Prophet’s Column \ * : “That Which Was Lost” In the nineteenth chapter of Luke is one of the most beautiful stories in the Word of God. It’s the story of the Lord saving a sinner, a tax collector by the name of Zacchaeus Salvatioo is not a work of man. You cannot do one thing to save yourself. The Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, saves the lost, only the lost. Zac chaeus was a man short in suture, that is why he ran ahead and climbed the sycamore tree in order to see Christ when He came by. It was a great surprise to him when the Lord .'stopped by that sycamore .•tree and CALLED him. “And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and ' saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make -haste, and come down; for ; today I must abide at thy - bouse.” (Luke 19:5) The 1 Lord gave him the Effec tual Call which he could not resist and Zacchaeus obeyed and just he and the Lord went into his house ; and the Lord saved him. • But the religious crowd 1 murmured; “And when ; they saw it, they all • murmured, saying, that he was gone to be gueet with a man that is a sinner.” • (Verse 7). When the Lord ; gets ready to save a sinner ; He does not consult with the religious world. The : religious world never puts its stamp of approval on Gdd’s salvation. This de religious crowd today will not have salvation by grace. You want to and are determined to get to Hea ven your way. But you’ll never enter the kingdom on your terms; you'll come God’s way or go to Hell for your trouble. I make no apology for telling you that. Every sinner out of Christ is prejudiced against God. You have your own ideas as to how you ought to be saved. Your own prejudiced opinion is on the throne of your heart about the Word of God. That’s why you are hot saved. After the Lord saved the taxpayer He said; "...This day is salva tion come to this bouse, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.” (Verse •). The little publican was an elect of God, a son of Abraham. Are you an elect of God? If you are saved you are. Why did the Lord come into this world? Not to sing Merry Christmas, a million times, no! But, “TO SEEK AND TO SAVE THAT WHICH WAS LOST.” Are you lost? tt you are a lost sinner under Holy Spirit conviction the Lord is seeking you. When man fell in the Garden of Eden he became a lost sinner. The image of God went out of him and he became a sinful and de vilish creature. Deny the Fall and you’ll never be saved. To deny the Fall is to deny man’s total depra vity. Every sinner who is being dealt with by the . Holy Spirit for salvation is • being taught his totally ■ depraved condition. Salva ■ tion Is no little light thing as ; it is passed off in the - multitudes of our churches ! today. I’ll give you this ; truth that I gave a man in the barbershop Friday ’ night; "the professing Christian of today is as touch like a real Christian as a scarecrow is like a real ; man I" Now that’s cutting across your grain but it is i so. I would not give you two ; cents a carload for the clap ■ trap stuff that is in our ' churches today. Our ' church members have no hope for eternity. It’s a sad thing in my life to see you coming down to the end of life without Christ. You say you don’t want to die be cause this world is the only one you know. What a tragedy! And there are others of you who don’t know any more about look ing to the Lord than a doodle bug knows when Sunday comes. You claim to be a Christian, but you don’t look to Christ to solve you problems. Christ came to save that which was loot. Have you ever considered your state as LOST What does it mean to be loet? First, you are cut off from God, alien ated from Him. While you live in time, you are not yet in as miserable a state as you shall be if the Lord never saves you. Here on earth you are the recipient of His common graces and mercies. But one day aodn, If you die in the hardened condition you are in, sin * • T ' J.M. Little ner, you’ll be cut off from all the common mercies and grace of God. And your never dying soul will be in a place of torment where you’ll never be able to enjoy the last of God’s mercies. Now is the day of repentence, of salvation. What will you do? God has been good to you. Will you go on sinning with a high hand against His goodness? The Lord came to seek and to save that which was lost. Every sinner must be awakened to his lost condition before be can be saved. 1 know that truth is not being proclaimed in our churches today, but in just., a few. I'll tell you on the authority of God’s infallible Word; “If you cannot go back to the time you stood in eternity as a lost sinner, you are not saved!’’ I don’t care how many professions you have made. When God awakens a sinner to his lost condition, it is the most startling thing that ever happened to him. Do you know what I’m talking about? But it is the most gracious thing that ever happened to him. It’s grace upon grace for the Lord to open your heart here in time and let you see your true lost condition. He doesn’t do that to damn you. He does that to save you. Thank Him for opening your heart. For had you died and been awakened apart from Holy Spirit conviction (Jn. 16: 7-11), your state would have been settled for all eternity and you would endure the torture of the damned in Hell. The greatest.thing in this universe is to know Christ. He alone is salvation. Do you know Him? When I was under conviction I was a very miserable soul. But the Lord brought me face * to face with the facts of my hell-deserving condition and He gave me grace to thank Him for opening my sins before hand. I was [ miserable everywhere I went and there was no rest or peace in my heart until Christ was revealed to me. Christ is my peace and rest. If you put anything or anyone ahead of Christ, you are not saved. How many of our church members are going to Hell on faith. You have made a god out of faith. Faith is not salvation, if you know Christ you don’t see faith, you see Him. To magnify faith above Christ is rank idolatry. Are you saved? If you can argue and criticize these messages, you are not saved. Cdl IlM OasaMtodil Truck on over to the place where the action is... The Classifieds. We sell items at a minimal cost. And if it's a bargain you're after, we've got 'em. The Charlotte Post 376-049* 1M4 LINCOLN TOWN CARS: Most are factory executive cars, full power, air, some cars as low as 7,000 miles. 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BLACKBEARD'S RE VENGE is themed around a pirate ship ride with the Carolinas’ infamous pirate Blackbeard. “It’s not a ride or a show, but a combination of the two,’’ said Caro winds Vice Presi dent and General Manager Vicki Sutton. BLACKBEARD’S RE VENGE is a huge pivoted room which rotates to ere Cabbage Patch No! “The Plotters of Cabbage Patch Corner” is not about a gang of thugs beating up on a poor, inno cent bunch of designer clothed dolls. It is the next show at the Children’s Theatre of Charlotte and is a musical by English play wright David Wood. * Set in another corner of the cabbage patch, it tells about a group of Insects and their adventures in trying to save the cabbage patch from destruction. Shows are March 8 and 15 at 7:30 p.m., March 9 and 16 at 1 and 3 p.m. and March 10 and 17 at 1 and 3 p.m.' Call the box office, 333-8963, 9 a.m. • 1, p.m. weekdays for tickets at $2.75 each. Want To Know How To Subscribe * .* to The Post? V i Just Complete The Coupon Below, And Mall To: The Charlotte Pos P.O. Box 30144 Charlotte, NC 28230 Payment Enclosed! One Year $17.76.1 Two Years $31.35', 6 Months $ 10.06 ] l * ' *•> ./ I l V V I Name " i ■ , Address City State Zip ate an illusory swinging effect on the guests who are securely seated on a sta tionary platform. At one point the room rolls over creating the feel ing of being completely' upside down. Set decor, sound and lighting help carry out the plane and illusion of being on a pirate ship at battle. According to Sutton, “Those who have experi enced the sensation have actually placed objects on their benches to convince themselves that they are, in fact, stationary.” “In addition to providing excitement.” added Sutton, “BLACKBEARD’S RE VENGE also provides the park with another air con ditioned attraction that can be equally enjoyed by guests of all ages.” Up to 1200 people an hour will he able to enjoy BLACKBEARD’S RE VENGE. Manufactured by Arrow Huss, Inc. in Clear field, Utah, the attraction made its debut in 1964 at the Lousiana World Expo sition in New Orleans. SPEND THIS WEEKEND WITH THE CHARLOTTE POST For Home Delivery Cqll 376-0496 A MW WAY TOnNDA limCAB. ran# past AND 8ASYI sas-oau 1-800 882-0211 (Outside Charlotte) Hours: Mon.-Sat. »:00a.m.-5:Q0p.m. "It is the first of its kind to have been built," Sutton said, "and we are proud to be the first theme park to feature it." Caro winds will operate on spring weekends (Sa-. turdays and Sundays) from March 23 through June 2. The park will also be open on Easter Monday, April 8, and on Memorial Day Monday, May 27. Beginning June 3, Card winds will be open six days ■ Week (Closed Fri days) through August 22. 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