Let's ask the Lord's blessing. Gracious Father, thank you for the day that you've made. Thank you, Lord, for this opportunity. Thank you for getting us here safely. Ask for our safe return home. Ask for the blessings on the preaching time to follow. And ask you, Lord, to just remember us in your mercy. We need mercy. And I pray these things and for the forgiveness of sin. In Jesus' name, Amen. Well, in Romans, the eighth chapter, we are continuing. Romans 8, let's look very quickly, remind ourselves, put it in context, Romans 8, 28 to 30. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he predestined, these he also called. Whom he called, these he also justified. And whom he justified, these he also glorified. So my title today is Five Things That God Does. Romans 8, we've said every time I guess, is about assurance of salvation in Christ Jesus. How much can we trust God to keep His Word? Can we trust God to manage all things? All things work together for good. Well, the children of God are defined in verses 1 through 27 Verse 28 is a summary of these verses 1 through 27. And then when we move a little forward, verses 29 and 30 explain verse 28. So the apostle is very logical in his process. The Lord uses the wisdom of men. Of course, the Word is inspired, but He still uses the gifts that He gives to men. When troubles come to us in this present age, and they will come, we can know that trials and sufferings and difficulties, inconveniences, no matter how serious they are, we've already seen that they're not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. So we need to keep that in our minds as we live. I don't want to test this, but I think sometimes I get more upset with little inconvenience than I do when I can handle kind of the big thing. Well, I know this is in God's providence, but when the computer doesn't work, or the car won't start, Those kind of things really bug me, so I'm telling you I'm not a patient man, I guess. Well, it is true. All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. And we must not limit our thinking to what may be seen now as we live through these experiences. What we are to know And we know, Paul says, is that before there ever was a creation, back in eternity past, if those words can mean anything, when there was only God, before there was light and before there was darkness. I've mentioned this, my astonishment at that thought. It wasn't light and it wasn't dark. God, Spirit. And I can't think, you can't think that way, I can't think of there not being anything but God. But I think that's where we are. So way back then, if you can use the word then, God purposed to have a people who would be conformed to the image of His Son. And this is an important theme that I'm going to be working on. to be conformed to the image of his son. I don't care how strict your theology might be and how correct your doctrine. If that's not occurring, then just forget about all this other. That's the purpose of it. And if that's not occurring, then something's not right. Genuine assurance of salvation must be based on the promise of God that those given to the Son by the Father will be glorified, surely. So as I mentioned, verses 29 and 30 explain verse 28. And these verses tell us how certain it is that God will have His dear children to be conformed to the image of His Son. He must have the preeminence, Jesus Christ. And not only did God purpose to have a people, He so ordained, predestined the events of time and circumstance, providence, to bring about His purpose and to carry it on to eternity future. There's a scene in heaven that is future to us. in Revelation 7, reading at verse 9, After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice saying, Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb. All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying, Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom, thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever. Amen. That's the scene. Civilizations rise and fall. Kings and rulers are raised up and they're put down because God is sovereign over all. The current news right now, it's been on TV for the last four days, nothing else. The problem in Egypt. What's going to happen in Egypt? Well, I don't know and neither do you. But God knows what's going to happen. What is the extent of God's providence? What is the extent of God's control over His creation, His management? Based on what the Bible tells us, God determines the death of every single sparrow. If you carefully read that text, Not a sparrow falls without the father. It doesn't say without the father's knowledge of it. It says without the father. Something as seemingly insignificant as the death of a little bird. God cares about that. He's in control of that. We'll go a little further. The very hairs on every single head of every one of the billions and billions of humans that have ever lived, or ever will live. God keeps up with that. I can't imagine anything much less significant than how many hairs I've got on my head, or how many I've had. I've got a lot fewer than I used to have. But the point is that nothing out there, nothing in creation is just random. Nothing is just floating around, even the dust particles. that have been stirred up, or will be stirred up, they come to rest wherever God puts them. I'm trying to show how things that we don't think are maybe important at all, and yet nothing is insignificant to God. Some people tend to think, well, He keeps up with the big things, It's everything. All things. Proverbs 16 reads this way. Proverbs 16. The preparations of the heart belongs to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man appear in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits. Commit your works to the Lord and your thoughts will be established. The Lord has made all for himself, yes, even the wicked, for the day of doom. Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord. Though they join forces, none will go unpunished. In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity. and by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil. When a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Better is a little with righteousness than vast revenues without justice. A man's heart plans his ways, but God directs his steps. being repetitive, but God is in control. God manages everything, and He does it without anxiety, effort, or frustration. So, if He manages all these things, dear children of God, not a single one of His children will be lost. He's able to do it, and He will do it. Don't let some misguided preacher trouble you with the false teaching that a person who is truly saved and justified by the blood of Jesus Christ can lose their salvation. That's taught in some circles. We do not worship a frail and frustrated God who only has made an effort. In that thinking, God saved no one. He made an effort to save everyone. So what's being preached in a lot of places this morning is that God's purpose was to save everyone, and man is in charge of his being saved. God made the effort, you agree to the proposition, and then God will if you let Him. You've heard all that before, I know. What does the Bible teach? Back to our verse 29, For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Now, I said my title is Five Things That God Does, and we looked at two of those five things last study, so I'm not going to go back through those. Foreknew and predestined. Again, we dealt with those words. And as Brother Gables pointed out, foreknew has to do with God's intimate knowledge of persons, not just events yet future. He knows everything is going to happen. He knows the end from the beginning. But foreknowledge in this context means he knows the persons. The view that God reacts to man's choice is a very weak attempt to have man in control of his salvation and denies the doctrine of God's sovereign choice in election. Every step to bring a person under the hearing of the gospel, the conviction of sin and guilt and repentance and faith and assurance of salvation and finally to be glorified together with Christ is in God's eternal purpose. But it's always necessary, at least it seems necessary to me, when the sovereignty of God is being emphasized, as I'm doing, to point out that nowhere in the Bible does the sovereignty of God do away with man's responsibility. God is sovereign, man is responsible, and I don't ever try to make that some way that you can, in your mind, work all that out. It's just true. Man does what he will do freely. But yet God is behind everything that happens. And I won't go back through the examples I gave of the crucifixion of Christ and so on, but you know those things. Well, the Apostle mentions five things that are purposed by God And each thing that he mentions here becomes the subject of the next phrase. So there's a continuity here. These five things that God does are not isolated things. They are linked together. The person whom God foreknew has been predestined. The person who has been predestined shall be called. And those whom he calls will be justified. And those whom he justified will be glorified. There are many so-called plans of salvation. There are a lot of tracts and things out there. We have the five steps. We have the four spiritual laws. We have the Roman road. And all of those are well-meaning. But basically, the ones that I am familiar with still put man in charge. So I want to look at the five things that God does. Those whom God foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. God did not purpose only to have a people in heaven, but to have a people who are conformed to the image of his Son. The first man and the first woman were created in the image of God. Spending a lot of time on this, let's just think a minute about the image of God. What is the image of God? In Genesis 1, verse 26, then God said, let us, plural, let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea. over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth, over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in His own image. In the image of God, He created him. Male and female, He created them. The image of God. Well, the image of God is not a physical likeness. No man has seen God. There's nothing physical to see. Those who were alive saw the Son of God when He was incarnate, but God is Spirit. Well, the image of God partly, I've got a few proof texts here, is holiness. To be conformed to the image of His Son is to be moving toward holiness. In Colossians 3.10, And we have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him. So knowledge is involved. In Ephesians 4 verse 20, But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard him and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus, that you put off concerning your former conduct the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man, which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." So this image of God, this being conformed to the image of Christ, has to do with our growth in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Before Adam sinned, God had chosen a people to be represented in Christ Jesus, and they will be conformed to the image of His Son. In Colossians 1, verse 15, He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, for by Him, this is referring to Jesus Christ, all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, who are the thrones or dominions or principalities of powers. All things were created through him and for him, and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he may have the preeminence." Some preachers, not all perhaps, but Some have read this text and they say, wait a minute, something's missing. Justification, calling, justification, and jump to glorification. Where's sanctification? Well, some have argued that sanctification is not mentioned because sanctification is part of justification, and that's simply not true. Those are two things that are separate, and they must be kept separate. The person who is justified, that's a one-time event. That happens one time. And those that are justified are in the process of being sanctified, being set apart for God's use. And you do not get to justification through sanctification. And that's the teaching, basically, of the Roman Church. You do this and this and this, and the church does this and this and that, and then you are justified based on all these things that you have done. Well, God justifies the ungodly, back in our previous chapters. And confusing justification and sanctification is the damning error of all works-based religions. The idea that God justifies a person based on their Obedience and good works is not according to grace. But when a person is justified, obedience and good works will follow. I'll go back now to the question that I raised about sanctification being omitted. But that's what being conformed to the image of his son is all about. So it's not left out. The way to be sanctified is to know that in all things Christ must have the preeminence. And thus, to be being conformed to his image. We're all tempted all the time. It helps if we can remember that we are being conformed to the image of Christ. And submitting to whatever it is that's troubling my puny brain at the time, if I could just keep that in my mind, it would help a lot. In Hebrews, the second chapter, Verse 10, For it was fitting for him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason he is not ashamed to call them brethren. Say, I will declare your name to my brethren. in the midst of the assembly, I will sing praise to you." And the word assembly can be church. So that should bring us back to that Revelation 7 passage. I won't read it to you again, but it's a worship scene in heaven. Five things that God does for a new predestined call justified and glorified. And I've already mentioned that we dealt with justified and glorified, so we'll move on. These he also called. Moreover whom he predestined, these he also called. There is an effectual call of God that results in faith in Christ. God foreknows, He foreknew them, God predestined them, and God calls them. These are those who love God, the called according to His purpose. Without using the specific terms, here's what Jesus said about the calling of God. In John chapter 6, everybody will know this verse, this passage. John 6 at verse 37. All that the Father gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me. This is the will of the Father who sent me, that of all He has given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life, and I will raise Him up at the last day." Now, what I've done in John In verse 37 it says, all that the Father gives me will come. And I've got a circle around will come. But then look down in verse 44. No one can come. It's a sure thing that they will come, but they can't come. Is that a contradiction? No, it's not. Because it says, unless the Father who sent me draws him. They're unable. Total inability. But when the Spirit of God begins to work in the heart of an unregenerate man and woman, they begin to be drawn to see the beauty of Christ. That's the calling. That's the drawing. So no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. For it is written in the prophets, and they shall all be taught by God. Therefore, everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me." So here's my other circle. They will come. No one can come. And then, who has heard? There it is. It's laid right out for us. And so God calls. And the called respond in faith and are justified. Whom he called, these he also justified. And I mention that every time. Justification is always the opposite of condemnation. That will help a person if they can keep that in mind. The just shall live by faith. Justification is by faith. We're not saved because of our faith. We believe because we're called to faith. Faith is a gift of God. We mentioned this last time. I'll run very briefly through it again. There's an era called eternal justification. And that teaching says that a person is justified from eternity because God has chosen a people that it's not necessary that they come to faith in Christ in this life. That teaching says that a person will be in glory because of election, not because of the God-given faith that they profess in this life. And I mention this a number of times, but it's worth repeating. E.W. Johnson, one of the lines that I'll never forget, he says, Justification waits on faith. called faith. Come to faith. And then justification occurs. So in God's mind, we're justified. But in our experience, we're not justified until we believe in God and trust in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. and then justified. Why is calling mentioned before justification? The person who is, quote, dead and trespassed and in sins is not able to respond to a call of God. But God gives the dead sinner the ability in the effectual call. That's what we've looked at as we look through those passages in John chapter 6. We've covered this in Romans 3. I want to read it again to you. We've spent quite a bit of time on it, so I'm not going to try to elaborate on it. But it's the foundation for what we're saying here. Justification by faith. By faith alone. So in Romans 3, beginning at verse 20, Therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight. For by the law is the knowledge of sin. I've been through that so many times I'm just struggling here. I just want to say things about that. Verse 21. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe, for there is no difference For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely without cause, that's what that word means, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood through faith to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed to demonstrate at the present time his righteousness, that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. How can those who die in infancy be justified since they can't have faith? I believe in God's infinite mercy. He reveals Christ to them. I can't explain it. The only text I can go to is what David said when his infant son died, the child of adultery. He said, he can't come to me, but I can go to him. I believe David's in heaven and I believe that child is in heaven. And Jim, how many sermons have you got on infants? How many? Twenty something. Twenty sermons without a text. Yeah. That's the problem. Yeah. Yeah. It's one of it's one of those things that I would I can't argue. I say it this way. And some people feel offended by saying this. But God is going to do right. Whatever he does is going to be right. I believe that infants are saved. I believe all those millions of aborted babies are going to be saved. I can't give you a text for it. But I go back and say, whatever happens, will be just and right. But there's two plans of how sinners can be justified. The ones for the adult by faith alone and for the children of babies. It's not two plans. If God reveals to the infant Christ and it's regenerate, that's to be the same method. But here's the way I answer this. I hope this will help. The Bible does not tell us how God deals with infants and imbeciles. I'm using that word in the correct sense. A mentally impaired person. People that have a number of years. They live a number of years. But their mind doesn't function. retarded people, retarded, whatever word you use. How does God deal with those people? My answer is I don't know. But the person that and I'm not saying you're doing it this way, but the person who is scoffing or I say, well, you're not an infant and you're not an imbecile. Now, what are you going to do about it? So the question is not what happens to those people, babies, imbeciles that I can't answer, I don't know the answer. I think I have an answer, but I can't prove it. But that's not the issue. The issue is, what about you? You're not an infant, and you're not an imbecile. You've heard the gospel. You've been told you're a guilty sinner. Can you repent? Can you believe the gospel? I turn it back around. It's a good question, David. I'm not minimizing the question. You see, the struggle of the Church of Rome worked out with what we sort of scoff at them at on the doctrine of limbo. And say, where do you get this? It's from David's question. Is that the infant doesn't go to heaven, neither does it go to hell, it goes to limbo. A neutral place out here in eternity and there it will remain. And that's just, it can't be figured out. You can't go either way. That's the Church of Rome's position on that. But if justification is the fruit of regeneration, and regeneration produces faith, then is there not the potential that that split second of regeneration, the infant, has faith imparted prior to death? If Rome holds that the second, that of holy water, can touch the body of an infant, it's regenerated. Then why would not the Holy Spirit be able to regenerate the infant prior to death? And we have the unique example. You can't make this a pattern for all of humanity, but there is John of Aptos, who was quickened in his mother's womb. Jehovah. So, I'm comfortable with this. I'm not at all... I'd say 70-80% of my associates in Reformed circles are very adamant against the idea that all infants are saved. And they say, they argue on the line, is that the Bible does not say we must keep our mouths shut one way or another and leave it at that. That is the position. That's why I said a while ago when I say that whatever God does is right, Some people have jumped on me and said, well then you're saying that babies go to hell. No, I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying that God, what He does is right. And I leave it at that. And my acquaintances would say then it would be right if God sent a baby to hell. Because they have to acknowledge either God can save all infants or He will save no infants or He can save some infants. He will save some infants. So since we do not have, it is believed, a clear text to deal with the answer to that, then the majority opinion is, let's don't speak to it. That leaves, I guess it's a degree of dissatisfaction in my own thinking. If I were an Arminian, I could maybe handle the destiny of the infants in some without at the same time having problems. But when you come to the justice of God and the wicked in hell being able to remember the sins which they've committed in this life, it's difficult for me to conceive how that the infant that is supposedly suffering in eternity and not being able to recall the sin, the personal sins that they have committed in time, of how the justice of God can be in that. Now, we can just fall back on the idea that's sovereign. But is it not true that God has gone to great lengths to show that in the salvation of the sinner, he must do and does do it on a just basis, that he might be just and the justifier, and that he has worked this out in showing in substitution to show that he's not unjust when he takes a sinner to heaven, then would not that same justice then require that if there are infants in suffering in eternity out here, that there be a correlation in that justice. The only thing I can think of is the imputation of Adam's sin. Makes them sinners. But I agree with what you say in Revelation 19, you know, how you've still got this matter of hallelujah, you know, as people are cast into The illustration you give of David's son, we may be messing up your topic this morning. David's son, how did David know that? We either have to say, and this is what my friends that don't believe in universal salvation they have to say is that David was, as a unique exception, was given an insight where his son went. The rest of us are not. Or, you have to come to the conclusion that I have come to, is David knew this because of the doctrine of the universal salvation of infants. That is that he could assume his son went to glory because all children do so. It's either that or you've got to say David was given a special understanding that the rest of us aren't given. And both positions stand on an equal ground of uncertainty. That's it. You can't be certain he wouldn't. I don't recall what the Philadelphia confession of faith says. I know the Westminster speaks of all elect infants. Dying in infancy. Be sure you put that on there. Well, I don't believe it says that. Yes, it does. Yes, it does. Yeah, all elect infants. Yeah, dying in infancy. They don't say where it's all or... And I think they said something there. Yeah, I think they did too. The statement is true. All elect infants. But they don't say all infants are elect. That's right. But that's the hint. One other question. At what point, you know, we don't believe what the Army is teaching in the age of accountability. So at what point do they cease to be babies and children, you know, and qualify therefore to be saved? Well, there's no biblical basis for so-called age of accountability. Generally, they take it from age 12 which had to do with the coming of age of the Jewish child and so on. But that's just, it's just not in the scripture. There's no, so there's no scriptural basis for an age of accountability. You come into this world accountable. Right. Now, go back to what I, with the discussion about infants and imbeciles and so many things that can't be answered. And we could spend a lot of time dwelling on something that you're not going to get an answer to. But that doesn't trouble me. I've passed through that. I'm not saying I got all the answers, but it does not trouble me whatsoever. God is God. And there's some things that I'm not going to know. The conclusion that I came up with in all connecting the dots as I use that method is that I forgot my conclusion. But you know, is it age 3, age 6? When do they cease to be an infant that cannot believe in this life? Yes, I reached a conclusion, and I'm not going to take 15 minutes to give it, but is that only a Calvinist has a biblical hope for the salvation of an infant. An Arminian does not. We'll work on that sometime. I agree with it. And that is because if faith is required and the infant cannot provide the faith, then God cannot regenerate. That's the position. It is only those who hold to a sovereign disposition of God that has any hope for the salvation of an infant. And the Arminian says that I have in my own ability the power to make that choice. Right. You've got to. That God waits upon the decision, the hope, the choice. And if the infant can't make the choice, then there is no hope if you are an Armenian and yet it is the Armenians that charge us as Calvinists with fatalism and everything like that and yet we're the only one that really has a grounds for a hope. The practical application of this is that when you as a counselor are sitting across the desk with a young mother and a young father who's asking their pastor, where's my baby? That's the practical thing. And that's why you're either driven to say, I don't know, then there's no comfort that can be given. If you say, oh, then we have some grounds, I mean have a grounds for giving that to the parents. You say some, well we're not sure about yours. So it has some very practical ramifications. I have this, I don't know if I can call her a friend, but a good acquaintance whose baby died, child died at age six from cancer. And as he was dying, it took him a year, she'd tell him he was going to be with Jesus. And that Jesus would take care of him and all. And I don't know where the age is. Yeah, but again, to go back, there's not an age. I believe that the Spirit can work, does work, in very young children. I don't deny that at all. But there's not a chronological age where a person has to live a certain number of days before they are accountable. I just discount that altogether. There's a lot of work that needs to be done in that area. In 2,000 years of church history, it's not been solved. But there are problems. Problems connected with our doctrine of depravity. doctrine of regeneration, all of those are connected with this. If you hold to the Socinian that the infant is born innocent without sin, then you've got a potential where you can say, all right, there is no Adamic condemnation. But if you hold to an Adamic condemnation at conception, then it puts on our shoulders a great need to explain that, and we don't have the data to do so. So the liberal, the Sarsenian says, and that shows your position, is not biblical. You're trying to argue something that the Bible does not teach when it teaches original sin. This is good. I'm glad we solved that. No, these are good discussions. And I think it helps me when we're confronted with issues that cannot be solved. I mean, it's kind of arrogant for somebody like me to think I've got all the answers, that I can answer any question that comes up. I can't. And I'm willing to tell you when I can't answer a question. One more verse. Acts 13.48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord, and as many as had been appointed to eternal life, they lived. Another verse. I forgot where we were now, but I'm going to continue right here. And a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And 2 Timothy 1 verse 8, Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. And I won't go there, but a wonderful passage in Titus chapter 3 along the same line. So God calls and God justifies. The last one is glorified. And whom He justified, these He also glorified. In one of two ways, every child of God will be given a new body. When I get up in the morning and my knees don't work, I need that new body. I'm not talking about, I don't want to be frivolous here, but mine is wearing out. either at death and the resurrection or the return of Christ, will have a new body. Philippians 3.20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body, that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which he is able even to subdue all things to himself. So, so certain is the future glorification of every believer, even though it is now yet future, and so certain is glorification that it is here stated as though it had already been realized. It's in the past tense. These he also glorified. So in the mind of God, if language can mean anything like that, his dear children are already glorified because he sees them in Christ. William Henderson points out that Jude 14 and most of Isaiah 53 indicates the certainty of a future event as though it had already taken place. In Jude 14. The seventh from Adam prophesied about these men also, saying, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against them." There are four ungodlies in that passage there. It is pretty strong. Some of you might remember, I forget when it was, how many years ago, but in this room I spent nine months in the book of Jude on 25 verses. Jude is the most, I believe, the most contemporary book in the Bible. By contemporary I mean it's right up to date, it's dealing with issues in the church. And one of the main issues in the church that Jude addresses is men who had gotten into the church in leadership positions, and they were ungodly men, and they were leading the church into error because of their ungodly ways. Back when I taught that series on Jude, I followed extensively the commentary of a man by the name of R.T. Kendall, somebody that I happened to know, I knew personally, a long, long time ago now. But his position was that Jude was referring to the second coming of Christ. Brother Gables corrected me, and he did it in a very good way. He didn't humiliate me in public. I love it. I mean this. I like for somebody to say, Jim, are you sure? Or, Jim, did you think about it this way? What I'm saying is, I hope I'm teachable. I want to be teachable. But what Brother Jim pointed out is that Jude here is quoting Moses from Deuteronomy, and the context is judgment. Judgment is certain. Now, I don't think it had anything to do with the second coming of Christ. It has to do with judgment is certain upon these ungodly people, men that were in the church. If you have time, or fine time, I'd recommend, read Isaiah 53. If we had a little more time today, I'd read it together. Read how the prophet speaks of the suffering Messiah as though he had already gone to the cross. The idea is that God puts things in the scripture and it puts in the present or the past tense something that hasn't happened yet. He was bruised for our iniquities. Not he will be bruised. So we have the certainty of that event. Some time ago, someone asked me this question, and you might have been asked the same question. But Jim, are you one of those people who believe that whatever will be, will be? Proverbs 26 verse 4 says, Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Verse 5 says, Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own ways. Is that a contradiction? Do not answer the fool. Answer the fool. Well, the way I've come out on this is you need to know what kind of fool you're dealing with before you decide to answer or not answer. If it's a scoffer, then they don't deserve an answer. One of the answers is, and I got this from my friend, a long-deceased Norbert Ward. Someone asked him that question, are you one of those people who believe that whatever will be, will be? And Norbert's answer was, are you one of those people who believe that whatever will be, won't be? I used that one time. I didn't know if Norbert used it. Yes, I did. She was a scoffer. We have to be thinking. All right. Can we rest in the five things that God does? Whom he foreknew, he predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he predestined, these he called. Whom he called, he justified. Whom he justified, he also glorified. So my, if I can call it an invitation, is not to believe in election and predestination. They're true, believe in them, but don't trust in the fact that you believe in those doctrines. You've got to believe and trust in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. That what He did had something to do with you. Can you believe that by faith? That's what you trust in. Anybody else? If election is based on God's foreseeing faith, then this text here that Jim has covered this morning requires God to first foresee him calling before faith. In other words, it's God must foresee that he must call in order for faith to appear. if faith then precedes justification, and it's in there in the calling. So you can't just say, well, God looks out and sees that I will believe. Then let's just cross out that word calling. That isn't necessary to do so. All right. Thank you all so much.