A Savour of Life and Death

Q: What does the Bible say about salvation and righteousness?

The Bible teaches that only through Christ's work can one be declared righteous before God. The Scriptures affirm that to be justified before God, one must rely entirely on the righteousness of Christ. Romans 8:33 states, 'Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies.' This emphasizes that man's works are insufficient for salvation, and it's through Christ's imputed righteousness that believers can stand justified before a holy God. Moreover, 2 Corinthians 5:21 elaborates on this by saying, 'For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' Therefore, salvation is not achieved by our merit but through faith in Jesus Christ who fulfilled all righteousness.

Q: Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

God's sovereignty assures believers that their salvation is secure and rooted in His eternal decree. The sovereignty of God is foundational to Reformed theology, emphasizing that God is in control of all things, including salvation. Romans 11:7 states, 'The election hath obtained it, and the rest were hardened.' This indicates that God, in His sovereign will, chooses whom He will save, ensuring that none are lost. This doctrine provides believers with confidence and assurance, knowing that their salvation is not based on their own efforts but on God's divinely ordained plan. Additionally, as seen in Ephesians 1:4-5, God chose His people before the foundation of the world, demonstrating His sovereign grace in the process of salvation.

Q: How do we know Christ's atonement is effective for believers?

Christ's atonement is effective because it specifically addresses the sins of His elect, securing their salvation. The effectiveness of Christ's atonement is rooted in the doctrine of particular redemption, which teaches that Christ died specifically for the elect. John 6:39 confirms this, saying, 'And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing.' Christ’s sacrificial death satisfies God's justice for His people, as confirmed in Romans 8:33-34, which underscores that no charge can be brought against God's elect, for Christ has already paid their debt. The assurance of salvation lies in the fact that Christ's death was not a general provision but a specific act aimed at redeeming those whose names are written in the book of life.

Q: Why does the gospel cause offense?

The gospel causes offense because it challenges human pride by declaring that salvation is entirely dependent on God's grace, not human effort. The message of the gospel is inherently offensive to the natural heart because it negates human pride and self-righteousness. The proclamation that one must rely solely on Christ for salvation, as noted in Galatians 5:11, is seen as exclusive and unfair by those who believe they can contribute to their salvation. This is particularly evident in teachings about predestination and election, where Romans 9:11 asserts that God's choices are based on His sovereign will. Many reject this truth, finding it hard to accept that not all will be saved and that salvation is entirely a work of grace. Consequently, the gospel represents a division between those whom God calls to Himself and those who remain blind to this truth.

Q: What is the significance of calling God the 'Bread of Life'?

Calling God the 'Bread of Life' signifies that Jesus is the essential sustenance for eternal life. By referring to Himself as the 'Bread of Life,' Jesus communicates that He is the source of spiritual nourishment and eternal life. In John 6:35, He states, 'I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.' This metaphor highlights the necessity of faith in Christ for spiritual sustenance, contrasting the temporary satisfaction provided by physical bread. Thus, believers are invited to partake in the life-giving grace of Christ, which fulfills their deepest needs. The metaphor also underscores that just as physical bread sustains life, Christ's sacrificial work is essential for eternal life and communion with God.

I want to continue in it this
morning. Now John chapter 6 begins with
a very large crowd that were following Jesus. You might say
they were his disciples because they were following him, this
large crowd. I would call them miracle chasers.
They were people who were interested in something dramatic taking
place. They were chasing miracles and they were following him and
they were basically chasing him around the Sea of Galilee from
one side to the other to try to be there but he put his finger
right on what their true motive was their true motive was the
next meal for which they didn't have to go to work he said you
seek me not because of the miracles and what they spoke of of the
words of eternal life of which they spoke you seek me because
you ate the bread you ate the loaves and were filled and so
it goes on throughout this chapter and we get to verse sixty verse
sixty And we see here the conclusion of this crowd, this large enthusiastic
crowd. What a fuss we would make, wouldn't
we, if we had a large crowd? We'd do everything in our power
to stop them going away. We'd put on things for them.
Well, I'm talking about the natural man and the majority of religion
that's all around us. We'd do all sorts of fancy things
to try and get them to stay. We try and make the Gospel, the
message of the Scriptures seem so reasonable and palatable.
How can any, any sane ordinary person regard this as an objectionable
message? Not the Lord Jesus Christ. He
told the truth because He is the truth. And the sayings that
He came out with, they ended up saying, this is a hard saying. Who can hear it? This doctrine
of yours, is too hard this doctrine of him being the bread of life
this doctrine of no man coming to the father except the father
draw him these doctrines are a hard saying who can hear it
and in verse 66 he said therefore I said to you
no man can come to me except it were given him of my father
and from that time many of his disciples those who had been
following him not the twelve many of his disciples went back
many of that crowd of miracle chasers went back and walked
no more with him there were a few others that
were with him the twelve and they heard exactly the same words
exactly the same but to them as Peter said as their spokesman
these are the words of eternal life verse 68 You have the words
of eternal life. We believe and are sure that
you are the Christ. You are our answer to that eternal
question, what must a man do to be saved? What must a man
do to be right with God? And we can't go anywhere else.
The words that you have spoken are our life. They're our spiritual
life. They're essential to us. We cannot go away. We have nowhere
else we can go. There's a huge divide. A huge separation. I put on the
back of the bulletin the calling text for this morning 2nd Corinthians
chapter 2 and verses 14 to 16. Now thanks be unto God which
always causeth us to triumph in Christ. God causes his people
to triumph in Christ and makes manifest the savor, the flavor,
the scent, the aroma of his knowledge by us in every place because
you walk about with it on you. For we are unto God a sweet savor
of Christ. His people are a sweet savour
of Christ. Those washed in the blood of Christ. Those cleansed
by the redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ. In them that
are saved and in them that perish. You see, in other words, there's
nobody left out. There's nobody neutral. It's
the same thing. This gospel of grace is that
savour of Christ. And to the one, to those that
perish, to the one, we are the savour of death unto death. This message that we proclaim
to many is a message of death it's a message of gross unfairness
it's a message that is repulsive to the human heart this idea
of a sovereign God and sovereign grace but to the other the savor
of life unto life to the child of God who hears it to the one
to whom God by His Spirit gives spiritual life and spiritual
light it's the savor of life unto life and who is sufficient
for these things? We're not because we're human
and mortal this is all in the eternal unfathomable purposes
of God it makes a great division the gospel of grace a great division
between death and life it will either offend you or it will
cause you to rejoice it will either be the most repulsive
thing you've ever heard in religion or it will be the thing that
is the sweetest thing of all it will be that pearl of greatest
price. It will be that one which, when
you discover it, all the other pearls, all the other jewels
in the box, you might as well chuck them away. They're of no
practical use. You must have that one pearl
of greatest price because it's the pearl of the gospel of grace. So I want to ask three questions.
What is this message? Why does it cause such offense?
And what is it that makes the difference between those to whom
it is the savor of life unto life and those to whom it is
the savour of death unto death." First of all, what is this message?
What is this message that divides? And it does. It divides humanity
and especially religious humanity. It divides dramatically. It's
the gospel of God's grace. It's the biblical answer to Job's
question. You know Job's question. What
must a man do to be just with God? What should a man do to
be right with God? That was Job's question. It's
the question that everybody buries their head in the sand about.
But being mortal beings, created in the image of God, and facing
a day, facing death of no doubt. Nobody can deny that. You can
argue with me about all sorts of things, but you cannot argue
with Hebrews chapter 9 and verse 27. It is appointed to man to
die once. That's true. Nobody gets out
of that one. And then, the judgment. The judgment. Immediately. That's
the scriptural message. But what should I do to be saved
in that judgment? For God is holy. And God is angry
with the wicked every day. And God can in no wise overlook
sin. He cannot excuse it. He cannot
sweep it under the carpet. He cannot just say, Oh, I forgive
you. Do you realize that? God cannot
just say, Oh, I forgive you. He cannot. He would fail to be
just. And if He failed to be just,
He would fail to be God. He must act justly. And He does that in His Son.
The instinctive answer of sinful man to that question, how must
a man be right with God? How must he be just with God?
The instinctive answer of sinful man is, I'm good enough as I
am. Myself, I'm okay. My works will be good enough.
They're not perfect, but there's more good ones than there are
bad ones. And look at all the bad people. And so the doctrine
of Islam is that all of your works are put on the scales.
And they're balanced, the good ones against the bad ones. And
so long as there's more good than bad, then you're accepted
and taken to heaven. Of course you know that that
is absolutely contrary. The Word of God says in James,
if a man offend in one point, he is guilty of all. In one point. It's by nature that we're sinners.
It's by nature that we offend the law of God. It's by nature
that God must condemn us in justice. So the instinctive answer is,
I'm okay by myself, but the gospel, this message says, Only Christ
works provide the answer. Only the imputed righteousness
of Christ, only the substitutionary bearing of the sins of His people
pays the sin debt so that the justice of God is satisfied in
Him. We're in one of two federal heads. We're either in Adam, as we're
all born by nature, for as in Adam all die, or we're in the
Lord Jesus Christ, who is this bread of life that this chapter
talks about. who is this substitute for sinners. And what he's saying
in all of these verses about bread, compared with the manner
that the Israelites ate in the wilderness, what he's saying
is acceptance with God is only in Him. It's not in yourself.
It's in Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, the bread of life. What he's
saying is that to be saved from wrath and justice, which is what
we all deserve, an infinite, infinite perfect substitute must
live, must die, must rise in my place and I must be in Him
so that I live righteously in Him. When He walked this earth,
I walked this earth in the justice of God in Him. And I am perfect
and I am righteous in Him because I'm clothed with that righteousness
that He gives to all His people. And then on the cross He was
loaded. He who knew no sin was made sin that we might be made
the righteousness of God in Him. that great transaction where
He bore the sins of His people. He was made sin. He didn't take
responsibility for them. He was made sin. Why did the
Father punish the Son? Because the Son was guilty of
His people's sins in that moment. He was never a sinner, but in
that moment He was counted guilty of the sins of His people. And
the justice of God must punish Him. And the justice of God was
poured out on Him. And the sin debt was paid. And
so now what do we read about the sins of the people of God?
The sins of those who are in Christ? You read the Psalms.
They're blotted out. They're blotted out. You know,
they're completely erased. The ink is gone. It's not there.
They're blotted out. We must all stand before the
judgment seat of Christ and give an account. What will your account
be? As I keep saying, the account of the people of God is this,
that they were paid for in Christ. And who therefore shall bring
any charge to God's elect. This is the message. This is
the gospel. He must earn righteousness. He
must pay the penalty for the sins of his people. Jesus said
in saying, I am the bread of life, he was saying that he was
that substitute for his people. Now this multitude, this crowd,
they'd seen 5,000 plus people, 5,000 men, never mind all the
women and children that were there as well, miraculously fed
with bread. for physical life bread sustains
physical life you do without it for several days not just
bread but food in general you do without it and you'll start
to feel a bit pasty you'll start to feel a little bit weak I don't
know about you but if I go if I go an entire morning of four
or five hours and I haven't had any intake of food I start to
feel quite lacking in blood sugar and quite shaky and I need to
have something to eat to get the blood sugar up bread is good
it sustains physical life for a while not eternally for a while,
doesn't it? For a few years. For a few short
years of this life, it sustains physical life. But Jesus said
that he was the bread of life, spiritually, eternally. Look
at verse 35. I'm going to get you to dot around
this chapter 6. Verse 35, Jesus said unto them,
I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger. He that believeth on me shall
never thirst. He's the bread of life. Verse
48, I am that bread of life. I am that bread of life. He gives
life eternally. He is the bread that sustains
for eternal life. And it's in Him and in Him alone. This is what He was saying, that
there are no other substitutes. Look at verse 53, Jesus said
unto them, verily, verily, you can rely on this, I say unto
you, except unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink
His blood, you have no life in you. You have no eternal spiritual
life in you. To have eternal spiritual life,
to be right with God, you must eat the flesh of the Son of God
and drink His blood. You must do those things. Of
course, His words are spiritual. He's not talking about physical
cannibalism. He's not talking about the bread
and wine of communion becoming the literal flesh and blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ. What he's talking about is a
spiritual union with him who accomplished all of these things
for his people. So he said he alone was that
substitute for sinners, that only his flesh and blood could
atone and not that of another. There was no other good enough,
says that Easter hymn, to pay the price of sin. He only could
unlock the gate of heaven. and let us in only him only his
flesh and blood could atone look at verses 54 to 58 carrying on from that you must
verse 54, whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal
life it's a now possession and I will raise him up at the last
day because of this vital union my flesh is meat indeed he's
talking about spiritual meat that sustains for eternity My
blood is drink indeed. That paying the price of sin
is spiritual food to us. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood dwelleth in me and I in him. As the Living Father hath
sent me and I live by the Father, so he that eateth me even he
shall live by me. This is the bread. He is the
bread which came down from heaven. It's not like that bread that
was given to the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years.
That manna, the name manna means, what is it? We don't know what
it is. It was that kind of white honeycomb stuff that appeared
on the ground for 40 years. He fed them with manna every
day, apart from the Sabbath day. Double on the Friday, ready for
the Sabbath on the Saturday, so that they didn't have to collect
it on the Sabbath day. Not as your fathers did eat manna.
And what was the end result of their eating manna? on which
the Jews put so much dependence they ate the manna and they're
dead they died and he means more than just physically they perished
in the wilderness you can look in uh... where is it, is it 1
Corinthians 10 or maybe it's 2 Corinthians 10 I'm not absolutely
sure and we won't waste time looking at that now but you see
that they're examples to us the Israelites are examples and many
of them perished in the wilderness many of them perished They didn't
drink of that spiritual rock that was Christ other than physically. And doing it just physically
was not enough for eternal spiritual life. He says, he that eateth
of this bread, meaning himself, shall live forever. These things
said he in the synagogue as he taught in Capernaum. And he also,
did you notice, he claimed to be God. He was claiming to be
God because he said, I am the bread of life. Moses came to
the burning bush and God spoke to him from the burning bush
and told him to go to Pharaoh to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites
go. And he said, who should I say
has sent me? And God said this to him, tell
them that I Am has sent you. I Am that I Am. That's the name
of God. That's the unique personal name
of God. I Am. I Am the bread of life. And in the Gospel of John there
are the several I Am sayings. I Am the door. I am the way,
the truth, and the life. All of those things. I am. He's
claiming deity. A claim to deity. Now the crowd,
this crowd, by contrast, they put their trust in their national
heritage as Jews. Oh, they were alright. They had
the traditions. They were Jews. They looked back
to Moses and the manna. Look at verse 31. After he's
told them that it is the work of God, that you believe on him
whom he hath sent that that's God's work to believe on him
whom he sent they then say well give us another miracle as if
they hadn't seen enough already and then in verse 31 they said
our fathers our forebears did eat manna in the desert in the
wilderness when they came out of Egypt as it is written he
gave them bread from heaven to eat then Jesus said unto them
verily verily I say unto you Moses gave you not that bread
from heaven because their implication was that it was Moses that had
given that bread, that manna from heaven to sustain the people.
He says no, it wasn't Moses, it was my father that gave that
and my father gives the true bread from heaven which is himself.
They were putting their trust in those things. They thought
that they were right with God already by virtue of their being
Jews, by virtue of their being descended from those people who'd
eaten manna in the wilderness. They thought they needed nothing
else. They thought they were already saved. They thought by
virtue of being born Jews, they were already right with God,
because of what God had done through Moses in the past. But
this man said no. No. This man said, this man,
ordinary man standing before them said, unless they had a
part in his work, unless he was their spiritual bread, They would
die as their forebears had done, even though they ate the manna.
Even though they ate the manna, it didn't save them spiritually.
And in the same way, he's saying, if that's all you're relying
on, you will die likewise. Look at verse 49. After he said
that he is the bread of life, he says, your fathers did eat
manna in the wilderness and are dead. They're dead. That eating
of manna in the wilderness was not able to save them. it was
just symbolical just the symbol wasn't able to save them they
ate the manna in the wilderness and they are dead well what was
their reaction you see these are words of eternal life these
are blessed words of eternal life that for the soul that knows
that it's under the judgment of God to see that there is one
who has perfectly come and paid the debt to know that in financial
terms you are in the most appalling debt, that your future, your
retirement is just a prospect of desperate poverty with no
possibility of any relief from that at all. And then to discover
that there's a benefactor that you didn't know about who's gone
down to the bank on your behalf and completely cleared your debts
and credited your account with all that you need. Oh, wow. What
a tremendous thing that would be. What a tremendous picture. You see, to some, it's the words
of eternal life. That there is one who is the
bread of life, who is able to save to the uttermost. But what
did they say? Look in verse 41. The Jews then
murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread. I am the bread
which came down from heaven. Who does he think he is? Verse
42, and they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose
father and mother we know? How is it then that he saith,
I came down from heaven? I mean, we've seen him do this
miracle. That was a pretty good trick. But look at him. He just
looks like an ordinary... We know him. We know him. We're
in Capernaum. Nazareth's only up the road.
You know Joseph and Mary, don't you, from Nazareth? This is Joseph
and Mary's lad. Who does he think he is, telling
us that he is the bread of life? This was their reaction. The
reaction of this crowd. Who does he think he is? They're
murmuring at him. Isn't this Jesus, the son of
Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it that he, this
ordinary looking man, is saying, I came down from heaven? How
is it that he is saying, in verse 52, that we must eat his flesh? The Jews then strove, verse 52,
among themselves, saying, how can this man give us his flesh
to eat? How can this man? We know him.
Mary and Joseph's lad. Who does He think He is? How
can He say we must have a spiritual part with Him otherwise we are
lost? Yes, He's an ordinary man. Yes,
look at Him. He's an ordinary man with no
comeliness that we should desire Him when we see Him. But look
at verse 62. Look at verse 62, what Jesus
says to them. He says in verse 61, He says,
does this offend you? Does this idea that I'm the only
Savior and you must be in Me, does that offend you? And verse
60 says, What, and if ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up
where He was before? What if you should see Me as
I really am? What if you should see Me as
I really am, the God of the universe? What if you should see Me like
that? You know, there are some that have seen Him like that.
In Isaiah chapter 6 and verse 1, Isaiah, in the year that King
Uzziah died, he went into the temple and there he saw the Lord.
And his train filled the temple. and he saw this magnificent vision
of the Lord Jesus Christ before he came to earth, of the Son
of God, of the second person of the Trinity. How do I know?
You just have to turn over a few pages in John's Gospel to chapter
12 and verse 41 where John says this, John 12
verse 41 he's talking about Jesus obviously
and he says in verse 41, these things said Isaiah things that
were written in Isaiah chapter 6. When he saw His, and you look
in the context, it's Jesus. When he saw Jesus' glory and
spake of Him. Isaiah was speaking of the Lord
Jesus Christ. It was Him that he saw. And you
know this one, that they said, how can this man give us His
flesh and blood to eat and drink? He said, what if you shall see
Him ascend where He was before? Look at Isaiah 45. The book of
Isaiah. chapter forty five and verse
twenty three I have sworn by myself says God
the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness and shall not
return that unto me every knee shall bow and every tongue shall
swear now turn over to Philippians chapter two and those verses
that you know well from Philippians chapter two and let's see who
it is to whom every knee shall bow let's see who it is Philippians
chapter two and verse ten that at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow of things in heaven and things in earth and things
under the earth and that every tongue should confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord Jesus Christ is Lord that this same Jesus is
Christ and Savior that He is Lord to the glory of God the
Father. What if you shall see this ordinary
looking man in his true glory, in his true person, in his office
as judge of all the earth? What if you shall see him like
that? That's the message. There's salvation in him and
him alone. Well, what's the offence of it? Why does it cause such offence? Why are those glorious, gracious
principles of salvation in a perfect substitute so offensive to so
many people because they are and I'll tell you in the days
in which we live and it's not just in these days because it's
been in every day there are so many who sound like the true
gospel who sound like they preach the true gospel but they're setting
about and they have an agenda which is seeking only to make
the truth of the gospel of Christ palatable to man in his natural
state you know when Stephen prayed about proclaiming the gospel
just simply and I wondered if anybody had go through their
mind that scripture in Titus of Paul adorn the doctrine of
God our Savior in all things that does not mean twist and
turn the doctrine of our God and Savior to make it appeal
to fleshly man you're wasting your time putting forward arguments
to try and get fallen flesh to believe the gospel. It's a work
of the Spirit of God or it's nothing else. It must be of the
Spirit of God alone. That adorning of the doctrine
of our God and Savior is in our behavior. Do nothing in our behavior
and the way we live and the fruit we bear that detracts from the
truth and the grace of the gospel that we proclaim. But why does
it cause such offense? When Paul writes to the Galatians,
in Galatians 5 and verse 11, he speaks of the offense of the
cross. The offense of the cross. What
is the offense? Why does the fact... it's coming
up to Easter and there'll be all sorts of sentimentality in
the media, no doubt. A lot less than they used to
be these days because the BBC probably feels that it has to
be fair to absolutely everybody and for every opportunity there
is to present any aspect of the Christian gospel, they'll feel
that they've got to balance it with some humanistic or other
false religion opposite to it. But why does it cause such offense?
Does it cause such offense? Surely it's not the message of
self-sacrificing love that causes offense, is it? Here's a man
who's dying for others. It's like saying that there's
been a shipwreck and there's a lifeboat and it's overflowing
with people and unless three or four of the people get out
of the lifeboat it's going to sink and they're all going to
drown. And so three or four of them, I'm doing this because
of the physics of Archimedes and you wouldn't believe it if
I only said one. So we'll say three or four of them say, we'll
sacrifice ourselves so that you will be in a lifeboat that will
be safe. And three or four of the men, we presume that the
days of chivalry and honor are still around us. And three or
four of the men climb out of the boat into the freezing water
and they allow themselves to drown, that that lifeboat might
be saved. You put that on in Hollywood.
Oh wow, the box office would have a whale of a time, wouldn't
it? People would be flocking to see this wonderful story of
self-sacrificing love, prepared to sacrifice themselves for the
love of others. So it clearly isn't. If you say
the gospel is that Christ died in the place of others, He shed
his blood that others might live. Oh, surely that isn't offensive,
is it? Surely not. No, no, no, no. Not that. nor
the injustice of Christ's crucifixion, because I think even the most
skeptical, if they believe the historical veracity of the crucifixion,
no, they're not offended by this, because it was clearly unjust.
Here was a good man, here was a good man who was grossly, unjustly,
tried in a jumped-up charge with false witnesses, and he was crucified,
this cruel death, quite unjustly. As the thief on the cross said
to the other one who mocked, he said, we're here justly, for
we receive the due reward of our sins, but this man has done
nothing amiss. No, it wouldn't be that that
causes offense. Maybe there's offense in this.
Oh yes, the human heart is offended by the fact that it itself cannot
save itself, but is entirely, the pride of the human heart
says, I can save myself. Yes, there's some offense in
that. But this is the main offense of this message. The main offense
of this message is this. Christ's death was not for everybody
that ever lived. Christ's death was for the elect
only. That is the message of the Scriptures.
As plainly as it can possibly be, page after page of the Scriptures,
this is the message of the Scriptures. Christ's death was for a specific
people, for the elect. And why? It has to be so. It must be so. It cannot be otherwise. Think of it. Use some logic. Think of it. If Christ paid the
sin debt of everyone, then nobody goes to hell. Nobody. God cannot
be just and send people to hell whose sins are already paid.
Romans 8.33 says this, Who shall lay anything to the charge of
God's elect? Who shall lay anything? Who shall
bring any charge that will stick in the court of God's justice
against God's elect? Why? Christ has already died
for His elect, not for everybody else. Oh yes, charges will stick
against the rest, but not against the elect of God. You read it,
didn't you, in Romans 11 verse 7. The election, what Israel
strove for by its own works, but didn't receive, the election
has accomplished. The election has achieved it.
and the rest were hardened, is what he says. This is particular
redemption. Particular redemption. It's what
we saw last week. It's the work of God. Verse 29,
it's the work of God that you believe. And verse 37, look at
these verses with me. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me. Who shall come to me? Who shall
come to Christ? All that the Father giveth me shall come to
me. They will come to Christ. Verse 39, this is the Father's
will which hath sent me that of all which He hath given me
I should lose nothing. All of those people whom the
Father gave to the Son before the beginning of time, He shouldn't
lose one of them, but should raise it up at the last day.
And this is the will of Him that sent me, that of everyone which
seeth the Son and believeth on Him may have everlasting life,
and I will raise him up at the last day." This is the message. This is the message of particular
redemption. Salvation of a specific, particular people is God's unalterable
will. and not one will be lost you
read that think of the parable of the the lost sheep in Luke
chapter 15 Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep there's a man
who has a hundred sheep and ninety-nine of them ninety-nine of them are
in the fold safe and doesn't need to worry about them they're
in the fold safe but there's one that's lost away alone in
danger of wolves and what does he do He's not satisfied with
99. He cannot be satisfied with 99. He must go and get the one that's
lost. The one missing sheep. He must go and get it. When that
valley of dry bones stands up on its feet a mighty army in
Ezekiel 37. I know I've used this many times.
Forgive me for using this illustration but you know when it comes to
the trooping of the colour on Horse Guards Parade on the first
weekend of June or whenever it is and you see all the ranks
of soldiers there Boy, it shows up if one of them's missing.
If there's a hole in the ranks, you can see that there's a hole
in the ranks. They're there in their ranks. This is the picture.
He will not lose one. And look at verse 44. No man
can come to me. No man can come to me except
the Father which has sent me draw him and I will raise him
up at the last day. Isn't that the plainest possible
statement about the eternal purposes of God? in election to save a
people. Now, verse 61. Does this offend you? It offends
lots of people. It probably offends you this
morning. You think it's grossly unfair. This isn't the gospel
that I was brought to believe. This is an unfair gospel. Surely
everyone should have an equal chance, shouldn't they? Surely
everyone has the capability, this is what Andrew Fuller taught,
everybody's got the capability of apprehending the presentation
of the gospel and therefore has a duty to believe it. And it's
duty faith that is preached because everybody's got the ability to
believe it. That's not what this book teaches.
That's not what this chapter teaches. And people think it's
grossly unfair. I'll tell you doctrinally, this
is the truth, doctrinally, we, you know, as in Adam all die,
as in Christ shall all his people be made alive, we all had our
chance in Adam, in the Garden of Eden, federally. and he failed
and nobody deserves other than the strict justice of God and
God is not obliged to save anyone this is the distinctive message
this is the distinctive message God is not obliged to save anyone
God would be just if nobody was saved because all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God but this is the gospel the
good news that God has graciously determined to save a multitude
of sinners from all nations. A multitude that is innumerable
to us, we can't count them. As unable as we are to count
the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore,
we are unable to count those in that multitude that the Father
gave to the Son before the beginning of time. But to Him, every single
one, a particular, absolutely certain number He foreknew."
Romans 8, 29. Whom He foreknew. Whom He foreknew. He also predestined to be conformed
to the image of His Son. He foreknew them. He didn't just
know that they would decide. He ordained that they would come
to the Son. And if He's a God of grace, in
amongst this message that offends so many, if He's a God of grace,
as we're going to sing in our final hymn, if free grace, why
not for me? In verse 37, Only those whom
the Father calls and gives to Him will come to Him. But Jesus
says this, He that comes I will in no wise cast out. He that
comes will in no wise cast out. Are you heavy and laden with
sin? Are you burdened with a dreadful
sense of the awful judgment of God and separation from Him?
Well, what does Jesus say? Come unto Me and I will give
you rest. The fact that you are so burdened
shows that God is working by His Spirit. So what is the difference? I've just got a few minutes left.
What is the difference? Why does some embrace this gospel
as the most glorious thing that you could ever imagine? And to
others, it's a hard saying from which they must flee. Or others
distort it to try to make it. They still claim to believe it,
but they distort it to try and make it appealing to others.
They line up all the arguments so that people don't have a problem
with creation and evolution in these days, and they line up
all their arguments for this thing and that thing and another
thing and they try to make it so appealing and so obvious and
so inoffensive and the offense of the cross is completely gone
because what goes is the offense of sovereign particular redemption. And that's the core of the gospel.
Sovereign particular redemption. Some see, others remain blind
to the truth. It's God who sovereignly decrees
it. It's grace that accomplishes
it. The election accomplishes it.
It's the greatest glory of God. Show me your glory, said Moses.
Exodus 33, 19. And God said to him, I will be
gracious. This is my glory. I will be gracious to whom I
will be gracious and have compassion on whom I'll have compassion.
We're naturally blind. More verses that I quote so often.
I hope you know them by heart. 1 Corinthians 2, 14. The natural
man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God. Neither
can he know them. for they're spiritually discerned
and without spiritual light you cannot see but God who said let
there be light in the beginning 2nd Corinthians 4 verse 6 has
shined in our hearts in the hearts of his people to give the light
of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ
who is it that makes the difference? 1 Corinthians 4 verse 7 what
makes you to differ from another? why do you glory in that which
you have only received and have not worked for? It's the election
of God that obtains it, as Romans 11 verse 7 says. The election
of God. Election sets the unchanging
purposes of God. Romans 9 and verse 11 says this,
that the purposes of God according to election might stand. So what
do we conclude? We conclude, well there's nothing
I can do to be saved. So I'm going to fatalistically
wait to see if I'm among the number of God's elect. And if
I am among the number of God's elect, He'll save me. And if
I'm not, He won't save me. And that's the end of it. I'll
sit back and do nothing. That's not the answer that Paul
gave to that Philippian jailer. You know what the Philippian
jailer said? He suddenly was faced with this dreadful knowledge
of the fact that he was due to die, he would die the justice
of his Roman bosses for letting the prisoners go and he was suddenly
faced with eternity and he was suddenly somehow in that moment
given such a sight of the justice of God and his sin and what the
justice of God must demand for his sin and he cried out to Paul
and to Silas, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? Ah, fatalistically
sit back and wait because there's nothing you can do. That wasn't
the answer they gave. The answer they gave was this.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved and anybody
else in your household. And if free grace, why not for
me? Let's sing that as our closing
hymn. It's on the other hymn sheet, the smaller
hymn sheet. Hark how the gospel trumpet sounds

A Savour of Life and Death

What does the Bible say about salvation and righteousness?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

How do we know Christ's atonement is effective for believers?

Why does the gospel cause offense?

What is the significance of calling God the 'Bread of Life'?

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A Savour of Life and Death

What does the Bible say about salvation and righteousness?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

How do we know Christ's atonement is effective for believers?

Why does the gospel cause offense?

What is the significance of calling God the 'Bread of Life'?

Sermon Transcript

About Allan Jellett

Comments

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