Those Who Resist The Gospel

Welcome to this weekend's InTouch podcast entire family. The world is full of people were openly hostile to the gospel that no one is beyond the grace of God, here's a reminder about the reach of God's love to those who resist the gospel headgear about someone been around a little while and thought to yourself, I don't think they'll ever get saved artisanal how the world, God will ever get through to someone who has that kind of attitude. They seem to be so bitter about God so hostile about the church so unbelieving about the Bible so blasphemous about Jesus Christ. I don't know that they'll ever be safe will probably all of us have met people that we wondered Lord, how could you ever reach someone like that. But one thing that is very evident from the Scriptures. Nobody is beyond the reach of a loving father and it's interesting in the Scriptures when you read the Gospels that most of the people that Jesus brought to himself of those people who came to him now. There was, of course, exactly as he was up a tree when he saw him there. He said Zach is come down I'm going home with you today blonde by the massive sitting by the highway side, but he called out to Jesus and asking the healing but most of those people are people who came to Jesus, but what about those people who just define God.

I mean they absolutely deliberately willfully resist any opportunities about salvation don't want to talk about the Bible.

Don't you talk about that to them and back there just absolutely downright hostile about well what about God's reach toward that person does it extend to those who are so angry at God hostile toward him in this church.

Yes it does.

So when you turn if you will to acts chapter 9 because here is a perfect example of how God works in the life of a person who indeed hates the Lord Jesus Christ and would do anything in his power to rid his name and everything he stands for, from the face of this earth. I want us to read these first nine verses know what we gonna talk about takes care of almost 31 verses in this passage and this is the account of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus and we know as Paul the apostle to the Scripture begins. Now Saul still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord went to the high priest and ask for letters from him to the synagogue at Damascus, so that he made. If he found any, belonging to the way both men and women he might bring them bound to Jerusalem and it came about that as he journeyed, he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him and he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me and he said, who art thou, Lord, and he said I'm Jesus, whom you persecuting but arise in in the city and it should be told you what you must do and the man who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the voice would say no one and Saul got up from the ground and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing and leading him by the hand. They brought him into Damascus and he was three days without sight, and neither eight nor drank no one I want you to see for just a moment is what happened to this man who was such an antagonist of the church because once in a while will meet somebody will say the Lord and I know the grace of God's great but I will say yes I know that God can save anybody but Lord, not too sure about so and so what here's someone who is a perfect example of one whom God loved. In spite of everything he did everything that he was, and I want you to see how God begins to work in his life because the way God begins to work in his life is the way he works in every person's life who say and that is, there begins a deep conviction conviction. Listen. Conviction is a feeling it is a feeling of a sense of need. It is a feeling of a sense of need that a person needs something they cannot do for themselves and is that conviction begins to grow, it becomes an awareness that God is dealing with them and that conviction brings them to the point that they need something for themselves. Only God can provide that there's no such thing as salvation about conviction until a person is convicted that they need Jesus. Until a person is convicted becomes aware of the need of Christ and the reality of who he is, they'll never be saying and so when a person says will probably save one of these days that somewhere right now and I don't want to be saved right now don't have any desire to be safe. One of these days I will you will not be saved until there is a conviction that is the work of the Holy Spirit on the inside of you working in your life. You see, because somebody says well I'll just be I'll be saved one of these days when I choose to know you will you will be saved. You choose to be safe when God chooses to and so there's got to be conviction.

I've never known anybody who said well I think I just want to be a Christian and just decide they want to be know there is a conviction of a knee, a conviction of a need that is different in every person's life. Now watch this careful let's say for example that here is a young child that little child wants Jesus in his or her heart of that song that doll and so you asked will what about this conviction well what kind of conviction has taken place in the life of the child. What is certain is an conviction of a lot of bad sin in the life because they're so young, because they know the difference between right and wrong. Their parents have taught them will they know that what sin is it sin is disobeying the parents of disobey what God says so.

They have an idea about that.

But what is it that the Holy Spirit is convicted that Charla is that Holy Spirit's conviction is a sense of need and creates a desire within a child's heart that if Jesus is who my parents say is if Jesus is who the pastor says he is that I want him. I want to be safe, I want Jesus in my life.

So in a tender innocent child's heart. That child says I want to ask Jesus into my life is will you be that a person can be cited age of five. Absolutely both a macho number say that that age I met many of the chairman who say that agent met many adults who was saved at the age of five or six or seven years of age. The spirit of God, did not convict him of a whole bunch of gross sin.

He convicted them of their need and the desire of the heart and it is the Holy Spirit who places that is on the heart of a child to want Jesus Christ as their Savior that they understand what reconciliation, justification, redemption and verification is absolutely not, let me ask you have that you want us to do before you were say right so therefore all of us are children when it comes to understanding the things of God. Now his. For example, a person who 16 years of age. A teenager living in sin with the Holy Spirit convicts that that teenage about their sin is a whole different story. That is conviction about sin is conviction about sins's conviction about the heart is conviction about who Jesus Christ is the need of Christ, his death on the cross with your 1620 3040 5060 or hundred. It's the same thing.

The spirit of God's work in a person's heart is to convict him of two things their sins and secondly the person of Jesus Christ that he is the only solution that sin and that when he died on the cross. He took their sin debt in full and therefore there conviction has to do with sin, and the person of Jesus. When the Holy Spirit of God convicted when Jesus came to Saul of Tarsus on the Damascus Road. You'll notice he didn't say Saul, you have been persecuting my people. You have killed my Saints you are trying to destroy the church.

He came upon him in such a way struck him down, blinded him, got his attention. And so Saul said, Lord, who are that he knew this was God because he saw something he'd never seen before. Not that he saw the visible presence of God or Jesus necessarily, but he saw this dramatic light that was so overpowering. He knew this had to be from heaven, but he heard the voice of God, he said, who are there Lord. He said I am Jesus whom you are persecuting the issue with Saul of Tarsus in the road. The day that he was converted was not his SIMS which was very evident, which was so horrible and terrible. The issue was who is Jesus. Was he a Nazarene a was he sent that one of those itinerant preachers or is he the son of God. Look, if you are the six chapter John and the Scripture says, talking to these Pharisees. He said no verse 43 Jesus answered and said to them, do not grumble among yourselves that look at this 44 verse no one can come to me unless the father who sent me draws them and I will raise him up on the last day. He says no one can come to me unless the father draws him look at that no one can come to me except the father draws him. If he says you can only count of God drawing and he says those whom he foreordained and he predestined those he called. So when you think about your salvation. There is not one single thing that you and I can take credit for. Because the Bible says if you disable the grace of God. It was foreordained, predestined, he called you well is God just call Solomon not everybody in the ask another question has God chosen to save Solomon chosen the safe to send some to hell.

Absolutely not someone to say that again God does not choose to save some and choose to send others to hell God indeed does choose to say. He says if I be lifted up I will draw all men. Many are called, few are chosen. So we have to ask is, is it the will of God really want to be lost.

No he says is not my will that initiative. He says he desires that all people would be safe. So it's very clear in the Scriptures and the many others that you not concerned that it is the will of God and the purpose of God is the desire of the heart of God, that every person would come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Whosoever shall call upon the name the Lord shall be safe when everybody call upon it know they will not. They rejected Jesus in his day, and they're rejecting Jesus today and my friend if you're a person who has heard the gospel listening to the gospel and you have rejected him and if you keep on rejecting him. And if you die in the state of rejecting Jesus Christ as your Savior. You will be eternally separated from God by your own choice, not because God did Mona save not because he didn't try to not because he didn't send his son to make it possible not because he does not reach out to you in love. If you die without Christ and be because you rejected the truth because you have chosen to have your own way because you said I don't God having his way in my life you have chosen to resist deliberately, willfully, the truth, and the opportunity of knowing God as your personal savior through his son Jesus Christ. That's the way it is. So the question comes.

Can anybody be saved. Anybody called by God anybody the Lord God draws well can you be saved anytime you want to know you can't you cannot be saved until you are convicted of the needed salvation of the spirit of God works in your life and you since the call of God in your life that will not come in everybody's life the same way. Let's talk about this whole issue. For example, of free will. Let me ask you this. How free is a man's free will and why Simental met many women. How free is a person's free will. Some is as well a free will means you have the freedom do anything you please you believe that I certainly hope you don't because, listen when you take this too is foolish is what you're saying. If any person on the face of this earth has an absolutely perfectly complete free will. That means that they are no longer subject to God. God is the sovereign of this universalistic while man has a free will. It is a limited free will know one has and ultimately free will.

The most vile, wicked personal face of this earth can only do what God allows him to do.

Now why God allows him, he will do some things he does.

I don't know but only they can only do what God allows him to do not witness and what God wills them to do but what God allows him to do. No one has an absolutely free will. All wills are subject to the sovereign ultimate omnipotent will of the living God.

Otherwise, we have real tragedy everywhere and God would not be the supreme sovereign of this universe.

So therefore no one has ultimately free will. Well, what about this whole idea of many call if you chose.

I want you to hear this very clearly God would never choose to save these and choose to send someone to hell never say this to make those kind of choices but God does choose to save some people in spite of themselves. These annoy them in order for them and that you mean to tell me that God work against the person's will.

Thank God he does most of us would be safe. Thank God he works against their will. Does he recognize I will acknowledge I will respect their will. Yes he does, but that does not mean that God is going to back off and say, be my guest having what you want to know because he sent his only begotten son of this world that you and I may be say this, the spirit of God came into this world to convict the world of sin and righteousness and judgment and conviction.

Fran is pressure. If you ever felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit you know what pressures like in the spirit of God, knows how to turn it up when the apostle Paul fell down blinds smitten by Almighty God on that day. What happened God's conviction came in a climactic form struck him down identified who he was, then asked the question, how many do you think lying that in the sand talking to the Lord Jesus Christ and hearing Jesus say I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. How many of you believe because a lot of on the part of that. Nothing doing God forget. I don't think he could have said no you say well, but what no I don't think he could've said no because God had brought him to such conviction listed here is the man he hated and suddenly realize he's God you think Paul could have said anything but yes, and in the King James version says what will thou have me to do, which is certainly what his attitude was could have said no horribly could've said no if you not save could you say no, you probably can. I don't know depends on what kind of conviction.

God's got you on will he save everybody know because everybody is not going respond. He's going to call many and will he save some in spite of them. Yes. Has he chosen some for specific tasks. Yes. Is that fair.

Yes, you and I will understand the purpose and plan for life as it unfolds in our life. Once we place him where he belongs.

That is the Lord master of our life. So when somebody says he will just leave me alone. Don't give minimalist church that this Bible business when I get ready get saved. I'll let you know my friend. I say this with all the love in my heart. You can get saved, when you want to you can only get saved when you begin the since the call in the spirit of God. That's why every time you hear the gospel is so very important. What I want us to see as it is a dangerous thing to feel and sense and here the message of truth and say no no no no no well why one day not even have those feelings and those interest is possible that's what you call a hard heart will cannot be say that's my heart-to-heart no or not because if your heart gets so hard.

You have absolutely no desire and you have turned and spurned the spirit of God, and you absolutely will not listen you absolute will not consider you will not have anything do with anything that has to do with God and how you will be say you only want you said what you mean to tell me that I can get the place in my life that I won't even want got it all. Yes, that's what is so dangerous to hear the gospel of truth and turn it down.

Now what about you say well have been listening and I go to church and once in a while but have you ever trusted Jesus as your Savior have year and listen to this way had hereby felt conviction and humor felt that something was wrong and you felt there was a separation between you and God. Sure you have what you do about brush it off, ignore it, tell somebody about it.

Distance argument is going to forget it. Are you willing to have the courage to deal. You see, that's God drawing you through his spirit, and I want to encourage you to ask him to forgive you of your sins and telling the today Lord I do believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God.

I do believe that you sent them in the world to die for my sins. I do believe the witness of Scripture and by faith and accepting him as my Savior, my Lord, my master the moment you do that is your Savior, then what if, on the church that preaches the truth, you baptize and you let your life begin to count for God is erotic of your preaching.

No everyone you have a Damascus Road experience no. But once you save the grace of God and things become new. Listen, if this message is his glorious and life-changing and is powerful as we say it is in all of us all to be telling it to our circle of influence where we live wherever we are, and father, we thank you today for your patience in convicting ours and hanging in there with us until we finally said yes. For some it was instantaneous but somewhat gradual period of time until that final decision is made, and for some it may have to be some crisis experience.

But how would you pray that multitudes of people who thought themselves too bad to evil to wicked to vile to hopeless, to help us to be saying recognizing the simple truth of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, who became the apostle Paul recognize if you'd save him. You will certainly save them, but we ask it in Jesus name, amen. Thank you for listening to those who resist the gospel.

If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or intense ministries enhance data lighting podcast is a presentation of intense ministries Atlanta, Georgia