Amen. So we're going to speak tonight on lessons from the net. Matthew chapter 13, as many of you will be aware, contains seven very familiar parables known as the parables of the kingdom. They are really earthly illustrations of spiritual things, of things relating to the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom into which sinners are born again by the Spirit of God. Now the parable of the net is the last of the seven and is found only here in Matthew's gospel. It is clearly a companion parable to that of the wheat and the tares mentioned in the previous verses. The parable that I preached on the last time I was with you on a Sunday. Now while there is a close connection Between the two, we need to understand that the Lord never wastes words. That's the amazing thing about the Lord. He never wastes words. Even though he seems to be covering the same ground as before, as close reading shows that he has a purpose in every one of these parables. The parable of the wheat and the tares is all about the sower and the seed. But in this parable, it's all about fishermen and fishing. Do you see that? There's a difference. Similarities, but there's a difference. How appropriate then that this parable deals with the final judgment that will take place at the end of the world. Verse 49. So this parable brings us right up to the end of the world. And that might not be that far away. I'm not going to speculate. I don't wanna be foolish enough to do that. But this parable brings us up to the end of the world. And both parables focus on the judgment day. Let me remind you right now, there is a judgment day coming. Whether you believe it or not, it's not gonna make any difference. It's gonna come in spite of your thoughts or notions or ideas. So it's a day of judgment coming when everything in the kingdom will be tested and the good will be separated from the bad. That's what the parable is teaching us. That's what the parable is all about. Now, before proceeding, let me just briefly mention a few details of the parable, simple things. I want you to see what I'm getting at here. I don't want anybody to be confused. I want you to see clearly what it's all about. First of all, there's the mention of the net. Do you see that? We've read about the net. There's the sea. We've mentioned and we've read about the sea. There's the fishermen. And then, of course, you have the fish. Now, what's it all about? Well, let me just explain now simply. The net is a symbol of the gospel. The sea stands for the nations of the world or the people of nations, people of the world. The fishermen represent evangelists, preachers, teachers, pastors. The fish represent the wicked and the just, according to verse 49. There are two kinds of fish. There are two kinds of people in this world, the saved and the lost. And so there are two kinds of fish here in the portion before us representing the wicked and the just. So it's simple. A child in primary school could understand these things already. So let me get to the main body of the message. Three very simple things. Now that we have that out of the way, now that we understand what it's all about, the parable paints a picture. A parable paints a picture. You open the newspaper, you might not take a lot of time reading all the verses there or the paragraphs, but you will look at the picture. That's not the way you do it. You look at the picture first and you think, well, will it be worthwhile reading what it's got to say about that picture? And so here we have a picture given to us, given to us by the spirit of God and the holy scriptures. It's a picture painted of a drag net that catches all kinds of fish. The net was then unloaded onto the shore. The fish were sorted out. The good fish were stored in certain vessels and then taken to market, while the bad fish were thrown away. So in illustrating the teaching of the parable, Jesus uses an activity which all who heard would understand. Everybody around Galilee knew all about fishing. I never was much of a fisherman. I never had anything to do with fishing. But when my son was very small, he said, father, or daddy, would you buy me a fishing rod? I said, that's OK. So many, many years ago, we bought it there in Portrush. I think maybe that shop was still there. I don't remember the street. But he was all excited. So we went down to the harbor there. And we got things sorted out, we got a hook tied onto it, not that I knew anything about attaching a hook or to the line, but we did it anyway. We had to give the kid the impression that we knew all about it, what we were doing. And so I let him cast in the line into the harbour, and I just walked away to sit down somewhere. And he says, Daddy, Daddy, I've caught a fish. Couldn't believe it. Just as he cast in, he caught a fish. And then he reeled it in. It was the right size of the fish. But I had not a clue how to get the hook out. I didn't even want to handle the old thing itself at all. I didn't want to even touch it. Somebody saw my dilemma and said, sir, can I help you? And I said, yes, please, you help me. And he did it. Did a good job. So then shortly after that, we were over Nymouth. on the east coast of Scotland one time, and he thought he would go down to the harbour there and fish. And sure enough, he says, Daddy, I've caught something. And I says, OK, reel it in. And there was something there, because I could see the rod was bending. And so he was going. And I thought, this is a massive fish. But as he reeled it in, he discovered he had caught a seagull. Couldn't believe it. And that was a hassle, because the closer we got, this thing went crazy and it began to attack us. And thankfully, there are other people there in the province of God who saw the pickle I was in and came to the rescue. It was a vicious monster, you know. What did a Bible student know about fishing and releasing seagulls from a fishing hook? Not a clue at all. But it prepared me for evangelism. as a fisher of souls, because sometimes you meet some very cruel seagulls when you're preaching the word in the open air, telling to Peter the sparring. And sometimes they do encounter this kind of thing. And so the Lord was even teaching me in that. So that was my experience of fishing. Never really pursued it after that. but here we have a picture before us. It was a common everyday activity around the Sea of Galilee as it is today. Fishing and Bible times could be done in different ways. There are three basic methods of fishing employed in that day in the time of Christ. When Christ told Peter to go and catch a fish on the hook, And as he retrieved that fish, he was to find a coin in the fish's mouth. He referred to the kind of fishing that would be done with a linen hook. Matthew chapter 17, I think it is verse 27. And the second method was the use of a casting net, a circular net. could be used then, and it would have a rope that would close the opening of the net to trap the fish. This was the method used by Peter and Andrew when the Lord called them to become fishers of men in Matthew 8, verse 13. And then there was a third way of fishing referred to in the parable. It's the use of the drag net. referred to in her text, and is known today as a trawl net. This was the normal way to fish on the Sea of Galilee in the time of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, they would stretch a long, wide net behind either one boat or between two boats, and then drag it through the water. The top of the net would have floats attached, and the bottom of the net would have weights attached. And as the boat moved silently across the Sea of Galilee through the water, the drag net would catch everything in its way. The net would then be drawn to the shore and such a net could bring in a huge variety of fish, big fish, small fish, living fish, dead fish, cleaned fish, unclean fish. Do you get the picture? So the net was indiscriminate in what it caught. And then the fisherman had to separate the edible from the inedible. Do you get the picture? Are you with me now? We're fishing here in the Sea of Galilee. Do you get the picture? I've been on the Sea of Galilee many, many times. Get the picture. And Christ depicts the net coming to the shore and the fishermen sorting the good fish into vessels and taking them to the market. And the inedible fish, they were cast away. They were no good. They were simply discarded. The scene would have been familiar to those listening to the parable. That's the way the Lord reached the hearts of the common people. Not with philosophy. Not with fancy talking. He used the language of the people. He told stories that illustrated truth to win their hearts. And the common people heard him gladly. They responded to his teaching. It was the educated people who turned the hearts of the people away from following after Christ. So every child probably watched the fishermen on a regular basis. as they stayed or sat around their villages on the sea of Galilee. And they watched as the fishermen sorted out the catch on the shore. The parable paints a picture. Are you getting the picture? This familiar practice was used by Jesus as a picture of what will happen at the end of the world. Solemn thought, solemn truth has been taught here. Notice the words in verse 49, so shall it be. These words signify not only that the meaning of the parable has been given, but that what has been presented in the parable is going to find its fulfillment sometime in the future. That's the point. sometime in the future, the future tense of the word to be, it shall be so. So he's painting the picture. He's given a familiar illustration so that anyone, a common person could understand it completely. And he's saying, this is a picture of what is going to happen sometime in the future at the end of the world. because there's going to be a time of the separation of the good from the bad at the end of the world. Do you get the picture now? Don't lose the picture. In the second place, the parable proclaims a principle. It's opening sentence makes it clear that Christ is giving us a picture of one aspect of the kingdom of heaven. Now, one thing to remember, it's very important to remember this. is that the kingdom, as the kingdom of heaven, that is the spiritual kingdom of heaven, as extended on earth, not all people who are visibly gathered into it are truly part of it. Now, we have the picture of the dragnet that picks up everything as it's dragged along the sea. But then the time of separation comes, the time of sorting comes. And so what I'm saying is this, that not all people who are visibly gathered into it are truly part of that. Now you may be sitting beside someone tonight in the house of God, and you may be thinking, well, they must be saved because they're here in church. That's not necessarily follow through. But they're here, they're part of what we would call the visible church, the visible manifestation of the church, an interest in the things of God, attendees at the services in the house of God, but yet unconverted. And a time will come when those redeemed by blood and those unconverted will be separated finally forever. And they will go to the design place for them as heaven For hell, the preaching of the gospel in the world does not convert the whole world. There are many millions who have been lost and who are lost in hell tonight. and there are many millions who have been redeemed by precious blood and are with Christ. The whole world will not be saved. We've got to understand that. That's what Jesus is teaching here. There are two classes of people in the world. The saved and the unsaved. The righteous and the unrighteous. The good and the bad. So the gospel is like a huge dragnet that gathers all kinds and if you like all classes of fish, some good, some bad. The professing church, Today has in it both true and false believers, and at the end of the world, God will separate true believers from the false, the good from the bad, that's it. That's clear, that's plain, that's simple. Understand it, believe it, take it to heart, don't miss what's here. The power of will proclaims the principle. And people may claim to belong to the kingdom who are not real subjects of his king. Just as the first parable in Matthew chapter 13 shows that only one of four soils produced fruit. So this parable shows that there are good fish and bad fish and the visible manifestation of the kingdom. As long as we're in the world, as long as we're in this world, the visible church will be just like Noah's Ark. Oh, it's a wonderful type and picture, we know that. But in Noah's Ark, there are all kinds of creatures, both clean and unclean. And three times in the parable of the sower, the parable of the wheat and tares, and now in this parable, Jesus tells us, that a church in this world is a mixed congregation. He wants us to learn this. He wants us to be clear about this. Being good living does not count. Being a self-righteous person just doesn't count. These are commendable things. I'm not striking out at those things. I'm commending those things, but they will not get you to heaven. They don't count as far as salvation is concerned. They don't. Widen up to the truth, see it as it really is. The gospel moves throughout the world by the preaching of the word and by the means of grace that are sometimes a silent and imperceptible as the net moving through the water. And those gathered in include not only the true subject of the kingdom, but others like Judas, Judas Iscariot. Did the Lord not select him to be one of his disciples? Yes, of course he did. Did he not know what kind of man he was? The Lord certainly did. But for some reason, knowing only to him, he selected him to be one of the 12. Maybe to teach the same truth. Judas is lost tonight. He's down tonight. He's in hell. But I'm sure many of the disciples themselves thought he was righteous. thought he was as good as they were, but they were wrong. His heart had never been saved by grace. He had not become a subject to the king of the kingdom. He lived only for self, for selfish reasons. And he had only himself to blame when he died in the sin, when he committed suicide and went to his own place, according to the teaching of the Bible. It was his own fault. And if a man or woman dies and goes to hell, it will be their own fault. It will be their own fault. People can turn around and blame God and point the finger at God. You hear all these reasons, all these crazy excuses. People will believe anything but the truth. And if you're witnessing to them, they come up with all these crazy notions and ideas. Now such hypocrites. "'as Judas may appear to be in the kingdom, "'but the kingdom is not in them.'" The kingdom was not in Judas. There are essentially two separations in this parable. First, there was the one made in the water by the net. We find here the thought is of people who do not get involved in the deep-dyed things of this sin-cursed world. They walk on the clean side of the broad road, as it were. There's some kind, as it were, restraint upon them and their lifestyles. And place them alongside many a professing believer, they're just every bit as good. But then the most important thing is this, is the second separation that happened on the shore. And let Christ explain what the separation on the shore refers to. This is what he said. Now listen to what Jesus said. So shall it be at the end of the world. This is Jesus speaking, the blessed son of God, God manifest in flesh, the judge of all men, because God has given judgment into the hands of his well beloved son. This is what Jesus is saying. The angel shall come forth. and sever the wicked from among the just, verse 49. And that word, sever, is a very strong word. It means to separate, and this separation will take place at the end of time, when time is no more. It's hard to believe that a time will come when time will be no more. It's hard for these puny minds to comprehend that. The end is coming. The Bible talks about new heavens and new earth. But time, as we know it, is coming to an end. The world, as we know it, is coming to an end. But there's more. There's the afterlife. There's the after part. That's the all-important part, the after part. He speaks of the good and the bad fish, the just and the wicked. The just are those who have been declared righteous by God, by a true and living faith in Jesus Christ. Romans 5 verse 9. These just ones were as wicked as the rest of humanity by nature. but they have been acquitted before God on the basis of Christ's satisfaction for them on the cross, when he offered himself as a sacrifice to put away sin, to atone for their sins. So they were every bit as bad. They were not justified from eternity, but there was a time in life's experience when they were justified by faith. They were chosen in Christ. But there came a moment in time when they were changed by the grace of God and brought into the family of God through grace and declared to be righteous at the bar of God simply because of his grace and his grace alone. We're saved by grace through faith and Christ alone by blood alone. That's the message of the Bible. They're redeemed from the curse of the law. They have been declared righteous before the bar of God. Oh, to be declared righteous before God. And Jesus one day will identify all those to his Father. This one is mine, this one is mine, this one is mine. They belong to me. Welcome them home to glory because of me, because of my work, because of the blood I shared on the cross, because of the life I loved and the death that I died. Be gracious to them and welcome them to the great kingdom above. In verse 49, Christ mentions the angels. I preached about Gabriel the other Tuesday night at the prayer meeting. I think Mr. Ferguson last week, was it? He was also touching on angels. So he believes in angels as well. Of course we do, because the Bible teaches truth about angels. And this is the part given to the angels, the holy angels. What does the Lord say? So shall it be at the end of the world, the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just. This is what the angels, the part they will play. At the end of time, at the end of the world, they will discharge their duty swiftly. They will discharge their duty exactly. They will separate according to God's standard. And let me make it abundantly clear, not one wicked person will gain entrance into the kingdom of God, and not one said one will be lost in hell. That's got to be made abundantly clear. No person will be allowed to contradict this or plead his case before God. Men will not be there before the judgment to plead their cause or case. The ungodly will be there at the white throne to receive how much hell they're going to get. That's already decided upon. Just how much will be determined by God on that day. It's going to be an awful place, the white throne judgment. It's not enough to profess to belong to the community, that that is set apart by Christ. Men need to flee for mercy to Christ now. for now is the accepted time to the one telling the parable that just will avoid hell because of the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ alone, who has endured hell on behalf of his people. Now, many people think the doctrine of hell goes against the idea of the love of God and compassion of Jesus Christ. That's a lot of absolute nonsense. Did you know the Lord Jesus Christ spoke more about hell than he did about heaven? He spoke more often about hell than anybody else in the Bible. He in grace is urging men and women to flee to him while there is time to do so. So we've looked at two simple things. We have the picture, the parable paints a picture. And then secondly, we have the other thought there, the parable, proclaims a principle. And then finally, the parable provides a pointer. What do I mean by that? A pointer given is some good advice of how to perform a task or solve an issue. It's a pointer. So the parable provides advice here. on what we need to do, and we're still unconverted. Now, in the parable, Christ warns that things will not always continue as they are now. So let's be clear about this. Things will not continue as they are now. Soon the kingdom of God will be full. How do I know that? The church of God will be complete, because Jesus talks here about the net, and he says, when it was full, that is the net. That is, when Christ's program of salvation for sinners, when it is complete, it will come to a close, the net will then be full. And the time identified for this is the end of the age. And then in verse 48, we're told, they drew it to shore and sat down and gathered the good and the vessels, but cast the bad away. The day of judgment is coming. in which God will forever separate the righteous from the wicked. Oh, the parable is teaching a lesson. The parable is a pointer here. The parable is warning, O men, of the certainty of God's wrath. Wrath is coming. Wrath is on its way. Judgment is coming. God is not some pathetic old man with long white hair setting up there on a throne and the world is out of control. Get that picture out of your mind. He's full of vibrance and vitality and energy. The God who never had a beginning, a God who will never have an ending, the eternal one, the holy one, the mighty one, who spoke in the beginning and everything created was created by the word of his power out of nothing, nothing. What a God this is. What a maker we have, the creator of all things. The God who in grace sent his son to die for a wretch like me. An ill-deserving, hell-deserving sinner. So many think that the doctrine of hell goes against the idea of the love of God and the compassion of the Savior. Now, what parent would not warn his or her child against the danger of fire? Fire is hot. Fire is dangerous, how fatal it can be. As a gospel preacher, not looking for popularity, not looking for the pat on the back of any man, I'm telling you in the Savior's precious name, hell is a place of eternal punishment, eternal wrath and judgment. I'm telling it to you tonight straight from the hip, telling you the truth of it is, It's up to you what you want to do with it, but remember this, you close your eyes to the gospel, you close your ears to the gospel, you harden your heart to the gospel, and you'll suffer the consequences of your sin. I'm telling you, mark my words, you'll suffer the consequence of your sins. In the light of what I've said, we as the people of God need to live daily witnessing to our fellow men, sharing the glorious gospel, constantly reminding them of the need to exercise faith in Christ, the need to repent of their sins, and trust only in Jesus Christ for salvation, always focusing on that coming day of judgment. There are many people who think all will be well simply because they're among other professing Christians. and believe that they are all heading to heaven together. But Paul warned, this is what he said, come into a close, examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith, examine yourself, whether you be in the faith, prove your own sales. Know ye not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobate." 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5. This is what Christ is warning men and women. This is the pointer in the parable. He's talking here about judgment to come. So God is not concerned primarily with the outward appearance. Of course he is concerned with it, but primarily he's looking on the inside. Now he sees you. inside out. He knows everything about you. He knows your lifestyle. He knows how long you've lived on earth and he knows how long you have left to live on earth. He knows everything about you. Thou God sayest me. He's looking into your heart now. He's looking into your eyes right now. Oh, may that all-gazing view of tonight, may it penetrate deep into your heart that you'll feel so convicted of your sin that you might repent and believe the gospel. More people say they believe in heaven than in hell, and most people who believe in hell think they're not going there. Christ is preaching here about hell. The greatest man who ever lived The greatest man who ever died, the great lover of sinners, the great lover of souls. This is what he says. God is love. Christ is the manifestation of God's love. This is what the God of love said. And shall cast them into the furnace of fire. there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth, verse 50. If you don't believe what I've said, look at it in your Bible, verse 50. This is what the Son of God has said. Jesus Christ believed in hell. He preached about hell. He suffered hell on the cross for his people. He knows what he's talking about. So Christ graphically describes hell as a place of torment. With this, I finish. For both body and soul, there will be darkness, there will be fire, literal fire. I believe that the judgment, the fire that fell on Sodom and Gomorrah was literally hell's fire. That's my thought on the matter anyway. A place of suffering, a place of gnashing of teeth, a place of endless torment, never going out of existence. Suffering, being tormented, in the darkness, in the fire, never going out of existence forever and ever and ever and ever and ever, never coming to an end, never coming to a close, never finishing. But there's mercy with God. There's a savior and he's here tonight and there's power to save. He invites you to come to him. taste and see that God is good. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Unless you flee from the wrath of God and flee from the judgment of God, then forever you'll be lost. I don't want you to be lost. I'm not being arrogant when I talk to you in this fashion. I'm not looking down my nose at anyone. I was a sinner, but now I am free because I believed in the gospel. And I'm preaching to you as a friend who's interested in your well-being, your eternal existence, your eternal destiny. And as your friend, I'm calling upon you tonight to repent and believe the gospel and to trust in Jesus Christ for salvation or forever to be lost. So we'll talk to you tonight about the net. I trust that it will be beneficial to you. The parable paints a picture. The parable presents or proclaims a principle. And the parable provides a pointer. Be in time, be in time, while the voice of Jesus calls you. be in time. We'll just have a word of prayer. We're going to sing a hymn. Then, those who feel they have to leave or must go, feel free to do so. And the Lord's people remain behind to remember him. Jesus invites his people to remain to remember him in his own appointed way. It's all by now for a brief moment, prayer. Father, we thank thee for thy presence. Thank thee for thy word. Bless it now to the hearts of those you've heard. And for those who have to leave, may the Lord even strive with them as they leave, and even bestow a blessing. And if there should be one or two or more out of Christ who need the Lord, even tonight, may they close with Christ and be washed in the precious blood and be saved by grace. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen. The hymn number is the hymn number 661, please. 661, my broken body, gracious Lord, is shadowed by this broken bread. The wine which is, which in this cup is poured, points to the blood which thou has shed. This is what it's all about. It's all about this. So it's 661, and we'll stand together, and after we sing the first verse, if you have to leave or go, feel free to do so as we sing the remainder of the hymn. Thank you for being here, may God bless you. If I can be of help, I can stay here with you for as long as you need. If I can be of help to you spiritually. Let's all worship the Lord at the end of this Lord's day.