Sovereign God, Sweet Salvation

I believe in the total sovereignty of God and believe firmly that salvation comes entirely from God apart from any goodness, righteousness, or action on the part of man.  Many Christians, especially Southern Baptists, would nod their head in agreement.  But the truth is, some of them would have difficulty fully agreeing with that statement if fully examined. 

Let’s dig deeper into my statement so you can see the full weight and magnitude of it: “I believe in the total sovereignty of God and believe firmly that salvation comes entirely from God apart from any goodness, righteousness, or action on the part of man.”  It is broken down into three parts (1) total sovereignty of God (2) salvation totally from God and (3) inability of man to do anything for salvation. 

To break this down further, let me share with you a few sub-statements.  At first, you will be shouting “amen” as you read them but slowly, I may start to lose some of you.

Statement 1: God's sovereignty is absolute, unlimited, and unconditional.  There is no limitation or end to his sovereignty.  He has complete control over time and over his entire creation – including that which is in heaven, on earth, and in hell. 

No problem so far?

Statement 2: Because of the Fall, man is totally depraved and dead in his sin.

Still no argument?   Now let’s put these two truths together. 

Statement 3: Man is totally depraved and dead in sin and therefore unwilling and unable to seek God or respond to God on his own; therefore, before the foundation of the world, God unconditionally chose some to be saved. Election has nothing to do with man's future response.

Problem?  That last part is a problem for some Christians.

Many evangelical believers will agree that salvation is wholly a work of God, until you begin to talk about election.  Then they want to say “but wait, we must make a choice, we must have faith and choose to believe in Him and make a decision to follow Him.” 

Furthermore, according to Romans, we did make a choice and because of our sinfulness and deadness we were only capable of choosing sin.  The Bible repeatedly says apart from Christ we rejected anything holy, anything of God.

So then, what brought us from the point of rejecting God to accepting Christ as Lord and Savior? The answer has to be God.  God has to enlighten our minds, change our hearts, and instill in us the faith necessary to believe.

“For by grace are you saved through faith.  And this (the grace, the faith, and the salvation) is not by your own doing; it is the gift of God” Ephesians 2:8.  To point it another way: 2 Corinthians 3:5 “Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God.”

God’s Word says we cannot claim that anything necessary for salvation came from ourselves.  The faith needed to believe didn’t come from us and therefore, the choice wasn’t truly made by us.  If God changes everything about us – our heart, our mind, and our faith – it would seem his gift of grace would be irresistible.  If we have a right heart, a right understanding, and the necessary faith – there is no reason why anyone would reject salvation.  So why do so many continue to reject Christ?

They are not predestined, elected (chosen) or called.

Romans 9:14-24 says “What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.  You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?” But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory—even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles?”

It is not my purpose in this writing to fully defend or explain election.  Election is taught in Scripture.  To deny that is to deny large amounts of Scripture.  I leave it to the reader to pick up the Bible and to wrestle with the issue of election.  I will possibly write more in specific defense of it later. 

My purpose for writing this particular entry is to ask you two questions…how sovereign is your sovereign God and how sweet is your salvation?

How sovereign is your God?  Is He truly Creator and Sustainer of all things?  Is he truly the Beginning and the End?  He is truly the King of Kings and Lord of Lords?  Truly all-powerful?  The Supreme One?  The Great “I Am”?  Then why don’t we read our Bible that way?  More importantly, why don’t we live our lives that way?  He is the One who seals us in our salvation until the day of glory.  He is the God of life and death…of health and sickness…of the rich and the poor.  It is He who gives and takes away. 

How sweet is your salvation?  Amazing grace?  A precious gift?  Or something you stumbled over?  Something you figured out and mustered up enough knowledge and faith to believe in?  Did you find Jesus?  Or did he reach down into the depth of the grave and call out His chosen one to life?

Again I ask, how sovereign is your God and how sweet is your salvation?

Isn't There Anyone Who Knows What Christmas is All About?

"In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

    “Glory to God in the highest

and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them."  (Luke 2:1-20 ESV)

This morning, as we celebrate Christmas, I ask you: are you too busy and self-serving to worship Him?  Are you too proud and self-centered to recognize His great love for you and to give back to Him your full devotion and service?  Have you worshipped Him today as the Ancient of Days, the one that fulfilled all prophecy?  Do you recognize him as the Captain of the Hosts, almighty God?  He is your Lamb, slain to pay the price for your sin?  Is He the Great Shepherd of your life…leading you beside the still waters as well as through the valley of the shadow of death? 

A.W. Tozer is quoted as saying “What is worship? Worship is to feel in your heart and express in some appropriate manner a humbling but delightful sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder and overpowering love in the presence of that most ancient Mystery, that Majesty which philosophers call the First Cause, but which we call Our Father Which Are in Heaven.”

God's Amazing Grace: A New Nature

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.   Ephesians 2:1-10 

In my prior blog entry (God's Amazing Grace: Election), I discussed the doctrine of election and grace.  Because I am Southern Baptist and because I believe in divine election and what is often referred to as the eternal security of the saints (once saved, always saved), I have often been accused of believing "you can't lose your salvation no matter what you do so you believe you can just run around sinning and doing what you want."

In theory, I would agree with that.  In THEORY.  Because IF I had truly been saved and regenerated by God's grace and I was capable of a life of violence and murder then I would still find myself in Heaven with God at the end of my life.  Now before you burn me at the stake, let me finish.  

The problem with that theory is the Bible makes it very clear that if we have truly come to salvation in Christ Jesus, a complete change in nature and spirit take place.  Our new spirit is encased with the old flesh, so we still struggle with the flesh and still sin (which does not negate salvation) but our nature and lifestyle cannot be the same as it was before He changed our nature.

Do you understand the implications and the importance of the doctrine of God's divine election?  Something amazing had to take place in our life for us to become a child of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Most High and Holy One.  Our nature has to totally change not just to follow Him but it has to change before we are even willing to accept the gift of grace and call out for forgiveness and seek a relationship with Him.  

Often it is taught that our salvation experience changes our nature and spirit and brings us to the relationship.  What is broken cannot repair itself.  What is dead cannot resurrect itself.  What is lost in darkness cannot find the light.  Only God has power over sin and death.  God chooses to have a relationship with His children and He changes our nature and our spirit to bring us to our salvation experience.

Paul explains in Ephesian 2 that we are saved by grace through faith and that neither the grace nor the faith come from us but that salvation is completely a work of God in our life.  When we understand that we don't earn salvation or "find God" it begins to change our perspective.  We begin to better understand the reason for our devotion to and worship of Jesus Christ.  

God's Amazing Grace: Election

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.  What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies"  Romans 8:28-33 (ESV).

We recently had a discussion in our Sunday School class about the doctrine of election and just what elections means.  Let me start off by saying this, we do not need to choke those we are sharing the Gospel message with nor new or less mature believers by trying to force feed them this doctrine.  Nor do we need to go to war with our brother's and sister's over this.

On the flip side, understanding God's sovereignty in salvation (which I like to refer to as Part One of His Amazing Grace) can be a source of strength, encouragement, and motivation, and can bring about a major change in perspective.  It is also vital that we speak truthfully about Scripture and what Scripture reveals about God and His plan. Today I just want to lay down the foundation for this monumental truth and provide an overview of this doctrine and a general defense for the doctrine of election.  We can take more time later to get deeper into the doctrine and its defense.

Romans 8 gives us the basic "flow" of salvation.  All too often today we teach this progression as someone tells you that you are a sinner and you need Christ...people keep hammering that idea into your heart...you finally realize you really are a sinner...you resist awhile longer...you finally give in to Christ...you ask for forgiveness and ask Him to "come into your heart"...He saves you.  That about sum it up?

What does Romans 8 say?  It says God foreknew...God predestined...God called...God justified...God glorified.  Who is central in the common "flow" we teach today?  The sinner and the witness.  Who is central in the Romans 8 flow?  God.

As we take a look at the actions God took in salvation, we realize that He did it all.  He foreknew us.  Scripture doesn't say that he foreknew that one day we would somehow "discover" Him or that someday we would decide to follow Him or someone would talk us into "asking Him into our heart."  He foreknew us.  When we speak of knowing God from other Scriptures we do not mean that we know Him in some sort of academic manner but that we have an intimate personal relationship with Him.  Foreknew carries the same meaning.  He established a personal intimate relationship with you personally before you were ever created.

Those who He foreknew and had an intimate relationship with, he predestined.  Predestine literally means to mark out, appoint or determine before.  What did God predestine His children for?  To be in the likeness of Christ.  And then after predestined comes called.  But notice who He called...those who He had predestined.  And once He placed the call in our life, He justified us and once justified we were glorified.  In other words, our salvation experience was not us "being saved" but it was our realization of what God had already done in our life.  It was the realization that before the foundations of the world were ever lain, God had knew us, marked us out, called us out, justified us, made us new and gave us a new heart and mind to accept His call.  

Bottom line...God's amazing grace is just that - amazing beyond comprehension and grace completely unmerited and undeserved.  The Bible says every man chooses to reject God and follow after his sinful desire, that not a single man seeks after God nor is he even able to seek God much less find him on his own.  Man is totally depraved, helpless, and hopeless...except for the fact that God in all of his power and glory and grace and mercy calls out His children and changes the heart and mind so no longer is it depraved and unable to believe and accept his gift of grace.  See the change in perspective?

The Importance of the Bible

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV)

From this short verse we learn a great deal about Scripture:

It is God breathed.  Sometimes God gave the writers of the Bible the exact words to write. For example, Jeremiah 30:2 says "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you."   Other times he used their minds, experiences, etc to produce His inerrant, infallible, perfect revelation.  He breathed His Word through the writers so that they wrote exactly what God intended to reveal to us.

It is extremely important to understand that while translations of the original text may not perfect, God's revelation to man is perfect without any mixture of error.  If one piece of Scripture if fallible or erroneous, the full Scripture is untrustworthy and useless.

The Bible is God's Word about the Word, that is, it is the revelation of God's ultimate revelation to man.  This essential truth becomes clear when we read John 1:1, which says "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  As we read further in John, it becomes very clear the Word - the Revelation of God - is Jesus Christ.

It is because of this truth that Scripture is the written revelation of Jesus Christ that makes it "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness."  Ephesians 5:1 tells us to "Therefore be imitators of God."  It is Scripture that teaches us what it means to be that imitator of the Most High God and corrects us when we fail to live the holy life we are called to live each day.

Current trends are to downplay the importance of Scripture and to treat it as a suggestion or as an additional tool rather than the ultimate revelation of God and the final authority of our lives.  We have also experienced through history a number of so called spiritual leaders that claim to have additional revelation that is either necessary to understand Scripture or transcends Scripture.  God had made it clear that His Word is the complete and final revelation of Himself to us.

How important is His Word to you?  Before you answer that question, ask yourself how many times have you picked up your Bible this week.  If you don't know His Word, how can you truly know Him to the fullest?