How to Test What We Believe, Whether it is Right?
2 Corinthians 13:5
May 11, 2014 AM
Pastor Craig
Ledbetter
Bible Baptist
Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
I.
Introduction (Matthew 7:21-23)
A.
Some serious statements from Jesus Christ Himself! Such an
important thing to not overlook!
B.
You see, There are many people who will EXPECT to be walking
right into heaven when they die, and yet will be stopped… NOT by Peter, or an
angel at the pearly gates, but by Jesus Christ Himself!
1.
He will NOT say:
a.
“Awww, you ALMOST had it.
Sorry.”
b.
“Not quite good enough”
c.
“If you only prayed more”
d.
“Go and talk with my Mother…
maybe she can get you in…”
e.
Or, “Head around back and
climb in through the BACK door” (as if there IS one)
2.
No! He will say, “DEPART from
me, ye workers of iniquity, I NEVER KNEW YOU!”
C.
You see, some people, even MANY people think they have faith,
… that basically ALL faiths are the same, leading to the same god…
D.
And they are wrong!
II.
Background
A.
What Faith Is…
1.
It is something every man
woman and child desperately needs – that’s why the whole world spends a whole
lot of effort trying to have faith! We all know we need it… To believe in
something more than you can see, and feel and understand!
2.
Faith is NOT some lofty
sounding religious words that you can repeat like a parrot
a.
“I believe in God, the Father
Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son,
our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended
to the dead. On the third day, He rose again…”
b.
…
c.
Anybody can say those words,
and even believe them with all their heart, and it not save them from a devil’s
hell!
d.
Many people believe the FACTS
concerning Christ. They believe that He is the Son of God and that He died on
the cross for the sins of the world.
e.
But they do not TRUST Him.
They do not love Him, nor are they willing to obey Him and follow Him. This is
not true faith in Christ and it will NEVER bring salvation.
3.
Faith is NOT some “Name it and
claim it” power – where you just tell God that you are believing for something
you want, and therefore you will get it! RUBBISH
4.
Faith is NOT something you
feel, or “experience”
5.
It is simply believing with
all your heart what God says – no debate!
a.
Abraham had faith in Gen 12,
enough that when God asked him to trust him enough to leave his family and home
to go to the Promised Land, Abraham believed God!
b.
The apostle Paul said in Rom
10:9,10
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved. For with the heart man
believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.
c.
Act 8:36,37
And as they went on their way, they
came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth
hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine
heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the
Son of God.
d.
THAT is saving faith – life
changing faith!
6.
So many people claim that they
believe IN God and that it is enough for them, but they do not simply believe On
Him! Faith is believing Him, trusting Him to do right, always!
7.
That’s faith!
B.
Where Does Faith Come From?
1.
There are so MANY “Faiths”
2.
They all don’t work!
3.
There is only ONE working
faith – THE faith (Acts 6:7; 16:5; Galatians 2:20)
a.
Act 6:7
And the word of God increased; and
the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company
of the priests were obedient to the faith.
b.
Act 16:5
And so were the churches
established in the faith, and
increased in number daily.
c.
Whose faith is the right one?
Gal 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by
the faith of the Son of God, who
loved me, and gave himself for me.
4.
And that faith is found in
THIS Book (Romans 10:17)
5.
Everything we believe, comes
from the pages of this Book – and only this Book!
C.
God’s Book says in 2Cor 13:5,
“Examine
yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your
own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?”
1.
See it you have faith
2.
See if you have the right
faith
3.
That is what we are going to
test this morning
4.
People are not often willing
to do this, but it is commanded because it is of eternal importance!
III.
Message
A.
“Examine Yourselves”
1.
Before you start focusing on
everyone else’s faith, start examining your own!
2.
For the first time in a long
time, STOP examining everyone else around you: their hair, their outfit, their
boyfriend, their money, their past, their failures, their accent… and take a
good, long look at yourself!
a.
See if you really are saved,
born again, fully forgiven by the grace of God!
b.
See if you really ARE
following Jesus Christ, or just a Jesus of your own imagination
c.
See if your heart is right
towards God
d.
Or if you are just as lost as
a goat!
3.
Examine your thoughts and
imaginations – do you ever catch all the things going on inside your head? Are
any of them godly?
4.
Examine your words – are they
the words of a Christian, or just the same old hurtful, filthy words that you
have always said?
5.
Examine your attitudes – take
your spiritual temperature!
6.
Examine your appetites – what
you live for; what tickles your fancy.
7.
Examine your heart, your loves
8.
Examine your worship
9.
Examine your commitment
10.
This is a normal thing for
someone claiming to be a Christian!!!
a.
1Co 11:28
But let a man examine himself, and
so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
b.
Jas 1:22-25
But be ye doers of the word, and
not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
For if any be a hearer of the word, and
not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his
way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth
therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall
be blessed in his deed.
c.
Luk 23:13,14
And Pilate, when he had called
together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, Said unto them, Ye
have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold,
I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching
those things whereof ye accuse him:
11.
And, allow GOD to examine you
to see if you are for real (Psalm 26:2)
a.
Psa 26:2
Examine me, O LORD, and prove me;
try my reins and my heart.
12.
Don’t look for perfection, but
look for something to be there that is of GOD, and not of this world. If no one
else notices anything different about you, at least YOU should notice something
different – something peculiar about you now that are turned to God and asked
Him to save your soul!
B.
“Whether ye be in the faith”
1.
Paul is talking about being
solidly in THE faith
a.
Like two gears, SOLIDLY
connecting – not just barely touching
b.
Ever tried to drive, and the
gears just wouldn’t get solidly engaged?
c.
A lot of Christians are like
that!
2.
Having sound, real, solid,
unfeigned faith (Titus 1:13)
3.
It is expected that a believer
should CONTINUE in the faith (Acts 14:22; Col 1:23)
4.
Check and see if you are still
doing right, years after getting saved!
5.
Yes, you can get out of and
back into faith – it is called backsliding – but don’t count on always getting
back in! God will chasten you when you back off from following Jesus!
6.
If you “have gotten out” and
don’t care that you have, then maybe you never were ever in!!!
C.
“Prove your own selves”
1.
There is such a large portion
of FALSE BELIEVERS out there!
2.
Prove yourself as a believer
in Jesus Christ! A believer of this Book!
3.
The world is hearing many
people everywhere on TV and in sports claiming to be Christians. You hear even
politicians claiming it. And I am glad!
4.
But everyone knows that SAYING
IT is not the same as BEING IT! So PROVE you are a born again child of God!
a.
It would be like someone
coming into a stadium, and saying they are a professional football player. And
yet no one recognises him. So they tell him, “prove it!” And so he then
commences to manage and kick and drive the ball like a master down the field
right over the head of the goalie and into the goal. And everyone agrees, Yep,
he’s a football player!
b.
It would be like someone
showing up late night at an overworked A&E and claiming to be a doctor, and that
he would like to help. Well, what do you THINK everyone on that floor would
say??? Hmmm? “Prove it!” And then he proves it!
5.
If you claim to be a
Christian, a Christ-follower, then you should have no problem proving it!!!
Amen?
D.
“Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in
you?”
1.
Either Jesus Christ, the Lord
of heaven, is IN you, or He is not!
2.
And most assuredly, He is IN a
believer
a.
Gal 4:4-6
But when the fulness of the time
was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
To redeem them that were under the law,
that we might receive the adoption of sons.
And because ye are sons, God hath
sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
b.
Col 1:27
To whom God would make known what
is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ
in you, the hope of glory:
c.
Gal 2:20
I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I
now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and
gave himself for me.
d.
Eph 3:16
That he would grant you, according
to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the
inner man;
e.
Eph 3:17
That Christ may dwell in your
hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
3.
So… If Jesus is IN you,
somebody should be able to tell it!
4.
You can’t hide a city set on a
hill – there is LIGHT there! You cannot hide HIM!
E.
“Except ye be
reprobates?”
1.
Tit 1:16
They profess that they know God;
but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every
good work reprobate.
2.
Reprobate means: Unproven,
Unacceptable, Rejected, Not enduring testing
3.
In other words, see if you are
the real deal, or only a fraud!
4.
And it is proven by the false
life you are living, and the unwillingness to do the will of God!
5.
It’s a serious concern! That
there are running around a whole load of people saying “Lord, Lord” and yet not doing what Jesus said do! And yet they
believe with all their heart they should be able to walk straight into eternity
– into the very presence of Almighty God!
F.
Some Thoughts
1.
There are so many things that
do NOT prove you are saved or lost…
2.
You sinning does not disprove
that you are in the faith or not
3.
You NOT sinning does not prove
that you are in the faith
4.
You feeling good does not
prove you are in the faith
5.
You feeling bad, depressed,
defeated does not prove you are not in the faith
6.
Your riches and successes do
not prove you are heaven bound
7.
Your failures and poverty do
not prove you are lost!
8.
Your baptism does not prove
you are in the faith
9.
You NOT being baptized does
not prove that you are not in the faith
10.
The fact that you backslide,
does not prove you are not in the faith
a.
2Ti 2:11
It is a faithful saying: For if we
be dead with him, we shall also live with him:
b.
2Ti 2:12
If we suffer, we shall also reign
with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us
c.
2Ti 2:13
If we believe not, yet he abideth
faithful: he cannot deny himself.
G.
“What Proves You Are
IN the Faith?”
1.
Jesus IN you proves it!
2.
And He only gets in you when
you RECEIVE Him (John 1:10-12)
3.
If Jesus Christ is what
makes a person a Christian, then nothing else affects it at all!
4.
Your once-off, heart cry to
God to save you from sins’ penalty, that you came to understand you deserved!
(Rom 6:23)
5.
Your belief that He will save
you simply because you believed enough to ask Him to (Romans 10:8-13)!
a.
Rom 10:8
But what saith it? The word is nigh
thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we
preach;
b.
Rom 10:9
That if thou shalt confess with thy
mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him
from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
c.
Rom 10:10
For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
d.
Rom 10:11
For the scripture saith, Whosoever
believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
e.
Rom 10:12
For there is no difference between
the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call
upon him.
f.
Rom 10:13
For whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved.
6.
Now you know why I spend so
much time trying to get people to just believe God enough to ask Him to save
them! To “Call upon His name!”
7.
And then there are some
supernatural results (fruits) of having a faith that saves:
a.
Hunger like a newborn baby –
for the word of God 1Peter 2:2
As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk
of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
b.
A desire to be just like Jesus
– not like anyone else
c.
A new attitude about your own
sin (not the sins of others, as awful as they may be), but your OWN sins (Romans
7:22-24)!
1)
Rom 7:22
For I delight in the law of God
after the inward man:
2)
Rom 7:23
But I see another law in my
members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to
the law of sin which is in my members.
3)
Rom 7:24
O wretched man that I am! who shall
deliver me from the body of this death?
d.
Chastening by God when you do
sin (Heb 12)
e.
Spiritual Growth and godly
changes in your life – even the small ones
f.
A love for the family of God!
1John 3:14
We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the
brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
IV.
Invitation
A.
This whole message, has been a challenge – to examine
yourself
1.
To take your heart, your
attitude, your thoughts, your FAITH, and see if they show signs of life –
spiritual life!
2.
To see if you are actually,
and solidly IN THE FAITH!
B.
Do a test - Answer these questions, honestly, truthfully
1.
Was there ever a time when you
knew you were a sinner, and as a sinner you would never make it to heaven?
2.
Good!
3.
Next question… Was there ever
a time when you learned that Jesus DIED for sinners so that they could be
forgiven AT HIS EXPENSE?
a.
Maybe someone told you that
you must be born again!
b.
Or someone handed you a Gospel
leaflet that explained how to be saved
c.
Or maybe you came out to a
church like this one, and heard the clear words of Scripture as it explained why
Jesus died, and who He actually died for!
4.
Next question… Was there ever
a time when you dropped to your knees, or fell on your face before God Almighty,
and cried out in fear of hell, and asked Him in simple, child-like faith, to
save your soul? To make you His forgiven child?
5.
If not, then today is a good
day to get saved!
6.
Last question… Have you seen
any fruit from that decision to follow Jesus Christ? If not, then you need to
get some fruit – start growing – stop putting off the right and necessary things
that will help you grow
a.
Like Sunday night Church
b.
Like Wednesday evening prayer
and Bible Study
c.
Like daily reading your Bible
through
d.
Like praying every morning,
about everything
e.
Like going out and being a
witness of God’s saving grace to this dark and dying world!
V.
How to be saved (Acts 16:27-32)
A.
It starts with you AS you are…
1.
Act 16:27
And the keeper of the prison
awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his
sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.
B.
Someone has to interrupt your life with some good news
1.
Act 16:28
But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are
all here.
C.
You need to do whatever is necessary to hear what GOD says
about your soul
1.
Act 16:29
Then he called for a light, and
sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
2.
It is called repentance
a.
Fear the judgment of God
b.
Dump your old religion, and
your pride, and self-righteousness
c.
And look for a real Saviour!
D.
You need to WANT to be saved from your sins and the
punishment for them
1.
Act 16:30
And brought them out, and said,
Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
E.
All you need to do at that point is, BELIEVE ON THE LORD
JESUS CHRIST
1.
Act 16:31
And they said, Believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
2.
Eph 2:8,9
For by grace are ye saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any
man should boast.
F.
And it is right then, instantly, you are saved by God’s grace
and kindness and forgiveness
G.
And then you get right into learning this Book – the word of
the Lord
1.
Act 16:32
And they spake unto him the word of
the Lord, and to all that were in his house.