though it was, But no hostile powers, Can ravage the inheritance, That awaits the people of God, It's an inheritance, That is undefiled, There will be nothing, To mar the splendor of heaven, Nothing that defiles,

[31:37] Will enter in, In the environment of heaven, And in the people, Who will be there in heaven, There will not be the least trace, Not the remotest vestige, Of anything that defiles, And the inheritance of God's people, Is unfading, We all love beauty, And, There are many beautiful things, Here in this world, That God has created, But the beauty of all of them, Eventually fades, The lovely flower, That blooms in the summer, Soon withers, The autumnal glory, Of the trees, Comes soon to an end, And the trees are stark, And bare in winter, But the land, To which the people of God go, The land that is their inheritance, Is a land of pure delight, Heaven with all its glories,

[32:37] Undiminished, Awaits forever, Those who heed this call, He gives grace now, And he gives glory then, These are the promises, Righteousness, Life, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Glory, Do you have this righteousness, Do you possess this life, Can you exult to the hope, Of the everlasting glory, You do possess this perfect righteousness, You do have this abundant life, You can exult to the hope, Of everlasting glory, If, And only if, You have heeded the call, Of this text, What is the substance of it, Well it's a call to repentance, Verse 13 says, The fear of the Lord is to hate evil, Pride and arrogancy, And the evil way, It involves turning away from sin, Making an about turn,

[33:38] It involves repentance, But it's a call to himself, A call to Christ, Verse 35 says, Whoso finds me, Finds life, It's a call to Christ, Come unto me, He says, All you who labor, And are heavy laden, And I will give you life, He who has the Son, Has life, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, And you will be saved, You've heard this call, I know, Many, Many, Many times, But have you responded to it, You pass today another milestone, This is the last Sabbath morning, The last Sabbath day of 1990, Before we meet here, For our Sabbath morning service again, We will have entered into a new year, Oh before that new year comes,

[34:39] Before this Lord's day ends, Will you not heed the earnest cry, Of the world's savior, He calls to you, He calls to you personally, He calls to you individually, And to you I call, Amen, And my voice is, To the sons of man, Let us pray, We pray, Oh Lord our God, That thy spirit will work in us, And if as yet, We have not heeded the call of the gospel, May we come, In penitence, And in faith to Christ, And find life, For his name's sake, Amen.