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Hello and welcome to the
Middletown Baptist Church podcast,

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where we are proclaiming the
truth to the world.

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My name is Pastor Josh and I
want to thank you for listening to

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this podcast.

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I hope that this podcast can
be a blessing to you and strengthen

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you in the word of God.

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Now come along, let's look
into the Bible and see what God has

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for us here today.

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We're going to be in the book
of Romans.

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If you have your Bibles, turn
there with me.

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Romans, chapter four.

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We're going to continue our study.

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Looking at the topic.

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Theology matters.

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What we believe matters.

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What we believe about God matters.

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What we believe about what he
has done for us matters.

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Why?

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Because what we believe about
him dictates how we respond to Him.

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What we believe about what he
has done for us dictates how we live

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our lives.

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And so the Bible says that if
our heart and our minds are set on

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certain things, that's what
our life is going to be pointed to.

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So if I'm in love with money,
look, everything that I do in my

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life is going to be based on
trying to get more of that.

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If, if I love my health,
right, I'm going to do everything

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that I possibly can within
what I'm thinking about and what

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I'm doing, what I'm investing
in to put it all into my health.

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I was talking to our study
today, our Bible study this morning,

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and I said, you know what?

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We can see a Christian's
priorities by their schedule.

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Some of you have your schedule
on your phones, some of you have

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your schedules in an old
school notebook.

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However, you have your schedule.

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Some of you say schedule.

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What's that?

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Okay, I understand.

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But for me, I have my whole
schedule right here in this phone.

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My schedule dictates my priorities.

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My bank account dictates my priorities.

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What am I spending my money on?

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My.

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My house dictates my priorities.

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If someone spends some time
with us, it doesn't even have to

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be that long.

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People can tell what our
priority is.

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And if our priority is not
putting Jesus Christ first, if our

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priority is not based in the
truth of God, we're going to be all

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over the place.

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We're going to be.

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We're going to be scattered,
we're going to be confused, we're

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going to be in doubt.

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And so the reason why we need
to study theology is not so that

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we just become smarter Christ.

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It's not so that we can quote
Bible verses.

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It's not so that we can
display to other people how much

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we know.

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It's so that we can live a
life of faith so that we can live

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a life of security, so that we
can live a life knowing that even

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though the circumstances of my
life will change, God doesn't change.

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Knowing that, hey, you know what?

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The world can be difficult,
the world can be confusing, but the

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word of God is sure, the word
of God is secure.

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The word of God is, is truth.

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And so when we go to this idea
of theology, we're not just saying,

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hey, we need to know more
about God so that we can be impressive

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to other people around us.

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Knowing about God allows us to
rest in him and trust in him and

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believe in Him.

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And so Romans, really, the
whole book of Romans speaks to this

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idea.

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The first half of the book of
Romans deals with this idea of salvation.

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Why we need a Savior.

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What type of salvation does
God extend to us?

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What does it take to be saved?

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And then we see there's a
middle part that speaks to the nation

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of Israel and their future.

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And then we see the end,
really in the book of Romans is dealing

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with how we practically apply
those theological truths.

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So for the first half of this
study, we're going to see this is

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what God says about this.

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This is what God says about that.

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But then we get to the place
in the end of the Book of Romans

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where we start to put that to practice.

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What does that look like
within the church?

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What does that look like
within our ministry?

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What does that look like
within our homes?

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And so we're going to
ultimately see that through this

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study.

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But here In Romans chapter 4,
Paul somewhat shifts gears through

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the inspiration of the Spirit
and says, okay, I've been talking

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to you about the need for a savior.

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Romans 1, 2 and 3 is all about
the need for a Savior.

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Our problem, and what is our problem?

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Our problem is sin.

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We are in a sin cursed world
and all of us have been marred by

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sin.

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The Bible tells us In Romans
chapter 3, verse 10, as it is written,

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there is none righteous.

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No, not one.

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Then it says in verse 23, for
all have sinned and come short of

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the glory of God.

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And so what Paul is trying to
describe to the reader is this.

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We all are in need of a Savior.

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We cannot save ourselves.

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We go back all the way to
chapter one, Romans chapter one,

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verse 16.

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He says, For I am not ashamed
of the Gospel of Christ.

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He says, the answer to all of
our problems is the Gospel of Jesus

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Christ.

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Why?

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For it is the power of God
unto salvation to everyone that believeth.

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To the Jew first and also to
the Greek, for therein is the righteousness

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of God revealed from faith to faith.

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As it is written, the just
shall live by faith.

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And so Paul starts with the gospel.

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He explains why we need the gospel.

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And now he's going to talk
about here in Romans chapter four,

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what type of salvation,
really, what type salvation does

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God extend to the believer?

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And it's a salvation through faith.

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And that's what we're going to
talk about here this morning.

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Are we going to try to win by works?

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Are we going to trust in faith
for our salvation?

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Look at verse number one with me.

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Paul is going to ask another question.

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He says, what shall we say
then that Abraham our father, as

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pertaining to the flesh have found.

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Fourth, Abraham were justified
by works he hath were of to glory,

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but not before God.

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You say, what is he talking
about there?

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Why does he bring Abraham into this?

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Because essentially what Paul
is doing is he says, if anyone could

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be saved by their works, it
would be Abraham.

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Why?

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Because they all look to
Abraham as their father.

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Abraham was esteemed by the
Jewish people as the father of their

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nation.

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They looked at Abraham as the
top guy, like we do in our country.

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We look at George Washington, right?

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George Washington is esteemed
by our culture.

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We say, wow, he was the first president.

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He was a wonderful president.

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And we look to him as a
cultural hero.

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Think about that on the scale
of 100 more.

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And that's who Abraham was.

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And so what Paul is going to
do is he's going to say, hey, you

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know what?

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You cannot save yourselves.

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You cannot work your way to salvation.

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And you know what?

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Even if Abraham, even if you
think Abraham could, he couldn't.

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And so he says, what shall we
say then?

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That Abraham our father, as
pertaining to the flesh, meaning,

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did he earn salvation through
the flesh?

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And so he's building a case here.

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And so in answering the
question, Paul looks to Abraham,

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who was, like I said, the most
esteemed man among the Jewish people

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of the day, and he says, even,
even Abraham could not save himself.

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This would have been really
alarming for the people because what

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they were taught, and what
many people are taught today was

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that people in the Old
Testament were saved through their

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works by following the law, by.

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By committing all these
sacrifices and trying to atone for

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their sins.

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And so, like, you know,
Abraham worked his way, Abraham followed.

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And he says, no, no, no,
Abraham did not get justified by

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his works.

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Why?

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Because we know that the Bible
says that none are justified by works,

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none are saved by works.

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Hebrews chapter 11 tells us
that Abraham was saved by faith.

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We're going to look at a few
different passages of scripture that

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point to that.

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And the reason why I want to
do that here this morning is because

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I want us to see that the
Bible exclusively says that every

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single person from the
beginning of time has been saved

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by faith.

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We're going to talk about two
words here this morning.

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We're going to talk about the
word justification.

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You should be familiar with
that word by now.

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Justification is a declaration
of righteousness.

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It essentially describes what
happens in our salvation.

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God looks at a guilty sinner,
but because of the sacrifice of Jesus

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Christ and because of that
sinner's faith in Jesus Christ, he

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now looks upon us and no
longer sees the sin on our account.

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He now says, you know what?

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That is someone who is saved
by the work of Jesus Christ, saved

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by grace.

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And so we're going to see here
this morning that Abraham was saved

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the very same way.

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So if anyone could be
justified by works, it would be Abraham.

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But if Abraham could be saved,
then he could boast.

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But what does he say here in
verse 2?

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For if Abraham were justified
by works, he hath wherewith the glorier

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he has a reason to boast.

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Now, now we know the Bible
says In Ephesians, chapter 2, verses

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8 and 9, for by grace are we
saved through faith.

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And that not of yourselves, it
is a gift of God, not of works, lest

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any man should boast.

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So what we see here this
morning is that the Bible says there

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is no reason for any person
who has been saved to.

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To boast about what they have done.

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I, I think a lot of times what
happens is that we often think that,

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you know what?

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I am a good person.

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I came to Christ on my own accord.

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I cleaned up my life and now
I'm going to trust in Jesus.

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And so you know what?

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I'm a pretty good person.

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The, the focus here this
morning is this.

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None of us have earned this.

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None of us can boast, not even Abraham.

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It's a gift of grace.

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And so this boasting is
nothing before God, because even

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works, even if works could
justify a person, all of us fall

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short of the glory of God.

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That's what verse 23 says.

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And so he says, if Abraham
were justified by works, he hath

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whereof to glory, but not
before God.

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No one can glory before God.

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Boasting is nothing before
God, because why everyone has fallen

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short of the glory of God.

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And so the Bible tells us very
clearly that Abraham was justified

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or saved by faith.

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Now if you question that, if
you say no, I Think all the Old Testament

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saints were saved by their works.

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Well, let's go back and let's
look at Genesis chapter 15, because

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Genesis chapter 15 tells us
exactly how Abraham was justified.

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And so we're going to go all
the way back to the book of Genesis

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here this morning.

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And we're going to look at
Genesis chapter 15 and we're going

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to see what the Bible says
about Abraham's salvation.

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We're going to see how God
accounted righteousness to Abraham.

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And it wasn't through his
works, it wasn't through his efforts,

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it wasn't through his.

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His good outweighing his bad.

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It was through, as we're going
to see here this morning, faith.

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And so Genesis chapter 15.

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Some of you know the story
Abraham has had at this point.

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He's Abram, and ultimately
he's gone through a lot so far.

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He's had an opportunity to
hear from God already.

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God has given him a promise.

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But here in Genesis chapter
15, we know that God has promised

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Abraham that he will have a son.

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And not only will he have a
son, but he will have a great nation

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that comes from his family.

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And we see in verse number
six, it tells us exactly how Abraham

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was saved, says verse six.

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And he believed in the Lord
right there.

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He believed in the Lord, faith.

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He believed in the Lord, and
he, God, counted it to him, Abraham,

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for righteousness.

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00:11:02,840 --> 00:11:05,400
So essentially, what we're
seeing here in verse number six is

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justification by faith.

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Now, Abraham obviously was
looking towards the Messiah.

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Abraham was looking toward
what God was going to do.

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And ultimately having faith in God.

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In that regard, we as
believers today have the opportunity

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to look back to what God has
done through Jesus Christ.

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But ultimately, what we know
through Hebrews chapter 11, what

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we know through Genesis
chapter 15, what we know through

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Romans chapter 4, is that
everyone throughout all of history

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has been saved because of
their faith.

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Their faith in what?

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00:11:33,700 --> 00:11:36,980
Their faith in God and
ultimately through us.

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In the New Testament, in the,
in the church age, we look to Jesus

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Christ.

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The Bible says in John 14:6, I
am the way, Jesus is the way, the

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truth and the life.

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No man cometh unto the Father
but by me.

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And so to know God is to know Jesus.

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To know his salvation is to
know the sacrifice.

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To know his forgiveness is to
know him in faith.

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And so what we're seeing here
in Romans chapter four is that Paul

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is using an individual who
everyone is familiar with and making

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the argument that if Abraham
could not save himself, you cannot

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save yourself.

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Your religion cannot save you.

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00:12:09,460 --> 00:12:11,220
Your good works cannot save you.

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Your giving cannot save you.

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00:12:13,550 --> 00:12:13,710
Your.

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00:12:13,710 --> 00:12:16,590
Your associations in this
world cannot save you.

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Nothing can save you.

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00:12:18,270 --> 00:12:20,150
You say, pastor, why are you
railing on this?

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00:12:20,150 --> 00:12:20,430
Why.

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00:12:20,430 --> 00:12:23,990
Why are you going over and
over this topic of salvation by faith

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00:12:23,990 --> 00:12:26,430
alone, justify justification
by faith alone?

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00:12:26,510 --> 00:12:31,110
The reason being is that we as
humans, in our flesh, in our natural

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00:12:31,110 --> 00:12:34,550
state, are prone to think that
it's something that we have to do.

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Have you ever heard someone
say, is it that easy?

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00:12:36,430 --> 00:12:38,590
Is it just that easy to
believe in God?

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00:12:38,590 --> 00:12:41,260
The Bible says very clearly
that, yes, it's about putting our

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00:12:41,260 --> 00:12:44,540
true faith in Jesus Christ,
authentic faith in Jesus Christ,

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and that is it.

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Now you would say, well, what
doesn't that mean?

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Does that mean I can just do
what I want to do for the rest of

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my life?

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00:12:50,380 --> 00:12:50,700
No.

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00:12:50,700 --> 00:12:53,420
Paul addresses this later on
in the Book of Romans.

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But essentially, if we think
at any degree that it's something

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00:12:56,259 --> 00:12:58,260
that we have done, it's
something that we have earned, well,

303
00:12:58,260 --> 00:13:00,220
it's because I'm a member of
Middletown Baptist Church.

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00:13:00,220 --> 00:13:02,180
That's why I'm going to
heaven, folks.

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00:13:02,180 --> 00:13:04,580
If any of us say, it's because
I'm a member of Middletown Baptist

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00:13:04,580 --> 00:13:05,660
Church, we're missing the mark.

307
00:13:06,470 --> 00:13:08,390
If someone says, well, it's
because I'm a pretty good person,

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00:13:08,390 --> 00:13:09,350
we're missing the mark.

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00:13:09,510 --> 00:13:12,150
If someone says, it's because
I read my Bible every day, we're

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00:13:12,150 --> 00:13:12,750
missing the mark.

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00:13:12,750 --> 00:13:15,110
If it's someone that says,
well, you know, I take all the sacraments,

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00:13:15,110 --> 00:13:16,070
it's missing the mark.

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00:13:16,150 --> 00:13:19,710
The Bible says that all those
things follow salvation, but those

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00:13:19,710 --> 00:13:20,950
things cannot save us.

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00:13:20,950 --> 00:13:24,390
And so we go back to Romans
chapter four, and we see that Abraham

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00:13:24,390 --> 00:13:25,990
was not justified by works.

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00:13:26,390 --> 00:13:27,830
He has no reason to boast.

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00:13:28,070 --> 00:13:29,590
We cannot be justified by works.

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00:13:29,590 --> 00:13:30,950
There's no reason for us to boast.

320
00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:33,760
Look at it in verse number
three, he references what we just

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00:13:33,760 --> 00:13:36,240
read for what saith the scripture.

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00:13:36,720 --> 00:13:38,320
I love that question there.

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00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:39,640
What does Paul do?

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00:13:39,640 --> 00:13:40,880
He says, let's appeal the scripture.

325
00:13:40,880 --> 00:13:42,360
You guys believe the Old Testament.

326
00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:44,880
Now, Paul wouldn't have called
it the Old Testament at that point.

327
00:13:45,120 --> 00:13:46,800
Paul would have said, you
believe the Scriptures.

328
00:13:47,439 --> 00:13:48,640
What do the Scriptures say?

329
00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:51,240
I think, by the way, let's
stop here.

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00:13:51,240 --> 00:13:54,640
I think that's what we should
do with every issue of belief, every

331
00:13:54,640 --> 00:13:59,250
issue of theology, instead of
saying, well, I think we can get

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00:13:59,250 --> 00:14:01,730
into a lot of trouble within
the church, within our own lives,

333
00:14:02,210 --> 00:14:05,050
when we start to talk about
things of God and we start to talk

334
00:14:05,050 --> 00:14:05,890
about our opinions.

335
00:14:06,690 --> 00:14:11,810
I believe, I feel I've always
been taught these are all precursors

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00:14:11,810 --> 00:14:14,850
to false teaching, heresy.

337
00:14:15,090 --> 00:14:17,010
Because I'm going to tell you
that there's some times in my life

338
00:14:17,010 --> 00:14:19,570
where I feel differently than
what the word of God says.

339
00:14:21,090 --> 00:14:25,210
I feel like saying that, you
know what, that makes a lot of sense,

340
00:14:25,210 --> 00:14:28,530
to accept that or to lean this
way or to do this thing.

341
00:14:28,850 --> 00:14:31,370
And so what we see here this
morning is that Paul says, well,

342
00:14:31,370 --> 00:14:33,970
let's go to see what scripture
has to say about salvation.

343
00:14:34,690 --> 00:14:38,090
And these people would have
appealed to the book of Genesis and

344
00:14:38,090 --> 00:14:38,490
understood.

345
00:14:38,490 --> 00:14:39,010
Exactly.

346
00:14:39,170 --> 00:14:40,290
Or what it would have said.

347
00:14:40,290 --> 00:14:42,410
And Paul says, let's look to
what scripture says.

348
00:14:42,410 --> 00:14:42,850
Verse 3.

349
00:14:42,850 --> 00:14:47,650
Abraham believed God and it
was counted unto him for righteousness.

350
00:14:48,930 --> 00:14:49,250
So.

351
00:14:49,250 --> 00:14:51,690
So he says, let's look at what
the Bible says.

352
00:14:51,690 --> 00:14:53,050
Let's look at what Scripture says.

353
00:14:53,050 --> 00:14:55,650
And very clearly, the
Scripture says that Abraham believed

354
00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:59,680
Abraham had faith, and then it
was accounted to him for righteousness.

355
00:14:59,680 --> 00:15:04,480
And so Paul makes it so clear
that Abraham's righteousness did

356
00:15:04,480 --> 00:15:06,440
not come from performing good works.

357
00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:10,920
And therefore, by extension,
our righteousness does not come from

358
00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:12,200
performing good works.

359
00:15:12,520 --> 00:15:17,200
What brings us righteousness,
it's belief in God.

360
00:15:17,200 --> 00:15:17,960
It's faith.

361
00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,640
And so it was the
righteousness obtained through faith.

362
00:15:21,640 --> 00:15:25,080
Some people teach this as
something called imputed righteousness.

363
00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:27,560
Now, I don't want to go over
your heads this morning, but essentially

364
00:15:27,560 --> 00:15:29,080
when imputed righteousness is this.

365
00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:33,560
God takes his righteousness
and imputes it or gives it to us,

366
00:15:33,560 --> 00:15:37,080
transfers it to us, and so
therefore we can live as righteous

367
00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:37,960
believers.

368
00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:40,080
That doesn't mean that we're
going to be sinless, but what it

369
00:15:40,080 --> 00:15:41,080
means is that there are.

370
00:15:41,080 --> 00:15:42,280
There are none righteous.

371
00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:43,720
No, not one in our flesh.

372
00:15:44,040 --> 00:15:47,240
But we can have righteousness
of God given to us through faith

373
00:15:47,240 --> 00:15:48,120
in Jesus Christ.

374
00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:50,520
I want you to see another
passage of Scripture that explains

375
00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:52,930
that I believe very sufficiently.

376
00:15:52,930 --> 00:15:55,010
And that's Second Corinthians,
chapter five.

377
00:15:55,410 --> 00:15:58,250
Some of you know this because
not too long ago we went through

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00:15:58,250 --> 00:15:59,410
the book of Second Corinthians.

379
00:16:00,050 --> 00:16:03,530
I'd like you to see multiple
places in Scripture when it comes

380
00:16:03,530 --> 00:16:06,410
to this idea of imputed righteousness.

381
00:16:06,410 --> 00:16:09,570
Second Corinthians, chapter 5,
verse number 21.

382
00:16:11,010 --> 00:16:12,650
Same concept, same principle.

383
00:16:12,650 --> 00:16:14,530
You cannot be righteous in on
your own.

384
00:16:14,690 --> 00:16:18,130
But when you trust in Jesus
Christ as your Savior, you have righteousness

385
00:16:18,130 --> 00:16:19,490
imputed or given to you.

386
00:16:19,570 --> 00:16:21,570
2 Corinthians, chapter 5,
verse 21.

387
00:16:21,570 --> 00:16:24,370
For he hath made him to be sin
for us.

388
00:16:24,610 --> 00:16:29,410
That's Jesus being sacrificed
for us who knew no sin.

389
00:16:29,890 --> 00:16:30,330
Okay?

390
00:16:30,330 --> 00:16:32,250
This speaks to the perfection
of Jesus.

391
00:16:32,250 --> 00:16:37,250
This speaks to his holiness
that we might be made the righteousness

392
00:16:37,250 --> 00:16:41,250
of God in him, in him, in Jesus.

393
00:16:42,210 --> 00:16:45,580
So two things you need to note here.

394
00:16:45,900 --> 00:16:48,540
One, the righteousness is not
our righteousness.

395
00:16:48,860 --> 00:16:51,580
The righteousness is Jesus
Christ's righteousness given to us.

396
00:16:51,740 --> 00:16:54,060
But at the same time it means this.

397
00:16:54,060 --> 00:16:58,899
We are to be characterized by
righteousness after salvation because

398
00:16:58,899 --> 00:16:59,620
again, there's a.

399
00:16:59,620 --> 00:17:01,980
There's what we would call
today cheap grace.

400
00:17:02,220 --> 00:17:03,660
Todd Cheap grace is this.

401
00:17:03,740 --> 00:17:04,540
I'm saved.

402
00:17:04,860 --> 00:17:06,860
But really at this point, I'm
just a human.

403
00:17:06,860 --> 00:17:08,060
I can do what I want to do.

404
00:17:08,060 --> 00:17:09,980
I'm going to sin, so I might
as well sin.

405
00:17:10,169 --> 00:17:10,329
No.

406
00:17:10,329 --> 00:17:13,569
Paul addresses that and says,
no, you are given righteousness,

407
00:17:13,569 --> 00:17:16,649
but that righteousness is not
earned by your good works.

408
00:17:16,649 --> 00:17:18,569
It's not earned by your status.

409
00:17:18,569 --> 00:17:24,529
It's given to you in grace by
a loving God who has shed his grace

410
00:17:24,529 --> 00:17:26,969
upon us through the sacrifice
of his Son.

411
00:17:27,369 --> 00:17:31,089
And so we see there, going
back to Romans chapter four, he says,

412
00:17:31,089 --> 00:17:33,049
what does the Scripture say?

413
00:17:33,209 --> 00:17:36,859
Abraham believed God and it
was counted unto him for righteousness.

414
00:17:37,490 --> 00:17:40,450
Now this is where he's going
to get a little bit further in the

415
00:17:40,690 --> 00:17:41,250
discussion.

416
00:17:41,250 --> 00:17:48,010
He says now to him that
worketh is the reward not reckoned

417
00:17:48,010 --> 00:17:49,330
of grace, but of debt.

418
00:17:50,210 --> 00:17:55,690
So he says, if we could work
our way to salvation, it would not

419
00:17:55,690 --> 00:17:56,290
be grace.

420
00:17:56,770 --> 00:17:57,090
Right?

421
00:17:57,090 --> 00:18:00,890
Grace by definition is a gift
given to us that we do not deserve,

422
00:18:00,890 --> 00:18:02,050
that we cannot earn.

423
00:18:02,780 --> 00:18:05,500
So he says, if you could buy
it, it would not be grace.

424
00:18:05,980 --> 00:18:09,500
And we have to understand as
believers that everything that we

425
00:18:09,500 --> 00:18:10,780
have is by grace.

426
00:18:10,780 --> 00:18:13,700
And so therefore Paul says, if
you want to trust in grace, you can't

427
00:18:13,700 --> 00:18:14,620
trust in your works.

428
00:18:15,980 --> 00:18:19,420
If you want to appeal to the
grace of God, we have to throw our

429
00:18:19,420 --> 00:18:20,740
works out at the front door.

430
00:18:20,740 --> 00:18:24,740
Because our works will never,
never account with what we see in

431
00:18:24,740 --> 00:18:25,420
the grace of God.

432
00:18:25,420 --> 00:18:27,180
We can never outweigh the
grace of God.

433
00:18:27,180 --> 00:18:28,380
God's grace is abundant.

434
00:18:29,090 --> 00:18:30,450
God's grace is infinite.

435
00:18:30,770 --> 00:18:32,290
Our works are so limited.

436
00:18:32,290 --> 00:18:34,530
I'm going to tell you here,
you could say here today.

437
00:18:34,530 --> 00:18:35,170
Well, you know what?

438
00:18:35,170 --> 00:18:37,170
I'm going to read my Bible an
hour a day.

439
00:18:37,970 --> 00:18:39,570
Okay, we'll read it two hours
a day.

440
00:18:39,650 --> 00:18:40,850
Why can't you read it two
hours a day?

441
00:18:40,850 --> 00:18:42,010
Why don't we read it two hours
a day?

442
00:18:42,010 --> 00:18:43,210
Well, why can't you read it three?

443
00:18:43,210 --> 00:18:44,210
You see what I mean?

444
00:18:44,369 --> 00:18:45,010
Works.

445
00:18:45,570 --> 00:18:47,250
Works would be a never ending pit.

446
00:18:47,250 --> 00:18:48,810
We can never win by our works.

447
00:18:48,810 --> 00:18:52,450
What we see here is that he
says it's only by grace if we continue

448
00:18:52,690 --> 00:18:54,090
to trust in our works.

449
00:18:54,090 --> 00:18:54,770
What will it be?

450
00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:57,320
He says there in verse number
four, It'll be of debt.

451
00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:01,240
It'll be a debt we cannot earn
our way.

452
00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:04,640
And so the idea of grace
stands opposite to the principle

453
00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:05,400
of works.

454
00:19:05,960 --> 00:19:10,520
Grace has to do with receiving
something that we did not earn.

455
00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,680
Works has to do with earning
some kind of merit before God.

456
00:19:15,560 --> 00:19:18,200
And so when we look at this
word grace, we have to understand

457
00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:20,880
that everything that we have
in our faith, everything that we

458
00:19:20,880 --> 00:19:24,160
have in the gift of God,
everything that we have in our salvation,

459
00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,000
everything we have in our
spiritual growth process, comes through

460
00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:27,480
that word.

461
00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:30,480
Grace comes through the gift
of God, not of works.

462
00:19:30,560 --> 00:19:33,800
Because when we talk about
those works, we talk about the debt

463
00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:34,320
that we owe.

464
00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:36,240
And none of us want to talk
about the debt that we owe.

465
00:19:36,800 --> 00:19:38,760
All of us owe the greatest debt.

466
00:19:38,760 --> 00:19:41,680
And the Bible says for the
wages of sin is death.

467
00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:43,600
We're going to talk about that
in Romans, chapter six.

468
00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:47,360
And so what we can ultimately
see is that going back to verse number

469
00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:49,040
three, Abraham believed God.

470
00:19:49,040 --> 00:19:50,900
He had faith, and it was counted.

471
00:19:50,900 --> 00:19:52,620
That word counted is an
amazing word.

472
00:19:53,420 --> 00:19:56,900
It's a word that basically
says that someone has debts on their

473
00:19:56,900 --> 00:19:59,580
account, and someone comes in
and blots that debt out, removes

474
00:19:59,580 --> 00:20:01,020
that debt, takes that away.

475
00:20:01,580 --> 00:20:04,220
And so when we say that we are
saved, we're saying that not only

476
00:20:04,220 --> 00:20:07,620
did God just make our life
better, even though salvation does

477
00:20:07,620 --> 00:20:10,900
make our life much better,
it's that God comes in and he sees

478
00:20:10,900 --> 00:20:13,100
that debt that we have through
our own works.

479
00:20:13,100 --> 00:20:15,420
By the way, the Bible says
that our works are like.

480
00:20:15,420 --> 00:20:17,100
Our best works are like filthy rags.

481
00:20:17,330 --> 00:20:20,530
And he comes in and he takes
all of that debt that we have and

482
00:20:20,530 --> 00:20:21,490
he wipes that away.

483
00:20:21,650 --> 00:20:23,410
He blots out our transgressions.

484
00:20:23,570 --> 00:20:25,650
He forgives us of our sins.

485
00:20:25,890 --> 00:20:28,210
And so that's the beautiful
picture of that.

486
00:20:28,210 --> 00:20:31,130
When you think about when
Jesus is on the cross, he says a

487
00:20:31,130 --> 00:20:31,370
phrase.

488
00:20:31,370 --> 00:20:33,650
It's actually one word in the Greek.

489
00:20:34,210 --> 00:20:35,210
In the English, it's.

490
00:20:35,210 --> 00:20:36,130
It is finished.

491
00:20:36,690 --> 00:20:39,690
In the Greek, it's the
telesti, which means it is finished.

492
00:20:39,690 --> 00:20:40,290
It's paid.

493
00:20:40,370 --> 00:20:42,610
The debt has been paid.

494
00:20:43,000 --> 00:20:45,720
All of us earn a debt with our
works, even our good works.

495
00:20:45,720 --> 00:20:49,320
But the Bible says that Jesus
comes on the scene, he pays the price.

496
00:20:49,640 --> 00:20:51,320
Telesti, it is finished.

497
00:20:51,320 --> 00:20:52,840
It's all taken care of.

498
00:20:53,960 --> 00:20:56,480
And so what we can see here in
this passage of Scripture is that

499
00:20:56,480 --> 00:21:04,040
Paul is emphasizing the gift
of grace and showing the danger of

500
00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:04,840
our works.

501
00:21:04,920 --> 00:21:05,640
Verse 5.

502
00:21:05,640 --> 00:21:09,400
But to him, that work, if not
so, the person who doesn't justify

503
00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:12,700
themselves by their works, but
believeth on him, that justifieth

504
00:21:12,700 --> 00:21:16,820
the ungodly, his faith is
counted for righteousness.

505
00:21:17,380 --> 00:21:20,140
So since you want to be Like
Abraham, you want to be like the

506
00:21:20,140 --> 00:21:23,460
one who understands God's
grace, who rests in God's grace.

507
00:21:23,460 --> 00:21:25,540
Don't be the one that tries to
work your way.

508
00:21:25,620 --> 00:21:29,700
Be the one who, as it says
there, trust in the Lord, believeth

509
00:21:29,700 --> 00:21:30,340
on him.

510
00:21:30,820 --> 00:21:33,940
And then there's this
interesting phrase here, says justifieth

511
00:21:33,940 --> 00:21:34,820
the ungodly.

512
00:21:36,990 --> 00:21:42,270
Think about that verse and put
your name there on the ungodly, because

513
00:21:42,270 --> 00:21:43,870
that's me, that's you.

514
00:21:44,030 --> 00:21:44,510
We're.

515
00:21:44,510 --> 00:21:47,470
Before we come to Christ in
faith, we are the ungodly.

516
00:21:47,550 --> 00:21:49,790
A lot of times we often think
about the person that was listed

517
00:21:49,790 --> 00:21:53,150
there in Romans chapter one
with all these heinous public sins.

518
00:21:53,230 --> 00:21:56,030
And certainly that person
would be considered the ungodly.

519
00:21:56,350 --> 00:21:59,270
But the Bible very clearly
teaches that all of us, before we

520
00:21:59,270 --> 00:22:00,670
come to Christ, are ungodly.

521
00:22:00,670 --> 00:22:03,030
Which means basically we're
the opposite of what God wants us

522
00:22:03,030 --> 00:22:03,390
to be.

523
00:22:03,780 --> 00:22:05,060
We're the opposite of righteous.

524
00:22:05,780 --> 00:22:07,340
We're failures in that regard.

525
00:22:07,340 --> 00:22:08,060
And so what does he say?

526
00:22:08,060 --> 00:22:10,060
He says, don't trust in your
own works.

527
00:22:10,060 --> 00:22:12,700
That will bring you debt, that
will bring you brokenness, that will

528
00:22:12,700 --> 00:22:13,700
bring you hopelessness.

529
00:22:13,700 --> 00:22:14,420
Verse 5.

530
00:22:14,500 --> 00:22:18,100
Trust in the Lord who
justifies the ungodly.

531
00:22:18,260 --> 00:22:20,740
And that person's faith is
counted for righteousness.

532
00:22:20,740 --> 00:22:23,700
So you want to be like
Abraham, follow Abraham's example.

533
00:22:24,020 --> 00:22:27,420
Not in every way, because
Abraham was a failure in many ways

534
00:22:27,420 --> 00:22:27,900
in his life.

535
00:22:27,900 --> 00:22:31,470
He was a sinner, he was not
perfect, but he was saved through

536
00:22:31,550 --> 00:22:32,030
faith.

537
00:22:33,310 --> 00:22:37,390
And so it isn't as if God is
just saying here, it doesn't matter.

538
00:22:37,470 --> 00:22:38,310
Works don't matter.

539
00:22:38,310 --> 00:22:38,990
What is he saying?

540
00:22:38,990 --> 00:22:41,230
He says works aren't what
saves you.

541
00:22:41,230 --> 00:22:43,150
What saves you is faith in
Jesus Christ.

542
00:22:43,150 --> 00:22:45,630
And so we're gonna build on
that here for a few moments.

543
00:22:46,030 --> 00:22:50,790
And so just as Abraham was
granted salvation, so we can be granted

544
00:22:50,790 --> 00:22:51,590
that same salvation.

545
00:22:51,590 --> 00:22:53,230
So then he goes on a little
bit further here.

546
00:22:53,230 --> 00:22:55,070
So he's used Abraham as an example.

547
00:22:55,070 --> 00:22:57,600
The now he's going to use
another character of scripture that

548
00:22:57,600 --> 00:22:58,320
you are familiar with.

549
00:22:58,320 --> 00:22:59,320
And his name is David.

550
00:22:59,960 --> 00:23:02,800
I think all of us to some
degree will, would admit that David

551
00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:03,560
was not perfect.

552
00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:07,840
But at the same time, David
holds a huge place in the culture

553
00:23:07,840 --> 00:23:09,600
of, of Israel, right?

554
00:23:09,600 --> 00:23:11,000
I mean, he was, he was the king.

555
00:23:11,240 --> 00:23:14,000
And, and certainly we know
that the Bible says that he was a

556
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:15,160
man after God's own heart.

557
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:18,240
So if anyone could earn their
salvation, it would be Abraham and

558
00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:18,680
David.

559
00:23:19,160 --> 00:23:21,960
But we're going to know that
even David understood his salvation

560
00:23:21,960 --> 00:23:25,160
not to be because of his
works, but because of his faith in

561
00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:25,640
Jesus Christ.

562
00:23:25,640 --> 00:23:29,360
So look at verse number six,
it says, even as David also describeth

563
00:23:29,360 --> 00:23:33,160
the blessedness of the man
unto whom God imputed righteousness

564
00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:37,520
without works, so he says
David understood salvation to be

565
00:23:37,520 --> 00:23:42,920
this way, verse number seven,
saying, blessed are they whose iniquities.

566
00:23:43,800 --> 00:23:45,080
We see that word iniquity.

567
00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:46,200
We're speaking of sin.

568
00:23:46,200 --> 00:23:50,480
We're speaking of, of missing
the mark, even whose sins or iniquities

569
00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:53,000
are forgiven and whose sins
are covered.

570
00:23:53,900 --> 00:23:59,340
Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin.

571
00:23:59,900 --> 00:24:04,460
And so on contrast, we see
that this idea that God imputes righteousness,

572
00:24:04,540 --> 00:24:07,620
when God imputes righteousness
upon us, when he gives that righteousness

573
00:24:07,620 --> 00:24:11,500
to us, he then withholds the
guilt of sin.

574
00:24:12,060 --> 00:24:15,060
We are not imputed sin, we are
imputed righteousness.

575
00:24:15,060 --> 00:24:17,620
And so what he essentially
does here is he quotes a passage

576
00:24:17,620 --> 00:24:18,220
of Scripture.

577
00:24:18,220 --> 00:24:21,190
He quotes from the book of Psalms.

578
00:24:21,190 --> 00:24:24,430
He quotes Psalm 32, if you
want to turn there with me, I want

579
00:24:24,430 --> 00:24:29,190
you to see that he basically
just says, hey, even David, the one

580
00:24:29,190 --> 00:24:33,590
you trust, the one you look to
as an example, the one you really

581
00:24:33,590 --> 00:24:36,990
lift up as a cultural hero, he
says the same thing.

582
00:24:37,630 --> 00:24:43,870
He says that the word of God
is consistently true when it says

583
00:24:43,870 --> 00:24:46,780
that we are saved through
through faith and faith alone.

584
00:24:48,300 --> 00:24:50,940
So Psalm 32, we're going to
look at this, and we're going to

585
00:24:50,940 --> 00:24:53,420
see exactly what Paul is
referencing here.

586
00:24:54,700 --> 00:24:58,540
Then we're going to get to our
concluding thought and the application

587
00:24:58,620 --> 00:24:59,340
thereof.

588
00:24:59,660 --> 00:25:00,620
Psalm 32.

589
00:25:01,179 --> 00:25:05,140
Blessed is he whose
transgression is forgiven, whose

590
00:25:05,140 --> 00:25:06,300
sin is covered.

591
00:25:06,860 --> 00:25:11,660
Blessed is the man unto whom
the Lord imputeth not iniquity, in

592
00:25:11,660 --> 00:25:13,060
whose spirit there is no guile.

593
00:25:14,420 --> 00:25:17,940
The, the idea here that David
is portraying is the same idea that

594
00:25:17,940 --> 00:25:22,180
Paul is portraying is that we
are blessed in grace when God does

595
00:25:22,180 --> 00:25:26,300
not account our sin, but when
God accounts the work of the Savior.

596
00:25:26,300 --> 00:25:30,780
So David speaks of the
blessedness, the joy of knowing that

597
00:25:30,780 --> 00:25:33,300
we are justified through faith
and not by works.

598
00:25:33,860 --> 00:25:37,440
And so this is the centerpiece
of the teaching of the Gospel, that

599
00:25:37,440 --> 00:25:38,960
it is completely a work of God.

600
00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,440
We are responding to his gift
of grace.

601
00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:45,160
And through that response, we
have salvation.

602
00:25:46,040 --> 00:25:46,920
Think about David.

603
00:25:46,920 --> 00:25:50,040
Think about what David was
saved from when he came to his sin.

604
00:25:50,200 --> 00:25:53,479
I mean, if anyone needed to
pay for their sins, it was David.

605
00:25:54,040 --> 00:25:56,120
One time I was struggling
with, I was like, you know what?

606
00:25:56,120 --> 00:25:56,760
I'm just not enough.

607
00:25:56,760 --> 00:25:59,560
I'm, I failed.

608
00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:04,490
I, I, I've sinned, and I just
don't know if I can even forgive

609
00:26:04,490 --> 00:26:04,730
myself.

610
00:26:04,730 --> 00:26:06,090
I don't know if any of you
ever gone through that.

611
00:26:06,090 --> 00:26:07,450
You're like, you know, how
could God forgive me?

612
00:26:07,450 --> 00:26:08,050
I just.

613
00:26:08,050 --> 00:26:09,130
I'm struggling with that.

614
00:26:09,130 --> 00:26:11,370
And I had a pastor friend of
mine, he was like, hey, let me tell

615
00:26:11,370 --> 00:26:14,290
you a quick story about this
guy that really received forgiveness.

616
00:26:14,690 --> 00:26:16,050
I was like, okay, yeah, tell
me about him.

617
00:26:16,050 --> 00:26:16,850
He goes, yeah, he was.

618
00:26:16,930 --> 00:26:17,370
He was.

619
00:26:17,370 --> 00:26:18,450
He was a spiritual leader.

620
00:26:18,770 --> 00:26:19,250
He was.

621
00:26:19,250 --> 00:26:22,490
He was leading a lot of
people, having a lot of spiritual

622
00:26:22,490 --> 00:26:25,570
victories, having a lot of
people that were really looking up

623
00:26:25,570 --> 00:26:25,890
to him.

624
00:26:25,890 --> 00:26:28,370
And eventually he went down a
path of.

625
00:26:28,720 --> 00:26:32,480
Of sin, and he kind of drifted
from the Lord, and eventually he

626
00:26:33,120 --> 00:26:37,480
wasn't where he needed to be
in his life, and he was looking upon

627
00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:41,080
a woman, and eventually he had
an affair with her and.

628
00:26:41,080 --> 00:26:43,960
And had a child with her, and
then eventually tried to cover it

629
00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:46,280
up by murdering her husband.

630
00:26:46,280 --> 00:26:48,000
I'm going, like, I've heard
this story before.

631
00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:49,040
And eventually.

632
00:26:49,040 --> 00:26:50,040
You guys know where I'm going
with this.

633
00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:50,240
He.

634
00:26:50,240 --> 00:26:52,720
He's describing the life of
David, and he goes, you know what?

635
00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:56,260
If David can find forgiveness,
you can find forgiveness.

636
00:26:56,900 --> 00:27:01,580
If David can say, hey, blessed
is the man who God doesn't hold sin

637
00:27:01,580 --> 00:27:02,420
accountable to.

638
00:27:02,500 --> 00:27:05,540
Hey, blessed are they whose
iniquities are forgiven and whose

639
00:27:05,540 --> 00:27:06,180
sins are covered.

640
00:27:06,180 --> 00:27:07,980
So we should say, man, I. I am.

641
00:27:07,980 --> 00:27:08,820
I'm blessed.

642
00:27:09,780 --> 00:27:10,820
And a lot of times we.

643
00:27:10,820 --> 00:27:14,740
We cheapen our salvation down
to, well, I heard a message one time.

644
00:27:15,620 --> 00:27:18,820
I didn't want to go to hell,
so I prayed a prayer.

645
00:27:20,100 --> 00:27:20,740
And you know what?

646
00:27:20,740 --> 00:27:21,220
I'm just.

647
00:27:21,390 --> 00:27:22,230
I'm going to heaven now.

648
00:27:22,230 --> 00:27:22,510
And.

649
00:27:22,510 --> 00:27:22,830
And we.

650
00:27:22,830 --> 00:27:23,110
And we.

651
00:27:23,110 --> 00:27:26,190
We reduce it down to such a
minute thing.

652
00:27:26,430 --> 00:27:29,710
But, folks, when you really
wrap your minds around the grandeur

653
00:27:29,710 --> 00:27:33,230
of what God has done for you
and your salvation, it's so much

654
00:27:33,230 --> 00:27:35,790
more than just a ticket to
heaven, though it is.

655
00:27:36,030 --> 00:27:38,510
Though it is an opportunity to
know everlasting life.

656
00:27:38,510 --> 00:27:41,470
It's so much more than that,
because a lot of Christians think

657
00:27:41,470 --> 00:27:42,150
like, well, I've.

658
00:27:42,150 --> 00:27:43,070
I've trusted in Jesus.

659
00:27:43,070 --> 00:27:44,830
Now I just have to live a life
that's miserable.

660
00:27:45,070 --> 00:27:48,580
Now I have to live a life of
pain and suffering and just trod

661
00:27:48,580 --> 00:27:49,820
my way along and get there.

662
00:27:49,820 --> 00:27:52,660
But, folks, the Bible says
that God has given us life and life

663
00:27:52,660 --> 00:27:53,540
more abundantly.

664
00:27:54,020 --> 00:27:55,500
God has poured out grace upon us.

665
00:27:55,500 --> 00:27:58,020
And though there's times of
difficulty, though there's times

666
00:27:58,020 --> 00:28:02,780
of brokenness, though there's
times of confusion, ultimately as

667
00:28:02,780 --> 00:28:05,540
a believer, we have hope and
we have confidence.

668
00:28:05,700 --> 00:28:08,940
And not only does God love us
in the moment of our salvation, but

669
00:28:08,940 --> 00:28:12,180
God loves us from the moment
of our salvation all the way through.

670
00:28:12,180 --> 00:28:13,300
And he's there with us.

671
00:28:13,300 --> 00:28:16,140
The Bible says that he's never
going to leave us nor forsake us.

672
00:28:16,140 --> 00:28:18,180
And so what is David doing here?

673
00:28:18,180 --> 00:28:22,540
Essentially, Paul is
recounting David, recounting what

674
00:28:22,540 --> 00:28:24,740
God has done for him and his salvation.

675
00:28:25,380 --> 00:28:30,860
Folks, when you're tempted to
doubt the love of God, go back to

676
00:28:30,860 --> 00:28:32,100
what he did for you in salvation.

677
00:28:33,220 --> 00:28:34,580
We've already described it.

678
00:28:34,740 --> 00:28:36,820
He saved us when we didn't
deserve it.

679
00:28:38,180 --> 00:28:44,030
He didn't hold us accountable
for the debts that we have essentially

680
00:28:44,030 --> 00:28:46,190
put on our own account because
of our sin.

681
00:28:47,150 --> 00:28:49,270
He, he imputed righteousness
to us.

682
00:28:49,270 --> 00:28:52,270
So it's not just about taking
away the bad, but he's now given

683
00:28:52,270 --> 00:28:52,910
us the good.

684
00:28:54,030 --> 00:28:56,150
And, and he's infused into our
life grace.

685
00:28:56,150 --> 00:28:57,950
He's infused into our life gifts.

686
00:28:57,950 --> 00:29:00,750
He's infused into our life an
opportunity, a purpose.

687
00:29:01,630 --> 00:29:04,870
One of the things that I was
trying to stress to our teenagers

688
00:29:04,870 --> 00:29:08,670
on Thursday of camp we have
something called family reunion.

689
00:29:09,540 --> 00:29:13,580
And family reunion is that
they, all the campers, all the teens

690
00:29:13,580 --> 00:29:16,500
from specific churches come
back and meet with their sponsors

691
00:29:16,500 --> 00:29:20,220
and you have a time of treats
and snacks.

692
00:29:20,220 --> 00:29:22,900
But ultimately it's a time to
talk about decisions that were made

693
00:29:23,140 --> 00:29:24,900
and the truth of camp.

694
00:29:25,780 --> 00:29:28,460
And one of the things I was
trying to stress to our teenagers

695
00:29:28,460 --> 00:29:33,700
was finding Jesus brings us purpose.

696
00:29:34,830 --> 00:29:36,350
Everyone's looking for purpose
in this world.

697
00:29:36,430 --> 00:29:39,190
Even people that are not
Christians would say that it's important

698
00:29:39,190 --> 00:29:40,750
to find a purpose for your life.

699
00:29:41,790 --> 00:29:44,350
For some people, their purpose
was, well, you know what?

700
00:29:44,350 --> 00:29:45,150
Make a lot of money.

701
00:29:45,710 --> 00:29:47,670
The one who dies with the most
toys wins.

702
00:29:47,670 --> 00:29:48,830
You've heard that statement before.

703
00:29:50,510 --> 00:29:54,270
For me growing up, I'll just
be honest with you when I say this

704
00:29:54,270 --> 00:29:54,510
now.

705
00:29:54,510 --> 00:29:57,310
Some of you will laugh because
you know me now, but if you knew

706
00:29:57,310 --> 00:29:58,830
me then, it wouldn't have been
so funny.

707
00:29:58,990 --> 00:30:02,150
But when I was growing up, my
goal, my purpose was to become a

708
00:30:02,150 --> 00:30:03,390
professional baseball player.

709
00:30:04,020 --> 00:30:05,300
I wanted to play baseball.

710
00:30:05,540 --> 00:30:07,140
I thought that I was gonna
make it.

711
00:30:07,700 --> 00:30:10,740
And there was these little
moments of revelation in my life

712
00:30:10,740 --> 00:30:13,260
where I started to realize
that that's not probably going to

713
00:30:13,260 --> 00:30:13,540
happen.

714
00:30:14,500 --> 00:30:18,980
I started realizing that I was
just a medium sized fish in a very,

715
00:30:18,980 --> 00:30:19,940
very small pond.

716
00:30:20,980 --> 00:30:24,140
And I started realizing that's
not gonna be what's gonna happen

717
00:30:24,140 --> 00:30:24,540
in my life.

718
00:30:24,540 --> 00:30:27,140
And you know what would happen
when that realization would come

719
00:30:27,140 --> 00:30:27,820
into my life?

720
00:30:27,820 --> 00:30:29,540
I would start to lose my purpose.

721
00:30:30,440 --> 00:30:30,840
Well, why?

722
00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:32,160
Why do I need to go out and do anything?

723
00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:33,880
I'm not going to become what I
wanted to become.

724
00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:37,160
And we see that happening in a
lot of people's lives.

725
00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:39,400
They put their purpose in all
of the wrong things.

726
00:30:39,400 --> 00:30:40,600
And they say, well, you know what?

727
00:30:40,600 --> 00:30:42,520
My whole life is going to be
wrapped up in this.

728
00:30:42,680 --> 00:30:45,480
And when that fails, and by
the way, every purpose outside of

729
00:30:45,480 --> 00:30:47,960
the purpose of God in our life
will eventually crumble.

730
00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:49,160
Will eventually fail.

731
00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:53,120
And when that purpose
eventually crumbles, what happens?

732
00:30:53,120 --> 00:30:59,340
We lose our hope, we lose our
joy, we lose our confidence, we lose

733
00:30:59,340 --> 00:31:00,100
our excitement.

734
00:31:00,500 --> 00:31:03,900
And what we can see ultimately
as a believer is that we have such

735
00:31:03,900 --> 00:31:04,340
a reason.

736
00:31:04,740 --> 00:31:05,580
And that word there.

737
00:31:05,580 --> 00:31:08,980
If you go back to verse number
eight in, in Romans chapter four,

738
00:31:09,140 --> 00:31:14,460
blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin.

739
00:31:14,460 --> 00:31:16,100
That word blessed means joyful.

740
00:31:17,460 --> 00:31:18,740
You could even say it this way.

741
00:31:19,220 --> 00:31:20,580
Gifted, graced.

742
00:31:20,980 --> 00:31:25,900
We as believers are so gifted
in what God has given us to us in

743
00:31:25,900 --> 00:31:30,140
salvation, but yet we are
still tempted in our lives to complain.

744
00:31:32,380 --> 00:31:34,780
We are tempted in our lives to doubt.

745
00:31:35,260 --> 00:31:37,260
We are tempted in our lives to question.

746
00:31:37,900 --> 00:31:40,100
Folks, what I'm going to tell
you here this morning is something

747
00:31:40,100 --> 00:31:43,740
that I have to do as much as
everyone in this room has to do.

748
00:31:43,740 --> 00:31:47,340
If you're a believer in Jesus
Christ, we have to go back to really

749
00:31:47,340 --> 00:31:51,990
understand the grandeur, the
depth, the, of the salvation that's

750
00:31:51,990 --> 00:31:54,630
been extended to us, to live
in the joy of our salvation.

751
00:31:54,870 --> 00:31:58,310
Even, even the psalmist, even
David said, restore in me the joy

752
00:31:58,310 --> 00:31:59,430
of my salvation.

753
00:31:59,990 --> 00:32:03,990
Some of us have lost the joy
of our salvation because we've lost

754
00:32:04,150 --> 00:32:07,830
the understanding of truly
what Jesus Christ has done for me.

755
00:32:09,030 --> 00:32:12,630
And if you look at verses 1,
2, 3, 4, all the way down really

756
00:32:12,630 --> 00:32:15,990
to verse number eight, you
realize that, hey, as a believer,

757
00:32:17,360 --> 00:32:20,560
all I have to boast in is what
Jesus Christ has done for me.

758
00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:23,120
There's a lot of teaching out
there today that says, you're enough.

759
00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:26,640
You are, you are so special.

760
00:32:28,160 --> 00:32:31,880
And what's happened is, is in
our American society, specifically

761
00:32:31,880 --> 00:32:37,680
within our American society,
we've individualized and really changed

762
00:32:37,680 --> 00:32:41,640
the direction away from what
God has done in salvation to the

763
00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:43,760
fact that it's a work of him
to It's a work of me.

764
00:32:45,260 --> 00:32:46,300
Church is about me.

765
00:32:46,380 --> 00:32:48,700
Church is about what people
can do for me.

766
00:32:48,700 --> 00:32:51,260
Church is what I can be
entertained with.

767
00:32:51,260 --> 00:32:53,340
Church is my Christian faith
is what.

768
00:32:53,340 --> 00:32:54,260
What benefits me.

769
00:32:54,260 --> 00:32:55,180
What benefits me.

770
00:32:55,340 --> 00:32:58,180
If you think about it from the
perspective of scripture, it's the

771
00:32:58,180 --> 00:32:58,740
other way around.

772
00:32:58,740 --> 00:32:59,900
What benefits the Lord?

773
00:33:01,260 --> 00:33:03,140
What's the purpose of a believer?

774
00:33:03,140 --> 00:33:06,420
Some of our junior campers
here this week heard, what's your

775
00:33:06,420 --> 00:33:06,860
purpose?

776
00:33:07,260 --> 00:33:08,580
My purpose is to have fun.

777
00:33:08,580 --> 00:33:12,710
No, as a believer, your
purpose is to glorify God.

778
00:33:13,750 --> 00:33:19,830
It's the chief Goal of man to
glorify God, not glorify self, not

779
00:33:19,830 --> 00:33:20,630
promote self.

780
00:33:21,350 --> 00:33:24,630
If it's about me, if salvation
is about me, I've missed the point.

781
00:33:25,349 --> 00:33:31,390
Salvation is a work of God
that brings him glory to God, be

782
00:33:31,390 --> 00:33:32,950
the glory, great things he has done.

783
00:33:34,230 --> 00:33:36,750
And so what we can see here
this morning is that Romans, chapter

784
00:33:36,750 --> 00:33:39,280
four, verse, what Paul is
doing is saying, you need a savior,

785
00:33:39,280 --> 00:33:40,480
you need salvation.

786
00:33:40,480 --> 00:33:43,120
And this is what true
salvation really is.

787
00:33:44,480 --> 00:33:48,040
I'm going to say something
here this morning, and I know that

788
00:33:48,040 --> 00:33:50,960
if you take it at face value,
it will offend some people here.

789
00:33:51,680 --> 00:33:53,680
But I don't want to offend
you, so hear me out.

790
00:33:54,240 --> 00:33:59,040
Salvation is not just saying a
prayer and reading words.

791
00:34:00,160 --> 00:34:02,240
If I got up here this morning,
I said, okay, how many of you want

792
00:34:02,240 --> 00:34:02,880
to go to heaven?

793
00:34:05,130 --> 00:34:05,370
Me.

794
00:34:06,090 --> 00:34:07,370
Well, just say these words.

795
00:34:07,690 --> 00:34:09,930
Just repeat these words after me.

796
00:34:10,250 --> 00:34:12,690
But you understand that you
could repeat those words and mean

797
00:34:12,690 --> 00:34:13,610
nothing in your heart.

798
00:34:14,010 --> 00:34:16,570
It's not because that the
Bible doesn't say, say this prayer.

799
00:34:16,570 --> 00:34:17,370
You go to heaven.

800
00:34:17,770 --> 00:34:20,170
The Bible says it's faith.

801
00:34:20,810 --> 00:34:24,210
Now, will faith produce a
confession with your mouth?

802
00:34:24,210 --> 00:34:26,570
Yes, definitely.

803
00:34:27,290 --> 00:34:30,090
But what we have to see this
morning is that salvation is not

804
00:34:30,090 --> 00:34:34,530
just, hey, I signed a card 50
years ago and I'm saved.

805
00:34:34,530 --> 00:34:39,090
No, salvation is based in what
you believe about Jesus Christ, what

806
00:34:39,090 --> 00:34:42,010
you believe about his work on
the cross, what you believe about

807
00:34:42,010 --> 00:34:45,250
his resurrection, what you
believe about that meaning in your

808
00:34:45,250 --> 00:34:45,530
life.

809
00:34:45,530 --> 00:34:46,610
What does that mean for you?

810
00:34:46,689 --> 00:34:47,810
Is he your Savior?

811
00:34:48,130 --> 00:34:49,810
Go back to verse number six.

812
00:34:49,810 --> 00:34:53,250
Even as David also described
the blessedness of the man unto whom

813
00:34:53,250 --> 00:34:55,810
God imputed righteousness
without works.

814
00:34:57,179 --> 00:34:58,699
Is that you this morning?

815
00:34:59,579 --> 00:35:03,019
Are you trusting in God not
just to make your life better, but

816
00:35:03,019 --> 00:35:07,699
to save you from your sin, to
forgive you of your sin, to give

817
00:35:07,699 --> 00:35:11,059
you hope and to give you grace
and to give you eternal life with

818
00:35:11,059 --> 00:35:12,219
him and a purpose.

819
00:35:14,379 --> 00:35:18,179
I had mentioned something
about complaining when we were driving

820
00:35:18,179 --> 00:35:18,539
back.

821
00:35:18,539 --> 00:35:19,139
We, we.

822
00:35:19,139 --> 00:35:25,150
We were driving two vans back
from North Carolina, and I just got

823
00:35:25,150 --> 00:35:28,110
done telling because one,
there was someone complaining about

824
00:35:28,110 --> 00:35:31,350
something and I was like,
guys, complaining is not going to

825
00:35:31,350 --> 00:35:33,070
change anything, okay?

826
00:35:33,070 --> 00:35:36,310
When I complain, all I'm doing
is just showing my bitterness of

827
00:35:36,310 --> 00:35:36,750
my heart.

828
00:35:36,910 --> 00:35:38,910
I was like, complaining is not
going to change anything.

829
00:35:39,230 --> 00:35:40,830
And I was wanting to give back.

830
00:35:41,150 --> 00:35:44,590
And all of a sudden I look up
and there's just a bunch of brake

831
00:35:44,590 --> 00:35:47,070
lights and I'm going, oh, man,
that's not good.

832
00:35:47,800 --> 00:35:53,320
So we, you know, slow down,
and all of a sudden we're just stopped,

833
00:35:53,880 --> 00:35:59,880
we're not moving, and 20
minutes passes by.

834
00:36:01,480 --> 00:36:04,600
30 minutes passes by, we're
still not moving.

835
00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:06,640
And you see people getting out
of their car.

836
00:36:06,640 --> 00:36:07,560
People are talking.

837
00:36:07,640 --> 00:36:09,640
I heard it's going to be like
a three hour wait.

838
00:36:10,280 --> 00:36:11,000
And I'm going.

839
00:36:11,720 --> 00:36:13,480
I just got done telling someone.

840
00:36:14,740 --> 00:36:16,260
Complaining is not going to
change anything.

841
00:36:16,740 --> 00:36:18,260
And I was ready to start complaining.

842
00:36:18,260 --> 00:36:20,220
I was like, complain.

843
00:36:20,220 --> 00:36:21,300
I'm just like, this is terrible.

844
00:36:21,300 --> 00:36:22,740
This is worst case scenario.

845
00:36:22,980 --> 00:36:23,820
This is so bad.

846
00:36:23,820 --> 00:36:25,060
I, I need to get these kids back.

847
00:36:25,060 --> 00:36:25,940
I need to get back.

848
00:36:26,340 --> 00:36:32,500
And, and so, but then as, so
about an hour and a half or so hours

849
00:36:32,660 --> 00:36:34,740
past, finally the traffic
started moving.

850
00:36:34,740 --> 00:36:36,340
There's a lot of stories that
we could tell with that.

851
00:36:36,740 --> 00:36:38,980
Maybe for another time, we'll
share that maybe next week.

852
00:36:39,390 --> 00:36:42,990
But we started moving and we
got up to the accident scene and

853
00:36:42,990 --> 00:36:45,710
there was a big tractor
trailer that had flipped and turned

854
00:36:45,710 --> 00:36:47,390
off the road and was all
smashed up.

855
00:36:47,390 --> 00:36:50,710
And one of the, one of the
teens in the back said, wow, that

856
00:36:50,710 --> 00:36:51,470
could have been us.

857
00:36:51,790 --> 00:36:52,990
We were right behind that.

858
00:36:53,950 --> 00:36:56,270
You know, the moment I started
thinking, I was like, you know what?

859
00:36:56,350 --> 00:36:59,390
I was sitting there
complaining because my plan was not

860
00:36:59,390 --> 00:37:00,110
coming to pass.

861
00:37:00,990 --> 00:37:03,710
And I was thinking of it from
a very selfish perspective.

862
00:37:04,110 --> 00:37:07,070
Like, I'm stuck here with a
bunch of junior campers and teens

863
00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:08,440
for 14 hours.

864
00:37:08,440 --> 00:37:10,000
I do not want to be here right now.

865
00:37:10,080 --> 00:37:12,480
That was my flesh saying, I, I
want to complain.

866
00:37:12,480 --> 00:37:12,920
Like, why?

867
00:37:12,920 --> 00:37:13,280
Why?

868
00:37:14,240 --> 00:37:18,360
But for a young person to
teach me the perspective on things

869
00:37:18,360 --> 00:37:21,440
that could have been us, hey,
so what, we were an hour and a half,

870
00:37:21,440 --> 00:37:22,160
two hours late.

871
00:37:22,560 --> 00:37:25,520
We're here, we're taking in
breath, we're still serving the Lord.

872
00:37:25,840 --> 00:37:27,600
And I think that's something
that we have to think about when

873
00:37:27,600 --> 00:37:29,120
it comes to our Christian walk.

874
00:37:29,840 --> 00:37:31,880
Yeah, we could sit here and
complain about a lot of stuff.

875
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:33,920
We could sit here and complain
about, well, you know what?

876
00:37:34,250 --> 00:37:35,450
I don't have, what that person has.

877
00:37:35,450 --> 00:37:38,370
You know what I don't have in
my life, the same gifts that that

878
00:37:38,370 --> 00:37:38,890
person has.

879
00:37:38,890 --> 00:37:42,650
I, I, I, I want to be more or
I want to have this.

880
00:37:42,810 --> 00:37:45,410
But at the end of the day,
when we think about what God has

881
00:37:45,410 --> 00:37:51,010
given to us in salvation, what
we have obtained in grace, folks,

882
00:37:51,010 --> 00:37:54,810
there's no reason to complain,
there's no reason to doubt, there's

883
00:37:54,810 --> 00:37:57,770
no reason to question, there's
no reason to get to our place in

884
00:37:57,770 --> 00:38:01,560
our life where we have lost
our focus, we have lost our hope.

885
00:38:01,560 --> 00:38:03,280
And so let's look at verse
number nine.

886
00:38:03,280 --> 00:38:06,160
We're going to go down and end
this passage here this morning.

887
00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:11,480
It says, cometh this
blessedness then upon the circumcision

888
00:38:11,480 --> 00:38:11,880
only.

889
00:38:12,360 --> 00:38:15,600
So he says, only the people
that are Jewish that have had the

890
00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:19,000
circumcision, that have
followed all the tradition, he says,

891
00:38:19,000 --> 00:38:21,640
is that the only people that
have been blessed with this or upon

892
00:38:21,640 --> 00:38:22,760
the uncircumcised also.

893
00:38:23,560 --> 00:38:27,240
For we say that faith was
reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.

894
00:38:28,180 --> 00:38:30,020
So he says, is it just for one person?

895
00:38:30,420 --> 00:38:31,940
Is it for these people?

896
00:38:32,180 --> 00:38:33,380
Or is it for everybody?

897
00:38:33,460 --> 00:38:35,780
Abraham was saved by faith.

898
00:38:35,940 --> 00:38:39,460
Abraham was reckoned to
righteousness because of faith.

899
00:38:39,700 --> 00:38:41,140
How was it reckoned?

900
00:38:41,700 --> 00:38:46,660
How was it then reckoned when
he was in circumcision or uncircumcision,

901
00:38:47,220 --> 00:38:51,140
actually, if you go do the
research in the Old Testament, in

902
00:38:51,140 --> 00:38:53,950
the Book of Genesis, this was
before the circumcision, by the way.

903
00:38:53,950 --> 00:38:54,910
This was before the law.

904
00:38:55,870 --> 00:38:57,230
This is before the Mosaic law.

905
00:38:57,230 --> 00:38:59,990
So what we see here is that
there was no way that Abraham was

906
00:38:59,990 --> 00:39:02,630
saved because of the law,
because the law hadn't been imparted

907
00:39:02,630 --> 00:39:02,910
yet.

908
00:39:03,710 --> 00:39:06,550
It wasn't circumcision that
saved him, because circumcision hadn't

909
00:39:06,550 --> 00:39:07,470
been given to him yet.

910
00:39:07,870 --> 00:39:10,870
And so it says here very
clearly that it wasn't those things,

911
00:39:10,870 --> 00:39:13,630
it wasn't those external
things that caused salvation.

912
00:39:13,790 --> 00:39:16,630
It says in verse number 11,
and he received the sign of circumcision,

913
00:39:16,630 --> 00:39:20,860
a seal of righteousness, of
faith which he had yet being uncircumcised,

914
00:39:21,660 --> 00:39:25,580
that he might be the father of
all them that believe, though they

915
00:39:25,580 --> 00:39:28,500
be not circumcised, that
righteousness might be imputed unto

916
00:39:28,500 --> 00:39:28,860
them also.

917
00:39:28,860 --> 00:39:30,060
And so what is he essentially saying?

918
00:39:30,140 --> 00:39:32,540
Paul's essentially making the
point that it's not anything that

919
00:39:32,540 --> 00:39:33,660
we do externally.

920
00:39:34,060 --> 00:39:39,500
It's no sign, it's no group of
people that are exclusive to salvation.

921
00:39:39,500 --> 00:39:40,940
It's a salvation to faith.

922
00:39:41,100 --> 00:39:43,900
Those that are in faith, verse
12, and the Father of the circumcision,

923
00:39:43,900 --> 00:39:48,310
to them who are, are not of
the circumcision only, but who also

924
00:39:48,310 --> 00:39:52,390
walk in the steps of that
faith of our Father Abraham, which

925
00:39:52,390 --> 00:39:57,270
he had being yet
uncircumcised, verse 13.

926
00:39:57,510 --> 00:40:01,630
For the promise that he should
be the heir of the world was not

927
00:40:01,630 --> 00:40:06,830
to Abraham or to his seed
through the law, but through the

928
00:40:06,830 --> 00:40:07,750
righteousness of faith.

929
00:40:07,750 --> 00:40:10,390
He says, you want to receive
the blessing of Abraham.

930
00:40:10,390 --> 00:40:11,990
You want to receive the gift
of God.

931
00:40:12,350 --> 00:40:15,670
It's not through the law, it's
not through circumcision, it's through

932
00:40:15,670 --> 00:40:16,110
faith.

933
00:40:16,910 --> 00:40:20,950
For if they which are of the
law be heirs, faith is made void.

934
00:40:20,950 --> 00:40:24,030
If we could earn it through
the law, faith is empty, Faith is

935
00:40:24,030 --> 00:40:24,510
useless.

936
00:40:24,510 --> 00:40:27,150
We don't even need faith
because we would just preach the

937
00:40:27,150 --> 00:40:27,310
law.

938
00:40:27,310 --> 00:40:33,550
We would preach some action
and the promise made of none effect.

939
00:40:34,030 --> 00:40:36,590
Meaning this God would not be
someone who kept his word.

940
00:40:37,800 --> 00:40:40,360
There would be no need for a
God if we could earn our salvation.

941
00:40:40,440 --> 00:40:41,200
But that's whole.

942
00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:42,200
That's Paul's whole point.

943
00:40:42,680 --> 00:40:44,760
We're in desperate need of
someone better than us.

944
00:40:44,760 --> 00:40:46,120
We cannot save ourselves.

945
00:40:46,440 --> 00:40:47,400
We've tried that.

946
00:40:48,920 --> 00:40:50,680
Every culture has tried to
save themselves.

947
00:40:50,680 --> 00:40:54,200
Every person to some degree
has thought about the fact that,

948
00:40:54,200 --> 00:40:54,640
hey, you know what?

949
00:40:54,640 --> 00:40:55,400
I think I can do this.

950
00:40:55,400 --> 00:40:57,840
But ultimately, at the end of
the day, we're honest with ourselves.

951
00:40:57,840 --> 00:40:58,760
We all fall short.

952
00:40:59,800 --> 00:41:00,520
Verse 15.

953
00:41:00,520 --> 00:41:02,600
Because the law worketh wrath.

954
00:41:03,890 --> 00:41:04,730
What does the law do?

955
00:41:04,730 --> 00:41:08,130
It always brings us to a place
of failure.

956
00:41:08,130 --> 00:41:10,050
It always brings us to a place
of brokenness.

957
00:41:10,050 --> 00:41:12,050
It always brings us to a place
of hopelessness.

958
00:41:12,850 --> 00:41:16,770
For where no law is, there is
no transgression.

959
00:41:17,570 --> 00:41:18,450
And he ends his.

960
00:41:18,450 --> 00:41:20,010
He ends his thought right here
in verse 16.

961
00:41:20,010 --> 00:41:21,410
Well, he continues on a little
bit further.

962
00:41:21,410 --> 00:41:22,850
But this is the thought for today.

963
00:41:23,330 --> 00:41:25,490
Therefore, it is a faith.

964
00:41:27,170 --> 00:41:31,520
It is a faith that it might be
by grace to the end.

965
00:41:32,320 --> 00:41:36,400
The promise might be sure to
all, the seed, to everyone, not to

966
00:41:36,400 --> 00:41:38,160
that only which is of the law.

967
00:41:38,160 --> 00:41:43,200
Not just the Jews, but to them
also, which is of the faith of Abraham,

968
00:41:43,600 --> 00:41:44,960
who is the father of us all.

969
00:41:45,360 --> 00:41:46,640
So the idea would be this.

970
00:41:47,360 --> 00:41:50,720
You want to be saved, be saved
the same way Abraham was?

971
00:41:50,880 --> 00:41:52,400
Well, Abraham was saved
through the law.

972
00:41:52,400 --> 00:41:53,120
No, he wasn't.

973
00:41:53,200 --> 00:41:55,000
Abraham was saved through circumcision.

974
00:41:55,000 --> 00:41:55,520
No, he wasn't.

975
00:41:55,520 --> 00:41:56,680
Abraham was saved through his work.

976
00:41:56,680 --> 00:41:57,280
No, he wasn't.

977
00:41:57,470 --> 00:41:59,670
The same way that Abraham was
saved is the same way that we get

978
00:41:59,670 --> 00:42:00,110
saved today.

979
00:42:00,110 --> 00:42:00,750
Through faith.

980
00:42:01,470 --> 00:42:02,430
What is faith?

981
00:42:03,550 --> 00:42:07,230
Well, simply speaking, faith
is believing in something we don't

982
00:42:07,230 --> 00:42:07,470
see.

983
00:42:08,030 --> 00:42:09,230
Faith is trusting.

984
00:42:09,950 --> 00:42:13,310
Faith is completely giving
ourselves over to the work of God.

985
00:42:15,470 --> 00:42:17,150
Hebrews, chapter 11, verse 6.

986
00:42:17,630 --> 00:42:17,990
We'll.

987
00:42:17,990 --> 00:42:24,370
We'll end with this specific
thought says it's impossible to please

988
00:42:24,370 --> 00:42:25,930
God without faith.

989
00:42:26,810 --> 00:42:28,450
So we go back to what do we say?

990
00:42:28,450 --> 00:42:30,090
The junior campers learned it
this week.

991
00:42:30,170 --> 00:42:31,490
What is the purpose of our lives?

992
00:42:31,490 --> 00:42:32,410
To glorify God.

993
00:42:32,410 --> 00:42:35,530
To bring joy to our Lord, to
please him.

994
00:42:37,610 --> 00:42:43,570
So if our purpose is to please
God And Hebrews chapter 11, verse

995
00:42:43,570 --> 00:42:45,930
6 says it's impossible to
please God without faith.

996
00:42:46,170 --> 00:42:47,450
How do we please God?

997
00:42:47,770 --> 00:42:48,490
Through faith.

998
00:42:49,860 --> 00:42:53,700
Through faith in our
salvation, through faith in our sanctification,

999
00:42:54,100 --> 00:42:58,340
through faith in our
struggles, through faith in our trials,

1000
00:42:58,580 --> 00:43:02,020
through faith in our joy,
through faith in our family.

1001
00:43:02,500 --> 00:43:03,780
The list goes on and on.

1002
00:43:03,780 --> 00:43:05,620
It's living a life of faith.

1003
00:43:05,620 --> 00:43:09,220
What Does a person look like
who's living a life of faith?

1004
00:43:10,020 --> 00:43:12,420
A life of trust in God and not themselves?

1005
00:43:13,140 --> 00:43:15,860
A life of trust in God and not
the economy.

1006
00:43:18,140 --> 00:43:26,620
A life of trust in God and not
their job, their health, their family,

1007
00:43:27,100 --> 00:43:27,460
folks.

1008
00:43:27,460 --> 00:43:30,220
We can place our faith in all
of these things.

1009
00:43:30,540 --> 00:43:35,500
But what the Bible says is
that ultimately the only faith that

1010
00:43:35,500 --> 00:43:37,740
matters is do we believe in God?

1011
00:43:37,740 --> 00:43:39,180
Do we trust in His Word?

1012
00:43:39,180 --> 00:43:40,620
Do you trust in His Word today?

1013
00:43:41,580 --> 00:43:43,210
Truly, you trust in His Word?

1014
00:43:43,210 --> 00:43:43,450
Not.

1015
00:43:43,450 --> 00:43:45,050
Well, I believe what he says
is true.

1016
00:43:45,210 --> 00:43:48,490
I, I, I know that most of you
here today, if not all of you to

1017
00:43:48,490 --> 00:43:51,690
a degree, will say, I believe
the Word of God, I believe the Bible.

1018
00:43:51,690 --> 00:43:53,530
I believe that this is really
His Word.

1019
00:43:53,610 --> 00:43:56,530
But a lot of us will
intellectually adhere to what the

1020
00:43:56,530 --> 00:44:01,650
Bible says, but our lives
don't match that well.

1021
00:44:01,650 --> 00:44:06,570
I believe God's got me, but
all week I'm stressing about this

1022
00:44:06,570 --> 00:44:08,490
problem that I have, and I
don't think he's going to handle

1023
00:44:08,490 --> 00:44:08,730
it.

1024
00:44:09,600 --> 00:44:12,680
I believe that God is never
going to leave me nor forsake me.

1025
00:44:12,680 --> 00:44:13,320
But you know what?

1026
00:44:13,320 --> 00:44:14,640
I just really feel alone today.

1027
00:44:16,560 --> 00:44:18,920
And I'm going to believe that
I'm alone today because there's days

1028
00:44:18,920 --> 00:44:20,080
where we feel alone.

1029
00:44:20,240 --> 00:44:22,400
But what do we have to do when
we feel a certain way?

1030
00:44:23,040 --> 00:44:25,600
When we feel a certain way
that is contrary to Scripture, what

1031
00:44:25,600 --> 00:44:26,040
do we do?

1032
00:44:26,040 --> 00:44:28,640
We go back to what we know
about the Word of God.

1033
00:44:29,040 --> 00:44:30,320
We don't go to how I feel.

1034
00:44:31,760 --> 00:44:34,080
Sometimes there's days where
we wake up and there's joy.

1035
00:44:34,650 --> 00:44:37,010
Some days we'll wake up and
that joy is not as easy to find.

1036
00:44:37,010 --> 00:44:38,890
But what would do we, what do
we do to find our joy?

1037
00:44:39,290 --> 00:44:42,250
We don't find our joy through circumstance.

1038
00:44:43,610 --> 00:44:46,130
We find our joy through the
truth of Jesus Christ.

1039
00:44:46,130 --> 00:44:47,930
The joy of the Lord is my strength.

1040
00:44:48,810 --> 00:44:54,090
And so what we can tell here
this morning is this God is not only.

1041
00:44:56,410 --> 00:44:59,330
I would say here, I would
venture to say here that God is not

1042
00:44:59,330 --> 00:45:04,760
only concerned with what we
do, what we think, but what we believe

1043
00:45:04,840 --> 00:45:06,360
in and what we trust in.

1044
00:45:07,800 --> 00:45:11,840
So theology does matter
because what we believe about God

1045
00:45:11,840 --> 00:45:13,240
is what we are believing in.

1046
00:45:13,640 --> 00:45:18,040
So sort of, for example, if I
believe that God is good, I'm going

1047
00:45:18,040 --> 00:45:20,440
to live my life and trust in
the fact that God is good.

1048
00:45:21,320 --> 00:45:23,080
What about when something bad
happens to me?

1049
00:45:23,400 --> 00:45:25,160
What about when I'm held up in traffic?

1050
00:45:25,320 --> 00:45:27,240
What about when I get that bad
news from the doctor?

1051
00:45:28,080 --> 00:45:29,600
Well, now I don't think God is
good anymore.

1052
00:45:30,000 --> 00:45:31,600
That's called weak theology.

1053
00:45:31,600 --> 00:45:34,480
That's called theology based
in my own mind.

1054
00:45:34,560 --> 00:45:35,360
And you know what?

1055
00:45:35,360 --> 00:45:39,480
If our theology is based in
what we can understand, we're going

1056
00:45:39,480 --> 00:45:42,000
to be struggling because
there's things that God does that

1057
00:45:42,000 --> 00:45:42,800
we cannot understand.

1058
00:45:43,680 --> 00:45:45,720
There's going to be things
that God does that are beyond our

1059
00:45:45,720 --> 00:45:47,360
thoughts, beyond our comprehension.

1060
00:45:47,760 --> 00:45:50,360
But all we have to do is we
have to go back to understand what

1061
00:45:50,360 --> 00:45:53,200
Paul says here in this
passage, that it's through faith.

1062
00:45:53,470 --> 00:45:55,310
Everything that we do in our
life is through faith.

1063
00:45:55,390 --> 00:45:58,350
And so here this morning, what
I would ask you is this.

1064
00:46:00,510 --> 00:46:05,710
If somebody asked you the
question today, are you a person

1065
00:46:05,710 --> 00:46:06,430
of faith?

1066
00:46:07,070 --> 00:46:11,630
Most of you would say, yes,
I'm a person of faith.

1067
00:46:12,750 --> 00:46:16,150
But then let's say that same
person said, okay, we're going to

1068
00:46:16,150 --> 00:46:18,430
follow you all week to see if
that's true.

1069
00:46:20,360 --> 00:46:21,800
How many of us would get nervous?

1070
00:46:21,800 --> 00:46:26,200
We would say, oh, I don't know
about that.

1071
00:46:27,320 --> 00:46:31,240
Well, the truth is, is that
just saying that I am a person of

1072
00:46:31,240 --> 00:46:34,280
faith does not make me a
person of faith.

1073
00:46:34,760 --> 00:46:37,960
What makes me a person of
faith is someone who places my faith

1074
00:46:37,960 --> 00:46:43,160
in something specifically in
the word and the truth of Jesus Christ.

1075
00:46:43,880 --> 00:46:47,830
So here this morning, a couple
of questions.

1076
00:46:49,110 --> 00:46:53,710
Number one, have you put your
faith in Jesus Christ to save you

1077
00:46:53,710 --> 00:46:54,390
from your sin?

1078
00:46:55,110 --> 00:46:57,990
Very simply for all have
sinned to come short of the glory

1079
00:46:57,990 --> 00:46:58,470
of God?

1080
00:46:59,110 --> 00:47:01,510
Have you put your faith in
Jesus Christ?

1081
00:47:02,390 --> 00:47:05,830
Have you put your faith in his
work on the cross?

1082
00:47:06,390 --> 00:47:09,390
Have you put your faith in the
fact that he conquered death through

1083
00:47:09,390 --> 00:47:10,150
the resurrection?

1084
00:47:10,230 --> 00:47:13,310
Have you put your faith in the
fact that he and he alone can save

1085
00:47:13,310 --> 00:47:14,230
you from your sin?

1086
00:47:15,540 --> 00:47:18,660
The answer to that question is
anything other than completely yes.

1087
00:47:19,540 --> 00:47:21,860
This morning is the warning
that you can take care of that you

1088
00:47:21,860 --> 00:47:22,340
can say, no.

1089
00:47:22,340 --> 00:47:23,820
I don't want to put my faith
in my works.

1090
00:47:23,820 --> 00:47:26,180
I don't want to put my faith
in the fact that I'm a good person.

1091
00:47:26,260 --> 00:47:28,580
I don't want to put my faith
in the fact that I'm a part of a

1092
00:47:28,580 --> 00:47:28,900
church.

1093
00:47:30,179 --> 00:47:32,500
But I want to put my faith in
the fact that Jesus Christ died on

1094
00:47:32,500 --> 00:47:33,260
the cross for my sins.

1095
00:47:33,260 --> 00:47:35,580
He conquered death through the
resurrection, and he's ruling and

1096
00:47:35,580 --> 00:47:36,180
reigning today.

1097
00:47:36,740 --> 00:47:38,980
That is the gospel.

1098
00:47:40,350 --> 00:47:42,270
So here this morning, if you
need to trust in Jesus Christ as

1099
00:47:42,270 --> 00:47:44,910
your savior, like some of
those teenagers did this past week,

1100
00:47:45,790 --> 00:47:48,230
we're going to have an
opportunity here in a few moments

1101
00:47:48,230 --> 00:47:50,310
as the music plays, for you to
come forward and we can show you

1102
00:47:50,310 --> 00:47:53,790
in the Bible what it means to
put your faith and trust in Jesus

1103
00:47:53,790 --> 00:47:54,110
Christ.

1104
00:47:55,390 --> 00:47:58,630
But for all of those who have
trusted in Jesus Christ as Your Savior.

1105
00:47:58,630 --> 00:48:02,270
You can go back to a time in
your life where you know without

1106
00:48:02,270 --> 00:48:04,870
a shadow of a doubt that you
have trusted in Jesus Christ and

1107
00:48:04,870 --> 00:48:05,950
him alone for your salvation.

1108
00:48:06,400 --> 00:48:10,080
How many of us have been
tempted through the circumstances

1109
00:48:10,080 --> 00:48:13,720
of life to drift in our area
of faith when it comes to the day

1110
00:48:13,720 --> 00:48:18,640
to day, when it comes to the
fact that yes, he has my salvation,

1111
00:48:19,120 --> 00:48:22,080
he has my eternal destination.

1112
00:48:22,160 --> 00:48:22,680
Settled.

1113
00:48:22,680 --> 00:48:25,600
But I'm not settled in my
struggle today.

1114
00:48:26,240 --> 00:48:29,040
Some of us lack in the day to
day faith.

1115
00:48:29,840 --> 00:48:31,920
Maybe today you need to come
forward and you need to say, you

1116
00:48:31,920 --> 00:48:34,930
know what, Lord, I want to
believe that you're going to keep

1117
00:48:34,930 --> 00:48:35,490
your word.

1118
00:48:36,610 --> 00:48:39,010
I want to believe that you
have me.

1119
00:48:40,050 --> 00:48:43,090
And the Bible says that faith
is simply just trusting.

1120
00:48:43,250 --> 00:48:43,610
It's.

1121
00:48:43,610 --> 00:48:43,890
It.

1122
00:48:43,890 --> 00:48:44,210
The.

1123
00:48:44,210 --> 00:48:47,770
The way that the Bible puts it
in the New Testament is childlike

1124
00:48:47,770 --> 00:48:48,210
faith.

1125
00:48:49,490 --> 00:48:52,850
I don't have to sit there with Silas.

1126
00:48:52,930 --> 00:48:55,650
I did this with Micah, and I
do it with Silas and I did it with

1127
00:48:55,650 --> 00:48:56,210
Nora.

1128
00:48:56,930 --> 00:48:59,290
Nora didn't trust me as much,
but I.

1129
00:48:59,290 --> 00:48:59,570
When.

1130
00:48:59,570 --> 00:49:01,090
When we first moved here.

1131
00:49:01,090 --> 00:49:03,970
I know I'm rambling, but just
bear with me.

1132
00:49:04,370 --> 00:49:07,730
When we first moved here to
the church, I would put Micah on

1133
00:49:07,730 --> 00:49:08,450
this first step.

1134
00:49:08,930 --> 00:49:10,210
I say, jump to dad.

1135
00:49:10,690 --> 00:49:11,650
Jump, jump.

1136
00:49:11,970 --> 00:49:14,650
And he would get nervous and
he would jump, catch him.

1137
00:49:14,650 --> 00:49:17,570
And as he would incrementally
trust me, he would get here on this

1138
00:49:17,570 --> 00:49:19,250
step, he would go here.

1139
00:49:19,330 --> 00:49:22,770
Now he's getting a little bit
bigger, but he would run from the

1140
00:49:22,770 --> 00:49:25,660
top step and jump to me, doing
the same thing with Silas.

1141
00:49:25,660 --> 00:49:26,300
Trust Dad.

1142
00:49:26,460 --> 00:49:30,540
Now I didn't have to sit here
and tell Micah, son, you know your

1143
00:49:30,540 --> 00:49:31,420
father loves you.

1144
00:49:31,660 --> 00:49:34,500
You know that I pay for your
food and your clothes and put a roof

1145
00:49:34,500 --> 00:49:35,100
over your head.

1146
00:49:35,100 --> 00:49:35,420
So.

1147
00:49:35,420 --> 00:49:36,460
So don't doubt me.

1148
00:49:36,460 --> 00:49:37,180
No, he.

1149
00:49:37,180 --> 00:49:40,940
He trusted because he knew
that dad had him, right?

1150
00:49:40,940 --> 00:49:44,540
I didn't have to sit there and
he didn't have to sit there and overanalyze

1151
00:49:44,540 --> 00:49:48,300
all the statistics of, well,
dad might drop me one out of a thousand

1152
00:49:48,460 --> 00:49:50,140
times, so maybe I shouldn't jump.

1153
00:49:50,450 --> 00:49:51,090
No, it was.

1154
00:49:51,410 --> 00:49:52,450
It was complete faith.

1155
00:49:52,450 --> 00:49:53,570
It was childlike faith.

1156
00:49:55,330 --> 00:49:57,290
And that's the type of faith
that we have to have in the Lord.

1157
00:49:57,290 --> 00:49:59,570
A lot of times we think, well,
Lord, maybe you'll.

1158
00:49:59,570 --> 00:50:01,050
Maybe you've got me, maybe you
don't have me.

1159
00:50:01,050 --> 00:50:05,570
And we overanalyze and we
start to use our own wisdom and why

1160
00:50:05,570 --> 00:50:07,650
we should trust the Lord or
why we shouldn't trust the Lord.

1161
00:50:08,050 --> 00:50:10,010
It's going back to saying,
lord, I trust you.

1162
00:50:10,010 --> 00:50:10,930
You're my dad.

1163
00:50:11,810 --> 00:50:12,530
Abba.

1164
00:50:12,690 --> 00:50:14,370
Father, I know you have me.

1165
00:50:14,370 --> 00:50:15,290
I know you trust me.

1166
00:50:15,290 --> 00:50:18,880
So maybe here this morning
it's a matter of trusting him in

1167
00:50:18,880 --> 00:50:19,800
the big and the little.

1168
00:50:21,000 --> 00:50:23,560
Maybe some of us have lost the
joy of our salvation.

1169
00:50:23,560 --> 00:50:26,480
Maybe we've forgotten what
what David said is, blessed is the

1170
00:50:26,480 --> 00:50:29,160
man to whom the Lord will not
impute sin.

1171
00:50:29,320 --> 00:50:31,840
David didn't say, blessed is
the man who's saved and also has

1172
00:50:31,840 --> 00:50:35,040
a bunch of things he doesn't
say, blessed is the man who has been

1173
00:50:35,040 --> 00:50:35,960
forgiven of his sin.

1174
00:50:35,960 --> 00:50:39,520
Plus he has all the the good
news and everyone likes him.

1175
00:50:39,520 --> 00:50:43,880
And no, he says, blessed is
the man who who is saved who is forgiven.

1176
00:50:45,080 --> 00:50:46,800
Some of us are wanting more, folks.

1177
00:50:46,800 --> 00:50:48,840
There's sufficiency in the gospel.

1178
00:50:49,320 --> 00:50:50,520
It's all we need.

1179
00:50:51,880 --> 00:50:55,320
And so here this morning,
maybe you've lost that simple faith

1180
00:50:55,320 --> 00:50:59,000
and excitement and joy in what
God has done for you.

1181
00:50:59,480 --> 00:51:02,280
Come forward and restore that
joy here this morning.

1182
00:51:02,440 --> 00:51:04,560
I'm gonna ask if you're able
to just stand every head bowed, every

1183
00:51:04,560 --> 00:51:05,880
head closed as the music plays.

1184
00:51:05,880 --> 00:51:07,280
I've already given you the invitation.

1185
00:51:07,280 --> 00:51:08,440
It's time to respond.

1186
00:51:09,160 --> 00:51:10,840
You need to follow here this morning.

1187
00:51:11,450 --> 00:51:12,730
I encourage you to do so.

1188
00:51:13,130 --> 00:51:15,450
Lord, I pray that you be in
this time of invitation working hearts

1189
00:51:15,450 --> 00:51:15,770
and lives.

1190
00:51:16,330 --> 00:51:18,490
We thank you for your love and
your grace.

1191
00:51:20,330 --> 00:51:21,050
Jesus name.

1192
00:51:21,050 --> 00:51:21,410
Amen.

1193
00:51:21,410 --> 00:51:22,730
As the music plays some have
already come.

1194
00:51:22,730 --> 00:51:24,170
Follow as the Lord leads here
this morning.

1195
00:52:47,320 --> 00:52:49,800
Thank you again for listening
to the Middletown Baptist Church

1196
00:52:49,800 --> 00:52:50,360
podcast.

1197
00:52:50,600 --> 00:52:52,920
I hope that this sermon has
been a blessing for you.

1198
00:52:53,890 --> 00:52:55,930
You would like to find out
more information about our church

1199
00:52:55,930 --> 00:52:59,410
or this sermon, you can find
us at middletownbaptistchurch.org

1200
00:52:59,730 --> 00:53:02,290
or find us on Facebook or YouTube.

1201
00:53:03,010 --> 00:53:07,450
You can also email me directly
at Josh Massaroiddletownbaptistchurch

1202
00:53:07,450 --> 00:53:11,930
dot com if you've enjoyed this
podcast, please subscribe and follow

1203
00:53:11,930 --> 00:53:14,690
along for future podcast and updates.

1204
00:53:15,410 --> 00:53:16,290
Thank you so much.

1205
00:53:16,530 --> 00:53:17,250
God bless.

1206
00:53:17,490 --> 00:53:18,850
Have a wonderful day.