How Can I Know I am Elect?

How Can I Know I am Elect?

1 Thessalonians 1:4-7

ICC’s AM Service (1/8/22)

I. Introduction

1. Prayers

i. God, you are loving in a way beyond our imagining, so we pray that we might understand the comfort of your choices this morning

ii. We pray as many people cannot be here with us, lord grant healing and comfort quickly oh God.

iii. Now, we ask you to open our hearts to understand your word because only you can do so

2. Catch- Eroding beaches is a serious problem in southern california

i. IN October of last the LA times ran an article Coastal erosion in San Clemente threatens railroad tracks

1. They were rushing to dump at least 11,000 tons to keep the ocean at bay and reopen a picturesque stretch of railroad track in San Clemente.

2. The tracks were shut down last month after large waves swept in and the ground became unstable.[i]

3. Coastal regions everywhere face the problem of constant waves crashing into the ground and pulling away the supporting dirt, exposing them to falling into the sea

4. So, FEMA offers many different solutions based on how severe the problem is -perhaps just replenish the beach sand, or build some pylons, anchor your house, or maybe even move the house

5. The key is making sure you get a secure foundation

ii. I don’t think I hear us asking How can I know if I’m saved a lot around here, which may be because we have the answer, but God does command us to ask it

2 Corinthians 13:5 ESV

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

- Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

1. God doesn’t want us to ask so that we feel discouraged, but so that our faith is our firmer ground

2. SO today, we’ll star to look at the firm foundation the Thessalonians had and try to ask:

a. What is assurance?

b. What should we do if we realize we do not have faith?

c. Would it be a problem to have the gospel come in word only?

3. Let me give us Context:

i. Historical context

i. Paul came to Thessalonica on his second missionary journey in Acts 17

1. many were persuaded, including a large number of women who showed great faith

2. But a mob formed and attacked them

3. So they left for Barea in v13

ii. In many ways this was a baby church that Paul was forced to abandon…so he is incredibly joyful to find them healthy, though needing some growth

ii. Book context

1. Paul has introduced the book with how thankful he is for them and their evident lives of following God

a. Previously we talked about how Paul doesn’t thank people directly… he doesn’t butter them up to say how great they are so they will listen to him

b. But he honestly thanks God for them

2. So, knowing God’s work in their lives is just one more motivation for Paul to thank God

What can make someone thankful for your life then?

II. The Internal and external evidence that God is at work in your life

WE will only get to the internal part today.

1. You believed there was power in the gospel message (4-5)

i. 5 realities you must believe about the gospel

1. The gospel is founded in love

a. Paul’s first description of them is those who God has given agape love towards

b. And how has God shown his love? His choice of them

i. The Greek word is where we get elect, it is eklogḗ

ii. Notice that he doesn’t spend much time explaining the important doctrine of election as we he does places like Ephesians were we says:

Ephesians 1:4–5- even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ…

1. Ephesians makes clear that he chooses before anything exists

2. Not because of what he sees in us, but because of his love

3. This is clear even in the grammar of this passage

a. Look in your bible… he has chosen you because, right?

b. But notice the commas right? You my have forgotten in English class, but those commas tell you that they can be removed from the sentence

c. So it could we we know because our gospel came to you

i. What do they know? They are they beloved brothers, choosen by God

The great pastor Augustine of Hippo wrote millenia ago. “God chooses us, not because we believe, but that we may believe.”

iii. The Thessalonians may have been a baby church, but they understood election was all about love

iv. It like the many adoptions that are made each year by people like my sister.

1. It is not a lack of love for the other children millions of other children that they adopted their son

2. It was specific love given to that boy

c. Louis Berkoff wrote, “It is sometimes said that the doctrine of predestination exposes God to the charge of injustice. But this is hardly correct. We could speak of injustice only if man had a claim on God, and God owed man eternal salvation. But the situation is entirely different if all men have forfeited the blessings of God, as they have. No one has the right to call God to account for electing some and rejecting others. He would have been perfectly just, if He had not saved any,”

d. Election is about God showing love to the underserving

Trans: so how was that love given?

2. The gospel comes in words

Explanation:

a. He in no way disparages the gospel coming in words

i. You may have heard that St. Francis of Assisi said “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.”

ii. But that is bogus.. None of his disciples, early or later biographers have these words coming from his mouth. It doesn’t show up in any of his writings. Not even close really[ii]

b. But more importantly the bible says words are necessary for faith

Romans 10:14–17- How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? …. faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

i. If there are no words, then christian deeds are just like a impressive magic trick

ii. You watch the amazing skill and you are awed that your card was selected, but you have no ability to be that way

iii. Words are necessary that an unbeliever knows they don’t need to be a godo person, they good God who can change them

c. Then what does words only mean?

i. Paul always preached the same gospel, but he didn’t get the same response

Acts 17:32- Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.”

ii. Some people hear the word of God and since their hearts are hard, the message of hope sounds foolish

1 Corinthians 2:14- The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

iii. But to the brothers who were love and choosen by God, these words resulted in a change

iv. Election gives a wonderful hope to why do two people who hear the same message have a very different response

1. Yet it doesn’t change the message

Illus:

2. The great Calvinist preacher, Charles Spurgeon said

If God would have painted a yellow stripe on the backs of the elect I would go around lifting shirts. But since He didn’t I must preach “whosoever will” and when “whatsoever” believes I know that he is one of the elect.

Application:

d. So preach the gospel boldly brothers and sisters, knowing that God has some who will respond

e. And ask yourself… do I respond to these words? Because it is not just up to preacher

Instead of being words only, the thessolonains knew they came in

3. The gospel comes in power

Explanation:

a. There are platitudes that sound nice but can do nothing because they’re like Hollywood sets, look impressive on the outside, but only facades

i. Words like you are enough ring hollow because you cannot handle everything thrown at you

b. But the Greek would power has the root meaning capable

i. WE know Paul had the signs of an apostle, which included miracles when we went places (2 Corinthians 12:12)

ii. But that is a different but similar Greek word

iii. & notice the preposition… the gospel didn’t come with powers alongside it… it came in power

Romans 1:16–17- For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Illustration

c. We know the words of God have power

d. If you’re reading our bible reading plan together you would have come across Matthew 8 yesterday where the Romans Centurion has this amazing faith in Jesus

i. He believed so much in the power of Jesus’ words that he didn’t even need Jesus to come to heal his servant

Matthew 8:8–10- But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.

ii. He just wanted Jesus to say the word because he believed Jesus words had power

iii. In DA Carson’s devotional that goes along with the writing, he wrote He was a Gentile. What grasp of Scripture he had we cannot say, but it was certainly less than that enjoyed by many of the learned in Israel. Yet his faith was purer, simpler, more penetrating, more Christ-honoring than theirs[iii]

iv. He didn’t know much, but he knew that he could trust the words of God.

App:

e. In a world where there are billions of voices and every one of them can be amplified by media… whose voice do you believe is able to do something? Who do you trust?

i. Those who love God come to his word with an attitude of submission.

ii. We choose to trust his word and we use it

iii. So, how do you respond to God’s word being read or preached?

1. When you think Monday through Saturday, do you have the belief that the bible should speak to normal life?

2. Because it does!

We can trust this word is powerful because of who works it

4. The gospel comes with the holy Spirit

Explanation

a. It is the holy spirit who brings his dynamic power to he truth of the scriptures

b. Paul wrote to the Corinthians

1 Corinthians 2:2–5- For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

c. Illustration

i. The gospel doesn’t just come with a power, it comes with a person

1. One of the craziest things I’ve seen is a multimillion dollar boat being hanging 15 ft in the air over dry land

2. Because you need to get those boats onto dry land and they use big forklifts to get it over to the lake or ocean

3. And if you happen to have the precious boat, you know better than jumping into the forklift yourself and trying to move it

4. You know you need someone to use that powerful device

5. But what a relief is it to see this professional who can maunever this boat thorugh a maze and stop on dime without breaking anythig

ii. In the same way, you must believe you cannot do it yourself, but you need the spirit to work and if you’re obeying the words he wrote… you can be assured he is

Application

d. Christians are up against impossible cultural forces that say a biblical ethic, the Christians standards of right and wrong are outdated and impressive and we literally have the prince of this world, Satan against us

i. Parents, do you ever get discouraged that your children are not getting it

1. Whether they’re young and it’s not going anywhere

2. Or maybe you’ve taught them better than that, but they are rebelling against it

ii. But we have an amazing ally in this gospel fight… the holy spirit is able to change people

iii. The internal belief that the results are up to Him and not you is a sign of real faith, that you trust.

Trans: and the holy spriit brought

5. The Gospel comes With full conviction

Explanation

a. Conviction means certainty

b. This may refer either to the conviction demonstrated by the missionaries or the assurance that developed in the hearers of the gospel[iv]

i. If it was the missionaries demonstrated their conviction through a willingness to undergo the rigors of travel by persistence in the face of opposition and by their willingness to work night and day without material remuneration from their converts (1 Cor 9:3–17; 2 Thess 3:7–9[v]

ii. It if is the hearers, they believed the words were so true that when Paul left they took up the suffering when he left

c. Paul proved his belief was real

i. The rest of the letter will go into how he lived honestly with them, willing to suffer

ii. As commentator Michael Martin wrote, “Conviction is invisible without action” [vi]

ii. Illustration

1. What is seen on the outside always starts on the inside

a. You know the phrase we are what we eat.

b. That is because our bodies are a recombination of molecules found in the food we eat

c. Almost every single cell in your body has been copied and built anew in your lifetime using the food you put in

d. So, what you put into your body produces the body that you have.

2. So The proof of God’s work started inside

iii. Application

1. So, do you have certainty about the gospel friends?

a. Do you believe there is a problem with this world, that something is not right that people are not right?

b. If you do, there must be a god who created some standard that all others must bow the knee

c. But the problem is that people try to push their own standards, their own laws the fight each other and destroy everything

d. And because God is just, he must judge those who destroy with eternity in hell for violating an eternal GOd

e. But the good news that the missionaries carried was Jesus was God and man, and he did everything you and I were supposed to do with all the same problems and temptations we have

i. But he succeded and he died for our sins, and he was raised to bring salvation

ii. So, you can be right with God today and every day because of him

We’ve seen the 1st evidence of the god’s work is internal, but what’s inside doesn’t stay hidden, so the second evidence is:

III. Therefore

1. Since we have seen (Cohesion)-

i. Next time we’ll see the outward responses they made to the inward truths they believed

ii. Today we saw 5 internal beliefs that show God has opened your heart to believe the gospel

1. The gospel is founded in love

2. The gospel comes in words

3. The gospel comes in power

4. The gospel comes with the holy Spirit

5. The Gospel comes with full conviction

2. We know then we must (Resolution)-

1. The application is to believe this gospel

a. God tells us to ask the question if I am really saved

b. And if you find you’re not, or you’re living like you’re not, instead of using the excuse, “I guess I’m not just not elect.”

c. Do what the elect person is supposed to do… put your hope in the gospel, look to Jesus for your hope

d. As Christians, we always go back to Him

e. And if there is anything in you that wants to look to Jesus… then you can Praise God because that is a gift from Him first and foremost

ii. If you never believed, go first

iii. But if you find your solid ground eroding, the answer is not ignore it or just try to be better

iv. The solution is to find the firm foundation of Jesus Christ… look to him

IV. Closing prayer

1. Jesus, we thank you for dying in the place of sinners like us

2. We ask lord, may our beliefs fit on your and change us

V. Communion

1. Ask servers to come up

Chair 1 - Rich Nelson (serve pastor)

Chair 2 - David Kingsbury (pray)

Chair 3 - Gary Harris

Chair 4 - Chris Freeman

Chair 5 - Bob Glickley

Chair 6 - Steve Swanson

1. Sing Hymn- When I Survey Wondrous Cross 274

ask people to sit down

2. This is unusual timing but we must celebrating the Lord’s supper

3. Communion is so important because it is not just ritual, but it is visual expression of our faith that we speak to each other

1. This is why it is so important to take it together and we’re battling with each other to believe this truth

2. 1 Corinthians 11:26- For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. Remember, this act is a statement of our faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Lord... we put our hope in Him and nothing good in us until our faith is made sight

4. And it comes with a big flashing warning sign 1 Corinthians 11:27–34 (ESV)

27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

You do not have to be a member of this church but there are two important questions I want you to ask so you do not have this judgment

First question: Am I right with The God of the universe?

You do not want to take a sign that you trust the God who knows your heart when you have not given up on controlling your own life

But if you find sin, remember the promise of 1 john 1:9 as you tell God

1 John 1:9- If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2nd question: Am I right with God’s people?

The Corinthians were selfish towards their fellow believers, and thus brought judgment upon themselves. This is something that unites us, so if there is a division you haven’t tried to make right, please confess it to God and resolve to deal make it right with your brother or sister.

4. Few moments of silent prayer

5. Pray for communion

6. Now open the top piece of plastic on your cup

7. pass bread

1. to men on right and then left... one by one

2. Sit down

3. Men will get up and pass... they will stack plates

4. get plate and give to each man right to left, outside to in

5. one guy will serve pastor. Man to the left

1) The Bread *This is christ’s body broken for you. As you consider your sins.

-Things seen and unseen remember the cost the perfect savior had to pay for it. Luke 22:19- And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.

7. Pass juice

1. pass one by one, left, then right

2. sit down

3. men get up to pass

4. give cup to each from left to right, outside to in

5. one man serves pastor, man to left

1) The cup -As others sin against you, remember that your sin is forgiven by this blood, so you should forgive them. & hopefully, their sin can be forgiven too. Luke 22:20- And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.

8. people drink

9. stand in prayer

10. leave- Please drop cups in the trash can on your way out.

[i] https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-10-02/coastal-erosion-san-clemente [ii] https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/factchecker-misquoting-francis-of-assisi [iii] D. A. Carson, For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word., vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1998), 34. [iv] D. Michael Martin, 1, 2 Thessalonians, vol. 33, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 58. [v] D. Michael Martin, 1, 2 Thessalonians, vol. 33, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 59. [vi] D. Michael Martin, 1, 2 Thessalonians, vol. 33, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 59.