Ch 6: Dazed by Easy Believism
-Bible teaches that we are body, soul, and spirit
1 Thessalonians 5:23
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you
through and through. May your whole spirit, soul
and body be kept blameless at the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ.”
-the fall of Adam and Eve disrupted the proper
order of the Garden of Eden
-the spirit is uppermost
-the soul was subject to the spirit
-the body was subject to both the soul and spirit
-the fall reversed the order-fleshly (body) passions
took control
-the Holy Spirit no longer leads the soul
-the soul id prompted, tempted, and coerced by
the demands of the flesh
Genesis 2: 17
“but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
-God gave Adam and Eve freedom to eat from every tree but
from the tree of knowledge of good and evil
-when they consumed the fruit they experienced spiritual death
-the gospel is about the reality of an eternal life in heaven and
a new life here and now
John 3:3
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom
of God unless they are born again.”
-Jesus restored the order once you are “born again”
-The spirit takes the uppermost, the soul retains its place in the
center, and the flesh takes a lesser seat
1 John 4: 4-6
“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them,
because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is
in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from
the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are
from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is
not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the
Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
-Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God
-regarding testing the spirits
-but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist
-the spirit is not capitalized because there are lesser spirits and demon spirits
-The Holy Spirit is capitalized because reflect God’s Spirit
Enemies of the Gospel:
–the eternal destination of every person outside of Christ at stake
-there is a battle over what constitutes the gospel
-enemies of the gospel replace the biblical gospel with an easy believism
Matthew 13: 24
“Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.”
-Jesus taught 3 parables to expose these false influences that can be present in every church
Examples:
Matthew 13: 20-24
-the kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but an enemy comes and sowed tares among the good seed, both grow together but the tares(weeds) are bundled to burn while the good seed (wheat) is gathered and put in the barn.
Matthew 13: 31-32
-the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, the tiniest seed become a great tree strong branches so the birds come to nest
Matthew 12:33
-the kingdom of heaven is like leaven, the woman worked the yeast to make bread, so do good work and store up your treasures in heaven
-What can we learn tares, mustard seeds, and leaven because they relate to the world of God on Earth
-the enemy, Satan, has sown false teachers and their false converts in his attempt to destroy Christ’s work
***even though your Bible is thousands of years old, it is never out of date
Matthew 10:29
“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.”
-the church will grow to such a size that enemies of the gospel will infiltrate and infuse it with destructive doctrines
Enemies Teach a Modernized Gospel:
-believism is rooted in the conscious or unconscious neglect of the whole counsel of God’s Word
-churches are succumbing to this alternative plan of salvation
-people rely on weird perversions of truth the goes against biblical wisdom and common sense logic
-motivations speakers may seem to insert a biblical passage here and there to sound like they are teaching biblically, but it is false teaching
-this type of teaching is false hope
-they dupe people into thinking they have a special connection with God
-they substitute the gospel for convenient substitutes that feels food
A Series of Minuses:
“Anytime the gospel is not taught clearly, it softens the nature of mankind’s sinfulness” (Puritan writer Ralph Venning).
***The Bible is never ambiguous in its estimation of humanity’s standing outside of Christ
Roman 3: 23
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
Romans 3: 10-12
“There is no one righteous, not even one;
there is no one who understands;
there is no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.”
Romans 5: 17
“For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!”
Psalm 51: 5
“Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”
-every human is sin positive
-we are born natural-born sinners
The Gospel Minus Conviction
-we don’t need feel good churches; a local bar can do that
-be aware of the message’s attitudes and actions that displease God
-church should not only make you feel good when you leave
-feeling good is not the fruit of the Spirit
****you should get God’s Word where the Holy Spirit grabs your attention through verses that pierce your heart
-the Bible alone has the power to deliver a verdict as to the state of a person’s heart
Hebrews 4: 12
“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
-the Spirit brings the soul to the point to confess
-those touched by God’s Word will respond
-every message should convict every person
-when the Lord speaks lives will be touched
-people will be encouraged, exhorted, instructed, and convicted
John 10: 27
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”
****if you are at a church that avoids conviction will be devoid of repentance and without repentance there is no transformation
The Gospel Minus Repentance
-Repentance is the first word of the gospel
-there is no good news without first knowing the bad news
-we can never appreciate Jesus Christ as Savior unless we first recognize that we need saving
-Jesus first presented the gospel
Mark 1: 15
“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
-Metanoia: the greek word for repent-meant change your mind-change the way you’ve been thinking about God and how to know Him
-repentance is a requirement for belief
-God asks us to consider the direction our life is heading, turn around, and leave that life behind
-true repentance breaks that cycle
-repentance is missing from preaching for several reasons
1-many ministers don’t hold the same view of sin as God does
2-many ministers don’t hold the same view of salvation
3-minsters take the easy way out as talking about repentance is not popular so they avoid the gospel message making repentance an illegitimate gospel
***the hearer’s response is not their responsibility
The Gospel Minus its Power:
-churches sell out for popularity
-the gospel is not a pep talk
-churches should not dilute doctrine in an effort to get people through the doors
2 Timothy 4: 2
“Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”
-pastors are commanded to “Preach the word”
-Give the authoritative World of God, not a pep talk or a feel-good story
***watered-down easy believism within a church produces weak Christians with no spiritual power so no long lasting change taking place in their lives
-they live a shallow superficial life that they have falsely labeled Christianity
-churches are far removed from expositional teaching that goes verse by verse through the entirety book of the Bible
-systemic teaching encourages people to dissect, eat, and apply God’s Word to their lives
-God’s Word results in growing deeper and stronger in their walk
-when you don’t grow in the power of the gospel you will lead a defeated Christian life
The Gospel Minus the Cross:
1 Corinthians 1: 17
“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.”
-the most dangerous aspect of believism is it devalues the cross which is the centerpiece of Christianity
-the power of the cross changes everything
-so-called gospel presentations often come wrapped in the latest trends with entertaining props, but absent of truths about the cross
Romans 1: 16
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”
-you must understand the absolute necessity of Christ’s blood-stained cross
-remission of sins is impossible without Jesus Christ being crucified on the cross
-death on the cross is the sole basis of our justification before God almighty
John 3: 14-15
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”
-only looking to the cross are our sins forgiven and heaven secured
Enemies of the Cross:
-Paul warned not to dismiss the necessity of embracing the cross
Philippians 3: 18
“For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.”
-do not become the enemy of the cross
-easy believism degrades the cross by suggesting it is possible to come to Christ without actually following Christ
-easy believism is a well-worn trap of Satan
“Don’t worry, you don’t have to give up anything. You can keep your lusts, lying, and cheating. You can keep your questionable business practices. In fact, your life can continue as it always has”
Matthew 16: 24-26
“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life[a] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?”
-the Holy Spirit has been convicting them ever since they could discern between right and wrong
-the necessity of the cross is watered down or removed, it is, easy to downplay the cost of following Christ
-Jesus’ death and resurrection should apply to people’s daily lives
Ex. Jehovah’s Witness-demands followers spend hours studying the Bible so they are sincere people, but they don’t study it accurately so their false teachings keep people hell bound
-easy way out to submit to the demands of cults
-Christians must remain steadfast in their commitment to the One who died for them
-don’t be deceived by the lie of no-cost, no cross Christianity
Witnesses of the Cross
-one of the most effective forms of evangelism occurs under the watchful eyes of an unbelieving world
-watching us in our day-to-day circumstances, in life’s struggles and victories
-our lives ought to be a living billboard, as sign and testimony of the presence of Christ–display of His Lordship
Matthew 28: 19
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
-when we realize the expense God paid in forgiving our sins, we immediately humbled by the power of such a display of love
-Jesus told his disciples to go out into the world, preach the gospel, and make disciples of all nations called the Great Commission
-the Great Commission is for every believer
-if Jesus Christ is in your life, you will make yourself available when God brings the opportunity
-disciples reproduce disciples
-grace is not cheap
Ex. The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
-we are saved by the grace of God, and when we act upon that grace in faith
-He brings us into His family
-Bonhoeffer warns that grace may be free to us; it cost God everything
-there is no such thing as cheap grace
***illusionary invention of progressive, liberal Christianity which is a false Christianity
-we should be humbled by expanse God paid in forgiving our sins in such a display of love
-Jesus born in Bethlehem who bore the brunt and shame of associating with mankind, only to be betrayed, crucified, buried, and resurrected from the dead
-we are too as a disciple of Jesus Christ to pick up our cross and follow Him by denying our flesh which is costly
****Apply the Word of God to every situation
2 Corinthians 3: 17
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”