Our help is in the Name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.
Beloved, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and the Lord
Jesus Christ, through the mighty working of God the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Psalm of praise: 9:1, 7
Prayer
Psalm 32:1, 3
Scripture reading: John 3
Scripture text: Catechism
Sunday 7; John 3:16
“For God so loved
the world, that He gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish but have eternal life.”
We often hear the quote from John 3:16.
- This verse is usually quoted out of context: The second part of
the text that distinguishes between believers and non-believers is
mostly skipped over or its consequences are not acknowledged.
- We only hear that God loved the world so much that He gave his
only Son.
- But then we do not also hear that He did not die for everyone but
only for those who believe in Him.
This verse so clearly explains that the Lord himself distinguishes
between people, because He did not let his Son die unconditionally for
all people.
We can also look at this from another angle:
- In his endless love He gave his only Son to mankind.
- But through the work of sin and in terms of predestination, there
are people who do not have a need for a Messiah.
- They reject Jesus and, as a result, are doomed.
That is why the Lord also sent his Holy Spirit to us after
Christ’s ascension.
- Through the working of the Holy Spirit ,faith is strengthened in
people’s hearts.
- Faith actually means acceptance of Christ and his beneficial
deeds.
Without Christ no salvation is possible and therefore our faith should
lead us to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Romans 1: 17:
“The
righteous shall live by faith.”
The whole issue of salvation is repeatedly confirmed by scripture, as.
in 2 Corinthians 5:18-19.
All
this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave
us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was
reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against
them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. (2
Corinthians 5:18-19 ESV)
- God reconciled us to Him and gave us the ministry of
reconciliation.
- The Holy Spirit of the Lord establishes this in us.
- Faith proves it.
- When we pray, through faith, this salvation is granted to us.
This sermon can be divided into three sections:
1. We refute the teaching of general
reconciliation.
2. We look at the Means of
reconciliation.
3. We profess the gospel of
reconciliation.
1. Firstly, the matter of general
reconciliation.
General reconciliation means that all people will go to heaven.
This doctrine teaches that all people are redeemed in Christ like all
people were doomed in Adam. We learn, however, that the Bible teaches us
differently.
- We learn that Christ died for believers only.
- The doctrine of general reconciliation also teaches that if
people go to hell it is because they consciously, out of their own free
will, rejected the Lord.
- And, similarly, they will go to heaven because they themselves
chose to believe.
In terms of the doctrine of general reconciliation, salvation entirely
rests with man’s own volition: God offers salvation and anybody can now
decide whether to accept it or not.
We, however, say that the Bible teaches another doctrine.
- It is true that God gave his Son.
- But He gave Him only for the sake of the elect.
- With the elect, salvation is also not a voluntary matter at all.
- God ordained by his counsel that they would accept the salvation.
- Nothing can change God’s will.
That is why the elect receive true faith in their hearts, because God
sends his Holy Spirit to bring it about.
Now it happens that certain religions say our teaching is offensive as
it rejects some people.
- This is true. It does offend people, but it does not offend any
true believers.
- It only offends people who want to live a profligate life and who
want to change the teachings of God to suit themselves.
These people also say that this teaching is merciless. With this
teaching we would then make the religion cruel and unfair.
That is why we once more have to verify our teaching against the Bible
today to see whether we are right!
Does the Bible teach general reconciliation or does the Bible refute it?
- Matthew 7:13, 14distinctly divides people into two groups – two
disproportionate groups. The one group is much bigger than the
other.
“Enter
by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads
to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is
narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it
are few.
Here the Lord himself speaks of many in contrast to few.
Or John 3:36, where it says that there are people who do not obey the
Son and that the wrath of God remains on them and they will not see
life!
- This passage says that there are people who will certainly go to
hell. God’s wrath remains on them.
The doctrine of general reconciliation is so far being refuted.
Romans 9: 11
- also teaches that the Lord accepts according to who He wills and
He rejects who He wills, even long before they were born.
- The fact that the Lord declares that He rejects people or loves
them even before they were born, shows that:
- it has nothing to do with the works these people do during
their lives,
- but it has to do with what God decided.
In the Bible’s own words:
. . .
in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of
works but because of his call . . .
Soul-searching in this matter is important. The truths in the Bible
must always have a bearing on us.
- Therefore we must test ourselves against these truths
- No person can live without establishing what God’s purpose is for
his life!
Is your life proof of you being an elect?
- God gave you His grace,
- and you are a partaker of the covenant, because God himself
inducted you into his covenant.
- Test:
- Do you live so carelessly that it proves that you do not
believe these truths?
- Or: do you accept God’s grace as you should?
This teaching of grace should do something to me:
- It should make me kneel down and thank and praise God for what He
has granted me without me having deserved it.
- And it should also make me plead with God to help me continue
living a good and righteous life, and to avoid evil, so that I do not
betray myself with vain hope.
The doctrine of general reconciliation is therefore unacceptable,
because it will strain the truth of the Word of God as well as the
redemption in Christ.
- Because Christ did not die for all people indiscriminately, the
Bible says that for some people Christ is folly, and for others He is a
rock over which they stumble.
Christ himself said He had come to create strife.
- He separates the world and the church into two groups: believers
and non- believers.
- If he had died for all indiscriminately then this separation
would have lapsed!
- With that He would have proved himself as powerless:
- It would have proved that Christ is not God, because his
reconciliation cannot redeem all people!
- After all, we know from the Bible that there are people who
will be in hell with Satan.
Important to know is that we inherit sins, but we receive God’s grace
according to the goodwill of God.
2. Secondly, the Means of
reconciliation
The means by which we share in the Lord Jesus’ reconciliation is faith.
Consider again the words of Paul:
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . (Romans 5:1)
In the Bible we find a full description of the various potential
appearances of faith.
Look at the comparison drawn by the parable of the sower in Matthew 13.
- Seed fell along the path – people who do not believe at all . . .
- on rocky places – those who hear the word and receives it with
joy, but it lasts only a short time . . .
- among thorns – people who struggle with faith but never come to
its full realisation because they live with wrong values . . .
- and on good soil – people who have true faith.
Temporary faith and disbelief are both forms of false faith.
The Lord describes it clearly so that we can see ourselves and judge
where we fit in.
- Only true faith can let us hold onto Christ.
- Only true faith can let us hold onto the Lord Jesus Christ, and
onto the Word of God.
- It lets us rely on the grace of God, and gives us the desire to
really obey God.
Your true faith is therefore proof that you have eternal life.
Our true faith is therefore proof of us being among those who accept
the redemptive work of Christ with a faithful heart.
True faith is twofold:
- It is an unfailing knowledge that the Lord Jesus saved me.
- It is a sure trust that this Redeemer also gave his Holy Spirit
to me to ensure me of this salvation.
3. Thirdly, we profess the
gospel of reconciliation.
If our faith does not accept the Bible in its entirety, it is false.
True faith does not accept only certain aspects of the Bible while
refuting or keeping silent about others.
The entire issue of salvation is ridiculous to non-believers.
- They want to know how Christ could possibly be God.
- How God could also be a human being.
- Why a human being had to die to redeem other humans.
Our reply: only true faith makes us believe all this.
- The Holy Spirit of God reveals it to us.
- 2 Peter 1:17 says that Christ received his honour and glory from
God when God the Holy Spirit descended on Him and the Father said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am
well pleased.”
The Holy Spirit not only effects this faith, He also confirms the
entire content of the gospel to us from the beginning to the end of the
Word of God.
- The content of this faith is that the sanctity and power of the
Holy Trinity is revealed to us in the death of Christ for the
elect.
- Therefore we can freely profess that a Christian needs to believe
everything promised to him in the holy gospel.
Put into practice:
- Never think God owes us anything.
- We cannot change God’s plans.
- We cannot force God to redeem us.
- We are very weak and also defiled with sin before God.
What we receive from God is grace.
Therefore we should be so grateful and responsible when the Holy Spirit
proclaims this salvation to us, and we must accept it faithfully.
Let us read together Catechism Sunday 7.
Amen
Closing prayer:
Closing hymn: Psalm 25:7
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the
fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen
Dr MJ du Plessis
Gereformeerde Kerk Bellville
Date: 10 August 2003 (evening)