Turn back to Isaiah chapter 8. We'll turn to a few scriptures
this evening, but I want to read this passage one more time. Isaiah writes to the law and
to the testimony, if they speak not according to the Word, it's
because there's no light in them. Lord willing, I'd like for us
to look at a few questions this evening from God's Word. Questions that can only be answered
through His Word. You know, over the years, men
have taken, they just take like a the verse of scripture and
just turn it into something crazy, for lack of a better term. But God's word says in the mouth
of two or three witnesses, let every word be established. We need the truth of God's word,
not man's opinion, not man's ideas, but the truth of God's
word. And then when we look at these
questions, we need to ask this as well. Who gets the glory? Who gets the glory? Is it man
or is it God? If it's man, then we're looking
at the wrong thing. In Isaiah 42 verse 8, we read
this. I am the Lord. That is my name. In my glory will I not give. I'll not share it with another. There's questions that should
be avoided. That's hard to imagine, isn't it? Questions should be
avoided. Scripture's clear on that as well. Paul wrote this
to Timothy. He said, foolish and unlearned
questions avoid, knowing that they gender strife. Things that aren't clearly resolved
or revealed in God's Word are to be avoided. You know, the
scribes and Pharisees, they were masters at this. They would come
asking our Lord some kind of question, but it wasn't any desire
to seek the truth. It was a desire to try to catch
him up in something or to court favor with the people and to
turn the people against our Lord. 1 Peter 3 verse 15, we read, sanctify
the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer
to every man that asks you the reason of the hope that's in
you. Be ready to give an answer. And
he goes on to say, with meekness and with fear, not arguing, but
in humility. And you know we have every reason
to do that, don't we? To answer in humility, considering
what the Lord's been pleased to do for us and to do in us. Well, what are some of those
questions that must be answered? Answered according to scripture.
Answered at the mouth of two or three witnesses. Answered
in such a way that it gives God all the glory. I know there are
many, many questions, but I want us to look at six this evening. Six questions, six vital questions
that must be answered. not debated. These things aren't
up for debate. They're not even to be explained.
They're simply to be declared, and declared from God's Word.
And these will probably be familiar to many of you, but the first
one is this, is Almighty God, the God of the Bible, Is he totally
sovereign in salvation? He either is or he isn't. Is God sovereign in salvation? Now most folks will readily admit,
and I don't know if they'll accept it or not, but they'll go along
that God is sovereign in creation. Scripture says this, in the beginning
God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without
form and void and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And
the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters and God
said, let there be light. Any questions? as to what happened
when God spoke those words, when he said, let there be light. There's no doubt about that,
is there? God who is sovereign in creation, he's also sovereign
in providence, in ordering all things. He says, calling a ravenous
bird from the east, the man that executes my counsel from Far
country, yea, I have spoken it, I'll bring it to pass. He said,
I purposed it, I will do it. In Ephesians 1 verse 11, we read,
in whom we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated by him who
worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. Think about this, a sparrow, a worthless sparrow, you know
it doesn't fall to the ground. That sparrow can't fall to the
ground without it being the sovereign will of Almighty God. a worthless, a worthless, we
have no use for a sparrow, do we? He worketh all things after
the counsel of his own will. Sovereign in creation, sovereign
in providence, and almighty God is sovereign in salvation. Man says he wants to save. That's what man says. Man says
that God wants to save you. Man says if you will, he'll let you. If you will, he'll
save you. They'll even say this, that God
has a wonderful plan for your life. But I ask you, what do the Scriptures
say? What does God's Word say? In John 5, verse 21, it says
this, The Son quickeneth whom He will. The Son gives life to
whom He will. He doesn't ask man's permission. He quickeneth whom he will. He
gives life to whom he will. And what he says he'll do, that's what he'll do. That's
what Abraham believed. Abraham believed God that he
was able to do all that he promised. Moses asked God, he said, show
me your glory. Remember that back in Back in
Exodus, turn there with me to Exodus 33. Exodus chapter 33. And in verse
19, Exodus 33 verse 19, God spoke to Moses here. And he said, I'll make all my
goodness pass before thee. He said, I'll be gracious to
whom I'll be gracious. I'll show mercy to whom I'll
show mercy. My friends, salvation. Salvation
is of the Lord. It is all of Him. He told the children of Israel.
Moses told the children of Israel. Remember that when Pharaoh's
army was coming after them? And there they were. There they were at the Red Sea.
I often think of that. Can you imagine the fear that
must have filled their hearts? For a brief moment, in their
mind, they were delivered. And then all of a sudden, there
they are, up against the Red Sea. They look one direction, there's
the sea. They look the other direction,
and there's this mighty army of Pharaoh coming to destroy
them. Man would say, the religion of
this world would say, look around and Probably try to find a stick
or a stone or something to throw at this army, which would be
futile. Or maybe even jump in the Red
Sea and swim for the other side. What did Moses tell them? Fear not. Stand still. Stand still. Don't do a thing. God's going to deliver you. Stand
still and see the salvation of the Lord. What'd they do? They stood still. And what happened? God delivered
them. God delivered His people and
He destroyed the enemy. Salvation is of the Lord. Jonah, he said the same thing. He said, I'll sacrifice to thee
with the voice of thanksgiving. I'll pay that which I have vowed.
Salvation is of the Lord. Hebrews 7 verse 25 said, he is
able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by him. Second question, is man dead? Is man dead in trespasses and
sin? To answer that question, we have
to go all the way back to the garden. Remember that. I ask you, what happened there
in the garden? Did Adam stump his toe? Did he
trip over something or did he fall? Is he wounded or is he dead? Is man wounded or is he dead
in trespasses and sin? I believe I can say this. about
every one of us, everyone sitting in this building, including me
up here standing, anyone who might be listening to this message
at home, anybody who might listen to it later. This is true of
all. I can say this thing, absolutely
true. Whether man will admit it or
not, we all have one thing in common. We are all sinners. All, all dead in trespasses and
sin. Back there in the garden, God
gave Adam one command. He said, of every tree in the
garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil, don't eat of it. For in the day that you eat
thereof, Thou shalt surely die." Dead. Dead in trespasses and
sin. And we know what Adam did, didn't
he? Adam disobeyed God. He knowingly and willingly took
of that fruit and he ate of it. And the result of it was death. Spiritual death. Turn to Romans chapter 5. Romans 5 verse 12. Is this true that we fail? Is that true of all of us? Does that apply to me? Maybe
you think, well, Adam did that. That's on him, not me. I'm no
sinner. In fact, by most standards, I'm
a pretty decent person, right? Romans 5.12, wherefore, as by
one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin. So death passed upon all men."
And here it is, all have sinned. Did you hear that? All have sinned. When Adam sinned and fell, we
sinned and we fell in him. And the result of that sin is
death, spiritual death, physical death, darkness, disease, enmity
with God. We're sinners, sinners by birth. Those of you who have young children,
and even if you don't, we were all children at one point, weren't
we? Our parents taught us to do things,
taught us to walk, taught us to ride a bicycle, taught us
to maybe use a fork or a spoon. But there is one thing they did
not have to teach us. One thing our parents did not
have to teach us. It's there naturally. Nobody taught us to lie, did
they? Nobody taught us to sin. You just picture that little
one there with crumbs all over their face. And you say, who
ate that? Did you eat that cookie? And
what did they say? What did we say? No. Huh? Wasn't me. Sinners. Born sinners. Sinners by choice. Sinners by
practice. Listen, it's who and what we
are. Romans 3 verse 23, and here's
this word all again, it says, for all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God. Romans 3.10, it says, there is
none righteous. And naturally when we hear that,
what do we ask? None? Surely there's got to be
one, doesn't there? He anticipated that question.
He said, there's none righteous. And before we could get that
question out of our mouth, he says, no, not one. We're dead. Dead in trespasses
and sin. Here's the third question. Did
God elect a people in Christ? Elect, that's such a small word,
but boy, it can get people stirred up, can it? Especially in religious
circles. Did God elect a people in Christ? Now that upsets the natural man. But listen, a God who is sovereign
in salvation, a God who orders and directs all things, a man
who is completely dead and trespasses and sins, a God who elected a
people unto himself. Scripture says, for whom he did
foreknow, he did predestinate, to be conformed to the image
of his son. God has a people he's going to
make just like his son. Scripture says that those he
predestinated, he called. And those he called, he justified. And those he justified, he glorified. Paul writing to the Thessalonians
in 2 Thessalonians 2.13, he said, We're bound to give thanks to
you, brethren, beloved of the Lord. Why? Why was he bound to give thanks
for them? Is it because God, after they
had made a decision to follow Him, did something for them?
No. What does Scripture say? God
hath from the beginning, chosen you to salvation through sanctification
of the spirit and belief of the truth. Man says God looked down
and he saw those that would be righteous and those who wouldn't. He looked down and he saw those
that would obey him and those who would not. Those that would
do some good works and those that would not. I ask you, is
that what he did? Is that what he did? These men
that say these things, they pretend like they're speaking from God.
They need to spend a little time in the Scriptures, looking at
what God's Word says. What does God's Word say? You
know, I find the older I get, the less interest I have in what
man has to say. And that's probably true of about
all topics. What do the scriptures say? Turn
with me to Psalm 53. Psalm 53, beginning with verse
two. of Psalm 53. God did look down
from heaven. We see that, right? God looked
down from heaven upon the children of men to see if there were any
that did understand. If there were any that did seek
after God. And what did he see? Look at
verse 3. Every one of them. We could put
that word all in there again, couldn't we? Every one of them
is going back. They are together become filthy. And here it is again, there is
none that doeth good, no, not one. Another scripture we read
this, Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated." Does that make
God unrighteous? God forbid. God forbid. Before Jacob or Esau were ever
born, they hadn't done anything good, they hadn't done anything
evil. For what purpose? That the purpose
of God according to election might stand. not of works, not
of works, but of him that calleth." God has an elect people. That's clear in Scripture. Chosen
in Christ from before the foundation of the world, that they should
be holy and without blame before him in love. Fourth question. Is Christ's blood sufficient? Is Christ's blood sufficient?
Did it get the job done? Again, man says foolish things.
They say things like God cast His vote and the devil cast his
vote and now it's up to you. I ask you, where is that? Where
is that found in Scripture? These things that men say, where? Where are they found in God's
Word? They're not. They're not. They say He's done all He can
do, now it's up to you. You know, there's a lot of serious
problems with a statement like that. But for sake of time, let
me just give you a couple. Our Lord's speaking to a group
of Jews there, and John, he said this, you will not come to me. You will not come to me that
you might have life. When our Lord was crucified,
and Pilate came out there and he said, who should I release
to you? Should I release the Lord Jesus
Christ or should I release Barabbas? Lord, don't leave me. Please
don't leave me to my so-called free will. When the people, what
do they ask for? Give us Barabbas. Crucify Him. If I'm left to my will, if I'm
left to my choice, I'll do the same thing. There's a way that
seems right unto man and the ways therein are death. You will not come unto me that
you might have life. And here's another problem. What
happens when you give a dead man a choice? A dead man can't do anything.
A dead man can't make a choice. And that's what we are by nature,
dead in trespasses and sin. But scripture says this, listen,
He is able to save to the uttermost. We read that just a little bit
ago. Able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by Him. Scripture says the blood of Jesus
Christ, His Son, the blood of Jesus Christ, His only begotten
Son, God's Son, that blood cleanses us from all sin. The sins of the believer have
been taken away. He said, I lay down my life for
the sheep. That song, the chorus of it,
the vilest offender who truly believes, that moment, at that
very moment, a pardon, a pardon receives. Saul of Tarsus, what
a wicked man. And he was going about imprisoning
folks and those that preach the word, those that believe the
word. He was a self-righteous Pharisee. Remember that poor woman in John
8? That one that the scribes and
Pharisees had brought before the Lord? And they said, this
woman was taken in the very act of adultery. They said, the law of Moses says,
stone her. What say ye? What a horrible, what a horrible
place to be in. Any sin for that matter. But
again, this woman had been taken in the very act of adultery. And that group of men, they drug
her. Isn't that, they drug her and
they said the law said stone her. Is the blood of Christ sufficient
to save her? Our Lord said this, He said to
these men, He that is without sin, let him cast the first stone. And they all just left. And when
the Lord Jesus lifted up Himself and He saw none but the woman,
Oh, think about that. Savior and the sinner. That's
it. When he saw none but the woman,
he said to her, where are thine accusers? And she said, no man. No man has condemned me. And
listen, standing before the Lord of glories, no doubt she knew
her sin. Our Lord knows all things. And
he says these words, neither do I condemn thee. Go and sin
no more. Oh, what joy, what joy must have
filled her heart. No doubt she thought she was
going to be stoned. And now she walks away free. I ask you, has the Lord, has
he spoke the same to you? Is Christ's blood sufficient? Did it get the job done? God's
word declares there is therefore now no condemnation to them that
are in Christ Jesus. He is dependent on me for nothing. That gives me great comfort.
dependent on me for nothing, nothing, nothing in my hands
I bring, simply to thy cross I cling." Hebrews 1 verse 3 said,
when he had by himself purged our sins, he sat down on the
right hand of the majesty on high. All for whom he died shall
be saved. Fifth, Does the Holy Spirit regenerate
and call God's elect? Psalm 110 verse 3, we read, thy
people shall be willing in the day of thy power. He makes his people willing. You know, with those two thieves
that hung on each side of the cross of our Lord, They were
both guilty. They were both deserving of death. They both mocked the Lord. They
both questioned His power, questioned who He was. But you know, at
some point, something happened to one of them. At some point
during that day, as those men hung on the cross, something
happened. And as one questioned and said,
if thou be the Christ, save thyself and us, The other one said, don't
you fear God knowing that we're in the same condemnation and
we indeed justly. We're going to receive the due
reward of our deeds. We're going to get what we deserve.
But this man, he had done nothing amiss. This man has done nothing wrong.
And then he looked. He looked. to the Lord Jesus
Christ. You know, our Lord had been beaten
and scourged like no man ever has been or will be. And it is very likely that by
the natural eye, he was unrecognizable from what
he had suffered. Isaiah said this, he said, His
visage was marred more than any man, more than the sons of men. And yet that thief was given
an eye of faith to see Him, to know Him. The Lord Jesus Christ
in mercy revealed Himself to that man. And this was his cry,
Lord, remember me. When you come into your kingdom,
remember me. He sees the Lord and he is made
willing. You know, every one of his people
that he's pleased to save, he makes them willing. When? In the day of his power. Well, here's the last question.
Question six. Will all of his elect persevere? Turn with me to John chapter
6. John chapter 6. Verse 39. And again, these are the words of
our Lord here. Look at verse 39. He says, This is the Father's
will which hath sent me, that of all
which He hath given me, of all which he hath given me, I should
lose nothing." I'm not going to lose one, but raise it up
again at the last day. Will all of his elect persevere? Here our Lord declares it to
be the sovereign will of his Father. the sovereign will of God that
elected His people. Everyone elected by the Father,
everyone redeemed by the Son, everyone of His sheep called
by the Spirit of God will be raised from the grave to eternal glory. And not one, Do you ever think, well, if there
was one to be lost, it would be me? Lord, you don't know how, we
tell ourselves this, right? He knows all things. Lord, you
don't know the wickedness of my heart. You don't know how
wicked I am, how sinful I am. What's he say? Not one. not one is going to be lost. Our salvation, our peace, our
comfort, our hope is this. Almighty God is sovereign in
salvation. Almighty God elected a people
unto himself. His son, the Lord Jesus Christ,
shed His blood for His people on the cross. The Spirit of God comes and regenerates
and gives life to a dead sinner. And not one of them, not one
of them will be lost. I pray the Lord would be pleased
to reveal us Reveal His Word to us. Reveal His Son to us through
His Word, through the Scripture to comfort, to give rest, and
give us a reason for great hope. In knowing this, it's all of
Him. All of Him. Salvation is of the
Lord. All right.