A Message by Pastor Michael Palmer

Given to Green Ridge Baptist Church

April 18, 2010

YOU CAN’T FOOL JESUS: HE KNOWS

IF YOU HAVE GENUINE SAVING FAITH

John 2:23-25

The people mentioned here in John 2 are like people everywhere. The scripture says “many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.” The same Greek word for belief or trust was used when it says “but Jesus did not commit (or entrust) Himself to them, because He knew all men.” It is a play on words. What does this tell us?

I. IN ORDER FOR JESUS TO RESPOND TO A PERSON, HIS/HER FAITH MUST BE GENUINE

In my estimation as a pastor for the last 32+ years, this is the most misunderstood and weakened teaching in the church today. People just don’t get it about genuine biblical faith. People mean well, but these “believers” here in John 2 meant well. But Jesus knew that their belief was not that which issued forth from the heart. Therefore, He did not respond in grace to regenerate, justify, sanctify, forgive their sin and give victory over sin, etc. So even though these people would have told others that they believe in Jesus, they were NOT genuine born again Christians. They were intellectual believers, but not heartfelt in repentance and faith. They may have even been emotionally titillated by the “signs” Jesus performed, but they still did not have a good discernment of who He really was and what He was calling them to.

In America we are guilty of selling a Jesus that people can have and He makes no demands of their life! We all want the forgiveness of sins without the Union with Christ—“do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” (Rom. 6:3). We all want a Jesus who will not change us too much! We want to believe in Jesus without Him asking us to give up a thing—or do anything like become a serious Bible student, or get out of debt, or tithe, or change my recreational habits, or talk to others about Jesus, etc. etc. Our culture is like this crowd who saw the signs Jesus did and had a form of belief. But it was not heartfelt; their belief did not rightly discern His holiness and His complete authority over their life. Oh, they believed, but it was not personal and it was not deeply meaningful.

We will look in just a moment at what constitutes genuine, biblical, saving faith.

II. JESUS KNOWS WHAT IS GOING ON IN YOUR MIND, HEART, AND SOUL

· Jesus knows what you are thinking.

· Jesus knows your emotions.

· Jesus knows your heart.

· Jesus knows your will.

· Jesus knows if someone is giving their whole heart to Him.

· Jesus knows if someone is holding back on full surrender of their heart even if they say they believe (intellectual belief only). Even the demons believe and shudder! (James 2:19)

My friends, you can fool the preacher, you can fool a spouse, you can fool a church, but you cannot fool Jesus! He knows you inside and out. He knows your heart and will respond to genuine repentance and faith! In fact, if you want Jesus to forgive you and give you eternal life, He can and will today. But you must turn to Him with no reservations. Call on Him in prayer even as I preach this message and He will save you!

III. SAVING FAITH – A BRIEF DEFINITION AND A LOOK AT THE ELEMENTS OF SAVING FAITH

I found this non-technical definition of faith in W. T. Conner’s small volume entitled Christian Doctrine (p. 198-199).

Moreover, faith as a condition of salvation is not an act by which the man merits or earns anything; it is the act by which the bankrupt sinner receives the grace of God. It is an act in which the sinner puts all his trust for salvation in another and in what that other has done for him. It is not an act in which the sinner makes any claims for himself; it is rather an act in which he acknowledges that he cannot help himself and in which he signs away his life to another. It is an act of utter self-abandon to another. So there is involved in the act of faith the very opposite of any claim to doing anything by which one wins the favor of God; it is an act in which one acknowledges the utter impossibility of doing this and by which one casts himself on Christ and what he has done for his acceptance with God.

Dr. Conner further states in saving faith (1) we receive Christ as Savior and (2) we submit to Him as Lord. Throughout the New Testament, Jesus makes a claim of total authority over our lives. In Matthew 10:34 ff and Luke 14:26, He says that He must come before father, mother, brother, sister, wife, or houses or lands: even of life itself. In Luke 9 and 14, we are asked to deny self, take up our cross, and follow Him. In Matthew 25, He claims to be the judge and final arbiter of the destinies of all men. And, of course in His resurrection and ascension, He proved His Lordship over all. One cannot come to Jesus as Savior only without recognizing that He is Lord over all . . . including our personal lives—all of our lives!

THE ELEMENTS

1. REPENTANCE

This turning away from trusting self; turning away from sin; this acknowledgement of total inability to produce anything good is absolutely necessary for one to have biblical faith. Acts 20:21; 2 Cor. 7:9-10; 2 Pet. 3:9.

“Scripture puts repentance and faith together as different aspects of the one act of coming to Christ for salvation. It is not that a person first turns from sin and next trusts in Christ . . . but rather both occur at the same time. When we turn to Christ for salvation from our sins we are simultaneously turning away from the sins (sin) that we are asking Christ to save us from. If that were not true our turning to Christ for salvation from sin could hardly be a genuine turning to Him or trusting in Him.” (Systematic Theology, Wayne Grudem, p. 713).

2. APPROPRIATION

Ken Keathley, in A Theology for the Church, says saving faith has the intellectual component but then calls the second main component APPROPRIATION, which Evans defines as ‘the consent of the will to the assent of understanding.’ Appropriation is the personal RELYING on Jesus.

Look at the qualities of appropriation that Keathley lists below:

1. Trust is an act of DEPENDENCE – Matt. 18:3

2. Trust involves a RESPONSE OF OBEDIENCE – 2 Thess. 1:8; 1 Pet. 4:17

3. Trust involves COMMITMENT – 2 Cor. 10:15; 2 Thess. 2:13. This is the yielding of the will.

4. Trust involves AFFECTION – one’s emotions issuing forth from the heart. 1 Pet. 2:7 – Jesus is precious to us. 1 John 4:7-21 – love of God.

5. Since trust depends on, commits to, obeys, and loves the Savior, then clearly to trust Jesus Christ is to ENTER INTO A RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM. We know Him! Matt. 11:27; John 8:19; 2 Tim. 1:12; Heb. 11:1

(A Theology for the Church, Chapter 12 The Work of God: Salvation by Dr. Ken Keathley, pp. 737-738)

IV. FAITH SHOULD INCREASE AS OUR KNOWLEDGE INCREASES (Grudem, p. 712)

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom. 10:17). The more we get to know Jesus and the more we know about Him, His character, etc., the more fully we are able to put our trust in Him.

V. IF WE TRUSTED JESUS WITH OUR WHOLE HEART, WE CANNOT END UP WITH A HALF-HEARTED CHRISTIAN LIFE

When we release to Jesus in genuine faith the Lord grips our lives for his purposes. That grip is real and the saving faith we begin with actually is the foundation for GROWTH IN FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS which results in His Grip getting stronger and stronger in and on our lives.

VI. THE GOSPEL WILL BE OUR CONSUMING LIFE’S PASSION IF WE TRULY BELIEVE IN JESUS

Oh friend, I remember the day I gave my heart to Jesus. He had all my heart then and He has it all today. I cannot shrink back from Him—I NEED JESUS TODAY MORE THAN EVER! I want people to be saved. I want the gospel to go forth. I want people to cry out to Jesus as they see themselves in abject spiritual poverty and then see Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes their sin and the King of Glory who wants them to come to Him. I WANT MY LIFE TO COUNT FOR THE GOSPEL. I BELIEVE IN JESUS—WILL YOU JOIN ME?!

QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL APPLICATION

(Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 718)

1. Have you come to trust in Christ personally, or are you still at the point of intellectual knowledge and emotional approval of the facts of salvation without having personally put your trust in Christ? If you have not put your trust in Christ yet, what do you think it is that is making you hesitate?

2. If your faith has not increased along with your knowledge, what can you do to encourage your faith to grow more than it has?

3. In terms of human relationship, do you trust a person more when you do not know that person very well or after you have come to know him or her quite well) assuming that the person is essentially a trustworthy and reliable person)? What does that fact tell you about how your trust in God might increase? What things might you do during the day to come to know God better, and to come to know Jesus and the Holy Spirit better?

4. Did you feel a sincere sorrow for sin when you first came to Christ? Can you describe what it felt like? Did it lead you to a genuine commitment to forsake sin? How long was it before you noticed a change in your pattern of life?

5. Have you ever truly repented of sin, or do you think you have been taught a watered-down gospel that did not include repentance? Do you think it is possible for someone genuinely to trust in Christ for forgiveness of sins without also sincerely repenting of sins? Do you think that genuine repentance usually involves only a sincere feeling of sorrow for sin in general, or does it involve genuine sorrow for specific sins, and turning from those specific sins?

6. Have faith and repentance remained a continuing part of your Christian life, or have those attitudes of heart grown somewhat weak in your life? What has been the result in your Christian life?