Preach the Gospel

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world and pft* % the gospel to every creature. — Mark xvi. 15.

I notice one young lady who is not paying attention. I have a text to-day that means everybody. “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.” That takes in that young lady that is thoughtless and careless. I am afraid she has not come here to hear the Word.

Now, the best part of the service, you know, is the text There is really more power in this little text than all the hymns in the hymn book. There is more life, more power, in one word that Jesus Christ has said than in tons of the traditions of men and in all the sermons that may be preached.

Now, just let me call your attention to that text again. “And He said unto them, go ye into all the world.” That means Cleveland. He might have had Cleveland in his mind when he said it. And the next verse says: “And he that believeth and is baptised shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned.”

These are not the words of any prophet. He was a prophet, but he was more than a prophet. They are not the words of a man. They are the words of the God-man. Christ had faced the world and had conquered it It was testing under his feet He had triumphed over the world. He had met Satan and had conquered him. He had met the cross and had conquered it. He had faced man’s enemy, which is death, and conquered him. He

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had gone down into the grave and had robbed the grave of its victory. Joseph’s sepulcher lay behind him now, empty. It is the captain of our salvation sending out his warriors. Around him was gathered that handful of men that had been with him in his three years of ministry. You can see the tears tickling over their cheeks. He is now going to leave them. For three long years — three short years they must have been — they had been in his company; they had associated together. But now his work on earth was finished, as far as he was concerned. He must now go up on high and commence and carry on the glorious work that he had begun on earth.

In the sight f the world, these men he had around him were very weak and contemptible. There was not a mighty ma*i among them. In the sight of the world there was ,r/ta great man among them. In the sight of the world they were unlettered, unlearned fishermen from GaL!^e, nearly all of them, and yet he sent them out as la’ ibs among wolves. “Go ye into all the world and pre xh the Gospel to every creature.” Don’t leave out or >. Although the Gospel has been proclaimed now for r.pwards of eighteen hundred years and has been proclaimed in this country as in no other country under the sun for the past hundred years — there is hardly a child but has heard the Gospel proclaimed — yet I will venture to say there is not a word in the English language so little understood as the word gospel. I venture to say if I should ask this audience what that word means, there b not one out of ten that could tell. If I should say I was going to get off this platform and begin with this man there and go through the congregation and ask every one what it means, many of you would get up and rur out of the house; you would not want to expose youi ignorance. I think I had been a partaker of the Gospel ten years before I knew what the word meant A grea?

many have an idea that the Gospel is the most doleful message that ever came into this world; and when you begin to proclaim it some men put on a face, as though you had brought a death warrant or an invitation to attend some funeral, or witness an execution, or go into some hospital where there is some plague. A great many people act as if they were to be struck with a plague the moment you begin to talk to them about the Gospel. The Gospel of the Son of God is the best news that evei came from heaven to earth — the best news that was ever heard by mortal man.

Now, if men really believed it, we should not have to preach and preach and beg and coax them to believe it It don’t take men long to believe good news; but the fact is that the god of this world has blinded us, so that what is good news men think is bad news. When the angel came to the shepherds upon the plains of Bethlehem, the angel said unto them, “Fear not; for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people; for unto you is borp. this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord.” That is the Gospel, God has provided a Savior for man. When the world was lost and ruined, when there was no eye to pity, no hand to save, none to deliver, in the fullness of time God sent his own Son to redeem the world. That is the Gospel. The word Gospel means God’s spell. It is a time God is not imputing unto men their trespasses and sins, but seeking to forgive them, bringing good news, glad tidings of great joy. Who will believe it to-day and be saved? In the fifteenth chapter of First Corinthians Paul says: “I declare unto you the Gospel,” and he goes on to tell what the Gospel was. u Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures.” That is what Paul called the scriptures. Christ died, not as a mere martyr, as some people tell us. He did not die just to exhibit the love he had for the world. He did not die that he might convince men that He loved them. There was a deeper meaning in his death than that. He died, not as a martyr, as some people tell us, to show that he was willing to seal with His blood the principles and doctrines that he taught Christ didn’t die as Stephen did — a martyr — didn’t die as that long line of martyrs have died — to defend the truth that Christ brought into the world. He died as man’s substitute. Said he, “I lay my life down and I take it up again.” This idea that some people tell us — that Christ could not help but die! For eighteen months before he died he was telling us that he was going up to Jerusalem and he should be delivered into the hands of the Gentiles, and he should be put to death, and on the third day he should rise again. For that purpose he came into the world — not only to live, but to die for the world — that through his death we might enter into eternal life.

I want to tell you why I think the Gospel is good news. It has taken out of my path four of the bitterest enemies that I have ever had, and not only my enemies, but the enemies of the whole human race — just swept them right out of the way, and they are gone.

The first enemy I want to speak of is sin. Now sin J. makes life bitter; sin makes our lives dark. Men may discuss about it, and they may deny it and talk as much as they are a mind to, but it don’t change the fact. Sin has made your life and mine bitter. Not only your own sins, but the sins of your children, the sins of your friends, have brought you into many a dark hour and many a sore conflict, and when you take a look into the future and remember .that it is written, “The soul that sinneth it shall die,” and then read again, “That all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” there is nothing very sweet in the future with that in view. But th$

Gospel comes and tells me that Jesus Christ came and died for sin; that Jesus Christ met the penalty for sin; that Jesus Christ came into the world for that very pur pose, to put away sin; that “He was manifested to take away the sin of this world.” “Behold the Lamb ot God that taketh away the sin cf the world.” Why, the prophet says, as he looks forward to that time, “Out of love to my soul he hath taken all my sin.” I like that word “all” — not a part of them. If I had committed a hundred sins, and God only had forgiven me ninety-nine, I would be just as bad off as if he had not forgiven me any. I have got to have all sin put away before 1 can have peace and rest. “Out of love to my soul He hath taken all my sins and cast them behind his back.” Not behind my back. Satan wouid get at them if they were there and bring them before me and torment me with them. But the prophet says, “Out of love to my soul He hath taken all my sins and cast them behind His back.” How is the devil to get at them? He has got to get behind the Almighty’s back before he can get at them. They will not trouble me if He has put them out of the way. That is good news, isn’t it? That is what the Gospel tells me, that He has put away sin.

Another Bible illustration is that He has blotted them out as a cloud. Now, last night there were a great many clouds; you could not see a star some of the time# But if you look around this afternoon you cannot see a cloud. Can you tell me what has become of those clouds? Can any of your modern philosophers tell me where those clouds are? What has become of them? They are gone. You cannot find them. But the gospel tells me if I believe on the Lord Jesus Christ he will blot my sins as a thick cloud. That is good news, isn’t it?

But, better still, we read over here in Ezekiel that

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not one of them shall be mentioned.” They are gone for time and for eternity. When God forgives it is thorough work. We talk about one forgiving, but we very often say, “Well, I will forgive you, but I won’t forget it I want you to remember that I will forgive you, but I won’t forget it. I will remember that against you after all.” That is not the way the Lord forgives. He says, “When I forgive I will not remember.” To me that is one of the sweetest thoughts in the Bible. If the blood of Jesus Christ has atoned for my sins, they are covered for time and eternity; they are blotted out for time and for eternity; not one of them shall be mentioned. K not that good news — to get sin out of the way?

Another Bible expression is, “I will remove them as far as the east is from the west.” I don’t know how far that is; can’t find out — just as far as you can get them.

Another Bible expression is, “He will cast them into the sea of forgetfulness.” A minister was telling me of his preaching from that text, and his little boy, ten years old, who heard the sermon, after they came home, said, “Pa, when you were talking about the Lord casting sin into the sea, you ought to have told them that sin was heavy like stones, and that it would drop out of sight, or they might think it would float about like corks on the top.” But he casts them into the depths of the sea.

I think it wan John Bunyan who said he was glad it was not a river, because a river might get dry. But He casts them into the sea, and into the depths of it. Ought we not to lift up our heads and rejoice to think that sin is put out of the way? It is gone for time and for eternity, for God has put it away.

Then another enemy is death. That has been con- u quered, When I was a little boy I used to look upon death as the most terrible thing in this world, I neve?

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thought of it that I did not tremble, and the cold chills used to roll over me. In that little yillage in Massachusetts where I was born and brought up, it was the custom when a death occurred to toll the age of the person. If a man was ninety years old when he died, there were ninety strokes of the bell. I always used to count the strokes of that bell. When a person very old died I used to think, “Death is a good ways off.” But sometimes death would come down into the teens, and then death used to seem nearer. Those times used to be times of darkness to me. Some nights I was afraid to go to bed — I was afraid of death. People may say I was a coward, but nevertheless I was afraid of death; it was so terrible to me. I remember the first time I put my hand on the face of a corpse. A cold chill went through me.

I remember once acting as pall-bearer to a schoolmate of mine, and I did not get over it for days and days. I used to look forward to that period as the darkest time of my life. But that is all goile now. As I go on through life I can say, “O death, where is thy sting?” and I hear a voice rolling down through the centuries, coming down from the cross of Christ, saying, “Buried in the bosom of the Son of God.” He tasted death for every man. He took the sting of death in His bosom. Now, I can say, “O, death, where is thy sting?” If a hornet or a wasp should fly on your hand, you would be afraid it would sting. But if the sting was gone — if the sting was taken away — you would not be any more afraid of it than you would of a fly. That is just what Christ did. He took away the sting of death. Now, I have not got to die. This Adam life will pass away; this house I live in will be torn down; but I have “a house not made with hands, eternal ia the heavens.” The grave may get this Adam coil,

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may get this house I live in, but I have got a new life as lasting as God himself. I have become a partaker of the divine nature. “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” How is death going to touch that? Death has had his hand on Christ once; he never will again. Death may steal up on to this platform and lay his icy hand on me and take me away out of this body, but I shall be clothed with immortality; I shall see Him and be like Him. Instead of getting a body that is subject to sin, I get a body that sin cannot touch — a resurrected and glorified body. It is the Gospel that brings me such news. My friends, you had better believe it and get the benefit of it

Then there is another enemy out of the way. I used 9 to think the grave was the most dark and gloomy place in the world. But that gloom is all gone now; and when I lay away a friend in Christ, I go to the grave and lay him down there, and I can hear a voice coming up from the grave, “Because He liveth ye shall live also.” Tesus Christ conquered the grave. He went down into the grave and measured its depths, and they laid him in Joseph’s sepulchre; but on the third morning, the glorious resurrection morning, he rose again. He conquered the grave. The grave has no victory; it has lost its victory. So we can say now, “O, grave, where is thy victory?” The Son of God has robbed the grave of its victory. That is what the Gospel tells me. That is good news, isn’t it?

The last enemy is the judgment. I used to think it would be terrible to have to go up there before the great T* white throne and have all the sins I ever committed blazed out before the assembled universe. But now I find not one of them is to be mentioned. Not only that, but the judgment has already passed to the believer, and I was judged in Christ Christ took my place. He died in my stead. He suffered for my sins. He became the sinner’s substitute. “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” If Christ was punished for me, I am not going to be punished. God is not going to demand payment twice, is he? If a man owed me and some one else paid it I could not collect it from that man, could I: Now, Christ has paid the penalty. Christ has suffered for the sins of the world, and when I believe that, I need not fear the judgment.

But I can imagine some of you say, “What will you do with that passage where it says, * Every one musl give an account of the deeds done in the body?’” ] think that is very plain. Paul there is writing to the church, and writing to believers, and that is an account of stewardship — a judgment for rewards. Every mar will be brought into judgment for rewards. And some of you Christians that come into the church and live ten, fifteen or twenty years, and never lift your hand foi Christ — hearers of the word, not doers — you don’t think there will be much reward for you, do you? Some people want to know if there are degrees of reward tn heaven, I think every cup will be full, but 1 think there will be some very small cups there, I think Paul will enjoy more than some Christtans will. I think he will have greater capacity for enjoying than some of us Christians. But I think there will be a great many people who will just barely get into heaven. They have hardly lifted their voices for the Son of God. And yet if a man believes on the Lord Jesus Christ with his heart He has promised to give him eternal life. That is the beginning; that is the first step; and we cannot do a thing to please God ontil we do that — until we believe on His Son; and the moment we believe with all our heart on His Son the new life begins, and it does not begin until we take that step; and if a man says, “I will not believe; I will not receive Jesus Christ as my Savior; I will not take Him as my way; I will not take Him as my truth; I will go and find some other way.” I believe that man is making the mistake that we read of where it says: “He that climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” The only way into the kingdom of God is this one way, “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believe th and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”

Now, there is a universal offer. If any man says: “I don’t like your Gospel, because it is too narrow,” — and I very often hear people say that — I just meet them with that text: “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.” There is a universal offer. The rich and the poor, the high and the low, all are to have the Gospel preached to them. And preach what? Why, that Christ died — that is the Gospel. I do not believe He wants us to come and preach to you the Gospel, and then does not give you power to believe it; do you? Do you ‘think the Lord sends his messengers out all over the earth to preach his glorious Gospel and then has constituted man so he cannot believe it? That is what many people tell us. It was not many hours ago that that very thing was brought up — that some men are so constituted they cannot believe. Away with such doctrine! A man comes to me and wants to have me goto his house and take tea with him to-night. “I would like very much to go with you, sir, but the fact is, I can’t go.” “Have you got some other engagement?” “No.” u Why can’t you go then?” Well, I don’t feel just like it” “What is the matter? Are you sick?” No, sin

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aever was any better than I am now.” “Well, what do you mean?” “Well, the fact is, I am so constituted I zan’t believe you want me.” There is a good deal of sense in that, isn’t there? So when the Gospel of the Son of God is preached, people say they are so con- .tituted they can’t believe it. Away with such doctrine!

* Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to svery creature. He that believeth” — and there the line s drawn. Men can believe if they will. It is not oecause men cannot believe; it is because men will not oelieve. “Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life.” Some one has drawn the picture of Peter saying,

* Lord, you don’t really mean that. You don’t mean that we should go back to Jerusalem and preach the Gospel to those men who murdered you.” “Yes,” says Christ, u I want to have you tarry in Jerusalem until the power comes, and preach to those Jerusalem sinners first. Let those men that murdered me have the Gospel preached to them first.” “But, Lord they may be so constituted they cafi’t believe.” “But you are going to preach the Gospel. That is your work Go ye into all the world, and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.” “What!” says Peter, “preach the Gospel to that man that drove those naiis into four hands and feet?” “Yes, go and hunt up that man that drove those nails into my hands and my feet, and tell him that I forgive him freely; that I love tiim with an everlasting love; that I will give him a seat n my kingdom if he will believe on me. Go hunt up :hat man that drove that spear into my side, and tell him :here is a nearer way to my heart than that. Tell him that :here is nothing but love in my heart for him, and that if he will believe on me, he shall have a seat in my kingdom, Gro hunt up that man that brought that cruel crown of horns n put it on my brow. Go tell him that if he will

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believe on me I will put a crown on his head, and there shall not be a thorn in it. Go hunt up that man that spat in my face and tell him that I love him and that he can be saved if he will believe the Gospel and repent from his sins and turn unto me. Preach the Gospel to every creature.” John Bunyan describes the scene, thai when Peter stood up there on the day of Pentecost preaching and the crowd was flocking around him, one came up and said, “Peter, Peter, can I be saved? I am the man that spat in his face.” “Yes,” says Peter, “He told me to preach the Gospel to every creature, and that means you.” Another comes pressing up through the crowd, “Peter, do you think there is any hope for me? Do you think I can be saved? I am the man that took that rod out of his hand and brought it down over that cruel crown of thorns. Can I be saved?” “Yes,” says Peter, u He told me to preach the Gospel to every creature.” Then comes the centurion, and he says, “I am the man that put Him to death. I had charge of the execution. I gave orders that those rails should be driven into His hands and feet. Peter can I be saved?” “Yes,” says Peter, “He told me to preach the Gospel to every creature, and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned.”

My friends, is not that a universal offer? Is not that invitation extended to every creature? If a man in this gospel meeting is lost, whose fault is it? Is it God’s fault? What more can He do for us than he has done? He sent His prophets, ard we killed them. He sent His own Son, and we murdered Him. And after He had gone up on High, He sent the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin; and the Holy Spirit is here on the earth at the present time.

So, my friends to-day you can believe the gospel if you will. And the gospel is this: that Christ has come to meet your need. There is not a need that you feel in your heart to-day but that Christ can meet if you let Him. God sent Him here to meet man’s need, ‘* He healed all them that had need of healing.” Do you need it? Is the heart heavy and sad on account of sin? Let Jesus Christ come to meet your need. He is so anxious to save men, you have not got to ask Him; He stands at the door of your heart now offering you salvation, and all you have to do is just to take it and live. When I was in Glasgow a lady came to me and said, “Mr. Moody, you are all the time talking about take, take, take — all you have to do is to take — as though we were to take a gift. Is that word take in the Bible? I have been hunting through the Bible, and I can’t find it anywhere.” “Well, I am very glad to tell you it is here. I don’t have to manufacture texts. It would take a lifetime, it would take a thousand years, to just begin to touch the texts in that book. We can’t begin to use what we have got.” She said, “I wish you would just show it to me.” So I turned over into the last chapter of the Bible and read: “The Spirit and the bride say, come. And let him that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” That is broad enough, isn’t it? I can imagine after the Lord got up to glory, He could see that after Paul wrote a few of his Epistles, some one would say, “I can’t be saved, because I don’t belong to the elect.” He saw that some one was going to stumble over the doctrine of election. So the Lord came down one Sunday — John was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day there on Patmos; and John and his Master got together; — can’t tell whether it was in Patmos or in heaven. The Lord came to John and said,? Nows John you just write these things.” And he began to write; and he kept on writing. “Now,” says he, “before you seal it, put in one more invitation so broad that there shall not be a man in the world that will think he ;<s left out.” He might have seen some one down here in Cleveland stumbling over the doctrine of election. So He worded the invitation so that every man would be included. “The Spirit and the bride say, Come.” The church is the bride; and the Spirit of God unites with the church and says, “Come.” “And let him that heareth say, Come.” If you have heard it, take up the cry and ask others. “And let him that is athirst Come.” Some people say, “I am deaf and I can’t hear.” A great many people say they are not thirsty enough. They say they are anxious to be anxious. Isn’t that a strange statement. “I am anxious to be anxious.” And so they think they are not thirsty enough. “Let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst Come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” And if God Almighty, maker of heaven and earth says, “Let him Come,” who is going to stop him? All the devils in hell could not stop that little boy there from coming and taking the water of life to-day if he will. There is nothing to hinder you if you will. The Lord will give you legions of angels to help you take the water of life if you want it. You can take the water of life to-day. You can be blessed to-day if you will. You can have every sin of your life swept out of your way, and get victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil to-day if you will.

“Go ye into all the wrorld and preach the gospel to every creature.” That means every one of us here. The question is to-day, What will you do with the gospel of the Son of God? What will you do with this offer? He comes to every person here and says, “I want to forgive you. I want to bless you.” Now, you can spurn the offer, you can refuse it, or you can let Him bless you.

I read an account some time ago of a man in Russia who became a wild, reckless prodigal. His father was very rich, and his father got him a commission in the army. He thought if he sent him away from his old associates he might reform. That is a mistake a great many people make. They think if they can get them away from their old comrades they will break off from their sins. You can’t get away from the sin that is in you* Christ is the only one that can give you victory over sin. This father put his boy in the army in the hope that it might do him good. But he went on a great deal worse in the army than when he was out He gambled and spent all the money he could get hold of and all he could borrow. The laws of that country are very rigid about the payment of debts* If a man can not pay his debts he has to go to prison. This young man had been gambling and got in debt, and he had got to the end of his rope, as we would say. He could not go any further. And one night he sat in the barracks — he had to meet that day, and there was only one way he could meet the debt He could sell his commission; but if he sold his commission he would have to go home in disgrace, and meet his old associates and that loving father. His heart was broken. He was coming to himself, and beginning to see what he had brought himself to. So he sat down there in his barracks that night and took a piece of paper and a pen and began to put down his debts, and reckoned up to see where he was. He put down a long column and footed it up. It was a large amount; and one of the largest debts had to be met the next day, He wept like a child over that account, and wrote underneath, “Who is to pay the debt?” and then laid his head down upon his desk and Wept, and at last he went to sleep. That night the Czar of the Russias, dressed in disguise, passed through the barracks to see what the soldiers were doing, and he came into this man’s barracks and found him asleep. His candle was burning very faintly. It was very late in the night. The Czar took up that paper, and he suspected what it meant. He could see the marks of dissipation upon the young man. He took up his pen and wrote right underneath, the word “Nicholas,” and passed on. When the young man awoke from his sleep, what was his surprise to see that signature, — “Nicholas.” What does this mean? That is the hand-writing of the Emperor. How came it here? He could not make out what it meant. But early the next morning the Emperor sent the money around and the debt was paid.

I simply tell you this as an illustration. You can just put down all your sins from childhood up that you can think of, and write right underneath, “The blood of Jesus Christ, his Son cleanseth from all sin.” That is the gospel. His blood was shed for that very purpose, and your sins can be covered to-day if you will have them covered up. You can be saved this hour if you will. You can believe the gospel and be saved to-day ii you will*