We die.. then what? (Part 2)

Thanks for tuning in to No Compromise Radio with pastor and author, Dr. Mike Avendroff. Today on No Compromise Radio, we'll be hearing Pastor Mike open the Word of God in a recent message he preached at Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston, Massachusetts.

Now let's join Pastor Mike in progress as he preaches through the Scriptures verse by verse with No Compromise.

Repentance in Light of Pilate’s Violence

Pilate was a wicked man. Pilate was a corrupt man. You can see how Jesus is dealt with when it comes to Pilate. And what happened was there were some Galileans, probably during Passover time, going to the temple or it's environs and they were going to make sacrifice, it was a religious thing, and Pilate sent his Gentile executioners in, remember they weren't supposed to go into the temple area.

It would be very, very bad, it could start a riot, you could get killed if you would go in there as a Gentile. But here Pilate desecrates the temple, sends in his executioners, his assassins, covertly they kill them and whether it's mingled their blood with the sacrifices figuratively, meaning they just killed them right there, or literally taking the blood of the sacrifices and then the bodies and the corpses of these Galileans and actually mingling the physical blood, either way it was blasphemous.

Now if you were thinking correctly you'd go, look at how bad Pilate is. That guy is wicked. Don't be like Pilate. That'd be the sermon. That'd be the VBS theme. Don't be like Pilate. But the culture of the day was so, you know what, I'm not going to really apply this to me, I'm going to apply it to somebody else, somebody else is worse, somebody else is a more horrible sinner.

The Jewish thought at the time, torqued as it was, was, you know what, they deserved it. They must have did something bad to have that karma-like experience happen. They did something bad, they got killed.

They're not saying Pilate's bad. The Jewish mindset of these people around Jesus at the time was, they did something really bad and God gave them what was coming to them. Now certainly in the Bible, occasionally you see the direct result of something sinful and that is execution.

Herod, remember Herod, wicked Herod, and God kills Herod because he's so sinful, killing one of God's choice men. But lots of times, there's no direct correlation between sin, personal sin at the moment, and then God killing the people.

But that's what these folks interpreted this as, crowding around Jesus, interpreting this not as Pilate's cruelty, but as, you know what, God was displeased with these folks. Now how would you respond?

How would you respond to that? Somebody asked you the question, well how does Jesus respond? Let's find out in verse 2. Jesus is not going to say, let me just give you a little discussion of the problem of evil, theodicy.

Let's talk a little bit about politics, you know, that guy's really a bad guy. Let's do a little social commentary. Let's talk about the major religions of the world. That's not what Jesus does at all.

He is going to force the issue that I'm trying to force today. Are you repentant? Are you ready to meet God? Life is fragile, that's what tragedies show, and it's time to get right with God before you meet Him.

And then it's too late. You will either pay for all your sins, or Jesus will pay for them, but every sin is going to be paid for because God is just, He's a just God, so when there's a sin, it's got to be paid for, on you or on Jesus.

Decide now. And doesn't all the idea of, well people are going to think I'm weird, I want to really keep my friends, I want to run in the same circles, what's my mom going to say, what's my husband going to say, what's my family going to say, what's my employer going to say?

I mean, can you hear yourself say those things? How insane are those? It's literally insane to think that way. When there's the greater issue, you're standing to meet God, God made you. You breathe His air, you drink His water, you have the body that He gave you to do all kinds of things, and you stand before Him, accountable.

He's the creator, He's the judge, and while you're alive, what about Savior? And Jesus answered. I love Jesus' answers. He answers with questions. This is so classic. And by the way, as I read this passage in chapter 13 verse 2, He lets us know that He knows what they're thinking, Galileans, bad, sinful, God kills Him.

But then changes it. He acknowledges what they're saying and what they're thinking because He can read their minds. And He asks the question by this way, and He answered them saying, do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered in this way?

Tit for tat, measure for measure. He brings up the conclusion that they are having, and then He rejects it by even the question. This isn't the right way to think. What's the right way to think? Put your house in order.

Unless You Repent, You Will All Likewise Perish

Verse 3, no, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. What an answer. Whether you get killed by a pilot, go down in flames in an airplane, have a heart attack, die of natural causes, you're dead.

And then you stand before God. So Jesus kindly, love incarnate, remember, on His way to Calvary says, then repent. Change your mind. That's what repentance means. Change your mind. Think differently. Instead of thinking you're the sinner of the universe, that you're self-sufficient, you'll repent later, a thousand erroneous fallacies that go through your mind, think differently.

It's the flip side of belief. Repentance is think differently, turn in your mind, and then turn towards God in faith. I used to have my kids line up because I'm trying to teach them this lesson. I would say to them when they're really little, start walking this way, and then when daddy yells repent, then you turn around and go this way.

You change your mind and your body will follow. Your actions will follow. And so Jesus says, repent or you're going to perish. This idea of perish is found all over in Luke. Listen to these words in Luke 9, for whoever would save his life will lose it.

But whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? Luke 17, just as it is written in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the son of man.

They were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, and being given in marriage until the day when Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all, likewise as it was in the days of Lot.

They were eating, they were drinking, buying, selling, planting, building. But on that day, when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all. So it will be on the day when the son of man is revealed.

Everyone's going to die, so Christ warns the people, repent. He had his forerunner show up in Luke chapter 3, and what was John the Baptist's message? First words out of his mouth, repent. The great commission in Luke 24, all the way at the end, I want you to go around to all the nations and preach what for the forgiveness of sins?

Repentance. So much for this crazy corner of so-called evangelicalism that says you should never say repent to people. There's a disaster coming and Jesus says repent. Timing in a sense is irrelevant, whether you live to be one day or a hundred days old or a hundred years old, you're going to die.

That's the common denominator. We all want a long life for people, that's true. But long lives still end in death, which reminds me of Psalm 7. If a man does not repent, God will wet his sword. He has bent and readied his bow.

He's got that bow pulled back with an arrow aimed right at your heart. And if you don't repent on judgment day, it's going to be released. That's the picture. The Southern Presbyterian Dabney said, the brevity and in some cases neglect with which this prominent subject of repentance is treated by many systems is surprising and reprehensible.

So I ask you the question, have you repented? Have you repented from your sins and trusted in Christ alone for your salvation? Because you're going to die and then judgment. Westminster Confession of Faith describes repentance this way.

Repentance unto life is an evangelical grace. The doctrine whereof is to be preached by every minister of the gospel. By it, a sinner out of the sight and sense, not only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins as contrary to the holy nature and righteous law of God and upon the apprehension of his mercy in Christ to such as are who are penitent.

So grieves for and hates his sin as to turn from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with him in all the ways of his commandments. And then the confession goes on to say, remembering that your repentance doesn't atone for sin.

It just recognizes the one who has atoned for sin. And the great part about repentance is if your sins are so great, it doesn't matter because Christ's death is greater. Yes, every sin deserves damnation, but no sin is so great that you can't be forgiven for it.

And therefore, Jesus says, except you repent, you will all likewise perish. Disaster will overtake you. The only escape is repentance. Well, let's go to the second tragedy found in Luke chapter 13, verses 4 and 5.

The Tower of Siloam and the Call to Self-Examination

Seemed like they were safe, that first tragedy. It seemed like everything was, this is just what we do. We go have sacrifices. We go to church on Eastern Christmas and we do a few other things. We're members.

We're baptized. We're consecrated. We're all these other things. As a matter of fact, did you notice that Jesus didn't say you want to avoid death, be baptized. The next time you go to a funeral and they bring an incense thing out and say, based on this person's baptism, we now know they're in heaven.

You think to yourself, unless you repent, you will likewise perish. And here's another safe place, seemingly. And Luke 13, verse 4 says, are those 18 on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them? This isn't directly by human hands.

Maybe they built it wrongly. Maybe there was an earthquake. We don't know. But it's a tower. You look out of the tower to see if there's any marauders or enemies. It's a place that signifies safety. This is a safe place.

This is how we keep our city safe. And the safest place to be in turns out to be the death trap for these 18 people. It's right down there by the pool of Siloam. We were just there a year and a half ago.

And then what does Jesus say? Remember the way they're thinking? He says, like one of Job's friends, Job must be sinning because he's got the chastisement of God on him. Do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?

You think they were more guilty? You think they were bigger debtors? This idea of debt. We sin against God. We have a debt that we have to pay. No wonder Jesus says, forgive us our debts, is the way we should pray in Matthew 6.

These people have bigger debts than we do. That's why they got killed. Jesus says, no, don't think that way. This is a surprising, shocking answer by Jesus. People have fallen into sin debt, so what's the response?

Verse 5, when you see an unforeseen accident, when you read about something where someone dies in the newspaper, when your colleague at work dies or their family dies, of course you should be kind. Of course you should be consoling.

But at the top of the list, you should think to yourself, I'm next. I'm going to die. No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. He says it again for emphasis, to warn people.

If people just did this naturally, he wouldn't have to warn people. As my father would say, he'd say, I need to get this through your thick skull. And it's with language, Jesus is grabbing the shoulders, saying, for your own sake, for the glory of God, yes, but for your own sake, repent.

That's why this whole notion of raising kids to have good manners and that's the end of it is such a disaster. I like good manners. I go to places and the kids aren't well mannered. I just think, where's the dad?

That's what I think usually. But good manners don't cut it. Morality doesn't cut it. The VBS teachers here better talk about repentance and faith under Christ Jesus, the atoning sacrifice of God who's been raised from the dead, or they're fired.

Why? Because unless those little kids at VBS repent, they're going to likewise perish. If you want to preach like Jesus preaches, you preach the truth. So, well, people might not like me. Well, how would you like to have the pleasure of God smiling upon you as you preach the truth?

You don't have to be mean about it, but there's an urgency. Can't you just feel the urgency? He repeats it for emphasis. Failure to repent leads an eternal death. You might not grow old. Universality of judgment.

Matter of fact, look at verses 2, 3, 4, and 5. I see the fourfold use of the word all. Why? So we all know that. Take a look at verse 2. All the other Galileans. Verse 3. All likewise perish. Verse 4.

Then all the others who lived in Jerusalem. Verse 5. But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish, including all the people here, including all your neighbors, including all your kids. You're just like, enough already.

Okay, repent, and then I'll stop. And if you have repented, I want you to realize this is the gift of God. Who could think a different way? Who could act a different way? Who could turn from their sins that they love?

Well, if you have, you can recognize the grace of God in your life. That's why repentance is a command and it's a gift. Tell people to repent, but they can't do it because they're slaves of sin. So God, through the preaching of the gospel, grants repentance.

How about just saying to God, God, grant me repentance. If you're not a Christian today and you've gone to so many altar calls in your mind and with your body, why don't you just say, I'm sick of myself, I'm sick of my sins, I know judgment's coming.

God, would you grant me repentance? That's the prayer of a penitent man or woman. No wonder the Bible says examine yourself. But this isn't the message that packs people into churches, is it? This isn't mega church land.

No wonder in John six, when Jesus talked like this in a similar fashion, many of the disciples left and followed him no more. Give me the bread. But once you start doing this whole election, repentance, sin, hell, judgment, I need to find a new Messiah that looks more like me.

Death, Judgment, and the Christian Hope

Now, in one sense, I don't think the human body is made to understand all the different tragedies that go on in the world. The internet has now given us every tragedy that happens. We pretty much actually can see it because it's been filmed and tsunamis and all kinds of other things.

In one sense, I think I'm not, I'm not made for that. I'm made for the guy down the street, the tractor falls on him and he gets killed and that's sad, but that's just a local thing. Just up over the hill, somebody slipped on ice and hit their head and they got a concussion and never got out of it.

But now we just have this onslaught of death on the internet. But you know what? In one sense, it's good because it should remind you every single time you see a tragedy and you'll see one today and tomorrow and the next day, some celebrity dies and the answer is not, that's too bad.

The answer is you are next. Then get to the, that's too bad. Be careful. Nobody is exempt. Both these groups thought they were safe, safe and secure from all alarms. I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

No wonder J .C. Ryle said in his excellent chapter on repentance, there are many things which are not needful. Riches are not needful. Health is not needful. Fine clothes are not needful. Noble friends are not needful.

The favor of the world is not needful. Gifts and learning are not needful. Millions have reached heaven without these things. Thousands are reaching heaven every year without them, but no one ever reached heaven without repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

No, not one. And if you have repented of your sins and placed your faith in Christ Jesus alone, then death has lost its sting. There are pictures in the Bible about the death of a Christian. Let me just give you three.

One is sleep. We've already seen that in first Corinthians. When you see someone sleeping, you think they're going to wake up. And so Paul talks about Christians who are sleeping. Their bodies are dead.

Their spirit's alive. And so be comforted. They're sleeping. They're still alive, in other words. There's another great picture of death for the Christian, departure. Second Timothy chapter four, verse six, Paul says, I'm about ready to put my sails up and sail home.

You can imagine standing on the side of a port someplace, maybe up in Salem, Mass. And you see somebody on a sailboat, and they're going out farther and farther and farther. They're departing. And pretty soon they get so far you can't see them, and you say, they're gone.

And the metaphor biblically is, they're not gone. They're just on the other side. They're on their way to the other side. The sting of death is taken away by the death of a Christian is sleep. It's departure.

And there's another one that's great, taking down a tent, dismantling a tent. Short of catechism says, what benefits do believers receive from Christ's death? You have the worst enemy taking care of death.

It's like taking down a tent. Second Corinthians chapter five, verse one. For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

It's just like taking down a tent. Go into the next place, and then you'd go put up the tent someplace else your next journey. O death, no wonder Paul says in first Corinthians, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

For death has been swallowed up in victory through Jesus our Lord. So for you, the Christian, you don't have to be like Hobbes on his deathbed. I'm taking the fearful leap in the dark. You don't have to be like Queen Elizabeth.

Oh, that I might not die. I would give millions that I might not die. The atheist, Edward Gibbon, all is dark and doubtful. Charles the ninth, the executioner, I know not where I am. I am lost forever.

I know it. But revelation 14 says, blessed are they that die in the Lord. Death should serve as a speed bump in your mind to say, I'm going to die one day. When you see someone else die, I'm next. I could be next.

Bill Maher, the commentator on TV, said, if you believe in judgment day, I have to seriously question your judgment. If you believe you are in a long-term relationship with an all-powerful space daddy who will, after you die, party with your ghost forever, there's an electrical fire going on in your head.

And in the end of the day, is magic underwear really that much crazier than giant arcs, virgin births, and talking bushes? You're either a rationalist or you're not. And the good news is a recent poll, Maher said, found 20 of adults under 30 say they're rationalists and have figured out that Santa Claus and Jesus are really the same guy.

For every one of you and for every one of your friends who is like Bill Maher or know somebody like Bill Maher, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Let's pray. Eternal Father, strong to save.

Father, grant us repentance for all those who are here who have not truly believed, who have not truly repented. I pray that you would grant them eternal life. Father, would you cut through all the rationalization, all the delay, all the schematics in their minds on how they will later.

I pray that you'd break them. I pray that you'd give them no rest until they rest in you. No peace until they have peace in you. Our great God who is granted to us, Christ Jesus, the atoning sacrifice for all who repent and believe.

And Father, for the Christians here today, I pray that they would rejoice in their salvation. And that they would be granted by your spirit a healthy dose of seriousness in their life as they see their friends and family die all around them.

In Jesus' name, amen.

No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Avendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life transforming power of God's word through verse by verse exposition of the sacred text.

Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 8 .30 and 11 AM and Sunday evenings at 6 PM. We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston, Massachusetts. You can check us out online at bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.

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