Turn with me, if you would, to
Acts chapter 24. Acts chapter 24. You know, the Scripture is very
specific. The Word of God, the Scripture
is very specific, but mankind has a way of generalizing things. It's very specific, but man has
a way of generalizing things, and that generalization is very
dangerous. That can be very, very dangerous.
God's people do not want a general religion. You know that? They do not want to know generally
what God has said in His Word. Not interested in that at all. They want to know specifically. specifically. This world is fine
with a general knowledge. They're okay with it. A general
knowledge, a general understanding, but not God's people. They want to know specifically
who it is that they're worshiping. They don't just want to blindly,
generically worship. They want to know who it is they're
worshiping They want to know specifically what He has to say. And they want to know if He is specifically
saying it to them. That's what they want to know. All of God's people are this
way. All of them. He puts that heart
and that desire in all of them. They search for the details. They want the truth at all costs. God's people want the truth at
all costs, no matter how condemning it is. You ever read this and
feel condemned? No matter how condemning it is,
no matter how exposing of their sin it is, they'll read something
and go, Oh, no matter how much it causes
them to decrease. Does anybody here want in the
flesh to decrease? You want to decrease in wealth,
decrease in health, decrease in popularity, decrease in anything? But no matter how much the Word,
the honesty of the Word causes them to decrease, they see themselves
decreasing in God's eyes in the flesh, they see themselves decreasing
in their own eyes. But no matter how much the honesty
of the Word strips them of all credit and all glory and anything
concerning their salvation, from the decision of salvation to
the execution of salvation to the obtaining of salvation. No matter how contrary the truth
of God's Word is to the flesh of man, God's people want it. They want it. They want the truth.
They're not satisfied to have a general understanding of God
and a general understanding of what saved them. They're not
satisfied with a general form of religion. They want to get
to the heart of it. They do. They want to get to
the heart of it. There's a particular subject I want to do that with
this morning. All right. There's a very particular subject. This is something that is very
generalized in religion. And I want us to look at it specifically. And it's this right here. What
is it? To be a believer. What is it to be a believer?
The general acknowledgement of whether or not a person is religious is whether or not he or she is
a believer. All right, you ask people, are
you a believer? You go up and ask somebody, are
you a believer? If the person says, no, I don't believe any
of that. Okay, well, that's not a religious person. Is that person
religious? No, he doesn't believe anything. Most people though, especially
in this part of the country, most people would say, Oh yes,
I'm a believer. I'm a religious person. Yeah.
Every child of God will say that if you ask a child of God, are
you a believer? A child of God will say, yes,
I'm a believer. I'm a believer, but a child of
God will not be satisfied with a general understanding of what
that means. He'll wanna get to the root of
it, all right? This is what a child of God will ask himself or herself. And I hope that we ask ourselves
this. Let's honestly ask ourselves this, okay? Take as this, I'm
gonna speak on behalf of all of us. Ask yourself this, okay,
number one. A believer of what? Are you a believer? Well, I don't
know. Am I? Am I? Are you? A believer of
what? A believer in what? A believer on what? Is a general belief of God enough? Ask yourself, this question is
what I believe about God. Correct. Ask yourself that question. Have you ever asked yourself
that question? You say, well, I'm a believer.
Okay. Ask yourself this question is
what I believe about God. Correct. What is it to truly be a believer? What does a believer believe? Am I one of them? How can I know
if I'm a believer? A child of God will specifically
want to know that. All right, let's go ahead and
answer the question. Here it is. We're going to answer it
and then we'll prove the question. Prove the answer. The Apostle
Paul here in Acts 24 is on trial for preaching the gospel. And
they gave him an opportunity to speak on his own behalf, to
defend himself. All right, this is what he said.
Acts 24, verse 10, Then Paul, after that the governor had beckoned
unto him to speak, answered, Forasmuch as I know that thou
hast been of many years a judge unto this nation, I do the more
cheerfully answer for myself, because that thou mayest understand
that there are yet but twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem
for to worship. And they neither found me in
the temple disputing with any man, neither raising up the people,
causing an uproar, neither in the synagogues, nor in the city,
Neither can they prove the things whereof they now accuse me, but this I confess unto thee."
He said, I'm going to lay it all out there, all right? I'm
going to make a confession to you. He said, I didn't do anything
they're accusing me of, but I am going to confess this to you.
Verse 14, but this I confess unto thee, that after the way
which they call heresy, that word means division. They had him on trial saying,
why are you preaching this? Why are you doing this? You're
creating division with this message. You're dividing people and dividing
things. Why are you doing this? Verse
14, but this I confess unto thee that after the way which they
call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing. all things which are written
in the Law and in the Prophets." He said, why am I preaching this?
It's because I have to. I'm a believer. I'm a believer. And what does a believer believe?
All things which are written in the Law and in the Prophets.
We talk about believing on Christ. The Word. The Word of God. We talk about believing on the
Lord Jesus Christ. Well, to believe on Christ is
to believe on His Word. You can't separate the two. He
is the Word. This is His Word. To believe on Christ is to believe
on His Word. It's to believe on this particular
person. This Word tells us of a particular
person. The person that's declared in
the pages of this Word. Not a book somebody wrote about
this Word. This Word. The only way that we can know
the person of the Word is through His Word, through
the declaration of His Word, knowing and believing what the
Word has to say about Him. That's what determines whether
or not a person is a believer, a believer on Christ. Am I a
believer on His Word? Am I a believer in His Word?
Am I a believer of His Word? You show a man something from
the Word of God. Same Bible, me and you, there
it is, black words, white paper, okay? You show them something
out of the Word of God. The man responds this way, I don't believe
that. Okay, well, that man's not a
believer. It's that simple. But if you
show a man something and he says, huh, well, that's what it says. And if God wrote it in his word,
it must be so. If that's a man or woman's response,
then that is a man or a woman who has been made to be a believer
of the word. A believer believes all things
which are written in the Word of God. A believer does not believe
part of the things which are written in the Word of God. A
believer believes all things. A believer doesn't believe most
of the things. I'm sure you've heard people
say, oh, I believe most of it. Well, a believer doesn't believe
most of it. He believes all of it. All of
it. A believer does not just believe
the things he can understand. Some people say, well, I don't
believe in election. I can't understand it. What difference
does that make? Really? A believer does not just
believe the things he can understand. If God wrote it in his word,
a believer believes it. All of it. Go with me over to
Matthew 4. Matthew 4, this is when our Lord
was tempted in the wilderness, and He was hungry, and the adversary
said, Why don't you turn those stones into bread? Verse 4, But
He answered and said, It is written. And that's a wonderful three
words that the Lord gave, It's written. He answered and said,
it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every
word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Every word. Every word. Well, I don't understand
that. It doesn't matter. I just don't know if I can go
along with that. It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. This is God
we're talking about. This is God, and a true believer
will believe His Word no matter what. Now, here's a question. Are we believers? I do not want to assume on this.
I believe I have had moments in my life where I have assumed
I was a believer. I'm over that. I don't want to
assume on this. Am I a believer? Are you a believer? Are we believers? Let's see what
our Lord has said in His word, and then let's see if we believe
it. All right, turn with me to Ephesians 2. Ephesians 2 verse 8, it says,
For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves,
it is the gift of God. Believing is faith. If we have
the ability to believe, it's because we have faith. And the
word of God says, faith is not of ourselves. It is the gift
of God. We're asking, are we believers?
Well, this word says the ability to believe is not of ourselves. It's the gift of God. People
think that faith is something they conjure up. That's what
people believe. I just need to have more faith. Well, the Word of God says, faith,
the ability to believe is not of ourselves, it's the gift of
God. Hebrews 12, two says, he is the
author and finisher of our faith. Now here's what it means. All of this is in his hands.
Do you ever remember the moment that it really dawned on you?
The ball is in his court. It's all in his hands and you
don't have a say in the matter. Do you remember that moment? What? This is what this means. It's
all in his hand. Whoever believes on the Lord
Jesus Christ shall be saved. All right. Well, faith is not
of yourself. It's a work that God does and
God starts. It's a work that God authors
and God performs and God finishes. We do not have the ability to
believe in ourselves. God has to give that faith to
us. God has to perform that faith in us. If we end up being true
believers, God did it. He gets the credit. If we're
believers, He gets the credit. If we're true believers, He gets
the glory. We can't even brag about the
fact that we're believers. Have you ever in your heart,
in your mind, or maybe out loud bragged that you were a believer?
Well, we're believers. We can't brag about that. We
cannot brag about that. He made us to be that way by
grace. By free gift, He made us to be
that way. Being a believer is His decision,
it's His work, it's His doing. We cannot even decide whether
or not we're gonna be a believer. You ever said, why don't you
believe this? There it is in black words on
white paper, why don't you believe this? We can't even decide whether
or not we're gonna be a believer. Everything's in His hands. Verse
8 says, By grace are you safe through faith in that not of
yourselves. It's the gift of God, not of
works, lest any man should boast. That's what the scripture says.
Here's the question. Do we believe it? Faith is not of ourselves. It's
the gift of God. A true believer will believe
that. He or she will say, it is God
which worketh in me both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Turn with me to Psalm 14. Psalm 14 verse 1 says, the fool
hath said in his heart, no God. If you have italicized words
in your Bible, you'll see that there is, is in italics. They
were added by the translator. The fool hath said there is no
God. Yes. But oh, the fool hath said
in his heart, no God. They are corrupt. They have done
abominable works. There is none that doeth good. Who's he talking about? Everybody,
all of mankind, all generations. He's talking about me, you. Verse
2, the Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men
to see if there were any that did understand and seek God.
Who is God going to save? Well, God looked down through
time to see who would choose Him and who would do good and
who would believe on Him. Yes, He did. Amen, brother. He sure did. Verse two, the Lord
looked down from heaven upon the children of men to see if
there were any that did understand and seek God. What did he find?
Verse three, they are all gone aside. They are all together
become filthy. There's none that do it good.
No, not one. Do we believe that? Do we believe that or do we say,
well, I mean, It can't be that there's none
that do us good. I just can't believe there's none
good. I just, well, I'm not a believer. I'm not a believer. If I do not
believe what God has to say about me and my sinful, wicked flesh,
I'm not a believer. This is what a true believer
will cry when he hears that. Amen. Amen. Oh, wretched man that I am. Turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter
3. 1 Timothy 3, verse 16. It says, and without controversy,
great is the mystery of godliness, God was manifest in the flesh. That says God is the one who
came down, not God's son. Not God's helper. not God's representative. God was manifest in the flesh. John 1 says, In the beginning
was the Word, Christ, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. God is three persons. God is
three persons. It's not that the Father is God,
and the Son and the Spirit are not God. That's not how it is. Three equal persons collectively
are God. The Father of God, this is how
a lot of people say it, they'll say, God the Father and then
the Son of God. Let's say it the same way. Either
it's God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, Or it's
the Father of God, the Son of God, the Spirit of God. But these
three are one, and these three agree in one. All of the fullness of God is
seen in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you want to
see God the Father, have you ever wondered if you will see
God the Father? Well, if you want to see God
the Father, look at Christ. And if you want to see God the
Spirit, have you ever wondered what the Spirit of God looks
like? Look at Christ. And if you want to see God the
Son, look at Christ. In Him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead. Isaiah 9, 6 says, Unto us a child
is born. Call His name the Everlasting
Father. And call His name the Prince of Peace. Well, who is He? Is He God the
Father or God the Son? Yes. Yes, if you've seen Him,
you've seen God. God. A believer will believe
that so. Do we believe that? A true believer
will. Go with me to Hebrews chapter
1. I'll be quick. Hebrews 1. Hebrews 1 verse 1 says, God who
at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto
the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken
unto us by sun. The word his is in italics. whom
he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made
the worlds, who being the brightness of glory." and the express image
of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His
power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, He sat down
on the right hand of the Majesty on high." Jesus Christ God manifest
in the flesh, by Himself purged the sin of His people, by Himself. They did not help Him. They did not give Him permission
to do it. They did not accept it, thereby
making it effectual to them. They had no role in the matter
whatsoever, none whatsoever. By his own blood, the Lord Jesus
Christ entered into the holy place and he offered one sacrifice
for sin for all of his people throughout all generations. And by that one sacrifice of
Himself, He purged. Have you ever purged anything?
I think I need to purge some things. He got rid of it. He wiped it clean. He emptied
it. What did He empty? The sins of
all of His people. There is nothing for His people
to do I've had so many people tell
me, had so many people write me emails and this and that and
say, surely you're not just going to preach what Christ did and
stop right there. Well, yes, that's what I'm going
to do. Surely you're not going to tell people what they need
to do in response to make that effectual. No, I'm not going
to do that. There's nothing for God's people to do. Christ already did it. Christ
already did it. By Himself, it is finished. Do we believe that? A true believer will. A true
believer will. He or she will say, it is not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to
His mercy, He saved us. by the washing of regeneration
and renewing of the Holy Ghost. One more. All right, last one. Go to John 11. John 11. Lazarus has just died
and the Lord has come and he's speaking to Martha right here.
John 11 verse 23, Jesus saith unto her, thy brother shall rise
again. Martha saith unto him, I know
that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. He
that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. and whosoever liveth and believeth
in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" He said,
Martha, are you a true believer? Verse 27, she saith unto him,
Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God,
which should come into the world. She said, I most certainly am.
Do you believe this? She said, I most certainly do.
I believe you're the Christ. I believe all life is in you. I believe all hope is in you. Everything is in you. This is
what it is to be a true believer. It's to agree with, it's to say
amen to, and it's to cling to every word that has proceeded
out of the mouth of God. Every word that has been recorded
in the scripture. The scripture says God is holy,
God is just, God is sovereign. A believer says, I believe it. The Scripture says man is sinful,
man is wretched, man is helpless. A believer says, I believe it. The Scripture says salvation's
of the Lord. A believer says, I believe it.
The Scripture says even my faith to believe is of Him. A believer
says, I believe it. The scripture says, I am secure
in Him. And a believer says, I believe
that. I believe Him. I believe Him. I believe that
man right there. I believe in Him. I believe on
Him. I don't believe in my belief.
I'm not looking to my faith. I'm looking to Him. I trust Him. I trust His Word.
Let God be true, and every other man a liar. Let God be true.
That's what a believer believes. And every believer will say this,
Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. Increase my
faith. It's of You. Cause me to look,
Lord. Send more faith, we pray. Do
it for Christ's sake. May the Lord give that to us.
All right, let's all stand together.