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Bro. Otis Fisher
This morning, I want to bring a few words on security of the believer. First, I want to read the 23rd Psalm. The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside still waters.
He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his namesake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. Thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
The security of the believer, what does it mean? First of all, we have Romans 8 .31.
Here, here, come up here. Romans 8 .31 to 39. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us, all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? Shall God that justify? Who is he that condemneth? Shall Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us?
What shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or pearl of sword, or pearl or sword? As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long.
We are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creation shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thank you. Since God is for us, who can be against us? The common interpretation of this scripture is that if God's on our side, we can win and fight against anybody, any foes, any place, any time. This interpretation takes the low plane of physical force.
It's much more than that. The correct interpretation hinges on the Greek word translated for. If God is for us, who can be against us? The word denotes substitution. Substitution is the fundamental idea in this Greek word.
This higher interpretation immediately exalts the subject matter to the loftiest of the eighth chapter. Since God is for us, in substitution of his son, no one can touch us. Having a substitute, the believer is out of the conflict and can never be touched in that he has a substitute.
The believer stands justified in the imputed righteousness of the substitute, God. Satan can never impeach the character of the believer. The unimpeachableness of our character, in which we defy the principalities of hell, is not personal for any man to boast.
But we glory in that we are clothed in the imputed righteousness of God, which is unimpeachable. God cannot impeach his own righteousness imputed to us. Having a substitute, neither the devil nor God can be against the believer.
I want you to get the full meaning of this. Instead of the devil dealing with the believer, he has to deal with the substitute, which is who. The devil cannot deal with God. Likewise, instead of God dealing with the believer, he too has to deal with the substitute, which is who.
God is morally bound to deal consistently with himself. God is for us in substitution from eternity past to eternity future. Now think, how far back can you go? Can you find a beginning? I know the scripture says, in the beginning.
But in the beginning of writing, God was already with us. Now we come to Romans 8, 29 and 30.
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. Moreover, whom he predestined, these he also called. Whom he called, these he also justified.
And whom he justified, these he also glorified.
For whom he did foreknow. Who is that, Fred? Who is that? For those whom he did foreknow. His children. His chosen ones. He did foreknow us. What did he do to us? Predestinated us. What's predestinated mean?
Jesse? Absolutely. Now he predestinated us and he did something else to us. Greg? Alright. Not only was Christ our substitute in death, he died for us. But he himself is our substitute now and eternally.
Therefore, Satan can never attack our souls. Everything from the beginning of time, through the death of Jesus, to his eternal intercession, vividly manifests God as the redeemer in substitution. We are saved by substitution.
We are safe in substitution. The reason no one can ever be against us is because we have what? A substitute. Christ. As God substitutes himself for the believer, he can no more be against the believer than he could rebel against himself.
He could no more cast off the Christian than he could cast off himself. To deny the believer would be to deny himself. To be against the Christian, he would have to be against himself. And thereby, he would cease to be God.
Therefore, his existence is the guarantee of our existence. The impossibility of God's denial of himself is our guarantee of the impossibility of his denying us. Not to be for the believer would be to be opposed to himself.
He would have to bring judgment against himself before he could condemn one for whom he was justified. He was the substitute. God being the substitute is there where any judgment, the substitute must bear the judgment.
The believer cannot be touched since he has a substitute. And he is passed from condemnation into what? Life. Life. Romans 1 and 2.
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
Alright, we learned that there is therefore now no condemnation. Right now, if you're in the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life is who? To condemn the one for whom he is the substitute. God would have to rescind his substitutionary action in the atonement.
The death of Jesus cannot be rescinded. That action is historical and history cannot be rescinded. You cannot change history. The death of Jesus is not only a historical fact, but Christ in the mind of God has stood the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
And eternity cannot be rescinded. Revelation 13, 8. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
If any man have an ear, let him hear. All that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names were not written in the book. What book, Jesse? Book of life. And when was it written? Before there was ever anything.
It's not a literal book, but he has to speak that way so we'll know what he's talking about. The heavens, the earth, and all things therein were created for the redemption, for the redemptive purpose.
Everything is made to be redeemed. And creation cannot be rescinded. Jesus' substitutionary death could not be rescinded without rescinding the historical atonement. So he cannot undo what he has done.
God's eternal purpose, his eternal will, even all of eternity and all of creation, substitution is according to his wisdom. Substitution and purpose is very nature. If the substitute could be annulled with reference to one believer, he would have to annul it to all.
For if God be inconsistent with himself with reference to one believer, he could not be consistent with himself to another. For in the death of Christ, God deals with himself and not with the believer.
The death of Christ, he deals with himself and not with you and I. God's attitude toward the believer is his attitude toward the substitute. That is his attitude toward himself. God could not be untrue to the believer without proving false to the one substituted.
God is the substitution and must be true to himself. He cannot be untrue. And the believer is safe as long as the substitute is effective. How long is that? Forever. Therefore, the regard for himself is his regard for the believer.
And his consistency with the believer is measured by his consistency with himself. So his self-consistency is the assurance of his eternal substitution. A saintly old woman lived in the highlands of Scotland.
She had been an invalid for many, many years. Her young pastor often visited her, more for his benefit than hers. One day he sought to test her faith. And he asked, suppose that after all your praying and all your trusting, God should cast you off at last.
What then? The old woman raised up her elbow and said, Eh, Mon, is that all the length you got to yet? Why, Mon, God would be the greater loser. Poor Nanny would lose her soul, to be sure. But that would be a sad loss indeed.
But God would lose his character. He knows I've just hung up my soul and all my hopes upon his precious promises. And if they should be broken, the whole universe would go to ruin. And then, sinking into a low voice, she added, for God would be a liar.
For the substitute to be against the one whose place he took would be contrary to the nature of the substitute. An impeachment of his character and a division of his own nature. Failure to regard his substitution be the breakdown of his character, revolt in his own nature, and the collapse of his immutability.
If God's character should change, he would cease to be God. If you can pray and get him to change his mind, he would cease to be God. The existence of God depends on his being true to his word. Thus, the believer's security is identical with the character and existence of God.
Safety reaches ultimate assurance in the immutability and eternity of God. John 5, 24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life.
We have passed from death unto life. What shall we say then to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? If it was to be against me, you'd have to be against my substitute. How many ever played basketball?
Did you ever substitute for someone? When you got hurt, did they get hurt? It's just that simple. He is my substitute. Our Heavenly Father, we have brought your message that you gave me. We trust that it was as you have said it.
We thank you for those that are here. We even thank you for those that are not here, but want to be. Go with us into the time of eating, the time of fellowship, that it might all be according to your will, in the name of Christ.
Amen.