This time we'll now read in the Bible and read Ephesians chapter one. We'll read Ephesians chapter one in connection with Lord's Day seven of the Heidelberg Catechism and the first question and answer which speaks of the truth of the particularity of salvation in Jesus Christ. The Psalter numbers that we sang from already this morning speak of that election and particularity of salvation. And this is also taught here in Ephesians chapter 1. We'll read all of Ephesians 1 at this time. And there we read this word of God. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. Grace be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace, wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth, even in him. in whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, that we should be to the praise of his glory who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of his glory. Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints. what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. May the Lord bless us in the reading of Ephesians chapter one. The basis of Ephesians one in all of scripture stands the truth of Lord's day seven in the Heideberg Catechism. Read at this time questions 20, 21, and 22, along with their answers. Question 20 asks, are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ? The answer is no. Only those who are engrafted into him and receive all his benefits by a true faith. What is true faith? True faith is not only a certain knowledge whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in his word, but also an assured confidence, which the Holy Ghost works by the gospel in my heart, that not only to others, but to me also, remission of sin, everlasting righteousness, and salvation are freely given by God, merely of grace, only for the sake of Christ's merits. What is then necessary for a Christian to believe? The answer is, all things promised us in the gospel, which the articles of our Catholic undoubted Christian faith briefly teach us. What are these articles? There follows the Apostles' Creed, which we will have opportunity to confess this afternoon. Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, Lord's Day 7, begins with a reminder that all men in Adam perished and died. When Adam fell into sin in the beginning, every person being a descendant of Adam through Noah, and being represented by Adam, also fell into sin in Adam. And although all mankind has fallen into sin and into a common total depravity, God has revealed the good news, according to Lord's day six, that he has established salvation from sin, from that depravity, unto everlasting peace and life with him in his covenant of grace. As Lord's Day 7 makes clear, this salvation is by grace alone, through Jesus Christ alone, and that is the gospel proclaimed as revealed throughout scripture in all the earth in the New Testament. But now the catechism treats another important question that clarifies exactly for whom Jesus is wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. for whom he is the mediator of the everlasting covenant of grace. Since Adam was the head of every man in the beginning, the question is often considered, is Jesus Christ also then the head of everyone who has fallen into sin in Adam? To what extent may we apply that parallel between Adam as covenant head and Jesus as covenant head? Is it exactly the same in every respect so that Jesus is a universal mediator for everyone? Did he die on the cross and make an atonement for sin for everyone who perished in Adam? On the basis of Holy Scripture, the Heidelberg Catechism answers those questions by explaining clearly the extent of the substitutionary atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ. And teaches very briefly in only three words, shows very clearly that although the human race perished or fell into sin in Adam, and earn the wage of sin, which is death, yet only some of those who perished in Adam are saved in Christ. And the reason for that difference of those who perished in Adam and only some of those who perished in Adam are saved is found not in the faith which those who are saved demonstrate, but is found in God himself. And those who are saved by Jesus Christ through faith will show that they are saved by the fruits of that faith in humility and making their calling and election sure. on the basis of that truth of all of scripture and Lord's Day 7 we consider then just the first part of question and answer 20 under the theme the wonder of particular salvation salvation which is for only some we'll notice the biblical truth and secondly the divine reason and thirdly the personal effect this doctrine has should have by God's grace on you and me. The question after Lord's Day 6 is then, well, here is the promise of the gospel of salvation in our Mediator, our Lord Jesus Christ, are then all men saved? Are all men then saved by Christ? There are many in the church world, the Christian church world today, who would say to that question, yes. And they appeal to the following passages in support of their answer. We consider five of them today. Number one, John 3, verse 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Clearly that teaches, they would say, All men are saved, or at least God wants to do so. Number two, 1 Timothy 2, verses three through four. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. A little later in 1 Timothy, in chapter four, verse 10, it states, For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those that believe. Number four, 1 John 2, verse two. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And then lastly, number five, 2 Peter 3, verse nine. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to us word, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. According to those verses, it is popular in the Christian world today to think Well, God loves everyone. God is willing to save everyone. God makes that salvation possible by the sending of his only begotten son, who died on the cross, and by the shedding of his blood, made salvation for as many people as possible. He has covered their sins by a propitiation of the blood of Christ, paid for those sins, removed the penalty of that sin, And from his perspective, God wants none to perish, but he wants all men to come to repentance. He wants them to have faith and salvation in Jesus Christ, they teach. That's true even in the Reformed church world, where it's taught that Jesus desired to save. everyone to whom the gospel was preached and made satisfaction for everyone to whom the word is preached and baptism is administered. He's removed the wrath of God for them. He shed his blood on Calvary to pay for their sin. And when the gospel is preached, there is offered to them that finished salvation. God loves them in the preaching. He wants them to be saved. so that Christ wants to save more than are actually in the end saved. Is that what the word of God teaches? What does the word of God teach concerning those whom Christ saves? Well, first of all, it teaches that the word that Jesus Christ only saves some. That's taught, for example, at the end of the Bible in Revelation 22, verse 15, where we learn that there are those who will be saved and there are those who are not saved. The saved are given the right to the tree of life. They may enter into the new Jerusalem. They may drink from the streams of living water that proceed from the throne of God. The unsaved, however, are cast into the lake of fire, along with the devil and the antichrist and the false prophet, and are cast into the outer darkness. At the end of the scriptures, at the end of the book of Revelation, it's very clear that Jesus only saves some who have perished in Adam in sin. That's repeated again earlier in the New Testament in Matthew chapter 25 in the parable of the final judgment, which speaks of that sphere in this earth of the kingdom of God. Even with regard to the sphere of the kingdom of God as it's manifest in the earth in the church institute throughout the New Testament, in the final judgment, Christ makes a distinction between the sheep and the goats. The goats are destroyed, the sheep are led by the Lord into everlasting life in his kingdom. Jesus does not save everyone, even within the church institute through New Testament history. So that in the second place, in answer to the question, whom does Jesus save? Christ only wanted to save some. who perished in sin in Adam. That was God's purpose in the sending of his only begotten son. He sent them, sent Jesus Christ with the specific purpose to save his people from their sin. That's what his name means. He will save his people from their sin. His people from every nation, tribe, and tongue and language throughout the earth, and yet only a remnant of those nations, tribes, languages of that fallen mankind are saved by Jesus Christ from their sin. That was the desire, not only of the Father, but also the desire of Jesus himself. According to the will of the Father, Jesus taught in John 10 verse 15, I lay down my life for my sheep, which makes clear that not everyone to whom he preached the word was part of his flock, part of his sheep. There was another shepherd or false shepherds to whom other sheep belong, and who would never believe on him, who would never hear his voice, for them Jesus did not lay down his life. He lay down and would lay down his life only for those people, only for those sheep given to him by the Father, part of his flock, which he speaks, John 10, and concerning the other sheep he had throughout the New Testament whom the Father also gave to him and he would gather unto himself. For them and them alone he laid down his life. That's further confirmed when Jesus, in John chapter 17, verse nine, in his high priestly prayer, makes clear in prayer to the Father, I pray not for the world. I don't pray for the church and the world, for everyone. Those for whom I pray as high priest and intercessor are only my sheep. only those whom thou, Father, hast given to me, and for whom I will lay down my life on the cross, only for those some, those few." What then do the texts mean, which we quoted earlier, that seem to teach that Jesus is the savior of everyone, or at least wants to save everyone? What do we say about John 3, verse 16? Well, John 3, verse 16 teaches that God loves the world of his redemption, the world whom he loves, the world whom he redeems by his only begotten son. The world which believes unto everlasting life is his church, and only his church 1 Timothy 2 verses 4 and 5 teach that God wants, God wills, that only one kind of people, just Jews, or one kind of nationality in the New Testament, and only that one kind of nationality will be saved and gathered as part of the remnant from the earth. 1 Timothy 2 verse 4 and 5 teaches that the Lord wants all kinds of peoples from among mankind and society to be saved, to come to the knowledge of truth and faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. Similarly, in 1 Timothy 4 verse 10, which teaches Christ is the Savior of all men. All men there does not refer to everyone or as many as possible, depending on what they do. All men there refers to all the different classes and kinds of people, kings and presidents, all the way down to the lowliest levels of society, all kinds of people. God is pleased to deliver from our sin in Adam, our depravity in Adam, unto righteousness and everlasting life with him. 2 Peter 3 verse 9 teaches, Christ does not want any to perish. What is the antecedent of any? Well, it's clear from Scripture there are those, many, whom God does want to perish. Even today, according to the Scriptures, according to Romans 1, there are many to whom God does not send the gospel. He does not want to save. And there are those to whom God does send the gospel for the purpose that they might not believe, according to Isaiah 6, but their eyes may be shut, and they may be condemned and hardened in their unbelief, so that they are not saved. Thus 2 Peter 3 verse 9 means that those whom God will not allow to perish, Those whom he will bring to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ are those elect strangers and pilgrims mentioned in 1 Peter 1 and implied through both epistles of 1 and 2 Peter. Will not perish. Cannot perish. They must have everlasting life. And finally, 1 John 2 verse 2 teaches that the blood of Christ is a propitiation for our sins, not only, but the sins of the whole world. Well, what is that world? Does that include the Roman Caesar at that time? Does it include Judas Iscariot? Others like him in the scriptures? The world of 1 John 2 verse 2 is not the world of every person, but it's the world for whom Christ is covenant head and advocate. And that world is the world of God's redemption. That's God's people gathered out of the nations of the world organically that elect remnant of grace, God's redeemed ones. And thus, beloved, we have the answer to the question, are all men then as they perished in Adam saved by Christ? What does God teach in his word? What is our answer? Our answer is no, only some. That's the wonder of God, only some. Regarding then the divine reason why there are only some, one might be inclined to think perhaps that according to Lord's Day 7, which now speaks about the doctrine of faith, well, it appears that that's the reason why some are only saved. Faith determines the few that are saved. After all, that's the topic of Lord's Day 7. Some, sadly, have come to that wrong conclusion, that man's faith, or as it's defined wrongly by some, free will, an act of free will, well, that's what determines who the saved will be and that number is exactly what it is, a remnant. And by that they teach, well, Jesus, he established salvation. He's done everything necessary to pay for sin, remove the curse of sin, suffer the penalty of sin in hell, and that salvation is offered in the preaching of the gospel or through the promise of baptism to those who are baptized, and now it's up to the baptized or those who hear the preaching of the gospel to exercise their free will or exercise their believing to make what is potential a reality in them. And the switch from potential to reality depends on the hinge of one's act of believing. To support that idea, the appeal to John 3, verse 16, for example, which speaks of salvation, redemption, everlasting life, and faith. And they say, well, John 3 verse 16 teaches a relationship between salvation and faith in which faith is clearly the reason, has to be the ground of why some are saved and others are not saved into everlasting life. Others will appeal to Acts chapter 16 verse 31. For Paul said to the Philippian jailer, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved in thy house. It is argued that Paul was teaching the jailer that in order for you and your household to have your state and condition changed from guilt and depravity to righteousness and life, that change will occur because of your act of believing. That's what you must do to become saved in the sight of God. And it is argued that faith then is that condition or basis which makes that change. It doesn't teach that faith is the means by which I know and am assured of what Christ has done to make this change in me, for me, by His blood, and in me by His Spirit. No, that faith itself is the basis for the change. What do we say to that? Well, we grant and we believe that Jesus did clearly teach in the scriptures that faith. He said that on a number of occasions to those whom he healed from their different diseases. Thy faith hath saved thee. Position that faith has in the wonder of salvation, how does that faith teach? As the basis, the cause of this difference of why word of God teaches, beloved, that the cause of our deliverance From our sin into life everlasting is not our faith. Catechism shows that in Lord's Day 7, chapter number 20, when it speaks of being engrafted into Christ. Only those who are engrafted, past tense, are engrafted Faith is described as being engrafted into Christ. That's a beautiful, beautiful picture. Perhaps you have a picture of what God does to us. when given faith by the Holy Spirit, snapped off, taken off the dead tree of mankind and brought and inserted into the tree of life, Jesus Christ. And the Holy Spirit makes that bond between that branch which we are in, Christ our Lord, and into us flows that life-giving power, that powerful life-giving sap of Jesus Christ. so that we are alive and may bring forth the fruits, the visible evidence of that bond in the activity of believing and bring forth the fruits of that faith in our life. Who engrafts you into the tree of life? Who engrafts you and me into Christ? Do we snap ourselves off the tree of mankind and then walk over and then climb up the tree of life and stick ourselves into the tree of life? You children understand that's absurd. That's not true at all. That's impossible for us to engraft ourselves into Christ. God must do that and that's why the Catechism has our engrafted in the past tense. The husbandman of the vineyard, our father in heaven, does that work through his spirit so that we are joined to Jesus Christ, which makes then faith God's work, and as the canons of Dort teach, both the will to believe and the act of believing also is the work of Jesus Christ, the author of faith. Since that's true, faith is a divine work. Our faith cannot determine, we cannot determine, man does not determine whether there's some or others who are saved or not saved. The reason is found, beloved, in God alone. God knows, in his eternal counsel, all things. Zach's chapter 15 verse 18 teach, for known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. Everything God knows in his creation, in the church, everything, and included in all of the works which God knows already from the beginning. From Genesis 1 verse 1 includes his work of salvation. He knows, and according to That counsel, that knowledge, Ephesians 1 verse 11 teaches, which we read, that he works all things after the counsel of his will, everything, including salvation in Jesus Christ. And according to his will, then, he has chosen a specific number of his people in Christ. predestinated them unto the adoption of children, as Ephesians 1 verse 5 teaches, unto redemption through the blood of Christ, which teaches them that our predestination unto a place in God's covenant of grace is not based on some quality in you and me, some work which we do, or even our faith, But as Ephesians 1 teaches, God's sovereign good pleasure. Because God wanted to do it so. In Jesus Christ, before the foundation of the world, in eternity. Believing that beloved. that because of God's sovereign electing grace in Jesus Christ, we are chosen in Him unto salvation. That brings upon us positive effects. Thus, in the third point, this most personal effect of the truth of knowing that only some are saved is humility. When we learn, beloved, by a true faith that we are saved by Christ alone according to God's will, we are presented by the world and by the devil with the temptation to become proud. And that's easy for us to do. We can begin to think, well, we save ourselves. Or at least we can think by what we're doing, we're pretty good. We actually deserve a place in heaven. After all, we lived a good life. Surely, we should, because of that good life, be received by God to glory afterward. We can easily think that who we are, maybe our last name, or the great things we may have done in the service of the kingdom of Christ in the earth. Surely in part, some part, that should be a reason for something of our salvation, shouldn't it? And then when we see that others are not saying, they don't show the fruits of faith, continue in unbelief, even under the preaching of the gospel, continue in their unbelieving ways, we might be tempted to become proud We're not like so-and-so. We're a true Christian and might be lifted up in pride in our thoughts over against others. That's not, beloved, what the doctrine of election and the particular wonder of salvation teaches, nor does it promote that.