Real Grace for Real Need

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Luke 9:11

And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spoke to them of the kingdom of God…

I. THOSE WHOM CHRIST HAS SAVED WILL ALL CONFESS THAT THEY HAD NEED OF SAVING.

1. All the saved saints confess that they had need of healing through their natural depravity.

2. Many have been led to feel that in addition to ordinary original sin, evil tendencies had in the case of some of us assumed peculiar shapes and dreadful forms of besetting and constitutional sin — quick temper; pride; animal passions, &c. Apart from grace, we had been sinners before the Lord exceedingly. A Scotch gentleman was observed to look very intently upon the face of Rowland Hill: the good old man asked him, "And what are you looking in my face at?" The observer replied, "I have been studying the lines of your face." "And what do you make out of them?" said Rowland. "Why, I make out," said he, "that if the grace of God had not changed your heart you would have been a great rascal." "Ah!" said Rowland, "you have made out the truth indeed." Many of us have to confess humbly that in us there was pressing need of healing, for if healing had not come, we should not only have been sinful as others, but should probably have taken the lead in iniquity, and been carried away by the wild sweep of inward passion to the utmost excess of riot.

3. Brethren, this need of healing will be confessed by the saints in this further respect, that there was not only in us a tendency to sin, but we had grievously sinned in act and deed before conversion.

4. There was need of healing because, in addition to having sinned, we wilfully continued in it.

II. UNSAVED HEARERS HAVE NEED OF SAVING.

1. Because you are inclined to evil.

2. Because of your actual sins.

3. You do not feel this as you ought.

4. You are unable to pray.

5. Your feelings, your desires after good things, are very often damped. Perhaps this morning you are sincerely in earnest, but to-morrow you may be just as careless as ever.

III. Our third point is to thee, O needy sinner. JESUS CAN SAVE THEE. Christ can save you, for there is not a record .in the world, nor has there ever been handed down to us by tradition a single case in which Jesus has failed.

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