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ARE THESE THINGS SO ...

October 8, 2000 AM

Sermon Outline

THAT JESUS WALKED ON WATER?

Mt 14:22-33

INTRO: The question of the Jewish high priest to Stephen in Acts 7:1 reaches into many elements of the Lords life and work. Are these things so? It is, in fact, a very good question. The life of Jesus on this earth was punctuated by so many out of the ordinary things. People would want to know if these things really happened. Here is a question one could ask. Is it really so that Jesus walked on water? And the question could be expanded to include the entire miraculous element of Jesus ministry.

I. NO DENYING BIBLICAL NOTICE OF MIRACLES

A. A bit of defining ...

1. we do use the word more broadly than scripture

2. a miracle is an unmistakable supernatural intervention in to the natural order of things

3. things absolutely not possible with man

B. Lk 7:19-22 ...what things ye have seen ...

1. the incredible things these men saw were testimony to John the Baptist and others that Jesus was Christ

2. listed in v.22 are just some of the miracles

3. note Jno 5:7-9,13 this was so public ... note, too, v.36 miracles were a testimony to Jesus uniqueness!

II. THE TESTIMONY OF FRIEND AND FOE

A. Jno 3:1,2 ... these miracles that thou doest ...

1. Nicodemus was a well known, recognized leader among Jews at Jerusalem ... credible!

2. he recognized the miracles as from God

3. such testimony cannot be lightly dismissed

B. Jno 9:6-10 ... and came seeing ...

1. this blind man was well known as a beggar

2. the testimony of those who knew him (even parents v.20) was that he was blind ... but now could see

3. Jno 9:16 note: they did not dispute that the miracle had been done ... that was indisputable

C. Jno 11:47 ... this man doeth many miracles

1. these were the enemies of Jesus - plotting to kill

2. but they did not seek to prove Him to be a fake, a charlatan ... the miracles were so well attested

3. still, He was a problem to their acknowledged leadership and power ... so, Jno 11:50

D. Jno 12:9-11 ... that they might see Lazarus ...

1. note Jno 11:43-45 an event witnessed by many

2. now, Lazarus had become a curiosity people wanted to see ... and the chief priests wanted to kill a living Lazarus!!

3. note Jno 12:17-19 eyewitness testimony not refuted or argued by His enemies

E. An absence of refutation is significant!

1. vast majority of miracles were seen by many

2. the miracles were (as Nicodemus noted) obviously the power of God

3. so, enemies did not deny them or refute them ... their only hope was to do away with Jesus (note Lk 23: and the assumption of Herod ... Jesus was one Who did miracles!)

III. THE PURPOSE OF GOD BY THE MIRACLES?

A. Jno 5:36 To bear witness He was sent by Father

1. but there were those who may have seen the miracles and remained unconvinced (v.38)

2. further, Jesus pointed to scripture as the ultimate source/basis of faith (5:39)

B. Jno 20:30,31 ... that ye might believe ...

1. if there was question about them, the miracles would become a source of confusion and skepticism

2. but there is really no historical question

CLOSE: Are these things so? While there are atheists and modernists who say, No, there was no real dispute about the miracles by the people nearest in time to them. These things are, indeed, so.

Cecil A. Hutson

08 October 2000

God's Plan of Salvation

You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what your background is. The Bible tells us that "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

You must believe and have faith in God because "without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." (Hebrews 11:6) But neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James 2:24; Matthew 7:21)

You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance alone is not enough. The so-called "Sinner's Prayer" that you hear so much about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the "Sinner's Prayer" to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts 10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, prayer alone will not save you. You must obey the gospel. (2 Thess. 1:8)

You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus "Lord of your life." Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just "accept Jesus as your personal savior." We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God, but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew 7:21)

Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21) Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in God's grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they remain faithful, those who are in God's grace will fall from grace, and those whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)