After the Sermon Part 6

In this part of the sermon: Martin turns to James 1:22-25 to identify the blessings of being a 'doer of the word.' The first blessing is the establishment and strengthening of one's assurance of salvation…

James warns against self-deception, comparing it to someone wearing a mask but knowing their true face underneath, implying a deeper deception where one doesn't even know their true spiritual state.

Grace effected in me that change essential to bring me out of the state of nature, condemnation and death, and into a state of grace and life and the favor of God. James has addressed the very real possibility. Of self-delusion further on in this very chapter in verse 26, he declares that it's possible to have a self-deceived heart and a religion that is nothing but a puff of air. If any man thinks or seems to be religious while he bridles, not his tongue, he deceives his heart. This man's religion is vain. It's a terrible thing. For a man to be play acting, as we heard in the previous hour, t...

12:13 - 13:14 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin turns to James 1:22-25 to identify the blessings of being a 'doer of the word.' The first blessing is the establishment and strengthening of one's assurance of salvation…

Martin refutes the idea that emotional responses like goosebumps during preaching are proof of knowing God, stating they only prove 'mobile goose bumps' and not true spiritual transformation.

And hereby do we know that we know him, if under the preaching of the word our flesh crawls with goose pimples, when the word is accurately and in the power and demonstration of the spirit and with close application to the conscience. Why I'm. Full of bumps. All through the preaching.

15:10 - 15:43 Read in full sermon

The point: Strip the false confidence from those under your ministry who claim assurance but lack obedience, before they sink into hell.

He describes the blessing of assurance as being able to 'pillow one's head' at night, knowing that one's soul will be taken by the Lord, contrasting it with a false hope.

It doesn't amaze unless it's made you one who is doing the will of the Father in heaven as revealed in the Word of God. The first and foundational blessing of being a doer of the Word, an implementer, is that our assurance is both established and strengthened. A life of settled, single-eyed obedience to the Word of Christ is generally the handmaiden of a strong and settled assurance of a saving union with Christ. And I say to you, my dear preacher friends, the kindest thing you can do for all those people under your ministry who say that they have a strong and settled assurance of a saving uni...

27:32 - 28:59 Read in full sermon

The point: Continually press children to believe upon the Lord Jesus, and then look for the fruit of love and obedience.

Martin uses the hypothetical 'love-o-meter' to illustrate that there's no subjective instrument to measure love for Christ; instead, Jesus provides an objective criterion: keeping His commandments.

And if you love Jesus, this is what you will do to show your love to Jesus. For Peter, there is no separation. And this text again only epitomizes the universal teaching of the Word of God. You say then, where can I go to find the love-o-meter which if hooked up to the certain part of my chest cavity will read love to Christ or no love to Christ.

32:07 - 32:38 Read in full sermon

The point: Continually press children to believe upon the Lord Jesus, and then look for the fruit of love and obedience.

He lists subjective feelings like 'tender and gushy' during hymns or 'melted to tears' during preaching about Christ's suffering, contrasting them with Jesus' actual criterion for love: keeping His commandments.

John's Gospel, chapter 14. John's Gospel, chapter 14 and verse 15. If you love Me, you will feel all tender and gushy when you sing hymns about Me. If you love Me, you will find yourself melted to tears when you hear preaching about My suffering and My death and My agony upon the cross.

33:32 - 34:09 Read in full sermon

The point: Examine yourself: if you don't love Jesus (evidenced by keeping His commandments), you are cursed of God.

Martin describes the Father's increasing love for the Son through His obedience, from eternity to His glorified humanity, to explain why the Father has no patience for those who refuse to love His Son.

The Father who loved the pre-incarnate Word from all eternity, dwelling face to face in the mystery of inner Trinitarian and commune. And He sends him to join to that eternal word, true humanity. The Word became flesh while ever remaining what He ever was, God of God, light of lights. He takes to Himself something He had never had before, true human soul and body.

37:33 - 38:10 Read in full sermon

The point: Examine yourself: if you don't love Jesus (evidenced by keeping His commandments), you are cursed of God.

He compares a Christianity that claims blessings without love-producing obedience to the 'heretical and damnable' lies of a 'little white man in his white gown with his beanie,' implying Mormonism, to emphasize its deceptive nature.

Oh wretched man, what a wretched man that I am. I love Him and I know I love Him because I'm committed to obey Him. And when obedience means I must do something akin to whacking off a right hand and throwing it from me and gouging out a right eye and casting it from me, and when it means I must have the dearest relations of father, mother, brother, sister, mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, desire, I'm ready for the sword for he that loves father, mother, brother, sister more than me is not worthy of me. My folks, these are the words of Jesus. This kind of Christianity that gets all this blessing...

40:35 - 41:55 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The third blessing of implementation is secured and increased growth in grace. Martin emphasizes that growth is not automatic and addresses the tragedy of stunted growth…

Illustrates spiritual immaturity by comparing it to a child who, by reason of time, should be eating solid food but still demands a bottle, symbolizing believers who remain stuck on basic doctrines.

When you ought to be sitting at the table, if not with fork and knife, at least with your grubby fat little hands breaking off chunks of mom and daddy's meat and vegetables and stuffing it in your mouth when you don't miss your nose and your ear. And the time has come when you ought to be having solid food. Mama's still propping the bottle up in your mouth. You want to babu?

47:51 - 48:16 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not let your shoddy life undermine the confidence of new converts and young believers in the church.

He contrasts men who are 'six foot six, 280 pounds of spiritual bone and sinew and muscle' with 'five foot one, 98 pounds' spiritual babes, regardless of their natural intellect, to show that spiritual strength comes from hearing and implementing the Word.

They become gurus in ethical questions of a naughty nature. As they do, they become strong in grace and it has relatively little to do with native intellect, IQ and brain power. I have seen men who spiritually were six foot six, 280 pounds of spiritual bone and sinew and muscle and with a mind spiritually of a university professor and they never made it through high school. And I've seen others who perhaps graduated with honors even in their post-graduate work who were five foot one, 98 pounds and could hardly carry themselves up a flight of stairs. And when you get to know the situation close...

49:42 - 51:10 Read in full sermon

The point: Confess your temper and other shoddy lifestyle expressions to your children and wife, lest you make cynics of your own children during family worship.

Illustrates hypocrisy by describing parents who lead family worship but whose children become cynical because they witness their parents' unchecked temper and shoddy lifestyle, undermining the credibility of their faith.

Written over that one hour later and some of you have heard that emphasis in the past few times and yet you sit here this morning and you don't have the conscience of your own kids on your side. When you lead family worship you're making cynics of your kids. Why? Because they hear you lose your temper and you don't confess it to them and to your wife.

52:54 - 53:29 Read in full sermon