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What is a Christian: Introduction · CCC West Covina

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Father, we thank you, Lord, for tonight.
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We thank you for the opportunity to gather in the middle of the
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week to study Your word and to be able to be challenged as we
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look into the perfect law of liberty.
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And our prayer, Father, is that you would open our hearts and
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minds to be able to understand the truth about Christianity,
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what Your word actually does say.
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And pray, Father, that you'd work in all of our hearts.
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And pray, Lord, that if there's someone among us who doesn't
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know you, that they would come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and
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Savior. And for those of us who do know
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you, Lord, may we be encouraged in our walk with the Lord as we
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understand the assurance of salvation.
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Lord, you're a great God. You've allowed us this
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opportunity. And pray, Father, that as we
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embark on the next several weeks together, that Lord, you teach
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us much. We love you, Lord, and thank you
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for this opportunity in Jesus name, Amen.
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Tonight and over the next 11 weeks, because it'll be 12 weeks
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until Thanksgiving Eve and we have a special Service plan for
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that night, we will spend this time asking and answering one
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question and one question only. And that is what is a Christian.
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And I'm sure that if you were to go and ask the people in our
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church or any church that question and have them write
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down the answer on a 3 by 5 card, I'm sure you'd come up
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with all kinds of answers to that question.
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What is a Christian? If you to go outside of the
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streets and ask people in your neighborhood or downtown LA or
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wherever you're, you may work and ask them what is a Christian
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and have them write down what they believe a Christian is.
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I'm sure you'd come up with some pretty incredible answers, but
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the real answer lies within the text of scripture.
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It doesn't really make a difference what your pastor says
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or what's your your friends say or what your coach says or
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teachers say about Christianity. It's what does the Bible say
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about Christianity? What, what has the Lord said
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about what it means to to be a Christian?
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That's what really matters. Nothing else does matter because
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the Bible is very clear and very explicit when it talks about a
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Christian. I told you on Sunday, I, I don't
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think I said in the second service, I did in the first
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service and that, that there are three, that there are many
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themes that run throughout the Bible.
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But there are three great themes that sound or seem to be
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paramount in the Bible. And the first one deals with the
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exaltation of Christ, because the whole Bible is all about the
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Christ. The whole Bible is about who is
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Jesus Christ. He's the Redeemer, the Savior,
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the deliverer. He is the Messiah.
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And so the Bible is all about exalting Christ.
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And it's almost like it moves from Genesis to Revelation in
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this great crescendo to the very end where every knee bows and
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every tongue confesses that Jesus Christ is lured to the
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glory of God the Father. So the first great theme of the
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Bible is is the exaltation of Christ.
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It's all about putting Christ on display.
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Yet the prophecies of the Old Testament, the promises of the
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Old Testament, the presentation of Christ in the New Testament,
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it's all about the exaltation of Christ.
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But the second great theme that follows on the heels of that is
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the proclamation of the gospel of Christ.
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If there is a Christ, if there is a Messiah, if there is a
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deliverer, A Redeemer, then how do we know him?
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And so you have this good news that brings great joy.
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It's all about the presentation and the proclamation of the
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gospel of Jesus Christ. So people will come to know who
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this Messiah is, who this deliverer is.
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That's the second great theme of the Bible.
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But the third great theme is something that very few people
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understand or mention. And that is the theme about
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examination of those who say they know the Christ.
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That's the third great theme of the Bible through the Old
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Testament and through the New Testament, there are a lot of
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people who make a profession of faith, but very few people who
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possess the Christ who grants faith.
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And so there's this examination all throughout the Bible about
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do you really know God? In fact, the book of Hosea says
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that my people are destroyed because they really don't know
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me, although they they think they do.
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And when you come to the New Testament, it begins to explode
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off the pages of Scripture. Just follow along with me as we
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take a little journey through the New Testament.
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Now on Sunday morning, we're covering one verse.
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Tonight we're going to cover a whole lot of verses, but in
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Matthew chapter 3, you have the forerunner to the Messiah.
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His name is John the Baptist. He, he's the greatest man
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whoever lived that's been born of a woman by the words of of
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Christ himself. He was the last Old Testament
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prophet. He was the first New Testament
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preacher. And John the Baptist comes
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exploding out of the the wilderness, out of the Judean
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wilderness, like a locomotive preaching the gospel.
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Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.
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And he is doing all this baptism down in the Jordan River.
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And lo and behold, the religious elite come down to the Jordan to
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see what John's doing and to even be baptized by John.
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So listen to what it says in Matthew 3 verse #7 But when he,
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John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for
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baptism, he said to them, You brood of Vipers, who warned you
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to flee from the wrath to come? This is how John greets the
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religious elite, the people who who are the keepers of the law,
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the people that everybody would say were the ones who knew God.
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And John confronts them right out the bat.
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This past June, they, they had, they had 28,000 people baptized
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across America, a revival that was, that was started by, by the
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Pentecostal denomination in their desire to baptize America.
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And they, they, they claim that, that 28,000 people were baptized
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in the month of June. I wonder if anybody greeted them
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when they came down to be baptized.
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You brood of Vipers who, who taught you to flee from the
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wrath to come? I'm sure nobody did, but that's
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what John the Baptist would have done because he was dealing with
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the religious elite. He says in verse #8 therefore
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bear fruit in keeping with repentance.
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In other words, if you're coming down here to repent, you must
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demonstrate the fact that you are truly turning from your sin
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to follow the true and living God.
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Why? And do not suppose that you can
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say to yourselves, we have Abraham for our father.
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Don't come down here and say, you know what?
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We are here and we are the religious elite because Abraham
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is our father. You can't claim Abraham as your
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father and say that that's why you're going to heaven.
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You can't do that. John says.
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And so he says, for I say to you that from these stones God is
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able to raise up children to Abraham.
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And and the Jews would refer to the the the Gentiles as stones
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because stones were lifeless, helpless and hopeless.
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And that's how the Jews saw the Gentiles, lifeless, helpless,
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and hopeless. And so he says, you know what?
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God can do something greater than you can ever imagine by
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raising up these stones and making them children of Abraham.
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Then he says in verse #10 The axe is already laid at the root
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of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does
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not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
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He's already talking about judgment.
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He's already talking about how God's going to bring judgment.
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He goes on to say, I'm going to baptize you with water, but the
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one coming after me is greater than I, and he's going to
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baptize you with fire. You see, that's how John greeted
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the religious elite. Why?
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Because John didn't want them to think that they were going to go
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to heaven when they had never truly repented of their sins and
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embraced the Messiah as the King of Israel.
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So you turn over a couple of pages to Matthew Chapter 7.
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And in Matthew Chapter 7, you have Jesus preaching there on
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the on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee.
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He is preaching what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount.
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He's talking about how how to become a child of the king and
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how to live as a child of the king.
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And so this is his sermon, Matthews 5-6 and seven, and this
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is how he closes out the sermon. Verse #13 enter through the
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narrow gate. For the gate is wide, and the
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way is broad. That leads to destruction.
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And there are many who enter through it.
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For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to
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life, and there are few who find it.
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So as he gives us invitation at the end of his message, he says
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there's a broad road and there's a narrow road and the broad Rd.
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says heaven. Like the narrow Rd. says heaven,
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but there are many on the broad Rd. that says heaven, but in
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reality it's going to hell. The narrow Rd. is the only way
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to life. And then he says this.
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Verse 15. Beware of the false prophets who
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come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous
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wolves. You will know them by their
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fruits. Grapes are not gathered from
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thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles.
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Are they? So every good tree bears good
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fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
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A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree
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produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear
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good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
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So then you will know them by their fruits.
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Then he says, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord will
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enter the Kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my
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Father who is in heaven will enter.
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Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophecy
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in your name and in your name cast out demons and in your name
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perform many miracles? And then I will declare to them,
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I never knew you, depart from me, you who practice
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lawlessness. And then it goes on and talks
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about how those who are the wise people are here the Word of God,
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and they apply it to the lives versus those who hear the word
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of God and don't apply it to their lives.
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And so he, he wants to make sure that the people listening
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understand that there's a broad road and a narrow road and the
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only way to heaven is through the narrow way.
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But there are going to become many false teachers, many false
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prophets who are going to lead you astray to follow the Broad
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Rd. Very, very important.
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Why? Because Satan's ploy has been
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always to disguise the truth with the false.
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He always wants to make sure that people don't understand the
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reality of Christ. That's why Second Corinthians
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4/4 says that he's blinded the minds of the unbeliever.
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He's a master of disguise. He does all they can to thwart
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people from understanding and hearing and believing the truth.
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And so he raises up false teachers within the church that
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will come against the church and lead people away from the Lord,
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not toward the Lord. So you move on to another couple
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of chapters to Matthew chapter 13, Matthew chapter 13.
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And in Matthew chapter 13, Christ begins begins to give the
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Kingdom parables. And he begins with a very
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familiar parable, one called the parable of the solar and the
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soil, because he wants the disciples to understand that in
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the Kingdom age, the word of God is going to be spread.
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And as the word of God is spread, you got to realize that
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the, the the seed, which is the word of God which is spread, is
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going to fall on certain kinds of soil.
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Some of them will be hard soil or, or a rocky soil or thorny
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soil or or soft soil. But you need to know this.
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And so he, he gives us parable and all a parable is, is a, a, a
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heavenly story or an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
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So he uses common day situations to tell a story that has a
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heavenly meaning. So he he recites the parable,
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and then he interprets the parable for them.
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He says in verse #18 here then the parable of the sower.
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When anyone hears the word of the Kingdom and does not
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understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has
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been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was
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sown beside the road. In other words, the hard heart,
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the Stony heart is the one that the seed falls upon.
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But Satan comes and snatches it away because it's a hard, cold
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and and calloused heart. And then he says this in verse
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#20 that the one on whom the seed was sown on the rocky
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places. This is the man who hears the
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word and immediately besie's it with joy.
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Yet he has no firm root in himself.
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But it's only temporary. And when affliction or
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persecution arises because of this, the word, immediately he
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falls away. This is the the shallow heart or
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the superficial heart. Here's the one who hears the
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word of God and he wants to jump on the Jesus bandwagon.
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He receives the word with joy. There's a great emotional push
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in his life. But when affliction comes and
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persecution comes, he falls away.
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Why? Because there's no firm root.
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There was no solid commitment to Christ.
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And then he says in verse number 22, and the one on whom the seed
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was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word
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and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of of wealth
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choke the word and it becomes unfruitful.
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In other words, here's a guy who he receives the word with joy.
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And yet because of the deceitfulness of riches, because
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of the, the cares of this world, the, the worries of this world,
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he cannot maintain his walk with the Lord does not persevere and
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he too falls away. So you have three different
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kinds of hearts. You have a, a Stony heart, you
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have a superficial heart, and you have a secular heart.
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This is the kind of heart that wants to add Jesus to their
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existing lifestyle. And then they when push comes to
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shove, they always choose the way of the world because it
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rings more true to them than the way of the Lord.
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And then he says this, he says, and the one on whose seed was
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sown on the good soil, This is the man who hears the word and
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understands it, who indeed bears fruit, and brings forth some a
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hundredfold, some 60 and some 30.
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In other words, here's one who is a a soft soil, a very soft
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heart. They received the word, they
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understand the word so much so that they bring forth fruit,
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some 30 fold, some 60 fold, some 100 fold.
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Now why is that important? That's important because a
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bumper crop in Israel would be a crop that was 10 fold.
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But Christ says this person bears fruit.
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That is some 30, some 60, or some a hundredfold.
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In other words, this is a huge crop.
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In other words, when someone is truly born again and they
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receive the word of God, there is complete, clear, obvious
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evidence that they know Christ as Lord and Savior.
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There's no wondering whether or not the end of the Lord.
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Why? Because the fruit is so
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abundant, it is so over the top. No one even considers them that
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they might not even be saved because the fruit is so
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overwhelming. So the numbers that Christ use
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are very important numbers because they describe for you
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the reality of a transformed life.
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It doesn't mean that every time you share the gospel that one
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out of every four people or only 25% of them are going to get
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saved. Doesn't mean that.
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What Christ is saying is that the majority of people who hear
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the gospel are not going to receive the gospel.
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They might look like they receive it.
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They might jump on the Jesus bandwagon because they received
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the Word with joy. There was some emotional
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compulsion in their lives and they they did it with sincerity,
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they did it with joy, they did it with tears.
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But that doesn't mean that way truly gave their life to Christ.
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Why? Because perseverance is always
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the key component to true saving faith.
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Perseverance is a gift given by God.
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Romans 15 verse #5 that God grants men perseverance that
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they will continue on in the faith no matter what the
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persecution or the affliction. No matter what about the the
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cares of the world or the deceitfulness of riches, they
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continue on in their faith. In the very next parable Jesus
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gives is the parable about the weed and the tares, because he
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wants to understand that in the Kingdom age there's going to be
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many tears that are sown among the wheat because the enemy's
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going to do that. He wants them to understand
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that, that that when the tears and wheat grow together at the
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very outset, you cannot tell them apart.
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They look exactly the same until the end of the age, until the
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harvest time. And so he says, we're not going
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to pull out the the tares until the end of the harvest because
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you might pull up some weeds with them.
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And it's at the end of the harvest that Christ takes the
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the tares and throws them into the fire and takes the weed into
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his Kingdom. But he wants them to be, to
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understand that throughout the Kingdom age, the tares will be
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sown among the wheat because that's what the enemy does.
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There are a lot of pretenders in, in the pews of churches all
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around the world, a lot of people who who say that they,
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they love the Lord Jesus, but they, they really aren't born
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again. They're pretenders in the Pew.
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We have pretenders in the pulpit as well, preachers who, who
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pretend to know Jesus Christ, but in reality don't know him at
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all. And that would even accentuate
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the fact that there are more pretenders in the Pew than you
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can ever begin to imagine. But he wants to understand that
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as you go through the Kingdom age, there'll be many people
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that look like Christians, but they're really tares among the
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wheat. But because they look so much
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like the Christian, you won't be able to tell them apart until
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the end of the age. That's very, very important.
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You see, people are are very self deceived.
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Satan is a master deceiver. But people can deceive
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themselves into believing some way, somehow, that they really
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are Christian because of something that happened in their
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life. Or because of what they say they
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believe, but that's not necessarily true.
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And so the Bible is very clear as it continues to talk about
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all these kinds of things. In fact, over in Luke chapter
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13, Christ says this. He says when someone said to
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him, Lord, are there just a few being saved, He said to them,
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strive to enter through the narrow door.
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For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
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Now that's very, very important. Why?
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He says you need to agonize to get through the narrow door.
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Remember in Matthew 7, he says there's a narrow gate and
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there's a there's, there's a, there's a broad, broad Rd. a
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narrow road and a broad Rd. But the, the narrow way is, is
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the way to glory. But he says that when you, when
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you, when you finally get to the narrow Rd., when you finally
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find the narrow gate and you get there of the few that find the
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narrow way in Matthew Chapter 7, when you come to Luke 16, the
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many of the few will never enter into the Kingdom.
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The many of the few of Matthew 7 and Luke 16 will never enter the
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Kingdom. He says, he says, I tell you,
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they will seek to enter and they will not be able to enter.
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Why? Because they will not want to
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pay the cost. They will not want to pay the
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price. They will not want to sacrifice
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their life. They will not want to give up
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their lives for, for Christ like see.
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And so he says these words. Once the head of the house gets
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up and shuts the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock
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on the door, saying, Lord open to us.
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Then he will answer and say to you, I do not know where you are
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from. Then you will begin to say, But
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we ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our
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streets. And he will say, I tell you, I
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do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evil
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doers. Again, the emphasis is on fact
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that there would be many people who think that they deserve
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heaven. They think they're on their way
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to heaven, but then the door is shut, they can't get in.
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They beg to get in and Christ says I never knew you, but they
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thought they were on their way to heaven.
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They were self deceived or they've been taught by a false
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teacher and they believe the wrong things.
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That's why it's so crucial to understand the importance of
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Christianity. The Bible is replete with this.
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It goes over and over and over again.
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I wish I had the time. Remember Acts chapter 20?
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Paul says this in verse 27. For I did not shrink from
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declaring to you the whole purpose of God.
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Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which
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the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the Church
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of God, which he purchased with his own blood.
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I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among
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you, not sparing the flock, and from among your own selves men
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will arise, speaking perverse things to draw away the
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disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert,
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remembering that night and day for a period of three years.
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I did not cease to admonish each one of you with tears, because I
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know that when I leave, there will be people that will come
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in, will rise up from within the church.
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OK, they're already here, and they're going to rise up from
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within the church and they're going to lead the disciples
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astray. They're savage wolves.
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And therefore I commend you to God in the word of His grace,
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which is able to build you up. He says in verse #32 But you
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need to be aware of this. I did not cease to warn you day
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and night for three years of this scenario.
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You see, every pastor needs to be warning his people of the the
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possibility of self deception, the possibility of being taught
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and learning the wrong things about Christianity.
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Every pastor needs to be concerned that that the people
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in the church understand the truth of the gospel, that they
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know what it means to truly be born again.
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That's the pastor's responsibility.
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And it's emphasized by by Paul in in Acts chapter 20 over in
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Second Corinthians or First Corinthians chapter Chapter 11
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verse #28 this Sunday we're going to partake at the Lord's
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table. Paul says that before you do,
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make sure that you don't eat and drink in an unworthy manner.
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So make sure that you examine your own personal life.
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In 2nd Corinthians 13, five, he says this, test yourselves to
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see if you are in the faith. Examine yourselves or do you not
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recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you,
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unless indeed you fail the test, but I trust that you will
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realize that we ourselves do not fail the test.
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Examine yourself, test yourself, prove yourself to make sure that
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Jesus Christ is really He's writing to the church.
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He's not asking people on the street.
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He's writing to the church at Corinth challenging them to make
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sure they know that Jesus Christ is in them.
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You go over to the the book of Titus.
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Titus says that there will be people in the church.
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They profess to know God, but by their deeds, verse 16, they deny
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him being detestable and disobedient and worthless for
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any good deed. There will be many who profess
25:51
Christianity, but their deeds are offensive to God because
25:56
they live sinful lives. And then you go over to the book
25:59
of James. James is the same thing, verse
26:02
26 of chapter 1. If anyone thinks himself to be
26:05
religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, but to seize
26:08
his own heart, this man's religion is worthless, pure and
26:12
undefiled. Religion in the sight of our God
26:15
and Father is this. To visit orphans and widows in
26:17
their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
26:21
He says this is true religion. If you think that you are
26:25
religious and you cannot control your tongue, your religion,
26:29
whatever you say it is, is a worthless religion.
26:32
It means nothing. That means you don't have the
26:34
Spirit of God. That will help you learn
26:36
self-control, to control your words.
26:38
Why? Because out of the buttons of
26:40
the heart, the mouse speaks. So if there's been a transformed
26:45
heart, there's transformed speaking.
26:48
If there hasn't been a transformed heart, the words
26:51
remain the same, you see, And James knows that, and James
26:56
attacks that. That's why he says, be not just
26:58
hearers of the word, but doers as well.
27:03
Over in Second Peter chapter 1, Peter says this way.
27:05
Verse #10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make
27:09
certain about His calling and choosing you.
27:13
He's talking to the brethren. Do you know that you've been
27:15
called? Do you know that you've been
27:17
chosen by God? Be diligent to make sure you
27:21
know without a shadow of doubt that God has called you and
27:25
chosen you for His purposes. And then of course you have
27:31
Jude. And Jude says this in verse #3
27:33
Beloved, I was making every effort to write to you about our
27:36
common salvation. I felt the necessity to write to
27:38
you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which
27:42
was once for all handed down to the Saints.
27:45
For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were
27:49
long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly
27:53
persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and
27:58
deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ.
28:02
He says, I wanted to write to you, I want to talk to you about
28:05
our common salvation. But I but, but, but I have to
28:08
warn you that there have been among us people that are in the
28:12
Church that turn the grace of God into licentiousness.
28:17
They live as if there is no law and they turn people away from
28:20
the truth. I have to warn you, I mean,
28:23
that's just a a sketch of what's in the New Testament.
28:27
As you go through the Scriptures, you'll see it over
28:30
and over and over again. Be warned, beware.
28:34
Paul says in Philippians chapter 3 verse #1 I want to safeguard
28:38
you that you understand what true salvation really is.
28:42
Why? I mean, he's talking to the
28:44
church. He's not talking to the people,
28:47
a bunch of people in the streets.
28:49
He wants the church to know for certain that the gospel they say
28:53
they believe is truly the gospel that transformed their lives.
29:00
So important. I came across a book this past
29:07
week, and that book is an entitled The Almost Christian
29:12
Discovered. It was written 300 years ago by
29:18
a Puritan by the name of Matthew Mead.
29:22
And he was concerned that the people who professed
29:26
Christianity in his day we're not truly born again followers
29:33
of Christ, that they had somehow deceived themselves in the
29:38
thinking that they were Christians.
29:41
And so he he begins to write this book that talks about the
29:48
almost Christian. And in a span of 120 pages, he
29:56
gives several characteristics of those who claim to be Christian.
30:04
But they're close, yet they are still so far way.
30:12
And so he begins to list all these characteristics and
30:14
underneath them he gives a plethora of Bible verses to
30:18
explain each and every point. I'm not going to do that for
30:21
you. But these are some of the things
30:23
that he does say. He says this.
30:29
He says a person may have a great deal of knowledge,
30:32
insight, and they may understand a lot about God and his will and
30:37
a lot about Christ and his ways, and yet still only be almost a
30:44
Christian. A person may possess great and
30:48
remarkable gifts and yet only be almost a Christian.
30:56
A person may have a high view of religion, be very active in
31:01
religious activities, and yet still only be almost a
31:06
Christian. It says A person may make great
31:10
strides in resisting sin and yet still only be almost a
31:15
Christian. A person may even hate sin, but
31:20
still only almost a Christian. A person may make grand promises
31:28
and pledges to God, yet still only be almost a Christian.
31:34
A man may may struggle and fight against sin within himself and
31:37
yet still only be almost a Christian.
31:45
A person can be a member of a Christian Church, join the
31:48
people of God, share in church privileges.
31:53
He may have great hope of heaven, even hope of being
31:58
saved, and yet still only be almost a Christian.
32:07
A person may experience significant transformation due
32:11
to the power of the word of God and yet still only be almost a
32:16
Christian. A person may be very passionate
32:21
about the religion. They may spend a lot of time in
32:25
prayer and yet still only be almost a Christian.
32:33
A person may endure hardship for Christ in their profession,
32:37
their reputation and physical being, and still only be almost
32:42
a Christian. A person may be called by God,
32:45
accept His calling, and yet still be far from the Kingdom.
32:52
A person may have faith, have genuine affection for the people
32:56
of God, obey the commands of God, do all the outwardly
33:01
religious activities, and still only be almost a Christian.
33:09
That's a remarkable list. But if you were to reverse the
33:13
list and say, well, I know somebody who, who has been
33:18
called by God, and I know somebody who has special gifts
33:21
and I, I know somebody who, who really wants to worship God and
33:24
is involved in their church and really wants to obey the
33:26
commands of God. And I know somebody who, who
33:29
truly loves the Lord. You will say that that person's
33:33
a Christian. Are they?
33:39
You see, we we tend to look at the externals, but Christianity
33:43
is about the internal. Christianity is about what
33:47
happens on the inside of a person.
33:52
Now what's on the inside will manifest itself on the outside.
33:55
But just because you manifest certain characteristics of
33:58
Christianity on the outside doesn't mean you're saved on the
34:02
inside. That's where the examination
34:06
comes in. That's why you need to be aware
34:09
of false teachers. That's not why you need to be
34:12
aware of of being self deceived. Well, what does the Bible
34:17
actually say? You see, there's so much
34:21
confusion about what it means to be a Christian.
34:26
Let me give you a couple of them.
34:28
What 1 is what are called the the familial confusion that that
34:33
I was born in a in a Christian family.
34:37
My parents are saved, my brothers are saved, my parents
34:42
are saved, my my grandparents are saved.
34:47
I was. I was born in a Christian
34:49
family. Of course I'm a Christian.
34:52
But just because you're born into a family that has Christian
34:57
parents doesn't mean you're born again.
35:01
The Bible says in John 112 that to as many as received him to
35:05
them gave you power to become the sons of God.
35:09
There. There there's an individual
35:10
reception of who Christ is. You see, the Jews believe that
35:18
because Abraham was their father that they were going to go to
35:22
heaven, that that's why they, they had such a hard time with
35:26
Christ, because he would, he, he, he indicted their, their,
35:31
their, their system of religion. And they would say to him, we,
35:36
we have Abraham as our father. And Jesus would say to them, if
35:40
you are Abraham's children, do the deeds of Abraham.
35:44
But as it is, you are seeking to kill me, a man who has told you
35:47
the truth, which I heard from God.
35:50
This Abraham did not do you. You say you're you're a child of
35:55
Abraham, but you can't claim ancestry as a way to get into
36:04
heaven. You must believe in who I am.
36:08
Abraham did that. He believed in me.
36:11
It was counted unto him as righteousness.
36:15
But you see, you don't believe in me.
36:17
Paul would say in Philippians 3 as he began to list the litany
36:22
of things that he had done, that he was circumcised on the 8th
36:26
day. He was a Hebrew of the Hebrews
36:30
when it came to the law of Christ or the law of God.
36:34
And he would begin to list all the things that he himself did.
36:37
But he says, but all that was rubbish, rubbish.
36:40
All that was was was human excrement.
36:43
It was dung. It meant nothing compared to the
36:48
surpassing knowledge of coming to know Christ as my Lord and
36:51
Savior. But see, it wasn't about the
36:54
fact that he was born a Jew, that he would get into heaven.
36:59
Just like when you're born to a Christian family, it doesn't get
37:02
you into heaven. But there's this familial
37:04
confusion that people have that because my parents are saved,
37:08
I'm going to ride the coat tails of my parents and just slide
37:11
right into glory. Doesn't work that way.
37:15
So you have a familial confusion, but there's also an
37:18
ecclesiastical confusion. That is, I'm a part of a church,
37:23
I'm a part of a certain church. I go to this denomination, and
37:27
therefore that's going to get me into heaven.
37:30
But listen, going to church doesn't make you a Christian any
37:34
more than going to the garage is going to make you a mechanic.
37:37
Doesn't work that way. You just don't become a
37:40
Christian because you go to a certain church.
37:43
The Mormons believe that they're going to be saved because they
37:46
go to the Mormon church and Jehovah's Witness because they
37:48
go to the Kingdom Hall, that that doesn't get you into
37:52
heaven. So we had this ecclesiastical
37:55
confusion that somehow if I go to the right church, that will,
37:59
that will get me into heaven, but it doesn't.
38:02
In fact, in Revelation chapter 3, Christ says, behold, I stand
38:07
at the door and knock. And, and contrary to popular
38:10
opinion, it's not the door of your heart that Christ is
38:13
standing on the outside of, it's the door of the church, The
38:17
Church of Laodicea, Revelation 320 that Christ is standing on
38:21
the outside of. He stands outside the church,
38:25
the door of the church and knocks and says, if anyone will
38:30
hear my voice and open the door, I will come into them and Sup
38:34
with them. He's talking to the church
38:38
because the Church of Laodicea was, was a counterfeit church.
38:42
It wasn't a true church before that was a Church of Sardis.
38:45
Remember that the Church of Sardis was the dead church.
38:48
They were a corpse. He says you have a name that you
38:51
were alive, but you're dead. You have a name that's very
38:54
popular in the community. You have a name that's very
38:56
popular around the world. You have a name, but you're
38:59
really dead on the inside. And then he comes to the Church
39:03
of Laodicea and says, I'm standing outside your door.
39:06
I am knocking. If there's anybody in there who
39:09
hears me and opens the door unto me, I will come in with him.
39:15
I would dine with him, I will Sup with him.
39:18
I will be his God and he'll be my son.
39:22
And the invitation is given. There's a theological confusion
39:26
as well that I that I'm theologically sound, I'm
39:30
theologically astute. This happens a lot in
39:33
seminaries, guys who who really are sound in doctrine, they
39:37
think that because they're theologically astute that they
39:40
know that they're going to go to heaven.
39:42
But that doesn't make you a Christian just because you have
39:46
a good doctrinal statement. You can dot all your IS and
39:50
cross all your T's. You know the demons.
39:54
They believe everything there is to know about God.
39:56
They know more about God than any of us do.
40:00
The demons are theologically sound.
40:04
They know about heaven, they know about hell, they know about
40:06
the deity of Christ. In fact, over in Mark 311 it
40:10
says, and whenever the unclean spirits beheld Christ, they
40:13
would fall down before him and cry out saying you are the Son
40:16
of God. See, the demons know that Jesus
40:20
is the Son of God. They're very clear on that.
40:24
They are so theologically astute, but yet they are not in
40:31
heaven. And there are people all around
40:33
the world because of their theological stance, because they
40:37
know a lot about God, they think that that will get them to
40:41
heaven, but it does not. The Jews, they believe in one
40:49
God. Here, O Israel, the Lord our God
40:54
is 1, Deuteronomy 6/4, and yet they don't understand that Jesus
41:00
is that God. There's also the moral
41:05
confusion. This is a big one.
41:09
The moral confusion, the somehow, if I do the right
41:12
thing, if I say the right things, if I don't murder
41:16
anybody, if I don't have sex outside of marriage, if I don't
41:21
lie, if I don't cheat, if I don't swear, I'm a morally good
41:26
person. Certainly God will accept me.
41:30
Certainly I'll get into heaven because of the of the goodness
41:33
and kindness of my heart. It's like the rich young ruler
41:36
in Matthew 19. Remember, he was, he was
41:42
totally. I've kept all these commandments
41:44
from my youth up. My whole life I've spent keeping
41:49
the commands of God. I've done that.
41:51
I've honored my mother and father.
41:53
I have not killed anybody. I have not committed adultery.
41:57
I have. I have.
41:58
I have done everything the commands of God say, and yet he
42:02
was so far from the Kingdom. And yet the moral confusion is
42:07
huge because people believe that somehow I can do enough good
42:12
things to get me into heaven. Listen what Paul says in Titus
42:16
three. He says he saved us not on the
42:18
basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but
42:21
according to his mercy, by the washing of regeneration and
42:24
renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out upon us
42:28
richly through Jesus Christ. Our Savior said being justified
42:31
by His grace, we would be made heirs according to the hope of
42:35
eternal life. It's not by deeds of
42:38
righteousness which we have done.
42:41
Paul in Romans 3 would say there is none righteous.
42:43
No, not one. No matter how good you think you
42:47
are, your goodness will never get you into glory.
42:52
The only work that gets you into heaven is the work of Christ,
42:56
not the work of man. But there are many people in
43:00
churches today that truly believe.
43:01
You know, I've done good things, man.
43:03
I'm in church on Sunday and you know what?
43:05
I don't beat my wife. I don't kick my dog, I don't
43:08
swear, I don't drink, I don't have sex outside of marriage.
43:11
I'm a good guy. God's gut accept me.
43:15
That's not the condition for salvation, see, because the
43:19
heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, and there
43:23
needs to be a transformation of a heart that's filled with sin,
43:27
a life that's been born in sin. There's another confusion.
43:33
We're going to call it the ministerial confusion.
43:37
That is, people are involved in all kinds of ministry in the
43:40
church. It's a huge confusion.
43:44
This is the classic example, Judas, classic example.
43:51
Judas preached like the other 11 preached.
43:55
He preached the Gospel, Matthew chapter 10.
43:59
He healed the sick like the other 11 did, but he was the son
44:04
of perdition. And when it came time to to talk
44:09
about the denial of the Lord Jesus, no one said it's Judas.
44:14
Of course we know it's Judas. No, the offset is that eyes,
44:18
that eyes. No one pointed to Judas.
44:20
He was the keeper of the money, the keeper of the purse.
44:23
He was the most trusted of the 12.
44:27
So the most trusted of the 12 was Judas, who went out and
44:30
preached the gospel like the other 11 did, who performed
44:33
miracles like the other 11 did. And yet he never had a
44:36
transformed life. We call it the ministerial
44:41
confusion. People involved in the ministry,
44:45
it's where pastors come into play.
44:47
Men who have been the pulpit for years have fooled people, have
44:53
fooled themselves. Judas had become self deceived.
44:58
But it was all about the money for Judas.
45:00
He followed Christ because there was something about Christ that
45:03
did so much for him, that gave him notoriety, that gave him a
45:06
chance to be popular, that gave him a chance to maybe get some
45:10
money. And that, that, that's what,
45:12
that's what the cares of this world and the sea fullness of
45:14
riches do to someone who follows Jesus with joy.
45:20
There's that ministerial confusion.
45:21
There's that emotional confusion where you, where you walk an
45:25
aisle and you sign a card and you, your, your eyes are filled
45:28
with tears because the music is played and the preacher is
45:31
preaching and everybody else is going down and, and you're just
45:34
overcome with emotion and you come down the aisle and you, you
45:37
just want to well, pray a prayer or, or, or, or say something.
45:41
And, and somehow we think that that's going to save us.
45:46
Emotional confusion is huge, but the greatest confusion is
45:55
experiential confusion. I've had an experience.
46:01
I've had an event in my life. There was a time where I prayed
46:08
a prayer. There was a time where I gave my
46:12
life to Christ. There was a time when I sat with
46:17
the the counselor and committed my life to Christ.
46:24
That's the biggest confusion. The Bible never points back to a
46:29
time in which someone was saved. The Bible only speaks of an
46:37
ongoing life that manifests transformation.
46:44
But there are people who say I need an event.
46:49
I remember when. Now most of us probably remember
46:56
when we were saved. But there are also a number of
46:59
us who have no idea when we were saved.
47:03
That could very possibly be. I had a elder at the previous
47:08
church I pastored who came to me and said, see, I I want my son
47:13
to know that as he grows older, that when he was five years old,
47:17
he prayed the sinner's prayer, and that's good enough to get
47:20
him into heaven. And I said, it's not, It's not.
47:27
You want your son to go back and look at a time in which he
47:30
prayed the sinner's prayer, no matter what his lifestyle's
47:32
like. What if your son becomes an
47:35
alcoholic and an adulterer and a murderer?
47:38
Are you going to say, go back to that time that you say you
47:40
prayed the sinner's prayer, and I know you're going to heaven.
47:44
You're going to guarantee his eternal destiny based on an
47:48
event, an experience that he had when he was 5.
47:53
Show me in Scripture where that's true.
47:56
Of course, he couldn't because there is no place in Scripture.
48:03
As parents, we got to be very careful.
48:05
Well, I was there when you prayed the prayer.
48:08
I was there when you were three. I was there when you were six.
48:10
I was there when you were baptized.
48:12
I was there when those things happened.
48:14
I know you're saved, but their lifestyle is totally contrary to
48:19
the truth of the Scripture. Is there an example of this?
48:23
Absolutely. Turn your Bible to Acts chapter
48:26
8. Acts chapter 8.
48:32
Let me give you an example of this, of somebody who had an
48:35
experience. And once you read it, most would
48:42
think the experience was true, but it wasn't.
48:48
Acts 8 verse #9 Now there was a man named Simon who formerly was
48:53
practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of
48:57
Samaria claiming to be someone great.
49:01
And they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention
49:04
to him, saying, this man is what is called the great power of
49:09
God. And they were giving him
49:11
attention because he had for a long time astonished them with
49:14
his magic hearts. But when they believed Philip
49:20
preaching the good news about the Kingdom of God in the name
49:24
of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike.
49:31
Even Simon himself believed. And after being baptized, he
49:40
continued on with Philip. And as he observed signs of
49:44
great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
49:50
So you stop right there and you say Simon had an experience.
49:54
He, he he heard the preaching of Philip.
49:56
And when he heard the preaching of Philip, he believed and he
50:03
must be saved. He believed Bible says in Acts
50:07
1631, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.
50:12
So Simon, Simon believed, but knowing that he believed he was
50:15
baptized and you're to believe and be baptized for the
50:20
remission of sins. Acts chapter 3.
50:22
So we say, well, he believed he was baptized, Simon saved, He
50:27
had an experience, there was an event, and then he continued to
50:33
follow Philip the preacher. Well, he must certainly be
50:38
saved. He believes he's baptized, and
50:43
now he's a follower of Philip, who's a preacher of the gospel.
50:47
The guy must be saved. Read on now when the apostles in
50:56
Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they
50:59
sent them Peter and John, two guys you don't want to meet if
51:04
you're not saved, who came down and prayed for them, and that
51:08
they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet
51:11
fallen upon any of them. They had simply been baptized in
51:15
the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their
51:18
hands on them and they were receiving the Holy Spirit.
51:23
Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the
51:27
laying on of the apostles hands, he offered them money saying
51:32
give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I
51:36
lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.
51:38
Wow, this is great. I mean I was in the magical
51:41
arts, but this is beyond magical arts man, you guys are doing
51:44
something phenomenal. This is supernatural.
51:47
You're laying your hands on them.
51:49
The Spirit of God has descended upon them.
51:50
This is fabulous. I got to be able to do that.
51:54
I'll give you whatever you need. How much does it cost me to do
51:58
what you do? But Peter said to him, May your
52:04
silver perish with you because you thought you could obtain the
52:11
gift of God with money. You have no part or portion in
52:18
this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
52:25
Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray
52:29
the Lord, that if possible, the intention of your heart may be
52:35
forgiven you. For I see that you are in the
52:38
gall of bitterness, and in the bondage of iniquity.
52:46
Peter calls him out. You're in.
52:49
You're enslaved to iniquity. You're, you're, you're in sin,
52:56
he says. You're in the gall of
52:57
bitterness. Those who are in Christ are not
53:01
in the bondage of iniquity. They've been set free from the
53:04
bondage of iniquity by the power of the Spirit of God.
53:10
And so Peter calls him out and Simon Says, but Simon answered
53:13
and said, pray to the Lord for me yourselves said nothing of
53:17
what you have said may come upon me.
53:19
That's not repentance. That's not true repentance.
53:21
He could have prayed and asked forgiveness himself.
53:25
He just wanted us to escape the temporary consequences of his
53:28
disobedience and his ignorance. You see, Simon had an event, but
53:33
he was never truly born again. He had an emotional experience.
53:39
He bought into what Philip was preaching.
53:43
He received the word. Everybody else was believing so,
53:47
so Simon believed too. Everybody else is baptized, so
53:51
Simon was baptized too. Simon said, I'm going to follow
53:55
Philip wherever he goes. This is great.
54:00
But he had no true conversion. There was no regeneration of his
54:04
heart. There was no transformation of
54:07
his soul. The experiential confusion is
54:14
how Satan dupes people into thinking that because you made a
54:18
decision way back when, you're on your way to heaven without
54:24
ever examining your life in light of the Scripture.
54:28
In terms of what the Bible says about what Christians truly are
54:33
and what Christians truly look like, this is extremely
54:39
important. I can't say it to you enough.
54:44
We've had people in our church baptized in our baptismal who
54:51
gave a profession of faith about what God did in their lives only
54:56
in years later to turn completely away from the faith
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to defrock the faith, to apostasize the faith, never to
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follow Christ again. They made a profession, they
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were baptized, they filled out a, a card.
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We had a man in our church who, who for years was involved in
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our tape ministry. He, he taped my very first
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sermon and he continued to tape all the sermons from the very
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beginning. And there were times early on
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when we were at another church and we had to use their
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equipment that sometimes the, the equipment messed up and, and
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so they didn't really get a, a good copy of the tape.
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So I had to come in on Monday morning and re preach the sermon
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to an empty auditorium because we were on the radio and those,
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those sermons were going on the radio that week.
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And so I had to come in on Monday morning and preach the
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exact same sermon to an empty auditorium.
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That was quite the challenge, but not only did he hear it on
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Sunday, hear the sermon on Monday, and he would talk to me
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about those sermons, but then he began to to invite the Jehovah's
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Witnesses into his home and begin to have conversations with
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them, long conversations with them.
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And he was involved and he built the stairs that are here on our
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stage in our auditorium. He was involved in building the
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baptismal, which people are baptized.
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He was actually be involved in the church.
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There was a Bible study every study night in his home.
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It wasn't too long after he invited in all these Jehovah's
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Witnesses to his home. And I'd warned him against that,
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but he did it anyway. One day he came to me and just
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completely denied the deity of Christ.
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He did not believe that Jesus was God in the flesh.
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And he had signed, he became a member of our church, and he had
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given a testimony about an event or an experience that he had
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when he was younger about giving his life to Christ.
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And yet he was led astray. He was unable to persevere.
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He was unable to defend the faith.
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He turned his back on Christ. He walked away from the church.
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He walked away from Christianity because he no longer believed in
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the DV Christ. I had it in my office, went
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through verse after verse after verse after verse with him.
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It was almost as if he was in, had never ever heard the gospel.
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He was so blinded by Satan. So I finally went to to him with
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John chapter 8 and I said to him, listen to what Jesus says.
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Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins.
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And what Jesus is saying is this, unless you believe that I
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am the God who spoke to to Moses from the burning Bush in Exodus
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chapter 3, you will die in your sins.
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You must believe that I am God in the flesh.
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I said to him, his name was Jamil.
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Jamil. Do you believe that?
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He says absolutely not. I said.
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Then the only thing I have for you is that you will die in your
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sins. You will never see Christ.
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Wasn't too long after that, he did die.
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He died in unbelief, never giving his life to Christ.
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He professed Christianity, he pretended at Christianity, he
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participated in all kinds of Christian activities, but he
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never possessed Christ himself in his heart.
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I don't want that to happen to any of you.
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I don't want that to happen to anybody in our church.
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My greatest fear is that you come thinking that you're saved,
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die and wake up in hell. That's got to be the most
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devastating thing ever. But it happens to people all the
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time because they're confused. They've been deceived, self
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deceived, or satanically deceived and they think they're
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on the way to heaven, but in reality they are not.
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So I asked you this question. Do you know for certain that
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Jesus Christ is the Lord, King and Master of your life?
1:00:00
And if He is, do you follow Him in obedience, out of a heart
1:00:08
filled with love and gratitude and thankfulness?
1:00:12
Are you the kind of person whose life has been transformed?
1:00:15
Are you truly a new creation? If any man in Christ, he is a
1:00:21
new creation. You're transformed.
1:00:26
You're new. You're not just a same old guy
1:00:30
with a new jacket. No, you're transformed from the
1:00:34
inside out. Your life has changed.
1:00:37
The conversation changes. Your conduct changes.
1:00:42
Your desires change. Your goals change.
1:00:48
Everything about your life is Christ centered.
1:00:53
You want to serve Him. And so I don't want you to go
1:01:00
further in life without knowing for certain that Jesus Christ is
1:01:04
King of your life. Have you ever truly given your
1:01:08
life to the Lord Jesus Christ? This is all just introductory.
1:01:15
Next week we'll begin to go more into great details as to what is
1:01:19
a Christian and spend the next 11 weeks examining that in light
1:01:24
of what the Bible says. I would encourage you to bring
1:01:28
someone with you. They might hear what you're
1:01:31
hearing and learn what you're learning because you're so
1:01:34
concerned about their spiritual life, their eternal destiny.
1:01:41
Do the people you love and the people you know truly live in
1:01:48
the light of the glorious gospel?
1:01:51
Are their lives transformed? Are they truly born again?
1:01:57
Does the is there a manifestation of new life in
1:02:01
them? If not, warn them, Tell them to
1:02:09
beware. Ask them for certain, you know
1:02:14
Christ is Lord and Savior. Challenge them because eternity
1:02:19
weighs in the balance. Let's pray, Father, we thank
1:02:24
you, Lord, for tonight and the opportunity you give us to be in
1:02:27
your word. And we just pray, Father, that
1:02:30
you'd enlighten all of us to the truth of your word.
1:02:33
A lot of things covered, a lot of verses read.
1:02:36
Bottom line is, Lord, we need to make sure that we know Christ is
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Lord and Savior. Lord, we love you and those who
1:02:44
are here are here to learn about you.
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They want to follow you, so we ask that Lord you'd work in all
1:02:52
of our hearts. If there's someone here tonight
1:02:55
who does not know you, may tonight be the night of their
1:02:59
salvation. May tonight be the night they
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truly embrace Christ as the Lord of their lives and follow you
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from this day forward in Jesus name, Amen.