Dealing with Sin in the Justified State

In this part of the sermon: Martin opens with a quote from George Whitefield on justification by faith alone, then introduces the sermon's theme: dealing with ongoing sin in the life of the justified. He…

Martin begins by quoting George Whitefield's sermon on justification by faith alone, setting the foundational doctrine for the entire message.

The following sermon was delivered on Sunday morning, August 26, 2007, at Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey. I begin this morning by asking you to listen as I seek to become the echo of the voice of a man of God who spoke the following words more than 250 years ago. Are any of you depending on a righteousness of your own? Do any of you here think to save yourselves by your own doings?

0:02 - 0:44 Read in full sermon

The point: When we sin, we must see our sin as a transgression of God's law, an affront to God's person, and provoking His fatherly displeasure.

Martin quotes John Owen to succinctly and accurately state that believers are obliged to universal obedience to God, and the law is established, not abolished, by faith.

The authority of His holy law, not just the summary of the moral law in the Ten Commandments, but every revelation of His will as God for us the creature is as much upon us as though we never heard the gospel. John Owen captured this truth so succinctly and accurately when he said, and he wrote, upon this complete justification, believers are obliged unto universal obedience unto God. The law is not abolished, but established by faith. It is neither abrogated nor dispensed withal by such an interpretation as should take off its obligation in anything that it requires, nor as to the degree and ...

14:10 - 15:38 Read in full sermon

The point: Maintain by faith the consciousness of who and what you are as justified.

Martin uses the scenes of Gethsemane and Golgotha to illustrate the gravity of sin, showing how our sins caused Christ's suffering and dereliction, making sin even more ugly for the justified believer.

The God who calls you and me to deal honestly with our sins, to open up our souls to look upon them in all of their vileness, in all of their ugliness, not only as offending a holy God and being breaches of His law, but now, now as Christians, I see that He bore my sins in His body up to the tree. And when I bring before me the scenes of Gethsemane and I see my manly Savior staggering like a drunk man, the Greek in Mark speaks of perpetual, repeated action of falling to the ground and rising and falling and falling, under the weight and the pressure of the cup of the suffering He would bear as...

20:15 - 21:42 Read in full sermon

The point: Say to yourself: 'I will not allow my sins to bring me back into legal bondage and fear, but I will deal with them as a justified sinner and an adopted child of God.'

Martin recounts the story of Paul on Melita where barbarians infer his guilt from a viper bite, demonstrating a natural human sense of justice and divine judgment even without biblical revelation.

If we're at all in touch with our true state, and the scriptures tell us that even pagans who've never seen the pages of a Bible are to some measure in touch with this reality, so Paul can write at the end of Romans 1, after listing all of these sins that mark the pagan, Greco-Roman world of the first century, he says as a capstone in verse 32 of Romans 1, who knowing the ordinance of God, that they that practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but also consent with them that practice them. Among the things they know by general revelation in the world without and the psy...

27:09 - 28:38 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin introduces the practical application: 'I will not allow my sins to bring me back into legal bondage and fear, but I will deal with them as a justified sinner and an adopted…

Martin uses the metaphor of a criminal 'on the lam' to describe the pre-justification attitude towards God, constantly looking over one's shoulder in fear of judgment.

And when the barbarians saw the venomous creature hanging from his hand, they said one to another, no doubt this man's a murderer, whom though he has escaped from the sea, yet justice has not suffered him to live. Here are pagans who've never seen the lids of a Bible, who've never heard anything of the Old Testament, or what is to us the New Testament, and yet they have this sense that certain actions precipitate the judgment of God. Now how much more is that conscience heightened when we come under the light of God's Word, whatever things the law says, and when we have been exposed to God's l...

29:03 - 30:30 Read in full sermon

The point: Confess your sins (homologeo – to say the same thing about them as God does) and believe that God is faithful and righteous to forgive.

Martin quotes M'Cheyne's hymn to express the believer's deepest longing for sinless perfection and unclouded love for Christ.

when you hear those words my little children what I've written to you I've written to the end that you may be sinlessly perfect what does your heart say to that they say forget it no way or does it say oh God oh God I long for the time when I shall be sinlessly perfect and if I could be now oh Lord if it meant I had to cut off my pinkies I'd do it by your grace that's what McShane knew when he wrote those well-known words among us when I see thee as thou art love thee with unsinning then Lord shall I fully know not till then how much I owe what is your greatest longing what is your greatest lo...

51:59 - 53:27 Read in full sermon

The point: If you take your sin seriously, you will be vulnerable to coming under a spirit of legal bondage and fear, and you must determine not to dishonor God by doing so, but to deal with your sins deeply, honestly, and thorough…

Martin quotes a hymn to beautifully summarize the doctrine of Christ's advocacy and propitiation, assuring believers that their guilty conscience finds no other sacrifice and that Christ's blood pleads before the throne.

heads but clear sub-heads but as I've wrestled for hours with these things I said I can't I can't break it down because it's it's the language of Christian experience that can't be broken down into neat little headings and there is an inter-penetration and a confluence of so many dimensions of God's truth and so I've just had to cry to God Lord take your word and by the Spirit be pleased to make it plain to your people at the point at the occasion of my sin when I feel so dirty and feel so filthy and I'm tempted to feel I need to go through a period of emotional flagellation stop it if any man...

62:20 - 63:49 Read in full sermon

The point: If you take your sin seriously, you will be vulnerable to coming under a spirit of legal bondage and fear, and you must determine not to dishonor God by doing so, but to deal with your sins deeply, honestly, and thorough…

Martin quotes another hymn to reinforce the idea that because Christ has made complete atonement, God will not demand payment twice, and believers are sheltered in His righteousness, free from the terrors of the law.

trying to preach this morning that's what you've been singing the terrors of law and of God with me can have nada zilch nothing to do I will not come under a spirit of legal bondage and fear it dishonors my savior it puts a distance between me and my God and then from our new hymn book what we sung what we sang this morning but there's another one from whence this fear and unbelief has not the father put to grief his spotless son for me and will the righteous judge of men condemn me for the that debt of sin which Lord was charged on thee complete atonement thou hast made and to the utmost limi...

65:18 - 66:48 Read in full sermon

The point: If you take your sin seriously, you will be vulnerable to coming under a spirit of legal bondage and fear, and you must determine not to dishonor God by doing so, but to deal with your sins deeply, honestly, and thorough…

Martin quotes a final hymn to illustrate how believers can overcome despair and guilt by looking to Christ, who made an end of all their sin, and whose sacrifice satisfies God's justice.

trust in his all sufficient blood ending my banishment from God for Jesus died for me and then what we sang this morning when Satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within upward I look and see him there who made an end of all my sin because the sinless saviour died my sinful soul is counted free for God the just is satisfied to look on him and to pardon me oh may God help us dear people if we're going to take our sin seriously and there's never one word in the Bible that ever rebuked any man woman boy or girl for taking sin too seriously there's hundreds charging people with tak...

66:48 - 68:17 Read in full sermon