The Gospel contemplates every descendant of Adam as a fallen, polluted, Hell-deserving, and helpless sinner. The grace which the Gospel publishes is his only hope.
– A.W. Pink
1886 – 1952
Author: Pilgrim
Sermon of the week: “Warning to Professing Christians” by Albert N. Martin.
Your Wednesday sermon of the week is a powerful one from Albert N. Martin.
Warning to Professing Christians is one of those messages you won’t hear in most churches that dot the landscape of American Christianity today.
Albert N. Martin delivers a convicting exposition of Matthew 7:21, a verse that I have wrestled with countless times (and still do). I’d also venture to say most readers of DefCon (who are supportive of our work here) have also been challenged by this verse at some point in their walk.
With that said, I not only recommend this sermon to the readers of DefCon who support us, but I also submit that this needs to be heard by those who give us the most resistance (like those who sit under such teachers as Robert Schuller, Perry Noble, Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, Mark Driscoll, etc.).
If you won’t listen to us (because we’re all just a bunch of prude “Pharisees”), perhaps you may give this sermon a chance and heed the warnings contained within. Although this sermon was delivered in 1994, it is just as apropos–if not more–today!
One of my favorite quotes from this sermon is in response to those who hide behind their sins with the excuse “nobody’s perfect.” Albert N. Martin says:
This is the hypocrites couch; this is the believer’s bed of thorns.
He also asks this cutting question in regards to Christians and their worldliness:
When you’ve got to suck at the world’s fountains for fulfillment, where in the world are you?
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I also highly recommend another exposition of Matthew 7:21 by John Thompson entitled The Saddest Words Ever Spoken. It was DefCon’s sermon of the week for January 03, 2008. Click here to go to the post to listen to it.
Debate: New Age Bible Versions – James White vs Gail Riplinger.
In this audio debate James White takes on Gail Riplinger on the topic of King James Onlyism. This classic debate is under an hour long and I highly recommend it to those struggling with the opinion of whether or not any other English translation of the Bible can be trusted.
James White also exposes the errors in Riplinger’s book New Age Bible Versions in which she attempts to push the KJV as the only acceptable English translation of the Bible by using some shady means.
See also: Bible Translation Comparison Chart
Quotes (610)
Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell.
– C.T. Studd
1860 – 1931
HT: Desert Pastor
Quotes (609)
It’s easier to cry against a thousand sins in others than it is to mortify one sin in ourselves.
– John Flavel
1627 – 1691
Quotes (608)
If a man is so proud that he will not see his faults, he will only quarrel with you for pointing them out.
– Charles Spurgeon
1834 – 1892
Stepping out of our comfort zones.
HT: Desert Pastor
Quotes (607)
Would that God would make hell so real to us that we cannot rest; heaven so real that we must have men there, Christ so real that our supreme motive and aim shall be to make the Man of Sorrows the Man of Joy by the conversion to Him of many.
– Hudson Taylor
1832 – 1905
More Charismatic foolishness: God’s Top Gun of deliverance.
HT: A Little Leaven
Sermon of the week: “Separating From Unbelievers” by John MacArthur.
Your sermon of the week is Separating From Unbelievers by John MacArthur. And yes, in spite of what you see in the lifestyle of the average professing Christian (and even the average pastor), there actually is a biblical mandate for believers to separate from unbelievers.
And for those who will have the typical knee-jerk reaction (who won’t listen to the messages but simply assume what MacArthur is saying), he is not advocating a monastic lifestyle. He simply expounds on the biblical doctrine of separating ourselves from unbelievers including what it is and what it is not.
This is a great refresher about a doctrine that was commonly practiced by the church until recently.
Separating From Unbelievers (Part 1)
Separating From Unbelievers (Part 2)
The 60 Worst Christian T-Shirts Ever.
You’ve seen the shameless marketing of Christianity through Christian sunglasses, you’ve been disgusted with the Christian socks and shoe inserts, and you’ve endured the horrendous attempt to “spread the gospel” via trampy Christian jeans; now I present for your perusal The 60 Worst Christian T-Shirts Ever.
All of these shirts are marketed for professing Christians and gobbled up by professing Christians.
The following 60 Christian t-shirts only scratches the surface. I could have easily reached 100 but why waste any more of your time?
To view the rest, click below.
Quotes (605)
Mere head knowledge will be as unhelpful to the soul on judgment day, as a painted fire is unhelpful to the frozen body on a cold day. Theoretical knowledge may make the head giddy, but it will never make the heart holy. He who lives in sin, without repentance, shall die in sin, without forgiveness.
– William Secker
Birth Un/Kn – 1681
Me Bibles.
The following quote comes from an article from the More Books and Things blog:
A regular Bible (the living Word) is obviously no longer enough to satisfy our spiritual hunger. We want the pretty one that is relevant to ME! The one that gives us SELF esteem. The cool one that LOOKS the nicest. The one that will help US! The one that entertains US. In a nutshell, we want the ME version, when the whole reason God gave us His Word in the first place was to reveal HIMSELF to us.
It hits nail on the head, doesn’t it?
See related:
Quotes (604)
The servants of God consider the matter of religion more seriously than others do; and therefore their differences are more observable to the world. They cannot make light of the smallest truth of God . . . whereas the ungodly differ not about religion, because they have hardly no religion to differ about. Is this a unity and peace to be desired? I would rather have discord of the saints, than such a concord of the wicked. [The saints] are so careful about their duty that they are afraid of misusing it in the least particular; and this (with their imperfect light) is the reason of their disputings about these matters. But you that are careless concerning your duty, can easily agree about the ways of sin, or anything that comes along. The saints honor the worship of God so much that they would not have anything out of order; but you consider it so unimportant that you will be of the same religion as the king . . . . The controversies of lawyers, historians, chronologers, geographers, physicians, and such like, never trouble the brains of the ignorant; but for all that, I would rather be in controversy with the learned, than without such controversy with you. If you scatter a handful of gold or diamonds in the street, perhaps men will scramble for them, and quarrel about them, while swine will trample on them and quietly despise them, because they do not know their worth.
– Richard Baxter
1615 – 1691
Who saves?
Quotes (603)
We would as soon worship cats with the Egyptians, as popes with the Romanists: we see no difference between the people whose gods grew in their gardens and the sect whose deity is made by their baker.
– C. H. Spurgeon
1834 – 1892
Sour fruit of Perry Noble.
An interesting post from the David J. Horn blog:
The love of the world runs deep within the inner workings of NewSpring Church in SC. It’s really disturbing to know that NewSpring Church’s Greenville Campus Children’s Minister Pudge Huckaby openly defends listening to filthy language (See the picture) and justifies it by making it an outreach to hurting people. Where is the discernment from right and wrong? How can such worldly filth be used to reach people when God clearly said in His Word to be separate? 2 Corinthians 6:16-18
Read the entire post here.
See also When The World’s Your Mistress.
Pro-life activist shot down in cold blood.
Here’s the news story from MLive.com.
Quotes (601)
Why are we here? Does our family exist to prepare children for the Major Leagues? If so, then baseball will be the center of our family’s universe, and everything else will bow to the whims and wishes of the baseball god. Does our family exist to produce socialites? If so, then our family must revolve around the social calendars of our overloaded teenagers and their hectic schedules. However, if our family exists to glorify and honor God and to lay a biblical foundation in the lives of our children, then we must not allow anything to interfere with our commitment to family worship, prayer, and Bible study.
– Voddie Baucham
Sermon of the week: “The Charismatic Movement” by Phil Johnson.
Your sermon of the week is entitled The Charismatic Movement.
A former Charismatic himself, Phil Johnson examines this movement from its recent beginnings (January 1, 1901) to it’s position today in mainstream Christianity. He tactfully, and Scripturally exposes the errors of Charismatic theology (and the damaging effects it has on those who adhere to it) in this message.
If you have any questions about this abhorrent movement, I cannot recommend this message enough.
Christ Alone Wyoming 