100523 what god won't do
- 1. What God Won’t Do2 Peter 3:8-10The Lord does not wantanyone to perishBUT
- 2. There are some thingsGod won’t doto keep us out ofthe Lake of Fire
- 3. God Will NOT:Violate our free-willto determine our owneternal destination
- 4. Gen. 2:16-17You may eat freely from any tree of the garden; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.He gave them choice
- 5. Joshua 24:14-15Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the river in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is disagree-able in your sight to
- 6. Joshua 24:14-15serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living.
- 7. Joshua 24:14-15But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
- 8. Acts 2:40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
- 9. God Will NOT:Save those whodie in their sins
- 10. John 8:24Unless you believe that I Am, you shall die in your sins.
- 11. John 8:21And where I am going, you cannot come.
- 12. God Will NOT:Provide the lost with a second chance
- 14. God Has:Sent His Son
- 15. John 3:16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
- 16. Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.John 1:29
- 18. God is patient with you ......not wanting anyoneto perish, but everyone tocome to repentance.2 Pet. 3:9
- 19. Don’t think lightly of the riches of His kindness and for-bearance and patience, for the kindness of God leads you to repentance.Rom. 2:4
- 20. And this prefigured baptism, which now saves you — not the washing off of physical dirt but the pledge of a good conscience to God — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ1 Peter 3:21
- 21. Regard the patience of the Lord to be salvation.2 Pet. 3:15
- 22. God Will:Cleanse
- 23. Acts 2:38Repent, and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
- 24. Acts 22:16Why do you delay? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins.
- 25. 1 Cor. 6:9-11Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes
- 26. 1 Cor. 6:9-11nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
- 27. 1 Cor. 6:9-1111 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
- 28. God Will:Invite
- 29. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.Matt. 11:28
- 30. And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.Rev. 22:17
Editor's Notes
- #2: What a wonderful thought from 2 Peter 3:8-10God wants to be our Father, not our JudgeHe wants to embrace us, not condemn usHe wants us to enjoy fellowship with Him for all eternity* BUT …
- #3: We’re going to spend a few minutes thinking aboutWhat God won’t do …What God has done …What God will do …To accomplish his wish for our salvation
- #4: Where you & I spend eternity is largely up to usIt’s largely the result of our own choicesGod will not save us if we’re determined to be lost
- #5: God gave Adam responsibility for the garden and told him not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. * Rather than physically preventing him from eating, God gave Adam a choice and, thus, the possibility of choosing wrongly. God still gives us choices, and we, too, often choose wrongly. These wrong choices may cause us pain, but they can help us learn and grow and make better choices in the future. Living with the consequences of our choices teaches us to think and choose more carefully.
- #8: Joshua 24:16-24 Then the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! …19 Joshua said to the people, "You are not able to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. 20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you." 24 And the people said to Joshua, "We will serve the LORD our God and obey him."I wish it had been so. The period of Judges was a time when the people turned their backs on God & God turned his back on them, over & over. The last words are telling:Judges 21:25 NIV In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
- #9: Acts 2 lays out Peter’s message: God sent his son & you chose to kill him!People’s response: “What shall we do?”Acts 2:38-39 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call."The bottom line: You have to make a choice* Acts 2:40 offers the choice* Acts 2:41 tells what those people chose
- #10: We have to make a choice between sin & righteousnessThe good news for those who choose righteousness is the bad news for those who choose sin …God will honor your choice!God will not forcibly save you in spite of your decision to live and die in sin!
- #11: There is a gulf between us and God – that gulf is death because of our sins.Christ has come into the world with the cure for our sins; he can span the gulf!He brings forgiveness & cleansing; he brings strength and grace to live as we ought to live.But we can refuse the cure!A doctor may tell you that you’re sick and that a certain treatment can restore your health; he may tell you that without the treatment, death is inevitable.But you can still refuse the treatment!Jesus says: I’m the cure for what ails you!But you can refuse the cure – and if you do, you will die in your sins!
- #12: If you die in your sins, what Jesus said in John 8:21 is true of you.God wants you to be saved; but if you choose to remain in your sins, He will not force His will on you.It’s a matter of your choice, not His!
- #13: Remember when you were kidsIf a game didn’t turn out as you liked, you wanted a “do-over”God doesn’t give “do-overs” with lifeYou get one chance – and only one – to get it right
- #14: I see bumper stickers saying “No Fear”One Christian bumper sticker might read “No Excuses”Hebrews 9:27 says it wellSince we only go around once in life, we need to do our best to get it right – especially considering the consequences of getting it wrong!
- #15: Which is easier to follow: rules or an example?Law of Moses: “Let me tell you what I expect”Law was filled with “Do’s” & “Don’ts”In the NT: “Here, let me show you what I mean”John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.In OT God said to Moses: "You cannot see my face; for man shall not see me and live" (Exo 33:20). When God reminds the people of the giving of the law, he says: "You heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice" (Deut 4:12). No one in the Old Testament thought it possible to see God. But John says that Jesus has fully revealed to men what God is like. If you want to see what God is like, look at Jesus.
- #16: This has been called “everyone’s favorite text”.1. The initiative in all salvation lies with God. Some preach as though Jesus changed God’s attitude toward men from anger to forgiveness. This text says it all started with God. God sent his Son because he loved men. 2. The mainspring of God's being is love. God does not smash men into submission; he yearns over them and woos them in love. 3. The width of the love of God. God loved the world – not a nation; not good people; not those who loved him; but the world. God loved the unlovable & the unlovely, those who love God & those who never think of him; those who accept his love & those who spurn it. As Augustine had it: "God loves each one of us as if there was only one of us to love."
- #17: The reason we do not have to perish & the reason we can have eternal life is that Jesus has taken care of our sin.Like the Passover lamb whose blood redeemed the lives of Israel’s firstbornLike the lambs sacrificed daily in the temple for the sins of the peopleJohn says - & we believe – that Jesus is the only sacrifice that can deliver man from sin.
- #19: God is not slow; he just is not on our timetable. * Jesus is waiting so that more sinners will repent and turn to him. We must not sit and wait for Christ to return, but we should realize that time is short and we have important work to do. Be ready to meet Christ any time, even today; yet plan your course of service as though he may not return for many years.
- #20: In his kindness, God holds back his judgment, giving people time to turn from their sin. It is easy to mistake God's patience for approval of the wrong way we are living. Self-evaluation is difficult, and it is even more difficult to bring ourselves to God and let him tell us where we need to change. But as Christians we must ask God to point out our sins, so that he can heal them. Unfortunately, we are more likely to be amazed at God's patience with others than humbled at his patience with us.
- #21: 1 Peter 3:20-21 NET … God patiently waited in the days of Noah as an ark was being constructed. In the ark a few, that is eight souls, were delivered through water. *21 And this prefigured baptism, which now saves you — not the washing off of physical dirt but the pledge of a good conscience to God — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,Peter says that Noah was saved from the condemnation of the world through the waters of the Flood – and that that water symbolized baptism, a ceremony involving water. In baptism we identify with Jesus Christ, who separates us from the lost and gives us new life.
- #22: God’s patience should lead us to action – not inaction.It should motivate us to obedience, not disobedience.
- #24: Peter to the people who had cried out for Jesus’ blood only weeks earlier
- #25: Ananias to Saul (Paul) who had been crying out for the Christians’ blood ever since
- #28: Paul is describing characteristics of unbelievers. Christians come out of all kinds of backgrounds, including these. They still struggle with evil desires, but they should not continue in the practices. Paul clearly states that even those who sin in these ways can have their lives changed by Christ. However, those who say that they are Christians but persist in these practices with no sign of remorse will not inherit the Kingdom of God. Such people need to reevaluate their lives to see if they truly believe in Christ.In a permissive society it is easy for Christians to overlook or tolerate some immoral behavior (greed, drunkenness, etc.) while remaining outraged at others (homosexuality, thievery). We must not participate in sin or condone it in any way; we cannot be selective about what we condemn or excuse. Staying away from more "acceptable" forms of sin is difficult, but it is no harder for us than it was for the Corinthians. God expects his followers in any age to have high standards.
- #29: Not only does God want us to be saved, he woos us to be saved.He makes us an offer that we can’t afford to refuse.
- #30: A yoke is a heavy wooden harness that fits over the shoulders of an ox or oxen. It is attached to a piece of equipment the oxen are to pull. A person may be carrying heavy burdens of (1) sin, (2) harsh demands of religious leaders Matthew 23:4 NIV They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.Acts 15:10 NIV Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear?(3) oppression and persecution, or (4) weariness in the search for God.Jesus frees people from all these burdens. The rest that Jesus promises is love, healing, and peace with God, not the end of all labor. A relationship with God changes meaningless, wearisome toil into spiritual productivity and purpose.
- #31: Both the Holy Spirit and the bride (the church) extend the invitation to all the world to come to Jesus and experience the joys of salvation in Christ.When Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well, he told her of the living water that he could supply (Joh_4:10-15). This image is used again as Christ invites anyone to come and drink of the water of life. The Good News is unlimited in scope—all people everywhere may come. Salvation cannot be earned, but God gives it freely. We live in a world desperately thirsty for living water, and many are dying of thirst. But it's still not too late. Let us invite everyone to come and drink.
- #32: Remember that chasm that separates men from God – our sins & their result, death.Jesus’ cross is a bridge from sinful man to the holy God.It’s a toll bridge – but the toll has been paid by Christ, so we can walk across freely.
- #33: It’s time for you to choose.God will not violate your free willGod will not save you if you die in your sinsGod will not give you a second chanceGod has sent his sonGod will show patienceGod will cleanseGod will inviteHow will you respond?