You might want to take a marker
and turn to Romans chapter 16 in Paul's letter to the Romans.
And just set your marker there. We're going to come back to it
in just a little while. We live in a religious world,
in a religious age and time. There's no denying that. You
can't get in a car, go to the store, anywhere you go. Religion's
on every corner. It's on every corner. There's
buildings everywhere. And the sheer numbers of independent
and denominational churches in this country alone is just mind-boggling. Between here and Wichita Falls,
about a five-and-a-half, six-hour drive, you couldn't get them
all on a single page in a tablet, just the buildings. If you just
wrote the titles down, it'd fill the page up, just in that simple
line. If you drive very far at all,
you're going to see people dressed a certain way, their hair a certain
way, certain kinds of clothing. And all this is a testimony of
whatever religion it is that they're in. Up in Kentucky, where
I'm from, we have Amish and Midianites and people like that, and they
all dress a certain way. As soon as you see them, you
know who they are, you know what they stand for, you know they're
religious, and that's why people dress that way. Preaching everywhere. TV, radio, Internet, books. tracks, billboards, signs of
every shape and size, plastered on the sides of buses and cars
and automobiles. Last time I went over to Wichita
Falls on the way home, we came through this little town. I don't
remember the name of the town, but there was an elderly lady
standing out there with a sign that says, HONK! Honk if you
love Jesus. Had this sign out there. Just
religion everywhere. And nearly everybody I used to
work with belong to a church of some kind, and those who didn't
made a religion out of their not believing. They had a little
group over here and they talked about what they believed. What
they believed. We live in a religious age, but
we live in a day of darkness. Religion has had no effect on
men. It never will. It never will.
In spite of the overwhelming influence of religion, men and
women are getting worse and worse. This country is flooded with
seminary-trained preachers and Christian schools, and yet for
all their numbers, there is an ignorance of the Word of God
that is shameful. Shameful. Christian values are
all but lost. Marriage doesn't mean... What
does marriage mean anymore? Nothing. We're just not getting
along. I think I'm going to get a divorce.
It's commonplace. Commonplace. Gays and gay rights. When I was a child, you never
heard the word mentioned. Never. It was an unspeakable
thing. It was something that was made
for parents to talk in secret about. It wasn't public knowledge. It plastered on the TVs. It's
on the shows. Churches promoting this type
of thing. Gay marriage. unspeakable crimes with children
at an all-time high. You can't turn your child loose
in your yard for fear some predator out there is going to pick it
up and go off with it. And yet religions, every block,
every city block of a town has a church or a congregation or
somebody meeting. No effect. Has no effect. Ignorance. Ignorance of the Word
of God and ignorance of the Gospel of God. Ignorance of God Himself. I meet up with people and I talk
with them and they're really quick to tell you what they believe,
but they can't tell you why. Why do you believe that? They
don't know. Men and women are quick to denounce
the truth. If I ask them what they believe,
they don't know. But if I tell them something,
they say, well, I don't believe that. And you ask them the same thing,
why? They can't tell you. They can't tell you. And folks
will defend worldly religion that they don't take part in.
They don't know what it's all about. They have no fellowship
with them. They have no part in it whatsoever. But they'll stand and against
the truth defend the lie. That's ignorance. That's what
that is. Ignorance. And I listen to what
men say. I don't always give a response
to it, but I hear what they say and I listen to what they say.
And without singling out any particular denomination, but
just generally speaking, this is what I hear them say. They
say that God loves all men equally, without prejudice, without distinction,
and without difference. universally and without definition,
they'll plaster on their bumpers, smile, God loves you. No distinction. No distinction
whatsoever. Put it on a billboard. I also
hear them preach this, that the atonement of Christ, His suffering,
His shed blood was for all mankind. Am I missing something or is
that what they're preaching? That's what I'm hearing. I hear him preach that in order
for his blood to be effectual, that makes chills run up my arm.
In order for his blood to be effectual, in order for his sacrifice
to have any bearing on your standing with God whatsoever, your faith
must be added to it to make it effectual. I'm told by these people with
their college degrees and the letters after their names and
the big robes who reside in the big buildings that God has prepared
a great feast, a feast of redemption, adoption, atonement, forgiveness
of sin, justification, sanctification, salvation. And all I have to
do to get it is exercise my free will and take it. Now that's
what they're saying. Here it is. Here it is. All I have to do is just raise
my hand. Just raise my hand. This is real
big up in Kentucky. Name it and claim it. That's
what they say. Name it and claim it. I'm told
that God voted for me, Satan voted against me, and I cast
the deciding vote. Have you ever heard that? That's
what these people preach. Somebody didn't just sit around
in the living room one night and that come and pop up into
the head. That was said from a pulpit of
a church. And it's become commonplace.
They say it a lot. It's my decision, my choice that will
settle and fix the future. And I'm told this, that the future
is undecided. Anything can happen. Huh? Anything can happen. The battle's
raging, but the outcome's uncertain. And I'm absolutely covered up
in prophecy about end times and tribulations and Antichrist and
plagues and monsters and all this type of thing that's right
out of some horror movie. I hear that all the time. I'm
just bombarded with it constantly, especially in this day. And I
preach to men and women who are religious, but they're lost.
They're lost. Paul said to the Jews, he went
and met them in the marketplace. He went and met them in the synagogues. He was a Jew. He knew where they
were coming from. He knew that they were lost.
And that's what he said. I'm praying for them that God
will save them. They thought they saved. They thought what they were doing,
God would save them in those things, in those ceremonies,
and in that works of righteousness that they did. They thought that
was salvation. It was all tied up in that. Their
searching of the Scriptures, their diligence in carrying those
scrolls and attending to those scrolls, reading those scrolls
every Sunday. I preach to men and women who
are religious but lost. They're ignorant, deceived, filled
with superstitious ideas and imaginations, hoping in decisions,
experiences, feelings and commitments. Overwhelmed by generations before
them. Overwhelmed by great organizations. Overwhelmed by pageantry and
beauty and big buildings and big Hollywood type promotions. Overwhelmed by the influence
of what the Bible calls the beast, the beast is everywhere. The whole world, that's what
it says over in Revelation, talking about that whole revelation of
Christ. It says the whole world wondered
and followed after the beast, followed after the beast. What
can I say when I stand up to preach? What can I say to whom
I preach and witness to? You bring in that friend and
bring in that neighbor, bring in your sons or daughters or
uncles or somebody in here and they sit down and I've got one
opportunity to talk to them. Forty-five minutes and then out
the door. What can I say? I know where
they're coming from. I know what they're overwhelmed
with. I know what they are by nature. What can I say to them?
What should I say to them? What can I say to even hope to
affect any kind of a change in them? Paul said, we wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against rulers of the darkness of this world, against
spirits of wickedness in high places. That's what's going on
in the world. What can I say? Should I coax him down the
aisle like everybody else and say, just take my hand, now repeat
after me? You think that's going to affect
the change? You think that's going to make a difference in
what he believes and what he is? Get him down here, kneel
down at a bench, make some kind of profession, make a decision.
What can I say? What can I say that I could even
hope would affect the change? Well, I ran on. I seek this with
all my heart every week, and I ran on to a word this past
week that I believe the Lord gave me, and He gave me some
hope. And the word is according. According. It means basis. It means the
reason for. The reason for. I'm going to
tell you something. If this book says everything
in general, that's what I'm told. Well, that's just your interpretation.
We have ours. If this book says everything
in general, then it says nothing in particular. Is that right? If this book says everything,
if it says what I'm saying and says what they're saying and
says what somebody else is saying, then it doesn't say anything
in particular. And I'm dead wrong if I get up
here and tell you that there's a difference. But when I read in this book,
the truth it declares commands men to believe. It has a consequence. It has a consequence. Let me
give you just a couple of things here. The Lord said to His disciples,
He said, all power, this is after His resurrection, before His
ascension into glory. He said, all power is given unto
Me in heaven and earth. Go you therefore on this basis,
go you therefore into all the world and preach My gospel. Everybody that believeth and
is baptized is going to be saved. He that believeth not, shall
be damned." That's a consequence, isn't it? Paul stood before the
church of Galatia, angry, upset. Judaizers had come in and began
to try to bring back in the law into this church that was completely
converted, this church who was strong and established in Christ. And he said, I'll just... He
said, who hath bewitched you? He said, "...though we or an
angel from heaven come preach any other gospel unto you than
that which we have preached, let him be accursed." Huh? That's a consequence, isn't it?
That's a consequence. If I preach to you, and leave
you to opinion and speculation about what I preach. If I just
stand up here and talk about salvation this morning, or I
stand up here and I talk about redemption, or I stand up here
and talk about something else, and I just leave you to your
opinions. I just throw it out there like
shooting a shotgun at a bunch of quail. Just throw it up and
shoot. They fall where it wears. Whatever
effect, let it have it. If I just throw that truth out
and leave you, then I haven't preached to you at all. I haven't
said anything. I haven't said anything. And
that's exactly what religion does. Religion talks about salvation
and just leaves you to form your own opinion. Whatever floats your boat. They talk about the death of
Christ, they just let you form your own opinion. They talk about
the love of God, let you form your own opinion. Preaching is
a declaration of truth as it is defined in the Scriptures. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15,
I preached to you from this passage the other day. He said, Christ
died for our sins according, see that little word, according
to the Scriptures. And He was buried and rose from
the dead the third day according to the Scriptures. according to the Scriptures.
Truth must be defined. It must be defined. If I just
throw a truth out, it has no meaning whatsoever. None whatsoever. Truth has to be defined. And
truth, all truth in the Scripture is always accompanied. I look
this up. It's always accompanied with
this little word, according. Here's the basis. I'm going to
tell you the truth, and now I'm going to tell you the basis of
the truth. Now let's look at as many of these as we have time
for this morning. Let's begin over here in Ephesians
chapter 1. Six times in the book of Ephesians
this word appears in chapter 1 alone. Six times. I'm sorry, Ephesians chapter
2. We'll start there. We'll start with this issue of
man's sin. I'm told that men are born in
innocence and they live that way until
they reach an age of accountability, which nobody seems to know what
that is. And then they make a decision and they go one way or the other.
They go one way or the other. They come, they talk to us about
it when we was in high school and called it the crossroads.
You come to the crossroads, now you have to make a decision which
way you're going to go. And I'm told that men are free moral
agents. They're not biased by anything. They're free. They're
free. Alright? Now let's see what God
has to say about it. Watch this here in Ephesians
2, verse 1. And you hath He quickened who
were dead in trespasses and sins. Now here's the way they explain
this too. This way false preachers explain
this passage right here. They say that this death is a
sentence, a legal judgment of God against sin. That they're
condemned to die if they continue on this road, continue in this
direction, then they're going to die. But that's not how Paul
defines this truth. Now watch this. We're in, that
is in this death, verse 2. In time past you walked," now
watch this word, according. You see that? Now here's what
that death is. It's according to the course
of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air,
the Spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience,
among whom also we all had our conversation in times past, in
the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and
of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as
others." Now God says our condition is according to our sinful nature. That's what He said. have all this nature in common,
and that this nature serves its own lusts and desires, and it's
under the rule and influence of the God of this world, talking
about Satan. And it follows Him just like
the rest of the world. That's all it's ever going to
do is follow him. It'll change. It'll change from
a Nazarene church to a Baptist church. It'll change from the
bar to the church. It'll change from this to that.
It'll change from just a no-account vagrant to somebody who works
and earns a living and marries and has a family. It changes
in that aspect all the time. But it never changes these things. It's still a child of wrath,
even as others. It still serves the God of this
world. It still walks according to the
course of this world. I don't care what it does outwardly.
This is what it does. This is what it does. And the
descriptions I could give you this morning are just endless.
They're just endless. Yeah, but there are no whatabouts. This is what God says. It's according. according. And so when I talk
about men being dead in trespasses and sins, and I talk about men,
sinners before God, this is what I'm talking about. I'm talking
about their nature. I'm talking about what they are. It doesn't make any difference
what you feel or think or speculate. The truth of the gospel is that
you and I are born in sin. We go astray as soon as we be
born, speaking lies. And we live out our days serving
ourselves and serving the God of this world. Alright, here's
the second thing. Look one page back there to Ephesians
chapter 1. It'd be a sad story if that were
the end of it. It'd be a sad story. In Adam, all die. Ain't that
what Scripture said? What if that were the end of
the story? All die. By one man sin entered into the
world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men.
Here is the evidence. All is sin. But look here in Ephesians 1,
verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly
places in Christ. Blessings of life and liberty
and joy and happiness go through the Scriptures. Eternal blessings
of covenant redemption, justification, adoption. Blessings in time,
the blood of Christ, imputed righteousness, effectual calling,
regeneration, faith, repentance, conversion, resurrection, ultimate
perfection. All the blessings of God, every
blessing that God determined to give to men, every one of
them, He blessed us with in heavenly places in Christ. Now watch this,
verse 4. See that great big word? Is it
beginning to jump out at you yet? According. Huh? According as He hath chosen us
in Him. before the foundation of the
world that we should be holy and without blame before Him
in love. That is as the object of His
eternal love. There He is. In Christ. In Christ. And if words mean anything at
all, God tells us here that all His favor and all His blessings
are according to divine election. Isn't that what he says? Now
he says, I'm going to prove it to you. I'm going to prove it
to you. And he takes Rebecca's two children, Jacob and Esau,
and before they were ever born, before they ever come into this
world, before either one of them exhibited any signs, any evidences
of good or evil, and he said, the elder is going to serve the
younger as it's written, Jacob have I loved and Esau have I
hated. Why in the world would he say
that? that the purpose of God according to election might stand."
Now that's why he said it. Isn't that what he said? Romans
chapter 9. Election. All his blessings. All of them. A-double-L-all. It's useless to start talking
about blessing the world and loving the world and dying for
the world when all of the blessings that He purposed from the very
beginning is purposed to those chosen in Christ. And if words
mean anything, that's what He's saying here. I read this to someone not long
ago and they said, that's your interpretation. There's not a
word in here more than five letters. Come on. They're not universal. They're
not up for grabs. They're not thrown out on the
ground for anybody to pick up, claim to be His. These blessings
are according as He has chosen us in Him before the foundation
of the world. Clearly defined. Clearly stated. Clearly declared. And you'll
be judged by it. You'll be judged by it. Because
it's made that clear. That's right. Nothing left to
interpret. There's nothing here left to
opinion. Alright, what's this? Ephesians
1 verse 5, "...having predestinated us unto
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according to
the good pleasure of His will." See that word, according? Predestination
has to do with the final end of all those chosen Christ. That's
what it is. It's the predestination. This is where you're headed.
This is what's going to be. That's what predestination means.
You go down here to Greyhound Bus Station, if you have one,
or Trailways Bus Station, and you go over there and there's
a big window in front of the bus that says New Orleans. That's
its predestination. That's where it's going. It may
go to Little Rock first, but it's going to New Orleans. That's
its destination. And it's already been predetermined.
Predestination has to do with the final end of all those chosen
Christ. God chose a people in Christ.
Blessed them with all the blessings that God had. And He blessed
them to a predestinated end. That's what He's saying here.
A predestinated end. And that end is adoption. Sons
of God. Heirs of God. Joint heirs with
Christ. That end, he says in Romans chapter
8, where he talks about predestination, is to be conformed to the image
of Christ. That's what it is. And this end
is fixed by the eternal decree of God in predestination. Now,
hear me. I'm going to show you this here
in the Scripture. I'm going to give you that word according
right here in just a minute. But if I tell you On the 10th
of May, 2051, that something's going to be. You have no confidence
that it's going to be that way. And I had no confidence to say
it unless I can control every event between here and then. Is that right? So in this sense,
predestination also accounts for everything between the time
of the declaration and the final end. Now skip down to verse 11,
Ephesians chapter 1. Let me show you that. Ephesians chapter 1, verse 11. Talking about Christ. He's talking
about this gathering together of all things that's in Christ.
Now watch this, verse 11, "...in whom also we have obtained an
inheritance, being predestinated according..." See where it works?
"...according to the purpose of him who worketh all things
after the counsel of his own will." That's how he can predestinate
that in because he's going to work everything between here
and there. When did he start telling us that? Way back yonder
in the prophets. He said, I'm God. There's no
one beside me. I declare the end from the beginning.
That's what we're talking about. The end. And from ancient times,
the things that are not yet done, saying my counsel stand and I'll
do all my pleasures. Been telling it to us. Just keep
telling it to us. He taught that to Nebuchadnezzar.
The first thing Nebuchadnezzar learned. I tell you, when I first
read this word predestination in the scriptures and went down
that little free will Baptist church I was going to and told
them about it, those elders jumped on me with both feet, don't even
talk about predestination, don't even bring that up. That's one
of those things, he said those deep things belong to God, God
only. Well then why did he tell Nebuchadnezzar,
that's the first thing he told him. First thing they told the
apostle Paul, the God of our fathers hath chosen thee. We
hate to tell people about election. Why? Why? It's the fundamental truth of
the gospel. These are the very first things
in the gospel declared, election and predestination. Nebuchadnezzar, he said, "...he
doeth according to his will in armies of heaven and among the
inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand or say
unto him, What doest thou?" First thing he learned. God, God. Paul didn't call it a dark secret.
Over in Romans 8, verse 28, he said, "...and we know." We know. Those born of God do. We know
that all things work together for good to them who love God,
to them who are the called according to His purpose. Why? Well, He goes on to tell you,
because whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate. Huh? That's exactly right. Alright,
here's the fourth thing, Ephesians 1, verses 6 and 7. God's chosen a people in Christ.
He's blessed those people with all eternal blessings, all spiritual
blessings. He's predestinated their end.
He's predestinated to have sons and daughters join heirs of God,
join heirs with Christ. He's predestinated this. Now
watch this. Verse 6, "...to the praise of
the glory of His grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the
beloved, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness
of sins according to the riches of his grace." It's all a gift, isn't it? It's
all a gift. This world has been told it's
a reward. They've been telling me, well,
I'm just waiting for my final check. I heard somebody say here
not too long ago, You're going to get your final check. You're
not going to like it. You're going to get it. Redemption
is not a reward for service or faith. It's the free gift of
God. That's what He said. God so loved
the world that He gave His only begotten Son. Isn't that what
it says? He gave Him. It's the free gift
of God. Forgiveness of sins is the free
gift of God. That's not complicated. That's
not an interpretation. That's not an opinion. That's
the plain, clear, precise declaration of this book. Grace! Grace! Grace! That's why I've got it
plastered on a sign out there. Grace! Not of works of righteousness
which we've done. Then look at verses 8 and 9 here
in Ephesians. Here's the fifth thing. wherein
he hath abounded toward us." He chose us. He blessed us. He
predestinated the end. He sent His Son to accomplish
it. To accomplish it. Paid for our
sins. Clothed us in perfect righteousness.
Ascended up into glory to intercede on our behalf as our High Priest.
Now watch this. wherein he hath abounded toward
us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the
mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he
hath purposed in himself." I thought it was my free will. No, it's
his good pleasure. That's what he says. Is that
hard to understand? How can anybody read that and
say, well, that's your opinion? That's just your opinion. Now,
I do know this. The gospel is a mystery. It's
a mystery that's said to be hidden by both God and by Satan. Our Lord lifted up His eyes one
day. The Pharisees had rejected His
counsel. His disciples were defending
the Pharisees somewhat, telling Him, He said, you've offended
them. He pushed his disciples over here, sent the Pharisees
over here, and he raised his head up and looked up into heaven,
and he said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because
thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and revealed
them unto me. Why do you speak to them in parables?
Because it's given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom
of God, but unto them it's not given. God does hide these things. He
does hide these things. He gives them to whom they will.
And He hides these things because it's not meant to give to them.
It's not for them. It's for His elect. That's where
the blessings have been purposed to go. They're not going anywhere
else. I don't care how much you want
them. I don't care how much you jump up and down. I don't care
how fast you run or how big you build an organization. God's
blessings are for His elect. He predestinated their end and
it's going to be. It's going to be. What if we
don't believe? Oh, you're going to believe.
Yeah, you are. What if I don't repent? You'll
repent. He gets a hold of you. Oh, yeah. Blessed in Christ according
to eternal election. And let me tell you this, God
doesn't blind men by putting his hand over their eyes. That's
not what he's talking about. When God blinds a man, he takes
his hand off his eyes. Huh? Takes his hand off. All he has to do to blind you
is leave you alone. You're already blind. All he
has to do to blind you is lift his hand and Satan will be delighted
to blind you. Paul said, If our gospel be hid,
it is hid to the lost in whom the God of this world hath blinded
the minds of them that believe not. You mean he has a greater
power than God? No, God just lifted his hand.
He just lifted his hand. Oh, Paul, he quoted this Scripture
to the Corinthians who began to see themselves proud and began
to see themselves lifted up and wise from that old background
of philosophy and all that stuff where those Greeks were. And
Paul told them, he said, I hath not seen nor heard, neither have
entered into the heart of man a thing that God hath prepared
for them that love him, but God hath revealed them unto us by
His Spirit. All things, yea, even the deep
things, that old deep doctrine of predestination, even that,
revealed them unto us. Bless this in Christ according
to eternal election, predestinated us to the adoption of sons. redeemed
us in Christ according to the riches of His grace. And then
He brings us to know these things according to the good pleasure
of His will and His purpose. Look here, Ephesians 1 verse
7. Verse 17, I'm sorry. I've already
read. He abounded toward us in wisdom
and knowledge. I've already read that to you.
Now look down here at Ephesians 1 verse 17. And this is along that same line,
but I'm going to show you a little bit more. Verse 17, that the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the
spirit of wisdom and revelation and the knowledge of Him, the
eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know
what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory
of His inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness
of His power to usward who believe? Now listen, according to the
working of His mighty power, what on earth is He talking about?
Well, read on. Which He wrought in Christ when
He raised Him from the dead and set Him at His own right hand,
far above all principality and power and might and dimension
and every name that's named, not only in this world but in
that which is to come. by a sovereign act of regeneration,
we're resurrected. Resurrected from our dead spiritual
state out of that grave of condemnation and depravity and raised up out
from under the rule of those principalities and powers and
rulers of the darkness and seated in full favor at the right hand
of God. That's what faith is. And you
can't do it. If all you've got is a decision
you've made, you've missed God. You've missed Christ. Christ's
not up there leaning over the banisters of heaven wondering
if anybody's going to believe in Him. He's victorious! He's seated at the right hand
of God, all powers in His hands. He'll make His gospel a picture
when it falls on the right ears. And when he does, that man will
know that it wasn't of him, it was this exceeding greatness
of God's power that took him out of his blindness and corruption
and depravity and rebellion and raised him up above it to see
it and to know it in his heart. It's a sovereign act of regeneration. Faith is not just mental ascent,
that's part of it. But it's an act of sovereign
regeneration. A new creature. That's what he calls it. A new
creature. And it's according to the working
of His mighty power. Here's the seventh thing, Colossians
chapter 1. Turn back toward the book of
Revelation, just a few books over from Ephesians, you'll come
to the book of Colossians. Colossians chapter 1. Verse 10. You're going to be surprised.
Those of you who have a Strong's Concordance or something, or
a Young's Analytical Concordance or something like that, look
up this word, according. You're going to be dumbfounded. Every aspect of the gospel of
Christ is tied in with this word, according. Front to back. We
don't have time. I'm just giving you a few this
morning. Now watch this. Verse 10. that you might walk
worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good
work, and increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all
might according to His glorious power, unto all patience and
longsuffering with joyfulness, giving thanks unto the Father
which hath made us meet, given us an ability." That's
what he's talking about there. Made us meet. to be partakers
of the inheritance of the saints in light, who hath delivered
us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us unto the
kingdom of His dear Son. Now, I'm going to tell you something. Godliness and good works are
the fruit of true saving faith. You say I have faith and you
don't have works, I'm telling you plain, point blank, clear
as I know how to tell you, you don't have faith. Period. End of story. You can't find
faith in the scriptures described apart from having fruit. You
can't do it. Every official in here lays that
foundation as clear as it can be laid and then he moves on
and he starts talking about that fruit. Talking about that fruit. All true faith produces fruit.
I don't care if it's weak faith or great faith or whatever. It
all produces fruit. Every bit of it. Why? Because
it's grasped into the vine. That's why. You can't produce
fruit. I'll tell you what you'll produce.
Thorns and thistles. That's what we produce. Barbs. People touch us and they go,
whoa. I want a little part of that. Godliness and good works are
the fruit of true saving faith. And I'm not talking about those
old religious traditions and ceremonial works. He said it's
not by works of righteousness which we've done. It's not a
reward for those things. It's not how those things are
obtained. But he said it's with the washing of regeneration and
renewing of the Holy Ghost. It's according to that. According. Flip over a few more pages. Just
before you get to Hebrews, you're going to find this little tiny
book of Titus. Titus. I want you to see how
Paul opens his letter here in Titus. Titus chapter 1, verse
1. Paul, a servant of God, a bond
slave, that's what he's talking about, and an apostle of Jesus
Christ, Here's that word again, according to the faith of God's
elect. And the acknowledging of the
truth, now watch it, which is after godliness. There is no
acknowledging the truth apart from godliness. All truth, he says here, this
faith of God's elect, You see how simple these things are?
How plain these things are? How clear they are? There's nothing
here to be misrepresented. The faith of God's elect acknowledges
the truth which is after godliness. It will hear 25 different variations,
but here's the one it will acknowledge. The one that produces fruit.
Now, that's the gospel. Every believer is going to say
that. One of them. And then last of
all, over in Philippians, back up a few pages to the book of
Philippians. Philippians chapter 3, verses
20 and 21. He said, for our conversation
is in heaven. From whence also we look for
the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body,
that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body." Now
watch it. According to the working which
He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself. According. According. He's going to change it. You
can't change it. I can't change it. I can point to Christ. And Paul said, looking into that
mirror, looking into the perfect Word of God, looking at Christ
and His glory, we're changed day to day. But we're going to
be changed to perfection. And we're going to stand there
in a perfect image of Christ. The great God of glory will one
day by sovereign grace stand us in His presence, he said,
without any flaw, unblameable, unreprovable, now listen, in
His sight. Huh? That's our hope. And then let me close with Romans
chapter 16. Romans chapter 16. Folks, who
do you think he is, standing up here and saying those things?
Who do you think he is? What right have you got to stand
up here and condemn a world full of religion? Who do you think
you are? What school do you go to? How
many letters have you got after your name? Who gives you this
authority? Listen to this, verse 25. Romans chapter 16, verse 25.
Now to him that is of power to establish you according to my
gospel. He used that word three times
here. And the preaching of Jesus Christ. according to the revelation
of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began,
but now is made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the prophets,"
that's Old Testament Scriptures, according to the commandment
of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the
obedience of faith. You see that? It's according to the commandment
of the everlasting God. It's according to the Gospel.
It's according to the preaching of Jesus Christ. It's according
to the revelation of the mystery. According to the Scriptures of
the prophets. Not just some isolated spot,
but it says this over and over and over and over, all the way
through the Scriptures. And it's made known unto you
for obedience. That's what he said. He commands
men to believe. That's a whole lot different
than what's being preached in this world. They throw a little word
out like redemption and then walk away and leave you to try
to come up with some kind of explanation. Bible doesn't do
that. Bible said it's according. It's
according. It's according. And I brought
these things to you this morning because I've had correspondence
on the internet. I've had some confrontations
in here. I have confrontations every day
everywhere I go with people. And you talk to them about these
things and they start shooting these things at you left and
right and you don't hardly know what to say. Well, here's what
to say. Take them over there and say,
well, let's see what God says. He said according to. Now I'll
just let you and God wrestle it out. Here's what God said.
This is what I'm going to believe. According to. There's no arguing
with that. Now I'm telling you, he that
believeth and is baptized is going to be saved. He that believeth
not, believeth not what? These things that he precisely,
clearly sets before you. There's no misrepresentation
here. It says what it says. Bow to it or go to hell. That's
just the way it is.