False Christian teachings, trends….
…For through grace God gives people the gift of faith. It is faith that is the instrumental cause of justification and by it believers are united to Christ and receive the benefits of His life, death, and resurrection. [It is essential to understand this concept; God the Holy Spirit seemingly brings born-again believers to a clear understanding of this: works are excluded; there is no boasting….]
In his Morning thoughts, Spurgeon talked about the Bride of Christ in a way that clearly offered plenty to meditate upon and to find hope in; his evening thoughts provided hope from his musings on Psalm 91. Very encouraging devotional for this day.
Nothing is more fatal than beginning the Christian life thinking trouble and problems are finished. In this sermon on praying in the Spirit from Ephesians 6.18, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains that the New Testament actually indicates the opposite of this. Rather, Christians should expect attacks as never before. What is the connection between “praying always” and the “armor of God”? Prayer is something Christians do in addition to putting on the armor. The armor provided by God cannot be used except in communion with God. Prayer is essential to the Christian life, for without it the Christian is faint….
In the sermon of this post, MLJ explains what the apostle Paul meant when he called us to take the sword of the Spirit in our fight with the Evil One. Among the many things he said, he made a distinction that would nullify the ideas of many Christians and commentators in our day, he said that Paul only referred to scripture; not any words that a Charismatic or a Mystic might receive during their spiritual exercises. All those words that such people claim they heard from the Lord, are excluded…. As usual, MLJ’s words are thoroughly biblical and provide sound guidance to the Christian who is traveling the biblical WAY.
This sermon is very relevant, even in the 21st century. People want to find God via their own reason, that can never happen. When Moses and the apostle Paul could not do so, how can we think we might do so? “…In Corinth, false teachers were denying the miraculous events of the Bible, saying that they cannot be true because they seem unreasonable. They wanted to view Christ as a good teacher rather than as God and Savior. People continually reject the wisdom of God that is revealed in the Bible, nature, and all of history. They turn to their own brain instead of relying on the all-knowing, all-powerful God of the Bible.”
How is a person saved? Is it through just hearing the gospel or is it through faith? The debate is a theological divide in the Christian church. …Dr. Lloyd-Jones says that there are two types of hearing: hearing that falls on the ears and hearing that moves a person to believe. Quoting the words of Isaiah, he reveals that this has always been the case.
In my correspondence yesterday, the topic of original sin came up. I thought I would post on this topic because there are so many unbiblical preachers in the 21st century church that many newer Christians may not know about this doctrine. Students of the Bible come to understand it, especially if they attend a church whose standards are the Westminster Confession of Faith or the Baptist Confession of 1689….
Spurgeon’s Morning commentary is on the following verse: “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.” — Heb_5:8. His Evening thoughts are about this verse: Song of Solomon 5:6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. [The morning thoughts are in line with the MLJ sermon which will be posted later today.]
In the last post, a sermon titled, Looking Unto Jesus, by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, the closed the service by singing the following hymn. The lyrics for the hymn are below the following video, so you may sing along.
Temptation is a constant trap that the devil puts in the path of Christians. Satan is constantly prowling around as he tries to convince Christians into crediting their salvation to the binding of rules and regulations. He twists and distorts the truth of the gospel by making the Christian think that they are still under the power and dominion of sin. …He points out in Scripture how the breastplate of righteousness is a reminder that the old self has been crucified with Christ, resulting in liberation from the laws and regulations they were bound to before.