WEBVTT 00:00:05.636 --> 00:00:07.907 "I would love for some help navigating 00:00:07.907 --> 00:00:10.034 my Christian experience. 00:00:10.034 --> 00:00:13.356 My question is how far can a person 00:00:13.356 --> 00:00:16.226 really go as a false convert?" 00:00:16.226 --> 00:00:18.936 He's asking this question for this reason: 00:00:18.936 --> 00:00:21.277 "I've been reflecting on my own life, 00:00:21.277 --> 00:00:23.337 and I'm a bit confused about some things 00:00:23.337 --> 00:00:25.686 that might be evidences of salvation. 00:00:25.686 --> 00:00:27.136 I believe the Gospel, 00:00:27.136 --> 00:00:29.585 repented of my sin - or so I thought - 00:00:29.585 --> 00:00:32.685 spent countless hours preaching the Gospel to people, 00:00:32.685 --> 00:00:33.896 evangelizing, 00:00:33.896 --> 00:00:35.904 even street-preached a couple of times 00:00:35.904 --> 00:00:37.416 overcoming much fear. 00:00:37.416 --> 00:00:41.067 It seemed like the Holy Spirit was working to some degree. 00:00:41.067 --> 00:00:42.958 I also had a deep sensitivity, 00:00:42.958 --> 00:00:44.292 conviction over sin. 00:00:44.292 --> 00:00:45.896 I spent a lot of time in prayer 00:00:45.896 --> 00:00:48.146 by which I was also deeply affected. 00:00:48.146 --> 00:00:52.036 I wept over sin and for others to get saved. 00:00:52.036 --> 00:00:54.205 There seemed to be a real love for Christ, 00:00:54.205 --> 00:00:55.824 for the brethren, for the lost. 00:00:55.824 --> 00:00:58.787 I was doing my best to walk in obedience to God, 00:00:58.787 --> 00:01:01.305 though I suspect I wasn't wholehearted. 00:01:01.305 --> 00:01:03.877 I may have been holding back some secret idols. 00:01:03.877 --> 00:01:05.783 I also fought hard and had victory 00:01:05.783 --> 00:01:07.645 over much sin like pornography, 00:01:07.645 --> 00:01:09.200 much worldliness, 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:11.087 though there were still a few things 00:01:11.087 --> 00:01:12.695 that were an ongoing struggle 00:01:12.695 --> 00:01:14.425 that I continue to fight really hard 00:01:14.425 --> 00:01:16.826 like lust, pride, fear of man, 00:01:16.826 --> 00:01:19.176 watching bad TV and movies 00:01:19.176 --> 00:01:21.654 which often got the better of me. 00:01:21.654 --> 00:01:25.105 Regardless, I made a lot of progress in sanctification. 00:01:25.105 --> 00:01:26.965 However, I ended up holding on 00:01:26.965 --> 00:01:29.795 and toying with one or two of those sins 00:01:29.795 --> 00:01:32.575 and fell into a very hardened heart 00:01:32.575 --> 00:01:33.995 and lukewarmness 00:01:33.995 --> 00:01:36.327 and just deliberate unrepentant sin 00:01:36.327 --> 00:01:38.644 and stopped feeling conviction. 00:01:38.644 --> 00:01:40.428 My question is: 00:01:40.428 --> 00:01:43.986 Is it really possible to have such fruits 00:01:43.986 --> 00:01:45.654 as I have had 00:01:45.654 --> 00:01:48.039 and still not have saving faith? 00:01:48.039 --> 00:01:52.390 How far can a person go in deception? 00:01:52.390 --> 00:01:54.346 If so, how is an unsaved man 00:01:54.346 --> 00:01:56.406 able to even feel that way 00:01:56.406 --> 00:01:58.724 if not by the Spirit? 00:01:58.724 --> 00:02:02.897 Any tips to help me understand my past experience? 00:02:02.897 --> 00:02:05.827 Could God have caused me to fall like this 00:02:05.827 --> 00:02:08.827 so it would become clear that I'm not saved? 00:02:08.827 --> 00:02:10.447 Giving some hope 00:02:10.447 --> 00:02:16.606 since only a lost person can be saved? 00:02:16.606 --> 00:02:19.037 I'm trying to seek the Lord now for salvation, 00:02:19.037 --> 00:02:21.907 but my past experiences have been a cause of confusion. 00:02:21.907 --> 00:02:25.451 Hence, my question. Thanks." NOTE Paragraph 00:02:25.451 --> 00:02:27.371 I just want to look at several texts. 00:02:27.371 --> 00:02:29.908 How far can a person go? 00:02:29.908 --> 00:02:34.845 He's asking this: how far can a person go in deception? 00:02:34.845 --> 00:02:38.097 How far can a person really go 00:02:38.097 --> 00:02:40.647 as a false convert? 00:02:40.647 --> 00:02:42.439 I just want to look at several texts. 00:02:42.439 --> 00:02:46.935 The first one is Hebrews 6. 00:02:46.935 --> 00:02:51.843 How far can they go? 00:02:51.843 --> 00:02:56.916 When I was a brand new convert, 00:02:56.916 --> 00:03:02.149 I read a Puritan book by Matthew Mead - 00:03:02.149 --> 00:03:03.619 the Puritan Matthew Mead - 00:03:03.619 --> 00:03:06.367 called "The Almost Christian Discovered." 00:03:06.367 --> 00:03:08.997 Anybody heard of that book before? 00:03:08.997 --> 00:03:11.608 Have you ever read it? 00:03:11.608 --> 00:03:13.538 As a brand new Christian, 00:03:13.538 --> 00:03:18.628 I found myself falling on my face 00:03:18.628 --> 00:03:21.907 on the floor often as I read that book, 00:03:21.907 --> 00:03:23.065 pleading with the Lord 00:03:23.065 --> 00:03:25.008 that if I wasn't genuine 00:03:25.008 --> 00:03:30.222 that He would search that out and show me 00:03:30.222 --> 00:03:33.728 because that book really rattled me. 00:03:33.728 --> 00:03:35.478 I had come to the Lord, 00:03:35.478 --> 00:03:38.300 but it had never occurred to me - 00:03:38.300 --> 00:03:40.599 you know what? 00:03:40.599 --> 00:03:44.601 Because I was around such lost people, 00:03:44.601 --> 00:03:46.459 I just assumed - 00:03:46.459 --> 00:03:48.439 because I was around such lost people 00:03:48.439 --> 00:03:52.833 and around nominal Catholicism, 00:03:52.833 --> 00:03:54.638 I just thought if people claimed 00:03:54.638 --> 00:03:56.650 to be true Christians, they were. 00:03:56.650 --> 00:03:58.908 That's what I thought when I was first saved, 00:03:58.908 --> 00:04:00.457 so to come across that book, 00:04:00.457 --> 00:04:02.647 it really jolted me. NOTE Paragraph 00:04:02.647 --> 00:04:08.789 Hebrews 6:4. Somebody begin reading right there. 00:04:08.789 --> 00:04:11.498 "For it is impossible in the case of those 00:04:11.498 --> 00:04:13.277 who have once been enlightened..." 00:04:13.277 --> 00:04:14.748 Tim: Okay. 00:04:14.748 --> 00:04:16.158 What he's going to say 00:04:16.158 --> 00:04:18.859 is it's impossible to renew unto 00:04:18.859 --> 00:04:22.088 or to restore unto or to bring back to a state 00:04:22.088 --> 00:04:23.967 of repentance 00:04:23.967 --> 00:04:27.306 somebody who has been - 00:04:27.306 --> 00:04:29.999 so this is a person who it's impossible 00:04:29.999 --> 00:04:31.488 to be saved. 00:04:31.488 --> 00:04:33.507 So one thing we know for certain: 00:04:33.507 --> 00:04:35.157 They've never been saved 00:04:35.157 --> 00:04:38.848 if it's impossible for them to be saved. 00:04:38.848 --> 00:04:41.118 They've been enlightened. 00:04:41.118 --> 00:04:43.016 That was the first thing that was said. 00:04:43.016 --> 00:04:45.328 They have been enlightened. 00:04:45.328 --> 00:04:47.430 What does that mean? 00:04:47.430 --> 00:04:49.359 Light. 00:04:49.359 --> 00:04:51.550 You know what it's like. It's dark outside. 00:04:51.550 --> 00:04:54.017 You come to the light, you can see things. 00:04:54.017 --> 00:04:56.277 If you guys go stand on my porch, 00:04:56.277 --> 00:04:57.570 and the light's not on, 00:04:57.570 --> 00:04:58.749 you can't see things. 00:04:58.749 --> 00:05:00.269 If I turn the light on - whoa! 00:05:00.269 --> 00:05:03.809 All of a sudden, everything appears around you. 00:05:03.809 --> 00:05:09.008 Light we are told makes manifest. 00:05:09.008 --> 00:05:10.429 What is it about light? 00:05:10.429 --> 00:05:11.658 Enlightenment. 00:05:11.658 --> 00:05:14.388 It means I am brought to see 00:05:14.388 --> 00:05:16.535 what I never saw before. 00:05:16.535 --> 00:05:19.750 So, how far can a person go? 00:05:19.750 --> 00:05:22.688 They can be exposed to preaching, 00:05:22.688 --> 00:05:24.209 to the Word of God. 00:05:24.209 --> 00:05:28.207 They can be exposed to the light of truth 00:05:28.207 --> 00:05:31.859 and brought to a place that they never were before. 00:05:31.859 --> 00:05:34.467 What's the next thing said there? 00:05:34.467 --> 00:05:36.349 "...Who have tasted the heavenly gift." 00:05:36.349 --> 00:05:39.467 Tim: Okay, isn't that amazing? 00:05:39.467 --> 00:05:41.118 They've tasted. 00:05:41.118 --> 00:05:43.728 It's like the heavenly gift - 00:05:43.728 --> 00:05:47.438 it's like they've taken salvation. 00:05:47.438 --> 00:05:49.898 They've put it in their mouth. 00:05:49.898 --> 00:05:54.339 And they've rolled it around on their tongue. 00:05:54.339 --> 00:05:57.589 They've got the flavor of it. 00:05:57.589 --> 00:06:00.580 Keep going. 00:06:00.580 --> 00:06:02.888 "...Who have shared in the Holy Spirit." 00:06:02.888 --> 00:06:04.618 Tim: Okay. 00:06:04.618 --> 00:06:05.986 You know what's interesting? 00:06:05.986 --> 00:06:08.378 He said this: 00:06:08.378 --> 00:06:12.777 "Is it really possible to have such fruits?" 00:06:12.777 --> 00:06:13.797 Or he says this: 00:06:13.797 --> 00:06:16.489 "How can an unsaved man 00:06:16.489 --> 00:06:18.938 be able to even feel that way 00:06:18.938 --> 00:06:20.858 if not by the Spirit?" 00:06:20.858 --> 00:06:23.610 Well, I would say this, 00:06:23.610 --> 00:06:26.138 it probably was by the Spirit. 00:06:26.138 --> 00:06:27.977 You say, what do you mean? 00:06:27.977 --> 00:06:29.178 I'm saying this, 00:06:29.178 --> 00:06:35.669 the Spirit of God works in many people 00:06:35.669 --> 00:06:39.939 who come short of genuine salvation. 00:06:39.939 --> 00:06:42.199 The Word of God can be preached. 00:06:42.199 --> 00:06:45.003 You know what you find oftentimes in times of revival? 00:06:45.003 --> 00:06:47.377 Or you find this even on a given Sunday. 00:06:47.377 --> 00:06:50.260 Somebody stands up and preaches a message. 00:06:50.260 --> 00:06:54.360 You get people who - they're moved. 00:06:54.360 --> 00:06:55.889 They're swayed. 00:06:55.889 --> 00:06:57.328 They're convicted. 00:06:57.328 --> 00:07:02.057 They feel some power in the preaching. 00:07:02.057 --> 00:07:05.737 They go out and they're concerned for their souls. 00:07:05.737 --> 00:07:09.099 Their conscience has been made alive. 00:07:09.099 --> 00:07:10.995 (incomplete thought) 00:07:10.995 --> 00:07:17.258 They've participated in the work of the Spirit. 00:07:17.258 --> 00:07:20.158 It's possible for that to happen 00:07:20.158 --> 00:07:23.348 and truly be of the Spirit, 00:07:23.348 --> 00:07:25.939 and yet they get to a place where it's impossible 00:07:25.939 --> 00:07:27.399 for them to repent. 00:07:27.399 --> 00:07:30.898 Keep going. 00:07:30.898 --> 00:07:32.949 "...And have tasted the goodness 00:07:32.949 --> 00:07:34.717 of the Word of God 00:07:34.717 --> 00:07:37.011 and the powers of the age to come." 00:07:37.011 --> 00:07:39.628 Tim: See? They've tasted of the Word. 00:07:39.628 --> 00:07:41.408 They've tasted the truths. 00:07:41.408 --> 00:07:47.157 That's swirled around in their mouth as well. 00:07:47.157 --> 00:07:51.190 And even the world to come. 00:07:51.190 --> 00:07:53.349 There's power. 00:07:53.349 --> 00:07:57.959 They're actually experiencing the power 00:07:57.959 --> 00:08:00.098 of the supernatural. 00:08:00.098 --> 00:08:01.768 And not just any supernatural, 00:08:01.768 --> 00:08:04.139 this is actually the power of God 00:08:04.139 --> 00:08:07.107 that they're being exposed to. 00:08:07.107 --> 00:08:09.251 Something even that's representative 00:08:09.251 --> 00:08:11.578 of the world to come. 00:08:11.578 --> 00:08:15.148 There's exposure. 00:08:15.148 --> 00:08:17.119 Keep going. 00:08:17.119 --> 00:08:19.188 "...And then have fallen away." 00:08:19.188 --> 00:08:26.909 Tim: Okay, now these people have fallen away. 00:08:26.909 --> 00:08:30.512 Here's the reality we looked at before. 00:08:30.512 --> 00:08:34.279 When it's genuine salvation, 00:08:34.279 --> 00:08:41.219 it can't be lost. 00:08:41.219 --> 00:08:43.428 So these people - 00:08:43.428 --> 00:08:47.419 it's impossible once they've tasted - 00:08:47.419 --> 00:08:52.449 look, when it says that they've fallen away, 00:08:52.449 --> 00:08:55.497 you can't fall away from true salvation. 00:08:55.497 --> 00:08:57.308 Why? Because He puts His fear in us 00:08:57.308 --> 00:09:00.618 that we not fall away; 00:09:00.618 --> 00:09:02.449 that we not go away from Him. 00:09:02.449 --> 00:09:04.859 Christ says if you come to Me, 00:09:04.859 --> 00:09:07.438 I will raise you up at the last day. 00:09:07.438 --> 00:09:08.750 You see, these people, 00:09:08.750 --> 00:09:10.120 (incomplete thought) 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:13.751 what they fell away from is not being saved. 00:09:13.751 --> 00:09:16.209 They've fallen away from the very things 00:09:16.209 --> 00:09:17.741 that are described there. 00:09:17.741 --> 00:09:21.770 They've fallen away from the impact. 00:09:21.770 --> 00:09:25.078 This is a person 00:09:25.078 --> 00:09:31.288 who is exposed to truth. 00:09:31.288 --> 00:09:34.647 They may claim to believe the truth. 00:09:34.647 --> 00:09:36.219 They may make a profession. 00:09:36.219 --> 00:09:38.030 They may get baptized. 00:09:38.030 --> 00:09:39.525 They may join the church. 00:09:39.525 --> 00:09:41.559 They feel they've been impacted. 00:09:41.559 --> 00:09:44.558 They feel they've been convicted. 00:09:44.558 --> 00:09:47.250 And look, based on that text, 00:09:47.250 --> 00:09:53.516 it's real supernatural operations of the Spirit. 00:09:53.516 --> 00:09:57.189 But it comes short because they fall. 00:09:57.189 --> 00:09:59.178 They go away. Remember this: 00:09:59.178 --> 00:10:02.763 If you're sealed with the Spirit, 00:10:02.763 --> 00:10:06.208 He's the guarantee of your inheritance 00:10:06.208 --> 00:10:08.783 until you acquire possession of it. 00:10:08.783 --> 00:10:10.029 It's a guarantee. 00:10:10.029 --> 00:10:12.438 These operations of the Spirit right here 00:10:12.438 --> 00:10:16.208 fall short of that. 00:10:16.208 --> 00:10:18.880 (incomplete thought) 00:10:18.880 --> 00:10:21.967 All those things right there 00:10:21.967 --> 00:10:25.297 a person can have happen and come short. NOTE Paragraph 00:10:25.297 --> 00:10:27.397 Let me take you somewhere else in Hebrews. 00:10:27.397 --> 00:10:33.855 Turn to Hebrews 12:16. 00:10:33.855 --> 00:10:37.307 This is Esau. 00:10:37.307 --> 00:10:40.849 Esau is another great example to look at 00:10:40.849 --> 00:10:43.527 as far as how far a person can go 00:10:43.527 --> 00:10:45.748 and still come short. 00:10:45.748 --> 00:10:49.749 Somebody read v. 16. 00:10:49.749 --> 00:10:51.628 "...That no one is sexually immoral 00:10:51.628 --> 00:10:53.317 or unholy like Esau 00:10:53.317 --> 00:10:57.858 who sold his birthright for a single meal." 00:10:57.858 --> 00:10:59.297 Tim: Keep going. 00:10:59.297 --> 00:11:01.387 "...For we know that afterward, 00:11:01.387 --> 00:11:03.707 when he desired to inherit the blessing, 00:11:03.707 --> 00:11:05.014 he was rejected, 00:11:05.014 --> 00:11:07.099 for he found no chance to repent 00:11:07.099 --> 00:11:09.267 though he sought it with tears." 00:11:09.267 --> 00:11:11.977 Tim: Here's the thing. We know he was lost. 00:11:11.977 --> 00:11:15.159 "Jacob I have loved; Esau I have hated." 00:11:15.159 --> 00:11:19.252 This text says he's an evil person. 00:11:19.252 --> 00:11:21.366 But what was true of him? 00:11:21.366 --> 00:11:24.118 I'll tell you two things that can be true of a person 00:11:24.118 --> 00:11:27.457 and yet they fall short. 00:11:27.457 --> 00:11:28.866 You see them there. 00:11:28.866 --> 00:11:32.398 You can repent of sorts. 00:11:32.398 --> 00:11:34.258 Remember, that's a change of mind. 00:11:34.258 --> 00:11:37.136 He had a change of mind 00:11:37.136 --> 00:11:40.209 where he easily cast away his birthright. 00:11:40.209 --> 00:11:43.308 He then later had a change of mind. 00:11:43.308 --> 00:11:45.138 He wanted it back. 00:11:45.138 --> 00:11:48.218 In fact, he even wept tears. 00:11:48.218 --> 00:11:50.238 A person can weep. 00:11:50.238 --> 00:11:54.225 A person can change their mind, 00:11:54.225 --> 00:11:56.147 but fall short. 00:11:56.147 --> 00:11:57.840 I want you to see another one. NOTE Paragraph 00:11:57.840 --> 00:12:04.139 Turn to Luke 8. 00:12:04.139 --> 00:12:12.798 Somebody read verse 13. 00:12:12.798 --> 00:12:15.088 "And the ones on the rock 00:12:15.088 --> 00:12:18.547 are those who when they heard the Word 00:12:18.547 --> 00:12:20.035 received it with joy." 00:12:20.035 --> 00:12:21.858 Tim: Okay, you can have people 00:12:21.858 --> 00:12:25.707 who hear the true Word. 00:12:25.707 --> 00:12:28.238 Something has happened in them. 00:12:28.238 --> 00:12:31.089 The Spirit may be moving and convicting. 00:12:31.089 --> 00:12:33.749 They may see something in this 00:12:33.749 --> 00:12:36.189 that their eyes have been opened to - 00:12:36.189 --> 00:12:41.910 enlightenment like we saw in Hebrews 6. 00:12:41.910 --> 00:12:44.423 They embrace it. 00:12:44.423 --> 00:12:46.987 They receive it with joy, 00:12:46.987 --> 00:12:49.229 but keep reading. 00:12:49.229 --> 00:12:50.797 "...But these have no root. 00:12:50.797 --> 00:12:52.217 They believe for awhile..." 00:12:52.217 --> 00:12:56.489 Tim: Notice that. They believe for awhile. 00:12:56.489 --> 00:12:58.803 Very interesting. 00:12:58.803 --> 00:13:01.283 Keep going. 00:13:01.283 --> 00:13:03.238 "And in time of testing fall away." 00:13:03.238 --> 00:13:04.337 Tim: They fall away. 00:13:04.337 --> 00:13:06.488 So they weren't genuine. They had no root. 00:13:06.488 --> 00:13:07.647 They never had any root. 00:13:07.647 --> 00:13:09.077 It's not like they were saved, 00:13:09.077 --> 00:13:10.649 and then they weren't saved. 00:13:10.649 --> 00:13:12.627 They were defective from the beginning. 00:13:12.627 --> 00:13:13.828 But here's the thing, 00:13:13.828 --> 00:13:15.540 you can be enlightened. 00:13:15.540 --> 00:13:17.878 You can taste of the heavenly gift. 00:13:17.878 --> 00:13:25.627 You can taste of this good gift. 00:13:25.627 --> 00:13:29.437 You can participate in the operations of the Spirit. 00:13:29.437 --> 00:13:30.858 You can repent. 00:13:30.858 --> 00:13:32.347 You can weep tears. 00:13:32.347 --> 00:13:34.098 You can even believe. 00:13:34.098 --> 00:13:37.896 You can receive gladly. 00:13:37.896 --> 00:13:41.527 You know what Matthew 7 says. 00:13:41.527 --> 00:13:43.419 You can say, "Lord, Lord." 00:13:43.419 --> 00:13:45.157 You can know the right lingo. 00:13:45.157 --> 00:13:47.797 They say, "Lord, Lord." What did they do? 00:13:47.797 --> 00:13:50.368 Well, we cast out demons, 00:13:50.368 --> 00:13:53.148 and we prophesied in Your name. 00:13:53.148 --> 00:13:55.646 We cast out demons in Your name. 00:13:55.646 --> 00:13:57.338 In Your name! 00:13:57.338 --> 00:13:58.688 We prophesied in Your name. 00:13:58.688 --> 00:14:01.458 We did many mighty works in Your name. 00:14:01.458 --> 00:14:04.378 You remember Judas? 00:14:04.378 --> 00:14:06.897 He undoubtedly cast out just as many demons 00:14:06.897 --> 00:14:12.227 and healed people as well as the others. 00:14:12.227 --> 00:14:15.628 You can do many mighty works in His name. 00:14:15.628 --> 00:14:20.746 He's not saying the people didn't do them. 00:14:20.746 --> 00:14:22.424 Many of these things can happen 00:14:22.424 --> 00:14:24.586 and still people fall short. 00:14:24.586 --> 00:14:27.416 You know the church at Sardis? 00:14:27.416 --> 00:14:31.266 "You have a name that you're alive, but you're dead." 00:14:31.266 --> 00:14:33.985 Oh, you can call yourself all the right names. 00:14:33.985 --> 00:14:35.264 I'm a Christian. 00:14:35.264 --> 00:14:37.225 I'm a child of God. I'm born again. 00:14:37.225 --> 00:14:40.244 You can say all the right things. 00:14:40.244 --> 00:14:41.921 You can say, "Lord, Lord." 00:14:41.921 --> 00:14:44.994 And He says it's not everybody that says to Me, "Lord, Lord." 00:14:44.994 --> 00:14:47.896 You can have a name that you're alive, 00:14:47.896 --> 00:14:50.185 but the name is a lie. 00:14:50.185 --> 00:14:53.676 People run around calling themselves (incomplete thought). 00:14:53.676 --> 00:14:57.664 When Jesus comes, He's going to set all names right. 00:14:57.664 --> 00:15:00.935 He's going to put the right names on people. 00:15:00.935 --> 00:15:03.673 You know, there's a place there in fact, 00:15:03.673 --> 00:15:06.276 Jesus talks about the people who say they're Jews, 00:15:06.276 --> 00:15:08.954 but they're not. They lie. 00:15:08.954 --> 00:15:10.223 Physically they were Jews, 00:15:10.223 --> 00:15:12.244 but they weren't really Jews. 00:15:12.244 --> 00:15:15.013 And Jesus is going to set all names right. 00:15:15.013 --> 00:15:17.128 People love to call themselves by names. 00:15:17.128 --> 00:15:18.898 You can call yourself many names 00:15:18.898 --> 00:15:23.496 and still fall short of being genuine. NOTE Paragraph 00:15:23.496 --> 00:15:27.965 So, I just want us to think. 00:15:27.965 --> 00:15:32.279 Okay, how does all of that 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:35.334 compare to the genuine? 00:15:35.334 --> 00:15:41.553 And that's the thing. 00:15:41.553 --> 00:15:44.835 And James preached through Philippians not long ago 00:15:44.835 --> 00:15:47.304 and I think I mentioned it last week 00:15:47.304 --> 00:15:49.065 or one of the last times. 00:15:49.065 --> 00:15:51.785 But Philippians 3:3 - 00:15:51.785 --> 00:15:58.194 can anybody quote it besides James? 00:15:58.194 --> 00:16:00.594 James, can you quote it? 00:16:00.594 --> 00:16:03.814 "For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God 00:16:03.814 --> 00:16:06.873 and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh..." 00:16:06.873 --> 00:16:09.854 Tim: Yeah, worship in the Spirit. 00:16:09.854 --> 00:16:13.943 So, this is the reality 00:16:13.943 --> 00:16:18.474 that their glory is in Christ. 00:16:18.474 --> 00:16:19.925 They worship in the Spirit. 00:16:19.925 --> 00:16:22.814 They put no confidence in the flesh. 00:16:22.814 --> 00:16:25.583 Their confidence is in Christ. 00:16:25.583 --> 00:16:28.665 I mean, look, listen. 00:16:28.665 --> 00:16:32.443 If somebody falls away because of persecution, 00:16:32.443 --> 00:16:34.546 you know what? 00:16:34.546 --> 00:16:37.336 You know what they really believed? 00:16:37.336 --> 00:16:40.886 They didn't believe that Jesus was to be had at all costs. 00:16:40.886 --> 00:16:46.166 What will make a man walk away from Christ? 00:16:46.166 --> 00:16:48.724 Only if he truly believes that Christ 00:16:48.724 --> 00:16:50.985 isn't the most necessary thing. 00:16:50.985 --> 00:16:55.435 Because as persecution goes up, 00:16:55.435 --> 00:16:58.024 why does it cause people to fall away? 00:16:58.024 --> 00:17:03.885 Because they put suffering and Christ in the scale, 00:17:03.885 --> 00:17:08.086 and they say my own not suffering, 00:17:08.086 --> 00:17:10.246 my own ease, 00:17:10.246 --> 00:17:14.233 my own not being persecuted and feeling bad 00:17:14.233 --> 00:17:17.404 is more important than having Christ. 00:17:17.404 --> 00:17:20.496 The reason the true believer will not let go of Christ 00:17:20.496 --> 00:17:21.958 is because he truly believes. 00:17:21.958 --> 00:17:24.134 He believes he's got to have Christ or perish 00:17:24.134 --> 00:17:26.855 and he won't let go of Him for anything. 00:17:26.855 --> 00:17:28.064 He glories in that. 00:17:28.064 --> 00:17:29.655 That is his hope. 00:17:29.655 --> 00:17:33.245 He worships God in the Spirit. 00:17:33.245 --> 00:17:37.196 That's what Christ said the Father's looking for. 00:17:37.196 --> 00:17:39.696 Not worshiping in the flesh. 00:17:39.696 --> 00:17:42.336 You say, what do you mean? 00:17:42.336 --> 00:17:45.203 You know what worship in the flesh is? 00:17:45.203 --> 00:17:55.115 It's praying like the heathen do. 00:17:55.115 --> 00:17:57.464 They think by their repetitions, 00:17:57.464 --> 00:18:01.726 they're going to get God. 00:18:01.726 --> 00:18:05.306 Believing that because you pray - 00:18:05.306 --> 00:18:07.034 it's trusting your prayer. 00:18:07.034 --> 00:18:09.026 Trusting the repetition of your prayer. 00:18:09.026 --> 00:18:11.325 It's trusting in what you do. 00:18:11.325 --> 00:18:14.420 The person who worships by the Spirit, 00:18:14.420 --> 00:18:15.718 what's happening? 00:18:15.718 --> 00:18:16.890 From the heart, 00:18:16.890 --> 00:18:19.961 they delight in God. 00:18:19.961 --> 00:18:23.661 From the heart, they admire 00:18:23.661 --> 00:18:25.701 and they adore 00:18:25.701 --> 00:18:27.169 and they're amazed 00:18:27.169 --> 00:18:28.649 and they're in awe, 00:18:28.649 --> 00:18:31.539 and they find God glorious 00:18:31.539 --> 00:18:34.666 and they're shaken by His majesty 00:18:34.666 --> 00:18:40.326 and by His purity and by His holiness. 00:18:40.326 --> 00:18:43.305 When they sing, there's a joy that comes. 00:18:43.305 --> 00:18:47.147 You see, those who don't worship by the Spirit, 00:18:47.147 --> 00:18:50.024 it's a work. 00:18:50.024 --> 00:18:53.006 What's happening in the worship 00:18:53.006 --> 00:18:56.767 is it's an exercise that they go through 00:18:56.767 --> 00:19:00.415 because they're accumulating points with God. 00:19:00.415 --> 00:19:04.119 Versus the worship that's of the Spirit - 00:19:04.119 --> 00:19:08.846 it's when the Spirit takes the blinders off 00:19:08.846 --> 00:19:10.885 and allows us to see the beauty 00:19:10.885 --> 00:19:13.225 and majesty of God 00:19:13.225 --> 00:19:16.466 and we worship Him from the heart level 00:19:16.466 --> 00:19:18.934 because we're thankful, 00:19:18.934 --> 00:19:21.667 because we find beauty. 00:19:21.667 --> 00:19:23.725 We're legitimately thankful. 00:19:23.725 --> 00:19:27.416 We come to God thankful that He saved us 00:19:27.416 --> 00:19:29.756 based on the merits of Jesus Christ. 00:19:29.756 --> 00:19:31.407 Not like the Catholic comes 00:19:31.407 --> 00:19:33.117 who counts the beads. 00:19:33.117 --> 00:19:36.788 What is bead counting? 00:19:36.788 --> 00:19:38.857 Why? Why each one? 00:19:38.857 --> 00:19:40.696 Because it's merit. 00:19:40.696 --> 00:19:42.896 I'm doing it to get something. 00:19:42.896 --> 00:19:45.877 So I count all these out. I'm rigorous. 00:19:45.877 --> 00:19:48.607 I walk on my knees till they bleed. 00:19:48.607 --> 00:19:50.535 I told you guys this. 00:19:50.535 --> 00:19:52.223 I went to high school with a guy 00:19:52.223 --> 00:19:53.836 that became a Jesuit priest. 00:19:53.836 --> 00:19:56.531 He likes to tell people that when he was a kid 00:19:56.531 --> 00:19:59.166 back when he was my friend - 00:19:59.166 --> 00:20:00.735 I grew up with this guy - 00:20:00.735 --> 00:20:03.777 that he put rocks in his shoes. 00:20:03.777 --> 00:20:05.556 He likes to tell people. 00:20:05.556 --> 00:20:06.785 Why? 00:20:06.785 --> 00:20:09.256 Because it's another notch in the belt 00:20:09.256 --> 00:20:10.595 of his righteousness 00:20:10.595 --> 00:20:12.906 that he's earning this merit. 00:20:12.906 --> 00:20:14.616 That's what it's all about. 00:20:14.616 --> 00:20:16.346 What do you think purgatory is? 00:20:16.346 --> 00:20:19.276 Purgatory is where you go pay in the fire. 00:20:19.276 --> 00:20:21.896 If you weren't able to pay well enough here 00:20:21.896 --> 00:20:23.666 and get enough here 00:20:23.666 --> 00:20:25.233 and do enough here, 00:20:25.233 --> 00:20:26.616 then you pay more there. 00:20:26.616 --> 00:20:28.355 It's all this merit system. 00:20:28.355 --> 00:20:32.317 When you worship God in the Spirit, 00:20:32.317 --> 00:20:33.886 it's totally different 00:20:33.886 --> 00:20:36.664 because what the Spirit does is exalts Christ. 00:20:36.664 --> 00:20:39.557 You see there. There's appreciation 00:20:39.557 --> 00:20:40.966 and there's thankfulness 00:20:40.966 --> 00:20:43.915 that He has saved you. 00:20:43.915 --> 00:20:45.597 And it's based on Him. 00:20:45.597 --> 00:20:48.116 And there's thankfulness and gratefulness. 00:20:48.116 --> 00:20:50.166 And you don't put confidence in the flesh. 00:20:50.166 --> 00:20:51.987 Counting those beads is all flesh. 00:20:51.987 --> 00:20:54.436 It's what you can do in your own strength. 00:20:54.436 --> 00:20:56.761 But you see, we cast that away. 00:20:56.761 --> 00:20:57.945 That's what Paul did. 00:20:57.945 --> 00:20:59.908 That's what Philippians 3 is. 00:20:59.908 --> 00:21:02.157 It's this great big list of all these things 00:21:02.157 --> 00:21:04.316 that he put his confidence in. 00:21:04.316 --> 00:21:05.279 But you know what? 00:21:05.279 --> 00:21:08.925 That's what it is to worship in the Spirit. 00:21:08.925 --> 00:21:11.805 The Spirit comes in and just devastates 00:21:11.805 --> 00:21:14.715 all the confidences that we formerly had. 00:21:14.715 --> 00:21:16.316 All the hopes we formerly had 00:21:16.316 --> 00:21:18.205 of how we were going to get to heaven - 00:21:18.205 --> 00:21:19.797 He just devastates them all 00:21:19.797 --> 00:21:22.194 until we're broken, we're empty, we're bankrupt, 00:21:22.194 --> 00:21:24.116 and there's only one hope, 00:21:24.116 --> 00:21:26.935 and that's we glory in Christ Jesus. 00:21:26.935 --> 00:21:30.407 Those three things stated there in Philippians 3:3. 00:21:30.407 --> 00:21:32.325 That's the essence of it. 00:21:32.325 --> 00:21:34.905 Sometimes people can feel discouraged 00:21:34.905 --> 00:21:37.625 or you feel like when I was a brand new convert 00:21:37.625 --> 00:21:39.085 reading this Puritan book 00:21:39.085 --> 00:21:40.815 and falling on my face all the time. 00:21:40.815 --> 00:21:42.725 But the reality is even though 00:21:42.725 --> 00:21:44.917 so many things can be real of your life 00:21:44.917 --> 00:21:47.805 and you fall short of being the real thing, 00:21:47.805 --> 00:21:50.446 you never fall short of being the real thing 00:21:50.446 --> 00:21:53.952 if your only confidence is in Jesus Christ. 00:21:53.952 --> 00:21:56.216 You will not be put to shame. 00:21:56.216 --> 00:21:57.725 No matter what else may happen, 00:21:57.725 --> 00:21:59.445 no matter whatever winds may blow, 00:21:59.445 --> 00:22:00.946 whatever persecutions may come, 00:22:00.946 --> 00:22:03.005 whatever attacks you may suffer, 00:22:03.005 --> 00:22:05.759 whatever thoughts may run through your mind, 00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:06.873 I'll tell you this - 00:22:06.873 --> 00:22:10.737 if your sole confidence in being saved before God 00:22:10.737 --> 00:22:14.474 rests in the merits, the death of Jesus Christ, 00:22:14.474 --> 00:22:16.226 that's your only hope, 00:22:16.226 --> 00:22:17.885 that's your only confidence, 00:22:17.885 --> 00:22:20.019 and you have none in the flesh - 00:22:20.019 --> 00:22:22.205 in your own doings, in your own worship, 00:22:22.205 --> 00:22:23.455 in your own merit - 00:22:23.455 --> 00:22:25.636 none in your own goodness, 00:22:25.636 --> 00:22:27.608 it's not there, it's only in Him, 00:22:27.608 --> 00:22:29.595 I'll guarantee you this: you are saved. 00:22:29.595 --> 00:22:31.125 You are going to glory. 00:22:31.125 --> 00:22:35.605 Scripture promises it. 00:22:35.605 --> 00:22:43.799 You have root if that's the case. 00:22:43.799 --> 00:22:48.908 So, this guy, I would say this to him. 00:22:48.908 --> 00:22:52.868 He said, "I made a lot of progress in sanctification." 00:22:52.868 --> 00:22:57.758 But he says, 00:22:57.758 --> 00:23:01.199 "I've ended up holding on to one or two sins." 00:23:01.199 --> 00:23:05.198 He says, "...lust, pride, fear of man, 00:23:05.198 --> 00:23:08.377 watching bad TV, bad movies... 00:23:08.377 --> 00:23:13.857 often gets the better of me." 00:23:13.857 --> 00:23:18.577 I would say this, 00:23:18.577 --> 00:23:22.537 that that isn't a good picture of sanctification. 00:23:22.537 --> 00:23:25.257 He says, "I've made lots of progress in sanctification." 00:23:25.257 --> 00:23:30.356 I don't think that is lots of progress in sanctification likely. 00:23:30.356 --> 00:23:33.177 If lust, pride, fear of man, watching bad TV 00:23:33.177 --> 00:23:36.585 and bad movies are often getting the better of him, 00:23:36.585 --> 00:23:39.683 that's not a good picture of sanctification. 00:23:39.683 --> 00:23:44.167 And so, what I would say to people like this 00:23:44.167 --> 00:23:55.696 is if you look at your life 00:23:55.696 --> 00:24:03.194 and you recognize something's wrong - 00:24:03.194 --> 00:24:08.615 look, people are looking for the solution. 00:24:08.615 --> 00:24:10.497 They're looking for the magic formula. 00:24:10.497 --> 00:24:11.668 But I'll tell you this, 00:24:11.668 --> 00:24:13.216 if something's wrong, 00:24:13.216 --> 00:24:14.777 there's only One who can fix it, 00:24:14.777 --> 00:24:16.386 and you can't. 00:24:16.386 --> 00:24:18.775 And the thing is you've got to be 00:24:18.775 --> 00:24:20.327 like blind Bartimaeus 00:24:20.327 --> 00:24:22.827 where you cry out until He fixes it. 00:24:22.827 --> 00:24:25.558 You cry out until He sets your eyes right. 00:24:25.558 --> 00:24:26.987 Because if you don't, 00:24:26.987 --> 00:24:29.007 if you just go back to your life, 00:24:29.007 --> 00:24:30.736 go back to your sin, 00:24:30.736 --> 00:24:33.197 go back to your religion, 00:24:33.197 --> 00:24:37.096 you just ignore these kinds of things, 00:24:37.096 --> 00:24:39.057 and you just let them go, 00:24:39.057 --> 00:24:42.017 he's going to drift deeper and deeper 00:24:42.017 --> 00:24:45.337 into what he describes as lukewarmness, 00:24:45.337 --> 00:24:47.516 unrepentant sin, 00:24:47.516 --> 00:24:51.187 stop feeling conviction, 00:24:51.187 --> 00:24:52.927 hard heart. 00:24:52.927 --> 00:24:56.536 And you just wake up in hell. 00:24:56.536 --> 00:25:04.294 You cry out until the Lord heals you 00:25:04.294 --> 00:25:06.666 or you perish. 00:25:06.666 --> 00:25:09.095 If something's wrong, 00:25:09.095 --> 00:25:10.875 there's only one place to go. 00:25:10.875 --> 00:25:13.274 It's not the church. The church doesn't heal you. 00:25:13.274 --> 00:25:16.245 It's not the pastors - any of them. 00:25:16.245 --> 00:25:17.676 All of us together - 00:25:17.676 --> 00:25:19.556 all the pastors in our church, 00:25:19.556 --> 00:25:21.597 all the pastors from every church in town, 00:25:21.597 --> 00:25:22.777 we can come together 00:25:22.777 --> 00:25:24.278 and we can all lay hands on you 00:25:24.278 --> 00:25:25.907 and we can't do anything for you. 00:25:25.907 --> 00:25:27.037 We can pray for you, 00:25:27.037 --> 00:25:29.187 but in the end, we're going to call upon Him 00:25:29.187 --> 00:25:30.777 who is your only hope. 00:25:30.777 --> 00:25:33.391 That's the only hope of anybody sitting here, 00:25:33.391 --> 00:25:34.536 anybody listening. 00:25:34.536 --> 00:25:36.497 If something's wrong, 00:25:36.497 --> 00:25:40.186 if you're spiraling into sin, 00:25:40.186 --> 00:25:42.328 look, what we can say is this: 00:25:42.328 --> 00:25:46.152 Scripture says in no uncertain terms 00:25:46.152 --> 00:25:47.986 you've been raised to newness of life. 00:25:47.986 --> 00:25:50.833 Sin shall not have dominion over you. 00:25:50.833 --> 00:25:54.307 You need to reckon yourselves dead to sin. 00:25:54.307 --> 00:25:56.037 The reality of Scripture is 00:25:56.037 --> 00:25:59.718 without holiness, you don't see the Lord. 00:25:59.718 --> 00:26:03.437 The reality is God is in the business 00:26:03.437 --> 00:26:05.895 of transforming people 00:26:05.895 --> 00:26:07.957 into the image of Jesus Christ. 00:26:07.957 --> 00:26:09.646 And if that is not happening 00:26:09.646 --> 00:26:12.208 in some stark, very real, 00:26:12.208 --> 00:26:14.527 very recognizable fashion, 00:26:14.527 --> 00:26:15.937 something is wrong. 00:26:15.937 --> 00:26:18.297 Like I say, if something is wrong, 00:26:18.297 --> 00:26:20.208 only Jesus can set it right. 00:26:20.208 --> 00:26:21.686 Only He can heal this. 00:26:21.686 --> 00:26:24.457 Only He is the doctor to do 00:26:24.457 --> 00:26:26.966 the kind of surgery that's necessary 00:26:26.966 --> 00:26:30.008 on the heart of people. 00:26:30.008 --> 00:26:31.582 You go to Him. You go to Him. 00:26:31.582 --> 00:26:34.748 You cry to Him. You look to Him. 00:26:34.748 --> 00:26:38.048 Scripture says if you call upon the name of the Lord 00:26:38.048 --> 00:26:40.086 you will be saved. 00:26:40.086 --> 00:26:42.159 So you call. You call. You go there. 00:26:42.159 --> 00:26:43.616 That is the only hope. 00:26:43.616 --> 00:26:47.988 There is no other place to direct people. 00:26:47.988 --> 00:26:50.644 I would give the Lord no rest 00:26:50.644 --> 00:26:52.968 if you're in a position where you're uncertain. 00:26:52.968 --> 00:26:54.987 And whether there's such things happening 00:26:54.987 --> 00:26:56.967 in your life with regards to lukewarmness 00:26:56.967 --> 00:26:59.645 and hardness and spiraling into sin 00:26:59.645 --> 00:27:01.133 and just not really knowing 00:27:01.133 --> 00:27:03.337 what it even means to worship the Lord 00:27:03.337 --> 00:27:06.401 in the Spirit and glory in Jesus Christ 00:27:06.401 --> 00:27:08.848 and to find all your hope there. 00:27:08.848 --> 00:27:10.568 Give Him no rest. 00:27:10.568 --> 00:27:12.695 Look, hell is real and once you're there, 00:27:12.695 --> 00:27:14.897 it's permanent. It's done. It's over. 00:27:14.897 --> 00:27:18.822 And you're devastated forever. 00:27:18.822 --> 00:27:20.686 You're damned. 00:27:20.686 --> 00:27:22.517 You're destroyed. 00:27:22.517 --> 00:27:25.136 And there's no hope. Fire is real. 00:27:25.136 --> 00:27:27.987 You wouldn't cast yourself into a bonfire. 00:27:27.987 --> 00:27:29.997 Think of the lake of fire. It's real. 00:27:29.997 --> 00:27:32.096 You're going to be cast in there. 00:27:32.096 --> 00:27:35.267 You don't want to just play with your soul 00:27:35.267 --> 00:27:37.776 as though it's some cheap little toy, 00:27:37.776 --> 00:27:39.748 something easily squandered. 00:27:39.748 --> 00:27:41.276 You don't want to do that. 00:27:41.276 --> 00:27:42.997 You lose your soul - Jesus said, 00:27:42.997 --> 00:27:46.438 what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 00:27:46.438 --> 00:27:48.028 There's nothing. 00:27:48.028 --> 00:27:50.685 You'll give everything in exchange for your soul. 00:27:50.685 --> 00:27:52.647 There's nothing to hold on to 00:27:52.647 --> 00:27:54.498 at the cost of your soul. 00:27:54.498 --> 00:27:58.367 This sin that you think that you have to have? 00:27:58.367 --> 00:28:01.538 You will curse yourself one day for holding on to it 00:28:01.538 --> 00:28:03.147 if it costs you your soul 00:28:03.147 --> 00:28:05.535 and you end up perishing. 00:28:05.535 --> 00:28:09.446 Especially when you were so close. 00:28:09.446 --> 00:28:12.237 If you perish after having sat 00:28:12.237 --> 00:28:13.807 under the preaching 00:28:13.807 --> 00:28:17.157 that you people have sat under, 00:28:17.157 --> 00:28:19.056 what a horror in that! 00:28:19.056 --> 00:28:20.142 Can you imagine? 00:28:20.142 --> 00:28:22.628 It's one thing to end up in hell 00:28:22.628 --> 00:28:24.516 and how devastating that is, 00:28:24.516 --> 00:28:25.826 but can you imagine? 00:28:25.826 --> 00:28:29.007 Can you imagine if you came this close? 00:28:29.007 --> 00:28:32.348 It was like, wow, God put me in church 00:28:32.348 --> 00:28:34.876 where they taught the truth 00:28:34.876 --> 00:28:36.644 and I heard the truth 00:28:36.644 --> 00:28:38.246 and I entertained the truth 00:28:38.246 --> 00:28:40.857 and I saw it from the pages of Scripture 00:28:40.857 --> 00:28:42.705 and I heard Christ proclaimed 00:28:42.705 --> 00:28:45.236 and He was lifted up as the only hope. 00:28:45.236 --> 00:28:46.666 And you know there were times 00:28:46.666 --> 00:28:49.597 I even experienced some of that power of the Holy Spirit 00:28:49.597 --> 00:28:51.027 and I felt convicted 00:28:51.027 --> 00:28:52.647 and I came this close. 00:28:52.647 --> 00:28:54.737 And there were times I was even reaching. 00:28:54.737 --> 00:28:56.938 There were times I asked the Lord to save. 00:28:56.938 --> 00:28:58.926 Oh, I look back now and I recognize 00:28:58.926 --> 00:29:00.867 I wasn't totally committed to that. 00:29:00.867 --> 00:29:02.377 I didn't totally want it. 00:29:02.377 --> 00:29:04.390 I wasn't really being honest. 00:29:04.390 --> 00:29:06.217 But there was some movements 00:29:06.217 --> 00:29:07.631 and I was this close! 00:29:07.631 --> 00:29:11.427 Can you imagine if you got that close 00:29:11.427 --> 00:29:12.935 to the Treasure? 00:29:12.935 --> 00:29:15.987 To touching the Treasure 00:29:15.987 --> 00:29:17.018 and then you turned 00:29:17.018 --> 00:29:19.265 and you chose your sin instead? 00:29:19.265 --> 00:29:21.140 And you perished. 00:29:21.140 --> 00:29:24.037 You will curse yourself forever. 00:29:24.037 --> 00:29:27.537 You came that close. 00:29:27.537 --> 00:29:29.916 And you will hear those words. 00:29:29.916 --> 00:29:31.889 It is now going to be more tolerable 00:29:31.889 --> 00:29:35.688 for Sodom than for you. 00:29:35.688 --> 00:29:41.627 That's what Scripture says. 00:29:41.627 --> 00:29:45.266 Oh Father, I pray that there would be 00:29:45.266 --> 00:29:48.027 some serious dealings with You 00:29:48.027 --> 00:29:51.045 by hopefully some of these young men 00:29:51.045 --> 00:29:53.547 who have written will hear these things 00:29:53.547 --> 00:29:58.796 and others like them. 00:29:58.796 --> 00:30:01.496 Lord, I pray, 00:30:01.496 --> 00:30:04.027 have compassion upon sinners. 00:30:04.027 --> 00:30:07.147 We pray You'd bring revival to our land. 00:30:07.147 --> 00:30:08.727 Bring a stirring. 00:30:08.727 --> 00:30:11.206 Sweep people into Your kingdom. 00:30:11.206 --> 00:30:14.668 Cause salvation to fall down from above. 00:30:14.668 --> 00:30:16.924 We ask it in Christ's name, Amen.