It’s ALL about Love – Lies
of the Enemy – Purity 1014
Purity 1014 04/11/2023 Purity 1014 Podcast
Purity 1014 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo a row of park benches bathed in the duskay
light of the sun setting over Lake Ontario comes to us from Rocco Say of Celestial
Blue Photography (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069048257152)
who shared this photo on social media last night commenting that his evening
ended well with a bike ride at sunset. We thank him for bringing his camera along
for the ride and capturing, and sharing, these magnificent views that he shares
with his friends.
Well, It’s Tuesday and tonight is the last scheduled
meeting of the Freedom in Christ course that I facilitate online where I try to
share the biblical worldview that the course materials puts forth as a frame
work from which we can experience our Freedom in Christ. In tonight’s session we will be sharing the
course’s guidelines for our walk of faith and so I share them here:
“God’s
Guidelines For The Walk Of Faith
Success comes from having the right goals. Success
is accepting God’s goal for our lives and by His grace becoming what He has
called us to be (Joshua 1:7,8; 2 Peter 1:3-10; 3 John 2).
Significance comes from proper use of time. What is
forgotten in time is of little significance. What is remembered for eternity is
of greatest significance (1 Corinthians 3:13; Acts 5:33-40; 1 Timothy 4:7,8).
Fulfilment comes from serving others. Fulfilment is
discovering our own uniqueness in Christ and using our gifts to build others up
and glorify the Lord (2 Timothy 4:5; Romans 12:1-18; Matthew 25:14-30).
Satisfaction comes from living a quality life. Satisfaction is living righteously and
seeking to raise the quality of our relationships and the things we do (Matthew
5:5; Proverbs 18:24; 2 Timothy 4:7).
Happiness comes from wanting what we have. Happiness
is being thankful for what we do have, rather than focusing on what we don’t
have — because happy are the people who want what they have! (Philippians 4:12;
1 Thessalonians 5:18; 1 Timothy 6:6-8).
Fun comes from enjoying life moment by moment. The
secret is to remove unbiblical hindrances such as keeping up appearances (2
Samuel 6:20-23; Galatians 1:10, 5:1; Romans 14:22).
Security comes from focusing on eternal values. Insecurity
comes when we depend on things that will pass away rather than things that will
last forever (John 10:27-30; Romans 8:31-39; Ephesians 1:13,14).
Peace comes from quieting the inner storm. The peace
of God is internal, not external (Jeremiah 6:14; John 14:27; Philippians 4:6,7;
Isaiah 32:17).”
Neil T. Anderson and Steve Goss, Freedom in Christ
Course, Participant’s Guide (Oxford, England: Monarch Books, 2017).
As you can see, Bible verses are used to support
these guidelines of how to experience success, significance, fulfillment,
satisfaction, happiness, fun, security, and peace. It is the truth of God’s word we must stand on
to experience the abundant life Christ has for us. We have to live by and in
the truth of God’s word.
I wanted to point that out before transitioning into
our new and possibly unending current series on the Lies of the Enemy. I point a shaking finger towards today’s big
lie because the enemy will undoubtedly use offense, The Bait of Satan, to
accuse and berate me for exposing one of the most popular falsehoods of our
age.
Lie # 2: Christianity is ALL about love.
Now I hit myself with the truth of God’s word by
offering the words of Jesus to testify that love is a fundamental aspect of our
faith. As Jesus, Himself said:
Matthew
22:37-39 (NLT2)
37 “‘You
must love the LORD your God with
all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’
38 This
is the first and greatest commandment.
39 A
second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
So yes, it is clear that we are to love God and to love
people. But that’s not all Jesus said.
To establish these commandments of love. He also said:
Matthew
22:40 (NLT2)
40 The
entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two
commandments.”
Here Jesus doesn’t dismiss the law or the prophets but let’s
us know that all “the demands” that come from them are based on these commands
to love God and love people.
Today’s big lie is that Christianity is “ALL” about love. And this is the trap of the enemy, whenever
you hear “extreme” language that would lift one aspect of our faith or
experience above all the other variables, we have to be careful that we aren’t
presenting a false image of God or what He “demands” of us.
While we are to love our neighbors as ourselves, we are to
love God first and love them according to what He says is true.
Loving Jesus, when speaking of those who would not accept the
gospel, told His apostles
Matthew 10:14-16 (NLT2)
14 If any household or town
refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet
as you leave.
15 I tell you the truth, the
wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than such a town on the
judgment day.
16 “Look, I am sending you
out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves.
He calls the non-believing wicked wolves, who will face judgement and destruction! And
what are we supposed to do in their presence: shake the dust off our feet and leave. We are to “unlovingly” separate ourselves
from their company.
Christianity isn’t ALL about love to the point that we would
excuse sin and give the non-believing or unrepentant sinner the false security
of our fellowship or affirm their sinful lifestyles. It’s not ALL about love, it’s also about God’s
standards of morality as Christ said,that even though he shifted some paradigms
about the Pharisee’s understanding of the law, he wasn’t getting rid of
it.
In Matthew 5:17 (NLT2) Jesus said:
17 “Don’t misunderstand why I
have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the
prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.
So the point behind
presenting today’s big lie is that although we are to love our neighbors, we
are to do so in the context of God’s holiness.
Christ told us to repent (Matt 4:17) so we have to change from our
worldly ways of wisdom that would teach us that “as long as no one is harming
anyone, any behavior is okay” and turn towards God’s ways that would tell us
that some things are just wrong and that those who do them with no repentance will
find themselves separated from God’s kingdom, no matter how amusing, charming,
or loving they may seem to be.
So let’s lovingly
encourage people to believe in the gospel and to repent. Instead of us telling people that their wrong actions and beliefs
are okay. We should follow the word of God’s advice in:
Ephesians
4:15 (NLT2) which says,
15 Instead, we will speak the
truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head
of his body, the church.
I know how difficult
facing today’s big lie is because we want to be well liked by the world. And I
know that speaking of God’s holiness is an offense to the world that is
perishing, however if we truly love
people we would seek to warn them of the danger their in and encourage them to
find peace with God by putting their faith in Jesus and seeking to become more like
Him by abandoning their ways that are contrary to His.
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Today’s
Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible Promise Book for Men”.
This
morning’s meditation verse is:
Philippians
4:6 (NLT2)
6 Don’t worry about anything;
instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all
he has done.
Today’s verse tells us to “be
anxious for nothing” in the NKJV and to continually pray, give thanks to God, and to let Him know what
you need.
It all points to a robust moment
to moment relationship with the Lord and advises us that we need not live fear
because we know God. Don’t worry, God is
with us. Don’t forget what He has done
for you and will do for you. Thank Him.
Ask Him for help. Ask Him for wisdom. Ask Him for strength. Pray about
everything.
How do we overcome fear?
Through knowing and relating to God continuously in the practices of prayer and
thanksgiving. These practices keep us
grounded in the truth of who God is, who we are in Christ, and remind us that
we are accepted, significant, and secure because of the peace we have with God through
our faith in Christ. So if fear arises,
pray for help and thank God for what He has done, knowing that even if the “help”
we ask for doesn’t arrive like we think it should, we will still be secure in
Him.
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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from A.W. Pink’s “The
Sovereignty of God.”
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage all to purchase A.W. Pink’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available on
many websites for less than $20.00.
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
By
ARTHUR W. PINK
CONCLUSION
“Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent
reigneth” (Rev. 19:6).
In our Foreword to the second edition (pages
13, 14) we acknowledge the need for preserving
the balance of Truth. Two things are beyond dispute: God is sovereign, man
is responsible. In this book we have sought to expound the former; in our other
works we have frequently pressed the latter. That there is real danger of
over-emphasizing the one and ignoring the other, we readily admit; yea, history
furnishes numerous examples of cases of each. To emphasize the sovereignty of
God without also maintaining the accountability of the creature tends to
fatalism; to be so concerned in maintaining the responsibility of man as to
lose sight of the sovereignty of God is to exalt the creature and dishonor the
Creator.
Almost all doctrinal
error is really, Truth perverted, Truth wrongfully divided, Truth disproportionately held and taught. The
fairest face on earth, with the most comely features, would soon become ugly
and unsightly if one member continued growing while the others remained
undeveloped. Beauty is, primarily, a matter of proportion. Thus it is with the
Word of God: its beauty and blessedness are best perceived when its manifold
wisdom is exhibited in its true proportions. Here is where so many have failed
in the past. A single phase of God’s Truth has so impressed this man or that
that he has concentrated his attention upon it, almost to the exclusion of
everything else. Some portion of God’s Word has been made a “pet doctrine,” and
often this has become the distinctive badge of some party. But it is the duty
of each servant of God to “declare all
the counsel of God” (Acts 20:27).
It is true that the
degenerate days in which our lot is cast, when on every side man is exalted and
“superman” has become a common expression, there is real need for a special emphasis upon the glorious fact
of God’s supremacy. The more so where this is expressly denied. Yet even here
much wisdom is required lest our zeal should not be “according to knowledge.”
The words “meat in due season” should ever be before the servant of God. What
is needed, primarily, by one congregation may not be specifically needed by
another. If called to labor where Arminian preachers have preceded, then the
neglected truth of God’s sovereignty should be expounded, though with caution
and care lest too much “strong meat” be given to “babes.” The example of Christ
in John 16:12 “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now,” must be borne in mind. On the
other hand, if I am called to take charge of a distinctly Calvinistic pulpit,
then the truth of human responsibility (in its many aspects) may be profitably
set forth. What the preacher needs to give out is not what his people most like to hear, but what they most need, i.e., those aspects of truth they
are least familiar with, or least exhibiting in their walk.
To carry into actual
practice what we have inculcated above will, most probably, lay the preacher
open to the charge of being a Turncoat. But what matters that if he has his
Master’s approval? He is not called upon to be “consistent” with himself nor
with any rules drawn up by man; his business is to be consistent with Holy Writ. And in Scripture each part or
aspect of truth is balanced by another aspect of truth. There are two sides to
everything, even to the character of God for He is “light” (1 John 1:5) as well
as “love” (1 John 4:8), and therefore are we called upon to “Behold therefore
the goodness and severity of God”
(Rom. 11:2). To be all the time preaching on the one to the exclusion of the
other caricatures the Divine character.
When the Son of God
became incarnate He came here in “the form of a servant” (Phil. 2:6); nevertheless, in the manger He was “Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11)! All things are
possible with God (Matt. 19:26) yet God “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2). Scripture
says “Bear ye one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2), yet the same chapter insists
“every man shall bear his own burden” (Gal. 6:5). We are enjoined to take “no
thought for the morrow” (Matt. 6:34), yet “if any provide not for his own, and
specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse
than an infidel” (1 Tim. 5:8). No sheep of Christ’s can perish (John 10:28,
29), yet the Christian is bidden to make his “calling and election sure” (2 Peter 1:10). And so we might go
on multiplying illustrations. These things are not contradictions but complementaries:
the one “balances the other.” Thus, the Scriptures set forth both the sovereignty of God and the
responsibility of man. So, too, should every servant of God, and that, in their
proper proportion.
But we return now to
a few closing reflections upon our present theme. “And Jehoshaphat stood in the
congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new
court, And said, O Lord God of our fathers, art not Thou God in heaven? and
rulest not Thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in Thine hand is
there not power and might, so that none
is able to withstand Thee?” (2 Chron. 20:5, 6). Yes, the Lord is God,
ruling in supreme majesty and might. Yet in our day, a day of boasted
enlightenment and progress, this is denied on every hand. A materialistic
science and atheistic philosophy have bowed God out of His own world, and
everything is regulated, forsooth, by (impersonal) laws of nature. So in human
affairs: at best God is a far-distant spectator, and a helpless one at that. God could not help the launching of the
dreadful war, and though He longed to put a stop to it He was unable to do
so—and this in the face of 1 Chron. 5:22; 2 Chron. 24:24! Having endowed man
with “free agency” God is obliged to let man make his own choice and go his own
way, and He cannot interfere with him, or otherwise his moral responsibility
would be destroyed! Such are the popular beliefs of the day. One is not
surprised to find these sentiments emanating from German theologians, but how
sad that they should be taught in many of our Seminaries, echoed from many of
our pulpits, and accepted by many of the rank and file of professing
Christians.
One of the most
flagrant sins of our age is that of irreverence—the failure to ascribe the
glory which is due the august majesty of God. Men limit the power and
activities of the Lord in their degrading concepts of His being and character.
Originally, man was made in the image and likeness of God, but today we are
asked to believe in a god made in the image and likeness of man. The Creator is
reduced to the level of the creature: His omniscience is called into question,
His omnipotency is no longer believed in, and His absolute sovereignty is
flatly denied. Men claim to be the architects of their own fortunes and the
determiners of their own destiny. They know not that their lives are at the
disposal of the Divine Despot. They know not they have no more power to thwart
His secret decrees than a worm has to resist the tread of an elephant. They
know not that “The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens; and His
kingdom ruleth over all” (Psa.
103:19).[1]
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tomorrow------------------------
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Encouragement
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