{"id":5597,"date":"2020-02-18T08:33:56","date_gmt":"2020-02-18T08:33:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=5597"},"modified":"2020-02-18T08:33:56","modified_gmt":"2020-02-18T08:33:56","slug":"%ef%bb%bftheir-religion-is-hollow-unsubstantial-and-unreal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=5597","title":{"rendered":"\ufeffTheir religion is hollow, unsubstantial, and unreal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Their religion is hollow, unsubstantial, and unreal<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

l<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(From Winslow\u2019s, \u201cChrist\u2019s Intercession for Tried Faith\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

the most accurate creed,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most beautiful ritual,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

the most costly religion,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

the most splendid profession,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

without Christ in the heart,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

is but as fuel preparing for the<\/p>\n\n\n\n

final and eternal conflagration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What, my reader, if your religion<\/p>\n\n\n\n

should prove to be nothing but chaff?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Does the bare probability startle you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ah! there are multitudes whom it might well<\/p>\n\n\n\n

startle; for multitudes are thus deceived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not a grain of saving grace is found in their souls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

no vitality in their faith,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

no solidity in their profession,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

no substance in their religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before every wind of false doctrine they bend, and<\/p>\n\n\n\n

by each blast of temptation they are carried away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The stubble of the field, and the chaff of the<\/p>\n\n\n\n

threshing floor (fit emblems of their profession),<\/p>\n\n\n\n

are not more unsubstantial and fleeting than it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All is woeful deception!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They have substituted\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

a form of godliness for its power;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

union to the church for union to Christ;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

the baptism of water for the regeneration of the Spirit;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gospel ordinances for sanctifying grace;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

works of benevolence for faith in the Lord Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And thus their religion is hollow, unsubstantial, and<\/p>\n\n\n\n

unreal; possessing a \u201cname to live, they are dead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And what will be the end of such?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Departing into eternity in this state of soul deception;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

building their hope of heaven upon this false foundation;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

in their sad experience must be realized the awful<\/p>\n\n\n\n

description which the evangelist gives of the judgment<\/p>\n\n\n\n

power of Christ; \u201cwhose fan is in his hand, and he will<\/p>\n\n\n\n

thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into his<\/p>\n\n\n\n

barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus will perish\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

all human religions,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

all false hopes,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

all hollow professions,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

all soul destroying doctrines;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

the \u2018wood, the hay, the stubble,\u2019 of a<\/p>\n\n\n\n

form of godliness, destitute of the power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Intolerant!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spurgeon, \u201cFire: the Want of the Times\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of all things under heaven, the most<\/p>\n\n\n\n

intolerant is the gospel of Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gospel demands obedience to itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Within its own realm its power is absolute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its arguments cut and kill error.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its teachings lay low every proud<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hope, and expose every false way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gospel is merciful to the<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sinner, but merciless to sin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It will not endure evil, but wars against<\/p>\n\n\n\n

it to overturn it, and to set up a throne<\/p>\n\n\n\n

for him whose right it is to reign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The gospel of Jesus Christ will never<\/p>\n\n\n\n

join hands with infidelity or Popery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It will never enter into league with idolatry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It cannot be at peace with error.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

False religions can lie down side by side<\/p>\n\n\n\n

with one another, for they are equally a lie,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

and there is a brotherhood between them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the true religion, will never rest until<\/p>\n\n\n\n

all superstitions are utterly exterminated,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

and until the banner of the King eternal,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

immortal, invisible, shall wave over every<\/p>\n\n\n\n

mosque and minaret, temple and shrine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Their religion is hollow, unsubstantial, and unreal l (From Winslow\u2019s, \u201cChrist\u2019s Intercession for Tried Faith\u201d) the most accurate creed, The most beautiful ritual, the most costly religion, the most splendid profession, without Christ in the heart, is but as fuel preparing for the final and eternal conflagration. What, my reader, if your religion should prove […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,138],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5597","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-octavius-winslow","category-false-religion-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5597","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5597"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5597\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5598,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5597\/revisions\/5598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5597"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5597"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5597"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}