looking down all four barrels. I don't know whether you've ever been approached by anyone on the street or at your front door or in your automobile and been asked the question, point blank, are you saved? Now the question is sort of vague, isn't it? And sometimes we are put on the spot and so we'll come back with a vague answer. Yes, I guess so. Or some will say, saved? Saved from what? What do you mean, saved? And then the man that introduced the conversation will say something like this, don't you want to go to heaven when you die? Or don't you want to get your sins forgiven? And of course the person will answer, well sure, doesn't anybody want to go to heaven? And doesn't everyone want to have their sins forgiven? And then they come back, then you need to be saved. Saved from the penalty of sin, which of course is eternal punishment in hell. Don't you want to be saved? And we say, sure, if I've got any sense at all, I'd like to be saved. What's it going to cost me? And the person replies, you don't understand, it's not going to cost you anything, it's a free gift. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God, you see, is eternal life through Christ Jesus. I did learn my verse today. All right, that's the Sunday School memory verse, but I knew that one beforehand. All right. And so, you see, it's free. Would you like to be saved? Sure. Sounds like a good deal to me. It's not going to cost me anything. And then the person says, well, then pray after me. And they pray a little prayer, something like this. Jesus, I repent of my sins. I ask you to forgive me. Come into my life. I believe you exist. I thank you for saving me, amen. Then the fellow says, that wasn't so bad after all, was it? And the man says, no. And now you're saved. Rejoice and tell others. Now this is the average concept that a lot of people have regarding witnessing and salvation. That's it, in a nutshell. All salvation means to the majority of people is you get out of hell, and you get your sins forgiven, and when you finally die, you get to go to heaven. Now that's salvation. And when we look at the cross, this is often the only viewpoint we ever take. Jesus died to save me from the penalty of sin, which again, is to enable me to escape eternal punishment, to have my sins forgiven, and I can go to heaven. So salvation just simply means forgiveness when I need it and heaven when I die. Well, although that concept is true, it's only partially true. And the idea that you only need to be saved to get forgiveness and to get out of hell is not totally true. That's not the only reason you need to get saved. Now, in church language, what I'm talking about this morning is called the miracle of justification. That's a big word. And a lot of folks don't know anything about it, but that's called the miracle of justification, what I've been explaining to you. And though you may not understand the term, everybody likes the meaning of the word. Now, under justification, God gives us three things, or three benefits. We like every one of them. The first benefit of justification comes with pardon and forgiveness for all of our sins. God says, I'll forgive you. Totally wipe the slate clean. You're forgiven, you're pardoned, that's it. We like that, that sounds great. I don't care what sins it's been, it's forgiven. Sometimes a mother's love is like that. I forgive you, I forgive you. Don't worry about it anymore. It's gone, forgotten, I forgive you. Now, the second benefit of justification is that God says He gives to us His own righteous state. Now, that may not make a lot of sense to us, but in Philippians 3, 9 and 2 Corinthians 5, 21, He says, not only do I forgive you, but I'm going to place within you my own righteousness. And you may not be thrilled with that, But God is, and God says, I will make you therefore have my righteousness. And the third benefit of justification is, after he gives us his righteousness, then he says, as I look at you, I declare you are righteous in my sight. Let me explain this to you. An earthly judge can pardon a criminal. But he can never go back and erase the record which says you were a criminal. It's always on the record. It may be beside the records you have been pardoned, but the record still says you are a pardoned criminal. Now in justification, God says you were a criminal, you're forgiven, but I erased the record. And when I look at you, I no longer at all see any record of your sins. As far as I'm concerned, justification, just if I had never sinned. How wonderful. If you come before God to be judged, God says, I see you as never having sinned in your life. What a tremendous miracle justification is. How God could do so much as this and why he would do it is a miracle. But that's justification. And so we're just tickled pink. to have this take place in our life. He not only forgets our sins and forgives our sins, but even forgets I was ever a sinner. That's wonderful. And doesn't even look at me as a sinner. Now in the past weeks we've been talking about the old covenant that God gave Israel on Mount Sinai and comparing it with the new covenant that God promised to give his people. at Pentecost. And the last part of the New Covenant that God promised to give the people included the miracle of justification. That's what's so much different about the First Covenant and the Second Covenant. In Jeremiah 31, 34, I just want to read it to you, so we'll conclude the four parts of the New Covenant. This is the last part of the New Covenant that God spoke about. Verse 34 says, the very last part of it, I will forgive their iniquity and I'll remember their sins no more. Under the first covenant at Mount Sinai, there was limited forgiveness. A lot of folks don't understand this, but under the old covenant, God forgave people only for those sins done accidentally and for those sins done in ignorance. If you deliberately went out and committed sin, there was no animal sacrifice available. Now I'm not saying God would not forgive, but God under the first covenant did not obligate himself to forgive you for willful sins. He could if he wanted to, but he didn't have to by the covenant. Under the second covenant, God forgives you for all sins with no exception. So on the old covenant for certain sins, there was no promise of forgiveness. And secondly, God never forgot you committed those sins under the old covenant. And in Hebrews 10.3, every year the high priest had to go in and renew the forgiveness for the sins you had committed and been forgiven for the year before and the year before. And God never wiped the record clean. Under the new covenant, God does wipe the record completely clean. And in Romans 3.24 we're told Christ's redemption upon the cross, that is the price He paid taking our place upon the cross, the redemption He secured for us, enables God to do that for us because, you see, He took the punishment of our sins. He took the penalty of our sins and so therefore now we can be truly forgiven and our sins can be forgotten. It's Christ's death on the cross that makes possible this miracle of justification. Again, may I say, Most folks have the idea that salvation only changes two things. Number one, it changes their status from sinner to saint, and two, it changes their residence from hell to heaven. And that's the only two changes salvation makes. Now again, I say this definition of salvation is too narrow, far too narrow, because it makes room for Christ to be a savior of souls. But it makes no room for Him to be a Lord over lives. It's very weak in this definition. When talking about salvation, Jesus talks about giving people life. Not just forgiveness, and not just heaven. He talks about giving people life. You say, I've already got life. That's right, but Christ doesn't like it. That's right. I don't like the life He says you've got. I want to give you a new life. Now, you say, I'm satisfied with the life I've got. You don't need Jesus. Christ says, I want to give you life. Not life eternal, but life now. Not life in the sweet by and by, but life right here in the now and now. We talk in terms of eternal life. Christ talked in terms of abundant life. We consider life to be beyond the grave. Christ considered life to be right here in this time in which we now live. In other words, when it comes to the subject of salvation, Christ has in mind abundant life, where we have in mind eternal life. And that's where a lot of confusion comes in. The abundant life is the life Jesus says, I want to give you right now. It's the life that the new covenant provides for the Christian and which was first started on the day of Pentecost. Might I add what God has joined together, let not man put asunder. I'm afraid we do too much talking about eternal life and not enough talking about abundant life. Now, you have not been here, won't know what I'm talking about, but there were four parts of the New Covenant. You remember that, that we're here. Four parts. Do you realize that the first three parts of the New Covenant, the first three parts deal with the abundant life, and it's only the last part that I just read to you that deals with eternal life? That's significant. By far, the greater emphasis is being placed by God in the New Covenant on abundant life. And right now we're at the heart of the matter of understanding this thing today that's so popular, baptism with the Holy Spirit. We're right at the heart of the whole matter. Now here's a popular concept being circulated today, and I'll do my best to be fair about it. Number one, while walking with Jesus The disciples had Old Testament salvation. On the day of the resurrection of Jesus, they received New Testament salvation. On the day of Pentecost, they received abundant life, or the baptism with the Spirit. Now, that's the general conception that folks are being taught today in regard to the subject of the baptism with the Spirit. To me, there are two very serious problems with this view, which I think make it incorrect. You are dividing what God has put us, you have been dividing us under what God has joined together. You're tearing scripture apart that should not be torn apart. First place, I say the disciples could not have received New Testament salvation on the day after the resurrection of Jesus. Everything about New Testament salvation involves the work of God's Holy Spirit. And there's no question about this. Everything evolving around salvation requires God's Spirit. Now, we're told clearly in the Bible that the disciples would have to wait until Jesus went back to heaven before the Holy Spirit would come. Now, they could not be baptized with the Holy Spirit on the day after the resurrection of Jesus because Jesus had not gone back to heaven yet, and he would not go back for 40 more days. Look at John 16, 7. John 16, 7. Notice what Jesus says. He makes it clear. Jesus says, It is expedient for you that I go away. For if I do not go away, the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, will not come to you. But if I depart, then I will send him back to you. Jesus was going to have to go to heaven before the Holy Spirit could come. Now the disciples on the resurrection day could not have received the Holy Spirit in the New Testament sense because he couldn't come until Jesus went back to heaven. That's obvious and that's clear in the Scriptures. Secondly, Jesus said, 40 days after his resurrection to his disciples, you still don't have the Holy Spirit. And you're going to have to wait, though I'm going back to heaven, you're going to have to tarry in that room and wait until the day of Pentecost because the Holy Spirit is not going to come until the day of Pentecost. You're going to have to wait. So 40 days or 39 days after the resurrection, Jesus still tells the disciples in Acts 1, 4, and 5 that you don't have the Holy Spirit and you're going to have to wait to get him. Now Jesus went back to heaven 40 days after his crucifixion. But you all know that Pentecost according to Hebrew scripture, always takes place 50 days after Passover. Christ was crucified on Passover, 50 days on down the line would come Pentecost. 40 days after the Passover, Jesus went back to heaven. The disciples hung around one more day, two more days, five, seven, eight, nine, still waiting. On that 10th day, Pentecost day, then the Holy Spirit comes. Now I say you could not have New Testament salvation without the Holy Spirit and Jesus said they did not have the Holy Spirit. And that they were going to have to wait until the day of Pentecost to get the Holy Spirit. Acts 1, 4, 5, 8 through 9. I don't have time to read these two this morning, but that's where you can find them. Now Jesus in talking about this day of Pentecost said several things. Number one, he says on that day you shall be baptized with the Spirit. They couldn't have been before then. They couldn't have had any type of relationship with experience in regards to New Testament salvation before then because the Spirit had not come in that relationship. The baptizing work of the Spirit was going to begin on Pentecost Day. Now Jesus connected Pentecost, a promise that His Father had made, and the coming of the Spirit, and the baptism of the Spirit all together. As far as I can understand, in every book I have ever read, no matter what you take, Jesus was saying that on the day of Pentecost, the second covenant, which I promised years and years and years ago, on that day the second covenant would become a reality. That I would put into effect on that day the second covenant conditions. Now, I don't believe there's anybody anywhere that would question that. That is unanimous in everybody's idea, in mine, that on this day of Pentecost, the second covenant came into being. And before that day, no one could receive the benefits of the new covenant. There's absolutely no way, including the disciples. Nobody could have the benefits of the new covenant the day of Pentecost, and that was 50 days after Passover, so the disciples could not have received the benefits of the second covenant, which happens to be New Testament salvation, until the day of Pentecost. I will say this to those who still do not agree. If the disciples, as many say, did get their New Testament salvation the day of the resurrection of Jesus, then when did all the other people in that upper room get their salvation experience. There were 120 people on the day of Pentecost. According to the scriptures, we only know of 10 of them that Christ came to after the resurrection and spoke to about the Holy Spirit. Where did the rest of them get it? And so people say, well, there was a second experience for the disciples. If that's the case, there was no second experience for the rest of the 120 up around. It was all a one-time experience, but I maintain that it was not a second experience for the disciples. The New Covenant experience was a one first-time thing for the disciples. I don't believe they could have gotten what wasn't available. Now the second reason that I disbelieve the other theory, that there is a second experience that comes after salvation, is that you have to divide the New Covenant benefits into stages. And I say you cannot do this. You either get the whole package or you get nothing. Now this idea you can be justified and you can have eternal life now. But then later on, if you want to, you can have the abundant life. I find no grounds for that in the Bible. Now the other three benefits of the new covenant, and we start out with them. Number one, regeneration. That means a new heart. You're not given an option for a new heart. Secondly, there was reconciliation. You shall have a new friendship. You and God shall be friends for a change. And the third was sanctification. That is, you will have a new vision as to the value of the law of God. Now those three things are the abundant life. I don't believe you ever have an option whether or not you're going to have a new heart, whether you're going to have a new friendship relationship with God, or whether you're going to have a new vision. regarding the value of God's law, you have no option. You have no option to take Christ as your Savior and take Him as your Lord if you want to. I found that nowhere in the Bible. And that's what you get into with this second experience. You can have salvation, eternal life, without abundant life. I say no. No. That's what everybody wants. But I don't believe the Bible gives that kind of deal. I really don't. Now the covenant benefits do not come in stages. I want to go back and repeat them for you. And by the way, did you notice where God placed eternal life? He placed it last in the list. Where God placed forgiveness and justification, He placed it last in the list. What did He put first? First He said, if you're going to be saved, I'm going to give you a new heart. That's called regeneration. I'm going You don't have an option. I'm going to give you a new heart. Secondly, he says, I'm going to give you reconciliation. And all that simply means is that I, who was once your enemy, and you fought me like cats and dogs against everything I did, we're going to be friends. And our friendship is going to be based upon agreement. You agree with me. I hope you understand this. There's no option to that. Automatically, God says we will be reconciled. On my terms, We'll be friends, we're going to walk together, but you're going to agree with me. Okay? And you have to say okay, you don't get salvation. Thirdly, he says, it's going to be sanctification. We talked about this last time. And by this he means you're going to have a new vision. A new vision of what? A new vision of the law of God. What kind of vision? That the law of God is very, very valuable. It's like silver and gold. Now, God says, I'm going to give you a new value system in your mind and thinking regarding my laws. Where you once looked at them and you said, ugh, that bothers me. I don't like those laws. Now you will say, you have no option about this, brother. Now your mind will say, there's a law, that's good for me. In other words, you say, if you know what's good for you, obey the green lights and the red lights and traffic signals, if you know what's good for you. And God says, if you know what's good for you, and you will know it, and you'll look at my law and say, that's good for me. It's good for me. Now that's not optional, brethren. Well, you can say, well, I'll take the law, leave it. No, if you get saved, part of you is gonna say, I'll take it, gladly, because it's good. It's good for me, and it's good for God. I like that. It's beneficial. There's a profit motive, you see, instilled. And that's not optional. And last of all, there's justification. It's strange to me that everybody wants justification, but they don't want regeneration. Leave my heart alone. Couldn't meddle in my life. You don't want justification. If you do, you're not going to get it. You see? God says, I don't give justification until you pass through stage one, stage two, and stage three. If you're willing to have a new heart, a new friendship basis, and a new vision of my law, then I'll justify you. Now that kind of salvation a lot of folks don't have much conception of, but that's the new covenant. That's the new covenant. And you can't have one without the other. No way. You just can't walk up and say, well, I'll take justification. The Lord says, I won't give it to you unless you'll take the other three with you. In other words, when you come to get saved, you look down all four barrels, all four of them, and God says you can take it or you can leave it. You just don't get a shot of justification. You're going to get a shot of sanctification, too. When God gives you the benefits of the second cometh, when God baptizes you with the Spirit, these four things are done to you just like that. And if you don't want them to, then you tell him, I don't want to be saved. Because you don't. You see, saved means you're saved from the penalty of sin, and you're saved from the power of sin. Now, the first three, the abundant life, deals only with being delivered from the power of sin. We got a lot of folks running around wanting to be delivered from the penalty of sin, but they don't want to be delivered from the power of sin. Well, I'm sorry, but what God has joined together, let's not man put asunder. The abundant life is now. And God says it's deliverance from the power, the domination, and the control, and the influence of sin over your life. Again, I might say, you have no choice. The New Covenant comes as a full-barrel gun. You're going to get one shot, you're going to get them all. You know, it's a four-in-one shot. And the abundant life is made available to us in the first three parts. And the eternal life is made available to us in the last part. Again, I might say, you don't wait for a second experience to get the abundant life. The new heart, the new walk, friendship, the new vision, You're equipped right there for eternal, for abundant life. You don't have to wait five years, six years. You don't have to have no second experience. I mean, you are given in the new covenant everything you will ever get in order for you to have the abundant life and eternal life. It comes to you, not in stages, not in trickles, but the moment you give your life to Christ, the new covenant benefits become yours. Whether you want Him or whether you don't want Him. If you don't want Him, you make up that decision before you ever say, I want Christ as my Lord and my Savior. You see, there's a double thing. The Lordship of Christ is associated with the first three parts of the covenant and the Saviorhood of Christ with the last part. You just don't get Christ as Savior and dump Him as Lord. If you don't want Him as Lord, you can't have Him as Savior. We need to put first, accept Christ as your what? Savior and Lord? No, Lord and Savior. Let's get the cart where it ought to be before the horse or horse before the cart. And the aim of Christ in saving us is to make us holy like he is. In closing, let me surmise, we are equipped at the moment of second covenant with a new heart, which comes about as a new birth. We are equipped with a new heart, every Christian, and you're equipped with a new vision, everybody. Regarding the abundant life, you are equipped with a new heart and a new vision. And then you're inspired, everybody, you're equipped to be holy by the new heart and new vision. You're inspired to be holy by the new friendship. The Lord just keeps saying that we're going to be friends. And if we're going to walk together, you've got to agree with me. And you know as well as I do that two people who squabble, fight, and fuss all the time can't be friends. They really can't. And Jesus said, now listen, I'm going to be your friend, and you're going to be my friend. We're going to base our friendship on getting along with each other. And that means that you're going to always agree with me. You don't want to say, that's too one-sided. That's tribal. He's going to save him. You're not going to save him. He's going to save you. So he lays down the terms. It's his covenant. It's his salvation. It's his home heaven. So he lays down terms. If we're going to walk in friendship, and you don't have to be God's friend, What did you say a friend was? If you love me, you'll keep my commandments. And those are my friends who do what I say. The basis of friendship with God is not going around saying, praise the Lord, I love you, Jesus. The basis of friendship is agreement. I get along with God. How do you get along with God? You agree with Him. You agree with Him. Now, that you are inspired to be holy because of reconciliation or the friendship of God. Why should I do what's right? Would you ever want to pray again? You know who you go to when you need help and pray? You go to a friend. You go to friends. Do you need God to be your friend? I do and you do too. So you see you're inspired or you're motivated to sort of keep that friendship alive because you're going to need him one of these days. You're going to need him today. Really. And God answers your prayer on the basis of friendship. The Bible says, if I regard sin in my heart, he won't even listen to me pray. You see, I've broken off the friendship. You don't run to God when you have made him upset and angry. So you see, by reconciliation, we are inspired within our heart to keep that friendship alive. Then we're declared to be holy. You see, justification declares us holy, and sanctification and reconciliation and regeneration prepares to be holy. You're declared holy by justification, and you ought to live up to your name. What's the Spirit called? It's called the Holy Spirit. Not the dirty spirit, not the hypocrite spirit, but the Holy Spirit. His job is to make us holy. And we're empowered to be holy by a new spirit within us, and that's the Holy Spirit. So you're equipped to be holy, and you're inspired to be holy, and you're declared to be holy, and you're empowered to be holy. And if that becomes true, you have what the Bible calls the abundant one. You have what the Bible says God wants you to have. now in this life. Father, we give you thanks this morning that salvation includes more than just heaven and forgiveness. It also makes provision for each one of us a drastic and total revolutionary change from bad to good. Father, we ask this morning as we look at this whole subject, are we truly realizing what our salvation is all about. And are we doing our best to cooperate with those changes that God has made within our heart, within our life? Are we doing the best we know how to live up to what the new covenant gives us? If not, we pray this morning that each of us might examine himself and say, I'm sorry, Lord, where there is reconciliation, restore the friendship, where there's justification, get our sin forgiven, But never forget that our new heart is a holy heart, that we are to take God's law seriously for their good. Renew us in Jesus' name we pray, amen.