Would God Save Through a Lie - Part II

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Intro
Part I
Part II

Let me offer the next thought-provoking question in this series:
If a man merely reads the scriptures but never is given a man of God to share the gospel with him, could he come to a saving knowledge of Christ?

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 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? 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!" - Rom 10:13-15

"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." - Pro 14:12

"Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts." - Pro 21:2

Philip was led by the Spirit to bring the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch which led to the following exchange:
And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? 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. - Act 8:30-31

In my search of the scriptures, I've found no examples where a man came to know his sins, the Lord's righteousness and judgment [Joh 16:8] without the Spirit working through a preacher. On the contrary, scripture teaches us that the revelation of Christ through the Spirit comes through His mouthpieces for that is what we are called to do. [1 Pet 2:9]

Some use Martin Luther's testimony or even personal testimonies to support the idea that a man can be saved by merely reading the Scriptures. I've read the stories and watched the documentaries also. However, do we dare nullify or compromise the clear teachings of the scriptures for the sake of making sense of an extra-biblical experience? Since "every way of a man is right in his own eyes", let us stand on scripture's infallible truth rather than man's experience or historical narratives. Besides, if I remember correctly, none of the biographers of Luther's life were apostles divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit.

In Part III, I hope to provide some applications of these truths in what I hope and pray would spur believers to preach the gospel to the lost at every God-given opportunity.

Would God Save Through a Lie? - Part I

Jump To:
Intro
Part I
Part II

Is Arminianism a false gospel? Consequently, is man's determinate will the decisive act in salvation?

That's a question I started asking about 6 years ago as a result of meeting other youth ministry leaders in the East Bay Area. Hearing them focus so much on getting the youth to make a choice to live for Christ, caused me to search the scriptures on this topic only to realize the undeniable, biblical truth that God is entirely sovereign over all things including (and especially) the will of man.

Rather than enumerate here what I learned through the years on this topic, I offer the following instead...

A few weeks ago, my wife found a message preached by Pastor John Piper on this very topic called How to Distinguish Between the Gospel and False Gospels. I've been blessed by it and I hope that you are too.

Pastor Piper has very clearly shown from the Scriptures that Arminianism (and any teaching that denies the complete sovereign work of God alone in salvation) is a false gospel.

I wondered what might have prompted Piper to speak on this topic. I remembered that in September of 2007, Pastor Piper was invited to be the sole preacher at a weekend conference in Sacramento hosted by a large and growing Ukrainian church (). During one of his messages, he touched on the biblical teaching of election. The church, being Armenian, apparently (secondhand knowledge) preached a "rebuttal" message the following Sunday after Pastor Piper had left. Coincidentally, the message above was preached just a few months later.

This is quickly becoming a battleground of truth for the Christian church and warrants careful thought and search of the scriptures.

I'm sure this is difficult for some who either themselves or have family members under this false teaching. I fall in that category as I have a sister who is in such a church.

Does it discourage me?

On the contrary! It makes me even more vigilant about finding opportunities to share with her and her family the truth of Christ in the Scriptures. May it also spur you on to do the same.

Would God Save Through a Lie? - Intro

Jump To:
Intro
Part I
Part II

Many recent discussions with close friends, trusted mentors and fellow believers have led to asking some very important questions that I've personally wrestled with for about six years. These events have sharpened me to again search the scriptures to "see if these things were so" as the Bereans did. The next few articles will try to address these questions/issues. Some of the answers may be difficult to accept but I hope and pray that you consider the clear teachings from the scriptures on these topics.

Below are the questions I'll raise in this series:

When a preacher teaches that a man is saved by their choice (Freewill, Arminianism, etc.) plus God's grace, is he preaching a false gospel?

Consequently, could a man be saved through such a preaching?

If a man merely reads the scriptures but never is given a man of God to share the gospel with him, could he come to a saving knowledge of Christ?

These are serious questions because their application runs deep and can lead to some very personal questions such as those below:

If I pray for my [insert closest family member here] who is steeped in Catholicism but never share the gospel with her, would God work to save her?

What if I give my [insert closest family member here] a bible, then pray? Would God work through that?

My sister goes to an Arminian church. They preach Christ there. I've been there. Wouldn't God save through that preaching?

These are uncomfortable questions to wrestle with but the Spirit has graciously given us answers in the Scriptures. I pray that the Spirit would lead us to only the truth as it is in Christ.

I Like Mellow Yellow

"Lord, ...we ask you to help us work for that day.. when yellow will be mellow..."

The phrase above is from Reverend Lowry's so-called prayer at the Presidential Inauguration last night. A transcript is available here.

There's already a lot of chatter on this in the blogsphere. Many Asians are angry, some are indifferent while others don't care. Frankly, I think we (Asians and Pacific Islanders) are up in arms about a relatively insignificant phrase. Lowry's attempt at trying to be funny was only overshadowed by his poor attempt at leading a nation in prayer.

If this topic comes up at work or with friends, how should a Christian respond? Here is one simple suggestion (I'm sure some have a better one):

"The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." - James 5:16

That "righteous man" is Christ. Without Christ, a man's prayers accomplishes nothing except to incite the flesh to cry out "Amen!" which is exactly what Lowry accomplished.

Now, think about what type of discussion that leads to with neighbors, co-workers and friends. I'm sure that would be better than discussing whether Yellow needs to be Mellow or not. :)

"Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man." - Col 4:6

My Testimony: HIM not me! - Part III

What should be a Christian's testimony?

In Part I, I introduced the question, "What is my testimony?" In Part II, we quickly looked at the biblical testimony. In this final part, I hope to help believers understand what a Christ-exalting testimony is.

I'm going to make this very short while hopefully maintaining relevance and spurring you on to honor Christ.  Read the Word of the Lord in the account of the Samaritan woman:

Joh 4:39-42

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.  So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.   And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world. 

You know the story of the Samarita woman (Joh 4:5-29).  When the Samaritan woman gave her testimony, she did not recall her past life nor wonder at the new life ahead of her.  She did not call the hearers to understand her sordid past.  She did not make the hearers to marvel at her renewed outlook on life, her newfound joy and peace nor her hope of a better future.  She merely told the hearers of her testimony, "He told me all that I ever did."

What was her testimony to the hearers?  I submit to you that her testimony was this: I am a sinner, a great sinner - lost and dead.  He made me to see my sins.  Greater yet, He made me to see Him and now I rejoice because the Messiah has found me and saved me from my sins!

Christian, the height of your testimony is not your pursuit of holiness and achievement of a less sinful life.  Nor is it your current state of happiness and peace as compared to your past.  It is not merely that you once were a drunkard and now you are not.  When your testimony amounts to your works and experiences, you place onto yourself a yolk of righteousness that you cannot bear.  When your testimony is limited to the changes in your life, you place blinders on the ears of your hearers so that they only see you and not the God-honoring testimony.

Your testimony is not what you have done, are doing or will do.  Your testimony is that He showed you your sinfulness and need for a Savior and that you have obtained mercy.  The person and the work of Jesus (the gospel) is your testimony.

When you understand that, you will then see that "blowing your testimony" is not about sinning in front of others.  We all do that all day long.  Blowing your testimony happens when you don't blow the bugle of the gospel as an evangel to proclaim the excellencies of Him who brought us (wicked, rebellious sinners then, now and tomorrow) out of darkness and into His marvelous light.  Our testimony is not us, it is Jesus!

My Testimony: HIM not me! - Part II

What is a biblical testimony?

In Part I of this article, I asked the question: What is my testimony? The question was born from the consideration of how often Christians use the term to describe their actions in life. In this second part of this three-part article, I will attempt to summarize the biblical definitions and uses of the word "testimony".

Before I proceed, I want to point out that I am not a seminary graduate nor have I taken any Greek or Hebrew courses. Like most of you, I am a layman trusting in the Spirit's work, counsel of wise men and the Scripture's efficacy for all things pertaining to life and godliness. I long to understand the Scriptures so as to reveal Jesus in His glory while setting men aside in the sidelines as auditors.

The word "testimony" is used by the KJV translators 44 times in the Old Testament and 32 times in the New. In total, there are 6 distinct words or forms of a word translated as "testimony". All words speak of either bearing a record (as in a witness of an act) or giving a report. In some uses, the word represents the actual report or evidence given. The Hebrew and Greek words translated often as "testimony" is also translated as "testimonies", "witness" and "testify/ied".

Other than Jesus' rebuke of the Pharisees (as in Mat. 23:31) as party to those that "kill the prophets", none of the uses refer to the act of the speaker nor of his past accomplishments or failures when the testimony is that of a man. Only when the Scriptures refer to the testimony of God (as in Psa. 19:7, ) does the testifier speak of Himself or of His acts.

Why then has the contemporary use become so man-centered and how do we return to a biblical and Christ-honoring testimony? See Part III...

Back At It...

I've taken a long break to do some major remodeling of unused rooms around the house to prepare for what we hope to be an interesting and blessed 2009.  More on that later...

I will be publishing the completion of the "My Testimony: Him not Me!" article this weekend as well as posting some that I've drafted but have not been able to complete.  I hope you find them beneficial to your soul.