When the hour had come for the fulfillment of Jesus’ earthly ministry, He turned to God the Father in prayer. Alistair explores this pivotal historical moment by taking a closer look at what Jesus asked, the work He was assigned to do, and the way He assured believers of the nature of eternal life. While the world may view the cross of Christ as an emblem of defeat, Scripture reveals how it’s at Calvary that God’s ultimate power, love, mercy—and glory—were displayed. In this brief excerpt from “The Hour Has Come,” Alistair reminds us that genuine belief is an essential element of salvation.
God doesn’t believe for us. God has entrusted from eternity to His Son a people. And the Gospel is proclaimed, and the voice of Jesus is heard, if it is heard at all; and the voice of the mere preacher knocks, as it were, at the outside of the door, but the voice of Christ, you see, knocks at the heart. Then you see. There’s that flesh of Wesley’s light: “I woke; the dungeon flamed with light.”
So we come now for the third time to what is referred to—this little passage—as “comfortable words” in the prayer book. This is, of course, familiar territory. It is as well-known as many a passage in the Bible. It is clear, it is unmistakable, it is universal in its appeal, and it is clearly personal in its application.
Doesn’t matter if you’re seven or seventy. Doesn’t matter if you’re bright or dumb. Doesn’t matter if you are prosperous or fearful. This is the story: the eternal call of God—everyone who looks and believes. If you’re a Christian this morning, you have been given to Christ by the Father, you have come to Christ as a result of His call, and you today are being kept by Christ—unless, of course, you’ve started to come around because you just want a little direction in your life, a little religion, a little something just to keep you going. What a tragedy to be an unconverted believer!
Stream or Read Alistair’s Latest Sermons
