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SALVATION IS OF THE LORD

September 8, 2002 PM

Jonah 2:8,9

INTRO: I expect that God could tell us some strange stories about the places from which people have prayed. But I have an idea that He has recorded for us the strangest of those incidents. It is, of course, that of Jonah praying from the belly of the great fish. In our last lesson we looked at several elements present in the prayer which has been preserved for our study. Tonight I want to look at two verses - 8 and 9 - with particular emphasis on Jonahs exclamation, Salvation is of the Lord.

I. JONAH HAD A HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ON WHICH TO DRAW

A. He certainly knew Israels history

1. Ps 44:1-4 ... note particularly verse 3

2. Ps 22:4,5 Jonah had a rich background of the heritage described here

B. He knew the futility of putting ones hope elsewhere

1. Jonah 2:8 he had already tried his own devices

2. Ps 33:13-20 no doubt that people have tried to make their own way, find their own deliverance

C. Jonah had the only hope experience and history had offered

1. he knew that his prayer was properly directed

2. and his exclamation of hope is worthy of our confidence

II. OUR DELIVERANCE FROM SIN, FROM DESPAIR IS OF THE LORD

A. God has the authority, power to deal with sin

1. sin is offense against Him to begin with Ps 51:4a

2. therefore, it is in His province to deliver or not the matter belongs to no other court; jurisdiction is His

3. Ps 49:6-9 greatest earthly desire and power simply have no bearing where deliverance of the soul is concerned

B. God has the grace to deliver us from sin

1. this is the best news of all!

2. we read the way God wants to handle sin in 2 Pet 3:9

3. 1 Tim 4:10 there is great statement of grace

C. God has the means of our deliverance

1. 1 Cor 1:18 cross represents the entire scope of deliverance of God: whether we call it salvation, redemption, justification, Jesus death on the cross is the means

2. Eph 1:7 note the riches of His grace

3. but God alone had/has the means ... as Jonah, we must come to terms with this fact

D. God has revealed His provision and our part in His plan

1. He sent His ambassadors out to make it known - Mk 16:15,16

2. He has made our part very simple and universal ... the deliverance is effected in baptism ... 1 Pet 3:21

3. believing, penitent people who are baptized know they are saved ... do not need to wonder, to doubt

III. JONAH REMINDS OF TWO THINGS DELIVERANCE SHOULD EVOKE

A. The voice of thanksgiving Jonah 2:9a

1. seems to me that gratitude toward God should be one of the strongest of emotions for a Christian Heb 13:15

2. for, indeed, He has broken the bond of sin and freed us

3. Col 2:7 speaks of life in Christ (thus, freed from sin) as overflowing with thanksgiving

4. 1 Cor 15:57 a thanks in context of deliverance!

B. The vow which needs keeping Jonah 2:9b

1. the vow is simply an understanding that our life belongs to God and is under His control this was Jonahs understanding

2. 1 Cor 6:19,20 ye are not your own because the salvation youve received cost God something!

3. constraints of love and gratitude should determine the manner and course of our lives each day in the future

4. 1 Cor 15:58 immediately after the exclamation of thanksgiving is this statement of vow keeping (Ps 50:14,23)

CLOSE: We can join with Jonah in exclaiming, Salvation is of the Lord. We, too, have experienced His salvation. Let our lives be filled with strong gratitude ... gratitude which keeps our lives in the confines of Gods will.

Cecil A. Hutson

08 September 2002

God's Plan of Salvation

You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what your background is. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6) “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

You must believe and have faith in God because “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6) But neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James 2:24; Matthew 7:21)

You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance alone is not enough. The so-called “Sinner’s Prayer” that you hear so much about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the “Sinner’s Prayer” to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts 10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, prayer alone will not save you. You must obey the gospel. (2 Thess. 1:8)

You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus “Lord of your life.” Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just “accept Jesus as your personal savior.” We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God, but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew 7:21)

Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21) Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in God’s grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they remain faithful, those who are in God’s grace will fall from grace, and those whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)