Paul's Message To Antioch

Q: What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in salvation?

The Bible teaches that God sovereignly chooses whom He saves, as seen in Romans 9:13. Scripture presents a clear depiction of God's sovereignty in salvation, emphasizing that He chooses individuals according to His divine purpose and grace. For instance, Romans 9 highlights God’s choice of Jacob over Esau, stating, 'Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.' This doctrine of election affirms that God’s grace is given not based on any foreseen merit in people but solely according to His will and purpose. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:4-5, God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, demonstrating that our salvation stems from His sovereign choice rather than our own effort or decision.

Q: How do we know predestination is true?

The doctrine of predestination is grounded in Scripture, particularly in Ephesians 1:5 where it states we are predestined according to God's will. Predestination is a biblical doctrine that underscores God's foreordaining of some individuals to salvation. Ephesians 1:5 states, 'Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.' This passage emphasizes that predestination is done according to God's purpose and for His glory. Romans 8:29-30 further elaborates this concept by outlining the golden chain of salvation, where those He foreknew, He predestined, and those He predestined, He called, justified, and glorified. This sequence illustrates God’s active role in salvation, making it clear that it is not a random selection, but a deliberate act of His sovereign will.

Q: Why is grace important for Christians?

Grace is essential for Christians as it is by grace we are saved, and it sustains our relationship with God. Grace is foundational to the Christian faith, as it signifies the unearned favor of God towards sinners. Ephesians 2:8 affirms, 'For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.' This illustrates that salvation is not based on our works or merit but solely on God's grace. Moreover, grace is not just the beginning of the Christian life but also integral to our ongoing relationship with God. It empowers believers to walk in obedience and provides assurance of salvation, reminding us that we are sustained by God's unmerited favor throughout our lives. In the face of our daily struggles with sin, grace reassures us that God remains committed to His people, offering mercy and forgiveness.

Q: How does God choose His people?

God chooses His people according to His sovereign will, as shown in Romans 11:5. The doctrine of God’s choice of His people is intricately linked to His sovereignty and grace. Romans 11:5 states, 'Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.' This teaches that God's choice is not based on human effort or deserving, but is a manifestation of His grace. Throughout Scripture, we see that God selects individuals and communities for His purposes, illustrating that His choices are deliberate and inevitable according to His perfect plan. Furthermore, 2 Timothy 1:9 emphasizes that God 'has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace.' This revelation is a profound comfort for believers, as it assures them that their standing before God rests solely on His sovereign choice.

Q: Why is the fear of God essential for believers?

The fear of God is essential for believers because it signifies reverence and acknowledgment of God's authority. The fear of God is an important concept in Scripture that reflects a believer's proper attitude toward the Almighty. It entails a deep respect and reverence for God's power and holiness. As Paul illustrates in his sermon, true seekers and worshipers are those who fear God, suggesting that a healthy fear of the Lord is essential for genuine worship and spiritual discernment. Proverbs 1:7 states, 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,' emphasizing that understanding and wisdom flow from recognizing God's majesty and sovereignty. This fear of God shapes a believer's life, guiding their decisions and actions in alignment with His will, while also reminding them of the grace and mercy extended through Jesus Christ.

Justice made our way, for it
is plainly said to do. Our God, our Lord, our God is
good, His mercy forever sure, His truth at all times fervent
is true. Let's go back to Acts 13. If
you followed along closely as we read, you probably got a blessing
from reading And this really needs no comment, but it half pleased God to use
this thing of preaching, and it's called the rightly dividing
of the Word. Preaching is to take the Word
and rightly divide it, or that is, give the sense of it, the
meaning of it. That's what Ezra and the scribes
did, remember, when they first erected a pulpit, preaching started. They gave the sense of the word. They would read it and give the
meaning of it, declare it. Apostle Paul, as you noted, is
preaching at Antioch, a city about 600 miles north of Jerusalem. When they departed from Perga,
they came to Antioch and Pisidia and went into the synagogue on
the Sabbath day. They went to worship Paul and
Barnabas, as their manner was. Whenever the people of God were
meeting, they did too. They sat down, and after reading
the law, someone had been reading the books of Moses somewhere,
and the prophets, one of the prophets. The rulers, leaders,
Jewish leaders, were sent unto them or sent word by someone
to Paul and Barnabas, who came in, and they knew who they were. And they asked them, Men and
Brethren, if you have any word of exhortation, if you have anything
to say, say on. Anything to say? So Paul did. Apostle Paul stood up. Verse
16, Paul stood up, beckoning with his hand. He said, Men of
Israel, ye that fear God, give ear. Give ear. Give audience. Ye that fear God. True seekers, true worshipers,
are God-fearing. Those that will hear from God
are those that fear God. God is not going to speak to arguers and questioners and backtalkers
and game-sayers. Oh, no. Our Lord said, except
you become as little children. repent and become as little children,
receiving the word of God as it is, the word of God. Not subjecting
the word of God to your reasoning, carnal reasoning, not subjecting
the word of God to your criticism or your thoughts or your opinions,
but no, coming before it as a little child and receiving it as such. That's the fear of God. Our Lord
said, "'To this man will I look, to he that is poor and of a contrite
heart, and tremble at my word.'" Men and women don't fear God
today. Paul said there is no fear of
God before their eyes in his day, and it's much more so now
with more people. They don't fear God because preachers
have told men and women for so long now and young people that
God loves them so much and can't do without them, and everybody
believes it. And so the name of God is being
blasphemed and used on the lips of everyone. And nobody fears
God. But Paul says, you that fear
God, listen up. If you truly fear God, listen
up. Verse 17. The God of this people
of Israel. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob. The salvation of the Jew. That's
what our Lord said. The salvation of the Jew. God
chose the people. Read on. God chose our fathers
and exalted the people. God chose Abraham. Abraham's
son, Isaac, not Ishmael, of whom the Arab world comes from. Isaac's Isaac had two sons, twins,
and before they were yet born, God chose one of them, Jacob.
He said, Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated. What do you
say to this man? Paul wrote a whole chapter about
it, Romans 9. What do you say about that? God chose one and
hated the other. God loved one and hated the other.
That's what it said. It comes from Malachi chapter
1. God chose people. No one seems
to be bothered by the fact that God chose man over angels. He did, he chose sons of Adam, and the rebellious
angels, he cast them into a pit with no hope of mercy. Not one of them was saved. But
Adam and many, a multitude which no man can number, God chose.
that some of them had passed by. Well, because it pleased
the Father. But God chose the people. That's what it said, that God
chose the people. And it's the same now. God chose
the people then, and he chose the people now. There's a remnant,
Paul wrote in Romans 11, verse 5, a remnant, even now, according
to the election of grace. If God hadn't, we would be at
the Sodom and Gomorrah. He destroyed us all. This is
where men and women start wrong, is they think that mankind has
something savable about it. They think there is something
lovable about it. There is something in man that God ought to save.
But that's not the case. All have sinned to come short
of the glory of God. He said they all together become unprofitable. And the fact that if God only
chose one human being to save, it would be mercy to him. It
would be one human being who didn't deserve it. And God doesn't
elect men and women to hell, they are going there anyway.
And what he elects is to save some of them. If left to ourselves,
we will go. All we like sheep have gone astray,
the Scriptures say. If left to ourselves, unless
God chooses us, we will not choose him. Unless God calls us, we
won't call on him. We won't even be interested.
That's a fact. You're looking at a prime example. A prime example. God chose the people. Thank God. Thank God. He chose the people. I'm glad that he did the choosing. I'm glad it wasn't left up to
me. I'm glad. He chose the people. And they
were strangers in the land of Egypt, strangers to the covenant,
strangers to the promise. They really weren't worshiping
God, because when God sent a man from him, they didn't hear him,
Moses. They got mad at Moses and said,
Go on back, we want to stay here, we're doing just fine. Yeah,
you're in slavery, you're in bondage. Paul said to Timothy
in his letter, he said, you go preach the gospel to them whom
God may recover out of the snare of the devil who are held captive
at his will, that God may recover them. They don't even know it,
but they are held captive. Strangers in the land of Egypt,
and he says he brought them out with a high hand. God brought them out with a high
arm. That means a sovereign deliverance. What that means is that there
is only one way they are coming out, and God did it. They were in such bondage and
they were such helpless people that there is only one way these
people are going to come out of Egypt. God is going to have
to do it. He is going to take a high arm,
an arm higher than man's arm, stronger than man's arm, held
captive by a stronger than day, but a stronger than heat, came
and delivered. All of this is telling the story
of the Jews, but he is telling the story through Israel. Again, he writes in Romans 11,
that all Israel shall be saved. But he began back in chapter
2 of Romans by saying that he is not a Jew which is one outwardly.
No, no, he is a Jew which is one inwardly. And circumcision,
the mark of being a true Jew, is of the heart, not of the flesh.
It's not an outward sign, it's of the heart. It's what God does
on the heart. God makes a person a Jew, a spiritual Jew, one of
his chosen, one of his people whom he set his love upon, to
bring out with a high arm. This is our story. This is my
story. This is your story if it was
truly God that brought you out to the high hour. Now, if you
saved yourself and made a decision or whatever, you can't enter
into any of this. If you were a captive Jew in
Egypt, no hope, no help without God. This is your story and how
he brought you out. And it says in verse 18, now
did God bring these people out because they were better than
the Egyptians? Oh, no. Verse 18, about the time of 40
years he suffered, suffered he their manners. For 40 years he
put up with these thankless, ungrateful, worthless people
called Jews, that he called Jews. Forty years. And he kept reminding
them. book of Exodus and Leviticus
by the servant Moses, he kept reminding the people, I didn't
save you because you're better than anybody else. He said, I
didn't save you because you're more righteous than the Egyptians.
He said, I didn't save you because I needed you. He said, I saved
you for my name's sake, for my glory. He said, You don't
deserve it. I'm quoting Moses. He said, You're a stiff-necked
and hard-hearted people. You're no different than the
world out there, but I saved you for my name's sake. I chose
you, not because you were worth choosing, but because I did so
for my glory, for the praise and glory of my grace. And I
suffered with you. He put up with that ungrateful
bunch of Jews for forty years. How long has he put up with you? This is the thing about it that
preachers fail to tell people, that men and women live 30, 40,
50, 60 years without giving God a thought. God who feeds them
and clothes them and waters them and gives them everything they
are, by the grace of God they are what they are, and they don't
give Him a thought until they get sick or somebody dies and
they expect God to just, oh, I'm so glad to see you. Standing up telling people, thank
you for coming to worship God. We're at Trump's wall now. Ought not men to praise God,
David Rogen, and thank him for his goodness with his sons of
men? Why isn't this building full of worshipers? Everybody
ought to. It's a privilege. It's not a
thing to be thanked for, a thing to be commended for. We don't
thank people for coming to worship God. We thank God for choosing
us to come to worship him. Or else we wouldn't give him
a thought until the day we get in need, and then everybody starts
hollering, God help me. Why should he? That's what he said in Isaiah
1. I brought up, I fed and watered a people that were rebellious. suffered their manners for forty
years, put up with them. And you know, after the Lord
saves his people, he still puts up with them. Right? Those of
you who claim to be the people of God, after he saves you, you
still, as Paul said, are still an unprofitable servant. Still
ungrateful. Still. Ask Peter. Ask Peter. Ask Peter. We are kept by the grace of God,
we are saved by the grace of God. Paul said, I'm still the
chief of sinners. I still depend on his mercy. He suffered their manner. Verse
19, it says he destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan,
divided their land to them by lot. The Lord destroyed nation
after nation in the path of Israel to bring them to the promised
That's the reason the world hates the Jews right now. That's an
absolute fact. Every nation in this world hates
Jews. Zionism, as the Jews say they
are the people of God, and back in the Old Testament days, it's
an absolute fact that God Almighty, the Jews, came through and just
wiped out places. Wiped them out. Joshua, read
the story, Gideon, all of them. Samson and so forth, Philistines.
These are Arabic nations that they wiped out on their way to
settle in the land of Canaan. That's a fact. Now, it's not
as though those were innocent people they came through and
destroyed. Oh, no, you'll read the stories
of the Malachites and so forth. People will be traveling through,
the Jews will be traveling through, and they would He'll treat the
people. And God said, slay them. Well, that's the God
of the Bible. That's this God. That's the God
of the Bible. That's this book. You either
believe it or you don't. He says here in Isaiah 43, verse
3, he says, I'm the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel,
thy Savior. I gave Egypt for thy ransom.
Ethiopian Sea Runner for thee. And Lord, God passes by a whole
world of people for his chosen, for his elect, even now. Passes
them by. That's a fact. That's a fact. God chose a people. And everything
is for the elect's sake. And God only tolerates this world
right now. It's only being held up until
the last elect comes into this world, and then he's going to
destroy it, take his people out of it. That's what this book
said. He gave them judges about the
space of 450 years until the signing of the prophecy. Concerning us, concerning God's
people, he is given, as Paul wrote in the book of Ephesians,
chapter 4, when he ascended up on high, he gave gifts unto men.
He gave gifts to his church. He gave some prophets, some apostles,
some evangelists, pastors and teachers. not judges in the sense
of that word, but nevertheless, leaders in his church, he gave
them. Good men, good judges, good men,
good preachers. God gave them to him until Samuel. Verse 22, when he had removed
Saul, they got under a king called Saul, and they did They got what
they wanted, and God sent it to them. Verse 22, when he had
removed Saul, he raised up unto them David to be their king.
To whom also he gave testimony and said, I have found David,
the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, which shall fulfill
all my will. What a picture of salvation this
is, that God puts up with his people for a long time and puts
them under the sound of the gospel like this young man, under the
sound of a faithful judge, or that is, a preacher of the gospel,
for many years. He didn't hear it and he didn't
hear them, neither did the Jews, and became under the dominion
of a tyrant's king. That's this being held captive
by Satan. All of God's people are for a
while. then raises up in their hearts
and minds a King, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords,
the Lord Jesus Christ, who is called the Son of David, and
reveals unto them their true King, and bows their knee to
the King, and breaks their heart in submission to the King, and
makes them obedient servants to that King, the King of Kings
and Lord of Lords, the Lord Jesus Christ. of whom the apostle Paul,
from here on out, begins to preach. He said, Of this man's seed,
verse 23, men in Israel give ear. This man's seed, God according
to his promise, has raised unto Israel a Savior, Jesus. When the Lord Jesus Christ was
made carnate, the angels said, Call his name Jesus. Why? For he shall save his people
from their sin. Not, he will try to save them.
Not, he will make salvation possible. Not, if they cooperate and let
him, he'll say, no, he called his name Jesus because it means
savior. And he shall save, not try to,
he shall save. Bring in an everlasting righteousness.
He shall present them wholly unblamable, unapprovable before
God's eyes. He shall put away their sins,
every last one of them. He shall save who? Kids, people. Christ came and
he said to many, you're of your father the devil. He said if
you were of God, you'd hear God's word, but you're not. He said,
I didn't come to call goats, I came to call sheep. He said,
All the Father giveth me shall come to me. All the Father giveth
me. I shall save my people. Like
the high priest of old had twelve names on his hands and on his
breastplate and on his shoulder. And that's who he went and made
that atonement for. And it's still true today. The
names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. And that's who
Jesus Christ died for. And every last one of them is
coming to glory. call his name Jesus. He shall
save his people from their sins. That's what his name means. He
shall save. A Savior. A Savior. Jesus. Read on. Now, when John,
verse 24, had first preached before his coming the baptism
of repentance to all the people of Israel, as John fulfilled
his That is, the Lord sent John, a true preacher, as with all
of his preachers he sent, to bear witness of Christ. When
they came to John, they said unto him, verse 25, Whom think
ye that I am? The first thing John said to
all those that came to him was, I am not the Christ. I am a nobody. John said, the true preacher
of God says, He must increase, I must decrease. The true preacher
of The gospel, the true preacher sent from God, does not bear
witness of himself, doesn't draw attention to himself, doesn't
put his name out there where everybody can know it, doesn't
build a work, a monument in his name. He's out to preach one
name. He's out to glorify one person.
As John said, I'm not he. Don't look to me. Don't follow
me. Behold the Lamb. That's what the true preacher
of God is sent to do, not get the attention, but to draw
away the attention of the people from everything and everyone
but Christ. One time, John had two disciples.
Two disciples were following John. And they quit following
him and started following Christ. And John said, revivals come. He had two members. He lost them
both. And he said, now we've got real
revivals. Because they quit following John,
and they started following Christ. And John said, That's why I'm
here. Mark them. Mark those people
out there, those false prophets. You can tell them, spot them
a mile away, when they're doing what they're doing for their
namesake. John said, I'm not he. cometh
one after me who should his feet, I am not worthy to unlatch, not
worthy to untie his shoes, let alone wear them." John fulfilled his course. He
fulfilled his course. Verse 26, Paul continued, Men
and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, whoever among
you fears God, you are here in the word of salvation. To you
is this word sent. I'm not preaching this message
to anybody else but you right now in this place. Right? I ought to turn the tape off. To you is this word sent. Read
the article in the bulletin. The greatest blessing that God
puts upon a people is to send a true preacher of the gospel.
The greatest blessing God puts upon a man or woman or young
person is to put them under the sound of the truth that has set
them free, the truth that sanctifies them, the truth of God. It's
not to be found everywhere. It's hard to find. When you find
it, falsehood, buy it and don't sell it for anything. To you is this word of salvation
sent. We've got a gospel here that
saves. And if there's a slayer out there,
you wouldn't trade it for a gospel that tries to save, would you?
We've got a Christ that's better than the one they're preaching
out there today. We've got a Christ who reigns. We've got a God who
is God, who doesn't run for election, but who's not trying to be God
if men are led. We've got a God who is God. He
works all things up to the counsel of his own will. And hell or
high water can't stop it. Why would you want any other
God than that? How could you worship a God who
can't do anything unless you let him do it? You can have that
God. I want a God whose hands my breath
is, and all my ways, and my family, and my future, and my soul is
in his hands. And I want it in my hands. I
messed it up from the day I was born. God who is God, a salvation that
saves, a gospel that's good news indeed, to the vilest of sinners,
to the day he dies, to the thief on the cross, to a prodigal son. This is the
only good news there is to a real sinner. to you is the word of the salvation
of sin." Men and brethren, whoever fears
God, it says in verse 27 and 28, "...they that dwell in Jerusalem,
and the rulers, because they do not know God, nor yet the
voices of the prophets, which are read every sabbath day, they
fulfill these words in condemning him, though they found no cause
of death in him." And it's so today, it hasn't changed, though
they read the Bible everywhere. Everybody reads the Bible, but
nobody knows the God of the Bible. And they've got so many perversions
of the Bible that they've changed the meaning of the Bible so that
it means anything anybody wants it to mean. But they don't know the God of
the Bible. Though they read it and they fulfill the very words
of the Bible in condemning this gospel that you're hearing right
now. They call what I'm preaching
right now, the doctrines of devils. And call that stuff they're preaching
out there today, the word of God. And nowhere in God's word
did he tell anybody in any public situation, ever one time in all
of God's word, Smile, God loves you. Never, never. Now, one place
in all the Book of Acts where you can find the word love. Not
one time. There's not one time in the Book
of Acts. But these apostles went about
preaching a holy, sovereign, and just God on a throne in whose
hands men are. who is angry with the wicked
every day, and the first message was, repent. Not smile, repent. Not let God, vow to God. Not make your decision. You better believe, God commandeth
men everywhere to repent, the scripture says. Doesn't ask them.
Kings don't ask anybody anything. God doesn't ask his creatures. The Creator is not subject to
these creatures. How foolish can you be? God Almighty, they fulfill his
word in condemning the guy with the baton, the Christ of scripture. Well, Paul preaches Christ crucified
here. He says in verse 29, in following
God, that they fulfilled all that was written of Christ. Oh,
yeah, they must. He's God. He wrote all this down
in a book, and it's going to happen. It's going to happen. Everything fulfills his will.
He said, I have spoken it and I will do it. I have purposed
it. It will come to pass. Every single thing. God hath
predestinated all things. Worketh all things together.
That's the counsel of his will. That's the God of his Bible.
And they fulfilled God's word by crucifying Christ, and they
took him down and laid him in a grave, but God, verse 30, raised
him from the dead. Raised him from the dead. And
he goes on to preach a risen, exalted, glorified Savior. sitting on a throne. Verse 38, "...be it
known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this
man," and this is the only one through this man as one mediator
between God and men, the man, this man, the only one, the man
Christ Jesus, one Savior. There is no such thing as a Pope.
What Paul wrote to Timothy, there is a great high potentate, his
name is Jesus Christ. He is the only one that belongs
on the throne. at the risk of sounding crude,
I'll say it again, the only throne that man belongs on is made by
American standard plumbing. That there's one who sits on
the throne who is God, one who deserves
all adoration. Worms don't, men don't, no man
deserves to be called Reverend. Holy and reverent is his name,
Psalm 111, verse 9 says. No man deserves to be called
the head of the Church. Goodness, that's Christ's name,
the head of the Church. No man is the vicar of Christ.
He doesn't need a vicar. He lives and reigns and rules.
Yes, he does. Seated on the throne, the Holy
One of Israel. And by this man, it says, through
this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sin. This is man's big need. This
is our great need, and this is to whom the gospel is sent, sinners. Not to help people with their
finances, not to help people get a new job, not to help people
who are singles and come to a singles ministry and find them a husband
or wife. That's not what this is all about. The whole issue between God and
man is sin. Something's got to be done about
our sin. That's what Christ came to do. Save them from their what? Sins. If he gets them out of
their financial shape, they'll get right back into it. That's not sickness. He comes
to save from sickness, although he does at times. But if they
get sick, they're going to die of something. Here's the whole
issue. This is the thing we've got to
settle. This is the thing that only Christ can settle. Sin. What are we going to do about
it? It separates us from our God. There's only one who can
do anything about it. He who has made sin for us, who
knew no sin. That God laid on him the iniquity
of us all. Sin. All the sins of God's people
past, present, and future were laid on the Lord Jesus Christ.
And he was made sin for them, and God punished their sin, and
now he forgives them their sin, but he didn't forgive his son.
He punished him for what I did, and I get the credit for what
he did. See, this thing is by grace.
Salvation is by the grace of God through the Lord Jesus Christ.
I didn't do anything. Jesus Christ did it all. That's what the whole theme of
heaven is going to be about throughout all eternity, unto him. Unto
him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood. That's the theme of heaven. That's
why Christ came. That's what we're going to behold
throughout eternity as a Lamb, as it had been slain, remembering
our sins that he put away, and thanking
God for it. That's what this thing is all
about. That's what salvation is all about. That's what this
book is written about. To you is this word of salvation
sent. Salvation from sin. The penalty
of it, the power of it, and someday the presence of it. Read on. And by him, verse 39, by him
all that This is good news, John Davis. You're back there on the back.
The last shall be first. The greatest, the chief, is the
first one he appeared to. By him. Paul wrote over in Colossians,
he said, By him, I say. By him, not us, not him and us,
but by him. Do you hear that? By him. All that believe, how do they
believe? By him. That's what Paul wrote in Ephesians
1, which believe according to the working of his mighty power. By grace you say through faith
it is not of yourself, it's a gift by him. All that believe, to
do what? To quit their meanness? You can't
quit that. You ought to try, but that won't
save you. God won't take that into account.
He looks on the heart. By him, all that believe, just
believe, just look to Christ, just trust Christ alone, are
justified. That means completely exonerated,
completely considered by God, unblameable, unreprovable in
God's sight, just as if I had never seen it. The thief on the
cross, again, was a thief and a murderer, right? And he never
did a work after the Lord revealed himself to him. Never did a work. But he was justified for my whole
thing. Completely. Completely justified for my whole
thing. That one hanging beside her said
so. He looked at her and said, Lord,
he believes, Lord. He believes you, Lord. He said,
you're coming into your kingdom, and when you do, would you just
remember me? I don't deserve to be there.
I've done nothing, and I can't even do anything now. I'm hanging
here. Would you, in mercy and grace
and salvation, just remember me? He said, Today, you'll be
with me in salvation, in paradise. Just look into Him. Look into
Him. Justify from all things. I was listening to public radio
and they were discussing the deadly sins. I had all these experts on there
discussing the seven deadly sins. Seven deadly sins. Where did
they get that? Where do you read that in all
of God's Bible? Deadly sins. Seven of them. It's
only one that I hear of, from 1 John, and that's unbelief. That's an out-and-out rejection
of the truth. Unbelief. But our Lord said, all manner
of sin and iniquity shall be forgiven. All manner of sin. It doesn't matter. The vilest
of the vile. He's able to say to the knows. The gutter knows somebody's in
there. Aren't you glad? A real sinner is. A real prodigal
is. It's glad. Mighty glad. It's
good news to the chief of sinners. It's only good news to a sinner.
Disgusting. Disgusting. All things justified, but from
which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Impossible.
No matter what you do. It's too late. It's already been
broken. And he said in verse 41, I've
got to quit. He said, Behold, ye despisers, and wander and
perish. I work a work in your days, a
work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare
it unto you. People hear this gospel all the
time on the radio and whatever, and they reject it. Thumbs down.
Reject it. The only thing it's able to say,
reject it. Despise it. I don't know why
anybody would despise it. They call it unfair. Salvation is not God being fair
to anybody. Salvation is God showing mercy
to people. Fairness means getting what you
deserve. Salvation is by mercy. It's not getting what we deserve.
Salvation is God not giving us what we deserve. Salvation is
God doing for us what we can't do. What's unfair about that?
What's unreasonable about that? Why would anybody? Only a self-righteous
person would not like that. Only a person who wants to share
the glory of God would not like that. Buy him all that believe,
past, present and future sin, but those who despise it, that
must not be sinners, they are going to perish. It says in verse
42, when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Jews, those
religious, self-righteous Jews who wore their clothing a certain
way, wore their hair a certain way, their beard a certain way,
and they were careful to keep moral, upright, religious, good
religious folk, you know, the Jews were. They left. I've heard
about all I can hear about that, that dog. That's not for me. No, it's not. But the Gentiles,
it said, those old uncircumcised Gentiles, the other people called
dogs, they heard it. The common people, it says, heard
him gladly. It says, publicans and harlots
and sinners gathered around Christ. How the self-righteous stood
back there in the back and said, we don't believe that. We'd be
not sinners. Pharisees and publicans, John
came up and said, we'd be sinners. Is this the sinners? Yep. Then
that's us. What do you got for us? and everything else, all the blessings of God. Well,
the Gentiles came and it says they besought, I love this, look
at it, verse 42, the Gentiles besought that these words, these
very same words, this same message might be preached to them the
next Sabbath. Actually, in the margin there,
it reads the week between the Sabbath. In other words, they
said, would you come back Wednesday night? They did. They heard this, and they said,
we can't wait seven days. This is what it means to be hungry.
This is what it means to hunger and thirst. How long can you
go without eating? How long can a sinner go without hearing the
gospel? Not long. Can you come back Wednesday and
say these same things? Would you pick it up again, the
same message? We're hungry. and thirsting for
righteousness." He said, yes, and you'll be filled. This is
what our Lord meant when he said, he that hath will be given more,
but he that hath not will be taken away whatever he hath.
The fat get fatter, the lean get leaner. The set centers just
keep on getting peace and comfort and hope and the self-righteous
just go on in their self-righteousness. Don't wait until Sunday. Yeah, we'd be glad to. And he
did. And he said in verse 43, when
a congregation was broken up, now many of the Jews, some of
these religious Jews, did come back, religious proselytes. They
followed Paul and Barnabas. They followed them. Paul and
Barnabas walked out of that place and headed down the road, and
they said, Where are you going? Where are you going? We want to go. Don't leave. Where
are you staying? Why don't you come home with
us? We'll feed you. You'll just talk to us about
what you were talking to us about." And Paul and Barba speaking to
them persuaded them, persuaded them to continue in the grace
of God. It's your only hope. The grace of God, the gospel
of God's salvation, the grace of God. And the next Sabbath,
almost the whole city came together. Almost the whole city. What does
it mean to continue in the grace of God? It means to hold fast
to the beginning of your confidence, steadfast to the end. The gospel
of God's grace. Though the whole world rejects
this, though the whole world turns against it, though the
whole world denies it, this is our only hope. if nobody believes
it. Our only hope is in God. It's
not in us, it's in God. Our only hope is in the blood
and righteousness of Jesus Christ charged to our account. That's
our only hope. That's the grace of God, the
gift of God. The salvation is a gift. And
I'm going to hold to that until the day I die. How about you?
I persuade you to continue in this gospel of the grace of God.
It's getting scarcer than hen's teeth. To continue in the grace of God
means to continue to believe and trust Christ in the face
of your sins. Did you hear that? Depend on
the grace of God. It's the only thing you're going
to be able to hold to in the day of judgment. Nothing else
will. Continuing the grace of God means
to attend to the means of grace. God has given means. God has
given means of grace. Means of grace. And you're in
on it right now. And to continue in it means to
don't let anything keep you from it. You need it. You need it. You need it. All right. Let's sing a song. Let's sing that hymn, Marvelous
Grace, number 209 in the Green Hymnal, number 209. This is good. Marvelous grace of our
loving Lord, grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt. Yonder
on Calvary's mount, our Pope there. The blood of the lamb
was spilled. Let's stand. Let's stand. Okay.

Paul's Message To Antioch

What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in salvation?

How do we know predestination is true?

Why is grace important for Christians?

How does God choose His people?

Why is the fear of God essential for believers?

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Paul's Message To Antioch

What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in salvation?

How do we know predestination is true?

Why is grace important for Christians?

How does God choose His people?

Why is the fear of God essential for believers?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

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