Declaring War on the Sinner's Prayer

Dear friend, is brother Paul Washer describing you? Are you a false professor that thinks you are going to heaven because you got emotional after someone manipulated you into saying a prayer years ago by "accepting Jesus into your heart" yet you have no hatred of your sin, no desire for the word of God, and no heartfelt desire to be around His people? If this is your lot, it is a sorry one. You need to examine yourself lest you go to Hell (2 Corinthians 13:5). I say this because I love you.



HT: Reformed Voices.

I interrupt this series on the fruit of the Spirit to bring you a very important reminder:

I was inspired by this Sunday’s sermon to re-emphasize something that I discussed at the beginning of this series, but I fear may have faded into the background. Because it is so important, I want to bring it to the forefront once again, because it is only in this context that we can truly understand the fruits of the Spirit properly.

The fruits of the Spirit are not add-ons to life. We can’t just tack them on to the end of our to-do lists. But that is what many church-goers try to do—they want it all. They want to enjoy the desires of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit. But Galatians 5:16-17 says, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.” The desires of the flesh are antithetically opposed to a life lived by the Spirit, meaning you can’t have it both ways.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Matthew 6:24

It’s basic logic, just like you can’t start in Omaha and drive towards Los Angeles and New York at the same time. The two are in opposite directions.

“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” I Corinthians 6:9-11

This last passage, which Pastor Dustin preached from on Sunday, clearly states that you cannot be a follower of Jesus Christ and practice unrighteous behavior (fornication, idolatry, adultery, homosexuality, stealing, covetousness, drunkenness, reviling, swindling). Even though some of the believers in the Corinthian church had been this way, they were no longer, because they had been washed, sanctified, and justified through Christ. Their natures had been exchanged, completely. That is the wonder of regeneration: the believer becomes a new creation, with a renewed mind and a heart that loves God and hates sin. He will still struggle with sin, but through the course of his life, he will increasingly walk in righteousness, demonstrating the fruits of the Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Galatians 5:22-25

Also, it is not enough to have a sort of “negative purity” by just avoiding sin. We must actively pursue righteousness, because if we truly have crucified the flesh and its desires, we will walk by the Spirit.

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20

That is why “whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23).

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21

I also want to add this quote from Boundless Webzine, a division of Focus on the Family:

"I am the vine, and you are the branches," Jesus teaches us in John 15:5. Our ability to bear fruit is dependent on our relationship with the vine, Jesus, not on something He expects us to conjure up on our own to win His approval.

Christian growth is not about us following rules, doing all of the right things, and avoiding the wrong. That's one of the main things that separates Christianity from other world religions. It's about a relationship with the living God through His Son. The Bible refers to Christian growth as fruit, and our character should reflect the fruit of the Spirit growing and developing in our lives.

Fruit isn't something that any branch can develop by sheer willpower. That's what I was trying to do for several years. Instead, fruit is a natural byproduct of a healthy plant; a natural byproduct in my life and yours, as we develop our relationship with Christ every day, over the long term. Genuine righteousness is different from self-righteousness, because Christ is at the center of it.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled fruit of the Spirit: patience.

Peace

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

Galatians 5:22-23

Peace is sometimes an illusive concept. Simplistically, it is the opposite of war; it is the absence of conflict. Some people try to claim that the Bible teaches pacifism, which means "opposition to war or violence of any kind" (source: dictionary.com) That is not the kind of peace the Bible teaches.

The Hebrew concept of “shalom,” translated into English as “peace,” encompasses the idea that “a person’s life with God and with everything else is in ordered harmony, both physically and spiritually, and ‘all is well’” (ESV Study Bible comment on Romans 1:7).

It is, at its core, peace with God.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.”
Isaiah 26:3-4

The LORD is trustworthy. Our peace has the same source as our joy, which I discussed in my last post: we have been reconciled to God, and we do not have to fear the coming judgment. We have nothing to fear. Even when our circumstances look bleak, because we trust our God, we can be peaceful and content because nothing about our ultimate fate can be changed.

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both body and soul in hell.” Matthew 10:28

Natural, unregenerate man is at war with God, whether he knows it or not. His sin arouses God’s righteous and holy anger. But Christ bore the penalty for our sin on the cross of Christ, allowing us to be at peace with God if we repent and believe on Him.

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 5:1

Peace is the reward of the righteous, of those who have faith in God their Father. Jesus promised his disciples before he was crucified that in his place, the Father would send them the Holy Spirit, and with the Holy Spirit would come peace.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14:26-27

The Holy Spirit is what enables the believer to be peaceful in all circumstances, saying with Paul:

“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:11-13

But do know this: peace with God does not mean we will be at peace with the world. For Jesus himself said this:

“‘Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.’” Matthew 10:34-39

“‘If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.’” John 15:18-19

It is clear from these two passages that peace with God guarantees enmity with the world, because our very natures have been changed so that we are at odds with our culture. We do not intentionally set out to cause trouble, but it will happen, simply because we are different. We ought to speak differently and live differently, and preach the cross which the world finds so offensive and foolish.

“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18

The world may call us foolish; the world may hate us and persecute us. But yet we will be at peace, because we have peace with God. And this deep soul-peace should emanate out from our behavior, which is what I will start talking about next time.

In the mean time, think about this passage, and how it relates to our topic today, peace, and the topic for next week, patience:

“Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” Romans 12:16-18

Men . . . stop messing around!

Get off facebook, BE A MAN - Paul Washer from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

May God grant us the desire to put to death the idle playthings that distract us from Kingdom Building.

Joy

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." Galatians 5:22-23

Love comes first in the list because it is the most fundamental of all the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Joy is second, because it, too, is of great importance. Joy is one of the umistakeable marks of a true Christian, particularly joy in the midst of suffering. Let me explain.

Everyone is cheerful when everything is going well for them, even unbelievers. But this does not mean Christians need to be dismal and serious so as to present a contrast to the unbelievers. That is not where the difference between a believer and an unbeliever is seen. A true believer is also going to be able to rejoice in the midst of suffering, and this will seem totally upside down and backwards to an unbeliever. Many religious people think they are too pious to smile, or laugh. But we actually have the greatest reason to laugh of all: we are sons and daughters of God! We do not have to fear the coming judgment! God, our Father, has promised to care for us!

"Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" Matthew 6:25-26

A parallel of sorts can be drawn with how Jesus says we are to treat our enemies.

"'You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.'" Matthew 5:43-48

Just as the unregenerate can love his friends, so he can rejoice when things are going well with him. But we as Christians are called to a higher standard. We "must be perfect, as [our] heavenly Father is perfect" and love not only those who love us, but also those who hate us, and we must rejoice not only when things are going well, but also when our circumstances are dark and bleak.

So where does this joy spring from? Several places, actually. As I said above, the first is that we have peace with God, and he has adopted us as sons and daughters. What a marvelous privilege! I don't stop to think about this often enough, but when I do, it never ceases to amaze me: we, who were enemies of God, who had trampled his goodness and spat in his face, are now not only justified, but adopted into his own family! The reason this gives us joy in our suffering is because our reconciliation to God is so much bigger and more important than whatever affliction we are going through.

"For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, 'Abba! Father!' The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." Romans 8:14-18

When we look at our sufferings in light of eternity, they are nothing!

"For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Not only that, but through our sufferings, we have the promise that God Himself will be our comforter.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

This verse also brings up another good point. When suffering, most people just want to know "why?" They can't understand why God would allow them (or rather, cause them) to suffer. Are they being punished?

First of all, God sent his only begotten Son to die for our sins. If he would do that to his Son, we have no guarantees that he will not see fit to do the same for us. Secondly, he tells us why, many different times. In the previous verse, it is so that we will be able to comfort others.

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." Romans 5:3-5

In this verse we find another reason why we must suffer: suffering produces character. This is about our sanctification, about being conformed to the image of Christ.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." Romans 8:28-29

We must suffer to produce character and for our sanctification. We must suffer in order to view this world in light of eternity, and this world is fading quickly. We must suffer in order to be able to comfort others. In our suffering, we can be joyful because we know that God is working all of these things out for our good and for his glory, using our pain to draw us closer to himself. In some small way, when we suffer, we share in Christ's sufferings. If we are joyful in the midst of suffering, what a testimony that would be to the world of the goodness of our God! If we are only joyful when it is easy to be joyful, we will look the same as the world. We must rejoice in suffering, not because we are masochists but because we trust in our God.