God's Sovereign Initiative in Salvation and Evangelism

What we find in this passage are descriptive terms of the radical character of man's fallenness. We've talked about moral inability. We have avoided the use of the language of Calvinism, which describes man's situation as that of "total depravity," a term that has become very, very controversial in Christian circles and is part of the famous acrostic that Calvinists use to delineate the so-called five points of Calvinism - TULIP. [00:01:26]

The term "total depravity" was coined to mean that sin affects the whole person, that the total essence of our humanity is fallen. That is, our minds are fallen, our wills our fallen, our bodies are fallen - the whole person is caught up in this fallenness. I prefer to speak of "radical corruption." The problem is that turns "TULIP" into "RULIP," and ruins the acrostic. [00:03:11]

The gospel's only good news when we understand the bad news. The gospel's only gospel when we first understand the law and our situation under the law. Here we are, dead in sin and trespasses, walking according to the flesh, the lusts of the flesh, and so on, walking like those who are under the spirit of disobedience, children of wrath - BUT God. [00:07:10]

It says, "But God, who is rich in mercy has made us alive, quickened us, even when we were dead in our transgressions." Now when I hear evangelical Christians talk about what happens in conversion, I hear two analogies frequently, illustrations designed to communicate to our minds what really happens. Maybe you've heard them. [00:08:07]

A better analogy would be that the man has gone under for the third time, and he's at the bottom of the sea, and God dives in the water, and He takes that dead man, that corpse from the bottom of the sea and brings him out onto the dry land and He leans over, and He gives him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, and He breathes His life into that man, and that man is restored from the dead. [00:10:35]

And of course, after God quickens us, then we choose, then we believe, then we embrace Christ, we repent. We do all of those things because we're alive now to the things of God. But the first step, the initiative, the being made alive from the dead, is the work of God and the work of God alone. [00:11:21]

The chief reason why we do evangelism, in light of the sovereignty of God is because God is sovereign, and God has not only sovereignly decreed the end, that is, the goal of the redemption of people, but He also has sovereignly decreed the means toward that end. He has chosen the foolishness of preaching as the means by which He will bring people to salvation. [00:15:43]

He has chosen to do it with me and by me and through me, and with you and by you and through you. So we see here that evangelism is first of all a duty. But second of all, and we need to understand this: evangelism is an unspeakable privilege. What a privilege to be - I mean, I was once reading a book on fundraising. [00:16:51]

All I do in my life - I don't play for the Pittsburgh Steelers, I'm not a member of the President's Cabinet - all I do is work everyday for the King of Kings. That's all I do. Now what could be more insignificant than that? All I get to do in my work, and I get paid to do this, is to work in the most significant enterprise that God has ever created. [00:19:24]

Notice what Paul says in chapter 10 of Romans. It says in verse 11, "For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.'" Man, what a statement. When we come to faith, and we place our faith, we place our trust, we place our confidence in Christ as our Savior - everyone knows what it means to have placed their trust or confidence in something or someone that let them down. [00:21:02]

But whoever places their faith or confidence in Christ will never be disappointed! "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord over all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him." Verse 13, "For, "Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.'" [00:21:49]

I know that it was God who brought me to Christ, but He used a man who told me the gospel, and I will never forget that man. And no matter what that man ever does, I will always love him because humanly, he cared enough to be the instrument that God was pleased to use to bring me to Jesus Christ. [00:28:17]