What Is In It For Me?
Matthew 19:16-30
Text verse 27: "What shall we have therefore?"
July 2005
Peter was the most colorful of the twelve disciples. He was a man of action. He did not nothing by halves. He was a man who spoke quickly. He often opened his mouth and inserted his foot. Here is one of those times.
Peter was quick to see the contrast between the wealthy ruler and the poor disciples. "We have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?" Now his inquiry about service was not made by Peter until after he had been following Christ for several years. That fact declares a great deal about where Peter's heart was. It says that his first interest was in Christ and not reward.
However, let me take the question of Peter and apply it this
morning.
Everybody wants to know "what's
in it for me?" What do I get out of it? What is in salvation
for me? What is in it for me?
I. There is An ERASER for my PAST! (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14)
A. Forgiveness for my failures
B. Forgiveness for my foolishness
C. Forgiveness for my follies
This forgiveness is full, free, and forever.
One of the truly great and far reaching blessings of God's salvation is what it does to sin. The repenting sinner is immediately and eternally saved from the penalty of sin, provided with victory over the power of sin, and guaranteed final removal from the presence of sin. No preacher, priest, pope, church, or water can banish your sins. Jesus bare our sins in his own body on the tree. He paid our sin debt. The Bible is full of beautiful passages that vividly describe what Jesus can do with our sins: "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us" (Psalm 103:12). The north-south measure is finite, not so with the east-west measure. Sin is removed so far, then we may be sure that the scent, the trace, the very memory of it must be entirely gone. If this be the distance of its removal, there is no shade of fear of sin ever being brought back again. "The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin."
There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuel's veins;
And sinners plunged beneath that food,
Lose all their guilty stains,
Lose all their guilty stains,
Lose all their guilty stains,
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,
Lose all their guilty stains.
"For thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back" (Isaiah 38:17). “Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea" (Micah 7:19). My sins are buried, never to rise again to be viewed, buried out of sight in eternal oblivion: not merely at the shore side, where they may rise again.
II. There is An ENTRY in the PAGES! (Job 16:19, Luke 10:20)
On our recent vacation, we stopped to eat at a restaurant called PLAIN AND FANCY. I was detoured a few minutes by a few items in the gift shop, but when came to where the rest of the family was, they were standing around and I thought they were just waiting on me. To my surprise they were not, but rather they were waiting on the usher to call the name CHAPMAN in order to gain an entrance to the restaurant. Mark had given the man our name, and they was just waiting on him to call it. Now it was important for you to have your name to be on that list. There are other list that are important for your name to be on (voter’s registration) . All other list fade into obscurity in comparison to your entry in the pages of book of life (Revelation 20:15).
The book of life contains the names of hopeless sinners who have trusted in God’s Son for salvation.
April 14, 1912, is an important date because of the sinking of the Titanic. It was a night where, in a little over 3 hours, thousands of people lost their lives in the icy waters of the North Atlantic and went out into eternity.
Following the sinking of the Titanic, the White Star Company, the company who had built the ship, in Liverpool, England, placed a large board on either side of the main entrance of their office. On one board they printed the words, "KNOWN TO BE SAVED." On the other board they printed the words, "KNOWN TO BE LOST!" When the Titanic began its voyage, there were 3 classes of passengers. But, when the voyage ended, there were only 2 classes: those who had been ‘SAVED' by the rescue boats; and, those who had been ‘LOST' in the deep waters.
In much the same way we are on a voyage aboard a ship called ‘Life.' This ship is sailing with passengers from all walks of life. However, when this ship finally pulls into port, and the horn sounds for the last time, there will be only 2 classes of people: those who were ‘SAVED' because they accepted Jesus; and, those who were ‘LOST' because they rejected Jesus.
The saved will have their names written in the book of life.
III. There is an An ENABLEMENT of POWER! (John 1:12)
The power of salvation in the person of the Holy Spirit is not to become merely a possession, but that power is to produce in and through our lives. The Holy Spirit is the Almighty source of our salvation, and He is to become the Almighty force for our service.
Jesus said that the power of the Holy Spirit would enable us to work, to witness, to walk, and to worship. The Holy Spirit is the equipping, enabling, empowering, enriching, and energizing force in the life of the child of God. He give us everything we need to do what we need do as it relates to the Christian life.
A. Enablement to stand up
B. Enablement to speak out
C. Enablement to shine forth
In a seminary missions class, Herbert Jackson told how, as a new missionary, he was given a car that would not start without a push. After pondering his problem, he devised a plan. He went to the school near his home, got permission to take some children out of class and had them push his car off. As he made his rounds, he would either park on a hill or leave the engine running. He used this ingenious procedure for two years.
Ill health forced the Jackson family to leave, and a new missionary came to that station. When Jackson proudly began to explain his arrangement for getting the car started that he was going to give the new missionary, the new man began looking under the hood. Before the explanation was complete, the new missionary interrupted, "Why, Dr. Jackson, I believe the only trouble is this loose cable." He gave the cable a twist, stepped into the car, turned the switch, and to Jackson's astonishment, the engine roared to life. For two years needless trouble had become routine. The power was there all the time. Only a loose connection kept Jackson from putting that power to work.
How tremendous is the power available to those who believe in God. His life and power flow through us through our surrender to the Holy Spirit.
IV. There is An ESCAPE from the PIT! (Luke 16:19-31)
To die without Christ, is to spend an eternity in hell.
No flowers will bloom on the banks of Hell,
No beauties of nature we love so well;
No comforts of home, music or song,
No friendship at all found in that throng;
No children to brighten the long, weary night;
No love nor peace, not one ray of light;
No mercy, no pity, pardon nor grace,
No water; O God, what a terrible place!
The pangs of the lost no human can tell,
Not one moment's ease--there is no rest in Hell!
Memory, remorse, suffering and pain,
Weeping and wailing, but all in vain;
Murderers, gamblers, drunkards and liars,
Will have their part in the lake of fire;
The filthy, the vile, the cruel and mean,
Such suffering and pain as never seen!
Yes, more than humans on earth can tell,
Are torments and woes of eternal Hell!
A. Hell is an actual place
The Bible declares in very dogmatic terms that a place called Hell exist. Hell is a fact. To deny Hell does not destroy it; to shun Hell does not annihilate it; to ignore Hell, does not erase it. Nobody can believe the Bible and not believe in Hell as an actuality too terrible for words to describe. There are 162 text in the New Testament alone which speak of the doom that awaits the unrepentant sinner, and over 70 of them were uttered by the Lord Jesus Himself.
B. Hell is an awful place
1. Frightful place
2. Fiery place
C. Hell is an avoidable place
Man only goes there by choice. God grants deliverance to any and all who will trust in His son, Jesus Christ.
Harry Houdini the great escape artists often would ask to be locked up in local jail cells when he was traveling to prove he could escape. He was always able to pick the lock except for one occasion. On one occasion Harry was placed in a cell, and the door closed. He fiddled with the lock trying to pick it but finally gave up in frustration. After giving up the jailor came over and simply pulled open the door. The cell door was never locked!
Christ died on the cross for our sins, and there is nothing we must do except go through the door!
Conclusion:
What is in it for me? What is in salvation for me? The benefits are great. See Psalm 116:12-16.
Christian, are you serious about your service for the Lord?
Dedication Pizza Style
According to The Week magazine (June 17, 2005, p. 8), a Tampa pizza deliveryman was shot in the leg by a would-be mugger while delivering pizzas. He went on to make four more deliveries before going to the hospital emergency room! If a guy will do that for delivering pizzas, why can't most Christians be that dedicated in delivering the Gospel to the lost?
Because of all the benefits that is in salvation, let us dedicate ourselves to his service.
Sincerely yours but securely His,