Smith, Harold: Salvation-All For Grace

I'm reading a verse of Ephesians chapter two, in the book of Ephesians chapter two. I'm sort of going to do a little bit of preaching and a little bit of teaching together tonight, and I do trust that I won't confuse anybody. Ephesians chapter two verse eight. For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God, not a work, lest any man should boast. For by grace are ye saved. That's on God's part. That's God's side. We have no grace within ourselves. We have no capability of having grace toward us in ourselves. The grace is all from God's side. For by grace are ye saved. The word grace simply means undeserved favor. God giving us what we do not deserve. Mercy is God holding back what we do deserve. That is judgment. The mercy of God holds back the judgment of God from falling on our sin. But the grace of God gives us what we do not deserve. That's grace. For by grace are ye saved through faith. Now, the faith isn't on God's part. The faith is on your part, on my part. It's grace on God's part. That's his part. It's faith on my part. When it says that not of yourself, but that doesn't refer to faith. It refers to the whole subject matter of the chapter, salvation. That salvation is not of yourself. Its source is the grace of God, but it only comes to us through our faith, our faith in God's grace as it is in the Lord Jesus Christ. So it's grace on God's part, it's faith on your part. Now, I'm going to look at some things that might be a little bit misleading to you, to show you the source and the pattern and the place where the grace of God has come to us, and then show you faith on our part. Now, I want to use some words that are very confusing, maybe. That big word predestination that you read about in the Bible, and election, which merely means selection. And I'm going to read a few of them to you. The first one back in Ephesians chapter one verse four. In Ephesians chapter one verse four. It says, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. Now notice next verse, to the praise of the glory of his grace. That word chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, predestinated us, uh, us under the adoption of children, all have to do with the grace of God in birth. It's all to the praise of the glory of his grace. So there you've got chosen and predestinated. Now we're going to look at some more verses like that. Let's look back in Romans chapter eight. We'll read that word predestinated again. Romans chapter eight, verse twenty nine. For whom he did foreknow, that is, he knew beforehand, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and so on. Now look with me in chapter nine of the book of Romans. Verse ten. This is talking about Rebecca, who was going to have twins at this time, Esau and Jacob. Verse ten says, and not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac, for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of work, but of him that calleth, it was said unto her, the elder, that would be Esau, shall serve the younger, as it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated or loved less. Now there are some people that tell us that if you're going to be saved, you're going to be saved, and if you're going to be lost, you're going to be lost. There's not a thing you can do about it. That is called Calvinism, hyper-Calvinism. It originated from a man called John Calvin, and, uh, it seemed that, uh, uh, maybe he didn't teach it as, uh, as extreme as it is today, but it originated with a man called John Calvin. That some people are predestinated to be saved, and some people are predestinated to be lost. Some people are, they're chosen to be saved, and some people are chosen to be lost. And there isn't a thing you can do about it. Just preach, and if a person happens to be one of the elect, well, he'll be saved, or she'll be saved. If they're not, they'll be lost. Now, there's no such a teaching like that in the Word of God. God has not selected some to be saved and some to be lost, and he has not predestinated, predetermined anybody to be- to go to heaven or go to hell. He's never done that at all, and and we, I trust that we'll see that. Two times that the word predestination is mentioned in the New Testament, and always remember this, in neither place does it have to do with the destiny of unsaved people. In Romans chapter eight, it says, it said of believers that he has predestinated them, in verse twenty nine, not to go to heaven or not to go to hell, but he's predestinated them to be conformed to the image of God's Son. Predestination has to do with the ultimate character of those that are saved, not their destiny. We're never told in the Word of God that God predestinated anybody that was unsaved. When a person gets saved, God predetermines that that saved person is going to be made just like his son. Predestination has to do with character. Never the destinies of men. The other place it's mentioned in Ephesians chapter one verse four, verse five, it says we're predestinated, Christians are predestinated unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. Now here it's the placing or the adoption of children. The adoption, as it's taught in the Word of God, hasn't taken place yet. The word adoption means the placing of a son, the putting of a son. Now, that hasn't taken place yet. That will take place when Christ comes back, when the dead in Christ arises, and the and the living saint will be changed, and they'll be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. Then at the judgment seat of Christ, each son will be properly placed in their eternal relationship to the Lord of glory. Here again, it has to do with character, the placing of a son, not the destiny of a son, but the character of a son. So remember that, the word predestination always has to do with God's predetermined end of the character of those who do believe. It has nothing to do with an unsaved person. It's only used in two books in the Bible. It was written to the saints of God, people who were already saved in both of those books, in the book of Romans and the book of Ephesians. It has to do with the, the full character of a person and the placing of them in God's eternal kingdom. So predestination has nothing to do with the destiny of men, but the character of those that are saved. Now, when you come to that word election, or chosen, which would be a similar word, here you have the thought of purpose. Notice in Ephesians chapter one verse four, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world. What did he choose us for? Notice in verse four, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love. See, that's purpose brought in view, not destiny. The Bible says nowhere that he's chosen us to be saved or he's chosen us to be lost. He has chosen us for a purpose, and the purpose is to be holy and without blame before him in love. That's what he predestinated us for. So in verse four of Ephesians one, you have both the, uh, the, the choice of God or the election of God and the predetermined end of those who are, who are selected. One has to do with the character, holy and without blame before him in love, and that is the purpose. The election, the selection, that is the purpose. So remember this, those two big words that are often so controversial among Christians. Predestination has to do with the character of men that are already saved, people are already saved. Election has to do with the purposes of God in relationship to those that are in faith. Now let's see this in Romans chapter nine, brought out so wonderfully here. In Romans chapter nine, Esau and Jacob, before they were born, verse eleven. For those two children, being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, notice the purpose of God, not the destiny of Esau or Jacob, but the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of work, but of him that calleth. Now, what was the purpose of God in relationship to these two boys? What does it mean when he chose Jacob, but he didn't choose Esau? It doesn't mean that he chose Jacob to be saved and Esau to be lost. It simply means that he chose Jacob. He had a purpose to fulfill. He had a promise to keep. He had to bring Christ into the world. He wanted a nation to bring Christ into the world through. So he was going to start a nation, and one of these two boys. So he selected Jacob to be the father of the Jewish. It was Jacob that had twelve boys, and it was those twelve boys that made up the twelve tribes, that made up the nation of Israel, and through that nation, God brought his promised Christ into the world through that nation. It had to do with the purpose of God in a nation and bringing Christ into the world. Now, it doesn't mean that Esau could have never been saved, but it does mean that Esau could have never been the father of the Jewish nation. Now, that's quite clear, isn't it? He could have never been the father of the Jewish nation. In Acts chapter nine, God told a man called Ananias, he said, you go into the house of a certain man at at Joppa, and you'll find there a man named Peter. He's a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles and before kings, and to suffer for my name's sake. He was a chosen apostle to the Gentiles. Now, God selected him. God elected him to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Ananias could have never been that apostle. God didn't select Ananias. Barnabas could have never been that apostle. Peter could have never been that apostle. James could have never been that apostle, because God selected Paul. That was his selection, but it doesn't mean that Ananias wasn't saved. Had nothing to do with Ananias' salvation, but it did have something to do with a special chosen vessel to the Gentile world, and God selected Paul, and and that's his election, that's his choice. Surely he has the right to make that choice. After all, he knows his men better than Peter would have known who to pick. So God's election has to do with his choices, his purposes, rather. This is so beautifully brought out again in Mark chapter one, and I'll take the time to look at that. In Mark chapter three rather, Mark chapter three verse th- 13. In this chapter, in this verse here, the Lord Jesus, it says, goeth up into a mountain, and he calleth unto him whom he would. He calleth unto them whom he would. That is, out of all of his disciples, he selected twelve on this occasion. There were many disciples there. He selected twelve of them. That was his choice, but notice, they came unto him. They weren't passive. They had to respond to that choice. They came unto him, and he ordained twelve. He made up a unit of twelve is what the word ordained means, that they should be with him and that they, that he might send them forth to preach. Now, there were many disciples there on that occasion, but he called twelve of those disciples, and not one of those other disciples could have ever been one of those twelve because that was not in the purpose of God. The purpose of God, he had a, he had a work to perform, so he selected twelve men to perform it. That was his choice. He does the electing, he does the selecting, but he never selects one person to be saved and another person to be lost. But he does select one person to be the head of a Jewish nation, and another one he doesn't select to be that. He does select twelve men to be apostles, and he never selected anybody else to be just like those twelve. That is, apart from Paul. Uh, he selected Paul to be a chosen vessel to the, uh, to the Gentiles, but he never selected anybody else like that. It has nothing to do with salvation. Election has to do with the purposes, either earthly or eternally, has to do with the purposes of God. The church, that body of people that are Christians in the world today, that body of people that he's making up for his namesake, they are said to be the elect of God. God has a purpose in view for them. They were not elected to be saved, but a- after they are saved, they are elected to a certain purpose, to be the fullness of him that filleth all in all. Now, I trust then that you'll see that these words, predestination, simply has to do with the character, the ultimate character of every born-again Christian. Somebody has said God was so pleased with his son that he's making all believers just like him. That's predestination. He, he hasn't predetermined that I'm going to be in eternity what I am in time. If that were the case, I wouldn't be much in eternity, would I? But he's predetermined that I, as a believer in Christ, I'm going to be made like his son, morally and righteously. I'm going to be conformed to the image of his son. That has to do with my character, and election has to do with purposes. Selection has to d- do with purposes. Now, we're going to look at God's grace as it's seen in the, in the background of these words, and God's grace and man's faith. Now, in first, in second Timothy chapter one, I want to show you that before the world began, God purposed salvation for the children of men. This is the, the fountain of his grace. God never looked at Adam after he sinned, and he said, Adam, I wi- I pity you, so I'll have grace on you. God didn't do that at all. God foresaw all of that. Way back before the foundation of the world, God purposed that when that man did sin, he was going to have grace for him. And notice how it's brought out here in second Timothy chapter one verse nine: Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace. You see it? Purpose and grace. Grace is something that finds its roots in the purpose of God. When? Which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. Way back there before the world began. Everything is open and naked before him with whom we have to do. Known unto God, we read in Acts fifteen verse, uh, 18, known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. He knows them all, so he can look way down ahead. He could see Adam, he could see the human race, he could see every lost sinner in the human race, and the purpose of God, out of the graciousness of his heart, was that I want to save them. We didn't deserve to be saved. God could have cut this whole world and its people off. He can do it today, he can cut it clear, but the purpose of God toward the children of men is grace, grace. That was what he predetermined that he was going to have toward the children of men. Now he hasn't picked out certain ones to have it. This is to all men. This is to all men. Timothy is only told about certain ones that come into it, but it's for all men. The grace of God that bring us salvation hath appeared unto all men, we read in Titus chapter two verse eleven. It's appeared unto all men. The law came by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. Grace came to all men, but that was the purpose of God. In Ephesians, we read there that the purposes of God in relationship to those that are saved was to be to the praise of the glory of his grace, because that was the purpose of God. Out of the graciousness of his heart, he purposed to save sinners. It's the purpose of God to save sinners. It's the will of God to save sinners. In Ephesians chapter one again, it says in the latter part of verse five, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace. He's made that known to us in verse nine, having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to the good pleasure which he has purposed in himself. In verse eleven it says we have an inheritance in him, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his will, that we should be to the praise of his glory, the praise of the glory of his grace. God purposed salvation for sinners. He purposed that before the foundation of the world. His purpose toward the children of men, his mind toward the children of men, his attitude toward the children of men, his will toward the children of men was salvation for everybody. That's the, that's the found, that's the fountainhead of the grace of God. That's where it originated from. Back in the heart of God. In the, in the counsel of God, in the foreknowledge of God. It was never manifested to the children of men before, but it was there. That verse in Timothy says, before the world began, God's purpose was grace toward us. So his purpose, his will is that all men would be saved. Are you fulfilling his will? Is God's purpose to save you in vain? Is his attitude of grace towards you being neglected or rejected? Is it in vain, or are you receiving it? So grace was his purpose. Now, because God had a purpose, he had to do more than that. So he devised a plan, and we read about that in First Peter. He devised a plan in First Peter chapter one. m Verse nineteen. first, latter part of verse eighteen, the first part of verse eighteen. For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold, verse nineteen. but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Now there's a plan here. Man needed to be redeemed. He needed to be bought back from the slave market of sin. He had been sold unto sin by Adam, and we were away from God to begin with, and man needed redemption. And we're told in this verse that Christians are redeemed by the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without spot and without blemish. That's the plan of God's salvation. Christ dying for my sin, he taking my place, dying my death. That was God's plan to be able to forgive me and be just in doing that. But notice in verse twenty when this plan was devised, who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifested in these last times for you. So verse twenty tells us that that plan that the people Peter was writing to knew all about, and that we know so well, that plan was devised before the foundation of the world was. So here is God's grace again, not only in his purpose to save mankind, but God had a plan to save mankind. He wanted to effect his purpose, so he devised a plan to save mankind. And he has a plan. He had a plan way back there before the world began. For by grace are you saved. Had God not had an attitude of grace toward the children of men, he would have never purposed salvation for any. Had he not had an attitude of grace toward the children of men, he'd have never planned salvation for anybody. Maybe it may have been an afterthought with him after Adam sinned, but it was no afterthought. God's purpose of salvation was before the foundation of the world. God's plan of salvation was before the foundation of the world. That's the source of God's grace. When Adam sinned, it didn't catch God off guard. God didn't have to hurry up like we do sometimes, some of you ladies do, when somebody comes on you in a hurry, uh, for supper, and you've got nothing ready, and you have to get the, uh, instant potatoes, you have to hurry up and get this and that and something else to get something before then. No, no, no, not at all. When Adam sinned, God was already, already had a plan. Didn't catch him off guard. When the Lord Jesus came into the world and died on Calvary's cross, it was no mistake. It was no mistake. I never did like that word in our hymn book. We have some lovely hymns in our Believer's Hymn book, so that word victim, I never did like that word. The Lord Jesus was not a victim. A victim is somebody that's caught in some unfortunate circumstances. He was no victim. He willingly put himself in those circumstances. He willingly fell into the hands of sinful man. By the predetermined counsel of God, he fell into the hand of cruel sinners. He was no victim. He was our substitute, but no victim. Sometimes people get killed in a car accident. We say they got jammed in a car, and the car, car caught on fire, and they burned to death. They were a victim of a tragedy, but the Lord Jesus was no victim. That was God's plan. He was only fulfilling the very plan for which he came to. The very purpose of God was affected in that plan. So God purposed it, the purpose of grace before the foundation, the plan of grace before the foundation of the world. Now, in Revelation chapter thirteen, we read here again about God's grace in verse eight. Now, to fulfill his plan, he made a provision. God not only purposed salvation, he not only planned salvation, but he provided salvation. Notice in verse eight of chapter thirteen of the book of Revelation: And all that dwelleth on the earth shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. When was he slain? From the foundation of the world. God viewed him as the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. It was at least four thousand years after before he actually took upon himself flesh and died on Calvary's cross for our sins. But beloved, God planned that, and he provided a savior before the foundation of the world. He knew that when the children of men came on the earth, he knew when the world was made and Adam would sin and the human race would sin, he knew his eye would roll to and fro across the earth to look for a man to stand in the gap, to look for a redeemer, and he could find none. Long before the foundation of the world, he provided one. He provided one. He saw Christ as the lamb of God's flame before the foundation of the world. For by grace are you saved. That's the source of God's grace. It's not an afterthought toward us. But it's the ver- it was in the very purpose of God to save sinners before they even sinned. It's the very plan of God to save sinners before they sin. He made the very provision to fill his plan before man even sinned. For by grace are you saved. Thank God he never made that for some and not the others.