THE LIVING WORD TRANSCRIPT  <br><br>      



PROGRAM AIR DATE – 3-23-14<br><br>



LESSON TITLE:  “GOD’S CHURCH FOLLOWS HIS PLAN UNTO SALVATION.”



<br><br>WELCOME<br><br>

LET ME WELCOME EACH OF YOU TO OUR PROGRAM ON THIS WONDROUS LORD’S DAY MORNING.  I HOPE ALL OF YOU ARE WELL AND THAT YOU ARE PROSPERING GREATLY, IN YOUR PHYSICAL LIVES ACCORDING TO WHAT YOU ARE GIVING TO GOD SPIRITUALLY.  IT IS WONDERFUL TO BE A PART OF GOD’S FAMILY AND TO HAVE OPPORTUNITIES SUCH AS THIS TO COME BEFORE HIM AND LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT HE WANTS OF US, AS WELL AS PRAISING HIS NAME THROUGH SONG.  AS WE BEGIN OUR HOMAGE TO GOD THIS MORNING, WON’T YOU BOW WITH ME IN PRAYER? <br><br>

PRAYER:  DEAR GOD AND FATHER IN HEAVEN, WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS DAY AND THE MANY BLESSINGS OF LIFE AND THE PRIVILEGE THAT WE HAVE TO BE CALLED YOUR CHILDREN AND TO SERVE YOU EACH AND EVERY DAY. FATHER, WE ASK THIS DAY THAT YOU WILL HELP US TO ALWAYS LOOK TO YOUR WORD, THE BIBLE, TO FIND WHAT YOU WOULD HAVE US TO DO AND TO OBEY YOU. FATHER, KNOWING THAT WHEN WE OBEY WE ARE FOUND PLEASING IN YOUR SIGHT AND THEREFORE RECEIVING YOUR GRACE, THAT IN THE END WE MIGHT BE SAVED AND RECEIVE THE GREAT REWARD OF HEAVEN. WE THANK YOU FOR THE GREAT GIFT OF JESUS, WHICH MAKES ALL THINGS POSSIBLE. IN HIS NAME WE PRAY, AMEN.<br><br>



 IT IS NOW TIME TO BEGIN WITH OUR FIRST SONG OF PRAISE.  OUR FIRST HYMN OF THE MORNING TALKS ABOUT THE WONDROUS BLESSING OF SALVATION, WHICH IS OFFERED THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.  SO, WON’T YOU JOIN IN WITH THE CONGREGATION AT THIS TIME AS WE SING TOGETHER THE SONG, “WE HAVE HEARD THE JOYFUL SOUND!” 



 



<br><br>DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS<br><br>

AN INTERESTING PART OF THE OLD TESTAMENT IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE GIVEN SO MANY GOOD EXAMPLES AND STORIES OF THOSE WHO WERE STRIVING TO PLEASE GOD IN THEIR LIVES.  HOWEVER, I ALSO FIND IT INTERESTING THAT THESE SAME PEOPLE WERE NOT PERFECT BEFORE GOD, BUT THEY WERE DOING THEIR BEST TO LIVE ACCORDING TO HIS WILL AND TO PUT HIM FIRST - THUS THEY WERE CONSIDERED AS COMPLETE IN HIS SIGHT.  

<br><br>

ONE SUCH EXAMPLE IS GOD’S GREAT SERVANT DAVID.  THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE HE SHOWED OVER AND OVER AGAIN HIS TRUE LOVE AND DEVOTION TO GOD.  AS A YOUNG MAN HE BOLDLY STOOD FOR GOD AND EVEN AS KING HE STILL DID AS GOD COMMANDED.  HOWEVER, WE ALSO SEE THAT HE WAS NOT PERFECT, AND YES HE SINNED!   NOTICE WITH ME WHAT HE SAID ABOUT GOD, KNOWING THAT HE HAD MADE MISTAKES AND DONE THINGS CONTRARY TO HIS WILL.  IN PSALM 66:20 , WE READ, “BLESSED BE GOD, WHO HAS NOT TURNED AWAY MY PRAYER, NOR HIS MERCY FROM ME!”  DAVID’S MERCIFUL GOD IS THE SAME GOD THAT WE SERVE TODAY.  HOW GREAT OUR GOD IS, IN THAT HE WILL NOT FORSAKE US OR TURN ON US, AS LONG AS WE REPENT AND STRIVE TO CONTINUE DOING OUR BEST ACCORDING TO HIS WORD. <br><br> 



SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR ALL OF US?  IT MEANS THAT GOD IS ALWAYS THERE FOR US AND WILL HEAR US, EVEN WHEN WE MAKE MISTAKES.  BETTER YET, WHEN WE ASK FORGIVENESS - HE WILL FORGIVE US IF WE ACKNOWLEDGE OUR WRONGS AND STRIVE TO CONTINUE IN THEM NO MORE.  I THINK JOHN PUT THIS BEST IN 1 JOHN 1:9, “IF WE CONFESS OUR SINS, HE IS FAITHFUL AND JUST TO FORGIVE US OUR SINS AND TO CLEANSE US FROM ALL UNRIGHTEOUSNESS.”  



<br><br>FINALLY, NOTICE WHAT DAVID SAID ABOUT OUR PRAYERS.  GOD NOT ONLY HEARS US BUT WILL NOT TURN AWAY FROM US, EVEN WHEN WE MAKE MISTAKES.  ISN’T IT GREAT TO KNOW THAT GOD IS ALWAYS THERE, READY TO LISTEN AND ANSWER OUR PRAYERS TO HIS GLORY.  ESPECIALLY IN RELATIONSHIP TO OUR NEEDS AND REQUEST IN THIS LIFE, GOD IS ALWAYS A GOOD LISTENER.  AND EVEN THOUGH WE MESS UP FROM TIME TO TIME HE IS STILL THERE AND READY TO FORGIVE IF WE ARE WILLING TO DO OUR PART.   

<br><br>

THIS MORNING, WE WILL BE CONTINUING OUR STUDY ENTITLED, “UPON THIS ROCK I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH!”  OUR SPECIFIC LESSON OF THE DAY WILL FOCUS ON THE FACT THAT, “GOD’S CHURCH FOLLOWS HIS PLAN UNTO SALVATION!”   SO STAY WITH US AND AFTER OUR NEXT SONG TOGETHER I WILL RETURN WITH THIS STUDY FROM GOD’S WORD.  

NOW LET’S RETURN TO OUR SINGING.  THE NAME OF THE NEXT HYMN, “WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS.” <br><br>



LESSON<br><br>

BY RAY SULLINS<br><br>

      THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CONTINUING WITH US THIS MORNING AS WE CONTINUE OUR SERIES THAT WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT IN RELATIONSHIP TO THE CHURCH WHICH GOD HIMSELF ESTABLISHED. IN FACT, THIS IS OUR LAST LESSON IN THAT SERIES AS WE THIS DAY WILL CONSIDER SOMETHING WHICH IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE, CERTAINLY IF WE ARE TO KNOW HOW WE GAIN ENTRANCE INTO THAT CHURCH. IF GOD HAS ESTABLISHED ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT DIRECTIVES THAT WE HAVE LEARNED THROUGHOUT THESE PAST MANY MONTHS, THEN CERTAINLY HE HAS DETERMINED WHAT IT TAKES TO BECOME A PART OF THE FAMILY. WOULD IT MAKE SENSE THAT GOD SPECIFICALLY TELLS US HOW WE SHOULD WORSHIP, AND HOW WE SHOULD LIVE, AND WHAT WE SHOULD DO, AND WHAT WE SHOULD SAY, AND THAT HE REALLY GIVES US EVERY CHRISTIAN CHARACTERISTIC AND DIRECTIVE THAT WE SHOULD FOLLOW DAILY BUT YET JUST SAYS WELL, YOU CAN JUST JOIN THE CHURCH OR GET INTO THE CHURCH HOWEVER YOU WANT? <br><br>

      THINKING ABOUT THAT, I WANT TO BEGIN WITH A QUESTION. IF YOU REALLY CONSIDER YOUR LIFE AND SOMETIMES WHEN YOU MADE SOME SERIOUS MISTAKES OR DID SOME THINGS THAT WERE WRONG, WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR DESIRE AFTER REALIZING THE MISTAKE THAT YOU HAVE MADE? WELL, YOU KNOW MOST OF US AFTER WE HAVE MADE A SEVERE MISTAKE OR WE HAVE SAID SOMETHING THAT WE MAYBE WOULD LIKE TO TAKE BACK OR SHOULDN'T HAVE SAID.  MAYBE WE DO SOMETHING OR GET ENGAGED OR INVOLVED IN SOMETHING AND WE WAKE UP THE NEXT MORNING OR WE GO THROUGHOUT THE NEXT DAY AND WE SAY, I WISH I HADN'T HAVE DONE WHAT I DID LAST NIGHT. ALL OF US HAVE BEEN THERE AND ALL OF US HAVE DONE THAT. ALL OF US HAVE ENGAGED IN THINGS THAT AREN'T RIGHT AND ARE SINFUL. THEREFORE, WE KNOW THAT THE PROBLEM OF SIN AUTOMATICALLY SEPARATES US FROM GOD. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING NEW ACCORDING TO CHRIST, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN AROUND EVER SINCE THE PATRIARCHAL PERIOD AND THE MOSAIC PERIOD. IN FACT, IF WE LOOK THERE IN THE BOOK OF ISAIAH CHAPTER 59, YOU RECALL THE FAMILIAR VERSE 2, THAT ACTUALLY SAYS, “BUT YOUR INIQUITIES HAVE SEPARATED YOU FROM GOD AND YOUR SINS HAVE HIDDEN HIS FACE FROM YOU SO THAT HE WILL NOT HEAR.”  DO YOU SEE WHAT SIN CAN DO? SIN SEPARATES AND WHAT WE BEGIN TO SEE, ALTHOUGH GOD IS UP ABOVE AND GOD IS OUR CREATOR AND HE HAS MADE US AND PLACED US ON THIS EARTH, WHEN WE CHOOSE TO DISREGARD HIS WILL AND NOT OBEY THEN WE ARE CHOOSING SIN. IT AUTOMATICALLY SEPARATES US, AS A CHILD IS SEPARATED FROM THE PARENTS, BY CHOICE. DOES THAT NOT HAPPEN IN OUR DAY AND TIME? A CHILD WILL CHOOSE THE WRONG PATH AND BEGIN TO DO THINGS THAT THEY SHOULD NOT DO. THEY WILL LEAVE THEIR FAMILY AND THEY WILL AVOID THEIR FAMILIES AND THEY WILL AVOID THEIR PARENTS. WHEN THE PARENTS HEAR WHAT IS TAKING PLACE AND THE CHILD WILL NOT CORRECT THAT ERROR, SOMETIMES THE PARENTS WILL AVOID OR STAY AWAY FROM SUCH A CHILD. THE SAME IS TRUE WITH GOD. WHEN WE DISRESPECT GOD BY CHOOSING SIN, HE CAN NO LONGER ABIDE WITH SIN OR BE IN THE PRESENCE OF SIN. THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE THAT IS ENCOURAGING IN THAT SAME TEXT AND IN VERSE 1. HE SAYS, BEHOLD, THE LORD'S HAND IS NOT SHORTENED, THAT IT CANNOT SAVE, NOR HIS EAR HEAVY THAT IT CANNOT HEAR.”  WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO US? IT MEANS THAT GOD HAS PREPARED A PLAN FOR SALVATION. GOD HAS CARED ABOUT HIS CREATION IN EVERY PERIOD, IN EVERY AGE, AND HAS MADE AVAILABLE TO MAN THE REALIZATION THAT THEY CAN KNOW HIS WORD, AND THEREFORE BY OBEYING HIS WORD, THEY CAN BE FOUND PLEASING IN HIS SIGHT.<br><br>

      AS THOSE WHO ARE PLEASING IN HIS SIGHT, YOU KNOW WHAT WE ARE RECIPIENTS OF? THE BLESSINGS AND THE REWARDS OF GOD. I DON'T KNOW OF A BETTER PLACE TO GO THEN THE BOOK OF ACTS WHEN THE CHURCH WAS ESTABLISHED. YOU KNOW, ALMOST ALL SCHOLARS AND THEOLOGIANS WOULD AGREE THAT THERE IN ACTS 2 IS THE DAY OF PENTECOST THAT THE CHURCH WAS ESTABLISHED. IN FACT, THE TEXT ITSELF SAYS THAT THOSE WHO WERE BEING SAVED ON THAT DAY, VERSE 47 OF ACTS 2, WERE BEING ADDED TO THE CHURCH. THAT'S THE DAY THE CHURCH WAS ESTABLISHED. THE SAME CHURCH THAT WE HAVE SEEN IN THIS SERIES THAT JESUS SAID I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH IN MATTHEW CHAPTER 16. AS WE LOOK AT THAT DAY OF PENTECOST, WE SEE ALL THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS THAT WERE TAKING PLACE. PETER PREACHES A SERMON AND WITHIN THAT SERMON HE IDENTIFIES WELL, NOT ONLY THINGS PERTAINING TO THE OLD LAW AND EVEN MENTIONING GREAT MEN LIKE DAVID AND OTHERS, BUT HE BRINGS THOSE JEWS AND THEIR MINDS THROUGH THE THINGS THAT GOD HAD DONE IN THE OLD DAYS AND EVEN UP TO THAT DAY WHEN HE THEREFORE, PROCLAIMED THAT JESUS HAS BEEN MADE THIS SAME LORD AND MASTER OR MESSIAH THAT HAD BEEN PROPHESIED ABOUT BEFORE. WHY DOES HE TELL THEM THAT? BECAUSE THEY JUST CRUCIFIED HIM. THEY JUST MURDERED HIM. THEY JUST KILLED HIM AND PUT HIM ON THE CROSS. IN HIS SCATHING REBUKE, PETER SAYS YOU ARE GUILTY OF THE BLOOD OF JESUS AND HE IS THE CHOSEN ONE. HE IS THE MESSIAH. HE IS THE ONE WHO IS TO BE THE SAVIOR OF ALL MEN AND HE IS THE ONE WHO CAN SAVE YOU FROM YOUR SINS. MAN, CAN YOU IMAGINE SUCH A REBUKE? WELL, IT'S THE SAME WAY AS WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP AND OUR PARENTS KNEW WE HAD DONE SOMETHING WRONG AND WE KNEW WE HAD DONE SOMETHING WRONG. WE KNOW WE'RE GOING TO GET THAT PUNISHMENT AND WE'RE GONNA SAY WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO MAKE IT RIGHT? IT'S NOT JUST WHEN WE ARE GROWING UP. WE CAN BE ADULTS AND ON THE JOB AND WE MAKE A SERIOUS MISTAKE AND WE SAY HOW CAN I FIX THIS? HOW CAN I MAKE THIS RIGHT? THE SAME IS TRUE SPIRITUALLY. WE KNOW THAT SIN SEPARATES US FROM GOD AND WHEN WE REALIZE THAT WE HAVE SINNED AS THEY DID, WHAT SHOULD SIN DO? IT SHOULD CUT US TO THE HEART. ISN'T THAT WHAT IT SAYS IN ACTS CHAPTER TWO? THEY WERE PRICKED OR CUT TO THE HEART. THE REASON THAT IS ALSO VERY, VERY SIGNIFICANT IS BECAUSE IT IS THE SAME IDEA THAT PAUL SPEAKS ABOUT, EVEN IN THE CORINTHIAN LETTER, IN HELPING THE BRETHREN THERE UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF GODLY SORROW. <br><br>

      THAT BRINGS ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE WHICH IS ESSENTIAL UNTO SALVATION. IN FACT, IN 2CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 7, HE SPEAKS THERE ABOUT THE LETTER OR THE EPISTLE THAT HE HAD WRITTEN. IN VERSE 9 HE SAYS, I REALLY DON'T REGRET THAT I MADE YOU SORRY BECAUSE YOUR SORROW LEAD TO REPENTANCE IN A GODLY MANNER. YOU SEE, SORROW IS ESSENTIAL TO BECOMING A CHILD OF GOD. IF YOU MEET SOMEONE WHO HAS NOT BEEN MADE SORRY FROM THEIR SIN, AND IT'S NOT EVIDENT THAT THEY ARE REMORSEFUL FOR THE WRONGS THEY HAVE DONE IN THEIR LIFE, THEN THEY HAVEN'T BEEN SAVED.  I DON'T CARE IF THEY'VE CONFESSED JESUS OR DONE WHATEVER ELSE THAT THE BIBLE PROCLAIMS, YOU CAN'T BE RIGHT WITH GOD EXCEPT YOU BE MOVED WITH THE FACT THAT YOU ARE HOPELESS. YOU ARE IN DESPAIR. YOU WILL NEVER BE SAVED WITHOUT GOD AND SIN HAS SEPARATED YOU FROM THE VERY THING THAT CAN OFFER YOU ETERNAL LIFE. THERE HAS TO BE A MOMENT OF BEING MOVED IN A SENSE OF UNDERSTANDING THE SEVERITY OF OUR SITUATION WITHOUT GOD AND HOW WE NEED TO RETURN TO HIM AND CORRECT THE WRONGS AND MAKE THEM RIGHT. WHAT IS THAT IN OUR LIFE? WELL, WE ACKNOWLEDGE THE SINS. THE IDEA OF SIN AND THE FACT THAT WE ARE GOING TO LOSE OUR SOULS AND GO TO HELL CHALLENGES US TO SAY I WANT TO KNOW MY GOD AND I WANT TO KNOW WHAT MY GOD REQUIRES OF ME. I WANT THE BLESSINGS AND I WANT THE REWARDS AND I WANT THE PROMISES. SO WHAT DO WE DO? WE ASK THE SAME QUESTIONS THAT THEY ASKED, BECAUSE AFTER THEY WERE CUT TO THE HEART IN ACTS CHAPTER 2, THEY ASKED A SIMPLE QUESTION. MEN AND BRETHREN, WHAT MUST WE DO? WELL, YOU KNOW, YOU JUST SAID WE MURDERED THE VERY SON OF GOD, THE VERY CHOSEN MESSIAH OF THE CREATOR HIMSELF, AND YOU JUST TOLD US THAT BECAUSE OF THAT WE ARE GUILTY OF THE BLOOD THAT IS ON OUR HANDS AND THAT SIN SEPARATES US FROM OUR VERY CREATOR. WE, AS JEWS, WANT TO BE ONE WITH OUR CREATOR. SO WHAT MUST WE DO? HOW DO WE OVERCOME THIS WRONG? HOW DO WE CORRECT THIS ISSUE? YOU KNOW WHAT PETER SAID? IT'S ONE OF THE SIMPLEST PASSAGES THAT YOU WILL EVER READ IN THE BIBLE BUT IT'S ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX PASSAGES IN RELATIONSHIP TO THE RELIGIOUS WORLD AND WHAT DENOMINALIZATION HAS DONE TO IT. THE SIMPLE ANSWER WAS REPENT AND LET EVERYONE OF YOU BE BAPTIZED. HOW IS THAT SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND? YOU BEGIN TO TALK TO FOLKS IN THE RELIGIOUS WORLD AND THEY WANT TO AVOID THIS VERSE AND THEY WANT TO AVOID OTHER VERSES AND THEY WANT TO SAY THAT IT IS ALL ABOUT THE HEART. THE HEART IS INVOLVED BECAUSE CONFESSIONS ARE MADE WITH THE MOUTH FROM THE HEART, SAYS ROMANS CHAPTER 10:9-10. BUT THAT'S NOT ALL. IS NOT ONLY THE HEART. IT TAKES THE PROFESSION OF FAITH WITH THE MOUTH AND IT ALSO TAKES ACTION, DOES IT NOT? CERTAINLY IT DOES. WHAT WILL THE RELIGIOUS WORLD SAY? IF YOU JUST PRAY.... WHERE IN THE WORLD DO WE READ IN THE NEW TESTAMENT THAT A SIMPLE PRAYER WILL SAVE THE SOUL OF A MAN WHO HAS NOT YET BECOME A CHRISTIAN. WE DON'T FIND IT. WHERE IN THE WORLD DO WE READ THE IDEA OF A SINNER'S PRAYER? THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH A SINNER PRAYING BUT A SINNER HAS TO ACT. HOW DO THEY ACT ACCORDING TO WHAT PETER AND THE OTHERS TOLD THEM ON THAT DAY? REPENT AND BE BAPTIZED. <br><br>

      YOU KNOW WHAT REPENTANCE IS? REPENTANCE IS A WORK. IN THE BOOK OF ACTS WE LEARN THAT REPENTANCE IS SOMETHING THAT WE DO. IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE THINK OR FEEL, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE ACT ON. WHAT IT MEANS IS THAT I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAVE BEEN IN SIN AND THEREFORE SEPARATED FROM GOD. I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT SIN AND I WANT TO TURN ALL THE WAY AROUND AWAY FROM THAT SIN AND LEAVE IT SO THAT I WILL WHAT? NO LONGER SIN. YOU KNOW WHY? BECAUSE SIN HAS NO PLACE WITH GOD. SIN HAS NO PLACE IN THE LIFE OF A CHRISTIAN. I CAN CHOOSE SIN AND HOLD ONTO THE OLD SINS AND SAY, OH BUT I LOVE JESUS TOO. I BELIEVE JESUS IS THE CHRIST AND I'M STILL SAVED, BUT I LOVE MY SIN. WE CAN'T DO THAT. REPENTANCE MEANS WE ACKNOWLEDGE AND WE TURN AWAY FROM SIN. WE ARE MOVED WITH SORROW WHEN WE SAY WHAT I HAVE DONE HAS BROUGHT SHAME TO GOD AND HAS MADE ME GUILTY OF HIS BLOOD. I'M GOING TO LEAVE IT BEHIND AND I'M GOING TO TURN ALL THE WAY AROUND AND I AM GOING TO BECOME A NEW CREATURE OR CREATION IN GOD. I'M GOING TO BE ONE WHO IS LIKE GOD, NOT THE WORLD. WHO IS LIKE MY CREATOR, NOT FLESH. WHO IS RIGHTEOUS, NOT CARNAL. THAT'S WHAT I'M STRIVING FOR.<br><br>

      AS WE TURN AWAY WITH THIS IDEA OF REPENTANCE, THEN WE ARE READY TO DO WHAT? MAKE THE CONFESSION AS THEY DID. TO MAKE THE CONFESSION THAT JESUS CHRIST IS THE SON OF GOD. YOU CAN'T BE SAVED WITHOUT BELIEVING, CAN YOU? EVEN IN ROMANS CHAPTER 10:9-10, IT SAYS, “WITH THE MOUTH CONFESSION IS MADE UNTO SALVATION.”  WHAT CONFESSION? THE SAME CONFESSION THAT PETER MADE BACK IN MATTHEW CHAPTER 16, AFTER JESUS SAID I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH. REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS THAT HE WAS BASING THESE THINGS ON? PETER JUST SAID ACCORDING TO WHAT THE FATHER REVEALED TO HIM, THOU ART THE CHRIST AND THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD. ARE YOU WILLING TO MAKE THE CONFESSION? ARE YOU WILLING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I AM NO LONGER GOING TO BE LIKE THE WORLD OR THE FLESH OR THE CARNAL THINGS AND I'M GOING TO TURN AWAY AND I'M GOING TO SERVE MY GOD. ARE YOU WILLING TO GIVE YOURSELF IN SUCH A WAY TO YOUR CREATOR IN THAT YOU MIGHT BE WHAT? SAVED ACCORDING TO HIS WILL. THAT'S WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES US THAT WE MUST DO. <br><br>

      WE FIND OTHER EXAMPLES AS WE LOOK OVER TO ACTS CHAPTER 8. THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE STORIES. THIS IS A FAVORITE STORY OF MANY WHO CERTAINLY LOOK TO THE QUESTION OF WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED. IT IS FOUND IN ACTS 8 AND IT IS ABOUT THE ETHIOPIAN EUNUCH. THIS ETHIOPIAN IS TRAVELING AND PHILIP IS LED TO HIM BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. PHILIP BEGINS TO PREACH FROM WHAT HE IS READING THERE IN ISAIAH AND HE PREACHES TO HIM. THE TEXT SAYS JESUS AND AS THEY ARE TRAVELING ALONG HE SAYS HERE'S WATER. WHAT HINDERS ME TO BE  BAPTIZED?  DID YOU NOTICE THERE, AS IN ACTS 2, THAT BAPTISM IS AGAIN MENTIONED? IT DOESN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT REPENTANCE BUT WHAT DO WE KNOW? WE KNOW THAT REPENTANCE IS REQUIRED BECAUSE IN LUKE 13:3, JESUS SAID EXCEPT YE REPENT, YOU TOO WILL PERISH. HE WAS CHALLENGING HIM TO OBVIOUSLY TURN AWAY FROM SIN TO FOLLOW JESUS. WHEN HE DID THIS HE SAID I AM READY AND THEN PHILIP SAID IF YOU BELIEVE WITH ALL OF YOUR HEART THAT JESUS IS THE CHRIST AND THEN THE EUNUCH MADE THE CONFESSION WITH HIS MOUTH WHEN HE SAID I BELIEVE THAT JESUS CHRIST IS THE SON OF GOD. THEN HE GOT THE HOLY SPIRIT....NO, THAT'S NOT WHAT IT SAYS. IT DOESN'T SAY AND THEN HE WAS SAVED, NO. HE WENT ON HIS WAY REJOICING, NO. PHILIP AND THE EUNUCH WENT DOWN INTO THE WATER AND HE (PHILIP) BAPTIZED HIM. WHY DID THEY GO DOWN INTO WATER? YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE WATER TO SOMEHOW GET THE HOLY SPIRIT? CERTAINLY NOT, IT IS SAYING THAT THIS WAS THE EXPRESSION OR THE ACT OF OBEDIENCE THAT PROVED THAT I HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED MY SIN AND I WILL REPENT. I TURN TO YOU AND I PROFESS YOUR NAME AND NOW I AM SUBMITTING AN ACTION IN WHAT YOU HAVE ASKED IN BAPTISM. IT'S NOT JUST THAT BECAUSE WHEN WE GO OVER TO ROMANS CHAPTER 6 WE BEGIN TO LEARN THAT BAPTISM IS SYMBOLIC OF THE DEATH OF CHRIST. AS HE DIED IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS DEATH AND BURIAL, WE DIE OF OUR OLD SIN AND OUR OLD MAN. DO YOU SEE THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE ACT? IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE DO LIKE IT'S NO BIG DEAL, WHO CARES. IT REMINDS US THAT WE ARE WILLING TO DIE TO OUR OLD MAN AND OLD SIN AND WE ARE WILLING TO RISE AS CHRIST ALSO ROSE AS A NEW CREATURE OR CREATION. THAT'S WHY IT SAYS WE ARE NO LONGER THERE FOR SERVANTS OF SIN, BUT RATHER SERVANTS OF GOD. <br><br>

      IF YOU LOOK THROUGHOUT THE BOOK OF ACTS, YOU ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO SEE EXAMPLE AFTER EXAMPLE AFTER EXAMPLE OF THOSE WHO WERE CONVERTED. THOSE WHO ASKED THE QUESTION WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED? YOU'RE GOING TO FIND GREAT MEN LIKE CORNELIUS. IN ACTS CHAPTER 10, AFTER HE HAD BEEN TAUGHT BY THE BROTHERS, HE RESPONDED AND IT SAYS HE WAS BAPTIZED. DO YOU THINK HE CONFESSED THE NAME OF JESUS? SURE HE HAD. YOU CAN'T BE SAVED WITHOUT DOING THAT. YOU THINK HE HAD REPENTED? CERTAINLY HE DID. THE TEXT DOESN'T SAY SO BUT SURELY HE HAD BECAUSE THOSE THINGS ARE REQUIRED UNTO SALVATION. AS A EUNUCH, HE HAD ALSO GONE TO WATER AND BEEN IMMERSED. IF YOU GO OVER TO ACTS CHAPTER 16 YOU WILL FIND THE PHILLIPIAN JAILER WHO WAS A MAN WHO SEES THAT THE PRISON GATES HAD ALL BEEN OPENED AND THE PRISONERS SURELY HAVE FLED. HE WAS TOLD BY PAUL AND SILAS TO NOT HARM HIMSELF BECAUSE HE WAS ABOUT TO KILL HIMSELF. HE WANTED TO KNOW WHAT KIND OF GOD HAS SUCH POWER. THEY PREACHED TO HIM THAT JESUS IS THE ONE AND YOU KNOW WHAT? HE AND HIS HOUSEHOLD WERE BAPTIZED, NOT BECAUSE BAPTISM IS GREATER THAN CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE, BUT BECAUSE THE PLAN THAT JESUS LAID DOWN EVEN FROM THE DAY THE CHURCH BEGAN WAS TO REPENT AND LET EVERYONE OF YOU BE BAPTIZED. YOU KNOW WHY? THE SAME VERSE IN ACTS 2:38 TELL US WHY. THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE REMISSION OF SINS AND THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. I KNOW YOU WANT TO BE FORGIVEN OF YOUR SINS AND I KNOW YOU WANT THE SPIRIT OF GOD TO HELP YOU WITH YOUR LIFE. DO YOU KNOW HOW YOU DO THAT? YOU REPENT AND THEN YOU ARE BAPTIZED. DON'T FORGET THE NEED FOR CONFESSION, BECAUSE CONFESSION MUST BE MADE WITH THE MOUTH. FINALLY, I MIGHT MENTION THAT IN ACTS 22 AND THE GREAT CONVERSION OF PAUL AS HE WENT TO THE CITY AND HE MET WITH ANANIAS, DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED? DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT ANANIAS TOLD HIM? AFTER HE PREACHED TO HIM OF JESUS, ANANIAS SAID WHY ARE YOU WAITING? ARISE AND BE BAPTIZED, AND WASH AWAY YOUR SINS. THERE'S THAT CONNECTION AGAIN MY FRIENDS AND BRETHREN. WE ARE INDIVIDUALS AND IF WE ARE WILLING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT THAT WE ARE WILLING TO TURN AWAY FROM SIN AND CONFESS THE NAME OF JESUS AND BE BAPTIZED, THEN WE CAN DIE OF THE OLD SINS AND THE OLD WAYS AND RISE TO BE NEW CREATURES IN JESUS CHRIST AND SERVANTS WHO WILL, NOT ONLY BE BLESSED TODAY, BUT BLESSED ETERNALLY. THE QUESTION IS, HAVE YOU SUBMITTED TO GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION? IF NOT, THEN WHY NOT? MAKE SURE TODAY THAT YOU ARE RIGHT WITH YOUR GOD BY DOING ALL THAT HE COMMANDS.<br><br>



CLOSING COMMENTS<br><br>

IT WAS CERTAINLY GREAT TO HAVE YOU WITH US TODAY.  THANKS BE TO GOD FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE HAD TO COME BEFORE HIS THRONE THIS MORNING.  PLEASE REMEMBER, YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US EVERY SUNDAY MORNING AT 7:30, AS WE JOIN TOGETHER IN THIS SERVICE TO GOD.<br><br>



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:  <br><br>

The Living Word

2540 N. Kansas Expressway 

Springfield, Mo.  65803<br><br>



Many of these materials are also available on our website:  

That address is: www.thelivingwordprogram.com

<br><br>

Or if you prefer, you may call us at:

(417)869-2284  <br><br>

 HOW TRULY BLESSED WE ARE TO HAVE A CLEAR PLAN FROM GOD IN HIS WORD, ANSWERING THE QUESTION, “WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED!”  THE QUESTION IS, HAVE YOU FULLY OBEYED THE WILL OF GOD IN REGARD TO HIS REQUIREMENTS?  IF NOT, WHY NOT DO SO TODAY! <br><br>