Salvation Guaranteed

A.W. Tozer, some of you will recognize that name,

but he once said,

if man had his way,

the plan of redemption would be an endless and bloody conflict.

Salvation, or in reality salvation,

was bought not by Jesus' fist,

but by his nail-pierced hands.

Not by muscle, but by love.

Not by vengeance, but by forgiveness.

Not by force, but by sacrifice.

Jesus Christ, our Lord,

surrendered in order that he might win.

He destroyed his enemies by dying.

And he conquered death by allowing death to conquer him.

Good morning.

What a great day this is.

I've been looking forward to it.

You have that sort of whittle out.

You're right, Rod.

No, I'm really happy to be here with you this morning.

I heard a saying years ago that sort of stuck with me.

Every day is a good day,

but some are better.

My prayer for you this morning

is that today is going to be one of those better days

for each and every one of you.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Father,

thank you for allowing us to be here together

to worship and glorify you this morning.

We ask that the Holy Spirit

fill us all with your love

and your peace

and comfort us

with the knowledge and truth

of your word.

Amen.

We're getting some variety

the last couple of weeks.

Charles was here last week.

I'm here this week.

And with luck,

Pastor Josh will be back from Mexico

by next week.

Or it's your turn, Rod.

When Pastor Josh told us

at an elders meeting

a couple months ago now, I guess,

when he was going away,

what the dates were,

and that those dates would include two Sundays,

my spidey senses went,

uh-oh.

Well,

then he asked Charles and I

if we would each take a turn

coming up here to talk to you.

Well, Charles took the first week,

and here I am.

Well, my immediate reactions

when Josh asked us that were,

well, maybe he was a little anxious,

a little fearful,

doubtful,

but

the opportunity

to share God's word

is such a blessing

that those feelings

quickly went away.

The Lord then put a thought

in my head about

what it was that he might

like me to talk about this morning.

Tozer referred to it a little bit,

the thought that came into my head

was salvation.

Now, we've been talking about it

at different times,

like salvation

and how sure are you,

what is it,

and why do you want it?

Well,

I had really

to do not a lot of thinking

because I don't get

random thoughts in my head

unless they're coming from

the Lord,

usually,

and he put that one there,

so here goes.

I'm going to give you

a couple points

the way I see them

on salvation.

First thing I'd have to look at

is salvation.

Well,

what does it mean?

What does salvation

actually mean?

Well,

being kind of old school,

I took out my

Funkin-Wagnall's Dictionary.

I don't,

some of you might remember

that term,

but

for the kids,

a dictionary is a book

with words in it

and it describes

what those words

actually mean.

Okay.

And as I was looking up,

looking for salvation,

I'm going down the page

and I saw salvage.

I thought,

hey,

that's close.

What does that say?

And

the definition of salvage was

anything

saved from destruction.

And I thought,

hey,

you know,

that's close.

That's not a bad answer,

but

well,

let's see if we can clarify

it just a little bit more.

And the very next word

under salvage

was salvation.

I thought,

okay,

here we go.

Now,

they listed three possible

definitions

for

salvation.

The first one

was the process

or state

of being saved.

Preservation

from impending

evil.

I thought,

well,

that's getting closer.

Then there's one

that said,

any means of deliverance

from danger,

evil,

or ruin.

Again,

it's in the ballpark.

And then it said,

in theology,

it means

deliverance

from sin

and its penalty.

and I thought,

bingo.

Now we got it.

I think that covers it

as good as

I was going to get it

covered.

Next question

I would ask,

the second point would be,

well,

where would we find

salvation

and how do we secure it?

How do we get it?

Well,

my first suggestion

to you would be,

read your Bible.

Okay,

your Bible

tells you exactly

where

and how.

And that's

Jesus.

In Isaiah 2,

or 12 rather,

verse 2

states,

Surely God

is my salvation.

I will trust

and not be afraid.

The Lord,

yes,

the Lord

himself

is my strength

and my defense.

He has become

my salvation.

Acts 2,

36 to 38

state,

Therefore,

let all Israel

be assured

of this.

God has

made this

Jesus

whom you

crucified.

I'll just clarify

here, okay?

This is Peter

talking to

a big group

of Jews

shortly after

the crucifixion.

Okay?

So,

God has

made this

Jesus

whom you

have crucified,

both Lord

and Christ.

When the people

heard this,

they were cut

to the heart

and said to

Peter and the

other apostles,

well,

what can we

do?

What should

we do?

And Peter

replied to

them,

repent and

be baptized,

every one of

you in the

name of Jesus

Christ,

for the

forgiveness

of your

sins,

and you

will receive

the gift

of the Holy

Spirit.

God's

spirit.

John 14,

6.

We all

know this

verse,

I think.

I am the

way,

the truth,

and the

life.

No one

comes to

the Father

except through

me.

Well,

the way,

the truth,

and the

life.

Well,

apart from

the way,

there would

be no

going.

apart from

the truth,

there is no

knowing.

And apart

from the

life,

there is

no living.

God says,

remain in

Christ and

rest yourselves.

He is

the way,

the truth,

and the

life.

In

Romans 10,

9,

if you

declare with

your mouth,

Jesus is

Lord,

and believe

in your

heart,

that God

raised him

from the

dead,

you will

be saved.

And then

I'll go to

probably the

best known

verse ever

in the

Bible,

John 3,

16.

And it

says,

for God

so loved

the world

that he

gave his

one and

only son,

that whoever

believes in

him shall

not perish,

but have

eternal life.

And I

thought,

boy,

that kind

of hits

it on the

nose,

but

God said,

well,

keep reading.

So I

did.

And the

next thing

is John,

of course,

3,

17.

And I

would even

go add

on verse

18a,

the beginning

of verse

18.

For God

did not

send his

son into

the world

to condemn

the world,

but to

save the

world

through him.

Whoever

believes in

him is

not

condemned.

They have

salvation.

Whoever

believes in

him.

There are

many other

verses,

really,

there are a

lot of

verses in

scripture

that explain

this process.

but I

think the

verses we

just read

stated so

clearly and

precisely that

I could

probably stop

there and I

would go on

to the

third part,

point three

in my talk

to you this

morning.

And the

final point

is the

assurance of

your salvation.

salvation.

How many of

you can look

in the

mirror right

now or this

morning or

when you go

home and

look at

yourself and

say,

you're saved

and you're

going to

heaven and

I know it.

Hopefully

every one of

you.

And if you

don't have

that insurance,

let's see what

the Bible and

these words tell

us.

Little thing we

found actually

this morning,

you know,

like documents

like teaching,

you teach from

sort of change

minute by

minute.

And we

were talking

about things

this morning,

Colleen and I,

and she got

looking at

things and I

got looking at

things and I

said,

hey,

that's a good

one.

So I'm going

to read this

to you.

It's a quote

from somebody.

where we

found it,

it didn't say

who it was,

it just,

but I liked

it.

We tend to

seek assurance

of salvation

in the things

God is doing

in our lives,

in our

spiritual,

in our lives

or in our

spiritual growth.

In the good

works and

obedience to

God's word

that is evident

in our

Christian walk.

Now,

while these

things can

be evidence

of salvation,

they are not

what we should

base the

assurance of

our salvation

on.

Rather,

we should find

the assurance

of our salvation

in the objective

truth of

God's word.

We should

have confident

trust that

we are saved

based on

the promises

of God.

God has

declared,

not because

of our

subjective

experiences.

Where do

you get

confidence?

Where do

you get

an absolute

conviction?

I'm saved

from God's

word.

Look it

up.

It's

there.

salvation.

It's not

just a

wonderful

experience.

It is

also a

blessing

to know

your

salvation

is secure.

You don't

have to

worry about

it.

Relax.

He's in

control.

You're right

there.

Right in

his pop.

He's got

you.

there.

There are

no ifs,

ands,

or buts.

Okay.

If you

are saved,

it's there.

It's yours.

Nothing can

take you from

the palm of

his hand.

John 23,

I think it

is,

Jesus said,

now I've

got to read

my writing,

I give

them eternal

life,

and they

shall never

perish.

No one

can snatch

them out

of my

hand.

No one,

nothing.

If God

has given

you

your salvation,

know it,

believe it.

It's yours.

Nobody's

going to

take it

away.

Okay.

we

shouldn't,

we should,

here's a,

I was

listening to

a reading

devotion by

Dr.

David

Jeremiah a

couple weeks

ago,

and he

quoted a

lady by the

name of

Sheila Walsh

in the

devotional,

and she

said,

remember,

it is

important to

read the

Bible

carefully,

taking in

every

promise

in its

context.

We

shouldn't

twist God's

words to

mean whatever

we want

them to

mean.

Okay.

Read

something in

the Bible.

If you're

not sure,

look in the

Bible,

because the

Bible will

back itself

up.

It will

repeat it

to you.

It will

say it

again.

Okay.

But when

we have

accurately

understood

one of

his

promises,

we can

stand on

it and

rejoice

with

confidence.

God

does not

change,

nor do

the glories

of his

person,

or the

salvation he

has

engineered

for us.

God's

promises

are as

dependable

as he

is.

And I

like that

quote.

Think about

it.

God's

promises

are as

dependable

as he

is.

So if we're

going to

find verses

in the

Bible

that give

us a

promise,

it's

God's

word.

It's

dependable.

Okay.

If God

promises it,

it will

be

fulfilled.

Guaranteed

it will

be.

So let's

look and

see if

there are

I was

going to

say any,

but some

verses in

the Bible

that, you

know, relate

to your

salvation and

it's

guaranteed,

that there's

promises

attached to

them.

First off,

John 24,

and this is

Jesus speaking,

I tell you

the truth,

whoever hears

my word and

believes him

who sent

me has

eternal life

and will

not be

condemned.

He is

crossed over

from death

to life.

I don't

know, it

sounds like a

promise there

to me.

Let's see if

there are any

more.

John 3,

16 again.

Let's go

back to it.

It tells you

about it,

but we

weren't

looking actually

for a

promise

before.

Now we're

looking for

promises.

So John

3, 16

and 18a.

For God

so loved

the world,

he gave

his one

and only

son,

that whoever

believes in

him shall

not perish,

but have

eternal life.

Again,

that's a

promise.

God's

promising you

that.

And then

verse 18a

puts on the

exclamation,

point.

Whoever

believes in

him is

not

condemned.

If you're

not

condemned,

you're

saved.

Romans 10,

19.

If you

declare with

your mouth,

Jesus is

Lord,

and believe

in your

heart that

God raised

him from

the dead,

you will

be saved.

not might,

not maybe,

you will

be saved.

No doubt.

No doubt.

No doubt.

There are many

more, but I

want to finish

with one last

promise that I

found.

And this

one comes out

of Romans,

Romans 8:35–39

chapter 8,

verses 35

to 39.

Who shall

separate us

from the love

of Christ?

Shall

trouble or

hardship,

or persecution,

or famine,

or nakedness,

or danger,

or sword?

As it is

written,

for your

sake,

we face

death all

day long.

we're

considered

a sheep

to the

slaughter.

No,

in all

these things,

we are

more than

conquerors

through

him

who

loved

us.

For

I am

convinced

that

neither

death

nor

life,

neither

angels

nor

demons,

neither

the present

nor the

future,

nor any

powers,

neither

height,

nor depth,

nor anything

else,

in all

creation,

will be

able to

separate us

from the

love of

God that

is in

Jesus Christ

our Lord.

Nothing

exists that

can take you

out of God's

hands.

You're

his.

We

need not

fear

life or

death.

Things present

are things

to come

because Jesus

loves us

and gives

us the

victory.

This is

not a

promise with

conditions

attached.

Okay?

It's not,

well, if you

do this,

God will

do that.

There's

always those

attachments.

You get a

promise from

a person,

there's doubt,

right?

There's an

attachment.

Well, if you

do that,

I'll do that.

If you

give me

10 bucks,

I'll give

you 20.

You're

doubtful,

right?

Okay.

This is

not a

promise with

those

conditions.

This

security in

Christ is

an established

fact.

And we

can claim

it for

ourselves

because

we are

in Christ.

Nothing

can separate

us from

his love.

Remember,

and remember

this always,

take it home

with you.

God's

promises

are as

dependable

as he

is.

And I've

never met

anybody

more dependable

than that.

I want

you to

believe it

and then

rejoice in

it.

Because

it's

yours.

You

don't

have

to

worry.

Now

Miranda's

going to

come,

I think,

is this

one?

No,

this isn't

it,

is it?

Hey,

I'm still

up.

Oh,

I was

going to

run

away.

No.

Have

to get

the other

page.

This is

a special

time in

any church

for any

Christian.

Okay?

Here at

Davidson

Community

Bible

Church,

we usually

celebrate

communion

every month.

I want

to emphasize

that this

is something

special.

Okay?

Very

special.

It is an

opportunity to

reflect and

remember

what Jesus

actually did

for us.

It is not

a right or

an obligation,

but rather a

chance for us

to personally

remember and

thank Jesus

for the

sacrifices he

made for us.

Matthew

26 to

28,

while they

were eating,

Jesus took

bread,

bread,

and when

he had

given

thanks,

he broke

it and

gave it to

his disciples

saying,

take and

eat.

This is

my body.

Then he

took the

cup,

and when

he had

given

thanks,

he gave

it to

them saying,

drink from

it,

all of

you.

This is

my blood

of the

new

covenant.

which is

poured out

for many

for the

forgiveness

of sins.

Serious

words.

Lucky thing.

Okay.

I want you

to remember

something just

before we

go for it.

we want to

invite everybody

who has a

personal

relationship

with Christ

to join

with us

in communion

this morning.

But before

we distribute

the elements,

I'm going to

take just a

second to

reflect on

things.

the broken

bread

represents

Jesus'

broken,

tortured,

and

crucified

body.

And the

cup represents

his blood

that he

willingly

shed

so that

our sins

can be

forgiven.

let's

just

reflect on

this for a

moment,

and then we

will pass

out the

elements.

into

the

hands

who

is

in

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I'd like to call up the elders

and distribute the elements.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Just a reminder as they're passing out the elements that,

let's wait until all have received the elements

and then we will commune together.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

This is the body and the blood of Christ.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Now we'll have worship through song.