Don't Be A Judas - [Hebrews 6:4-8]

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What follows is a real letter to a real Christian ministry that you're very familiar with. It reads this way.
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Over the many years, I have been blessed to receive free tapes, CDs, and books from your ministry.
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Thank you. At these times, I really appreciated them. Now, I no longer believe in the
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God of the Bible or in Jesus Christ. Ten years of full -time ministry proved to me that there is no
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God and that the God of the Bible does not care. I now reject Christianity and have come to peace.
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What was at first a great loss has now turned into joy, peace, and freedom. I did not leave the faith because of some extreme sin.
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I left because the God of the Bible, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are all a fantasy.
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I'm happy I now live in the real world. I only feel guilt about the many people whom
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I led to Christ and expose them to the lies of Christianity. I'm not mad at Christians.
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I'm not mad at you. However, I am mad at myself for not being a more critical thinker.
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I won't make this mistake again. Thank you for the many years of help and teaching you all shared with me.
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I do appreciate what you're all trying to do with the knowledge you have. Please remove me from your mailing list.
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Save the money. Don't waste it on an apostate like me. I was just giving your
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CDs away, but now my conscience can no longer tolerate the further spread of false hope and disappointment.
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Sincerely, Steve Agnostic." What a letter.
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You know, he could have signed his name, Steve the Apostate. Almost every one of us knows someone who has professed
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Christ, who says they believe, and then something happened and they don't follow
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Christ. 2 Timothy 4 says, Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me.
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John 6, verse 66, And as a result, many of Jesus' disciples withdrew and were not walking with him any more.
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And 2 Timothy 4, The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.
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While it is impossible for a Christian to apostatize, it is possible for a professing believer to apostatize.
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And I'd like you to take your Bibles and turn to Hebrews chapter 6. And today we're going to look at that very scary reality.
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That there are people in every congregation who confess Christ Jesus as Lord. They profess him, but they don't possess him and believe in him with saving faith.
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They're not trusting with their heart, soul, mind, and strength that Jesus is the Messiah.
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They have no sin bearer and they are apostates. I guess the question for us this morning might be, if you ask yourself, am
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I a real believer? Am I really trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ? Resting on his promises?
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Believing in him? Now the book of Hebrews, as we approach it, you can imagine what was going on when this letter arrived.
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It's probably around the mid 60s, 65 AD. And Jesus has been crucified, he's been buried, he's been raised, he's ascended.
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And that was only a few decades earlier. And maybe some of the apostles are still living.
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I think some of them are. But most of the people now are second generation Christians.
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The beautiful temple is still there even though the veil has been rent from top to bottom.
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It doesn't need to be used. And there's a pressure, there's a push back against Christians.
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And the temptation for these people was simple. If I just go back to my old way of life,
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I won't have to get persecuted anymore. Life will be simple. There's got to be an easier route to take.
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And the writer essentially is saying this. There's no other route for your salvation. Keep trusting in Jesus.
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One day you'll stand before God and you need to have a sin bearer. He's the only one. And if you turn your back on Jesus, there's no hope for you.
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And that's where we come to chapter 6. This whole book is written so that you might believe, so that you might trust, so that you might say, yes, in fact,
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I not only know that Jesus is better than angels, but I affirm that he's better than angels.
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And he takes on humanity so that he might live as a representative. He might die as a substitute. He might be raised from the dead.
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He's greater than angels, true, but I believe he's greater than angels. He's greater than any opulent
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Old Testament sacrifice. And I know that deep down in my heart because he is the new high priest.
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He's the only high priest. If you had to summarize all the book of Hebrews, it's that Jesus is supreme.
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But it's one thing to say Jesus is supreme, and it's another thing to say I believe that he is supreme.
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I'm trusting in the work of the Lord for my salvation. And so we come to this passage today in Hebrews chapter 6, and it is quite frightening when we talk about apostasy and people turning their back on the only
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Savior. If there were two saviors, it wouldn't be such a big deal if you turned your back on one.
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You'd have hope. But if there's only one Savior, you have one opportunity, one mediator to stand before God on that day, you can't turn your back on him.
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And sadly, people turn their back on Jesus for all kinds of reasons. I was telling somebody the other day when
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I meet a young man or a young woman, and they all say, you know, I grew up in the church, and I believe that Jesus is the way. I believe the
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Bible's inerrant, and I believe all these things, but I'm not quite sure anymore. I usually say to them, as a young man,
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I'll say, well, what's her name? What I mean by that is they're cogitating this.
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I'd like to have relations with this girl, or I am, but I know what the Bible says. I know what it says about holiness.
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I know what it says about sanctification. I know what it says about my body's a temple, and I can't process both, so one's got to go, and it's not her.
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This whole book is written so that you might keep believing that Jesus is the
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Messiah. Heidelberg Catechism tells us, what is true faith? True faith is not only a sure knowledge whereby
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I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in his word, but also a hearty trust which the
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Holy Spirit works in me by the gospel. That's what I want you to have, a hearty trust, believing that Jesus is the
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Messiah, the great High Priest. Well, let's go to chapter 6, and for a quick review, you are not saved by doing religious things.
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You're only saved by resting in, or trusting in, or believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, the risen Savior. You're not saved by doing religious things.
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Remember last week, verse 1, Hebrews 6? Therefore, let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ, the
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ABCs, true things, but just elementary things, and go on to maturity. And he gives a bunch of religious things that were good religious things, not even anti -religious.
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They're good things, but they're only foundational, not again laying a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.
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When it comes to being a Christian, it's not just religious duty and religious doings.
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Furthermore, verse 3, it's not even of your own power or will. And this verse 3, we will do if God permits.
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It's one thing to be responsible for salvation, it's another thing to actually accomplish it, and since people are born in trespasses and sins, they can't do it.
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John 1 says, people are born not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, not of the will of man, but of God.
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And now we come to verses 4 through 6. You're not saved by doing religious things, verses 1 and 2.
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You're not saved by your own power. And now verses 4 to 6, you're not saved by having religious experiences.
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And I'm going to call these Judas experiences. We're going to talk a lot about Judas today.
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Let's read verses 4, 5, and 6. These are experiences that people can have that are not saving.
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This is not enough. For it is impossible, verse 4, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who've tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the
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Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away to restore them again to repentance.
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It's impossible. Since they are crucifying once again the
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Son of God to their own harm and holding Him up to contempt.
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As I said last week, when we sit around the campfire and we talk theological questions, 1
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Peter 3 comes up and Hebrews 6 comes up. But really, it's not that difficult.
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Although Martin Lloyd -Jones said, I can say definitely after some 35 years of pastoral experience that there are no passages in the whole of Scripture which have more frequently troubled and caused them soul agony than the passages in Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10.
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Lloyd -Jones, large numbers of Christian people are held in bondage by Satan owing to a particular misunderstanding of these verses.
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I do not say that these are the two most difficult passages in the Bible. I do not regard them as such. But I do assent that they are passages the devil seems to most frequently use in order to distress and to trouble
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God's children. They're difficult, but not that difficult.
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Now, when we come to this section, there are essentially four views. Who are these people that apostatize?
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Option 1, they're true believers who lose their salvation. Option 2, they're true believers and they lose a reward.
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Option 3, they're just hypothetical believers. And option 4, they're false believers who face eternal condemnation.
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And I think we can easily solve this problem by looking at verse 9, the key verse in all of Hebrews 6 to unlock what's going on.
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Though we speak in this way, Hebrews 6, 9, yet in your case, and now he calls him this for the first time, beloved, we feel sure of better things, things that belong to salvation.
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And then he lists those. In other words, whatever he's talked about in verses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, it doesn't talk about salvation.
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You don't hear anything in those verses that talk about reconciled by Jesus' blood, redeemed by the blood of the
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Lamb, made propitiation for sins, trusting in Jesus, the only Savior, for your salvation.
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It's all foundational things. It's all bottom line things. This passage is talking about if you profess
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Christ and don't possess Him, and you turn your back, there is eternal judgment for you. These people aren't real believers.
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These people are like Judas. One thing's for certain, verse 4, do you notice this?
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It is impossible, it picks it up in verse 6, to restore them again to repentance. Whatever's happening here, if they turn their back on Jesus, there's no hope for them.
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It's impossible. The text, by the way, does not say it's hard. If you turn your back on Jesus, it's hard for you in the future.
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It does not say, well, it's kind of difficult. It does not say, well, it just won't help you on that day of judgment.
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It's just not profitable. The text says it's impossible. Do you see chapter 6, verse 18? Here's another use.
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It is impossible for God to what? Lie. The text does not say, it's kind of hard for God to lie.
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It's kind of difficult for God to lie. It's very, very unfitting for God to lie.
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It's impossible. Same thing in verse 4 of chapter 10. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
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It doesn't say, well, it's kind of difficult. It's hard. It's complicated. It says it's impossible.
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And in chapter 11, verse 6, it's impossible to please God apart from faith. If you won't trust in who
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Jesus is, you can't please God in any way, shape, or form no matter what you do. It doesn't say it's hard, it's difficult.
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It's very, very problematic. It says it's impossible. And that same word is used here in Hebrews 6.
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It is impossible. Don't weaken it. It's impossible. If you're going to turn your back on Jesus, if you're going to stiff arm
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Jesus, there's no hope for you. There's no way that you can stand before God. It is impossible.
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And so what we have is essentially five descriptions of what these people have gone through that still don't measure up.
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And by the way, if you're a Greek student, there's one definite article that governs all of these participles.
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By the way, one of the first things I do when I'm teaching men how to preach is I make them take an English refresher class.
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Because what's a conjunction? What is a gerund? What is a participle?
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And of course, as the reformers would say, in these last days, God has revealed himself to us in Hebrew and Greek letters.
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We have to be people of the book. And so here we have one article governing five participles.
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Isn't that just, I mean, that is just to me the refreshment of the day. And these are those participles, and these are those five here.
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Do you see them? Once been enlightened, once tasted the gift, shared in the Holy Spirit, tasted the goodness of the word, and the powers of the age to come.
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These people profess all that, but they don't have it. And when I read this,
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I think, that sounds like Israel in the wilderness. That sounds like Judas to me.
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Every one of those phrases could be used of Judas. Could it not? By the way, when
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Jesus sent Judas out with the twelve, he gave Judas power and authority,
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Luke 9 says, over demons to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.
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Can you imagine all the privileges Judas had? He could heal, he could cast out demons, he heard
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Jesus preach, he heard the sermon on the mount, he heard Jesus, as he said to the demons, be gone, he saw the five thousands fed, he saw the four thousands fed, he was there when
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Jesus talked about the prodigal son in Luke 15, he was there when
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Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, Lazarus arise, he heard
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Jesus talk about the narrow road to salvation, he witnessed all those miracles, and yet this man betrays
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Jesus, this man said Judas, why was not this ointment sold for 300 pence and given to the poor?
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This Judas said, whomever I shall kiss, he is that man. This Judas said,
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I have sinned and that I have betrayed innocent blood. This writer here is preaching this sermon, this letter sermon, and he knows there are people in the congregation who are believers, and he's talked about, you can have great help in time of need,
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Hebrews chapter 4, but like me today, sadly, I mean, I don't know because I can't read hearts, but whenever I get up to preach,
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I'm thinking, and even Elder Brown, when he said, Lord, if there are people here that don't know you, draw them to yourself, there are people here that aren't
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Christians, and so they need to be face to face with, you know what, well, I know all about Jesus, and I intellectually know, friends, demons believe and tremble,
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Judas believed, Judas did miracles, Judas had experiences, well, I've had experiences too, and I felt this warmth, and I thought this was true, those things are irrelevant, if you won't trust in Jesus, they are irrelevant,
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Judas was close, he wasn't saved, Israel had experiences in the wilderness, they all died, now one thing we do know, because chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, they've taught us, is that saints, real believers, are secure in Christ, because you have a high priest, because you have a mediator, you don't have to worry about losing your salvation, you could lose your salvation, as much as people could leave heaven right now, because you have the promises of God, if you're trusting in this
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Messiah, God's gifts are irrevocable, God's calling is sure,
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Jesus said, and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand, we saw a few weeks ago, who shall separate us from the love of Christ, I'm persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, depth, or any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our
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Lord, as Charlie rightly said, Jude 24, to him, now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, blameless, with great joy, if there's anything that chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 have taught us, is that when you're trusting in the high priest, your sins are forgiven, you can't lose your salvation, you have a mediator that stands before, between you and the father, present tense language, you always have him,
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Jesus said in John 6, all that the father gives me, shall come to me, and the one that comes to me,
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I will certainly not cast out, if you're born again, you can't be unborn, you're kept by the power of God, 1st
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Corinthians 1, if those slackers spiritually could lose their salvation, anyone could, but what does
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Paul say in 1st Corinthians 1, who shall confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of the
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Lord Jesus Christ, God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with his son,
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Jesus Christ our Lord, our salvation is secure, because of who
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Jesus is, Hebrews 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, but there are people that hear sermons, whose salvation shouldn't be secure, because they're not real believers, they know the foundational building blocks, they know the
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ABCs, they know the catechism, they know that God's a creator, they know they're sinful, they know that maybe Jesus is the only way, but they're not trusting in him, and so this warning is there, front and center, so people say, am
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I one of these people, am I really trusting, you can have all kinds of Judas experience, and still go to hell when you die, and frankly,
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I think that's probably more shocking to me, than if somebody says, well I'm Anton LaVey, and I follow
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Satanists, and I do this, that and the other, and when I die, I know I'm going to go to hell, they'll be shocked that day,
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I know when they enter into hell, but it'd be more shocking for people who said, do you know,
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I was catechized, I go to church, I'm a member, I serve, I've had all these religious experiences, but I'm not trusting in the
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Lord, and so think Judas, when you see all these descriptions, for instance, verse 4, who have once been enlightened, and to remind you, all this language is less than saving faith, less than saving faith, who have once been enlightened, they've got an intellectual understanding, of the redemption of God, that's true, and when
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I think of these, once been enlightened, and these other five descriptions, here's what I often think of, and I think it's right to do,
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Paul, maybe it's not Paul, the writer of the book, I kind of want it to be
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Paul, how many people here think it's Paul, by the way, okay, how many people think it was the
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Virgin Mary, actually some people do, okay, the writer, the apostle, the author of this book, he's writing to Hebrews, what do you think is going to be a backdrop, to his stories, it's going to be
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Israel, because he's already talked about, how Israel in the past, has not rested in God, how they believe, but this belief is not connected, with real belief, it's less than real belief, and so he's going to be talking, about experiences, that they had in the wilderness, pretty often, and I think he does that here, did the
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Israelites in the wilderness, have an enlightening experience, the answer is yes, and the
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Lord Exodus 13, went before them that day, in a pillar of cloud, to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light,
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I'm sure that's what he's talking about, these Israelites in the Old Testament, they had light, they were enlightened, maybe they even had an enlightened, a religious experience, but that's not enough, you say, well
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I know some people, they're enlightened all the way, that's true, but there's an enlightening, that's just partial, that's not saving, that's not converting,
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Balaam, was Balaam enlightened, when he said, he knew the knowledge of the Most High, Numbers 24, and gave messianic promises,
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Balaam knew a lot, he was enlightened, he had the knowledge of the God, but he's not a believer, turn to Acts chapter 8, and let me show you another illustration, of somebody who can be enlightened, who can taste, who can be close, but they're a billion miles away,
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Simon Magnus, is his name, Acts chapter 8, Acts chapter 8, there is a faith in the
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Bible, that doesn't save, there's a trust in Jesus, that's not salvific, there's a false hope, a
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Judas hope, a demons hope, that I don't want anybody here to have, Simon, the magician,
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Acts 8, 9, the question is really, how close can you be to Jesus, and still not be a
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Christian, the answer is pretty close, but there was a man named
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Simon, who had previously practiced magic in the city, and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great, that's an odd way to phrase it, they all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying this man is the power of God, that is called great, capital
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G, and they paid attention to him, because for a long time, he had amazed them with his magic, but when they believed
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Philip, as he preached good news about the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women, even
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Simon himself believed, and after being baptized, he continued with Philip, he believed, baptized, continued, and seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed, believed, baptized, continued, amazed, and when the apostles, verse 14, at Jerusalem heard that Samaria, had received the word of God, they sent to them
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Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized, in the name of the
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Lord Jesus, then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit, now when
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Simon saw, that the spirit was given, through the laying on of the apostles hands, he offered them money saying, give me this power also, so that anyone, on whom
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I lay my hands, may receive the Holy Spirit, and Peter knew, that this man was not saved, listen to what
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Peter says, may your silver perish with you, because you thought, you could obtain the gift of God, with money, he could have just said to his face, you go to hell, that's the idea, no possible way, you perish, you die right now, because this is false, you have verse 21, neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God, and he gives a call to salvation, repent therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the
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Lord, that if possible, the intent of your heart, may be forgiven you, and I'll add my words, you fraud, for I see, that you are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity,
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Simon answered, pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said, may come upon me, he's close, he's enlightened, he knows, he says he believes, he's baptized, he continues, he's amazed, and he's still not a
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Christian, true or false, everyone who says to me,
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Lord, Lord on that day, will enter into the kingdom of heaven, false, not everyone, back to John chapter 6, there's a faith, that doesn't save, that rocked my world, by the way, when
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I became a Christian, there's a faith, that doesn't save, it's a fake faith, it's a demon faith, it's intellectual only, it's knowledge only, it's my parents only, it's only gonna last, until that girl comes along, that man comes along, that job comes along, and then it's like, you know what,
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I don't need that, I have other things, there's a faith, that just says, you know what, just keep me out of hell,
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I'll just give as minimal, amount of trust to Jesus, as that, and let me live for myself, these
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Israelites, were enlightened, in the wilderness, Judas was enlightened, it wasn't saving, it didn't save the
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Israelites, in the wilderness, it didn't save Judas, eternally, well furthermore, who have tasted, the heavenly gift, whatever this is, verse 9 of chapter 6, says it's not saving, they've tasted, the heavenly gift,
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John Owen says, they taste it, but they don't swallow it, this could be
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Judas, this could be Saul, tasting, it's a metaphor, for experiencing something, they had an experience, some people think, they had the
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Lord's supper, but still turned their back, on the Lord, that has nothing to do with it, I don't think, let's think about, that Israel thing, in the wilderness,
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Israelites could be enlightened, by the pillar of fire, could the wilderness, wanderings of Israel, show us anything, about tasting, did the
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Israelites, taste anything, of the good hand of God, well we know that, Exodus 16, for then the
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Lord said to Moses, behold I'm about to rain bread, from heaven for you, and the people shall go out, and gather a day's portion, every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk, in my law or not, did not the
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Israelites, taste the manna, did they taste the manna, that's why when you go, to the manna down the street, in West Boston, and they serve you that food, that they serve you,
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I always look at it and go, what is this, just kidding, manna means what is this, they saw the pillar of light, they tasted the manna, they died in the wilderness, we have these experiences, we say we believe, pressure comes, tribulation comes, persecution comes, nope
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I'm checking out of this, Christianity doesn't work, by the way, this is why when you evangelize people, if your evangelism tactic is this, come to Jesus, all your problems will be solved, this kind of, glory first, cross, maybe some other day, that was for Jesus, these prosperity teachers on TV, the health, wealth, prosperity preachers, why are they bald by the way, and wear glasses, physician heal yourself, this is the wrong kind of evangelism, because troubles do come, we're sinful, we live in a cursed world, and Jesus said, through Paul, in this world you will have tribulation, so you need to have a faith in Jesus, that is going to hold you, and that faith is not, well you know what,
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I'm going to come to you, because I get things, including when you evangelize someone, say come to Jesus, and your marriage will be all better, frankly
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I know some people, who are married as unbelievers, and are still unbelievers, and their marriages are better, than some people here, come to Jesus, and you might have your marriage, explode negatively, that's not why we evangelize people, come to Jesus, and you get this, that and the other in your life, come to Jesus, so you can be reconciled to God, and to give glory to his son, these people were close, but they weren't believers, they weren't resting, they weren't trusting, thirdly what does the text say, they were partakers of the
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Holy Spirit, now that could be Simon Magnus, that could be Judas, they were partakers, the text does not say, they were sealed with the
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Spirit, they were dwelt by the Spirit, they were baptized in the Spirit, they were filled with the Spirit, it doesn't say any of that, but there was this personal attachment, they partook, but they didn't possess, partakers of the
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Holy Spirit, go back to chapter 2, what does this mean, partakers of the
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Holy Spirit, I think he's on to something in chapter 2, when he says in verses 3 and 4, about what the
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Holy Spirit could do, and what he would do, and how powerfully he could do it, and they could see some of that, not only in the wilderness, but also in the apostolic era, how shall we escape
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Hebrews 2 ,3, if we neglect such a great salvation, it was declared at first, by the
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Lord, and it was attested to us, by those who heard, while God also bore witness, by signs and wonders, and various miracles, and by gifts of the
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Holy Spirit, distributed according to his will, what's the writer saying, you could watch all this, with their very own eyes, healings, and feedings, and power, and miracles, and still you can see it, but you might not believe it, back to chapter 6, there's enlightening, there's tasting, there's sharing, and here's now more taste language, tasted the goodness of the word of God, this reminds me of the parable of the sower, people receive the word with joy, and they still trash it, when something bad comes, here's the word of God, they've tasted it, he's writing to the
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Hebrews, and here's what I think he's saying, you Hebrews have experienced, the Old Testament prophecies, that Jesus is the
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Messiah, you know about Genesis 3, you know about the Passover lamb, you know about the rock, that was struck in the wilderness as Jesus, you know about Isaiah 53, you know about all these, but you're just tasting it, you're not believing,
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Hebrews 4 ,2, the word did not profit them, because it was not united by faith, they heard the word, but it was of no profit, because if you don't believe it, it doesn't matter, and then lastly chapter 6, it says powers of the age to come, you can have all kinds of experiences, but if you're not resting in Christ, and believing in him, it doesn't matter, you can be enlightened, you can taste, you can share, you can taste, and here, tasted the powers of the age to come, those people that died in the wilderness, saw the powerful miracles of God, in Israel in the wilderness, they didn't make it in the land, these readers, these recipients of this sermon, they heard about the apostles miracles, they heard about the miracles of the
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Lord Jesus, they didn't believe, everything in this list, that we've just gone through, could be said of Judas, could be said of Israelites in the wilderness,
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Matthew Henry says, they declare that they approve of what the Jews did, in crucifying Jesus, what, where do we get that, take a look at verse 6, if this is the way you're going to act, you're going to have all these kind of, experiences, but don't believe, and you turn your back, on this only
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Savior, it's impossible, to restore them to repentance, since they are crucifying, once again, the son of God, to their own harm, holding him up to contempt, now that is amazing,
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I know all about Jesus, I've been taught, I understand, but I'm not going to believe in him, because life is hard, and there's another way,
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I'll go my own way, well friends, you're saying basically, Jesus got what he deserved, and by the way, if I could bring him back right now,
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I'd crucify him again, the language here, is intense, no wonder,
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Jesus calls Judas, the devil, no wonder, Jesus called Judas, the son of perdition, no wonder,
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Jesus said to Judas, it would be better for him, if he had not even been what, born, this man for three years, walks in the company of Jesus, knows that Jesus has to suffer, die, and be raised from the dead, because he's the son of man, prophesied in Daniel chapter 7, and Judas says, for 30 pieces of silver, you crucify him, and if you've had religious experiences, but you won't trust in Jesus, and you turn your back on Jesus, for money, for power, for sex, or for whatever else, you're standing at the cross, saying crucify him, that's the passage, crucify him, no wonder, the text does not say, it's improbable, for them to have repentance, what's the text say?
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Impossible, because if you turn your back, on who Jesus is, it's impossible, I, don't want to believe in Jesus, something has a higher priority, and the apostle here says, then you know what, you put yourself, at the bottom of that cross, in the same company, with those people, who nailed him to the cross, you spit in his face, you put the bag on his head, and punch him, you run the spear, through his side, you nail those, nails to his wrists, do you notice the text, holding him up, to contempt, at the end of verse six, this negative testimony,
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I know all about Jesus, but I'm not going to believe in him, I just as soon, hang
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Jesus up naked, and put him up, in a parade, let's have a parade about Jesus, and just mock him, and spit on him, no wonder
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Hebrews 10 says, how much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one, who is trampled underfoot, the son of God, and has profaned, the blood of his covenant, when you turn your back, on who
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Jesus is, and won't believe, there's no way, to be reconciled, there's no way, to be forgiven, there's no way, to be justified, because reconciliation, redemption, justification, propitiation, are rooted in the high priest, and when you turn your back, on Jesus, you say, get
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Jesus back, on that cross, crucify him afresh, as far as I'm concerned,
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Jesus deserved, to be crucified, loser, he can't save himself, how can he save, somebody else, liar,
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Satan was right, crucify him, that's what unbelief does,
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Vincent said, this marks, the enormity, of the offense, this is not meant, to scare
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Christians, you're supposed, to be trusting in the Messiah, the high priest, who saved you, and when you struggle, you have a time, to go to him in weakness, and a time of need, this is meant, to scare people, who are dabbling, around the periphery, and we're saying, you know what, maybe one day
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I'll believe, maybe right now, I won't believe, maybe some other time, this is meant, for people, who have sin in their life, to go, you know what,
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I should probably, examine myself, to see if I'm in the faith, I should probably, double check, to make sure, is there fruit in my life, of Christianity, and that's what's coming up, in the next week, he really lays it on heavily, and it's dramatic, yes, it's sharp, yes, and the text says, you can fall away, not
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Christians, they can't fall away, we're secure in Christ Jesus, Christ mediatorial priesthood works, but these professors, they can fall away, and when they fall away, and turn their back on Jesus, there's no hope, if this text said, you could lose your salvation, friends, you sin one time, you lost it for good, and it's impossible, if you'd ever get it back,
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I have friends, they say, well this passage means, you can lose your salvation, well then, after you sin once, it's impossible for you, to ever get it back, that can't be, and when you look at the text, crucifying verse six, once again, the son of God, what a title, it'd be one thing, if you said,
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Jesus, his humanity, but this is the son of God, and there's no other way, to the father, except through the son,
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I watch this, and I think, do I believe in original sin, do I believe in satanic forces,
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Satan blinding people's minds, the answer has to be, yes and yes, because who else would do this, who else would be so close, to the promises of God, and tasted it, and experienced, and seen, and read, and said, you know what,
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I don't care, I want my sin instead, we believe in depravity, we believe in sin, we believe in Satan, because no one in their right mind, would do this, but of course, sin makes us depraved, in our mind, this is not a fall from salvation, this is a fall, from the profession of faith, and actually, it's good that they fall, for their own sakes, because at least they're not, self -deceived any longer, it's good for the congregation, to know about, because then we can see, you know what these people, used to be part of us, and they left, does this not sound like, 1st
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John chapter 2 verse 19, they went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us, but they went out, that it might become plain, that they are all not of us, that could be
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Hebrews 6, that is Hebrews 6, and then he gives a final illustration, with agriculture, and Christians bear fruit, they're not saved, because of fruit bearing, but they do bear fruit, remember our legal standing, is based on Christ's work, that's the ground of our salvation,
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Christ's perfect life, Christ's death, Christ is risen, to prove that he did what he did, and he said what he was, and he confirmed all those promises, by being raised from the dead, but that's the ground of our salvation, but if we have been saved, we have been justified, there will be fruit in our lives, attitude fruit, action fruit, and that's what he does here, you can say you're something, and if there's no fruit, there's burning, but if there is fruit, that should help you with your assurance, that we'll talk about, we talked about a few weeks ago, and we'll talk about next week as well, so he gives this agricultural illustration, this illustration from nature, about apostasy, here's the fruitful one verse 7, for land that has drunk the rain, that often falls on it, produces a crop useful to those, for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God, you're saved by faith alone, but that faith won't be alone, and when you see fruit in your life, as we talked about the fruit of the spirit, that is a good confirmation, that you're a
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Christian, but it says in verse 8, there's also a fruitlessness, and this is what happens to those, that will not trust in Jesus Christ, if you're here today, this is your end, if you're not going to trust in Jesus, but if it bears thorns and thistles, and look at the three descriptions,
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I mean it is shocking, worthless, near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned, the first one, worthless are rejected, that word could be translated reprobate, that word could be translated unapproved,
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God makes you as a creature to honor him, and you don't do what you've been made to do, you're worthless, you everyone here,
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Christian and non -Christian, have been made to worship Jesus Christ, and if you won't, you're going to be rejected, what else does he say, taking your breath away kind of language, cursing,
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King James, nigh unto cursing, remember what the
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Bible says about the law, curse it as everyone, who will not obey the law perfectly, curse it as the one, who will not perfectly obey the law, so why be there, when you can trust in Jesus, who redeemed us from the curse, and then the end, of course you've got a lot of false teachers, on the radio and TV running their mouths, about no judgment at the end, and no hell, and no eternal damnation, this writer is not that foolish, he knows what's the end, because he knows what
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Jesus has taught, about the lake of fire, and the end, here's the end game, not party with my buddies in hell, forever the end is to be what, burned, and it's end is to be burned, just like those crops, you pull out all the crops, and you harvest them, and you eat the fruit, and then the thistles, and the thorns, and the bristles you burn, weeds go in the fire, goats go in the fire, sheep don't, thorns and thistles, this is just such a passage, it reminds me of Deuteronomy, all its land is brimstone, and salt a burning waste, unsewn and unproductive, and no grass grows in it, like the overthrow, of Sodom and Gomorrah, which the
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Lord overthrew, in his anger and in his wrath, and the nations will say, why has the Lord done thus, to this land, why this great outburst of anger, therefore the anger of the
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Lord, burned against that land, to bring upon it every curse, which is written in this book, that was temporal judgment, how much more eternal judgment, no wonder 1st
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Corinthians 6 says, do you not know, that the unrighteous, shall not inherit the kingdom of God, do not be deceived, either fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God, but such were some of you, and you were washed, and you were sanctified, and justified, in the name of the
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Lord Jesus Christ, and the spirit of our God, Paul said in 1st
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Timothy 4, now the spirit expressly says, that in the latter times, some will depart from the faith,
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I don't want that to be you, Christian, I want you to keep believing, and keep trusting in Jesus, the only
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Savior, and Christian, you are safe and secure, you will persevere to the end, you're told to persevere to the end, and God will make you persevere, all the way to the end, we'll see that next week, in chapter 6, verses 9 through 20, but for you, those of you, who are here playing games, and I'm not really trusting,
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I'll wait till I'm older, and the list goes on and on, all the reasons not to believe, there's an end,
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I'm telling you what's coming up, it's burning, so turn, trust, believe,
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God offers you forgiveness now, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible says, and you will be saved, don't be a pretend believer, don't be an apostate, don't be a
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Judas, don't be a Saul, don't be Israel in the wilderness, father, we come to your word with solemnity, and sobriety today, especially in light of this passage, and I just am very thankful, that you have these warnings in the scripture, because through these warnings, you do your work, and father, to have a sermon like this, even if it affects one person, that they become serious about their sin, and serious about Jesus, the sin bearer,
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I'll be very thankful, and only eternity will tell, what you do through a frail man's preaching, with passages like this, and so I pray, that the
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Christians would be thankful, that they're not these kind of people, and that we have a hope set before us, fixing our eyes on the
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Lord Jesus, but those who are playing games, father, I pray that you'd expose them, and as S. Louis Johnson has prayed, give them no rest, until they rest in you by faith, in Jesus name, amen.