Rescued From Despair Part 2

It's a command like Martin Luther to free the church from darkness, salvation by reading the Romans used his newfound faith to change churches course toward an understanding of salvation. He rediscovered the meaning of grace.

Justification and faith.

The Moody Church this morning to serve as clear teaching helps get across the finish line after Luther Luther made many enemies with his spiritual insight. One day you're absolutely right, and as you know, Luther was a very complicated personality. He himself often times lit fires, figuratively speaking, the one time very literally that we can talk about, but he sometimes got into controversies said very extreme things and so yes, he attracted a lot of enemies, but the reason that we need to understand them is because he came to the conclusion that justification was by faith alone, and this was his deliverance. You know, this series of messages is entitled rescued what God did to save us, and I'm so glad to be able to tell you that we have a new study guide that goes with these 12 sermons because what I want you to do is to dig into the depths of the book of Romans and see its transforming power. So at the end of this broadcast.

I'll be giving you this information again but for now, if you wish to go to our website go to RTW offer.com that's RTW offer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337. Now let us take the time to go to the pulpit of Moody church and let us understand better the gospel of Jesus Christ, our most precious possession and the Bible says that God covers our sin so we can cover one center said just as much as another head. What this really means that you heard me say it a number of times but you'll probably hear me say after a number of times in the future is that the real issue is not the greatness of arson.

God actually can say big centers, criminals, if you please. If they transfer their trust in Jesus Christ because no matter how great our sin is on the merits of God in Jesus Christ are above that sin. So listen to me carefully. Nobody listening to me today can say to me pastor Luther I send too much for God to forgive me. I'd say believe his promises and go for it.

My friend, because Jesus died for some mighty big centers so first of all, it is a free gift. Secondly we discover in the text of Scripture that not only is it a free gift, but it is given equally to all who believe you sailors that in the Bible. Well, it says in the book of Romans chapter 3 it is given to all who believe. And obviously there's only one kind of righteousness.

And that's gods that is being given as a gift. It's righteousness that cannot be improved upon. It cannot be made any better and so this righteousness is given equally to all who believe. So you know this division between the saints who had righteousness, and there were some who believe that the saints had more righteousness than they needed to enter into heaven, and that you could actually draw on their treasury of merit as many people did in medieval times.

All that needs to go because the righteousness of God is given to all who believe. That's why one of the first doctrines that Luther no longer believed in was purgatory.

Because you see purgatory says that very few people certainly not people like us, we would never die with enough righteousness to enter into God's presence. But if the righteousness of God is given freely as a gift to all who believe. And if that righteousness is as holy as God himself is if that's the case, why then, when we die we go from this life to the next without any without having to pass go without having to receive $200 without going to jail or rogatory because we die as righteous as Jesus is an when we arrive in heaven. We are welcomed as if we were Jesus save totally and completely on the basis of his merit alone. You see, it was this that led to what we call the priesthood of the believer and then in Wittenberg there are two churches there is the famous castle church. The church of the Reformation, but there's also the town church called town because the people from the town would go there and it is there within the church on Christmas day. 1521, something happened that had not happened for centuries in the churches of Europe, two things. First of all, the liturgy was set in German utilize first time a whole generation of Germans heard the words, this cup is the cup of the new covenant in my blood is drink in remembrance of me. The first time they actually heard it in German in language that they could understand. But there was something else that happened within that church and that is that not only was the liturgy in German, but now people were able to participate in the cup and also the bread together because now every one was a priest before God and therefore the common person had just as much access to God Almighty as anyone else. Now mind you when this happened on Christmas day 1521, Luther wasn't there.

Luther was holed up in the Wartburg Castle because you see the Emperor had said that whoever finds them can kill them so he was hiding there for 10 months in a room in the Wartburg Castle and it is there that Luther translated among many other things he wrote all kinds of books but is there that he translated the Bible and translated it from the original into German. He did the entire New Testament and something like about 20 weeks and you even imagine that and so he eventually translated the entire Bible, including the Old Testament and he that of course took years. Luther wanted the common person to understand and to read the Bible that was very important to himself holed up in that particular room, that's where he began his translation he said he wanted Moses to speak such good German that the Germans wouldn't even know that he was a Jew.

Luther. But the Bible in the hands of the German now you think of the impact of this, let's fast-forward centuries later up in Canada my parents who were German descent. They are reading to us as children every morning before we went out to work or school. They read to us from the German Bible and if you were to open the German Bible as I did as a child you would notice there based on the Martin Luther translation.

It is impossible for us to over exaggerate and to overemphasize the impact that Luther had with the many books that hymns that he wrote and the translation of the Bible into a German that the people could understand. He said I want the scrub woman to be able to pick up the Bible and read it.

Now there's something else about the righteousness of God and that is it is given to us permanently permanent acceptance before God.

Now I have a question I'm going to ask you and I want you to answer this because for some of you your eternal salvation could rest on how you answer the question I'm going to ask the question is simply this, when was Luther actually converted born again as Jesus said we must do if we intend to enter the kingdom of God was at his baptism know no baptism didn't do it was during those times of confession, the hours and hours of confession as he tried to racked his brain remembering every sin that he had ever committed was that the time that Luther actually was converted all, you don't get saved by confessing your sins because if you simply confess your sins without understanding the gospel.

It's something that you do once and then you return again and again and again but but you have no assurance that that you've ever done enough or that you've confessed enough now it's not that today millions of people in America will be attending church and they will be confessing sin and they will leave through those church doors as unconverted as Luther did as he confessed them for our after our back in Erfurt what what what what is going on here.

He is able. Don't you believe in the confession of sins.

Yes, we as Christians confess our sins, but that's not how you become a Christian.

Luther's right you can't remember all of your sins, you you Kevin confess them. One day he returned the next year. Not sure if you get them all and you don't know where you are at what the gospel says is this, that what we need is one act that permanently settles our relationship with the God and it doesn't happen simply because we remember all of our sins that we do have to.

Of course acknowledge that we are sinners and it is that one act by which we become children of God, for ever and our destiny is finally and totally settled and we become God's children and then we are born again. Then after being born again. We then belong to the family of God. You'll notice what the Bible says so clearly in the book of Hebrews and one of the most beautiful passages that you could ever read or meditate upon speaking of the Old Testament, the writer says that every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice.

Luther pointed out that Jesus is not re-sacrificing again and again.

He offered a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down on the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by as single offering he's breath acted for all time those who are being sanctified for one time, that when Jesus died on the cross he doesn't have to die again. That sacrifice is sufficient.

And when you place your trust in Jesus, your sins, legally past, present and future are forgiven, how many of your sins.

By the way were future when Jesus died, all of them in the very same way. We must understand that Jesus Christ death on the cross was so expensive so well accepted by God the father that if you believe in him, you become a child of God forever now. Within that context. Of course, confession now becomes important because that maintains our personal relationship with God and keeps the issues clear between us.

Maybe I can give an example, what if Rebecca and I had adopted a boy into our family and that he were to say to us now that I am your child and the adoption is secure. Does that mean I have to keep re-upping my adoption by constant confession of my disobedience and we would say no. We don't want you to be disobedient. We do want you to confess to us and be reconciled to us, but your stature in this family is secure and immutable. And that's the way it is when we believe on Jesus.

I can imagine there's somebody here, I see what your mind is think you're thinking this oh so isn't this nice because I had people say this to me, they say, well, you know, isn't this nice you know what this really means is that I can just believe on Jesus and live like denying just go out and I can just commit murder if you're saying that today I have a couple of things to say to you as I look into your mind.

Number one. Thank you for thinking that because that is the natural response of somebody who finally believes that salvation is a free gift but number two.

I would also say that you are tipping your hand here almost certainly can tell you that if you're thinking that way you have never been born again of the Holy Spirit, you've never trusted Christ in the way I described it would be something like our son to use the analogy again whom we adopted coming and saying well now that I belong to you. I can just go out and murder somebody else still bear a child right, yeah, I get what you're saying, namely your understanding that our relationship with you is immutable, but is this the response of someone who's been welcomed into a family and loved and redeemed in the family of God.

I don't think so.

So as you think about the freeness of the gift. Remember this, that it is indeed free to those who transfer their trust in Christ alone.

Not Christ and my sacraments, not Christ and prayers, not Christ. Individuals not Christ and all these good deeds good deeds flow from our relationship with Christ.

But it is to see the merit of Jesus as being complete and total.

That's why you know we even saying I need no other argument I need no other plea.

It is enough that Jesus died and that he died for me that is the good news of the gospel and I encourage you today. If you've never trusted him or thought you have, but you really haven't to rush to him in faith. Remember the Old Testament there was a plague that God sent to the people, the Israelites, because of their disobedience. The Bible says that there were snakes actually serpents yeah who went among the people and bit them, and many people died.

So Moses cries out to God and says God, he says, what shall I do, these people are dying and God says here's what I want you to do. Take a pull in on it put a brass serpent and I will work it so that there will be a miracle that will take place if somebody looks at that pole in faith. I will heal them and keep them from the plague. Centuries later, Jesus was talking to a man by the name of Nicodemus who came to him by night and said what shall I do to be born again. And Jesus said unless you're born of water and wind of those are two symbols of the Holy Spirit water cleansing wind power. Unless you're born of water and wind.

You will not enter into the kingdom of God.

And so in order to get his point across. Jesus said this as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so shall the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life. All that was required for those people in the desert is to look up in faith.

Sometimes I hear people preach the gospel and they say, why don't you give your life to Christ by understand what they mean.

But when you understand the gospel. You realize that it's not a matter of giving God anything you come to receive you come as you are to receive as the hymn says, just as I am, without one plate, but you come to receive. You don't come to give all I know giving your life to Christ is important, especially after you believed but we, and we bring nothing to the table except our great need. Luther put it so beautifully. He was a very witty man but he also had very pithy sayings in the process. He said this basically is the gospel, and I don't think I can summarize it any better than this. He said oh Jesus, I am thy sin, thou art my righteousness.

That's it. I'm your sin that's my contribution. Your contribution is that you give me the righteousness that I receive by faith that is the righteousness of God.

Of course Luther lived for centuries before this poem and it's one of the few that I know my memory was written, but my how he would've rejoiced in it and agreed with it the terrors of law and of God with me can have nothing to do because my Savior's old deviance and blood ties all of my sins from view my name on the palm of his hands. Eternity cannot erase forever. There it stands the mark of indelible grace that is the gospel of Jesus Christ and that is the story of the Reformation you trusted Christ as your Savior like that.

So simple, yet always at heart. All the objections what you mean. This is all I have to do and is there more for me to do you mean I can just do LOL you nor I have to humble myself and say that Jesus has to do it all. All the all the things so simple and yet so very hard to do, but there's some of you to mind speaking and God is working in your heart and showing you exactly that this is what you must do because the despair in your heart is a good sign to show you your need of a Savior who covers your sins, who changes you within and makes you a member of God's family forever. Will you join me as we pray father, we thank you today for the gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ and we pray for all those who have never really trusted him this way, they trusted Jesus plus a whole lot of other things.

Help them to see the Christ to raise risen glorified died for sinners just like us. We thank you for the gift of God and out before I close this prayer all those who are listening and you may be listening on the Internet by radio.

In addition to the many who are here today where are you and your relationship with God.

They the turmoil within you realize that that may be God speaking to you telling you it's time to believe on Jesus leading you the path of Luther's the recognition that the gospel is the answer. And Jesus is what you're looking for. You talk to him right now.

You tell them that you believe on him. Father we pray that your Holy Spirit has been given to your people and through your word and through the gospel may bring about conviction. Understanding overcome all the resistance that some may have, to see the completeness of the work of Jesus on our behalf and we thank you that because of him. We can sing that it is really well with our souls we move from despair to wellness in his name, will my friend, this is Pastor Luther and I know that I've said this before, but I deeply enjoy preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. I never tire about telling people all that God did to save us.

And you know I believe that this sermon series. These 12 messages will be a tremendous blessing to you for a gift of any amount they can be yours. And along with them will send you a study guide that will enable you to have questions so that there can be discussion because we can give ourselves to nothing more important than understanding the gospel better and sharing it with others.

So here's what you do for a gift of any amount. As I've already mentioned, go to RTW offer.com. Of course RTW offer is all one word RTW offer.com or if you prefer you can call us at 1-888-218-9337. I'll be giving you that phone number again but I have to tell you that this series of messages entitled rescued what God did to save us, cannot only be transforming for you, but also for others it's really an exposition of the opening chapters of the book of Romans, a book that has had a tremendous impact throughout the history of the church, and you can come to the same conclusion that Martin Luther did doesn't matter how much God requires of us. As long as we don't have to pay it. Jesus paid it all. Once again, I'll give you that contact information, go to RTW offer.com for a gift of any amount. These messages can be yours or call us at 1-888-218-9337 you can write to us run into when 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614 faith in the wrong place is worse than no faith at all because it creates false confidence next time. Don't miss a message on how believers have been rescued from misplaced faith. This is Dave McAllister running to win is sponsored by the teacher