ONE BY ONE

ISAIAH 27:1

A. "YE SHALL BE GATHERED ONE BY ONE, O YE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL"
  1. The emphatic phrase in our opening text is "One by One"
    1. It reveals the importance of the individual
    2. God does not deal with men in masses only
  2. In creation:
    1. God could have formed a million human beings but He formed one man
    2. A prayerful study of God's communion with men reveals that He communed with single individuals
B. "YE SHALL BE GATHERED ONE BY ONE, O YE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL"
  1. This great and fundamental Bible truth stands out in the life and teaching of the Lord Jesus:
    1. He uttered one of the greatest truths in the Bible to one man - Nicodemus - John 3:1-12
    2. He emphasized the one acceptable worship to God - "They that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth" - to one woman - the Samaritan - John 4:22-23
    3. He emphasized the finding on the one lost sheep - Luke 15:1-6; the loss and finding of one coin - Luke 15:8-9
    4. The angels in heaven rejoice over one sinner that repenteth - Luke 15:10
  2. The Bible makes it abundantly clear:
    1. That our duty to God and men is personal all the way
    2. The duties to God and men are expressed in the personal pronoun - "Thou" - Ex. 20:3-17
    3. We are held accountable to God, not collectively but as individuals; Examples: Adam sinned as an individual and could not blame Eve for his sin, though he attempted to put the blame on her - Gen. 3:12; Eve blamed the serpent for her guilt, but did not change her personal responsibility - Gen. 3:16; Soul attempted to blame the people for his transgression, but that did not work either - I Sam. 15:20-21
C. THE GOSPEL OF THE SALVATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL IS PARAMOUNT IN THE BIBLE
  1. Jesus Christ did not die for society, but for persons - individuals:
    1. He called the disciples one by one - Andrew, Nathanael, Levi, and Zacchaeus and many others
    2. He left ninety and nine worlds, came to this sinful world and would have died for one sinner - Luke 15:1-9
    3. Of the ten lepers that were cleansed only one returned to him and thanked him for the cleansing - and he was a Samaritan - Luke 17:13-16
  2. There are a number of personal implications involved which make laboring for the individual imperative:
    1. No two persons have the same outlook upon life; what may appeal to one may not impress the other
    2. Jesus used a different approach to different person; He had one to Nicodemus - John 3:1-9 and another approach to the woman of Samaria - John 4:1-29
    3. He, knowing human nature, dealt with each of the twelve disciples according to their disposition - Thomas differed from Peter
  3. Note a number of facts concerning salvation which make salvation personal:
    1. The conviction and confession of sin is personal - Ps. 32:1-9
    2. The change of human nature is personal and not collective; said Paul, "I die daily" I Cor. 15:31; "I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live...the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me" - Gal. 2:20
    3. The giving of the reward will be personal "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ' that everyone may receive the things done in the body, whether it be good or bad" - 2 Cor. 5:10
  4. "Ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel"
    1. This truth should make us conscious of the fact that salvation is personal
    2. That our responsibility to God and man is personal - John 21:20-22


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