This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.

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.

The Bible tells us in the book of Corinthians Paul was concerned about those carnal Christians because there were those who were trying to teach things contrary, teaching of false Jesus and a false spirit and a false gospel. Those three things seemed to go together. He says, I fear less as Satan begal leave to his subtlety so your minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that’s in Christ. Having such a great message, we use great plainness of speech. We want people to know what we said.

In the book of 2nd Peter in chapter 1, if you’ll notice there in your notes, because we’re talking about things that every Christian should remember. So this morning is a or repetitious theological mucilage. See what does that mean? It means the more mud you throw in the wall, more is going to stick. And so we want to stir up your minds. Remember, we don’t always grow strong in the Lord learning something new, but using what we do know and staying strong in it.

Learning the principles of the truth of God’s Word and knowing those basic doctrines and in maintaining it for the rest of your life. 2 Peter 1 verse 15 says, Moreover, I will endeavor that you may be able after my deceased. No, I guess you know what that would mean. After my deceased. Do I need to go into the Hebrew in the Greek? Or I’ll just tell you, he’s gonna die. See there how simple that was? He’s gonna die. He says, but when I’m dead and I’m gone, I want you to remember what we told you because what we told you was not that we follow some cunningly devised fabled,” he says, because we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

We saw Him, we saw Him on the amount of transfiguration. We saw Him in His glory. He also saw Him in His humility, and He understood the difference that the Old Testament saints had difficulty explaining between the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow, he says, I saw him suffer, and I saw the glory. And so if you could just remember that, yes, he suffered, but it ain’t over yet. Yes, he came back from the dead, and he ascended into heaven because he can’t come back if he doesn’t go there, but he’s coming back.

The next statement, as he says here to have these things always in remembrance. As you study the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms, you’ll find out how that God’s kind of reminiscent a little bit, it seems, about Israel, and all that He did for them, but they soon forgot. They didn’t remember. So God does things in our life to help us to remember. And so He says in the next verse, the second Epistle, Beloved, right to you in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance.

So every once in a while it’s good to refresh your mind. Have you ever seen that little thing on a computer where if you did something you’ve got to hit refresh? Just refresh. Well sometimes you go to church you don’t learn anything new but you’re refreshed and to remembering the things that you’ve already studied. Now we know that the most important things that we should always remember I’m giving you four of them today. And that is that a man cannot, it’s impossible to save himself.

You should allow all you know that. No, no, no, let’s just look at it again. So take your Bible and turn to Matthew chapter 19, the book of Matthew and chapter 19. There’s a brief little story here that I want to show you. In chapter 19, you’ll notice there in verse 25 and 26. It says in verse 25, when his disciples heard it, They were exceedingly amazed and who then can be saved. Verse 26, But Jesus beheld them and said unto them, With men, this is impossible, But with God, all things are possible.

What was impossible? For a man to save himself. Now, if God comes out and tells you, Right off the bat, it’s impossible for a man to save himself. Why are so many people trying to save themselves? How are you trying to save yourself? Because if you’re trusting and depending upon your works to get you to heaven, it won’t work. Do you have to go to church to go to heaven? No. Do you have to give money to go to heaven?

No. Do you have to change your life? In any way to go to heaven? No. But anyway, I want you to see what he says here. He says, but with God, all things are possible. So there’s some things that are possible, some things that are not possible. It is impossible for a man to save himself. Now, get the story first. Look what he says in verse 16. And behold, one came unto him, good master. What good things shall I do that I may have eternal life?

So he asked a good question. He came to the right person. And I think Jesus will probably give him a pretty good answer. Well, if there’s something you must do and you must be good, only you got to do is just be perfect. See, there’s problem solved. Simple as was. But he showed him that he wasn’t perfect. He lists a few things from the do just from the law. And so Jesus said to him, why call a style me good?

There’s none good but one and that’s God. So Jesus was trying to get the God to say, look, either I’m God and that’s why I’m good. or I’m not good and I’m not God. He’s either one or the other. If he’s good, he’s God. Because the Bible says in Romans in chapter 3, there is none righteous, no light one. There’s none that doeth good, no light one. That’s why we often say here that good works when I get you to heaven because there is no good heaven.

There’s not even a bad heaven. You see, if you had a bad heaven, you had to be bad to get in it. If there’s a good heaven, you had to be good to get in it. But God has a perfect you’re not gonna be perfect to get in that one. How do you qualify? So trying to be good when there is no such place is a good heaven. There’s only a perfect heaven and you have to be perfect to get there.

The Bible is so clear, so simple. It’s not hard to understand. But because he wanted to know what do I have to do? What good thing? In verse 18 he said unto him, Jesus says, thou shalt do no murder, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, unto thy father thy mother, and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, the young man said unto him, all these things have I kept from my youth up.

What lack I yet? What made him think he lacked something yet? Because you see, you can put your confidence in those things that you do, but it doesn’t give you confidence of mine that I’m good enough, that never does. If you had to go to church and you went to church, how do you know you went to the right one? I know if you win enough times. If you had to give money, okay, now I’d open up another can of a war.

How much? Who to? Me? No, no. There’s nothing you can do to earn eternal life. You cannot work your way to heaven. But he goes through here and he shows him that the law cannot save you. He says, all these, I’ve done. What lack I get, verse 21, then said him, if thou will be perfect, go and sell the thou hath, give to the poor, thou shall have treasure in heaven, come and follow me. Oh, he just laid it all out there for him.

But he had much treasure and he was a rich man, and so he went away sorrowful. You see, he wanted to know what must I do. You see, the only thing you can do is trust Christ as Savior and he showed him that with the law and trying to keep the 10 commandments, you’re gonna fail. Because not just thou shalt not commit adultery. He also said later on chapter five, he said, if you so much as look upon a woman and lust after her in your heart, your guilty of adultery.

Christ could have threw that in there too. That’d have slotted him upside the head, wouldn’t it? So he says, it’s impossible for a man to save himself. Now I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Titus in chapter 3. Titus and chapter 3. Titus chapter 3 and look at this verse. Titus is in the New Testament. Remember the Thessalonians and the Timothees and the Titus, the teas are all together. In the book of Titus in chapter three, look what he says in verse five.

These are verses you need to underline in your Bible to refresh your mind so that you stay simple and you stay clear. There’s a lot of shisers on radio and television. They’re always trying to figure out a way to separate you from your money. If they’re not clear on the gospel, don’t you give them one red cent, not even a penny. Look at verse five. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.

Past tense. I’ve been saved, but not by any works of righteousness that I’ve ever done. I’m not going to heaven because I’ve tried to live good, because well I’m a preacher so I get extra brownie points for that. Well if you’re singing in the choir you’ll get brownie points for that. That’ll help. Well, I’m a deacon. You can’t earn it. It’s not by your worst. And no, people still can’t believe that because they still believe in the back of the mind.

Some people deserve to go to heaven. And a lot of people they say, well, they deserve to go to hell. Look in the mirror. So do you. You don’t deserve to go to heaven. You’ve never done anything good enough to go to heaven. If any of us get to heaven, it’s gonna be because we trust that in Jesus Christ and Him alone as our only hope of getting to heaven. And it’s not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy, he hath saved us.

Now look there in the book of Romans in chapter 11. Romans chapter 11, I know you have a photographic memory. You’ve memorized all these verses, but I would appreciate if you look at them anyway, it just makes me think you’re still awake. In Romans in chapter 11, look what he says in verse six. In verse six, this is important verse to remember. And if, if by grace then it is no more of words, otherwise grace is no more grace.

But if it be of works then it’s no more grace, otherwise work is no more work. So how simple that is. Look at the verse right before that. Look in verse 5. Even so then at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. means God chose to save a person by grace, not by works. God will save everyone who will believe on Jesus Christ, but He will not save anyone who tries to save themselves because it’s impossible.

God cannot save anybody who is trying to earn their way to heaven. He can’t do it. Why? Because He can only save you by grace. Because if He saved you by your works, you have to wear off the glory, but not before God. So that’s why I want you to see two of my favorite verses in the Bible. You say, well, hey, Ephesians 2, 8, and 9. Turn in your Bible to the book of Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 8 and 9.

I have seen these two verses literally take the starch out of a lot of people, especially when I was a young graduate of Florida Bible College and I had gone to Minnesota and I was in a room with three of these these loggers who were dead set on riding me out of town on a rail, and they had meant to do me harm. And that’s not a lie. I just didn’t know it at the time. And so they all come running up to me and hollering and yelling and screaming in my face.

And I said, stop. Give me 10 minutes to explain the gospel and you can say or do anything you want to I had no clue how serious they were about doing me harm and that they were. They went and one guy said to them, the couch and the other one, when he gets the wall over there and the other one went over there on the other wall. And after I went through the gospel as clear as I knew how to make it.

That 10 minutes passed just like that. I wish it were longer but finally the guy said on the couch, he looked at me and he says, are you through? Yes, I am. He says, can you show me that in the Bible? I had quoted Ephesians 2 8 9. He says, can you show me that in the Bible? I said, yes, I can. He said, do it. So I walked over to him. I opened up the Ephesians 2 8 9, and he read those two verses, and it just took the steam right out of him.

He looked at the other guys, and he says, fellas, sit on and shut up. It’s in the Bible. They didn’t know what the Bible said. But they were really to do me in because they didn’t believe that it actually said what I said it said. But when they saw that Ephesians 2 8 9 are two powerful verses. If you want to explain the gospel, somebody, these are two verses that I would always use. Look at it. For by grace are you saved through faith.

And that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of, not of words. People say, you’ve got to earn your way to heaven. Good people go to heaven, bad people go to hell. Everybody knows that. No, they don’t know that. And that’s not true. There are no good people. We’ve all sinned and come short of God’s perfection. I showed that verse to him. He trusts the Lord and the other two trusts the Lord. And it was awesome because power of those verses right there.

You see, when you realize you can’t earn your way to heaven, then you have to trust Christ as your Savior alone because there’s no other way. So you’re saved by grace. And that’s what the Bible is talking about. So look at the little statement I wrote there. If it is not by works, then a man cannot save himself. If it’s not by works, your works cannot even help save you. It has no part in it. None of us in this room are going to heaven because we promise to live good.

We promise not to live bad. We promise to give money. We promise to do blat these humanitarian things and we love everybody. No, that has nothing to do with going to heaven. Going to heaven is gift. It is free. And once you trust Christ to save you, He gives you eternal life. Now, I want you to know this. It’s not possible for a man to lose his salvation. Why? Because your works did not get it for you. Good works didn’t get it.

So therefore, bad works cannot take it away. Good works did not give you eternal life. And bad works cannot take it away. Because see, God gave you as a gift, as free. So how I live good or bad has nothing to do with getting or losing my salvation. I didn’t get it by my works and I can’t keep it by my works. So take your Bible and look at this. Look in John chapter six, the gospel of John in chapter six.

Jesus is speaking and this is what he said. In verse 37, all that the Father giveth me shall come to me He says, He that come to me, I will endure on the Linus in your Bible, no wise cast out. It means he’ll never cast you out. Anyone who comes to Christ, trust him as a Savior, he says, I will never cast them out. Never. I read that to a guy one time and he says, well, he won’t cast you up, but you can take yourself out.

I want to know why he’s got to, yeah, but you can take yourself out. I said, all right, let’s look at verse 39. And this is the father’s will, not mine, the father’s will, which have sent me that of all which he hath given me, I should lose how many out of the all, how many is going to lose?

So he’ll never cast you out and he’ll never lose you. And no man can take himself out of God’s hands. And that’s why in John chapter 10, he makes a statement, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. So when I trusted Christ as my Savior, 57 and a half years ago, God saved me. He is taking me to heaven. My going to heaven depends upon him keeping his word, not me.

me and anything that I do or don’t do. You say, you mean you can go out here and still do this and that and the other? Well, of course I could have done it before it too, couldn’t I? Why? Just because I trusted Christ to save you doesn’t mean I can’t send anymore, but I know that it might have only Father because He’s my Father and I’m His child. I can’t live as I please and get away with it because my heavenly Father is going to be tarot.

I mean, maybe take me home before my time. And I don’t know how long I’m going to So I want God’s blessings instead of God’s chasening. That just makes sense. It makes sense to serve the Lord, but not to get to heaven. My going to heaven is based upon what He did for me, not what I do for Him. Now blessings in my life, rewards when I get to heaven depends upon what I do for Him. So you need to always keep this in your mind.

Now, you ever heard the first John 5, 13? If you haven’t, we quoted just about every Sunday morning. But take your Bible and look in 1 John chapter 5 and verse 13. Now, if I was to ask you to show me your Bible, and I was to turn to the book of 1 John chapter 5 and verse 13, I would expect you to have it underlined. If you didn’t have it underlined, you’re probably not saved. Just joking. Just joking.

But you ought to have that verse online because if you’re talking to anybody about how to go to heaven, That verse ought to be one of the verses. You show somebody look what he says and verse 13 verse John chapter 5 verse 13 These things have I written under you that attend Calvary Community Church and gives 50% It doesn’t say that but anyway these things have I written under you that believe on the name of the Son of God that you may what?

Know that you have eternal life. Can you know you have eternal life? He said that’s why I was written But see, if it depended upon my good work, well, I can’t know it. Well, I had to wait till I died to find out that I make it, did I make it, did I make it? I’ve known for almost 58 years. I’m going to heaven. Knowing that I have eternal life and knowing that I’m going to heaven, I thought it was so wonderful.

I think I’ll just spend the rest of my life telling people how to go to heaven. Don’t make sense? I was told they had some people trust Christ as Savior down in Texas. Is it worth going down there and telling them? They could have stayed here and not done anything. But there’s gonna be some people, there’s gonna be, and heaven’s gonna be, man, I’m glad y’all dedicated your life, you look. Man, I’m so glad y’all sacrificed to come down here.

Man, I’m so glad, I’m so glad, I’m so glad. And when you get to heaven, those are gonna be your crown of rejoicing, the people that is trusted Christ as their Savior because of it. Look at the next statement, it’s in bowl right in the middle of your page, the doctrine of eternal security is not a separate doctrine from salvation, it is salvation. That is the gospel. That’s what makes it good news. Then saved forever is good news. If I told you if you trusted Christ as your savior, God would save you for a day, how long you think it’d be saved for?

A day. If you trust Christ as your savior, he’ll save you for a week. How long would you think it’d be saved for? At least it’d be good for a week. What if I told you it was before a month? What if I told you it’d be for a year? What if I told you it’s forever? Wouldn’t that be eternal security? It’s eternal security. He said he didn’t believe it to me half, present tenth half, life for a week.

Life till he sins again. Life as long as he keeps giving money and keeps going to the county community church. I don’t want you to go to the city church. Now look at the next statement. Believing in eternal security is the only sure way of proving that a person truly believes in salvation by faith. You see, if it is eternal security, then it would have to be by faith because it was by your works. There’s no guarantee there on what you’re gonna do today or tomorrow.

So your salvation depend upon your works. And God already said, not of works. So God’s not gonna save anybody because of your works. So he says, by faith, by grace, if you really believe that salvation is by grace, then you’ve got no problem with eternal security. If you believe it just by your faith and what Christ did for you, you have no problem with eternal security. If you believe in, it was simply by trusting in Christ alone, then you would have no problem with eternal security.

If you do really believe that salvation is without man’s works, then you can believe in eternal security. But you see, are there people that do not believe in eternal security? It’s because they don’t believe us by faith alone. They don’t believe us by grace alone. They don’t believe us by Christ alone. They don’t believe that it’s not by your works. They do believe us by their works. The only way a person can lose their salvation is their salvation depends upon their good works.

They’re trusting in what they do or don’t do as the means of their salvation that is not the gospel of Jesus Christ. churches are full of them and there’s preachers that are preaching that type of a message. We don’t preach that here and we don’t want anybody to be confused. We want you to know we admit what we are sinners saved by grace. We’re not better than anybody else. God has saved us because we have trusted in what Christ did for us.

He paid for our sins. Now look at number three. It is impossible to please God without faith. So I want you to take your Bible-looking revelation, chapter four, revelation and chapter four. Because see, after you have trusted Christ a Savior and you know you can not lose your salvation because that’s the only kind of salvation God has is eternal salvation. So then what happens with the things that I do in my life? What happens with the bad decisions I make and the sinful deeds that I do and the sinful thoughts that I have, what about all of that?

Well, see, you have a choice now. You can seek to either please the Lord, your heavenly Father, or please yourself and do whatever you want. So there is a battle of the wills, God’s will versus your will. And they’re not always on the same wavelength. They’re not always on the same page. Sometimes you want to do things that God doesn’t want you to do. So you have a choice. God says, I want you to please me because of what I did for you.

And you’ll find that in 2 Corinthians 5 verse 14. For the love of Christ constraineth us or motivates us because we thus judge that if one died for all, then all were dead. And that they which live should not henceforth live. them to themselves but unto him who died for them and rose again. So God tells us what He wants us to do and why we should do it. So after I trusted Christ as my Savior I had a choice.

I wanted to please the one who did all of that for me because I don’t have to do it. I don’t have to go to church. I don’t have to change my life. I don’t have to read the Bible. I don’t have to pray and I don’t have to give. I don’t have to be a missionary. I don’t have to win souls. But I fell in love with the Lord. And when I fell in love with the Lord, I wanted to do all that.

Isn’t it better to have a motive that I’m doing what I do because I love Him than I will I have to do it? I’m not here today because well I have to, but I love the Lord. And love is a powerful motivating force in anybody’s life. So he makes a statement here in verse 11 of chapter 4, the book of Revelation, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power. Why is he worthy? Do you know who he is?

Do you realize what he’s done and what he’s going to do? He is worthy to receive honor and praise and glory from every one of us. And we ought to live our lives in such a way that brings praise and honor and glory because he is worthy. But look at the rest of it. For thou hath created all things, and for get this, you know how to unline in your Bible, thy pleasure, thou art and were created. You and I were created for his pleasure to please God.

But what is generally the goal of most people is to please themselves? What do I want to do with with my life. What do I want to be? What do I want? No, what does God want? I have a choice. I can be what God wants me to be or whatever I want. I can do whatever God wants or whatever I want. But stop and think. If I decide to serve the Lord, my Heavenly Father promises to bless me.

I win. And He will reward me when I get to heaven. I win. But if I decide to live my life for myself. I lose and I lose rewards that I could have had. I lose, I lose, I lose. Now think about it. Do I want to be a winner or a loser? It’s your choice. Are you a new listener to Bibleline? Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well, if you’ve never contacted us before, we want to give you Dr.

Arnold’s book, The Gospel driven man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works, and about how to share the gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy. There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply Paulus at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of the gospel-driven name.

The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address, and God bless you and thank you for listening to 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 4811 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.