Separation: How to Attain, Part 2

The point: Ask yourself if you have come through the narrow gate of radical biblical conversion.

The Sermon on the Mount is described as Jesus' 'manifesto of the kingdom of grace,' illustrating its foundational importance for understanding kingdom life.

Now please follow in your Bibles as I read once more, as we've done for nine previous Lord's Day mornings, Matthew chapter 7, verses 13 and 14. coming toward the end of what we commonly identify as the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7, often described as our Lord's manifesto of the kingdom of grace which He has come to establish. The Lord Jesus, like any good preacher, not satisfied simply to inform His hearers about the nature of the kingdom. He is passionately desirous that his hearers actually enter that kingdom and having entered, come under the lifestyle of the kingdom an...

0:11 - 1:19 Read in full sermon

Driving home: And if you want to get to heaven while still dancing with the world, again, you are deluded.

The narrow gate is likened to a 'turnstile' that requires discarding baggage for entrance, emphasizing the radical nature of conversion.

and the baggage of the world and its ways as the molding influence upon our lives, that baggage must be discarded or there's no entrance into that turnstile, that narrow gate of true, thorough, radical, biblical conversion. And then focusing upon the principle that the restricted way, the compressed way, the straightened way. Straightened does not mean the opposite of crooked. It means pressured way.

6:36 - 7:07 Read in full sermon

Driving home: And if you want to get to heaven while still dancing with the world, again, you are deluded.

The word 'straightened' is clarified to mean 'pressured' or 'difficult,' like tribulation, emphasizing the challenging nature of the narrow way.

and the baggage of the world and its ways as the molding influence upon our lives, that baggage must be discarded or there's no entrance into that turnstile, that narrow gate of true, thorough, radical, biblical conversion. And then focusing upon the principle that the restricted way, the compressed way, the straightened way. Straightened does not mean the opposite of crooked. It means pressured way.

6:36 - 7:07 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He further elaborates on mind renewal through Psalm 1 (meditation on God's law), John 17:17 (sanctification by truth, God's Word), and 2 Corinthians 3:18 (transformation by the…

Meditation is described as 'mumbling' and compared to a cow's 'mental regurgitation' of grass, illustrating the continuous, assimilative process of engaging with God's Word.

You watch this guy walking around and mumbling. You see, his contact with the word of God is not something he does like a good Catholic that runs through her beads and says, I had my devotions. I went through my prayer beads no no what he read he now is seeking to carry with him and as he goes about his work during the day what's he mumbling about he's seeking to bring back in a kind of mental regurgitation what the cow does with her grass and to assimilate it and to break it down and to take it into his system

25:06 - 25:51 Read in full sermon

Driving home: so that every thread in the fabric of life, apart from a few threads of God's common grace, are devilish threads.

The world system is described as a 'fabric' where every thread, apart from common grace, is 'devilish,' illustrating its pervasive anti-God disposition.

It's a marvelous turnphrase. The followers of Jesus are permitted neither the luxury of compromise with the world, nor the safety of disengagement from the world. We are called upon to live out our days in this world system, not just on planet earth, but in this system of men and things alienated from God in opposition to God, framing all of its life by its anti-God, its anti-Christ disposition. so that every thread in the fabric of life, apart from a few threads of God's common grace, are devilish threads.

32:39 - 33:30 Read in full sermon

Driving home: so that every thread in the fabric of life, apart from a few threads of God's common grace, are devilish threads.

The world is likened to a 'compactor that takes cars and squashes them down,' illustrating its relentless pressure to squeeze believers into its mold.

And He praying Father Father sanctify them in the truth Thy Word is truth in the midst of that mess in the midst of that world that is like the compactor that takes cars and squashes them down to little 18 globs of metal that the world and it's going to squeeze you in its mold unless you are undergoing a constant, serious process of mind renewal based not upon some kind of New Age meditation where you cross your legs and lift up your hands and let your mind go blank. No, but where you've got your eyes upon your Bible

34:34 - 35:21 Read in full sermon

The point: Be prepared to say no to worldly distractions (radio, newspaper, TV, iPod, phone, etc.) to prioritize mind renewal through God's Word.

Martin recounts a personal story from his youth where he felt guilty for not thinking about Jesus while doing manual labor, but his mother taught him that God desires full engagement in legitimate callings, liberating him from false guilt.

Now my application. My dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to settle in your heart and will that this is the only way. now I know that there's a host of things that cry for and constantly demand the attention of your mind there are those legitimate things that are part of fulfilling your duties and callings in life you can't do without the engagement of your mind I remember as a young Christian shortly after God saved me and God gave me an unusual experience of his special nearness. It was just a kiss from the Lord to assure me that

40:31 - 41:17 Read in full sermon

The point: Constantly pray for spiritual discernment to see the things of the world for what they really are and not what they merely appear to be.

The devil's temptation of Eve in the Garden of Eden is used as an example of his method of presenting a false face and appearing as an advocate for good while leading to spiritual detriment.

This is not an innocent morally neutral thing. love not the world neither the things that are of the world John is assuming that there is discernment to know what is a thing of the world that I may not love it and that's why we need to constantly pray for spiritual discernment to see the things of the world for what they really are and not what they merely appear to be now think with me From his first appearance in the garden that arch fiend of God and man the devil presents a false face in his attempt to allure Adam and Eve into sin Remember how he came to Eve

51:17 - 52:10 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin expounds Philippians 1:9-10 as a model prayer for discernment, enabling believers to approve what is excellent and distinguish things that differ. He introduces Oz…

Martin quotes Oz Guinness's book, 'Dining with the Devil,' to introduce the concept of 'tracing the bouncing ball' when evaluating trends, emphasizing the need to look at origins and outcomes.

What kind of a mind? A mind that is furnished with knowledge and discernment, able to distinguish things that differ, that you may approve the excellent, discern what is best, see through issues. The world often presents an open, generous hand and a smiling face, and it says this is for your good, when in reality it is to our spiritual detriment. in an excellent book my judgment an excellent book called Dining with the Devil by Oz Guinness in which he's addressing particularly those things in the megachurch movement and in the user friendly

57:30 - 58:17 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin expounds Philippians 1:9-10 as a model prayer for discernment, enabling believers to approve what is excellent and distinguish things that differ. He introduces Oz…

Trends are compared to a ball in a pinball machine, bouncing unpredictably, to illustrate that their origins, trajectory, and ultimate destination are more important than their current appearance.

A common reason many people are uncritical is they see a trend as simple, straight, and short, almost like the flight of a missile. But in fact, trends are more like the bounce patterns of a ball in a pinball machine. It's been a while since I've stood behind a pinball machine, but the ball doesn't come here and down. It bounces along the way.

58:38 - 58:57 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin expounds Philippians 1:9-10 as a model prayer for discernment, enabling believers to approve what is excellent and distinguish things that differ. He introduces Oz…

Martin Luther's analogy of a 'drunken peasant who clambers back on his donkey only to fall off on the other side' is used to warn against human efforts that, despite good intentions, lead to unintended negative results.

There's an ethic of results as well as intention. As Martin Luther warned, many of our human efforts are like those of a drunken peasant who clambers back on his donkey only to fall off on the other side. What's he saying? He's saying the world, the world, and what it's doing to squeeze us into its mold that ultimately takes us away from Christ and the word of Christ and the ways of Christ and the triumphs of the kingdom of Christ.

59:53 - 60:22 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: He applies the 'trace the bouncing ball' principle to contemporary worship trends ('worship wars'), arguing they stem from a backslidden church and lead to a diminished appetite…

The 'worship wars' and the use of 'neophyte' worship bands in churches are given as an example of a trend that, when traced to its origins (backslidden church, half-converted people), reveals its unbiblical nature and negative outcomes.

Who's in mama? And who's his papa? What's giving birth to this trend? For example, we talk about the worship wars.

60:40 - 60:51 Read in full sermon

The point: Don't uncritically accept things for what they appear to be; ask God for discernment, trace trends to their origins and ultimate results.

The church's 'obsession with visual images' is critiqued, referencing Arthur Hunt's 'The Vanishing Word,' arguing that paganism relies on images while revealed religion relies on the Word, and this trend leads away from biblical religion.

Trace the thing to its origins. Trace it to its ultimate results. For example, and with this I'll close, I'll just touch on them, the obsession with visual images in the church.

64:06 - 64:20 Read in full sermon

The point: Be discerning about the music you allow yourself and your children to listen to, understanding that medium and message cannot be separated.

A story is shared about a young man who turned away from his Christian upbringing, attributing it to listening to 'edgy CCM Christian rock,' which cultivated an appetite for the 'rock ethos' that eventually led him beyond Christian music, illustrating the danger of separating medium and message.

Same thing with the music you allow them to listen to. I heard this week about a young man who spoke to his mother, and you know what he said? He's turned away from the heritage of his Christian upbringing. I didn't make this up.

66:36 - 66:49 Read in full sermon