You find yourself haunted by mistakes from your past. Do regrets keep cropping up to threaten your security or cause you to doubt your salvation?
Well, Alastair Begg has a reassuring message for all followers of Christ today on Truth for Life. We'll find out why we're secure in the finished work of Jesus in spite of our sins in the past, in the present, or even in the future. Mm. Once I was lost, once I was a hell-bound person, once I was going in a completely different direction. And then the grace of God opened my eyes to see that that was true, and furthermore made it clear to me that Jesus had done something wonderful, something necessary in relationship to that.
And I came to trust in Christ. I became a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. And as we sang in the hymn, and I didn't have in myself the strength to continue to obey Jesus. He provided that also. And it is this, then, that Paul is affirming as he comes to the end of Romans chapter 8.
He provides for as a series of Questions and affirmations, and we resume our consideration of this closing section in verse 33. Where he asks the question: who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?
Now, in the same way as we saw in the last question, verse 31: if God is for us, who can be against us? He was not saying there that nobody can be against us. What he was doing was setting all opposition proportionately in the context of the fact that if God is for us, then no matter who can be against us, it is ultimately of insignificance. In the same way, when he says, who will bring any charge against God's elect, he's not suggesting that nobody may bring a charge. Because the fact of the matter is, even our own hearts accuse us.
Our friends oppose us. Our enemies seek to undermine us. And the evil one, who's described in part in the Bible as the accuser of the brethren, is the one who comes again and again to say, well, you couldn't possibly be a Christian after all. I can't believe that you just shouted at that person. I can't believe that you have been so unfeeling towards your spouse.
I can't believe that you've been so prayerless. I can't believe that you are this and you are that and you are the next thing. And indeed, the accuser of the brethren may accuse us before the Father. And say to God, How can you possibly look upon this person with favor? Don't you realize that they are sinners?
And how then can you declare them justified? That is a great question, and that is, if you like, the great question. And the answer, of course, that the Father would give in such a dialogue is not to try and bolster up our self-esteem by reminding our accuser of all the pluses in our lives. But rather of turning the gaze of our accuser to one place, namely to the cross of his son. and saying to the one who accuses us, Yes, she is a sinner.
Yes, he is a sinner. But look at my son's hands, and look at my son's feet, and look at the wounds in the side of my son. Who are you to condemn?
So what we really need to do, to come back to the analogy of Perry Mason from last time, is to recognize that what the Bible is telling us is this, that the case against us is closed. that there is no possibility of double jeopardy. That no one can once again re-raise the charges that were justifiably against us. Not because of how well we have been doing, But because of how wonderfully Christ has made an atonement for sin. In the cross, God has satisfied His perfect and His holy justice.
By executing the punishment our sins deserve. Without that, God would not be true to Himself. And in the cross, the Lord Jesus has pardoned those who believe in Jesus. Even though we have sinned, And even though we deserve his condemnation. And without this, we would be inevitably excluded from his presence forever.
That's why we often go to the twenty-first verse of 2 Corinthians 5 and sit as it were before it and think. God was not counting their sins against them. But he Who had no sin was made sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. in him. And so, what he provides for us are facts for our consideration.
Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? Who could bring a charge? God could. Who could condemn?
Well, only Jesus could. Who is he that condemns? And this little verse here is actually a complex verse. It's even hard to read. And depending on the translation of the Bible, it pushes you one way or another.
And so often Phillips gets me out of my problem. And he did once again in his paraphrase. This is how he puts verse 33, 34. Who would dare to accuse us? Whom God has chosen.
The judge himself has declared us free from sin. Who is in a position to condemn? Only Christ. And Christ died for us. Christ rose for us.
Christ reigns in power for us. Christ prayed. Praise for us. The story of the Bible. is the story of what man has done.
in putting himself in the place that God deserves. Exalting ourselves to the highest place. Worshiping substitute gods. Making ourselves feel better. And the unfolding story of the Bible is the story of what has happened to humanity as a result of man putting himself in the place that God deserves.
and the good use of the Bible. It's what has happened as a result of God. put in himself in the place that man deserves. That God in the person of Christ has come. and has indwelled our place and inhabited our time.
And has gone to the cross so that we who are justifiably the recipients of God's righteous wrath. May be the benefits of His wonderful grace. This is the good news, incidentally. This is the gospel. That God has done this for us in Jesus, and that all who will come to trust entirely in this.
will know the reality of it. There's something else in this that I feel it is important to point out. Namely, That what the Bible is pointing out to us here Is that the Lord Jesus Christ is somewhere? In fact, he's not just somewhere. He is in the presence of God the Father in heaven.
In other words, He was Raised as the God man. His resurrection was a physical resurrection. His ascension Did not send him nowhere. It sent him somewhere. It sent him The Bible says to the place in which he is now located.
So, the physical presence of Jesus. Is in its exalted state. in heaven. You say, well, does that really matter? Yes, it matters.
Tremendously, and about a lot of things that we might never ever have considered. Where is Jesus physically present then, according to the Bible? in the presence of God the Father. Therefore, he is not physically present anywhere else, right? He is present in other places by the Holy Spirit.
but he is not physically present anywhere else. He is corporeally, which is the word. In heaven. Therefore, he is not corporeally On earth. Therefore, loved ones, he is not present in the Roman Catholic Mass.
He cannot be. He is in heaven. exalted in his body. Therefore, bits and pieces of him are not down in some little place. They cannot be.
You're sensible people. Think it out. If you are someone who looks to the here and the now and the down here and the in there, then I can pretty well guarantee you you do not understand what is being described for us here in Romans chapter 8. That there is no condemnation, there is no separation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Because as we sang, my life is.
is Christ My life is Christ. There is no life for me in Jesus apart from Christ. His life is my life. His death is my death. His resurrection is the basis of my resurrection.
Ontologically, it is inevitable that I must be raised. Why? Because I'm a pastor? No, because I am in Christ. Do you see how different this is?
Do you see how this takes you away from man and from the intercessions of man? And from the significance of a man? Who could perhaps be somehow or another an intermediary for you to put in a good word for you for this one? Do you see how much superstition is tied into all of that? I say again to you.
Jesus. his real presence. It's there.
Now Hebrews chapter 7, look at it. Hebrews 7, he's quoting in part here from the Psalms, from Psalm 110, which I've suggested to you already. We won't back up too far. We'll just go to verse 23. Says the writer, there have been many of those priests.
He's been talking about the priesthood in the Old Testament. It says there have been many of those priests since death prevented them from continuing in office. That makes perfect sense, doesn't it? We're going to get another priest because our priest died.
So we'll need another one. But verse 24 Because Jesus lives forever. He doesn't die. Because he lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Oh wow, that's different.
And he, therefore, Notice is able to save Completely. Completely. Completely. He doesn't just get us started. And then say, now try and make sure that you can get to heaven by doing your best.
He saves completely. This is the great wonder. This is the great mystery. This is the great terror, if you like, of the gospel. That in the death of Christ, not only has he saved me retrospectively, but he has saved me prospectively.
That all the sins that I have yet to commit. are also covered in his death upon the cross. This is this is revolutionary, you see. Indeed, when you make this really clear, even people who believe it start to wonder whether they should believe it. I can't possibly believe that.
Are you then saying, and they always have another corollary or two, but are you then saying that you can just sin anytime you want, since have no, that C deals with that in Romans 6, that's for another Sunday. But no, we're not saying that at all. But don't get tripped up by what we're not saying. Let's just notice what we are saying. He's able to save completely.
Who? Those who come to God, how? Through him. Through no one else. Through him.
Because He always lives. There we go again. to intercede for them. Such a high priest as this meets our need. One who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.
Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins and then for the sins of the people. Why not?
Well, he sacrificed for their sins once for all. When he Offered. himself. Case closed. Case closed.
Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus died. Christ Jesus was raised. Christ Jesus ascended.
Christ Jesus prays for us. You see You? Do this little test for yourself in your mind.
Someone comes to you and says, Well, do you have any confidence that you will end up in the presence of God in heaven? And you say Yes? And they say, why? Do you then use the first person? Yeah.
In your answer? I eat When they say, well, why you say, because I Because I Because I did this, because I believe, because I was, because I am, because I, because I, because I. Be real careful if you do. Because that's not the right answer. The right answer is in the third person.
Because he Because he That's one of the ways you'll know you're a Christian. That's one of the ways you will know that this stuff about which we've been saying this morning has actually taken root in your life. Because you've actually come to, when you sing those songs, you go, this is just a mystery. It is a mystery. All I have is Christ.
At the end of the day, what else do I have? All I have is Christ. He's my only hope. I'm a sinner. He's a Savior.
That's the message. And it is in that. that Paul is able to make this great affirmation.
Well We'll go to verse 35, just get it started, and then we'll come back this evening, God willing. Verse thirty five. Who shall separate us from the from the love of Christ. Once again, he's not suggesting that there aren't things that would threaten to separate us. What he's doing is he's setting the challenges that come against us.
Within the security that God provides for us. And he runs through a list. Here, he says, are some of the enemies of our happiness. Here are some of the things that challenge our security in the Lord Jesus Christ. And once again, he is returning to the notion of suffering.
Which he has done already, hasn't he? We needn't go back all the way to that, but if you have been memorizing it, you will know that the sufferings, he says in verse 18, are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. In other words, he's not saying, now in Christ we've been removed from the realm of suffering. Rather, he says, when we face suffering, we have to realize that whatever this is and however long it goes on, it actually pales in significance in relationship to all that God has planned for us. Without a proper theology of suffering, We will be tempted to do one of two things: either just bury ourselves in despair.
Or will attempt to To import What God promises for the then into the now. In technical terms, we will be tempted to an over-realized eschatology. In common terms, that simply means that when the Bible says that he will wipe away all tears from our eyes, we start to suggest that he's going to do all of that for us now. That there will be no more sighing, there will be no more crying, there will be no more dying, there will be no more cancer, there will be no more of this stuff. That is all an absolute guaranteed promise, but it is then, it is not now.
And if we don't have a theology of suffering that is able to face suffering and do something with it, then either we will bow down under the weight of suffering and will become morose, or we will be tempted to deny its presence by saying silly things and making affirmations that aren't true. The list that Paul provides here I don't think it just grabs out of the air. I think that he's able to extrapolate from his own experience. You can go and read the journeys of Paul and see if there's any validity to such an assertion. Trouble?
He knew it. Pardship, he knew it. Persecution, he knew it. Famine, he knew it. Nakedness, he knew it.
Danger, he knew it. Sword, he knew it.
So this is not arm's length theology. And Paul, in a kind of prophetic element, is assuring these people as they live their lives. that there's actually nothing will be able to separate them from the love of God that is in Jesus. The hot blast, if you like, of opposition that comes from the society and from the culture, the rejection that they will inevitably face. No, he says you need to be absolutely secure.
In this.
Well We can come back to this this evening. As I was wrapping up my study, I had a hymn that came to mind that we used to sing in Charlotte Chapel. And I never I I didn't know where it came from. I discovered that it was written In nineteen o six, by a lady called Ada Habershawn. And she wrote it as a result of somebody sending her a note saying, I think we need a good hymn that will be helpful to remind the fledgling Christian.
That they are able to continue all the way to the end of their Christian journey. And so she wrote a number of hymns and she sent them to Philadelphia, interestingly, in time for a crusade that was being conducted by R. A. Torrey. And this.
hymn was introduced in an evening event. by a fellow called Charles M. Alexander to our congregation of some 4,000. And they were taught to sing, When I fear, my faith will fail. Christ will hold me fast.
When the tempter would prevail, He can hold me fast. I could never keep my hold. He will hold me fast. For my love is often called. He must hold me fast.
I'm precious in his sight. Those he saves are his delight. He will hold me fast. He'll not let my soul be lost. Christ will hold me fast.
Bought by him at such a cost, He will hold me fast. He will hold me fast. He will hold me fast. For my Saviour loves me so, He will hold me. Fast.
It just occurs to me. how much life has changed. Even since Twenty years ago. And those of us who were parents 20 years ago with children that were relatively small. will recall those wonderful and glorious days.
when we used to be able to put the children In all kinds of positions, in those minivans and station wagons, some of them looking out of the back window like a dog, some of them sitting up in between the gear stick and the emergency brake, some of them hanging over the top, some of them, whatever it was, it's just get them in and let's get going. We're going to Florida. I hate to think, to tell you some of the things that we used to do on those trips to Florida that I can't even bring them up because they accuse me. But anyway, that's the picture that some of us have of the Christian life. That somehow or another, God has said that to us.
He says, you know, hang on the best you can. You'll probably get there if you just hold on. Just hang on now, hang on, hang on. He doesn't do that.
Now he comes to us and he buckles us in, he straps us in, he takes us to himself. He gently leads those that are young. He gathers the little ones, the lambs, close to his heart, those The Father loves rest. between his shoulders. holds us Fast.
Loved ones, this is not presumption. This is security. This is the security of the security. of the believer. This is the hope.
That can look life in the face in all of its ugliness. and affirm Christ. that can look the grave. In all of its loss. and affirm Christ.
You're listening to Truth for Life with Alastair Begg. You know, I think all of us have wrestled with doubts or fears, or know someone who is new to the faith and may be wrestling. with these issues. Let me recommend a three-book set. titled Puritan Treasures.
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Sometimes in the depths of suffering, our faith may falter. We'll conclude our study in Romans 8 tomorrow by considering why Paul was absolutely confident about Christ's steadfast love. The Bible teaching of Alastair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life. Where the Learning is for Living.
