Calvary Road Baptist Church
“ADVICE YOU WOULD DO VERY WELL TO
HEED”
Philippians 3.20
My text is Philippians 3.20:
“For our conversation is in heaven;
from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
This is the Apostle Paul’s description
of the believer’s conversation and expectation. Allow me to spend some time
addressing the condition of those who are not believers.
My friends, we live in a time of
terrible spiritual apostasy. The departure from the faith that we see in
churches around us is so complete that people actually think things are
wonderful. But are things wonderful? How can things be wonderful when the most
prominent spiritual leaders in the world are men who would have been tossed out
of churches 200 years ago for being heretics? How can things be wonderful when
God’s Word says that men should not enter the ministry because of greed for
filthy lucre, but that is precisely the reason so many really are in the
ministry? How can things be wonderful when there are so many so-called
spiritual leaders who are adulterers, who are liars, who are drunkards, and who
prey on children in their parishes? How can things be wonderful when pastors
are now forming fight clubs in their own churches, and organizing octagon
fighting cages as a way to attract people to their ministries? Have we
forgotten that blood sport was Rome’s chosen form of entertainment in the first
century, and that we delighted the large crowds with our spilt blood at the
hands of the wild beasts and the gladiators for refusing to deny Christ? And
now so-called churches are encouraging gladiators to engage in blood sport in
their places of worship?
We have many Bible colleges that are
academically laughable jokes. We have seminaries that are unfaithful to God’s
Word. We have churches that are engaged in the ridiculous imitation of the
Hollywood entertainment industry. People claim to be Christians who get drunk,
who fornicate, who never pray or read their Bibles, and do not participate in a
church ministry or tithe and give offerings. Forgetting that God shows us in
His Word that He deals with a faithful remnant, a very small minority, most
people have fallen into the Satanic trap of thinking that most who claim to be
Christians are, that most “churches” really are churches, and that most
“preachers” really are preachers of the whole counsel of God’s Word. Clearly,
the Savior declared they are not.[1]
Most “Christians” are not saved. Most “churches” are churches in name only, but
bear no resemblance to the churches of the New Testament era. And most
preachers wouldn’t know the truth that sets men free because they, themselves,
are not saved.
As Paul wrote in Second Corinthians
11.14-15, Satan has transformed himself into an angel of light and has
transformed his ministers into ministers of righteousness. However, because so
few people are familiar with God’s Word, because so few people have any real
concern for pleasing God and not sinning against the holy One, the downward
spiral into religious apostasy continues apace. From time to time, however, a
sinner does become concerned about his soul. When he hears about the wrath of
God coming upon the unrighteous it rings as truth in his ears. He knows that
something is not right, that all is not well with his soul, that he is not yet
prepared to meet his God, that there is a coming day of reckoning when he will
have to give an account of himself, and he knows he is not ready for that day.
Who can say when such a sinner will be
brought into this church auditorium as someone’s guest? Who can say when a
sinner already in this church auditorium will suddenly be troubled in his
conscience and become spiritually sensible? Who can say that there are not
several of you here today who have that nagging and gnawing suspicion that you
are condemned already, and that Hell awaits you with openmouthed hunger? Because
of the apostasy that we live in these days, there is no longer any cultural
memory of things spiritual, of things Biblical, or of things Christian. Used to
be, when a sinner was aroused in his soul he knew, to some degree, what to do. He
didn’t know how he knew what to do, and he didn’t know everything necessary to
be saved most of the time, but he did know some things, because even if he had
never been to church in his life he had picked up enough snippets of
information from the saved people around him that he would know what to do to
do his wretched soul some good. However, that is no longer the case in the
culture you and I live in. If you are here today and you are not saved you do
not know what to do. You have no idea. You are clueless. You are in such
spiritual darkness that you have no idea what questions to ask. You are so
spiritually ignorant that you think the ministry of the Holy Spirit in a
person’s life is to make him feel good and not feel bad. But you are wrong. His
ministry is to convict you of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment to come.[2]
So you see, if you are like most who live in the United States, your ignorance
of even the most basic spiritual truths taught in the Bible is profound. Not
only are you spiritually helpless and completely hopeless, but it is likely
that even these truths have escaped you.
Therefore, what I’m going to do at
this time is to give you some advice. I recognize that advice not asked for is
generally advice not taken. But if you want to be saved from your sins and
escape the wrath of God in Hell, if you want to be reconciled to God, this is
advice you would do very well to heed.
PIECE OF ADVICE #1, LISTEN TO ME
First Corinthians 1.18 and 21:
18 For
the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us
which are saved it is the power of God
21 For
after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
I am a preacher. I preach the gospel. I
am a rare and dying breed. There are very few of us around anywhere in the
world today. That’s too bad. I ask preachers all the time, “Name your favorite
gospel preacher,” and they have no answer. That should tell you something. My
first piece of advice is that you listen to me Sunday morning, and that you
listen to me Sunday night, and that you listen to me Wednesday night. Why
should you? Let’s read these two verses again:
18 For
the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us
which are saved it is the power of God
21 For
after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
Now take note of Romans 10.14-17:
14 How
then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a
preacher?
15 And
how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are
the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of
good things!
16 But
they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed
our report?
17 So
then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
The way a sinner is saved is through
faith in Christ. But the way a sinner acquires faith in Christ is by means of
preaching. There are other ways, but preaching the gospel is the primary way,
the preeminent way, and the most pronounced way. The old ones used to write
about what they called the means of grace. They were referring to the means
that God uses to reach down and stir the hearts of the lost and draw them to
Christ, and also the means by which God sustained and provided spiritual
nutrition to the saved. My friend, preaching is a means of grace, and it’s a
self-destructive fool who misses a chance to hear the gospel being preached. You
may not like church or be thrilled with preaching, but so long as you do only
what you like doing and listen only to what you enjoy hearing, you have no hope
of escaping the eternal torment of the damned.
As well, consider Acts Chapter 2. We’ll
not read Simon Peter’s great Pentecostal sermon, because we don’t have the
time. Let me instead comment on the objections many sinners have to preaching. “It’s
too loud. It’s too personal. It makes me feel bad.” As to being loud. That’s
what preaching is. The Greek word for preaching, , means to make public
declarations, to proclaim aloud.[3]
When you aren’t energetic and loud you aren’t preaching. It is as simple as
that. As to being personal. Peter, like the Savior before He was crucified, was
very personal in his Pentecostal preaching. Everywhere in the Bible preaching
is personal. If it isn’t personal it isn’t real preaching. In Peter’s sermon in
Acts chapter 2, he uses such personal pronouns as you and ye dozens of times. And
how much more personal can a public speaker be than when he says to his
audience, “God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and
Christ,” Acts 2.36? As to making you feel bad. Acts 2.37: “Now when they heard this,
they were pricked in their heart.” Acts 5.33: “When they heard that,
they were cut to the heart.” Acts 7.54: “When they heard these things,
they were cut to the heart.” And on it goes. Preaching doesn’t make good people
feel bad. It shows sinners the way they really are, and they don’t like it. My
advice? Listen to me; tonight, Wednesday night, next Sunday morning. Don’t miss
a single service.
PIECE OF ADVICE #2, LEARN GOD’S WORD
I urge you to study God’s Word, not to
discover the way of salvation, for I am convinced that very few will have
success in that endeavor, but to learn about your sin, to learn about God’s
character, and to learn about eternal torment.
I read from Acts 8.30-31:
30 And
Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and
said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
31 And
he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that
he would come up and sit with him.
The passage the Ethiopian eunuch was
reading was a passage describing the Lord Jesus Christ’s saving work on behalf
of sinners. Notice, he didn’t seem to have much success deciphering the
scripture he had been reading. That’s because it is generally God’s plan to use
a man to win a man to the Savior. That’s what gospel ministers are supposed to
be engaged in, providing direction to seeking sinners.
However, on your own there are things
you must do. Luke 13.24 is a command the Lord Jesus Christ has given to lost
people:
“Strive to enter in at the strait
gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.”
Okay, how do you strive to enter in at
the strait, or the narrow, gate? Let me give you a partial answer by taking you
to another verse of scripture, Mark 12.34:
“And when Jesus saw that he answered
discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.”
This said the Savior to an unsaved
young man. However, keep in mind that the young man, who was as lost as lost
can be, was told by the Lord Jesus that he wasn’t far from salvation. How so? Partly,
because he was a student of God’s Word and tried very hard to obey God’s Word. He
knew what God commanded, and what God demanded, and that he himself had fallen
short. You should do the same.
In addition to listening to me, then,
learn those portions of God’s Word that describe your problem. Learn the
sinfulness of sin. Learn the consequences of sin. Discover what scripture says
about the damage of sin and the seriousness of sin. My friend, open up your
Bible and find out what the problem is, and come and let me show you what the
solution is. That’s my advice to someone who wants to be saved. Does it make
sense that someone drowning in the ocean off shore would have nothing to do
with the aid that could be provided by a life guard? Therefore, it must be true
that the person who does not seek the gospel minister’s help does not really
want to be saved from his sins. Those who refuse the flotation device pushed
toward them by a lifeguard do not want to be rescued.
THIRD PIECE OF ADVICE, LEAVE YOUR SINS
Do we know that Christ died for the
ungodly, Romans 5.6? Yes, we do. Do we know that salvation is not of works,
lest any should boast, Ephesians 2.9? Yes, we do.
Let us also know that if you are not
saved the first time you hear the gospel it is good for you to, in addition to
listening to me, in addition to learning God’s Word, leave your sins. John 6.44
shows us that no one comes to Jesus Christ except the Father draws him. And
sometimes the drawing of sinners to the Savior is gradual. So, should you
become concerned about your sins, should you become aware of the condition of
your soul, don’t be so foolish as to think you can continue in determined
wickedness until you are saved. You may not ever be saved. Discard the
marijuana and the fornication and the pride and the bickering and the pettiness
now.
Will the discarding of such sins stand
you in good stead with God? Not at all. Everything you do will be tainted with
sin, even your attempts at self-righteousness. But fewer sins on Judgment Day
will be better for you than more sins on Judgment Day. And it may be that the
discarding of your sinful practices is an evident token of the Spirit’s
conviction, John 16.8: “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin,
and of righteousness, and of judgment.”
Some will object to what I say by
claiming that if it doesn’t do them any good to stop committing certain sins,
why should they stop? First, because all sin is committed against God. Do
you really think God will be disposed to save you while you recklessly and
arrogantly continue to commit the vilest of sins against Him? Second,
sin is wrong. It is always wrong to do wrong. It is always right to right. And
although stopping a pattern of sin will not commend you to God, it will not so
much provoke His wrath as more serious sins provoke Him.
So, leave off the booze and the drugs
and the illicit sex. Go to church and read your Bible, tithe and invite others
to church. Why? It’s less sinful for you than what you otherwise would do. And
should you, in fact, not end up being saved, it will go easier for you on
Judgment Day to have fewer sins than to have more sins.
LISTEN TO ME. LEARN GOD’S WORD. LEAVE
YOUR SINS. AND FINALLY, TAKE MY ADVICE AND PLEAD WITH GOD FOR YOUR SOUL
You know, some people really don’t get
it. They play their little religious games with God, and they dictate their
terms to Him, and they get into their childish moods and have their silly
spells. They have such an inflated sense of self-importance that they must
imagine God pleading with them to be saved, begging them. As if God simply
can’t get along with you.
But they have it all wrong. God meets
no need of His whether you are saved or lost. You see, He is self-sufficient
and sovereign. The right attitude was displayed by the poor publican in Luke
18.13: “And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his
eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a
sinner.” Understand that this occurred prior to Christ’s crucifixion and before
the revelation that Christ is the exclusive approach to God was made known to
this man. But the Lord Jesus Christ used him as an example of the right
attitude by a sinner. Apparently, having gone to the temple and having offered
his sacrifice to atone for his sins, the man is now pleading with God to be
merciful. My lost friend, if you will not come to Christ, I suggest that you
start pleading with God.
From John 9.31 we read the words of a
man who said that God heareth not sinners. From Isaiah 59.2 we know that your
iniquities have separated between you and your God, that your sins have hid His
face from you, so that He will not hear when you cry out to Him. In other
words, you, sir, have no standing or ground by which to approach God. But so
long as you are only mildly uncomfortable with your sin, so long as you are
something short of desperate, you’re not going to be saved.
You see, until you’re willing to plead
for your soul you’re not going to be saved. You may not even be saved then. But
it’s been my observation, and it’s been the observation of others who are
concerned about seeing sinners really saved, that those who plead for their
souls are more often saved than those who do not.
Most people whose thinking has been
more shaped by this apostate culture we live in than by God’s Word think that
sin is a bad thing, but not a terrible thing; an unpleasant thing, but not
something to grieve and agonize over. And if you just pray a little prayer and
ask Jesus into your heart everything will be okay and you will live happily
ever after. My friends, that is wrong on all counts. Sin is a terrible thing, a
soul damning thing, a wrath deserving thing. And a little prayer is not going
to make it go away. Only people who have not listened to Bible preaching, who
have not read God’s Word and studied what it says about sin, think that’s any
solution at all.
As a lost man, you are really lost. Totally
lost. And you will not be found by yourself. Those who are found to the saving
of their souls, generally, listen to gospel preaching, and listen and listen
and listen. We have people in our church who are saved after having listened to
gospel sermons for decades before their conversion. Those who are found to the
saving of their souls are those who know what God says about sin, what God says
about damnation, what God says about the lake of fire and Hell, and about how
right and proper and appropriate it is for them to be sent there to be punished
for their sins. Those who are found to the saving of their souls are sometimes
saved right out of the middle of gross wickedness. However, most of the time,
especially if the conviction of the Holy Spirit goes on for any length of time
at all, you will see sinners leaving their sins behind. Not because they think
that will save them, but because they have become sick of their sins, tired of
their wickedness, weary of being a soul estranged from God. And then, finally,
read the many accounts of conversions in days gone by. With men who were really
saved the Bible way. So often there was a heart’s cry out to God for relief,
for salvation, for mercy, for grace. Not that they expected to be saved any
other way than by coming to Jesus Christ, but this was the cry of their soul
over the wretchedness of sin.
Are you willing to take this matter of
sin and salvation seriously? Even as a child, I expect you to take these things
seriously. Of what benefit is it for you to come here Sunday after Sunday and
store up wrath for the Day of Judgment if you have no serious interest in being
saved from your sins? Do you come here to have fun? This is no place to have
fun. Magic Mountain is for fun. Church is not for fun. This is a place for
conviction, for concern, for weeping and wailing over sin, for praying for the
lost, for listening to the gospel being preached, and perhaps, for occasionally
rejoicing over a hopeful conversion or enjoyably engaging in an activity to
show Christians how to live.
If you will listen to me, and if you
are willing to learn God’s Word, and leave your sins, and value your own soul
enough to plead to God for your salvation, then step into my office after the
service, where perhaps we can discuss this matter of guiding you to Christ.
[1] Matthew 7.22-23
[2] John 16.8
[3] Bauer, Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the
New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, (Chicago, IL: The
University of Chicago Press, 2000), pages 214.
Question? Comment?
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