Are You Ready for the End? Part 3

You know, I've had the privilege of being the pastor of Christ Community Church since its inception 20 years ago. And I've got to be honest with you, this has been the greatest 20 years I could have ever experienced. In fact, I am so pleased with what God has done, so enamored with the faithfulness of God, that if I was to die and I could come back, As any in the world, I'd want to come back as me again. Now, that might sound kind of weird to some of you, but in all reality, If I could come back and be me just one more time, I would.

That's how great my life has been. And I've experienced many tragedies and many difficulties. Throughout my 56 years of living, I know I don't look 56 years old. I know I look 36, but I am 56. But the bottom of the line, bottom line is this: God has been so incredibly good to me throughout these years. Especially these last 20 years in the ministry at Christ Community Church. And God has shown me His sovereignty, His holiness, His glory. Over and over again. And God is sovereign over all things. And I am so pleased that God's in control of this church, and I am not in control of this church.

That God has a plan. And one of the plans is how he orchestrates the events of everyday life to come about so that when I stand up to preach, I know that God's in charge. We have just finished Luke chapter 21 and asking the question: Will you stand before the Son of Man? And so it's at our 20th year anniversary, and what better anniversary? Celebration sermon to preach, then are you ready? Are you ready to face Christ? Are you ready to meet your Maker when you die? God is just so good because we need to understand our responsibility as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And I can't think of a better message to preach than to make sure the people of Christ Community Church are ready to meet Christ face to face. And it's imperative that we understand what exactly that means for each and every one of us. The church has been given a mandate. 2 Timothy, verse number 2: Preach the word. Preach it in season, out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long su and patience. That's the mandate. Given to the church, preach the word. Paul told Timothy, give yourself to the reading of the word, to the teaching of the word, to the exhortation of the word.

Give yourself To that, because people need to hear what God has to say. And so we need to give people The word of God. And when you give people the word of God, you put yourself in a very precarious situation because it's a very dangerous thing to do. A lot of people get upset when you preach the word, and rightly so. Rightly so. Because the Bible says that Jesus is a stumbling offense and a rock of offense.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is that stumbling stone and many will stumble over him. So if you go to preach Jesus, people are going to be offended because of what Jesus has said and what Jesus does. We also know the Bible says this about Jesus: that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.

So if you preach Christ and you preach the cross, it is foolishness to those who could care less about Jesus and the cross. We also know that the Bible says over in 1 Corinthians 2, verse number 14, that the natural man does not understand the things of the Spirit of God.

He has no idea about what we're talking about. So, if you're an un and you come to church, you come to a church like Christ's community, and we say, turning your Bible to this verse, and we read the verse, and we expound the verse, and we preach on that verse, and we take you to different various scriptures in the Bible. And we preach Jesus, listen, that's going to be offensive to a lot of people who don't know Jesus. We understand that. And yet, the mandate has been given to the church to preach the word.

Charles Spurge said this over a hundred years ago. I fear there are some who preach with the view of amusing men. And as long as people can be gathered in crowds and their ears can be tickled. and they can retire pleased with what they have heard, the orator is content and folds his hands and goes back self-satisfied. But Paul did not lay himself out to please the public and collect the crowd. If he did not save them, he felt that it was of no avail to interest them. Unless the truth had pierced their hearts, affected their lives, and made new men of them, Paul would have gone on crying, Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

In other words, Spurge says, We are given to preach the word. We 're not here to entertain men, we're here to enlighten men as to the truth of God's word. We're not here to amuse men. We're here to tell them the truth of God's word. And if your spirit is convicted because of its sin, If your spirit is not challenged by the Word of God, then we have failed at our mission. We want to give you the Word of God. But most orators would be content by having you leave comforted, having you leave okay with where you are.

I don't think any of us could say we're okay with where we're at. We need to be progressing spiritually, moving on to Christ's lik, which is the never pursuit of the believer. We want to. We want to be like Christ. We want to honor Christ. We want to serve Christ. And none of us are perfect. So there's a progression about our lives that each day builds upon the other. And so we want the Word of God to challenge us, to convict us, to convert us when we don't even know who Christ is. So we preach the wor.

We preach the word for several reasons. If've got your Bible, turn me to 2 Timothy 4 for a moment. 2 Timothy chapter 3 and chapter 4. Paul says this in chapter 3, verse number 1. But realize this, that in the last days, difficult times will come. Maybe your translation says perilous times. Will come. It's a word used to describe satanic activity during the ministry of Christ. So it's a word that describes that the world will be like Satan's graveyard. Perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of self and lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips without self-control, brutal, haters of good.

treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, sounds like today. I mean, Paul could write that today. But Paul says, beware. You got to preach the word, 2 Timothy 4, 2, because of the perilous seasons. It's a season where men need to know the truth because of their attitude, because of their actions. They need to know what God says.

So preach the word. Number one, because of Perilous seasons, and number two, because of the problem of spiritual ph.

He says this, verse 5: Holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power and avoid such men as these, for among them are those who enter into households. and captivate weak women, weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. And just as Janice and Jambreys opposed Moses, so these men also opposed the truth. Men of depraved mind rejected as regards the faith. There's going to be a problem in the church, and the problem is spiritual phonies.

You need to preach the word because it weeds out the fraudulent. It weeds out those people who want to pretend. The pretenders in the pew or the pretenders in the pulpit. So you preach the word, it begins to weed them out. You preach the word because of the perilous seasons. You preach the word because of the problem of spiritual. Phonies, and you preach the word because of the pattern of the saints. It says in verse nine. But they will not make further progress, for their folly will be obvious to all, as also that of those who came to be.

But you follow my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings. And it's happened to me at Antioch and Iconium and at Lyst. What persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord delivered me. And indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and apostles will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing that from Whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings, which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus.

Timothy, there's a pattern that's been set. The pattern's been set by me. The pattern was set by your mother and your grandmother, Lois and Eunice, because from your early childhood you knew the scriptures. His father was a Greek. He didn't know the Lord, but his mom and grandmom did. And there's been a pattern that's been set. And because of the pattern that's been set, what's going to happen is that there will be people that will be exposed over time. Those spiritual phonies will be exposed, but there's a pattern that's been set.

And that's what you need to follow. That's why you preach the word. You follow Timothy my persecutions, the ones that you know well about. It's going to happen to you. But you've got to continue to preach the word. It is the pattern that's been passed down from generation to generation from the beginning of time. And you need to preach the word. The perilous seasons, the problem of spiritual phonies, the pattern of the saints, and the power of scripture. Verse 16: All scripture is inspired by God and profitable teaching for reproof or correction.

For training in righteousness, that the man of God may be adequately quipped for every good work. Every man needs to hear the word of God because it's going to mend them together, it's going to put them together, it's going to tie everything together for them to make them complete. That they might be the kind of men God wants them to be. So you need to make sure, Timothy, you preach the word because of the power of scripture. Need to preach the word, chapter 4, verse number 1, because of the presence of our sovereign King.

I solemnly charge you, in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead. And by his appearing and his kingdom, preach the word. Timothy, you're preaching because of the presence of the sovereign king of the universe. He is your audience of one. He is the one you must please. He is the one who is listening to every word that you preach. So make sure that when you preach, you preach to the king, because he is the one who listens to every word you say. You preach the word because of the prediction about seduction.

It says in verse 3: For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires. and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths. But you be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. There is a prediction that seduction will come. Men don't want to hear the truth. They're going to be moved away from that.

They're going to go to those who will tickle their ears. They don't want. See, the truth doesn't tickle your ears, it boxes your ears. People don't want their ears to be boxed, and so they'll go to a place where their ears can be tickled and they can be comforted by what is said instead of Al their life with the true, unadulterated, undiluted word of God. And because of the prediction of seduction, Timothy. Need to preach the word all the more because people need to hear the truth. And then, lastly, you preach the word because of the promise of the second coming.

In the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, verse number 8, which the Lord the right judge will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing. Timothy, Jesus is coming again. The promise of his coming. You need to pre the word. So, for 20 years, Christ Community Church has been committed to preaching and teaching the word of God. So people will know the truth of God's holy word. It was Charles Spurgeon, who, yes, still over 100 years ago, said these words.

He said, Now observe, brethren, if I or you or any of us, or all of us, shall have spent our lives merely in amusing men, or educating men, or moralizing men. When we shall come to give our account at the last great day, we shall be in a very sorry condition, and we shall have but a very sorry record to render. For of what avail will it be to a man to be educated when he comes to be damned? Of what service will it be to him to have been amused when the trumpet sounds and heaven and earth are shaking, and the pit opens wide her jaws of fire and swallows up the soul unsaved?

Of what avail even to have moralized a man if still he is on the left hand of the judge and if still he hears the words, Depart, you cursed, shall be his portion. He's right. People need to hear the truth of God's holy word. Years ago, Douglas Webster wrote these words as he compared biblical preaching to the modern-day church. He says biblical preaching was God-centered, sin-exposing, self-convicting, and life-challenging. The direct opposite of today's light, informal sermons that Christianized self-help.

And entertain better than they convict. There are so many illustrations in today's market-sensitive sermons that the hearer forgets the biblical truth that is being illustrated. So many personal anecdotes that the hearer knows the pastor better than she knows Christ. So many human interest stories that listening to the sermon is easier than reading the Sunday paper. So practical that there is hardly anything to practice. No wonder nominal Christians leave church feeling upbeat. Their self-est is safely intact.

Their minds and hearts have been sparked and soothed with sound theology. Christian maxims and a few practical pointers dealing with self-est, kids, or work. But the question remains: has the Word of God been effectively in faith? Excuse me. Effectively and faithfully proclaimed penetrating comfort zones and the veneer of self-satisfaction with the truth. Of Jesus Christ. That is the bottom line. How do people leave church? What do people hear when they go to church? If we don't give them the truth, who will give them the truth?

And so we have decided. To help you understand, are you ready to meet Jesus? And we began two weeks ago by telling you: you're ready if You have repent of your sins. If you've turned from your sins, if you have understood that the Bible says in Acts 17.

That the Lord is declaring that all men everywhere should repent. Luke:, that great commission that has been given to the church that you're to preach. Repentance that man may obtain the forgiveness of sins. And so we preach the gospel that speaks about. Turning from your sins, all the while knowing that 2 Timothy 2:2 says that repentance is a gift granted by God. So if God grants the gift, whatever God requires, he will accomplish. So if God says, I need you to turn from your sins, he's going to make sure you turn from your sins because he's granted you the gift.

Repentance. Like he grants you the gift of grace and the gift of faith and the gift of belief because everything centered around conversion is a gift from God. It's all a work of God, not a work of man. And so we believe in the truth of God's holy word. And so we preach that word so that man will understand the truth. And when God convicts the soul, God turns the soul. So you preach rep. And then, number two, how do you know you've repented?

You've embraced. Jesus Christ as Savior and as Lord. You have turned from your sin to trust the true and living God. You've embraced Jesus, who will save all men from his sins, who is the Savior of the world. For unto you, this day, in the city of David, has been born a Savior who is Christ. The Lord. He is the Messiah of Israel. You cannot be saved unless you believe that Jesus is the Messiah of Israel. John 20:3 and 31. These things are written that you might believe that Jesus is. The Messiah, and that believing in Jesus as the Christ, you might have life in his name.

And so you must believe that Jesus is the Messiah, and that he is Lord of all. He is the King of kings, He is the Lord of all Lords, He is the God, the Creator, the Master. The universe. That's why the Bible says in Romans:, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing a word concerning the Christ.

Okay? Faith comes by hearing and hearing a word particularly about the Christ and who He is. Who is Jesus Christ? That is so important. We need to understand that because the identity of Jesus Christ is always the question when Jesus asks in Caesarea Philippi, Who do men say that I am? Some said, well, some say you're Jeremiah, some say you're Elijah, some say you're John the Baptist, some say you're one of the prophets. But Christ says, but who do you say that I am?

Because the essence comes not what the crowd thinks, but what you think. What you know. Who do you say that I am? And Peter, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Christ made a very important statement. He says, Fles and blood has not revealed to this to you. Simon, but my Father who is in heaven, the only way you can claim that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Lord of the universe, is if God the Father reveals that to you. It doesn't come through a convincing sermon. It comes because God has opened your heart and reveals it to you that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.

Now, let me tell you something about that word, Lord. That word Lord Kyri is the translation of in the Old Testament The word for Yave or Jehovah. Every time Jehovah is translated in the Greek Septuagint, which is the translation of the Hebrew Old Testament. It's always without exception translated cur. So when Paul says in the book of Romans, the 10th chapter, the 13th verse. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, Kyri, he is quoting from Joel chapter 2. Okay, where the Lord God says, Whosoever shall call upon the Lord shall be saved.

All right? And so Paul is quoting from the book of Joel. And the Lord is the God of Israel. And people come along and they say, well, the word Kyri in the New Testament is the word used of an earthly Lord. And that is true. It is. And Jesus, when he came, was an earthly Lord. But he was also the Lord of all lords and the king of all kings. So, not only is he just an earthly Lord, he is the actual Lord of the universe. That's why in Hebrews chapter 1, verse number 8, it says, The Father has said to the Son, Thy throne, O God.

Okay? So the Father calls the Son God. Romans 9, verse number 5, it says, Christ. Who is God? So the Messiah him is God forever. So it's It's without question that the New Testament preaches that Jesus is God. Jesus is Lord of all. Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah of Israel. He is the Savior of man, the deliverer of man, the Redeemer of man. He is the Lord. Of all, unless you embrace Jesus Christ as Savior and as Lord, you cannot be saved. He who comes to God must believe that he is. Hebrews 11:6.

He is what? Everything the Bible says he is. And that believing in him, you might have life through his name. So, what happens is this: or that he's the reward of those who diligently seek him. And so, what happens is that we begin to understand that Embracing Jesus as the Christ, as the Savior, as the Lord, is essential. You know that you do that because you have turned from your sin. You've repented of your sin and you've trusted Christ for who He is, what He's done, and you've embraced Him for who He is.

So crucial. Why is this so important? Because of this, we all know by now that one of the members of our church, or who was a member of our church, Jam Murad, died this past week on Monday. Okay? So, I'm going to share some things with you about Jamil. I've asked Barb about this. She has given me permission. I am standing on a platform that Jam Built. Okay? When we arrived at this church, there was just a stage here. And Jamia was an intricate part of our church at its inception. He was the one who was instrumental in recording our very first sermon and making sure that every sermon subsequently was recorded and ready for radio.

He was so committed to the recording ministry that there were times at our church's inception when we began our Wednesday night service and we had. I want to say 27 people at our first Wednesday night service years ago, okay?

And I would get up and I would preach, and everything I preached was recorded. But there were times early on where the recording didn't take. And so Jamia would come in on Thursday, and I would stand up in an empty auditorium and I'd preach to nobody except Jesus. And nobody's there except Jamia was in the back. And so I'd preach the same sermon I'd preached the night before because we needed to have it for the radio ministry. So I'd preach it to an empty auditorium. That happened on no less than ten different times early on in our ministry.

So I got used to preaching to nobody being there. So if you don't come, I'm just going to preach anyway. That's just what I do. And so, but he would come in, and then we'd talk about the sermon. Now, Jamia was a member of our church. And so he would orchestrate the recording of the sermons. He would come in when They didn't record the night before because of some mishap because we were at a different church at that time and we were trying to use their equipment and one thing led to another. Well, finally, we bought this facility.

And there was only a platform here, and so Jam came to me, or I came to Jame one day because Jam was so instrumental in helping me with the things in my home. He was so kind to me, so loving to me. If I call him, he would come at the drop of the hat. Sometimes in the middle of the night, he would come and fix whatever is broken because I can't fix anything. But Jamil could fix everything. And if he didn't know how, he'd figure it out. And so one day I, you know, we need stairs. That lead to the platform because the choir was walking around the archway and then coming this way.

So I said, let's build stairs. He said, okay, we can do that. So he built stairs. And they came to me one and said, We need a baptismal. How about we put the baptismal inside the stage? That was his idea. It's a great idea. Let's do it. So he made sure that was taken care of. The cross, which is behind the screen, okay? His idea. And the lighting of the cross, so that when you see it, you see three crosses. Two meeting. One, three, one on either side, crucified Christ. Three representing the triune nature of God.

His idea. All his idea. And so one day, after about 10, 11 years of ministry, he came to me. And he said to me, I want to let you know that I no longer believe that Jesus is God. I said, what? How'd you come to that conclusion? He said, well, I've been talking with some people in my house, and he'd invited the Jehovah's Witnesses into his house, and had been conversing with them for many, many weeks and months. He says, you know, I just don't believe that anymore. So we begin to talk about this. Art McLean, who has since gone home to be at the Lord, one of our elders, would have Jim Eal in his Bible study.

And they would constantly address this issue in their Bible study on Sunday nights. Hal Roach, who was one of our elders a while back, would sit down and talk with him about his belief in the deity of Christ. And so over and over and over again, we would talk to J. Finally, he stopped coming to church altogether.

So one day I said, you need to come and sit down with me in my office for two hours. I went through every verse I could think of. To help him understand that Jesus is God in the flesh. In every verse, he denied. Every one. And so at the end of our time together, I said to him, I'm going to read you one last verse, Jamil. John 8, 24 says, I said therefore to you that you shall die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am, you shall die in your sins. Jesus said very clearly, That unless you believe that I am, that's the God who spoke to Moses in Exodus chapter 3, verse number 15.

Unless you believe that. You will die in your sins. And Jam said to me, Well, that's what you believe. I, No, Jam, that's what the Bible said. Jesus said it. Jesus said it. I'm just quoting what Jesus said. And I said, Jam, unless you believe that Jesus is the I am, you're going to die in your sins. And I don't want that to happen. I want you to embrace Christ. I said, and I took out his membership form. And I showed it to. I said, Jimmy, you signed this, you, 11, 12 years ago when you became a member of our church, saying that you believed in our doctrine, that you believed that Jesus was the Son of God, that you believed that Jesus was God in the flesh.

He goes, Yeah, I know, I changed my mind. I said, but you're wrong. And if you don't come to the conclusion that Jesus Is the living Lord, you will die in your sins. And I don't want that. Your wife doesn't want that to happen. Your elders don't want that to happen. None of us want that to happen. He says, I'm sorry, I just don't believe that. I was heartbroken because Jamia was not only a good friend of mine. He was such a ser in this church who did anything we asked him above and beyond. He did everything.

He was such a willing servant in this church. And Jamil died of a heart attack on Monday. As far as we know, his wife knows his beliefs never changed. And some would say, well, you, maybe at the end there was a change, and maybe there was. When you have a heart attack. And you're struggling to live, you're not asking yourself, is Jesus God, Lord, or not? You're not asking that question. You're gasping for air. The pain is severe, it's quick. That's why you never know when you're going to die. It just comes suddenly, unexpectedly.

And, you know, my heart breaks for Barbara, for her family. And Barbara and I talked this morning. She knows he didn't know the Lord. She knows that. As a church, we know that. And Barb said to me on Tuesday, she said, this is the sovereignty of God. Because you're speaking on, are you ready? And my husband wasn't. You need to tell the people of the church they need to be ready. This is her testimony. Her testimony. And we don't govern the conditions of salvation, Christ does. We just preach the message.

We want people to understand the message. We want people to believe the message. So the question comes: how does that happen? How does that happen in the church? How does somebody who is so faithful? Who becomes a member, signs on the dotted line, says they believe everything that you believe, and then all of a sudden, everything. Changes. And Jamil, I, if you open his Bible, he underlined so many verses. He read the Bible ad nauseum. He read it over and over and over again. He had a multitude of questions.

And before he ever denied the deity of Christ, we would answer all kinds of questions about the second coming, the return of Christ, because a lot centered around that.

And we would have such marvelous discussions as he worked on things in my house. I mean, that's what we did. He would work for free and I'd answer all of his questions. What a great deal for me! And so he'd ask questions, we'd talk, and he'd work, and we'd talk, and that's how it happened. And he was so inquisitive about everything. So how does a man who was energetic and excited and believed in what everybody here believes all of a sudden change? What happens? How does that happen? Well, the greatest contribution to apostasy in the church Is a diluted message of the gospel.

Okay? The greatest contributor. To apostasy, that is the falling away. People don't lose their salvation. They were never saved to begin with. They might do things that saved people do. They might look like they're saved. And they do the things that saved people engage in. But.

Because of a diluted gospel, they believe something that when push came to shove, When reality meets the road, or the rubber meets the road, that's reality, they turn their back on what is true. Because early on they heard a diluted message of the gospel. Are we sure how that happens? Okay? Years ago, famous pastor in our country, Rick Warren, wrote a book called The Purpose-Driven Life. Multitudes of churches all throughout the country went through 40 days of purpose. Reading the book, The Purpose-Driven Life.

Now, you know and I know that your life will never be purpose-driven without knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Can't. You can do a lot of good things, but it'll never be purpose-driven because you don't know Christ. So you have to search the book. To find the gospel present. Once you find it, you have to ask yourself the question: what is this? It's recorded on page 58 and 59 of his book, The Purpose-Driven Life. This is what it says. I'm going to read it to you. First, believe God loves you and made you for his purposes.

Believe you're not an accident. Believe you're made to last forever. Believe God has chosen you to have a relationship with Jesus, who died on the cross for you. Believe that no matter what you've done, God wants to forgive you. So believe those things. Second, receive.

Receive Jesus into your life as your Lord and Savior. Receive the forgiveness for your sins. Receive His Spirit who will give you the power to fulfill your life purpose. The Bible says, John 3:3, who accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever.

I'm not sure what translation that is, but that's what it says. Wherever you are reading this, I invite you to bow your head and quietly whisper the prayer that will change your eternity. Jesus, I believe in you and I receive you. Go ahead. Now, ask yourself this question: What Jesus Who did what and why? Ask yourself that question. Who is Jesus? There is no explanation as to who Jesus is. You can't be saved unless you understand the identity of Jesus Christ our Lord. Then he says, if you sincerely meant that prayer, congratulations.

Welcome to the family of God. You are now ready to discover and start living God's purpose for your life. How do you know you're ready for the family of God? How do you know you've entered the family of God? Simply because you believe something about what the Bible says concerning God and you receive Jesus?

There's nothing there, listen, that deals with repentance. There's nothing there that call the sinner to repentance. There's nothing there about the sinner's separation from God. There's nothing there about the guilt of that man's sin and the consequences of that man's sin. There's nothing there about hell and the eternal torment in hell. For those who are damned because of their sin. There's nothing there about that. Nothing. There's nothing that describes the identity of Jesus Christ. Who he is and what he did.

There's nothing there about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. So, pray tell, how can somebody get saved without knowing they're a sinner and they are separated from God, the God who came in the flesh to die for their sins and rose again the third day?

Answer, you can't be. But for all the people who read that book, if I'm a Mormon, I can believe that. If I'm a Jehovah's Witness, I can believe that. If I'm a Roman Catholic, I can believe that. In fact, everybody I know. Believes that. So, because of a diluted message that's preached, people now think they're going to heaven. Congratulations. You're in the kingdom. You're going to heaven. And they're like, really? That's it? What about if any man hear my voice and follow me? Take up his cross, deny himself, and be my disciple.

What about self-denial? What about crossbearing? How do you leave that out of the gospel presentation? We have a little booklet that we wrote years ago. If you've not read this, you need to read this. What the Bible says about Christianity.

This is a complete understand in very short form of what it means to be a Christian. And we tackle all the theological confusions that are out there about what people believe. That's just not true. And then we go through and articulate what people need to. The crucial convictions, the seven crucial convictions that everybody who is a Christian does believe in. A lot of it centers around Jesus as Lord, the deity of Christ. The historicity of the life, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord.

And it goes through in great detail as to what the Bible says about Christianity. If you don't have one of these, Get them. They're free for the taking. Give them out of Christmas. Put them in your Christmas cards. Put them in your Thanksgiving cards. Give them to everybody you know because this will explain to people what the Bible says concerning Christianity.

Because there's so much confusion out there. Simply because there will be more people who will read the purpose-driven life than will read the Bible. And they'll think they're ready. And they are not. That's how people apost the faith. A diluted gospel is the biggest contributor to people turning their back on the church, turning their back on Christ, because Christ gave us the parable of the sower and the soils, right? He told us that many will jump on the Jesus bandwagon, but because of persecution, because of affliction, when the sun beats down upon them, they walk away, they turn away.

Or because of the deceitfulness of riches, or because of the cares of this world, they will def the faith and turn away. Why? Because when the rubber meets the road, they're not that committed to doing what Jesus says.

And it's not because they lost their salvation. It's simply because he never believed in the scriptures that explain to us the identity and the ministry of Jesus Christ our Lord. That's why we must preach the word. We must tell people who Jesus is. When you come here, you must see Jesus. If you don't see Jesus, somebody didn't preach it right, and that'd be me. You got to see Jesus. It's all about the Christ. It's all about who He is and what He's done. Folks, this is crucial. We need to understand this because what is happening is that evangelical churches around our country, around the world, are filled with people who think they're ready and they're not.

They've never repented of their sins because they were never called into account because of their sin. That they were separated from God, bound for Christ's eternity. And then, once you explain to them how far they are from God, God has provided a way through His substitutionary atonement. How do you get saved without explaining substitutionary atonement? That's the perfect God of the universe died in your place. You can't because you see he took upon him your sin and the payment for your sin so you didn't have to.

So that I could experience the righteousness of Jesus Christ my Lord. Folks, this is crucial. So you could ask yourself: what do you believe? What do you believe about Jesus Christ? Have you embraced Jesus Christ as the Savior and Lord, the Master of your life? And then, thirdly, we talked about last week, which is acknowledge scripture as your divine authority in life.

How do you know you've embraced Christ as Lord? You acknowledge the scripture as your authority. If Christ is my Lord, I'll do everything He says. Why call me Lord, Lord, and not do the things that I say? In other words, Christ says, You can't call me Lord and say, I'm not doing that.

Can't do that. Because if I'm the Lord and I'm your master, you're my slave and you will do as I say. So I acknowledge the scripture as my divine authority in life. I have two more points. Let me introduce to you the fourth one so I can, in my own conscience, know that I covered it today briefly.

Okay? And that's this. You denounce Satan and his world system. How do you know that you've repented of your sins? You have embraced Christ for all that He is. How do you know you've embraced Christ for all that He is? You've acknowledged Scripture as your divine authority, that no matter what He says, I do. No matter where He goes, I follow. How do I know that I've acknowledged the scriptures as my divine authority? I have denounced Satan and his world system. I have turned my back on the satanic system that is governed by the prince and the power of God.

Of this world, who was Satan himself. I've turned my back away. That's why Paul says, Come out among them, and be ye separate. Be ye separate. You don't love the world. You don't love the things that are in the world. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the prod of life. They 're of the world. The world's passing away. And the lust there. But he who does the will of God abides forever. Next week, we'll pick this up. Help you understand how you denounce the world system because that's indicative of what your divine authority is.

And your authority is based on who you've embraced as Lord of your life. And if you've repented of your sins, you've embraced Christ as Lord. Are you ready? I trust that you are. Let's pray. Father, we thank you, Lord, for today. The chance to be in your word, study it, to understand it, to come to grips with it, to realize, Lord, that your truth is all that matters. And our prayer, Father, is that if there be one among us today who does not know you as Lord and Savior, who's never embraced you for who you are, who's never turned from their sins, who never has acknowledged you as their divine authority.

Who never has denounced the world system. May today be their day. They come on bended knee and proclaim Jesus as Savior and Lord. We pray in your name. Amen. Amen.