Thank you.
All right. Well, welcome to church this morning. Looks like you're all settled, so please grab your hymnals and let's start with hymn number two.
Let's start with hymn number two, glory to his name. Hymn number two. And when you have found it, can you please stand. Hymn number two, glory to his name.
All right. Let's sing it up to the Lord.
Down at the cross where my Savior died. Down where for plagues and from sin I cried. There to my heart was the blood of Christ. Glory to his name.
Glory to his name. Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of God. Glory to his name.
I am so wondrously saved from sin. Jesus is weirdly abides within. There at the cross where he took me in. Glory to his name. Glory to his name.
Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of God. Glory to his name. Oh precious fountain that saves from sin. I am so glad I have entered in. There Jesus saves me and keeps me clean.
Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of God. Glory to his name.
Come to this mountain so rich and sweet. Cast thy poor soul at the Savior's name. Plunge in today and be made complete. Glory to his name. Glory to his name. Glory to his name.
There to my heart was the blood of God. Glory to his name.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we want to thank you, Lord, for this opportunity to be in your house. Lord, we come to glorify the name of Jesus Christ.
Lord, we thank you so much for giving us a Savior who died on our cross, on the cross, Lord, and paid for our sins and was resurrected from the dead.
Lord, that we can stand perfect and complete and forgiven, Lord, in your presence, Lord, because of the great gift that you've given us in Jesus Christ.
God, I just pray that you bless the service this morning. Lord, I also pray for blessing our Baptist Church as they prepare to hear from your word as well.
Lord, I pray that you'd be moving in their hearts as well. And, Lord, all other churches that name the name of Christ as their Savior.
Lord, I just pray that this morning we bless toward you, Lord, and that we would receive a blessing in return. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.
You may be seated.
Alright, let's turn to the Christmas carols. 428, please.
428.
It came upon a midnight clear.
428. It came upon the midnight clear.
You may be seated.
fictitious.
ordination.
canoe.
To touch their harps of gold.
Peace on the earth, goodwill to men,
From heaven's all gracious king.
The road in soul and stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.
Still through the golden skies,
They come with peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavy music flows,
The roving weary road.
Above its sound and lowly plains,
They bend on wrong reindeer,
And ever o'er its painful sounds,
The blessed angels sing.
And even if light's crushing low,
Whose forms of end they mow,
The toil of onward climb,
We claim with painful steps and slow.
Look now for glad and golden owls,
Come swiftly on the wind.
Oh, rest beside the weary road,
And hear the angels sing.
For all the days are hastin' on,
By proper mobs foretold.
When where's the ever surfing is,
Comes round the age of gold.
When peace shall overrule the earth,
Its ancient slanderers flee.
Let the whole world give back the song,
Which now the angels sing.
All right, let's do 423, Joy to the World.
423, Joy to the World.
Let the whole world give back the song,
Which now the angels sing.
Joy to the World, the Lord is come,
Let earth receive her King,
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and heaven and nature sing.
Joy to the World, the Saviour reigns,
Let men their songs employ,
Wild fields and floods,
Cross hills and plains,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
All thorns infest the ground,
He comes to make His blessings grow,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove,
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders and wonders of His love.
Alright, great singing.
We'll do one more song before the Bible reading.
Let's turn to hymn number 27.
Hymn number 27, an old favourite.
The Old Rugged Cross.
Hymn number 27, the Old Rugged Cross.
On a hill far away, stood an old rugged cross,
The ember of suffering and shame.
And I love that old cross,
With the dearest and best,
For a load of lost sinners was slain,
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross.
Too much hope, please at last I lay down,
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
Oh, that old rugged cross,
So despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me.
For the dear Lamb of God,
Left His glory above,
To bear it in God's poverty.
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
Too much hope, please at last I lay down,
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
In the old rugged cross,
Slain with mud, so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see.
What was all that old cross,
Jesus offered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
Too much hope, please at last I lay down,
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
To the old rugged cross,
I will ever be true,
It's shame in me, but gladly bear.
And He'll pour me some day,
To my home far away,
Where His glory forever I'll share.
So I'll cherish the old rugged cross,
Too much hope, please at last I lay down,
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
Alright, wonderful singing.
Please take your Bibles now and turn to Ephesians chapter 1.
Ephesians chapter 1 and brother Michael is coming up for the reading.
Ephesians chapter number 1.
So that's the book of Ephesians and chapter 1.
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God,
To the saints which are at Ephesus,
And to the faithful in Christ Jesus.
Grace be to you and peace from God our Father,
And from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings
In heavenly places in Christ.
According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
That we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself,
According to the good pleasure of His will,
To the praise of the glory of His grace,
Wherein He hath made us accepted in Thee beloved,
In whom we have redemption through His blood,
And forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
Wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence,
Having made known unto us the mystery of His will,
According to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself.
That in the dispensation of the fullness of times,
He might gather together in one all things in Christ,
Both which are in heaven and which are on earth,
Even in Him, in whom also we have obtained an inheritance,
Being predestinated according to the purpose of Him,
Who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.
That we should be to the praise of His glory,
Who first trusted in Christ,
In whom He also trusted after that He heard the word of truth,
The gospel of Your salvation,
In whom also after that He believed,
You were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise,
Which is the earnest of our inheritance,
Until the redemption of the purchased possession,
Unto the praise of His glory.
Wherefore I also, after I heard of Your faith in the Lord Jesus,
And laugh unto all the saints,
Cease not to give thanks for You,
Making mention of You in my prayers,
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
The Father of glory,
May give unto You the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
The eyes of Your understanding being enlightened,
That He may know what is the hope of His calling,
And what the riches of the glory of the inheritance in the saints.
And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us who believe,
According to the working of His mighty power,
Which He wrought in Christ,
When He raised Him from the dead,
And set Him on His own right hand in the heavenly places,
Far above all principality and power and might and dominion,
And every name that is named,
Not only in this world,
But also in that which is to come,
And hath put all things under His feet,
And gave Him to be the head over all things to the church,
Which is His body,
The fullness of Him that filleth all in all.
Dear Father in Heaven, we praise You so much for another beautiful day that You've given to us.
We thank You, Father, for the brethren.
We thank You for the church.
We thank You for our pastor, Kevin, who made it safely from Sydney.
We pray that You would please fill him with the Holy Ghost,
That You would help us also to understand, to be focused,
And that we would be more like Jesus.
In His beautiful name we pray. Amen.
Thank you.
Alright, so last week, last week we had a look at the fall of man.
We had a look at how Adam and Eve sinned against the Lord,
And by nature we received that sinful nature.
You know, and not only by nature, but also by choice we have chosen to sin against the Lord.
And in sin, you know, we're sinful creatures.
We cannot save ourselves, the whole point of Jesus Christ.
And as we're coming into Christmas, it's always wonderful to think about the fact that the Father sent the Son into this world,
Not only as a babe in the manger, but ultimately the major reason for that is to give us salvation.
To die on the cross.
You know, at the birth of a child, you normally think about the birth of a child, you're excited for its life,
But when you think about the birth of Jesus Christ, the whole purpose was to come and die.
And not to die for himself, but to die for us.
And so the title for the sermon this morning is simply salvation.
Just, salvation, salvation.
Okay, the fall of man was last week, salvation is this week.
And we had a look at Ephesians chapter 1 there.
I want you to notice verse number 12, Ephesians chapter 1 verse number 12, it says,
That we should be to the praise of His glory,
I want you to notice the next words,
Who first trusted in Christ.
When it comes to salvation, it is so simple.
It is so easy.
The very first thing, the only thing really that you need to do Brevin, is to trust in Christ.
You know, we talk about putting our faith, our belief on Jesus, yes we are talking about that,
But we're not just talking about our belief on facts of Jesus Christ, but that we are trusting in Christ.
We are trusting of course, His death, His burial, His resurrection.
We are trusting the fact that He died for our sins, and we say, yes Lord, I want that Lord, I trust in that.
My faith, my belief is in you.
It's not just in the belief that Jesus did come, or belief that He did die, that He rose again,
But that is what I'm trusting in.
That is my vehicle for salvation.
Verse number 13, it says,
In whom ye also trusted, but that ye heard the word of truth.
So what are we actually trusting in there?
The word of truth.
We've heard the word, we've heard the scriptures.
And of course when we go and we preach the gospel, we must preach the scriptures, the word of truth.
This is what helps people trust, because faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
But it says that you heard the word of truth, look at this, the gospel of your salvation.
The gospel, gospel means glad tidings, good news.
The good news of your salvation was heard in the word of truth, and then you trusted Jesus.
That's salvation. That's how easy it is, brethren.
People complicate salvation. They love to complicate it.
They love to try to, you know, people just can't accept that Jesus did it all.
You know, it's sort of like this thought, I've got to do something, surely.
I've got to bring something to the table, I've got to bring my good works.
Surely God will accept my righteousness.
Surely God will accept my attempts to follow His word.
You know, for salvation. No.
The very first thing is you trust in Christ.
You trust what you heard in the word of God, the gospel of your salvation.
Then it says, in whom also, after that ye believed,
notice how the Bible uses interchangeably trusted and believed.
Okay, it's the same thing.
After that you believed, look at this, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.
Brethren, not only have you trusted Christ and believed upon Him, but you've been sealed with that Holy Ghost.
Listen, nothing can take away your salvation. It's been sealed by the Holy Ghost.
Okay, and so, like I said to you, the title for the sermon this morning is Salvation.
It's my favourite doctrine. It's the most important doctrine.
You know, please, if you're not sure about your salvation this morning, please don't let this day go by.
You know, at the end of the sermon, please come up to me and talk to me, if you're not sure.
And it truly is that simple, your trust, your belief on Jesus Christ.
What He has done for you, His sacrifice. Please don't get confused by preachers that come trying to explain it some other way.
You know, that you've got to bring your part to the table.
You know, or you've got to be in church to be saved. Nothing can be further from the truth.
Jesus Christ did it all, okay, and it is truly a free gift.
Now, we are going through our statement of faith, and under salvation, we're going to have these words, which says,
We believe that the salvation of sinners is holy of grace through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Salvation is the free gift of God, neither merited nor secured in part or in whole by any virtue or work of man.
One must repent of any trust in self or works to merit God's forgiveness, and receive salvation only by personal faith in Jesus Christ,
in whom all true believers have eternal life as a present possession, a perfect righteousness, sonship in the family of God,
deliverance from all condemnation, and the divine guarantee that they shall never perish.
Apart from Christ, there is no possible salvation.
I hope you can agree with those statements, okay. This is going to be under salvation.
I want it to be very clear. You know, we could write so much about salvation, but I think that's clear enough.
It's holy of grace. It's something that is wholly done by God, okay. It's been paid for by Jesus Christ,
and all we need to do is believe that, trust that, trust Christ alone, and there is no other means of salvation besides Christ.
Now, whether in Ephesians, please come with me to a very familiar passage to many of you.
Ephesians chapter 2, of course. Ephesians chapter 2 and verse number 8.
Ephesians chapter 2 and verse number 8, which speaks about our salvation.
And, you know, please let this be clear in your mind. Please don't say to me,
Pastor, I know I'm saved because I've been going to church my whole life.
Like, please don't say to me, Pastor, I know I'm saved because I've been going to a Baptist church.
Pastor, I've been going to an independent Baptist church my whole life.
And my kids, please don't say to me, Dad, I know I'm saved because you're the pastor of a church.
Please don't say anything besides what we're going to read about in these verses right here, okay.
Please don't say, Pastor, you don't know, I've been the Sunday school teacher for a school, you know, for a church for many, many years.
Of course I'm saved. But you ask me, you know what, you think I'm ridiculous, but you ask me those questions.
How do you know you're saved? I've been going to church my whole life.
I grew up in a Christian home. What do you have to, you know, how can you, I've been a teacher, I've been teaching the children at church.
Of course, please don't, listen, if you have those answers, there's something wrong.
I'm not saying you're not saved. I'm just saying there's something wrong right there, okay.
Because salvation is Christ alone. It is not your efforts. It's not even your efforts at church, okay.
It's not your efforts of being in the choir at church. We don't have a choir here.
So you can't use that excuse. But people say these things, honestly, people say these things.
You know, I once knocked on a man who was from the Salvation Army and knocked on his door.
And I said to him, look, you know, are you 100% sure you're going to heaven? He said yes.
I said, well, what gives you that confidence? He said, well, I've got faith.
And at first I was like, oh, that sounds excellent. Yeah, faith. I said, faith in what?
Like, I just want faith in, like, faith in Jesus. Like, faith in his death, in his resurrection, you'd think he'd say.
What's your faith in? Well, I've been serving the Salvation Army for 20 years.
And I've reached the level of general or something like this.
And, you know, we've been feeding the poor and we've been doing all these, what, your faith is in yourself.
Your faith is in your works. Your faith is in your church. Your faith is in the good deeds that you've done.
It's not in Jesus Christ. And I could not convince, like, he had the answer right.
It's by faith, but it's faith in himself. It's faith on Jesus that saves us.
Please, if you don't know the answer to this question, please, look, if I were to ask you this morning,
how do you know you're saved? And you said anything else in your mind besides, well, Jesus Christ did it all.
Then please even talk to me then, please. Let's get this said. Let's make sure you're saved.
It's the most important doctrine. You know, I care more about you stepping foot in heaven than stepping foot in this church.
You know, we go and preach the gospel to the lost. Not many of them come to church.
Faith doesn't bother me. I know they're going to step foot in heaven because they received Jesus Christ.
That's more important. There are plenty of people stepping foot in church this morning that are on their way to hell.
That are still trusting in their good deeds, in their merits.
Okay, what they've accomplished, what they've done for God. That's not salvation, brethren. It's not salvation.
Look at Ephesians chapter 2 verse number 8. For by grace are ye saved.
Okay, it's by God's grace that you're saved. Through faith. Right? Your faith, your belief, your trust in Jesus.
And that not of yourselves. Please understand, not of yourselves, not of you.
Sometimes people come up to me and say, Pastor, I don't know if I'm saved. Why? Because I've done this bad thing here. I've done that.
Look, salvation's not of yourself. You can't base or judge your salvation on yourself because you're a sinner.
Now look, I'm not saying there's ever a time, like I know people that are newly saved sometimes that have doubts.
You know, it takes time to absorb and to clear cobwebs and to just understand the pure teaching of the Bible. I understand that.
But if you're someone that can say, you know, Pastor, I believe I've been saved for 10, 20 years. And you say, but I still have doubts.
Then I have doubts about you as well. Because the only thing that causes doubts, when you talk to Christians, what causes doubts?
They think, well, I'm not doing, I'm not performing the way that I think I should. Salvation is never about your performance.
Who are you trusting? Because if you're trusted in Jesus, then you'll have no doubts.
Even when you mess up in life, you'll have no doubts because you know salvation is through Christ.
And He's done it all. He's paid for all your sins. He rose from the dead.
Either your trust is on Jesus or it's on yourself. Or if it's a mix of Jesus and myself, then you're not saved.
It's got to be holy on Jesus by grace alone. Faith alone, on Christ alone. Not of yourselves.
This is in the Bible so we don't judge our salvation on ourselves. We base it on what Jesus has done.
Let's keep going there. Not of yourselves. It is the gift of God.
We're coming up to Christmas. I'm sure some of you have Christmas gifts. Ready to give.
How much does a receiver have to pay for that gift? Nothing. Gifts are free.
You could not call it a gift if it was not free. This is how easy salvation is. It's a gift.
Here you go. Do you want it? How do I receive it? Just trust Jesus. Put your faith on Jesus and Him alone.
And then you'll have no doubts because you know Jesus did it all. He's the perfect Lamb of God.
He is your sacrifice. It is the gift of God. Look at verse number 9.
Not of works lest any man should boast. What is it saying there?
If it was by works, man would boast, I am going to heaven because I've been serving the Salvation Army for 20 years. Don't you know?
I've been feeding the poor for 30 years. Don't you know? That's boasting.
Listen, the only one we boast of when it comes to salvation is Jesus Christ. We boast of Him.
Not of works lest any man should boast. So what is it saying there?
If you're judging your salvation, say of course I'm saved. I've been going to church for 20 years.
Of course I'm saved. I grew up in a Christian home. Of course I'm saved. My dad was the pastor.
You are boasting of yourself. You are boasting of what you've achieved, what you've done in life.
Revenant is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. And it is that simple.
It is so simple that people hate it. They hate the message.
Because most people want to go to heaven based on something good that they've done.
They want to, surely I'm good enough for heaven. No, you're a sinner. You're a sinner.
And we need a Christ to come and die for us. Such an important doctrine.
And you say pastor, we know all this. I know my church knows this very well. I know that.
But there are independent fundamental Baptist churches that don't know this. Believe it or not, they don't know this.
They'll say, the preacher behind the pulpit will say, believing is not enough. You also have to bring your part to it.
You've got to turn from your sins. You've got to repent of all your sins to be saved.
How many times have you heard preachers say this? What's that guy, Ray Comfort?
In New Zealand, Ray discomfort. What's his doctrine? What's his gospel?
Repent of your sins and live a life of holiness and kind of Jesus slapped on the side.
You know, his gospel is not even the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
His gospel is look how wicked of a sinner you are. Are you holy yet? Because if you're not holy, you're not saved.
If that's the standard of salvation, then no one's going to heaven. Because you still sin to this day.
And if you say I don't, then you're just stubborn. You know your sin. You know your sin.
Salvation is not by cleaning up your life. Salvation is not turning from your sins.
Salvation is Christ and Him alone. And you know, some pastors hear what I'm teaching here,
and they think this church does not believe in repentance. Oh, we do believe in repentance.
We do. And we'll talk about that in a moment. Okay.
But it's so confusing. The gospel is so confusing today. You know, it's so messed up today.
So many churches teach things that are not in the scriptures. Like if I just, if what I just said to you,
that turning from your sins is not the requirement for salvation, that makes you uncomfortable.
If I said to you today, like I said, that repenting of your sins is not how you get saved, but it's your efforts,
and that makes you uncomfortable, then let me challenge you to open your Bible,
and find anywhere that God said you have to repent from your sins to be saved.
I'm telling you now, it's not in the Bible. If it's not in the Bible, then where is it coming from?
It's a false gospel. Now look, this church teaches you have to repent of your sins.
To live a clean and holy, blameless life, but it's got nothing to do with salvation.
Salvation is holy by grace, on Christ alone, on His work.
Look, I've heard preachers say, people that teach what I teach, they've heard it say,
well, you've got to do something about your sins though.
Well, you're saying you can just be a sinner, and you don't have to do anything about your sins,
and you can be saved by just believing on Jesus?
We do something about our sins. We say, Jesus, you pay for it.
Jesus, you were nailed to the cross with my sins. You took on my sins, Jesus.
That's what's happened to our sins. They've been taken from us, and put on Christ,
and He became our substitute. He paid the penalty for our sins, so we don't have to pay for that penalty.
That's not just the sins of my past, they're the sins of my present,
the sins that I've done today, or that I might do today, the sins of tomorrow.
They've all been already paid for in Jesus Christ.
Of course we say something has to be done about our sins, but it's not my efforts to clean up my life,
it's what Jesus has done. He's been nailed to the cross for me.
Salvation is simple, and it is so simple that people can't see it.
It's like, you go to anyone and offer them a gift, just go to a random stranger and try to offer them a gift,
and they'll think, hold on, there must be strings attached.
There must be something, I can't. People have a hard time accepting gifts.
People have a hard time accepting the gospel, because they think when you come and show them free gifts,
there must be strings attached, what do you want?
It's free, it's been paid for by Jesus.
It is not of yourselves, not of works, lest any man should boast.
Now come with me to 1 Corinthians 15, come with me to 1 Corinthians 15.
Now, while you're turning there, I just want a quick disclaimer.
I'm not saying that every preacher that says you have to repent of your sins is unsaved or preaching a false gospel.
You need to get down to the details with them, you need to ask them that question, what do you mean by that?
And some preachers will say, well I'm just saying you've got to acknowledge you're a sinner.
Alright, but it's still not a biblical term.
I agree you've got to acknowledge you're a sinner, because it's the moment you acknowledge that,
hey Lord, I'm in sin that you realise I need a saviour.
So yeah, I understand that, but there are others.
I've heard independent fundamental Baptist pastors get behind the pulpit and say, well, believing's not enough.
If you're a drunkard, you need to stop drinking alcohol to be saved.
If you're living with your girlfriend, then you need to stop doing that in order to be saved.
This all works, this is Lord trying to clean up your life to be saved.
No, it's a free gift.
1 Corinthians 15 verse 1, let's talk about the gospel here.
1 Corinthians 15 verse 1, moreover brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you,
which also you have received wherein you stand, but which also you're saved.
If you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain.
Now, I won't go into all of it, but the believing in vain, if you go through the chapter,
is that some people did not believe in the resurrection.
Okay, that's what it's about, but anyway, not to get off track.
But verse number 3, for I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received,
how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures,
and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.
This is the gospel. This is the good news.
This is why Christ came, okay, in Bethlehem's manger.
This is why he came, to fulfil the scriptures, to die for your sins, to die for my sins,
to die for the sins of the whole world, and to rise from the dead, to rise from the grave.
This is the payment for our sins. This is the payment.
Come with me to chapter 1 now, first same book, 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 18.
1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse number 18.
Now you say to me, but pastor, even the Catholics believe that Jesus died and rose from the dead.
Are you saying they're saved?
You know, even the Orthodox Church teaches that Jesus died and rose again. Are they saved?
Well, let me ask you a question. If you went to a Catholic right now and said to them,
you know, how can you be sure of going to heaven? What are they going to say?
Well, I'm trying to be a good person. You know, I've done the sacraments.
I've confessed my sins to the priest. And again, what are they doing?
They're trusting in themselves. They're boasting of themselves.
They're not going to say to you, well, Jesus Christ did it all and I'm trusting him alone
and I know I'm eternally secure because of what Jesus did and nothing else.
They're not going to say that to you because they don't believe it.
You know, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.
You know, straight away when someone says, well, you know, I'm doing the best I can,
then you know what's in their heart? Their trust is not on Jesus.
Their trust is on themselves or their church or whatever it is.
So even though they know the facts of Jesus Christ's death-bearing resurrection,
they are not trusting that. Do you understand?
They're still trusting themselves or they're trusting their church.
And so I do believe in repentance. What does a Roman Catholic have to do?
They have to repent. Repent of their sins? No.
Repent of trusting themselves. Repent of trusting their church.
Repent of trusting whatever they were trusting in and put all their faith and trust on Jesus Christ alone.
Of course we believe in repentance.
But 1 Corinthians 15 verse 1. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 1 says,
Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you,
which also ye have received and wherein ye stand.
By which also ye are saved. Hey, we're saved by the gospel.
What was the gospel again? The death, the burial, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
That's it. Have you placed your trust in that? Have you placed your trust in Jesus?
That's your salvation, brethren.
If you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed.
Sorry, I'm reading the wrong passage.
Sorry, where am I reading from? 1 Corinthians 1.18.
Sorry, I'm reading the wrong passage to you. 1 Corinthians 1.18.
Look at this. 1 Corinthians 1.18.
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness,
but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
Brethren, that's why you go and offer them free gifts. Jesus did it all.
And they reject it. The world rejects it most of the time.
Because it's foolishness to them.
They can't understand a free gift paid by Jesus.
They feel like they have to do their part.
Surely I've got to be good enough.
Surely I've got to at least attend your church once or something, right?
To be saved? No.
Yet to them it's foolishness, but for us it is the power of God.
Drop down to verse number 21.
For that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God,
it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
That what? That repents of their sins? No, that believe.
Okay, if you believe the cross of Christ, you believe his sacrifice,
this pleases God.
You think trying to clean up your life is going to please God?
For salvation? Oh, well, you've done enough.
You know, you've overcome ten out of a million sins that you've got,
now you can enter into heaven.
You think that's going to be pleasing God? No.
It's believing what his son has done for you.
Verse number 22.
For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom,
but we preach Christ crucified.
Unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness.
So brethren, whether you're preaching to the Jews or to the Gentiles or Greeks,
it's the same message.
We preach Christ crucified.
You know some people preach that the Jews get saved a different way?
No, it's Christ crucified.
It's not saves all man.
Let's keep going, look at verse number 24.
But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Jews and Greeks were saved the same way.
Australians, Italians, Chileans, Filipinos, whatever you are, I don't know.
What are you? We're saved the same way.
Okay? This is the good news of salvation,
that there is not a preferred people that get saved some other way,
or God chose the Jews to get saved by works and everyone else by faith alone or something like that.
No, Jews and Greeks the same way.
Salvation is through Christ.
So I just want to show you there in 1 Corinthians 1 that,
it's believing what Christ has done for us.
It's what saves us.
And again you say, okay you're beating a dead horse there.
I don't believe I am.
Because I guarantee you, you step foot in Australian IFB,
sometimes you won't even know what they believe.
It's so vague, it's so unclear.
I know because I've been in a church like this.
And I'm not going to name the church because I love the church, I love my pastor there.
And my pastor is saved 100% I know because I've spoken to him about it.
But they're afraid to just be clear and say,
salvation by faith alone, Christ alone.
They're afraid to do this because half the church believes it's by works
and half the church believes it's by faith alone.
And they know if they're clear enough, they're going to drive half the church away.
I say look, be clear enough, maybe get half the church saved.
And look, if they don't receive it, it's foolishness unto them, alright, then let them go.
But we can't take this church with another gospel.
Say pastor, why did you start a church on the Sunshine Coast?
Because by testimonies that I've heard, the gospel is not being preached here.
That's why I came here.
The clearness of the gospel is not being preached.
People in this neighborhood were not being reached with the gospel.
That's why I came here.
You know, when I set my heart to come and start a church,
it wasn't to come to the most beautiful place on the earth.
That's what I believe the Sunshine Coast is, by the way.
Caroline and Kaylie are the most beautiful places on the earth.
That wasn't my desire.
I said, Lord, wherever the gospel is not being preached, please send me there.
That's where we need to go.
That's why we're here. We're saved.
Let's get other people saved.
Let's give a clear presentation of the gospel.
It's a free gift, just like a Christmas gift.
It's free. Do you want to receive it or not?
It's paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Come with me to Mark chapter 1.
Mark chapter 1 and verse number 14.
Again, this topic of repentance.
Look, it's important. Repentance is important.
Repentance is part of salvation.
But again, those that want to preach a false gospel,
those that want to teach you it's your efforts,
those that want to corrupt the gospel,
they're going to tell you you have to repent of your sins.
To repent is to change, to turn,
to turn from your sins to be saved.
How is that possible?
Look at Mark chapter 1 verse 14,
and just in case you're not sure what the Bible has to say about this,
let me show you what was taught by Jesus Christ here in Mark chapter 1 verse 14.
Now after that John was put in prison,
Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.
So what is Jesus Christ preaching?
The gospel. Alright?
He's coming to preach the gospel.
Verse number 15, and saying, what is he saying?
The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent ye. Yes.
Jesus Christ taught that we have to repent.
Repent ye. And what?
What do we have to do, Jesus?
And believe the gospel, he says.
Repent ye and believe the gospel.
So if there is a turning,
what is the turning in that context?
From not believing the gospel,
to believing the gospel.
Not believing that you're good enough for heaven because you're Abraham's children,
or you're good enough for heaven because you've tried to keep the commandments,
or that you're trusting in whatever it is that you're trusting in.
But repent from that and believe the gospel.
That's salvation. That is repentance.
Repentance for salvation is to turn from what you were trusting in,
and trust in Christ alone.
Trust in the true gospel that saves you.
That's repentance.
When people say you've got to repent of your sins to be saved,
no one's trusting their sins to be saved.
I've never met anybody that says,
I know I'm going to heaven because I sin greatly.
In the past I just told ten lies yesterday, that's why I know I'm going to heaven.
That's not what's...
No, repentance is where you're placing your faith.
Remember, salvation is not by works.
So it's not cleaning up your life that saves you.
Salvation is by faith.
So where your faith is placed incorrectly,
that's your repentance.
Where your faith is incorrectly placed,
and place that faith.
Believe the right thing.
Believe the gospel. Believe in Jesus.
Believe his death, burial, resurrection.
Believe that it's a free gift paid for by Christ alone.
That's repentance.
Some of you have come out of Christian churches,
Pentecostal churches,
and you've heard about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
Okay?
But many of you thought, hey, I've got to do my part, or I might not achieve it.
I might lose it if I'm not good enough, or something like that.
Repentance requires you to stop believing it's of yourself.
And it's holy on Jesus Christ alone.
That's repentance.
Repent ye and believe the gospel.
It's not saying repent on your sins and believe the gospel.
But that's what pastors, preachers like to do this.
They corrupt the word of God.
It's not in your Bibles.
You know, I thought this, I didn't know this was an issue.
When I got saved, I was four years old.
I had childlike faith. Jesus, you did it all.
Thank you. I want that.
Thank you, Jesus.
You know, and thankfully, I went to the churches that always taught this correctly.
You know, that salvation is paid for in Christ alone,
and not of yourselves.
I did not know until the church that I was sent from,
that I started to realize, hey, there's a controversy
I guess, I was just, the Lord just allowed me to go to the right churches, I guess.
And I didn't even know this was something that people taught.
That people actually taught, you have to turn from sins.
And I'd see pastors either mock salvation by faith alone.
Pass.
What, just believe? They think that's enough?
Just believe and cry.
You think that's enough?
They mock that.
Listen, if a pastor is mocking that,
I'm telling you right now, he's a false prophet.
How can you mock Christ having done it all?
I mean, if you mock faith on Christ alone, you're mocking what he's done for us then.
Either Christ did it all, or he did nothing.
Listen, Christ did it all.
You can have confidence. You don't have to doubt your salvation today.
If you just trust that Christ did it all, you put your faith on him alone.
It's not a measure of your performance.
Now look, I hope as a Christian you get better, you become more holy.
I hope as a Christian you become more righteous.
I hope as a Christian you have victory over sin.
You know, we don't just teach salvation every week.
We teach other things because we want you to repent from your sins.
We want you to clean up your life.
But none of that is how you get to heaven.
None of that is salvation.
Like, we also teach baptism, don't we?
We're a Baptist church.
But what if I said to you baptism is required to be saved?
Then you know I'm teaching another gospel.
That's another gospel. That's your works. That's your efforts.
Hey, we teach have victory over sins.
We teach live a holy life.
But if I say you have to do that to be saved, that's another gospel.
That's a gospel that does not save.
And if a saved person gets under that preaching, you know what that's going to create?
Doubt and confusion.
Because they're going to start measuring their salvation based on their performance
and they're going to be confused.
Maybe I'm not saved because look how I'm living my life.
It happens to a lot of Christians. They get under the wrong church, under the wrong preaching.
And now salvation is a measure of themselves and not their full faith in Christ alone.
Repentance.
Hey, we believe in repentance.
Look at, come with me to, what can I get to turn to?
Come with me to Hebrew chapter 6.
Hebrew chapter 6 and verse number 1.
Okay, it's a moment to turn there.
Hebrew chapter 6 verse number 1.
The Bible says,
Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go unto perfection.
So there are principles, there are some basic things, okay?
Then we are to go unto perfection, we're to grow and mature, right?
Look at this.
Not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.
What is repentance? What are we repenting from?
What are some of the very principle things that we learned in the Bible?
Repentance is from dead works.
Works.
Okay?
If you think it's your works that saves you, you've got to repent from those dead works
and put your faith and trust alone on His work.
His work of the cross.
I want to show you that repentance is repenting from dead works.
Repenting from the things you are trusting in.
In your efforts, you repent from that.
And you put your faith on the Lord God.
You put your faith in Jesus Christ.
See, some people make the mistake, every time they read the word repentance or repent,
they think it means repent from sins.
They just automatically have that in their brain wired
because they've heard bad preaching, even though it's not in the scriptures.
Okay?
And every time it just says repent, that means repent from your sins.
And they don't realize that the very first time repentance comes up,
is God repenting.
Genesis 6, 6, and it repented the Lord that He made man on the earth
and it grieved Him at His heart.
And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth,
both man and beast and the creeping thing and the fowls of the air,
for it repenteth me that I have made them.
You know who repents the most in the Bible?
God repents the most.
If you count how many times someone repents from the Bible, God repents the most.
So if you automatically have it wired in your head that repentance means turning from your sins,
who's the one that turns from your sins the most in the Bible?
God. God has no sin. God has no darkness.
God is perfect. He's sinless.
That's why Christ had to be our perfect sacrifice.
See, repentance does not mean turn from sins.
Repentance just means a turn or a change of mind.
Okay? I used to trust my works.
Now I realize they're dead.
I'm going to put my faith and trust on Jesus alone.
I'm going to repent toward Him.
That's repentance. That's biblical repentance.
That's what saves you.
But if you think I'm repenting from my sins,
therefore I'm giving up the alcohol.
I'm giving up the dirty speech.
I'm giving up, I don't know, the lust of the eyes.
I'm giving up these things. I'm repenting from these things to be saved.
And you've got another gospel.
You're boasting of yourself.
You're doing it by your own efforts and your own merits.
Don't ever be sure of your salvation.
You'll always have doubts because, again, it's based on you.
And you know you cannot maintain a perfect clean life on this earth.
Every time you do something wrong, you're going to be like,
oh, maybe I'm not saved.
Because you're trusting yourself.
Stop trusting yourself and trust Christ alone.
That is the gospel message.
You know, the Bible says in 1 John 3, 4,
Whosoever committh sin transgresseth also the law,
for sin is the transgression of the law.
Sin is the transgression of the law.
Okay, when we think of the law, let's summarize it by the Ten Commandments.
Let's say it. Okay, most people understand that.
They summarize the law by the Ten Commandments.
All right. What is sin?
Sin is the transgression of the law.
So one of the Ten Commandments is?
What? They shall not covet.
Okay? They shall not covet.
Okay, so when you're saying to someone now,
you've got to repent from your sins to be saved,
what are they saying?
You've got to stop transgressing the law.
You used to covet, you've got to stop coveting to be saved.
What are they doing?
They're bringing you back under the law.
They're bringing you, hey, you've got to keep the law to be saved.
You've got to repent from transgressing the law,
which is sin, and clean up your life.
Let's say if a pastor stood behind the pulpit
and said you've got to keep the law,
the church would rebel.
They'd go, pastor, you, man,
that is corruption, that is heresy.
But if a pastor gets behind the pulpit and says
you've got to repent from your sins,
which is exactly the same thing,
it just goes over their head
because the Bible says repent somewhere in the Bible.
I really want to make this clear
because salvation is simple.
It's a free gift paid for by Jesus Christ.
Okay?
You have to accept that Christ has paid for your sins.
He's paid the penalty for you.
Okay?
Not you trying your best efforts to stop transgressing the law.
Turn with me to Galatians chapter three.
Galatians chapter three verse ten.
Galatians chapter three verse number ten.
See, this is the most important doctrine.
This is the doctrine that saves souls.
This is the doctrine that gets you to heaven,
that saves you from hell.
If the devil's going to corrupt any doctrine in the Bible,
what do you think is going to go for the most?
Obviously, the gospel message is what he's going to attack the most.
Galatians chapter three verse number ten.
It says,
For as many as are of the works of the law
are under the curse.
For it is written,
Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things,
which are written in the book of the law to do them.
You see, when you're saying to someone,
you've got to repent from your sins to be saved,
you're bringing them under the curse of the law.
Do you see that?
Okay?
It says here,
For many of the works of the law are under the curse.
Listen again,
I'm not saying every preacher that says repent of your sins is unsaved or anything like that.
Just, again, it's confusing to them.
They've grown up in churches and they've heard this term,
and they don't know how to explain it.
But, if you go and ask a preacher,
Preacher, can you please explain what you mean?
And he says, and they do say,
Well, for example, what's one of your sins you struggle with?
Say, well, I struggle with telling the truth, for example.
Alright, well, you have to repent from lying.
Okay, you've got to repent of your sins.
And they go that far.
Like I said, you've got to stop drinking the alcohol or something like that to be saved.
Then Brevin, I'm not saying this.
The Bible is saying this.
It says, For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse.
That preacher, that pastor is not saved.
They are under the curse.
They're still under the curse because they believe that salvation is by keeping the law.
I'm not saying that. The Bible says that to you.
It says, For it is written, cursed is everyone that continueeth not in all things,
which are written in the book of the law to do them,
which is strange because these pastors that say these things,
they name the sins that they don't commit,
so they feel like they're saved.
But you've got to continue in all things.
If you're going to say repent from your sins,
you've got to repent from all sins to be saved.
Even the sins of the thoughts of foolishness.
How can anyone be saved by this standard?
Look at verse 11.
But that no man is justified by the law of the sight of God.
It is evident.
It's obvious.
No one can be saved by turning from their sins.
No one can be saved by keeping the law.
It is evident for the just shall live by faith.
Look at this.
And the law is not of faith, but the man that doeth them shall live in them.
So should we do them?
Yes, we should do the law.
Yes, we should keep the commandments.
Yes, we should live according to those laws.
But that's not how we get saved, brethren,
salvation is by faith.
Look at verse number 13.
Christ have redeemed us from the curse of the law,
being made a curse for us.
For it is written, cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree.
And just in case you think the Old Testament saints were saved by works,
it says, verse number 14,
that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ,
that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Not by the law.
Through faith.
The same blessing, the same promise given to Abraham.
The Old Testament saints were saved the same way.
Through faith.
It's the only way to be saved, brethren.
You accept Christ's full payment.
You accept the grace of God or you don't.
And if you look at the end of the sermon, if you're not sure,
please talk to me because I want you saved.
Please talk to me.
This is the most important thing.
The most important doctrine.
If you haven't got this right, please talk to me.
Okay.
It'll break my heart if I go to heaven one day
and I find out my church members were not even saved.
It'll break my heart.
Destroy me.
So important.
The Bible also says in 2 Corinthians 5, 21,
for he have made him to be sin for us who knew no sin,
that we might be made, look at this,
the righteousness of God in him.
How beautiful.
Not only did Christ become the curse for us,
he became sin for us.
He took all of your sins.
Think about the most wicked things that you've done in life.
All of it was put on Jesus as though he did it
and God the Father punished him for you.
I mean this should drive us to live a holy life.
Like I don't want Jesus to pay for more sins that are,
you know, or have paid for more sins.
I don't want to increase, having to increase the suffering of Christ.
It's already been paid for though.
But you know what I mean.
I think when you realize just how much Christ paid,
not just for you but for my sins,
for the sins of the whole world upon his body,
it's hard to understand but this is what Christ,
this is the wonderful sacrifice.
And not only did he become sin for us, as it's said there,
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Brethren, we go to heaven because we are righteous.
But again, not our own righteousness,
the righteousness of God in him.
We go to heaven through the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
What an exchange.
Like Jesus, you take all my sins, okay,
and in exchange you can have all my righteousness.
Wow. What a gift. What a gift.
We go to heaven on the righteousness of Christ,
not your own righteousness.
What do you trust? What do you trust in him?
Your own righteousness or the righteousness of Christ?
Say, pass, I still have doubts. Why?
Because your righteousness is not good enough
or never was good enough.
Either you're trusting the righteousness of Christ
or you're not saved.
Come with me to John chapter 1.
John chapter 1 verse 12.
John chapter 1.
Actually, no, turn with me to Romans 8.
Please come to Romans 8.
Romans 8, please. Romans 8.
I'll read to you from John 1.12.
Probably one of my favorite verses.
But as many as received him.
Remember, we are to receive Jesus.
Isn't that what a gift is, though?
Someone offers you a gift and you have a choice.
Do I receive it or do I reject it?
You know, if you haven't received it this morning,
please receive it this morning.
The Bible says, for as many as received him,
to them gave you power to become the sons of God.
Look at this. Even to them that believe on his name.
How do we receive Christ?
By believing on his name.
Believing in Jesus.
Nothing else.
It says, which were born not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man, but of God.
Let me read that again.
So we're born of God if we believe in him.
Which were born not of blood, we know that
because his flesh is still sinful.
Nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man.
Some people say, well, you don't have to turn from your sins.
You don't have to repent of your sins to be saved.
But you have to be willing to turn from your sins to be saved.
Haven't you heard that before?
I realize that maybe turning from your sins is not really possible,
but you have to be willing to do it.
You have to be willing to do something that you can't do.
But you have to be willing to do what they say.
Well, what did it say there?
Let me read it again.
Which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man.
You cannot be willing enough to be clean.
You cannot be willing enough to be righteous.
It's not by your will.
Salvation is the will of God.
And you just have to receive it by believing on Jesus Christ,
believing on his name, believing his death,
his resurrection, that he's done it all.
So simple.
That's why Jesus Christ pulls up a little child,
and says, unless you be converted as a little child,
you shall not see the kingdom of heaven.
See, salvation is just what a little child does.
Yes, I believe it.
Adults, we have a hard time.
We don't want the faith of a little child.
It's like, I want to do my part though.
You're going to need to have the faith of a child.
You believe Jesus or you don't believe Jesus.
Anyway, that passage I said to you,
but as many of you have received him,
so don't give your power to become the sons of God.
See, the moment you trust in Jesus,
you become a child of God.
You become part of God's family.
What a blessing.
No longer sinners.
Forgiven, not just forgiven, but sons of God,
the children of God.
Amazing.
What a blessing, right?
Look at Romans 8.
You're there in Romans 8.15.
Romans 8.15.
For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear,
but ye have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry,
Abba, Father.
The spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit
that we are the children of God,
and if children then heirs, heirs of God,
and joint heirs with Christ,
if so be that we suffer with him,
that we may be also glorified together.
Wow.
Not only are we children, part of his family,
but then we're heirs, right?
Isn't that what normally happens when the parents pass away?
They pass on their inheritance to the next generation?
Well, the father has an inheritance for Jesus,
of course, because it's his son,
but then we're joint heirs with Christ,
because we're children of God.
Look, we're not some lower class children.
We're right up there, joint heirs with Jesus Christ,
children of God, the moment you trust him,
the moment you put your faith on Jesus Christ.
Amazing.
He's promised us heaven, okay?
The heaven's a free gift,
and then we want to lay up our treasures in heaven.
How's your bank account looking in heaven today?
We often focus on our bank account on this earth.
How's your bank account in heaven?
Listen, you're going to need to lay up your treasures
in heaven.
You need to serve the Lord.
Yes, overcome your sins.
Yes, turn from your sins.
Yes, be in church.
Serve the Lord.
Serve the brethren.
Yeah, all of this stuff.
Go soul winning, all right?
Love your family.
Raise your children and nurture an admission of the Lord.
Do the things that lay up treasures in heaven.
That's where your mindset ought to be.
That's where your bank account ought to be.
Come with me to John chapter three.
Let's look at the most famous verse.
John's famous verse, John 3.16.
How many people know this verse off my heart?
How many times do you go to someone's door
and you start quoting John 3.16 and they quote it with you,
but they don't believe it?
They don't understand it, right?
John 3.16, for God, John 3.16,
for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.
It's a gift he gave his son that whosoever what?
Lives according to the law.
Whosoever repents from their sins.
Whosoever goes to church and is part of the church choir
and has taught the Sunday school.
No, whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
Do you believe that verse or do you not?
You can read that verse to someone at the door
and they quote it with you and then you say,
so what do you have to do to go to heaven?
I'll be a good person.
Because they haven't got the spirit of God to teach them the truth.
That's why you're there, by the way.
You're there.
Okay, that's why we're still living.
That's why we're still breathing so we can go to our neighbours
and tell them the verse that they all know.
No, no, whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
Look at verse number 17.
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world through him might be saved.
How is the world saved?
Through him, through Jesus.
There's no other way.
There's no other way that you can be saved.
It's just through Jesus.
Verse number 18.
He that believeth on him is not condemned.
You're no longer under condemnation the moment you believe on him,
but he that believeth not is condemned already.
Why?
Because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Reverend, if you want to pass from condemnation,
you need to just believe in Christ to accept what he's done for you.
If you don't believe in Christ and you believe it's yourself,
it's your efforts to turn from sins,
your efforts to live a clean life,
then you're still under that condemnation today.
Drop down to verse number 36.
John 3, 36.
He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.
Reverend, that's present tense.
Have you believed on the Son?
Then you have everlasting life.
You're not just going to receive everlasting life when you pass away.
You have it today.
It says, and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life,
but the wrath of God abideth on him.
You see, it's not how well you clean up your life
or you live out your life that saves you or that condemns you.
Reverend, we're all deserving of hell,
but what sends us to hell?
Not believing on Jesus Christ.
What delivers us from hell?
Trust in Christ, believe in Christ.
Christ alone, that's all we need to do, Reverend.
You're full faith and trust on Jesus.
So we are not under the condemnation.
Con with condemnation.
Damnation is like damnation, with damnation.
Hey, we're not going to be damned.
The moment you believe in Christ, you have everlasting life,
which means you can never lose it,
because if you could lose it tomorrow,
it was never everlasting.
God says no, it's everlasting.
It lasts forever.
Okay.
And so not only that, but John 16 said should not perish.
Hey, we're not going to perish if we believe in Christ.
Everlasting, eternal life, just by default,
you should know that you cannot lose it
if you believe it's everlasting or eternal life.
Just by definition, it proves that you cannot lose it.
And why is that so important?
Because people that believe you can lose salvation,
what are they basing that on?
They're basing it on their works again.
Back to their works.
Well, if I don't do good enough, I can lose it.
Well, then you're not trusting Christ alone.
You're trusting some elements of Christ, but on yourself.
Ultimately, it's up to you now if you're going to go to hell or not
based on how good you are or how bad you are.
You know, it's everlasting.
It's eternal.
Does God lie to us?
You know, you don't understand pastor,
I've done something so wicked.
And I say this to the people at the door
so they really understand it.
You cannot be bad enough to lose your salvation
because you were never good enough to get it in the first place.
It was never about your performance.
It was not by your works.
It's been paid for by Jesus Christ.
Some Old Testament saints did some really wicked things.
Think of King David, a man after God's own heart,
took another man's wife and murdered him.
That's pretty wicked.
Okay, and I'm not saying go ahead and do these things.
No, of course not.
That's not what we teach in this church.
We want to live a life that pleases God.
Okay, but please stop, please stop doubting.
If you know salvation, stop doubting salvation then.
Stop doubting it.
Okay, because Christ has done it all.
Just accept that.
That is what salvation really is.
The moment you accept what Christ has done,
that is salvation on Christ alone.
You're there in John.
Please come with me to John chapter 6, verse number 37.
John chapter 6, verse number 37.
Just some other verses that you can use
if you have some doubts about whether you can lose it or not.
John 6, 37, Jesus Christ says,
all that the Father have given me shall come to me
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Have you come to Christ?
He'll never cast you out.
Come with me to John chapter 10, John chapter 10, verse 28.
John chapter 10, verse number 28.
John chapter 10, verse number 38.
Jesus Christ says, and I give unto them eternal life
and they shall never perish.
How good is that?
You cannot lose the brethren.
You'll never perish.
You have eternal life.
Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
So you think, well, I can pluck myself out of his hand.
No.
No man can pluck you out of his hand.
Once you're in the hand of Jesus,
that's where you're going to remain.
But pastor, what if I let go?
No, you're in the hand of Jesus.
He'll never let you go.
He'll never cast you out.
You cannot let go because he will never let go of you.
Verse number 29.
Then he says, my father which gave them me
is greater than all
and no man is able to pluck them out of my father's hand.
How good is salvation?
You're in the hand of Christ
and then above that you've got the hand of the father
keeping you safe and secure.
See, it's by the work of God that saves you, not of yourselves.
John chapter 14, please.
John chapter 14, verse number 5.
The Bible says, Thomas saith unto him,
Lord, we know not whither thou goest
and how can we know the way?
How can we know the way?
Verse number 6, Jesus saith unto him,
I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No man cometh unto the father but by me.
You see, there is no other way.
Salvation is in Christ's hand.
Salvation is in Christ alone.
Sometimes I talk to Christians, they're not saved.
I think I shared with you not long ago,
I talked to someone on the plane and they said,
well, he believes he's saved, he believes he's a Christian.
And he says, but I also believe that if the Muslims
just follow their light, then they will go to heaven too.
Well, then you don't believe that Jesus Christ is the way.
Jesus Christ is the only way.
And they're like, but how can God condemn all these people?
It's based on where you grew up
and what you believe and what you...
Well, the answer to that is that if you've got a burden
for those that are lost in these Muslim countries,
then you're breathing.
If you know the gospel, you go out there and give them the gospel.
You go out there and get them saved, that's the answer.
You have the only way.
He thought it was not loving that God would send Muslims to hell.
And I said, what is more unloving though?
Thinking that they're on the way to heaven
by following the light and they're actually on the way to hell
and you won't even open your mouth?
You say, well, Mr. Muslim friend,
you know, just continue following your lights.
Hey, that's more hateful.
That's more hateful.
You're guaranteeing them their way to hell
by saying it's all good, just follow your lights.
You've got to tell these people there's only one way
through Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
The Bible also says in Acts chapter 4,
please turn with me to the book of Romans.
Go to Romans chapter 5.
Come with me to Romans chapter 5.
And while you're turning to Romans 5,
I'll read to you from Acts 4, verse 10.
Acts 4, verse 10, which says,
Be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel
that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead,
even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
This is a stone which will set out naught of you builders,
which has become the head of the corner.
And verse number 12 is the most important one here.
Neither is there salvation in any other,
for there is none other name under heaven
are given among men whereby we must be saved.
No other name given under heaven.
It's by Jesus Christ alone.
His death, his burial, his resurrection,
his pay for it all, Brethren.
What a wonderful free gift.
Again, if you're not sure this morning,
please receive the free gift.
Say, yes, Lord, I'm trusting Jesus Christ alone.
Say, sorry, Lord, I'm going to repent from trusting in myself.
I thought I had to bring something to the table.
I thought I had to clean up my life.
I'm going to repent from those dead works, Lord,
and put my faith on Jesus Christ alone today.
If you're not sure, please pray that to Jesus Christ.
Please place your faith on him alone.
Okay, and if you're still not sure,
then come and talk to me, please.
It's so important, okay, so important.
You're there in Romans chapter five, verse 14.
And let's just end on this.
I already mentioned that it's a free gift.
We saw that in Ephesians chapter two,
but let's just nail this down a little bit further.
It's a free gift.
It's interesting that we have to use the word free gift
because all gifts are free already.
Like, the word free is kind of redundant next to gift, okay?
But anyway, that's what God does here.
That's what God does here in Romans chapter five, verse 14.
You see, God wants you to know it's not just a gift,
but it's a gift which is free, of course,
but he wants you to know it's free.
There's no strings attached.
It's completely free.
There's nothing to pay.
Christ is that gift.
Christ is offering us that gift by grace, okay?
Just like Adam's sin has affected us all,
all that salvation, that free gift in Christ abounds into us.
The grace of God comes upon us if we receive that gift freely.
Coming to the next chapter, Romans chapter six,
verse number 23.
We use this verse when we go soul winning.
Romans chapter six, verse number 23.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
What is the gift?
Eternal life.
It's the gift of God.
Who pays for the gift?
If God wants to give you the gift, he pays for the gift.
How did he pay for the gift?
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Completely paid for.
Come with me to one more passage.
John chapter four.
John chapter four, verse 10.
Last passage, please.
John chapter four, verse number 10.
Let's just look at this last thing now.
The words of Jesus Christ.
John chapter four and verse number 10.
Now again, if you're not sure this morning
or if you're listening online
and you're not sure if you're saved,
then please receive the gift.
Please accept that Jesus Christ has done it all.
Please accept it, okay?
Stop trusting in yourself.
Stop trusting in your church.
Stop trusting in this pastor potentially.
Stop trusting in this church potentially, okay?
Stop trusting your abilities to turn from sins.
Stop trusting your ability to keep the law.
Stop trusting everything.
Repent from everything else, okay?
The Bible says in John 4, 10.
Jesus answered and said unto her,
if thou knewest the gift of God
and who it is that saith to thee, give me to drink,
thou would have asked of him
and he would have given thee living water.
Jesus Christ is saying, look, you want the gift?
Just ask of me and I'll give you that living water.
Jesus, I want that gift.
It's not magic words, all right?
It's not the prayer that saves you.
It's the prayer, the one you're praying to,
the one you're calling upon,
the one you're asking the gift from.
That's the one that saves you.
So if you're not sure this morning,
please go to Jesus this morning and say,
Jesus, I want that free gift.
I want to know that I'm going to heaven.
I don't want any more doubts.
Lord, thank you for the simplicity of the gospel.
Thank you that you've done it all for me, Jesus.
Please give me everlasting life.
And the moment you do that, Reverend,
you're born into God's family.
The moment you're doing that,
you're joint heirs with Jesus Christ,
you know, to the heavenly promises
and you'll never come into condemnation.
You'll never have to face the fires of hell
because Jesus Christ has done everything necessary
for you to be saved.
All right, let's pray.
Heavenly Father, Lord,
I want to thank you so much for salvation.
Lord, that it is truly a free gift.
And Lord, it's not a gift to take for granted.
Lord, we understand the price that was paid,
the suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And Lord, I thank you that Christ
has done all the work necessary.
Lord, I thank you that you receive us
just like little children
that put our faith upon you,
put our faith upon the death
and burial and resurrection of Jesus.
Lord, thank you for making salvation so easy.
And Lord, forgive us sometimes, Lord,
for not appreciating what you've done for us.
Lord, if there's anyone not saved this morning,
Lord, I pray that you press upon their hearts
to make this right with you as soon as possible.
Lord, because we're not guaranteed
to even wake up tomorrow.
Lord, thank you for giving us heaven.
Thank you for the promises,
the inheritance that you're excited to give us.
Lord, we're excited for the coming of Christ
and we can't wait to see you face to face.
Lord, we pray these things in Jesus' name.
Amen.
All right, open your hymnals, please,
and turn to hymn number 127.
Hymn number 127.
127, let's sing,
"'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus."
And as we're singing,
please pay attention to the words.
If those words mean nothing to you,
if they go over your head,
there's something wrong,
please understand what Christ has done for you.
127, "'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus."
rook of Christ,
"'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus,"
Just to take him at his word,
Just to rest upon his promise,
Just to know the Son of God.
Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, how I trust Him, how I love Him o'er and o'er.
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus,
O full grace to trust Him more.
O how sweet to trust in Jesus,
just to trust His cleansing blood,
just in simple faith to plunge me,
with the heat when cleansing blood.
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him,
how I love Him o'er and o'er.
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus,
O full grace to trust Him more.
Yes, it's sweet to trust in Jesus,
just from sin and self to cease,
just from Jesus, simply take life and rest,
and joy and peace.
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him,
how I love Him o'er and o'er.
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus,
O full grace to trust Him more.
I'm so glad I learned to trust Thee,
precious Jesus, Saviour, Friend,
and I know that Thou art with me,
will be with me to the end.
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him,
how I've proved Him o'er and o'er.
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus,
O full grace to trust Him more.