Sermon Nuggets Fri. Feb 22
Theme- 7 Wonders of Salvation
Verse- John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.(NIV)
5) THE WONDER OF GOD’S OFFER: WHOSOEVER
The thought that strikes me is not only does God love the world, but the individual as well. And whoever will, may come. It offer is as broad as the world, but as narrow as each individual. Nothing need keep one from salvation except unwillingness to have it God’s way. This is not to discount the Spirit’s drawing us to Christ, as we will also study in our sermons in Romans.
One day Dr. M. R. DeHaan decided to count the number of times the word whosoever appears in the Bible and using a concordance he came up with 179 references. He pointed out these important facts about the word; it crossed all lines and man-made divisions. It does not put up barriers between good or bad, rich or poor, black or white, religious or irreligious. The spirit says, “Whosoever will, let him take the water offered freely.”
The famous preacher John Bunyan author of Pilgrim’s Progress, declared, “Had the Lord written, If John Bunyan will come to Me, I will save him; I would have hesitated, I’d have thought, certainly its’ not this evil drunken tinker-its another John Bunyan who lived hundreds of years ago or some John Bunyan who will live hundred of years hence. To be sure it cannot be me, this poor, miserable sinner, but when God said Whosoever, that takes in This John Bunyan.”
A quote to ponder for the theologians-The elect are the whosoever will, the non-elect are the whosoever won’t. Badger wrote a poem.
Pardon freely offered to all who will believe;
Whosoever cometh Jesus will receive;
Jesus loving savior, died to set us free,
Hallelujah. Whosoever: that means me.
6) THE WONDER OF GOD’S REQUIREMENT IS BELIEF
This is what amazes me. It isn’t through all kinds of hardships and sufferings that we are saved, it is through belief. We simply accept and believe that what God said is true and make it the object of our faith. We trust Jesus and make him Lord of our life. Now I am not saying easy believism that emphasizes going through the motions of a prayer that says Jesus come into my heart and then continue to live any old way you want. It is the desire and conviction Jesus died for my sin, I want his salvation and I trust him and invite him into my life and desire to follow him. It isn’t through knowledge of doctrine. You can know him in your head but that isn’t enough. It isn’t through merits, or works, or offerings, or sacraments of baptism or the Lord’s Table or through sincerity. Many people are very sincere in their religion but it is faith, an act of the will, that you will trust Jesus and Jesus alone.
Dr. Walter Wilson told of using John 3:16 to lead a boy to the Lord. Quoting the verse, he stressed the word gave, and explained that the Lord was offering him salvation full and free. Then he asked him pointedly, “Does the giving of the gift make it yours?” “Well, no I suppose you must take it.” “Exactly” said Dr. Wilson, “Look at it this way. I am not your doctor am I?” “No” said the boy. “Why not?” asked Wilson. “Because I didn’t ask you to be.” “That’s right. The same thing is true of Christ. He is not your savior unless you ask Him to be. Wouldn’t you like to do that right now?”
Simply put, Christ believed and salvation is received.” If you believe in a doctor that you are going to his office for an examination and if he thinks you need surgery and you believe in your doctor, you will submit to surgery and commit yourself into his care and let him do what he wants in operating on you.
So if you really believe in Jesus Christ you will act and live accordingly. It means that you give yourself to him, place yourself in his care and trust him so utterly as to your salvation that you let it all depend on him and what he did for you in his death and resurrection.
Pastor Dale
