God’s Revealing Truths,
Uncovering Satan’s Lies
Part 3a of
3
Roger Stillwell – November 17,
2007
· The need for “discerning”
and “skillful” laborers
§ [Open Bibles to] - 2
Timothy 4: 1-5
(v. 1) I charge thee therefore before God, and
the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his
appearing and his kingdom;
(v. 2) Preach the word; be instant in season, out
of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and
doctrine.
(v. 3) For the time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to
themselves teachers, having itching ears;
(v. 4) And they shall turn away their ears from
the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
(v. 5) But watch thou in all things, endure
afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy
ministry.
· Opening Word of
Prayer
· 5 More of Satan’s Most Lies
and Deceptions that are most typically
directed toward the church and the believer in
Christ
§ Once saved, always
saved…
§ Judge ye
not…
§ The Old Testament has
passed away…
§ Big churches are better
churches…
§ My accountability lies only
between God and me…
Due to the complexities of each of these deceptions, I
would like to render a full teaching for each of the topics listed. Therefore, today we will only be looking
at the fallacies behind the concept of “once saved, always
saved.”
· Fallacies behind the
concept of “once saved, always saved”
§ Give Speeding Ticket
Analogy
In any given town there are roads that see little
or now law enforcement where it comes to drivers violating the posted speed
limit. The locals of these cities
and towns are aware that there is little to no law enforcement. Thus, the drivers along these roads will
typically, drive their vehicles anywhere from 10 to even 20 miles an hour above
the speed limit.
Alvernon Way
, here in
Tucson
, between Creycroft and
Irvington
is just such a
road. Now, the posted speed limit
is 45mph. Yet, Tucsonan’s will
typically drive anywhere from 50mph to even 60mph.
It is natural human behavior to “push the
envelope.” Where there are no
punitive for doing wrong; people will often do wrong. The implied concept behind “once saved,
always saved” lends to the idea that there are no eternal punitive judgments for
those who have once been saved even though they may have back-slidden or are not
serving the LORD except on Sundays or “religious holidays.”
Moreover, and even of a more dangerous notion is
that; we can willfully sin today, ask for
forgiveness tomorrow and the “great sugar-daddy in the sky” will forgive
us and make everything just rosy fine.
Nothing could be further from the
truth!
§ Ezekiel 3: 20,
21
(v. 20) Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his
righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he
shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his
righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will
I require at thine hand.
(v. 21) Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the
righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is
warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.
§ Luke 13:
23-27
(v. 23) Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And
he said unto them,
(v. 24) Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will
seek to enter in, and shall not be able.
(v. 25) When once the master of the
house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and
to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and
say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:
(v. 26) Then shall ye begin to say, We
have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our
streets.
(v. 27) But
he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye
workers of iniquity.
§ [Open Bibles to] - Matthew
25: 31-46
Key Verses
Matthew 25: 34, 35, 40
(v. 34) Then shall the King say unto them on his
right hand, Come, ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the
world:
(v. 35) For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat:
I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me
in:
(v. 40) And the King shall answer and say unto
them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least
of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
Matthew 25: 41, 45, 46
(v. 41) Then shall he say also unto them on the
left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed,
into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his
angels:
(v. 45) Then shall he answer them, saying,
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these,
ye did it not to me.
(v. 46) And these shall go away into everlasting
punishment: but the righteous into life
eternal.
Question:
Are we living as a servant or are we just making idle use
of our time?
§ Matthew 12:
46-50
(v. 46) While he yet talked to the people,
behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with
him.
(v. 47) Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand
without, desiring to speak with thee.
(v. 48) But he answered and said unto him that
told him, Who is my mother? and who are
my brethren?
(v. 49) And he stretched forth his hand toward his
disciples, and said, Behold my mother
and my brethren!
(v. 50) For whosoever shall do the will of my
Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and
mother.
Key Verses
Matthew 12: 48-50
(v. 48) But he answered and said unto him that
told him, Who is my mother? and who are
my brethren?
(v. 49) And he stretched forth his hand toward his
disciples, and said, Behold my mother
and my brethren!
(v. 50) For whosoever shall do the will of my
Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and
mother.
Question:
Are we doing the will of the
Father?
§ [Open Bibles to] - John 14:
15-24
Key Verses
John 14: 15, 20-21,
23-24
(v. 15) If ye love me, keep my
commandments.
(v. 20) At that day ye shall know that I am in
my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
(v. 21) He that hath my commandments, and
keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of
my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to
him.
(v. 23) Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words:
and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode
with him.
(v. 24) He that loveth me not keepeth not my
sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent
me.
Question:
Are we keeping the LORD’s commandments and His
sayings? Come Judgment Day, will He
call us a faithful servant?
§ [Open Bibles to] - Hebrews
10: 32-39
Key Verses
Hebrews 10: 35-39
(v. 35) Cast not away therefore your
confidence, which hath great recompense of
reward.
(v. 36) For ye have need of patience, that, after
ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the
promise.
(v. 37) For yet a little while, and he that
shall come will come, and will not tarry.
(v. 38) Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul
shall have no pleasure in him.
(v. 39) But we are not of them who draw back unto
perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the
soul.
Question:
Verse 39 implies that there are those (believers) that do
or will draw back unto perdition. How would this be possible if the saying, “once saved, always saved” were
completely true? What then, does
this scripture imply with regard to the back-slidden
believer?
§ Revelation 22: 18,
19
(v. 18) For I testify unto every man
that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto
these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this
book:
(v. 19) And if any man shall take away from the words
of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of
life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in
this book.
Question:
Does “once saved, always saved” hold up to scripture if
we take away from the words of the book of this prophecy and God then takes away
our part out of the book of life?
§ Philippians 2:
12-16
(v. 12) Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always
obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling.
(v. 13) For it is God which worketh in you both to
will and to do of his good pleasure.
(v. 14) Do all things without murmurings and
disputings:
(v. 15) That ye may be blameless and harmless,
the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation,
among whom ye shine as lights in the
world;
(v. 16) Holding forth the word of
life; that I may rejoice in the
day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in
vain.
· Next time we’re going to
look at the fallacies concerning discernment and weather or not, we are to be in
judgment of others.
· Some parting questions and
“food for thought”
Questions:
§ Are we working out our own
salvation with all fear and trembling?
§ Are we letting our light
shine and holding forth the word of life?
§ Are we doing the work of an
evangelist and making full proof of our ministry? (2 Timothy 4:
5)
§ Are we living as a
servant?
Parting Scripture:
James 1: 22-27
(v. 22) But be ye doers of the word, and not
hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
(v. 23) 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:
(v. 24) For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his
way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he
was.
(v. 25) 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.
(v. 26) If any man among you seem to be
religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's
religion is vain.
(v. 27) Pure religion and undefiled before God and
the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and
to keep himself unspotted from the world.
· Closing Word of
Prayer