Entering By the Narrow Gate, Part 4

The point: Renounce from the heart all confidence in what we are or are not, what we have or have not done or ever hope to do as the ground of our acceptance with God.

The analogy of casting away every thread of a garment made on the loom of one's own efforts and being covered by a garment manufactured exclusively on the loom of Christ's righteousness illustrates the renunciation of self-righteousness.

all confidence in what we are or are not, what we have or have not done or ever hope to do as the ground of our acceptance with God. Or to use a different approach. I said, we must cast away every single thread of every garment made upon the loom of our own efforts, and be prepared, prepared to have our moral nakedness covered by a garment manufactured exclusively on the loom of the perfect righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ.

6:09 - 6:53 Read in full sermon

The point: Renounce from the heart all confidence in what we are or are not, what we have or have not done or ever hope to do as the ground of our acceptance with God.

Adam and Eve's attempt to cover their sin with fig leaves, which God ripped off to clothe them in skins, illustrates man's inherent desire to make his own covering for sin, which is never acceptable to God.

And the reason the gate is narrow is that man from the moment he fell and we see it in Adam and Eve is determined to try to make his own covering for his sin. For Adam and Eve it was their attempts to construct garments of fig leaves and apparently God himself ripped them off when he clothed them in skins. While I'm not prepared to say that the skins typify a blood sacrifice without which there could be no skins, the Bible is silent on that, this much is clear. God does underscore that man

6:54 - 7:39 Read in full sermon

The point: Renounce from the heart all confidence in what we are or are not, what we have or have not done or ever hope to do as the ground of our acceptance with God.

The phrase 'knock the strut out of you' vividly describes God's work in humbling a person, removing pride and self-righteousness to bring them to a disposition of spiritual poverty.

to natural human nature and to fallen flesh. That's why the Lord said it's a narrow gate. And the first mark of the sons and daughters kingdom is highlighted in the Beatitudes, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. The first thing God will do with you if he's going to get you into his kingdom is knock the strut out of you. He'll knock

9:05 - 9:33 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He reiterates that entering the narrow gate involves great difficulty, requiring the renunciation of all confidence in one's own efforts or merits as a ground for acceptance with…

The contrast between the Pharisee's self-righteous prayer ('I am not as other men') and the publican's humble plea ('God, be merciful to me, the sinner') illustrates the disposition God gives to those entering the narrow gate.

the strut out of you. There'll be no pharisaic, I am not his other man, no. God will give you the disposition of a publican in the depths of your soul. God, he's merciful to me, the sinner, the sinner.

9:33 - 9:57 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He argues that man was created to serve God's will but, through the Fall, turned inward, making self-will and self-serving the dominant principle of all fallen humanity, citing…

The imagery of 'all we like sheep have gone astray' from Isaiah 53:6 describes humanity's sinfulness as a vast flock leaving its rightful shepherd and path, turning to its own way.

We'll look at three of these epitomizing texts which gather the overarching teaching of the Bible and express it in the most condensed and succinct manner and hear the prophet Isaiah viewing all of humanity writes in Isaiah 53 and verse 6 all we like sheep have gone astray. Here he describes man's sinfulness under the imagery of a vast flock of sheep that has gone astray from the government and the association of its rightful

16:46 - 17:31 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He argues that man was created to serve God's will but, through the Fall, turned inward, making self-will and self-serving the dominant principle of all fallen humanity, citing…

The comparison between an AIDS-ridden junkie in an alley and a cultured elite at the Met, both out of Christ, illustrates that despite vastly different outward expressions, their commonality is turning 'each to his own way' (self-will).

for some, that finds expression in the life of great culture, aesthetic sensitivity, a preoccupation with the elevating aspects of human existence, the arts and literature and science. For others, it means a total preoccupation with the sensual, with the base and with the bestial. But there is fundamentally no difference tonight between the junkie huddled in an alley somewhere in New York City, his body riddled with AIDS, sticking his needle in his arm, and the cultured person who may sit in the Met

19:28 - 20:10 Read in full sermon

The point: Honestly assess whether the governing principle of your life is seeking the things of Christ Jesus or seeking your own things.

The physical 'eight-foot center aisle' in the church is used as a metaphor to draw a clear, stark line between seeking the things of Christ and seeking one's own things as the governing principle of life.

or genuinely for your state for they all seek their own that is their own things, not the things of Jesus Christ. Now here you sit and here's the line that's drawn as really as this eight foot center aisle and the governing principle of your life is either one in which your heart is set upon seeking the things of Christ Jesus, that is in every facet of life in every relationship, in every decision, in how you spend your time, your money, whom you will choose to be your more intimate

28:34 - 29:18 Read in full sermon

Driving home: whenever I've come close to quitting the ministry it's been in this series realizing that this is spiritual neurosurgery to cut a little too deeply is to kill the patient but to refuse to cut deep enough is to leave his …

The analogy of 'spiritual neurosurgery' describes the delicate and critical nature of preaching on self-examination, where cutting too deeply can kill the patient, but not deep enough leaves a malignancy.

I make the statement because the repudiation of self will and self serving is the most elementary issue in the call to discipleship now will you listen carefully I didn't scratch the words off hastily God knows and my wife will bear witness whenever I've come close to quitting the ministry it's been in this series realizing that this is spiritual neurosurgery to cut a little too deeply is to kill the patient

31:35 - 32:16 Read in full sermon

The point: If you would be Christ's follower, repudiate yourself, repudiate self-will and self-serving as the fundamental and governing principle of your life with decisiveness and resoluteness.

Peter's vehement denial of Christ, taking oaths and curses, is used to illustrate the strong meaning of the Greek word 'aparneomai' (to repudiate with vigor and vehemence) as commanded in denying oneself.

you have an aorist imperative imperative of the Greek verb aparneomai arneomai is the verb to deny the preposition in front of it intensifies it to deny with vigor and vehemence hence I've used the word to repudiate it's the very word Jesus used in Matthew 26 34 and 35 when he said Peter before the cock crow three times you will twice you will deny me three times aparneomai and what did Peter do he took oaths and brought down maledictions upon himself when the little girl came up and said oh you're one of them

35:17 - 36:02 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared to relinquish the life of self-will and self-serving, putting it in the bowels of death, as a condition of salvation.

The analogy of a grain of wheat that must fall into the earth and die to bear much fruit illustrates that one must relinquish their self-willed, self-serving life (die to self) to gain eternal life and bear spiritual fruit.

what they thought they'd see verily verily I say unto you except a grain of wheat fall into the earth and die it abides by itself alone but if it die it bears much fruit here someone has a grain of wheat it is potential seed Jesus says put it on the shelf you can lacquer it you can embed it in clear looms you can make it an ornament on your shelf do whatever you want the one thing is clear as long as it's there safely alone on the shelf

41:56 - 42:39 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He concludes that the actual replacement of self-will with supreme attachment to Jesus Christ is always the radical result of entering the narrow gate, as evidenced by 2…

Paul's experience of being accused of being 'beside ourselves' or 'out of his tree' (crazy) is used to relate to how some might perceive the radical commitment of a true Christian, and to explain the rationale behind Paul's ministry.

in verse 15 when God works by His grace to get a sinner through the narrow gate this is one of the things He always does Paul works in seeking to explain his own life some said the guy was out of his tree verse 13 whether we are beside ourselves it is unto God he said you accuse me of being crazy just like that that people say that preacher seems to be half intelligent yet he gets all excited and hollers and shouts like a crazy man he's got a screw loose somewhere well that's alright God knows the screws that are loose aren't here

55:10 - 55:55 Read in full sermon

The point: Teenagers, if you are not ready to bear a cross and be socially ostracized for being identified with Christ, you are not a disciple of Christ.

A hypothetical interview with Paul, where he is asked for his philosophy of life and responds simply 'to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain,' illustrates the profound, all-encompassing nature of Christ's lordship in a believer's life.

to live can you imagine someone coming to do an interview with Paul you've heard about this international missionary and all the mighty works God's done through him and we want to talk to you about his philosophy of life and so the man comes with his big legal pad and twenty pages and two or three ballpoint pencils in case one runs out and starts to skip and thinks well we're going to have us a big long day long interview sits down and says now sir give me your philosophy of life Paul says well I think I can do that in a relatively short time or to me pretty personal to live as all of life is ...

62:30 - 63:14 Read in full sermon