A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD?

God instructed Moses that, as in any covenant or treaty, a mediator was necessary, Exodus 18:19. The people could not relate to God directly.  They needed an advocate (lawyer).  Why?  God is Holy and as sinners they dared not approach except through a mediator. Is it any different today?  So many today speak of wanting a ‘personal relationship’ with God.  Imagine a defendant in a courtroom wanting a personal relationship with the judge.  We all know that the only means of direct communication with the judge is through a court approved representative.

            The good news for sinners is that the Lord Jesus, God’s eternal Son is that God-given, God-appointed representative. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” I Tim. 2:5.  He came into this world and laid down His life in sacrifice, as the sinner’s Substitute, and satisfied Holy God on behalf of those He redeemed.  Now He lives again and is seated in heaven, to intercede on behalf of all who come to God, BY HIM! Hebrews 7:25.  There is no coming to God but BY HIM!

A RANSOM FOR MANY

“The Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many,” Matthew 20:28

When the Lord Jesus laid down His life for the world, did He do it for every single person in the world?  This is an important question because if He died for everyone without exception, and yet many still end up under God’s eternal condemnation, then that puts in question not only Christ’s power to save, but God’s justice, having sacrificed His Son, and then punishing those for whom He died.      No! When the Bible speaks of Christ being the Savior of the world, it means the Savior of men and women from every tribe, nation, and tongue.  He died for everyone without distinction of race, as in all sorts of sinners in the world, Revelation 5:9.  He gave His life for many, the many that God the Father chose from eternity and gave to Him, John 6:37, but not all without exception.  The Good News is that having laid down His life, God the Father is just in forgiving and justifying everyone for whom He died. All who believe on Christ for salvation do so because Christ died for them! His ransom paid it all!

ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED

“To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.” Ephesians 1:6 

            How could it ever be that He (the Holy God), before whom the moon and stars are not pure in His sight, accepts sinners? Yet the infallible Word of God declares the He indeed has accepted some in the Beloved (His Eternal Son, the Lord Jesus). Who are they? How are they made accepted? Read Ephesians 1: 3-14 in the Bible and you will find that they are those whom God the Father chose in Christ before the creation of the world.  They are those who have been predestinated to the adoption of children by Christ.  They are those who have been redeemed by Christ, and therefore forgiven their sins in Him. They are those who have been given faith after they, by the Spirit of God, heard the Gospel. They are those who have been sealed by the Holy Spirit in Christ. This was all done for them to the praise and the glory of God's grace. He who does all things after the counsel of His own will accomplished this for them. To the hopeless, and only the hopeless, this is good news!

ARE YOU SAVED?

 This is a question you may have been asked at some point in your life, or you may have the habit of asking others.  What does it mean to be saved?  Here are three uses of the word ‘saved’ in the Bible:

1. SAVED FROM THE PENALTY OF SIN- The Lord Jesus Christ accomplished salvation, by His life and death, on behalf of those that God the Father chose in eternity and gave to Him as their Substitute and Representative, Eph. 1:4-7.  So complete was the work of the Lord Jesus for His people that because of it, God looks on everyone that He redeemed as forgiven and justified before Him- Col. 1:14.

2. SAVED FROM THE POWER AND PLEASURE OF SIN- Those whom Jesus Christ saved from the penalty of sin, by His death, He does in time save (deliver) from the power (authority) of sin.  The Holy Spirit delivers them from the blindness and deadness of heart, and opens their eyes to see and believe on Christ who redeemed, justified, and sanctified them, John 5:24.

3. SAVED FROM THE PRESENCE OF SIN- Those who believe on Christ, through the work of the Spirit, shall yet be saved from the presence of sin in glory, as the ultimate effect of His work on the cross, Rev. 20:6.  Jesus Christ does ALL of the saving!

CHRIST THE RIGHTEOUS

“My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous,”                                                                     1 John 2:1

The Scripture encourages the believer to trust and hope in the mercy of God at all time! It does not say, “If any man is holy, prayerful, and always faithful, he has an advocate”, but it says, “If any man SIN, he has an advocate with the Father.”  It does not say, “If any man sins, he forfeits his right to Christ’s advocacy.”  Grace that can be forfeited because of human failure is not grace at all.  Mercy that is conditioned on the merit of the creature is not mercy at all.  If my title to glory rests upon my works either BEFORE OR AFTER conversion, it is a total failure.  The Scripture declares that at all times, under all circumstances, Jesus Christ is the righteousness of His redeemed, elect people. He is their sanctification, their advocate, and their redemption.  As a redeemed sinner, when I consider my past or present, and am overcome with a guilty conscience, I can rejoice in the mercy of My Father, for I have an advocate – Jesus Christ the Righteous!  Do YOU?

CHRIST THE SAVIOR OF SINNERS

Noah got drunk; Abraham lied to protect himself; Jacob was a supplanter; Rachel was an idolater; Samson was a womanizer; Rahab was a prostitute; David was an adulterer and a murderer; Jonah was a renegade and angry man; Peter denied Christ; The disciples all abandoned Christ; Martha worried about everything; the Samaritan woman suffered many failed marriages, Paul was a lost religious fundamentalist.

Yet, other than these all sharing the same sin nature, they all shared the same saving grace of God- chosen by eternal grace, Eph. 1:4,5; redeemed and justified by the blood and righteousness of Christ, Eph. 1:7; and set apart by the Spirit of God as SAINTS, 1 Cor. 1:2, God having imputed to their account the very righteousness of Christ, as He did for every one of the elect when Christ died, 2 Cor. 5:21. These all died in the faith, having Christ and his effectual sin-bearing sacrifice as their only hope and ground of righteousness, Hebrews 11:13.  Our Lord declared, “They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance,” Mark 2:17. This is GOOD NEWS indeed to poor sinners!

THE CHURCH THAT CHRIST BUILDS

            What is the true church? It is the church with which Christ identifies Himself.  It’s founder is not a man but Christ Himself.The Lord Jesus Christ said, “I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it,” Matthew 16:18.

            In the construction of any building there is a plan, materials, and the overseeing of the building.

            1. The Plan-  God has chosen a great multitude of sinners in Christ, that He will save by this electing grace- Ephesians 1:3-5

            2. The Purchase of the materials-  Christ Jesus came to earth to redeem everyone of the elect of God.  He has by His life and death accomplished redemption for them- I Peter 1:18,19

            3. The Building- The Spirit of God will bring to Christ (the foundation), all sinners who are chosen of God and redeemed by Christ. It is the Lord who adds to His church, not man.- Acts 2:47

DO YOU BELIEVE THE GOSPEL?

Nothing less than a true, saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ will suffice, II Peter 1:1-3.  The terms of the Gospel of our Lord are clearly set forth in Scripture.

·        Salvation is of the Lord-  Salvation is not what the sinner does for Christ, but what the Savior does for the sinner.  God has made Him the believer’s wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, I Corinthians 1:30.

·        Any whom God saves, He does according to His sovereign will and purpose- It is all by God’s eternal, electing grace.  Man’s will is not free, but bound by sin. It is God who acts by His free-will to save sinners He has chosen in His Son Jesus Christ, Ephesians 1:3.

·        Jesus Christ did not die to make salvation possible, but actually redeemed those whom His Father chose. The perfect life of obedience and precious blood of the Lord Jesus is what saves.  He died to save everyone that the Father gave Him, and He has redeemed them by His precious blood, John 6:39. Believe on Him!

EFFECTUAL REDEMPTION IN CHRIST

 A wealthy individual visits a prison dungeon in which a wretched captive lies bound with chains and fetters.  He proclaims loud to the captive that he has brought gold sufficient for a ransom, on condition that the captive will liberate himself from his chains. “Alas!” exclaims the wretched man, “unless your gold can affect my deliverance, it can be of no service to me.” Even so, man by nature is spiritually unable to believe in Christ, as the condemned captive is physically unable to break his chains.  All talk of man’s decision, or a general invitation to accept Jesus, is an empty offer of salvation, when conditioned on the sinner. A general atonement is much too weak to meet the desperate case of a lost sinner.  But, how different is the salvation of God!  The Bible says, “By the blood of Thy covenant, I have sent forth Thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water,” (Zechariah 9:11).  Jesus, by his death, actually paid the ransom, and made the captives His own, that the Father gave Him.  Therefore, He has a legal right to their persons, and by the Spirit of God, through the preaching of the Gospel, He actually brings them forth. It is His glory to bring every one of His redeemed ones out of the prison-house of sin and condemnation, (Isaiah 42:6,7). He’ll not lose one!

“ETERNAL REDEMPTION”

            REDEMPTION?  DOES ANYONE NEED REDEMPTION TODAY? Slaves do! Bankrupt citizens do!  Is there anyone who fits that description today?  Any one who finds himself enslaved to your corrupt, sin nature; bankrupt before God, unable to save yourself. 

            THERE IS HOPE!  “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood he entered in once into the holy place, HAVING OBTAINED ETERNAL REDEMPTION FOR US.”  Hebrews 9:12.  The Lord Jesus Christ did not come to try and redeem sinners.  He has already obtained redemption for those He came to save. Contrary to popular belief, He did not come to save everyone.  He redeemed everyone that God the Heavenly Father chose out of fallen humanity, Romans 8:28-33

            HOW CAN YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE REDEEMED?  Christ said, “All that the Father giveth me, shall come to Me; and him that cometh, I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:37.             Does this description fit you?  Only sinners need apply!

FOR CHRIST’S  SAKE

Sadly, many today use this expression in a profane way, dishonoring the Lord Jesus Christ.  Consider this!

·        Why does a Holy God do what He does for sinners?  “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

·        Why does He show mercy and grace to hell-deserving rebels?  “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

·        There are a thousand reasons why God should condemn us, yet, only one reason why He saves and forgives any.  Why?  “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

·        What is the sum of the Gospel in three words?- “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

·        What is your only hope of standing just before God, finding forgiveness and eternal life with Him? “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

THIS IS SUBSTITUTION-     God saving guilty sinners through the sacrifice of His Son.  God blessing unworthy sinners through the Worthy One- “FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

“FOR US”

Contrary to popular opinion, the Lord Jesus Christ did not die for everyone.  II Corinthians 5:21 teaches that “He was made to be sin FOR US.”  WHO ARE THESE FOR WHOM HE WAS MADE TO BE SIN?

·        Christ was made to be sin for the ungodly- Rom. 5:6-8

·        Christ was made to be sin for His sheep- John 10:11

·        Christ was made to be sin for His church- Eph. 5:25-27

·        Christ was made to be sin for those that God the Father gave Him from all eternity-                     -John 17:9,20

The Spirit of God draws every elect sinner to Christ in time, causing them to believe the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. This salvation is gloriously revealed to the heart of His redeemed ones through faith in Him (Hebrew 11:1).

FORGIVENESS OF SINS

 “In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins,” (Colossians 1:12-14).

How does God forgive sins? The Bible clearly tells us that is based solely on the death that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished.  Sadly, many are deceived by their own sinful thinking in imagining that forgiveness of sins is conditioned on their faith, confession, acts of penitence, or personal reforms.

            Who does God forgive? Sinners, not reformers or self-righteous!  How does He forgive? He has done so FREELY by His grace in the death of His Son.  When the Lord Jesus laid down His life, He put away the sin of sinners that His Father chose in eternity and gave to Christ as their Substitute, from the beginning of time to the end. Why does He forgive?  God has accepted the sacrifice of His dear Son, which effectually put away sin, Heb. 1:3.

            How do I know He has forgiven me?  All for whom Christ died do in time believe on the Son, and rest in His complete work of redemption! They believe because Christ bought them! Jn. 10:26-28

IS GOD RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS SINFUL WORLD?

Someone recently asked, “How could God, being just and holy, ordain the existence of a world so full of sin ?

·         The Lord Jesus Christ is called the Lamb slain from the creation of the world, 1 Peter 1 :20.  What would be a Redeemer without sinners to save ?  In purposing a fallen world, God chose to honor His Son as Redeemer in giving Him a people to save, Ephesians 1 :4,5.

·         The first man (ADAM) fell, to pave the way for the last Adam (JESUS CHRIST).  By His perfect life and sacrificial death He has redeemed all that the Father purposed to save, Romans 5 :12ff.  God is sovereign in all things, and saves the chief of sinners by the death of His Son.

·         Is God the author of sin ? NO !  « Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God, for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempeth he any man, » James 1 :13.  Yet, being sovereign, thankfully, He is the MASTER of it,.

GOD JUSTIFIES THE UNGODLY

True grace is TOTALLY a work of God FOR sinners.  The Bible tells us that God justifies (declares just) the ungodly- “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness,” Romans 4:5 This He did through the life and death of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Substitute for those sinners He came to save.  Clearly then, salvation is entirely the work of God on behalf of such sinners, because no sinner could ever satisfy God’s righteous demands.  Salvation is ALL OF GRACE, apart from any contribution from the ungodly sinner, which the holy demands of God’s law and justice require. 

            The old hymn asks, “What can wash away my sin?” The Answer? “Nothing but the blood of Jesus?”  It goes on to state, “This is ALL my righteousness, nothing but the blood of Jesus.”  Observing special days, fastings, and refraining from certain foods and activities hoping for forgiveness of sins is a false hope.  The only hope and a truly good hope, by God’s grace in Christ is founded and conditioned on the Lord Jesus Christ’s finished work alone, at the cross.

GOD’S PLAN OR MAN’S- WHICH IS IT?

            The plan today is to make the church as much like the world as possible, so that unregenerate people will not feel uncomfortable and will be attracted to its ministry! People turn the church into a theater;  worship into a musical display; ministers into actors and clowns to amuse and entertain; sermons into political, patriotic or philosophical essays; and the living God into a good buddy whose attributes are adjustable to any culture or creed.  This will attract the flesh but bring condemnation from God.

            God’s true people worship Him in “spirit and in truth,” John 4:24. They worship spiritually in opposition to any external rituals that appeal to the flesh.  They come to God through a heart that His Spirit has quickened.  They can only worship God in Truth.  Truth is all that agrees with who He is (Sovereign, Immutable, Holy, Faithful, Good, Gracious).  We must come by the only means that He has ordained for sinners to come-through Jesus Christ the Lord, covered by His blood and righteousness alone, Hebrew 7:25.

GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS IN REMITTING SIN

“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.”  Romans 3:25

The Lord did not show mercy to Old Testament saints at the expense of His justice.  He ‘passed over’ their sin, and was forbearing, not imputing it to them, because He decreed that His Son, the Lord Jesus should come and bear it in their place.  Herein is revealed the wisdom of God in declaring them, or any sinner just before Him.  It is only in the Substitute and His obedience unto death at the cross.  Sooner God would damn a thousand worlds of sinners than set aside His justice to pardon them.  Yet, in Christ’s death His justice was made a friend of mercy! He is that propitiation [mercy seat] where the blood has been applied and justice satisfied.  Sinner! Look nowhere else!

“GOOD NEWS”

These five questions direct us to the sum and substance of the Gospel.  This is the great article of faith of the Church of Jesus Christ.

·         WHO DIED? Jesus the Christ, the Son of God in human flesh.

·         HOW DID HE DIE? The shameful death of the cross under the wrath of God, bearing the sins of His people.

·         WHY DID HE DIE? As the Substitute for all of the ungodly sinners whom God has purposed to save, that God might be just in justifying them through the death of His Son and bring them to believe on Christ in truth.

·         FOR WHOM DID HE DIE?  For the ungodly.  The self-righteous, religious, and self serving have no Substitute or Redemption.  Only the undeserving, ungodly who are without help and without hope in this world.

·         WHEN DID HE DIE?  When His people as sinners were without strength to obey Him or keep His law, and without any ability to help themselves.  He died “in due time,” at the time appointed by the Father.

WHAT GOOD NEWS FOR SINNERS!  

HOW TO BE JUST WITH GOD

Long ago, Job asked a very important question.  “How should man be just with God?”(Job 9:2).  To be justified before God is to be acquitted of all guilt by Him, on the basis of a just and satisfactory payment for your sin.  No question is more important to answer than, ‘Am I just with God?’ The answer is not in your efforts to make yourself just.  The Bible declares, ‘there is none righteous, no not one,’ Romans 3:10. If you would know whether you are justified (declared righteous) before a holy God, then learn this one thing!  The Lord Jesus Christ is ALL in justifying sinners before Him.  Only through His blood and righteousness has God reconciled sinners to Himself.  HIS BLOOD shed unto death is the only ground of acceptance with God, Ephesians 1:7. HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS put to the sinner’s account when He died, is the only basis of God declaring the sinner holy, Rom. 5:9.  Believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, the sinner sees all His justification before God in Christ, and therein enjoys peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Sinner!  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ!

IMPUTATION

 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him,” 2 Corinthians 5:21

The Bible teaches a salvation that is totally outside of the sinner and conditioned entirely upon the work of a Substitute- the Lord Jesus Christ.  There are two things that God must do to insure the salvation of those that He has purposed to save in Christ

1. The imputation of their sin to the Substitute- The Lord Jesus was sinless in His person, but God made him to be sin by putting to His account the sins of His elect (those He chose out from all of fallen humanity).  The sins of all his people were transferred on him. In punishing Him, God was effectively punishing them.  He so identified with their persons, that he actually answered their charges for them with his own life.  WHAT LOVE!

2. The imputation of the Substitute’s righteousness to them- The Lord Jesus not only laid down His life in payment for their sin, but lived an absolutely perfect life in thought, word, and deed to answer the demands of God’s righteousness for His people.  If you are Christ’s, He is your Surety for forgiveness of sins and righteousness. His people are not only FORGIVEN but RIGHTEOUS in Him!

JUST WITH GOD

Most people know they don’t measure up to God’s standard but they still try to justify themselves before God by their good works, hoping that God will be pleased with them.  This is a very deadly. God will never be pleased with the works of natural man.  He is too  holy and by virtue of His nature, He must punish sin-“The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezek 18:4,20; Rom 4:1-8).  How then are we to be justified before God?   Here is the answer – “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (satisfaction to divine law and justice) through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God (Old Testament saints who were justified before Christ actually died); To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness:  that He might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Rom 3:24 – 26). The only justification before God is through the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus which He accomplished by His perfect life and sacrificial death.

“WOULD YOU BE JUSTIFIED BEFORE GOD?”

            Long ago, Job asked a very important question.  “How should  man be just with God?”(Job 9:2). 

            Would you be justified (declared righteous) before a holy God?  Then learn this one thing!  The Lord Jesus Christ is ALL in justifying sinners before God.  Only through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ do sinners have reconciliation and peace with the Holy God.  Only by Christ alone can a sinner be accepted and admitted into God’s presence.

·         HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS which He worked out while on earth must be put to your account in order for you to stand righteous before the Father.

·         HIS BLOOD (sacrificial death) is the only payment for sin which can  save you from sin and eternal condemnation.

·         HIS NAME is the only name by which any can obtain an entrance through the gate of eternal glory.”

NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS

Why did God order it that His beloved Son should be crucified between two criminals?  It was certainly no accident, since nothing is ever left to chance or man’s devices in a world governed by a Sovereign God.  Acts 4:28 teaches us that whatever man did to the Lord Jesus Christ in crucifying Him, was simply that which God’s hand and counsel “determined to be done.”

            Two reasons may be given, which show the infinite wisdom of God in the death of His Son. 

1.  Our blessed Lord was crucified with the two thieves to demonstrate the depths of shame into which He descended as the Sin-Bearer.  It was not for any sin in Him that He died, for He was the ‘Lamb of God,’ without spot or blemish.  Yet, it shows the awfulness of sin that He came to remove for His people. 

2. It teaches us something of the justice of God the Father.  To be a just God and Savior, He had to smite His Son with the full force of His Law and Righteousness, in order to show grace and mercy to sinners He has purposed to save!  What love for His people!  What hope His death gives for those He has redeemed!

OUR GOSPEL

What distinguishes our Gospel from the rest?  In brief, our gospel gives God all the glory in salvation.

Ø    It declares that salvation is of God the Father in electing sinners according to His sovereign will, not man’s, Ephesians 1:4. 

Ø    It declares that God the Son fully accomplished salvation in His cross death and that by it all for whom He died were then and there forgiven, justified, and reconciled to God, Romans 5: 9-11

Ø    It declares that God the Spirit does in time call out of rebellion and darkness everyone whom God has purposed to save and the Son purchased, 2 Timothy 1:9

Ø    It teaches that man’s will and rebellion is no barrier to God saving. Our Gospel saves the ‘chief of sinners,’ and not one sheep given to Christ shall be lost, John 6:39.

Ø    It enables God to be just and justifier of those who believe, because faith is the gift of God to those for whom Christ died as their Substitute, Romans 3:26

What a rich and glorious Gospel this is for sinners!

“OUR MESSAGE”

            Our one message is to declare God as He is, to sinners as they are, and to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ as the only Savior.  He is the only Mediator between God and men, the All-glorious Redeemer, who accomplished redemption for His people, and reconciled them to God the Father.  (II Corinthians 5:18-21).  We proclaim

·         A GOD you cannot satisfy

·         A LAW you cannot keep

·         AN OBEDIENCE you cannot render

·         A RIGHTEOUSNESS you cannot produce

·         A LOVE you cannot give

·         SIN you cannot get rid of

·         A JUDGMENT you cannot endure

·         A REPENTANCE you cannot work up

·         A FAITH you cannot work out

·         A CHRIST who fully satisfied a holy God for sinners and who fully and freely saves the vilest of sinners because of Christ’s blood and righteousness alone.

REDEMPTION THROUGH HIS BLOOD

The blood of Jesus Christ was shed for MANY for the remission of sins, Mt. 26:28.  We, that is, those chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, predestinated to the adoption of children by Christ Jesus to Himself, made by Him to be accepted in the Beloved, ‘have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins,’ Ephesians 1:7.  We have it- no conditions!  We have it through His blood, when that blood was shed unto death.  Everything else, like believing and receiving, flows from Christ’s sacrificial death.  Believing and receiving are not what make His death effectual for me, but rather His death for me will in time, by the Spirit, cause me to believe and receive Him.  If our deliverance were based on our believing first, then it would read, “We have redemption through our believing in His blood.”  But it doesn’t say that.  It reads, ‘We have redemption through His blood!’

            How many has Christ redeemed with His precious blood? MANY! Are you one of the many whom God has taught by His Spirit to look to Christ, the Crucified One? Redemption is in Him alone!

SALVATION BY THE CRUCIFIED SAVIOR

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began."

 2 Timothy 1:9

What was given before the world began?  God purposed to show grace to sinners He chose in Christ. When did the actual saving occur,  in time, or eternity? Matthew 1:21 says, "Thou shalt call his name Jesus for he SHALL save his people from their sins."  It does not say He had already saved them.  When Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Spirit, 'who hath saved us, and called us,’ in the saving he is clearly referring to the death that Christ accomplished at the cross for the legal deliverance of God’s elect and the satisfaction of God's justice. That Christ did! The calling is the internal special revelation of Christ, by the Spirit, in the heart of the elect in time, revealing Christ and Him crucified to their souls.  Both the redeeming work of Christ and the regenerating work of the Spirit are in harmony with the eternal purpose of God the Father to show grace in Christ. What He purposed in eternity is accomplished in time, through the death of His Son, and the calling to Christ of every sinner that He redeemed.

SATISFACTION GUARANTEED

Jesus Christ died to SATISFY the just demands of a Holy God.  Isaiah 53:10,11- “He shall see His seed and be satisfied.”

His seed is that race of sinners of whom God is the spiritual, heavenly Father.  It is a people from every tribe, nation and tongue, chosen by the Father, and given to His only beloved Son by eternal grace.  It is for these that the Lord Jesus came into the world and lived a perfect and holy life, and died a sacrificial death as Substitute for their sin.  All whom the Father has chosen, and the Son redeemed, He will cause to hear the Gospel.  It is the Spirit of God who gives them ears to hear and hearts to receive Him as Savior and Lord. May the Lord be pleased to life by His Word, and cause you to come to Christ as a needy sinner, and call out to Him for grace and mercy!  Christ did not come to save the self-righteous, but SINNERS, Mark 2:17.

Do you question whether the Lord Jesus really did satisfy the wrath of God for sinners such as you?  The Bible says He did, and therefore, SATISFACTION of a holy God is GUARANTEED for those that Christ redeemed. 

SAVED BY THE BLOOD OF THE CRUCIFIED ONE!

The sweet psalmist David wrote, “All my springs are in thee,” Psalm 87:7.  The Lord Jesus is to His people as a fountain of living water. The very cross of the Lord Jesus Christ (His sacrificial death) is made a fountain opened for all sin and all uncleanness, Zechariah 13:1.  That fountain opened for the sinner is his entire source for pardon and peace, acceptance and justification before God.  Through the Spirit Christ’s person and work are all our happiness and holiness, wisdom and strength.

            Christ crucified is “to them who are saved, the power of God.” I Corinthians 1:18.  At the cross alone (through Christ’s obedience unto death), not only have Christ’s redeemed ones been made wise unto salvation, but they became righteous by a free justification, which the Spirit of God reveals in them by faith.

“This fountain so dear, He does freely impart;

Unlocked by the spear, it gushed from His heart,

With blood and with water He does thus redeem

And does by His grace; make guilty sinners clean.”

SINNERS WANTED

One of the most difficult people to find today is a sinner!  You may say, ‘How so?  Aren’t we all sinners?’  Yes! Yet, how few there are that truly see themselves as so before God.  So many compare themselves with one another and come away thinking, ‘I’m not as bad as them!’  Or, even when caught in some wrong doing, most will call it a mistake or an indiscretion, rather than admit, ‘I was wrong.’

            The fact is the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ did not come into to world to save the ‘righteous,’ but SINNERS!  Matthew 18:11  ‘For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.’  Someone who is lost is totally unable to find his or her way back.  However, as we all know, some would rather continue to struggle to find their way than admit, ‘I’m lost!’  Nevertheless, it is only lost sinners that the Lord Jesus came to save, and the good news for any who know themselves to be lost, by God’s Spirit and Word, is that the Lord Jesus has already paid the price necessary for their redemption and reconciliation before God.  If He has shown you that you are lost, you know Christ to be your only HOPE and RIGHTEOUSNESS!

SIN’S PUNISHMENT

A slogan on a marquee reads: “God doesn’t punish you for your sins, but may punish you by them.”  So full and complete was the death of the Lord Jesus Christ as the just payment for the sin of His people, that the all-knowing God sees their sin no more. Their justification and forgiveness of sins were determined upon Christ the Surety from eternity, and in time Christ came and fulfilled all righteousness so that then and there God declared them forgiven and justified once payment was made in full, Romans 3:24-26.   However, God does chasten His children with their sins, Heb. 12:6.  The wanderings, and falls of the Lord’s elect don’t change their state before God because of Christ’s work for them. Yet, the Lord will mercifully use their sins to chasten them, and in His time humble them, and tenderly turn their hearts to Christ again and again in repentance, Luke 22:32.  If you are chastened in mind and heart by your sin, rejoice in the Lord who died FOR sin.  However, if you enjoy the pleasures of sin, without the chastening, you are not to be envied but feared.

SPEAKING THE TRUTH PLAINLY

“But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to everyman's conscience in the sight of God”  (2 Corinthians 4:2).

Today, many attempt to preach just enough truth, so as not to make any deception evident.  Others state a truth when it is convenient, but hedge when in a situation that may cause offense. They use worldly, salesmanship methods to attempt to produce spiritual results. They handle the word of God deceitfully, attempting to mix grace and works, God’s will and man’s, or making the efficacy of Christ’s death dependant on something man does or doesn’t do. 

The truth is that God does not bless ‘coded truth, which is really a lie.  He honors the clear, simple, plain declaration of the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom He is well pleased, and by whom He has purposed to call out those that He has redeemed, I Cor. 1: 18. The faithful Gospel preacher has but one mission- to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ as the Sovereign Savior, who saves WHOM HE WILL by His blood and righteousness alone.  Those He has redeemed will bow at His feet for mercy, and His work FOR them fulfilled IN them!

THE CHURCH OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

·        Christ’s church is not built upon masses, numbers, programs, buildings or budgets.  He is the very foundation of His Church and He adds to it those that should be saved (Acts 2:42,46,47).

·        The Bible warns us against any form of worship that is not founded totally on the Lord Jesus Christ alone.   There is no salvation but in His shed blood.  God will not justify any sinners apart from the righteousness of Christ for the believer.  If your hope is in any work, repentance or self-wrought faith, then you are yet in your sins and under the condemnation of God, (Romans 3:19-26).

·        The agenda of the church is not to reform society, nor influence politics.  It is to proclaim the Gospel of God’s sovereign grace in Christ Jesus alone.  When God reveals Christ in the sinner, that sinner will live according to the Spirit of Christ.  There is nothing that is more necessary than this. (I Corinthians 2:1-4).

THE DAY OF JUDGMENT

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." (2 Cor. 5:10)

This verse does not teach rewards or loss of rewards based on our works.  Unbelievers will be condemned for their works because all their works, even their best efforts to keep the law, are wicked and evil, according to God's standard of righteousness. Those who don’t have Christ as their Advocate will receive the sentence of eternal death, because "the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). However, those whom the Father has chosen and justified through Christ’s finished work at the cross, and the Spirit has called unto Him, will be declared righteous on that solemn Day of Judgment. This because all of their evil deeds have been pardoned in the death of God’s Son, and all of His righteous works (the only good God can accept) were imputed to their account at the cross.  They have also already been judged righteous before the Father, in Christ, who gives them the entire merit of His whole work at the cross, imputing (charging) the merits of His obedience unto death to them. Sinner! The only hope of salvation in the face of God’s judgment is in, by, and because of Christ.

THE SUBSTITUTE

With all of the uncertainties of life, this one thing is sure.  The death of the Lord Jesus Christ takes away sin before God.  It is not conceivable in God’s High Court that Christ should die for some, who, in turn, will be finally cast out of His presence forever. Would you make God an unjust judge in first punishing His Son for one’s sins, and then turning again to punish the sinner?  The Lord Jesus Christ was appointed to bear the sin of many.  Although He was God Himself, yet He came into the world and took upon Himself the form of a servant and bore those sins, not merely in sorrow, but in death itself!  Since the Lord Jesus actually paid the ransom for His people, His people stand justified in Him!  This is certainly all my plea, that when He died He died for me.  Is He yours? Romans. 8:29-34

“THE GOOD NEWS”

The Gospel means “GOOD NEWS.”  The good news from God to lost sinners is that God the Father has purposed to save sinners to the honor and glory of His Son, the Redeemer! The glorious Gospel of salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ tells of redemption purposed of God the Father, purchased by God the Son, and applied by God the Spirit.

Do you want some good news?  It is not in a message of Jesus Christ knocking at your door, hoping to gain entrance! THE GOOD NEWS is that the Savior is not only able and willing to give a new heart to whom He will, but does. Salvation is sure for His people because He is the SURETY! Matthew 1:21 reads, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS:  for he shall save his people from their sins.”  Just as sure as his name is JESUS he shall save his people, ALL his people, from ALL their sins.  What a Savior!.

THE OLD GOSPEL

In a day when people are searching for new and contemporary ways of worshipping God, we need to be reminded that if it’s new, its not true!  Jude wrote to the Church in the first century telling them, “it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which WAS ONCE DELIVERED UNTO THE SAINTS,” Jude 3.  The Old Gospel is ever new for those who are the Lord’s.  Why?  It gives ALL the glory to God in salvation.  In Jonah 2:9 we read, “Salvation is of the Lord.” It is of the Lord in its design, execution and application.  It is as eternal as God Himself.  God the Father chose those He will save, 2 Thessalonians 2:13; God the Son redeemed those that the Father chose, John 10:15.  He said, “ I pray not for the world, but those that them which thou hast given me,” John 17:9. God the Holy Spirit effectually quickens, calls out, and brings to Christ, through the Gospel, every one that the Father elected and the Son redeemed, Ephesians 1:13.  Have you heard the OLD, OLD Story?  If so, you will rejoice in hearing it again, and never want to hear anything else!

THE POTTER AND THE CLAY

Romans 9:21  “Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor?”

The Bible compares God to a potter forming vessels of clay.  The potter has the power over the clay to shape it in whatever form He pleases, and from it to make what vessels He pleases.  Some wrongly assume that it is God’s will to save everyone, and bless everyone, if only they will let Him.  Such thinking is false and does not reflect the God of the Bible.  It is not the clay that determines what the potter does, but vice-versa.  Vessels of honor are those that God purposed to save from all eternity, and for whom He sent His Son into the world to redeem, and whom God the Father has justified (declared just) based on the blood and righteousness of His Son, Romans 5:9,10.  Vessels of dishonor are those that God has created but left to their own devices, who will live their lives in unbelief and be eternally condemned, John 3:26.

            Do you know the God of the Bible?  There is no other!  Many acknowledge Him as God when things go well, or they like the way He is leading in their lives.  Nevertheless, He is God, regardless of the day, for He orders all things for His glory and that of His Son.

THE SAVIOR OF LOST SINNERS

“the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.” Matt 18:11

Jesus-Christ, the eternal Son of God, took on human flesh and became the Son of Man, in order to deliver from sin a people who were made sinners by the disobedience of the first man, Adam.  Note the following conclusions we may draw from this verse of the Bible:

1.       Salvation is in, by, and through the Lord Jesus Christ alone, not man.  Some preach up works or free will as the condition for salvation, but if their free will or works could save any, Christ would not have come, Gal. 2:21.

2.       The Lord Jesus’ coming into the world was not to make sinners salvable, but rather to save.  By His righteous life and sacrificial death He actually redeemed every lost sinner that His Father gave Him in eternity, John 6:37

3.       There are many today who don’t see themselves as lost, but those Christ has saved by His death on the cross will in time be brought to Him in faith and repent of every confidence in themselves, and rest in His redeeming sacrifice alone for righteousness and forgiveness with God.   Are you a lost sinner?

THE SON OF GOD MADE TO BE SIN

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”          2 Corinthians 5:21-

What a glorious truth to learn that the very Son of God on behalf of His people settled the matter of sin and righteousness upon the cross.  So absolute is the work of imputation, (the sinner’s sin to Him and Christ’s righteousness to the sinner), that ALL whom Christ redeemed have ALL been already pronounced righteous by the Eternal Judge.  There is no sin laid to their charge because it was all laid to His.  There is complete righteousness before God’s law because He worked it out and the Father has imputed it to their account. Sin was not infused in Christ, but rather charged to His account.  The same is true with regard to the imputation of His righteousness.  It is not infused into the sinner, but charged to his account, whereby God declares such a one righteous before Him.  All for whom the Son of God was made sin, will in time be made to see that their sin put Him to death, but glorious thought, His righteousness was made to be theirs also, by grace alone.

THE WORK OF THE CROSS

 In Romans 5:1 we read, “Therefore being justified, by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

‘Therefore being justified,’ refers back to Romans 4:24 and the redemption and justification that Christ accomplished for His people AT THE CROSS.  There, God was propitiated toward those that Christ redeemed, Rom.3: 25. It is by faith that the redeemed sinner, through the work of the Spirit of grace, is reconciled to God through the Lord Jesus Christ.  The Spirit removes all enmity toward God in that redeemed sinner’s heart, making Him at peace with God, whose justice Christ satisfied by His death on the cross, Col. 1:20.  The believer’s justification before God took place at the cross because “the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, He took out of the way, NAILING IT TO HIS CROSS, Col. 2:14.  All charges were satisfied in Christ’s death, not just dropped, or set aside. Therefore, forgiveness, redemption, and justification were fully accomplished at that time. Faith does not complete Christ’s work.  It is finished! Rather, it is by faith that all of Christ’s redeemed ones are brought to embrace and enjoy what He accomplished for them at the cross! If you are in Christ, by grace, through faith, you are indeed BLESSED!

TRUE WORSHIP

Sadly, many churches today are adopting fashionable forms of 'worship' for people looking for something gratifying or pleasing to themselves. However, the way that God has ordained that we worship Him has not changed.  Psalms 96:8,9 give us the foundation of true worship.

1. IT GIVES GOD ALL THE GLORY. “Give glory unto the Lord,” He alone is worthy of glory (distinction, exaltation, honor, and praise). Our hymns, prayers, and preaching must magnify Him as the sovereign God of creation, providence, salvation and judgment.

2. IT APPROACHES GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST ALONE. In the Old Testament, to "bring and offering, and come into His courts" was to offer to God a spotless, sacrificial lamb. The Lord Jesus Christ is GOD’S LAMB that He gave for an effectual atonement to reconcile His elect people to Himself. We do not come to God by ceremonies or rituals, but only through the precious blood of Christ (I Peter 1:19).

3. IT ADDRESSES A HOLY GOD. To "worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness", literally means, "to bow in the glorious sanctuary". That sanctuary was the Holy of Holies, where only the High Priest could enter in once a year with the blood of the sacrifice. Christ is the High Priest by whom sinners must enter into the presence of God today (Heb. 3:1).

WDJD

            Many are wearing paraphernalia with the initials, WWJD. However, true saving faith in the Lord Jesus is not worn on the outward, but emanates from a heart that God the Spirit has changed by His grace.  The message of the Gospel is not “What would Jesus do?”, but WDJD, “What did Jesus do?”  Nowhere in Scripture do we find that the Gospel is to be marketed.  It is to be proclaimed!  What did the Lord Jesus Christ accomplish in coming to this earth?

1.       He accomplished the eternal will of God the Father in redeeming those that He has chosen to save by His grace, John 6:38,39.

2.        He worked out a perfect righteous for every one of His people.  So full and complete is His work of righteousness, that God the Father considers all for  whom He died as just and holy as God Himself, Hebrews 10:10. The only righteousness that God considers is that which the Lord Jesus Christ has worked out for the sinner. Believe on Him, in repentance of any works of righteousness of your own. That is God’s command! 

What is TRUE FAITH?

·        It exalts God as absolute sovereign- Of whom, by whom and for whom are all things. (Psalm 115:3).

·        It abases man and shows him dead in his sins, unable to come to Christ in faith and repentance. (John 6:44).

·        It teaches redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ alone- His perfect obedience and death as the Substitute for God’s people.  He has redeemed everyone that God the Father gave to him. (Hebrews 9:12-15).

·        It attributes faith (repentance) to the irresistible grace of God.  These are gifts of God to those He has purposed to save. (Titus 3:5,6).

·        It keeps God’s children in the way- All the redeemed of Christ will persevere until the end in faith.  Any who fall away, never were His- (Hebrews 10:38,39)

Is this your faith?

WHAT YOU WON’T LEARN FROM ‘THE PASSION’

1. It won’t teach you the GOSPEL.  The Bible says, “it pleased God by the foolishness of PREACHING (not dramatizing) to save them that believe,” I Cor. 1:21.   The truth regarding the Lord Jesus Christ, and how God has redeemed and justified sinners by His sovereign grace, is not revealed through idolatrous imagery, but through the Gospel, I Cor. 2:1-5.

2. It can’t show you the true SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST. His sufferings were not just physical. Isaiah spoke of ‘the travail of His soul.’ God justly poured out His wrath upon His Son as the Substitute and Sin-Bearer of His elect, Isaiah 53:10. The Lord Jesus, by His death, satisfied God’s perfect righteousness by which God has forever justified chosen sinners, having put away their sin, once for all, Rom. 5:9,10. 

3. It doesn’t tell WHY the Lord Jesus Christ laid down His life.  God slew His Son, and the wicked hands used are representative of the sins of His people, Acts 2:23. If Christ laid down His life for me, my SINS nailed Him there.  By His death, God has redeemed, justified, and sanctified every sinner for whom Christ died, I Cor. 1:30.  Only the Gospel will teach you this, not a movie!

WHICH JESUS?

Recent national attention has centered on ‘discovering the true Jesus.’  Various views range from Him being the eternal Son of God to merely an imaginary figure whom men conjured up and passed on through history. However, believing the Bible as the inerrant, inspired Word of God, we need to hear what the Bible says.  Who is He?

1. He is both the eternal Son of God and the incarnate Son of Man- John 1:1-3,14.

2. God the Father sent Him into the world that He might live a perfect life of obedience and suffer death at the cross, that God might be just in declaring forgiven and righteous, by His death, every sinner that He chose from eternity and eternally loves, Eph. 1:4-7.

3. He did not come to lay down his life as an example, but as the ultimate and unique sacrifice for sin, and thereby obtained redemption for all those who, by His grace and Spirit, trust in Him as their only righteousness before God, Romans 10:1-4.

4.His resurrection and ascension are proof that God the Father is satisfied with His work and those for whom He died! Romans 4:26

“WHO DOES GOD SAVE?”

·         God saves sinners that He has ordained to eternal life

“And when the Gentiles heard this, the were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.”                                                      Acts 13:48

·         God saves all sinners for whom the Lord Jesus died

“And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.”                                                      John 6:39

·         God saves all sinners to whom His Spirit gives spiritual birth

“Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”                                       John 1:13

·         God saves all who come to Him by Christ

“No man can come to ME except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.”            John 6:44

“All that the Father giveth ME shall come to ME, and Him that cometh, I will in no wise cast out!”                            John 6:37

WHO WILL BE JUSTIFIED BEFORE GOD?

 Ask most people in religion today, who will be justified before God at the judgment seat of Christ, and you will most likely here them reply, “I believe all good people will be in heaven."  The question is,   "What is the basis or root cause of goodness?"  Most professing Christians today will say that the standard to which one would gain eternal heaven was based upon how many good works were produced. However, such an answer shows that there is no understanding of what God Almighty requires (Gal. 3:10).  The truth is that because God is Holy and all men are sinful, the best we can produce will never satisfy His demand (Isa. 64:6). The scriptures plainly and powerfully proclaim that, "there is none good, no not one" (Rom. 3:9-12). Certainly, any thinking person would see that creature merit and righteousness is excluded in the scheme of God's salvation.  The only way any guilty sinner can be justified before God is to have a perfect justifying righteousness, provided by God Himself, without any contribution from the sinner  (Rom. 4:1-7).  This is the good news of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Salvation is based upon His performance not ours (Psalm 57:2).  He has come and lived and died, that God the Father might be Just and Justifier, in Him, (Rom. 3:26)

“WHY IS THE PREACHING OF THE CROSS SO OFFENSIVE?”

            Should we, for the sake of avoiding persecution, stop preaching the cross?  The Apostle Paul’s  response was that to do so would take away from the offense of the message of the cross, Galatians 5:11.  He could never do that, and neither can any faithful preacher of the Gospel of Christ today.         WHY IS THE BIBLE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS SO OFFENSIVE TO PEOPLE?

·         It addresses all people as sinners, and that offends man’s sense of dignity.

·         The knowledge of the cross comes only by God’s sovereign revelation.  That offends man’s lofty thoughts of self.

·         The singular Spirit-given faith required to embrace Christ as the only Substitute and Savior offends man’s  wisdom.

·         The fact that Christ died to save a particular people and not everyone, offends man’s pride and sense of justice.

·         It gives all the glory to God for salvation, not to man’s “free-will.”   That offends man’s desire for praise.  I Cor. 1:30,31