Let's take our Bibles and turn
to Romans chapter 8, continuing our study in the blessed book
of God, the Scriptures. Romans chapter 8. We looked last
week at Romans 8, 28 to 30. a passage that we quote and read
from and consider so often. In Romans 8, 28-30, that establishes
what a believer has been taught. The Apostle says, and we know. That is, we have an understanding
from God, not that we know by our own ability because left
to ourselves, we don't know anything concerning God. This is spiritually
discerned. This is not carnally discerned.
Paul says we know that all things created, good, bad, all things work together. They cooperate. under the providential
guidance of Almighty God. They work for good, for the eternal
good. To them that love God, to them
who are the called according to His purpose, to those that
love God, to those that have been given a new heart and spirit
that truly loves God and loves Him because He first loved us. We love Him. For whom He did foreknow, foreordain,
elect to salvation. Foreknow, that's what it means.
He also did predestinate. Now, I want you to look in particular. Verse 29, For whom He did foreknow,
He also did predestinate. And you see where to be is in
italics. That means it wasn't in the original.
This is what it actually says. For whom he did predestinate,
that is, determine the destination beforehand, conformed to the
image of his son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. What did he say? Turn to Jeremiah
1. For whom he did predestinate. determined the destination beforehand,
conformed, made to be like, made in the image of. Jeremiah 1,
4 and 5, Jeremiah the prophet speaking, Then the word of the
Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly, I
knew thee. And before thou camest forth
out of the womb, set you apart. I sanctified you. I ordained
you a prophet unto the nations." You're asking, was he saying
that everything concerning Jeremiah was determined and ordained and
appointed before God Almighty ever created him in the womb?
Did God establish that? That's exactly what I'm saying.
And for all of God's sheep. That's the way it is. "...for
whom He did," back in Romans 8, 4 and 0, "...elect a salvation,
or ordain it. He also did determine the destination
beforehand, conformed, done deal, I ordained you a prophet to the
image of His Son." God Almighty appointed, decided, chose, elected before the foundation
of the world that all that he has everlastingly loved were
going to be made in the image of his Son. That he might be
the firstborn, the surety, the one that came forth as a promise
to all in him that they come unto. that they would come forth righteous. Moreover, verse 30, whom He did
foreknow. I mean, moreover, whom He did
predestinate, determined before Him. He also called. And I told you before that word
there when He said predestinate those that He determined the
destination. Jeremiah, before I formed you in the belly, I
knew you. I've always known you. This is what I know about you.
ordained a prophet, I called you to be a prophet. Your mama
didn't call you. You didn't call you. I called
you. For whom He predestined them, He also called, named,
surnamed them. Turn to 1 John 3.1. 1 John 3.1.
Whom He did predestinate them, He also named. called. I told you before, I've
got a boy. His name is Gabe. That's what
I called him. That's what that means, called.
That's what that word called means. 1 John 3, verse 1, Behold
what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we
should be called the sons of God. That's what it means right
there. What does He call them? He calls
them His sons. He calls them his sons based
on being found and chosen, elected in Christ, the surety. For whom he did predestinate,
them he also called. And whom he called, them he also
justified, declared, showed, regarded as innocent before any
accusation of the law that would accuse them of being guilty. How can that be? He saw Christ
slain from the foundation of the world as the payment. How can they be innocent? Christ
paid. He justified them whom He justified. He also glorified. He absolutely
established, this is my opinion of them. They already possess
the internal inheritance. You say, are you telling me that
before the foundation of the world, all those chosen in His
Son, all those before any foundations of this world were ever laid,
are you telling me that God Almighty determined the destination of
all that He's everlastingly loved in Christ and named them to be
his sons, and declared them to be just before the law of God,
based on seeing and beholding the Lamb slain from the foundation
of the world, he declared them guiltless. And whom he declared
guiltless, them he also viewed as seated in Christ in the heavenlies."
That's exactly what I'm telling you. How can you say that? God
never changed. Is that going to be an actual
happening? Yes, it is. It is right now. You say, well, I don't see it.
Oh, you will. You know Him. You will. God said,
I am. God is eternal. There's nothing
new with God. Nothing old with God. God is
now. Now. The I am. All right. Now, let's pick up now this new
verse. Verse 31. What shall we then say to these
things? If God be for us, who can be against us? What conclusion,
based on this, for whom He did foreknow, then He also did predestinate
to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be
the firstborn among many brethren whom He predestinated. He named
them, justified them, and glorified them. Now, what are we going
to say? What kind of conclusion are you
going to come to concerning this wonderful truth? What can be
added to God's mercy? If God be for us. If God be over and above and
beyond all things. That's what the word for means.
If God's over everything. If God's for us. Joseph. in Christ to be holy and without
blame before Him in love, if it's His will, and He orders
all things after the counsel of His own will, if it's His
will, that Almighty God look upon me in His Son, in His eternal
electing grace. If God has said, who is the absolute
first and last word in all things. If all things is going to bow
to Him, if He said, I'm going to save you, what are you going
to say? What shall we say? All of His
counsel. is surely going to stand, if
He has completely and eternally in His purpose and will, viewing
the slain Lamb. If He has put away my guilt in
His heart, and in time it was so that Christ came, but God
eternally saw it, eternally accepted it. If He has renewed me by His
Spirit, if He will never allow me to fall, who is able to keep
you from falling. If God is for us, first, last
word, everything, everything else is going to bow to Him,
then who can be against us? Name me, tell me who can be against
us. What do we have to fear? of the
future. If the Creator of all things,
the Judge of all things, the God of all things is for me,
what difference does it make? What happens? What comes to mind?
What difference does it make? Verse 32, He that spared not
His own Son, but delivered Him up. for us all. How shall He not with Him freely,
also freely, give us all things?" Now here is the indescribable
surety and confidence of our standing before God. This is
it. You say, how can you be so sure? If God has purposed to show mercy to the remnant, according to
his grace. And he spared not, if he did
not abstain in any way, in any way, he showed no leniency toward
Christ." That's what it meant. If he spared not, if he was not
lenient in one thing, one thought, one act, if he spared not his
own son, If he didn't hold any wrath back from the Lord Jesus
Christ, if he spewed out all of his wrath for all that Christ
represented, if God spared not his own son, if the sin, and
it was, of his people was made to be his own, that's what Psalm
40, verse 12, mine iniquities, the Lord Jesus Christ speaking
under the inspiration of the Spirit of God through David,
my iniquities have taken hold upon me, and I'm not able to
look up. He made them his own. They're
his own. They're his own. Well, if they're
his own, and he took them, he took mine, he took the guilt
of mine, my iniquities, and made them his iniquities, that's his. And if God spared not his own
son, God spared not he who was sent. God in the flesh. God spared
not God. I like what you said. God had
to do something for Himself. And God only dealt with Himself.
God dealt with Himself on my behalf. God dealt with God. He that spared not His own Son,
God the Son, but delivered Him up for us all."
Someone says, well, there, see? He died for the whole world.
Wait a minute. Turn back to Romans 1-7. This
book is written to somebody. I've told you before, if I decide
to write a poem, And I write it to my wife. And
I say some things in there, and it's concerning my love and affection
for her. And another woman picks that
thing up and says, I want you to look what Marvin wrote to
me. I said, I didn't write that to you. I wrote that to her.
This book right here is written to somebody. Who was it written
to? Romans 1-7. to all that be in
Rome, beloved of God, called saints,
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ." All that word called right there, all that are appointed
to the saints of God, the appointed of God, the appointed to God's
mercy. He delivered Him up. The Scripture
says, delivered him up for us all, the appointed, the beloved
of God. Christ was given over to the
penalty of God's law. Death was his lot. His lot. Made sin. For who? For the appointed to salvation.
He was appointed to death because I was appointed to life. God, who spared not His own Son,
He that spared not the Lord Jesus Christ, delivered Him up for
us all, instead of us all, instead of the elect. That's what the
word for. He spared not His, but delivered Him up instead
of us all. Since God spared not His own
Son, since the everlasting love of God for His people was the
foundation of our hope, in the Lord Jesus Christ. How shall
He not, with Him, united with Him, freely give us all things? I wanted to find out. When He
said, freely give us all things, you know what that means? Grant
us a favor. How shall He not, with Him, do
us a great favor? I'm going to give you life. It's
going to cost the blood of my Son. I'm going to send Him. Why? Because I everlastingly
purposed that the order of man was not going to perish from
this earth. God loved the order of man. And out of the order
of man he chose some of all of them, out of every nation, kindred,
tribe, and tongue, and gave them." Here, these are yours. They're
mine, and I give them to you. I give them to you to redeem
them. And the Lord Jesus Christ, that
was his bride. God made him a bride, gave him
a bride. The Lord Jesus Christ has everlastingly
been married, always been married. He's always been her husband.
She's always been his wife. He's always loved her. And he
came into this world. There she was, fallen in Adam,
ruined by the fall. And he took her guilt and he
said, I'll take that. That's not your guilt anymore.
That's my guilt. And he took that guilt. He made sin. And he went to the cross. And
he died. God spared not, showed him no
leniency, and he died under the wrath and judgment of Almighty
God, paying the penalty of what his wife owed. And he said, my righteousness
that I earned as a man, I give that to you. That's yours. And robed in his righteousness,
I stand before Almighty God, holy and without blame, uncondemned. Now, who's going to lay anything
to my charge? God justified me. How shall He
not, with Him freely, give us all things with Him? Who shall lay," verse 33, any
charge, anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that
justified. Now here's the full meaning.
If you want to get the meaning of justification, it's found
right here in this verse. It's the laying and establishing
of a legal charge by the law of God that sticks. and is answerable
for. That's what it is. That's a person
that's not justified. What is justification? It is
the establishment by Almighty God that there is no charge by
God's law that will stick and make you answerable. That's what
it is. The guilt of sin is the only reason. The guilt of sin. is the only reason that a man
will be found under the wrath of God, the guilt of sin. And
if God's people have never been under the wrath of God because
God never changes in His attitude, if they've never been under God's
wrath, then they've never been found answerable to the law. Why? Because Christ has always
stood for them. He's always answered for them.
He's eternally answered for them, chosen in Him before the foundation
of the world, holy, without blame, before Him, in the love of God. Sin has been atoned for by the
blood of Christ. If God has been satisfied, if
the law has been honored, who can incriminate God's elect or
justify them? Who could stand and summon one
of God's elect before the bar of God's justice, before the
bar of the judgment seat? Who could summon someone before
God's place of judgment and make it stick when God the judge,
whose law it is, has said, I've been honored. I've been honored. My Son put away your guilt. And
I'm well pleased with Him. And in Him, you're holy. And
there's no condemnation to you. And I fed that. That's what God
said. Now, who's going to lay anything to your charge that's
going to stick? Nobody. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It's God that justifies. that has declared the claims
of his own justice satisfied. Now, if justice hasn't been satisfied,
well, then there can't be any justification. But Christ slain
from the foundation of the world, and I do understand that in time
it actually took place as far as I'm concerned. But I'll tell
you this, as far as God's concerned, it was eternally done. If there's been no justification,
then there can be no pardon. Sin is with me. Paul said, I'm
a sinner. But do you know why God can say
to me or to you that believe? When we do sin, and if we say
we have no sin, we make God a liar because we do sin. But I'm telling
you the penalty for that sin. What is that? Eternal separation
from God. That's the penalty of it. Somehow we think that the penalty
of sin is that we're going to get sick. Or God's going to take
$100 away from us. No. I'll tell you the penalty
of sin. The wages of sin. You know what it is? It's death.
How many sins do I have to commit to do that? One. To offend in one point is to
be guilty in all. The penalty of sin. Eternal separation from Almighty
God. If Almighty God has dealt with
Christ from the foundation of the world for me, and my guilt
has been put away, when I do sin right now in actual deeds
of transgressions, and I do, I do. From the moment I've stood
up here in this pulpit right here in myself, there's no good
thing. Paul says, in me, that is in
my flesh, there's no good thing. You say, you mean to tell me
that you've been sinning since you stood in that pulpit before
that and haven't stopped yet? Do you like it? No, sir. I'm
ashamed of it. Sorry. But let me tell you something. God will pardon me. That's what
it means. Forgive me. Why? Because He's
justified me in Christ. My guilt's been put away. My
guilt! My guilt! So He can pardon me. Can God forgive any that He has
not justified? Think on this. Can God forgive
any that He has not justified? No. Why? Because he's just. Somebody's going to pay. Verse
34, Who is he that condemneth? It's Christ that died, yea, rather
that's risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who
also maketh intercession for us. Who is he that can give judgment
against God's elect? Four reasons why nobody can.
Number one, it's Christ that died, the Messiah. The Word made flesh, the only
sacrifice that could put away my guilt and be accepted by Almighty
God. By His death, all the ground
of condemnation has been removed. His death. completely satisfied
God's demand for justice. It satisfied God. Therefore,
there's no condemnation to them that be in Christ Jesus. Why?
Because Christ was made condemnation. Four reasons. Number one, Christ
died. Secondly, yea, rather that's risen again. The resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ was the open, declared evidence that
God accepted what he did for me. When he came out of that
grave, God declared by his resurrection, and I say God, I mean the Father,
the Son, and the Spirit, because remember the Lord Jesus Christ
said, I have power to lay down my life and I have power to take
it again. He laid down his life for the sheep. He said, no man
takes my life from me. I lay it down. I lay it down,
he said. So when the triune God, Father,
Son, and Spirit, raised the Lord Jesus Christ, what that was was
the open declaration by that resurrection that all the claims
for justice were gone. All the claims All that which
was demanded is no more. Nothing else. God has a right
to justify His people. How do you know that God is right
when He says, I will not condemn you? I justified you. I declared you to be just. What right? We looked at this.
Just turn back to Romans 4.25 for a second. Romans 4.25, what
is the open declaration that God has the right to say, I have
justified you? Romans 4.25, who was delivered
for our offenses and was raised again, you see where it says,
for our justification? Let me remind you what that word
right there, for, means. Because of. because of. Almighty God, before the foundation
of the world, declared in the person of His blessed Son all
of His elect to be absolutely justified, declared just, no
charge before them. Before the foundation of the
world, God declared that. When Christ came out of the grave,
His resurrection proved that Almighty God was right and had
the right to do it, he was raised because of our justification. Our justification took place
eternally. Christ died, as far as we know,
in time. But you remember this, that resurrection
in time proved what God had eternally said was so. The third thing is, who is even? Back in Romans 8. Verse 34, who
is he that condemneth? Number one, Christ died. Number
two, yea's rather. Rather is risen again. Number
three, who is even at the right hand of God. There's no condemnation
to God's elect because the elect's redeemer is God. God Himself ruling this universe,
directing all things for the good of His sheep and for His
glory. And fourthly, here's another
reason there's no condemnation. who also maketh intercession
for us, he who bears the scars in his hands, in his feet, in
his side, he who has presented his own blood." You remember
when the high priest would come in one day out of the year and
he would sprinkle that blood on the mercy seat. There was
the ark inside the Holy of Holies. One time a year, that great high
priest could go in there. That's a picture of the Lord
Jesus Christ entering in to the Holy of Holies, into the presence
of Almighty God. That's on that ark, on that mercy
seat, on that lid that sat on top of that ark. That's where
God said, I'm going to meet with you. I'll meet with you right
there. And that priest would come in.
And he'd take blood and he'd sprinkle it on that mercy seat,
the place where God would meet. What did that represent? That
meant that the only place that God's going to meet with any
men, the only place that God's going to show any mercy, is when
everything that God has demanded for justice has been satisfied. And when that blood was sprinkled,
that was a picture of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ put
away, putting away, eternally putting away in time, showing
what God had eternally purposed. Here's the payment right here.
This is what God is going to meet with people. What's it going
to cost? It's going to cost His blood.
There He is making intercession for us by His blood, the ultimate
sacrifice. 1 John 2 says, My little children,
these things write unto you that you sin not. If any man sin,
We have an advocate, one who pleads another's cause with the
Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. Any man's sin is one who makes
intercession for us right now, pleading His sacrifice. Verse 35, who shall separate
us from the love of Christ? Who can remove Christ's love
toward us? The Father manifested his love
toward the elect by sending his Son to redeem us. Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ? The Son who manifested his love
by the shedding of his own blood. Greater love, the Lord Jesus
Christ said, hath no man than this, that a man lay down his
life for his friends. And then he said, you're my friends.
You're my friends if you do whatsoever I command you." He commanded
his friends. Believe on him. Believe on him. That's what that Philippian jailer
asked Paul. What's the evidence of salvation?
That's what he asked him. What must I do? What's going
to come out of a believer? And Paul told him, he said, you'll
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. What must we do to work the works
of God? This is the work of God, the Lord Jesus Christ told him.
He said that you believe on him whom God has sent. That's the
work of God. Belief. Belief. Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ? Tribulation? What? Grievous affliction? Pressure
of any kind? Or oppression? Shall that separate
us from the love? Distress? That means a narrow
calamity that has absolutely no appearance of relief. When
things just go and they keep going and they keep going, is
there any end to this? Is there any end to this? Is
there any end to this? I just can't imagine. Or persecution? Any enemies of God or ourselves
who's bent on our destruction, and it comes up, you deny Him
or I'll take your life. Is that going to separate us
from the love of Christ? Or famine? Total failure of the necessities
of this life. The Father says, your Father
knows you have need of all these things. What if God withholds
them and you die? What if you starve to death?
Is that going to separate you from the love of Christ? A nakedness,
total exposure. That's what it means. Total exposure. That's what it means. A lack
of whatever. Or peril. It means danger. Is there any danger? A third,
that is, from foes of the gospel or judicial punishment. I took you for the law. Is that going to separate what,
you know? As it is written, for thy sake were killed all the
day long were counted or accounted as sheep for the slaughter. That's
a quote. from Psalm 44, 22. For thy sake,
killed all the day long. Paul, the apostle, I believe,
who wrote the book of Hebrews, 1137, says they were stoned,
sawn asunder, tempted, slain with a sword, wandered about
in sheepskins, goatskins, destitute, afflicted, tormented, of whom
this world was not worthy. wandered in deserts, mountains,
dens, caves of the earth, and these all, having obtained a
good report through faith, received not the promise." They didn't.
There were some, he said, never saw the Lord Jesus Christ come
in this world yet, but they believed God. Who shall separate them
from the love of God? Who shall separate them from
the affection of Almighty God? This world reckons the people
of God to be nothing more than refuge. But who's going to separate
you from God's love? Verse 37, Nay, in all these things
we're more than conquerors through Him that loved us. In all the
things we gain a victory, a surprising victory. I mean, stuff that comes
our way and we look and we see and we think and we think, surely,
surely God's forsaken me. Surely the Lord's left me to
myself. Surely this can't be the Lord's will. Surely this
can't be. We're more than conquerors through
Him that loved us. Paul said, I'm persuaded that
neither death, life, angels, principalities, powers, things
present, things to come, height, depth, any other creature shall
be able to separate us from the love of Christ, which is in Christ
Jesus. I'm our Lord. I'm convinced of
this, Paul said. I'm convinced, absolutely. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing that you can
think of. Nothing that you can imagine.
Nothing comes your way. Nothing past. Nothing today. Nothing tomorrow. If God Almighty
leaves you here, we'll separate those that God has always everlastingly
loved. is going to set. You know that's
good news. That's good news. What if I get sick? What if I run out of money? What if I die? You're going to. Yeah. What if, what if anything,
what if somebody hates me? What if somebody talks bad about
me because of what I preached? Has it changed you, bro Scott?
They've been talking about you a long time. Has it really made
a difference? Who shall separate you from the
love of God? See what I'm saying? God's elect are eternally kept
for His glory, His opinion, and definitely for my good. I pray
it's been a blessing to you. All right, Brother Gary, come
lead us in the closing.