Anchors for our Faith (pt. 3) (6:37-40)

JOHN 6:37-40 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day…

JOHN 6:37-40 …For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

1 Peter 1:1a, 3-6 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion…Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you,…

1 Peter 1:1a, 3-6 …who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,

JOHN 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Conversion The willing response to the gospel call, in which we sincerely repent of sins and place our trust in Christ for salvation (Grudem)

2 Anchors that Establish, Explain, Ensure our Conversion ELECTION – (6:37a) – All that the Father gives me will come to me,… – God’s Decree in the PAST … CONVERSION – (6:37b) – …whoever comes to me I will never cast out. – (6:40) – …everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life – Becomes a Reality in the PRESENT … SECURITY – (6:40) – everyone who looks on the Son and believes…I will raise him up on the last day. – Secures an Ultimate Fulfillment in the FUTURE …

Preservation of the Saints Perseverance of the Saints Perseverance of Christ Doctrine of Assurance of Salvation Eternal Security “Once Saved, Always Saved”

Westminster Confession They whom God hath accepted in His Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved

Preservation of the Saints Those who possess true faith in Christ for salvation cannot totally and finally lose that faith, because their faith is Secured by God Himself, and He will see them through to the end.

William Secker Though Christians be not kept altogether from falling, yet they are kept from falling altogether.

Richard Baxter In our first paradise in Eden there was a way to go out but no way to go in again. But as for the heavenly paradise, there is a way to go in, but not way to go out.

Our Conversion is SECURE Because… 1.It is Anchored in Election 2.It has Permanently Changed Us 3.We are Held By God’s Power

Election The act of God before creation in which he chooses some people to be saved, not on account of any forseen merit in them, but only because of his sovereign good pleasure.

JOHN 6:39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day

Thomas Watson When God calls a man, He does not repent of it. God does not, as many friends do, love one day, and hate another; or as princes, who make their subjects favourites, and afterwards throw them into prison. This is the blessedness of a saint; his condition admits of no alteration. God's call is founded upon His decree, and His decree is immutable. Acts of grace cannot be reversed. God blots out His people's sins, but not their names

Our Conversion is SECURE Because… 1.It is Anchored in Election 2.It has Permanently Changed Us 3.We are Held By God’s Power

John 3:3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead

Our Conversion is SECURE Because… 1.It is Anchored in Election 2.It has Permanently Changed Us 3.We are Held By God’s Power

JOHN 6:37-40 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

JOHN 10:28-29 – I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.

1 Peter 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Our Conversion is SECURE Because… 1.It is Anchored in Election 2.It has Permanently Changed Us 3.We are Held By God’s Power 4.We Have Been Promised Future Resurrection & Reward

JOHN 6:39-40 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

JOHN 11:24-26 Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

Matthew 25:34 Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world

1 Peter 1:3-6 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,

What Happens When Believers Sin? 1.Conviction of the Holy Spirit 2.Discipline from the Father 3.Eventually Repent & Return

Evidences which neither prove nor disprove Salvation 1.Visible Morality 2.Intellectual Knowledge 3.Religious Involvement 4.Active Ministry

Evidences which indicate Genuine Salvation 1.Love for Christ 2.Love for Others (believers/unbelievers) 3.Spiritual Growth (Fruit-Bearing) 4.Conviction of/Repentance from Sin 5.Increasing Pattern of Obedience 6.Endurance