March 21st, 2004, Sunday Morning

"Eternal Promise"
Knowing for certain if you're Lost or Saved


OPENING: John 8:39-51

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• TRUE BELIEVERS (the saved souls) HAVE A DESIRE TO KNOW AND OBEY THE LORD JESUS
  
  
  • John 8:47: If you truly are one of God's saved children, you will want to hear His Word and desire to obey His commandments
    
    
    • John 8:39-51: The Jews and Pharisees (and everyone lost today) prove themselves unbelievers because they don't want to hear the truth; they either stop their ears, respond with verbal insults (as when the Jews said Jesus had a devil in Him) or ultimately want to kill the messenger (as when the Jews attempted to stone Jesus at that moment)
      
      
    • Psalm 119:10,16,27: Whereas those who love Him will want to obey, praise and know more about God
    
    
  • Salvation (eternal life) is the amazing gift God gives us
    
    
    • John 3:3: You can be sure you're going to Heaven when you die if you're "born again" or saved; this is "accepting salvation"
      
      
    • 1 Peter 1:3: And with this promise of going to Heaven when you die, you--right now--have the assurance and hope that no matter what happens to you for the rest of your life, you know the end of your story: you've won--you're forgiven all your sins of this earthly life
      
      
    • James 1:18: God did this willingly--out of love for you--not out of a sense of obligation or being coerced
    
    
  • When you receive salvation and are "Born Again" (spritually), you prove you're a new and changed person by forever forsaking (giving up) your bad, immoral habits
    
    
  • Acts 9:1-21: When you become "Born Again" (saved), your attitude radically changes from hate to love--an internal transformation which only God can accomplish
    
    
    • 2 Corinthians 5:17: It's the most radical change your earthly life will ever experience
      
      
    • Galatians 6:15: Following the laws and customs of past dispensations means nothing now; What matters is that because you're saved, you will be judged guiltless before God because Jesus is in you now
      
      
      • Romans 6:15: However, because you're saved no matter what you do doesn't give you a "license to sin"; You're now charged with the new, challenging responsibility of remaining as sinless as possible
      
      
    • Romans 6:4: And the next step to take after being saved is baptism; Not because it's required for salvation but to publicly identify and symbolize the death of our old, sinful body, raised to life a new, holy life
    
    
  • And with the gift of salvation come new desires in your life
    
    
    • The greatest desire is to love the Lord God with all your heart, soul and mind (which consequently leads to obeying Him)
      
      
    • We now have the ability to understand God, the Bible and receive His gifts because of the Holy Spirit
      
      
      • 1 Corinthians 2:10,12: You will not understand or want to hear the truth of the Bible until you are saved at which time the Holy Spirit "opens your heart and mind" to understanding the Bible and God
    
    
  • John 10:3,4,27: And consequently the saved can now "hear the Lord" because the saved can interpret the Bible's directives for how to live life\ (where in this context of scripture, the "sheep" are the saved people and God is the Shepherd)
  
  
• THERE IS ANOTHER GROUP THAT IS NOT OUT OF GOD
  
  
  • Those not saved (not "of God") are still living "lost"--in sin
    
    
    • Romans 3:11 and 1 Corinthians 2:14: A lost person may have read the Bible but they will not understand it--even if they claim to--because God doesn't allow understanding of His Word unless you are saved
      
      
    • Romans 3:12: And if the lost person claims to "do good," it means nothing to God because salvation is what matters--not doing "good works" (Isaiah 64:6)
    
    
  • Because the "lost" person is still "dead in sin," he cannot hear God's Word because he doesn't want to listen
    
    
    • John 8:43: Ever wonder why church bores you? Is it because you don't understand the sermons? Perhaps you don't understand the sermons because you're not saved?
      
      
    • They reason the lost cannot hear is because they still belong to Satan and the bondage of sin
      
      
    • It is the choice of man to not want to listen to God (the Bible); Evil men don't like the truth because they do not understand justice
      
      
    • 2 Corinthians 10:10: The worldly man believes power and strength characterize man and define his influence; But in God's economy, it is the meek and weak He uses for His mighty works (Psalm 37:11 and Matthew 11:25)
    
    
  • 2 Timothy 2:14: God's Word is not intended to be debated about, but to be absolutely obeyed, without question
  
  
• IN THE MIDST OF THIS DISCUSSION, JESUS DELIVERS AN ETERNAL PROMISE
  
  
  • John 8:51, 11:25-26: Jesus promises if you have faith in Him and obey Him, you will never see hell but have eternal life (because while the earthly body dies your soul lives forever--it's just a question of where ... and "limbo" does not exist)
    
    
  • John 6:50-51: Jesus' flesh is willingly given to you in two ways:
    
    
    • His body physically broken to pay for your sin on the cross, over 2,000 years ago
    • Symbolically called your "daily bread" which is the Words of the Bible
      Physical bread satisfies you for a time but Jesus' "living bread" (which you read and obey) will eternally satisfy you
    
    
  • Revelation 2:11, 20:14: When you die your first (earthly body) death, you have only two options: your soul spending eternity in Heaven with God or your soul experiencing the "second death" of eternity in hell (where no one reigns)
    
    
  • Notice scripture says hell is cast into the lake of fire, indicating that Satan doesn't rule; And if Satan doesn't rule, how much more helpless is man's lost soul?
    
    
  • Notice Scripture says either Heaven or hell--there is no limbo, no empty space and certainly no reincarnation
  
  
  
  CLOSER

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• Philippians 1:21: To live on earth for Christ means that to die is gain; after all, nothing you gather on earth can be taken with you but the fate of your soul
  
  
• Of all the religions of this world, only Christianity addresses the critical issues that other religions won't touch: such as the final disposition of sin and salvation and that the God of this universe is a loving God who wants to forgive you without having to perform works or ceremonial/ritualistic requirements
  
  
• The WORLD'S "golden rule" is to "do unto others as they do unto you" (like Hamas) but God says "no matter what you've done, I love you as much as the most obedient, holy person who ever walked this earth"
  
  
• The saved are not living today for the sake of today's events but preparing their story/testimony for God at the time of eternity
  
  
• Another peculiar truth about the Bible, as compared to the other religions of this world:
  
  
  • Scripture compared against Scripture thoughtout the Bible has never been contradictory
  • The Bible has never been proven wrong or inaccurate in its prophecying
    
    
  • Therefore, it can be concluded that if God has promised you something, you can be sure He will keep His promise--so take advantage of His eternal promise right now--before its too late