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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, 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 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.

Then when you get your Bible, turn it to the book of John, John, the Gospel of John, chapter 10. I was 18 years old when I heard the Word, when I heard the voice of God, speaking through His Word right to little O’Yankee. I heard what He said, and He said, if I would believe I would have eternal life. So I believed it, guess That’s what I got. Eternal life. Eternal life. There’s a person of Scripture found here in the book of John chapter 10, and I want you to look at this verse in verse 27.

Verse 27, in verse 27, my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish. shall any man pluck them out of my hand. So the Bible says, my sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give unto them eternal life. So whenever you first read that, you might come up with the idea that if I follow him, he will give me eternal life because isn’t that what it says in verse 27, and they follow me, not may follow me, might follow me.

It seems like it, they will follow me. You say, well, okay, I trust the Christ is my Savior, but I’m not following the Lord. So it means you must not have eternal life. Not exactly. But this verse is used by many in the lordship salvationist camp, those that are Calvinists to prove that that you have to persevere in the faith. And by persevering means you have to not only start following, you have to keep following and when it’s all over with, you followed.

And I give them eternal life. Well, it sure looks like that’s what it says. And that’s enough to scare you to death. So is this verse a verse of security or a verse that can cause you to doubt your own salvation. Well, it depends on your perspective. You need to find out also who is he talking to and what it’s really talking about and study the context a little bit might help. So I want you to look there at the top of your page.

Now, but look at the first statement there, why those who teach Lordship Salvation love this verse. It appears from this verse that eternal life is given to those who follow, meaning that their quality of life becomes their guarantee of being a true believer. You know, if you’re really saved, you’re going to follow the Lord. So this is why you can go to some churches and they’ll say things like this. Well, I know that person is saved because and then they’ll say other things like, well, I know that person can’t be a Christian because.

So the reason they’re determining who is a Christian or who is not is based upon what they see. They’re looking at what they call evidences. And these evidences are supposed to let you know the truth. So if you don’t have the evidences in your life, then you must not be genuine. So it causes people to question and doubt other people’s salvation. And it also causes people to doubt their own salvation. I had a person tell me, says, there’s no way that Hitler could ever go to heaven.

Look how bad he was. Well, if Hitler couldn’t go to heaven, neither can you. If he couldn’t go to heaven, you can’t either. Because, you see, God’s eyes, there is no difference. For all have sinned. His righteousness is unto all but only upon those that believe. Wouldn’t you totally be surprised that when you got to heaven, there he was. You see, that can’t happen. Yes, it can. there’s never been anyone who has lived a life good enough to go to heaven.

The best living person you know, because how good they are, doesn’t mean they got a better chance. No, the ones that get into heaven are those who trust Christ as they’re only hope of going to heaven and those that don’t don’t get to go to heaven. That’s a plain way to put it but that’s not the way it is. Because if he can’t make it. You can’t make it either. We’re all sinful. We’re all wicked. Now according to this verse now look at number one the problem.

Look at the problem. Those who believe that a person may have the gift of eternal life by believing on the name of the Son of God by grace through faith plus nothing might have a problem in John 10, 27, and 28 would they? Because here’s the potential problems that you could have. Let her A, well I know as long as I’m following, okay as long as I follow, then I can know that I’m saved. As long as I’m doing the right thing.

Will I know only at the end of life when I have finished following? In other words, if I have to follow in order to get eternal life, does that mean that I have to live my life and then I get eternal life? Or do I get it in advance but it’s on a probationary only if I keep making these installments, these payments by following. And I’ll have it as long as I keep doing right, but if I stop doing right and stop following the Lord, then there goes my salvation.

There goes my eternal life. Because at the end of He says, and I give them to them eternal life, and no man can pluck them out of my hand. Let her see. If I don’t follow, then am I not still saved? If I don’t followed does that mean I was never saved. So there’s people who have a serious problem with this verse but believe it or not many common terries that you can read on just about anybody. Many times the difficult passages they don’t touch and sometimes I think maybe they don’t understand it and so they don’t explain it.

Well it can cause questions in different opinions I guess but I do believe that context means everything and we’re going to look at that. Now understand this. In this chapter, it’s talking about the shepherd and sheep. And here’s some stories about the shepherd and sheep. When you go all the way back to the Old Testament, the book of Psalms, in chapter 22, you’ll find that it’s talking about the shepherd. Chapter 23 is talking about the shepherd. And chapter 24 is talking about the shepherd.

So you have three Old Testament Psalms right in the row that talk about the shepherd. Psalms 22 talks about Mount Calvary and the good shepherd that gave his life for the sheep. That’s what you have here in John chapter 10. The good shepherd given his life for the sheep. Now in chapter 23 of Psalms it talks about another shepherd called the great shepherd and the great shepherd is mentioned in the book of Hebrews and it’s talking about the life that you and I live and how this great shepherd leads us and guides us in the fear not and be not afraid for I will not leave you and I will not forsake you,” and all that in the book of Hebrews in chapter 13, but it’s talking about Psalms 23.

So you see in Psalms 22, it’s about Mount Calvary and Christ dying on the cross and giving his life and he was pierced in his hands and his feet so that those that believe on him would have eternal life. And it mentions that in Psalms 22. Psalms 23 is a little bit different because you see it’s yay though I walk to the valley. So that means if this is a mountain, Mount Calvary, and this is a valley, chapter 24 is talking about I will set my king upon his holy hill of Zion.

Mount Zion is talking about chapter 24, the king of glory, the king of glory. That one day he’s going to come as the king of glory. So you have a picture of the good shepherd who gives his life. The great shepherd who leads and guides our life. And one day the chief shepherd, found in the book of 1 Peter in chapter 5, the chief shepherd shall appear. And he’s going to literally set up his kingdom upon the earth. So you and I are blessed to have a good shepherd.

So whenever you read the 23rd Psalm, Yay, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, thou art what? With me. The Lord is my shepherd. He is with me. He leadeth me beside the still water. He’s with me. He supplies the table before me in the presence of my enemies. So I don’t have to worry. He had known it’s my head. He’s present with us. See, he came to do a job.

He is doing a job and he’s gonna do a job. But this is the story about the shepherd. So he says, my sheep hear my voice. And they follow me and I give it to them everlasting life. So there’s times when the voice says different things. I heard my mother’s voice at times and it would be real nice and sweet and pleasant. Yankee come and eat. And then there was other times, Yankee, where are you? It meant something totally different.

Or when I cut off the dog’s tail. You ought to hurt her voice at that time. So the Lord says a lot of things. This is the word of God. So the word of God has been given to us. Look at the next statement. Some propose that those who believe will follow the Lord and have eternal life. And they further propose that if someone does not follow the Lord, then they perhaps never did, really believe. Using these two verses, these folks say that Jesus had some sheep that he knows and his sheep follow him and after that they have eternal life.

Is this passage really a cause for Christians to question their salvation rather than firm ground on which he might understand his security in Christ which comes first following or eternal life? What it looks according to this verse here it says you got to follow and then he says and I give unto them eternal life. Well understand there’s a story hear about a shepherd and the sheep. He also had a mixed audience. There was people here that did not believe that he was who he claimed to be.

So there rose some confusion. But just so that you know, it doesn’t always mean the same thing when you hear the voice. It all depends on what did the voice say. There’s different things in the Word of God that tells us to do certain things. When it comes to salvation, God will tell you certain things. And then it comes to service, God will tell you something else. So I can follow what His voice said to do here, and I can follow what His voice says to do here.

And I can reject His voice. I can reject the word of God. So look at number two. To whom was Jesus speaking? chapter 2 and verse 3, it tells us over and over again, he that hath ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit said unto the churches. That scripture is found. So in each one of those, it said something different. It wasn’t always the same thing. So whenever you say you’ve got to follow the Lord, okay, where is he going?

Do you see him? When’s the last time you saw How far did he lead you? Did he stop? How do you know you’re really following as closely as you ought to? How do you know when you’ve followed and now I’m not following it but I did follow but I’m no longer following. You know you can get confused. Sometimes in church I like to confuse people and then try to straighten it out before I get through them. Sometimes I succeed in both of them.

confusing and straightening out. But now notice here in this verse, let her be there, there were Jews of several opinions regarding Jesus and His message. So take your Bible, John chapter 10, and look at this verse. Look in verse 19, verse 19, where it says, there was a division therefore among the Jews for these many of them said He hath the devil, and He’s mad. Why? And here’s that word. Here, ye Him. Why? Hear ye Him. Verse 21, others said, these are not the, on the line that word, words.

Of him that hath the devil. Can the devil open the eyes of the blind? So did you hear what he said? Did you understand the words that he said? Remember he’s talking about the voice. The voice. He’s talking about a voice. So look there in chapter 10 in verse 2. John chapter 10 verse 2. Now notice what he says and notice the words where he says, hear my voice or his voice. In verse two, but he that entered the end by the door is the shepherd of the sheep, to him the porter openeth and the sheep hear his voice.

He called it his own sheep by name and leadeth them out. And when he put forth his own sheep he goeth before them and they follow him, they follow him, his sheep follow him, they know his voice. In verse five the voice of a stranger, they know not the voice of a stranger. So you’ll find that in the context it’s talking about a voice. And the voice of a shepherd that the sheep will hear and they will follow his voice.

So they’ll go out and they’ll come in and they follow his voice. Now he’s using this as a teaching. He’s not really a shepherd. We’re not really sheep. I mean when I look at you this morning, you’re not really a sheep. You may act like a sheep, but you’re really a human individual. I’ve noticed when I was in Israel that there was always a few goats among the sheep and we might even have a few old goats here. I don’t know.

But look at the next statement in your notes there. There’s a little statement above number two where it says John MacArthur says the fruit of one’s life matters. If you are not following you You are not saved. Now that’s what he says, but that’s not what the word of God says. Now you can listen to his voice and follow his teaching and believe it. Or you can follow the Lord’s voice and hear it and believe it. So you got a choice.

So as it says in the bottom of this page here, some dismissed him as demon possessed and crazy. were persuaded by His good and miraculous works that He was good. Some blamed Him for making them to doubt as though He did not explain Himself clearly that He really was the Messiah. And He should have done that. So the top of the page there, you’ll notice on top of page 2, to these He replied that He had already in the past told them plainly who He was, and Yet they believed not, they did not believe.

Look there in verse 24. Verse 24, then came the Jews round about Him in your scriptures and said unto Him, how long does Thou make us to doubt? If Thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believe not, you did not believe. This is why they’re not his sheep because they did not believe. Well, how did some get to be a sheep because they did believe? They heard what the voice said and believed because that’s what the voice said to do.

That was the word of God. So the word of God is the voice of God and we often refer to the Bible as the word of God. So if I want to know how to get to heaven, I need to hear the word and follow the word. Follow what it says. Did the Word tell me what to do in order to be saved? Well, I believe that it does. Now, I want you to take your Bible and look at this verse.

It’s over in the book of Mark. If a man must follow meaning by quality of life, a change in your life that gives signs or evidence that you’re really one of his sheep, Well, there’s a problem with this verse in Mark chapter five. Look in verse 37. And it says here in verse 37, and he suffered no memory, he permitted no man to follow him, say Peter and James and John, the brother of James. So that means that you have to follow the Lord in order to go to heaven and live a certain way he just commended, nobody could follow him, but these three, so these are only three people that got saved.

Now would you think that I was taking the verse out of context? I’m taking the verse out of context because you know and I know that there’s more than three people that gets to go to heaven. And this is not what he’s talking about. So you’ve got to find out what does the context say? What’s he talking about? So evidently it’s got to have another meaning. So just to kind of let you know that you can find verses that say whatever you want it to say, but it doesn’t mean that’s what God meant it.

So you have to study the scriptures. So now I want you to take your Bible and turn to the Gospel of John, the Gospel of John chapter one. Gospel of John and chapter one. We know that there’s God and there’s God the Son. And you’ll notice that in John chapter one verse one in the beginning was the what? The word. Now let’s appear. At the end of this book, he says these things are written that you’re not in the end of this book.

you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and that by believing, you may have life through his name. By believing, you may have life through his name. So by believing, you have eternal life. So evidently the following in that verse and believing has to mean exactly the same thing. It means you heard his voice and you followed what the voice said. What did the voice tell you to do? believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you would have eternal life.

And that’s how you become a sheep, one of God’s sheep. Is did you or did you not? Here’s what he said. Did you follow the voice? What did he say to do to become his child? So you look here in John chapter one, in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. The same was in the beginning with God and then he makes a statement here about him being the word. See there in verse 14, the word, the voice was made flesh.

He was the voice of God. He came into this world and revealed the invisible God, God in the flesh. Remember what they did when they asked John the Baptist, who are you? Are you one of those, the prophets? Or Isaiah or Jeremiah? Or what are you? He said, I’m just the voice of one crying in the wilderness. See there, when it makes that statement in verse 23, see there in verse 23? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness.

Now, whenever you study, you look at the context, and if you study the context of chapter 10, you get an understanding about it, it means for a sheep and a shepherd. Then he’s talking about, I’m the shepherd, and I want you to hear my voice. Follow what I’m saying. did you hear what I said? I had my mother one time, she told me she told me to do something and I did not move. And then she said it like this, did you hear me?

Well why would she say that? Do you think she really meant that I really hear her? Or because I didn’t do what the boy said do? I evidently must not have heard her because she knew that if I I would have done it. Mother made a great mistake. No, I was just sometimes rebellious. But anyway, you don’t always listen to what the voice said to. Here’s the invisible God. He comes into this world. He’s the voice of God. And he says, if any man here, what I have to say, listen to what I’m saying and to believe it.

You can have as a free gift ever lasting life to the best news in all the world. Now, also once you take your Bible and look there in chapter 1 and look in verse 11. And verse 11 says, He came into His own, His own received Him not, but His men has received Him to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name. Here, over and over in this book, you receive the gift of eternal life, you become His child born into His family just by believing.

If that’s all you have to, You can’t change it later. You can’t change it later to something else. So when he’s talking about you receiving this gift of eternal life, that’s the best news in all the world. Now he had words that he had to say to a guy like Nicodemus because it says in a ruler of the Jews, came to Jesus by night, said to him, and asked, right, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou do, say, God be with him.

And Jesus, I’m so impressed. You’re good to go. No, he says, you must be born again. And I believe John 3 16 was his explanation on how to have this new birth, John 3 16. Now look there in chapter 4 and look in verse 41. Now we know the story that happens here in chapter 4 because it’s talking about a woman at the well and he simply told her he says, if thou knewest the gift of God and who it is that sent and they’d give me the drink.

That would have asked of him and he would have given the living water.” She was listening to what he said. She says, evermore, give me this water. Give me this water. She heard what he said. She believed what he said. She says, give me this water. Anyway, she goes and runs into the city and she tells all the men. I don’t know why she didn’t tell the women, but she told the men, and the men came running. And says down here in verse 41, many more believed because of his own and you ought to underline that word.

They heard the word. They heard what he said and believed it. And you become a sheep because you heard the word. Now some people here, but don’t believe it. He says, you’re not my sheep. my sheep if you hear my word and you obey what my word told you to do. My word says, believe on me. Trust me, accept me. And those that did were saved and those that did not, did not. Look in verse 42. And said unto the woman, now we believe, not because of by saying what she said, for we have heard, heard him ourselves and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.

So they they heard him themselves and believed. So the gospel of John is the context where you find John chapter 10. So when you want to understand something you just spend a little bit and you want to better understand expand a little bit more. You want to understand John even more? We’ll explain some more. Go into all the other books. You want to understand the book of the New Testament better just expand it into the Old Testament. And by the time you get through, you know the whole book, you’ll have a pretty good idea of the context of what God’s talking about.

And it will make sense and it cannot contradict itself. Take a Bible looking John chapter 5. John chapter 5 and looking verse 24, verse 24, barely, verily, I say unto you, He that goes to Calvary Community Church gives 50%. I wish it said that, that it doesn’t say that. He that gets this, here is my word, my word and believe it. Here is my word and believe. So the word has to be something that they had to understand. They had to understand what they were to believe.

So there’s a message there in the Gospel. So we explain the gospel and if you believe it, you followed the voice. You did what the word says do and you have as a free gift everlasting. Look what he says in verse 25, Verily, Verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming and now is when the dead shall hear his voice. And this is talking about something else. Done in verse 28, marvel not that this hour for this, for the hours coming in which all that are in the grave shall hear his voice.

But see, they’re all going to be resurrected. But see, there’ll be about a thousand years different between these two resurrects, but it’s going to happen. But it’s talking about a resurrection here. It’s not talking about the same thing as talking in chapter 10. So you have to hear the voice. You’ve been listening to another great lesson from Pastor Arnold, and we hope that you’re growing in the knowledge of the Lord through this ministry to help you continue your growth and maturing we are going to give those who make a financial donation in any amount.

the DVD teaching series, How to Witness to a Jewish Person. You know, most Christians think Jews really know the Old Testament, but in reality, most know very little. Though most are familiar with some terms of the Bible, very few know any details about how Abraham, their patriarch, was saved. Most have never read Isaiah 53 and have no idea it’s all about Jesus. So for this month only, for a donation in any amount, we’ll send you this DVD teaching series on how to witness to the Jew.

Our mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And don’t forget to include your mailing address as well. God bless you and thank you again for supporting Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4011 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. 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, just keep looking up.