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Plan of Salvation for Everyone. Plan of Salvation. Introduction. A. All have sinned, Rom. 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”; Rom. 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death” (separation from God). Plan of Salvation. B. God is just, He cannot overlook sin.
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Plan of Salvation • Introduction. • A. All have sinned, Rom. 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”; • Rom. 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death” (separation from God).
Plan of Salvation • B. God is just, He cannot overlook sin. • Many cannot or will not understand this. • 2 Thes. 1:6 “it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you.”
Plan of Salvation • C. But God loves us and does not want to punish the sinner. • 2 Pet. 3:9, “the Lord is … not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”
Plan of Salvation • D. God has clearly demonstrated His love for us. • Christ died for us. Not our “substitute,” but rather the sacrifice to expiate sins. • 1 Jn. 2:2, Christ is “the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” • Rom. 4:7, “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.”
Plan of Salvation • E. But this salvation is not universal. • It is not unconditional. There are requirements. • God PROVIDES salvation. • But man must ACCEPT it by obeying the gospel.
Plan of Salvation • I. Plan of salvation for sinners of world to obtain the forgiveness of past sins. • A. Hear the pure, genuine gospel. Rom. 10:17. • Matt. 13:3-8, 19-23. There are various kinds of hearers. • We should be hearers like examples in Acts: 3000 on Pentecost, the Ethiopian, Saul, Cornelius, Lydia, the Philippian jailer and the Corinthians.
Plan of Salvation • B. We must believe the pure gospel. • Everyone is a “believer,” but what kind of faith do they have? • Little, great, dead or OBEDIENT FAITH? • Jn. 12:42, “believed but… did not confess Him.” Afraid of family and “friends.” Friends?
Plan of Salvation • C. Repent, most difficult commandment in Bible. • Means CHANGE. Bad habits, speech, character. • Put Christ first. Matt. 6:33, the church, not family, work, “friends,” pleasure/ entertainment • Accept this commitment! God does not accept left-overs (the crumbs of our life!).
Plan of Salvation • D. Confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. • Matt. 10:32, 33, deny Him – we’ll be denied! • Son of God = same as God, equal to God (Jn. 5:18), eternal, omnipotent, omniscient, worshipped, forgave sins – had and displayed ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. • Acts 8:37, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Plan of Salvation • E. Be baptized. Mar. 16:16, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” • Salvation – B + B; Condemnation – not believe. • Acts 2:38 “repent … be baptized … for the forgiveness of your sins.” • Millions (even churches) reject this command.
Plan of Salvation • II. Plan of salvation for a member of the church that sins. A. Must not “practice” sin (1 Jn. 3:8). But we all “stumble” at times, 1 Jn. 1:8 First of all, must not be too proud to admit that we have sinned. Accept it, confess it.
Plan of Salvation • For example, not worship God (not sing, pray, study, partake of Lord’s Supper, contribution). • Members miss for many reasons: have company, travelling, working, or just plain indifference. • Heb. 10:25 does not say “not forsake attending unless you have company, travel, work or you’re mad at your wife/husband, etc..”
Plan of Salvation • Then after missing services sometimes members come back, lead singing, prayer, serve the table and teach/preach as if they had not missed. • It’s all the same, if we attend or if we don’t attend, -- we’re all “faithful” members. • Do we really think that this is acceptable to the Lord? We need to re-read a few texts.
Plan of Salvation • B. Acts 8:22, “repent… and pray to God.” • Should repent of sin just as we did before being baptized. • Sin is sin, before or after baptism.
Plan of Salvation • C. James 5:16, “confess your sins to one another and pray for one another.” • How? Make confession of sin as private or public as the sin. • The important thing is humble ourselves, repent, confess.
Plan of Salvation • III. Plan of Salvation: Restore. • Gal. 6:1, 2, one of the most neglected commandments in the Bible. • Ignored the way sectarians ignore Acts 2:38. • We don’t like to exhort them, might “upset” or offend them. • Is it better to just let them go to hell?
Plan of Salvation • 1 Thess. 5:14, “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all.” • This is a commandment (just as attend, worship, partake of Lord’s Supper, contribute are commandments).
Plan of Salvation • Christians get together, associate with each other, keep company with each other. • Not only here in the assembly but also “from house to house.” • They visit each other, know and care for each other. 1 Cor. 12:25, 26.
Plan of Salvation • Especially for the members “new creatures in Christ” (spiritual babies). • How do we treat babies? With much attention and affection. • Are they more important than the new spiritual babies? • It’s cruel to neglect them. Need much attention.
Plan of Salvation • We need to review the “one another” texts: • Receive one another, greet (speak to) one another. Many do not take this seriously. • Be affectionate, care for, serve, consider, admonish, encourage, bear with, forgive… • Especially the newer membersand visitors!
Plan of Salvation • Then if it’s necessary to “discipline” a member, this is precisely what is cut, terminated! • So that he will feel ashamed and return to the Lord and the church. • It hurts … he misses this love he had known.
Plan of Salvation • How do we justify our neglect of this command? • “But he doesn’t want to attend, he loves the world, his relatives, the pleasures of life. • “He loves it more out in the wild, with wild beasts, doesn’t love the flock. • “So just let him go.” What about Luke 15.
Plan of Salvation • Not simply call or visit. • Do everything possible to form strong ties with new members. • Are we really family? • What do we mean when we say “brother/sister”?
Plan of Salvation • DISCIPLINE begins with teaching and exhorting. • Heb. 3:13, “but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”
Plan of Salvation • IV. Plan of salvation: mark, withdraw. • 2 Thess. 3:6, “we command you … that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly.” Withdraw what? Ourselves. • 2 Thess. 3:14, “if anyone does not obey our word …note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed.”
Plan of Salvation • 1 Cor. 5:9, Discipline = “not to keep company” • But this does not prohibit eating with those of world (v. 10). Jesus did this. • V. 11, “But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner – not even to eat with such a person.”
Plan of Salvation • If we apply the “not eat,” must apply the “do not associate with him.” • Paul says, “have no company with… don’t even eat with.” • In other words, stop all social life with him so that he will be ashamed, humble himself. • 1 Cor. 5:5, “that his spirit may be saved.”
Plan of Salvation • Conclusion. • A. What does the Bible say to those who do not respect the plan of salvation? • 1 Pet. 4:17, “what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” • 2 Thess. 1:7, 8, the Lord will return “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not … obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Plan of Salvation • B. What does God say to the brother who has sinned and does not want to confess his sin? • Rom. 2:5, “because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself.”
Plan of Salvation • C. Today is the day of salvation. 2 Cor. 6:2. • Let’s take advantage of the opportunity to accept and obey God’s plan of salvation. • Remember, God does not want anyone to be lost. • He has done everything possible to prevent it. • But God can only PROVIDE salvation. It’s up to us to ACCEPT IT!
