Thursday, October 28, 2021

Making Much of Sin - August/Sept. 2021

 

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As stewards of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we do no service to men by making light of sin, skirting around the issue, or avoiding it altogether. Men have only one problem: they are under the wrath of God because of their sin. (John 3:36) To deny this is to deny one of the most foundational doctrines of Christianity. 























It is not unloving to tell men that they are sinners, but it is the grossest form of immorality not to tell them! In fact, God declares that their blood will be on our hands if we do not warn them of their sin and the coming judgment. (Ezekial 33:8) 



To seek to preach the gospel without making sin an issue is like trying to heal the brokenness of people superficially, saying, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6:14)





The Scriptures tell us that the law was not given as a means of salvation, but as an instrument for exposing both the vileness of sin (i.e., that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful) and the sinfulness of man (i.e., all the world may become guilty before God). (Romans 7:13; 3:19) 






...there is no evidence in the New Testament that this ministry of the law should not continue to be an essential part of our gospel proclamation. 





The old preachers called it the breaking up of fallow ground, turning over rocks, and pulling back curtains. (Jeremiah 4:3; Hosea 10:12) They saw the need to hold men up to the mirror of God’s law so that they might see their destitute condition and cry out for mercy. Of course, this is not to be done with a spirit of pride or arrogance, and we are not to handle people roughly. God has not called us to be a belligerent or offensive people, even though the truth we preach with all humility may be a great offense to many.








Was the apostle Paul merely an angry and bitter man with an ax to grind against humanity? No! He loved humanity to such an extent that he poured out his life like a drink offering on behalf of the Gentiles, and he even wished himself accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of his fellow Jew. (Philippians 2:17; Romans 9:3) 









Paul preached against sin for the same reason that the physician works to diagnose his patient’s illness and is willing to tell him even the worst of news. It is a labor of love for the salvation of the hearer. Any other response by a doctor or preacher would be loveless and immoral. 




It may be appropriate at this time to ask ourselves if our gospel preaching has such a purpose. Do we love enough to teach truth, expose sin, and confront our hearers? Do we possess a biblical compassion that tells men the truth in hope that their hearts will be broken under the weight of their sin and they must look to Christ alone? Are we willing to risk being misunderstood and maligned in order that truth might be told and men might be saved? 


Modern man has become the feeble character that he is because he is self-absorbed and living in rebellion against God. He is loaded down with guilt because he is guilty. He needs God’s Word to expose his sin and bring him to repentance. Only then will there be a biblical brokenness that leads to life.

(From: The Gospel's Power & Message, by Paul Washer, Ch. 10, (c) 2012 Reformed Heritage Books.)

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These two men approached one of our team members and attempted to sway him to believe in "The Mother God"

The video linked here gives a good introduction to this heresy.


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For information on how you may participate in this outreach please contact Steve at email: ephesiansDELtwo8910@gmail.com. (In order to avoid automated spam replies I have added three letters in caps. Please DELete those letters before using this address to reply.) Thank you!

Maranatha!!


Thursday, August 19, 2021

The Shield of Faith - June/July 2021

 


…above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. — EPHESIANS 6:16


FAITH DEFINED 


What does it mean for us to have faith in God and His Word? Is faith merely intellectual assent in some abstract ideas concerning God and His truth? Is it just having some vague notions or feelings about the Almighty and the Bible? It is not. 






Besides being the channel through which God brings us salvation (Eph. 2:8–9), faith is also what sustains us throughout the entirety of our Christian lives, for “the just shall live by faith” (Rom. 1:17, emphasis added). 




Faith, simply defined, is a conviction of a known truth and the solid confidence that springs from that conviction. Faith is a firm persuasion of and unwavering trust in God and His Son, Jesus Christ (John 14:1), based upon everything He has said to us about Himself in His Word. 




In addition, in this context of Ephesians, faith communicates the idea of belief in God’s power and His promises to do all that He said He would do in order to keep us safe from enemy assaults (Eph. 6:10–13). Peter O’Brien points out that believers lay “hold of God’s resources, especially his power, in the midst of the evil one’s attack” and appropriate “the promises of God on our behalf, confident that he will protect us in the midst of the battle.”  




The apostle tells us that “above all,” or, more literally, in all situations and on all occasions, we are to take up the shield, which is faith. We see again from his language that Paul is giving Christians a solemn responsibility. The verb take up, in active voice, indicates there is something we must do in order to protect ourselves from the devil. Take up is a military term, the same one used in verse 13 of this chapter, and it lays upon us the necessity of completely trusting God, His Word, and His ability to help us at all times. 




If we are to stand strong, we must regularly take up the shield of faith and never put it down. We are to habitually trust in the Lord, who is a shield about us (Gen. 15:1), and believe all that He has said to us in Scripture. Only then will we be greatly protected from the devil’s attacks against us.

(Excerpt from Brian Borgman; Rob Ventura. "Spiritual Warfare: A Biblical and Balanced Perspective." Reformation Heritage Books.)




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For information on how you may participate in this outreach please contact Steve at email: ephesiansDELtwo8910@gmail.com. (In order to avoid automated spam replies I have added three letters in caps. Please DELete those letters before using this address to reply.) Thank you!

Maranatha!!