First Baptist Church in Fernwood, NY » faith

Death In The Life of the Believer part 3

Pastor Scott Griese — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 11:30:35 +0000

Romans 6:1-10 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? (2) God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (3) Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? (4) Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. (5) For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: (6) Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. (7) For he that is dead is freed from sin. (8) Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: (9) Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. (10) For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

What is the true Christian life? Being a Christian is more than just being born again. A person is only physically born once and then that person can only be born again spiritually once. Being born again is just the beginning, after that the believer is to walk in love and obedience toward God and this is an ongoing process. When the believer stops growing spiritually, they will begin to shrink. Just as a muscle in the body shrinks if it is not exercised, so will the believer’s faith and spirituality shrink if it is not exercised. Spirituality is exercised internally and then shows itself externally. Now, we can exhibit spiritual-looking behavior by going to church, witnessing, saying the right things, but if it is not something that we believe internally, then nothing is truly gained. If we do things just because it is our duty, then that is the wrong motivation. How would you feel if a child of your came to visit you and told you that they only came because they felt it is their duty? Duty is the wrong motivation for the believer in Jesus Christ. We should serve Him because we love Him. If that is not your motivation, then you need to get to your knees and ask God for help. The more time you spend with God, the more your love for Him will grow. And the opposite is true: the less time you spend with God, the less will your love for Him be. You will trust Him less and your faith will shrink.

God is a personal God and He wants your relationship with Him to be more than just the new birth. How many of us would really want a son or daughter than only remained a week old infant for their whole lives? God wants to see His children grow and mature.

Hebrews 5:12-14; 6:1,2 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. (13) For every one that useth milk is unskillfull in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. (14) But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, (2) Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

In the Old Testament God gave ten commandments. In the New Testament, Jesus Christ gave two commandments, which summarized the ten commandments.

Matthew 22:36-40 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? (37) Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. (38) This is the first and great commandment. (39) And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. (40) On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

Jesus Christ is stating that these two commandments cover all of God’s commandments. The first one He gave about loving the Lord covers the first four commandments, and the second commandment covers the last six. I do want you to note that the Tenth Commandment given by God, in a sense, covers the previous nine commandments.

Exodus 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor’s.

If we are coveting something that our neighbor has – tangible or intangible – then we are not properly loving our neighbor AND we are not trusting God and His decisions for us. My neighbor may have fame and if I desire his fame, then I am covetous and I am lacking faith in God that He rightly decides for me. Why is it that we trust God for salvation and then refuse to trust Him for anything else? If I declare that I trust God, but then my actions do not show that trust, what am I saying to others? I am stating that I do not believe what I say I believe. If I lack trust in Him, what I am really doing is denying in practice that He has a right, as my God, to use me where He wants in the spiritual battle which exists in the seen and unseen world (Francis Schaeffer). If I am coveting, then I am not showing proper love for my fellow man AND I am disobeying God, so now I have broken both of the commandments by Jesus Christ.

Duty alone is a poor reason for doing anything. It was Robert E. Lee who said, “Duty s the sublimest word in the English language.” But though her name may be sublime, Duty’s demands may be harsh and burdensome. “Must” is an unpleasant word. It sometimes speaks of harsh necessity. Jesus Christ said, “The Son of man must be lifted up” (John 3:14; 12:34). God’s Son must be nailed to the cross. Yet there was no drawing back from the obligation, no shirking the necessity. He must be lifted up because He loved, and love, eager to save poor sinners, made His death necessary. He must die because He loved. His submission to the will of God and His love for men were tangent at the cross. In obedience to the will of the Father and because He loved men and willed to redeem them He must die. He had to die. It was necessary that the Son of Man be lifted up because the Son of Man came into the world to save sinners and He must go to the cross to do the work of salvation. He went to the cross willingly. He was bound to the tree not by the nails which impaled Him upon the beam. The God who hid in the earth the iron from which the nails were forged and made the tree of the cross grow from its seed could not have been held by the nails upon the wood against His will. He was bound there by the cords of His own divine love. He gave His life. No man took it from Him (John 10:17,18) (unknown author).

1Corinthians 10:23-24 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. (24) Let no man seek his own, but every man another’s wealth.

When we place other people’s needs and desires ahead of our own, and doing it for the right reason, then we are not being covetous and we are obeying God. To do things for others with the right motivation requires us to humble ourselves because we are setting aside our needs and desires for someone else’s. 1Corinthians 13:3-5 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. (4) Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, (5) Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Are we truly loving our neighbor, if we are not willing to help them or love them for the right reason? If my focus is on me and what I want, then I am not loving my neighbor and the end result is that I am not loving God. Your neighbor is more than just the person living next door, your neighbor is also your spouse, your child, and your relatives.

Does this mean all desiring and needing is covetousness? No. So when does desire become covetousness? Desire becomes sin when the love of God or man is excluded. When our motivation becomes wrong for desiring something, then it becomes covetousness. If you are not sure then you can examine yourself this way: First: am I content with what God has given me; Second: do I love my neighbor enough that I do not envy them.

First, in regard to God: I am to love God enough to be contented, because otherwise even our natural and proper desires bring us into revolt against God. God has made us with proper desires, but if there is not a proper contentment on my part, to this extent I am in revolt against God and, of course, revolt is the central problem of sin. When I lack proper contentment, I have forgotten that God is God (Francis Schaeffer). And how can you tell that you are not content? When you are not thankful to God for what He has given you.

Ephesians 5:3-4 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; (4) Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ:

If I am truly contented than I will also be thankful to God. Furthermore, I will not be partaking in anything that is listed in verses 3 and 4.

The second test about when desire becomes coveting toward our fellow man is when we envy what the other has and we hope to see the man fall. We should not take satisfaction in seeing another person fall down and if we do then we are being covetous and not loving our neighbor as we should. That other person may seem to be succeeding, even if they are doing it through wrong methods, but if we truly love them, then we should be praying for their repentance toward God.

Romans 6:3, 4 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death

Paul is telling us that as believers, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Saviour, in God’s eyes we have died. Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: Galatians 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. Colossians 3:3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Colossians 3:5-9 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: (6) For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: (7) In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. (8) But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. (9) Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

As believers in Jesus Christ, we are to die daily to ourselves. This happens when we humble ourselves and look to serve and please God and others first. Paul uses the word “mortify” meaning to bring ourselves under the spiritual control of God – not self control, but spiritual control. So we must be willing to say “No” to ourselves in order to better love God and our fellow man. Instead seeking my good first, I should seek other’s good first. Remember again: 1Corinthians 10:23-24 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. (24) Let no man seek his own, but every man another’s wealth. Just because I can do something, does not mean I should do it. Even if it is allowable under God’s Law, if the action may cause my fellow man to stumble, then I should not do it. It means saying, “No” to what we want and, “Yes” to others. We naturally do not want to deny ourselves anything, but we must be willing to say, “No” to ourselves.

Jesus Christ told His disciples: Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. This is the concept of dying daily: deny ourselves in order to follow God. What are we to deny ourselves? Things that are sinful and things that are done in the wrong motivation. For the believer in Jesus Christ, when He died on the cross, the believer died on the cross. Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is important for the believer. If He had not died on the cross, then the believer’s sins have not been paid for. Jesus Christ was the perfect, sinless sacrifice as the Lamb of God to take away the of the world. He had to died to pay the sin debt that everyone has accumulated, but that debt is only paid for those that have trusted in Him. If everyone is going to Heaven, then there was no reason for Jesus Christ to die on the cross. If everyone could get to Heaven whether they follow Jesus Christ or not, then Jesus Christ did not have to die on the cross of Calvary! Jesus Christ points out in several places in the Gospels the fact that He was going to die for the sins of others. Go to Isaiah 53. Look at the words used: stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: he was afflicted; he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter,

Jesus Christ’s death, His sacrifice, on the cross is absolutely necessary for the salvation of all that come to Him. Because of His death, believers are no longer under the penalty of sin and believers can live lives that honor and please God because they love Him. His death was unlike no other death because it was a substitutionary death. He died for others so that they may live. Jesus Christ died once for all.

Luke 9:22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day.

Jesus Christ showed a chronological order here in Luke 9:22 for His upcoming death: rejected, slain, raised. Then we see this same order presented for the believer in Jesus Christ: rejected, slain, raised. Luke 9:23, 24 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. (24) For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. The believer in Jesus Christ should look to follow this order in their lives everyday. It is a matter of again seeking to love and serve God and others before ourselves. Luke 9:25-26 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away? (26) For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels. As Christ’s rejection and death are the first steps in the order of redemption, so our rejection and death to things and self are the first steps in the order of true and growing spirituality (Francis Schaeffer).

Trust Him when dark doubts assail thee, Trust Him when thy strength is small,

Trust Him when to simply trust Him Seems the hardest thing of all. Trust Him, He is ever faithful,

Trust Him, for his will is best,

Trust Him, for the heart of Jesus

Is the only place of rest.

Daniel Chapter 1 part 1

Pastor Scott Griese — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 05:32:04 +0000

Daniel 1:1-8 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. (2) And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God: which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. (3) And the king spoke unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes; (4) Children in whom was no blemish, but well favored, and skillful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. (5) And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. (6) Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: (7) Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abed-nego. (8) But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.

The Babylonians invaded the kingdom of Judah three times. On the third time, they destroyed the city and took most everybody into captivity. The invasion described in the beginning of the Book of Daniel was the first invasion and it took place about 604 BC. Daniel and his three friends were taken along with thousands of others. Some of the vessels from the house of the Lord were taken and placed into the temple of the god of Nebuchadnezzar.

Daniel 1:3 And the king spoke unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king’s seed, and of the princes;

When invading a foreign land, Babylon would take the best people from that land and put them to work for Babylon. We see here in verses 3,4 that certain young men were set apart and chosen for their wisdom and understanding so that they could serve as advisers to King Nebuchadnezzar. It is believed that Daniel would have been about seventeen and it is also believed that Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were made eunuchs. Verse 3 tells us that the master of the eunuchs watched over them and verse 9 Dan 1:9 Now God had brought Daniel into favor and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs points in that direction. This would fulfill the prophesy made by Isaiah to King Hezekiah: Isaiah 39:7 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. Why would Nebuchadnezzar have them made into eunuchs? So the men would remain focused on studying science and wisdom rather than being distracted by other pursuits.

Daniel 1:4 Children in whom was no blemish, but well favored, and skillful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans.

They were chosen for their smarts and also their ability to communicate and conduct themselves. I like what J. Vernon McGee wrote about this verse: I want to submit to you that the Bible was not written by a bunch of ninnies – it wasn’t written by men who were ignorant. Moses was learned in all the wisdom of Egypt. The Egyptians were quite advanced; they knew the distance to the sun, and they knew that the earth was round. It was a few Greeks who came along later and flattened out the earth. They were the “scientists” in that day, you see. Science taught the the earth was flat. The Bible never did teach that; in fact it said it was a circle (see Isaiah 40:22). Daniel, too, as a young man was outstanding. He must have rated high on the list of tests in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. Don’t despise the learning of that day. There were many men who were well advanced in knowledge, in science, and in many other areas. Daniel is going to be exposed to all that.

Daniel 1:5 And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king’s meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.

These young men were to fed with the best food in the kingdom – the same food that King Nebuchadnezzar would be eating. The idea was that they would be ready to stand before the king ready to advise him after three years. The king’s meat would include foods that were prohibited by God’s Law. Daniel was a Jew and was forbidden by God to eat unclean animals which included certain meats, birds and fish.

Daniel 1:6,7 Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: (7) Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abed-nego.

The Jewish names for these young men point toward their allegiance to God and their Hebrew names incorporate the name of God in some fashion. Each of these men were devoted to God as their names suggest, but the prince of eunuchs determined that they needed new names to show their subjection to the Babylonians. So the names Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego incorporate the names of the gods of the Babylonians. Obviously, as we read through the Book of Daniel, the men did not follow the gods that they had been re-named after. They chose to follow Jehovah and remain obedient to Him even at great risk to their lives.

Daniel 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.

This is the key phrase in this chapter: Daniel purposed in his heart: Daniel decided early on that he would not defile himself for the sake of getting along. Daniel decided in his heart that he would take a stand against what he knew was wrong. Daniel decided in his heart that he would not compromise despite the consequences of his actions. The goal of the Babylonians was to make these men into Babylonians – they were to learn Babylonian knowledge, they were to dress like Babylonians, they were to eat like Babylonians, and they were to behave like Babylonians. Daniel and his three friends purposed in their hearts that they would not compromise and adopt the ways of the Babylonian world. The king of Babylon had ordered that the men were to eat of the king’s meat and so it looks like they would have to follow those orders. There are those that would argue this is true and that there is no individual responsibility in this matter. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah did not see it this way and purposed in their hearts to follow God. They chose to obey God’s Word and not man’s law. They chose to honour God and glorify Him rather than compromise and follow the Babylonian example. The Christian should never compromise on what God’s Word declares. Paul Harvey once told the story of the uncertain soldier in the Civil War who, figuring to play it safe, dressed himself in a blue coat and gray pants and tiptoed out onto the field of battle. He got shot from both directions!

One Unjudged Thing

Pastor Scott Griese — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 03:27:51 +0000

It is an axiom proven by experience and supported by Scripture that the only way we can advance in the truth is by maintaining a good conscience. Allow one unjudged thing — that which you know is contrary to the Word of God or is not in line with God’s will for you — to exist in your life and you will soon find your spiritual eyes become darkened; your spiritual susceptibilities will become deadened. No real progress will be made in your soul, but rather a steady decline. Instead there needs to be faithfulness in separation from that which is opposed to the mind of God. When His Word is allowed to sit in judgment on all your ways, you will learn that “the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day” (Proverb 4:18). The Word will illumine each step before you as you take the one already pointed out.

by H.A. Ironside, 1910 from his commentary on Daniel

Separation part 1

Pastor Scott Griese — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 20:46:09 +0000

By David Cloud

http://wayoflife.org/files/baa7b9c8d7f9e6cf30592a11b620c73a-656.html

“Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way” (Psalm 119:128).

There is a fierce attack today on a strict Biblicist position. It is hated by evangelicals, the emerging church, Southern Baptists, most Presbyterians and Methodists and Lutherans.

Brian McLaren said the emerging church is targeting our children and grandchildren with the objective of leading them away from separatism. Recently Gabe Lyons (shown above) said he is excited about (supposed) death of separatist Christianity (“End of Christian America is Good, Says Young Evangelical,” Christian Post, Oct. 12, 2010).

Even among those who still claim to be fundamentalists and who say that they are opposed to New Evangelicalism and the Emerging Church, there is a softening of stance, a moderation of militancy, less forthrightness, less naming names, less plainness in warning. How many Independent Baptist schools/churches even have warning conferences? When is the last time that you hear of a large IB school that had a conference on Separation?

(I am not defending Fundamentalism as a movement. It has always been interdenominational and committed to the heresy of “in essentials unity; in nonessentials liberty …” See our report “New Evangelicalism: Its History, Characteristics, and Fruit” at the Way of Life web site for more on this.)

I didn’t know anything about Fundamentalism or separation when I was converted in 1973. I grew up in the Southern Baptist Convention, and separation was not a part of the message and practice. Billy Graham and his ecumenical evangelism was upheld as the desirable philosophy. “Let’s be Christians but not fanatics” was the unsung watchword.

After I was saved, I began to devour God’s Word and to seek to measure everything by it. I took the following promises of Christ in the Gospel of John seriously and trusted the Lord to lead me in the path of truth.

John 7:17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

I didn’t know where to go to church at first. I was led to Christ by an old-line Pentecostal, but we parted ways the next day and I have never seen him again. I attended some Pentecostal services, some Baptist ones, some generic evangelical ones. I listened to J. Vernon McGee on the radio and ordered some of Herbert W. Armstrong’s booklets. In the public library I found some books by Seventh-day Adventists, and of course I came across Jehovah’s Witness literature and met a Mormon. It was bewildering, but I continued to devour the Bible and to call out to the Lord for wisdom. I trusted His promises, and I thank the Lord that He led me through the wilderness of heresy and end-time compromise into the bright light of sound doctrine.

As I have studied the Bible to renew my mind and to develop a proper Biblical worldview, I have learned the importance of the following points. I have learned that the Scripture demands a strict position on doctrine and practice. Nowhere in Scripture is there an encouragements to be tolerant and broadminded in these things.

October 13, 2010 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org

Idol Worship part four

Pastor Scott Griese — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 21:42:57 +0000

Jeremiah 10:10-11 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. (11) Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.

The gods that mankind has thought up and follow did not make the heavens and the earth and one day, the idols will die, will rust, will go bankrupt, and will fade away. But God is eternal and everlasting

Jer 10:12 He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion.

God spoke and the universe came into being. God decided where the stars would go. God decided where the waters would flow on earth. God decided where everything would live and you know what? He did not ask us our opinion. His wisdom determined these things and He used His discretion in creation. As smart as we may think we are, God is far above us.

Isaiah 55:6-11 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: (7) Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (8) For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. (9) For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (10) For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: (11) So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

God knows what is best for us, if we would just trust Him. We need to seek Him daily and follow Him in love and obedience. Which is going to benefit us and our Christian walk more: an idol that we have created or the Creator of all things? God created the rains and the snows so that water can nourish the plants so that we can have bread to eat. Nobody but God could have come up with that idea! A businessman once gave the reasons why he knew there was a God. He had been earnestly considering the wonders of the stars and planets, their system and order. Then he said, “It takes a girl in our factory about two days to learn to put the seventeen parts of a meat chopper together. Some may believe that these millions of worlds, each with its separate orbit, all balanced so wonderfully in space-that they just happened; that by a billion years of tumbling about they finally arranged themselves. I am merely a plain manufacturer of cutlery. But this I do know, that you can shake the seventeen parts of a meat chopper around in a washtub for the next seventeen billion years and you’ll never make a meat chopper.”

Jer 10:13 When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he causeth the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.

God did not have to do anything complicated in creation – He spoke and it came into being.

Famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking now says definitely that God did not create the universe or spark the Big Bang. In his new book, “The Grand Design,” scheduled for a September release, Hawking argues that the universe didn’t need divine inspiration to come into being. “Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing,” writes Hawking. “Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists why we exist. I do not know about anyone else, but I have yet to see anything be spontaneously created. Look at what God says to men like Stephen Hawking:

Jer 10:14-15 Every man is brutish in his knowledge: every founder is confounded by the graven image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them. (15) They are vanity, and the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they shall perish.

Every man is brutish in his knowledge, meaning that man is insensible and ignorant and shows why we need God. He is the source of knowledge and understanding and truth. Proverb 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 3:5-7 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. (6) In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (7) Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

The problem is that we rely on our own wisdom and it does not matter how much we pray for something – it that something does not agree with God’s Word or glorify Him, then God is not going to endorse it. And just because nothing really bad seemed to happen, does not mean that God endorsed it. And just because something seemingly good came from it, does not mean that God endorsed it.

Jeremiah 10:23 O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.

Every believer needs to follow God in love and obedience. The only way any believer will know how to follow Him is by reading His Word and prayer and listening to the preaching and teaching of His Word.

Psalm 119:101-105 I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. (102) I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me. (103) How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (104) Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. (105) Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

It is through the Word of God that we can know what God wants of us and what He expects of us. We gain greater understanding of Him through His Word. Furthermore, we need that time together as a group of called believers to strengthen each other, edify each other, encourage each other, and grow closer to God. We need to show others that time together as a group is important – otherwise, why should they want to join our group? Can a person be a Christian without joining a church? Yes, but it is like a soldier without an army; a student who will not attend school, a salesman without a customer, a sailor without a ship, a bee without a hive, an author without a reader, or a baseball player without a team. These situations might exist, but they would not be very satisfactory.

Psalm 115:1-8 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake. (2) Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God? (3) But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. (4) Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. (5) They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: (6) They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: (7) They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. (8) They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.

Idol Worship part two

Pastor Scott Griese — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 23:10:53 +0000

Jer. 9:25, 26 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will punish all them which are circumcised with the uncircumcised; (26) Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.

God will punish all that have not come to Him. The circumcised are the Israelites and the uncircumcised are the Gentiles and God’s Wrath will fall upon all that do not accept His Son, Jesus Christ, as Saviour. Note what is said at the end of verse 26: and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart. The Israelites may have been paying God plenty of lip service, but their actions were speaking a different story. Just because they had been physically circumcised does not mean that their heart is right with God. In today’s terms: just because a person made a profession and got baptized does not mean that they were truly born again. I can say that I am a cheeseburger, but that does mean I am one. I could smell like a cheeseburger and place myself in a bun with a slice of cheese and some catsup, but that does not make me a cheeseburger. The Israelites had done the outward requirements of God, but they were not obedient on the inside. They made a show of their commitment but inwardly, they were still uncircumcised in the heart. They may have made their weekly contributions, but they were not committed to God. The difference in a contribution and total commitment is usually the difference in failure and success.

A chicken and a hog were walking past a church building one day when they noticed the Sunday morning sermon posted on the outside bulletin board, “Helping the Poor.” They walked a ways when the chicken suddenly came across with a suggestion. “Say, Brother Hog, why don’t we give all the poor people a nice breakfast of ham and eggs?” The hog thought a moment and replied, “That’s all right for you to say because for you it is only a contribution, but for me, it’s total commitment!”

Jesus succeeded in His mission because He was totally committed to the task before Him. He was willing to give up everything, even His life, for the cause He believed in. No one really succeeds in life until he reaches the point that he is willing to lay down his life. Jesus said, “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone.” Disraeli said, “Nothing can resist a will that will stake even existence for its fulfillment!” Go to chapter 10.

Jer 10:1-2 Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel: (2) Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.

What important words for us today too! We should not learn the way of the heathen – we should not look like them, act like them, or speak and think like them! Believers in Jesus Christ are suppose to be different, not the same! The reference to “the signs of heaven” refers to astrology and the zodiac – the stars do not guide a person’s destiny, believers must allow God to guide them. It must be our conviction to follow God and not ourselves. Jonathan Edwards, the famous preacher wrote in his diary at the age of nineteen: “Resolved that all men should live to the glory of God,” then he added, “Resolved, second, that whether others do this or not, I will.” Jonathan Edwards was possessed by a great conviction to do the will of God.

Jer 10:3-5 For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. (4) They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. (5) They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

This passage is often mistaken as talking about condemning the use of Christmas trees, which is ridiculous since Christmas trees did not even exist during Jeremiah’s time. He is talking about idols and the worship of them. These idols are made by man’s hands and then they are decorated by man’s hands. Silver and gold is placed upon the idol. It is decorated with shiny objects. It may have candles around it or lights upon it. Isn’t it amazing, however, that these idols are made by man, but then the man places himself in subjection to the idol? He has to take care of it, keep the silver and gold shiny and protect it from the weather. Man makes the idol and then the idol makes the man. What can an idol make of a man? Nothing, since the idol is ultimately going to break down, rust, decay and turn to dust. There is no satisfaction in an idol because the idol has nothing to give. An idol can only take from man. It takes away his time, it takes away his energy, and it takes away his focus on God and it takes away his time with God. Look at verse 5: They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. The idol cannot move, it cannot speak and it needs man to carry it around. An idol could be be very handsome or pretty, but it ultimately makes the man very ugly, because the idol keeps man away from God. The rest of verse 5: Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. The idol itself is neither evil or good, it is man’s reaction to the idol that becomes evil or good in the eyes of God. A hobby may not be a bad thing, but when it becomes an obsession and takes away time that should be spent with God, then the man needs to reassess his priorities. Charles Spurgeon told the story of two men meeting on the street: “Well, Jack,” said one who met a man who had lately joined the church, “I hear you have given up all your pleasures.” “No, no,” said Jack, “the fact lies the other way. I have just found all my pleasures, and I have only given up my follies.”

Look at verse 3 again: For the customs of the people are vain: Jeremiah is stating that the customs of the people are empty – they are like a soap bubble: pretty on the outside, but nothing on the inside. That is why they spend so much time on their idols: they are trying to fill something that cannot be satisfied or filled. So they keep at the idol, thinking that if they try one more thing they will be happy. The idol becomes the focus and it consumes their time, energy, money, and life. Sin always takes more of a person than that person expected and it keeps them there longer. We must let people know that those idols need to be replaced by Jesus Christ. Remember in Jeremiah 10:5, we are told that the idols need to be carried around. Jesus Christ does not require that. Look at end of Matthew 11:

Matthew 11:28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Jesus Christ urges people to get rid of their idols because they are heavy and a burden and come to Jesus Christ for rest and peace. Idols have many strict requirements and needs, but Jesus Christ offers rest for people’s souls. What does an idol need? Nowadays, idols require batteries, money, electricity, attention, money, protection, maintenance, and money. Jesus Christ wants two commandments followed: Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. (38) This is the first and great commandment. (39) And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

What future rewards do idols offer? Idols offer temporal rewards: the praise of other men, money, fame and other things that are fleeting and will not last. Jesus Christ offers eternal life in Heaven by His side. I cannot think of a better reward than that! Idols may offer temporary pleasure, but when the pleasure is gone it takes more effort to bring the pleasure back. Charles Spurgeon said: Amusement should be used to do us good “like a medicine.” It must never be used as the food of the man.

Lost people have idols and so do saved people. The difference is that the saved person should feel some conviction about their idols and the need to give them up.

The Book of Hebrews 2:1 declares that “we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip” . Another way of looking at the final phrase of this verse is, “lest we drift away.” Nothing in the world is easier than drifting. No person drifts upstream, only downstream. It is so easy. All you do is sit back and relax and let the boat go. You are soon lulled into a lazy stupor, not caring where you go. You may not even be aware you are drifting until it is too late and the boat is on the rocks. Satan is very wise. He seldom urges a believer to leave the church or to give up his faith in the Lord. Instead he causes us to relax, rest on the oars, and drift along in the Christian life. All around us are Christians who have drifted into a state of coldness and indifference. They have stopped caring about others who need to hear the message of God’s saving grace. Are you drifting? Wake up now! Grab the oars and pull. Your active concern is needed as we seek to lead others to find Christ and His will for their lives.

Mat 16:24-26 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. (25) For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. (26) For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

The idols that are made here on earth are worthless now and in the end. Are the idols in your life now worth more than the spiritual treasures found in Heaven one day? Your answer to that question is important to you and to others around you. They will act according to how you act. What is more important in your life? Your idol or Jesus Christ?

Psalm 32 part 2

Pastor Scott Griese — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 19:01:16 +0000

Psalm 32:2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

Verse 2 leads off with the word “blessed” meaning “happy.” The first phrase of this verse means that happy is the man that the LORD does not charge iniquity to. The word iniquity means “perverseness” or “moral evil.” How can verse two happen? Again, because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. When David wrote this psalm, under Holy Spirit inspiration, animal sacrifices were taking place to temporarily cover sin, but it is only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ that sins are truly washed away. The word “impute” means to “charge or put on one’s account.” Believers in Jesus Christ should be very happy because our sin debt is paid by Jesus Christ! 2Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Romans 4:24-25 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; (25) Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification. This does not mean that believers have license to sin, because there is still a judgment coming over our obedience to Jesus Christ, but we do know that we will spend eternity with Jesus Christ. But I do not look forward to that Judgment Seat of Christ, for I will see the opportunities that I neglected and the times that I chose to go my way rather than God’s way. Just because I have that security of knowing I am saved, does not mean I should relish sin! Even though I am saved, that does not mean that I no longer sin, but I need to ask forgiveness and look to do the sin no more.

Further, Psalm 32:2 states: Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. In other words, just confessing sin with out meaning it, does nothing for our sin – it is still imputed to us.

When we repent of our sin, we need to mean it. Listen to this illustration: “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child,” says William Shakespeare’s King Lear. Well, then, how about a thankless jailbird? If you want an answer to that one, ask a judge in Seattle. Recently, a young man appeared before the judge on charges of car theft. The judge saw no reason to keep him locked up while he awaited court action. He released him on his own recognizance. A short time later, that judge’s own car disappeared. Police quickly found the stolen car, and the one who stole it. Now the judge was in court in a new role, not as a judge, but as a witness, against the same young man he had released, who stood accused of stealing the magistrate’s wheels. A Japanese proverb reminds us that forgiving the unrepentant is like drawing pictures on the water. Ignoring sin may gain the sinner’s temporary gratitude, but makes no lasting impression. A forgiven car thief is still a car thief if no change of character takes place.

How about you? Do you seek to escape justice or to be justified by God’s grace and Christ’s mercy? God offers you liberty, not license, in the cleansing blood of Christ.

Psalm 32:3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.

King David is telling us what happened to him when he tried to keep silent about his sin. Nobody around him knew about his sin, but God knew. David may have put up a facade, but inside his conscience was bothering him. The sin was affecting his health as he continued to try and hide the sin. He may have been silent on the outside, but inside him the sin was roaring as he dealt with the conviction by the Holy Spirit about the sin.

Psalm 32:4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer.

Charles Spurgeon wrote: God’s finger can crush us – what must his hand be, and that pressing heavily and continuously! Under terrors of conscience, men have little rest by night, for the grim thoughts of the day dog them to their chambers and haunt their dreams, or else they lie awake in a cold sweat of dread. God’s hand is very helpful when it uplifts, but it is awful when it presses down. …my moisture is turned into the drought of summer David is physically affected by his sin and he is drying up! If only we were as sensitive to our sin as David was! How often do we suppress the thought of our sin and the more we do that, the less effect our sin has on ourselves. We need to pray to God that we see our sin as He does. Even the Apostle Paul struggled with sin: Romans 7:22-25 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: (23) But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. (24) O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? (25) I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Sin deadens us and the longer we waddle in sin, the deader we are to the sin. Sin is not a laughing matter and needs to be taken seriously by believers today. We are seeing how David reacted to his sin. We need to see who God is and recognize His Holiness and strive toward His Holiness. There is a new song out that seems to be the attitude of professing Christians toward God. The title of the song: I Think I’m Gonna Throw Up. Here are the lyrics: I Think I’m Gonna Throw Up, I Think I’m Gonna Throw Up, I Think I’m Gonna Throw Up, My Hands To The Lord. (Repeat) Throw Up, Throw Up, Throw Up, My Hands To The Lord. (Repeat) NEXT VERSE: I Think I’m Gonna Hurl, I Think I’m Gonna Hurl, I Think I’m Gonna Hurl, My Sins Out The Door (Repeat) Hurl, Hurl, Hurl My Sins Out The Door. (Repeat) The song is sung by an man with children singing behind him. At the end, the children laugh and make retching sounds. Does that really glorify the King of Kings? Does this song honor the Lord of Lords? What are these children going to remember about this song? Praising God or getting to sing euphemisms about vomiting? Whenever vomiting is discussed in the Bible it is never good.

Psalm 32 shows us that David did not consider his sin to be a laughing matter. It weighed very heavily on him. Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

David gave in to the the conviction of the Holy Spirit and repented of his sin. Look at how David mentions his sin, his iniquity, and his transgression. Note that David says that not only he sinned but that he acknowledges that his sin was against God and that his iniquity is not hid from God. God sees everything we do, knows everything we think, and hears everything we say. The first steps toward forgiveness by God is to acknowledge our sin and realize how it affects us and our relationship with God. We then need to confess that sin to God – not to man. Confess to God first and then if your sin affected another person, then confess to them. Francis Fuller very wisely said, “To repent is to accuse and condemn ourselves; to charge upon ourselves the desert of hell; to take part with God against ourselves, and to justify Him in all that He does against us; to be ashamed and confounded for our sins; to have them ever in our eyes and at all times upon our hearts that we may be in daily sorrow for them; to part with our right hands and eyes, that is, with those pleasurable sins which have been as dear to us as our lives, so as never to have more to do with them, and to hate them, so as to destroy them as things which by nature we are wholly disinclined to. For we naturally love and think well of ourselves, hide our deformities, lessen and excuse our faults, indulge ourselves in the things that please us, are mad upon our lusts, and follow them, though to our own destruction.”

Psalm 32 shows us the importance of recognizing our sin and repenting of it. Thank God that He is merciful and patient with us. 1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

John 9 Are You Blind?

Pastor Scott Griese — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 03:04:49 +0000

In John chapter 9, the apostles of Jesus Christ come across a man that was born blind. They ask Jesus Christ, “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind.” Jesus Christ declares to the disciples that the man was born blind, not because of any sin, but because Jesus Christ was there to heal that man and bring glory to God by doing the works God commanded Jesus. Jesus Christ combined dirt and His spittle and applied the mud to the man’s eyes. He then told the man to go and wash it off at the pool of Siloam. The man did as Jesus Christ directed and could now see. When the Pharisees heard about the healing, they got upset because Jesus Christ healed the blind man on the Sabbath, rather than rejoicing that the man could now see. The Pharisees questioned if the man had even been blind and they declared that Jesus Christ was a sinner and not from God.

John 9:27-34 He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples? (28) Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple; but we are Moses’ disciples. (29) We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is. (30) The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvelous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes. (31) Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshiper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth. (32) Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. (33) If this man were not of God, he could do nothing. (34) They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.

The Pharisees were willfully blind to what Jesus Christ said and to what Jesus Christ was doing. The man that had been born blind was wiser than the Pharisees and he understood that Jesus Christ was at least of God, but had not realized yet that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. After the Pharisees cast out the man, Jesus Christ came to him and the man realized that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and he worshiped Him.

John 9:39-41 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. (40) And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words and said unto him, Are we blind also? (41) Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Jesus Christ came to this world the first time to reach out to God’s people, the Israelites. He preached to them about repentance and the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand, but the Jews rejected Him. The Israelites considered themselves to be godly, but they were blind to who Jesus Christ really is. They thought that they could clearly see the things of God, but they were blind to who Jesus Christ is. The apostle Paul, when he was Saul, described himself this way in 1Timothy 1:13 Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. This did not excuse Paul/Saul’s sin, because in verse 15 he calls himself the chiefest of sinners, and he points out the Jesus Christ came to save sinners. Ignorance is not an excuse for sinning, especially when there are ways to get knowledge – such as the Bible, and the preaching and teaching of God Word – but if the methods of obtaining knowledge are ignored, the penalty for the sin is still there. God’s Will for mankind is revealed in His Word, and the Bible records at least five times in the Bible that Word of God had spread around the entire world. But a person can look at the world around him and see what God has done in creation and God will reach out to that person that may not have access to a Bible if they are seeking Him first. God raises up missionaries to reach the world for Jesus Christ and sends them to where there is a desire somewhere among an indigenous people to know God. No where in the Bible does God promise to send a missionary to a people that is not seeking God first.

In John 9, the Pharisees thought they were godly and that they saw things clearly and declared that the man that had been blind was still blind – spiritually blind. The truth is that the Pharisees were blind – willfully blind to Jesus Christ and His teachings. John 9:40, 41 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words and said unto him, Are we blind also? (41) Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth. The Pharisees decided that they saw things clearly, but truly they did not and chose to remain that way. The truth, Jesus Christ stood in front of them and they denied Him. Their sin remained on them because they chose to remain blind even as they thought they could spiritually see. Jesus said: If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: – if the Pharisees had realized that they were blind to what Jesus Christ taught and desired to learn from Jesus Christ and ultimately repent and believe, then the penalty for sin would no longer be imputed upon them. Instead, the Pharisees determined that they were strong. Instead the Pharisees determined that they were godly. Instead, the Pharisees determined that they were righteous.

Luke 5:30-32 But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners? (31) And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician: but they that are sick (32) I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. If the Pharisees had been willing to humble themselves and follow Jesus Christ and His Word, then they would have understood their sinful condition and their weakness and their blindness and ultimately their need for Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

Separation

Pastor Scott Griese — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 21:25:07 +0000

Taken from wayoflife.org
New Evangelicals have long divided doctrine into “cardinal” and “secondary” categories, and the “secondary,” we are told, can be overlooked for the sake of unity.

In Grace Awaking, Chuck Swindoll says, “My encouragement for you today is that each one of us pursue what unites us with others rather than the few things that separate us. … There was a time in my life when I had answers to questions no one was asking. I had a position that life was so rigid I would fight for every jot and tittle. I mean, I couldn’t list enough things that I’d die for. The older I get, the shorter that list gets, frankly” (Grace Awakening, p. 189).

Even the most conservative evangelicals, such as Iain Murray, fall into this trap. Condemning fundamentalism in America Murray stated, “In its tendency to add stipulations not foundational to Christian believing, fundamentalism was prone to make the boundaries of Christ’s kingdom too small” (Iain Murray, Evangelicalism Divided, p. 298).

This is the working philosophy of Southern Baptists. Consider the book Building Bridges (Convention Press, 2007). It was written by David Dockery and Timothy George and prefaced by Thom Rainer, three prominent Southern Baptist leaders.

“Though I may disagree with some on secondary and tertiary issues, I will not let those points of disagreement tear down bridges of relationships with brothers and sisters in Christ. … We need a new spirit of mutual respect and humility to serve together with those with whom we have differences of conviction and opinion. It is possible to hold hands with brothers and sisters who disagree on secondary and tertiary matters of theology…” (pp. 11, 34).

This is even becoming the working philosophy of many Independent Baptists. In the book Thinking Outside the Book, Charles Keen says,

“I’m a slow learner, but I finally realized that not all truth is of equal value. Some truths I differ from others and divide over even die for (as least I should). With others, I might be uncomfortable with how they are handled by my brethren, but I can still fellowship with them either personally or in some cases, ecclesiastically. We need to develop some ‘ecumenicalism within the parameters of fundamentalism.’ … Let’s decide who the enemies of the cross are and divide from them. Then let’s decide who the friends of grace are and tolerate them. We don’t have to unite but we do need unity” (p. 81).

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS

First, this philosophy is refuted by Christ’s teaching.

It is refuted in Matthew 23:23, where Christ taught that while not everything in the Bible is of equal importance everything has some importance and nothing is to be despised or neglected. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.”

It is also refuted in Matthew 28:20, where Christ taught that the churches are to teach the believers to observe ALL THINGS whatsoever He has commanded.

Second, this philosophy is refuted by Paul’s example and teaching.

He declared the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27).

He taught Timothy to value all doctrine and not to allow ANY false doctrine (1 Tim. 1:3).

He further taught Timothy to keep the New Testament commandment “without spot” (1 Tim. 6:13-14). A spot refers to something that is small, seemingly insignificant. The context of Paul’s instruction in 1 Timothy 6:14 is an epistle that has as its theme church truth (1 Tim. 3:15). In this epistle, we find instruction about such things as pastoral standards (1 Tim. 3), deacons (1 Tim. 3), the divine restriction upon the woman’s work in the church (1 Tim. 2); care for widows (1 Tim. 5), and discipline (1 Tim. 5). These are the very kinds of things that are typically considered of secondary importance today.

While we know that Bible doctrines are not equal in importance (e.g., John 3:16 is more important than 1 Corinthians 11:14-15), every teaching of Scripture has some importance and nowhere are we taught to despise anything God has said, not for the sake of an Independent Baptist unity or world missions or for any other reason.

I believe that Romans 12:2 (“be not conformed to this world”) and James 4:4 (“friendship with the world is enmity with God”) and 1 John 2:15-17 (“love not the world”) are very essential teachings, and this doctrine condemns the contemporary philosophy that is spreading quickly among Independent Baptist churches. The same is true for what God’s Word says about the sacred music or modest attire or ecclesiology or repentance or the preservation of Scripture or any other thing.

We should stand for all of the truth of God’s Word, and we should defend any truth that happens to be under attack in our day.

Third, we must understand that not all heresies are of equal weight as far as destructiveness, but all heresies are to be opposed.

A heresy is a doctrinal error. The word describes the self-will that characterizes such sin. A “heretic” is one who exercises his own will over the Word of God and chooses an error over the truth. The error can be as serious as denying the deity of Christ or as seemingly slight as allowing a woman to usurp authority over men.

There are “damnable heresies” (2 Pet. 2:1), which are heresies that affect eternal salvation. To accept a damnable heresy is to bring upon oneself eternal damnation. The damnable heresy described by Peter was that of denying the Lord Jesus Christ. The apostle John also described the doctrine of Christ as a crucial doctrine (2 John 9). We see in other passages that damnable heresies are particularly related to the person of Christ, to the gospel, and to the Holy Spirit and thus to the person and nature of God, including such doctrines as the Trinity (2 Cor. 11:4).

There are also less destructive heresies. “For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord’s supper. For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken” (1 Cor. 11:19-21). In this passage Paul was referring to errors in the church at Corinth, and in the immediate context, he describes errors relating to the Lord’s Supper.

That not all heresies have the same consequence does not mean that some heresies are to be ignored. Every wind of false doctrine is to be refused (Eph. 4:14).

David Nettleton refuted the New Evangelical philosophy in “A Limited Message or a Limited Fellowship,” which describes his experiences in an interdenominational youth ministry in the 1950s. Consider an excerpt from this message:

This message, like many, is born out of an experience. It may be some others are going through similar experiences. Therefore, let me recount the one which brought this message to light. I was brought up as a Presbyterian. I was saved at a college which was interdenominational in student body, but was managed by the Church of the Brethren. From there I went to a seminary which was not a denominational school, and from there to another seminary which was United Presbyterian. I entered the Baptist pastorate with no Baptist training except that which came from reading of the Scriptures.

A few years later I was drawn into an interdenominational youth movement and was given the leadership of a local Saturday night rally. I cooperated with any who were evangelical, regardless of their associations. I was advised by top leaders in the movement to seek the names of outstanding modernists for my advisory committee. I didn’t do that. But I did follow advice which led me to send to all converts back to the churches of their choice, churches I knew to be liberal in some cases. This greatly troubled my conscience and I prayed and thought about it.

Another problem connected with this work was the failure on my part to instruct any converts on the matter of Christian baptism, which in the Scriptures is the first test of obedience. I felt that I should do this inasmuch as Peter and Paul did it. But how could it be done when on the committee of the work there were close friends who did not believe it? By such an association I had definitely stripped my message and my ministry of important Bible truths which many called ‘nonessentials.’

In the follow-up work it was not convenient to speak of eternal security in the presence of Christian workers who hated the name of the doctrine. Thus the ministry was pared down to the gospel, just as if there was nothing in the Great Commission about baptizing converts and indoctrinating them. I had found the least common denominator and I was staying by it. But my conscience had no rest.

Then it was that Acts 20:27 came to mean something to me. The great apostle had never allowed himself to be drawn into anything which would limit his message. He could say with a clean conscience, ‘I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.’ Why cannot many say that today? In my case, and in many other cases, it was due to a desire to teach a larger audience and to work with a larger group of Christians.

Many have been carried away from full obedience by a noble-sounding motto which has been applied to Christian work. ‘In essentials unity, in nonessentials liberty, and in all things charity.’ Some things are not essential to salvation but they are essential to full obedience, and the Christian has no liberty under God to sort out the Scriptures into essentials and nonessentials! It is our duty to declare the whole counsel of God, and to do it wherever we are.

Today we are choosing between two alternatives. A LIMITED MESSAGE OR A LIMITED FELLOWSHIP. If we preach all of the Bible truths, there are many places where we will never be invited. If we join hands with the crowds, there will be limiting of the message of the Bible. Bear this in mind–it is the Baptist who lays aside the most! It is the fundamental Baptist who makes the concessions! Think this through and you will find it to be true. We believe in believer’s baptism. We believe in separation. We preach eternal security. We believe in the imminent coming of Christ. We consider it an act of obedience to reprove unbelief in religious circles. The Sadducee and the Pharisee are to be labeled. But according to a present philosophy we must lay these things aside for the sake of a larger sphere of service.

Which is more important, full obedience or a larger sphere of service? And yet I do not fully believe these are the only two alternatives. It is our first duty to be fully obedient to God in all things, and then to wait upon Him for the places of service. It may be that we will be limited, and it may be that we will not. Charles Haddon Spurgeon did not travel as widely as some men of his day, but his sermons have traveled as far as the sermons of most men (David Nettleton, “A Limited Message or a Limited Fellowship,” GARBC).

The necessity of discipling and pastoring God’s people requires that we protect them from “small” compromises and “non-essential” errors.

“Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Colossians 1:28).

I would rather err on the side of being too strict and too separated from Independent Baptist compromise than to be soft and not separated enough.

Seek Ye The Lord (Zephaniah 2 part 3)

Pastor Scott Griese — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 10:29:16 +0000

Zephaniah 2:4-5 For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. (5) Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.

These are the opening verses of the judgments against the nations and people of the world. They continued to deny God, they railed against God, and they wanted nothing to do with God. Ultimately, God will give them their desire and they will spend eternity separated from Him. Look at the middle phrase of verse 5: the word of the LORD is against you. Consider what that means: the word of the LORD is against you. We know that the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12), and we know from the Book of Revelation that Jesus Christ will speak and His enemies will fall down before Him. It was also the Word of God that spoke all of creation into being. It is by the Word of God that all things continue to exist today. It is the Word of God that says: John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

But the Word of God does not stop at verse 16: John 3:17-18 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. (18) He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. We cannot only focus telling about the Love of God without also declaring the Wrath of God. Both are real and everyone will fall under one or the other! Jesus Christ Himself spoke about the Wrath of God as well as the Love of God. It is the Word of God that will change people’s hearts. It is the Word of God that will transform lives to be more like Jesus Christ. The one thing we do not want to have happen is for the Word of God to be against us. But the Word of the Lord convicts us when we study it. The Word of the Lord shows us God’s Love and shows us why He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to be our Saviour. The Word of the Lord also shows us the Wrath of God and why judgment is coming. And the Word of Lord shows us how we can escape God’s Wrath through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Charles Spurgeon wrote: You will soon be dead, and you will pass into another world. You will come to the seat of judgment. You will want witnesses in your favour, and this book will be called to give its testimony. If the book could speak, it would say, “Great God, he never read me. I bear witness to his neglect of thee, for he never read me.” And many a text of Scripture would rise up in that last day and say, “I was preached to him. His mother quoted me to him. His sister wrote this in a letter. A friend sent him this verse and pleaded with him to take it to heart, but he heeded none of it.” If “the Word of the Lord is against you,” the law will say, “He knew me and he broke me.” The gospel will say, “He knew me and he refused me.” The Bible itself will say, “He understood something of me, but he ridiculed me.”

The Word of the Lord is used by the Holy Spirit to direct us. We cannot go by feelings when deciding to do something. Our heart will deceive us and sometimes we want to do something so badly that we do not wait upon God and we end up doing that thing badly. It is the Word of the Lord that is used to direct us because it speaks to us through the Holy Spirit. How often have we heard a missionary say that they read a particular Bible passage and that was when they knew where they were to go or what they were suppose to do? Personally, it was a passage from the Book of Ezra that told me to move back to New York State. It took a passage from Matthew that told us both to move back to New York State. How often has that happened in your life? If it does not happen, then maybe you are not waiting long enough on the Lord. Maybe the task is not suppose to be started at all. The Word of the Lord will speak to you, but let it talk, do not force it to talk – do not look for meaning that is not there.

A businessman had a framed photograph of the Leaning Tower of Pisa on his wall. For a long time he noticed that it persisted in hanging crooked despite the fact that he straightened it every morning. At last he asked the housekeeper if she was responsible for its lopsided position each morning that he came to his office. “Why, yes,” she said, “I have to hang it crooked to make the tower hang straight.” Does that sound strange? That is exactly how a lot of people read the Bible. Many people twist the Word of God in order to justify their own opinions or actions, or doctrine to make them all appear right. Let us not twist the Scriptures to suit our own fancy. Let us be sure to hang the picture right!

Please do not let the Word of the Lord be against you. Follow it and read it daily. I will close with this quote by Charles Spurgeon: Never be afraid of your Bibles. If there is a text of Scripture you dare not meet, humble yourself till you can. If your creed and Scripture do not agree, cut your creed to pieces, but make it agree with this book. If there be anything in the church to which you belong which is contrary to the inspired Word, leave that church. He that reads his Bible to find fault with it will soon discover that the Bible finds fault with him.