The Race Set Before Us--mmebs 1

The Race Set Before Us 1

2

The Race Set Before Us Introduction & Preview of Chapter 1 3

Why The Race Set Before Us? 





Our Christian faith must be grounded in Scripture. No recent accessible exegetical-expository book on Christian perseverance & assurance. The need for an urgent pastoral appeal to persevere in faithfulness to Jesus Christ.

4

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

1. With conditional promises the gospel calls us to receive salvation in Christ.  “If you believe, then you will be saved.”  “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household” (Acts 16:31).  “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God” (Rev. 2:7).  “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death” (Rev. 2:11).  “If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will never blot your name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels” (Rev. 3:5). 5

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

2. Divine promises to preserve his people safe unto salvation in the Last Day.  “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26).  “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28).  “Indeed, just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whomever he wishes. . . . Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes in him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has 6 passed from death to life” (John 5:21, 24).

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

3. The gospel admonishes and warns us to persevere in faithfulness to Christ in order to be saved. 





“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book” (Rev. 22:18-19). “For if we willfully persist in sin after having received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful prospect of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries” (Hebrews 10:26-27). Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:7-9). 7

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

4. The gospel announces the necessity to persevere in faithfulness to Christ because they will face opposition. 





“We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us” (Romans 5:3-5). “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life” (Mark 10:29-30). 8

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

5. The gospel calls upon us to examine ourselves to see whether our behavior corresponds to what the gospel requires of all who believe. 



“We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, ‘I know him,’ but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him” (1 John 2:3-6). “Those who have been born of God do not sin, because God’s seed abides in them; they cannot sin, because they have been born of God. The children of God and the children of the devil are revealed in this way: all who do not do what is right are not from God, nor are those who do not love their brothers and sisters” (1 John 3:9-10). 9

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

6. The gospel makes it clear that anyone who fails to remain faithful to Jesus Christ was never an authentic believer. 

“Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us” (1 John 2:18-19).

10

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

7. The gospel clarifies that everyone who does persevere in faithfulness to Jesus Christ does so only because God is doing a work of grace in them. It is God who enables them and causes them to desire and to do what he desires. 



“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God” (John 3:19-21). “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed— not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” (Philippians 2:12-13). 11

Eight Kinds of Biblical Passages 

8. The gospel explains that everyone who believes in Christ Jesus and perseveres in faithfulness to him does so because of God’s grace alone. 



“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith— and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared for in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:9-10). “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:28-30). 12

The Race Set Before Us An Overview of the Book

13

The Race Set Before Us 1. The Race Set Before Us: What Is There to Win or Lose? 2. The Prize to Be Won: Our Present & Future Salvation 3. The Race to Be Run: The Necessity of Obedient Faith 4. Running to Win the Prize: Heeding God's Admonitions & Warnings 5. Reflecting on Fallen Runners: Who Are Those Who Have Fallen Out of the Race? 6. Drawing on God's Grace: Going the Distance by God's Power 7. Running with Confidence: Being Assured That We Shall Win the Prize 8. Running by Divine Appointment: Who Are Those Who 14 Run to the End & Win?

The Race Set Before Us Preview of Chapter 1 The Race Set Before Us: What Is There to Win or Lose?

15

g n o r w Four Views on

Warnings & Assurance

Loss of Salvation View.  Loss of Rewards View.  Tests of Genuineness View.  Hypothetical Loss of Salvation View 

16

Five Views on Warnings & Assurance Loss of Salvation View.  Loss of Rewards View.  Tests of Genuineness View.  Hypothetical Loss of Salvation View  God’s Means of Salvation View. 

17

18

19

20

Warnings & admonitions only caution what would happen if one could fail to endure to the end.

The Prize is salvation, eternal Life

Already Saved The race track represents salvation. One who is already saved cannot abandon the race.

Hypothetical Loss of Salvation View of Warnings & Admonitions

21

22

Not all believers will persevere in faithfulness to Christ

only as good perseverance

as

one’s

t lva

salvation, but not from perseverance

apart

Assurance is not of the Assurance is of the n G W o i o essence of faith. Present essence of faith. Present ar e t od nin tiv alva assurance is possible but assurance is final and c w gs e s or p s o k only as good as one’s absolute certainty, without & t o s Ad perseverance ar Pr hip any relation to one’s e e mo ns ne ar o nit perseverance. i s c t

o dm

d

o Go

on

i nit

ss A e c & ne s g o n n ni e v ar W ha s rk wo

y ar

es s

la re

ar

Retrospective view of Salvation Salvation already

y

ion

on

s

ly

ar

e

as

Re tr ev ospe ide c nc tive e of sa lv

Loss of Rewards Tests of Genuineness

at

ion

All believers will persevere in faithfulness to Christ

Loss of Salvation Means of Salvation

ion od e sa ctiv wo W l r a e ar Salvation already but not yet nin ks a fin osp re gs Pr or f e n & y ec Prospective view of Salvation ar Ad ar es s s s mo sa ion ce t ry nit i e n n ion fo e mo r r s d a fin A ar ks & e al r s o Assurance is not of the Pro sa is of the w ing Assurance l s d v n p o essence of faith. Present a r essence of faith. Present ec Go Wa tiv tion assurance is possible but assurance of final e

Go

24