Mar 26
16
It has been my experience that focusing on whether or not I am saved always leads to confusion and doubt, but focusing on whether Christ is the Saviour has always led to simplicity of thought and confidence. Joe Terrell
It has been often said that justification is the article upon which a church stands or falls. While I do not disagree with that statement, it certainly is not complete. Perhaps a better word would be sanctification. Sanctification (being set apart to be holy) encompasses the whole spectrum of salvation. The believer was set apart by the Father in eternal election to be holy. The believer was set apart and declared to be holy by the redeeming work of Christ on the cross. The believer is set apart from the rest of the world in regeneration when he is given a holy nature by the Spirit of God. Sanctification describes the work of all three Persons of the Godhead and encompasses every aspect of salvation from election to glorification. Yes, justification is of infinite importance. But so is every other part of God’s salvation. What word is used most in Scripture to describe God’s children? ….. Saints (Sanctified Ones).
Todd Nibert
Saving Faith
Saving faith is not based upon one’s feelings but upon God’s faithfulness. It embraces and rejoices in the promises of God. It needs no evidence or proof, only a word from the living God of the Bible; being “fully persuaded that what God has promised, he is able also to perform” (Romans 4:21); and realising that the only difference between God’s faithful promise and its perfect fulfilment is just a little time…His appointed time!
~Maurice Montgomery
I challenge anyone to put his or her finger on one scripture in the Holy Bible where Christ ever turned away a truly repentant sinner. You won’t find one! Many came in pride that were turned away. Many came in religion that were soon drawn away. Yet never was there one desperate sinner who came with great need and desire to be healed that was ever denied His grace. ~David Eddmenson
The Warning
2 Peter 2:1
As there were many false prophets among the children of Israel in the Old Testament, so there shall be many false teachers rising up in the church of Christ until he comes again. Though they profess to be redeemed by Christ and claim to love him and trust him, though they seem to be most amiable and kind, the poison of asps is under their lips. Their doctrine is damning! Their doctrine is a denial of Christ, not of his coming, but of his accomplishments, not of his Being, but of his character, not of his death, or atonement by it, but of the efficacy of it! To deny Christ the Lord is not a mere denial of the title Lord, but a denial of his character as Lord, rightful Master and absolute Sovereign! “Beware of false prophets!”
Don Fortner
Who Is Jesus Christ?
Matthew 24:22-24
Satan is a master deceiver. His methods of destroying the souls of men are numerous, but none is more successful than false religion.He transforms his ministers into angels of light and preachers of righteousness (I Cor. 1:13-15). He invents false christs, builds a refuge of lies, and persuades people to trust a christ he has invented and make lies a refuge for their souls. Then he gives his captives peace and assurance with which he drags them to hell.Salvation is to be had only by trusting the Christ of Holy Scripture. Any other christ is a false christ, antichrist. “The One who is to be enshrined in our minds and hearts must be the true Christ of the Bible. Otherwise we have an idol at the centre of our faith” (John Legg). We must know who Jesus Christ is and what he has done if we are to trust him and be saved by him. Faith in a false christ, (no matter how sincere, life changing and comforting it is), is a false faith that will drag your soul to hell at last. I do not say that a sinner must have any depth of theological knowledge and understanding before he can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. That would be to preach a subtle form of works salvation. There are no preconditions to be met by the sinner before he may believe on Christ. However, I do say, true faith must have the true Christ for its object.You cannot be saved trusting a false christ! Many false prophets have gone out into the world in the spirit of antichrist preaching a false christ (I John 4:1-4).It is therefore vital that God’s servants clearly identify the Christ of Holy Scripture.JESUS CHRIST IS THE SOVEREIGN GOD (Rom. 9:5). Being himself God, our Saviour has absolute power, dominion, and control over all creation. He always does what he will. He cannot fail to accomplish his will to any degree. A god who fails is no God at all! JESUS CHRIST IS THE EFFECTUAL REDEEMER OF HIS PEOPLE (Gal.3: 13). By his incarnation, obedience to God and death upon the cross as their Substitute, Christ has established perfect righteousness and fully satisfied the justice of God for his elect. By effectual redemption he secured the eternal salvation of all his people. JESUS CHRIST IS THE SUCCESSFUL SAVIOUR (Matt. 1:21). All whom he purposed to save in eternity and died to save at Calvary he will save at his appointed time. All who trust him do so because he is a successful Saviour!
Don Fortner
Through the inward conflicts,
secret workings
Through the inward conflicts, secret workings,
mysterious changes, and ever-varying exercises
of his soul, the true Christian becomes established
in a deep experience of . . .
his own folly and God’s wisdom,
his own weakness and Christ’s strength,
his own sinfulness and the Lord’s goodness,
his own backslidings and the Spirit’s recoveries,
his own base ingratitude and Jehovah’s patience,
the aboundings of sin and the super-aboundings of
grace.
He thus becomes daily more and more confirmed in . . .
the vanity of the creature,
the utter helplessness of man,
the deceitfulness and hypocrisy of the human heart,
the sovereignty of distinguishing grace,
the fewness of heaven-taught ministers,
the scanty number of living souls,
and the great rareness of true religion.
J.C.Philpot
We get no better, but rather worse
“Accepted in the Beloved.” Ephesians 1:6
We are ever looking for something in SELF to
make ourselves acceptable to God—and are
often sadly cast down and discouraged when
we cannot find . . .
that holiness,
that obedience,
that calm submission to the will of God,
that serenity of soul,
that spirituality and heavenly mindedness,
which we believe to be acceptable in His sight.
Our crooked tempers,
our fretful peevish minds,
our rebellious thoughts,
our coldness,
our barrenness,
our alienation from good,
our headlong proneness to evil,
with the daily feeling that we
get no better,
but rather worse—make us think
that God
views us just as we view ourselves. We
seem to lose sight of our acceptance in Christ,
and get into the miserable dregs of SELF. We
are so vile, and only get worse as we get
older.
Now the more we get into these dregs of SELF,
and the more we keep looking at the dreadful
scenes of wreck and ruin which our heart presents
to daily view—the farther do we get from the grace
of the gospel—and the more do we lose sight of
the only ground of our acceptance with God.
It is “in the Beloved” alone, that we
are accepted—and not for any . . .
good words,
good works,
good thoughts,
good hearts, or
good intentions
of our own.
And a saving knowledge of our acceptance “in
the Beloved,” independent of everything in us
either good or bad, is a firm foundation for our
faith and hope—and will keep us from sinking
altogether into despair.
J.C.Philpot
The fatal mistake of thousands
The fatal mistake of thousands is
to offer
unto God the fruits of the flesh—instead of
the fruits of the Spirit.
Fleshly holiness,
fleshly exertions, fleshly prayers,
fleshly duties,
fleshly religious forms,
fleshly zeal—
these are what men consider good works,
and present them as such to God.
But well may He “who is of purer eyes than to
behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity”, say
to all such fleshly workers, “If you offer the blind
for sacrifice, is it not evil? And if you offer the
crippled and the diseased, is
it not evil?” Mal. 3:8
All that the flesh can do is evil, for “every
imagination of man’s heart is only evil continually;” Gen. 6:5
and to present the fruits of this filthy heart to
the
Lord of hosts, is “to offer defiled food upon His
altar.”
A broken heart,
a contrite spirit,
a tender conscience,
a filial fear of God,
a desire to please Him,
a dread to offend the great God of heaven,
a sense of the evil of sin,
a desire to be delivered from sin’s dominion,
a mourning over our repeated backslidings,
grief at being so often entangled in our lusts and passions,
an acquaintance with our helplessness and weakness,
simplicity and godly sincerity,
a hanging upon grace for daily supplies,
watching the hand of Providence,
a singleness of eye to the glory of God,
—these are a few of the fruits of the Spirit.
J.C.Philpot
False Religion and True
Philippians 3:1-3
Philippians 3:1-3 sets before us a distinct contrast between false and true religion. The message of these three verses is of tremendous importance.
An Exhortation
This chapter begins with an exhortation (v. 1). Paul says, “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.” No matter what our providential experiences and circumstances are, we always have reason to rejoice in the Lord.Here is an exhortation to joy. What a blessed command! — “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say rejoice!” Rejoice in the greatness of his person as our all-sufficient Substitute, in the power of his blood that cleanses us from all sin, in the perfection of his righteousness imputed to us for justification, in the abundance of his all-sufficient grace, in the immutability of his unfailing love, in the rule of his providence working all things together for our good, in the fact of his all-prevailing intercession on our behalf, and in the fact that our names are written in heaven. May God give us grace ever to “rejoice in the Lord” for the glory of Christ and the good of his people.
A Warning
5
In verse 2, the apostle gives us a serious warning. — “Beware of dogs.” He warns us to beware of false prophets. He calls them dogs because that is what the Word of God calls male prostitutes. False prophets are men who have for their own sakes prostituted the gospel of Christ and the glory of God (Deut. 23:18; Isa. 56:10-11). Then he tells us to “beware of evil workers,” referring to those same “dogs” (preachers) who teach, preach, and promote any system of man centered, works based, free will religion (Matt. 7:22-23). Man centered, works based, free will religion is the single greatest cause of evil in this world. The good works of religion without Christ are the most abominably evil works done in this world. They rob God of his glory, trample under foot the blood of Christ, do despite to the Spirit of grace, and gradually abase man to his lowest, most contemptible state (Rom. 1:25-31). Next, he speaks of these men as “evil workers,” referring to all who teach that God’s salvation depends upon and is determined by man. The apostle goes on to call these work-mongers “the concision,” warning us again to beware of them. Those who are of the concision are men and women who teach us to cut, mutilate, and otherwise punish our bodies in hope of winning God’s favour.
In essence, Paul is saying, “Beware of Christless religion.”Beware of any religious custom, doctrine, or service that is centered in yourself and encourages you to focus attention on yourself.
True Religion
In verse 3 we are given a description of true religion. — “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” True religion is not man centered, but Christ centered. True religion is not ceremonial, but spiritual. True religion is not a matter of creed, but of conviction. True religion is not outward, but inward. “For we are the circumcision,” God’s true, covenant people, the Israel of God, Abraham’s true children, which “worship God in the Spirit.” We worship God as he is revealed in the Scriptures, by the power of his Holy Spirit, in our spirits, and in a spiritual manner. True worship is spiritual worship, not carnal, ceremonial ritualism (John 4:23-24). — “And rejoice in Christ Jesus.” We trust the Lord Jesus Christ alone, placing all our confidence in him as our Saviour. We are complete in him (1 Cor. 1:30-31; Col. 2:9-10). — “And have no confidence in the flesh.” We place absolutely no confidence in our flesh, the experiences, emotions, or (imaginary) excellencies of our flesh. The privileges of the flesh, the feelings of the flesh, and the works of the flesh are no basis of confidence before God.
The Distinction
In all false religion the hope of salvation and eternal life is, in some measure, found in the flesh. In true religion “Christ is all,” all hope is found in him alone. That is the great distinction. True religion is religion that trusts Christ alone. False religion trusts Christ, and…
Don Fortner