If you would, turn with me to
2 Corinthians chapter 13, please. 2 Corinthians chapter 13. Paul writes here to the church
at Corinth, and in verse 5, he says this, Examine yourselves. whether ye be in the faith. Prove
your own selves. Know ye not your own selves,
how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates. I want to talk to you about saving
faith. You know, you'll never find any
hope any confidence, any assurance of salvation if you look to something
that you must do in order to be saved. Yet, if Jesus Christ
is the object of my faith, if he's the object of your faith,
then we can have some hope, some confidence, and assurance that
we're right now saved. That's why Peter said, brethren,
give diligence to make your calling and election sure. That's exactly
what Paul meant when he wrote, work out your own salvation with
fear and trembling. It doesn't mean that salvation's
by works. That'd be contrary to the teaching
of the Bible. We know that the Scriptures are
very plain, for by grace are you saved through faith, saving
faith. And that's not of yourselves.
It's a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. And
yes, Paul did say, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. But that wasn't the end to what
he said. He said, for it is God which
worketh in you to will and to do His good pleasure. We say
this all the time, but it's the truth. We cannot work out what
God does not work in. And that's such a basic biblical
truth that every true believer learns and understands. You see,
we did the sinning. God does the saving. We are the
sinners. Christ is the Savior. We're dead
in trespasses and sins. Christ gave us life so that we
might believe. We can't get the cart before
the horse and expect to get anywhere. Can we know if we've passed from
death to life? You better believe we can. Isn't
that what John said? The beloved John said, we know
that we've passed from death to life. How do we know that,
John? Well, first we know by our love for the brethren, because
we love the brethren. Actually, we're encouraged in
the Scriptures to determine that issue right now. How could we
truly have any peace, any comfort, any joy, any assurance in this
life if we didn't have or know that we, by the Spirit of God,
have been saved? How could we really have any
comfort in this life? You know, the true believer is
often uncertain in and of themselves, but they are never uncertain
about their God and their Savior, Jesus Christ. They don't believe
or trust in their ability. No. But they simply believe God
according to His Word. And that's the key. According
to the Word of God. And there are many people in
religion today who think that it doesn't matter what they believe.
Just as long as you're sincere, they say. You're sincere in your
religion. You're sincere in your beliefs. You're sincere in your
doctrine. You're alright. I had a man tell
me not long ago that we're all just spokes in the same wheel
connected to Jesus, the center hub. You know what I told him?
I said, that wheel won't roll. It just won't roll. And it won't. Our faith and our relationship
with God must be determined by what God says in His Word. And Paul tells us right here
in our text to examine ourselves whether you be in the faith.
I don't want to miss faith in Christ. I don't. I don't want
you to miss it either. Without faith, it's impossible
to please God, I know that. So I don't want to miss faith
in Christ. I want to be pleasing to God. But I know that in and
of myself, I can't be. You see, it's not unlikely to
please God without faith. It's impossible to please God
without faith. He that believeth. That's what
faith is. It's believing. He that believeth
on the Son has faith in the Son, has everlasting life. And he
that believeth not the Son will not see life. But the wrath of
God abideth on him. Faith is in Christ. That's the first thing that we
need to see about faith. It must be in Christ in order
to be saving faith. And that's what John said. He
said, and this is the record that God has given to us eternal
life and this life is in His Son. That's where eternal life
is. Today, men and women's faith
seems to be in most anything and everything except in Christ.
They have faith for health. They have faith for wealth. They
have faith for everything but Christ. John said, He that hath
the Son hath life. And he that hath not the Son
hath not life. So the sinner's question should
be, how do I get a hold of Christ? How do I get a hold of Him? Well,
I have the answer for you. By faith. By believing. That's how. Whosoever believeth
in him, that's faith, shall not perish, but have everlasting
life. That's saving faith. Do you remember
why Israel couldn't enter into the land of promise? Was it because
they rebelled at the Red Sea? Was it because they built a golden
calf to worship? Was it because they constantly
murmured and complained All those things were a result of the real
reason, and the real reason was unbelief. Unbelief. They entered not in because of
unbelief. Hebrews 4 verse 6. And you know, unbelief is still
the only thing that will keep you out and away from God's love,
mercy, and grace in Christ. Unbelief. Take heed, brethren,
lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing
from the living God. And I find it amazing, though
we shouldn't, that God considers unbelief to be evil. in men and
women's hearts. To not believe is to depart from
the living God. Unbelief is a denial of God's
existence. It's a denial of His salvation,
His purpose, and His providence. To not believe in Christ as the
only means of redemption is to deny the Word of God. It's to
call God a liar. It really is, when you think
about it. God says that there's only one
way to be saved. And men say, well, there are
many ways to be saved. Calling God a liar. There's only
one way to be saved, and that's by the substitution and the sacrifice
of His Son. If you refuse to bow to that
one way, to that one mediator, then you're calling God a liar.
To not believe in Christ as the only means of salvation is to
deny the Word of God in its entirety because this whole book's about
Him. From Genesis to Revelation, it's
a book about Christ and how He saved sinners. One characteristic
of all the Old Testament saints listed in Hebrews chapter 11
You can stick your marker here, turn there with me, Hebrews 11.
I want to take just a few minutes here for us to look at that.
One characteristic of all the Old Testament saints listed here,
those who knew God, those who walked with God, those who loved
God. Do you know what that one thing
was? It was faith. Faith. If you go down that list
or this list here in Hebrews 11, they all had one thing in
common. They believed God. Do you believe God? They had
faith. Look at verse 4. By faith Abel
offered a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. You see, friends,
it was faith that caused Abel to bring a lamb. And it was by
faith that God accepted his sacrifice. Look at verse 5. By faith Enoch
walked with God. And God took him on home with
him, didn't he? Verse seven, by faith Noah, being
warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared
an ark to the saving of his house, by the which he condemned the
world and became an heir of the righteousness which is by faith. How do we get righteousness?
By faith in Christ. It's his righteousness. and put
it to us that saves us. Look at verse eight. By faith,
by believing, Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place
which he should after receive for an inheritance, he obeyed,
and he went out, not knowing whether he went. It didn't matter,
because his faith was in God, and he trusted, and he believed
God had his best interest at heart. Do you believe that? That's
what faith is. And it continues on here in Hebrews
11 and talks about the faith of Isaac and Jacob and Joseph
who we've studied on Wednesday evenings. Talks about the faith
of the parents of Moses. We just looked at that in the
book of Exodus. And then in verse 24, we see,
by faith, Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be
called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction
with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for
a season. So let me ask you, have you examined
yourself to see if you have this kind of faith? We need to. We need to. We need to do it
often. It's called saving faith. What makes it saving faith? Oh,
I'm telling you, I'm concerned about my faith. I want my faith
to be the right kind of faith. I want it to be directed in the
right direction. I want it to be saving faith.
And I must examine myself. Not you. Isn't that what Paul
said? Examine yourselves. Not anyone
else. You know, I had a fellow tell
me one time that he didn't judge people, but he said, I am a fruit
inspector. He inspected fruit and others.
Well, we don't inspect and examine others. We examine ourselves. And we see if we believe. And
we see if we are in the faith. And again, I would have you notice
that definitive article there, THE faith. There's only one kind
of faith. Only true faith will save and
that is faith in Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved. Isn't that so simple? So simple
yet impossible apart from the mercy and grace of God in Christ. People continue to ask this question. What should we do to work the
work of God? And the answer remains the same.
It never changes. This is the work of God. Believe
on Christ whom God has sent. What do believers believe? They
believe that God came in the flesh. He became flesh and blood. He came in the person of the
Lord Jesus Christ. You see, God became a man to
be a substitute for men and women. He was a man, it says, in the
likeness of sinful flesh. It says that because he had no
sin of his own. He knew no sin. He was the only
man that could pay man's sin debt. Turn back to Romans chapter
8. I want to show you this too.
Romans chapter 8. Look at verse 3. People trying
to work their way to heaven. They're trying to keep the law
in order to be saved. Look at verse 3. Romans 8. For what the law could not do,
in that it was weak through the flesh. Now that's our flesh. That's what that's talking about.
We couldn't keep the law. God sending His own Son in the
likeness of sinful flesh and for sin. God sent His Son in
the likeness of sinful flesh for Sin. Condemned sin in the flesh. That
the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us. We're
told quite a bit here. The person sinning is God the
Father. The one sent is God the Son. And Christ came in the likeness
of sinful flesh. Now He looked like a man. He
talked like a man. He ate. He drank. He slept. He hurt. God did. Because He was a man. He acted like a man with one
major exception. He had no sin. He had no sin. He knew no sin. He was made to
be sin. He was born of a sinful woman.
But His Father was divine. He was touched with the feeling
of man's infirmities, and He was in all points tempted, as
you and I are, with one great exception, yet without sin. What an exception that is. And
as the sinner's substitute of God's elect, while having all
the sins of God's elect upon him, for which he was answerable,
he made himself so. He made himself responsible for
all that God gave him before the foundation of the world.
And it says, and therefore, for sin, Meaning for the payment
of sin, for the pardon of sin, for the forgiveness of sin, He
condemned sin in the flesh. He's the only one that could.
You can find no one else who can do this for you. The only
way our sin could be put away was if a man paid for them. And that man is going to have
to be a perfect man. A man without sin. So our Redeemer
must be both God and a man. He must be God because all men
have sinned. And He must be man because only
a man can pay the wages of sin which is death. But He's got
to be a perfect man. He's got to be God and man. Christ Jesus is the God-man.
God could not die. Man could not satisfy. But the
God-man could both die and satisfy. And as a man, He died to pay
sin's wages. As God, He satisfied divine justice. Since He had no sin of His own,
the law cannot condemn one that is innocent. So Christ became
guilty in the believer's place. And being just, which He is as
God, He died for the unjust. And we call that substitution.
And friends, that's the Gospel. There's no other message by which
we can be saved. And that's what you must believe
in order to be saved. That's what you must believe
in order to have saving faith. Saving faith? is simply to trust
in Christ who's paid the law's demands on your sin and trust
that in Christ, God's holy justice has been satisfied. And if God
enables you to do that, then you're saved. You're saved. What must I do? Believe. Believe. Right now, examine yourself
to see if you believe these things. I was thinking about this. When
on the cross the Lord said, it's finished, He could have said,
God is satisfied. Same thing. It's finished. God is satisfied. Do you believe
that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses you from all sin? If you do, you've got saving
faith. Do you believe that Christ was
raised from the dead and that you were raised with Him? If
you do, then you have saving faith. Do you believe that Christ
died, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God?
You say yes, then you have saving faith. That's what it is to examine
yourself, to see whether you be in the faith. And friends,
isn't that why we come and hear the Gospel? over and over and
over again. We don't want to hear anything
new. We better not. We want to hear the greatest
story ever told. We want to hear it again and
again and again. Why? Because that's our confidence. That's our hope. That's our comfort. That's our assurance. People
that don't know God either have no hope and confidence or their
hope and confidence is a false one. Simply believe what God's
Word says about you and your God. Well, that all sounds good,
but it can't be that simple. There has to be more to it than
that. There has to be something that I do. Well, there better
not be more to it. If there is, it makes God out
to be a liar. You remember what Paul said,
and I love this. He said, don't be corrupt. from
the simplicity that is in Christ. You know, the serpent, back in
the garden, he beguiled, he deceived Eve by complicating the simplicity
of God's Word. And that's exactly what he did.
God said this very directly, very straightforwardly. He said,
of all the trees in the garden, you may freely eat, but of the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Thou shall not eat
of it, for in the day that you do, you shall surely die. You can read that in Genesis
chapter two, verse 17. Now, is there anything too hard
to understand about that? Nope, it's straightforward, a
straightforward command from God. You remember what the serpent
said? Hath God said? Hath God said,
question mark? Eve should have said, yes, He
has. That's what God said. And that's what we should say
when He tries to corrupt us from the simplicity that's in Christ.
But her mind was corrupted by the serpent, complicating God's
simple Word. It's simple. It's simple. Christ did for us what we cannot
do for ourselves. Man, I wish I had a dollar for
every time I've said that. He did for me what I can't do
for myself. So don't let your minds be corrupted
from the simplicity that's in Christ. And that's exactly why
Paul is telling us to examine ourselves. That's why he's telling
us to prove ourselves. That's why we must give diligence
to make our calling and election sure. It's not because of anything
lacking in God. It's because of what's lacking
in us. It's not because of anything
lacking in Christ to provide for us a perfect righteousness.
It's everything to do with what's lacking in us. You can't build
your hope of eternal life on a feeling. There are many that
do. Do you feel saved? Do you not
feel saved? Feelings come and feelings go
and feelings are deceiving. And you can't build your hope
of eternal life. Now listen to me, I'm telling
you the truth. You cannot build your hope of eternal redemption
on an experience. Why? Because experiences are
a dime a dozen. Satan can give you an experience.
Eternal life comes from bowing, leaning, trusting in Christ alone
to make you acceptable to a holy God. You're unacceptable in your
present state. And again, I reiterate that Christ
is the only One that can do this. Now I want to quickly finish,
but I want to give you some must in order to be saved. What must
we do? Well, a man or a woman is not
saved who is not born again. Born from above. That's what
God's Word says. Christ said you must be born
again. You must be born from above to
have this saving faith. You must be born to see the Kingdom
of God. You must be born to enter the
Kingdom of God. You can't see God's Kingdom,
you can't enter God's Kingdom unless and until God gives you
life from above. You must be born again. Second
thing, a man or a woman is not saved, cannot have saving faith
if they've not heard the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and
Him crucified and believe it in their heart. You must hear
the Gospel. For it pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching. And that's preaching the truth,
by the way. Not just preaching anything. But preaching the truth
of Christ and Him crucified to save them that believe. You see,
thirdly, a sinner is not saved unless they believe on Christ.
I think we've established that, haven't we? Believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. You must believe on Him,
have faith in Him, in order to have life eternal. Fourthly,
a lost man and woman is not saved if they do not love the Lord
Jesus Christ. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 16.22,
he said, If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, Let him
be anathema maranatha. And that means let him be accursed
when the Lord comes. Again, listen to me. I'm almost
finished. Oh, I'm pleading to your soul,
friends. God doesn't plead and beg men
to come to Him, but I sure will. I'll beg and plead you to come
to Christ. Because that's the only way you'll have life. Salvation
is not about accepting Jesus. I've heard that all my life.
Oh, you've got to accept Jesus. Salvation is not about accepting
Him. Salvation is about loving Him.
About worshiping Him. Salvation is believing Him and
being devoted to Him. Salvation is not accepting, but
being accepted in the Beloved. Being accepted in Him. No sinner,
fifth thing, will ever be saved or have saving faith who is ignorant
of the righteousness that is in Christ Jesus. Now, how do
you know if you're ignorant of God's righteousness? The Bible
tells you. You'll go about to establish
your own righteousness. If you do, then you've not submitted
yourself to the righteousness of God, Romans 10. And that again
brings us right back to the teaching, the doctrine of substitution.
For He, God, hath made Him, Christ, to be sin for us, you and I. He knew no sin. You and I are
sin. Do you see the contrast there?
He knew no sin, had no sin, was perfect, holy, and righteous
before God. You and I are just the opposite.
Unholy, unjust, full of sin. Sin's what we are. And because of that substitution
of God putting our sin upon Him, we were made the righteousness
of God in Him. And that's the greatest spiritual
transaction that has ever been made between God and man. Christ took the sin of His elect
and He put all their sin away. All the sin of God's elect throughout
all time. And at the same time, He gave
each one of them His perfect righteousness. Now have you ever
heard any better news? Do you believe it? Do you believe
it? That's what saving faith is.
Examine yourself to see if you be in the faith. I think often about what I heard
my pastor say, if you believe these things, everything's going
to be alright. It don't mean you'll have a big
house and a fancy car and a bunch of money in the bank. That's
not what I mean by alright. But it'll mean that you have
life eternal. And that's what's important.
That's what saving faith is all about. So what I want you to
do is to examine yourself. You know that that word in the
Greek means scrutinize? Scrutinize yourself. We're good
at scrutinizing others, aren't we? Boy, I'm a master at it. I'm good at scrutinizing other
folks. Lord, help me to scrutinize myself
to see if I have that kind of faith. And then when you have,
Paul says, then prove that you have it. Prove it to yourself,
not to anyone else. Prove it to yourself by examining
and scrutinizing yourself over and over and over again. This
is a constant thing. And right now, you can have forgiveness. And you can have joy. And you
can have comfort. And you can have peace. And you
can have assurance that you're a child of the Eternal Father.
Right now. You don't have to wait until
the end of time when we stand before God and hope everything's
going to work out. Okay, no sir. You can have it
right now. There is therefore now. No condemnation
to them that are in Christ Jesus. Isn't that the best news you've
ever heard? That's the best news a sinner ever heard. May God
give you that assurance as you examine yourself over and over
again. Amen. Amen.