Did God Pick You?

Can you be sure that you’re going to heaven? Are there those who are on their way to heaven but might not make it in the end? Are there others who don’t even think about God but end up going to heaven? Let’s sort out the issue of predestination and the foreknowledge of God.

So are you gonna go to heaven? Are you sure? Can you be for sure?
Um, are there those who are on their way to heaven?
And, um, they may not make or are there those who don’t even think about god at all and they’re going to go?
What’s the truth on this? Does Jesus really know who really belongs to him? That’s hang on.
Let’s dive in. Let’s get into the Bible and see.
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Now open your hearts to what god’s word has to say to you. Here is Jack Gibbs.
Hey, everybody. Welcome to the podcast and really, um, important.
This is coming out of something, to be very honest with you, as we are currently at this timeframe moment, uh, going through on Sundays at the church, the book of Romans.
I couldn’t wait. I love Romans chapter 1 to 8. Love it. Who couldn’t love it.
But the way that I was brought up spiritually at Carrie Chapel Costa Mesa, under Chuck Smith.
Um, and I’m only telling you that because I went to Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa Under Chuck Smith, I couldn’t wait to get the Romans 9, 10, 11.
Right now, we’re we’re halfway through Romans 9 on Sundays.
And the way that I was brought up, Romans chapters 9, 10, 11 are thrilling. They’re awesome.
And I’m having a great time.
I think we’re something like, don’t quote me on this because I’m I’m kind of off the calendar in my head, but I’m gonna guess that this is at least our 3rd or 4th Sunday in Romans 9, and we’ve only gotten to the 13th verse in a month.
Um, because we’re just unpacking it systematically. And listen, Number 1, letting the Bible interpret the Bible.
So I I happen to have gotten saved at cover Chapel Costa Mesa.
Greg Lori was giving the gospel on a Monday night.
I thought he was the pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. Until I went to church the following Sunday.
I got saved in a Monday.
I went to church on Sunday in this this bald older man came out.
And I thought, who’s this guy? Oh, Carrie Costa Mesa was Chuck Smith’s ministry.
And, um, he cracked open the Bible and guess what?
Book of Romans, brand new believer, book of Romans, my jaw dropped.
I don’t know how long it took us to go through it, but it was just incredible.
And guess what? I don’t remember if ever if ever Chuck In the in the nearly 2 decades that I was there, I don’t remember Chuck Smith ever bringing up much ever men’s names.
He was never a name dropper ever.
But when I went through the book of Romans with him, it was just it made such so much sense.
It’s so awesome. And I’m so glad I did.
And the reason why that’s important is because there are people sadly, and I know I’m gonna upset some of you guys.
Can you just hear me out right now?
We get you guys, we get all kinds of input input from people, and some people are just bizarre, fanatical weird.
And when I say fanatical weird, it’s it’s like this stuff.
I think these are fanatically weird people who when I say, man, I love a w tozer.
Oh my gosh. Tozer’s a freak. He believed that you could actually experience god.
Tozer talked a lot about experiencing god. And it’s like, wow.
I’m so surprised that people have a problem with a w tozer.
Because I read everything that I do read through the filter of my Bible. This is the Bible.
Whatever Toeser’s written is not the Bible. Can you handle that?
Whatever Charles Spergin wrote is not the Bible. Charles Spergin wrote, but Charles spurgeon wrote about.
But if I quote spurgeon, some people because frankly, they’re so shallow and frankly immature.
They foaming at the mouth and their eyes rolled in the back of their head because I quoted spurgeon.
What a pathetic response to an incredible man of god? Who He had his own quirkiness.
So Charles Stanley had his quirkiness. Chuck Smith had his Doctor David Jeremiah.
Um, Jay Vernon McGee. Excuse me. If you me, I have mine.
If you don’t think you have your quirkiness Not all of us come to the exact same landing on any particular verse of the bible at all times.
That’s why there’s commentaries written by men. They’re not inspired by god necessarily.
Now the Bible versus their quoting, they are.
And some of the teaching where it is in line with scripture 100%, you can tell. The believer can tell.
When somebody says, look, I’m gonna say something. Get rid of the foam. Get your napkin ready.
You’re gonna have you’re gonna have a seizure in a moment.
You will never hear me publicly endorse William Barkley.
William Barkley’s got some very bizarre views in his commentaries. William Barkley the commentator.
But I read Barclay because he’s profoundly insightful and accurate regarding background content.
Background content, William Barkley is great.
But William Barclay didn’t believe in the miracles of Christ. That’s bizarre. That’s nuts. Guess what?
If I’m gonna teach on the miracles of Christ, guess whose book I’m not gonna use. Barclay.
You know why? I boast in Christ and him alone.
I’ve read enough of this book to know that all books must bow to this book.
And so I’ve got an anchor that when I read anyone’s book publication, If I listened to anyone’s podcast or sermon, I judge it all against the Bible just like you should do me.
And by the way, that’s what acts 1711 is all about.
Everything Paul City was teaching and preaching should be judged against the word of god. Is that awesome?
So, um, I mentioned William Barclay, I gleaned from him just like Ruth gleaned from Boaz’s uh field.
Right? I pick what I want. I pick what I need.
If I read, uh, spurgeon, I pick what I want. I pick what I need.
Um, when I read from Uh, oh, here’s a note. Watch.
If if I read from art, uh, uh, a j JC Ryal, great insight, especially the gospels.
Wow. But do I hold to the the, um, views of soteriology, for example, that JC Riled Hellto, not all of them, Um, you say, how can you say that?
You’re just you’re just Jack. How can you judge JC Ryal? It’s easy for me to judge JC Ryal.
I just go to the Bible.
So for example, You’re not gonna hear me mention often.
Uh, the men of god who are known for what people listen.
Please listen. What people have made them into be in the realm of controversy.
So for example, big fan big fan of Dee Martin Loyd Jones, big fan.
Now some of you now now your left eye is rolling in the back of your head because Martin Lloyd Jones said that he was a Calvinist.
The funny thing about Martin Lloyd Jones is that he has pro found evangelistic sermons.
You see, what what’s the point? Well, here’s the beautiful point.
You’ve got John Calvin’s teachings and not all of those conclusions, uh, on Tulip, If you know what I mean, you you know what I mean.
If you don’t, you don’t need to know.
But I don’t agree with the definitions of Tulip of the today modern Calvinist person.
In fact, if John Calvin came back, he’d probably slap some people up around the face.
Because I don’t even know if spurgeon or or or Calvin or Luther would agree with all that stuff.
But Listen, there’s stuff, for example, Martin Luther. Oh, Martin Luther, the great reformer.
Of course, he was the great reformer, but did you know that Adolf Hitler used Martin Luther’s view of the Jewish people to justify.
He used Martin Luther as a cover. To do his demonic antics smart, uh, Hitler did.
Did you know that? Did you know that Adolf Hitler thought there’s parts of Luther that were right on that he could use to make himself look good against the Jews.
Martin Luther was an anti Semitic individual, the great reformer. People who wanna talk about that. I don’t care.
I don’t care because he’s dead and gone. Okay?
What I care now is about what the Bible say it’s my it’s it’s the only care I’ve ever had.
People will say to me, uh, good, bad, or ugly, whatever your view is is irrelevant to me, is, boy, you’re so bold about what you believe.
You know why? Notice. I have a look. I have a little thing that I’ve practiced in my life.
I don’t get excited about things unless I know what I’m talking about.
So for example, I don’t know why I just turn the pages on this.
I was in John chapter 10. That’s where I wanted to bring this up. I was in John 10.
And how do you hear this? How do you respond to this? Are you ready? Listen up.
And this this This is, uh, Dovetail.
It dove it dove Dovetails or coalesces perfectly with Romans, uh, 9, 10, 11.
Uh, John 1027. Jesus said, my sheep hear my voice. I know them.
Question. When did god know those who are his sheep?
Answer Romans 8 and Romans 9. Just to pick one area of scripture.
That from about Romans 8 28 to 30, and then into Romans 9 verse 1.
All of god’s doctrines, ephesians 1, versus 4 and 5, I think.
And ephysians 111, I think. Deal with predestination because it’s a biblical doctrine.
What does that mean? Well, read the Bible.
The Bible says that based on god’s foreknowledge, he predestined those, and it says right there in scripture, he wore in them his sanctification work.
It says all the way out to glorification.
Whom he and then he goes all the way to glorification.
When I was taught the Bible as a brand new believer, see, I didn’t have any denominational influence.
I had no church background at all.
I just think, god, I went to a church where a guy sat down on Thursdays on a stool with the Bible open, or he stood by an appropriate on Sunday with the Bible open.
And all you heard was Bible.
And a little bit of expository Bible, a lot of Bible, little bit of expository, a lot of Bible.
And so I didn’t have any trash.
I didn’t have any baggage of influence from other great believers before us. Okay?
And so denominations often are very passionate about their founders to the point where they will ignore other parts of scripture to stay true to their denomination.
And that’s very sad. I would believe I do believe that that’s an that’s an account to teaching the traditions of men over the doctrines of god.
That’s a boo boo man. That is bad news, and that’s where Paul was messed up.
A soul of Tarsus was messed up before he became Paul, the apostle.
So my question to you is this. Jesus says my sheep. Oh, Jesus knows who his sheep are.
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them. When did Jesus know them?
What does the Bible say? He knew them in foreknowledge. When was that? Exactly.
The Bible says in Ephesians 1 before the universe, before the foundations of the world.
Materialism was ever created. Uh, let me ask you. I’ll ask you this way.
When was Jesus created? You say he’s never been created. Exactly. You know why? Cause he’s god.
So what can he know? He knows everything. Yes. He does.
For knowledge is that he knows everything in advance before anything ever was before a 1000000000 years ago ever existed Jesus knew his who his sheep would be.
Does that freak you out? Go ahead. Not me. I love it. Awesome.
God. Thank you. Wow. I feel so safe. Insecure. My sheep hear my voice. They follow me.
They follow me. Do you wanna follow Jesus, or do you wanna follow Luther?
Do you wanna follow Jesus, or do you wanna follow Chuck Smith?
Do you wanna follow Jesus, or do you wanna follow John Calvin?
Do you wanna follow Jesus, or do you wanna follow tozer? Or I don’t know.
Whoever, Billy Graham, David Jeremiah, Stanley, Spurgeon, fill in the blanket. Doesn’t matter.
Any name you want. The answer should be no.
You do not wanna follow them. You wanna glean from their ministries.
Like, I hope you can glean from this one, but beware.
Judge everything against the Bible. The Bible is the final word.
See, people get into to name battles word battles when they are not letting in the word of god have its authority.
If you come up to me and say, Pastor Jack, I believe that people should be baptized forward.
There’s people who actually say this. Great. Knock yourself out. Go for it. Really?
Are you agreeing with people then? Do you believe that you should only be baptized forward? I didn’t say that.
I only have one stipulation about bep 2. Uh, sorry. 2.
Number 1, you better have repented of your sins. To accept Jesus Christ as lord and savior first.
If you get baptized before that, you’re not baptized. You just got wet.
Nobody gets baptized unless they’re born again. Period, says the Bible.
Repent and believe when the lord Jesus Christ, then you shall be saved.
I just had a word battle yesterday with, uh, Catholic doctrine, penance.
It act this person actually said, show your penance and believe on the lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.
And I said, you change that word and meaning to repent and believe in the lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.
Now we got something to work with.
But if you’re telling me that go do your good works, and the and the good deeds that you need to do and believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and savior.
The book of Galatian says you have fallen from grace. You’re not saved.
You’re believing in works and Christ blood. Can’t do that. You cannot mix works in with blood.
If the blood is covering your life and you’re born again by the grace of god almighty, right?
Ephesians 2 verses 8 to 9, not by works. But by faith in Christ in him, then you’re born again.
But if you try to mix your morality and add it to his blood, You’ve just contaminated his blood.
Can’t do that. It’s impossible, unacceptable to god.
It’s by grace And it’s having faith in what Christ has done for you. Grace. Grace.
How Lindsey I think it was? Oh, hell, Lindsey.
The guy that made the movie, the light gray planet Earth, how could you? Yeah.
How Lindsey Ayelandine said a great way to remember the doctrine of grace is the acronym.
God’s riches at Christ expense. Look.
He may have been a moviemaker, but that’s pretty awesome stuff. That’s good doctrine.
Grace is god’s riches at Christ expense.
It’s not god’s riches at Christ’s expense and yours or mine.
That that blows up the whole word.
You can’t even spell Grace if you add me or I to it. Doesn’t work.
And so Jesus says, my sheep hear my voice. They they and I know them.
They follow me, and they give them eternal life. And they shall never perish. Pretty bold. Yeah?
I love it. Neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. You believe that?
I believe that with all my heart. I don’t need it. Listen. I believe that so much.
I don’t believe I can snap myself snatch myself out of his hands. What does that make you?
Are you a are are you a Calvinist? Are you Armenian? Are you what are you?
I don’t even know what I am. If you’re gonna use those human terms.
I’m not following any man. I know this.
Before the universe ever was and before I was ever created in my mother’s womb, Jesus knew based on his foreknowledge forever ago that there would come a time in my life when I would hear the gospel by his grace.
And even though I didn’t quite understand it, I was so convicted. I’ve I felt.
Look, I don’t care what you say about this. I remember where I was sitting on June 20th, 1977.
Go look and see. Look it up. It’s a Monday. It’s just before 9 o’clock. PM.
And I remember where I was sitting and how I began to sweat as I was brought under the conviction of the holy spirit who I didn’t even know existed.
And I found out that I was going to held by default because of my sinful life.
I was so convicted. I was mortified.
You didn’t have to convince me I was going to hell.
When Greg Lohrey enumerated on that night, a sermon titled How to inherit hell.
You didn’t have to convince me by 8:50 PM that night.
I had no idea what was coming. I’d never been to church before in my life.
And when he said, if you want to have your sins forgiven, I perked up This this is what you need to believe and confess.
And he gave the gospel. I said it. So what were you feeling? What was I feeling?
I was feeling like if I didn’t pray immediately, that the earth was gonna open up and swallow me.
I was gonna go straight to hell. I am not kidding you.
I was freaked out convicted because I was guilty.
He went down this list of 10 things, and I was guilty about 7 of them.
All I needed to do was to be guilty of one of them.
And the holy spirit just dialed down on me, man. He pressed in and I was so busted.
I had no place to hide. I went forward that day that night by myself.
In fact, I asked somebody to go with me. They said, dude, you’re on your own.
I was so glad they said that. Sounds pretty cruel. Right? I’m glad.
I I I had nobody hold my hand to the altar.
It turns out I didn’t need anybody to hold my hand to the altar.
Because Jesus before the foundations of the world knew that when the gospel would go forth, He knew that I would respond In your case, if you believe this or not, I believe that god is the creator and he did make us angels even though they do have free will angels were not created in the image of god.
We were. I believe this. And this is one reporter’s opinion. I’m not even asking you to believe this.
But I believe that god built into us a little bit of sovereignty.
Whereby we can actually make choices.
And if if I choose to accept the gospel, and be born again.
I give I have to give god all the glory for inviting me for allowing me to heaven for sending Jesus.
When I walk into heaven, I know it’s gonna be by his grace.
I’m not gonna pat myself on my back and say, well, boy, did I make the right decision on June 20 1977?
Are you kidding? I’m gonna be on my face saying thank you. Thank you. Thank you. God.
In the same token, because God gave us a little bit of sovereignty to make choice when the gospel is presented, and there are those people who say, I don’t want this.
I’m religious. I’ve got I was baptized as an infant. I don’t need Jesus. Or Uh, I’m an atheist.
I don’t believe this. And, uh, or I don’t like the way god’s running the universe like Christopher Hitchens didn’t like the way god was running things.
And denied god. If you die and wind up in hell, guess who you have to blame.
Only one person, you God provided the way of eternal life and you refused.
I imagine I if I send you a letter and it’s addressed to you and you don’t open it up, Who’s bad is that?
It’s not mine. It’s yours. Who are you gonna blame?
You know everybody in hell, read Luke chapter 15 16. Who are you gonna blame?
Those that are in hell today, they only have one person to blame. It’s themselves.
Romans chapter 1 makes it very clear.
Nobody goes to hell or Evan, even if you’re in the remote jungles of South America.
God reveals himself to you. Romans chapter 1 read it. All of mankind are without excuse.
Even if you live in the in the the you’ve never heard the gospel and you live in the in the desolate regions of the Siberian wilderness in Russia, According to Romans 1, god is speaking to you in creation and speaking to your heart.
So the bottom line is this.
I revel in the joy, the freedom, the comfort, I don’t I don’t worry or fret if I’m the elect or not.
I know this.
I never would have wanted Jesus into my life unless Jesus knew me from the foundation of the world.
I became his sheep on June 20 1977.
But according to Jesus, based on his foreknowledge, I had always been one of his sheep.
I just hadn’t been born yet. He knew that. I didn’t know that.
And so he says those that are mine, not only will they not be able to be plucked out of my hand.
You can’t take them out of my father’s hand. I and my father are 1. I love that.
Almost at a time. In fact, allow me to to draw this.
So this and forgive me in advance for this.
I’m not an artist, but, um, so It kinda, to me, looks this way.
Okay. So here’s the Okay. So sorry.
Um, that doesn’t look like much to you right now, but let’s say let’s let’s put s for son and f for father.
Okay. Uh here, we’ll do this. One’s got a hole. Yeah.
One’s got a hole through the hands. The other one doesn’t.
And then there’s me. Here’s my feet sticking out.
You see that?
That’s me in the middle. Right.
That’s me in the middle of the god sandwich. I’m in Jesus’s hands.
I’m in the father’s hands. Nobody can take me out of there.
Nobody Deathner Life, principalities, or powers? Nothing. I love this.
Listen, if you don’t agree, Yeah.
You don’t need to you don’t need to email me or text me, uh, that you disagree.
I’m enjoying this thing called Christianity. I’m enjoying the salvation that he has given.
I try to give the gospel to as many people as possible, and I let him use that gospel to every creature that goes out.
I’ll let I let I’m supposed to give it. Whatever they do with it is between him and them.
And the reality of being saved is that now I don’t live for those things that I used to live for.
I live for him. And now I wanna do what he wants me to do.
And now I don’t need the 10 commandments posted on the wall of my home or my office.
Don’t need them. He posted them in my heart. And you know what?
You know what’s greater than the 10 commandments?
Is the commandment that says, love god with all of your heart, and I’m working on that every day when I say work.
I yield myself every day to him. I don’t work on anything. Except to stay close to him.
And I’m commanded to love my neighbors, including my enemies.
There is no 10 commandments if that you suit. That’s the 1st commandment if you think about it.
And if you’re Christianity terrorizes you and those who are around you.
How sad is that? Nobody wants to join your team.
Maybe nobody wants to go to your church because you’re teaching a miserable gospel.
There’s no joy in it. It’s all, what are you gonna do for god?
What are you gonna do for god? You gotta get up and do this for god. How about this?
How about you come to god?
And fall on your face in front of him and let him wash you of your sins.
And then the Holy Spirit takes control of your life, and he does with you what he wants to do.
Don’t get up in the morning and say, god, this is what I’m gonna do today.
You need to get up in the morning and say, lord, What are we going to do today?
What do you want me to do today? It’s not what I wanna do.
It’s what he wants to do. And there’s such liberty in that.
That no matter what happens today, if today there’s a 10.10 earthquake that hits Southern California, and I perish or I don’t have a house anymore, that’s god’s business.
That’s not my business. He knew in advance. It’s a pretty worry free life.
You wanna get bogged down in the words of man, knock yourself out.
I would rather listen to what he has said and rejoice in him.
Listen, as always, it’s time for us to live out what we believe in. It’s time for real life.
That’s our jingle. It’s time for us to live out.
What we believe in, it’s time to live real life. It’s time to do real life.
It’s time to experience god’s real life. So listen, as always, please.
If this blesses you, subscribe and give us a like, give us a thumbs up, give us a rating.
That always helps in the weird analytical world of that world I don’t know about.
But I’m always told, make sure you tell them to hit the thing and to give us a thumbs up I guess it matters.
So listen. God bless you guys. We’ll see you back here next time.
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