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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s Word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, and that today’s first part of this two-part message will be a blessing to you and your family.

I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, and chapter 4, 2 Corinthians, chapter 4. You have heard most of your life if you’ve gone to church about the gospel of Jesus Christ. You’ve heard that you’re supposed to take the gospel into all the world and preach it to every person. You know, as a child of God, we’re supposed to witness and give the gospel. You know, there’s a lot of churches that are supposed to be gospel preaching churches.

Well, everybody that talks about the gospel doesn’t naturally mean they give the gospel. I want to tell you, point blank, here this morning, in a simple little message, what is it? What is the gospel? And I want you to totally understand it, fully understand it, because the gospel is the greatest story that can ever be told. There’s nothing in this world better for any man to ever hear than the gospel of Jesus Christ. So if you look there in your Bible to 1st, 2 Corinthians in chapter 4, I want you to Look in verse three, where it says, but if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost.

Now, I want you to see a couple things that was mentioned right before this great statement. If our gospel be hid, it’s hid to those that are lost. So evidently the gospel is for the lost. Now the gospel cannot be explained or made clear, understandable by the lost man. He doesn’t know the gospel. That’s why he’s lost. Those who do understand the gospel are supposed to fight for the clarity of the gospel and in defense of the gospel. Because that is our responsibility.

Because God has entrusted you and I with the gospel, even so we speak. Not as pleasing men, but God which try at their heart. So I want you to look there in verse one. Therefore, seeing we have this ministry, and this ministry is about the gospel, not being hid, but being revealed. As we have received mercy, we fate not, we don’t stop, we don’t quit, but have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking and crafting this or handling the word of God deceitfully.

In other words, there’s some things that we may hide, but it’s not the gospel. There’s some things that we will manifest, and it ought to be the things that God wants us to reveal. There’s some things that God doesn’t want us to reveal from our lives. You see, there’s sins and so forth that we’re not supposed to boast about or brag about, but we’re all sinners. We know that. But he didn’t say, go into all the world and preach about your sins.

He says, nor handling the word of God deceitfully. You see, you mean there’s people that do? Yes. There’s people who make merchandise of other people. They simply want to pickle your little fancy, pickle your ears, tell you what you want to hear. Don’t talk about sin because that might make you feel bad. Don’t talk about hell because that’s an ugly thing and that makes me uncomfortable. So we won’t talk about that. We’ll just talk about love. If I really love you, I must tell you the truth.

And if I don’t tell you the truth, it’s because I don’t love you. And there’s a lot of people who really have no concern or care about the destiny of anybody. They simply want to make merchandise of people, and all they want is your money and your membership, but they care nothing about the soul of the individual. The last part of that verse is, but by manifestation ofountain truth, commending ourselves through every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

But if our gospel be hid, it’s hid to those that are lost. In whom the God of ): this world hath blinded the mind of them which believed not. Lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine unto them. Now, I want you to look at your notes just a couple of things that I mentioned here. The Lord has placed this treasure, this glorious gospel, this good news into earthen vessels. You see down in verse 7 where he says, we have this treasure in earthen vessels.

This gospel that we have is a treasure. It’s the greatest treasure in all the world. If any man finds everything else in the world, become the richest man in the world, He roams everything in the world, but he dies and goes to hell. He was a fool. The greatest treasure is knowing God, and you cannot know Him except through the gospel. This message that God has blessed us with. We have been privileged to explain to individuals. The gospel is the lens through which we see God.

You take away the gospel and you’ll never find God. never know God. No man can know God except through the story of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the revelation of God in the flesh. And you can’t know anything about God except through his son who came to reveal his father. To Mar the gospel is to deface the portrait of Christ. It talks about the face of Jesus Christ, the face of God. You and I cannot know who God is, what God is like, what God hath done, what God will do, except through that story of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The word gospel is good news. It’s good news about what God has done for man and weoldemort. The third thing I have here is the gospel blinds the minds of those that we seek. So to veil the gospel, these to add things to the gospel that God didn’t add. Try to take away someidav from the gospel that God says put in. So in the gospel therein is the righteousness of God revealed. In the story of the gospel is the wrath of God revealed.

Romans chapter 1, your love and loyalty to Jesus Christ is revealed by your love and loyalty to the gospel of Jesus Christ. And your love and loyalty to the gospel of Jesus Christ reveals your love and your loyalty to Jesus Christ. If you’re not faithful to the gospel, you’re not faithful to Christ. If you’re not loyal to the gospel, you are not loyal to Christ. You cannot love Christ any more than you love the gospel and you can’t love the gospel any more than you love Christ.

It’s an awesome story. It’s the greatest story. Any Phasians 289, I want you to take your Bible and turn there with me. The book of Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8 and 9. These are my two favorite verses in the entire Bible. Probably never seen them before. But if you have a Bible, you ought to underline those two verses in your Bible. Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8 and 9. I want you to read those verses out loud with me. For by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast.

In this verse it tells you what the gospel is and what the gospel is not. So it’s very easy to understand what the gospel is. It says here in this verse that it is a gift of God. It is is the gift of God. For by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Faith is not the gift. Salvation is the gift. The inside is a gift. Now I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Romans, the book of Romans.

And chapter five, Romans chapter five and look at verse 15. Chapter five verse 15 says, but not as the offense so also is the free gift. You ought to underline the free gift. For if through the offering of one, many be dead much more the grace of God that they gift by grace in your underlying those words gift by grace, which is by one man Jesus Christ. had to bound it unto many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift for the judgment was by one to condemnation.

But the free gift is of many offenses unto justification. So in other men, a man can sin an awful lot and still be justified by faith and receive a free gift. And so as you go down through here it talks about the gift of God, the gift of God. Now look there in Romans chapter 6 and verse 23 verse 23 where it makes this statement for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God the gift is eternal life.

So So the gift is eternal life. It’s free. It is a gift. Means you can’t earn it, can’t work for it. And it is by grace undeserved. So no man has ever earned it or deserved it. So that is what we’re talking about. We talk about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now look there in Romans, while you’re here, and look in chapter 11. Romans chapter 11 and look in verse 6. It’s difficult to explain the gospel to someone when it seems like, well, everybody knows that.

No they don’t. Everybody understand, no they don’t. Majority of church people, I’ve invented to say, in most churches that have no clue what the gospel is, what to say it is or what to say it is not. They don’t know. They hear about it, but don’t know what it is. You see, when he said, going to all the way in preach to the gospel, he didn’t mean going to all the way in preach to book of Revelation, to book of Daniel.

Well everything in the Bible is true, so it’s a good story, so it’s all in the gospel. No, it’s not. The gospel is a specific thing about how a man gets saved. How a man escapes hell. How a man gets to heaven. How a man has eternal life. That story of why Christ came. So just because you teach the Bible doesn’t mean you taught the gospel of Jesus Christ. So here in the book of Romans in chapter 11, look there in verse 6.

If you’ll have verse 6 underlying your Bible, you’re probably not saved. Now young. But underline this verse because it’s such an important verse. And if by grace, then is it no more of works? Otherwise grace is no more grace. If it be of work, then it is no more grace. Otherwise work is no more work. So it’s either by grace or by works, but it can’t be by both. And if it is by grace, then it can’t be by works.

Otherwise grace isn’t grace. And if it is by work, then it can’t be by grace. Otherwise work isn’t work. So how simple it is illustration. I showed you a long time ago, but you probably forgot it with my coat off. Well, that’s grace. My code on. Well, that’s works. But God says if it’s by grace, can’t be by works. Otherwise, grace isn’t grace. But if it is by works, well, then it can’t be by grace. Otherwise, work isn’t work.

So I’ll tell you that is. Now, I mentioned to you before, if I was asked to go see the President Day of the United States, better say, Yankee, don’t forget to put on your coat. Yes, dear. So I go in there to see the President of the United States. Is my coat on? What were my code off?

Yeah, don’t worry about what other people think. You’re an independent thinker. You think for yourself. Nobody tells you how to think. But how many think my code is on? Let me see your hand. Oh, you got a few. A few of you. How many think my codes off? Let me see him. Okay. Okay. Got a few. How many are confused?

Did you know there’s more of you that are confused? Why are you so confused? Because, see, I’ve added works to groups. You see, I give you, it’s free. No, it’s by your works. Are they the same? That’s not the same thing. If it’s by grace, it can’t be this way. If it’s by words, it can’t be this way. They don’t mix. So whenever a man is told that you’re going to have an oh, it’s free, but you got to do good too.

Well, then that just contradicted this. Now, either it’s free or it’s by your works. It can’t be both ways. God says if I grace or it’s by works, but it can’t be both ways. See, that’s what causes so many preachers to be confused. Why? Because their message is confused. The people are confused. It’s one way or the other. And the only way that you really know that somebody really believes and understand what you’re saying, I asked a man this question one time.

Now you listen to this question. Some of you’ll probably get it wrong. Can a practicing homosexual go to heaven when he dies? A practicing homosexual go to heaven when died if he trusts he tries to save you. Well, most of y’all get an A for the day. Did you know if you asked that question in some churches, that would be a total no. And the reason is because they don’t understand the gospel. Because you see, in the back of their minds, he doesn’t deserve to go.

He doesn’t deserve it. Look, what he’s doing. As though what you do in your life determines where you go when you die. It doesn’t. And this is what blows most people’s minds. can’t believe that. You can’t tell me all you have to do is believe. Well, if I can’t tell you, God can’t tell you, it don’t matter, does it? Nobody can tell you. But what if God says it is that way? If a man does trust Christ’s Savior, and if a man doesn’t change his life, If a man still lives like a devil, and if a man dies, and if the man went to heaven, be grace wouldn’t.

And people still will not believe it, because he doesn’t deserve it. Because in our little mind, we still think good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell. And that is not the Bible, and it’s not true. Look during your notes, there’s two things that I have here that I think are very important. the gospel must be free or it’s not the gospel. The gospel must be forever or it’s not the gospel. You either have to be saved forever or it wasn’t the gospel you believed.

You see, whenever you trust Christ as your Savior, are you trusting Him to save you for an hour, a minute, a day, a month? How long? Forever. Because if it’s not forever, what value is it? Is it, oh, I’m trusting Christ as my Savior till I sin the next time? Then I got to get saved again. What’s wrong with trusting Christ to say me forever? The good news is that when Christ saves a person, He saves you forever for all eternity.

Why don’t you take your Bible looking John chapter three in verse 16? John chapter three in verse 16. Now I know that majority of you here, you’ve heard this same message for 30 years, but there may be some of you here that’s never heard it at all. Some of you might need to refresh your course to appreciate what you’ve been given, to understand it. Look in verse 16, for God so loved all the good people that were really trying their best.

Is that what your Bible says? No, no, no, it didn’t say it. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. That’s Jesus Christ. The whosoever, whosoever, keeps the 10 commandments and obey the goal and rule and go to Calvary Community Church and play 25% half everlasting life. Do you see anything I’m doing that’s wrong? Is it wrong to add to what God said? Why not just let God say what He says without me adding to it.

When he says here that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that hosts so ever, believe it, should not perish but have everlasting life. And all he has to do is believe. Look there in verse 36, he that believe it on the son half, present tense, half, right now. What kind of life? Temporary life? Everlasting life. And he that believe if not the Son shall not see life but the wrath of God abide upon him.

So whether you have eternal life or not, or the wrath of God or not, depends on whether you have the Son or not. He that hath the Son hath life. And he that hath not the son of God hath not life. Look there in verse 18, he that believeth on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed. Not because he didn’t live up to a certain extent. He’s going to be lost, the literal fire burning hell because he hath not believed.

He did not believe the gospel. What was this gospel that Christ died for my sins? He died for mine. It means I don’t have to pay for my sins because He did it for me. It means I don’t have to earn my way to heaven by my good deeds because He did it. All I had to do was believe He did it for me. And I believe He did it for me. God gives me as a free gift everlasting life.

And I get to go to heaven on what Christ did. Look in John chapter 5 and verse 24 In verse 24 says verily verily. I mean it’s truthfully, truthfully God cannot lie. I Say unto you He that heareth my word and believe it on him that sent me Hat everlasting life. That’s present to me right now. Hat everlasting life and get this in the future nature shall not come in the future into condemnation. Means that if I trust Christ as my Savior today right now, it means that I have everlasting life.

And in the future I can never be condemned. That’s pretty good. That’s what makes it good news. See, it’s not good news to go around the world telling people that, you know, you’ve got to straighten up and fly right. You’ve got to walk out straight and narrow path. You’ll have to endure till the end if you want to get to heaven. You got to keep the 10 commandments to go to heaven. All that shows him and he can’t do it.

And I always tell people you can’t do it. And then I try to let them know, look, let me tell you some good news. The good news is that Christ died for you. He paid for your sins. Will you trust him as your Savior? Will you trust him to take you to heaven whenever you die? And God said he would give you as a free gift ever lasting life. Look there in John chapter six. John chapter six verse 47 says, Verily, verily, I say to you, he that believeth on me hath, present in half what?

Right now, hath everlasting life. See the good news is that when you trust Christ, he gives you everlasting life. Oh, look what he says in verse 37. In verse 37, same chapter. He says, and verse 37, all that the Father giveth me shall come to me, Him that come up to me, I will in no wise cast out God said, I’ll never cast you out. I’ll never lose you. He won’t cast me out. He’ll know. Well, unless you send again, did it say that?

It didn’t say why? Why do people want to add to what? He didn’t say that. I’ll never cast you out. I’ll never lose you unless I send again. Don’t say that. People can’t believe God really means what He says. It just blows their mind. That’s too easy. It’s too easy. It ought to be easy, Dunder. He said, preach the gospel to every creature. Then it must be easy to understand. It’s easy. But the devil makes it so difficult and hard.

And so there’s some kind of preacher’s thing that they have to really help God out. We’ve got to have these people really mean business. God’s the one that meant business. There’s nothing you have to stop. There’s nothing you have to do. There’s nothing you have to promise. It’s so important to get this. Now look at one more verse with me right here in John 10. John 10 verse 28 makes this statement. And I charge them. No. And I give unto them temporary life.

What kind of life? Eternal life. What if it’s eternal life? I want to how long that lasts. Isn’t that a difficult question? How long? That’s like asking somebody, when was the war of 1812? Or here’s another hard question for you. Who’s buried grants tomb? Some people can’t figure this stuff out. This is difficult. I know that. And I give unto them eternal life. And they shall what? Never perish. That means today, tomorrow, I can never go to hell. Never, never, never.

Never. Best news in all the world. You know when he makes a statement here, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. Let me show you a simple little illustration. Here’s me. Here’s God. I want to go to heaven when I die. So I go to church. I go to the front. I pray, beg, hang, let go. Get a grip, grip on God. Tip the Lord of Quarter when they are from plate came by. I’m ready to go.

I’m good to go. And then when I do something wrong. Uh-oh, I’m slipping away. Slipping. I’m lost. Now I gotta get saved again. Go back, back, back, go. Get saved again. And as long as I’m doing fine, where you going? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m going to heaven. Now I’m going to hell. Now I got to get saved again. Where you going, Yankee? Heaven? Where you going? Not hell. Got to get saved again. That’s not the Bible. Because, see, God says, if I trust Him, He will save me.

See any difference? He said, He won’t cast me up. He said, He won’t lose me. He says, He gives me eternal life, and no man can pluck you out of His hands. You see, I’m trusting Him, God, who can’t lie, to take me to heaven. And He said, if I would, He would. So I did, and He will. So by going to heaven, it’s about what Christ said and what Christ is doing. He is my Savior, not me. It has nothing to do with me.

Nothing, zero, how I live never affects the Word of God. Now yes, as a child of God, it is the will of God that I as his child serve him. But I do not serve God to go to heaven. I am not here this morning. I am not preaching this morning so that I can finally make it to heaven. I’m going to heaven because 50 years ago in a little-low living room. I wasn’t in a church. The man was not a preacher, but he simply opened up the Bible and explained John 3.16 to me.

And setting there that night, I understood all that I had to do, all that I could do was accept Christ as my Savior and He would save me and give me eternal life. And I’d go to heaven whenever I died. If He gave me eternal life 50 years ago, would I still have it today? And will I have it 100 years from now? I have eternal life. I’m going to heaven when I… But does that mean just because you’re going to heaven, you probably lived a very wicked life.

I live more wicked before I trust the Lord. I guarantee you that. But since I’ve trusted Christ as my Savior and I’m God’s child, I believe that as a child of God, I should serve the Lord, but not to get to heaven. None of my service gets me to heaven. None of my service to the Lord for 50 years helps me secure me in any way. There indeed mean nothing like that. But I serve the Lord because I want to, because I love him.

I love the Lord, and I know he loves me. You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you were blessed by today’s message. Part 2 of this teaching will conclude with tomorrow’s broadcast. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, you can reach Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing toll-free 1-800-576-3771. That’s 1-800-576-3771.

To listen to today’s message again or to obtain a free download of any of our Bibleline programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the radio broadcast link. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10-30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by clicking on the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org.

Thanks for joining us on Bibleline, and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound, and we will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon, and just keep looking up.