THE LIVING WORD TRANSCRIPT

Program Air Date - 4-18-04

LESSON TITLE: IMPORTANT DOCTRINES OF GOD: "THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION"

WELCOME

The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want! Who is your shepherd on this wondrous Lord's day? We hope and pray that it is God and that you've joined us today as His child - to worship before His throne.

As followers of God, how blessed we are to have opportunities like this to praise our God and to do those things according to that which He has asked of us through His will. Are you willing to do your part this morning to make this time successful in the service of God?

Now, as we begin our offering to God, will you bow with me in prayer!

(PRAYER)

Let me take a minute today and remind you all that we will be having a taping of song for this program next Sunday afternoon. I hope many of you have planned to be with us for this service to God. We will begin at 2:00 p.m. and end around 4:00. These songs will be used on this program to teach and edify, as well as to give the glory and praise required to God. So we hope you will be a part of this offering to God. I look forward to seeing you at our building on Kansas Expressway next Sunday!

This morning I would like to encourage all those who live in the Marshfield, Missouri area to visit with the faithful brethren who meet in that city. The Marshfield Church of Christ meets regularly to worship God. Beginning with Bible classes on Sunday mornings at 9:30 o'clock, then a worship assembly at 10:30 a.m. On Sunday evening these brethren also gather before God at 6:00 o'clock. A mid-week service is also offered as an opportunity to praise God, this service is at 7:00 p.m., every Wednesday. So let me encourage you to visit with these brethren whenever you have the opportunity. If you need further information please contact their minister Paul Fisher at (417) 468-4161. Or you can contact us and we will assist in any way we can.

Now it's time to join in our first hymn of the day. Won't you join in with the congregation at this time as we sing, "Seeking The Lost."

(SONG # 1)

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS

One encouraging thing about following God is to know that many things we do for Him and others bear direct rewards. By this I mean that if we obey God's Will, He has promised to react in a specific way, in order that we may be blessed in His service!

One such verse that reminded me of all of this is found in Psalms 41:1. There David begins by saying, "Blessed is he who considers the poor.... When was the last time we have done something to help those who have less? When was the last time we went out of our way to do something good for someone else who has a need. God's says, "happy are those who consider the poor!"

But now we will ask why? Well, not only because it is what God commands, but David goes on to say that those who obey God's Will, shall reap direct rewards for their obedience. In the same verse he goes on to say, "The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble." Wow, God is going to deliver those from trouble who have obeyed His Precepts! However, David doesn't stop there, in verse 2 he adds, "The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. And verse three concludes, "The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness...." Brethren notice what we can do for others to be obedient servants of God. But furthermore, notice what we receive - when we prove ourselves to be faithful to all that God asks. Just how well are you obeying the commands of God? Are you seeing the rewards from God in your life, because of your faithfulness? If not, begin serving Him today so that you will truly be happy in those things you do through His precious name!

Today we will be continuing our series entitled, "Important Doctrines Of God!" Our lesson of the day will deal with, "The Doctrine Of Salvation!" So stay with us and after our next song together, brother Paul Fisher will lead us in our main thoughts of the day. As mentioned earlier, brother Fisher is the minister for the Marshfield Church of Christ. We thank this good brother for again being with us to lead us in the study of God's Word. But for now let's join together in our second song of the morning. The name of this hymn, "Ring Out The Message."

(SONG # 2)

LESSON

Speaker: Paul Fisher

Good morning and welcome to our program. This morning, we'll continue the theme of "Great Bible Doctrines." This morning, I'll be speaking on the topic of "Can a person know that they are saved and how this person becomes saved." These are important questions because there are many Christians in our world who wonder whether or not they are truly saved. Plus, there are many people in our world today who believe that they are saved and yet many of these people have not done all that God requires for a person to be saved.

First, the first question I'd like for us to look at is "How can a Christian know that they are saved?" Well, some question whether a person can know for sure this side of eternity whether or not they are saved, yet when we turn to God's Word, we find in 1 John chapter 5 and verse 13, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the son of God that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may believe on the name of the son of God." John the apostle inspired of God wrote that we might know that we have eternal life or that we are saved.

But how can we know that we have this eternal life and that we are saved? Well further down in 1 John chapter 5 and verse 20 we find and we know that the son of God has come and has given us an understanding that we may know Him that is true and we are in Him that is true even in His son, Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life." Notice that John said in this passage that "the son of God hath given us John and the other apostles an understanding, something that they could know and that we may know that Him that is true. Here is the understanding that was given to John that "we may know Him that is true, being God, because of what His son, Jesus Christ, revealed to them about God," Hebrews chapter 1, verses 1-2.

Note also the way that John begins this epistle or letter of 1 John. "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and our hands have handled are the words of life for the life was manifested and we have seen it and bear witness and show unto you eternal life which was with the Father, it was manifested unto us." In other words, John is telling us today that if we believe his eyewitness account and are obedient to the things that are written in the New Testament, we can also have this eternal life. We can know that we have this fellowship with the Father and with his son, Jesus Christ, then we can know and have the same understanding that John and the other apostles had about being saved or having eternal life.

But notice back in 1 John 5, verse 20 that "this knowledge is only through or in God's son, Jesus Christ." So to answer our first question, "Can a Christian know that they are saved?" The answer from the scripture is, "Yes, most assuredly they can know." But remember that John, by the inspiration of God, wrote that this knowledge and understanding can only be known by those who are in God's son, Jesus Christ. So to be in God's son, Jesus Christ, is the equivalent of being saved or having eternal life which of course brings us to our second question: "How can a person be saved and have eternal life?" Well again, I would like to direct your minds and attention to the Word of God for the correct answer to this question because many in our world today are teaching and saying many different ways that a person can do or what they should not do to be saved.

Well again, let us turn to the Word of God, this time to the gospel of John and read what John wrote by the inspiration concerning salvation or being saved. In John chapter 20 and verses 30-31 we find, "And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples which are not written in this book, but these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and believing you might have life through His name. John wrote that he did not write everything that Jesus did while He was here with us during His three years of public ministry, but that what he wrote he wrote so that the readers could come to believe in Jesus Christ as the son of God and that a believing person might have eternal life through His name of by His authority.

So the first thing a person must do to be saved is to believe in Jesus Christ and God. But how can we do this? In Romans 10:17 we find these words, "So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God." The first logical step in salvation is to hear the Word of God either by listening to a sermon such as you are doing this morning or by reading and studying the Bible because it is only through the Bible that we find that our personal sins have separated us from God just as the sins of the children of Israel long ago separated them from God. Isaiah 59, verse 2, "But your iniquities have separated you from your God and your sins have hid His face from you that He will not hear."

It is also in God's Word that we find that "everyone who has reached an age of understanding, right from wrong, has sinned," Romans 3:23. Plus, these personal sins have earned us wages, according to Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." We have earned eternal death by our sins, but God extends to us the gift of eternal life through salvation that is through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So by hearing God's Word in the Bible we learn that we are sinners separated from God earning eternal death, but God extends to us the gift of eternal life to His son, Jesus Christ. This is why Paul the apostle wrote in Romans 1, verse 16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

Paul was not ashamed to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, as it contained God's salvation to everyone that believeth. The word "believeth" in the King James version of the Bible that I am reading from means that this belief must be a continued belief throughout the life of the individual. So we find that the first thing that we must do to be saved is to listen to God's Word because it not only points out our sinful and lost condition, but it also points out how we can receive the gift of God, eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. In other words, how we can be saved.

So how does a person who believes in God's Word receive this gift of salvation? Notice that this salvation has been mentioned several times in our study so far this morning and that it is in Christ Jesus. The question now for us to answer is "How does a person get into Jesus Christ?" We know that we must believe because that is pointed out in several passages such as Mark 16:16 where Jesus said, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned." Without believing in God and His son, Jesus Christ, we would not be obedient to His Will. So these verses point out that if we do not believe and continue not to believe, we will be damned. But if we continue to believe in Jesus Christ and God, and all that is required, then we will be saved.

But the question is "Is belief all that is required?" Well again, notice what Jesus said in Mark 16:16. He said Himself that "yes, we must believe and continue to believe in order to be saved." But He also said, "We must be baptized." So we see right off that there is more to salvation and being saved than just believing though believing is a very important part.

Remember it is sins that have separated us from God and sins must be repented of according to God's son, Jesus Christ for we read in 13:3, "Jesus said, I tell you nay, but except ye all likewise repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Repentance is a turning from your past sinful life and turning towards God and walking towards Him. True Godly repentance requires a change of heart or mind that is seen in a change of our actions including our speech.

Yet we might ask, "Is this all that we need to do to receive salvation?" Of course we would have to answer "No" because we have said nothing yet about what Jesus said about being baptized in Mark 16:16.

In the book of Acts we find the evangelist Philip was conducting a private Bible study with a man as they traveled in Acts chapter 8. In this study, "Philip preached to this man (about) Jesus Christ," Acts 8:35, "then Philip opened his mouth and began with the same scripture preaching unto him Jesus." This man was brought to a point that he believed in Jesus Christ and that he no doubt had repented of his past sins for in verse 36 we find this question being asked. "And as they went on their way, they came to a certain water and the Eunuch said, See here is water. What doth hindereth me from being baptized?" The preaching of Jesus Christ included what Jesus has said about being baptized to be saved.

In the next verse, we find that Philip answered the man's question "If you believe with all your heart, you can." The eunuch answered, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God." This man made what we often refer to as the good confession. Upon making that confession, notice the next thing that took place. "And he commanded the chariots to stand still and they went down into the water both Philip and the eunuch and he baptized him." The eunuch confessed his faith in Jesus as being the son of God and he was baptized to be saved.

So we see then that a person must confess their faith in Jesus Christ as a requirement to be saved for we read in Romans 10:10 that "For with the heart of man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation." So we see that confession is an important part of our salvation, but we also find and remember that Jesus said, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned." Jesus said that we must believe and be baptized in order to be saved. Jesus told Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, in John 3, verse 5, "Verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born of the water and the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." Baptism is how a person is born to the water. Becoming a new life as it were. Romans 6:3-4, ""Know ye not that so many of us that were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death. Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism into death that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father even so we also should walk in newness of life." Did you catch what the apostle Paul wrote? "Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus..." Here is how we get into Jesus Christ. "We," according to Romans 6:23, "are extended the gift of eternal life when we are baptized into Jesus Christ."

According to Galatians 3:27 we find, "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ Jesus have put on Christ." For how does a person get into Jesus Christ? Well why is it important for us to be baptized into Christ? Because "being in Christ is where all spiritual blessings are found," Ephesians 1, verse 3. Is being saved a spiritual blessing. Yes, my friends, indeed, it is.

Notice also what happens to a person who is baptized into Jesus Christ according to Acts 2:38. That person received remission of their sins.

According to Acts 2:41 and Acts 2:47 that person is then "added to the Lord's church."

According to Colossians 1:13 that person is "translated from the power of darkness into the kingdom of His dear son."

My friends, have you done these things? Have you heard the Word of God? Have hearing His Word caused you to come to believe? Have you repented of your sins, confessed your faith in Him and been baptized for the remission of your sins? If not, please call the church of Christ and have that done today.

Thank you. (SONG # 3 - "Did You Think To Pray!")

CLOSING COMMENTS

What a blessing it has been to join together in the things of God this morning. Thank you for doing your part in making all these things to be according to His Will. As always, we invite you back every Lord's Day morning at 7:30, as we commit ourselves to this offering for God!

But for now, let me ask if you have any questions or comments about today's lesson? Maybe, you would like a free transcript or a cassette tape of this program? Possibly, we could assist you with free Bible materials or correspondence courses? No matter what your need is, please contact us at the following address:

The Living Word 2540 N. Kansas Expressway Springfield, Mo. 65803

Many of these items are available on our website: www.thelivingwordprogram.com

Or if you prefer, you may call us at: (417)869-2284

Thanks be to God that He has offered us Salvation through His Blessed Son Jesus Christ. Have you responded to God's call in order that you may be saved?

(Program closing)