The golden chain of salvation (How do we know our faith is the true faith?) Part 2

Thank you for listening to this message from the ministry of Morse Corner Church in Leverett, Massachusetts. Morse Corner is a non-denominational church that is committed to the preaching and teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our church was founded in 1896 by two students of the famous evangelist D .L. Moody. We seek to encourage and edify the body of Christ through the proclamation of God's word through the ministries of the local church.

Warning Against a False Gospel

If you'd like more information, visit our website morsecornerchurch .com. We hope you enjoy the message. Galatians 1 verse 7, Paul talks about a different gospel which is not another. But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.

But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than that which you have received, let him be anathema, let him be accursed.

So notice, this is a stern warning directed at those who preach a false gospel. Even if they claim that they got this truth from an angel.

Maybe they did. Maybe they did.

Wasn't a holy angel though. I want to make this very clear. Since we are talking about other belief systems, I want to make it very clear what our heart, what my heart is, what our heart should be towards the people caught up in these systems.

Love for the World and the Mission of the Church

Just as God sent his only begotten son into the world because he so loved the world, we send missionaries and support missionaries because we love the world. We preach the gospel because we love people.

Even with these verses in Galatians. And some of the things that Paul says to the churches of Galatia are pretty harsh. Some of Paul's words, of all the words Paul spoke, some of his harshest words were for this book, for these people.

Why was he saying this? Because he so loved them. He cared. We preach Christ because we care. We know what Christ has to offer. We know what he has done for us personally. And we want to see these same blessings bestowed on everyone else.

If God didn't love the world, he wouldn't have sent Christ. And if we didn't love people, we wouldn't preach these things. So, we show our love for God by loving others. And now the criticism you will hear, this is a common criticism, that if we claim our faith, you say, Pastor, you're claiming your faith is the true faith.

You're claiming that Christianity is the true religion. And that the God of Christ, the Father of Christ, is the one true God.

You got it right.

That's what we're saying. You're saying, yeah, but you're saying all other religions are wrong.

You got it right.

That's what we're saying. So, that's narrow-minded.

It's narrow-minded.

Yeah, but in reality, everybody thinks this way.

Don't be fooled.

Don't be fooled.

Everybody believes they're right. Everybody believes they're right. Those who are pushing their political agenda, they're doing it because they think they're right. And they tell other people they're wrong because they believe their way is the right way.

Don't buy into this, well, this is going to be tolerant. They don't really mean that. Everyone, everybody believes their way is right. If they believed it was wrong, they change. Don't buy into the propaganda.

People of other religions follow that path because they think they are correct. So, we're not really unique in that sense. Now, turn to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8, and I want to address the question I mentioned at the beginning where people maybe think that, well, you're a Christian because you were born in the United States of America.

Well, isn't that, well, you can't really make that argument anymore, I don't think. Or, well, you're a Christian because you were born into a Christian home. Is that how you become a Christian, because you're born into a Christian home?

Of course not.

Well, if you were born in Saudi Arabia, you'd probably be a Muslim. You want to know why a lot of the people in the Middle East say they're Muslims? Because if they say that they're not, it's going to go really bad for them.

You understand how that goes? So, I contend that no matter what your upbringing, no matter where you were born, all of these things, they're in God's hands. They're in God's hands. John 1, 12 and 13 says, But as many as received Christ to them, he gave the right to become children of God to those who believe in his name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

I told you to turn to Romans 8, right? All right, we'll read that in a moment. But notice what I just quoted from John 1. Notice that according to the Bible, not every person is a child of God. This is a common idea that, well, everybody, every human being is a child of God.

That's not what Jesus taught. If you want to believe that, that's up to you. That's not what Jesus taught. So, only those who receive Christ, according to Jesus, according to the gospel of John, only those who receive Christ are children of God.

And those who receive Christ, it's not an accident. It didn't just, well, that's where you were born. That's the family you were born into. That's not the way it works. These things are in God's hands.

The Golden Chain of Salvation in Romans 8

Okay, sometimes this is overlooked, but it's true. And this should serve as a great comfort. Romans 8, 28. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose.

So, a lot could be said there, but we see in Romans 8, 28, that God has a people that are called according to his purpose. In verse 33, the apostle Paul identifies this people as God's elect. They are the called according to God's purpose.

And for them, not for everybody on earth, but for them, all things work together for good. Verse 29. For whom he, that is God, for whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

The term foreknowledge is used here, and this refers to a predetermined relationship. So, no, it refers to what God knows ahead of time. Well, yeah, but that's God's omniscience. Foreknowledge here means a predetermined relationship with God, that he has with his people, because according to Ephesians 1, 4, he chose them from the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1, 4 tells us that, and then Ephesians 1, 5 states that God has predestined his people. He predestines believers to the adoption as sons. And here's the point I want you to see. How do I know that my faith is correct?

How do I know that my faith is the true faith? You see, if I alone made my choice based on the information that I have, and this was my doing, I'm not so sure I would have confidence in myself that I made the right choice.

But once I come to the realization that I love him because he first loved me, and that, yes, I chose him, but it's because he, from the foundation of the world, chose me. Once I realize that, then all of my doubts turn into confidence, because my confidence is not in me, it's in him.

Romans 8, 29, again, for whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Well, I'm a Christian. Are you being conformed to the image of Christ?

Here we see how believers are predestined so that they, or we, will be conformed to his image. This is how we can know that all things work together for good. Even when times are hard, even when things happen that are really difficult, even when tragedies strike, even maybe when doubts start to come in, we know if we're called according to the Lord's purpose, all of this, God's allowing it to teach us something, and to shape and mold us into the person God wants us to be.

Look at verse 30. Moreover, whom he predestined, these he also called. Whom he called, these he also justified. In whom he justified, these he also glorified. This passage has been labeled as the golden chain of salvation.

God elects, he foreknows, he predestines, even before a person is born, even before the person comes to faith, no matter their upbringing, no matter where on earth they were born, God is involved in all of this.

So, in order for a person to be saved, they need to call upon the name of the Lord, right? They need to come to a saving knowledge of Christ. And this is where God's call fits in. Verse 30 again. Moreover, whom God predestined, these he also called.

And this is the call that when they hear the gospel, remember that verse, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. It's all laid out here. And certainly it is implied, it is implied that all who are predestined are called, all who are called will be justified, and all who are justified, they will be glorified.

Friends, if you want the doctrine of eternal security of the believer,.

There it is. It's right here.

It is right here. This is the chain, a chain that cannot be broken. Paul says in verse 31, after all of this, after all of this, what then shall we say to these things? Well, if God is for us, who can be against us?

Well, that's a rhetorical question. The answer is no one. Verse 32, he who did not spare his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect?

It is God who justifies. So the point I want to make is this, if you have trusted in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, that's no accident. It didn't happen by chance. Chance isn't even a thing. It's no accident.

It's not because you chose the right faith, even though you did, but God, rather, he chose you.

Amen.

I know that raises a lot of questions that we're not even going to get into, and that's where all the arguing starts. But this is what the word of God says. Again, if it's all up to you to make the right choice, how much confidence could you have in yourself to make the right decision?

Once you realize it's God, that it is he who has brought you to this point, that it is God who has opened your understanding to the gospel. And if there's someone listening right now, you're just not quite there yet.

I mean, you're on a journey, but you're not quite there yet. I promise you, if you are seeking the truth and you are seeking righteousness, God will lead you there. And when you finally see that the one thing that sets Christianity apart from every other faith, that all the others are religions where you have to do something to earn your position before God, Christianity is completely different.

It's what Jesus has done to bring you into a right relationship with your creator. Let's close in prayer. Our father, I'm reminded of what your word says in Romans 8, 16. And this is how we condone. The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.

We thank you for loving us the way you do. We thank you for revealing your truth to us through Christ, who was the embodiment of divine truth. And may your goodness in this word preached lead someone to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and savior.

We pray these things in his name.

Amen.

Thanks for listening. I'm Pastor Michael Grant from Morris Cornick Church. If you'd like to listen to the complete message or if you'd like more information about the ministry, visit our website, morriscornickchurch .com.

And we'd love to have you join us some Sunday morning here in Leverett. Until next time, with the grace of God,.

Be with you.