Our Duty Toward the Rising Generation (7)

Introduction to the Study on Hindrances to Gospel Proclamation

0:04 The following message was delivered on June 26, 1994, in the adult Sunday school class of the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey.

0:17 While others are finding their seats, we do want to extend a hearty welcome to those who are visiting with us. There are some who are not new to us, but have been in the providence of God, led to other places, who are visiting us this weekend. We welcome them, and any others who may be here for the first time. The present focus of this adult class has been, for several weeks, a study in the doctrine of God, which has been led by Bart Carlson.

0:50 But Bart has taken two Lord's Days, a vacation time to attend the family conference with his family, and God willing, will, after a two-week absence, resume these studies in the doctrine of God. And what we're going to be doing today is to begin a two-week study on the subject of what are the major hindrances to greater measures of unashamed aggressiveness in proclaiming and defending the gospel of Christ. And we're going to discuss that subject, not with respect to those of us who are set apart, to minister the word of God formally and publicly, but rather with respect to each one of us in the ordinary course of his life. What are the hindrances to our having greater measures of unashamed aggressiveness in proclaiming and defending the gospel of Christ? Now let me say a word concerning the background of our study and discussion for these two Lord's Days. The first is about our weekly morning adult classes.

Review of Previous Series and the Duty to Witness

2:07 In bringing to a conclusion a lengthy series of messages on the manifesto of Trinity Baptist Church, we were considering our duty to the rising generations. And in dealing with that theme, we focused at the end of our series of studies on the responsibility we have to leave as a legacy to the rising generation a God-automated, honoring, Christ-centered, biblically-ordered, spirit-filled church. And this led us to consider some of the major characteristics of such a church, and the last of those seven characteristics was this. It would be a church that was unashamed in its aggressive proclamation and defense of the gospel of Christ. We considered from the scriptures our duty to proclaim and to defend the gospel, and then some of the questions that arise from a serious consideration of that duty. What realities make this necessary? And we considered those unchanging realities of man's condition in sin, God's only remedy for that condition, and God's ordained means to bring the remedy to the church of Christ.

3:31 God's ordained means to bring the remedy to men in that condition. And in opening up that second question, or that question of what means then are sanctioned by God to bring the gospel to men in their unchanging condition of lostness, we saw from the scriptures that it is the duty of every true believer to seize his God-given opportunities to engage in an unashamed and unashamed way of life. An unashamed and an aggressive proclamation and defense of the gospel. And we rested the biblical case primarily upon 1 Peter 2.9, 1 Peter 3.15, and in a secondary sense upon Philippians 2.14 and 15, and concluded our study by making this statement that a holy life without a verbal witness is an unexplained mystery. A holy life without a verbal witness is an unexplained mystery.

4:37 Hence, Peter says, we are to be ready to give a reason of the hope that is in us, and to do so with meekness and with fear. On the other hand, a verbal witness without a holy life is an inexcusable tragedy. And the greatest commentary on that fact is Romans 2.17-23, where Paul indicts the Jews who were going around being a corrector and an instructor of everyone, but their lives were so shoddy that he says, for this cause the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.

5:16 Oh yes, they were very aggressive in their verbal witness, but they did not have a life commensurate with the witness, and it gave the enemies of God occasion to blaspheme. And we want neither a holy life devoid of a verbal witness, nor a witness that will leave us as individuals and as a company of people an unexplained mystery to the world. We want to explain the mystery of our radically different alternate lifestyle, and seek to communicate that it is the power of the gospel that has made the difference. And certainly we have no desire to stir up increased verbal witness among those of you who have a shoddy life, shut your mouth, and get your life straight. And by the grace of God, when your life validates the gospel, then open your mouth, and have your mouth explain the mystery of that life, which has no other explanation than the power of the gospel. Now having addressed these things, I brought the series to a conclusion, hoping to have raised another question, and that question then leads us into our study this morning, and God willing, next Lord's Day morning, what are the major hindrances to our unashamed proclamation and defense of the gospel of Christ, and how can we deal biblically

6:45 with those hindrances? If it is our duty to speak forth, to tell out the virtues of Him who has called us out of darkness into marvelous light, 1 Peter 2.9, if it is our duty to sanctify Christ as Lord, always ready to give a reason of the hope that is in us to everyone who asks, if it is our duty to shine as lights in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation by a holy light, while holding forth the word of life, Philippians 2.14 and 15, what then is it that keeps us from this unashamed proclamation and defense of the gospel, and how, how can we biblically deal with those hindrances? Now, in taking up the question, I will state the first one and lead you through the study of that, and then I will open it up for you to suggest those things which you have personally found to be a hindrance to your own unashamed proclamation and defense of the gospel, and then seek to glean from the scriptures the biblical understanding and the biblical antidotes to those causes for shame and reticence in proclaiming the gospel.

Hindrance 1: The Evil Heart of Unbelief Concerning Man's True State and Fate

8:11 And as I worked through this matter, I came up with six major causes for being held back in this unashamed proclamation and defense of the gospel, and hopefully you will bring forward those six and perhaps more in the course of our study, but in trying to set them out in some kind of order, though I would not claim any special inspiration or that the issue stands or falls upon this arrangement, it seems to me, as I have tried to be honest with my own heart, that one of the most foundational causes for our lack of unashamed proclamation of the gospel is our egoism, our egoism, our evil heart of unbelief concerning the true state and ultimate fate of men apart from a saving knowledge of Christ.

9:16 One of the major causes of our reticence to be more bold in communicating the gospel surely must be our evil heart of unbelief concerning the true state and ultimate fate of men apart from a saving knowledge of Christ. Now, I have taken the terminology and evil heart of unbelief from Hebrews chapter 3, and I'd ask you to turn there with me if you would please, Hebrews chapter 3, wherein the setting, the evil heart of unbelief is in conjunction with the danger of apostasy, verse 12 of Hebrews 3. Hebrews 3, Make heed, brethren, lest haply there should be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief in falling away from the living God. Now, he is addressing brethren, and he says to brethren that they have the danger of the actings of an evil heart of unbelief, which in this setting, would lead them into the path of apostasy,

10:43 a falling away from the living God. And the principle is that within the hearts of believers, though unbelief never is found as a reigning sin, it is found alas as one of the dominant and most insidious elements of remaining sin in our hearts. And that evil heart of unbelief finds many actings like a many-tentacled octopus. And surely when it comes to the matter of the question, why are we not more bold and aggressive in seeking to communicate the gospel to those whom God puts in our path, or who would be placed in our path were we more aggressive, at the root of that lack of zeal and lack of aggressiveness must be in most cases some dimension of an evil heart of unbelief concerning the true state of these people to whom we are reluctant to witness, in whose presence we are reluctant to be aggressively bold. Now I did not say abrasively and boorishly.

12:04 Graciously bold, lovingly bold, but nonetheless bold in seeking to communicate the gospel. If we have a present consciousness and present actings of faith with respect to their true state as they stand before us, as they sit next to us on the bus or train going into the city, as we meet them in the coffee room at the office, as we work next to them in the shop, if we have a real present conviction of their true state, then surely if the grace of God is operative in our hearts, there must be a desire welling up within us to bring the gospel to them. Furthermore, if we contemplate their ultimate fate, where will this man or woman, boy or girl who sits next to me on the train or bus be a hundred years from now? Where will he or she be throughout the unending ages of eternity, when time is no more? What is the ultimate fate of this person apart from a saving knowledge of Christ?

13:21 Well let me remind you without going into any exhaustive biblical treatment of those critical directives or critical assessments of the word of God with respect to the true state of Christ. The ultimate fate of men apart from Christ and their ultimate fate apart from Christ. And it is these perspectives and these texts I would urge you to memorize them. And when sitting next to someone on a plane, sitting next to someone on a bus, on a train, mingling with someone in your place of business, actually let these texts turn over in your mind.

The True State of Unbelievers: Enemies of God

13:59 Look at these people through the eyes of these texts and say, this is their true condition. However much that condition may be restrained or refined by common grace, this is their true state as defined by the word of God. First of all, they are described in scripture. If they are not in Christ, they are enemies of God.

14:26 They are enemies of God. They are my dearest friends' enemies. Romans 5.10 If when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son.

14:44 Romans 8.7 The carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be. And then in Colossians chapter 1, we find this very clear statement. Verse 22 Verse 22 Now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death.

15:07 I'm sorry, verse 21. And you being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind and in your evil works, yet now has He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death. You were alienated and enemies. Now if we during the Second World War were present when the consciousness of the tremendous conflict going on in the world, that consciousness that has been heightened by the D-Day celebrations, if you really believed you were in the presence of someone who was out to give all of his time and energy and mental and physical faculties to cooperate either with Hitler and his vision for the Third Reich, or with the imperial ambitions of Japan, if you believed you were in the presence of someone who was an enemy of your country, an enemy of your liberties, an enemy of all that had been bought by the blood of those who had died to secure your liberties, could you be indifferent in the presence of someone who was an enemy of your country and of all your highest interests? Of course not. How much more then,

16:29 when we have been made the friends, of God and of Christ through His grace, when we recognize that all men in their native state are enemies of our God, the God whom we love, they hate. Now that doesn't mean that they consciously stand on a street corner and clench their fists and say, I hate God. But God says they are His enemies because they love darkness and He's a God of light. They love the lie and He's the God of truth.

17:00 They love sin and He's the God of holiness. They are the antithesis of all that He is and all that He made them to be as His image bearers. They are enemies of God. That is their true state according to the scriptures.

The True State of Unbelievers: Cannot Please God and Under His Wrath

17:16 Furthermore, there is nothing they can do and are doing that can please God. Nothing that they do pleases God. Romans 8 and verse 8 says, So then they that are in the flesh, those who have never been regenerated and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, they are in the flesh. That is, they have nothing but what nature has imparted to them in conception, gestation, and birth, and in virtue of their solidarity with Adam and his race.

17:49 They are in the flesh. The scripture says they cannot, cannot please God. But you say they go to church. They go to mass every morning.

17:58 They cannot. They cannot please God. They pray. They cannot please God.

18:04 He that turns away his ear from hearing the law, the scripture says even his prayer is an abomination. God says the plowing of the wicked is sin. They cannot please God. Nothing they do pleases God.

18:19 They cannot please God. That is their true state according to the scriptures. And you see it's an evil heart of unbelief in us that really does not take that seriously. If we believe there's nothing they do that can please God and we hear from their mouths things that indicate they do indeed think that they are pleasing God, then surely God's claims and their claims have come into a collision course and can we be silent?

18:51 And you see often our silence is because of an evil heart of unbelief that doesn't take seriously their true state. They are enemies of God. They cannot please God. And worst of all, they are under the wrath of God.

19:06 John 3 and verse 36. A clear text. And I say I'm giving you simple, clear, basic text urging you to memorize them. He that is believing on the Son has eternal life.

19:20 But he that is not believing and is doing so in a willful way and so it can be rendered. He that obeys not the Son shall not see life. But the wrath of God is presently abiding on him. Do I really believe that that nice, well-dressed, upper middle class gentleman sitting next to me on the train and on the plane has the wrath of God hanging over his head, held back only by the threat of God's merciful sovereignty?

19:57 Do I really believe that? Do I believe that my neighbors, when they got up this morning, if they've gotten up yet, and turned to their Sunday Bible, the Sunday paper that gets thicker and thicker, at least from what I can see of the ones that are thrown out by my neighbors, I wouldn't have one in my home. I don't care how many coupons you can get from it. The end does not justify the means.

20:25 And the reason the advertisements are so profusely is because the circulation is so great. And you aid in that circulation by purchasing it. Just a little aside. They get up and read their Sunday Bible and spend their day before their Sunday god, the television.

20:45 And their Sunday gods of sport and fun and games are off to the shore for sand and surf and bared flesh. Do I really believe that the wrath of God is hanging over me? And the moment their heart stops beating, it crashes down upon them and presses them irretrievably into hell. Dear people, we really don't believe that, do we?

21:14 Oh yes, we do, but we don't. We do, but we don't. I say it's an evil heart of unbelief that does not presently believe in the true state of men apart from Christ. They are enemies of God.

The Ultimate Fate of Unbelievers: Eternal Destruction

21:29 They cannot please God. They're under the wrath of God. Then add to that what is their ultimate fate if they live out their days and die in that condition. Listen to 2 Thessalonians chapter 1.

21:44 Again, simple, clear texts. 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 7. And you that are afflicted, rest with us at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power. Here's the part of the text.

22:04 That I urge you to memorize. In flaming fire, rendering vengeance to them that know not God. Rendering vengeance to them that know not God. What must a man do to receive the vengeance of God at the return of Christ?

22:25 Just live and die in ignorance of God. The God who can only be known in Jesus Christ. And them that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus who shall suffer punishment, even eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might. The Lord Jesus Christ will come in vengeance and will consume with his eternal judgment all who know not God and who obey not the gospel.

23:05 All who know not God and obey not the gospel. All who know not God. Those of you sitting here this morning who don't know God and don't obey the gospel. With a vengeful cry, what will you do?

23:28 If I focus my mind upon it, it's almost enough to paralyze thought. Similar passages. Revelation 14, 11. The smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever and they have no rest day and night.

24:06 The smoke of their torment ascends up forever and forever and they have no rest day nor night. Dear people, if we really believe that that's the ultimate fate of our children, of our grandchildren, of our neighbors, of our work associates, of our traveling companions, if we really believe that is their fate, then surely, if the love of God is in our hearts, love that desires to do good to its neighbor, what's the highest good you can do to your neighbor? Is it not to seek to rescue him from the pit of everlasting burnings? Isn't that the highest good you can do to your neighbor? Isn't that the highest, the ultimate good you can do to your neighbor? Then why are we so sinfully silent and so shamefully, unaggressive in our communication of the gospel?

Antidote to the Evil Heart of Unbelief

25:13 Surely it must be, as one of the fundamental reasons, we have an evil heart of unbelief concerning the true state and ultimate fate of man apart from a saving knowledge of Christ. Well, what then is the antidote to this condition in our hearts if every one of us must struggle through all of our days with an evil heart of unbelief that would take away the edge of our presence, of our present conviction and the commensurate responses of heart to the conviction of the true state and the ultimate fate of those outside of Christ? What is the antidote to the condition? May I suggest three ingredients to the antidote? Number one, periodically to meditate upon and bring near the final day of judgment. Periodically, to meditate upon and bring near the final day of judgment. And I say this because the Apostle Paul clearly indicates that this was a factor that kept him aggressive and bold and unashamed in his proclamation and defense of the gospel.

26:33 2 Corinthians 5.10 Having stated that he had a single-eyed ambition to be well-pleasing unto Christ, he then says in verse 10 of 2 Corinthians 5, for we must all be made manifest before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he hath done, whether it be good or bad, knowing therefore the fear of the Lord we persuade men. You see the connection? A day of judgment is coming, contemplating it.

27:09 It fills me with a sense of holy dread of that day that multitudes of men are unprepared for it. Therefore, we persuade men. People have asked me, look, Pastor Martin, when you're sitting and talking about the weather, you don't get excited and wave your hands and get a red face and wrinkle your brow. You're talking about, why can't you just stand up in the pulpit and chit-chat?

27:39 Because you see in this pulpit, we're not talking about the weather. Talking about issues of any servant of God, they could not live in the constant meditation on these things. They would crush us, and God doesn't expect us to. I urge you as I urge myself to meditate upon and bring near the final day. Often when I sit on that, very few, the last hymn or during the offering, before I go, it's one of the few times I ever look out. Any of you who've tried to see, I'm not here as a spectator, I'm a worshipper. And I don't go gawking around if I'm on this platform And you know that, because I want to be a worshipper of my God, but from time to time I look out, and I say, in a few short years, every one of those faces will be upturned, looking upon a glorified Christ on the throne.

29:05 Every one of them is going to hear, depart, or welcome, or every single particle of my soul.

29:23 I'd rather have people think me a madman. In the day of judgment, say, you talked about those things in such a light and frivolous way, who would have believed you? We must periodically meditate upon and bring near the final day. Secondly, we must plead with God to increase our faith in these realities.

29:51 Remember Mark 9, 24, the nobleman who prayed, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief. Lord, I do not disbelieve what you've said about the true statement. Men, that they are your enemies, that they cannot please you, that they are under your rule. I do not disbelieve what you say about their ultimate state, but, O God, the measure of my faith is so weak and inconstant.

30:20 Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. Or in the language of Luke 17, 4, after the Lord had given a directive to his disciples, they said, Lord, increase our faith. There are two specific examples. Example of prayers, we can pray to our Lord Jesus.

30:38 Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. Lord, increase my faith. And then thirdly, here's the antidote, memorize the scriptures, which clearly describe the true state and the ultimate fate of unbelievers. Memorize the scriptures, which clearly describe and the ultimate fate of unbelievers.

31:06 Why? Because to pray for an increase of faith and not to bring near the word of God is to mock God. For he has said in Romans 10, 17, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

31:24 Blessed man, according to Psalm 1, is the man who meditates in the law of God day and night. How can you meditate in that law unless you've hidden it in your heart, unless you're going to go around with a Bible in your hand all day. Most of us don't have. We don't have the kind of work that would permit that at all, whether housewives or workers in the shop or in the office or even a pastor.

31:47 And so we must hide the scriptures in our heart. As Paul says in Colossians 3, the word of Christ dwells in us richly. That's beautiful imagery. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in your heart.

32:08 And I say to you, my dear brothers and sisters, to those of you who are Christians, you and I will make little progress. In the area of increased unashamed aggressiveness in proclaiming and defending the gospel, unless we deal with this matter of our evil heart of unbelief concerning the true state and the ultimate fate of men apart from a saving knowledge. Now, to give you an idea of how we want to approach this, identify the problem and bring a biblical antidote to it, who would like to suggest? We mentioned Wednesday.

Hindrance 2: Sinful Reluctance to Bear Hatred, Reproach, and Rejection

32:48 Wednesday night that this is what we would be doing, not in great detail, but enough, hopefully, that some of you have been thinking about it. Who would like to suggest what are some of the other major causes? And let's be honest. The things you have found in your own heart are the major causes for our lack of unashamed aggressiveness in proclaiming and defending the gospel of Christ.

33:12 Given our own station in life, our own temperament, our own personality, our religion development as Christians. We don't believe in turning everyone. We don't believe in turning everyone into cookie-cutter witnesses in this assembly. It's not taught in the Bible.

33:28 But we have seen everyone called out of darkness into light has a responsibility to declare and show forth and proclaim the virtues of him who called him out of darkness. Every one of us is to sanctify Christ as Lord, being ready to give an answer to everyone who asks of a reason the hope that is in us. Every one of us is to be blameless and harmless, shining as lights. Every one of us in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, holding forth the word of life, all of the variables, yes, but no negation of the fundamental baseline duty and privilege.

34:05 Now, what's another major hindrance to our being more aggressive, more unashamed in our proclamation and defense of the gospel? Anyone want to put forward another major cause? If we open our mouths to prison, be taken away from worship and from being accepted.

35:09 And being at least in some proximity of warmth and friendship, there'd be distance and alienation. How many would agree this is a major good? You've made my task. It's the second one that I listed.

35:26 And I expressed it this way, Ken. Sinful reluctance, company, and an aggressive proclamation and defense of the gospel.

35:52 And you couldn't labor fast enough to get it all down, so I'll run it by again. Our sin proclamation and defense.

36:42 To whom we proclaim the gospel. The consistent measure and verbal communication of the gospel of Christ. And by verbal, I mean not just with my mouth, but I mean where I may give a gospel tract, a booklet, a tape, with the gospel of the grace of God that can only be conveyed in conceptual form, whether printed or whether with the framing of my own words. That while not every single person to whom we aggressively proclaim the gospel will hate, reprimand, or hate the gospel of God, we will not hate the gospel of God. That no one can approach and reject us. That no one can avoid these things if there's any consistent measure and communication of the gospel. Are there any passages in the word of God which tell us the inevitable accompaniments of being a true disciple of Christ?

37:57 Because being a true disciple of Christ means confessing Christ.

38:02 Can you think of any passages that clearly teach that these things are inevitable?

38:09 All right, yes. Our brother is making reference to which Eric is making. His first teaching reference is verse 34 and following. Do not think that I send peace on the earth.

38:43 Send peace against his father and the daughter and mother-in-law.

39:00 His foes shall be they of his own household. Now what's the setting of that? And of a misconception that our wounds, some of his followers had. We'll look up at the previous verses, 32 and 33.

39:16 Everyone therefore who shall confess me. Peace before my brother who is in heaven.

39:28 Whosoever shall do for my father who is in heaven. Think not that I came to send peace. You see these words are in direct connection with the opus before men. It is that opus before men will bring the division.

39:57 Couple people, one another.

40:01 Lest something has snapped and is perverse in our spirits. No one likes the against. That comes. Of the offense.

40:13 Open confession of Christ. Something's wrong.

40:22 God has made us social beings. Social beings that are comfortable with and delight in the acceptance and the approbation.

40:34 Other beings whom God has made. And division and separation of his name. To be a true disciple of Christ who has nobody against you for your confession of Christ. You'll have to rewrite the terms of discipleship and its results.

41:03 Jesus. Has established them here. All right. Can you think of another passage that makes this very clear?

Biblical Evidence for Inevitable Hatred and Persecution

41:10 The job very easy. I had listed as the second passage Matthew 10 24 and following especially verse 34 and following. Then John 15 18 to 23. Thank you Terry.

41:29 John chapter 15. Now remember what we're seeking to establish. That the reason why we are not more aggressive and unashamed in our proclamation in defense of the gospel. Is that we have a.

41:42 Sinful reluctance to bear the hatred reproach and rejection that come with that. Well who says that hatred rejection. And Christ himself has said it. Matthew 10.

42:01 Very clear. John chapter 15. Equally clear. Beginning now in verse 18.

42:08 And the reason why I don't ask you men to read the passage is that when they go out on the tapes they can't be heard. And I just had the frustrating experience of listening to a series of tapes. From a pastor who was preaching in a conference somewhere and for my own edification I wanted to hear the tapes and it was so frustrating that when the questions were asked I couldn't hear them so I had to figure out from his answer what the question was and so I read the passages so that they'll come through clearly on the tape. But now verse 15 hates you you know hated me before the world would love its own world but I chose the world.

43:02 None say the world may hate you in some cases perhaps no he says the world hates you whenever the world loses one of its subjects to its standards to its goals to its perspectives the world hates the one it has lost because the world loves darkness and now a former son of darkness has become a son of light and the scripture says this is the condemnation that light has come into the world and men love darkness rather than light. Manifestations of their hatred of the light is that they hate those who are the instruments of light i.e. those who are not of the world but having been chosen by Christ and called out of the world through the grace of Christ the world hates you remember the word that I said unto you and Christ here makes reference to his previous utterances a servant is not greater than his Lord if they persecuted me and did they.

44:08 Yes or no and who persecuted me tell me some of the groups that persecuted Jesus no no persecuted Jesus his own brethren did not yet believe in one place it was his friends they said he's out of his tree he was so busy ministering to people remember in our studies in mark his friends said he is beside himself giving me great comfort when some of my friends didn't even understand me out of his tree think of it incarnate God received me and they did they and by and large.

45:36 They didn't they will keep yours also but all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake because they know not him if I had not come and spoken unto them they had not sinned but now they have no excuse for their sin he that hates me Lord makes it abundantly clear that is surely experienced hatred reproach and rejection that came and the rejection think of one other accompaniment of being a.

46:39 True disciple of Christ yes Norman the second Timothy chapter three in verse twelve passage but there the emphasis is upon just living godly all right and I was going to argue from analogy yay and all who will live godly in Christ Jesus who suffer persecution how much more when they who live godly speak the words of God the persecution is intensified but I put it as a second rank soldier by inference there's another first rank soldier yes got it Matthew five. Eleven and twelve the capstone beatitude God willing in our series on self-examination will be looking at the beatitudes if not next week hopefully in a couple of weeks time and this is one of the most amazing statements as we read through the beatitudes which give us a composite picture of the character traits of the sons and daughters of the kingdom and innocent inoffensive they are in their character traits.

47:53 Poor incident failures they are meek they have no end or self-will to God they hunger and thirst after righteousness not money and fame and trample over people to get it they are merciful they see need and respond to it with compassion and pity and deeds of kindness they are pure in heart they are not people who are duplicitous purity of heart speaks of singleness of direction and motive simplicity of soul this one thing I do. For to me to live is Christ pure in heart they are peacemakers they don't go around agitating stirring up trouble but now such people living in a sin loving Christ hating God define world what does the world do with people like this welcome them with open arms do away blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven and it's interesting the

48:58 only beatitude on which he expounds is this final one blessed are you when men shall reproach and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven I'll notice for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you now what have prophet ever fulfilled his office by silence no you see the prophet was the man who in his generation told them what they were in God's estimation by pulling off the cloak of what they had become in their own estimation which often was confirmed by the false prophets that's why Jesus says in a parallel passage woe on the witness but they gave a witness that confirmed people in their own illusions about their spiritual state the true prophet was always pulling off the mass the true prophet was always telling them

50:17 look you're going to the temple and everything looks fine Isaiah chapter 1 you're keeping all your feasts the altars are just sacrifices and your god says I'm sick and tired of the whole rotten mess you see what happens to people like that they end up in dungeons they end up being vilified and Jesus said that every true son and daughter of the kingdom becomes as it were an heir of the true prophets reproach and rejection because no matter what they do they don't see how sweetly, no matter how gently, no matter how tactfully, no matter how winsomely we seek to present the truth of the gospel to men sooner or later, we must confront them with the fact that they are enemies of God, these gods, and unless God effectually works, they don't like it. Who in the world are you to talk to me? You and your narrow-minded religion, you think you alone have the truth. That's what comes. And when we defend the

51:27 gospel, when people say in our presence, well, you know, thinking that because we're a little religious, this will make us feel good, and they can curry our favor, you know, it's, I'm glad that religion is on the rise, and you know, there are just many ways to God, and you have your way, and I'm, we can't be silent when someone says that. That's a denial of everything the Bible teaches, and we have to say, well, I know that many think that way and speak that way, but I have a problem with that. Why? Well, because it just isn't true. Jesus Christ said, In the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me. Christ was as narrow as the dimensions of his own person and work, and he said, outside of that, there's nothing but darkness and death and damnation. That's where the reproach comes, in defending the gospel as well as proclaiming it. Well, our time is gone, but you identified the two.

Conclusion and Prayer

52:23 God willing, next week, come prepared, discuss what is the antidote to the second major hindrance. What is the biblical antidote? The biblical antidote to this sinful reluctance to bear the hatred, reproach, and rejection that accompany an open verbal confession of Christ. And I have again a threefold compound as I've tried to pull together the biblical witness. May the Lord lead us in our study together. Let's pray. We would corporately confess to you our evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful

53:11 reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief.

53:17 We would corporately confess to you our sinful reluctance to bear the shame of the evil heart of unbelief. children will allow himself to merely see his sin and go away groveling in guilt that may each one of us be led afresh to the fountain open for sin and uncleanness and there having confessed our sin receive the promised forgiveness and cleansing and then help us to take the biblical antidotes to these sins and that we may by your grace see these sinful causes for our silence overcome by degrees through the power of your grace and the ministry of the spirit in the use of these appointed means thank you for our time together thank you for your word oh lord may it live in each of our hearts in power we ask in jesus name amen