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Acts 15:1-35

“It is finished!”

All the plans of eternity past had been effectively executed. The full outpouring of Divine wrath had been absorbed. The eternally condemning debt had been completely satisfied. The price for sin had been paid in full. The ransom cost for sinners had been completely met. “It is finished!”

That final cry from the cross was a victor’s shout, not the resignation of the defeated. The enemy of men’s souls had been faced, fought and defeated. Nothing was left to be done. NO-thing was left to be done! “It is finished!” Still…

“It just seems too simple. It’s just too cheap. I am a self-made man. I came from a family that had virtually nothing. My parents were hard working, good people. But they always lived from paycheck to paycheck. Our family really never did have anything much, but I have worked hard, managed well, and I have ‘made it’ in my industry. I am a self-made man. So the claim that all I have to do to be saved is to ‘believe’ is just too simple. There has to be SOMETHING that I contribute!”

One of the most difficult realities for the slaves of sin, the servants of self-righteous pride, to accept is that salvation is a “free gift” received simply by believing. The arrogant heart argues that it is a treasure obtained by (1) believing AND (2) behaving. “Faith+GoodWorks=EternalReward” says the pride of the heart.

“But some believers who belong to the ‘party of the Pharisees’ rose up and said, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses!” Acts 15:5 Not only are there those who just can’t embrace a “Faith Alone” salvation, but there are always some who insist on laying “Faith Plus” burdens on them. Pride dies hard!

What an exciting day it was when I had the honor of baptizing the one who finally accepted the reality that in the realm of eternal salvation, there is no such thing as a “self-made man.” “But we believe that we WILL be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus just as they will!” Acts 15:11

He has paid the debt in full, has absorbed the full force of the wrath of God and has declared the victory! We can’t save ourselves. YOU can’t save yourself! NO-thing to add. NO-thing to do. NO-thing to give. He did it all! “It is finished!”

See you Sunday, Church!
Pastor Tom