Would you turn with me back to
Romans chapter 11? Paul says in the last sentence
of verse 20, be not high-minded, arrogant, presuming upon the grace of God. Be not high-minded, but fear. For if God spared not the natural
branches, speaking of the Jews, take heed lest he also spare
not thee. I've entitled this message, Be
Not High-Minded, But Fear. Now someone may think, how do you reconcile those words
Take heed, lest he spare not thee, with the eternal security
of God's elect. How do you reconcile those two
statements? That God's elect are eternally
secure, and yet he turns around and says to these people, be
on your guard. Take heed, lest he spare not If my understanding of grace,
now listen real carefully, if my understanding of grace or
any doctrine of the scripture leads me to disregard the warnings
of scripture, I've not understood it right. I want you to chew on that for
a moment. If my understanding of grace,
oh, I'm thankful for salvation by grace, aren't you? So eternally
grateful for that. But if my understanding of grace
leads me to disregard the warnings of the scripture, like this,
take heed. Don't be high-minded, but fear. Take heed, lest you be not spared. If my understanding of scriptures
makes me disregard that and think, well, that's not really relevant
to me, I have misunderstood the scripture. Now let's back up
to verse 13 and see what led Paul to make this statement.
Paul says in verse 13 of Romans chapter 11, for I speak to you
Gentiles, remember Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. Inasmuch
as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office. If by any means I may provoke
to emulation, and that word means jealousy, them which are my flesh,
and might save some of them. Now Paul loved the Jews. He was a Jew, wasn't he? And
he said, brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for
Israel is that they might be saved. Oh, how he loved his kinsmen
according to the flesh. He said in Romans chapter nine,
I have great heaviness and sorrow in my heart, continual sorrow. He said, I could wish myself
curse from Christ. That's one of the most amazing
scriptures. He says, I would be willing to be damned if they
would be saved. Now, I don't even know what to
say about that verse of Scripture. But that's how much he loved
the Jews. And God had especially appointed
him to be the apostle to the Jews, to bring the gospel to
them. And he says, I want them to see
God's mercy to the Gentiles in such a way as it'll make them
jealous. And they'll want God's favor
toward them once again. That's what I desire for them.
I want to provoke them to emulation so some of them might be saved
when they call upon the name of the Lord. Verse 15, for if
the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world. Now
remember, at first, only the Jews had a revelation from God. God didn't speak to the Hittites
or the Amorites or the Jebusites or the Canaanites. There wasn't
any gospel for them. God spoke only to the Jews. But when he cast them away because
of their unbelief, the door of mercy was opened to the Gentiles.
God's ways are just past finding out. This ended up being the
way for me and you to hear the gospel. There was a time when
there was no gospel for me and you, but now there is through
the casting away of the Jews. For if the casting away of them
be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them
be but life from the dead? For verse 16, if the first fruit
be holy, The lump is also holy, and if the root be holy, so are
the branches. Now, when he's talking about
the first fruit here and the lump, he's talking about Abraham
and Isaac and Jacob, the first Jews. He said they're holy. Now, when he uses the word holy,
he's using it in the same sense that Paul used in 1 Corinthians
7. Would you turn with me there? 1 Corinthians 7. Hold your finger
there, Romans 11. We're coming right back there. Verse 13, And the woman which
hath a husband that believeth not, if he be pleased to dwell
with her, let her not leave him. For the unbelieving husband is
sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified
by the husband, else were your children unclean, but now are
they holy." That's not talking about the same holiness that
the believer has when he's born again. That means they're set
apart. They're sanctified. They were
unbelieving, yet they're set apart. They're consecrated. And
that's what the word means. It means more than being made
holy. It means set apart. And he's saying that the Jews,
the first Jews were set apart by God, and so the branches are
set apart by God. He's not talking about holiness
in the sense of the new nature that the believer possesses or
the holiness of God, because as we go on reading, these branches
are broken off. So obviously, all it's talking
about is them being set apart. Now let's go back to Romans chapter
11. For if the first fruit be holy,
the lump is also holy. And if the root be holy, so are
the branches. And if some, verse 17, if some
of the branches be broken off, that's talking about the unbelieving
Jews, and thou being a wild olive tree, this is talking about the
Gentiles, not cultivated, a wild olive tree, were graft in among
them. And if God has saved me or you,
he's graft us in. and with them partakest of the
root and fatness of the olive tree. You partake of the grace
of God. He says in verse 18, boast not
against the branches. Don't think because of some goodness
in you, you were grafted in. But if you boast, you bear not
the root, but the root thee. Now don't boast Don't think that you are grafted
in because of some goodness or merit or righteousness in you. Boast not. Don't take credit. Don't glory in something as if
God saved you because of something you did. Or he grafted you in
because of something you did. Don't boast. If you boast, you're
saying you hold up the root and not the root you. Now this thing
of boasting, there's something we are commanded to boast in
or glory in. Paul said, God forbid that I
should glory or boast save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, I am commanded to boast,
to glory, to rejoice in, to have confidence in the Christ. Not
in myself. Not in myself. Now, when Paul said, God forbid
that I should go, remember who this is speaking. It's Paul,
the apostle. It's the man that God used more
than any other man to expound the gospel. And he says, God
forbid that I glory in any of that, how God has used me. God
forbid that I should glory save in the cross. This is the only
thing I glory in. This is the only thing I have
confidence in, who Christ is and what he accomplished in my
behalf. And I don't glory in anything else. Paul said in Philippians
3.3, we are the circumcision. which worship God in the Spirit,
inspired by the Spirit of God. That's the only way there'll
be worship, is by the Spirit of God. And we rejoice in Christ
Jesus. And we have no confidence in
the flesh. Now that's what it is to worship
God in the Spirit. It's to rejoice only in Christ. and to have absolutely
no confidence in the flesh. My soul, I don't have any confidence
in my flesh, and I don't have any confidence in yours either.
But oh, how we rejoice in Christ Jesus. All boasting is excluded. If you boast in something you've
done, something's wrong with that picture. Don't you know
you haven't done anything to be saved, that you're saved by
the grace of God, that you're saved for Christ's sake? Don't
you know that? Would you boast? Look what he says in verse 19.
What I will say then, the branches were broken off that I might
be grafted in. Really? You are so special that
God got rid of the Jews so he might have you. Do you really
believe that? Do you believe that about yourself? Dabbled say, the branches were
broken off that I might be grafted in. Well, because of unbelief
they were broken off. They weren't broken off so much
that you might be grafted in, they were broken off because
of their own unbelief. Now understand this. If me and you are not saved,
it's all our fault. It's because of our unbelief. You can't say, well, I wasn't
saved because God wouldn't save me. No, you were not saved because
of your unbelief. It's all your fault. It's all my fault. It's because of my unbelief,
my failure to trust the Lord Jesus Christ. Now turn with me
for a moment to Hebrews chapter four. Hebrews chapter 4. Let's begin
reading in the last verse of chapter 3. So we see then they could not
enter in because of unbelief. They couldn't enter the promised
land because of unbelief. Let us therefore fear. There's that word again. Let
us who believe the gospel. Let us fear. Don't have a presumptuous
attitude. Don't have a fatalistic attitude.
Let us fear. Lest a promise being left us
of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short
of it. For unto us was the gospel preached as well as unto them,
but the word preached did not profit them. not being mixed
with faith in them that heard it. Now wouldn't it be horrible
for the word to be preached, God's word, God's gospel, and
to not profit me? Because there was no faith in
the hearing. Verse three, for we which have
believed do enter into rest. As he said, as I've sworn in
my wrath, they should not enter into my rest. Although the works
were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spake in
a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, and God did
rest the seventh day from all his works. They were finished.
And in this place again, if they shall enter into my rest, seeing
therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they
to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief,
Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, today,
after so long a time, as it's written, today, if you will hear
his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest,
then would he not afterwards have spoken of another day. There
remaineth therefore a rest, a Sabbath of rest to the people of God. Now, what did you do on the Sabbath
day? Nothing. No works at all. Works were forbidden. Now the Sabbath is given to teach
us something about what trusting Christ is. Works are forbidden. You look to Christ only. Let's
go on reading, verse 10. For he that's entered into his
rest has also, what's that next word? ceased from his own works as God did from his. When God
finished creation, what did he do? He rested. And it wasn't because he was
tired, it's because there was nothing left to do. He looked
at what he did and behold, it was very good. and he rested. And the believer looks to what
Christ did and he rests. There is absolutely nothing for
me to do. He did it all and I rest. Verse 11 Let us labor, therefore, to enter
into that rest. Want me to give you something
to do? Labor to enter into that rest. Rest. Don't you love that word
rest? lest any man fall after the same
example of unbelief. Now to hear the gospel of Christ,
of the Sabbath of rest, and to reject it, is to provoke the
wrath of God. They were cut off and rejected
because of their unbelief. Now go back to Romans chapter
11. Verse 19, thou would say then
the branches were broken off that I might be grafted in. Well,
because of unbelief, they were broken off. They would not rest
in Christ. And thou standest by faith. Thou standest by faith. There's one reason for my standing,
for your standing, if we stand. And that is faith in Christ. You see, we really believe that
His righteousness is the only righteousness we have, don't
we? We really believe that. We really
believe. We're really relying on this.
that when he said it is finished, my salvation was actually finished. We believe. That's what faith
is. Faith is believing something.
To him that worketh not, but believeth. On him that justifies
the ungodly. We believe that. Our standing
is by faith. We really believe that as He
is, as 1 John 4, 17 says, as He is, so are we in this world. Is He righteous? I am too. Is He holy? I am too. Is He pleasing to God? Oh yes,
He is. I am too. We really believe. Our standing is by faith. We
understand that our standing is not in our own strength, but
in what He did. Colossians 2, 9, and 10 says,
In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you
are complete, lacking absolutely nothing in Him. Now, we stand by faith, don't
we? We don't stand by works, we stand by faith. We look to
Christ and to Christ only. Paul put it this way in Philippians
chapter three, verse nine. Oh, that I may win Christ and
be found. in Him. Now does that become
old to you or is that the desire of your heart? Is that a scripture
you already know and you've gone on something else or is that
the very desire of your heart? Oh, that I may win Christ and
be found in Him so that when God comes looking for me, all
He sees is Jesus Christ. Everything that God requires
of me, He looks to His Son for. And you know everything that
God requires of me, I look to His Son for too. We stand by
faith, don't we? Not by our works, not by our
righteousness. You stand by faith. Now, verse 20, well, because
of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Now look at this command, and
this is a command. Be not high minded. but fear. Now this is where we
get in big trouble when we become high-minded. Be not high-minded. A higher view of ourselves than
we should have. Look over in Romans chapter 12,
verse 1. I beseech you, therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable
service. And be not conformed to this
world, but be ye transformed. by the renewing of your mind
that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect
will of God. For I say through the grace of
given unto me to every man that's among you." Here's the first
thing he said when he talked about proving what is that good
and acceptable and perfect will of God, not to think of himself
more highly than he ought to think. Be not high minded. Don't think of yourself more
highly than you ought to think. Well, how should I think about
myself? I want to know. How should I think about myself?
What should my true scriptural self-image be? What is it that
a believer thinks about himself? Well, Paul summarized it with
this statement in 1 Corinthians 15, verse 10. By the grace of God, I am what
I am. By the grace of God, I am elect. I'm chosen of God. And I know sure enough as I'm
standing here that that's my grace. The only reason he chose
me is because of His grace. I made reference to this last
week. We see someone in a fallen state, and we say, there go I
by the grace of God. No, that's me. That's me. Not the way I used
to be. I don't say, well, I used to
be. No. I'm justified. You know what
that means? That means I stand before God
without guilt. And that's by the grace of God. I'm a sinner. I say that with shame. I'm a
sinner. What's a sinner? He's the one
who does the sinning. I'm a sinner. Not, I used to be, I am a sinner. And it's only by the grace of
God that I know that. What a blessing it is when the
Lord teaches you that you are a sinner. How easy it is to trust
Christ for righteousness when you have none. It's easy that
way, isn't it? I'm redeemed. Redeemed. by the blood of Christ because
of grace. I am what I am by the grace of
God. I'm preserved. Lord's keeping me. And the only way I'm kept is
by the grace of God. The reason I have not fallen
away and made shipwreck of the faith and brought reproach upon
the name of Christ is because I'm kept and preserved by grace. Now, I am what I am by the grace
of God. Now, that's a biblical view of
yourself, not a high view of yourself. You can't think highly
of yourself like that, can you? It's impossible. You know who
you are, what you are, and what you would be, and what you will
be apart from the grace of God. I am what I am by the grace of
God. I trace all of my salvation to
the free grace of God. Now, Paul said in Romans chapter
11, The last sentence of verse 20, be not high-minded, but fear. Fear God. Fear being high-minded
and presumptuous and conceited. Fear being deceived. Fear turning
out to be a hypocrite. I fear that, don't you? When
the Lord says to that group who said, Lord, Lord, have we not
preached in your name and in your name, have we not cast out
demons? And in your name, have we not done many wonderful works? Then shall I say unto them, depart
from me, ye that work iniquity, I never do you. You know when
I hear stuff like that, you know what it does? Lord, save me. That'll be me if you don't do
something for me. Lord, save me by your grace.
You know, these warning of the scriptures makes a believer fall
at the feet of Christ and ask him for mercy. It doesn't cause
him to be presumptuous. It doesn't cause him to, no,
Lord, do something for me. Fear, fear God. I think of what our Lord said,
fear not him that killeth the body, and after that, that's
all he can do. Rather, fear him that after he's killed the body,
hath power to cast into hell. Yea, I say unto you, fear him. Now this is a command. This is
a command. Spoken of in the imperative.
This is not good advice. This is a command. Be not high-minded,
but fear. Now look at verse 21. For if God spared not the natural
branches, take heed, lest he spare not
thee. Now, the natural branches are
the Jews. They're the Israelites who would
not believe the gospel. They would not bow to Christ,
and God cut them off. They wouldn't come the way of
grace. They held on to their works, and God cut them off.
He did not spare them. Now, that's a strong statement.
He didn't spare them. You know, there's four times
in the Bible where we read these words, He spared not. He spared not the angels. We read about that in 2 Peter
chapter 2. He spared not the angels that left their first
estate. The fallen angels. The angels
that rebelled against Him. He didn't spare them. There was
not any mercy for them. He didn't spare them. And then we read of His not sparing the old world. He spared not the old world,
but saved Noah, the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness.
Now, there was a time where God looked upon the world. You can
read about it in Genesis chapter 6, verse 5. God saw the wickedness of man
was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually. The scripture says he didn't
spare them. He sent the flood and killed every single one of
them, with the exception of the eight people that were found
in the ark. He destroyed the entire world. You see, God's
not going to let sin go. He spared not the old world.
And here's the scripture that really hits me about this. He
spared not his own son. Now think of that. Don't think
that the Lord is going to spare sin because he spared not his
own son. When sin was found on his son, you know what God did? He didn't
spare him. Even though it was his son, he
did not spare him. But he gave him the full weight
of his wrath and his anger and his indignation against sin. He spared not his own son. And
he didn't spare the Jews, those who rejected his son. He didn't
spare them. Now you take heed, lest he spare not thee. He didn't spare the natural branches.
They're under the judgment of God for their unbelief. Take
heed, lest he spare not thee." Now, how does that hit you? How
does that hit you? You know, there are men in the
Scriptures, in the New Testament, we're given their names, who
made shipwreck concerning the faith. Hymenaeus and Philetus,
Demas, we're given the names of these men who began, but did
not continue. in the faith. Verse 21, take heed lest he also
spare not thee. And look what it says in verse
22. Behold, therefore, now this is again a command. He's commanding
us to behold this. Behold, therefore, the goodness
and the severity of God. On them which fell, severity. But toward thee, goodness, if
thou continue in his goodness, otherwise thou also shalt be
cut off. Now he says to behold the goodness
and the severity. of God. Now that word severity
means he'll give you the full weight of the law. It doesn't mean he punishes too
severely. It means he gives exactly what's
deserving. He said behold the severity of
God and behold the goodness of God. Now, the goodness of God. How kind How good has the Lord been to
you? Ephesians 4.32 says, Be ye kind,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's
sake hath forgiven. How good has the Lord been to
you? I wish I could speak of that
the way it ought to be spoken of, but I know this. I know this. If I'm not in hell, it's because
God's good to me. That's why. Behold the goodness
of God, the grace of God. And notice he says, Behold, therefore,
the goodness of the severity of God on them which fell severity,
but toward the goodness, if thou continue in his goodness, otherwise
thou shalt be cut off. Now, understand this. The Lord
is going to meet me and you on the ground we come. You come
the law route, you're gonna meet the severity of God. That's something me and you can't
handle. You come the grace route, and
he's gonna meet you right there. by his grace. Sheer, free, pure
grace. God is going to meet you on the
ground you want. But notice how he says, to thee,
goodness, if thou continue in his goodness. Paul said in Colossians 1.22
that we're holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight,
if we continue in the faith, grounded and settled, and be
not moved from the hope of the gospel." What is the hope of the gospel? It's very simple. Christ is all. That is the hope of the gospel. That Christ is all. He's all to God. He's all in
the Bible. He's all in salvation. And He's
all to me. He's all my hope. Christ is all. And by His grace, I'm not going
to be moved an inch from that. By His grace. I'm not going to
be moved from the hope of the gospel. I'm not looking anywhere
else. Christ is all. We're made partakers of Christ
if, the writer to the Hebrews said, if we hold the beginning
of our confidence. What's the beginning of my confidence?
When God first saved me, what was the beginning? When God first saved me, I knew
that all I had was Christ. I didn't have any experience
to look to. I didn't have any works to look to. I knew that
all I had was Christ. That's it, nothing else. It ain't changed. It ain't changed. We're made partakers of Christ
if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end. as you received Christ Jesus
the Lord. How'd you receive him? Empty handed, freely. Nothing in my hands I bring,
simply to thy cross I cling. As you receive Christ Jesus the
Lord, so walk ye in him. Now, like I said, if you go the
works route, God will meet you there, if that's
what you want, and you will run smack into the severity of God. And if by grace you come pleading
only Christ, that's where God's gonna meet you. Verse 23, he says, and they also,
if they abide not still in unbelief, these people who, and this gives
us such encouragement, these Jews who abide in unbelief, or
anybody else who abides in unbelief, And they also, if they abide
not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in, for God is able
to graft them in again. Aren't you happy for that word,
again? God's able to graft them in again.
I love this word, again. The Lord turned to them again. The Lord made himself known to
them again. They messed up, but he's gracious,
and he turns again. And here's the, God is able. God is able. With God, nothing
shall be impossible. God is able. Verse 24, for thou
art cut out of the olive tree, which is wild by nature. You
are a Gentile, no hope, uncultivated. And you were grafted contrary
to nature into a good olive tree. And don't you know that, you
know, you were grafted, that's in the passive tense. You know
that if you're saved, it's because God grafted you in. You know
it's his work. How much more shall these, which
be the natural branches, be grafted in their own olive tree. Oh,
Paul says, I want these Jews to come to a saving knowledge
of the Lord Jesus Christ. I want them to be grafted in.
They were broken off. I'd like to see them grafted
in again. Now, you know what that tells me? If our heart is
where it ought to be, we ought to greatly desire the salvation,
really, of everybody. of Jews? Somebody says there's
going to be a great revival, a million times of Jews? Maybe,
I don't know. Maybe. There's a lot in Romans
11 I don't understand, but there's a lot I do, too. And I know all
Israel shall be saved. He goes on to say that. We're
going to consider that next week. But I do know this. I want everybody
in this room, beginning here, to be saved by the grace of God.
And I want to preach the gospel to every creature. And we want
to see people saved, don't we? We want to see the broken off
branches grafted again. And we want to see those wild
branches brought in. Now, there are four things he
tells us to do. This is what I'm closing with
in this passage of scripture. He says, most not. Don't boast. Then the next thing he commands
us is to don't be high-minded. Don't have higher views of yourself
than you ought to have. Being able to say, I am what
I am by the grace of God. And then he says to fear. You
know, the fear of God is clean. It's the one thing that's clean,
fear. Don't be presumptuous. Don't
just take things for granted. Don't look upon the past. You
know, if I've got to look five minutes back for assurance, I'm
looking in the wrong place, aren't I? I'm to look to Christ only. Fear, fear presumption. And behold the goodness and the
severity of God. Be a blessing for us to do those
four things. Don't boast, don't be high-minded,
fear, and behold the goodness and the severity of God. Let's pray together. Lord, we ask in Christ's name
that you would give us the grace to boast only in Christ and to
never boast and find confidence in anything in our flesh. Lord, deliver us from being high-minded. Cause us to be lowly, poor in spirit. looking only
to thy Son. Lord, put thy fear in our hearts
that we won't depart from thee, but that we'll continue in the
faith. Lord, deliver us from presumption. And Lord, give us the grace to
behold thy goodness and thy severity. and to continue in thy goodness,
looking only to thy son. Now, Lord, bless this message
for the Lord's sake. In his name we pray, amen. Boy,
you got a closing in? 474, we'll stand and sing. As we sing the third verse,