SERIES: “THE RICHES OF SALVATION”



SERIES: “CUPS FROM THE LORD’S CUPBOARD”

MESSAGE #3 THE SINNER’S CUP

Psalm 75:8

“For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain and drink down.”

Let us reach into God’s Cupboard for yet another “cup”. Here is a cup which, it seems to me, no one would willingly choose if they knew the horrible destiny associated with it. Yet, the majority of persons on planet earth, who are either ignorant or infidels, will partake of this cup.

Examining the Sinner’s Cup we discover that:

I. THIS IS A CUP OF UNEQUALED CATASTROPHE.

Psalm 11:6 “Upon the wicked He will rain coals; Fire and brimstone and a burning wind

shall be the portion of their cup.”

This is an awful prospect, “fire and brimstone”, isn’t it? Psalm 11:6 reminds us of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, doesn’t it? It also causes us to call to mind the word pictures of the ultimate place of punishment – Hell. Hell is referred to in the Bible as:

• “the lake of fire” – Rev.19:20

• A “furnace of fire” – Matt.13:42

• A place of “everlasting fire” – Matt.18:8; 25:41

• A place of “darkness” – Jude v.13

• Three times our Lord calls it “outer darkness” – Matt.8:12

• Jude calls it “everlasting chains under darkness” & “the blackness of darkness for ever” – Jude v.6

• Peter speaks of “the spirits in prison” - (I Peter 3:19).

• It is called “the pit” – “Deliver him from going down to the pit” - (Job 33:24).

• Another name by which it is called is “the second death” - (Revelation 20:14).

There are no descriptions of the cauldron of the Sinner’s Cup that are anything but

descriptions of unequaled catastrophe. An anonymous preacher of years gone by,

graphically described Hell as follows: “Hell is a lonely, barren, desolate world, rolling bet-

ween the confines of eternity, with no sun or star to light up its darkness. There are rivers

of liquid fire and continents of incinerated rocks. Over it the damned walk, climb and

stumble throughout eternity.”

Someone may ask, ”Where could anyone get such an idea?” In the Bible!

II. THIS IS A CUP OF UNIVERSAL JUDGMENT.

Psalm 75:8 “Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain and drink down”.

All are included under one universal umbrella of Divine judgment. Many scriptures repeat

the all-inclusiveness of God’s judgment upon unrepentant sinners. Some of them are:

A. Rom 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

B. Rom 5:12,13 “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death

through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.“

C. Rom 5:17 “Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men,

resulting in condemnation.”

D. Jude v.14-15 contains Enoch’s prophecy of all inclusive judgment: “Now Enoch, the

seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord

comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who

are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an

ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against

Him.”

E. So, back to Psalm 75:8 - “For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine

is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of

the earth drain and drink down”.

These sweeping indictments should silence all self-righteous persons who think they

need no repentance and salvation. If the above evidence is not sufficient, there is more:

III. THIS IS A CUP OF UNENDING SUFFERING.

Rev 14:10-11 “He shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full

strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in

the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of

their torment ascends up forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night ....”

Mark 9:46 contains this remarkable expression: “their worm dies not, and the fire is not

quenched.” It is an endless death – eternally dying – yet alive. What a horrible future

awaits those who reject God’s remedy for sin’s ruin freely offered in the Salvation Cup

which the Lord extends.

I was pastor of a church that was hosting a guest speaker who was speaking on the

subject of Hell. A man stood and loudly said, “I do not believe in Hell!” The speaker

thumbed through several pages of his Bible and replied, “Sir, it is still written in God’s holy

word, ‘The wicked shall be turned into hell and all the nations that forget God.’ – you can

read that, sir, in Psalms 9 and verse 7.’” The man continued to cause such a disturbance

that I called the ushers and had him removed from the service.

A minister had just finished describing the horrors of Hell. A skeptic spoke up and said, I

am not afraid of Hell. All the Hell we have is here on earth.” The preacher said, “I will give

you three reasons why that cannot possibly be true. First, I am a saved man and there are

many other saved persons present and there are no saved people in Hell. Second, across

the street is the City Park with a lake and a water fountain in the middle of it. In Hell there

is no water. Third, I have just presented a Gospel message and in Hell there is no Good

News of salvation. No, sir! Hell is not here on earth in this life. Hell is yet to come for all

Christ rejecters.”

The Sinner’s Cup is reserved for those who have no interest in the Savior’s Cup and who

have refused the Salvation Cup.

CONCLUSION

Is there any hope? Is there any help? Yes! The Gospel is “good news” – you don’t have to choose Hell! Paul the Apostle sets forth the Gospel in clear and understandable words:

“I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,” (I Corinthians 15:1-4)

Notice that he said, “by which also you are saved” (v.2). Saved from what? Saved from the penalty of sin which is eternity in “the lake of fire” (Rev.19:20). Take the Salvation Cup offered in the Gospel and provided by our Lord Jesus Christ Who willingly took the Savior’s Cup.

JdonJ

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