Ron Dunn Podcast - Why God Demands Faith

Episode Date: February 26, 2020

Ron Dunn continues his sermon series from Romans

Would you open your Bibles now to the book of Romans, chapter 4? The book of Romans, chapter 4. I wish we had the time this morning to read this entire chapter, but we do not. Romans, chapter 4 is the Lord trying to prove to us, demonstrate to us that men are saved by grace through faith. You know, the devil's primary target in his attack upon God is to confuse the way of salvation. Now, he has some secondary targets that he will attack and try to bring about confusion, but his primary target is to try to confuse to the minds of people the way of salvation. And he's done a magnificent job.

I have a great respect for the devil because he has done a marvelous job in confusing the minds of men about the way of salvation. And it's nothing new to us because the Apostle Paul had the same struggle. And all the way through these first three chapters of the book of Romans, Paul has been laboring the way of salvation. And in the third chapter, he concluded that all are under sin. Everybody is guilty. There is no defense, no excuse that anybody can make. He says that all the world be silent and freely

translated. That means let man keep his mouth shut. He has nothing to say to God. The whole world is guilty. Judgment has already been executed. He is under the sentence of death, and the wrath of God abides on him. Then the Bible turns to this great question. If it is true that I have already been judged and found guilty of God, that the sentence has already been put out,

and I stand before God this morning, a guilty sinner, under the wrath of God, then the great question is, how can I be right with God? How can I be saved? How can I be brought back into a right relationship with God? How can I have this sentence of death and hell removed from me? You can't do it by anything that you can do. It is without human merit. It is without human ability.

It is apart from human goodness. It is by grace. Grace means unmerited favor. And the way God saves us is, He saves us because it pleases him to save us not because we deserve to be pleased say not because we have earned it not because we have merited it by anything that we have done but he saves us by his grace grace means unmeritederved favor. God saves us because it pleases him to save us.

Not because I deserve it or even sometimes want it. Not even because I need it. God doesn't save me because I need to be saved. He saves me because it pleases him to be saved. He does it all. I have nothing at all to do with it. All I must do is to give my consent. And you know, the wonderful thing about salvation is you never have to beg God to save you. God's ready and willing to save every man. All he's waiting for is consent.

We're saved by grace. This means God does it all. This means you contribute absolutely nothing to your salvation. We're saved by grace. God does it all. We're saved by grace through faith. Faith means I give my consent. God is anxious to save me. God wants to save me. He yearns over me. He weeps over me. He wants to save me more than anything else. God wants to save me. He wants to save me so much. He sent his son, his only son into the world that through him, we might have life everlasting. And God demonstrated to me how much he wants to save me when Jesus Christ died on the cross. And the Bible says that the father put his own son to death.

He put his own son to death. He put his own son to death. As I said before, you'll never understand the gospel until you understand this, that it wasn't the Jews that crucified Jesus. They were just the instruments. It wasn't the Roman soldiers that crucified Jesus. They were only the instruments. The one who crucified Jesus was the Heavenly Father. He's the one that crucified Jesus.

Isaiah chapter 53 and verse 10, it says, it pleased the Lord to prove Jesus. He has put him to grief. In 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 21 says that he who knew no sin, talking about Jesus, hath been made sin for us. God made Jesus to be sin for us. He was the lamb of God. And when you observe that happening on the cross, here's what you see. You see the heavenly father coming to the place of

sacrifice. He's carrying something in his arm. What is it? It is a lamb. It is a lamb, a lamb of sacrifice, a lamb whose blood will be shed to pay the penalty for my sins. The heavenly father approaching the altar of sacrifice with a lamb in his arms. And as he gets closer and closer, you begin to distinguish that lamb more perfectly. And you see that that lamb that the heavenly father holds in his arms is his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And when Jesus died upon that cross, it was his heavenly father crucifying him. How can I ever doubt the love of God? How can I ever doubt that God wants to save me? But that doesn't automatically save me. I have to give my consent. I have to give my consent. And that's all that I do. I,

by faith, accept what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross. You know, God has never changed his M.O. God has never revised his plan. God has always had only one way of salvation. He has never changed it. He never will change it. We're saved by grace, by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Everybody is saved by that way. If you weren't saved that way, you're not saved. I love that old song we used to sing. God leads his dear children along, some to the water, some to the flood, some to the fire, but all through the blood. All of them come through the blood. And if you are not saved by the blood of Jesus Christ atoning and covering your sins, you're not saved. That's all there is to it. That doesn't automatically

save me. Because Jesus died on the cross for me, I must accept it. And that's what faith is. That's what faith is. You see, grace makes salvation available, and faith accepts what grace makes available. God says, here's my son, here's life, here's forgiveness of sin. Will you accept it? You say, yes, Lord, I'll accept it. I'll join the church. I'll be baptized. I'll live a good life.

God says, no. No. You can't be saved by doing things. You cannot merit this salvation. You cannot deserve this salvation. All I want to know from you is, be saved by doing things. You cannot merit this salvation. You cannot deserve this salvation. All I want to know from you is, will you by faith simply take what I offer? That's what faith is.

Now, in Romans chapter 4, Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is proving to us that we're saved by grace. God does it all through faith. My faith merely accepts what God has already done on my behalf. You remember the last Sunday I preached to you? I said the difference between

your religion and the New Testament religion is your religion is a religion of do. I must do this in order to be saved. I have to do this in order to please God. I have to do this in order to be right with God. But the religion of the New Testament is not the religion of do. It's the religion of done. D-O-N-E, not D-U-N-N.

D-O-N-E. It's already been done for me. Everything I needed to do, Christ has done for me. If I needed to be righteous, Christ has been righteous for me. If I need to keep the law, Christ has kept it for me. If I need to live in perfect obedience before the Father, Christ has done it for me. My religion, the religion of the New Testament, is a religion of done. It's already been done for me. That's great.

It's not what I do, it's what Christ has done. And faith is my realizing it's nothing I can do. I merely accept what Christ has done for me on my behalf. Now, the first 17 verses, he proves this negatively. And verses 18 following, he proves it positively. I want us to read one verse because it is the key verse. Verse 16, Romans chapter 4, verse 16. The first part of that verse.

This is the key to the chapter. My friends, it is the key to salvation. And if you don't get this, you've missed it. Verse 16, Romans chapter 4. Therefore, it is of faith in order that it might be by grace to the end for the purpose that the promise of salvation might be sure to all the seed. And here's what he says. Paul has been laboring the fact that we're saved by grace. We're saved by what Christ has already done for us, all we have to do, all we must do is merely accept it. It has to be by faith.

It has to be of faith in order that it might be by grace. And in order that the promise of salvation might be secure to everyone. Now, the message that I'm going to preach to you this morning answers the question, why does God require faith? Why does God require faith? And there are three reasons found in verse 16 why God demands and requires faith in order to be saved. First of all, it must be of faith

in order that it might be by grace. It must be of faith in order that it may be by grace. You say, I don't understand. Well, just stay with us and you will. All right, now let's look at verses 4 and 5. Oh, let's look at verse 2. Verses 2 through 5.

If Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to boast and brag, but not before God. So what does the Scripture say? Abraham believed God, that's faith, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace but of death. All right, now let's stop verse 4. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace but of death. Paul is using an

illustration. He's saying, listen, grace and work are mutually exclusive. They're like oil and water. You cannot mix them. Here's a fellow who takes a job. Let's suppose I work for Mr. Harris this week. He's going to go out and mow his lawn. That's more than I do for my own. Mow his lawn and wash his windows and trim his hedge and just going to work in his garden, in his yard. I'm going to be his yard man this week. And I arrive at seven o'clock every morning and work till six o'clock every evening. I just work, work, work, work, work. At the end of the week, Ed Harris is obligated to me. He is in debt to me. If he wraps up my paycheck as a gift, I am offended. Because that paycheck is not a gift.

It is not of grace. And if Ed pays me what he owes me, I'm not going to say Ed's a gracious son. That's not grace. I earned that. I worked for it. I sweat it for it. I labored for it. He owes it to me.

He's in debt to me. He's obligated to me. That's not grace when he pays me. That's not grace. That's not a gift. I have for it. He owes it to me. He's in debt to me. He's obligated to me. That's not grace when he pays me. That's not grace. That's not a gift. I have earned it. And this is what Paul is saying. He's saying if we're saved by being baptized,

if we're saved by joining the church, if we're saved by our good intentions, if we're saved by giving to the community chest of the United Funds, if we're saved because we have high ideals, then we can come to God. We can present our bill to God and say, Lord, since I have done such and so, since I have pleased you,

since I have worked, since I have labored, you must save me. And when God saves me, it is not grace. You see what he's saying? Anybody who believes that you can commend yourself to God because of the life that you're living or because of the religion that you embrace, you are removed from grace. It must be through faith. Now notice he says, but to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that

justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. All right. If I come over to Ed and I work real hard for him and he has to pay me, that's not grace. I've deserved it. I've earned it. But let's suppose I don't work for him. Let's suppose I work not, as it says in verse 5. I don't lift a little finger to help him. I don't cut a blade of grass. I do not wash a single dirty windowpane.

I don't do anything. And at the end of the week, he comes over and hands me a full check. That's grace. That's grace. Then I can say, he's a gracious fellow. Are you gracious?

I'll meet you at the back after this. To him that worketh not, it's grace. You see, it has to be of faith in order that not, it's grace. You see, it has to be of faith in order that it might be by grace. And this is where the devil has confused so many of us, you see. Well, the Jews said, oh, but Abraham was saved by circumcision. He was saved by that religious ceremony. No.

Paul proves that Abraham was saved before that religious ceremony. No. Paul proves that Abraham was saved before God ever gave that ceremony. And God gave that ceremony, why? In order to secure Abraham's salvation. No. As a sign that he had already been saved. Now here, now I want you to listen very carefully, very closely. Here is the deadly mistake the Jews made. They thought that religious right that was given as a sign of salvation was given in order to secure salvation.

They thought they were saved by submitting to that religious right. We've made the same mistake. Baptism is a sign of our salvation. Church membership is a sign of our salvation. And some of you this morning have the mistaken notion that baptism or sprinkling or confirmation or church membership is to secure that salvation, and it is not. Wednesday night, as many of you know, we had the adult choir from your Central Baptist Church in Aurora, Colorado with us.

And that night after the service, two men out of that choir came up and said, I want to shake your hand. I was saved as a result of Ponderosa. Back in March, I believe it was, I spoke at the Colorado Men's Retreat at Ponderosa. And those two men were there, members of that church. They were there at that camp, and they were saved as a result of that meeting. One of the men came up to me Wednesday night, and he said, I want you to know that I was chairman of the deacons of our church. And he said, for some time I had been bothered that maybe all I was is just a church member and not really saved. And he said, in one message that you brought,

you mentioned this and I preached on Jesus being the door of salvation and some people had climbed over the wall to get inside the church that never come through Jesus. You know there's more than one way to get in the sheepfold you can climb over the wall and get in the sheepfold but that doesn't make you sheep jesus said you have to come through me and there's a lot of people in the church they got in the church by climbing over the wall they didn't come through jesus and he said i realized then finally and certainly that i was lost he said i came back i told my pastor i was saved. I made a profession of faith. Now he, in 1969, that's three years ago, had been chairman of the deacons

of the Central Baptist Church in Aurora, Colorado, and he'd been lost. Why? Because he thought church membership was in order to secure salvation instead of being a sign that he already had salvation. It has to be a faith

in order that it might be by grace. You see? As long as you think by your work and your goodness and your church membership and your religion that this somehow commends you to God, you've missed it.

You've missed it. It's like the song that says, Nothing in my hand I bring simply to thy cross I cling. Could my tears forever flow? Could my zeal no longer know? These for sin could not atone. Thou must save and thou alone.

So it must be of faith in order it might be by grace. To say by grace, do you think. And also has to be in the second place by faith in order it might be universal. In order it might be saints. And also has to be in the second place by faith in order that it might be universal, in order that it might be global, in order that it might be for everyone.

Now, I'm going to get down into this mic because my voice is going rapidly. But I want you to hear this. Notice what he says in verse 16. Therefore, it is of faith in order that it might be by grace to the end the promise might be sure to all in order that the promise might be sure to all to all now listen the only way that the gospel of jesus christ be offered globally, universally to every

man is if it is offered through faith. If it's offered to the rich, that excludes old John Jasper, the slave. If it's offered to the poor, that excludes F.B. Meyer, the wealthy Christian. If it is offered to the learned, educated only, that excludes D.B. Meyer, the wealthy Christian. If it is offered to the learned, educated only, that excludes D.L. Moody, who had only a third grade education. If it is offered only to the ignorant, that excludes Charles H. Spurgeon, who had a classic education. If it is offered only to the white, that excludes George Washington Carver.

If it is offered only to the whites, that excludes George Washington Carver. If it is offered only to the blacks, that excludes Billy Graham. If it is offered only to the Jews, that excludes Ronald Dunst and every one of you. If it is offered only to the Gentiles, that excludes Paul the Apostle and Simon Peter and John the Baptist. The only way it can be offered to everyone is if it is offered through faith. It is through faith in its availability. It's available to everyone. And it is through faith in its accessibility.

Now listen. The genius of Christianity is that it's accessible to everyone. Now listen, I'm going to do a little reasoning, a little logic. Some people say, well, you have to be baptized in order to be saved. All right. Let's suppose then that I am in the middle of the Sahara Desert and I stumble across a gospel tract.

And I pick up that gospel tract and that gospel tract says, you're lost. You can be saved if you will trust Christ and be baptized. I look around. I need some mechanical means.

I need some water. I need a baptister I need someone to baptize I'm alone on the Sahara Desert I don't see any water anywhere therefore I cannot be saved well somebody says you've got to belong to our particular denomination

you have to belong to our particular church in order to be saved let's suppose that I'm in the dark jungles of Africa and I stumble across a gospel tract and it says if you're lost you can be saved if you'll trust Christ and join our denomination. We are the only church. Well, I look around, I don't see anything but trees and vines and monkeys and snakes. I lack the mechanical means to join that church.

Therefore, I cannot be saved. Somebody comes along and they say, you can be saved if you will trust Christ and live a good life and keep the Ten Commandments. How life and keep the Ten Commandments. How can I keep the Ten Commandments?

Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, perfect paradise, and they couldn't obey God. Somebody says, if you will never yield to temptation, you can be saved. No way. Now listen, I want be saved. No way. Now listen, I want you to get this statement. In your plan of salvation, if your plan of salvation will not work

under any and every conceivable circumstance, it's not God's plan of salvation. Because there is a conceivable circumstance where you wouldn't have water to be baptized. There is a conceivable circumstance you wouldn't have a priest to confess to. There is a conceivable circumstance you wouldn't have any church, any denomination to join. There is that probable circumstance that none of us can keep perfectly the laws of God. But there is no conceivable circumstance where faith cannot be exercised. I like what old Christmas Evans used to say.

He used to say, I can wrap him up in a chain, padlock that chain, throw him in a rain barrel, nail the top, knock the knot out, and shout through the hole how to be saved, and that man can be saved in the rain barrel. That's right. Because you can exercise faith if you're lying on a sickbed. You know where sprinkling grew up? You know where sprinkling instead of immersion came from? Because people came to the place they believed you had to be baptized in order to be saved. If you weren't baptized, man,

you'd go to hell. Well, here's a fellow in the hospital dying. He wants to be saved. Well, you can't take him out of that sickbed and take him down to the river and immerse him. So what do they do? They come up with what they call

clinical baptism. They get a little pail of water, and they come in and they sprinkle it. Here's a man in jail. He accepts Christ as Savior. They say, you've got to be baptized also to be saved. Well, I'm sure they're not going to allow this fellow to leave jail and go down to the river to be baptized.

So they'll bring a little pail of water, and they'll sprinkle it. Now you're saved. There is no conceivable circumstance under which a man cannot exercise faith. It is alive and conscious. It is a faith that it might be to everyone. The last thing I want to say, it has to be by faith in order that it might be guaranteed. It has to be by faith in order that it might be guaranteed. Notice what the apostle says, therefore it is a faith that it might be by grace to the end the promise might be and underscore that next word s-u-r-. That the promise of salvation might be sure,

might be certain, might be firm, might be steadfast. The only way that my ultimate arrival in heaven can be guaranteed is if salvation is by grace through faith. But I want to tell you something. Maybe some of you here this morning aren't saved and you're thinking about becoming a Christian.

And you have the idea that after you're saved, everything is going to be great. You're not going to have the same temptations. You're not going to have the same weaknesses. You'll never sin again. I've got news for you. You know, I've sinned more since I was saved than I did before I was saved. Of course, I was saved when I was nine years old and didn't have too much time.

But let's suppose now, like some people say, that we're saved by grace through faith, but then after you're saved, you've got to keep yourself saved by living a good life and a faithful life. Saved by grace, kept by work. Well, I want you to know that I just can't make it. You know what? I'm still bothered by some of the same weaknesses and some of the same sins that I was 20 years ago and even before I was saved.

Well, I woke up one day and I realized, Lord, I'm the same old fellow I've always been to a certain extent. I have the same temptations. I have the same weaknesses. And I'm not perfect like I thought I would be after I was saved. And Lord, if my arrival in heaven depends upon my obedience and my faithfulness and my goodness, I'll never make it. I want you to know that you're saved initially, immediately through faith

and you're saved all the way through and ultimately by faith. Not by anything you do. You are no more kept saved by your good works and your church membership than you were saved initially by your good works and your church membership. It never was dependent upon me.

It never has been. It never will be. Now listen, my salvation has absolutely nothing to do with me. It's not what I do. It's what Jesus has done. I want to tell you a two-fold miracle when you exercise faith in Jesus. Two things that happen. First thing that happens is, the Bible says in Romans chapter 4, that when you exercise faith in Jesus. Two things that happen. First thing that happens is,

the Bible says in Romans chapter 4, that when you exercise faith in Jesus, when you come to Jesus and say, Lord, I realize that I'm lost. I realize there's not anything that I can do to help myself, and so I merely accept by faith what you have done. And thank you, Lord, for saving me. I don't feel anything.

I don't feel any different. I don't see any difference. But, Lord, I've asked you to save me. You promised you would. I take it you would. Thank you, Lord, for saving me. I don't feel anything. I don't feel any different. I don't see any difference. But, Lord, I've asked you to save me. You promised you would. I take it you would. Thank you, Lord, for saving me. When I do that, exercise faith, two things happen. First of all, God takes all of my sins and charges them to the account of the Lord Jesus.

That's what it means when he says, the Lord imputes our sin to him. The Lord reckons our sin to Jesus. What a marvelous miracle of grace. As a nine-year-old boy, when I came to Jesus and said, Lord Jesus, I accept you as best I know how as my Savior, God took all the sins that I had committed. He took all the sins that I ever would commit until the day I died. And he took all that indebtedness of sin.

He didn't charge it to my account. He didn't put it under my name. That would mean I'd be lost in hell forever. He came over here to the name of Jesus and he put listed all of my sins under the name of Jesus. You look under my name, you don't find any sins there because God has charged up. He has reckoned. He has counted all of my sins under the account of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when Jesus died upon that cross,

God was pouring out his wrath upon Jesus because of my sins. God was going down the list of the sins of Ronald Dunn, and he was punishing Jesus for what I had done. He took all of my sins, and he charged them to the account of Jesus. Miracle number one. Miracle number two. When I trusted Jesus as my Savior, he took all the righteousness and all the goodness and all the perfection of Jesus and he charged that up to my account.

So when the Father looks at the account of Jesus Christ, what does he see? He sees sin, your sin, my sin. When he looks at the account of Ron Dunn, what does he see? Righteousness, goodness, holiness, perfection. Who? The Lord Jesus. It has been charged up to my face. My salvation is guaranteed because it doesn't ever depend upon what I do. It's through faith. It's just through faith. Not by by worth not by merit I've been preaching for nearly 19 years

and that doesn't make my salvation a bit more secure the Lord has given me victory over a lot of things in my life and the Lord has cleaned my life up considerably in these 18, 19, 20 years that doesn't make my salvation a bit more secure.

I'm saved by grace through faith. You know, it's not anything that I do. You say, what if the devil gets after you? It doesn't make any difference. My salvation is not dependent upon me. It's dependent upon Jesus. The devil's got to get after Jesus. He wants to rob me of my salvation.

The devil can buffet me all he wants to. He can tempt me all he wants to. He can tempt me all he wants to. If he wants to get at my salvation, he must attack Jesus. But my salvation depends not upon what I do, it depends upon what Jesus has done on my behalf. It has to be of faith in order that it might be guaranteed, you see. Oh, I know some people, they don't know whether they're saved or not. You ask some people, do you know for certain that you're saved? I hope I am.

They have an idea that when they get to heaven, God's going to have a big scale there. And on one side, He's going to place all of your works. And on the other side, He's going to place all of your sins. And if your sins outweigh your good works, you'll go to hell.

And if your good works outweigh your sins, you'll go to heaven. I'm glad it's not that way. He is going to place all my sins on one side of that scale, but guess what's going to be on the other side of that scale? Jesus. Or he weighs more. See, this is what the Bible means when it says,

When sin did abound, grace did what? Much more abound. If sin weighs a thousand pounds Jesus weighs a ton where sin did abound in my life grace is much more abound my salvation is a faith in all that might be guaranteed my name from the palm of his hand

eternity will not erase. It's impressed upon his heart and remains in marks of indelible grace. And when from the dust of death I rise to claim my mission in the sky, this only then shall be my plea. Jesus has lived and died for me. It is a faith in order that it might be by grace in order that it might be guaranteed. But let's suppose now

like some people say that we're saved by grace through faith but then after you're saved you've got to keep yourself saved by living a good life and a faithful life. Saved by grace, kept by word. Well, I want you to know that I just can't make it.

You know what? I'm still bothered by some of the same weaknesses and some of the same sins that I was 20 years ago and even before I was saved. Well, I woke up one day and I realized, Lord, I'm the same old fellow I've always been to a certain extent. I have the same temptations. I have the same weaknesses. And I'm not perfect like I thought I would be after I was saved. And, Lord, if my arrival in heaven depends upon my obedience and my faithfulness and my goodness,

how I'll never make it. I want you to know that you're saved initially, immediately through faith and you're saved all the way through and ultimately by faith. Not by anything you do. You are no more kept saved by your good works and your church membership than you were saved initially

by your good works and your church membership. It never saved initially by your good works and your church membership. It never was dependent upon me. It never has been. It never will be. Now listen, my salvation has absolutely nothing to do with me. It's not what I do. It's what Jesus has done. I want to tell you a two-fold miracle when you exercise faith in Jesus.

There are two things that happen. First thing that happens is the Bible says in Romans chapter 4 that when you exercise faith in Jesus, when you come to Jesus and say, Lord, I realize that I'm lost. I realize there's not anything that I can do to help myself

and so I merely accept by faith what you have done and thank you, Lord, for saving me. I don't feel anything. I don't feel any different. I don't see any difference. But, Lord, I've asked you to save me. You promised you would.

I take it you would. Thank you, Lord, for saving me. When I do that, exercise faith, two things happen. First of all, God takes all of my sins and charges them to the account of the Lord Jesus. That's what it means when he says the Lord imputes our sin to him. The Lord reckons our sin to Jesus. What a marvelous miracle of grace. As a nine-year-old boy,

when I came to Jesus and said, Lord Jesus, I accept you as best I know how as my Savior. God took all the sins that I had committed. He took all the sins that I ever would commit until the day I died. And he took all that indebtedness of sin. He didn't charge it to my account.

He didn't put it under my name. That would mean I'd be lost in hell forever. He came over here to the name of Jesus, and He put listed all of my sins under the name of Jesus. You look under my name, you don't find any sins there, because God has charged up, He has reckoned, He has counted all of my sins under the account of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when Jesus died upon that cross, God was pouring out his wrath upon Jesus because of

my sins. God was going down the list of the sins of Ronald Dunn, and he was punishing Jesus for what I had done. He took all of my sins, and he charged them to the account of Jesus. Miracle number one. Miracle number two. When I trusted Jesus as my Savior, He took all the righteousness and all the goodness and all the perfection of Jesus and He charged that up to my account. So when the Father looks

at the account of Jesus Christ, what does He see? He sees sin. Your sin. My sin. When He looks at the account of Ron Dunn, what does he see? Righteousness, goodness, holiness, perfection. Who? The Lord Jesus. It has been charged up

to my face. My salvation is guaranteed because it doesn't ever depend upon what I do. It's through faith. It's just through faith. Not by worth, not by merit. I'll tell you, I've been preaching for nearly 19 years, and that doesn't make my salvation a bit more secure. The Lord has given me victory over a lot of things in my life, and the Lord has cleaned my life up considerably in these 18, 19, 20 years, that doesn't make my salvation a bit more secure. I'm saved by grace through faith.

You know, it's not anything that I do. You say, what if the devil gets after you? It doesn't make any difference. My salvation is not dependent upon me. It's dependent on Jesus. The devil's got to get after Jesus. He wants to rob me of my salvation. The devil can buffet me all he wants to. He can tempt me all he wants to. If he wants to get at my salvation, he must attack Jesus. But my salvation depends not upon what I do. It depends upon what Jesus has done on my behalf. It has to be a faith in order that it might be guaranteed, you see. Oh, I know some people,

they don't know whether they're saved or not. You ask some people, do you know for certain that you're saved? I hope I am. They have an idea that when they get to heaven, God's going to have a big scale there. And on one side, he's going to place all of your work,

and on the other side, he's going to place all of your sins. And if your sins outweigh your good works, you'll go to hell, and if your good works outweigh your sins, you'll go to heaven. I'm glad it's not that way. He is going to place all my sins on one side of that scale, but guess what's going to be on the other side of that scale?

Jesus. Oh, he weighs more. See, this is what the Bible means when it says, When sin did abound, grace did what? Much more abound. If sin weighs a thousand pounds, Jesus weighs a ton. Where sin did abound in my life, grace is much more abound. My salvation is a faith in all that might be guaranteed. My name from the palm of his hand

eternity will not erase it's impressed upon his heart and remains in marks of indelible grace and when from the dust of death I rise to claim my mission in the sky this only then shall be my plea Jesus is real and died for me my messengers in the sky. This only then shall we be my friends. Jesus,

live and die for me. It is a faith and all that it might be by grace and all that it might be guaranteed. The Ron Dunn Podcast is available only for personal

edification, not to be duplicated, uploaded to the web, or resold without prior written consent. It is managed and operated by Sherwood Baptist Church. If you would like to listen to additional Ron Dunn messages, visit sherwoodbaptist.net slash bookstore and search Ron Dunn. For more Ron Dunn materials, including sermon outlines, devotions, and scanned pages from a study Bible, please visit rondunn.com.