CONCERNING GOD AND MANKIND

DIVINE SOVEREIGNTY

Understanding divine sovereignty

• God is the supreme being in the universe.

• God is supreme in power in the universe.

• Robert Lightner, God is the absolute and sole Ruler in the universe.

• God is God and I’m not!

Principles of divine sovereignty

• God has an all-inclusive plan which He controls.

• God has the freedom to do what He deems best.

• God is only bound by Himself.

• God is always consistent with Himself.

• James MacDonald, God completely controls the universe - with His feet up! He’s not stretched or stressed in any way.

Biblical evidence for divine sovereignty

• Psalm 135:6, Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps.

• Ephesians 1:11, ...we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will.

• Romans 11:33-36, Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to Him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY

Who is in control concerning salvation, God or man?

• God takes the initiative by calling people to Himself through Jesus.

• Individuals choose to place faith in Jesus alone.

Glimpses of the process of salvation from John 6

John 6:28-29, Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

• Merrill Tenney, To Jewish questioners, attaining eternal life consisted in finding the right formula for performing works to please God.

• Leon Morris, ... "What must we do?" shows that the questioners had not grasped Jesus' point that life was his gift. They looked for salvation as the result of their own effort (as people in their natural wisdom always do).

• Charles Swindoll, The only "work" required is belief in the Son, which involves no work at all.

John 6:37, Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away;

• Warren Wiersbe, These are among the most profound words He ever spoke, and we cannot hope to plumb their depths completely. He explained that salvation involves both divine sovereignty and human responsibility. The Father gives men and women to the Son (John 6:37, 39; 17:2, 6, 9, 11–12, 24), but these men and women must come to Him, that is, believe on Him.

• Leon Morris, People do not come to Christ because it seems a good idea to them. It never does seem a good idea to sinful people. Apart from a divine work in their souls (cf. 16:8) people remain more or less contentedly in their sins. Before they can come to Christ it is necessary that the Father give them to him.

• Kenneth Gangel, The Father literally gives certain believers to the Son. On the other hand, the gospel always proclaims, “Whosoever will may come.” Does God choose us or do we choose him? The only possible answer is, “Yes.”

• A church member asked Charles Spurgeon how he reconciled divine sovereignty and human responsibility. His response was, I never try to reconcile friends.

John 6:40, This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day.”

• Leon Morris, This thought is of the greatest comfort to believers. Their assurance is based not on their feeble hold on Christ, but on his sure grip on them (cf. 10:28f.).

• Charles Swindoll, God in human flesh, came to earth to gather His own, who can be identified by their belief in Him.

• Grant Osborne, The final balance between security and responsibility is a mystery and will never be truly solved until eternity arrives.

• I believe divine sovereignty and human responsibility are parallel lines that only cross at the heart of God.

John 6:44-45, No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me.

• Edwin Blum, No one can come to Jesus or believe on Him without divine help. People are so ensnared in the quicksand of sin and unbelief that unless God draws them (cf. v. 65), they are hopeless

• Leon Morris, The thought of the divine initiative in salvation is one of the great doctrines of this Gospel, and indeed of the Christian faith. People like to feel independent. They think that they come or that they can come to Jesus entirely of their own volition. Jesus assures us that this is an utter impossibility. No one, no one at all, can come unless the Father draws him.

• William Hendriksen, The drawing of which these passages speak indicates a very powerful—we may even say, an irresistible—activity. To be sure, man resists, but his resistance is ineffective. It is in that sense that we speak of God’s grace as being irresistible ... both at the beginning and throughout the entire process of being saved, the power is ever from above; it is very real, strong, and effective; and it is wielded by God himself!

John 6:47, Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life.

• Leon Morris, Jesus’ main concern is with life and how people obtain it ... Now he solemnly repeats the way to life.

• Thomas Constable, In spite of the truth of the Father's drawing the elect to Himself, it is still imperative that they believe in Jesus. This is the human responsibility. However, belief in Jesus is not something that deserves a reward from God; it is not meritorious. It is simply the proper response to God's working.

THE INTERACTION BETWEEN DEITY AND HUMANITY

God’s process in election

• At times, I wonder why God chose me for His Son. The God of all creation adopted me. The price God paid for me was the life of His only Son, Jesus. It is beyond the scope of my understanding.

• I don’t know why but I am committed to honor Him with the new life He gave me. My privilege is to live under God’s sovereign, loving, and gracious control.

• There is no injustice with God in condemning; salvation is a matter of grace, Ephesians 2:8, For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—

Human responsibility in sanctification

Introduction

• Christians are to be conformed to the image of Christ.

• We are called to participate with the Holy Spirit in becoming more like Christ in our behavior not just in position.

• John Stott, ... becoming a Christian is one thing, being a Christian is another.

What must I do?

Acknowledge need

• Ask God to make you hungry for Him, Psalm 107:9, For He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul He fills with good things.

• George Whitefield, The renewal of our natures is a work of great importance. It is not to be done in a day. We have not only a new house to build up, but an old one to pull down.

Accept responsibility

• We are to actively pursue a life in the Spirit, Galatians 5:16-17, Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want.

• There are serious consequences for those who live for the flesh, Romans 8:6, To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

• Jerry Bridges, The pursuit of holiness is a joint venture between God and the Christian. No one can attain to any degree of holiness without God working in his life, but just as surely no one will attain it without effort on his own part.

Meditate on the greatness of our Triune God

• Who else called you to newness of life for eternity?

• Who else is always faithful?

• Who else gives peace today and hope for tomorrow?

Pursue spiritual disciples

• Study the Bible daily

• Pray daily

• Fellowship and worship regularly

• Observe the ordinances of baptism and communion.

Expect success

• He has given us new hearts, Jeremiah 31:33, But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

• Martin Luther, We are not what we shall be but we are growing toward it; the process is not yet finished but it is going on; this is not the end but it is the road. All does not yet gleam in glory but all is being purified.

Be an example

• Blaise Pascal, The serene beauty of a holy life is the most powerful influence in the world next to the power of God.

• J.C. Ryle, Sound Protestant and Evangelical doctrine is useless if it is not accomplished by a holy life.

SUMMARY

• Consider several key lessons from this message: God calls people to Himself. People respond to His call. God keeps those who are called. Believers have daily choices.

• Robert Lightner, The sovereignty of God and the responsibilities of man are parallel truths in Scripture ... It remains a mystery how God an be altogether sovereign and yet allow for genuine human responsibility in His sovereign plan.

• James MacDonald, There is in every human heart a propensity “to leave the God we love” unless we are continually gripped by His greatness, unless on a regular basis we allow our hearts and minds to be rocked with the truth of all that He is.

• I pray that for me. I pray that for you.