Feb. 24, 2025
Free Moral Agency
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Each of us has been given the ability to exercise choice, and with that comes responsibility. Will we yield our free moral agency to the Holy Spirit, or use it to rebel against God’s commands? Open your Bible and study this topic in the book of Romans along with Pastor Jack today.
(00:00) The Gospel of Jesus Christ
(15:47) The Identity of Christ
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Transcript
00:00 - Speaker 1
Real Life presents the Jack Hibbs Podcast with intention and boldness to proclaim truth, equip the saints and impact our culture.
00:09 - Speaker 2
You're not going to go to heaven because of your Hebrew blood. You're going to go to heaven because you've been washed in the blood of the Lamb of God. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew or Gentile, male, female, bond servant, rich or poor. It doesn't matter, and that's such great news.
00:29 - Speaker 1
You can get the outlines of this podcast by going to https://jackhibbs.com slash podcast Today. If this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled life in Christ, then make sure you leave us one of those five-star ratings. To us that's like saying amen or yes. Then that rating will encourage others to listen Now open your hearts to what God's word has to say to you. Here is Jack Hibbs.
00:58 - Speaker 2
Matthew, chapter 23,. Verse 37. Matthew 23, 37. Oh, jerusalem, jerusalem, jesus says the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. Church, are you with me? What does it say? But you were not willing.
01:23
Verse 38, behold or look, your house has left you desolate. In other words, the temple, it's the temple's over, it's over, it's all it's done, forget it. Jesus is saying I'm not propping up religion anymore, I'm done with this. You had the scriptures. You should have known them. Today was the day. And besides all this, now, because you've rejected, you've exercised your choice to stick with tradition rather than putting faith in me, in Christ and in the word of God. Your temple, it's done, no need for it anymore. For I say to you. Verse 39, you shall see me no more till you say blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. And did you know that the Bible records that in the last days, everybody listening, are you with me? The Bible says that at the end of the tribulation period, those remnant of living who are Jews who believe, will cry out and say blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. I want to remind you all again.
02:37
Romans 8, 29 says for whom he foreknew. He also predestined. He knows everything. He also predestined. He knows everything. He can't learn anything. He sees down the corridors of time and he knows exactly what decision you would make when the gospel would be presented to you, if you'd say yes or no, if you'd blow it off or not.
02:59
I can't blame it on anybody. It's so powerful that I can't blame it on my past. I can't blame it on anybody. It's so powerful that I can't blame it on my past. I can't blame it on my mom or my dad. I can't blame it on anybody else. It's so powerful that it's God saying to you what are you going to do with me? In the moment, in the right now, he's asking some of you what do you say to these things?
03:21
This guy up here has just been given nothing but Bible. Forget about him. Listen to my word. Jesus would say it's my word. What are you going to do about me? Do you really want him Him, I'm sorry, him being the Jesus of the Bible, not him being the Jesus of the New Age movement, the Jesus of the gurus, the Jesus of the cults no, god Jesus, jesus, the son of God, jesus, the one who you and I so could not help ourselves, that he went to the cross and died in our place for us, so he would pay the debt of all of our transgressions and sins and then die in his body, die and be buried but on the third day be resurrected for our righteousness.
04:11
And he says I did that for you. And listen, if he were to say to you look, I did that for you, listen, if you're pre-programmed, there's no praise or worship in that Right. Think about it. It's almost like a petulant, spoiled child. They always get this, they always get that, they always get this, they always get that, they always get this, they always get that. And they never once say thank you because they think this is the way the world is until it's gone. And the way things are going. It's all going to be gone soon and our faith is going to be thrusted upon an ancient dream or a living reality, and that living reality will be. Christ, Will get us all the way through the tribulations of life and into his presence, because he's committed himself to us. It's not your great commitment to him. We often say we're hanging on, how's it going? We're hanging on to Christ. Oh, that's cute. That's like your two-year-old thinking they're mowing the lawn. All they're doing is they're riding on your back. He's hanging on to us and, by the way, he never lets go.
05:23
Ephesians 1, verse 3 says Ephesians 1, verse 3 says Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord, jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. In Christ. Here, it is Just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestined remember foreknowledge, precedes predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure Of his will. One more here 2 Timothy 1, verse 9 who has saved? Or it is 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. Not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus. Here it comes before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, jesus Christ. Isn't that beautiful?
06:26
Another point under this here, and that is verses 3 and 4, involves love, compassion and mercy. So we're not only grieved and sorrowful about those in our lives who are lost, which, by the way, I should add this when he says that in verse 3, for I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ this is Paul speaking For my brethren. He's talking about his Jewish brothers and sisters, my countrymen according to the DNA, according to the flesh, who are Israelites. Wait, paul, what'd you just say? Paul, this is Paul. No wonder why he's grieved, no wonder why he's sick to his stomach. He's sickened and he's saying is there any way for me to be cut off from eternal salvation so they can have it? How can you say that, paul? Listen, I love you guys, but not that much For me to say, god, send me to hell so long as they can go. You know what God would say to that. He's going to say it to Paul, but listen before I say it.
07:33
He also had to encounter with one other person that said the exact same thing. Moses, you guys and I'll just paraphrase it In Exodus 32, mark it down. Moses said God, if you're not going to save these people and rescue them, then blot my name out of your book of life and put their name in. And do you know what the answer is to both these guys? The answer to Moses and the answer to Paul from God is the same thing. It doesn't work that way. It doesn't work that way. Stop right there, press, pause everybody. Here's the thing. Way, stop right there, press, pause everybody. Here's the thing. The only love I can imagine coming close. And Lisa and I have felt this at least at this stage of our lives thus far.
08:19
We remember when our daughter became violently immediately sick. She was eight months old. She was rushed to Children's Hospital of Orange County and the pediatric hematologist came out and said I give your daughter 50% chance to live at best. We don't know what she has, but because of that she's in quarantine and she's been quartered. They had to quarter her. They had to tie all the four extremities to the four post of the hospital bed and strip her down to her little body, because if you touched her skin she would bleed through her pores. Her blood cells were lysing, her blood cells were breaking apart and falling apart and the blood cells, her hematocrit, dropped so violently low that the skin couldn't even hold the blood back. The blood was leaving her veins and her arteries and floating to this level of the skin and coming out of her pores. So if you touched her chest or her cheek or her nose, blood would come out and the 50% chance or less to live.
09:32
And then what do you do? If you've ever been there, listen, there are people I'm not gonna name them, but there are people who lead you in worship here up here, and you know they come up here and they lead you in worship and you don't know anything about their life. You have no idea that when they're done here, they go back to the hospital because their son, for example, has been in the hospital more than he's been home over the years of his life and he could die at any time from his cancers. But they're leading you in worship but you don't know that because we don't burden you with that. But when the doctor says she's got less than 50% chance and she's in quarantine eight months old, do you know what you say? This is what you say God, seriously, let's make a deal. No funny business. You're God. Whatever she has, give it to me, take it off of her.
10:31
You ever prayed that prayer? Does your husband have cancer? Is it your wife? Is it your kids? Is it your parents? I know no other love. Listen, there is a love that is among warriors. If a hand grenade is tossed, the US Marine throws himself on it before he ever thinks. He's been programmed to do that. He's been trained so well and hard that when that grenade lands on the ground he doesn't say, oh my God, a grenade. He yells grenade as he's throwing his body onto it, and he's been taught how to embrace the grenade so that he saves his brothers. That's powerful.
11:13
The only other thing I know is that when a parent, for example, says, god, give me that cancer, I cannot stand to see my child go through this, or my wife or my husband. Greater love is no man than this, than a man lay down his life for his friends. But what if your friends have hated you, cursed your name, done all manner of wrong against you, and Jesus still loves us? Jesus still goes to the cross. You see, the scope of God's sovereignty involves love and compassion and mercy. These are the things that God, by the Spirit, lives out in our lives and it's very powerful.
12:02
But that is a tortured thing. I wrote myself this note that I have not seen this level of anguished, tortured love in this world, except in the life of a parent who's mourning for a wayward son or daughter or a sick or ill son and daughter Some of us have. Maybe you do have relatives that are far from Christ and you would say to God oh God, in fact it's so bad, it hurts you so bad that you would love the rapture to happen today. But your caveat is oh Lord, please not today, because they're not right, and you have to leave that. That's none of your business. You have to leave that with God. And then we end with this. It's verses four and five. And that is the scope of God's sovereignty.
12:48
Incorporates the full counsel of God, god's full teaching, he says in verse 4, to whom pertain the adoption? He's speaking about the Jewish people, the genetic descendants of Abraham. The glory Did they not see the glory in the wilderness wanderings? Did they see the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night? And the covenants? Notice, it's plural. This is cool, are you guys still with me? Good, good, good. Covenants, plural. That's the Abrahamic covenant promised to the Jewish people and that is the Davidic promise that is given. There are others, but those two are the main covenants. That didn't come to America. It wasn't given to Canada.
13:44
God revealed himself to the Jewish people for a reason and it's also, by the way, why they're in headline news. They're God's people. It doesn't mean everything that they do is right. Sometimes they do things wrong. It has nothing to do with God choosing them. Do you know that he's chosen them? You mean the whole thing? No, the land is his and those Jews who believe in him are his. Not all Jews will believe in him. They're not his. Not all Gentiles will believe in him. They're not his.
14:24
He says here the giving of the law, the service of God, the promises of whom are the fathers and from whom? Listen, according to the flesh, christ came, who is, overall, the eternally blessed God. Listen, we're going to end with this. It doesn't mean get up and leave. It means listen to this. This is amazing. All of the promises, everything that you and I need for eternity, has been promised to the Jew first.
14:52
Did you know that, when the gospel was being preached in Matthew, mark, luke and John, what did the Bible say? Jesus said don't go to the Gentiles, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Isn't that fascinating words. He didn't say go and preach to the nation of Israel. Nope, what did he say? Go and preach to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Out of Israel, there will be those who are mine. How do you know Jesus? Because I'm? Look at it, I, I.
15:27
Christ came. Okay, this is fourth grade English. Here we go. You ready. Jehovah Witnesses, mormons, friends, listen, this is important. My Jewish friends, muslim friends, hey, listen. For Christians who don't get it, watch this.
15:47
According to the flesh, christ came. Number one. Christ is a descendant from the fathers. Christ is a descendant from those who were given all the promises. Are you tracking with me? You got that, all of this pertaining to the descendants of Abraham, by DNA. We got that.
16:07
Jesus, according to the genealogies in scripture, is a descendant of Abraham, legally bloodline. We got that. But did you get this? Christ came. Who is overall who? Who? Who's the who? Who is overall who? Who's the who? You can't flub this up. If you flub this up, you're never going to graduate junior high. The who is Christ. It has to be. Christ came. Christ is overall Christ, the eternally blessed God. You can't get away. That is a pure fact. You can wrestle with this for the rest of your life, you're gonna lose. The eternally blessed God is the manifested in the flesh, god the Son having come to die on the cross for us. That's how you become a descendant of Abraham. You're not going to go to heaven because of your Hebrew blood. You're going to go to heaven because you've been washed in the blood of the Lamb of God. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew or Gentile, male, female, bond servant, rich or poor. It doesn't matter, and that's such great news.
17:29 - Speaker 1
This Jack Hibbs podcast, as well as all the broadcast outreach opportunities, are listener supported. Will you consider partnering with us through a special gift? Go to https://jackhibbs.com to learn more and stay connected.
Real Life presents the Jack Hibbs Podcast with intention and boldness to proclaim truth, equip the saints and impact our culture.
00:09 - Speaker 2
You're not going to go to heaven because of your Hebrew blood. You're going to go to heaven because you've been washed in the blood of the Lamb of God. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew or Gentile, male, female, bond servant, rich or poor. It doesn't matter, and that's such great news.
00:29 - Speaker 1
You can get the outlines of this podcast by going to https://jackhibbs.com slash podcast Today. If this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled life in Christ, then make sure you leave us one of those five-star ratings. To us that's like saying amen or yes. Then that rating will encourage others to listen Now open your hearts to what God's word has to say to you. Here is Jack Hibbs.
00:58 - Speaker 2
Matthew, chapter 23,. Verse 37. Matthew 23, 37. Oh, jerusalem, jerusalem, jesus says the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. Church, are you with me? What does it say? But you were not willing.
01:23
Verse 38, behold or look, your house has left you desolate. In other words, the temple, it's the temple's over, it's over, it's all it's done, forget it. Jesus is saying I'm not propping up religion anymore, I'm done with this. You had the scriptures. You should have known them. Today was the day. And besides all this, now, because you've rejected, you've exercised your choice to stick with tradition rather than putting faith in me, in Christ and in the word of God. Your temple, it's done, no need for it anymore. For I say to you. Verse 39, you shall see me no more till you say blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. And did you know that the Bible records that in the last days, everybody listening, are you with me? The Bible says that at the end of the tribulation period, those remnant of living who are Jews who believe, will cry out and say blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. I want to remind you all again.
02:37
Romans 8, 29 says for whom he foreknew. He also predestined. He knows everything. He also predestined. He knows everything. He can't learn anything. He sees down the corridors of time and he knows exactly what decision you would make when the gospel would be presented to you, if you'd say yes or no, if you'd blow it off or not.
02:59
I can't blame it on anybody. It's so powerful that I can't blame it on my past. I can't blame it on anybody. It's so powerful that I can't blame it on my past. I can't blame it on my mom or my dad. I can't blame it on anybody else. It's so powerful that it's God saying to you what are you going to do with me? In the moment, in the right now, he's asking some of you what do you say to these things?
03:21
This guy up here has just been given nothing but Bible. Forget about him. Listen to my word. Jesus would say it's my word. What are you going to do about me? Do you really want him Him, I'm sorry, him being the Jesus of the Bible, not him being the Jesus of the New Age movement, the Jesus of the gurus, the Jesus of the cults no, god Jesus, jesus, the son of God, jesus, the one who you and I so could not help ourselves, that he went to the cross and died in our place for us, so he would pay the debt of all of our transgressions and sins and then die in his body, die and be buried but on the third day be resurrected for our righteousness.
04:11
And he says I did that for you. And listen, if he were to say to you look, I did that for you, listen, if you're pre-programmed, there's no praise or worship in that Right. Think about it. It's almost like a petulant, spoiled child. They always get this, they always get that, they always get this, they always get that, they always get this, they always get that. And they never once say thank you because they think this is the way the world is until it's gone. And the way things are going. It's all going to be gone soon and our faith is going to be thrusted upon an ancient dream or a living reality, and that living reality will be. Christ, Will get us all the way through the tribulations of life and into his presence, because he's committed himself to us. It's not your great commitment to him. We often say we're hanging on, how's it going? We're hanging on to Christ. Oh, that's cute. That's like your two-year-old thinking they're mowing the lawn. All they're doing is they're riding on your back. He's hanging on to us and, by the way, he never lets go.
05:23
Ephesians 1, verse 3 says Ephesians 1, verse 3 says Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord, jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. In Christ. Here, it is Just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestined remember foreknowledge, precedes predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure Of his will. One more here 2 Timothy 1, verse 9 who has saved? Or it is 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. Not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus. Here it comes before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, jesus Christ. Isn't that beautiful?
06:26
Another point under this here, and that is verses 3 and 4, involves love, compassion and mercy. So we're not only grieved and sorrowful about those in our lives who are lost, which, by the way, I should add this when he says that in verse 3, for I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ this is Paul speaking For my brethren. He's talking about his Jewish brothers and sisters, my countrymen according to the DNA, according to the flesh, who are Israelites. Wait, paul, what'd you just say? Paul, this is Paul. No wonder why he's grieved, no wonder why he's sick to his stomach. He's sickened and he's saying is there any way for me to be cut off from eternal salvation so they can have it? How can you say that, paul? Listen, I love you guys, but not that much For me to say, god, send me to hell so long as they can go. You know what God would say to that. He's going to say it to Paul, but listen before I say it.
07:33
He also had to encounter with one other person that said the exact same thing. Moses, you guys and I'll just paraphrase it In Exodus 32, mark it down. Moses said God, if you're not going to save these people and rescue them, then blot my name out of your book of life and put their name in. And do you know what the answer is to both these guys? The answer to Moses and the answer to Paul from God is the same thing. It doesn't work that way. It doesn't work that way. Stop right there, press, pause everybody. Here's the thing. Way, stop right there, press, pause everybody. Here's the thing. The only love I can imagine coming close. And Lisa and I have felt this at least at this stage of our lives thus far.
08:19
We remember when our daughter became violently immediately sick. She was eight months old. She was rushed to Children's Hospital of Orange County and the pediatric hematologist came out and said I give your daughter 50% chance to live at best. We don't know what she has, but because of that she's in quarantine and she's been quartered. They had to quarter her. They had to tie all the four extremities to the four post of the hospital bed and strip her down to her little body, because if you touched her skin she would bleed through her pores. Her blood cells were lysing, her blood cells were breaking apart and falling apart and the blood cells, her hematocrit, dropped so violently low that the skin couldn't even hold the blood back. The blood was leaving her veins and her arteries and floating to this level of the skin and coming out of her pores. So if you touched her chest or her cheek or her nose, blood would come out and the 50% chance or less to live.
09:32
And then what do you do? If you've ever been there, listen, there are people I'm not gonna name them, but there are people who lead you in worship here up here, and you know they come up here and they lead you in worship and you don't know anything about their life. You have no idea that when they're done here, they go back to the hospital because their son, for example, has been in the hospital more than he's been home over the years of his life and he could die at any time from his cancers. But they're leading you in worship but you don't know that because we don't burden you with that. But when the doctor says she's got less than 50% chance and she's in quarantine eight months old, do you know what you say? This is what you say God, seriously, let's make a deal. No funny business. You're God. Whatever she has, give it to me, take it off of her.
10:31
You ever prayed that prayer? Does your husband have cancer? Is it your wife? Is it your kids? Is it your parents? I know no other love. Listen, there is a love that is among warriors. If a hand grenade is tossed, the US Marine throws himself on it before he ever thinks. He's been programmed to do that. He's been trained so well and hard that when that grenade lands on the ground he doesn't say, oh my God, a grenade. He yells grenade as he's throwing his body onto it, and he's been taught how to embrace the grenade so that he saves his brothers. That's powerful.
11:13
The only other thing I know is that when a parent, for example, says, god, give me that cancer, I cannot stand to see my child go through this, or my wife or my husband. Greater love is no man than this, than a man lay down his life for his friends. But what if your friends have hated you, cursed your name, done all manner of wrong against you, and Jesus still loves us? Jesus still goes to the cross. You see, the scope of God's sovereignty involves love and compassion and mercy. These are the things that God, by the Spirit, lives out in our lives and it's very powerful.
12:02
But that is a tortured thing. I wrote myself this note that I have not seen this level of anguished, tortured love in this world, except in the life of a parent who's mourning for a wayward son or daughter or a sick or ill son and daughter Some of us have. Maybe you do have relatives that are far from Christ and you would say to God oh God, in fact it's so bad, it hurts you so bad that you would love the rapture to happen today. But your caveat is oh Lord, please not today, because they're not right, and you have to leave that. That's none of your business. You have to leave that with God. And then we end with this. It's verses four and five. And that is the scope of God's sovereignty.
12:48
Incorporates the full counsel of God, god's full teaching, he says in verse 4, to whom pertain the adoption? He's speaking about the Jewish people, the genetic descendants of Abraham. The glory Did they not see the glory in the wilderness wanderings? Did they see the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night? And the covenants? Notice, it's plural. This is cool, are you guys still with me? Good, good, good. Covenants, plural. That's the Abrahamic covenant promised to the Jewish people and that is the Davidic promise that is given. There are others, but those two are the main covenants. That didn't come to America. It wasn't given to Canada.
13:44
God revealed himself to the Jewish people for a reason and it's also, by the way, why they're in headline news. They're God's people. It doesn't mean everything that they do is right. Sometimes they do things wrong. It has nothing to do with God choosing them. Do you know that he's chosen them? You mean the whole thing? No, the land is his and those Jews who believe in him are his. Not all Jews will believe in him. They're not his. Not all Gentiles will believe in him. They're not his.
14:24
He says here the giving of the law, the service of God, the promises of whom are the fathers and from whom? Listen, according to the flesh, christ came, who is, overall, the eternally blessed God. Listen, we're going to end with this. It doesn't mean get up and leave. It means listen to this. This is amazing. All of the promises, everything that you and I need for eternity, has been promised to the Jew first.
14:52
Did you know that, when the gospel was being preached in Matthew, mark, luke and John, what did the Bible say? Jesus said don't go to the Gentiles, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Isn't that fascinating words. He didn't say go and preach to the nation of Israel. Nope, what did he say? Go and preach to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Out of Israel, there will be those who are mine. How do you know Jesus? Because I'm? Look at it, I, I.
15:27
Christ came. Okay, this is fourth grade English. Here we go. You ready. Jehovah Witnesses, mormons, friends, listen, this is important. My Jewish friends, muslim friends, hey, listen. For Christians who don't get it, watch this.
15:47
According to the flesh, christ came. Number one. Christ is a descendant from the fathers. Christ is a descendant from those who were given all the promises. Are you tracking with me? You got that, all of this pertaining to the descendants of Abraham, by DNA. We got that.
16:07
Jesus, according to the genealogies in scripture, is a descendant of Abraham, legally bloodline. We got that. But did you get this? Christ came. Who is overall who? Who? Who's the who? Who is overall who? Who's the who? You can't flub this up. If you flub this up, you're never going to graduate junior high. The who is Christ. It has to be. Christ came. Christ is overall Christ, the eternally blessed God. You can't get away. That is a pure fact. You can wrestle with this for the rest of your life, you're gonna lose. The eternally blessed God is the manifested in the flesh, god the Son having come to die on the cross for us. That's how you become a descendant of Abraham. You're not going to go to heaven because of your Hebrew blood. You're going to go to heaven because you've been washed in the blood of the Lamb of God. It doesn't matter if you're a Jew or Gentile, male, female, bond servant, rich or poor. It doesn't matter, and that's such great news.
17:29 - Speaker 1
This Jack Hibbs podcast, as well as all the broadcast outreach opportunities, are listener supported. Will you consider partnering with us through a special gift? Go to https://jackhibbs.com to learn more and stay connected.