Please turn in your Bibles this morning to Romans chapter
13 as we continue our in-depth study of Paul’s letter to
the church in
We have spent several weeks looking at the false teaching, the false doctrine, the doctrines of demons that are being brought into the church and there are only a few that are awake enough, care enough to even speak against this. We have seen New Age and Eastern Mysticism come flooding into the church and I believe the church, the false church that is, is becoming the church of the last days, the church of Laodicea, the Lukewarm church, the apostasy or falling away from the truths of God found in the Word of God has begun!
Last week we began a section dealing with discernment and we spoke about what this word means. We said that Biblical discernment is the ability to separate truth from error or even half-truth, the ability to separate right from wrong. Now today many would call that unloving if you were to do that, but the reality is, you are being wise, you are obeying the Lord because He wants us to judge if something is right or wrong, good or bad, of Him or of the Devil. Sorry, those are really the only two options, because if it is not of God, guess what, it is of the Devil!
This morning we are going to continue looking at this topic of discernment because there are four main points I want to look at and as I have said, we covered the first point last week dealing with what discernment is. Here again are those four points.
WHAT IS DISCERNMENT?
IS DISCERNMENT BIBLICAL?
WHY DISCERNMENT IS LACKING IN THE CHURCH TODAY?
WHAT CAN WE DO TO BE MORE DISCERNING?
So with that said, let’s begin reading in Romans chapter 13, starting in verse 11 and see what the Lord has for us as we study His Word and look at this topic of discernment as Paul calls for us to wake up from our spiritual sleep because the Lord’s return is getting close!
Folks, I don’t know how much clearer I can be. We are called to discern and stand for the truth. We are called to expose the false and hold onto the truth. And yet many will tell you that you are being too critical, to unloving by doing this. But am I being too critical or do the Scriptures call us to be discerning? That is what we will look at this morning as we continue to examine these four main topics regarding discernment.
2. IS DISCERNMENT BIBLICAL?
First of all let’s look at Jesus command for us to discern things people are saying to us. In Matthew 7:15-20 Jesus tells us, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
I do understand that there are those out there that say we shouldn’t judge because Jesus said in Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that you be not judged.” The point that Jesus is making is we are to judge with the right heart, we are to judge with righteous judgment and that can only be accomplished when we hold what they are teaching, what they are saying up to the light of God’s Word! If we were not to judge why would Jesus tell us to judge false prophets, that would make no sense.
During the days of Jeremiah, as today, there were false prophets. In Jeremiah 23:16-17 we read, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless; They speak a vision of their own heart, Not from the mouth of the Lord. They continually say to those who despise Me, ‘The Lord has said,’ “You shall have peace”’; And to everyone who walks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say, ‘No evil shall come upon you.’”
You see, “God is love, there is no judgment coming. Eat, drink and be merry!” That is what these false prophets were saying and they were not drawing people back to God but away from Him. And we see the same today. In some churches you can’t say anything that is judgmental, you can’t even use the word “sin” because it is too harsh, to strong and it might offend someone! Think about that one for a minute. Tell that one to Jesus, how harsh sin was to Him; it nailed Him to the cross to pay the penalty for our sins! We need to heed the warning of Jesus, and not follow after these false prophets. We need to be fruit inspectors!
John MacArthur had this to say regarding this verse and how some take it. He wrote:
Some years ago a church was looking for a pastor who would emphasize holiness rather than doctrine. I once received a manuscript to review whose primary thesis was that doctrine divides the church. Consequently, the author argued, all doctrine — at least all that might be disagreed with and therefore be divisive — should be eliminated for the sake of the higher goal of unity and fellowship. Right doctrine not only is compatible with true holiness, unity, and fellowship but is absolutely necessary for them to exist. Only right doctrine, biblical doctrine, can teach us what true holiness, unity, and fellowship are — and are not.
In many circles, including some evangelical circles, those who hold to strong convictions and who speak up and confront society and the church are branded as violators of this command not to judge, and are seen as troublemakers or, at best, as controversial. Yet at no time in the history of the church, or of ancient Israel, was spiritual and moral reformation achieved apart from confrontation and conflict. God’s prophets have always been bold and controversial. And they have always been resisted, often by God’s own people. The church reformers of the sixteenth century were men of strong doctrine, conviction, and principle — apart from which the Protestant Reformation would never have come about.
Reformation is needed when spiritual and moral life are low; and for the very reason they are low they will resist every effort to reform. The power of sin, whether in an unbeliever or believer, is opposed to righteousness and will always resist God’s truth and God’s standards. To the carnal person, absolute doctrine and high moral standards are inherently controversial.
- John MacArthur
Think about that, if we were to negate all that were controversial in the Bible, what would we have? Love, love, love and that is all we would have. And thus, many churches remove any notion of sin, of separation, of judgment, of Jesus being the only way and-so-on, so they are not controversial, they will not divide. But Jesus tells us that we are to judge with righteous judgment not self-righteous judgment and to do this we look at the fruit of what they are saying, their doctrine and compare it with the Word of God. That is what Biblical discernment is all about and it is Biblical! Just a few more verses to show you what I mean that discernment is Biblical. Paul tells us in Romans 16:17-20, “Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple. For your obedience has become known to all. Therefore I am glad on your behalf; but I want you to be wise in what is good, and simple concerning evil. And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.”
Also, in II Corinthians 11:3-4 listen to what Paul has to say here, “But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted — you may well put up with it!” How can you avoid this? By using Biblical discernment and you will not be deceived!
And of course, remember what Paul said to the churches in Galatia in Galatians 1:6-9, “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.” How is this done? By using discernment folks, it is not rocket science here and yet, many Christians refuse to judge what another person is teaching, even if it is contrary to the Word of God, and that is wrong!
And there are many, many more we can go through but I think you get the picture. Let me just give you one more and this is from I John 2:18-27, as John exhorts us by saying, “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that He has promised us — eternal life. These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.”
John says that it is the last hour, we are living in the last days, and thus, the deception is great. And the way we can know the truth is because we have “the anointing.” Now don’t freak out when I say that, I know what some of the televangelists say and how they use this word, but John is using it! And what John is speaking of is the Holy Spirit who will show us the deceptions that are out there, He will expose them to us as false so we don’t fall prey to them and He will use the Word of God to show us as well as He speak to our hearts. The Holy Spirit will expose these heresies with the truth of God’s Word!
And when John speaks of knowing these things he doesn’t use the Greek word GINOSKO or to know by experience but EIDO, which means knowledge by intuition. You see, we know some things by intuition, the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts about them and they of course are in line with what God’s Word has to say.
Then why are so many people being lead astray? They are either not saved or they are not listening to the Holy Spirit’s guiding, thinking they know better - but they don’t! Maybe you have talked with them, you try to explain why this New Age teaching, this Eastern Mysticism coming into the church is not of God and you speak of leaders that are involved in this and they won’t believe it. They refuse to accept that he is wrong or that this is wrong and all those millions of people that are following him and what they are teaching are wrong. You see, as Christians we know the truth, the real question is, “Will we follow the truth?”
And thus, I think you can clearly see that discernment is Biblical and the Lord has commanded us to use it and the writers of the New Testament have also exhorted us to use it.
3. WHY DISCERNMENT IS LACKING
IN THE CHURCH TODAY?
The next issue we are going to look at is this, why is discernment lacking in the church today? That is an important question. There are a couple of reasons I think this is true. First of all it is because we want to be popular and it is not popular to talk about there only being one way to God, that we are sinners, that sin has separated us from God and-so-on. Some have said, “If we are going to win the world we have to win their favor!” And the only way this can be accomplished is that we must not be too doctrinal because doctrine is offense to people!
I will tell you this, if you stand on the truths of God found in the Word of God, in love, the world will not embrace you but call you a fanatic, a hate-monger, unloving and-so-on. Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a godly man and taught from the Scriptures and listen to how he was perceived by the world. In fact, J. I Packer said that he was the godliest man he ever met and yet people hated him for one reason, he was too theological! Christopher Catherwood wrote of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, “As years went by, Martyn Lloyd-Jones acquired an unfortunate negative image in the eyes of many. The explanation of this is bound to be one of the main areas of controversy in any interpretation of his life. In his own mind the issue came down to differing attitudes to Scripture. He saw that the elements of warning and of opposition to error were essential parts of any true commitment to the bible and therefore believed that the disapproval of polemics [The art or practice of argumentation or controversy], debate, in the Christian church is a very serious mater.
Accordingly he expected no approval from those who accepted the prevailing attitude which put love first and treated arguments over doctrine as unChristian. It was that very attitude he believed which was responsible for the removal of the note of authority from the pulpit. The charge of dogmatism and the dislike of reproof and correction were criticisms of Scripture itself. One of the main characteristics of Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ ministry was thus both an offense to those who were supporters of the spirit of the modern pulpit and an inspiration to those who believed that a return to authority in preaching was a great need. The latter were profoundly thankful for the very thing which the first group had found faulty. Dr. Lloyd-Jones . . . listen to this . . . had a penetrating and courageous diagnosis of the present situation. This is an age of appeasement, not in the political and international sense, but in the realm of Christian affairs and of the church. Winston Churchill is now acclaimed and almost idolized. In the thirties he was severely criticized as an impossible person because he knew what he believed, he believed it and he caused disturbance by criticizing the policy of appeasement . . . so it is today. Strong men who stand by their principles are today regarded as being difficult, self-assertive and non-cooperative.”
So this is not new but this idea of being popular and not rocking the boat is growing in the church today and it is not a healthy doctrine to say the least! We see people and teachers telling us that the Bible, doctrine is not relevant but how can speaking the truth not be relevant? It can’t and yet many believe it is and that we have to change the way we think if we are going to reach people today. You may reach them but what are you reaching them for?
In fact, listen to what Paul said in I Corinthians 1:22-24 regarding the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He wrote, “For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” You see, the cross is offensive to people and if you negate the cross so that people will like you, then you are giving them nothing! But I guess they like you but I wonder what they will say about you in the Lake of Fire!
Let me give you one example of what has taken place in the church today. There is a church in Spring Lake Michigan that was called Christ Community Church but they have changed their name to C3 Exchange and have removed the cross and feel that they can gain insight from all religions. The Fox News reporter opened up by saying this, “Is the cross alienating. Does it alienate you?” And the basic premise here is that it is alienating and that is why this pastor has removed the cross from its bell tower and taken it out of the church. They have become all inclusive or universal in their beliefs now. Their pastor said on Fox News June 27, 2010 that: “We want to be all we can be in the world and make a difference together.”
On their church website they have this to say as they welcome you to this sight:
“Welcome. C3 Exchange is an inclusive spiritual community that offers resources to enrich and empower the lives of all people in body, mind and spirit. We are an open and evolving community. . . . Accepting you for who and where you are. . . . Encouraging you to reflect on your beliefs and values. . . . Inspiring you to be the change you wish to see in the world.”
I am glad they changed their name because they are no longer Christ centered. My question is, how did the congregation at Christ Community Church allow this to happen? How did they not fight for the Cross and how did they not fight for Christ? They were not discerning! You see, as nice as this may sound on the outside, when you get right down to it, by taking away the cross you have taken away everything and a cross-less life is a spiritually dead life!
Let me just share with you a few words from Oswald Chambers in his book My Utmost for His Highest because he deals with this issue of forgiveness and the cross. He wrote:
Very few of us know anything about conviction of sin; we know the experience of being disturbed because of having done wrong things; but conviction of sin by the Holy Ghost blots out every relationship on earth and leaves one relationship only - “Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned!” When a man is convicted of sin in this way, he knows with every power of his conscience that God dare not forgive him; if God did forgive him, the man would have a stronger sense of justice than God. God does forgive, but it cost the rending of His heart in the Death of Christ to enable Him to do so. The great miracle of the grace of God is that He forgives sin, and it is the death of Jesus Christ alone that enables the Divine nature to forgive and to remain true to itself in doing so. It is shallow nonsense to say that God forgives us because He is love. When we have been convicted of sin we will never say this again. The love of God means Calvary, and nothing less; the love of God is spelt on the Cross and nowhere else. The only ground on which God can forgive me is through the Cross of my Lord. There, His conscience is satisfied.
Oswald Chambers goes on to say:
Beware of the pleasant view of the Fatherhood of God – God is so kind and loving that of course He will forgive us. That sentiment has no place whatever in the New Testament. The only ground on which God can forgive us is the tremendous tragedy of the Cross of Christ; to put forgiveness on any other ground is unconscious blasphemy. The only ground on which God can forgive sin and reinstate us in His favour is through the Cross, and in no other way. Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony of Calvary. It is possible to take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and our sanctification with the simplicity of faith, and to not forget what enormous cost to God it was all made ours.
Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace; it cost God the Cross of Jesus Christ before He could forgive sin and remain a holy God. Never accept a view of the Fatherhood of God if it blots out the Atonement. The revelation of God is that He cannot forgive; He would contradict His nature if He did. The only way we can be forgiven is by being brought back to God by the Atonement. God’s forgiveness is only natural in the supernatural domain.
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, pp. 324-325
You see, discernment is needed and it is not a popular thing to talk about the cross, to talk about sin but if we negate that, we negate the message, we destroy the Gospel message and what we are giving people is a sugar coated pill instead of the salvation that is found in Jesus Christ. We are sending them to Hell instead of into the arms of a loving God! Yes, it may not be popular but it is what is needed!
The other issue, and it goes along with this first one of wanting to be liked, is that there is no right or wrong, there is no black or white, there is no true or false, it is all shades of gray and we must accept what everyone is saying even though we might not agree with it, that is their reality! But look at every page of the Bible and it says what is right and what is wrong, what is truth and what is error, what is true and what is false! There are absolutes!
And lastly, many don’t know the Word of God and thus, they don’t have the truth tester to show them and they are relying on feelings, what they feel is right or wrong and that does not cut it. It doesn’t matter what you think, it only matters what God has said! So discernment is lacking in the church today because we want to be loved by everyone and we don’t want to rock the boat, we just all want to get along. It is lacking because we don’t feel that there are any absolute truths. It is lacking because people don’t know the Word of God! And how sad today when Christians in American have several Bibles in their homes, Bible software, commentaries, have the Bible on CD, on their IPOD and-so-on and they refuse to dig into it or believe it!
4. WHAT CAN WE DO TO BE
MORE DISCERNING?
What can we do to be more discerning? There are two things that we need to do. The first is that we need to be men and women of the Word. We need to not only know what the Bible says but we also have to believe what the Bible is saying! Let me give you one of the best examples of this in the Scriptures.
Jesus has just been baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist and in Matthew chapter 4, starting in verse 1 we are told, “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”’” Matthew 4:1-4.
Physiologists tell us that after about 7 or 8 days of fasting you lose your appetite, you are no longer hungry. And somewhere around the 40th day that hunger returns and it is an indication that death is not far off. Jesus had reached that point, He hungered and what happens in a weakened condition? The adversary comes to try and cause Him to stumble just as He does with us.
And there is so much we can focus on here but I want you to notice how Jesus fights off the temptations that are before Him, by the Word of God, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3. This is the key, allowing the Word of God by the Spirit of God to control the man of God! The power is not in quoting Scripture but obeying it! We need to allow that Spirit life to grow in us and not let the flesh control us, our bodily desires! And thus, with discernment, we must also say, “IT IS WRITTEN!” and not “THIS IS HOW I FEEL!” because feelings are wrong but God’s Word is never wrong, it is truth!
Let’s continue on looking at this confrontation here in Matthew 4, picking up in verse 5, where we are told, “Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: “He shall give His angels charge over you,” and, “In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.”’ Jesus said to him, ‘It is written again, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”’” Matthew 4:5-7.
This is interesting to me, for Satan does know the Scriptures, but he will twist them and misquote them to make his point. Satan quotes Psalm 91:11-12 but misquotes it. For the thought is in all of God’s ways, not our ways. And the challenge is if you really trust God, if you really trust His Word, then throw yourself down from the top of this pinnacle to the valley below, maybe some 400 feet, and God will protect you like His Word says. Prove you trust God’s Word!
Make no mistake about it, as I have said, Satan does know the Scriptures and he will use them for his purposes by twisting them. Remember C. S. Lewis’ book, The Screwtape letters? You see, even years ago when C. S. Lewis wrote Screwtape Letters, he saw the foolishness of getting away from the truths of God, on not allowing the enemy to twist the Word of God. Now this book deals with an imaginary encounter with Screwtape, the chief demon, who is developing a strategy to destroy the church and he’s trying to train another demon by the name of Wormwood on how to destroy the church. And in one little scenario, as Screwtape is instructing Wormwood, he tells him here’s how to keep Christians totally confused, “Keep his mind off the plain antithesis [direct opposite] between true and false”.
C. S. Lewis was dead on. If you can get Christians to abandon critical antithetical teaching and knowing the difference between true and false, you can have them so totally confused, you can teach them absolutely anything. And that is what Satan was trying to do here with Jesus but really, try to confuse Jesus about the Word in which He wrote, He is the Word of God! But he did try.
I wish more Christians would understand this. It is wrong to deliberately place yourself in danger just to test God’s faithfulness. It would be like going out and lying down across the Interstate to prove God will protect you. If you do that, you will be able to ask Him personally why He didn’t! We even see that with those Christians who handle poisonous snakes and drink poison, quoting Mark chapter 16 as their reason for doing it. And yet that deals with missionary work and God’s protection, not tempting God. And many have died because of this foolishness. Again, Jesus combats the Devil with the Word of God, quoting Deuteronomy 6:16. And thus, with discernment, we must also say, “IT IS WRITTEN!” and not “THIS IS WHAT SOMEONE SAID!” because man is man and he can be wrong but God’s Word is never wrong, it is truth!
And notice that the Devil does not give up, he continues on trying to get Jesus to stumble as we read in Matthew 4 staring in verse 8, “Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”’ Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.” Matthew 4:8-11.
How can Satan make a promise like that? Folks, this was not an empty promise by Satan for in Luke 4:6-7 we are told, “And the devil said to Him, ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.’” God gave to man this world and because of man’s sin it was handed over to Satan. We are told in II Corinthians 4:4 that he is called “ . . . the god of this age. . . .” In John 12:31,
“ . . . now the ruler of this world . . .” And in Ephesians 2:2 he is called “. . . the prince of the power of the air. . .” Thus, Satan could offer all the kingdoms of the world to Jesus; the only catch was He would have to bow the knee to Satan!
What was Satan doing here? He is telling Jesus that He doesn’t have to go to the cross; He can have it all now, immediate gratification! And that is exactly what he tells people today. You don't need to go to the cross; you can have it all now! And sadly, people buy into that lie and have an eternity to think about their mistake. There is no real joy apart from the cross; no real fulfillment apart from the cross; there is no atonement apart from the cross! Again, listen to what Oswald Chambers had to say because there are many people out there today who are promising the world apart from the cross. He wrote:
Never build your preaching of forgiveness on the fact that God is our Father and He will forgive us because He loves us. It is untrue to Jesus Christ’s revelation of God; it makes the Cross unnecessary, and the Redemption ”much ado about nothing.” If God does forgive sin, it is because of the Death of Christ. God could forgive men in no other way than by the death of His Son, and Jesus is exalted to be Saviour because of His death.’ “We see Jesus . . . because of the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour.” The greatest note of triumph that ever sounded on the Cross of Christ – “It is finished!” That is the last word in the Redemption of man.
Anything that belittles or obliterates the holiness of God by a false view of the love of God, is untrue to the revelation of God given by Jesus Christ. Never allow the thought that Jesus Christ stands with us against God out of pity and compassion; that He became a curse for us out of sympathy with us. Jesus Christ became a curse for us by the Divine decree. Our portion of realizing the terrific meaning of the curse is conviction of sin, the gift of shame and penitence is given us – this is the great mercy of God. Jesus Christ hates the wrong in man, and Calvary is the estimate of His hatred.
- Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, p. 326
And thus, Satan tries to bypass the cross any chance he gets! Now back here in Matthew we see Jesus again counter Satan with the Word of God, quoting from Deuteronomy 6:13 and 10:20. Jesus came to do the Father’s will, and the cross was part of that. You see, He came to redeem man from his sin and redeem the world back from Satan. Jesus is going to be Lord over all, but first He has to go to the cross! And thus, with discernment, we must also say, “IT IS WRITTEN!” and not “THIS IS THE EASY WAY, THE BROAD WAY THAT LEADS TO LIFE!” because the broad way leads to death and there are many who travel on its path, but Jesus tells us that He is the way that leads to life and man is man and he can be wrong but God’s Word is never wrong, it is truth, it is life!
Thus, don’t let the enemy confuse your mind, be in the Word of God and apply it to your life. And you see, the power was not in the quoting of God’s Word, but in our submission to it, for it will cause the Devil to flee! It says in James 4:7, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” And it is the Word of God that gives us that discernment we need, showing us what is right and what is wrong!
The other piece of the puzzle you might say in regards to learning how to be more discerning, is to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to our hearts, in accordance or agreement with the Word of God. The Holy Spirit will never show us things that are contrary to the Word of God, that negate the Word of God, but He will speak in unity with the Word of God!
Paul shows us this in I Corinthians 2:10-16, as he wrote, “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For ‘who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.”
You see, we can’t know everything, we are not God but the Holy Spirit can show us all we need to know and thus, He reveals to us the mind of Christ. And yet, like in the Old Testament, there are many out there who love to hear the fairy tales that teachers are speaking. Remember back in Jeremiah 5:30-31 we are told, “An astonishing and horrible thing Has been committed in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?”
The religious leaders were not serving God, but themselves. They had big mansions, drove around in Roll’s Royce’s, they had those big Rolex watches and all kinds of jewelry, sold all kinds of books and programs and-so-on. They were fleecing the flock of God rather than feeding the flock that God had entrusted to them. They were not speaking for God but spoke falsely and even though they took advantage of the people, did not speak forth the Words of God, the people loved it, they could not get enough of them. As much as this was going on in Jeremiah’s day, it is happening over and over again in the days we are living in.
Religious leaders are more interested in money than they are in God and people. They are more interested in promoting their own false doctrine than the Word of God. And the people keep supporting their greed, their doctrines of demons! I guess when you have your ears tickled, it costs lots of money and it sounds great, while the Gospel message is free to all who receive it but it will cost you your life. I can’t imagine what these people will say to God when they stand before Him for what they have done to the people and the junk food they have feed them, which will not help them in times of need. And look at the church today and how they are loving this stuff, this false teaching and yet, when it does come to God’s Word, it is boring, it needs to be updated to fit our times and if you feel that way, remember what the Lord said in Jeremiah, “But what will you do in the end?”
One more point and then I will rap things up here this morning. Paul, in Philippians 1:9-11 said, “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Did you notice what Paul is praying for here? That their love would continue to grow and this love would be based in knowledge and discernment! You see, knowledge, doctrine, discernment is not opposed to love, as some would have you believe! It is not a love that is not based in knowledge, doctrine discernment, why? Because that is not love! And when you do this you will be able to approve that which is excellent, or you will be discerning and you will be filled with righteousness and this will all be to the glory of God!
I want to thank you for your patience over the last 8 weeks of studies as we have dealt with some very difficult issues. But I felt it was important for us to understand what is going on in the world and the church today, how they are merging together you might say and we as a church, a body of believers need to awaken out of our spiritual sleep and smell the coffee you might say. It is time to awaken because the Lord’s return is getting closer and if that is true, that means that the deception will continue to grow and become more intense and we need to be able to discern what is truth and what is error.
Let me just say this and then I will close this morning or is it afternoon yet? Anyway, listen to this. We are told:
A man put this sign in front of his auto repair shop: “Beware of bargains in life rafts, brain surgery, parachutes, and auto repairs.” There are truly some points in life at which bargains are no good. When cultists came calling on a man in one village, he said, “Come in. You’re offering me a better deal than I’m getting up there at the church!” We must go beyond that which looks good to find real value, to find the truth, to find God’s truth!
- Michael Shannon, Preaching September/October 2003
Salvation is not a bargain, it cost our Lord His life, and may we not cheapen what He has done for us. It is the narrow gate not the broad way that leads to life. We must get back to the basics, the Word of God and keep the main thing the main thing and that main thing is Jesus!
And folks, discernment is the key but we must be awake, we must be willing to take that stand against the darkness that is out there. I will leave you this morning with the words of Paul as he is admonishing us to be awake and this is from The Amplified Bible. He wrote, “Besides this you know what [a critical] hour this is, how it is high time now for you to wake up out of your sleep (rouse to reality). For salvation (final deliverance) is nearer to us now than when we first believed (adhered to, trusted in, and relied on Christ, the Messiah). The night is far gone and the day is almost here. Let us then drop (fling away) the works and deeds of darkness and put on the [full] armor of light. Let us live and conduct ourselves honorably and becomingly as in the [open light of] day, not in reveling (carousing) and drunkenness, not in immorality and debauchery (sensuality and licentiousness), not in quarreling and jealousy. But clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), and make no provision for [indulging] the flesh [put a stop to thinking about the evil cravings of your physical nature] to [gratify its] desires (lusts).” Romans 13:11-14. May we never forget that!