Sermon #655 Miscellaneous Sermons

Title: Salvation To The Uttermost

Text: Hebrews 7:25

Reading:

Subject: Full salvation by an almighty Savior

Date: Sunday Morning - July 28, 1985

Tape #

Introduction:

Soon you and I will meet one another again at the awesome bar of God’s judgment. In that day, you will give an account for the message you are about to hear and I will give an account for the message I am about to deliver. I stand before you as a man with a tremendous burden upon my heart. It is my responsibility to preach once again to eternity bound men and women, as God’s messenger. It is my heart’s solemn determination, when I stand before God, to be free of your blood (Ezek. 33:7-9; 1 Cor. 9:16). Now, in anticipation of that day when I shall see your faces before the bar of God, I am going to preach the gospel to you in the plainest, simplest, most unmistakable language I can. May the Spirit of God enable me to preach with power.

Martin Luther preached with this burden. He said, “I preach as though Christ was crucified yesterday, arose from the dead today, and is coming again tomorrow.” Richard Baxter preached with this sense of urgency. He said, “I preach as one never sure to preach again, as a dying man to dying men.” Christmas Evans was right when he said, “The flame of Calvary’s love is intense, and should cause a glow in the pulpit.” Oh, may the love, grace, and power of Christ crucified glow in this pulpit today and shine in your hearts to the saving of your souls.

I speak now especially to you who are without Christ. Give me your attention. I am going to plainly tell you the truth. It may offend you, but you must hear what I say.

1. You are a lost sinner (1 John 5:10-12). (Illustration: “I’ve seen better days.”)

· You are guilty, depraved, and helpless.

· You are justly condemned and the wrath of God is upon you.

· Unless God is pleased to save you, you will soon be in hell.

1. The Lord Jesus Christ alone can save you.

“There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all” (1 Tim. 2:5-6). “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

2. Salvation is revealed only in the Word of God.

It is not possible for you to know the way of salvation in Christ, except by the Word of God. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). God has written many books by which he speaks to men.

a. The book of creation reveals God’s wisdom and power (Rom. 1:20).

If our ears are opened by grace we can hear the voice of God in the rippling of every creek, in the roll of every clap of thunder, in the brightness of every bolt of lightening, in the twinkling of every star, in the shape of every snowflake, and in the budding of every flower.

When through the woods and forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur

And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze,

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

· The book of creation tells me that God is great in wisdom.

· The book of creation tells me that God is great in power.

b. The book of conscience reveals God’s holiness and justice (Rom. 2:14-15).

Conscience is the voice of God in a man’s soul. It is God’s witness stamped upon man’s heart. All men by nature know three things:

1. God is

2. God is holy.

3. God is just. He must punish sin. Sin must be atoned. Justice must be satisfied.

But still, the way of salvation is not known. Both creation and conscience are unable to show fallen men the way of life.

c. The book of providence tells men that God is a God of judgment.

· The flood

· Pharaoh

· Israel

· Sickness

· Famine

· Bereavement

God has written the three great books of creation, conscience, and providence. If you are wise, you will read them with care. They tell you of God’s wisdom, power, holiness, and justice.

4. But only the Bible, the Book of Holy Scripture, tells us what salvation is and how it may be obtained.

The Scriptures alone are able to make a man wise unto salvation. Only in the Bible do we read of God’s love and grace toward fallen man. The Word of God alone shows us how that a holy God can both be just and the justifier of the ungodly. Salvation is revealed only in the Scriptures; and salvation is the primary, essential doctrine of Holy Scripture. The Bible was not written to teach me history, but to teach me grace. The Bible was not written to instruct me in philosophy, but to instruct me in Divine truth. The Bible was not written to teach me morality, but to teach me the way of salvation and life in Christ. This is the purpose of Holy Scripture, to reveal the Lord Jesus Christ to men in the fullness of his redemptive and saving glory. Therefore, I insist that there is no room in the pulpit for the preaching of philosophy, science, economics, politics, or morality. It is a mockery of men’s souls, an insult to God, and an abuse of time for men to do anything in the pulpit other than proclaim the gospel of the grace of God in Christ. C. H. Spurgeon said, “He who does not always preach the gospel, ought not to be accounted a true called minister of God.” My subject today and always shall be the gospel of Christ, nothing but the gospel. I have nothing to discuss and nothing to declare but pure gospel truth.

Proposition:

May God help me to declare and help you to see that the Lord Jesus Christ is able to save your soul.

Divisions:

The title of my message is “Salvation To The Uttermost.” In our text, Paul tells us three things about salvation.

1. In order to be saved you must come to God by Christ Jesus.

2. The Lord Jesus Christ is able to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him.

3. Christ’s power to save is evident, “Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession.”

I. The first thing taught in our text is this - In order to be saved you must come to God by Christ Jesus. “He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come to God by him.”

Saving faith is described by many metaphors in the Word of God. Faith is looking to Christ. Faith is leaning on Christ. Faith is embracing Christ. Faith is receiving Christ. Faith is laying holy of Christ. Here, faith is coming to Christ and coming to God by Christ.

A. What is this coming to God?

Please understand that coming to God is not a physical act. In this day of high-pressure evangelism, altar-call salvation, and decisional regeneration, I cannot stress this enough. Coming to God is not a physical act. It is a spiritual act.

· You do not get saved by coming to church, but by coming to God.

· You do not get saved by coming to the front, or coming to the “altar”, or coming to the confessional booth, but by coming to God.

· You do not get saved by saying “the sinner’s prayer,” but by coming to God.

· You do not get saved by coming to baptism, but by coming to God.

· You do not get saved by coming to the Lord’s Supper, but by coming to God.

Note: Coming to God is a spiritual act of the heart. It is not coming to him now and then, but coming to him continually, sincerely, whole-heartedly. This deliberate, willful, whole-hearted coming to God is faith (Heb. 11:6).

1. Coming to God implies that you must leave something else.

If a man comes to God, he must leave his sins and he must leave his righteousness. He must leave his bad works and his good works. The gate is too straight to carry anything in with you; and the way is too narrow to allow you to pick up anything along the way.

Illustration: The Artist and the beggar.

2. Coming to God implies a sense of need.

3. Coming to God implies a reconciliation of the heart to him, as he is pleased to reveal himself in Holy Scripture.

4. Above all, coming to God is to believe him. It is exercising faith in him.

B. How do men come to God?

There is but one way for sinful men to come to God. All who come to God have to come the same way. We come to God “by Him.”

· Christ is the only Way to God (John 14:6; Heb. 10:20).

· Christ is the only Door of Entrance into life (John 10:9).

· Christ is the only Mediator between God and men.

1. God will never accept any who come to him without a suitable Sacrifice, and that Sacrifice is Christ.

· Abel - Abraham - Moses - God requires blood atonement.

2. God will never accept any who come to him without a spotless garment of righteousness. That garment is Christ.

C. What do we come to God for?

There are many who come to God; but they are rejected, because they do not come for the right thing. Many a student comes to God for help with his studies. Many businessmen come to God when their business is in trouble. Many, in times of difficulty and danger, come to God out of fear. But God will never accept any until they come to him for Christ.

Poor, guilty, helpless sinners come to God with one object in mind. He comes to God, because he wants, and must have Christ - Forsaking all I take Him.

Illustration: What are the riches of the world to a

condemned man? He only wants a pardon.

Wealth and honor I disdain

Worldly comforts all are vain:

These will never satisfy,

Give me Christ, or else I die!

1. Come to God for life.

2. Come to God for pardon.

3. Come to God for righteousness.

4. Come to God for mercy.

5. Come to God for Christ.

D. When does a believing sinner come to God? “Cometh”

True faith comes to God, not now and then, in spasmodic fits of religious fervor and devotion, but continually - “To whom coming.” Having come to God and found acceptance with him by Christ Jesus, we now have liberty to come to God in every time of need (Heb. 4:16).

1. I have come to God.

2. I am now coming to God.

3. I shall soon come to God.

II. Secondly, Paul shows us that The Lord Jesus Christ is able to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him.

There are no limits to Christ’s saving power. There is no boundary to the fullness of grace in Christ. There is no extent beyond which the arm of his mercy cannot reach. He is able to save to the uttermost! Paul is telling us that the Lord Jesus Christ is an almighty, all-sufficient Savior.

A. The uttermost extent of guilt is not beyond the power of our Savior.

It may be that you think you have gone beyond the reach of Christ’s power, and that your sins and guilt can never be forgiven. I thought that of myself, until I saw Christ crucified as my Substitute.

B. The uttermost extent of rejection and gospel hardness is not beyond the power of Christ’s saving grace.

You may have spurned the gospel thousands of times and hardened your heart against every earnest preacher you have ever heard, but today, if you hear his voice and harden not your heart, Christ is able to save you.

C. I can tell you that the Lord Jesus Christ is able to save guilty, helpless sinners at the uttermost point of despair.

It may be that you have been contemplating suicide. Your sin and guilt has brought you into misery. Your conscience torments you with guilt. You are in utter despair, ready to take your own life, were it not for the fear of hell, you would have done so long ago. Despair has sharpened many knives, opened many bottles, and loaded many guns. I have been where you are. Let me tell you something. You need not despair. There is hope for you. Christ is able to save to the uttermost all who come to God by him!

Grace steps in when all hope is gone!

This is what I am trying to tell you. The Son of God is able to save from the uttermost woe to the uttermost bliss. His grace reaches to the uttermost of our need and misery and supplies the uttermost requirements of God’s law and justice.

D. Children of God, here is a breast of consolation for you.

Christ Jesus our Savior shall save us to the uttermost. He will not cease his work of grace in us until he has finished his work of grace in us (Phil. 1:6).

1. In your heaviest trial, his ability is the same. He is able to save to the uttermost.

2. Though you are tempted, he is strong, and he is able to save to the uttermost.

3. Though your body and your mind grows weak and feeble with age, he is able to save to the uttermost.

4. Though death shall seize your body, it shall not touch your soul, for Christ Jesus is able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by him.

5. Though the world, the flesh, and the devil oppose you, you shall not perish, for Christ is able to save to the uttermost.

6. Yes, he who is our Savior shall save us to the uttermost extent of our hearts’ desire.

III. Now, let me give you this word of assurance - Christ’s power to save is evident, “Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession.”

Christ Jesus ever lives to make intercession for them that come unto God by him.

A. When Paul says, “He ever liveth,” the implication is that he once died.

His death is the source of his saving power. Had he not died, the Son of God could never have saved anyone. Because, “He saved others, himself he could not save.”

1. Christ died to satisfy divine justice for sinners.

Since justice is satisfied, he has the right, the power, and the ability to save (John 17:2).

2. Now, if you come to God by him, Christ died for you and satisfied justice for you. If you come to God by him, Christ is making intercession for you.

B. And Christ Jesus is able to save, not only because he died, but also because he ever lives to make intercession for us.

Can you picture him in your mind’s eye? There, at the Father’s right hand is our Savior. See the prints of the nails in his hands, they prevail with God (1 John 2:1-2; Rom. 8:33-34).

Forgive him, oh forgive they cry,

Nor let that ransomed sinner die!

Application:

1. A word of warning. Do not harden your heart against God’s grace, lest he should leave you without hope (Isa. 1:23-33).

2. An earnest appeal to your heart - Come to God now by Christ. he will save you to the uttermost.

Illustration: The prodigal - The hankerchief.

Come, ye sinners, poor and wretched,

Weak and wounded, sick and sore;

Jesus ready stands to save you,

Full of pity, joined with power:

He is able, He is able,

He is willing, doubt no more.