back to indexBerean Community Church Wednesday Night Bible Study November 2, 2022
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We'll take a moment to pray and get started with Bible study. 00:11:02.120 |
Heavenly Father, we lift up to you a word of prayer. 00:11:05.920 |
With our hearts gathered, Lord, we want to thank you so much. 00:11:09.080 |
Thank you, God, for the many blessings and privileges 00:11:12.600 |
we have, particularly, God, to continue to seek you 00:11:18.840 |
I pray, Father God, that as we join together, 00:11:21.000 |
both in the study and the discussion and more, 00:11:24.160 |
we pray that this is a time of true edification 00:11:30.760 |
to grow in every measure, every statute, Lord, 00:11:35.400 |
And I pray, Lord, knowing that we cannot bear fruit 00:11:40.040 |
And so we ask for your spirit to continue to do a work. 00:11:48.800 |
And now, Lord, as we again join our voices to lift you up, 00:19:12.960 |
The first, because we have a lot of our BAM single members 00:19:18.960 |
reminder that this Saturday, our main event of picnic day, 00:19:26.960 |
So please come on time, and it's gonna run 'til 2.30 p.m. 00:19:29.960 |
If you guys recall, like, games, amazing games 00:19:32.960 |
we brought back, such as Tug of War, Chicken Fight, 00:19:35.960 |
et cetera, et cetera, it's gonna be a lot of fun. 00:19:38.960 |
The second thing is we have now hit the past halfway mark 00:19:43.960 |
of our Bible study series here in Second Peter, 00:19:46.960 |
and, you know, thank you all for volunteering 00:19:50.960 |
to help out with the various needs that we have 00:19:55.960 |
the babysitting, and the 6.30-ish setup time. 00:20:03.960 |
so we're gonna resend just to everybody the sign-up sheet. 00:20:08.960 |
but if you haven't had a chance yet to sign up, 00:20:11.960 |
for the remaining half of the Bible study series, okay? 00:20:17.960 |
and we'll be back together in about 45 minutes. 01:05:31.960 |
Okay, we're going to get started in about three minutes, four minutes. 01:08:44.960 |
position is because depending on what your theological 01:08:47.960 |
position is, you're going to end up interpreting this 01:08:56.960 |
conclusion of your theological position based on prejudice. 01:08:59.960 |
Right? It's like, "Oh, that sounds more fair." It doesn't 01:09:08.960 |
you'll have a leaning and based on that leaning, you're going to 01:09:14.960 |
is one of those passages that if you came in with a certain 01:09:20.960 |
maybe you came from an Armenian church, if you know 01:09:23.960 |
what that is, where you were taught that you can lose 01:09:26.960 |
your salvation, then you're going to look at this as a 01:09:29.960 |
proof text. You're going to look at this and say, "Well, here's 01:09:38.960 |
Reformed church as far as soteriology is concerned 01:09:41.960 |
but we don't want you to be Reformed just because 01:09:44.960 |
you happen to be a Reformed church. We want you to make sure that 01:09:47.960 |
it's coming from careful analysis of the study. 01:09:50.960 |
So what I'm going to do today, I'm going to spend a lot of time 01:09:56.960 |
Cross-references, other passages that speak on the same subject 01:10:02.960 |
and look at the text with that perspective. So before I 01:10:05.960 |
go in and tell you, "This is the perspective that we're going to be 01:10:08.960 |
looking at," I'm going to, again, spend more time in the cross-reference 01:10:14.960 |
So if you look at it on the surface, it says, "After they have 01:10:17.960 |
escaped," right? "The defilement of the world." 01:10:20.960 |
Right? Is that a Christian or not a Christian? 01:10:23.960 |
How do they do that? By the knowledge of the Lord 01:10:29.960 |
some sense you can look at that and say, "Well, that sounds like a Christian." 01:10:38.960 |
of righteousness than have known it to turn away 01:10:41.960 |
from the holy commandments handed down to them. It has happened 01:10:44.960 |
to them according to the true proverb, "A dog returns to his own vomit 01:10:47.960 |
and his soul after washing returns to the wallowing 01:10:59.960 |
Right? If it doesn't mean that, how do you interpret 01:11:05.960 |
Right? Why does he explain somebody who's not a Christian 01:11:11.960 |
So here's some cross-references that we're going to be 01:11:20.960 |
Because we didn't earn salvation, so you can't 01:11:26.960 |
Right? So the only way we can lose our salvation is if He takes it from us. 01:11:32.960 |
eternal life." Right? "I give eternal life." Right? 01:11:44.960 |
My Father who has given them to Me is greater 01:11:50.960 |
"And no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." So our salvation 01:11:56.960 |
there's nothing that can happen, can snatch it out. 01:11:59.960 |
So He gave it to us and He's holding onto us. 01:12:05.960 |
"For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined." 01:12:08.960 |
Foreknew basically means that He knew us. Not that He was 01:12:11.960 |
predicting, like He was a fortune teller looking down in history 01:12:14.960 |
and saying, "Oh, I can see what you're going to do." 01:12:17.960 |
That's not the doctrine of foreknowledge. Foreknowledge basically means 01:12:35.960 |
that we would be sanctified so that He would be the firstborn among many 01:12:38.960 |
brethren and these whom He predestined, He also 01:12:44.960 |
justified, and those whom He justified, He also glorified. 01:12:47.960 |
You notice here in every part of the salvation, 01:12:56.960 |
"He does His part, you do your part, and as long as you do your 01:13:08.960 |
And that's the reason why you heard the gospel and you believed is because He 01:13:11.960 |
called, and those He called, He justified, right? 01:13:14.960 |
The reason why you repented is because He regenerated 01:13:17.960 |
and He justified you, and those He justified, He glorified. 01:13:29.960 |
for salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time." So again, 01:13:32.960 |
preserved by the Father. Philippians 1.6, Paul 01:13:35.960 |
says, "I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work 01:13:38.960 |
in you were perfected until the day of Christ Jesus." 01:13:41.960 |
So all of the text that you're looking at here 01:13:50.960 |
He's the one who initiated, He's the one who caused you to persevere, 01:13:53.960 |
He's the one who's going to cause you to be glorified. All of it, 01:14:02.960 |
says, "Therefore He is able," He's talking about Christ, 01:14:14.960 |
elected, save forever those who draw near to God 01:14:17.960 |
through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for us." 01:14:26.960 |
John 6.39, "This is the will of Him who sent me 01:14:38.960 |
sound like that you could lose your salvation? 01:14:41.960 |
He said, "If God gave Him to me," He says, "I lose none of it." 01:14:44.960 |
But if we lose our salvation, this wouldn't be true. 01:14:56.960 |
that God gives to us, He's the one who causes us to persevere, 01:14:59.960 |
and He's the one who causes us to be glorified. So can somebody 01:15:11.960 |
No. Okay, I wanted to hear somebody say, "No." Okay. 01:15:20.960 |
listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having 01:15:23.960 |
also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit 01:15:29.960 |
of our inheritance with a view to the redemption of 01:15:32.960 |
God's own possession to the praise of His glory." So when 01:15:41.960 |
Right? So if you lose your salvation, what it means is that the deposit 01:15:47.960 |
If you had the Holy Spirit, because of your sins 01:15:50.960 |
and you didn't persevere, the Holy Spirit was withdrawn from you 01:15:53.960 |
and you no longer have the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit basically failed. 01:16:08.960 |
completely in His hand, that we cannot lose our salvation 01:16:11.960 |
is clear. There's many passages that teach that. 01:16:14.960 |
But the reason why there's a tension is because 01:16:23.960 |
because of my name, but it is the one who has endured to the 01:16:35.960 |
The one who makes it to the end. 1 Corinthians 15.2, 01:16:38.960 |
"By which also you are saved if you hold fast." 01:16:41.960 |
If you hold fast, meaning continue, persevere 01:16:44.960 |
with the word which I preach to you unless you believed in 01:16:50.960 |
Meaning you professively, but you believed in vain because you didn't 01:16:53.960 |
hold fast to the end. You didn't persevere to the end. 01:17:02.960 |
"It is a trustworthy statement for if we died with Him, 01:17:20.960 |
remains faithful for He cannot deny Himself." God remains 01:17:23.960 |
faithful to all His promises. But if you say you believe 01:17:32.960 |
So does this mean that you can lose your salvation? 01:17:35.960 |
That you profess one time and then later on you deny Him? 01:17:38.960 |
That means you lost your salvation. What does that mean? 01:17:41.960 |
Every single one of these things says perseverance is necessary. 01:17:44.960 |
You have to hold fast to the end. Those who do not deny 01:17:53.960 |
willfully, after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there 01:17:56.960 |
no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying 01:17:59.960 |
expectation of judgment and fury." Right? To profess, but then you 01:18:02.960 |
continue in sin. Okay? So let's look at these 01:18:05.960 |
texts that we just looked at. The first set of 01:18:08.960 |
texts that we looked at, God the Father, clearly 01:18:11.960 |
He's the one who initiated. He's the one who causes us to persevere. 01:18:14.960 |
He promises that He will hold on to us. Jesus Himself 01:18:26.960 |
in Ephesians that if you are saved, the Holy Spirit 01:18:35.960 |
passages clearly says that you cannot lose your 01:18:38.960 |
salvation. You cannot lose something that you did not earn. 01:18:41.960 |
It was given to you as a free gift. Right? You didn't 01:18:53.960 |
reconcile these verses? And I've only highlighted 01:19:08.960 |
"You know what? I like this better. This makes more sense 01:19:11.960 |
to me. I don't know what to do with the other verses where it 01:19:17.960 |
Or you can't come and say, "I don't believe we can lose our 01:19:20.960 |
salvation, but I don't know what to do with these verses." 01:19:23.960 |
So how do you explain these verses where it says you have 01:19:29.960 |
So you cannot declare the sovereignty of God and 01:19:32.960 |
then say, "I don't have answers for this and you do not deal 01:19:35.960 |
with it." Whatever doctrinal position you take, you have to reconcile 01:19:56.960 |
you were here for transformation, they put up tulip. Tulip is 01:19:59.960 |
basically total depravity. Right? Meaning we don't have 01:20:05.960 |
bad as you can get. It just means that we do not have the ability 01:20:11.960 |
doctrinal total depravity. Unconditional election is God 01:20:17.960 |
Right? If you do this, I will choose you. It says no. 01:20:20.960 |
It's unconditional election. Free grace. Right? 01:20:26.960 |
has a different doctrinal thing that I don't want you to get 01:20:29.960 |
confused with. Okay? Limited atonement. Because 01:20:38.960 |
Limited atonement basically means when he was crucified on the cross 01:20:44.960 |
Specifically the elect. Right? That's why it's called limited 01:20:47.960 |
atonement. Right? And the irresistible grace is when 01:20:50.960 |
God chooses us, you cannot resist. The reason 01:20:53.960 |
why you responded, the reason why you believed is because 01:21:05.960 |
justified and those he justified he glorified. 01:21:08.960 |
And then the last part of his perseverance of the saints 01:21:38.960 |
for a Christian who is in rebellion against God. 01:21:41.960 |
There are people in our generation who believe 01:21:50.960 |
that you can have assurance of salvation because 01:21:53.960 |
one saved always saved. Clearly I was saved at one 01:21:56.960 |
point even though I'm not walking right with God. It doesn't 01:21:59.960 |
matter because I cannot lose my salvation. So they're holding on to 01:22:02.960 |
one part. But the second part clearly says if you 01:22:05.960 |
do not persevere, right, you will not be saved. 01:22:08.960 |
Those who hold fast to the word of God, those who make it to the end 01:22:26.960 |
And so that's how those two sections are reconciled 01:22:32.960 |
where a Christian who is willfully sinning can say 01:22:38.960 |
the second part of the passage verses that we looked at. 01:22:44.960 |
you know I'm saved today and then I'm not saved tomorrow because 01:22:47.960 |
yesterday I did something or tomorrow I did something bad and then I 01:22:50.960 |
come back today you're being saved, not saved, being saved. 01:22:53.960 |
So how many times in your life are you saved and not saved, saved and not saved? 01:22:59.960 |
allows that to happen. Right? Our salvation is secure 01:23:02.960 |
but the security of our salvation is proven by our life. 01:23:11.960 |
would not be able to go back to their old life. 01:23:20.960 |
if I ate something that I thought was delicious 01:23:32.960 |
somebody turned on the light it just tasted really good. Somebody 01:23:35.960 |
put sugar on it. Whatever. Right? I apologize 01:23:41.960 |
But that's the only thing I can think of. So hopefully it will stick. 01:24:08.960 |
be able to eat that again. Right? Every once in a 01:24:11.960 |
while you will forget. You will remember what it was 01:24:14.960 |
like the 10 years you were eating it and you got hungry and you got tempted 01:24:26.960 |
effort. It's talking about you're not able to 01:24:32.960 |
now you're no longer creatures of darkness. You're creatures of light. 01:24:47.960 |
Not you shouldn't go back, you can't go back. 01:24:53.960 |
revelation now completely has changed your view 01:24:56.960 |
of everything. Okay? So that's the doctrine of 01:24:59.960 |
perseverance of the saints. If God has truly elected you 01:25:02.960 |
you've been truly transformed, right? You will 01:25:05.960 |
persevere. So here's some passage. Here's a passage 01:25:23.960 |
In case of those who once have been enlightened, right? 01:25:29.960 |
seems to be confusing but this one's actually been enlightened 01:25:32.960 |
tasted the heavenly gift. I want you to look at 01:25:41.960 |
Have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, tasted 01:25:44.960 |
the good word of God and the powers of the age to come 01:25:50.960 |
So a lot of people have a problem because they look at this 01:25:56.960 |
Right? Once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift 01:25:59.960 |
and partakers of the Holy Spirit. I mean it seems like this person 01:26:02.960 |
has everything that you need to be a Christian. 01:26:05.960 |
Right? But here's the problem. He says it is impossible 01:26:26.960 |
How many of you would be Christians to this day? 01:26:32.960 |
can have assurance today? Is there any of you who have never 01:26:35.960 |
repented after you became a Christian? But if you believe 01:26:38.960 |
that this is a Christian who falls and he says 01:26:41.960 |
he can never repent again, that's a bigger problem. 01:26:44.960 |
Right? Which none of us would be here if this is the case. 01:26:47.960 |
Since they again crucified themselves the Son of 01:26:53.960 |
who is he referring to if this can't be a Christian? 01:26:56.960 |
Right? Look what he says. I think 7 and 8 clarifies that. 01:27:05.960 |
useful for those whose sake the till receives a blessing 01:27:11.960 |
thorns and thistles it is worthless and close to being cursed 01:27:32.960 |
They experience Bible study. They hear the Word of God. 01:27:41.960 |
Where the teaching, the Word of God, prayer meetings are happening, mission work 01:27:44.960 |
is happening, there's leadership, there's the elders 01:28:08.960 |
So this is not in reference to Christians who are losing salvation 01:28:11.960 |
but these are people who look like Christians who are inside the church. 01:28:17.960 |
And here's another passage that explains that. 01:28:20.960 |
"They went out from us but they were not really of us. 01:28:23.960 |
For if they had been of us, they would have remained with us." 01:28:29.960 |
"If they were of the elect, but they went out 01:28:32.960 |
so that it would be shown that they are all not of us." 01:28:41.960 |
that they are elect and that they are in God's hands 01:28:44.960 |
that they would remain, they would persevere. 01:28:47.960 |
But the fact that they don't persevere is evidence that they were never of us 01:28:50.960 |
to begin with. They were just going through the motion. 01:28:56.960 |
So then why would people like that be at church? 01:28:59.960 |
Why would people who were just kind of going through the motion 01:29:08.960 |
never really saved, why would they be so busy at church? 01:29:20.960 |
Especially in a post-Christian culture like ours, 01:29:44.960 |
Raise your children together, right? Friendship. 01:29:47.960 |
So I mean, there's all kinds of reasons why people would go through the motion to stay. 01:29:58.960 |
Right? As soon as you have relational problems. 01:30:02.960 |
As soon as those reasons why church is important to you is no longer there, 01:30:07.960 |
then you have no reason to persevere because that's the reason why you were there. 01:30:14.960 |
The only reason why a Christian would persevere through difficulty 01:30:20.960 |
We're here to worship God, and friendship and community 01:30:23.960 |
and all this other stuff happens as a result of that. 01:30:26.960 |
But if that's the reason you're here, that's all that needs to break. 01:30:29.960 |
Disappointment with people, and that's all in need, and then you're gone. 01:30:33.960 |
Okay? So the text that we're looking at here is the same thing. 01:30:37.960 |
It's talking about people who are in the church in every way look like Christians. 01:30:41.960 |
Right? They escaped the defilement of the world. 01:30:44.960 |
How did they escape the defilement of the world? They're inside the church. 01:30:50.960 |
They're not a part of a group of people who are going out, you know, sinning. 01:30:56.960 |
So again, because of the gospel, the community is formed. 01:31:01.960 |
And again, you notice here, entangled. Entangled means wove together. 01:31:05.960 |
It's not just somebody who's just kind of tripping up. 01:31:08.960 |
That this word basically is like you're intertwined with the world. 01:31:14.960 |
So he's not talking about somebody who's struggling with temptation. 01:31:17.960 |
He's talking about somebody who's entangled and overcome. 01:31:23.960 |
He said the last state has become worse than the first. 01:31:26.960 |
Right? Why would the last state be worse than the first? 01:31:30.960 |
What is the difference between the first and then the second? 01:31:43.960 |
Right? Where prior you were doing because that's all you knew. 01:31:48.960 |
But when you have been in the church, been exposed to the gospel, have all the benefits. 01:31:53.960 |
Right? And then you fall. You're willfully going that direction. 01:31:58.960 |
Right? So it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness 01:32:02.960 |
than have known it to turn away from the Holy Commandments, hand it on to them. 01:32:06.960 |
It has happened to them according to the true Proverbs. 01:32:09.960 |
Coming from Proverbs, a dog returned to his own vomit. 01:32:12.960 |
A sow after washing returns to its own mire. That sounds like poop to me. 01:32:15.960 |
Right? The illustration seems like, you know, which is worse, the dog eating the vomit? 01:32:24.960 |
Returning back to poop. You used to eat poop and you say, "Oh, disgusting." 01:32:28.960 |
And then after a while you go back. That's how he describes it. 01:32:31.960 |
And the dog and a sow, a pig, are considered unclean animals to Jews. 01:32:37.960 |
So he's choosing something that they would say. 01:32:40.960 |
We would say, "Ew" to poo and they would say, "Ew" to dog. 01:32:43.960 |
Right? It's not like pets, like we have pets. 01:32:48.960 |
It's like dog and pig would elicit the same response that we would get when I say poop. 01:32:53.960 |
Right? And so basically he's using something disgusting and saying it's like those animals. 01:32:59.960 |
Like we're no better than those animals when we recognize what's filthy. 01:33:04.960 |
Or at least profess to recognize what's filthy and then going back to its vomit. Right? 01:33:08.960 |
So he says it's better for them to have never known. Right? 01:33:14.960 |
Because now you know and based upon the knowledge that you've been given, 01:33:19.960 |
he says you will be judged and the scripture is clear on that. 01:33:22.960 |
He says, "And you, Capernaum." Remember the three cities? 01:33:26.960 |
Remember when we were going through the Gospel of Matthew, some of you guys were there? 01:33:29.960 |
There are three cities where Jesus spent the majority of his time doing miracles. 01:33:34.960 |
It's considered, they call it the evangelical trinity or triangle. 01:33:53.960 |
So those are the three cities. It's right above, if this is Galilee, this is Jerusalem. 01:34:03.960 |
Samaria, somewhere down here. And those three cities are up here. 01:34:08.960 |
Right? So Jesus spent the majority of his ministry in those three cities. 01:34:12.960 |
So most of the miracles you see Jesus performing is in one of those cities. 01:34:16.960 |
So Jesus is saying, "And Capernaum will not be exalted in heaven, will you? 01:34:20.960 |
You will descend to Hades, for if the miracles had occurred to Sodom, 01:34:24.960 |
which is considered an evil city, which had occurred in you, it would have remained to this day." 01:34:29.960 |
In other words, they would have repented if they received everything that you received. 01:34:34.960 |
So if you remember, Jesus spends most of his ministry doing miracles, 01:34:38.960 |
and then the highlight of his ministry happens in John chapter 6, 01:34:42.960 |
when he feeds the 5,000. And then remember what happens after he feeds the 5,000? 01:34:54.960 |
because it was too difficult to accept what he was saying. 01:34:58.960 |
Because prior to this, he says, "I am the bread. You're looking for me because you had bread, 01:35:01.960 |
but I am the bread." Right? "If you do not eat of my flesh and drink of my blood, 01:35:05.960 |
I have no relationship with you." And as a result of that, they turned away. 01:35:09.960 |
Jesus said, "You're not coming after me because you want me. 01:35:12.960 |
You're coming after me because of the bread." Right? He said, "I am the bread." 01:35:16.960 |
And so they couldn't accept that, so they turned. 01:35:19.960 |
So in other words, all those professing followers of Jesus rejected Jesus 01:35:24.960 |
because Jesus would not give them what they wanted. 01:35:28.960 |
That was not the Messiah they wanted. They wanted the king. 01:35:31.960 |
They wanted a miracle worker. They wanted a social worker, 01:35:38.960 |
So that's what he's saying. He said, "You've been given blessing upon blessing. 01:35:41.960 |
The Son of God walked among you. You've seen people who are blind, eyes open. 01:35:46.960 |
You saw me walking on water, right? And yet you rejected me 01:35:50.960 |
because I didn't give you what you wanted." Right? 01:35:54.960 |
So there's greater judgment coming upon you. Luke 12, 47, 48. 01:35:59.960 |
"And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready 01:36:04.960 |
or act in accordance with his will will receive many lashes, 01:36:07.960 |
but the one who did not know it and committed deeds worthy of flogging 01:36:10.960 |
will receive but a few." Right? Based upon what? Based upon knowledge. Right? 01:36:16.960 |
"From everyone who has been given much, much will be required, 01:36:19.960 |
and to whom they entrusted much of him they will ask all the more." Okay? 01:36:29.960 |
A nonbeliever in the church is much more in a dangerous place 01:36:43.960 |
Let me say that again. A non-Christian inside the church 01:36:47.960 |
going through the motion is under stricter judgment 01:36:52.960 |
than the non-Christians who are outside the church. Right? 01:36:55.960 |
And this is why the seeker-friendly movement is so dangerous 01:36:59.960 |
because you're inviting non-Christians who refuse to be converted 01:37:04.960 |
to feel comfortable and accepted in the church. Right? 01:37:08.960 |
We're not saying that we should condemn them, 01:37:12.960 |
but a goal of a non-Christian being brought to church 01:37:16.960 |
who doesn't have singular goal is to bring them to Christ. Right? 01:37:20.960 |
And if they don't see any difference between the church and the world, 01:37:30.960 |
And all they needed to do was to say, "Okay, I'll take Jesus. 01:37:35.960 |
And they can function in the church. They can be in the church. 01:37:38.960 |
They can serve in the church. And sometimes they rise up into leadership 01:37:41.960 |
and don't feel any urgency to convert. Right? 01:37:55.960 |
where you're going to have a lot of people in the church 01:37:58.960 |
who do not understand the gospel feeling perfectly safe 01:38:08.960 |
what is the difference between someone who is entangled and overcome by the world 01:38:13.960 |
versus someone who is struggling with temptation? 01:38:16.960 |
There is a big difference between somebody who is living in sin 01:38:33.960 |
With struggling with sin versus living in sin, what's the difference? Right? 01:38:37.960 |
The Bible calls for church discipline for those who are willfully sinning 01:38:43.960 |
If you've never seen or participated in church discipline, 01:38:46.960 |
or if you come from a church where only grace was taught, 01:39:02.960 |
Not only are we to be gracious, we are to be holy, 01:39:08.960 |
We don't compromise grace because we need to be holy, 01:39:11.960 |
and we don't compromise holiness because we need to be gracious. 01:39:14.960 |
So the challenge is, how do we practice this well? Right? 01:39:24.960 |
Do I discipline him, or do I encourage him? Right? 01:39:29.960 |
And you're constantly wrestling back and forth. 01:39:33.960 |
What happens if I discipline him when he needs encouragement? Right? 01:39:38.960 |
They get discouraged, and it's like, "Oh, nobody loves me," 01:39:41.960 |
and they go off. And then what happens to a child 01:39:44.960 |
when they are shown mercy and grace when they need discipline? Right? 01:39:54.960 |
So there's a constant challenge of, how do we practice discipline 01:39:59.960 |
and grace and love and patience and holiness all at the same time? 01:40:06.960 |
You cannot do one without the other. Both need to be practiced. 01:40:09.960 |
But the challenge is, how do we do it? When do we do it? Right? 01:40:12.960 |
And so there is no one chart that you go through and say, 01:40:16.960 |
"Oh, now I get it. This is how you're supposed to do it," 01:40:22.960 |
And that's why elders and leaders have been given-- 01:40:25.960 |
one of the biggest responsibilities of the elders in the church 01:40:33.960 |
again, discipline cannot be carried out by just the church leaders. 01:40:37.960 |
The church leaders may have to come to a conclusion, 01:40:39.960 |
but when we do carry it out, it has to be the church. Okay? 01:40:42.960 |
So the second is, how do we do that? What principles should we use? Right? 01:40:47.960 |
Is our tendency to make a mistake to the left or to the right? Right? 01:40:54.960 |
Do you tend to be more gracious? Do you tend to be more judgmental? Right? 01:41:01.960 |
Don't think about those five people that you need to judge. Okay? 01:41:05.960 |
How do you determine when to practice patience and grace 01:41:08.960 |
and when to practice accountability and discipline? Okay, same question. 01:41:12.960 |
Four, what sin or sins do you struggle with that so easily entangles, 01:41:15.960 |
both sins that are observable and the sins that are of the heart? Okay? 01:41:21.960 |
and see what insights are given in our fight against sin. Okay? 01:41:25.960 |
So if you have time to be able to do that, I encourage you to do that. Okay? 01:41:29.960 |
So let me pray for us, and then I'll give you time to jump into this. 01:41:41.960 |
We pray for sensitivity to your Holy Spirit's guidance. 01:41:46.960 |
Lord, give us the knowledge, give us the wisdom, 01:41:51.960 |
give us the heart and brokenness and humility to be able to receive your guidance. 01:41:57.960 |
If there is any hurtful ways in us, help us, Lord God, that it may be revealed, 01:42:03.960 |
that we may be humble enough, Lord God, to share. 01:42:06.960 |
Help us, Lord God, to take sin in our lives that we may have compromised 01:42:11.960 |
or have excused, that you would reveal it to us, 01:42:16.960 |
that our striving after holiness, Lord God, would not be passive. 01:42:20.960 |
But help us also, Lord God, that we would not be overly harsh. 01:42:24.960 |
Help us to be gracious as you've been gracious to us. 01:42:28.960 |
We pray that in our discussion that you would help us to be open, to be vulnerable, 01:42:33.960 |
and again, that our application would be biblical.