From Valley to Victory (Part 6)

Stories told about a beautiful Monastery that is perched atop of a mountain or a cliff in the beautiful country of Portugal visitors who made it up to that Monastery area that retreat they are rewarded with a magnificent view of the Portuguese countryside is only one problem. The only way to reach that Monastery is to be hoisted by an Asian monk up the cliff in a wicker basket type total. One day an American visitor, American tourists decided to go up there and he wanted to see if he showed up with his guide. They got up okay being pulled by this very aged gray-headed monk of this rope in the wicker basket but as they were leaving that same gray-headed old monk was lowering them down and the basket began to swing widely to the right and to the left and there is the Rocky basin below the courageous American tourists now nervous wreck with a wide swing looked at his guide and he asked him how often do they replace the rope and the stonefaced God said to him every time it breaks now I want to do. Just visualize this with me. I want you to put yourself in the place of this tourists and imagine him sitting there in that wicker basket with the old man up there and is going swinging from left to right. Think of how he felt as this basket was swinging. Think of what he was thinking how he felt at that very moment, a moment of terror in the moment of fear wouldn't break before we get down will I make it to the bottom, replacing the rope with a new one. After off all is not going to be any good to me, the beloved, listen to me. I want to tell you that this is precisely the way so many Christian believers live the Christian life. There are many Christian believers who live the Christian life. Like the story sitting in the wicker basket. They know they are saved, but they're not sure of their eternal future. There are some who thinks that there are saved today, but will they be safe tomorrow. There are others who are certain of their salvation. But they're fearful. What would happen to them when they close their eyes, and death like this tourists that visitor into the Monastery. They are sitting in the wicker basket of life wondering if the rope will break before they make it to their destination.

They live in a state of spiritual term. I've met them and you have to why because we so used to hearing about products that are guaranteed for life, only that the manufacturer goes out of business interiors, which are used to seeing guaranteed product. When you read the fine print says the one thing about the guarantee is a cannot be guaranteed and that is why Romans 512 11 will bless your socks. Now if this passage does not ring your bell, your clap is broken. If that does not set you on fire for Jesus.

Your word is wet. He is telling us here that salvation in Christ comes with eternal guarantees eternal guarantees not temporary guarantees, but eternal guarantees in a moment I'm gonna show you from the word of God.

There are six guarantees that salvation. Salvation come with but let me first remind you of the last message Paul is saying that we can only brag about the grace of God because it is only by grace that we return that is saved not by works, lest any of us can boast. We saw also that salvation. Salvation is a gift from God. God gives it to us as a gift. We saw also that the faith that helps us to believe is a gift from God so that God does it all from beginning to end in here in chapter 5 verses 1 to 11 Paul is anticipating the readers questions. If faith is by grace.

If faith is a gift from God, then how are we going to maintain this faith, how to maintain the salvation of how can we continue this salvation and the rest of our lives and then for eternity. How are we gonna experience that salvation all the way to the end. Great question very important question.

Can you see if salvation is a gift from God. Does that mean that we can lab any which way we want to live out the rest saved. There are some people think that once you saved you can live like the devil. There are some people who actually say it doesn't matter once you got salvation you can live any which way you want to. And the answer is not unlimited and knows the person who thinks that because they save they can live any which way they live.

They're not saved. They think that salvation is like an insurance policy.

How many times have you heard that that there's a salvation is like an insurance policy.

They don't get the policy but they pay the whole premium upfront so that way they can live recklessly the only people happy for you to live recklessly after you buy the insurance policy are your beneficiaries not to wonder you and good. So in Romans chapter 5 verses 1 to 11 Paul gives us the answer and he tells us that the gift of salvation comes with sixfold eternal guarantees. The first guarantee is in verse one. It is peace with God.

The second guarantee is in the first half of verse two chapter 5. It is having a favor with God. The first guarantee is found in the second half of verse two and it is having hope in God forcefully you guaranteed that you have a purpose in your suffering for Christ. Verses three and four number five. The guarantee of Christ's over whelming love versus 5 to 10.

The six guarantee is overwhelming joy. Verse 11. The first guarantee is off of our salvation is that we would have peace with God. Look at verse one. Therefore, the rule about the word therefore if it is, therefore, you find out what is, therefore, therefore, because salvation is a gift from God. Therefore, since we are justified by faith we have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ this piece that he talks about here is in the present tense. Why is it in the present tense because it means that peace you have with God not dependent on your feelings but is in fact this peace with God is not down the road sometime not.

It is now. Whatever the now is this peace with God is not pie-in-the-sky in the buyer by, but it is a reality. This peace with God is not on occasions when you feel peaceful Navajo, but always you have to look around them and they just listen to the news for a few minutes and you realize there is a desperation for peace in our world to back that are people desperate for peace of mind that peace in the home peace and politics in society and even internationally. Yet the real peace of God can only come from surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Every human being without exception every human being without exception, is born in a state of enmity with God regardless of how they feel they are born with a state of enmity with God idea that you did some time ago a friend of mine was saying in a Michael 11 enmity with God, I'm neutral about God is another factor. I don't find God is the answer. Listen carefully. Just as those who have been justified by God, have peace of God and peace with God regardless of how they feel those who are not in Christ Jesus uttered enmity with God regardless of how they feel toward God. Some of you probably are thinking of sending Michael Michael but I have friends and relatives. I have neighbors I know people in my family they really don't feel it enmity with God. They really don't hate God.

In fact, there are ambiguous about God. Beloved, there is no such thing as neutrality toward God. Even though you are a member of the kingdom of God. We are a member of the kingdom of Satan. You either belong to the kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of hell. You're either for God or against him him or not.

There is no dual citizenship when it comes between heaven and hell. Jesus and Satan.

The most instant and immediate guarantee that God gives you when he gives you salvation is his overwhelming peace peace with him. Peace within, and that pleased him as well. Gonna tell you that peace is permanent.

That peace is revocable, that peace is guaranteed by Christ himself say more about this in a minute but I know the hundreds and thousands of you will testify to this fact that you have experienced the peace of God, even in your darkest hour. I know I can first guarantee is what peace with God. Second guarantee is a favor with God.

I hear there was a father. Those are God give us favor with God, give us five you already have God's favor. This verse first half of verse two, through whom also we have obtained access by faith into his grace into his favor in which we stand.

We saw in the last message that that grace, that favor that unmerited and undeserved and unsolicited favor is unconditional.

This graceless favor of God is not just merely a proclamation or an announcement number not listen to me.

It is an atmosphere in which we enter this favor is a privileged posture in which we stand for the rest of our lives and for alternative. It is a privileged position to be in now and forever. Once you enter into that atmosphere of grace. Once you enter into that atmosphere of the favor with God. You stay there until either Jesus comes back, or you're gonna see him face-to-face a member volunteer.

Don't forget problem to tell you, you do not go in and out of that atmosphere favor you do not fall in and out of grace. You do not get in and out of favor with God. You know politicians get in and out of favor with the electorate. Yes, but not the grace of God, the nature of the grace of God is that when you enter it yesterday and it all of your earthly life ago to go home to glory.

Please understand this is very important. You do not stallion that atmosphere of grace.

But how hard you good acute spiritual teeth. You do not stallion that atmosphere favor with God.

But how high can you pull your spiritual bootstraps Navajo nothing on it is because God himself guarantee it. Therefore, God himself sustains you, God himself holds you, God himself strengthens you. God himself convicts you when you sin. God himself will gives you when you confess and repent. God himself restores you every time you confess and repent peers in indisputable fact, when the supreme judge of the universe declares you in favor there is no higher court docket overturned that decision.

There is no higher judge that can overturn that verdict. There is no higher thought of it that's going over ruled that acquittal the very purpose of God's grace and favor is to free you from sin not for you to sin, listen to me.

The person who said hooray now that I'm saved I can send freely, that person was never saved. Romans six, eight, Paul says, having been freed from sin. We have become slaves to righteousness. The believer who is constantly doubting his or her eternal salvation. They doing two things. They are giving the devil the chance to drag you back to sin and the doing something else. There are questioning the power of God.

They questioning the integrity of God first guarantee is what peace with God. Second guarantee is what favor with God. In the first guarantee is hope in God, look at the second half of verse two, Romans five and we rejoice in the hall of the glory of God. Let me explain this. This is where whole pyramids! When you make an appointment in the gonna see somebody you hope that that person will be there when you go there right if you are organizing, and outdoor activities you hope that it doesn't rain.

If you having a surgical procedure you hope it will be successful right but that kind of hope has nothing to do with the word hope here in Romans chapter 5 verse two. The word hope here means a short knowledge. It means I definitely assurance it means an absolute certainty. My whole or absolute certainty is based upon trust in God and his words and his promises. This absolute assurance is certainty.

This is guaranteed by the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ himself. That assurance makes me live in a state of rejoicing. It makes me live in a state of jubilation even when my whole world was falling apart. Even when darkness around me, even my circumstances are not all that congenial. Paul writes in Ephesians chapter 1 verse 1314 tells us why. The reason you have that absolute assurance is because Paul said in Ephesians 113 of 14. Every believer is sealed by the Holy Spirit and nobody can break that seal first guarantee is what peace with God. Second, guarantee favor with God first guarantee hope in God's laws guarantee is there a purpose and suffering. If you look with Ms. verse three and four. We also rejoice in sufferings, because we know that suffering produces its own perseverance produces character, and character produces hope, only to give you an explanation about the word sufferings here because this is not talking about the suffering of the aches and pains that we all experience in life. Okay, that is not talking about fear and anxiety, and suffering that way that many of us go through certain periods of time. This is not the pain of disappointment that will face from time to time, but the word suffering here is referring to suffering for the sake of Christ. And yes, it does not refer to suffering that comes as a consequence of our foolish decisions I've experienced a lot of suffering that come as a result of forest decisions that are made. That's not the suffering is talking about this type of suffering is the suffering that experienced by students.

Whether your high school student with a college student. This is the kind of suffering that comes when you take a stand for Christ in your school and your college and then you get marked the second suffering is talking about when you take a stand for Christ and you pay a price for this copper suffering result from obedience to God and knowing that you are doing the will of God in your life in there to self. This type of suffering comes directly from living righteous, holy and pure life before God. In Romans five, three and four. Paul said this particular type of suffering produces perseverance and perseverance produces character some time ago I read about John Wesley, John Wesley suffered so much for the sake of Christ that become second nature to him that he really worried if he didn't suffer for Christ and this happened one day he was walking alongside the road and he was thinking this is my goodness it's been three days since no one has thrown in a regular tomato or stone, which he was used to run a regular basis.

Three days nothing happened.

Nobody is persecuting me nobody so anything at me so he goes immediately on his knees right there in the countryside while he was walking as your Lord is a sin in my life, and while not suffering for you.

I did not examine himself as he prayed he was praying a peasant can buy and recognizing and source donated administered by Mensch.

He immediately leapt to his feet and began to praise God that he is okay with God. Now that is being persecuted again that you and I would say offering God for those three days break right, but not Wesley. He thanked God that he is paying the price for his stand for Jesus Christ suffering teaches us perseverance. Perseverance produces character, and character, hope.

One of the things that really grieves me is what I read about this generation.

Now of course are exceptions are exceptions in this church that I know personally but what I read about this generation is what they want everything basically handed to them on a platter. They don't want to suffer. They don't want to pay any price they wanted all now. I guess the notable exceptions. As I said in this place on those specifically but on talking in generalities. It grieves me.

I fear that this generation that has not learned perseverance in suffering for the sake of Christ literally will crumble when the crunch comes, which seems to becoming faster than any of us would want. For some reason known only to God, he chose to make me experience the situation of being a stranger in a strange country several times in my life I was building a 19 years old, I found myself all alone in a country of Lebanon are literally of the time you no one then wasn't long after that, barely 20 years old. I was a stranger in this big country of Australia knowing literally no one all alone and you know I thought escaping from the Middle East and the persecution and I'm in a Western country known Australia and I could witness freely from my faith.

So I began to witness to my work colleagues at her job. On the third day of arriving to the country. Wonderful job. Love everybody there shower sharing Christ with another man. They will really be recipients no way a man of all experience, rejection, marketing and jeers because our enjoy with them at the lunch hour at the pub in the reverie and I see them going back out to lunch is not going to look like that coming back to work.

One of the Merced with Michael. He shouldn't have lunch because beer is a liquid bread. As of right exactly called me names.

I never knew what they meant and I couldn't even find them in the dictionary. I thought maybe is an English word that I don't know Saigon look in the dictionary I move on but beginning those days, and even before that, I began to learn perseverance and paying a price for my walk with Christ. Then in 1977.

My wife and two small children landed in that big country called California knowing clearly, definitively, without a shadow of doubt in our minds. In my minds at least that on following the will of God.

We prayed and we prayed we know that we are coming here and yet the hardships we experienced was not expected scholarship that was promised evaporated. As soon as we landed I helped with part-time jobs and started yet. Many times we did not know where our next meal coming from God was teaching us perseverance even though we were at the very will of God.

Even though we did what we did in obedience to God. God was teaching us perseverance.

In fact, we were what I call in God's scholarship program I've ever been in God's scholarship program.

If you ever been there, you will know what I'm talking about her, his scholarship program is filled with lessons and perseverance.

In fact, add to this dilemma. My dilemma is that my mother bringing us up particular I remember her clearly hammering in my ears and in my heart in my head again and again and again, don't let your needs be known to man only lit your needs be known to God. Consequently, I learned through the years that made my needs known only to my heavenly daddy but also my heavenly daddy want to teach me perseverance before he could meet my needs are blessed God every single day, several times a day.

The word perseverance here comes from the word that is used, to refine metal particular gold. You know when heat particular high degree of heat applied to gold the drops and the gold rises to the top and then metalworker would scrape it and therefore you end up with pure gold. And here Paul is saying that if we are going to rain on rule the universe for Jesus Christ.

He will purify us and make us become struggling though Mrs. God does not effectively use people who have never learned perseverance. You notice I said effectively effectively. God does not effectively use people who have never been broken. God does not effectively use people who have never learned to lean on him alone. Look at the people who have effectively serve God and honor God in the Scripture as we see them if you ask Ebrahim. He will tell you about the crushing experience on Mount Moriah. If you us Jacob. He will tell you about the pillow stone in which you slept is Knights of yours, Joseph. He will tell you about the Egyptian dungeon if you asked Moses they will tell you about the wilderness and dealing with Pharaoh.

If you asked David.

He will tell you about being hunted down by soul.

If you are Job. He will tell you about the song in the night when there was nothing to sing about but that should not surprise us for it's only the crushed roles that gives off its sweetest fragrance is only the pain of childbirth, that the joy of motherhood is experienced.

It's only the crushing of the wheat that makes bread with only the grain of sand that wounds the body of the oyster that yet five of that irritation comes a beautiful pearl suffering for Christ produces perseverance. Perseverance produces character, and my beloved friends character, be learned from a book 1st guarantee peace with God. Second, got into favor with God. Third guarantee hope in God's fourth guarantee purpose and suffer the first guarantee is God's overwhelming love look with me please versus five all the way to 10. You know what I have grown to discover that the greatest problems with humanity's inability to comprehend, to comprehend the love of God.

I don't care how long you live going to find the best that is the case. People just can't comprehend it sometime. The back on it some just accepted but it's impossible to comprehend it. And part of the reason is because people love those who love them so they think of only love God, God will love them. Others people think that the love of God is dependent on us of how much we love him or how much we do for him. But, beloved, if this is the case, listen to me, then our salvation is dependent on our treacherous hearts and is not thanks be to God, it ain't so, Paul tells us that God's love for us is not dependent on our loving this when we were utterly helpless to bring ourselves to God he loved us when we're ugly, unworthy of his love. He loved us when we were totally powerless to escape from sin and death. He loved us when we were totally powerless to resist Satan loved us when we were totally powerless to please God. God loved us and he sent his son to God. Our death listen carefully to verse nine and 10. Here's what he say if God had the power and the will to redeem us from the first place. How much more does he have the power and the will to keep us redeem if he loved us when we were enemies. How much more does he love us when were his children.

If the dying Savior reconciled us to God.

Surely the loving Savior would keep us reconciled to God. If God had already secured our salvation and rescued us from sin and death.

How on getting out continuously Savior sort of salvation can never be in jeopardy. The first guarantee peace with God. The second guarantee favor with God. The third guarantee hope in God, the fourth guarantee purpose and suffering. The fifth guarantee overwhelming love.

Finally the six guarantees and overwhelming joy. Look at verse 11. The last message. Again, we saw how the religionists those religious people who bragging about their good works.

And Paul said you can't do your you bragging about the wrong thing you bragging the wrong way and Paul showed us in the last message how to brag the right way to brag about Jesus and his cross and his salvation. And here he is telling us our gratitude to God for all he has done for us should give us such joy in life that nothing can take the joy away from you. Every time every time you're tempted to allow circumstances to get you down every time you allow your circumstances to cause you a loss of joy.

You must deliberately and intentionally focus on your peace with God. Your favor with God. The hope in God's purpose in your suffering is overwhelming love and his joy is going to bore you every time will blow your so let me ask you, as I conclude, are you experiencing some crushing circumstances.

Only you know you and God know are you grieving so deeply over the loss of a loved one are you experiencing emotional pain that nobody seems to understand.

Have you been rejected by the near and dear. Have you been maligned for doing good are you experiencing in gratitude from those who should be filled with gratitude are you experiencing confusion, discouragement of any kind not of which stand when you compare it to the joy of your eternal salvation allow nothing and no one to steal your joy say that with me, allow nothing and no one to steal your joy.

God brings give God praise God, pray.

Thanks for listening to this message from Dr. Michael.

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