A More Sure Word

Q: What does the Bible say about grace?

The Bible says grace is an unmerited gift from God, fundamental to understanding our salvation. In scripture, grace is defined as God's unmerited favor towards humanity, a key concept that is repeated throughout both the Old and New Testaments. It teaches that what we are and have is the result of God's free and sovereign grace, not based on any works or merit of our own. The Apostle Paul emphasizes in Ephesians 2:8-9 that we are saved by grace through faith, and not by works, lest anyone should boast. This doctrine is central to the understanding of our need for salvation and God’s provision through Jesus Christ, who embodies grace itself.

Q: How do we know our election is true?

Our election is confirmed through faith and the transformative work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Election refers to God's sovereign choice of certain individuals for salvation, as Paul explains in Ephesians 1:4-5, indicating that He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world. To know our election is true, we look to the evidence of faith and the Holy Spirit's work within us. 2 Thessalonians 2:13 states that we are bound to give thanks because God chose us for salvation through the sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. This faith, coupled with the love of the truth, serves as the assurance that we are indeed among the elect.

Q: Why is making our calling and election sure important for Christians?

Making our calling and election sure is essential for spiritual assurance and perseverance in the faith. Making your calling and election sure, as mentioned in 2 Peter 1:10, is vital for Christians because it reinforces the believer's confidence in their salvation and encourages diligent faithfulness in their lives. This diligence involves continually seeking Christ, engaging with the gospel, and actively living out one’s faith, which ensures that believers will not fall away. This process serves as a means of grace, allowing believers to experience the fullness of assurance that their salvation is certain and that they have been called by God into His everlasting kingdom.

Q: What does the Bible say about the importance of truth?

The Bible emphasizes that knowing and adhering to the truth is crucial for spiritual life and understanding. Truth in the Scriptures serves as the foundation for a believer's faith and practice. In John 17:17, Jesus prays for His disciples, 'Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.' This indicates the necessity of grounding oneself in biblical truth for growth in sanctification and understanding. Furthermore, 2 Peter 1:12 stresses the importance of being established in the present truth, highlighting that believers must constantly be reminded of God's truth to walk according to His ways. The truth is crucial because it reveals the character of God and directs us toward Christ, who is the ultimate truth.

Q: Why is faith considered precious for Christians?

'Faith is considered precious because it is a divine gift that allows believers to please God and experience salvation. Faith is articulated in Scripture as a precious gift from God that is both rare and valuable, as stated in 2 Peter 1:1. This precious faith is essential because, without it, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). It distinguishes believers, making them part of God's elect, chosen to receive salvation through Christ. As such, faith is not merely an intellectual agreement but a heartfelt trust in God's promises, leading to a transformative relationship with Him. This understanding of faith as precious underscores the deep reliance believers have on God’s grace and His sovereign choice.

I like that fourth verse. It
says, well, I like all the verses. Grace wrote my name in life's
eternal book, verse 2. But verse 4 says, Grace taught
my soul to pray, made mine eyes o'erflow. T'was grace which kept
me to this day. and will not let me go." That's
the kind of grace I need, don't you? Sovereign saving grace. All right. Turn with me to the
book of 2 Peter. 2 Peter. This passage of Scripture, and this
one verse in particular, is confirmation of Sunday's message. Look at
verse 19 of 2 Peter, chapter 1, verse 19. 2 Peter 1, verse 19. We have also
a more sure word of prophecy. whereunto ye do well, that ye
take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until
the day dawn, and the day star rise in your hearts." Let's ask
the Lord to bless them. Our Heavenly Father, we come
worshiping you for who you are, all that you do and have done
and will do. We sang of your amazing grace,
and it is indeed a charming sound to your people, those who know
the joyful sound, those whom you have caused to hear it, those
whom you have called by your gospel, those whom you have opened
their ears and then opened their eyes. It is indeed a charming sound. It sounds like Christ to us. Grace. By the grace of God, I
am what I am. Everyone in here can say that.
Surely everyone must know that, that what do we have that we
have not received? So that means everything we are
and have is by the grace of God, a gift, an undeserved gift, not
of works, not of merit, not of worth, lest any man should boast. but of grace, all of grace, all
of free unmerited handout from the king to beggars, to wretches. And Lord, we will take this cup
of salvation and offer sacrifice of praise unto thee
for thy amazing grace. Now, Lord, we ask that you would
enlighten us tonight through the reading of your word, through
the teaching and study of your word, which is a lamp, a lamp
and a light to us, a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.
O Lord, illuminate our dark hearts, open our understanding. We pray. In Christ's name, amen. As I said, this passage, and
you noted as you read it, this passage is a confirmation of
Sunday's message on Christ's light of life. I can't seem to get away from
it. It wasn't intentional. bringing this message was not
intentional by me, anyway. And I was just reading this and
it was like a light came on. This is the title of the message,
perhaps, A Day Star Arisen, or A Light That Shineth in Our Heart.
Let's go back to verse ten. We'll begin there in verse ten. Apostle Peter, speaking to, now,
well we can't start in verse 10, you've got to start in verse
1. Verse 1, this is who he's writing to. We need to know who
he's writing to, because he's not, these promises are not to
everyone, but they are to God's people. To those, he says in
verse 1, Simon, Peter, a servant, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to
them that have obtained like precious faith with us through
the righteousness of God and our Savior or of our God and
Savior Jesus Christ. And then he goes on to say, given
unto us these great precious promises and so on. Now down to verse ten. So he's
talking to a believer who had this precious faith. Precious
faith. Faith is precious. Precious means
it's rare. Precious means it's valuable.
Precious means it's dear. Without faith, it's impossible
to please God. And that's what God gives. It's
rare because God gives it and not many have it. Many are called,
but few are chosen to receive it. Verse 10. So he says, brethren, and he warns about those who He just finished warning about
those who are barren and unfruitful, and he says in verse 10, Wherefore,
the rather brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election
sure. For if you do these things, or
that is if you give diligence concerning your calling and election,
you shall never fall. Diligence. If you've ever been
diligent about something, That means you stuck with it until
it was done. That's what diligence means. It means you don't quit until
the job is done. You don't quit until you're finished.
Diligence means constant seeking, searching, calling, watching. Does anyone know what the word
importunity means? Some of you surely do. Over in
Luke 18 is the story of a widow. Who goes to this judge and asked
him to avenge her of her adversary or someone troubling her. Perhaps
a debtor that she's asking this judge to. To relieve her problem. And it says that she kept coming
to him, kept coming to him, kept coming to him continually coming. That's what importunity means.
At the top of your Bible, you may have written there, the importunate
widow, over that story. And that's what diligence, same
thing, importunity, not quitting, not quitting, continuing, importunity. And the Lord, in one of the most
striking verses in all of Scripture to me, is at the end of that
story. When the Lord Jesus Christ said,
after he told that story of that woman who kept coming, kept coming,
until that judge answered her and did something about it. The
Lord said, when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on
the earth. And that's the kind of faith
he's talking about. Importunate. Paul said it didn't
in the Philippians, I haven't attained yet, I haven't arrived
yet, so this one thing I do. Didn't he John? He said, I'm
going to forget the past, forget yesterday. Are you a believer?
Why yes, I was about to forget that. And I pressed. Like a full court press when
you want them to give me the ball. He said that I press toward
the mark for the prize the high calling. Of God in Christ Jesus
well that's what this diligence means to give diligence to make
your calling election sure and nobody in here should presume
upon their salvation. Starting with this preacher.
I don't presume upon it. Well, I hope I don't presume
upon it. We need to approach the hearing
of the gospel every time like we're unsaved. You know, Debra, how would you
hear the gospel if that were, if you approached it in that
way? Martin Luther, or someone said, We ought to hear the gospel as
if it was the first time we heard it, and it's going to be the
last time we hear it. It may be. Well, give diligence
to make your calling and election sure. What is this calling and
election? What is it? Look over at 2 Thessalonians,
chapter 2. What is this calling and election?
2 Thessalonians 2, look at verse
13 and 14. You got it? 2 Thessalonians 2, verses
13 and 14. Paul says, We are bound to give
thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord,
because God hath from the beginning chosen you. That's election. From the beginning, too. That's
election for the foundation of world, no matter how you might
want to. Abuse it or misuse it. That's
what that's saying. God chose a people in Christ
before the foundation of world. That's the election. And he says
about some of these people you but these Thessalonians and and
Peter says to some people and maybe it's you. God had from
the beginning chosen you to salvation, to be saved. How'd he do it?
How do you know you have it? How do you know you are saved?
It's his calling. Look at verse, read on. Through
sanctification, or that is a setting apart, a calling out of the Holy
Spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto, or that is to salvation,
he called you out. How do you call it? By our gospel. Whose gospel? Paul says our gospel. Not this other one. Anybody that
made a profession of faith under this Armenian, so-called Armenian
gospel, you weren't saved under that.
That's another Christ. That's another Jesus. That's
another gospel. That one didn't save you. Our
gospel saved. to the obtaining of the glory.
Turn back to, well, look at verse 10. He says, some people don't
receive the love of the truth. You see that? All deceivableness
and unrighteousness and them that perish, those that perish
because they receive not the love of the truth, they might
be saved. How do you know you're one of the call, one of the elect? Well, look back at 1 Thessalonians
1. First Thessalonians 1. Look back
there. You see, many are called, aren't
they? By what? What's the call? The
gospel is the call. But if you are chosen to receive
it. Didn't John say a man can receive
nothing except it be given him? To as many as received him, John
1, 12, to as many as received him, to them gave he the right
to become the sons of God, which were born, not of blood, not
of the will of the flesh, not of the will of man, born of God,
chosen of God, called of God, and yes, elected of God. Called, many are called, but
few are chosen to receive it, have their ears open, their eyes
open. This is what he says here in 1 Thessalonians. And more
importantly, their heart open. Their heart open, they receive
the love of the truth. It's not the doctrine of the
truth. It's not an intellectual assent to the truth. It is the
love of the truth. I started with it here. I wouldn't
say. But when it went from here to
the affection That's when the Lord, when I met a person, he
said, look at 1 Thessalonians 1 verse 4, knowing brethren,
beloved, your election of God for our gospel came. Our, there
he says it again, our gospel. And I don't apologize for saying
it like that, do you? It may sound biased to this generation
to say that Our gospel is the true gospel. Any other gospel
is a false gospel. Now, that may sound bad, but
that's just the way it is, isn't it? Can't we say with Paul in
Galatians 1, if any man preach or believe any other gospel than
what we preach and believe, they're going to go to hell? Can you
say that, Terry? Without reservation? Without
hesitation? Without apology? Based on the
Word of God? That's our gospel. We can say, now you can have
that. That's your gospel. This is our gospel. That's your
rock. Right, Stan? But their rock's not like our
rock. We love that verse. Their rock's this big, and they
study it in their hands, you know. We're standing on our rock. We're in our rock. Well, verse
5. Our gospel came. But listen. Read on. Not in word only, not
doctrine only. Oh, I love the words. And we,
what's that verse of Scripture that says, hold fast the form
of sound words. I like sound words. Don't you,
Henry? Sound doctrine. I just like the sound of election. Don't you? I just like the sound
of atonement, redemption, righteousness, predestination. Some fellas hate
the sound of it. Now you don't want to hear it.
I like the sound of it. Don't you, Joe? Predestination. Want to hear it again? Predestination. Blood. Don't you like the sound
of it? Oh, this modern Haughty, tauty, civilized society,
the blood, just away with that. Let's talk love. Love. I like the sound of that, too.
I do, too, but blood. You can't have love without blood.
Right? I like the form of sound words,
but sound doctrine now won't save you. It's got to go further. Read
on. Not in word only, but in power. Power. Doctrine can change the
way you think. Only Christ can change what you
are. Right? Doctrine can give you an understanding
of some truths, but only Christ the truth can give you an understanding
and know him who is the truth. And then the Holy Ghost and much
assurance and on and on he talks. Well back to the text, 2 Peter
1. If I'm not careful, I could dwell too long in each of these
places. 2 Peter 1. So your calling an
election has something to do with it, has everything to do
with the gospel. And we've been talking about
this lately, haven't we? A man who hungers and thirsts
after righteousness, where is he going to be filled with it,
righteousness? The gospel. When he hears of
the gospel concerning Christ's righteousness. And that does more than just,
I agree, that fills the heart. You see, an old sinner realizes
he's unrighteous. He's filthy. He's a wretch. He's
a wretch, and he needs righteousness. Huh? Oh, I was reading. I don't know if I can find it.
I was just browsing through and read something. I don't think
I could find it. Yes, I did. He says here, I will
greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my
God, for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation. He hath covered me with the robe
of righteousness." That's not just a doctrine. That's the soul
covering for the believer. That's what covers his naked
soul and his sins. That's like the blood poured
over the mercy seat under which he's found. Righteousness. Oh, it's sound doctrine, isn't
it? But it's more than that to a sinner. It just fills his heart,
not just his head. It fills his heart with gratitude. Read on. Now, so the calling
election is the gospel. And when you give diligence to
make it sure, so what are you going to do? Stan, what are you
going to do if it has everything to do with the gospel? And the
way you're receiving the love of it, you're giving diligence. What
are you going to do? You're going to make sure you
keep hearing this gospel, aren't you? You're not going to forsake
the assembly of yourself to gather as a matter of some of you. But
you're going to give diligence. You're not going to presume that
you've heard it and believed it. You're going to hear it again.
Let me hear that again. Tell it to me one more time. I want to make sure that I believe. Well, read them. If you do these
things, you'll never fall. Boy, that's a strong, seems like
a condition. Sounds like it to me. Well, if
you do, these things it's God that work within us both to will
and to do. And if you never fall it's because
he's able to keep you from falling. But we don't take any credit
at all. If we fall we're going to get
all blank. And we left the gospel. That's
exactly what the charge is going to be laid to the account of
every person Who's not saying you rejected the truth. You didn't
receive the truth or one who did hear it and believed it sprung
up for a while and left it. You left the truth. You left
your first love. That's the charge going to be
laid. Can't charge God, can we? All right, read on. For so an
entrance shall be ministered unto you. An entrance shall be
ministered unto you. Believers, seekers, watchers,
waiters, worshipers are going in. That's who's going in. Importunate widows and widowers
and married are going in because they're seeking, watching, waiting. They'll be found of the Lord,
waiting, watching. That's what they'll be found.
An entrance shall be ministered unto you. I like this. Abundantly. Come on in. You ever had an abundant
entrance into somebody's house? Now, I've been to people's houses
before where, I mean, I was in, I felt like I was totally imposing
on these people. Matter of fact, they didn't let
me in. Knock on the door and, yeah, what do you want? Did I
wake you up? You ever made a phone call like that? Did I wake you
up? Yes. You're not supposed to say that, whether you did
or not. You're supposed to be nice, aren't you? Well, you know,
and other people that are gracious say, well, you know, I was just
laying there. That's what everybody says. I
was just laying there with your eyes closed and snoring. Yes,
but... Right? Well, I've been, but there's
been times when I've been up to somebody's door and knocked
on the door and they just swung it wide open. Come on, where
you been? And they jerk you in. That's
an abundant interest. That's what God's going to do
to His people. Don't you like that kind of interest,
where you feel welcome? and wanted like they're waiting
on you? Well, he is. An abundant entrance
into everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. An abundant, abundant entrance
shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting
kingdom. Oh, my. Well, look at verse 12. Wherefore, I will not be negligent
to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know
them, and you're established in the present." Truth, not truths. Doesn't say truths, does it,
Stan? Truths. We've all been guilty of talking
about the doctrines of grace, haven't we? I've done it. I've
tried to make an attempt to quit saying that. Because all the
doctrines make up this one doctrine. The doctrine of God's sovereign
grace in Christ Jesus. John said, if any man transgress
and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ. The doctrine of Christ. It's
all, and those who keep talking about the doctrines, the doctrines,
they might just take one of them out. Right? But when you see it all, the
doctrines as the doctrine, they all have to go together. See
what I'm saying, Joe? It all goes together to tell
us about the doctrine. of a sovereign God. Sovereign
Christ. Doctrine of grace. Doctrine of Christ. And that's
what he said, the present truth. One of the brethren one time
said, now you can preach truths and not preach the truth. That's a wise statement. Christ
is the truth. You can preach truths, doctrines,
and not preach Christ. Or that is, you can preach about
Christ and not really preach Christ. He's a person in work. Read on. He says, he says, I'll
put you always in remembrance, always. Wherefore, I will not
be negligent, he said, to put you in remembrance. I don't want
to be negligent. Yeah, verse 13, I think it made
as long as I'm in this body to stir you up by putting you in
your memory. I want to keep reminding you. And he says, moreover, in that
verse 14, knowing that shortly I must put off, I'm going to
die, he said, like the Lord told me. Verse 15, moreover, I will
endeavor that you may be able after my decease to have these
things always. Sounds like Stan, he wanted them
to remember some things, doesn't he? He said, I'm going to always
remind you. I'll not be negligent. As long
as I'm living, I want to put you in your memory. And when
I die, I want you to remember. God saw to it, didn't He? That
what Peter was saying is remembered. He wrote it with a pin of iron
to rock. You know, to some people, the
things we preach and say and even the scriptures we look at,
we appear to be like a broken record, don't we? Grace, grace,
grace. Just over and over again, same
old thing. Righteousness, righteousness, righteousness. Don't we, Henry?
Sound like a broken record. Well, this is the record. In this is the record. He that hath the son hath life. He that hath not the son hath
not life. You say the same things over and over again. Same message.
Same subjects. Constantly preaching the same
things. Concerning the same law. Sin. We always talk about sin. Like
some person told one of our ladies, your preacher makes too much
of sin. Well, that's what's missing in
preaching today. You don't even hear about it
today. And this is the message, and this is what the Holy Spirit
comes bringing, first of all, doesn't it? He shall convince
the world of what? Sin. Righteousness. There's that word again. That's
what the Holy Spirit was going to convince everyone he saves
of. And he'll keep convincing them, and keep convincing them,
and he'll keep convincing them until the day that they die.
And then when they die, they'll be convinced, won't they, that
they were sinners and they're saved by the righteousness of
Christ. And they're not going to enter
into judgment because Christ took it for them. Well, we keep saying these things.
You know, there's no better way to get something across than
by repetition, is there? You know what I mean? You know
what I mean? This is what you do with your children. You tell
them something 130,000 times in the course of their
lifetime. And eventually, Nancy, they get it. When they get married
and have children of their own, then they start telling. They
say, oh, I see what Dad and Mom were saying. Now don't you see? Don't you see? And no, they're
not going through, Steve, until they get married. That's just
the way it is. Experience is the only teaching.
And they shall all, this is what God teaches his children. They'll
all be taught of God, and he teaches them the same things
over and over and over and over, doesn't he? Until it sinks in. Until it's planted there. So
we, by God's grace, will keep preaching the same thing. Same
one. That one thing needful. Christ
crucified. Undetermined. With another fellow
named Paul. not to do anything, not to preach
anything, save Christ and him crucified. And for you not to
be taken up with anything, save Christ and him crucified. Listen
to this. Listen to this. For Zion's sake will I not hold
my peace. For Jerusalem's sake I will not
rest until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness,
and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth." Boy, that
doesn't go well with our text. Now he says, we have not followed
cunningly devised fables or clever stories when we made
known unto you the power and coming of our Lord. We haven't
followed. Turn over to Matthew 28. Very quickly, I want to get
through this. I want to get to the verse, Stan.
I want to get to verse 19. Peter said, we haven't followed
cunningly devised fables when we've made known unto you the
power coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 28, when our
Lord arose from the grave, here's this, this, what's the word I'm
looking for? This rumor or, well, let's read
it. Verse 11, when they were going,
behold, some of the watch came into the city and showed unto
the chief priest. That is, some of the fellows
who were watching at the grave of the Lord. Some of these soldiers,
the watch, when they came into the city and showed the chief
priest all the things that were done. Or that is, the resurrection
stone rolled away and all that. And when they were assembled
with the elders and had taken counsel, they gave large money
unto the soldiers. They bribed them. What's the
word? I'm looking for a word. Somebody
help me. Go on. They gave money to the
soldiers saying, say this, say ye this. His disciples came by
night and stole him away while we slept. And if this comes to
the governor's ear, we'll persuade him and secure you. In other
words, if a soldier was caught sleeping on duty, he was killed.
They cut his head off. And these fellows said, if this,
if they hear that you were asleep, we'll pay them off too. So read
on. So they took the money and did
as they were taught. And this saying is commonly reported
among the Jews until this day. Rebecca, the Jews, that's what
the Jews believe about this Jesus. You know, the Jews today, that's
what they believe actually happened to that Jesus of Nazareth. If
they look long enough, they find his bones. This is no cunningly devised
fable. Peter said, no. Thomas says,
uh-uh. I didn't believe it either until
he showed me his hand. Read on, down in the text, 2
Peter 1. No cunningly devised fable when
we made known unto you the power, power, and the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ. The power and the coming. You
notice there's an even more cunningly devised fable going on today
in religion. And it's all done in the name
of Jesus. But it's all a bunch of fables. Cunningly devised
for money. That's the same. Cunningly, these
fellows are cunning, they're tricked. Their father is cunning. You know who their father is,
don't you? You know who their minister is sent by, don't you? Their father teaches them in
the... There's a fox. Their father teaches them in
the art of cunning, craftiness. They use craftiness. Handling
the Word of God deceitfully. And it's a cunning fable that
they're making up today, and they call it gospel. It's being preached today, this
universal love of God. That's just a fable. That's just
a fable. This Jesus who tried and failed
is in man's hands now. That's a fable. That's an old
wives' fable. That's not God's Word, is it? No, no. Peter says, we didn't
make these things up. We're talking about He who has
all power. We're not talking about a figment
of our imagination or some little Jesus we've made up. We're talking
about the One who made us. We didn't make Him up. He made
us up. He's not in our hands. We're
in His hands. When He made known unto us His
power, And He's coming. Yes, He came and He died and
He rose again. He's coming again. And, buddy,
His power, every eye is going to see it there. And they're
going to see this was no fable. This Jesus is more than that. He's Lord. Every eye shall see
Him and every knee will bow automatically and every tongue will be forced
to say, He's Lord. I mean all-powerful, sovereign
King, Lord of Lords, not title only, but in actual power. I like this. Look at this. He
said, We were eyewitnesses of His Majesty. His Majesty. Nancy, they call these little
pinhead fellas and ladies, you know, with these pins in their
head. That's all those crowns are,
aren't they? Pinheads. Is that where they
got that saying, pinhead? Maybe their brain can fit on
the end of a pin. Maybe that's it. Anyway, these
fellas that wear all these robes and these crowns and these ladies,
you take all that off and they're just naked. Most of them are
old and wrinkled. And I've said before, they sit
on the same throne that we do. made by American Standard Plumbing,
if you don't know. They ain't nothing. But there's
one that's sitting on the throne of glory, the right hand of the
majesty on earth. That's his majesty. That's who
I bow to. And that's who every knee's going
to bow to someday. His Excellency, His Majesty,
Your Honor. You see these fellows in these
black robes, you know, judges, they're going to stand for The
Judge, The Judge, Your Honor, Your Honor. And this is a good
description of a true believer right here. Mickey, he doesn't
say we were believers in the doctrine, does he? We believed
his doctrine. Does he say that? This is a good
description on the difference between a true believer and a
nominal one. We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. We saw his glory. Have you seen
his glory? Until you do. Well, let's read on. Verse 17. He received from God the Father
honor and glory when there came such a boy. Such a boy. Scripture
calls it the voice of the sound of many waters. You ever stood
on the ocean with the waves crashing in the shore? Oh, it's powerful,
isn't it? Multiply that a thousand times,
a million times. The voice of the sound of many
waters. That's God's voice. Peter said, we heard it. We heard it. Was it when Paul
was on the road to Damascus when God Christ spoke and said, some
said it thundered? You ever heard thunder so powerful
that it just really shook you to the bones? That's what the
actual voice, audible voice of God sounds like. We haven't heard
it before. Peter said, we heard it. And
it did. It shook us to our souls. And what did he say? Huh? This is my beloved. When God had one thing to say,
God spoke out loud. Watch in the New Testament, God
spoke out loud and He said one thing, Harry. There's only one
thing worth saying. This is my son, Peter. Oh, these fools open their mouths
and give them sacrifice of fools, don't they? multitude of words,
and ain't no Christ in it. God speaks very briefly and very
powerfully in one subject, my son." Boy, that, what a command to
me. Hmm. Yeah, look at the excellent,
from the excellent glory. He keeps coming up with these
marvelous adjectives, doesn't he? Concerning heaven, abundant,
everlasting kingdom. This is my beloved son. And this
voice which came from heaven, we heard it when we were with
him in the Holy Mountain. We heard this voice. Think of
it. Wouldn't you like to have been there? I would have. I can't wait to hear his voice.
I really can't wait to hear his voice. Can you? I want to hear
him. I want to see him. Well, you
know something? Peter says there's something
even better. Or at least more sure than that. Something more sure. You know,
voices. I've heard voices before. I've heard voices before. And
I was hearing things. You know what I mean? I mean,
we've heard we have illusions all the time. I think we're hearing
something. What did you say? I didn't say anything. Well,
Peter says you can't trust visions or dreams or even voices. You can't trust them. Drugs will
induce visions and so forth. I've said before, too much food
before we go to bed will induce dreams and voices. Well, here it is, he said, we
have a more sure word of prophecy. I'm more sure. Something more
sure than even outward signs or audible voices even. Now,
they heard the voice of God, no mistaking it. But Henry said,
he said, this is more sure. And we do well, he said, you
do well to take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark
place until the day dawn. The day star arise in your heart,
a light that shines in a dark. This is the way that God speaks.
This is what Peter say. This is the way that God speaks.
God doesn't speak audibly anymore. No more. God doesn't speak. God
spoke once, yea twice, no more. This is how God speaks. And if
anybody's going to hear God speak, they're going to hear him speak
this way. If they won't receive this, they're not going to hear
God speak. And they're not going to hear
him say in that day, enter in. They're going to hear him say,
mind them, cast them out. Well, what do we need to believe?
Everything he said. Especially concerning his son,
who's declared to be the son of God with power, an excellent voice, a
more sure voice or word of prophecy. You do well. It's like a light
that shines in a dark place. You tell me now, when the word of God finally
hit home, home, this is home. Homes where the hearty, as they
say. Well, heart is where the home is. Your faith is where
the heart is. Tell me when this when the word
hit home now, wasn't it like. Like like sun coming up. When Nancy. You didn't know nothing. Before, but when the word hit
home, this whole book just began to explode in. It's like you
have your eyes open for the first time, then I see I see. It's like a little child that's
born. This is what the new birth is. Teresa, do you remember when
Blair first started realizing she's alive? Before, they had
this opaque look in their eyes. They hear your voice, and they
know it's you. But they hear with the hearing
of the ears, and they're alive, and they're hearing it. All of
a sudden, one day, their eyes begin to focus. And they see
you smile. And they smile. And they look
in their hands, you know. You know, they're alive. Things, you know, they're noticing
everything. When the Word of God begins to
illuminate a dark heart, they see themselves, oh, blackness. They look in his heart, black,
black, sin, sin, Christ on the cross. Look, Christ, Christ,
look here's Christ. You ever see this? And they start
telling him, you ever see this? I didn't. It all begins to just
open up, doesn't it? Like a day star, that's when
the day star, what's the day star? Well, tonight, when you
go out there, you're going to see the moon, aren't you? That
doesn't illuminate things very brightly, does it? It's just
reflected. It's just a reflection. It doesn't
burn at all. The moon shineth not. Who does shine? The day star. Now, in the morning, is something
going to wake you up? If you don't get up before it,
like some early birds, It's going to wake you up. And that's exactly
what Christ is going to have to do to some dead sinners. Wake
them up, just like the sun coming up. And that's what happens when
the day star rises in your heart. Very quickly, verse 20 and 21. Now know this, know this first,
and know this last. No prophecy, nothing in this
book, Peter, nothing in this book was of any private interpretation. No man ever sat down and said,
hey, I'm going to write this book. Isaiah didn't sit down
and say, I think I'll write a book. Jeremiah didn't do that. Jeremiah said, no, no, not me.
Moses didn't say, I'm going to write five books. Moses said,
I don't want to. God said, you write. That's exactly right. No personal
read-on. Prophecy came, verse 21, not
in the old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Moved by the Holy Ghost. It's not the will of man, it
came by the will of God, and men wrote exactly what God told
them to write. Is this the Word of God? Yes,
it is. Every word of it. There's a war going on today
against it. There's a subtle, even in so-called
conservative religion. Well, there's only two religions. Believers of the truth and the rest of it. We're of
God. and the whole world lies in wickedness.
And he that is of God, heareth God's word. And they stake their
soul on every word of God, particularly the word of God. This is not
the word of men, and you know it's not. You know it's not.
The day stars, sun, you see the sunshine in every face. Don't
you? You know it's too complex. It's
too wonderful. It's too glorious. It's all too
cohesive. It's too miraculous. It's too
marvelous. It all tells the same story too clearly, too definitely,
too particularly. Certainties of Christ from Genesis
1 to Revelation 22. No man could have done that.
God did. It's impossible. With man it's
impossible. But with God, God did the impossible. Didn't He? He wrote His Word down. And we
do well to take heed. You're in the dark about something?
Come to the light. The entrance of His Word giveth
light and understanding to the simple. All right, let's stand. Our Lord, we thank you for this
precious gift, the gift of your Word, and more especially, we
give thanks for the unspeakable gift, the gift of God, eternal
life, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Lord, we are what we
are by the grace of God. We know what we know by the grace
of God, by the revelation of God. And we preach in part, we
know in part. When that which is perfect has
come, we'll know, even as we've been known. But Lord, we do thank
you for that. We do know. And yet we plead
that we know nothing yet as we ought to know. And we come as
little children to be taught, oh, that we might know Him, that
we might grow in grace in the knowledge of Him, of Christ Jesus
our Lord. And this all comes by hearing,
hearing the Word. So enable each one of us who
have heard this Word tonight to hear it down in our hearts. and make us, cause us to give
diligence, to make our calling and election sure. If we do these
things, we'll never fall. We have your word on it. In Christ's
name we met together tonight. Amen.

A More Sure Word

What does the Bible say about grace?

How do we know our election is true?

Why is making our calling and election sure important for Christians?

What does the Bible say about the importance of truth?

Why is faith considered precious for Christians?

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A More Sure Word

What does the Bible say about grace?

How do we know our election is true?

Why is making our calling and election sure important for Christians?

What does the Bible say about the importance of truth?

Why is faith considered precious for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

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