A Sermon (#546) Preached By William “Bill” Touchton
Edited By Michael D. Lawson
If you have your Bibles, turn with me to the book of Mark 10.17…
As you study the Bible, you will find the most abstruse, the most profound and thought provoking questions ever asked. And in one sense these questions are inescapable. They must be answered.
Several of these questions are found in the book of Matthew, for instance, in Matthew 16, Jesus posed this question to his disciples. He asked, “Whom do men say that I the Son of Man am?” You say, who cares what they think. There are many ways to answer that question.
Listen, he asked that question to lead into the next question. Question number 2, “Whom say ye that I am?” You see, he made it personal. Who is Jesus Christ according to YOU? That is inescapable. You will answer that question and your response could mean the difference between Heaven and Hell.
There’s another question found in the 27th chapter of Matthew that is inescapable. In that passage, Pontious Pilot asked, “What then shall I do with Jesus which is called the Christ?”
Listen. Who is Jesus Christ, and what are YOU going to do with him? Listen…everyone must answer those two questions in this lifetime.
Now there’s a third question found in the book of Matthew, and it is also repeated in Mark 10, and also in the book of Luke, and it’s a question that each of us need to ponder. And that question is, “Who can be saved?”
Listen, there are people here this morning who need to be saved. The Bible tells us that God loves us. He sent His Son to die for us. He wants to give us an abundant life now, and eternal life in Heaven, but there may be people here this morning who can not be saved, and I will show you sho they are in this passage. Now, look with me at Mark 10.17, and this morning I want to preach on ‘The Question of Who Can Be Saved.’
Chuck Colson, in his book he entitled Life Sentence, tells the story of a young man by the name of Tommy Tarrants. In the early 1960’s Tommy Tarrants was considered to be one of the most violent and dangerous criminals in the country. Tommy was a trained marksman, and was an expert in explosives, and was raised with an intense hatred toward the black community, and toward Jesus. And because of this hate, he became a terrorist with the KKK and with a group called the White Knights.
For some time the FBI tried to track him down, and one night they caught up with Tommy and his partner. A gun battle took place. Several people were shot. One died, but Tommy was arrested and went to prison.
Within 2 months he and another friend escaped. The FBI pursued them and caught them. Another gun battle took place. Tommy’s friend was killed and once again he was arrested and sent back to prison, and for one year, he lived in a small cell. Just a couple of feet wide and six feet long, in solitary confinement, and the only thing he could do was read.
One day, while reading, he came across the gospel of Jesus Christ as found in the Bible. He fell under a deep conviction and got on his knees in that cell and asked Jesus to come into his life – and Jesus came into his heart and changed him. And this man, who was known as the meanest man in prison became a model prisoner and God used him to help start a Bible study group, and used him to win other prisons to the Lord. And when I read that story I was reminded that God can save anyone. It matters not how sinful they are.
Eldridge Cleaver was a member of the Black Panthers. He too was trained in explosives and used his skills and hatred to terrorize the white people. His favorite line that he would shout at these rallies was, “Kill the cops, and rape the white women.” And he too became one of the most wanted criminals in this country, so he ran from the police and moved to France. But one day, while sitting at his home, he too was confronted with Jesus Christ. And Jesus saved him.
He came back to America and turned himself in – and served his time – and joined the same Bible study group that Tommy Tarrants was in, and he too became a model prisoner. One that could be trusted, and he too shared his faith with other prisoners.
But that’s what the grace of God can do. You see, the grace of God is so vast that it can cover any sin – or any amount of sin. God can save anyone, no matter how sinful. He can take the hardest heart and make it soft. He can take a heart filled with hate and cause it to love. Listen, God can save anyone…No one is so sinful that they go beyond the grace of God – and there’s evidence to prove that all through the scripture…
Abraham came from a background of idol worshippers, but God saved him.
Nineveh was a city filled with sin, but God sent Jonah with an eight word sermon, and God saved all 600,000.
Manasseh was the most evil and wicked king to love sin on Israel’s throne…He destroyed the altar of God and raised up one to Baal. He made his son pass through the fire of the false god Molech. He used enchanters and consulted spirits. He led an entire nation to do evil. He shed innocent blood that he thought might oppose his rule. Yet, in 2 Chronicles 33.11-13, we see that Manasseh was humbled and the Bible says he “knew that the Lord was God.”
Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Israel and set up a statue of himself to be worshipped by all. Yet, he too was humbled by God’s grace and God saved him. No one is beyond the scope of God’s grace.
God can save anyone!
Listen…Here’s what the Bible teaches…
- God desires all to be saved (1 Tim. 2.4)
- Jesus died for all to be saved (1 John 2.2)
- The Holy Spirit disturbs all to be saved (John 16.8)
Listen, the gospel message is so simple anyone can be saved. The scope of the gospel is so broad that it can cover anyone.
Listen. God can save ANYBODY, and yet NOT EVERYBODY can be saved. And that’s what we find in this passage.
We’re introduced to such a man in this passage of scripture.
Let me describe the context. The story of this man is found in the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Here’s what we know.
He’s young. He’s rich. He has a religious background. And he wants to be saved and go to heaven when he dies. He has all the advantages for someone who wants to be saved…He would be chosen “most likely to be saved” in his high school yearbook.
1. He’s young…did you know that 80% of all people who get saved, get saved before they turn 18…Listen, its likely that if a person is not saved when they are young, that they will never be saved. This man was young, his heart had not been hardened with time.
2. He’s rich…he has been blessed by the goodness of God…And Paul said in Rom. 2.4 that the goodness of God leads to repentance.
3. He’s got a religious background…he has a background in the Bible, and church…that’s how he could be elevated to the position of “ruler” as such a young age…He has been exposed to the Word and way of God.
4. He wants to be saved. He comes running, it says in v. 17. He asked, “Lord, what must I do that I may inherit eternal life?”
Listen, he came before Jesus ever gave the invitation…but listen, he wasn’t saved on that day. He had every opportunity to be saved, but he was not saved.
Listen, he was saddened, but not saved. He was grieved, but he didn’t receive the grace of God.
Listen, as he walked away, the disciples said, “Lord, if this young man can’t be saved, who then can be saved?”
God desired him to be saved. Jesus was willing to die so he could be saved. The Holy Spirit disturbed him so he could be saved. God did everything He could do, yet he left unsaved.
God wanted to save him, but could not save him. Let me tell you why.
1. He would not recognize his need for a savior.
If you notice, he referred to Jesus as “good Master.” This is a title of respect, but not one of reverence. In his eyes, Jesus was no better than he was.
Then Jesus responds, “Why callest thou me good? There’s none good but God.”
Let me illustrate. When I went to Argyle, they had a night of questioning. A gentleman asked me, “Can you explain to me the doctrine of the humanity of man and the deity of God?”
Concerning the humanity of man, There is none righteous. We have all sinned, We have all turned to our own way.
Concerning the deity of God. He is sinless. Perfect. As Isaiah recorded, He is holy! Holy! Holy!
Here’s the point. Only a holy God can save a sinful man.
Is Jesus a good master? Yes. But he is also a God of mercy, who saves sinful men.
Back to the question the young man asked, “What must I do to be saved?” The answer is…nothing.
When Jesus said, “There is none good…” He is trying to show him his inadequacy.
Christianity is the only religion in the world that doesn’t offer a man-made, works based way to be saved.
Jesus is the way! Only Jesus can save!
2. He would not acknowledge his sin.
In Luke 18, Jesus tells a story about a tax collector and a Pharisee. The Pharisee stood and prayed confidently about who glad he was that he wasn’t like other sinners. The tax collector was so overcome with an awareness of his sin, that he couldn’t get past the back row of the church. He prayed humbly. Admitting his sin.
If you are not willing to admit your sin. You can never be saved.
3. He would not acknowledge the sufficiency of God.
To be saved there must be an exchange. You exchange your life for his.
In 2 Cor. 5.21 Paul says that Jesus, who knew no sin, became sin for us. So that we, sinful men, could become the righteousness of God.
This man would not acknowledge that what Jesus wanted to give him was any better than what he already had.
He had all the advantages, but he left lost. Who can be saved?
Look at Mark 10.46-52.
Here we see a blind man who cried out to God for mercy and had faith that Jesus would heal him.
So, the answer to the question, Who can be saved? Anyone one who cries out to God for mercy and has faith that Jesus will act on their behalf. Anyone who does that can and will be saved.