Flattery

"All flattery is dangerous; self-flattery is more dangerous; but self-flattery in the business of salvation, is the most dangerous of all." - John Flavel

Do You Truly Know The Lord? Paul Washer at The Master's College

Last month my kids, some friends, and I had the privilege of hearing Paul Washer live at The Master's College chapel. As usual he delivered a powerful and stirring message. He implores the students, who may be numb to the Gospel, to deeply examine themselves using the scripure of evidences of true conversion. I admire his genuine love for the lost.

Audio and MP3 download HERE.

“Another Gospel?” by Harry A. Ironside

HERE is only one Gospel ¾ only one true message of good news from heaven. But there are many substitutes offered in place of the Gospel. It was so in the beginning. It is so now. The apostle

Paul wrote to the Galatians:

“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from Him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel; which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians1:6-9)

THESE are intensely solemn words. They come bubbling up from the steaming heart of the indignant apostle in righteous wrath as he learns of pretentious carnal legalists deliberately seeking to mislead eternally-bound souls with a false message which could only, like a will-o-the-wisp, lead to ruin and destruction at last. He would have us know it is a fearfully wicked thing to trifle with the sacred heaven – sent message that has come to a needy world declaring the grace of God to poor lost sinners.

WHAT then is this Gospel of which the apostle was so jealous? He tells us plainly in 1st Corinthians 15:1-4:

“… I declare unto you the gospel… how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

Note carefully: The Gospel is God’s wonderful story of His beloved Son. It is a message of grace to be received in faith. It is not a code of laws to be obeyed or good advice to be followed. It is not a system of ritual observances or a call to submit to certain ordinances. It does not set forth the claims of any human church organization, however venerable, nor does it exhort men to seek after experiences, however remarkable, though a blessed experience follows its acceptance. It simply sets forth Christ crucified and risen as the Savior of all who believe in Him.

WHEN THE MORMON elder comes declaring that an angel revealed a gospel of salvation through a restored church and renewed ordinances, he is preaching another gospel, and angel and man are alike under the curse.

WHEN THE LEGALIST comes insisting that salvation is by obedience to God’s holy law (which in itself is just and good), he is preaching another gospel, for the Word of God declares, “By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in His sight.”

WHEN THE REVIVALIST comes promising salvation to those “who make a full surrender” of all that they have to God, and who “pay the price of full salvation,” he is preaching another gospel, for the price was paid on Calvary’s cross and the work that saves is finished. It was Christ Jesus who made the full surrender, when He yielded Himself unto death for us that we might be redeemed from the curse of the broken law and forever saved from the judgment to come upon all who refuse His grace.

WHEN THE MODERNIST prates in glowing terms and honeyed phrases of salvation by character, salvation by altruism, salvation by ethical culture, he, too is proclaiming another gospel, for if character could have saved, Christ need not have died; if altruism would have fitted sinful men for heaven, the Lord Jesus would surely have told us so; if ethical culture could deliver from the wrath of God, what place would Gethsemane, Calvary and the Empty Tomb have in the Divine economy?

WHEN THE CHRISTIAN SCIENTIST (falsely so-called) denies the reality of sin, disease and death and lulls sinners to sleep by telling them that “God is all and all is God,” even going so far as to declare the death of Christ was unreal, and His resurrection simply spiritual, and that the blood of Jesus was no more efficacious to cleanse from sins when shed upon the accursed tree than when it was flowing in His veins, he, or she, is promulgating another gospel, which is not another, for it is a baseless dream, a weird and blasphemous “error of mortal mind” that will leave its votaries at last without God and without hope.

THE SOLEMN FACT IS THERE IS NO OTHER GOSPEL. Every pretended substitute is but a Satan-devised delusion meant to turn men away from the strait gate which alone leads into the narrow way, and make them contented as they crowd down the clear side of the broad way to eternal perdition.

BEFORE there can really be another gospel there must be another savior and another Holy Spirit, and this can never be. Nor is any other gospel needed, for the grand old Gospel of the grace of God is all-sufficient to save “whosoever will,” and has demonstrated its power throughout the centuries by transforming lost miserable sinners into happy joyous saints. Paul says:

“I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith” (Romans 1:16,17).

THE Gospel needs only to be preached in the power of the Holy Spirit to hold its own against every imitation and substitute that the mind of the natural man energized by Satan can devise. Like the Bible itself it is divinely inspired and, therefore, preeminently fitted for the needs of mankind… It convinces the mind and satisfies the heart, if men but take the place of repentant sinners and accept it by faith. It is the dynamic of God unto the deliverance of all who believe it. To refuse it is to be lost. To receive its message is to be saved.

IT reveals the righteousness of God, making known how He “can be just and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus.” Satan’s false gospels all pretend to show how man can establish his own righteousness. The Gospel of Christ comes to unrighteous men and tells them of a righteousness that is divine which is imputed to all who believe.

ANOTHER gospel ¾ whatever its outward form ¾ will always be found to center in something that man can be or do in order to obtain merit. The Gospel of God declares what Christ has done in order that the salvation purchased may be justly offered to sinners.

ANOTHER gospel presupposes some strength, some ability to please God, in the natural man. God’s Gospel declares that when “we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”

ANOTHER gospel will land you in hell! God’s Gospel, believed, will bring you safe to heaven.

Dr. Harry A. Ironside

TURNING from every false hope, I beseech my unsaved reader to rest in what Scripture declares concerning Christ, and thus be able to sing in faith:

“Upon a life I did not live, Upon a death I did not die, Another’s life, Another’s death I hang my whole eternity. None will ever be confounded who put their trust in Him.”

*The writings of Harry A. Ironside are in the public domain and can be used freely.

O Holy Spirit - A Puritan Prayer

In the Puritan prayer book, Valley of Vision, the authentic work of the Holy Spirit is beautifully implored. 

"O Holy Spirit,

As the sun if full of light,
the ocean full of water,
Heaven full of glory, so may my heart be full of thee.

Vain are all divine purposes of love
and the redemption wrought by Jesus
except thou work within,
regenerating by thy power,
giving me eyes to see Jesus,
showing me the realities of the unseen world.

Give me thyself without measure,
as an unimpaired fountain,
as inexhaustible riches.

I bewail my coldness, poverty, emptiness,
imperfect vision, languid service,
prayerless prayers, praiseless praises.

Suffer me not to grieve or resit thee.

Come as power,
to expel every rebel lust, to reign supreme
and keep me thine;

Come as teacher,
leading me into all truth, filling me with
all understanding;

Come as love,
that I may adore the Father and love him
as my all;

Come as joy;
to dwell in me, move in me, animate me;

Come as light,
illuminating the Scripture, moulding me
in its laws;

Come as sanctifier,
body, soul and spirit wholly thine;

Come as helper,
with strength to bless and keep, direct my
every step;

Come as beautifier,
bringing order out of confusion, loveliness
out of chaos.

Magnify to me thy glory by being magnified in me,
and make me redolent [strongly reminiscent or suggestive of] thy fragrance."

Why Are Young People Leaving the Church?

Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored. 

Likewise urge the young men to be sensible;  in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us. Titus 2:3-8 (Emphasis mine)

What I've seen over the 20 years of being a Christian is young people graduate high school or college who leave youth group/student ministry and follow their peers to younger churches. 

Those younger and hip churches lack older saints who have a gold mine of life time wisdom who are not connecting with these younger men and women. This gap creates an environment of immature baby Christians, who learn from more immature Christians, and they remain immature Christians.

Over time this problem creates an imbalance of age groups in biblical churches.

So why is this happening?

Age segregation defies the Titus 2 main principle of discipleship. The passage above is singular in context of a one on one relationship.

 If we separate young people in to their own culture within the church they'll have a hard time connecting and bonding with older men and women in the church's main population.

These older folks are also their family; come to the church of Jesus and find your uncles, fathers, brothers and grandfathers. It is not biblical for my children to depend solely on their peers for fellowship. "He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will suffer harm." Proverbs 13:20

This is mainly the parents' responsibility to encourage and enable their kids form connections with older saints, but what happens if there are young people who are without parental support? Perhaps their father or both parents are unbelievers and they are not getting the discipleship training they need. That is where the church can jump in and use hospitality, spiritually adopt a young person, and demonstrate an authentic Christian home.

Often times the young person of an unbelieving family are sent to a youth group with their friends, but they are not getting one on one from a mature Christian. They often slip through the cracks and go on unchallenged in their Christian walk.

Even though I disagree with Mike Hauser's pragmatic philosophy of WHY young people are leaving the church they grew up in, I do agree with his solution because it lines up more to the biblical standard.  




Related articles:

Reflection on Becoming a Titus 2 Woman by Sherry Wilson

Pyromanics: "Too many old people"?

Ongoing Pastoral Counseling of an Abuser is a Formula for Trouble

I was part of a women's ministry for many years, and even in that environment the afflicted women were coaxed to get their Titus 2 on and go back to their husbands.

I don't understand the point in having shepherds if they won't protect the weak in the flock they vowed to protect; very sad.

"It has occurred to me lately that we are hearing about a very common pattern experienced by Christians who are abuse victims. They have gone to their pastor for help and the pastor decided to start meeting regularly with the abuser to counsel and “fix” the problem. Some time goes on – perhaps months or longer. Pastor and abuser meeting, talking, fixing. Then the inevitable day arrives. The victim receives a call or note from the pastor asking that she begin to meet with her husband and the pastor. It seems that great progress has been made and now it is time to get her involved. What should she do?"

"Don’t go. Don’t go. Don’t go."

Full article here.

Related article:

Signs Your Husband May be Addicted to Pornography

Abstinence is unrealistic and old fashioned

Another reblog! This excellent article will encourage young people, and make parents like me pump their arms.

"There’s plenty of ignorance on the subject. Plenty of confusion. But it’s the lies I hate. The lies that come from people who know better. The people who have made mistakes and now encourage others to make them, too."
Full article here

Christian Women Bloggers: Maintaining God-Intended Femininity

The Lord is showing me some things.

"Since the publication of my book, Should She Preach? - Biblical Evangelism for Women, I have received questions from several sisters in Christ regarding to what extend can Christian women write, teach, and or share the gospel online (i.e. blogs, journals, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.). It's a legitimate question. Some Christian women have asked the question in a sincere and thoughtful way, while others have asked the question with venom in their words, ready for a fight." Tony Miano

Full article here.

Related posts:

Recovering Biblical Womanhood - Paul Washer

Mentoring: A Blessed Call

Being a Wife and Mother - Charo Washer

Horrible Advice From an Elder

In the middle of my second separation from my abusive ex-husband, the elder of our church called. He called to inform me my soul was in danger. It did not matter that my physical life, my emotional life was in danger from the abuse. He insisted that there was something much worse for me. “God hates divorce,“ he said. “Go back to your husband. Submit to him. Put a hundred and ten percent into the marriage what you want out of it. It will work. He is not abusive. He has poor coping skills that’s all.”

Full article here.