The Unconverted “Believer” (3): God Justifying the Ungodly

First Baptist Church Leominster

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And then pray for us, please Acts chapter 5

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But a man named Ananias with his wife Sapphira Sold a piece of property and with his wife's knowledge

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He kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the

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Apostles feet but Peter said Ananias why is Satan filled your heart to the lie to the

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Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of The land while it remained unsold did it not remain your own and after it was sold was it not at your disposal?

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Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man, but to God When Ananias heard these words he fell down and breathed his last and great fear came upon all who heard of it

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The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him After an interval of about three hours his wife came in not knowing what had happened and Peter said to her tell me whether you sold the land for so much and she said yes for so much

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But Peter said to her. How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the

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Lord? Behold the feet of those who have buried your husband or at the door and they will carry you out

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Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last when the young men came in they found her dead and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband and Great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things

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Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the Apostles And they were all together in Solomon's portico

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None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem and More than ever believers were added to the

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Lord multitudes of both men and women So that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats that as Peter came by At least his shadow might fall on some of them

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The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem Bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits and they were all healed but the high priest rose up and all who are with him that is the party of the

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Sadducees and Filled with jealousy. They arrested the Apostles and put them in public prison

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But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out and said

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Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this life

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And when they heard this they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach Now when the high priest came and those who are with him

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They called together the council all the Senate of the people of Israel and sent to the prison to have them brought

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But when the officers came they did not find them in the prison So they returned and reported we found the prison securely locked and the guard standing at the doors

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But when we opened them, we found no one inside Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priest heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them wondering

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What this would come to? And someone came and told them look the men whom he put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people then the captain of the officers went and brought them but not by force for they were afraid of being stoned by the people and When they had brought them they set them before the council and the high priest questioned them saying we strictly charged you

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Not to teach in this name Yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us

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But Peter and the Apostles answered We must obey God rather than men the

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God of our fathers raised Jesus whom you killed by hanging him on a tree God exalted him at his right hand as leader and Savior to give repentance to Israel and forgiven forgiveness of sins and We are witnesses to these things and so is the

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Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him When they heard this they were enraged and wanted to kill them

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But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel a teacher of the law Held in honor by all the people stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while And he said to them men of Israel take care what you are about to do with these men for before these days

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Thudias rose up claiming to be somebody in a number of men about 400 joined him

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He was killed and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing After him

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Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him

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He too perished and all who followed him were scattered So in the present case

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I tell you keep away from these men and let them alone For if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail

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But it is of God, but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them You might even be found opposing

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God So they took his advice when they had called in the Apostles They beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus and let them go

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Then they left the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name and Every day in the temple and from house to house.

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They did not cease teaching and preaching that Christ is Jesus Let's pray

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Heavenly Father you are a great and glorious God and We're thankful that the teaching of the

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Apostles has continued today Because their teaching is truth. You are truth and Lord.

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We are grateful that we know the truth We're thankful for your Holy Spirit who teaches us in truth

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Who convicts us of our sin and helps us to understand the path that is set before us?

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We pray Lord that we would walk in your spirit We pray that as we go to those scriptures and as we read and as we study as we

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Listen to the sermon being preached. We pray that the Spirit would take these words and implant them deep within our hearts

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Lord help us to understand your truth and help us to live them out help us to be disciplined in these things

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Lord, we pray that you would bless this time together. We pray that you would bless the sermon. We pray that The words that come from this pulpit would be your truth and that they would deeply affect each one of us

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We thank you Lord in Jesus name. Amen Well, let's turn to Romans 4 this morning

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And we'll begin this morning Reading how the Apostle Paul called upon the

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Old Testament scriptures the Hebrew Scriptures To prove that God justifies

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Ungodly sinners through faith alone apart from their works We have already sung about this.

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We read about it in the scriptures and here we have the really the heart of the matter the heart of the the teaching here in the book of Romans and We'll give attention here first to Romans 4 1 through 8 and then we'll consider its context

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What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh For if Abraham was justified by works.

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He has something to boast about but not before God For what does the scripture say

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Abraham? Believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness

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Now to him who works the wages are not counted as great but as debt

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But to him who does not work but believes on him who justifies the ungodly

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His faith is accounted for righteousness Just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom

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God imputes righteousness apart from works Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven whose sins are covered

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Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin In our discussion of the nominal

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Christian and this is the third Lord's Day which we're dealing with this matter and By nominal

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Christian, we mean the one who claims to be a believer, but who is still in sin and under God's condemnation

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But he's not aware of it, perhaps It's important for us to address the classical

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Protestant teaching about justification For justification is an essential

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Essential important aspect of true salvation and so the Word of God teaches throughout its pages

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Old Testament and New Testament that God pardons the sinner and Regards him as righteous through faith alone

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And so we'll consider this matter today by using the following outline God's justification of the ungodly through faith alone will explain the doctrine the teaching

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Secondly justification essential to the gospel, but not the entire gospel.

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It's so incredibly important to understand Thirdly what kind of faith results in God justifying the sinner and Then fourthly we want to emphasize that God justifies the ungodly

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Through faith that's important, too And so God's justification of the ungodly through faith alone

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The Protestant Reformation is commonly said to be gone in Germany during the early ministry of Martin Luther It was of course a movement throughout northern

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Europe in which Christendom returned to the authority and sufficiency Of the Holy Bible while breaking away from long -held unbiblical tradition and practice

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The result was that people everywhere broke away from Roman Catholicism and in particular its teaching respecting the way of salvation

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At the heart of this separation from Rome was the Protestant understanding That the

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Holy Scriptures teach that God justifies the sinner through faith alone The Westminster Shorter Catechism stated this foundational

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Christian doctrine in this concise way Biblical way Question 33.

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What is justification? answer Justification is an act of God's free grace whereas wherein he pardoneth all our sins and Accepted us as righteous in his sight only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone

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Rome Rome of course had taught for centuries That people were saved from sin through the merit of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

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They certainly Advocated that but with the addition of personal faith generated good works between the two

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Christ and your efforts you could bring about your own salvation and This could be shown in a number of sources

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But it's quite clearly expressed in what the Roman Catholic Council of Trent Declared which was really an effort to counter the

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Protestant Reformation and so it was convened and it met over the course of a number of years but it was asserting

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Rome's teaching against what the Protestants taught and So in that official

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Catholic document, which Rome regards as inspired and as authoritative as Holy Scripture It declared that those who held to the

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Protestant teaching on justification were cursed of God That's what they officially say regarding me and you if you believe what we had asserted about justification about what the

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Westminster Catechism says about Justification you are cursed of God That they who believe in a spouse this doctrine were damned by God accursed of God And so here are a few of the formal statements of Trent and Canon means rule

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You know a finding a rule official rule again This was the Word of God to them as authoritative as Scripture Canon 9 if anyone saith that by faith alone the impious is justified in Such wise as to mean that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to the obtaining the grace of justification

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And that it is not in any way necessary That he be prepared and disposed by the movement of his own will let him be anathema so Rome officially declares if you believe

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Justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. You are damned Canon 12 if anyone shall say that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence in the divine mercy

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Pardoning sins for Christ's sake or that it is that confidence alone by which we are justified.

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Let him be accursed and then Canon 24 if anyone saith that the justice received is not preserved and what they meant by justice is

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Justification if justice is received received is not preserved and also increased before God through good works

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But that the said works are merely the fruits or signs of justification Obtained and that's certainly what we assert that the

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Bible teaches But not a cause of the increase Thereof that is the increase of justification.

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Let him be anathema and so Rome is on record of denouncing decrying the foundational major teachings of the

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Protestant Reformation And so it was this denied denial rejection the way of salvation taught by historical

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Protestants Roman Catholicism That was really the issue with the

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Reformation R .c. Sproul wrote this regarding Rome's position and Reality the

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Roman view of the gospel is expressed at Trent was that justification is accomplished through the sacraments

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Initially the recipient must accept and cooperate in baptism by which he receives justifying grace

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When you're baptized as a baby you're justified He retains that grace you can lose being justified

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Until he commits a mortal sin Mortal sin is called mortal because it kills the grace of justification

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You can lose your salvation The sinner then must be justified a second time and this happens through the sacrament of penance

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Which the Council of Trent defined as a second plank or basis of justification for those who have made shipwreck of their souls

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The fundamental difference is this Trent said that God does not justify anyone until real righteousness in here's within the person

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In other words, God does not declare a person righteous unless he or she is righteous

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So according to Roman Catholic doctrine justification depends on a person's sanctification

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That's why you have to go through purgatory they say because only after thousands of years the tens of thousands of years through that you come out purified then

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You are fully truly justified. It's based upon you becoming holy Then you're justified by contrast.

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The Reformer said Justification is based on the imputation of the righteousness of Jesus The only ground by which a person can be saved is

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Jesus's righteousness, which is reckoned to him when he believes the

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God justified sinners through faith alone is taught throughout the Bible and Perhaps it is set forth most clearly and fully by the

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Apostle Paul in this epistle to the Romans particularly the first four chapters of Romans and So let's consider the teaching of the

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Word of God Respecting this matter by first considering the teaching of the Apostle leading up to Romans for the passage

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We read verses 1 through 8 It's very important that we understand what the

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Apostle was stating and why he stated the truth set forth in these eight verses the

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Romans for Romans is an epistle or letter Which sets forth the gospel of salvation of Jesus Christ to a church that Paul had never visited in person

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We do not know a certainty when or how this church was founded But it's likely that there were

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Jews and perhaps some Gentile proselytes who were residents of the city of Rome That had traveled to Jerusalem during the

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Feast of Pentecost shortly after the crucifixion resurrection of Jesus and There they heard the salvation through Jesus Christ.

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They repented of their sins perhaps on the day of Pentecost Embrace Christ in faith then returned to Rome where they had begun this

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New Testament Church Paul had long desired to visit this church so that he could him better ground them in the content of the gospel

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That's what he stated in the opening of his letter But because Paul had been unable to travel there

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He wrote them this epistle to set forth the doctrine of salvation and its application To the life of the church.

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It was in Providence. He couldn't go there. Otherwise, we wouldn't have this letter Thank the

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Lord for that In the first three chapters of this epistle Paul presented the need of all people everywhere for salvation

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That was available only through Jesus Christ He declared the entire world was guilty of sin before God and that all would one day stand before him in judgment

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God had created established his world and righteousness Having revealed his law by which all mankind were to order their lives, but none did so All have sinned and come short of the law that God established and one day

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God would judge that world Judge the world by that law So here are

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Paul's inspired words But in accordance with the hardness in your impenitent heart

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You're treasuring up for yourself wrath and the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God who will render to each one according to his deeds a judgment of works awaits us

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Eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory honor and immortality

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Would interject that's the life of faith But to those who are self -seeking and do not obey the truth but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath

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Tribulation and anguish on every soul of man who does evil of the Jew first and also of the

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Greek but glory honor and peace To everyone who works what is good to the Jew first and also to the

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Greek for there is no partiality with God We're all going to be judged according to the same standard the law of God For as many as have sinned without law that would be like Gentiles who never heard will also perish without law

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Later, he says they do have the conscience that will condemn them a law of God written on their hearts

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And as many as have sinned in the law that would be the Jews who had the written law of God will be judged by the law in the day when

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God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel a General judgment of mankind according to their works the standard being

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God's law Well, everyone is in need of two qualities in order to stand before God in judgment and escape his wrath for their sins

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First the sinner is in need of God to forgive him of all his sin Forgiveness second on judgment day the sinner will need to be righteous

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That's not just a cancellation of guilt of sin The sinner must be found to be righteous in accordance with God's law

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When God examines him he must be found to be in perfect accordance to his law

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But how could anyone hope to escape the justice of God when he or she is brought before Jesus Christ and is judged according to his holy and perfect law everyone would be condemned for his sins and Everyone would stand without the righteousness that the law of God requires and demands of all people everywhere

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Paul reasoned that no one could or would be able to stand Exonerated of sin and no one would be found to be perfect in righteousness.

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No, not one Paul declared that God had revealed through his law the universe universality of mankind's guilt and Mankind's inability to save himself no effort put forth by a sinner

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Even if he were to desire and strive to obey God's law No effort could save him from certain condemnation on the

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Day of Judgment the law of God condemns all mankind Paul wrote now we know that whatever the law says

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It says to those who are under the law That every mouth may be stopped

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That all the world may become guilty before God and therefore by the deeds of the law

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No flesh will be justified in his sight No one will be exonerated on the

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Day of Judgment because they have been led to moral life so called Even if that morality is an effort to conform to the law of God No one will be justified in his sight for the law was never given as a way of salvation

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The law by the law is the knowledge of sin But Then the

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Apostle set forth the good news of salvation the gospel For sinners from the just penalty for his sin through faith in Jesus Christ God could and would forgive a person's sins and provide his gift of righteousness

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To the believer in Jesus Christ that would enable him to stand justified that is righteous on the

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Day of Judgment and So Paul wrote but now the righteousness of God apart from the law a different kind of righteousness not

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According to righteousness by keeping the law but now a different righteousness is

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Provided by God apart from the law and it's revealed being witnessed by the law of the prophets here.

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He's saying the Old Testament spoke about these things Even the righteousness of God Through faith in Jesus Christ to all and upon all who believe

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For there is no difference for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus Whom God set forth as a propitiation by his blood in other words through Christ's death

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He satisfied the justice of the law of God. He propitiated the wrath of God, which mean appeased

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God's wrath God is no longer angry and full of wrath toward believers in Christ In order to demonstrate his righteousness

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Because in his forbearance God passed over the sins that were previously committed Talking about all the believers of the

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Old Testament. He passed over those with view to the death of Christ on the cross He Did that in order to demonstrate at the present time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus and So God is not unjust in forgiving great sinners.

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He is just in doing so Because his justice was satisfied when

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Christ died in the place of the sinner And Although it's impossible for fallen man to atone for his own sin and to stand righteous on the day of judgment

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God has provided a way that he can be just in his dealing with guilty sinners and yet not

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Condemn them and damn them for eternity by his grace alone God saves the guilty sinner through faith alone who's deserving of his eternal wrath

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Who is incapable of standing in his judgment the sinner who truly believes in Jesus Christ Will be found free from the guilt of all his sins and will stand righteous on the day of judgment

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When the sinner believes on Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior God freely and fully upon the exercise of that faith

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Forgives him of all his sins and gives to him the gift of righteousness

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Which will enable him to Stand righteous before Jesus Christ who is the judge on judgment day?

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God justifies that is he declares the sinner to be righteous even though he isn't in himself as of yet Not through his works of obeying

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God's law but through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone who had kept God's law fully and perfectly

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Jesus Christ died upon his cross in the place of the believing sinner and thereby atone for his sins

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Satisfy the demands of justice of God's law and because Jesus Christ lived a

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Perfect life a righteous life a life in full conformity and obedience to God's law

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He Jesus acquired a life of righteousness that is then Credited to the account of all those who believe on him as Lord and Savior So if you're a true believer in Jesus God regards you as righteous as Jesus Christ himself

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It's not just that you've never sinned, but you are as holy and righteous as Jesus Christ is

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Incredible no wonder. It's good news And so by God's grace alone through the sinner's faith alone in Jesus Christ alone

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He or she will stand before the judge on the last day Forgiven of all his sins and as righteous as Jesus Christ himself

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Because of the righteousness of Christ credited to his account The escape of the sinner from damnation on the day of judgment is due wholly to one other than himself

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Not through your effort it was through his effort On behalf of the sinner God alone save sinners through Jesus Christ alone.

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He is the only way of salvation Well now we come to the teaching of Romans 4 1 through 8

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In which we read of the Apostle Paul calling upon the Old Testament scriptures to Substantiate what he had just been teaching in the first three chapters

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That God justifies sinners through faith alone He called upon two persons famous persons of the

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Old Testament To declare that they were brought into a saving relationship with God not through works of righteousness that they had done

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But solely and wholly through faith alone. And so first we read that Abraham was justified by God through faith alone

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Romans 4 1 through 5 Again, what then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?

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What did he discover? What did he learn about God how to relate to God in his life? For if Abraham was justified by works

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He has something to boast about at least among people not before God For what does the scripture say and then here

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Paul quotes? the book of Genesis Abraham believed God and it that is his faith his belief was accounted to him to Abraham for righteousness

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Now to him who works the wages are not counted as grace But as debt if you earned it by what you did

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God would owe you something And that's not grace by definition But to him who does not work but believes on him who justifies the ungodly his faith is accounted for righteousness

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And so Paul cited Abraham from the Old Testament to show that the Hebrew Scriptures Set forth the same teaching as he had just declared to this church

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God justifies people apart from works That is the good deeds that they do or have done or might do should do want to do apart from any of that God justifies believers to the instrument of faith alone

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It's not because faith has any value inherent value it's because faith Connects you to Christ and so it's

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Christ who justifies faith brings you into the union and connection with Christ Who alone justifies?

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So faith is the instrument that God uses to bring you into relationship with Christ to benefit from his life and death

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Paul Cited Abraham from the Old Testament show that the Hebrew Scriptures taught this and The Paul quoted from Genesis 15 verse 6 and here's a context from this verse from which this verse is taken

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After these things the word of the Lord came to Abraham. This is before he was renamed Abraham To Abram in a vision say do not be afraid

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Abram. I am your shield your exceedingly great reward But Abram said Lord God, what will you give me seeing?

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I go childless and the heir of my house is Eliezer Damascus And Abraham Abram said look you've given me no offspring indeed one born in my house is my heir

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And behold the word of the Lord came to him saying this one shall not be your heir But one who will come forth from your own body shall be your heir and he brought him outside and said look now toward heaven count the stars if you're able to number them and he said to them so Show your descendants be and he

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Abraham believed the Lord and he God Accounted it to him Abraham for righteousness

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And that's what Paul quoted in Romans 4 Years before this occasion

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God had called Abraham to leave her the call days and travel to Canaan God had promised

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Abraham that his descendants would Be great in number and they would inherit the land in which he was dwelling as a stranger

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But years passed and Abraham had no children He was he and Sarah were childless

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And if he were to die without having a natural child then Eliezer of Damascus his head servant his steward

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Would inherit his estate But then God revealed himself to Abraham declaring that his own physical offspring

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Abraham's offspring would inherit his blessing from God and that his descendants would one day be a great mighty nation and they would inherit

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God's promises to Abraham and so even though Abraham was an elderly man at this time

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He was 75 years old. He believed God's word to him He believed

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God could bring forth life from this dead body he believed in the God of the resurrection and At that time then

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God declared Abraham a righteous man righteous in his sight Isaac would not be born for another 25 years.

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Abraham was a hundred Amazingly is miraculous obviously But he was righteous all that time

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Here the scriptures declared that Abraham's faith was credited to him as righteousness

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Notice it in the example of Abraham set forth in Romans 4 1 through 5 There's no mention of God forgiving

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Abraham his sins now We should assume he did but there's no mention of it by Paul Paul brought up Abraham to show that the emphasis

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God credit credits the gift of righteousness Who faith alone apart from works? That's why he cited

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Abraham Well, then Paul called up King David as a witness and That's what we have in verses 5 through 8 of Romans 4

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King David had been justified by God through faith alone also Two greatest men of the

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Old Testament yet. They weren't saved by their good works their own merit. They were saved through faith And Paul cited what

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David had expressed regarding his knowledge and assurance that he related with God Not according to his works, but due to the grace of God through faith.

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And so here's Romans 6 and 7 Just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom

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God imputes righteousness apart from works David talked about this

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Celebrated it sang it Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered blessed is the man to whom the

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Lord shall not impute sin And so Paul quoted

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Psalm 32 1 and 2 Which David had written a thousand years before David was a righteous man as far as fallen men are

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Or can be but he was a guilty sinner before God who is holy But he knew that God had saved him from his sin through faith alone

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And he said a man is blessed when he sees this and understands this Notice that David wrote of a state of blessedness in terms beyond what was testified in the passage to which

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Paul cited Abraham as having Been justified he talked about God crediting righteousness to Abraham But when he brought up David he talks about how

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David's sins were freely forgiven as well as having righteousness imputed to him and So Paul wrote of the gift of imputed righteousness to David in verse 6 just as he had declared of Abraham But Paul then wrote of the forgiveness of the sins of David in verses 7 and 8

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Blessed are those whose lawless deeds and that's what sin is breaking God's law

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Lawless deeds are forgiven whose sins are covered Blessed is the man to whom the

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Lord shall not impute sin. He doesn't hold sins against that man And so the

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Old Testament scriptures validate Paul's teaching as the truth of God regarding the sinners justification through faith alone

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God had justified both these notable Old Testament persons through faith alone The early leaders of the

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Protestant Reformation had set forth the vital importance of this doctrine of justification through faith alone to the

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Christian faith John Gerstner He was a Jonathan Edwards scholar. He was

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R .C. Sproul's mentor he wrote Martin Luther called justification the doctrine by which the church either stands or falls.

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That's how important it is Calvin declared it the hinge of the Reformation The Roman Catholic Church at the

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Council of Trent where it dealt with the Protestant Reformation Recognized justification as a central doctrine at issue.

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That's why they talked against it. They knew it was central This doctrine is the core of the gospel.

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It is indispensable The Reformed Church of the 16th century was purified by reaffirming clearly this doctrine while Roman Catholicism was destroyed by denying it

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And Luther further stated these words this doctrine is The head and the cornerstone it alone begets nourishes builds preserves

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Defends the Church of God and without it the Church of God cannot exist for one hour

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For no one who does not hold this article or to use Paul's expression This sound doctrine is able to teach a right in the church or successfully to resist my any adversary

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This is a heel of the seed that opposed the Old Serpent and crushed its head for ever to Genesis 3 15

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And that is why Satan in turn cannot but persecute it Whoever departs from the article of justification does not know

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God and is an idolater For when this article has been taken away, nothing remains but error hypocrisy godlessness and idolatry

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Although it may seem to be the height of truth worship of God and holiness and so justifications faith alone in Jesus Christ alone is the only way that God pardons guilty sinners and Thereafter regards them as righteous before him we affirm this teaching as essential and Foundational to the teaching of salvation the

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Word of God the Holy Bible However, it's very important now we're getting back on to our main subject the unconverted believer

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It's very important. We understand that justification which is essential to the gospel is not the entire gospel and This is where it falls

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It fails it is proclaimed as though it were the entire gospel and This is how many people have become nominal

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Christians coming short of becoming true converts of Jesus Christ They have been taught that they are sinners as all other people everywhere to which they would agree

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Relatively few would disagree They were then told that God loves them and that Jesus Christ died for them paid for their sins they then were told that if they but believe this is true after all the

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Word of God teaches this truth and they'll be forgiven of their sins and Then often they are led in a prayer to accept

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Christ or receive Jesus in order to assure that they truly believed The one can understand the truth of justification through faith alone

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Be convinced that he's justified through faith alone can stand in a pulpit and teach Justification by grace through faith alone and yet still be under God's condemnation and sin

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There are several reasons for this self deception First oftentimes nominal

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Christians are taught and assured that if and when they exercise a single act of faith

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Saving faith is lifelong faith, but there's an emphasis on a single act of faith in an evangelistic crusade

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They are taught God then and there justifies them in other words They're told that the faith expressed in a sinner's prayer is saving faith now it may be but More often than not it's not

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And so please understand the prayer offered in a sinner's prayer may be an expression of saving faith.

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I Read tracts left and right for weeks and prayed that sinner's prayer

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I bet you 500 times and was still unconverted We're not saved through prayer.

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We're saved through faith in Jesus Christ Saving faith is not a single act of faith, but it's a faith that begins and continues through the life of a believer

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But there are many who are led to make a single prayer of faith Which they themselves may have sincerely believed at the time

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But that faith was but a temporary ascent not a faith that would thereafter characterize his thinking or govern his living

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And the Holy Scriptures describe saving faith in this way. The just shall live by faith

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If you're not living by faith, you've got a reason to be concerned for your soul

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Saving faith is not a one -time decision and one cannot biblically believe that God has justified him upon that single act of faith

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God has promised salvation to the one who believes Present tense we've emphasized this in the past not to the one who at one time believed

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Frankly doesn't matter. You know what? I believed in the second week of January of 1972

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Although it was life -changing. What matters? Am I believer today? Am I going to be a believer next week?

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Ten years from now. Am I going to be believing when the Lord returns? Saving faith is lifelong not a one -time decision

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Saving faith is not a one -time decision God has promised salvation to the one who believes not to the one at one time believe and What is all important is again what you believe now today and what you continue to believe through life

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Yes, there was a time when you first believed but for the true Christian that was but the beginning of a life of faith

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Not just a one -time act of faith and yet so often in evangelism. That is what's taught.

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It's one Time act of faith. You're now saved you're forgiven

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Christ righteousness has been credited to you and they go off thinking they're saved and yet there's no Manifestation of a changed life.

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There's no life of faith. They're unconverted But now they think that they are saved and they populate churches they're all over and Preaching and teaching off into those churches are doing everything keep these people in man

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You don't want to be too strong or direct because you'll run them off and you will run them off when you present, you know biblical

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Christianity that involves a cost and a consequence a Second reason for self -deception for the cause of much nominal

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Christianity is that the reformed doctrine a justification by God's grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone is frequently assumed and Proclaimed to be equated with the gospel.

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That is the gospel I heard a pastor in earth probably 15 years ago. After all the gospel is justification by grace through faith alone

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Well again, you cannot have the gospel unless you believe this doctrine. It is foundational. It's essential, but it is not the entire gospel in other words

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It's assumed that justification through faith alone is the gospel and that salvation itself is fully obtained when one is justified through faith alone

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They are one in the same But justification through faith alone, although it is essential and foundational to salvation it is not the entire gospel

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Justification addresses the sinner's need to be saved from the penalty of sin but justification does not address the need of the sinner to be saved from the alienation of sin or From the dominant

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Dominion and power of sin Justification doesn't deal with that Or from the very presence of sin which one day will happen when

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Jesus returned Salvation is broader than justification Although one cannot be saved apart from being justified

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Justification speaks of God forgiving sin and of the believer becoming righteous before God But justification does not speak of an actual change in the believers character or behavior

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The biblical gospel is salvation from sin through Jesus Christ in all of its forms and manifestations

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If we're saved from sin, we're in need of more than just God forgiving us of our sins

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We use the illustration last week a week before Adam and Eve needed more than just for being forgiven of their sins to return to the garden

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Their whole bent on a life of sin had to be changed Please Understand that Paul's presentation of the gospel of salvation is not limited to Romans 1 through 4

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But often it's presented as if it is regarding the four arenas of salvation mentioned above Paul addressed first the

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Salvation from penalty of sin through the grace of justification in Romans 1 through 4

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But then toward the end of Romans 4 and through chapter 5 Paul wrote secondly of the believer salvation from the alienation of sin

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That he characterized a sinner before becoming justified Paul argued that God recovered the believer unto himself and to other believers through the grace of reconciliation

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Particularly in his adoption as a child into the family of God. That's a part of salvation too and Justification doesn't directly address that We are adopted into the family because we are we are justified

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Paul Also addressed salvation from the power of sin in his teaching respecting progressive sanctification

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Which he set forth very thoroughly in Romans 6 and 7 and into chapter 8 and then of course

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Paul Wrote in the fourth arena of deliverance salvation from the very presence of sin and our glorification

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This will occur upon our resurrection from the dead which is set forth in later portions of Romans chapter 8

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Biblical salvation is from sin and all its damning results in one's life

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But too often when salvation is offered by which a sinner could be forgiven. He'll respond to that offer

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Yes, I want to be forgiven of my sins Everybody in the world wants to be forgiven of sins.

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That's what that's what drives religion That's what drives the Muslim and the Hindu and the

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Buddhist They want to be right with God because they got a sin problem and you tell people this is how you can be forgiven of Your sins freely without doing anything.

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They'll jump through that hoop But tell them all so it's going to deliver them from the sin that you're currently living in and see how much of the salvation

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That you're the salvation that you're presenting they want If you present salvation as deliverance not only from sins punishment, but a life

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Dominated by sin in which a believer departs from his sin and follows Christ in faith and obedience many will pass on the offer and The result is what we considered from Proverbs 30 12 couple weeks ago.

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There is a generation that's pure in its own eyes They've been taught that yet is not washed from its filthiness

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This matter can press best be expressed in that the gospel of salvation is Jesus Christ himself

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He's the good news in Saving faith were brought into spiritual union with Christ Which assures us that we will receive the full scope of salvation from sin

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That is in him is set forth in the scriptures in short We are in need of more than the forgiveness of sins, although that is certainly essential and then a third reason why there is deception about this matter in the error

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Although in the passage of Romans Paul explained fully and clearly that God justifies sinners through faith alone

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Actually, he was not telling sinners in this passage Specifically and directly what they must do in order to be saved.

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He's telling them how God saves them He's not telling them what they are to do in order to be saved directly

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But this is the wrong assumption and assertion made Please understand what we're saying here.

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This is important We can prove that this is true by considering the absence of any word

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Regarding the command or the need for the sinner in coming to Christ for salvation to repent of his sin

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Paul says nothing about the need to repent of sin in this passage There's no word of repentance in the direct context of Paul's presentation of justification

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There's one reference to repentance back in chapter 1 or chapter 2 rather When he talks about the goodness of God that leads people or should lead them to repentance

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But other than that word repentance in that passage in Romans 2 Paul never mentions the word directly

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He never gives the verb or the command to repent He's just setting forth how

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God justifies ungodly people to faith alone Now aside from this one verse in Romans 2 the word repent is not found in Romans It Was not

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Paul's intention to lead these people to Christ But to explain to them that it's God in his sovereign grace who brings the people to receive and experience salvation in all its fullness

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For his and our glory However, when you look elsewhere in the scriptures you see this matter of Repenting of our sins turning to God everywhere in connection with the forgiveness of sins

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And so in consideration this matter of repentance, let's could just consider some verses and I gave a list of them here

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Mark 1 14 and 15 now after John was in prison Jesus came to Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God saying the time is fulfilled the kingdom of God is hand repent and believe in the gospel

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Two things repent every sin turning to God and believe in the gospel and in that context.

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It was the gospel of the kingdom Which was the gospel of salvation which we'll show in a couple weeks

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Luke 13 They were present at that season some who told him about the Galileans whose blood

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Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices It was a cruel ruler Jesus answered said to them do you suppose these

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Galileans were worse sinners and all other Galileans because they suffered such things I tell you no, but unless you repent you all likewise perish

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You know they could blame that on wicked Pilate Jesus himself introduced the second scenario or those 18 on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them.

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That was an act of God Do you think that they were worse sinners and all other men who dwelled in Jerusalem?

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I tell you no, but unless you repent you will all likewise perish Repentance is essential

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It's as essential as faith Acts 238 the day of Pentecost Peter Repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins repentance is essential and You shall receive the gift of the

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Holy Spirit that will enable them of course to experience changed lives Acts 3 19 and following 20 repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out

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Notice your sins cannot be blotted out unless you repent Clearly he says that Act 17 30 and 31

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Paul preaching to the Gentiles in Athens truly these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent

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Because there's a day he's appointed. He's going to judge the world in righteousness Acts 26 19 and 20

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Paul talking to King Agrippa I was not disobedient to this heavenly vision But declared first to those in Damascus in Jerusalem throughout all the region of Judea and then to Gentiles that they should repent

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Turn to God and do works fitting befitting or consistent with repentance Luke 5 32

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Jesus. I've not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance Luke 24

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The Great Commission in Luke he said to them thus it's written thus It was necessary for Christ to suffer to rise from the dead the third day and that repentance and remission of sins

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They're connected should be preached in his name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem Acts 5 30 31 the

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God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree Him God is exalted to his right hand to be

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Prince and Savior to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins Forgiveness connected with repentance

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That's what it is to believe on Jesus you turn from sin you turn to Jesus You turn away from living and sin you turn to live for Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and that's what faith is isn't it and Then acts 20 he's describing.

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He's talking to the elders of the church at Ephesus He couldn't make it to Ephesus He called them to come the 20 miles down to Miletus and he met for them met with them and when they had come to Him he said to them, you know from the first day

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I came to Asia the Asia Minor Western Turkey in that in the manner I always lived among you serving the

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Lord with all humility with many tears and trials which happened to me by the Plotting of the Jews how I kept back nothing that was helpful but proclaimed it to you and taught you publicly and from house to house testifying to Jews and also to Greeks Repentance toward God and faith toward our

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Lord Jesus Christ repentance and faith and so we see that the

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Responsibility for the one becoming a true Christian includes involves a true and thorough turning from sin unto

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God. That is repentance But even though the verb repent however is not mentioned in Romans This is not to say that the idea of repentance is not suggested for it is

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But Paul does not address the matter until Romans 6 There he wrote of the fact that those who have come to Christ for salvation had and had been baptized had died to sin

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That's repentance, isn't it? This is what happened when they came to faith It implies it in their conversion.

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They had repented of their sin He appealed to these Christians in this church at Rome that this was the implication of their conversion and baptism

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He wrote for if we have been united together in the likeness of his death Certainly, we also should be in the likeness of his resurrection knowing this that our old man

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It's not talking about your sinful nature. It's talking about your life before Christ your old man

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Was crucified with him. It's God is dead. It's over So that the body of sin might be done away with that We should no longer be slaves of sin for he who has died has been freed from sin sins

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No longer the ruler of our lives Christ is But in addition we can read descriptions of what occurs and experience of salvation in these verses first Peter 1 1 and 2

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I'm gonna dive in there. He talks about the elect who are saved through the sanctification of the

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Spirit This is where the Spirit sets them apart and changes them transforms them

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Sanctification of the Spirit for obedience That's what salvation entails and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.

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There's the forgiveness of sins Grace to you and peace we multiply Salvation is not just the forgiveness of sins.

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It's a new life in Christ Signaled by Repentance turning from one way of living on to another way of living a new life in Christ Behold if any man is in Christ his new creation old things are passed away.

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Behold all things become new 2nd Corinthians 5 17 2nd Thessalonians 2 13 and 14, but we are bound to give thanks to God always for your brethren beloved of the

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Lord Because God from the beginning chose you for salvation and then he talks about the means by which he brings salvation through Sanctification by the

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Spirit. This is the change that has wrought within you and Belief in the truth that's justification

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In which he called you by our gospel for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ So there you've got

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Justification sanctification and glorification all wrapped up in this matter of salvation and the good news involves all of this

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Not just forgiveness First Corinthians 1 30 and 31 but of him you were in Christ Jesus who became for us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and Redemption that as it is written he who glories let him glory in the

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Lord And so take note of the many references cited regarding the imperative the command to repent of sin

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Turned into God believe on Jesus Christ and for salvation The fact is there's no salvation for the believer

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I put that in quotation marks without accompanied repentance from sin and turning in submission and obedience to the

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Lord Jesus Christ one must repent and believe or The believer is a false

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Christian Who is not exercise true saving faith in the Lord Jesus the true the fruit of true faith is repentance from sin turning on to Christ unto

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God Now this is important here

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It should be recognized that though the command to repent is often placed before the command to believe

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Repentance actually follows faith or accompanies faith For repentance is the fruit of saving faith.

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You wouldn't turn from sin unless you believed what God said about it, right? That's already an evidence of faith

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Repentance is also a gift of God of God's grace but our need and desire to repent of sin and turn to Christ is due to our faith and what the scriptures tell us and command us and When you tell people they must repent that will lead them ultimately to put their faith in Jesus When they've tried and failed tried again failed then they come and they bow wholly and fully to Jesus Christ alone

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We also cited verses in which salvation is set forth as sanctification and belief

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Whereas true belief or faith results in our justification God's grace of sanctification shows itself in repentance

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Repentance is a fruit of faith, but it's a it's a grace of sanctification, isn't it? People only repent of sin because of the grace of God in them

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He commands all men everywhere to repent But our repenting of sin is a manifestation of the sovereign sanctifying grace of God We command people to repent those who do repent we know it was because God was at grace working grace in them

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That's the conclusion of the Apostles when they heard about coronation this household when they heard these things they became silent

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They glorified God saying then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance on to life

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Repentance is a Work of God's grace. It's not something you work up Something that God has to do in you or it's not going to happen

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It's your responsibility to repent, but you're only going to be able to if God gives you the gift of grace

01:00:52

And so thirdly what kind of faith results in God justifying the sinner. That's the important question to answer and There are a number of verses that speak of the blessed promises for those who believe

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John 3 18 whoever believes Present tense in him Christ is not condemned

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But whoever does not believe is condemned already because he's not believed in the name of the only Son of God John 3 36 whoever believes present participle resin tense and the

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Son has eternal life Whoever does not obey the Son notice how believing and obedience are put here in the same context

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If you believe on Christ, you're going to obey Christ perfectly None of us do but that is that is the way you live

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Christ is your Lord your Savior and certainly without faith. It's impossible.

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Please him Of course saving faith itself is due to the grace of God Operating upon within the soul of the one who believes

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Ephesians 2 8 9 for by grace you've been saved of course Through faith and that not of yourselves.

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All of it is of grace It's a gift of God not of works if repentance were a result of your working it up You'd have a whole lot of reason for boasting.

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I Repented you didn't Pat me on the back I've arrived because of what

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I did rather than you know No, you know repentance is a work of God's grace in the soul

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It's your duty your responsibility, but it's not going to happen unless the Lord enables

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Saving faith is not the product of man's understanding of will apart from the grace of God saving faith

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This is the product even the outworking of God's grace in the soul So we might say that God saves people through faith not because of faith and that's important He saves his people because of Christ alone

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Not because there's any inherent value in faith But God uses faith to bring his people to receive the blessings of Christ as Lord and Savior It's a very sad and unfortunate fact.

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However that there are multitudes I fear who assume that any kind of believing in Jesus may be regarded as saving faith

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It's thought that if a person believes he's to be regarded and treated as a Christian But the subjective faith that is of a saving kind is qualified by the

01:03:17

Word of God and That's why we frequently refer to true believers or saving faith

01:03:27

What is faith? What kind of faith is it that God requires? Saving faith is the faith of God's elect according to the scriptures

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It is a faith that is produced and sustained by the grace of God And so the scriptures teach that saving faith must have three elements

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It first must be based on an understanding of truth. You have to have knowledge

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Second there must be an affirmation that knowledge is true I sat under professors who knew more

01:03:55

Bible than all of us put together, but I knew they were unconverted They had the knowledge, but they didn't believe it was true

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There must be an affirmation of truth and then there must be thirdly a trust and commitment to that truth

01:04:10

One must believe and act upon that truth. Faith is a three -legged stool remove one of these three and it is not faith

01:04:19

Kim Riddlebarger, he's a Presbyterian pastor in Southern, California a good man Express it this way according to this historic

01:04:28

Protestant understanding faith is seen as a composite of three necessary elements knowledge Assent and trust that is one must have knowledge about the

01:04:36

Christian message No, no tits ha Latin word knowledge Which involves the intellect one must arrive at the conviction that what the

01:04:44

Bible claims is in fact true Assentious or assent where in the intellect comes to believe what the con that the content of note idea is

01:04:53

True and last one must believe what the Bible says is true to me. I Must act upon what

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I know and believe to be true fiducia trust in Christ, which is an act of the will But saving faith has that is born sustained by the grace of God Has certain characteristics that distinguishes it from faith that does not save the soul from God So what a saving faith looked like and we're gonna have to court probably give a whole message.

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It talks about this Not too far in the future, but I listed some things here It's not exhaustive first when one has saving faith

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He humbly acknowledges his guilt for sin before God and that he is incapable of doing anything to remove his guilt or remedy

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His condition I am undone. I am I'm a goner God unless you do something

01:05:44

Second the one with saving faith has come to understand that if he's to have salvation It must be to the mercy and grace of God alone for he believes rightly.

01:05:53

He's deserving of damnation By the just and holy God who holds him accountable for what he does in this life

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Third the one who has saving faith has heard and believes that only through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone as his

01:06:07

Lord and Savior Can he receive salvation from God? It's through faith alone just as we sang in that wonderful hymn by Horatious Bonar not by anything that we have done

01:06:20

Not by our tears or sincerity our commitment or obedience or it's not even because of our faith it's because of Christ and Our faith brought us into Union with Christ who saves us

01:06:33

He knows there's no amount of good works or intensity of feeling or sincerity by which he can atone for his sin

01:06:40

Forth the believing sinner knows and seeks to repent of his sin before God Knowing that his faith must be manifested in his turning from living in and for sin to live before God in Christ repentance fifth saving faith is seen in the desire and purpose to obey

01:06:56

Jesus Christ as Lord Jesus said why do you call me Lord and do not the things that I say?

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Lots of people call Jesus Lord, but they're not doing what Jesus Christ has said.

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They're not Christian Now all of us fall short all of us fail, but the desire and the bent of a person with saving faith

01:07:17

I want to do your will Lord Jesus and I lament when I'm stubborn and resistant and fail to do so But if I had the desire of my heart

01:07:26

Lord, it would be never to depart from your side Never to think or do anything that is contrary to your will that's the heart of a

01:07:37

Christian But that's not the heart of those who? Who think that they're forgiven of their sins because they accepted

01:07:43

Jesus and then they're living life any way they pleased Picking shoes from God's commands in the Bible.

01:07:49

Yeah, I think I'll go along with that because I want to but no That's not for me. That won't work in my life.

01:07:55

That is the testimony of an unconverted person That's where we are

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Fifth saving faith is seen and desire and purpose to obey Jesus There it is six saving faith is a persevering faith since it's born of the grace of God it continues

01:08:13

By the grace of God and the power of God they're kept by the power of God through faith unto a

01:08:22

Salvation ready to be revealed in the last time future salvation and Seventh he who has saving faith has come to see believe that all

01:08:30

That he must know and believe regarding his salvation of sin is contained and set forth in the Bible alone

01:08:36

The Holy Scriptures, it's not Trent. It's not Rome. It's not the Pope. It's what the

01:08:42

Word of God says In short saving faith that is one subjective faith what

01:08:49

I believe Must be based and informed on objective faith What is believed and that objective faith is set forth in the

01:08:57

Bible the Word of God? Alone, and we'll conclude with this word and this is incredibly important I think there are a couple people in our own

01:09:06

Congregation sphere of our congregation that need to hear and understand this. I notice one isn't here today

01:09:15

God justifies the ungodly Through faith We may conclude with a return to the passage which we began particularly

01:09:24

Romans 4 5 Paul wrote but to him who does not work, but believes on him who justifies the ungodly his faith is accounted for righteousness

01:09:34

We give a great deal of attention to the responsibility to repent of sin and turn into God as well as Exercising faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation

01:09:44

But it's very easy to think but wrongly About this matter and as a result greatly struggle in believing on the

01:09:53

Lord Jesus Christ the wrong thinking follows this line I must repent of my sin in order to have salvation

01:09:59

But I cannot repent of my sin for it's too powerful sin is too powerful for me I've tried and tried

01:10:05

I've prayed and prayed but to no avail I cannot truly believe on Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior for I cannot repent of my sin.

01:10:12

I'm lost and without hope And that reveals wrong thinking Here's the solution to your difficulty

01:10:21

The Word of God declares, but to him who does not work, but believes on him who justifies

01:10:27

Not the godly the one who's repented He justifies the ungodly

01:10:36

If you turn to him purposing to leave your sin and come to him in faith then do so believe on him

01:10:43

It's his responsibility to save you to deliver you from your sin you don't have the ability you don't have the power

01:10:50

And he may have already put the desire in you, but you don't have the power Trust in him to do so That's why even though repentance and then believe repents often set first If you repent it really is a manifestation of your faith

01:11:08

You come to him as an ungodly person a condemned person looking for mercy and grace

01:11:14

Lord, I repent in that I'm turning to you now You better clean me up.

01:11:21

You better break the power of this sin or I'm a goner and So repentance itself is a grace.

01:11:27

It's a fruit of faith The failure to repent of sin should not be a preventive

01:11:36

From you believing he justifies the ungodly You can be an ungodly person a wretched person

01:11:44

Walking in here this morning and go out a righteous person in the sight of God freely forgiven of sin if you believe on Jesus Do for me that which

01:11:55

I cannot do myself. I've tried I failed and I know that there's nothing

01:12:01

I can do I'm a goner But Lord Jesus I'm Believing on you as my

01:12:07

Lord and my Savior He'll take over and he'll clean you up and you'll find this gift of repentance being manifest in your life

01:12:16

Because you're believing on him who can do it because you can't do it yourself and it's foolish to even try apart from the grace of God Amen May the

01:12:27

Lord help us in these things Father thank you for your word and thank you for the freeness of the gospel

01:12:35

That you invite ungodly people to believe on Jesus for the salvation of their soul

01:12:41

Help us our God to affirm this and to declare complete and true and full gospel to a lost world

01:12:49

And we pray that we would see many converts coming into the kingdom of God as they turn from sin

01:12:55

Believe on Jesus Christ in purpose to live before you for it's in Jesus name.