SCRIPTURAL SALVATION – Charles Spurgeon
SCRIPTURAL SALVATION
“For the Scripture says, Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” Romans 10:11.
I. AN OLD-FASHIONED WAY OF PROOF
The shepherd on the hill is most of all anxious about his sheep—he cares for his cottage, he trains the woodbine around his porch, sows flowers before his door, and digs his little plot of garden ground—but, since he is a shepherd, his chief thought follows his flock and especially any of the sheep that are wandering, or the lambs that are tender. Even so I feel that my main business is the saving of souls. I may fitly preach to you upon any Scriptural subject and I may minister to the delight of the family of the redeemed. I may lead them into the deep things of God—but my principal business must always be watching for souls. This one thing I do. When a city is to be stored for a siege, it will be well for those who attend to the commissariat to lay in a proportion of everything that is necessary for human comfort and even a measure of certain luxuries—but it will be of first importance to bring in great quantities of corn. The necessities of life must be the chief provision. These we place in storehouses by the tons, whereas in other articles pounds may suffice. If there is a failure of bread, what will the people do? For this reason, I feel I must preach over and over again the plain Gospel of salvation by Divine Grace through faith in Christ Jesus! While I would withhold nothing that may minister to edification, to comfort, to growth, or to the perfecting of the saints, yet, first and foremost in abundance, even to overflowing, I must gather for you the Bread of Life and set forth Christ Crucified as the sinner’s only hope. Faith must be urged upon you, for without it there is no salvation. Paul, in this case, was acting upon this safe principle as he always did, for he is speaking of salvation in the plainest terms. His heart’s desire and prayer for Israel was that they might be saved and he proved the truth of that desire by setting forth that which would save them—he keeps to faith in Christ—and hammers upon that nail to fasten it securely.
II. A SIMPLE STATEMENT OF THE WAY OF SALVATION
“The Scripture says, Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” The way of salvation is to believe on Christ, whom God has laid in Zion for a foundation. What is believing on Him? It is trusting in Him. The language is not “Believe Him”—such belief is a part of faith but not the whole. We believe everything which the Lord Jesus has taught, but we must go a step further and trust Him. It is not even enough to believe in Him as being the Son of God and the Anointed of the Lord—we must believe on Him, just as in the building (for that is the figure used by Isaiah) the builder takes his stone and lays it on the foundation. There it rests with all its weight—there it abides. The faith that saves is not believing certain Truths of God nor even believing that Jesus is a Savior—but it is resting on Him, depending on Him, lying with all your weight on Christ as the foundation of your hope. Believe that He can save you! Believe that He will save you! At any rate, leave the whole matter of your salvation with Him in unquestioning confidence. Depend upon Him without fear as to your present and eternal salvation. This is the faith which saves the soul.
Notice, next, that this faith is believing on a Person—“He that believes on—it”? No! On, “Him.” Our faith is not based on a doctrine, or a ceremony, or an experience—but on “Him!” Our Lord Jesus Christ is God. He is also Man—He is the appointed and anointed Savior. In His death He is the Propitiation for sin. In His Resurrection He is the justification of His people. And in His intercession He is the eternal guarantee of their preservation. Believe “on Him.” Our faith fixes herself upon the Person of the Lord Jesus as seen in His sufferings, His offices, and His achievements. “Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.”
The text refers to the truth of the trusting. The Apostle does not say, “Whoever believes on Him with full assurance, or with a high degree of confidence shall not be ashamed.” No, it is not the measure of our faith, but the sincerity of our faith which is the great question! If we believe on Him at all we shall not be ashamed. Our faith may be very trembling and this will cause us sorrow—but a trembling faith will save. The greater your faith, the more comfortable for you. But if your faith is small as a grain of mustard seed, it will save you. If your faith can only touch the hem of the Savior’s garment behind Him, it will heal your soul, for, “Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” Is there not blessed comfort about this assurance? Observe, again, that all depends upon the presence of this trusting and not upon the age of it. “He that believes on Him”—this relates to the immediate present. Perhaps the truster has only believed on Jesus during the last five minutes. Very well, he does believe on Him and he shall not be ashamed! Some of us are glad to remember that we were built on the sure Foundation more than 40 years ago. But the length of years during which we have believed does not enter into the essence of the matter—Believers are saved whether their faith has lasted through half a century or half an hour. “Whoever believes on Him,” takes in the convert of this morning as well as the hero of a thousand fights. My newly believing Friend, I am sorry you have put off faith so long but, still, I am greatly glad that you have believed at all—for your faith shall not be put to shame!
III. THE GLORIOUS PROMISE TO THOSE WHO OBEY THE GOSPEL
“The Scripture says, Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” Take the Hebrew form of it first—“shall not make haste.” When a man builds his hope upon the Lord Christ he is not driven into worry and hurry. He quietly walks with God and does not hasten through fear. They say that the floods are out, that the winds are howling, that the rains are descending—he that trusts in a refuge of lies may well make haste to flee—but he that has built his house upon the rock, quietly answers, “The flood is coming. I supposed it would. The rains are falling. I expected that they would. The winds are blowing. I was forewarned of the tempest and I am prepared for it by being on the rock!” His house will stand. He will never be ashamed of its foundation. In patience he possesses his soul— “Calm ‘mid the bewildering cry; Confident of victory.”
The Holy Spirit’s reading of the Holy Spirit’s Word in the Old Testament is, “He shall not be ashamed,” and this means that he shall not be ashamed at any time by discovering that he has been deluded. Men are ashamed when their hopes fail. If a man has an expectation of eternal life and all of a sudden he sees his hope dashed to shivers, is he not ashamed? If on his dying bed his confidence should turn out to be based on a falsehood, how ashamed he will be! He will then say, “I am ashamed to think I did not take more care. I am ashamed that I followed my own judgment instead of God’s Word.” They shall lie down in sorrow who find their hope to be as a spider’s web. It will be an awful thing in our last moments, when we most need comfort, to be driven to despair by the wreck of our confidence! If any of you are trusting in your gold, it will turn out to be a poor confidence when you are called upon to leave all earthly things.
IV. A WIDE DOOR OF HOPE FOR THE SEEKER
Read that word, “whoever,” whoever, whoever. I must keep on ringing that silver bell! It rings in the 13th verse— “Whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” It rings in the text—“Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” No secret decree has ever been made to shut out any soul that believes on Him! God has not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth and said, “Such a man may believe in Christ and yet he shall be lost.” Do not be afraid of this, for it is impossible! No measure of sin in your past life can deprive you of this promise. “Whoever believes on Him,” though he had been a murderer, or a thief, or a drunkard, or an adulterer, or a liar, or a blasphemer—he shall find his faith removing his sins through the blood of Jesus and renewing his heart by the Holy Spirit. “Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.”
“Alas,” cries one, “I have a strong besetting sin, I have a hot temper, or fierce lusts, or a desperate thirst for drink.” Yes, I know. But if you believe on Him you shall not be ashamed, for these shall be conquered and destroyed. You shall be helped to fight against them until you get a complete victory and so you shall never be ashamed. “Ah,” says one, “but I once made a profession and I have gone back.” Yes, but, “whoever” does not shut out the wanderer! Backsliding is a great and bitter evil but he that believes is justified from every sin. “Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Come, then, with your heaped-up sins and be unburdened! Come, though seven devils dwell within you! Come to have them driven out and yourself made white in the blood of the Lamb! Come, for you shall not be ashamed! Let no man stand back and say, “I dare not come.”
Remember the word of the SavIor, “Him that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out.” “In no wise.” That is, for no possible reason. “Oh, but my birth was shameful.” I may be speaking to one who is illegitimate. This is no barrier, for children of shame may be made heirs of Glory! The Lord rejects none, however uneducated, coarse or dull they may be. Neither does race offer hindrance. Be you an Englishman or a Chinaman, there is no difference. White, black, brown, red, or blue—still does the promise stand—“Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.”
There is no distinction as to rank, name, class, or reputation. “Oh, but look at my occupation!” I am sorry if it is an evil profession—get out of it and do something honest—but whatever you may be by trade, come to Jesus and believe on Him, for, “Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” “Alas, I am too old!” says another. What are you? Two hundred? “No, not so old as that.” Then you are still under age! Never mind how old you are—“Whoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.” If you have one foot in the grave, faith may put both feet on the Rock of Ages! You are yet on praying ground and pleading terms with God, therefore come to Jesus, for He has said, “Him that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out.” Come with your little faith, your trembling hope and believe on the Lord Jesus and you shall not be ashamed!
Lastly, in that day when the earth and Heaven shall melt and nothing shall be seen but Christ upon the Throne, judging all the earth, those who have not believed in Him will be ashamed. They will have no excuse to offer—they have none even now! They will be ashamed, then, that they did not take the counsel of their godly friends and heed the pleadings of their minister. They will be ashamed to think how they put off thoughts of Christ and lingered until they found themselves in Hell! The face of the Lord Jesus will be terrible to unbelievers to the last degree! One young person, in great trouble of soul, said to me the other day, “When I am lost, I shall always see your face—it will accuse and condemn me.” She will not be lost, dear girl—I trust she will soon find peace with God through Jesus Christ. It will be terrible, for those who refuse the Gospel, even to remember the preacher of it—but infinitely more so to see the face of Him who bled and died and loved unto the uttermost. Oh, to think, “I would not have Him! I would not be saved by Him! I preferred to trust to myself or not to think at all—and now here I am.” Assuredly, the flames of Hell will be more tolerable than a sight of His face! The bitterest wail of Tophet is this—“Hide us from the face of Him that sits upon the Throne!” You sinners seek His face, whose wrath you cannot bear. God help you to seek it now! Before you leave this house may you seek it and find it! He says, “Seek you My face.” May God the Holy Spirit lead you to obey the call. Amen.