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April 16, 2021 2:00 am
God has always planned on saving you; you were not an afterthought to Him. In the message "Our Bedrock Salvation," Skip shares about how you were chosen before time began and how your salvation was expected and planned for.
This teaching is from the series Rock Solid.
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When Paul wrote to Timothy, Timothy, God desires all men to be saved, but Scott's great desire is God's great hope is that people would come to salvation. We run the risk of losing our gratitude for salvation. The simplest most basic component of the Christian life. We run the danger of not realizing just how good we have it. Just what a great deal. We have been given the gift of salvation in Jesus is the greatest thing we can ever receive you rejoicing that every day day on connect with Skip Heitzig Skip shares just hopeful filling your new life in Jesus can be before we begin want to let you know about a resource that shows you how you can live in the peace of Jesus and free from your work. So how is your stress level on a scale of 1 to 10 stresses that the robber of peace and joy skip. I think with the planet observation. If you don't live with an anchor of faith given adrift in a sea of anxiety and most people in the world they don't have anything to anchor.
They have no real grand scheme or purpose, life to help you live with an anchor of faith so you can learn to lean into God in times of anxiety sending you three powerful resources. I think new booklet overcoming an anxious mind is teaching worship and the uncertainty on CD plus the rumors over worship stating this bundle is our thanks and you get $35 or more today to help expand the Bible teaching outreach of Skip Heitzig Jesus as Savior brings peace with God Jesus as Lord is calm now to request these three encouraging resources when 819 to 1888, or give online securely connectwithskip.com/offer will be in first Peter chapter 1 today stuck so much joy Skip in the book of Peter first Peter chapter 1 he gives them the all screw up their salvation. Saving a life is wonderful but saving an eternal soul is even more wonderful benefits that salvation that's on Peter's mind as he writes the next few verses of first Peter chapter 1 you see his audience has been suffering oppression and persecution in trials and if you know anything about suffering it causes your eyes to look downward.
You are way down you are looking not at the hopeful horizon. But the painful path and you need the encouragement to look up and get your thoughts refocusing to the right place, and essentially Peter does that in these verses. He has a theme a recurrent theme in this book. So far the word salvation appears three times. It's the focus it's the highlight of the book so far.
Look at verse five who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time verse nine receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your soul, and now in verse 10 of this salvation, the prophets have inquired and searched carefully salvation. There is not a more assuring more comforting word in all of language, the word salvation.
It appears 400 times in Scripture say saving salvation 400 times.
It is a broad scope of meaning it can mean anything from being saved physically from harm's way to being saved eternally from sin and death and hell and just as I that day in Jerusalem learned the fall scope of the story of how my son was a so Peter gives to them the scoop on their eternal salvation. You'll notice in verse 10 of this salvation, the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified beforehand the suffering of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed not to themselves but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who preach the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven things which angels desire to look into when Paul wrote to Timothy. He said Timothy God desires all men to be saved, but Scott's great desire is God's great hope is that people would come to salvation but we run the risk of losing our gratitude for salvation.
The simplest most basic component of the Christian life. And we run the danger of not realizing just how good we have it.
Just what a great deal.
We have been given when you said yes to Jesus Christ or should I say when God said yes to you that salvation I told you before that when I first came to Christ. I was watching Dr. Billy Graham on television and I turned it off after hearing the gospel and I went into my room and I immediately thought okay let me get this right you gave your son, your best. You gave all to this world. In exchange, you want me you want me to give you my life so you gave Jesus you want me to give you this broken life does not excuse me, but God you're getting a bum deal.
This is not great in terms of what you're getting out of this deal.
But then I immediately thought, but I get like a killer deal that I'd be stupid to pass this up and I think from time to time, we need to stop and realize what it means to be a saved man or a saved woman. What are salvation means to us what Peter tells them as not only do you have salvation.
We tell you how great it is cemetery a little bit more about you may not be realized. So like an insurance policy and most of us have insurance policies for life or for homework for automobiles. Most of us don't read the insurance policies of discovery discovered that he does know you have one you read the fine print until you have to make a claim and you want to find out if you can get reimbursed because you got additional money out. That is what happened is a covered in the insurance policy and then you find out all yes they cover everything except what you needed that point. Yes, we cover everything for your car except your drivetrain that fell out on the road to miles back we don't cover them. So Peter says not only do you have a great insurance policy.
This one comes from heaven. It's been going on a long time and it's so great that even the Angels are checking it out the marble out of the pond or so. That's how these verses divide up verse 10, 11 and 12 prophets predicted it. Preachers proclaim it. Angels ponder that's what were going to unpack today as we go through.
First of all prophets.
The prophets predicted verse 10 of this salvation, the prophets have inquired of the Old Testament prophets. By the way they've inquired and searched carefully.
Who prophesied or predicted of the grace that would come to you. Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. Who were the prophets, prophets were spokesman. They were spokesman for God look at him like field agents, field reps they represented God by giving a message from God to a group of people. It's like they came in they said and now a word from our Creator and they give a message something that God wanted people to hear and their messages centered on two things they proclaimed God's word and they predicted future events, they proclaim God's word, the predicted future events and all of that was anticipating salvation. Think of the prophets like archers, you know, the guys with the bows and the arrows in the prophets shot arrows of truth up into the air, but they didn't know exactly were those arrows would land. So Isaiah shot up his arrows and Daniel shot up a few arrows in Zechariah and Zephaniah. Daniel shot up some arrows think they pulled back on the prophetic bowsprit strings and out launch that prophetic missile of truth high into the sky till it disappeared into the sky over the horizon and they wonder where is it going where is it going to land.
Did you know that about 330 predictions were made about what Jesus Christ would do, who you would be where he would be born, but what happened to about 330 arrows were launched into the sky over 1600 year. And all of those arrows fell on one person, Jesus Christ is just a sampling. Trust me I wouldn't I wouldn't try to go to all 330 be a great study but it take us like 330 days to do so urges a sampling of some of the predictions they made. They predicted he would be born of a virgin, Isaiah 714, that he would be born in Bethlehem. Micah chapter 5 verse two that he would be born into the tribe of Judah. Genesis 4910 that his ministry would begin in Galilee. Isaiah chapter 9 verse one. They predicted he would work miracles. Isaiah 35 verse five and six that he would enter Jerusalem on a donkey. Zechariah 99 that he would be betrayed by a friend. Psalm 41 nine that he would be sold for 30 pieces of silver.
Zechariah 1112. They predicted he would be wounded and bruised.
Isaiah 53, five, but his hands and feet would be pierced. Psalm 2216. The predicted he would be crucified between two thieves. Isaiah 5312. They predicted that his garments would be torn and those around the cast lots for them. Psalm 2218. They further predicted his bones would not be broken. Psalm 3410 sigh would be pierced. Zechariah 1210 the predicted he would be buried in a rich man's tomb. Isaiah 53 verse nine then they predicted that he would rise from the dead. Psalm 16 verse 10 to 16 predictions, 16 arrows shot up to say nothing of all the glories that would follow the millennial glories that would follow. Isaiah the prophet Daniel the prophet Ezekiel, they all speak of the millennial kingdom.
The reign of Christ upon the earth to let me remind you of something.
This year our hearts, the sheer odds of any one person in history fulfilling 330 predictions.
It's crazy. The idea that all of those prophecies. All of those arrows would fall on one person. The odds against that are astronomical. I mean there's certain things humanly impossible to prearrange. You didn't arrange where you were to be born who your mother would be what tribe you would come from her town, he would be born in etc. I have a little book in my library.
I pull it out from time to time, called science speaks by Dr. Peter Stoner Peter Stoner was the young emeritus professor at Westmont College in science and applied mathematics and he did a book all about this.
Calculating the odds of one man in history fulfilling the predictions made about Christ that he indeed fulfilled. So, for example, he says in his book if you take eight just eight of the predictions I gave you 16 for one man in history to fulfill eight things foretold about him before he was born for him to actually see those things come to pass. The odds of that would be one in 10 to the 17th power to visualize that said Stoner. You could take the state of Texas and Philip 2 feet deep full of silver dollars. If you could do that you be a very rich person… Suppose you could do that you feel the state of Texas, 2 feet thick four silver dollars. You pre-Mark one you send a man and blindfolded. The odds of him selecting the one silver dollar your pre-mark is one intent of the 17th and Stoner even got more elaborate use of the odds of one man in history fulfilling 16 we just gave you 16 of the predictions made about Jesus Christ that he fulfill would be one in 10 to the 45th power again whenever you have numbers you gotta visualize because I get whatever that's a number so so this what would be like if you could get enough silver dollars to make up all so big that from the center of that ball to the circumference edge of that ball would be 30 times the distance the earth is presently from the sun, which is 93 million miles or 93 million miles times 30 is the distance from the center of your silver dollar ball to the edge. You pre-mark of silver dollars and somebody and that globe. The odds that he could find the silver dollars. One intent of the 45th power then Stoner went on to say what about Fortier predictions and I get so crazy that he has to use electrons not silver dollars wizards is no way you could do that is what I want you to know there are 25 books in the world thereabouts the claim to be Scripture all of them have one important ingredient absent from them. All of them except for one have something missing prophecy, predictive prophecy, the Koran doesn't have the Upanishads of the Hindus don't have it.
The writings of Confucius. They don't have it there absent from the Bible has predictive prophecy so the prophets made all of these crazy predictions. The problem is they didn't understand everything they wrote. In fact, I would even say they understood very little of what they wrote.
They shot the arrows out and they were looking like Zach in the land example in Isaiah chapter 6 God commissions Isaiah to go, proclaim to a nation, the desolation's that will come. Isaiah asked the question, how long, O Lord. The prophet Habakkuk says the same thing.
The predictions are made about Judah and Jerusalem all Lord, how long we study the prophet Daniel four months. Daniel didn't understand everything. Daniel seven says I was grieved in my spirit within my body because this vision troubled me, and he asked and asked the angel who was standing by and with these things meant so these prophets predicted these things and then they looked at what was written to try to figure out what it all meant. There were two basic things over trying to understand. Notice what it says, searching what verse 11 or what manner of time. The spirit of Christ, who was in them was indicating when he testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. Some translations say, searching, what person or what time. Basically those are the two things they wanted to know who my writing about. When will these things happen.
What's the timing and the circumstances around the coming of the Messiah. I mean imagine. Isaiah the prophet, writing what he wrote.
Okay so listen other sounds. Isaiah 714 you hold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, ego, what is that mean God and should out of the say don't worry about it, you would believe if I told so it was with Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Daniel and Micah and Zechariah and the rest of minutes. I 25 men all try to put together one of those 1000 piece jigsaw puzzles, you know where every one of them has a few of the pieces, but none of them have all the pieces and no one has the picture on the front cover of the box. Add to that, most of these guys didn't know each other and live hundreds of years apart. That's what being an Old Testament prophet was like David had a few of the pieces Moses had a few the pieces Isaiah had a few of the pieces. Daniel had a few the pieces Zechariah had a few of the pieces but no one prophet, have them all when all of those pieces were put together the picture on the front of the box was Jesus Christ. And so Jesus walks from Jerusalem toward Emmaus with two of his disciples and their bummed out because they don't know why Jesus died on the cross and then I think is a lie from the dead happens to be right next and in revealing himself to these two apostles. Jesus says these words all foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have written, ought not Christ to have suffered and enter into his glory and the Luke says beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he expounded to them in the Scripture, all things concerning himself.
On one occasion.
Jesus even said to his disciples, many prophets and righteous men desire to see what you see and did not see it and to hear what you hear and have not heard folks that's what we study all the Bible. If you ever wonder why you study the Old Testament we can understand the New Testament got a whole bunch of predictions made in the Old Testament you know whether God is. Arrows were shot up with the gamelan in the New Testament, but if you just read the New Testament as I could go to feel a bunch arrows and yes where these things come from that review Old Testament.
That's where they shot those things off that. So as one scholar put it so beautifully.
The new is in the old contained the oldies in the new explained that is the New Testament is in the Old Testament contained the Old Testament is in the New Testament explained, you need both to see who and when those arrows were shot of how they were fulfilled in Christ. Look at verse 12. To them, but as to those profits. He still speaking about.
It was revealed that not to themselves but to us they were ministering the thing which is now been reported to you at some point those profits began to understand what they were writing about was going to be fulfilled at a distant time far into the future.
One can happen in their time. Some things they predicted it, but much of it was going to happen beyond their time and Peter is saying to his audience. You're the audience you're it your the recipients. I can decide a couple of examples, Moses in Deuteronomy 18, may one of the earliest predictions of the Messiah and he put it this way, the Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like him to me from among your brethren him, you shall listen to in the book of Daniel, which we studied at length in Daniel 1014 the angel said to Daniel, I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days for the vision refers to many days yet to come.
Daniel 12 verse four but you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book until the time of the end. I find this extremely encouraging. I find it encouraging that my salvation was never an afterthought. I was never an afterthought. It was all planned in the mind of God, who gave a message sent from heaven given to and through prophets fulfilled in Christ, proclaimed by the apostles and received by you and I because life happens sometimes like happened so suddenly takes us off guard so surprising what Peter saying is this whole salvation enterprise was not surprising to God is all part of his eternal plan in your part of his eternal plan to sometimes things happen with a minute so random.
What happened redemption is a random dull part of God's great plan.
The prophets predicted second thing I want you to notice. Preachers proclaim and oh by the way little piece of trivia.
This is the only Scripture were prophets, preachers and angels are talked about in the same section Bible is a lot to say about all three of them, but is the only place where all of her put together. The prophets predicted it but notice preachers proclaim at verse 12. To them it was revealed that not to themselves but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Prophets predicted it, but they did not originated.
It came from heaven to the prophets through the prophets and it was picked up by preachers who preach should anyone who would listen as he referred to those who preach to you for primarily the apostles in that day and age was Peter and that was Paul. It was John and James and the rest of going out and sharing the gospel. It was the earliest apostles who preach the gospel to people.
In fact, Peter the author of this book was the first preacher in the early church day of Pentecost to shut up and preach thousands of people got saved, came in the salvation sometime later Peter and John were going into the temple there was a man who was lame from birth was picked up healed. Peter preached a message and he said in that message, nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved for what began with the prophets and was passed on to Peter and the apostles was preach anybody who would listen.
Now fast forward 2000 years, Albuquerque, New Mexico 930 service Calvary Albuquerque here you are the reason you are here is because of the faithfulness of those who picked up that message and preached it and others certainly appreciate another started and you and you and you and you and you and you and you are all commission to take up that banner and to preach the gospel to this generation. Enter the next generation Skip message from the series walks to Skip to share.
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