This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.

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.

You have some notes in front of you that goes along with the note that I gave you last Sunday. But it deals with the subject of Lordship Salvation. Whether or not there will be a change in a believer’s life depends upon that Christian’s choice. There is a battle raging within and he must fight and win it in the strength of the Lord. Yes, it is the will of God that everyone who knows Christ’s Savior served the Lord. But you have a choice.

Salvation was a choice. No one made you trust the Lord, and no one can make you serve the Lord. But it doesn’t mean just because you don’t serve Him that you’re not saved. You’re saved by grace without any commitment to Christ, without making Him the Lord and the Master of your life. There are people that do not agree with that. I would say probably 90% of all the churches in America teach that you must make Christ the Lord and Master of your life in some way or other in order to be saved, or to prove that you’re saved.

So anyway, I want you to take your Bible and turn to 2 Peter, 2 Peter in chapter two. There’s a man that everyone has heard about, his name’s called Lot. He was an nephew of Uncle Abraham, and he made some bad decisions for his life. Made some bad decisions for his wife, made some bad decisions for his kids. And while he was in a place of Sodom, he made some bad decisions there. I guess the guy just made a whole bunch of bad decisions.

Well, there was a price to pay. But would you believe that God considered a lot a just man? He wasn’t just because of the way he lived, not because of what he believed. See, I am a just man, just in the sense that I have been justified freely by his grace because of the payment Jesus Christ made on the cross for me. So I have been justified. You may not live like you have been justified. You may not live like all of your sins have been paid.

And as she sung in the song, wash wider than snow. I have been washed wider than snow. The snow’s pretty white. I lived in Colorado. And if you didn’t watch it, when the sun hits the snow and you’re out there hunting and you walk and then walking, you can get sun blindness. That’s why you can hardly see, cause it’s bright. But you talk about being made wider than snow. It’s not because you lived like you’re wider than snow. You may not have changed much in your life, but that doesn’t mean that you’re not in the eyes of God, may wider than snow, because of the blood of Jesus Christ that was applied to you.

You have been cleansed as though you never committed a sin. That’s hard to understand, but it’s still the truth. So here in the book of Second Peter chapter two, look in verse six. Verse six says, turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them with an overthrow, making them an example under those that after should live ungodly. So do people live ungodly? Yes. In other words, he’s talking about the lost people living ungodly, and so he was gonna judge the place.

So even though, for example, people in America, can people live ungodly? Yes. Does that mean that they get to escape the judgment of God because they’re not God’s children? God is still going to judge America and judge ungodliness regardless of who does it? Saved or lost. But he makes the statement in verse 7, and he delivered just lot. Now just lot doesn’t mean he’s the only one, no, because his daughters came out and his wife came out later on she turned into a pillar of salt.

And then that was the end of that. But he delivered just a lot vexed with the filthy behavior of the wicked. For that righteous man, that righteous man dwelling among them in seeing and hearing vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds. What he saw, what he heard, where he was, he shouldn’t have been there. And he was a righteous man. I am a righteous man. If you trust the Christ as your Savior, God says you are righteous.

You have been declared righteous, not because of any good deeds that you’ve done. See, a lot of people think that you’re righteous if you live righteous and you’re just if you live just, but that’s not what the Bible teaches. You see, you may be a righteous man in the sense that you have trusted Christ as your Savior. It’s the will of God that his children live like they have been declared righteous. You’re a child of God, you should live like a child of God.

You should talk like a child of God. You should walk like a child of God. You should think like a child of God. Why? Because you’re a child of God. It’s how God sees you. But you still live in this world, in that old body, he didn’t change that. He washed your soul as white as snow. He saved you, made you righteous. you still live in that sinful body, and so you still can do all those things that are wrong.

But God has forgiven us of all sins. So the penalty payment of sin is death and hell. We’ve been cleared of that, declared righteous. We are free. Exscape it. So it’s important to keep it in mind. Look at where I had the next paragraph, the second paragraph. You You must keep salvation and service separate. If you don’t, you will be very confusing to the loss when you attempt to witness to them. It is also very confusing for a Christian to witness when he doesn’t know for sure if his own life measures up to this high standard of self-righteousness.

If you believe that after you’re saved, you will live a righteous life, a cling life, a godly life, and then you don’t. You have every reason then to question or doubt your salvation. But see, that’s not what God said. That’s what people say. That’s what preachers say when they want the people to live right so they put them in fear. Make you afraid that if you don’t live like you’re supposed to, that’s a sign you’re not really saved. You didn’t really mean business.

Salvation is not mean meaning business. Salvation is God meaning business. He said that if I trust Him, He would save me. So am I going to heaven depends on him, not me.” So the third statement, a Christian of course should serve the Lord, but he is still a Christian if he does not serve the Lord. Salvation is free, always remember that. It can never be any other way. No man can ever live good enough to save himself. Stand strong for the gospel of grace.

change the message just because somebody lives wrong. Don’t doubt the message just because you don’t live right. But it’s sometimes very hard for people to share the gospel with somebody when they believe they have to live according to some high standard and then no they don’t. So then they feel like a hypocrite. When I talk to a lost man, I’m not talking to him about how good I am. I want them to know how good God is. I want them to know what Christ said, what Christ did.

It’s a lot easier if I was to have a life that backed up what I’m saying. So you don’t want to be or have things in your life that would cause a lost person not to listen to you. So therefore you have to discipline yourself, but you do that because you care about them. You don’t want other people to spend an eternity separated from the Lord. So it’s very, very important. Look at Lordship salvation, it contradicts Scripture. That’s one of the reasons why you don’t believe it.

Why? Because it contradicts Scripture. Scripture cannot contradict itself. Therefore, if it contradicts the Scripture, it can’t be true. This reason should settle the matter completely. If a doctrine is contrary to what God says, then it should be discarded immediately. Because if God says that a man is saved by grace, that alone has nothing to do with his life, nothing to do with how he lives. But that God demonstrated his love for an individual paying for all of his sins and all that you and I I had to do was believe it.

Now, if that is the truth, then what right does any preacher or any church have for changing that, adding something to that? They have no authority. Even though we want everyone who trusts Christ as Savior to serve the Lord, but you don’t change the gospel message, salvation is one thing, service is another, and never the the two goes together because no man is saved because he serves. And no man has to serve because he is saved. Gotta keep them separate.

And if you don’t do it, the scriptures will be confusing to you. You’ll not rightly divide what God has to say. The next statement, number two, I want you to see there. Number two, it causes confusion and frustration to the unbeliever because it leaves the impression that salvation is by works. Therefore the lost person often puts off accepting Christ until he is ready to turn his entire life over to the Lord. Have you ever seen some people, maybe talk to them?

And they say, well, I’m not ready to get saved. I’m not ready yet. Whatilings me, how do you get ready? If I know that going to heaven is free, what’s the problem? Because in their mind, based upon what somebody has said, They gotta change their life. And if they don’t change their life, then God ain’t gonna save them. And so they’re not ready to change their life. Maybe they tried and they failed. Some people tell you that if you smoke, you go to hell.

No, you might smoke when you get there. Every man dies. It’s just whether you go to the smoking section or the non-smoking section. That’s pretty good. So everybody is going to die. And the question is, is where are you going when you die? And so when you add works of the message, you confuse the message and people are not sure what they have to do in order to be saved. So do you have to turn your life over to the Lord and promise to serve in order to be saved?

No, you do not understand that. Number three, the message can not save. Why can’t it save? Because God says you’re saved by Christ. If you’re saved by your works, your works isn’t Christ. You’re only saved by Christ. There is no other way to be saved. No man has ever lived good enough to save himself by the way he lives. So why should a person think that they’re going to heaven because they live a good life? Because they go to church, because they sing in the choir, because they take up the offer, because it has nothing to do with your works.

It’s a gift. It’s free. We go to heaven because of what he did, not because of what we did. You say, well after you’re saved, you should. I’m, yeah, you should, but do you have to? No. Your eternal destination can never depend upon what you do. Before, during, or after, never. Keep it clear. I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Romans in chapter 11. Romans and chapter 11.

There’s a verse there that I think you might like. I like the verse an awful lot. And the reason is because it’s so simple. It is so clear in Romans chapter 11 and verse six, it makes this statement. And if by grace, then is it no more? No more. It’s not a word, but it’s no more of a word. No more. It didn’t save me, and no more words. Do you see what he’s saying? You’re not saved by your works.

It’s no more of works because it’s only by grace. It’s not saved by works today. You’re not saved by works tomorrow. If you’re not saved by your work, then it is no more of works. Otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace. Otherwise, work is no more work. So if you’re trying to save yourself by your works, you can’t have it. That’s why it’s a message that cannot save. God can only save a man by grace, by giving it to you.

He can’t save you because you earn it. You deserved it. save you because you earn it. You deserved it. Then it wouldn’t be free. And God says, you cannot earn eternal life. You’ll never be good enough. Now look at the verse right before this. In verse 5 it says this. So then, even so then at this present time, because he referred to in the Old Testament, but at this present time, he says, there also is a remnant according to the election of grace.

Election deals with choice, choosing. God chose to save a person by grace. Then he says they’re in verse 6. And if by grace it cannot be by works. So in the Old Testament no man has ever saved by his works. Then, now, at this present time, there is no way that a man has ever or ever will save himself because he made Christ the Lord and the master of his life. That is heresy. You say, who teaches something like that?

Now multitude of independent, fundamental, Bible-leaving, missionary-minded Baptist churches, and I’m not lying to you, I’m telling you the truth. And many are ignorant of what they’re saying, but many are not. You are saved by grace. You see, whenever you believe that people have to turn from their sins, stop being bad, that’s what it means. Make Christ the Lord and Master of your life means to start being good. So if you believe that and you want people to stop the bad things, then you have to preach a sermon on how bad you are.

And make you feel sorry for all those bad things you did. And try to get you to see you need to change your ways. Men’s your way straighten out and fly right. So I’ve got to get you to feel sorry and weep and well and tell you things so I can get you to break down and cry. So when I had you stand and sing 15 verses of just as I am, I can get you to come down here to the front and pray through.

So you’ll hang on and let go and let God. But I have to do all of that. So He called I got to get you to confess before man. So you can be saved. What if it’s not true? It’s not. Right where you’re sitting. Right where you’re sitting. You can trust Christ as Savior and God will save and give eternal life and you don’t have to stand up walking now sign a card You don’t have to raise your hand God will save whosoever believes You believe that he died and paid for your sin God will save you and give you eternal life You will not find a forward invitation in the scriptures Go find it.

I I heard a preacher say, every person God called, He called them publicly. Oh yeah, Nicodemus came by night. The woman at the well was all by herself. See, that’s a lie. That’s not truth. That’s because you want to manipulate people and get them to do what you want because I’ll look good if I can show you how many decisions were made. I believe if you had 200 people in the church service, 200 people made decisions. I’ve only got 10, 10 people made decisions.

I believe every time I preach, I’m seeking individuals to make a decision about something in their life. And you’re making decisions. Every time you hear the word of God, you’re going to decide either to obey it or disobey it. I don’t want to chalk up numbers so I can say, look, I’m going to make decisions. I must really do my job. I would rather have the quiet discipline changes in a person’s life instead of the glory and all the excitement and stuff, the emotional upheaval.

Because isn’t it something you’re supposed to be able to think about whether this is right or whether this is wrong and you do it? because of the heat of the moment, because you can logically think, I’m God’s child. I’m going to heaven, and I haven’t been serving the Lord, and I should. And therefore you make silent changes that nobody else maybe knows about, because God can deal with you. I have to believe that I have to believe that the Holy Spirit that indwells everyone of his children will speak to his children through the Word for changes to be made in a person.

life. I want every person who knows Christ’s Savior to submit his body as a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God. And I would like to see God’s people not conform to the world, but be transformed by the hearing of the Word of God and that making good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Those are things that you do. I see small increments of growth in individuals, Not overnight changes and everything’s changed. Most of us grew spiritually, little by little.

Here a little light, there a little light. Line up on line, precept upon precept. Here a little there, little. And you grew and you got stronger and stronger and stronger. Did you go from childhood straight to manhood? They don’t work that away. The next statement I want you to see is there at number four. This message is cursed of God. Take your Bible and turn to Galatians in chapter one. Galatians and chapter one. Galatians chapter one in looking verse six.

In verse six he makes a statement, I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel, which is not another. But there be some that trust. you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we are an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you, then that which we have preached unto you, let him be a curse. The message is cursed and the preacher that preaches the message is preaching and a cursed message.

And that’s why Paul later on says, I would they were even cut off which trouble you. Because the message is salvation by grace. That’s what makes it good news. And yet there’s some people that will add all this other junk to it and telling people that you have to turn from your sins to be saved. Go into any church you want to, hit their track rack and look on the back of it and see what you have to do to be saved.

Look what the prayer is and it’ll tell you an awful lot. And a lot and they might give the Gospel clear. And all of a sudden at the end of this is what you have to do. You’ll have to repent of your sins, make Christ the Lord of the Master of your life, and go to church and do all this. It’s all mixed together. Is that what you have to do? No. Only believe. Only believe. And it’s so simple you would think, well, everybody can get this.

It’s like a little child with a piece of candy. candy, it’s free. Do I have to promise it? No, no, no, no, no. It’s free. It’s a gift. And that’s what God says. And He says in verse 9, as we said before, so say, now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you, then that you have received, let him be accursed. Salvation is a gift. When you add one work to the The Gospel of grace, it’s no longer grace.

The test of the gospel is grace. And it means it has to be free to be the gospel and it has to last forever in order to be the gospel. If anyone of those is missing, it’s not the gospel of Jesus Christ. It has to be free or it’s not the gospel. It has to be forever or it’s not the gospel. Number five, the message is cursed of God. A person who preaches such a message is also cursed of God.

It’s a strong statement. Look at the last line on the front page where it has sincerity is not a substitute for truth. You see, well, my preacher preaches and he’s just as sincere as you are. Okay, but sincerity is not a substitute for truth. You may go to the medicine cabinet to get those two aspirants for your headache. Well, if you got, oh, arsenic, oh, you’ll feel better for a long time. But you were sincere. It doesn’t matter. You’re still dead.

It’s like an atheist laying in the casket. All dressed up. No, where’d he go? Wouldn’t that be terrible? And there’s a lot of people who have no clue that, hey, it’s free. Turn your page over. I want you to see this. Number six, if salvation really does come to those who turn over their lives to Christ, then God has been wrong all the time. If you really do have to make Christ the Lord and the Master of your life, see the reason this is so important because it means that you have to be the servant.

He’s the master, you’re the servant. So they’re saying you have to serve the master. And that means how you live. And if you live good enough, you make it. Well, if that’s true, why did Christ die? If it’s true, then salvation can’t be the gift of God. If it’s true, it can’t be only believe. If it’s true, it can’t be he that believes in me, hath ever last tonight, that can’t be true. Then the whole Bible is wrong. You can’t trust any of it.

If what they’re saying is true, then we ought to take our Bibles and throw it in the trash can, then the Bible is no good. Or we can believe, according to Titus chapter 1, that God, who made all these precious promises, can’t lie. He can’t lie. That is what shows us His love for us has nothing to do with our love for Him. The law demands… Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, mind, body, soul, and strength.

And the second is like unto it thou shalt love thy neighbor. That’s law which no man has ever kept. It’s an impossibility. So the law was to lead us to Christ because the law cannot save us. If the law could save us, it wouldn’t have had to lead me to Christ that we might be justified by faith according to the Galatians in chapter 3. Look at number 7. Number seven, it causes even young preachers to follow successful pastors of large churches when they’re wrong.

Because all young preachers want to be successful. Well, how are those that are successful doing it? Well they tickle people’s ears. They tell them what they want to hear. They don’t have to preach against sin. Just make them feel good. Just tell you how wonderful you are. And give you a health and wealth philosophy. your social gospel. Just don’t preach the truth that makes people feel bad. You listen to the Bible preachers and they were not going around trying to make people feel good.

They told them truth. Truth. The truth of the gospel is divisive. It doesn’t make everybody feel good because it takes all of the people that are religious and lets them see you can’t save yourself by how good you are. You mean I’m as bad as he is? I didn’t rob no bank. I didn’t kill nobody. I’m not a sinner. You are a sinner. Everybody has sinned and come short of the glory of God. And every person that does not trust Christ in him alone is going to burn in hell.

Do you understand what I’m saying? Now I would love to say that lovingly. You’re going to go to hell and burn forever. I want to make you feel good. I don’t know how to do it. I try to warn people. I had somebody that says, well, you don’t trust Christ just for fire insurance. Because when I was 18 years old, when that man finished talking to me, I knew of what he said is true. I’m burning. So why did I trust Christ?

fire insurance. It wasn’t because I loved the Lord. It had no desire to change my life. It had nothing to do with that. If this is what I have to do to escape hell, I’m trusting Christ as my Savior. You just have the wrong motive. Pretty good for me. And so that’s why you don’t have people who understand why they need to be saved because they don’t know what they need to be saved from. You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tapp of Florida with Dr.

Ralph Arnold. We pray that you were blessed by today’s message. Part two 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 Bible and 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. 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. Friends, 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.