10 things salvation does to a believer — Paul Aspenson

The Gospel of God and the Hallmarks of Salvation

Romans chapter 1. In our Bible study in La Crosse we're opening this book and this is something that I've appreciated from this passage that I want to give to you today. On Friday morning, Friday noon, I went to the cafe and there was a man that I hadn't seen for years and I walked in the door and he was sitting at a table with another man and I nodded to him and he didn't recognize me and when they were done with their meal I didn't holler over to him but I spoke to him and I called him by name his first name is Kevin and he looked at me and says I don't recognize you and so I told him who I was and he says oh you've changed a little bit and I'd probably gained a little table muscle but he came over and we started to talk and he started to speak about a man, here are his words, that wore Christianity as a cloak.

Those are his words. He wore Christianity as a cloak. He says every time I dealt with him and he wasn't using platform language the idea is that he would not come out in a good way. He wore Christianity as a cloak.

I want to read the first section of Romans chapter 1 and I want to talk about 10 things that salvation, the gospel of God does to a believer and how that everyone who is truly saved have these hallmarks in their life.

There's 10 of them that I see they're just something that I've appreciated and I want to pass them on but I want first to read the scripture. Romans chapter 1 and verse number 1. Paul a servant of Jesus Christ called to be an apostle separated unto the gospel of God which he had promised to for by his prophets in the holy scriptures concerning his son Jesus Christ our Lord which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh and declared to be the son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead by whom he we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for his name among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ to all that be in Rome beloved of God called to be saints grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

First I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world for God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his son that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers making making a request if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you for as long for I long to see you that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift to the end you may be established that is that I may have I may be comforted together with you by this mutual faith both of you and me.

Now I would not have you ignorant brethren that oftentimes I purpose to come unto you but was let or hindered hitherto that I might have some fruit among you also even as among other Gentiles I am debtor both to the Greeks and to the barbarians both to the wise and to the unwise so as much as in me is I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are in Rome at Rome also for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth to the Jew first and also to the Greek for therein is a righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith as it is written the just shall live by faith.

I've noticed in this passage it's been uh the book of Romans has been divided in three three ways many many times and it's rightly so the first eight chapters are doctrinal. This uh nine ten eleven are dispensational and twelve through sixteen are are practical.

I want to maybe you've uh heard this as well but this is how I've appreciated the book of Romans breakdown that the righteousness of God is being displayed in the gospel in the first eight chapters and how that God is showing exactly who he is what his requirements what his demands are absolutely right and holy and just everything.

Then we see the righteousness of God defended to the Jews in those middle chapters 9 10 and 11. But then we come to 11 through 16 there's the righteousness of God that is demonstrated in the believer.

And this is something that has touched my heart. And when I heard that man speak of a man wearing Christianity as a cloak he was misrepresenting he was not demonstrating the righteousness of God in the gospel.

And I've asked myself this very question in the times that I've I've been uh away from that man. His first name is Kevin. Am I demonstrating the righteousness of God in the gospel in a way that honors Jesus Christ in my life am I doing uh uh am I representing correctly.

And I and I see in this passage here as well that there is a representative man. We often have heard this that there are eight represent eight men in the first eight chapters of of uh of Romans. In chapter one you have the corrupt man.

In chapter two you have the inexcusable man. In chapter three you have the guilty man. In chapter four you have the forgiven man. In chapter five you have the justified man. In chapter six you have the crucified man.

In chapter seven you you have the uh the wretched man. And in chapter eight you have the triumphant man. And how that we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. How can we be more than conquerors.

There's no one else to conquer. Christ has conquered all and we are in him. And now there's no more to be conquered. We are more than conquerors. And I see that those those eight men in chapters one through eight.

But I also see an extra one in the in the in my bible there's two columns you have in the newberry. There's column one. Column two. In column two it's the corrupt man the wrath of God revealed. Column one I see the Lord Jesus obviously.

But I see the apostle Paul 13 times. He uses the pronoun I I think there's four times or so it uses me and my. So he's looking at this is the result of a revelation of God to his soul has changed him totally.

Something has happened in his life that he he was he was obviously saved on the road to Damascus Damascus and Acts chapter 9. But how did it change him completely totally. And as a result of that he is a representative man for everyone who comes to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their own personal savior.

Salvation Makes Believers Thankful

We see that how that in this passage in verse number eight is where I want to begin. The first of the ten things is that salvation first of all and its priority makes us a thankful individual. We are thankful.

We see that here is a revelation of God to our soul. And as a result of that revelation it has changed us. We have bowed before God we have recognized our guilt our sin and our need. Christ Jesus has not only has died he has risen indeed proven proven to be holy proven to be the son of God declared that that soul by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

And as a result of that that knowledge that was was communicated to the apostle Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus. It broke him down and he was bowed and bent before his God. And finally he rose.

And he he said in a sense even before he rose Lord what will thou have me to do. It changed him. But it also made him a thankful individual. Because what happens when we understand. We get into our bibles and we begin to see things about our God as we've already heard it doesn't.

It should not produce a spiritual pride or an arrogance among us. There's way too much of that. Look how many bible verses I know. I know this passage. I can outline this book. I can do these things. What do you do.

What do you know. Oh you don't know as much as I do. We take the computers away from everyone. Then we'll find out how much we know. And you don't even have to do that. You look at each of our lives. And the question of spirituality is not how much I know.

It's who I am like am I like the Lord Jesus who died to save me. And the apostle Paul in this passage here in verse number eight he's recognizing as a rep I am I am putting that forth to you for consideration.

As a representative man he's saying firstly first of all I'm thankful I thank my God. He's thanking him for the Roman believers per se particularly. But I want to notice this in a general way. God when he saves us he makes us a thankful individual.

We've if we were turned over to verse number 21 of the same book because that when they knew God they glorified him not him not as God neither were thankful but became vain in their imagination. So here's the corrupt man.

He has a revelation of God. He looks in the starry heavens and he looks at the beautiful trees. He looks at the animals on the on the face of the earth. He may even see a few under the waters. And he says wow this is great.

I'm going to worship these things he said. Now he has he's received this inventory of knowledge from God. But he doesn't glorify him as God. And what else does it say. Neither were thankful. So an ungenerate unregenerate individual a corrupt person in our sins we are not thankful.

And so the first thing that salvation does to us is makes us thankful. You know what thankfulness shows me. It shows me that we are are not all taken up with ourself. A thankful individual is one who is selfless.

There's a man in uh in uh San Diego being taken care of by his wife. Actually he's my my uncle through marriage. And as as he's being taken care of he's so thankful. He thanks thanks her for this and thanks her for that.

He's thankful about all the little things that are being done for him. Because he realizes he can't do it himself he has. It has humbled him. It has caused him to recognize and look at things in a different perspective because too often we get the idea that I deserve this.

Like Saul as we've already heard I deserve what I have see he wasn't thankful. He recognized in his own mind that he'd gotten this on his own power and ability. And David he was a thankful individual.

He was a humble lowly individual and he recognized God had given him all this. And I've wondered many times on in Psalm number eight as David I believe was sitting on it or lying on his back and with the sheep around him.

And he looked at the starry heavens and he saw the wonders of all that. And he said when I consider thy heavens the work of thy fingers the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained. He says what is man that thou art mindful of him and the son of man that thou visitest him.

It humbled him and it made him thankful. See when we begin to think that I deserve this we lose our thankfulness and we we become sharp with each other we become critical of each other and we think that we are better than other people.

And God says no you're not. It's the gospel. The Lord Jesus has changed you and I. And the first thing we ought to be is thankful. The second thing I want to notice in verse number nine for God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his son.

Salvation Makes Believers Worshipful

That little word serve as you well know I'm sure in your margin of your bible is the idea of a worship that religious worship will serve us. And what I want to notice from this passage that that salvation makes us worshipful not only thankful but worshipful because we are occupied with a person we are occupied with the Lord Jesus Christ who died to save us.

The one who came from heights unscalable and he came and he was went to the place called calvary and sunk to depths unfathomable. And they're the one who showed his love to us. The one who gave himself for us once we were saved our hearts were drawn out to him in appreciation for who he is and what he's done salvation had has made us worshipful as a young believer I was told rightly.

So the best thing the most important thing you can do as a believer is to become a worshiper. Become a worshiper when we go to our bible. And we find well what are we going to worship about. The bible is full 66 books packed with the Lord Jesus all kinds of things about him whether the figures of the old testament the books of history or the the feelings of the Lord Jesus in relation to the books of poetry or the foretellings of the Lord Jesus in relation to the books of prophecy or the facts of the Lord Jesus in relation to those books of history in the new testament the gospels in the book of the acts and all the the the fruit of that of his of his sufferings the fruit of his work in the in the epistles.

How that is expressing to us why why it all happened. What was in God's mind. What was God's God's intention for Christ to suffer. And we look into the epistles and we find I was chosen in him before the foundation of the world.

And what does that do make me proud. It makes me humble. I don't deserve this and neither do you. And so we turn to our God and we say thanks for ever saving my soul. And this is the one who loved me before I ever had being.

This is the one who sent his son into the world to die for my sins while I cursed him. He loved me. And we're our hearts are drawn to him. We come to the revelation and we see the fruit of his suffering the fullness of it how it's going to be brought.

We're going to be brought into that beautiful place of heaven that we've heard of already this morning. And the joys of that wonderful place. And who's going to be there and say I'm here because I'm such a good individual not a one of us not a one of us.

We're going to stand on the shore of heaven. And we're going to bow before the nailed pierced feet of the Lord Jesus. And we're going to say I don't deserve to be here but Jesus Christ he loved me and he gave himself for me.

This is the one that we come to worship. We rise whether it be on the Lord's day morning or in the in the as we open the door of our day and we think of I'm going to heaven maybe today I might I might end up heaven today.

And we think of the beauty of the place where we're going. And sometimes we can't hardly wait to get to a breaking of bread meeting because our hearts are welling up with with appreciation for the Lord Jesus.

And we want we want to have other believers there with us. And we hear them speak of Christ. And we hear them singing of Christ. And we begin to speak of Christ and our hearts are warmed. And sometimes a meeting it meeting ends.

And we we just want to sit there. We don't want to leave. Why. Because God's salvation had has made us worshipful. And in this passage I see that if a person cannot speak well of the Lord Jesus Christ in worship how can he really speak well of Christ in the gospel of his son.

How can he really do that. Because he's the the uh the writer here saw or Paul the apostle is linking his religious service at worship with a presentation of Christ in the gospel. So just that. That's for your consideration in the end of verse number nine as well as in verse number 10.

Salvation Makes Believers Prayerful

I want to just notice this briefly. The idea of being prayerful. God the God's salvation has made us prayerful. We haven't. We have a desire to speak to God. What a privilege that is. And even I've enjoyed it this way lately.

It's it's a privilege. Yes. But it is a pleasure. It's a pleasure ever thought about speaking to God as a pleasure coming into his august holy presence as a pleasure. I have often thought of of uh of Esther going in before the king.

She wasn't sure whether she had acceptance. She knew she had accepted or she knew she had access. She knew she could get in there but she wasn't sure whether she would have acceptability. When she went in he held out the golden scepter.

Ah then everything changed. And what does our God tell us. He wants us to come before him. He wants us to come to him. He wants us to speak to him. How would you feel if you had a child who never had never spoke to you.

How would you feel you had a son who was 18 20 25 years old and they never spoke to you in all their life. Would you say well we have a real close relationship. No there are some believers. I wonder how close a relationship we have.

It may be as that man said a cloak of Christianity in our prayers. We open the day. I'm sure you do with prayer. It doesn't mean you have to be on your knees for 24 hours. The idea is that we have to be in that attitude of prayer.

And I've uh I would suggest and if younger ones are on the road driving or whatever when someone comes across your mind their name comes across your mind. And you don't know why. Pray for them. Send up a prayer to God thank God for them in some way.

And then pray for them in this very specific way because their name came across your mind for a reason. And be prayerful and communicate with your father in heaven. Being prayerful the time is quickly going.

I want to get down through these. Oh and one thing about being thankful this just comes to mind. Are we able to be thankful when someone else is blessed more than we are when someone they have a promotion at their job and they say well I've got a great raise.

I've got better better hours better these things. And the very next brother right sitting next next to him during the break at the breaking of bread. That's where they sit. You know in their their special places right next to them.

They lose their job or they get deep. There's a cutback and they don't have quite as much money as they used to have. Is it easy to say well I'm glad you got the promotion. I'm glad you make the three or four six or eight figures or whatever number you want to put on it.

I'm glad you I'm glad for you. Or is there that tinge of Saul in us and say oh I want to get rid of him. I want to pick that javelin up and I want to show him what life is really like in my shoes. See when we're thankful we recognize that when another is blessed when another is is strengthened or benefited we should rejoice with them.

And we should be thankful to God for them and with them because that is a one of the features of being a true Christian is a thankfulness even for the blessing of other people. Being thankful being worshipful being prayerful in verse number 11.

Salvation Makes Believers Helpful

For I long to see you that I may impart or share onto you some spiritual gift onto or to the end. You may be established or strengthened now. This is not the idea that the apostle Paul had all these special gifts residing in him and he would go and he put his hands on people to impart special gifts to individuals.

He was there to show to share what he had the gift he had and as well to to seek to build up others that they might be strengthened that there might be a mutual enjoyment of each other's ability that God has given.

And I just want to put this label on this because something simple unlike my brother Jerry. I just want to be simple because I'm simple. This salvation makes us want to be helpful. That's what I want to see here in this verse.

See my gift is not for me. My gift your gift is not for you. At conversion God has given each of us a gift something to bring honor and glory to him. And it's not mine. Mine is not for me and yours is not for you.

You may not like me. And that's really that's immaterial. I really don't care about that because this is not a game to me. I'm not here to win friends and and have people tickle my back. No not a bit.

I'm here because this is their pressed upon my heart. And I want to give to you for your good and your help. Because I realize I have to answer for it to the Lord for every word I realize that. And my gift is not for me.

It's for your good. And your gift is not for you. It's for my good. And the apostle Paul he recognized that and he wanted to be a help. Because that's what salvation does to people. Salvation does not make us selfish.

Salvation makes us want to help other people. I think of the Lord Jesus Christ not only in in Philippians 2 the one who being in the form of God thought of not robbery to be equal to God. That beautiful passage there in chapter 2.

But here's one who he took upon himself the form of a servant form of God form of servants. And when in John chapter 18 I've thought of this many times as well. The first time that I read in my Bible you can help me if I'm wrong where the Lord Jesus was ever physically hit in the in any part of his body where he was actually physically hit.

And he came at the temple officer. He spoke to the the the high priest there and the temple officer took his hand and hit him on the face smote him on the face. And I think of the Lord Jesus turning and looking at that temple officer and saying if I have spoken evil bear witness of the evil.

But if well why smitest thou me. He did not stand up for his right. He did not think about himself. Oh you hurt my cheek. He's actually inquiring. He's actually probing the very heart of the one who smote him.

Why. Because he was selfless. He was not selfish. He was seeking to improve and help this individual who had just hit him and see. And that's the way we ought to be in our life. When people do stuff to us it hurts.

We've all had that happen to us heavily. They may not. As we've already heard they may not do it intentionally. But it hurts just the same. And sometimes when you find out it was intentional the way it drops you to your knees.

But here is one unselfish in all his ways the one who is God manifest in flesh walking amongst men in the beauty of his pathway. Not not a word ever escaped that silent tongue in his defense. Or to promote self-glory.

It was always for the glory of his father even in john 11 it's for the glory of God. Lazarus was going to die. But it's for the glory of God. So he's always selfless. And that's a that's a mark of a true christian but being helpful.

Salvation Makes Believers Useful in the Body

Verse number 12. I want to notice this briefly. That is that i may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. I want to notice this here of being useful here is a usefulness that the apostle as a representative man i'll submit that to you again for consideration.

He said this is where all christians should be. We have a desire to be a help one to another. Why. Because we are a part of a body. Have you ever tried to eat your cereal. Whether you have honey nut cheerios or wheaties or whatever.

And you have two parts of your body two muscles in your body that are fighting against each other. They're both. They're both contracting. You have your trice uh your tricep muscle and your bicep muscle.

And they're both fighting against each other. And your your bicep wants to contract and bring your bring the food to your mouth. And the tricep. Nope i don't want that i'm gonna i'm gonna be stiff. And so you have two stiff arms because these muscles are just they're fighting against each other.

They're not being useful. And they're fighting and fighting. And you're looking at your honey nut cheerios. And boy you're hungry. And if you don't if there's not the release if there's not the give and take if there's not the usefulness.

Who suffers. Who suffers when members of our body are not being used. Right. The body suffers. And you know sir sometimes when brethren we may get at odds with each other. And i don't. I didn't get my way.

Well there's a whole lot of things involved there. Pride and arrogance flesh and all those things. You know this is why i didn't get my way either. Well there's pride arrogance and flesh all involved there too.

But when we bow we get our view of the lord jesus. We get our view back on the one who died to save us the gospel of our god. I tell you pretty soon the bicep works again. The tricep does its job. And the body begins to be nourished.

In our local assemblies that's the way we need to be. The give and take to be useful. For what my honor. No it's about the honor of the lord jesus christ. There's an expression i've i've i almost said i beat my brother over the head with many times in relation to various things.

I keep telling him this is not about you or me. It's all about him. That's the lord jesus. The things that happen in the local assembly whether we agree or disagree. And the difficulties that come in every assembly wherever they may be.

Let's get our focus. Let's refocus on him because it's all about him. Let's do things for the glory of him and not for my glory or for your glory. Why. Because gospel. The gospel has made us the result of the gospel has made us useful believers being helpful to use the gifts that god has given.

For what. The mutual benefit of all. And who receives the glory when all are benefited. The one who died to save us the lord jesus. Is he worth that. Yes he is. He is. So when when i become stubborn and say well i just don't feel like going to meeting.

I don't feel like praying. I don't feel like doing this. I'm not going to until i get my pound of flesh. Well time for me to get on my knees fall on my face and have repentance and confession before god.

And realize that my brother didn't have nail prints. They don't have nail prints in their hands. Oftentimes you might notice when we shake hands i may look at your hand because there's no nail print in your hand.

But the one who died to save me has nail prints. And that's the glory that i want you to serve. And i know you want me to serve too. Why. Because we're being useful for the honor of the lord jesus. What's another thing we come down to verse number 13.

Salvation Produces Fruitful Lives

Now i would not have you ignorant brethren that oftentimes i purpose to come to you but was led hither to that i might have some fruit among you also even as among other gentiles. Here was the idea of a fruitful life that comes from the gospel the salvation that the gospel brings to us.

There's things that that we we sow a seed and we we see the sprout come out we see the stock we start to see the the development and we're looking for fruit from something from that plant and we recognize that in due time there's going to be something.

If the seed is right the fruit is going to be right. And this is something that i have i've noticed in past years and i'm going to express it is i fear that we have even in our gospel meetings have become entertainment desirers.

What i mean by that is this that i want to come and have the stories told so that i feel good about being there and and having oh man it's such a good meeting. It just kept my attention all the time. And there's that sense of am i here for what reason.

I would love to hear and i know we do. I'm just speaking speaking. What's on my heart. I would love to hear the truth of obviously the ruin of man the guilt of man the sin of man the the the repentance required of man.

And in god's simple remedy. That's simple and that's in don't misunderstand me please. It wasn't easy for god to give his son. It was costly. But there was a ruin of man and the remedy that god provided.

Sometimes i think we like to hear the stories out of wikipedia about all these little creatures which are good in themselves. Don't misunderstand me please. But we like to be entertained. Oh man. So this is a great message.

He had seven stories and i remember each one. But what about this. What. What about sin was preached. What about this. Well uh i don't know. Well if the seed is being presented wrong are we to expect the fruit to be wrong.

How can we present the gospel. The true full gospel of the grace of god. Not in the sense of the of the apostolic full gospel but the death burial resurrection of christ the ascension of christ the coming back of christ.

And then have someone say well i just received jesus into my heart. Man you can go to heaven. I'll meet you in heaven. I don't want anything more to do with the bible i don't want anything more to do with the christians.

I don't want to be baptized. I don't want it. I i'm saved now because this is what i've done. And see you later. See you in heaven. My my point is simply this. If the seed is incorrect it's tainted with man.

Will not the fruit be incorrect tainted with man. And the apostle paul here he's saying in true salvation the helpful that the the fruitfulness of a truly divine seed being planted produces divine fruits that he wanted to enjoy.

He wanted christ to receive the glory. For he wanted everything about christ. So here's another thing that the gospel received does for a believer makes us fruitful. Want us want us to present it positively.

Salvation Makes Believers Debtors to Others

Verse number 14. I am debtor both to the greeks and to the barbarians. To the wise and to the unwise. I just want to notice the apostle paul. He had us as a representative man. He had the idea of of the needfulness for uh being needful because we don't.

Just we don't get saved. And we're okay. There's nothing for me to do now. I'm going to sit back and do nothing there. There's a need. And as a debtor there's a need. Here's an obligation that he has.

He recognized i have obligation to all these these people. And i'm going to fulfill that. And we as christians we yeah we're not apostle paul's. Obviously none of us are all put together. May not be. But i tell you do we recognize we have a need.

There's a needfulness for us to live christ. We may not be able to put a gospel tract in every person's hand that we ever meet in our life. But we have the ability to give them a good representation of the savior that we have to every person we meet.

Why. How can we do that. By being cordial by our conversation by our action by our our interest in them positively by not being short with them by treating them right and not wearing christianity as a cloak.

So here's a needfulness that we have to spread the gospel. Yes but to be used and to live christ represent him perfectly here on earth now. Then we go down to verse number 15. So as much as in me is i am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at rome also here was a hopefulness.

Hopefulness for Gospel Ministry

Paul was hopeful because he wanted to do more. He wanted to get to this this place where he had never been yet. And he wanted to be there because he he wanted to preach the gospel. Gospel was in him. You know.

Yeah people have asked me. Well how do i know what my gift is. How do i know. Well i've asked him this. What's the first thing you think of in the morning when you wake up. What is on your mind. It weighs on you in the morning weighs on you through the day.

It weighs on you at night when someone says why i get up i want to pray for so-and-so to be saved and their salvation. Well that's that's good. You keep you keep praying develop that keep developing that exercise.

Or another one comes to me and they say well um you know i really have an interest in this these christians to be developed and right away. I'm thinking if you wake up in the morning with the saints on your heart and you go to bed at night with the saints on your hearts.

Maybe you're a shepherd of the people of god. Maybe that's what you are. I keep praying keep thinking on those matters. Keep keep progressing for god. Some they wake up and the word of god is on their mind.