Justification takes place in Heaven, in the courtroom of God. Regeneration, on the other hand, takes place on earth, in the heart of man. Justification is a declaration by a judge; regeneration is an act of creation by an omnipotent Creator.
– Charles Leiter
If you want to know whether or not someone truly loves God, watch what he or she does. If a person does not do the things that God says are pleasing and acceptable, and in fact does the things that God abhors and forbids, and yet claims to love God, it will be tough to support that claim. In fact, John argues, “The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected” (1 John 2:4-5a).
– Voddie Baucham
Sometimes the truth hurts, but it still needs to be told. I wish more pastors would be as bold as Tim Conway. Granted, their pews would empty out, but wheat usually grows much better without tares anyway.
Shun therefore the evil ways of Christians, but cleave to the way that is Christian. . . . Take heed therefore of picking up a quarrel with Jesus Christ, and with His ways, because of the evil doings of some of His followers. Judas sold Him; Peter denied Him: and many of His disciples went back and walked no more with Him; but neither Himself nor His ways were the worse for that.
– John Bunyan
1628 – 1688
Your sermon of the week is Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered by Russ Sukhia. The sermon overview from Sermon Audio reads:
This Reformation Day sermon, the fourth in a series on Galatians, looks at justification by faith, and endeavors to clearly explain exactly how our redemption is accomplished. This message, which includes a summary of Luther’s life and a fictitious account of a breakfast meeting with Arnold Schwerzenneger and Bill Gates, was well-received. One member said it was ‘the best gospel message I have heard in 40 years as a Christian.’
Worldly preachers seem to go out of their way to put their carnal expertise on display—even in their sermons. In the name of connecting with “the culture” they want their people to know they have seen all the latest programs on MTV; familiarized themselves with all the key themes of “South Park”; learned the lyrics to countless tracks of gangsta rap and heavy metal music; and watched who-knows-how-many R-rated movies. They seem to know every fad top to bottom, back to front, and inside out. They’ve adopted both the style and the language of the world—including lavish use of language that used to be deemed inappropriate in polite society, much less in the pulpit. They want to fit right in with the world, and they seem to be making themselves quite comfortable there.
– John MacArthur
Rick Warren from 2008:
Rick Warren from 2009:
As if I needed more evidence of the decline of the visible church in America, I stumbled upon the following DVD offered in a Vision Videos Christian catalog. The Cotton patch Gospel is described as follows:
This award-winning musical drama is a leg-slappin’, toe-tappin’, hand-clappin’ hoe-down of a story that retells the Gospels of Matthew and John—translated into present day Southern vernacular. It brings the far away places of Nazareth, Jerusalem and Bethlehem closer to home—Atlanta and Valdosta, Georgia. From his birth in a trailer in Gainesville, Georgia to his Good Friday lynching and Easter Sunday victory, the story of Mary Davidson’s son, Jesus, is presented musically with zest and uninhibited joy.
Imagine if you will, that someone made a video like this of Islam, and depicted Mohamed in the same fashion as they did Jesus Christ. The Muslims would be up in arms.
Not us, though. We shrug at it and order a copy for our church youth group.
Ichabod! Ichabod! Ichabod!
______________________________________________________________________________
I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!
– Galatians 1:6-9
If we let passion take the place of judgment, and self-will reign instead of Scriptural authority, we shall fight the Lord’s battles with the devil’s weapons, and if we cut our own fingers we must not be surprised.
– Charles Spurgeon
1834 – 1892
There are those who profess to believe in the existence of God . . . yet they have not His fear upon them and are not in subjection to Him. So there are many who claim to trust in the finished work of Christ, yet their daily walk is no different from that of thousands of respectable worldlings. They profess to be Christians; yet are covetous, unscrupulous, untruthful, proud, self-willed, uncharitable; in a word, utterly unchristian.
– A.W. Pink
1886 – 1952
Just because the Moral Law is unable to restore the broken relationship with God does not mean it is without value. Just as physical laws create order in the universe, so spiritual laws create order in a nation. Many countries have rejected the biblical code of conduct at the risk of living in a morally-neutral society. No such society truly exists. No such civilization has ever survived. To take no stand is, in effect, to take a position. The rejection of biblical absolutes has resulted in a callousness towards wrong, with each generation becoming more comfortable with sin. The Bible teaches that this will eventually lead to chaos.
– John R. Cross
For those who can’t get enough JC Ryle, allow me to introduce you to the new JC Ryle Quotes blog.
Your sermon of the week is Gaining the World and Losing Your Children by Paul Washer. It is yet another challenging message directed toward fathers in how they treat their wives and children. When you are done with this sermon I highly encourage you download his message Biblical Manhood Part 1 found on this post.
Oftentimes in our zeal to defend truth and contend for the faith, we cross the line. And in spite of having a team of contributors that hold each other accountable, sometimes things slip through the cracks that should have never seen the light of day.
A while back a contributor posted a video that mocked our Savior. The post was quickly pulled and when explained to this brother why it was pulled, he was gracious and completely understood. Unfortunately I have fallen into this same error myself and posted a video from The Church You Know that, in retrospect, I should have never posted.
I think my justification was “it’s not as bad of a mockery of our Lord as that other video we pulled.” But is any mockery acceptable? Is there a level of mockery that is ok to post and a level that isn’t? Certainly not. All mockers–no matter how reserved or how intense–will suffer the wrath of God.
I have refrained from publishing many posts in the past that I felt could be a stumbling block to another, but sadly I failed to be as diligent in my last post. Regardless of the motive, or my intentions, I contributed to the mockery of the Church by posting a video on DefCon that I never should have. For this I am truly sorry.
Although my intention was not to offend or cause a fellow brother or sister to stumble, I believe that I have done just that. It is for this reason that I firstly ask forgiveness from God, and secondly ask forgiveness from you.
I am truly sorry to any and all who I caused to stumble and to God whom I have offended. I take full responsibility for what has happened and I have removed the video. I ask DefCon readers to forgive me.
Sincerely,
– The Pilgrim
I believe there is far more harm done by unholy and inconsistent Christians than we are at all aware of. Such men are among Satan’s best allies. They pull down by their lives what ministers build up with their lips. . . . I fear that Christ’s name is too often blasphemed because of the lives of Christians.
– J. C. Ryle
1816 – 1900
Women who break the unwritten two-child-per-family rule are often greeted with questions like, “Haven’t you guys figured out what causes that?” Fathers who choose to emphasize their sons’ spiritual growth at the expense of their participation in the all-consuming pursuit of sports sometimes find themselves being alienated by other dads. Children who don’t attend the local public high school are often looked down upon because they don’t know the latest catch phrases or wear the latest designs. The pursuit of family driven faith can be costly.
– Voddie Baucham
“Son of man, speak to the sons of your people and say to them, ‘If I bring a sword upon a land, and the people of the land take one man from among them and make him their watchman, and he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows on the trumpet and warns the people, then he who hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, and a sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head. ‘He heard the sound of the trumpet but did not take warning; his blood will be on himself. But had he taken warning, he would have delivered his life.
‘But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and a sword comes and takes a person from them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require from the watchman’s hand.’
“Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me. “When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand. “But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life.
– Ezekiel 33:2-9
Your sermon of the week is The Curse Motif of the Atonement by R.C. Sproul. I’ve had this message on my MP3 player for a while now and only got around to listening to it the other day. Wow. I wish I had listened to it earlier.
I’ve never been what you’d call a “fan” of R.C. Sproul, but this message is spot on and powerful. If you only listen to one R.C. Sproul sermon in your whole life, this should be it.
To sin because mercy abounds is the devil’s logic. . . . He that sins because of God’s mercy shall have judgment without mercy. Mercy abused turns to fury. . . . Mercy is not for them that sin and fear not, but for them that fear and sin not.
– Thomas Watson
1620 – 1686
Christ Alone Wyoming 