Mat. 7:15-20
Beware of False Prophets, Part 3
In "Beware of False Prophets, Part 3," Pastor Albert N. Martin continues his exposition of Matthew 7:13-20, focusing on the deceptive doctrines of false prophets. He argues that false teaching is characterized by subtle additions to or glaring omissions from God's Word, particularly concerning the character of God, the nature of man's sin, the conditions for salvation (repentance and faith), the basis of assurance, and the necessity of perseverance. Martin urges listeners to diligently study Scripture with prayer for the Holy Spirit's illumination, isolating principles from personalities, to discern truth and avoid the broad road of counterfeit conversion.
Primary Texts
Topics
Outline 8 sections · 57 min
- The Difficulty of True Conversion vs. The Ease of Counterfeit Conversion 0:04
- The Deceptive Nature and Doctrinal Marks of False Prophets 2:45
- False Prophets Distort the Conditions for Salvation 5:36
- False Prophets Distort the Basis of Assurance of Salvation 10:54
- The Contrast Between False and True Prophets Regarding Peace 19:09
- False Prophets Distort the Necessity of Perseverance 24:50
- The Gate, the Way, and Life: An Inseparable Connection 36:42
- Safeguards Against False Prophets: Diligent Scripture Study and Prayer 45:30
Key Quotes
“And I'm utterly convinced in my own heart that this is what makes the false prophet so dangerous. He comes holding this book. He comes in the name of God and with the book of God. But he is to be found in his glaring omissions and in his subtle addictions.”
“Just as surely as the man who follows the pipings of Rome that would lead him to lay one hand upon Christ and one hand upon the saints and his own works, just as surely, as that man will perish, so will everyone perish who seeks to lay hold of Christ with one hand while he clings to his sins with the other.”
“But isolate their teaching from their personalities and it is marked by a glaring omission of the two other grounds of assurance a transformed life and the witness of the spirit. There's only one person in the world who's got a right to tell you you're saved and that's the God who saves.”
“the mark of the true prophet is that people come to peace under his ministry only in a way of righteousness for the Bible says righteousness and peace have kissed each other the false prophet promises peace in a way of unrighteousness and rebellion and stubborn”
“God's keeping comes to light in your persevering. I know if God is keeping me as I persevere.”
“Nothing supplies false prophets with followers so much as spirits will sloth under a cloak of humility. I'm too humble to ever come to decide opinions.”
“you won't find one verse in the Bible where Paul tells believers now that they're saved to take Christ as Lord no he says in Colossians 2 6 as you've received Christ the Lord now walk in Him when you got saved you got a Lord Romans 6 you had a change of masters”
Applications
All listeners
- Do not seek to lay hold of Christ with one hand while clinging to sins with the other; there must be a two-handed embrace of Christ, turning from sin and embracing His crown.
- Isolate personalities from principles when receiving instruction; do not embrace or reject truth based on who says it, but solely on the basis of Scripture.
- Do not give assurance of salvation to others; instead, tell them how they can get assurance by pleading God's promises, looking for evidences of grace, and seeking the Spirit's witness.
- Examine the basis of your peace with God: Is it founded on the Holy Spirit making God's promises real, evidences of a changed life, and the Spirit's testimony, or on human comfort?
- Face the book of Hebrews 5:9 and John 10:27: Christ is the author of salvation to those who obey Him, and His sheep hear His voice and follow Him. Are you hearing and following?
- Study the Word of God regularly with prayer for the teaching of the Holy Spirit as the best safeguard against false teachers.
- Go home, get on your knees, open the Bible, and ask the Lord if what has been preached is true.
- Do not rest short of true biblical salvation, which involves passing through the narrow gate and walking on the narrow way that leads to life. Break off with your sins and flee to Christ for pardon and mercy.
A full transcript is available on the tab. 90 paragraphs, roughly 57 minutes.
The Difficulty of True Conversion vs. The Ease of Counterfeit Conversion
We turn again this morning to the seventh chapter of the Gospel of Matthew as we continue our studies in this last section of the Sermon on the Mount.
Matthew chapter 7, beginning with verse 13, Our Lord, in a very intense and concentrated way, is applying all that He has taught the great multitudes who have stood at His feet there upon that mountainside. In verses 13 to 14, He gives His invitation for men to enter the kingdom. And you remember that at the outset, our Lord said that entrance into the kingdom by way of conversion was a difficult and a rare thing. He said it was entrance into a narrow gate, and it was the inception of a walk upon a mountain, a narrow way, and few could find that gate and that way. Our Lord has never rescinded those words. Therefore, as true conversion was in His day a difficult thing, so it is today. Whether modern evangelism makes it difficult or not, it is a difficult thing.
When our Lord finished dealing with a young man who wanted eternal life, the disciples threw their hands, hands up in Matthew 19, 25, said, Who, Lord, can be saved?
And the Lord said, With men it's impossible. But with God, all things are possible. And you see, true conversion is such a difficult thing that only God can produce it.
But in contrast to true conversion, which is a difficult and a rare thing, we consider counterfeit conversion as a common and an easy thing. It's that wide. It's that gate and that broad road, and many enter it. That's not the road upon which all sinners walk by nature, for they don't enter that by an act of the will.
We're born upon that road. But this is a gate and a road which are entered by a conscious act, and it is the gate and the road of counterfeit conversion. I fear that much which is spawned off in our day as the truth of God is but encouraging people to enter that broad, that broad gate and that broad way. So there's that danger.
The Deceptive Nature and Doctrinal Marks of False Prophets
And then there is the danger that our Lord enunciates, in which we have been studying for several weeks, of the false prophet. Beginning with verse 15, he gives us a second command. Verse 13, Enter the gate, but as you enter, beware. Beware of the false prophet.
Those who would enter must beware of receiving wrong directions about how to enter. For the false prophet, as we have seen, is deceptive. He comes in sheep's clothing, but is inwardly a ravening wolf. We have considered the definition of a false prophet as one who stands as the mouthpiece of God and does not speak truth in his name.
We have begun to consider the doctrines of the false prophet. And if you will remember, I stated that the doctrine of the false prophet is always marked either by faith, subtle additions to the word of God, or by glaring omissions of the word of God. In Revelation 22, a curse is pronounced not upon the people who throw out the word, but you remember what the Spirit says? If any man adds to the words of this book, he'll keep the book, but he'll put some plus signs.
God says he'll add the plagues to it. Then the other extreme, you have the person who takes from the words of the book. He keeps much of the book, but he takes certain undesirable things from the book. And God says he will take his part out of the book of life.
And I'm utterly convinced in my own heart that this is what makes the false prophet so dangerous. He comes holding this book. He comes in the name of God and with the book of God. But he is to be found in his glaring omissions and in his subtle addictions.
And we looked at some of those areas. Concerning the character of God, the false prophet has a God who's all love and no holiness.
He has a man who's a sinner only in the general sense, but who is not holy and utterly depraved, blind, dead, a rebel against God, as the scripture describes. He can talk about men's sin, two sinful men, and never, never strike the root of the issue. When they talk of God's remedy, there's vague talk about the cross, but no specific zeroing in on what that cross signifies, that God is so holy and sin is so heinous that he'll baptize his son in blood, in agony and death before he'll ever forgive us. What an eloquent message on the holiness of God is found in the cross of Christ.
False Prophets Distort the Conditions for Salvation
And then we closed our study two weeks ago by considering the fact that the false prophet always adds to or subtracts from the God-given conditions of entering into salvation. How do I enter into that salvation provided in God's grace and offered to all men freely in the gospel? You see, the Romanist would come and he'd put his plus signs. He'd say, you enter in by Christ, plus the saints, plus Mary, plus penance, plus, plus, plus.
And we'd say a plague on your house, and rightly so. But the scripture says, if anyone comes bringing any gospel other than that which we've preached unto you, let him be accursed. May I say the curse of God is upon those who omit any conditions that God has laid out. And what are God's conditions?
Made absolutely clear. Paul says in Acts 20 and verse 21, I testify to Jews and Greeks repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul did not say accept Jesus as your personal Savior. He said you must turn from sin and embrace the Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ. Paul said in Acts 26, 20, I spoke to the Jews and then the Gentiles in the coast of Judea and in all of my ministry that men must repent, turn to God and do works meet for repentance. And dear ones, listen carefully if you value your soul. Just as surely as the man who follows the pipings of Rome that would lead him to lay one hand upon Christ and one hand upon the saints and his own works, just as surely, as that man will perish, so will everyone perish who seeks to lay hold of Christ with one hand while he clings to his sins with the other.
There must be a two-handed embrace of Christ which means I must turn from my sin and the disposition to rule my own life and serve my own ends and embrace not only the benefits of his cross, but I must lovingly embrace the implications of his crown and cry with Paul, Lord, and what wilt thou have me to do?
And so the false prophet, not all who preach this are deliberate false prophets, but remember the illustration, a wrong pill will kill you whether the man who gives it to you hates you or whether he gives it to you in ignorance.
And oh, may God give us an assembly of people who are mature enough to isolate personalities from principle.
When you receive instruction from anybody, and I urge this upon you continually, don't receive anything that passes over this pulpit because you love me. Don't refuse it because you hate me. Isolate what is said from who says it and hold it up to the light of the divine truth of God. And if it's according to that book, you better embrace it.
And if it isn't, reject it. One of the great problems with people, I faced it this week again, a lady called me and said, you know, the Spirit of God has shown me this week under your ministry that it's true, it's wrong, it's wrong, it's wrong to tell people simply believe Christ died for your sins and you'll be saved. We must point them to that cross which is empty. And the Christ who was there is on a throne.
And we must tell them as Paul did, have faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Embrace Christ as a prophet to teach you, a priest to forgive you, a king to rule you. She says, but...
Then she began to mention the names of some men who had been an instrument of blessing in her life. She said, in the light of the word and what God has shown me, there's something wrong in their teaching, isn't there? I said, can you isolate personalities from principles? And I gave her what I'm trying to give you this morning.
Don't embrace or reject truth because of the instrument through which it comes, but solely on the basis of the book. God said that that attitude amongst the Thessalonians was an admirable characteristic. It says, these were more noble, I mean the bereaved. They were more noble than the people than those at Thessalonica in that they did what?
They searched the scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. When the apostle Paul came, he didn't stand up and give his seniority ratings and I've been a missionary for so many years and I've established so many churches. Anything I say goes. You hear me?
No, he said, here's what I feel the truth of God is and God's revealed it to me. And those people went home and got in the little group and they opened up their Bible and they searched it out, searched it out. Did God say, that was an impudent spirit? No, he said, that was a noble spirit.
They valued their souls enough that they'd not even be deceived by a great apostle.
May God give us that spirit in this assembly. May he give it to you as an individual. Now there are one or two other areas upon which I want to touch in concluding this section on the doctrine of the false prophet. And then the next time I'm with you, the Lord willing, we're going to consider the discovery of a false prophet.
False Prophets Distort the Basis of Assurance of Salvation
How does one discover the false prophet? And our Lord has told us and we want to study that together. But there are one or two other areas in which the doctrine of the false prophet is most obviously discerned by its subtle additions and its glaring omissions.
One of those is this matter of what is the basis of the assurance of salvation. We had a good preparation for this in our college class today. I didn't know we were going to get on that. I thought you'd been through that ground already.
So those of you in the college class, you're getting two barrels of the shotgun this morning.
What is the basis upon which one may confidently rest that he is a child of God?
Now the scripture clearly teaches that the basis of salvation is threefold. One may know that he's a child of God as the Holy Spirit takes the promises of the word of God to repenting sinners and makes them real to my heart.
That's not the only basis. The second basis of assurance, and we studied that this morning in the book of 1 John, are the evidences of a transformed life. Hereby do we know that we pass from death unto life if we love the brethren. We know that we know him if we keep his commandments.
I'm quoting from 1 John.
He that saith he is born of God and keepeth not his commandments is alive. The second basis of true assurance is discerning in myself in the light of the word of God the evidences that God has done a work of grace. And the third line of evidence is the witness of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8.16 The Spirit himself bears witness in concurrence with our spirits that we are the children of God. I believe the Spirit is made real the promises of mercy to my heart. When I read he that believeth hath everlasting life the Holy Spirit's enabled me to take hold of that promise of mercy. As I look at the book of Romans and the book of 1 John and other passages I discern in my own spirit some of those evidences.
Yes, I do long to keep his precepts. I do want to live to his glory. I do love the brethren. I do want to be holy.
I do want to live in the realm of light. And I discern in my own mind and spirit those characteristics not as full-bloomed that I'd like to see them not as extensive as they ought to be but thank God they're there. Now the third line of evidence is the Holy Spirit concurs with what my spirit tells me. My spirit tells me Lord I am your child.
The promises of mercy are sweet to my soul and the evidences of your grace are manifest in my life. And then there's that witness of the Spirit with my spirit and what's the prime characteristic of it? Galatians 4 He hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts crying Abba Father it gives me strength freedom of access in prayer and communion with God is a vital and a real thing to me. Now the false prophet comes along and says do you want to know if you're saved?
Put your finger on the verse and stop there.
He says the basis of assurance is only one thing. If the Bible says it you believe it. But the problem is nowhere does the Bible have my name in it. If I found a verse somewhere written by the pen of the Holy Ghost Al Martin is a child of God that's the only basis I'd need.
But you won't find a verse like that that's got your name. Not a verse in the Bible tells me you're saved or tells you you're saved. Thank God there are many verses that say believers are saved. Those who repent and embrace Christ are saved.
Those who hear the word and believe on him that sent Christ have passed from death unto life. But the same Bible teaches such a thing as the faith of the demons. It says the demons believe. It talks about a man named Simon in Acts 8 who believed and was baptized and a little bit later Peter says to him you're still in the bond of iniquity and a call of bitterness.
Your heart is not right with God. It wasn't saving faith it was something else. So I say Lord how can I know if my faith in your promises is genuine? God says look for the evidences of faith in your life.
That's the book of 1 John. Look for the fruit of faith. It says in Galatians 5 that faith works by love. Faith unites us to Christ and when we're joined to Christ what happens?
If any man be in Christ he's a what? New creature. Old things have passed away. All things have become new.
Do I really want to know if I've taken hold of the Lord in faith? Well then I look for the evidences of a new work a work of a new creation.
That's how.
But the false prophet stops and says have you believed? And if anybody says yes alright the Bible says he that believeth is saved. Don't doubt God even though there's no evidences of life don't doubt God. God says it you believe it.
Beloved that teaching is deluding thousands in our own land and across the world as I get letters from missionaries in business.
I'm not saying the men who teach this and write tracts on it and books on it are deliberately trying to damn people. Beloved I'm not saying that. But isolate their teaching from their personalities and it is marked by a glaring omission of the two other grounds of assurance a transformed life and the witness of the spirit. There's only one person in the world who's got a right to tell you you're saved and that's the God who saves.
The spirit is the witness not the personal worker. Every single book in class on personal work that says after you've led the convert to a decision give him assurance that it's you serving the place of the Holy Ghost. You can't give anybody assurance because you're not God and you don't know the heart. We can tell them how they can get assurance.
We can tell them look you plead the promises of God's mercy ask him to make them real to your heart and if God has saved you you pray that he'll make manifest in you the works and evidences of his own grace and as you discern them thank God turn them to 1 John and show them how they can get assurance. Oh I can tell them how they can get it but I can't give it to them. I'm not God. I'm not God.
I'm not God. And you're not God.
All the people who go into the counseling room at the evangelistic campaigns they're not God.
And do you know why we're cursed with so much sham conversion through our modern evangelism? It's because we've thumbed our nose at the Holy Ghost and we've said we'll do your work and God says alright if you want to do my work I'll let you do the whole business and the conversions will be your product as well as the assurance.
I talked with someone who just recently was given six names to follow up on one of these evangelistic films that is hitting the nation and the reports are glowing. I read the other day 71,000 conversions. He said in all six cases he couldn't find a trace of anything like the fear of God or conviction of sin or any knowledge of who Christ was.
You know that I'm not barking up a tree.
I'm trying to expound the word of God and apply it to our own generation to wear of the doctrine of the false prophet. You see in this area of assurance the false prophet will be known by his glaring omissions.
The Contrast Between False and True Prophets Regarding Peace
Notice in Jeremiah 23 the verse how this was the problem in his day. Jeremiah 23 Jeremiah had stood and told the people of God in the name of Jehovah that unless they repented and mended their ways God would judge them by the scourge of Babylon coming in and taking over their country. But notice what the false prophet said.
Verse 16 of Jeremiah 23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts hearken not to the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you they make you vain they speak a vision of their own heart and not out of the mouth of the Lord. Notice they say still unto them that despise me and the word despise does not mean in many cases in the Hebrew it doesn't mean what we use when we say I despise something it means almost equivalent to hate but the word despise means to regard lightly.
Now this is what God says these false prophets say to people who regard me lightly they don't have any real serious regard for my Lord for my laws for my will for my glory for the majesty of my person. Now notice they say to these people the Lord hath said ye shall have peace and they say unto everyone that walketh after the imagination of his own heart the American standard renders it they say to everyone that walketh after the stubbornness of his own heart no evil will come upon you.
You're in right relationship to God. Claim his promise doesn't he say? You are my people rest on the word of God and the false prophets encourage men who have no evidences of a right relationship to God to believe all was well because they could trust the promises of God.
Whereas notice the ministry of the true prophet in verse 18 for who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord who hath really perceived and heard his word who hath marked his word and heard it behold a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth in fury even in the night even a grievous whirlwind it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked the anger of the Lord shall not return until he hath executed until he hath performed the thoughts of his heart in the latter days you shall consider it perfectly I have not sent these prophets yet they ran nor spoke unto them yet they prophesied now notice but if they had stood in my counsel and had caused my people to hear my words then they should have turned them from their evil ways and from the evil of their doings have you got it? the mark of the true prophet is that people come to peace under his ministry only in a way of righteousness for the Bible says righteousness and peace have kissed each other the false prophet promises peace in a way of unrighteousness and rebellion and stubborn beloved what can be clearer than that? that the reproach of that principle in the context of 20th century America and I'm not talking about the liberals they don't believe there's any hell to escape I'm talking about the evangelicals who promise men an escape from hell
on no other basis than that they're trusting the promises of mercy where there's no evidence that they've been brought into vital relationship to God that they've been turned from their evil ways God says the man the woman that husband that wife that parent that stands in my counsel will never promise a man in my name peace in any other path but the paths of righteousness and obedience the false prophet will promise you in paths of stubbornness and wickedness has the Holy Spirit opened this to you this morning? this is the issue of our generation people this is the issue do you have peace this morning that all is well between you and God?
you young people parents members friends do you have peace that all is well between you and God? what's the basis of peace?
what's the basis of your peace? is it bible basis? the promises of God's word made real to your heart by the Holy Spirit and He never makes them real to an unbroken heart the evidences that your life has been changed by the power of God and a testimony of God's Holy Spirit to your spirit that you are His is that the basis of your peace? if it isn't dear one I don't care if doctor so and so or mister so and so or evangelist so and so has been the means of giving you comfort isolate the person from the principles of truth and face the issue you're not a child of God I'm not asking you to believe in it because I told it to you but I am asking you to face this book it says in Hebrews 5.9 Christ became the author of eternal salvation unto all that obeyed Him He said my sheep hear my voice and they follow me are you hearing His voice and following Him?
False Prophets Distort the Necessity of Perseverance
one of the most grievous things to my heart is when I get up and I get some feedback from the ministry of this place and elsewhere and people say oh that's just Reverend Martin's emphasis is that the Bible? does God say the two things he that believeth hath everlasting life? does God say that? yes and the same God says he that obeys hath everlasting life must be inverted throw out one or the other and you're done the last area in which the false prophet is marked by his glaring the false prophet is marked by his glaring the false prophet is marked by his glaring the false prophet is marked by his glaring omissions omissions omissions and subtle additions is in the area that I would call the necessity of continuance in the Christian faith the theologians call it perseverance continuance now what does the word persevere mean? it means to press on in a given course in the face of difficulty if I come by your house when the nice warm weather comes if it ever comes and I see you out in the backyard in one of these portable hammocks and you're laying on the floor and you're sitting down on the floor and you're laying there with a piece of hayseed in your mouth and sort of half asleep and just swinging
from side to side if you stay there for an hour I would never come by and say you know Mr. so and so is really persevering in that hammock well you're staying there you're in the same course of action but you never say you're persevering but if I saw you out in the backyard in the same hot day and you're trying to get up all the dandelions and you've got thousands of them out there and the sweat's pouring down and your face is red and your poor hands are blistered where you've had that dandelion digger but you're sticking at it sticking at it guzzling down water burning up hot I'd say boy he's really persevering in digging out those dandelions now you see the word persevere has to do with continuing in a given course in the face of difficulty discomfort that which is unpleasant to my flesh now the scripture clearly teaches two very simple but profound principles I hope you're listening and may God the Holy Ghost give you ears of the heart to hear the Bible teaches that when anybody gets saved God saves the man or the woman salvation is of the Lord Jonah 2.10 Ephesians 2.10 we are His workmanship and all that God saves I'm convinced the Bible teaches God preserves them because He starts the work He's going to complete the work He that hath begun
in you will carry it on until he gets discouraged and then he'll drop it no he that hath begun a good work in you will do what complete it carry it on perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ Philippians 1.6 Romans 8 says whom He justifies then He glorifies now follow God saves and God preserves His people they don't help God to get themselves saved God saves them God preserves them He says my sheep not everybody makes a decision but my sheep those who hear my voice and follow me I'm holding them and no one can pluck them out of my hand you got the two principles God saves God preserves now here are two other principles clearly taught in the Bible man repents and believes and man perseveres to the end God saves but God doesn't repent for it oh yes He gives the grace of repentance Acts 11.18 God hath granted unto the Gentiles repentance unto life 2 Timothy 2.26 if peradventure God will give them repentance but though God works in us the grace of repentance and faith is the gift of God Ephesians 2.8 in that not of yourselves it is the gift
of God yet God doesn't do my repenting or do my believing I do by His enabling grace but I repent I must turn from my sin and I must embrace Christ John 1.12 as many as receive Him He doesn't receive Him for me I must receive Him alright we're clear on that aren't we God saves but man repents and believes God preserves God preserves His people but His people for the same Bible that teaches he that hath begun a good work shall be saved he that endureth to the end shall be saved oh but you said that's in Matthew 24 and that's the Jews in the tribulation well I don't believe it is but so what if it is because there are other passages that say this Hebrews 3.14 we are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end oh but that's Hebrew Christians that doesn't apply to us alright let's take John even the strictest of those who would pigeonhole the Bible say the gospel of John is the gospel of grace alright what's it say John 15.6 any man abide not in me he is cast forth as a brand and men gather them up and they are cast into the fire and they are burned
1 Corinthians 15 Paul says I have delivered unto you that gospel which I received Christ died Christ rose Christ was buried but he says about that gospel notice carefully 1 Corinthians 15 he says concerning that gospel which they embraced initially moreover brethren I declare the gospel which I preached unto you wherein ye have which ye have received and wherein ye stand now notice by which ye are saved if if ye keep in memory what I have preached unto you unless you have believed in vain Hebrews 3.14 we are made partakers of Christ Hebrews 3.14 if we continue steadfast unto the end Revelation 2 and 3 the last words of Christ directly to his church what are they seven times what did he say he that over cometh to him that over cometh seven times he promises blessing only to the over cometh now what does the false prophet do now again I am not saying he is trying to damn you but to the extent that the message is not in accordance with the word it is not the truth of God he comes
and agrees 100% almost on this God saves God keeps and so the verses are quoted and they are there and we need to love them and embrace them for by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works that any man should boast God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son David and him should not perish but have everlasting life John 5 24 verily verily I say unto you he that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death unto life and there the false prophet stops and he says God saves God keeps therefore you are saved and kept no matter what happens ah but wait a minute my Bible says that all that God saves are people who repent and believe and persevere now doesn't the Bible teach both have I given you enough verses but the false prophet only gives this side and comes and says to people loving their sins one of them a nationally known preacher said I believe when Jesus comes he'll take some people from the lap of a harlot to be with himself think of it my Bible says no adulterer shall enter the kingdom of heaven like the bleary eyed
red eyed alcoholic that I went to see and witnessed to outside of a place down in Atlanta Georgia some years ago and I got talking about the Lord and he looked at me and said I'm a good man and he named his denomination and I believe one is shaved always shaved don't you I said Mister my Bible says no drunk will enter the kingdom he had been told that having made a decision all was well and you say Mr. Martin you're teaching I didn't say God said God says then who must persevere who did overcome so when we ask the question is a person saved and really saved no matter what he does he can't be lost you're putting two things together that God doesn't put together if I'm truly saved I won't do just what my old flesh wants to do there is a principle of new life within John says 1 John 3 9 he that is born of God cannot persist in the way of sin the seed remains in him the principle of God's life within his breast and it says he cannot practice sin because he is born there's the blessed harmony of divine truth God saves God preserves and the saint who sees the terrible foes that he had
that wicked world without that wicked devil above and that wicked thing that Rutherford called the house devil within my own flesh I say God how can I make it I can't I can't and so what does it do it drives us to the throne of grace and then when we come from the throne of grace like Christian we go out to face Apollyon and there may be times when Apollyon has us almost whipped until Christian reached a promise and when he got a promise Apollyon fled and left got his sword so I need that truth that God who began the good work will carry it on and on that I carry it on and on my knees I call upon him through grace for the love of the God who begins it and carries it on is the God who tells me that I must abide that I must persevere that I must overcome saved and lost no I don't believe the Bible teaches it saved unto perseverance yes let me give you in our context a very clear teaching of this in pictorial language we look there at the Matthew 7 passage Matthew 7 and notice what Jesus said and I'm amazed how I read this thing for years and saw it
The Gate, the Way, and Life: An Inseparable Connection
but didn't see it notice Jesus said enter ye in at the straight or the narrow gate for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction and many there be which go in there at because now follow closely straight is the gate narrow is the way which lead unto life here's life my book that's life now I stand over here and I say Lord I want life like pilgrim went running down the road crying life life eternal life when they tried to keep him in the city of destruction he put his fingers in his ears and he cried life life now how do I get life how do I end up in the everlasting dwelling place of the living God what does Jesus say two things lead to life you see them what are they number one is the what number fourteen what's the first thing what is it the gate and what's after the gate huh the way and what's after the gate and the way life now get it there's an inseparable connection between life the way and the gate what's the gate true conversion what's the way perseverance in faith obedience and holiness and what's life
heaven heaven now what could be simpler than that that all who get into the gate persevere on the way and blessed be God they end up in life but what about people who say I'm in the gate but they're not in that narrow way of holiness obedience they have no grounds to claim they've come in that gate and John Bunyan had this thing so clear he met people apparently on the way and he said this is the way and he said how did you get into this way they said oh I came down from a path well did you come in at the wicked gate no it was too inconvenient I came down by my own way and they may have traveled a long way but when the way began to lead to the celestial city through one means or another they missed it and some got right up to the gate and missed it right up to the river and they missed it beautiful picture sad picture of those who seem to be in the way of holiness obedience and faith who are not and surely a devastating critique of those who say if you get in the gate that's all that matters now just sit down on a thousand crosses and all will be well no the Lord said you get through that gate roll up your sleeves and in the power
of the Holy Ghost endure to the end that's what the Bible teaches that's what the Bible teaches oh you say that makes us our own Savior no because if you touch that man on the shoulder anywhere along the way that's what the Bible teaches oh only God could have got me through that narrow gate I loved my sin so I never would have unpacked I loved my own way my carnal mind was enmity against him I never would have surrendered to Christ well how'd you get that way God showed me my sin as that which exposed me to his wrath God showed me my sin as that which crucified me and by his spirit gave me grace in him my God oh so you got in that gate all of his grace all of his grace how is it to change the way how is it that you're found this far along the road oh it's all of grace why well I have the remains of that wickedness within the flesh and there is Apollyon the enemy of my souls and all of his emissaries who've come and tried to turn me aside and it's only grace that preserved me grace that has kept me grace that has hedged me up and it's grace that will see me safely home you see this doesn't detract from the grace of God
for the grace that saves keeps but God's keeping comes to light in your persevering have you got it God's keeping comes to light in your persevering I know if God is keeping me as I persevere that's why John 17 is so helpful this will be the last passage we'll look at on this subject this morning then I want to bring this all to a practical conclusion will you notice in John 17 I believe in John 17 believe the Lord willing perhaps in the coming year of ministry someone has asked me what are you going to do when you get out of the Sermon on the Mount we've been in there for three years I say no I kind of feel like I lost my wife and one of my children maybe the Lord will come before then that would be wonderful wouldn't it then we know even as we are known but John 17 notice what the Lord is praying for his own now you see the false prophet he'll love this verse 24 Father I will that they all my glory and the false prophet tells people see all that belong to Christ Christ is praying that they'll be with him and his prayer must be answered and he's true when he says that that's true that's why I don't believe a person can be genuinely saved and lost
because if he's saved he's been in the heart of God from eternity the grace that chose him and drew him now is being expressed in the intercessory work of Christ he's praying Father Father I will that those whom thou hast given me be with me where I am I want them preserved but now there's something else Christ is praying we look back to verse 15 and remember God always answers the prayer of his son I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world but that thou shouldst keep them from the evil or from the evil one they are not of the world even as I am not of the world sanctify them through the truth through the truth through the truth through the truth thy word is truth what's he praying he's praying that we shall be kept from evil or from the evil one that we shall be continually sanctified now you see when the false prophet faces those two verse he's silent oh God will hear the prayer of his son that his people be kept ah beloved God hears the prayer of his son that his people be holy praying for me will secure my glorification comes to life in the name of God in my perseverance for the father answers the cry of his son
and if I miss child and he's praying Lord sanctify him keep him from evil the Holy Ghost within me seeks to perfect the image of Christ when I step into a way that's devious and unclean whom the Lord loves he chastens he scourges I may be defiled and besmirched with sin and the spirit will deal with me until I come to a place of repentance or God may cut me off prematurely I believe there is the sin of the death 1 Corinthians chapter 11 for this cause many sleep but do you see dear ones that my being preserved by Christ comes to light in my persevering in the way of Christ do you see may the Holy Spirit make it real for I am convinced again that many are being led into the broad gate and confirmed in their deception on a broad road by being cold that if you've nodded to Christ and you're resting in the promises all is well come with me I said that'd be the last passage I've got to give you one more in Romans 6 you forgive me for not keeping my word on that I had this passage written down and I feel it's a key one you look at Romans 6 22 three things in this verse here Paul gives us in theological language what Jesus gave us in pictorial language
Safeguards Against False Prophets: Diligent Scripture Study and Prayer
being made free from sin and become servants to God not made free from sin in the sense of sinlessness leave perfect there is no such thing this side of heaven but being made severed from sin as the master to whom you willingly and gladly yield obedience he's speaking of conversion in which there's a change of masters from sin to God being made free from sin and become servants to God ye are having your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life see the three things what do we have out here everlasting life now what leads to it two things notice them fruit unto holiness and what's behind that a change of masters being made free from sin and become servants to God that's conversion you have your fruit unto holiness that's perseverance and the end everlasting life don't you claim that you'll have the end without gain and without the way isn't that clear did God make it any clearer the only people who perish with the Bible in their hands are those who want to perish and that's my practical conclusion this morning having looked at the definition of a false prophet
the doctrine of the false prophet the deceptiveness of the false prophet how can we be kept from the false prophet even if he stands in this pulpit and bears my name how can you be sure that I will not lead you astray how can you be sure that others will not lead you astray how can we be kept from false prophets may I read a paragraph that I extracted from Bishop Ryle who made this comment what is the best safeguard against false teachers and their teaching beyond all doubt listen carefully the regular study of the word of God with don't stop there you see we have people studying their Bibles feverishly who are being duped by false prophets regular study of the word of God with something else prayer for the teaching of the Holy Spirit the Bible was given to be a lamp to our feet and the light unto our path the man who reads it aright will never be allowed greatly to earn it is neglect of the Bible which makes so many pray to the first false teacher whom they hear they would fain have us believe that they are not learned and they do not pretend to have decided opinions
people say well who am I I don't know I've learned it I haven't been to school I haven't been to college Bible school who am I to hold an opinion that contradicts doctors oh and so or pastors oh and so or preachers oh and so who am I ah listen what he says listen the plain truth is they are lazy and idle about reading the Bible and they do not like the trouble of thinking for themselves nothing supplies false prophets with followers so much as spirits will sloth under a cloak of humility I'm too humble to ever come to decide opinions happy is he who prays over his Bible and knows the difference between truth and error in religion there is a difference we are meant to know it and to use our knowledge isn't that a beautiful simple statement what's the greatest preventative to the teaching of false prophets a body of people like you who study this book diligently with prayer for the illumination of the Holy Ghost do you know why this whole teaching about a divided Jesus has taken such root in the church that you can have Christ as your Savior now and your Lord later do you know why it's taken such root people are not studying the Bible you can't read your Bible
and come up with that faith is always directed to the Lord Jesus Christ not the Savior Christ the Lord Jesus Christ the Lord Jesus Christ if thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus you won't find one verse in the Bible where Paul tells believers now that they're saved to take Christ as Lord no he says in Colossians 2 6 as you've received Christ the Lord now walk in Him when you got saved you got a Lord Romans 6 you had a change of masters and I'm convinced as I've been privileged to go all over this country and I was reminded of it again this week down in Pennsylvania people have swallowed this hook, line, and sinker because they haven't read their Bibles with prayer for the illumination of the Holy Ghost this false kind of security that says since I can put my finger on a date when I went into a prayer room or to an altar and I can put my finger on three verses I'm fixed all is well the reason that's found such deep-seated root in the church is because people don't read the Bibles for how could you read your Bible and not come across those verses where Christ said you're my disciples if ye continue in my word if ye continue if ye abide in me if we hold the beginning of our confidence he that overcometh if ye continue steadfast beloved you'd have to hit those now and then wouldn't you and when you did they were just spackings
oh boy something's all right something's all right and when you heard people say all you need to do to be saved is accept Jesus as personal Savior if you're reading your Bible you'd see that the Apostles preach repent and believe turn or burn and you'd say something's wrong something's wrong there's a note missing and why has this become the cliche of fundamentalism accept Jesus as personal Savior and it's never even found in the Bible it's because God's people don't read the word that's the only reason don't read the word crying to God for the illumination of the Holy Ghost God says oh where'd you get those ideas you read some books no I didn't beloved I didn't know any books I didn't know anybody else believed it as I was privileged to go from place to place and had the awful responsibility of facing men and women every night sometimes weeks in a row as an evangelist I would get alone with my God and say Lord what have you commissioned me to preach Lord I want to know what message have you ordained and as I studied that book and I studied the book of Acts for the evangelism of the Apostles I found that they always held up Christ as Lord they said that if you want the benefits of this cross you've got to bow to his crown you know these are truths which God the Holy goes through the word and finds why his spirit is burned into my breast
I don't believe him because God made him real to me but you go home get on your knees and open up that book and say Lord is this so I dare to tell you do that I've got nothing to lose because I'm a man and I see through glass darkly and as best I try to handle the truth honestly there may be areas where I'm not so the safest thing for you and me lest I be guilty of leading you astray and you be guilty of being led astray you go to God and I'll be guilty of being led astray but beware of false prophets beware of them for they come as wolves in sheep's clothing the doctrine of the false prophet his glaring omissions his subtle additions he'll tell you God saves and God preserves but he won't be clear that man repents and embraces Christ and man perseveres and that God's keeping comes to light in my perseverance you see the truth of God is a beautiful whole isn't it some of you have begun to see this recently I've had some of you come to me and say well it all fits don't destroy your soul by clinging to one portion hiding your eyes to the other but may God give you grace to embrace this whole house and if you're here
this morning we have visitors here and they never see you again some of you who've come here for years I may never see you again and my word to you is this don't rest short of true biblical salvation the work of God's grace that gets you through the narrow gate and gets you on the narrow way that leads unto life oh today break off with your sins and flee to Christ and sue out a pardon from Christ seek mercy in his wounds seek mercy as you bow before his sovereign crown let us pray our Lord we thank you for your grace for your word for that way which you've said is a way of holiness and a man though a fool need not err therein Lord we confess this morning that we're ignorant our minds are dark our spirits slow to respond take the truth that we've sought to communicate to and with your people and confirm it by the spirit Lord deliver every one of us from the darkness from the damning results of heeding the false prophet
who would give us security in our sin or who would say that mercy is to be found in any other way but through the merits of Christ oh Father help us seal your word honor your son and send us to our homes to search the scripture to see if these things be so God make of this body of believers professing Christians a way of life a body of men and women who know what it is to search the word of God and to be taught of the spirit of God and lead us as pastor and people into the whole counsel of God for your glory and for our good
This transcript was generated by automated speech recognition and may contain errors. It is provided for study and reference only; the audio recording is the authoritative source.
Passages Expounded
This passage from the Sermon on the Mount is the foundational text, particularly verses 13-15, which introduce the narrow gate, broad way, and the warning against false prophets.
This passage is expounded to illustrate the contrast between false prophets who promise peace in unrighteousness and true prophets who call people to repentance and righteousness.
This verse is used to provide a theological summary of the 'gate, way, and life' concept from Matthew 7, detailing the progression from conversion to holiness to eternal life.
Texts Expounded
Also Referenced
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