The Hope of the Gospel

If you have a Bible, I'd like
for you to open it to Colossians chapter 1. I'm going to be speaking
today on the subject, the hope of the gospel. The hope of the
gospel. And our text will be taken from
Colossians chapter 1, verse 19 through 23. Now, if you will
follow along while I read the scripture now. And while you're
finding the scripture, I'll remind you that this message can be
obtained on a cassette tape. I'll tell you at the end of the
program how to get the tape. But now let's read from Colossians
1, verse 19, the hope of the gospel. In verse 19, Paul declares,
it pleased God, it pleased the Father, that in Christ Jesus
should all fullness dwell. In other words, all the fullness
of deity is in Jesus Christ, for he's equal with God. He thought
it not robbery to be equal with God. He said, I and the Father
one, and he is God manifest in the flesh. Isaiah said, call
his name Emmanuel, God with us. So in Christ dwelleth all the
fullness of deity, not only deity, but all the fullness of glory.
The very glory of God, that which is God's alone, His glory, is
revealed in the face of Jesus Christ. The very glory of God
is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. All the fullness of God's
glory. And then all the fullness of
His grace. The law came through Moses. Grace and truth came by Jesus
Christ. He is the grace of God. All the fullness of God's grace
and mercy and love is in Jesus Christ. And beside that, the
fullness of his wisdom, because he's called the wisdom of God. The fullness of God's righteousness,
because he is the very righteousness of God. And the fullness of eternal
life is in Jesus Christ, because he that hath the Son hath eternal
life. So verse 19 is rich. Paul says, it pleased God. It
was according to the will of the Father that in Jesus Christ
should all fullness, Christ is all and in all, and all fullness
dwells in him. Now look at the next verse, verse
20. And having made peace through
the blood of his cross, he reconciled all things unto himself. in heaven
and earth. In other words, all believers
who were then in heaven when he died and who were then on
earth, Moses was already in heaven, Isaiah was already in heaven,
the disciples were still on earth. You and I had not been born.
But Jesus Christ, by the blood of his cross, reconciled, when
he died, all believers to God, whether they were already in
heaven or whether they were on the earth. He redeemed them He
forgave them of all their sins by the sacrifice of himself.
He put away all their transgressions. Paul writing about this in Romans
3 says, we're freely and fully justified by his grace through
the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. And Peter wrote, we are
not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold,
but with the precious blood of Christ as a lamb without spot
and without blemish. So by the sacrifice of himself,
he reconciled us to God by his blood, justifying us freely,
making us accepted in himself. Now verse 21. Verse 21 says,
and you, now Paul's writing here to the Gentiles, and you Gentiles,
you pagans, you idolaters, You who were alienated from God.
In other words, we were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel.
We didn't have any part in the promises to the fathers. But
we were alienated from God and we were enemies by our wicked
works. Romans chapter 1 describes us. Pagan, idolaters, will-worshippers. We were alienated from God. We
were enemies of God. And yet, hath he now. It's a present blessing. Has
he now reconciled you in Christ? You're made sons of God, from
an enemy to a very child of God, from a pagan to an heir of righteousness,
from an idolater to one accepted in the beloved. Think about that.
How did he reconcile us? How did he redeem us? It says
in verse 22, listen, in the body of his flesh, through death,
Christ, our representative, lived to give us a perfect righteousness
and died to give us acceptance before the justice of Almighty
God. Isaiah said He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was
upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. Already, right
now, at the now, do you hear that? In the body of his flesh,
he hath now reconciled us to God. Now, what's the result of
this? What's the result of Christ's
all-fullness dwelling in him? What's the result of his perfect
life? What's the result of his sacrificial death? Listen, verse
22. And he will present us holy,
unblameable, and unreprovable in God's sight. He will present
us. And you Gentiles, pagans, enemies
of God, alienated from God, enemies in your minds, idolaters, yet
has He now, through the blood of His cross, through the death
of His Son, reconciled you to God and given you peace. And not only that, but made you
who were unholy, holy. Made you who were so chargeable,
unblameable. made you unreprovable in his
sight. Jude said, he will keep us from
falling, and he will present us faultless, absolutely faultless
before the presence of his glory. You know what he's saying here?
He's saying that every true believer in Jesus Christ is perfect, perfect
in the sight of God, perfect before God. He is saying that
every true believer in Jesus Christ is actually sanctified,
sanctified completely. Every true believer in Jesus
Christ is right now, having been reconciled by the death of His
Son, having received peace from God through the blood of His
cross, every believer is truly accepted before God, faultless,
holy, without blame. They must be or God could not
accept them at all. Now then, look at the next verse.
What is the evidence? Now these are marvelous promises.
In Christ dwelleth all the fullness of God, and he hath reconciled
us to God in the body of his flesh on the cross. He has made
peace with God through the blood of his cross, that he might present
us holy, unblameable, unreprovable in almighty God's sight. Well,
what is the evidence? What is the proof that a man
is truly in Christ, that he's truly a recipient of these mercies,
that he is among those who are justified and sanctified and
accepted? Verse 23. And here's my text. If, there's the big word, if,
if, he will present you holy, he will present you unblameable,
He will present you unreprovable in God's sight if, if, if you
continue in the faith of Jesus Christ, grounded and settled,
and be not moved away for any reason from the hope of the gospel
of His Son. There it is. There's the evidence.
And there's the proof, if, if, if you continue. Now, to continue
in the faith, you've got to be in the faith. And if you're truly
in the faith, you'll continue in the faith. John said, if they
had been of us, they no doubt would have continued with us.
But it is evident from the fact that they left us that they never
were of us. So those who are holy, unblameable,
unreprovable, and faultless, and reconciled, and justified,
and accepted in Jesus Christ are those who, by the grace of
God, believe on Christ, trust in Christ, rest in Christ, and
continue in Christ, and die in the faith. That's what this is
saying. In the body of his flesh he hath reconciled you, and he
will present you holy, perfectly holy. perfectly righteous, unblameable,
unreprovable, in God Almighty's own sight, if you continue in
the faith, grounded and settled, firmly established, rooted, and
be not moved away for any reason from the hope of the gospel.
In the light of that, preacher, I have some questions for you,
all right? Go ahead and ask them. Well,
Preacher, do you believe that all of those people who are walking
the aisle today in these huge meetings, in these emotional
services, making professions, going to the front, signing cards,
going to the inquiry room, do you believe these people are
saved? Do you believe these people really know God? No, sir, I do
not. I do not. Well, don't you believe
that the majority of church members across this country, they're
people who've been sprinkled, and they've been baptized, and
they've been brought into the church, and they've been pressured
into membership, and they've joined by proxy, and moved their
letters, and they're on the church road. Don't you believe those
people are saved and they know God? No, sir, I do not. I do not. Well, why do you say
that, preacher? That's a serious charge. I know
it is indeed a serious charge. But I'm here to tell you, and
I've just got through reading it to you from the Scriptures,
this thing of salvation is not professing religion. It's not
joining a church. This thing of salvation and eternal
life is knowing God, knowing God by faith in Jesus Christ,
and it's continuing. in that knowledge of God, and
in that faith of Christ Jesus, and in that walk of faith, and
in that hope of the gospel. It's a continuance. Where do
you see any perseverance today? Where do you see any continuing
today? Most churches are just constant
turnovers, turnovers. It's almost like the average
vacation land, people coming and people going all the time.
But true believers don't come and go, they come and stay. True
believers don't come, believe, and leave. They believe and stay.
That's what he's saying here. He hath reconciled you. He will
present you holy, unblameable, unreprovable, if, if you continue
in the faith, grounded and settled, like a rock, for we are built
on a rock, grounded and settled, and be not moved away for any
reason. from the hope of the gospel.
You see, this thing of salvation is not a new profession, it's
a new creature. A new creature in Christ Jesus.
There's a heart work. It's a new nature. It's the nature
of God. God said, I'll take away the
stony heart and give you a heart of flesh. It's a new life. Our Lord said, those who know
Him will have within them a well of living water springing up
into everlasting life. It's a new way. It's a new family. Listen to the Scriptures. Would
you listen to God's Word? Our Lord said, my sheep hear
my voice, they follow me. They follow me. Another shepherd
they will not follow, stranger they will not follow, they follow
me. They follow in the path of Christ, in the way of Christ.
He said, if any man come after me, let him deny himself. Take up his cross and follow
me. He said, if any man would be my disciple, let him take
up his cross and follow me. And then the Apostle Paul, I
believe, was a writer of the book of Hebrews. He said, Christ
Jesus is the son over his house. He's the Lord and ruler over
his house, whose house we are, if, there's that word again,
if, if we hold fast the confidence and rejoicing of the hope firm
unto the end, unto the end, until life is over, until it can be
said of us as it was said of the prophets of old, they died
in the faith. And no, sir, I do not believe
that this present day, joined today, lead tomorrow, up today,
down tomorrow, in today, out tomorrow, on the road today,
never seen again, is salvation, not in any shape, form, or fashion. I deny it. And then again, Paul
said, we are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning
of our confidence unto the end. Unto the very end. He that endureth
to the end. The same shall be saved. Now,
he said again, the just shall live by faith. But if any man
draw back, and they do that for a thousand reasons, just hurt
somebody's feelings and you quit worshiping God. Just sing the
wrong song and half a row will leave. There's so many ways that people
get their feelings hurt. depart from worshiping the living
God. They never did worship Him. If any man draw back, my soul
shall have no pleasure in him, God said. But thank God, Paul
said, we're not of them that draw back, but we're of them
that continue to believe to the saving of the soul. Continue
to believe. Perseverance in the faith. Our Lord said, he that puts his
hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom of
God. You see, and Paul brought this
lesson to us, those folks that despised Moses' law, that Old
Testament covenant, that Old Testament law, that consisted
of types and patterns and pictures, and those that slighted that
law and disregarded that law, died without mercy. of how much
sore punishment shall he be counted worthy who walks under his feet,
the very blood of the Son of God, who professes, yes, I'm
a Christian, yes, I'm a believer, yes, I love Christ, yes, I believe
the Bible, and then walks away, turns his back. Now, read that text again in
Christ. In Christ, that's where all the
fullness of God, glory, grace, life, it's in Christ. And He reconciled us to God by
the blood of His cross, made peace by the blood of His cross,
to present us holy and unblameable and reprovable in God's sight,
if. If you continue in the faith,
grounded and settled, are you grounded? Are you settled? And if you be not moved away,
it doesn't matter the purpose. You can't justify departing from
Christ. You can't justify absence from
the praise and worship of God. You can't justify unbelief. And if you be moved away from
the hope of the gospel, there is no hope. You see, that faith
that saves And that hope of the gospel will continue throughout
life. Salvation is not response to
an emotional appeal by an evangelist. That's not salvation. I don't
come to the end of this program and ask you to touch the television
or reach out to me or do all these things. I do come to the
end of my message, and I say to you, look to Christ, call
upon the name of the Lord, Seek the Lord, search the Scriptures,
count the cost. If God be pleased to reveal Christ
to your heart, embrace Him, look to Him, believe on Him. Salvation
is not just making a public response to an emotional appeal by an
evangelist. It's not just following religious
tradition and ceremony. I'm a Protestant, I'm a Catholic,
I'm a Jew, I'm a Baptist, I'm a Presbyterian. I wish we didn't
have those names. A believer is a child of God.
This thing of salvation, this faith in Christ, this hope for
the gospel is not turning over a new leaf and reforming your
life. It's not being a member of some church, a supporter of
some religious movement, a supporter of some preacher. God doesn't
dwell in temples made with hands. God doesn't dwell in these big
old cathedrals and churches and ridiculous buildings. God is
in Christ. And we know God as we know Christ.
In closing, I want to suggest four things to you. Four things. This is the hope of the Gospel.
This is that faith that saves. I verily believe that the hope
of the Gospel, a true, genuine hope which continues, that faith
that saves, that faith that continues, number one, it arises from a
right knowledge of Almighty God. not just an emotional appeal
or a psychological appeal or a death in the family or a sickness
or something like that that sets you off, but this thing of saving
faith, this hope of the gospel, the very basis of it is a right
knowledge of Almighty God, a right knowledge of God. Our Lord in
John 17 prayed, Father, Thou hast given me power over all
flesh. that I should give eternal life
to as many as thou hast given me. And this is life eternal,
to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast
sent." Now, would you know God? Would you know God? In I John
5, 20, the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding
This is not an emotional appeal. This is not response to an emotional
appeal. This is an understanding. The
Son of God has given us an understanding that we may know God that is
true, and that we're in Him that is true, even in His Son, Jesus
Christ. This is the true God. This is
eternal life. God's not who we suppose He is,
or who we think He is, or who somebody says He is. God's who
He is. God's who He is in Christ. He's revealed in Christ. He's
declared in His Word. He's eternal. He's holy. He's just and righteous. He's
merciful. He is love. He that cometh to
God must believe that He is. I ask you to sit down and count
the cost. I say, take the Word, find out
who God is. Find out who God is. Don't trust
your feelings or your emotions or your experiences. Who is God? God's eternal, God's holy, God's
just, God's righteous. Thank God He's merciful. And
when a person finds out who God is, that doesn't change. Throughout his whole life, that's
who God still is, and he grows in a knowledge of the greatness
and glory and majesty of God. You make a profession of religion,
quit tomorrow, but if you ever find out who God is, you'll never
quit. He's still the same, yesterday, today, and forever. Find out
who God is. And then the fear of the Lord
will be in your heart, and the glory of God will be revealed
to you. And then secondly, the hope of
the gospel arises, not only out of a knowledge of who God is,
but it arises out of a knowledge of ourselves. The man who truly
knows God will know himself. He'll discover himself. Job did. He said, Lord, I've heard of
you now. I see you. And I hate myself. I hate myself. I repent in the
sackcloth and ashes. I've seen the Lord. Isaiah said,
I saw the Lord, and I cried, woe is me. Under God, I'm a man
of unclean lips. And I dwell in the midst of a
people of uncleanliness. I've seen the Lord. That's what
happens. The man who truly sees God sees
himself, and that never changes. I could take you to the Scripture
today and show you how sin entered the world through Adam, how sin
passed upon all men, how God will punish sin, but the way
to discover sin is to discover the holiness and majesty and
glory of Almighty God. And that doesn't change. It's
not something I leave tomorrow. Well, I got religion. I left
it. Yeah, you will if you get religion. You'll finally leave
it or ought to. But if you ever find out who
God is, that never changes. Because then you find out who
you are. I'm a sinner. I'm a sinner. I've sinned and
come short of the glory of God. I need mercy. I need help. And
then this faith and hope of the gospel arises out of a knowledge
of who Christ is. the person and work of the Lord
Jesus Christ. When I find out who God is, dwelling
in a light to which no man can approach, and I find out who
I am and how far I am from God, and that my sins have separated
me and that holy God, then I've got to have somebody to bring
me to God. In Adam I lost the way, I lost the truth, I lost
my life. I need a mediator. Who shall
it be? There's only one mediator between
God and men, and that's the man Christ Jesus. He came into the
world to save sinners of whom I'm chief. When the fullness
of time was come, God sent his Son into the world, made of a
woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the
law. God set him forth as a perpetuation. And I discover that. And that
never changes. That doesn't change. There's
no way you can make me mad enough to forget who Christ is. There's
no way you can hurt my feelings and make me leave Him who's my
only hope, my propitiation, my high priest, my mediator, my
mercy seat. You quip, I'm not. I need Jesus. I need Christ. Do you see what
I'm saying? You sit down and count the cost.
You ask God to reveal to you who He is, and then you'll find
out who you are. And then you'll find out who
Christ is, and you know what'll happen? You come to Christ. You
cast yourself on Him. You say with Paul, I know whom
I have believed, and I'm persuaded he's able to keep that which
I've committed to him until the day of judgment is in his hands. That's real.

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The Hope of the Gospel

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