This winter we are lingering on the topic of our salvation–learning about it, celebrating it. We began by talking about the human condition of sin–you can’t appreciate the cure until you know the disease. Our disease is sin, and it’s fatal. It has left us for dead. Last week we talked about the fact that our sinful rebellion has left us as spiritual orphans–cut off from our Father God.
But the good news is that we have a loving Father, God, who pursues us with a persistent, unending, love. He works to secure our adoption. In love, he chooses us before the creation of the world (Ephesians 1) and works to secure our adoption into his family. One way to understand the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is that he paid the price for our adoption. The Father loves you, Jesus has prepared a home for you, and he has paid the price. You basically have to show up.
That is the good news. That is the gospel (which means good news). Today, I want to begin by focusing on the fact that the . . . .
I. Gospel Unlimited
A. Jesus died for the sins of the world. Jesus' death is for the sins of the world- the whole world.
1. Scripture teaches this
a. 1 John 2:2 “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
b. John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
c. 1 Timothy 2:6 Jesus, “who gave himself as a ransom for all men-- the testimony given in its proper time.”
d. 1 Timothy 4:10 “we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.”
e. This is not to say that every single person in the world is automatically saved by Jesus, but "whoever believes in him" in the entire world (not just Jews, middle east, etc)
f. Everyone, anyone, who calls on the Lord will be saved.
2. Romans 10:12-13 “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile — the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."”
3. There is a Reformed document from the early 17th Century in Holland called The Canons of Dort. It isn’t my favorite creed because it is so dogmatic in a negative way. But it clearly teaches this: Article 3: The Infinite Value of Christ's Death:
a. "This death of God's Son is the only and entirely complete sacrifice and satisfaction for our sins; it is of infinite value and worth, more than sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world."
b. We need nothing more to atone for our sins
c. If we try to add to it we take away from the value of the sacrifice
B. The sacrifice of Jesus is enough. Actually what I want to put is that it is absolutely perfect! Completely Sufficient! More than enough. Unlimited in its ability to save.
1. No more sacrifices for sin are needed–Jesus did it all, he paid the price in full, for all of eternity, for all mankind.
2. The most precious sacrifice in the history of the universe was Jesus crucified for our sins AND for the sins of the world.
Given that reality, it isn’t surprising that Jesus’ disciples took this message into the world. They didn’t just hang out in Galilee. They went to Jerusalem, the capital, Judea, Samaria, and beyond. They never stopped. They’re still doing it today!
Which brings us to the story of two men, Peter and John, disciples of Christ in the first century in the city of Jerusalem, not long after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven.
Peter and John are in Jerusalem, going to the temple to tell people that the Messiah has come, inviting anyone who will listen to accept the gospel of Jesus.
As they are entering the temple they see a crippled beggar, who asks them for money. These guys are preachers, so they say, Acts 3:6-8 Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." 7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.”
For that act of kindness Peter and John were arrested, spent the night in jail, and in the morning were dragged before the religious authorities. Actually they were arrested for preaching Christ and the fact that he rose from the dead.
Acts 4:5-12
The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest's family. 7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: "By what power or what name did you do this?"
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 He is
"'the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the capstone.'
12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
The gospel message is unlimited. It is for the whole world. The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is enough to save all of humanity, but there is only
II. One Name under heaven that can save us.
Which means that . . .
A. Christianity is exclusive. There are some religions that teach that it doesn’t matter what you believe, as long as you believe something. Have faith. It doesn’t matter in what, it is just important to you as a person to have faith in something bigger than yourself.
1. That is not the Christian message. One Name, and only one name, is given for the salvation of mankind. There are not many roads that lead to heaven, but one way to the Father, through Jesus his son.
2. That isn’t popular today, it wasn’t for Peter or John in the first century either.
3. But this is the way it is. This is the revelation of God to mankind, this is God’s provision for salvation. I kind of what to say: “Take it or leave it.” But . . .
B. Christianity is also loving. I feel like I need to add this because sometimes Christians seem rude and condescending and rather snotty about Jesus being the Way. The gospel is love. Peter and John aren’t mean, aren’t belittling to other people who have rejected their religion. They offer salvation to anyone who will listen, even the very people in Jerusalem who crucified Jesus. When they say in Acts 4:10 “It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified,” they are literally talking the men who arranged for Jesus’ death, the religious leaders. They offer grace to them, in love.
1. When we start talking about Christianity being exclusive, we can start to sound like snobs. That’s wrong.
2. The gospel is for EVERYONE. Unlimited. Jesus died for the very people who put him on the cross!
3. Jesus didn’t get crucified because he claimed to be the only savior so much as he offered that salvation to everyone. It was his grace shown to sinners, tax-collectors, and prostitutes that led the religious people to despise Jesus. The radical power of the message of Jesus and his salvation is that it is unlimited.
4. And yet, it is limited. The gospel is limited in two ways:
a. The reality that there is only one name under heaven given by God for salvation. There is only one way. It is NOT enough just to have vague faith or a strong belief in something or someone who is not Jesus. God didn’t say–“just believe in anything, any old religious icon or prophet will do, regardless of what they teach or stand for. There is one name under heaven by which mankind is saved. That’s a limit. And secondly . . . .
b. Not everyone who hears believes.
c. Here is the response of the religious leaders to Peter and John that day.
Acts 4:18-20 “Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. 20 For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."” [Who are you going to obey– a bunch of religious guys or God?]
C. Why did so many people that day at the temple believe and so many others not believe? Today, why do some accept the gospel and others reject the reality of Jesus Christ? What limits the gospel? I think it’s important to talk about that for a moment. How you answer that affects how you view God, his sovereignty, and your salvation. The reasons are complex (the religious leaders didn’t want to give up their power and position to follow Jesus, like many today don’t want to hand over the keys of their life to Jesus–they want to be their own lord and master.) You can boil the answer down to two reasons: (maybe on a continuum of some kind)
1. People either have faith or they chose to not accept Jesus. They reject him. So Acts 3:16 “By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.”
a. So some Christians emphasize the faith response. It is as simple as: some hear and have faith, others hear the same message and don’t have faith.
b. What determines who is saved or not? The gospel is preached to a stadium of 50,000 people, 3,000 respond by faith and are saved. The answer: human choice. So it is a human choice, a human decision.
And second view of this limitation is that . . .
2. God’s sovereign choice. Some are chosen by God, and others are not. Matthew 22:14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.” Clearly the Bible talks about God choosing some for salvation. God’s people have always been referred to as the chosen people. In the Old Testament that was the Jewish people; now it is those adopted by Christ. Last week we talked about predestination–God working diligently to adopt us into his loving family.
3. What determines who is saved or not? The gospel is preached to a stadium of 50,000 people, 3,000 are called, by the inner working of the Holy Spirit, they respond by faith and are saved. The answer: God's plan, his sovereign choice.
4. There is a tension in the Bible that troubles us people with finite minds:
a. God is sovereign – absolutely in control!
b. In love he created us to be free.
c. In love he predestined us for adoption.
d. At some point in the process, we need to respond to his grace with our faith. (Next week’s focus!)
5. What helps me understand election, being called, chosen, is to simply look (not at the universe and all 6 billion people), but consider my own life. What I am saved?
a. Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
b. If I think that the reason I chose to believe in Jesus is because I have a stronger faith than unbelievers, or I am smarter or wiser, or spiritually smarter, then I harbor pride and arrogance grows in me, and I can easily write off those who are separated from God.
There is in this passage in Acts 3 and 4 an urgency to share the good news about Jesus because there is . . .
III. No Other Name
This is the way Jesus said it (he used a poetic image that people understood)
John 10:1-30
"I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. 3 The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."
6 Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them. 7 Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. 11 "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
Jesus uses this image of a loving, caring, tender shepherd to teach that
A. There is no love in the false shepherds.
1. There were in the first century MANY other names
2. There are today.
3. The are religions of rules and regulations and rites. Jesus came to offer a relationship with the living God, not just a bunch of cold, heartless rules to keep.
Even more direct, Jesus says that those false “gods”
B. They come to steal, kill, and destroy. Some false gods destroy less than others and steal less of our time, money, and dignity. But anything, even the wise Buddha, that keeps us from Jesus, the one who can save us from our sins, is a bad thing.
1. So when we were in India there was a holiday for a Hindu goddess of wisdom, of learning and education. (Ironic that schools were closed to honor the goddess of education.) Most Hindu homes and schools would have an idol of this goddess, and they would worship it somehow. The ladies all dressed up. Part of the ceremony is to take the idol and cast it into the Ganges River. So here is a truck full of them. Then a priest will throw it into the river. Here’s what’s left– a pile of garbage next to a polluted river.
2. I watched a nicely dressed (shirt and tie), young, middle class man show up in his little car. Get out, carry his idol down to the river, give it the priest, watch awkwardly as the man waded into the mud and threw it into the river. Then he left. A chore done. How does that steal and kill and destroy?
a. If your faith is in a paper-mache idol, your belief melts in the water.
b. If you think that such a ritual will help your child in school, it won’t. You are being lied to.
c. If that’s keeping you from relying on the living God, who cannot be made into an image or idol, who answers prayer and makes a difference in our lives, in our education, then it is bad.
3. Our culture is a culture of extreme tolerance, so tolerant that we don’t even want to define truth. We don’t want to call something like this ridiculous.
4. As Christians we have to join with the apostles in saying that there is NO OTHER NAME under heaven that can save a single soul–only the name of Jesus Christ!
C. Knowing the truth about the one, knowing that there are so many false gods in this world, what should we do? How should we respond? Peter and John are good role models–they couldn’t keep quiet about Jesus. They were unschooled, ordinary men, but the Holy Spirit gave them words to speak.
Challenge: Believe in the name of Jesus. “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Matthew 7:13-14
Share the name.
Peter and John were told to just shut up about Jesus. Their response? Acts 4:20
“For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
They realize that the gospel knows no bounds–it can save the worst sinner.
They understood the truth of 1 Timothy 2:3-6 “This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all men-- the testimony given in its proper time.”
There is only one God, one go-between, one savior, that is Christ Jesus. But God wants all people saved, Jesus gave himself to ransom all people!
We’ve talked about calling, election, predestination.
What if you believe that every person you talk to is chosen by God, and that your conversation or encounter will be used to bring them one step closer to Jesus.
Wouldn’t that make us a little quicker to imitate Peter and John and tell about the things we have seen and heard?
When I start to grasp the sovereignty of God in salvation, I thank God for his grace in MY life, for choosing me and saving me,
AND I realize that God is working in other people’s lives and he has invited me and you to be a small part of his master plan to redeem other people from their sin.
The world doesn’t need silver or gold. The greatest need in America is not a financial recovery. The greatest gift we can give anyone is to introduce them to the one name that can change their lives.
