Quote

by

Quotes (824)

Catholics who believe the literal interpretation of John 6 face a serious dilemma. Both the “eating and drinking” and “believing in Jesus” produce the same result—eternal life. What if a person “believes” but does not “eat or drink?” Or what if a person “eats and drinks” but does not “believe?” Does this person have eternal life because he met one of the requirements but not the other? . . . God forbids anyone from consuming the blood of a sacrifice. If Jesus were teaching the multitudes to literally drink His blood, He would be teaching them to disobey God.

–          Mike Gendron

by

John Charles Ryle on faith and assurance.

Faith, let us remember, is the root, and assurance is the flower. Doubtless you can never have the flower without the root; but it is no less certain you may have the root and not the flower.

 

Faith is that poor trembling woman who came behind Jesus in the press and touched His garment. (Mark 5:27) Assurance is Stephen standing calmly in the midst of his murderers, and saying, “I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:5-6)

 

Faith is the penitent thief, crying, “Lord, remember me.” (Luke 23:42) Assurance is Job, sitting in the dust, covered with sores, and saying, “I know that my Redeemer liveth.” (Job 19:25) “Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him.” (Job 13:15)

 

Faith is Peter’s drowning cry as he began to sink, “Lord, save me.” (Matthew 14:30) Assurance is that same Peter declaring before the Council in after-times, “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:11-12)

 

Faith is the anxious, trembling voice, “Lord, I believe: help Thou mine unbelief.” (Mark 9:24) Assurance is the confident challenge, “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? Who is he that condemeth?” (Romans 8:33-34)

 

Faith is Saul praying in the house of Judas at Damascus, sorrowful, blind, and alone. (Acts 9:11) Assurance is Paul, the aged prisoner, looking calmly into the grave, and saying, “I know whom I have believed. There is a crown laid up for me.” (2 Timothy 1:12, 4:8)

by

Sermon of the week: “The Gnostics” by Phil Johnson.

Your sermon of the week is the second installment of Phil Johnson’s series, A Survey of Heresies. These are the five major heresies that have plagued the Church and that are still around today. Two weeks ago Phil Johnson taught on the heresy of the Judiazers (found here), and this week his message is on The Gnostics. Join us in two more weeks when Phil Johnson lectures on the next major heresy, The Arians.

by

Quotes (822)

[Christians] have unnecessarily (and unbiblically) drawn a line of distinction, assigning the obligations of Christianity to a few while keeping the privileges of Christianity for us all. In this way we choose to send off other people to carry out the global purpose of Christianity while the rest of us sit back because we’re ‘just not called to that.’

– David Platt

by

Quotes (821)

voddie-baucham Biblical love says, “I choose to love you, and I’m not going anywhere.”  Biblical love knows nothing of backing out when things get tough. Biblical love gives without expecting, goes the extra mile, sacrifices for others, and views divorce as a tragic and unnecessary plague visited upon a culture that has settled for a lie. Biblical love is not constantly seeking the emotional high that often characterizes immature relationships but instead is content with the depth and breadth that only the love of a maturing, godly relationship can provide.

– Voddie Baucham

by

What is the shape of your brain?

Can you guess who said the following?

“The question then arises, if the world cannot approach God in prayer, what is the method by which He draws men? The Scriptures say that no man can come unto Christ except the Father draw him. (John 6:44.) The answer is that the drawing cannot be done though the Holy Spirit; for the world has not yet received that Spirit. The drawing power which the Almighty exercises over humanity is in different degrees. Some have a strong desire to worship God, others have a weak desire, and others have no desire at all. This difference is due to the shape of the brain. Mankind are born with differences in this respect.—Psa. 51:5. . . . Man was created in the image of God. The fall has greatly marred that image, but no one is totally depraved. All have unbalanced brains, some in one direction, others in another. When Truth comes in contact with those whose organs of veneration or conscientiousness are less impaired, they are drawn to investigate it, with the hope of being drawn close to God.”

Answer . . .

Continue reading →

by

Quotes (820)

Let us take care that we do not regard a magnificent funeral as an atonement for a life wasted in carelessness and sin. We may bury a man in the most expensive style, and spend thousands of dollars in mourning. We may place over his grave a costly marble stone, and inscribe on it a flattering epitaph. But all this will not save our souls or his. The turning point at the last day will not be how we are buried, but whether we were “buried with Christ,” and repented and believed. (Rom. 6:4.) Better a thousand times to die the death of the righteous, have a lowly grave and a pauper’s funeral, than to die graceless, and lie under a marble tomb!

1816 – 1900

– J. C. Ryle

by

Quotes (819)

It is impossible to measure the harm done to the Protestant cause through the retention of paedobaptism. The Reformed churches profess to be governed solely by Scripture, but so long as they continue baptizing babies, so long will they be taunted by Roman Catholics (and others) for their manifest inconsistency. . . . . Baby baptism is ruinous to the souls of thousands. Strictly speaking, it is not baby baptism but mistaken views regarding its efficacy and significance which leads multitudes down the broad way to destruction.

–          T.E. Watson

by

Quotes (817)

You and I can choose to continue with business as usual in the Christian life and in the church as a whole, enjoying success based on the standards defined by the culture around us. Or we can take an honest look at the Jesus of the Bible and dare to ask what the consequences might be if we really believed Him and really obeyed Him.

– David Platt

by

Sermon of the week: “The Judiazers” by Phil Johnson.

Your sermon of the week is the first in a five-part series entitled A Survey of Heresies. Every two weeks DefCon will be bringing you the next installment in this series from Phil Johnson on the top five major heresies that have plagued the church since its inception, and continues to rear its ugly head in the form of the cults and false Christian religions of today.

We begin this series with The Judiazers.

by

Quotes (815)

Modern Roman Catholicism is the monstrous tree that sprang from the acorn of the Judiazers.

– Phil Johnson

by

Quotes (811)

I know very many decent people who seem to have resolved never to come to Christ until they can understand how the doctrine of election is consistent with the free invitation of the Gospel. I might just as well determine never to eat a morsel of bread until it has been explained to me how it is that God keeps me alive, and yet I must eat to live.

– Charles Spurgeon

1834 – 1892

by

Quotes (810)

Knowledge of the truth will bring division. Those who follow Jesus by abiding in his Word will be divided from those who do not. . . . Doctrine divides believers from unbelievers. Without doctrine there will be no division.

–          Mike Gendron

by

Quotes (809)

Let us never doubt for a moment, that the preaching of Christ crucified – the old story of His blood, righteousness, and substitution – is enough for all the spiritual necessities of all mankind. It is not worn out. It is not obsolete. It has not lost its power. We need nothing new – nothing more broad and kind – nothing more intellectual – nothing more effectual. We need nothing but the true bread of life, distributed faithfully among starving souls. Let men sneer or ridicule as they will. Nothing else can do good in this sinful world. No other teaching can fill hungry consciences, and give them peace. We are all in a wilderness. We must feed on Christ crucified, and the atonement made by His death, or we shall die in our sins.

– J.C. Ryle

1816 – 1900

by

Quotes (805)

http://easterpeople.wordpress.com/2009/07/23/im-a-charismatic-baptist-reformed-calvinist/

I am told that, years ago above the Falls of Niagra, a boat was upset, and two men were being carried down by the current. Persons on the shore managed to float a rope out to the men, who both seized the rope. One of them held fast to it and was safely drawn to the bank. But the other, seeing a great log come floating by, unwisely let go of the rope and clung to the great piece of timber, for it was the bigger thing of the two and apparently better to cling to. Alas, the timber with the man on it went right over the vast abyss, because there was no union between the wood and the shore. The size of the log was no benefit to him who grasped it. It needed a connection with the shore to produce safety. So, when a man trusts his works, his prayers, alms giving, sacraments, or anything of the sort, he will not be saved, because there is no connection between him and God through Christ Jesus. But faith, though it may seem to be a slender cord, is in the hand of the great God on the shore.

– Charles Spurgeon

1834 – 1892

by

Quotes (804)

A W PinkSin! That “abominable thing,” which the Lord hates (Jeremiah 44:4), is regarded so lightly by those who commit it. Sin! It caused our first parents to be banished from Eden and is responsible for all the woe in the world. Sin! It produces strife and bloodshed and has turned this “land of the living” into a mammoth cemetery. Sin! A hideous monster we so much dislike hearing about and which we are so ready to excuse. Sin! Satan employs all his subtle arts to render it attractive and sets it forth in the most appealing colors.

– A.W. Pink

1886 – 1952

by

Quotes (802)

Stephen Charnock Study God in the creatures as well as in the Scriptures. The primary use of the creatures, is to acknowledge God in them; they were made to be witnesses of Himself and His goodness, and to be heralds of His glory, whose glory of God as Creator “shall endure forever” (Psalm 104:31). . . .  Nature is not contrary to Scripture, nor Scripture to nature; unless we should think God contrary to Himself who is the Author of both.

– Stephen Charnock

1628 – 1680

by

Are you a Roman Catholic or a Christian?

Are you a Roman Catholic or a Christian?

Grab pen and paper and take the following ten-question quiz (formulated by Dr. J. Ronald Blue of Dallas Theological Seminary). How you do will determine whether you’re a Roman Catholic or a Christian.

Choose the position which is most true:

1:

A). God gives a man right standing with Himself by mercifully accounting him righteous.

B). God gives a man right standing with Himself by actually making him into a righteous person.

2:

A). God gives a man right standing with Himself by placing Christ’s goodness and virtue to his credit.

B). God gives a man right standing with Himself by putting Christ’s goodness and virtue into his heart.

3:

A). God accepts the believer because of the moral excellence found in Christ.

B). God makes a believer acceptable by infusing Christ’s moral excellence into his life.

4:

A). If a man becomes born again, he will achieve right standing with God.

B). If a sinner receives right standing with God, he will then experience a transformation of character and life.

5:

A). We receive right standing with God through faith alone.

B). We receive right standing with God by faith and love.

6:

A). We achieve right standing with God by having Christ live out His life of obedience in us.

B). We achieve right standing with God by receiving the truth that he obeyed the Law of God perfectly for us.

7:

A). We achieve right standing with God by following Christ’s example by the help of enabling grace.

B). We follow Christ’s example because His life has given us right standing with God.

8:

A). God first declares us good, and then His Spirit begins making us good.

B). God sends His Spirit to make us good, and then He will declare that we are good.

9:

A). Christ’s finished work on the cross and intercession at God’s right hand gives us favor in God’s sight.

B). It is the indwelling Christ that gives us favor in God’s sight.

10:

A). Only by the imputation of Christ’s righteousness can we fully satisfy the claims of the Ten Commandments.

B). By the power of the Holy Spirit living in us we can fully satisfy the claims of the Ten Commandments.

Bonus Question 1:

You get to Heaven by works: True or False

Bonus Question 2:

Our faith is the ground of our salvation: True or False

Answers . . .

Continue reading →