Essential to Real Christianity

Driving home: All who appropriate the salvation provided by the death of Christ must indeed die to themselves if they are to rise in newness of life in union with the Lord Jesus.

The natural process of a seed dying in the earth to bring forth abundant fruit is used as an analogy for the 'life-out-of-death' principle, both in Christ's work and the believer's experience.

And in the outworking of that promise, men all over the world see lived out before them, again and again, what I have sought to describe as the life-out-of-death principle, in the word of God. When our Lord said, seedtime and harvest shall not cease, He was assuming that the bridge between seedtime and harvest would be the burial of the seed in the earth, the seed dying, losing its own identity as seed, and thereby springing up and bringing forth, abundant fruit. And it is just this life-out-of-death principle which forms the focus of our study again this morning. In the process of focusing on...

2:25 - 3:49 Read in full sermon

The point: Be persuaded by the word of God and personal testimony that losing your life for Christ's sake in the gospel leads to true life and blessing.

Martin recounts his vivid memory of December 7, 1941, and then contrasts it with his conversion at age 17, where he 'lost his life' for Christ, sacrificing popularity and dreams, but found true joy and blessing in following Jesus for 40 years.

with the knowledge that my life is ordered by one who knows me better than I know myself who knows the woman that's best for me to marry who knows best how I can glorify him in career and in strata of influence and standard of living who knows best how I can get to heaven safely with what friends and in what associations and company oh blessed be God for the truth of this word as I sat yesterday and reflected many times back over as I mentioned in yesterday morning's prayer meeting a half a century ago it doesn't seem possible I lay in bed with my wife last night and said honey a half a centur...

36:34 - 38:04 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not let your heart remain attached to the 'Sodom of this world'—its standards, pleasures, music, and people—lest you lose the life that is life indeed.

The image of a captive like Terry Anderson, upon release, not stopping to retrieve bubble gum wrappers from a plane seat when his loved ones are waiting, illustrates the incongruity of being attached to worldly things when Christ returns in glory.

in that day he that's on the housetop he and his person is on the housetop the returning Lord is coming and his first thought is uh oh the Lord's coming I don't have my goods with me Lord hold up there in the clouds while I go down and get my goods he who thinks of his dirty duds when the Son of God is returning in glory is a heart that's never seen his beauty can you imagine Terry Anderson and these others who've been captive when their loved ones are waiting to greet them and they're coming out the plane and their arms are open they stop and say oh oh sorry sorry wait a minute I think I left...

46:55 - 48:22 Read in full sermon

The point: Die to the life of worldly pursuits and embrace a life of holiness, purity, devotion to God, and conscious cultivation of your mind by God's word.

Martin reveals that grown men sobbed in prayer for the salvation of young people and unsaved husbands in the congregation the previous day, emphasizing the earnest desire for their conversion and the seriousness of their spiritual state.

I die to the life that is life indeed. You young men and women, tears were shed for you in this building yesterday.

52:11 - 52:26 Read in full sermon

The point: The church must not receive into membership those who have never truly died to self, even if they are respectable and orthodox, as this will lead to a self-centered church that fails to validate the 'life-out-of-death' p…

Martin describes churches more concerned with polishing a brass plaque in honor of someone's granny than with funding gospel spread, illustrating how self-centeredness in the church leads to misplaced priorities and opposition to true ministry.

in the individual members the raw materials are not there to do it. And it will be self that determines how the money shall be spent, how the personnel shall be used, what projects will get first priority, and dear people I say it, not as exaggeration but as a horrible testimony to what happens. I've been in so-called Christian churches more concerned about preserving the shine on a brass plaque in honor to somebody's granny than sinners going to hell around the world.

60:13 - 60:51 Read in full sermon

The point: Beware of 'perfumed self' in religion, where outward forms and 'Jesus talk' mask a fundamentally self-centered heart.

Martin references a TV exposé of charlatans bleeding poor people dry with promises of health and wealth, and a student's insight that these followers are merely seeking worldly gain through 'perfumed self,' using Christianity as a means to selfish ends.

Baptized self. Sprinkled with Jesus talk and Jesus activity. But at the root of it, it's self-centered. Do you have any other explanation? If you saw that 2020 or whatever it was that exposed those three charlatans, bleeding people to death, paupers and poor people and pensioners, promising them health, wealth and prosperity. I was so pained and angry I found myself praying prayers of imprecation, but then one of my former students, greatly perceptive, said, you know, Pastor, isn't it God's judgment on the very poor people who, if they could, they'd be right where these wealthy clowns are. And...

62:00 - 62:47 Read in full sermon