The Believer's Confidence and Assurance

Q: What does the Bible say about the assurance of salvation?

The Bible assures believers of their salvation through God's unchanging love and redemption. The assurance of salvation is rooted in God's promises and His character. In Isaiah 43:1-13, God assures His people, referred to as Jacob and Israel, that they need not fear because He has redeemed them. This is further elaborated in the New Testament, where Romans 8:1 declares that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. The believer's confidence is not in their actions or decisions but in God's unchanging nature and His sovereign choice to save. As believers, we are reminded that our salvation is grounded in Christ's redemptive work, fulfilling the types and shadows of the Old Testament sacrificial system through His death and resurrection.

Q: How do we know that God loves us unconditionally?

God's unconditional love is exemplified in His choice to save His people before they did anything good or evil. The unconditional love of God is beautifully illustrated in His relationship with Jacob, where Scripture states that God loved Jacob even before he was born, demonstrating that this love is not based on our merits but solely on God's grace. Romans 9:11 tells us that God's purpose in election might stand, affirming that He chooses whom He will save according to His will and purpose. Moreover, 1 John 4:10 reminds us that God demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Thus, our assurance of God's love lies not in our performance but in His sovereign, unchanging character and the sacrificial love of Christ on our behalf.

Q: Why is the concept of being redeemed important for Christians?

Redemption signifies the believers' liberation from the curse of the law and their new identity in Christ. The concept of redemption is foundational for understanding the believer's identity and standing before God. In Isaiah 43:1, God declares, 'I have redeemed you,' which means He has delivered His people from the bondage of sin and the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13). This redemption is not accomplished by our own merit but through Christ's sacrificial death on the cross. It highlights our freedom from guilt and condemnation, affirming that we are now children of God and heirs according to His promise (Galatians 4:7). Embracing this truth encourages Christians to live in the light of their new identity as redeemed and beloved children of God, instilling hope and confidence in the face of trials and challenges.

Q: How do we find peace amidst life's trials as Christians?

Christians find peace through the assurance of God's presence and promises in the midst of trials. Amid life's challenges, Christians can find profound peace by resting in the promises of God, which assure us of His presence. Isaiah 43:2 states, 'When you pass through the waters, I will be with you,' indicating that God is not only aware of our struggles but actively accompanies us through them. This assurance is echoed in Romans 8:28, where we learn that all things work together for good to those who love God. Furthermore, knowing that God has redeemed us and calls us by name gives us confidence and hope, allowing us to face trials without fear, for our ultimate hope lies in His faithfulness. The believer's peace is anchored in trusting God’s sovereign plan and His everlasting love, giving us the strength to endure.

But who is Jacob? Who is the
Israel to whom he speaks here? Well, it's not national Israel. It's not the Jew, which is Abraham's
seed by natural generation. Now, please understand this.
In the Old Testament, there was a tabernacle. That tabernacle
was a type. That tabernacle had no saving
power. That tabernacle had no redeeming
power. That tabernacle was a type that
stood for many years as a picture, a symbol, a type of Christ Jesus. And there was a priest to it. But those priests never could
save. Those priests couldn't forgive
sin. Those priests couldn't put away sin. There were many of
them. They were men who were born and
lived a short time and died. And other men took their places.
They were men who offered sacrifices, the blood of animals, in a temporary
tabernacle. And that blood of animals couldn't
put away sin. But those things stood for several
years as types and as pictures of Christ the Lamb of God. But
these priests and these sacrifices were not effectual, had no saving
power. They served for a time. They're
gone. They're completely gone. Christ is our high priest. And
as Tom said in his reading of, in the book of Psalms there,
he said there was a mercy seat. Let me hide, let me have a refuge
in the shadow of thy wings. And that mercy seat covered the
ark. The ark was about so long and
so wide and so deep, it stood in the Holy of Holies. And over
that ark was the mercy seat. In it was the broken law, the
Ten Commandments, the tables of stone. And on either side
of that mercy seat were the cherubims, who stretched their wings over
the mercy seat. And that's under the shadow of
his wings, on the mercy seat. God said, I'll meet you at the
mercy seat. But there's no ark today, there's no mercy seat
in the Holy of Holies. Christ is our mercy seat. God
said to Paul, through Paul and Romans, I've set forth my son
as a mercy seat. And this tabernacle served its
day, these priests served their day, these sacrifices during
their day, and this mercy seat and ark is gone. It served its
day. Christ is the fulfillment of
all these things. Now the nation Israel, and I
know there are a lot of preachers and a lot of religious promoters
who continue to hold up national Israel and the Jew, and who knows
what God may have for the Jew in the future? I do not know.
But the Jewish nation Israel stood Just like that tabernacle,
as a type, as a picture of the church in the wilderness, of
the true Israel of God. That's right. That nation, Jacob,
Abraham, Isaac, that nation is no more guaranteed or given the
promises of God today than any nation you pick in the heart
of Africa. or Timbuktu. That's right now. What God has in the future, I
don't know. I'm not prepared to say. But
I'm simply saying they stood as a picture. And when God says
here, just say to the Lord, O Jacob and O Israel, you know to whom
he's speaking? He's speaking to that Israel
of God of whom that Israel in the Old Testament was a He's
speaking to the sons of Jacob. And you're looking square there
up in the eyes of one of them. Son of Jacob. And I'm looking
out there over many of the sons of Jacob. This is Israel. All
Israel shall be saved. All Israel. Now let me show you
that in the Word of God. Turn to, and hold that Isaiah
43. I'm coming back. But turn to
Romans 2. Now we need to make a point,
and then we need to to find where it declares that in the Word
of God. So in Romans 2, verse 28, what I'm saying, you understand
what I'm saying? National Israel has served its
day, it's served as a picture and a type of spiritual Israel. Most of those people didn't even
know God. Most of them perished in unbelief. In Romans 2, 28,
he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly, Neither is that circumcision
which is outward in the flesh, but he is a Jew, which is one
inwardly, who's been born of God, regenerated, been brought
to faith. And circumcision is not in the
flesh, it's in the heart, it's in the spirit, not in the letter,
whose praise is not of men, but of God. Now turn to Romans 9,
just right over a few pages of Romans 9. Verse 6, now listen
to it. You know, most of the nation,
Israel, rebelled against God, rejected His Word. They didn't
know God. He came unto His own, and His
own received Him not. Israel receives their King. Israel
crowns their King. True Israel. Look at Romans 9,
6. But not as though the Word of God had taken not a thing.
They're not all Israel, which are of Israel. Neither because
they are the seed of Abraham are they all children, but in
Isaac shall thy seed be called." Ishmael was the son of Abraham.
In Isaac shall the seed be called, not in Ishmael at all. That is,
they which are the children of the flesh. How plain can God
make this? These are not the children of
God. So when you gaze at your map
and look over and see, This nation over there fighting Syria and
Lebanon and Jordan and all the rest of them and all the preachers
are saying, we've got to get on their side, we've got to promote
them or we're going to come under the judgment of God. You just
say, just clearly, they that are the children of Abraham in
the flesh are not the children of God. They're not the children
of God. But the children of the promise
are counted for the sake. What promise? The promise he
gave to Christ, that he'd have a people. Turn to Galatians.
I want one or two other scriptures, and I'll nail this down here.
Galatians chapter 3. Galatians 3. Galatians chapter
3, verse 7. Listen. Know ye therefore, that
they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
Do you believe God? Israel didn't believe God. National
Israel did not believe God. Do you believe God? Then you
are a child of Abraham. Look at verse 20, 29. And if
you be Christ, if you are possessed by Christ, then are you Abraham's
seed. You are sons of Jacob, and your
children heirs according to his promise. Is that Galatians 6? Look at this one, Galatians 6,
14. Galatians 6, 14. Listen to this one. But God forbid
that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world.
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything. Anything. nor uncircumcision, but a new
creature. And as many as walk according
to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy upon whom? The Israel
of God." So, alright, who's speaking? The Lord God. Turn back to Isaiah
43. To whom is He speaking? Old Jacob,
Old Israel. But I'm telling you who that
is. That's sons of faith. You see, I could show you that
in many other places. Don't turn to these, because
you just listen as I quickly turn. Listen to what the Lord
says. Now, what he's doing is speaking
to all of his children of every tribe, kindred, nation, tongue
unto heaven who believe in Christ. He says in Malachi, just listen
to this, I am the Lord, Malachi 3.6, I change not. Therefore
you sons of Jacob are not concerned. You sons of Jacob. Jacob believed
God. Abraham believed God. And everybody
who believes God is a son of Abraham and a son of Jacob. Listen
to this in Jeremiah, chapter 31. Jeremiah 31, verse 11. Again, we're called Jacob. Jeremiah 31, 11. The Lord hath
redeemed Jacob. and ransomed him from the hand
of him that was stronger than he." Just one man? No, every
son of Jacob. Over here, you can turn to this
because it's just a page over where you are, Isaiah 44, verse
21. Listen to this, Isaiah 44, 21.
I'm showing you that the Lord's speaking to you and to me. So
many people have lost a lot of promises. from the Old Testament
because they keep referring these promises to national Israel. And they're not to unbelievers,
they're to believers. Isaiah 44, verse 21. Remember
these, O Jacob, Israel, thou art my servant. I have formed
thee, thou art my servant, O Israel. Thou shalt not be forgotten of
me. I have blotted out as a thick cloud thy transgressions, And
as a cloud thy sins return unto me, I have redeemed thee, I have
redeemed thee. Sing, O ye heavens, for the Lord
hath done it. Shout, ye lower parts of the
earth, break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every
tree, for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself
in Israel." That is not true of the Jewish nation by natural
generation. But it's true of every person
who believes. All right. Why do you suppose
he calls us sons of Jacob? The Lord that created thee, O
Jacob. The Lord that formed thee, O
Israel. Why do you suppose he calls us
sons of Jacob? Well, Jacob's a good type of
you and me. In the first place, God loved
him. God loved him. He said twice
in his word, Old Testament, New Testament, Jacob have a love,
Jacob have a love. Esau hated him. God loved him. And you love God because he loved
you. He loved you first. He loved
Jacob. Jacob didn't even know God. But
God, in another thing, God chose him. God came to his mother.
And the Lord said to Rebekah, she had twins in her womb, the
children not being born, neither having done any good or evil,
that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not
of works, but of him that called it. God said to Rebekah, the
elder shall serve the younger. Jacob have I loved, Esau have
I hated. So we're sons of Jacob. Here
it was love, not that we loved God, he loved us and sent his
son to be the perpetuation of our sin. God loved him, God chose
him. And one day, years later, God
crossed his path. God crossed his path and met
Jacob and revealed himself to him. Read about it sometime.
Old Jacob had messed up everything at home. He'd deceived his father,
he'd stolen his brother's birthright, he'd turned everybody against
him and he fled, fled from home and fled from his family and
going to another land and wandering out there in the wilderness and
lay down on the ground to sleep. And God appeared to him. And
God said, Jacob, I've loved you, I've chosen you. And God revealed,
now you remember that ladder up to heaven between the throne
of God and Jacob and the angels going back and forth? That's
Christ. The way God met Jacob. God revealed Himself to Jacob.
He said, I'm your God. You walk before me and I'll keep
you and bless you. That's right. God appeared to
Him. God blessed Him. God revealed Himself to Him.
And you know Jacob called that place what? Bethel. The house
of God. where I met the Lord. And God
crossed your path. That's right. You're one of His.
If He loved you, and if He chose you according to His own will,
one day you may be 50 years old. You may be 40. I don't know how
old Jacob was. I know he's old enough to know
better. I know he messed everything up
and everybody else up. God met him. God crossed his
path. And God crossed his path and
he didn't ask him to do anything. He told him what he was going
to do. He said, I'm going to be with you. You're mine. You're
mine. And I'm going to bless you. I'm
going to make your name great. I'm going to do it because you
can't do it. Look what you've done. And then fourthly, why
are we called sons of Jacob? God gave him a new name. God
gave him a new name. What does the word Jacob mean? supplanter, Jacob. He said, what's your name? Jacob.
You know, the Lord met him one night. This was after that when
God loved him from the foundation of the world with everlasting
love. God chose him. God met him on
his road of rebellion like he did Saul of Tarsus and revealed
himself to him. And then God came to him later.
One night when he was going to meet his brother Esau, the angel
of God. And I'll tell you who that is,
that's Christ. Because he asked the angel, what's your name?
And he said, my name's secret. Wonderful. And he wrestled with
him. Old Jacob held on. He said, I'm
not going to let you go. You bless me. He said, what's
your name? I bet old Jacob kind of gulped. Boy, Jacob, supplanter,
cheat. Your name shall be no longer
Jacob. But your name shall be what?
Israel. Israel. That's the first time
that name is given. Israel. Your name's Israel. I loved you. I chose you. I blessed you. I revealed myself
to you. And your name's Israel. What's
that mean? Prince of God. Son of God. And you know from then on, I'll
tell you another reason why we're called sons of Jacob. is from
then on God kept him and blessed him and ordered his steps and
took him to glory. So there, verse 1, who is speaking? The Lord God that created thee.
To whom is he speaking? Sons of Jacob, you and me. And what does he say? Two words,
fear not, fear not. Verse 5, look at verse 5 of this
chapter, fear not, fear not. Let me tell you something, if a man does not fear, now listen
to me, there's death, death is so mysterious, but I do know
this about it, it's the end of life on this earth. It's the
end of the days of grace and the days of mercy. It's the beginning
of eternity. There's death. It may come at
any moment. Then there's a judgment. God's
going to bring every idle word and every secret deed and everything
done in the darkness, God will bring to judgment. Every man's
going to give an account of himself to God. David said, Lord, don't
bring me into judgment with thee. If a man doesn't fear death and
doesn't fear judgment, and there's an eternity. I don't know a whole
lot about it. I do know Christ had a lot to
say about it. Eternal wrath, eternal condemnation,
eternal judgment, depart from me, I never knew you. Where the
worm dies not and the fire is not quenched. home of the fearful and abominable
and unbelieving. The man doesn't fear death and
judgment, standing in the presence of a holy God and eternity. I'd say this, now listen to me,
listen carefully. If anybody here has no fear,
no fear, no qualms, no anxiety about death, you're either, number
one, a fool. Or number two, are you ignorant? You're ignorant. A man doesn't
fear death and judgment and hell. He's either a fool, whistles
by the graveyard, you know, as if it weren't there, or he's
ignorant. Or thirdly, God has given him a reason not
to fear. I don't fear it, honestly. I
have some anxiety. I don't know how God will be
pleased to call me, and I know you feel the same way. But fear,
there's no judgment to them who are in Christ. There's no condemnation to them
in Christ. We don't have to fear death.
Paul didn't fear death. He said, to die is gain. That
doesn't sound like fear to me. Paul was no fool. Paul wasn't
ignorant. He had been to the third heaven.
But Paul had a reason not to fear death. And that's the reason I say here,
this is the believer's confidence here. He says, thus saith the
Lord, Jacob, sons of Jacob, Israel, you don't have to fear. You don't
have to fear. You can know what this is about
and you can know what's coming and what lies there and still
not fear. Why? Well, somebody may rush
in and say, well, I made my decision for Jesus. Well, I looked this
chapter over and I couldn't find your reason. Well, I was dreaming one night
and saw a bright light over my bed. I looked for that too and
I couldn't find it. Well, I've been a Baptist all
my life. My parents were Baptists and we stood for the truth. I
looked for that reason and I couldn't find it. Well, I was baptized and joined
the church and paid my tithes and kept the holy day. I couldn't
find that either. But I did find some reasons not
to fear. I'll give them to you. Listen.
Here's the first one. Oh, this fellow Jacob, I have
redeemed thee. Oh, man. That John, there she
is, isn't he? Don't have to be afraid. I've
redeemed thee. I've redeemed you from the curse
of the law. You see, the Scripture says,
Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all points of the law
to do them. But Christ hath redeemed us from
the curse of the law, being made a curse for us. So my debt's
paid. He's taken off me the curse of
the law. He's redeemed me. He's paid the
price. That's what redemption is. You
redeem something down at the palm shop, you buy it back, it's
yours. He said, I've redeemed you. And
then he said, listen, I've called you by name. I've called you
by name. That's what he said. I know my
sheep. I've called them by name. My sheep hear my voice. I know
them. I give them eternal life. I know my sheep. You see, it's
a divine call. I call, whom he foreknew, then
he also predestinated to be conformed to the image of God's Son, whom
he predestinated. He called. He called. How does God call his people?
He calls through the preaching of the gospel. He calls by his
Holy Spirit. He calls by revealing the gospel
to the heart. Don't listen for a voice. I tell you, if you hear a voice,
run from it, because God speaks through His Word. Don't listen. Look for a vision. Look to see
Christ revealed in the Word. Faith comes by hearing, hearing
by the Word of God. That's right. He calls by His
Word. He's begats by His Word. He calls by the Gospel. And I
tell you, if He takes this Gospel and calls you, He'll show you
in this Word who He is. That's what you said. He'll show
you in this Word who you are. He'll show you in this Word who
Christ is. He'll show you in this Word the
mercy that's reserved in Christ. He'll show you the grace in the
blood of Christ. He'll show you the victory of
Christ. He'll show you all those things, and He'll give you faith
to believe it. That's how He calls. That's how
he called. It's like a man said to me one
time, he said, I was in church for years, and then one day I
found myself listening. Like that man in Mexico said
to Milton, I've heard this message before, but today I heard it.
Do you know what he means? I know what he means. A lady
came to this church one time, several Sundays in a row, and
I shook hands with her at the door, and she said, you know,
this morning was the first sermon I've ever heard. I said, what
do you mean the first sermon you've ever heard? You've been
in church all your life. She said, I never heard anything. But it was preached. But she
said, I never heard. I heard today. Do you know what I'm talking
about? I heard. I heard God speak through His
Word. I heard. That's God calling. Believe me now, I'm telling you
the truth. And all you people here that know what I'm talking
about, isn't that true what I'm saying? You grew up in church,
you grew up in religion, you heard sermons, you whole home
you know, you slept through it, you wiggled through it, you did
it because you had to do it. But one day, man, I heard something. I heard the reality of God and
grace and truth and Christ. I heard it. And from then on,
I couldn't hear nothing. That's the reason people come
to you and say, why do you people sit there and listen to that same
guy preach 40 years? They're not listening to this
guy, they're listening to the Word of God. It doesn't make
any difference who's saying it. We could have closed the service
when Tom got through speaking a while ago. That was grace enough,
gospel enough. It's not who speaks, it's in
the flesh, it's God speaking. And if my voice is the only voice
you hear, you'll just mess you up. You've got to hear Him speak
through His preaching through His Word. Listen for God. I called
you. Now listen to verse 2. And when
you pass through the waters, I'll be with you. What waters
is this? Well, these are the waters of
trouble. Some of our dear friends are going through trouble right
now. Oh, sorrow and trouble, heartache. But He said, I'll
be with you now. I'll be with you. What waters
is he talking about? Well, through the rivers, the
river Jordan, crossed over Elijah, crossed over on dry land, and
God picked him up and took him to glory. I'll be with you when
you cross through the rivers and through the waters. And he
says, listen, they'll not overflow you. They're not going to destroy
you. Not like they did Pharaoh's army,
you'll walk through on dry land. Let me tell you something, my
dear believer. O Jacob, O Israel, I redeemed you, I called you
by name. When you come to that water of death, I'll be with
you. I won't have to cross Jordan
alone. I'm going to walk right through. The Lord is going to
take us through. And when you walk through the
fire, and the fire is sent to try us, sent to try us, that's
what Peter said about the fiery trials, you're not going to be
burned. When they cast the three Hebrew
children in the fire furnace, there was somebody else in there
with them. The fourth man likened to the Son of God. And they came
out of that furnace, and it was a furnace of fire, but they didn't
even smell fire on their garments. He kept them. And we're going
to walk through some fire, but you're not going to be burned.
The flame is not going to kindle upon thee. Why? I'll be with
you. You don't have to be afraid.
And listen. Why? I'm the Lord your God. The word Lord is Jehovah. I'm
the Lord your God. I'm your Savior. I'm the Holy
One of Israel, your Savior. I'm your Savior. I'm a just God
and a Savior. Look to me. He's the only Savior. There's not another Savior. I'm
the Lord, thy God, the Holy One of Israel, the Just One. God doesn't save His people by
hook or crook. He saves them by truth and justice. Like Tom Pooley a while ago,
mercy and truth, righteousness and peace. Those things, as far
as we're concerned, are as far apart as the poles. Just truth? Truth? Well, truth is, I'm a
sinner and ought to go to hell. Mercy is, mercy says, take him
to glory. Righteousness says, he's a sinner,
his garments are filthy rags. Peace says, give him a hope. How can that be done? How can
both truth and love and mercy meet together? At Calvary. where Christ took my place and
my sin, and God's truth is magnified, His mercy is applied, and His
righteousness is exalted, and His love is exalted. I'm your Savior. I gave Egypt
for your ransom, Ethiopian Seba for you. What is Egypt? Ethiopian Seba. They were enemies
of Israel. That's who imprisoned God's people
was Egypt. That's who put them in slavery.
That's who put them in bondage. Egypt kept them 400 years. But
Almighty God says, I'll deal with your enemies, and I'll sacrifice
all of them, rather than your being destroyed. He made a shambles
of Egypt. Just to show he could? No sir,
to redeem his people. Whatever, let me tell you something.
All things are yours. If you're Jacob, sons of Jacob,
if you're the Israel of God, if you've got an enemy, principalities,
powers, rulers of darkness, wherever, if you've got an enemy on this
earth, keeps you from your Lord, God will destroy them. That's
right. He'll destroy all your enemies
rather than seeing you destroyed. That's right. He said, I gave
Egypt and Ethiopia and Sheba, Jericho, keep naming them. God devastated them for His people. And that's a picture of what
He'll do. He'll deal with those who oppose His own. Listen to
verse 4. Why do you not fear? You're precious
in my sight. You're precious. You don't need
to fear. You're precious. And listen,
and you're honorable, you're valuable. Boy, we're not, nothing
much precious about us, is it? Not in ourselves. Nothing much
valuable or honorable about us in ourselves, but in Christ you're
precious. Precious to God. And He honored
you, you're honored. Who am I? A dead dog? No. Son of God. Honorable. In Christ. Listen, I've loved
you. I've loved you. I wish sometimes
you'd read the book of Hosea. Well, the first three chapters
are the main picture in Hosea. The strangest thing, God came to Hosea, one of his
prophets, and told him to go down and pick his wife in a nation
of prostitution. He calls it whoredom. What? He said, yeah, you go down and
marry one of those girls down there in this land of prostitution
and whoredom. Take her to yourself and marry
her. I want to show my people Israel how much I love them.
So he went down and married her. Young lady, 15 or 16 probably. She wasn't in the practice, but
she was of that nation. He married her. She had a son.
She had a daughter. and another one, and then she
went right out just like she was raised and did what she was
raised to do. She went right out into the worst
kind of life. Gave herself, sold herself, but
you know all the time she was doing that, Hosea took care of
her. He used to go up there where
she lived and put food out in front of her door. and clothing and things like
that. All the time she was living in that perversion, He was taking
care of her. And finally, she came down to
ruin. She just came to utter ruin.
Nobody wanted her. She was just cast out. They put
her on the block to sell her like a slave. And God came to
Hosea again and said, Go yet. You know what He said? Go yet.
and love that woman to show my love for the children of Israel. That's what it says. Listen.
The Lord said, Hosea, go yet and love the woman, yet an adulteress,
according to the love of God towards you, O Jacob and O Israel,
who look to other gods. So Hosea went down to the block. And he said, I bought her. I paid 15 pieces of silver for
his wife. He bought her. An omer of barley
and a half omer of barley. I bought her and brought her
home. Put you weak on that, can't you?
You and I were sons of Adam. God chose us and loved us even
before we sinned, before we had done any good or evil. Loved
us and chose us. And then we were born into this
world. And who'd we follow? God? No, we followed our mamas
and daddies. People around us. We sinned,
walked in iniquity. So what'd He do? We were on the
slave block. He came down here and bought
us. Not with silver and gold for my vain conversation, but
with the precious blood of Christ as a Lamb without spot or blemish.
He bought us, and He said, now come on home. Come on home. See, that's love. We don't know
very much about that. Don't cross anybody today, they'll
hate you till you die. That's right. Don't offend. Don't
offend. You're done if you do. But my
Lord's love is an everlasting love, an unchanging love. He
said, I'm the Lord, I change not, therefore you sons of Jacob
are not consumed. Read on, I've got to quit in
a minute, I've preached too long now. Verse 5, Fear not, I've
redeemed you, I called you, I'll be with you, I'm your Savior,
your precious Messiah, I love you. Where is my decision in
all this? There's no assurance in what
you've done. There's assurance in what He's
done. Listen. I'm with you and I'll bring your
seed from the east and I'll gather them from the west. When? When
He pleases. And I'll say to the north, give
them up. I'll say to the south, keep them not back. These are
my sheep and my seed from the four corners of the earth. Bring
my sons and my daughters from the ends of the earth. Even everyone
that's called by my name, I created him for my glory. I've formed
him, I've made him. You don't need to be afraid.
If you're one of his, that's the reason I say, like Peter,
make your calling and election sure. Don't try to go back and
find out when you got this and when you did that and when you
did something else. You look here and find out when
he did something. Read on. Bring forth the blind
people that have eyes and the deaf that have ears. Who is that? Well, that's you that had your
eyes open to see Christ and your ears open to hear the Word. He
said to Peter, blessed are your ears, they hear and your eyes
they see. Listen, let all the nations be gathered together
and let the people be assembled, all billions of them, everybody.
Who among them can declare this and show us former things? In
other words, he's saying, who can declare the end from the
beginning? That's what he's saying here.
Who can say? Listen to this. Who can say, you're mine before
you're mine? Who can say, I've called you
when you hadn't even been called yet? Who can say that there'll
be a multitude which no man can number when there's not anybody
there yet? The one that can make it happen.
That's right. The one that can make it happen.
Now he said, listen, you bring forth every human being on the
face of this earth and let them be assembled and let them declare
who among them can declare the end from the beginning. Who among?
Not one. Let them bring forth their witnesses. that they may
be justified if they can't declare the end from the beginning. If
not, let them say that what I say is the truth. That's right. If you can't declare the end
from the beginning, if your God can't, then you're going to have
to say, this is the truth. You're my witnesses, saith the
Lord, my servant whom I've chosen, that you may know and believe
and understand. Listen, we know that the Son
of God hath come and given us an understanding that we may
know God and believe Him, this is the true God, this is eternal
life. That you may know that the Son of God has come and has
given us understanding and that you may believe. That I'm He. I'm He. If you believe not that I'm He,
you'll die and you'll sin. That's what Christ said. Before
me there was no God formed, before me there was nothing formed of
God, neither shall there be after me." Listen, I, even I am the
Lord, beside me there is no Savior. I have declared, I have saved,
and I have showed it. When there was no strange God
among you, therefore you are my witnesses, saith the Lord,
that I am God. Now listen to the last verse.
before the day was, I'm He. And there's none that can deliver
out of my hand our work, and who's going to turn it back?
Shall all this be accomplished? Well, God said, I'll do it. I'll
work it. Who's going to change it? Who can condemn me? Who can separate me from the
love of Christ? Tribulation, distress, famine,
persecution. God said, I'll work and nobody
can turn it back. That's the believer's confidence.
That's the believer's firm assurance. I'm just convinced of it. The
more the days go by and the more I try to find out something about
God and about Christ and about the Word, the more persuaded
I am and right it, On my tombstone, salvation is of the Lord. That's right. And I'm glad. All right, Mike, come lead us
in a song, if you will.

The Believer's Confidence and Assurance

What does the Bible say about the assurance of salvation?

How do we know that God loves us unconditionally?

Why is the concept of being redeemed important for Christians?

How do we find peace amidst life's trials as Christians?

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The Believer's Confidence and Assurance

What does the Bible say about the assurance of salvation?

How do we know that God loves us unconditionally?

Why is the concept of being redeemed important for Christians?

How do we find peace amidst life's trials as Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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