The Message Pastor Ron Smith How Does The Holy Spirit Present The Gospel? Acts 16:25. Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

Transcription

1 The Message Pastor Ron Smith How Does The Holy Spirit Present The Gospel? Acts 16:25 Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

2 Another Jesus whom we have not preached (2 Cor 11:2) Beware of asking a different Jesus into the heart.

3 The first thing a little child should be taught: The Ten Commandments

4 False way # 1 I would get them to ask Jesus into their hearts and get them to think they were now saved. Such false comforts take many a soul to hell.

5 False gospel #2 Just tell them it s all about them and God wants them to be happy with a wonderful plan for their life.

6 False gospel #3 Tell them God loves them unconditionally.

7 False gospel #4 Just confess your sins to the priest, get forgiven, and continue in sin.

8 False way # 5 I went forward and accepted Christ. King s X. I m in. Now I can live like I want cuz I got my ticket.

9 The Holy Spirit s Method The first thing God did was to give us God s Law. That s what we should do, too.

10 The First Words Jesus Said: Repent.

11 The Function of The Holy Spirit convince the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8).

12 The Philippian Jailer God put His fear in him.

13 How Did Jesus Preach The Gospel? If you would enter life, keep the commandments. (Mat. 19:17)

14 Look How Jesus Answered Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? (Luke 10:25-28) What is written in the Law?

15 Jesus said. Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:20).

16 The Day Of Pentecost Signs & Wonders Peter quoted the Old Testament How Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament He used the law Peter said, Repent

17 How Did The Spirit Preach Through Paul? He used God s law to convince of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

18 He Has Fixed A Day

19 The Message Pastor Ron Smith How Does The Holy Spirit Present The Gospel? Acts 16:25 Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

20 How Does God Present The Gospel? Acts 16:25 He does it today just like He did in the Bible. The praises of Paul and Silas in prison caused an earthquake! The prison doors fell open and their chains fell off. This is how God wakes people up sometimes. Awakened sinners need to be reassured. So Paul said, Don t worry. We re all here. [30] Then he brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? [31] And they said, Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household. In order for this jailer to believe in the Lord Jesus, they had to go to his house and preach the word to him. He didn t even know who Jesus was yet. [33] and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. (Acts 16:25-34 ESV). 2 Paul said there were some who preached another Jesus whom we have not preached (2 Cor 11:2). A woman said, The Jesus I know would not kill all the men, women, and children in Jerusalem. My Jesus is a God of love. Well, that s another Jesus. So, to be saved, people have to believe in the right Jesus, the Jesus of Scripture, all Scripture, and not just parts of it. I have witnessed Sunday school teachers teach little children to ask Jesus into their heart. What does that mean to a little kid? Number one, it will make him think that little ritual saved him. It can harden him and make him immune to further instruction. It s different if he first understands and surrenders his heart on his own. 3 The first thing a little child or any man should be taught is the first thing God taught men: His Law. What is it that makes professing Christians to invent simple little formulas for salvation in place of God s method? 4 1

21 I was taught what I will call False way # 1. You show them 1. All have sinned. 2. The wages of sin is death. 3. And then get them to repeat after me asking Jesus into their hearts. The first month I led 30 of my high school mates in the sinners prayer. But I got discouraged when I saw no changed lives. A year later I asked asked Doug Stewart, Are you saved? He said, Sure. Don t you remember? You saved me last year. I picked up a hitch-hiker named Ron Goodwin and led him in the sinners prayer. The next day I was called to the principal s office where two detectives asked if I knew Ron Goodwin. I said, Yes. I led him to the Lord last night. They said, You drove the getaway car. He had just robbed a store. What I did was to make Ron Goodwin think it was okay to steal. All he had to do was ask Jesus into his heart. He had no fear of God and was not ready to do that. I should have said, Buddy, you better get right with God. You re gonna split hell wide open. 5 False gospel #2 is to just tell them it s all about them and God wants them to be happy with a wonderful plan for their life. The honest sinner will answer that by saying, Living in sin is what makes me happy. 6 False gospel #3 says, Tell them God loves them unconditionally. The honest sinner will say, If He loves me unconditionally, I guess I don t have to meet any conditions in order to be saved. Why do I need to change? 7 False gospel #4 says, Just confess your sins to the priest, get forgiven, and continue in sin. That is no different from asking Jesus into your heart. 8 2

22 False way # 5 says, I went forward and accepted Christ. King s X. I m in. Now I can live like I want cuz I got my ticket. Many a man has responded to the invitation in a crusade to receive a Jesus they did not know. The result was that they never got baptized, they never searched the Scripture to know Him, they never got involved in a church, they never learned to tithe, and they never got delivered from their sins. They received a different Jesus. All these false gospels have one thing in common: escape with a free ticket to heaven. 9 Contrast these made-up methods with The Holy Spirit s Method The first thing God did was to give us God s Law in the first 5 books of Scripture. So this is the first thing to be taught. The law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. The law can t save us, but it s the only way to bring us to the One who can save us. 10 The first words Jesus said by the Holy Spirit was, Repent. That means, Turn from sin. Sin is the transgression of God s law. 11 Jesus said The Function of The Holy Spirit is to convince the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). Those are the three things the Holy Spirit did by the mouth of Paul. When he preached to King Felix he reasoned about righteousness and self-control [sin] and the coming judgment (Acts 24:25 ESV). 12 The Holy Spirit reasoned with The Philippian Jailer by sending an earthquake preceded by Paul and Silas singing and praising God at midnight that they were counted worthy to suffer for Christ. That put the fear of God s judgment in him. 13 How Did Jesus Preach The Gospel? 3

23 Let s do it like He did. Let s look a some examples. Matthew 19:16-22 And behold, a man came up to him, saying, Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? [17] If you would enter life, keep the commandments. [20] The young man said to him, All these I have kept. What do I still lack? [21] Jesus said to him, If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me. [22] When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. I know of no example of God telling anyone to give everything to the poor except rich young men. Antony of the Desert, Columba, Benedict, and Francis of Asissi were all rich young men who did do this. How would you answer if someone asked you how to be saved? Would you say, Just bow your head and repeat this prayer after me? Or would you say what Jesus said? 14 Look How Jesus Answered Luke 10:25-28 A lawyer that asked Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? [26] He said to him, What is written in the Law? How do you read it? [27] And he answered, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself. [28] And he said to him, You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live. Wait a minute. That s salvation by works. Jesus knew works do not save. He used the law as a tutor to bring him to the next step: faith in Himself. It is stupid to tell people to receive Christ before they are 4

24 convinced of sin, righteousness, and judgment. It is impossible to believe in Christ without first being convinced that they need Him. 15 Jesus said. unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:20). How can that happen? Only by grace through faith. With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. First, let s tell them what Jesus told them first. 16 How Did The Spirit Preach The Gospel On The Day Of Pentecost? First, the Holy Spirit got their attention with the sign of speaking in the languages of all the nations gathered in Jerusalem. Second, by the mouth of Peter He quoted the Old Testament to show that this event was based on Scripture. Third, he explained how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament with miracles, crucifixion, and resurrection. Fourth, he used the law by saying, you crucified, the Christ. Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart [convinced], and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, what shall we do? Fifth, Peter said, Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) were baptized and joined the church that day. Compare that to what the modern methods: We re not asking you to join a church or be baptized. Just come and ask Jesus into your heart. WHERE IS THAT IN THE BIBLE??? 17 How Did The Spirit Preach Through Paul? In Athens he used God s law and said, God commands all people everywhere to repent, [31] because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he 5

25 has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead (Acts 17:30-31 ESV). This is the gospel. This is how the Holy Spirit preaches. It s not just individuals that must repent, but entire nations. God does not tolerate any law but His own. God commands all men everywhere to repent because 18 He Has Fixed A Day on which he will judge the world in righteousness. 6