I did choose thee, Lord, for,
Lord, that Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nyberg. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 1030 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
945 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nyvert. I want to speak this morning
on the way of salvation. We read in Acts chapter 4, verse
12, the Apostle Peter saying, neither is there salvation in
any other. For there is none other name
under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. Now in this verse of scripture,
and I think this is one of the most important verses of scripture
in all of the word of God, we have the word salvation and saved. What is the way of salvation? Now from this verse, we know
that God does save, and we know that we need saved. What is salvation? Now, in the context of this statement,
Peter had been speaking of the man who was lame from birth that
was miraculously healed, and he was using this as a platform
to preach the gospel. Verse 1 of chapter 4, And as
they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the
temple, and the Sadducees came upon them, being grieved that
they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection
from the dead. And they laid hands on them,
and put them in hold until the next day. They put them in jail.
For it was now eventide, howbeit many of them which heard the
word believed, and the number of the men was about five thousand."
Now, as usual, the religious leaders were grieved over what
Peter had said with regard to the healing of the lame man. They did not like what was said,
even though they knew this miraculous miracle had taken place. They weren't against the miracle.
They were against what Peter said regarding this miracle. The religious leaders were upset.
It was that way then, and it's this way now. You know, I must
confess that I hate religion. I hate most of what goes on under
the name of Christianity. It's insanity. And I'm embarrassed
to even be identified with it. But I'm not ashamed of the gospel.
I'm not ashamed of the gospel that Peter preached. I'm not
ashamed of the gospel of the scriptures. I don't expect religious
people to like the message of the gospel. They didn't then.
and they do not now. But they had Peter arrested for
what he had done. And in verse 5 and 6 we read,
And it came to pass on the morrow that their rulers, and elders,
and scribes, and Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John,
and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high
priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. Now it's interesting
There are two high priests in this tribunal. There's only supposed
to be one great high priest, and this lets us know how political
things have become. There are two high priests who
bring James and John before them, or Peter and John, and ask this
question. Verse seven, and when they had set them in the midst,
they asked, by what power Or by what name have you done this? Where is the authority? Who did
this? What authority do you have to
make these declarations? By what power, by what authority,
by what name have you done this? By what name have you healed
this man? Now, if I tell you to believe
something because I say to do it, you wouldn't have any reason
to believe it. Believe this because I said it. Well, that's no reason
to believe it. But if I say believe this because God said it, it's
in the teaching of the word of God. I'm coming in the name of
God. Well, that's a reason to believe.
And so they're asking Peter and John, give us a reason as to
how this man was healed. Who's gave you this authority
and by whose name do you do this? Now let's look at Peter's answer.
Verse day. Then Peter filled with the Holy
Ghost. Preaching is a supernatural thing. It's inspired by God the Holy
Spirit. And the only way a man can truly
preach is if he's inspired and filled by the Spirit of God.
And the only way you can truly hear is if God the Holy Spirit
enables you to hear with hearing ears. The Lord said, whosoever
hath ears to hear, let him hear. Not everybody does, only those
who the Holy Spirit has enabled to hear. Now, when Peter replied
to them, the scripture says he was filled with the Holy Ghost. And this is what someone sounds
like when they're filled with the Holy Ghost. Then Peter, filled
with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people,
and elders of Israel, If we this day be examined, put on trial,
is what he means, if we be put on trial, because of the good
deed done to this impotent man, this powerless man, By what means
he's made whole, and that word made whole is the word that's
generally translated saved. By what means he was saved. Verse 10, be it known unto you
all. Let me stop right there. Be it
known unto you all. This is the method of every preacher
who is inspired by the Holy Spirit. He's not trying to cover anything. Be it known unto you all. I want you to know this. I don't
want to hide this in any way. I want this to be known. Be it
known unto you all. And to all the people of Israel,
that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified,
whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand
here before you whole. Now this is what I want you to
know. It was by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. He's the
one who made this man whole, and it's by his sending and his
authority that I make this claim in his name. Now, Peter could
have said before this group, in the name of Jehovah, this
man was made whole, and it would have been true. He could have
said in the name of the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, in his name, this
man was made whole, and it would have been true. But it would
have been pure compromise. What he said would have been
true, but what he said would not have been the truth. It would
have been cowardly compromise. You see, he could have said,
Jehovah, or the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the
God of Jacob, and what he said was true, and he wouldn't get
in any trouble. He wouldn't be arrested. The
Sanhedrin and the religious rulers would have said, well, we agree
with that, that's fine, go on your way. If he would have said
that, it would have been a compromise of the gospel. Now understand
this, a false prophet is usually identified not by what he says,
but by what he doesn't say. It could be that everything he
says is true, but he never says the truth. I listen to men preach,
and I'll hear men say things like, Christ died for those who
believe. Now, under some contexts, I think
it's probably okay to make a statement like that. It depends on what
your motive is. If somebody says Christ died for those who believe
in order to keep from saying Christ died for the elect, Christ
died for the sheep, Christ died for the church, Christ died for
those God gave to him, if they say that in order to keep from
offending someone, what they've said is true, but they haven't
said the truth. That's not the way true preaching
works. True preaching, like Peter's
at this time, is be it known to you. Be it known to you that
the Bible is the Word of God. Now, I can't prove that to you,
but I can proclaim it. This book is either God's word
or it's no different than any other piece of human literature,
like Shakespeare or Milton, a great piece of literature. No, it claims
to be the word of God. All scripture is given by inspiration
of God. And if it's not the inerrant
word of God, it's just a human book like any other book, written
by sinful, fallible men. Now, I proclaim, be it known
unto you, This is the Word of God. I don't try to prove it
to you, but I do proclaim it to you. I proclaim, be it known
unto you, that God is, as the Bible declares Him to be, absolutely
sovereign, in control of everybody and everything. God is God. He is the cause of causes. He's the first cause. He does
everything for His own glory. Be it known to you that according
to the Bible, men are dead in sins, unable to do anything for
their salvation. Be it known unto you that before
time began, according to the scriptures, God elected a people,
a number which can't be added to or taken from, to be saved
before the foundation of the world. Be it known to you that
when Christ died, it was a successful death. He died for the elect,
those the Father gave Him, and He accomplished their salvation.
Be it known to you that God's grace saves. It's invincible. It's irresistible. It cannot
be thwarted. Be it known to you that everybody
that the Father elected and Christ died for and God the Holy Spirit
gives life to will persevere all the way to the end. Now that
is the way preaching is to be done. Be it known to you, not
speaking in code, not trying to keep from offending people.
Now I don't want to offend somebody by my personality. I'm sure I've
done it, but I don't want to. But I fear. preaching that doesn't
offend anyone. If it doesn't offend people,
it's not God's truth. Paul spoke of the offense of
the cross, and the gospel is offensive to the natural man
and woe be to the preacher that tries to remove the offense.
Peter said, be it known to you. And he didn't say that God the
Father did this or the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.
He didn't say Jehovah. He said Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, the one whom you crucified, the one whom
God raised from the dead. even by Him that this man stand
before you whole. I admire the way Peter preached. Now, let's go on reading. Verse
11, Peter says, This is the stone which was set at naught of you
builders. which is become the head of the
corner." Now, I have no doubt that Peter remembered the Lord
Jesus quoting this verse. It's a quotation from Psalm 118,
and the Lord quoted it at the end of one of his parables. He
said in Matthew 21, 42, this quotation from Psalm 118, Did you never read in the scriptures?
I love the way the Lord says that to the Pharisees. Of course
they'd read it, but he's kind of making a dig at them. You
may have read it, but you must have overlooked this. You must
have never heard this. Have you never read in the scriptures
the stone which the builders, the religious leaders, rejected? Said it not. Set aside. Said, I won't have this. The
same, the one they rejected, is become the head of the corner,
the cornerstone. This is the Lord's doing, and
it's marvelous in our eyes. Question. is the fact that the
Lord Jesus is rejected by this religious world, yet God made
him the headstone, the cornerstone, the only foundation. Do you see
this is the Lord's doing? This is God's work. Salvation
is of the Lord. And is it marvelous in your eyes? Now, Peter says to these people,
this is the stone. The Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus
Christ of Nazareth, this is the stone which was set at naught
of you builders. You saw no beauty in him, no
glory in him. which is become the head of the
corner. This is what God has done with
him. He's given him a name, which is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in things in heaven,
in things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father. He earned this name, the Father
gave him this name, Jesus. That's the name that gave this
man perfect soundness before you all. The Lord Jesus Christ,
the name which is above every name, the power. of His name. Now verse 12, here's the verse
I originally quoted, and remember the title of this message is
The Way of Salvation, verse 12. Neither is there salvation, talking
about the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Neither is there salvation
in any other For there is none other name under heaven given
among men whereby we must be saved." There is such a thing
as salvation. Peter said, neither is there
salvation in any other. Now, generally, when people think
about being saved, there's two things that come to their mind.
If I'm saved, that means, number one, I won't go to hell. And
number two, I'll go to heaven. That's what most people think
of when they think of salvation, not going to hell and going to
heaven. Now, that is not salvation. That's the result of salvation. If you are saved, you will not
go to hell. If you are saved, you will go to heaven and be
in the very presence of Christ. And what glories there is in
that to not be condemned and to be in heaven. I want that
desperately, but not going to hell and going to heaven is not
salvation. It's the results and the effects
of salvation. Now here's what salvation is.
In Luke chapter 18, we read of a man who was a publican. He was a Roman tax collector. Everybody hated them. They were
dishonest, sinful men. And he was in the back of the
temple, and he would not even lift up his eyes to heaven. He
beat on his breast, and here's what he said about himself. God
be merciful to me, thee, sinner." This man believed himself to
be the worst man alive. I am the sinner, and there's
nothing I can do about my sin." The word, have mercy, is literally
be propitious. Now this is a New Testament word.
And it's taught in the Old Testament as well. And the word means be
a sin removing sacrifice. Do something about my sin. I
can't do anything about my sin. If you leave me to myself, I'll
go to hell. Be merciful to me, be propitious
to me, the sinner. If there was ever a man that's
a sinner, I'm the one who fits that description. You know, I've
not met many sinners. I'd love to meet me one, and
I'd tell him the way of salvation. You see, Christ Jesus came into
the world to save sinners, Paul said, of whom I am chief. But
here we have this man beating on his breast, God be merciful
to me, the sinner. And the Lord Jesus Christ said
regarding that man, I say unto you, that man went down to his
house justified. rather than the other. The religious
man who thanked the Lord for all the good things he did and
did not do. He thanked the Lord for those
and he went down to his house in his sins. But this man who
was a sinner went down justified, cleared of all guilt. Now, salvation is God. taking the sinner and making
him justified, sanctified, and glorified. Salvation is God taking
the man whose righteousness is his filthy rags and making him
the very righteousness of God, justified. Salvation is taking
the proud, haughty religionists and making him to be the very
chief of sinners, needing God's mercy. Salvation is taking a
hater of God and turning him into a lover of God. It's changing
a man from saying, not thy will, but my will be done, to saying,
not my will, but thine being done. It's repentance, true repentance,
a true change of mind. Now, there is such a thing as
salvation. Somebody may ask, well, what
do we need to be saved from? That's a good question. What
do we need to be saved from? Let me give you three things
we need to be saved from. First, we need to be saved from
God. Now, when I talked about hell, remember, God is the one
who sends men to hell. Hell is because of the justice
of God. Hell is because of the character
of God. Hell is because of the righteousness of God. THERE IS
A PLACE CALLED HELL BECAUSE GOD IS HOLY. GOD IS JUST. GOD IS RIGHTEOUS. AND HE CAN'T
JUST LET SIN GO UNPUNISHED. WHAT WOULD WE THINK OF A JUDGE
IN OUR COURT SYSTEM WHO IF A MAN WAS GUILTY, HE SAID, WELL, I
FORGIVE YOU. GO ON. WELL, WE'D GET RID OF THAT JUDGE,
WOULDN'T WE? IF HE WOULD PUT THAT CRIMINAL BACK OUT ONTO SOCIETY,
HE WOULD BE DOING MUCH HURT. WELL, THE LORD IS MUCH MORE JUST
THAN WE ARE, AND HE IS NOT GOING TO LET SIN GO UNPUNISHED. I NEED
TO BE SAFE FROM GOD. You see, his character demands
the punishment of the offender. That's his character. He's God,
God of all. And I need to be safe from him.
The Lord put it this way. He says, be not afraid of them
that kill the body. And after that, there's no more
they can do. But I'll forewarn you whom you shall fear. Fear
him who, after he hath killed, hath power to cast into hell. Yea, I say unto you, fear him."
I need to be safe from God in a way that honors His justice
and vindicates His character. Secondly, I need to be safe from
myself. I'm the problem. Your sins have
separated you from your God, the Scripture says. Israel, thou
hast destroyed thyself. We read in Hosea, I am the problem. And if God doesn't do something
for me, I will not be saved. If he leaves me to myself, if
he just takes his hands off and leaves me to myself, I will not
be saved. I need God to do something for
me. I need him to give me faith.
I need him to give me repentance. I need him to give me a new heart.
I need Him to do something for me, because I need to be saved
from myself. If I'm left to myself, I will
not be saved. And thirdly, I need to be saved
from my sins. Matthew 121 says, Thou shalt
call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins. And notice how Peter states this
in a negative way. Verse 12, neither is there salvation
in any other. For there's none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby what we must be saved. Now, the
gospel is exclusive. The gospel is intolerant of all
other religions. Now, you can say there's truth
in all religions. You can say that if you want,
but the gospel, the Bible won't say that. It's intolerant of
all other religions. It's intolerant of all other
ways. It's the way of Christ alone, not Christ and. Christ
alone, not Christ and your free will. Christ alone, not Christ
and your evidences and good works. It's Christ alone, not Christ
and your baptism and church membership. It's Christ alone. It's not Christ
and your experience and the time that you remember when you were
saved. It's Christ alone. It's not Christ and you start
doing this and stop doing that. It's Christ alone. It's not Christ
and your efforts to live the Christian life and to suppress
sin. It is Christ alone. Now that thief was saved by Christ
alone. He was never baptized. He never gave a dime to the cause
of Christ. He couldn't have any good works done by his hands
because they were nailed to a tree. He was saved by Christ alone.
And Christ said to that thief, today thou shalt be with me in
paradise. Now, while it's stated in a negative
way, it declares a positive truth. There is salvation in Christ. Salvation from God in a way that
satisfies Him. Salvation from myself that does
something for me that enables me to do to believe, to repent,
to love, and salvation completely from sin because my sin was put
away. And don't miss this word, must. There's none other name given
under heaven among men whereby we must be saved. Salvation is not about what may
be. Salvation is about what must
be. If you're saved, your salvation is a divine necessity. God chose
you before time began. He purposed your salvation and
His will can't be thwarted. Christ died for your sins and
put them away and made it to where you have no sin. The justice
of God demands your salvation. You have no sin. God the Holy
Spirit has given you spiritual life, a life that cannot die.
You must be saved. The salvation of every sinner
that's saved is a divine necessity. There's none other name given
under heaven among men whereby we must be saved. Now, somebody says, how can I
be saved then? Well, that act question has been
asked before. The Philippian jailer said, sirs,
what must I do to be saved? Paul answered, not work, not
do, not straighten out your life, not turn over a new leaf, believe. on the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the Lord. He's Jesus, the
Savior. He's God's Christ, God's prophet,
God's priest, God's king. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved. That, my dear friends, is the
way of salvation. Now we have this message on DVD
and CD. If you call the church right
or email, This is Todd Knopper praying God will be pleased to
make Himself known to you. That's our prayer. Amen.