Salvation is Necessary

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.

No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ. Based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the

Apostle Paul said, But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

In short, if you like smooth, watered down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn't for you.

By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we're called by the

Divine Trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her King. Here's our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth.

No Compromise Radio ministry, Steve Cooley, Cooley, is that how you say, what did

I just say? Uh, I prefer Co -ah -lee. Co -ah -lee. Multisyllabic last name.

Please tell me about the Ligonier Conference. You just got back from Seattle, Washington. Yeah, it was short, sweet.

You know, I mean, it was just a Friday and Saturday deal. It was kind of funny because we also took in, they have some extra things on the menu that you can just sit in and watch.

And so, there was a little Logos demonstration, and I'm going, the guy did more in 10 minutes than I ever do with Logos.

I was pretty embarrassed by that because mostly all I do is I just kind of get all the commentaries and some other things

I want, and then I'm done with it. I think that's all I do. I just go Hebrews, O 'Brien, cut, paste.

Yeah. And I use that, you know, I'll pull out, I don't know, five, six different commentaries, the ones that I read all the time.

But I did feel a little guilty. I'm going, wow, you can do all that? But you know, some of it, I mean,

I'm kind of rambling, but some of it, I just thought word searches, stuff like that. I mean, word studies, you know, there are all kinds of fallacies involved with that.

But overall, conference was good. You know, really nice church.

I should show you some pictures. I have to show you pictures. Petey We're going to show them to the listeners. Pete Well, we won't. But I mean, the church is always,

I'm always amazed by the churches. Now you have to understand, this is in Redmond, right?

And you know, the heart of Microsoft. So I'm just like, I'm going probably if you get like one person who's moderately involved in Microsoft, you know, or is that you can fund a lot at your church, but they had a massive, massive campus.

And they had, what do they call it? Kid's Town, which was decorated to the nines.

I'm just like, okay, I see everything involved here except for,

I don't know, the gospel, the Bible, you know. Pete There's a deer that just ran across the parking lot.

Pete Oh yeah, I see it. Pete See that? Pete Yeah. Let me wave at him. Pete That was weird. Pete I remember when we first moved out here, we were renting a house in Sterling and I called my brother, you know, my brother,

Joe. And I said, hey, Joe, guess what I'm looking at right now? And he goes, I don't know what. And I said, three deer on my property, you know.

Pete Eating that rhubarb. Remember that rhubarb? Pete Yeah, I do. Pete That was super good. Pete Well, usually there are, he doesn't know where to go.

Usually there are turkey out there, but this time there's a deer. Our listeners write in sometimes that we're just talking about Bible things and then we'll mention animals in the parking lot.

So we have ADHD or something. Well I mentioned deer deaths. Pete Hey, how often?

Does a deer run through your parking lot, right? Pete Here it goes up and over. Pete Not very often is the answer.

Oh, yeah, running out on the road. That's not a good plan. Pete Wow. That thing can leap.

Pete Well. Pete As a deer panteth for the water, so my soul. Is it a heart or a deer in the original

King James version? Pete I don't know, but what does the message say about that?

Pete You know what? Pete We're going to find out because this is the message that I have with Bono's version of Psalm 42 because he and Eugene Peterson are kind of friends.

Pete Stop it. Pete Did you watch the interview? Pete No. Pete Well, you should type it in, Bono and Eugene Peterson.

Pete I'm so disappointed in Bono. Pete Psalm 42, according to the message, a white -tailed deer drinks from the creek.

I want to drink God. Pete It doesn't say I want to drink,

God. It says I want to drink God, deep draughts of God.

So give me a 42 ounce or on tap God. I want to drink God. I'm thirsty for God alive.

Pete For the record, there are 40 answers, not 42 answers. Pete Okay. Well, what about the number five alive drink?

Pete No, I did have a Henry Winehearts while I was in Seattle, though. Pete Root beer.

Pete Yeah. Pete I wonder, will I ever make it, arrive and drink in God's presence?

I'm on a diet of tears, tears for breakfast, tears for supper, all day long.

People knock at my door pestering, where is this God of yours? Now, I want to know what it means to drink

God. I've been to four theological seminaries and teach at three. I don't know what that means.

Pete I don't know, but it makes me think of that old folk song, hang down your head, hang down your head,

Steve Cooley, I mean, hang down your head and cry. I didn't, I'm not responsible for that translation, but I'm glad I'm not.

Pete Steve, just generally regarding conferences, what would you say to those people who are listening and every year for family vacations, they go to Disneyland or Disney World or something like that?

Is there, are there some suggestions, some wisdom to maybe make it a family vacation?

I don't know, Camp of the Woods, the Ligonier, I don't know, what do you do? I guess there's no kid things up in Ligonier conferences.

Pete Well, except, you know, if you go to the National one in Orlando, you come for the sermons, you'll stay for the pie.

Yeah, I mean, you can go to Disney World, you can do Sea World, you can do Universal Studios. You know, you don't have to only do one or the other.

I think it's good to kind of emphasize some sort of spiritual lesson with your kids rather than vacation.

It's just where we have fun. Steve, what if I went to the National Ligonier Conference in Orlando and would go to Bible teaching one day and then

I could go to Universal Studios Harry Potter segment the next day? That work out okay?

Pete Well, I mean, I'm not a big Harry Potter fan, but then again,

I'm not, you know, totally legalistic about it either. But I would just say you will probably get more out of the

Ligonier, you know, more impact for your spiritual life, more eternal impact than you will at Harry Potter.

I will say, though, that, you know, a lot of the Ligonier messages tend to be, you know, topical and theological in nature rather than expositional, meaning you don't leave there going, okay, what was the text and what was the point of the text?

That's not typically, you know, I mean, they'll use scripture and stuff, but they don't really, they don't preach expositionally, they don't really expose the text, they don't get to the meaning of the text and just preach the text.

Jared Do you think that's okay to do at a conference versus Sunday morning? Pete Yeah, I do. I mean, I do, and I think topical things are fine for that.

I just, I would prefer something more, again, tied to a text because I'm just like that.

You know, I want to know that what the speaker is saying is actually based on the

Bible. So, Steve, when Jesus said in Luke 12,

I came to cast fire on the earth and would that it were already kindled, I have a baptism to be baptized with and how great is my distress until it is accomplished.

Do you think that I came, have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.

Why don't we ever hear about that kind of passage? I've always liked peace on earth, Bing Crosby and David Bowie singing.

I think there's, of course, Jesus comes and he brings peace with God. And of course, he is

God, but he brings peace with the Father because of his atoning work. What does it mean when he's bringing the sword?

Pete Well, he divides and it's something that is not very popular these days because we like to just set up Jesus as the ultimate hangout guy, right?

He just sort of hangs out with people and makes people feel better about themselves and that is not the

Jesus of scripture. The Jesus of scripture confronts sin. Does he hang out with sinners?

I mean, there's a country song, you know, that basically says Jesus hangs out with sinners and that's why he would like me because I'm a sinner.

And I'm like, oh, no, I think what he did was call people to repentance and, you know, he certainly just by his own presence made people uncomfortable, right?

I mean, because he, here's the sinless lamb of God and not somebody that you like to just sit around and go, so,

Jesus, what's new with you? And he goes, well, I'm just doing the Father's work. What about you? Jared When he hung out with sinners, he called them to repentance is what he did.

Jared Steve, the text goes on to say in Luke chapter 12, no, I tell you, but rather division for from now on in one house, there will be five divided, three against two and two against three.

They will be divided father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother -in -law against her daughter -in -law and daughter -in -law against mother -in -law.

In other words, the gospel comes to a family and it might divide the family because now you have people that love

Jesus and other people that hate Jesus. Pete Wait, hate Jesus? Who could hate

Jesus? Jared Well, I'm trying to think of something funny when

I just said, well, I could have said it like Ronald Reagan or something, wasn't Pete Well, and actually,

I'll answer my own question. Who could hate Jesus? Every unbeliever. Jared What about the person who's got high self -esteem?

Does he have any need for Jesus? I was thinking about this the other day, Steve. You've got Puritans focused on sanctification through self -loathing, essentially, and they would even call it that.

And now you've got self -talk about today, but not so much self -loathing.

Are there any people on earth that are loathing themselves? Maybe some

Reformed Baptists. Steve I mean, you're talking to the wrong guy, right? Because I'm always beating myself up.

I mean, the truth is, I mean, if you, I think if you don't have a certain amount of self -loathing, then you're not at all introspective and you're,

I would say that you may run afoul of 2 Corinthians 13. 5. You know, examine yourselves and see if you're in the faith.

I mean, there's a principle there. I think it's good, especially when we sin, you know, it's easy to say, well, that sin's covered because it is, but I think it's also right to just say, well, what can, how could

I do that? How could I possibly sin against God like that? I know better, you know, so how could

I even, how could I think that? How could I say that? How could I do that? I think those are good things to contemplate and then to say, okay, you know, apart from, well, what can

I do that I won't commit that sin again? How can I push that sin off? What can I put into my life and get rid of it?

So, you know, I think a certain amount of self -loathing is very helpful and that's why churches today that just want to teach you how to love yourself, how to be more in love with yourself, who want to, you know, teach the

Whitney song, Whitney Houston song, you know, the greatest love of all, those things are really spiritually poisoned.

They're killing you. Why did love me do just come into my mind? I don't know, but that has to do with, you know, another person loving you and has -

Steve, I regularly say, even out loud, that was stupid. You're an idiot.

And the thing is, I'm talking about myself. That was dumb. Don't do that stupid thing again,

Mike. That was idiotic to think that way. That was sinful. Steve, today, mainly

I want to talk about this because you have many years in the criminal justice system.

Is that fair to say? Yes. Is that part of the system? I was recently released on parole and -

Okay. So, when I watch Law & Order back in the old days, there's law part, you would be part of the law enforcement, and then there's the order.

I guess that's the lawyer kind of - Judicial part of the show. Or if you watch

Blue Bloods, I guess if you have one family, you have some of both, right? Some of the lawyers and some of the cops and all.

All right. Here's what Jesus says in Luke chapter 12. And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?

As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer puts you in prison.

I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny. And then

Jesus goes on to talk about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled, and the response of Jesus was, hey, it's not because they were bad, but unless you repent, you'll all likewise perish.

Then he talks about the tower that fell, Siloam Tower. And the response again is, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

Here's my point at the end of Luke chapter 12. Steve, with your background, wax a little bit on the idea of settling out of court before you have to go to court with God.

In other words, you're going to die one day and stand before the bar of God's justice. So while you're alive now, settle out of court is better before you go into court.

Yeah, it's really in our system, it almost doesn't, the analogy almost fails because you can get a plea bargain, plead to a lesser crime, or take, just plead guilty and get a lesser penalty because you don't fight it.

You don't go to the jury. You don't push for a trial or whatever. But when it comes to God, there is no lesser penalty you can pay.

I mean, you're either all in with Jesus Christ so that all of your sin is transferred to him and all of his righteousness is credited to you so that when you stand before the judge, there's nothing for you to pay and you enter into his kingdom or you stand there empty.

You have nothing. You're bereft of hope. You have no excuse. You stand before the judge and you just say,

I'm guilty. Nobody's going to be able to say, I didn't know any better.

I was drunk. We were talking about that, this case out in California earlier off the air, but nobody's going to have an excuse.

You're going to stand before God like Romans 1 says. You're going to stand before God and you are going to say, I'm guilty.

I have no excuse. And he is going to say, depart from me. You are going to hell, eternal punishment.

If you try to go to court with God, what are the odds that you're going to win your case?

My sin really wasn't as bad as you say it is, God. I didn't commit as many sins as you say

I did. Your holiness really isn't that holy. I mean, are you ever going to win? No, there's no loophole.

There's no jury nullification. There's no hung juries. There's none of that. Can you buy off a jury member like John Gotti allegedly did?

No, and you can't nullify the jury like they did in the OJ case, convincing them that the police department framed

OJ. You can't do anything like that. You're just going to stand there and, you know,

I've spoken with people before who say when I get, you know, before God or when I get to heaven,

I'm going to ask him such and such, or I'm going to say whatever. And the truth is, your mouth is going to be shut and you're just, you're going to have no defense.

Nobody's going to intercede for you apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. No one can intercede for you.

What kind of defense is there? Because Romans 1 tells us that just by looking around, we know that there's a

God. We know the nature of God. We have, Romans further tells us that we have the law of God written in our hearts and then we're going to stand before him and say, but I didn't know.

I didn't know better. I, you know, I, my conscience was afflicted, but I didn't know.

Yes, you did. You knew exactly what right and wrong were and you did wrong. To use this earthly illustration, now put in the spiritual realm,

God has given you, if you're listening today and you're not a Christian, he has given you an opportunity to lay down your arms, as it were, and repent and believe in the gospel and you can make things right before the judge because of the

Lord Jesus, even in 1 John 2, called an advocate. You could think of it as a lawyer in your defense where Jesus takes your punishment, as Pastor Steve just said.

You get Jesus's righteousness and now God's holy law has no claim against you.

Jesus said on the cross, paid in full. Tetelestai, it is finished. He's been raised from the dead.

But if you are waiting on this earth now thinking, I'm not going to settle out of court.

Essentially, you're saying, I'm going to stand before God's bar of justice and we'll see what happens.

I'm going to bamboozle God. You know, I mean, I'm going to, I'm going to stand up and I'm going to give him a, if the glove does not fit, you must acquit.

I mean, but if you're thinking that way, doesn't that show you the insanity and the lunacy of sin and how sin deceives?

And then it says Satan blinds the eyes of people who aren't believers. I'll take my chances with God.

I'll stand before him. I'm going to win that day. I'm going to be Johnny Cochran that day.

I don't even know. Well, let me just, let me just say that people talk about, you know, going to Vegas and they're going to do this and that and the other thing because the odds are in their favor.

Well, we know that that's a fallacy because we look around at the buildings, all these lush, lavish buildings that they build there and you go, well, if the odds were so good, they couldn't do that, right?

Trevor Burrus Steve, slot payouts are 97 .4%. Pete Barber Yeah, yeah, yeah. But the odds with God, it's 100 to zero.

I mean, what could be more certain? You're guilty. You are 100 % guilty.

And guess what? God knows that because God knows everything. He knows every thought, everything that you've ever done, every even like pre -thought that you've ever had.

I mean, whatever. He knows everything. And so, you're going to stand there and say, what? You know, well,

I'm really not as bad as you think I am. Pete Barber And isn't it interesting, Steve, in Luke chapter 13 where the people essentially, you know, thinking like the

Jewish people of the day, who would be Indians in their thinking regarding caste system.

These people did something bad, therefore God punished them. That's a similar thought in the East today.

Putting it off on other people. Well, here's how God deals with other people. Let's think about them.

And I'm more righteous. It didn't fall on my head. And I must be more righteous than them.

Comparative righteousness. Could there be a bigger lie? My righteousness is better than these other people.

Pete Barber No, there could be no bigger lie. Jesus straightens it right out, right? He says, I tell you, unless you repent, you know, the same will happen to you.

So, they don't have any better claim. Here's the problem.

The problem is everybody presumes, even if they don't like think of it as a sliding scale, that's kind of what they're doing.

And what they're saying is, you know, well, even if I have done things that are as bad as other people,

I've done a lot of good, too. You know, and certainly God will look at the good things I've done and think, you know what?

Overall, I'd have to say he's a pretty good guy or she's a pretty good gal. You go to the judge even today and say, okay,

I know I'm here for murdering somebody. I did murder them. I'm 40 years old.

And for 39 years, 364 days, I never murdered anybody.

I did murder that one person the other day, but I didn't murder anybody else. Petey - And when you look at it, you know,

I've never stolen anything. I don't even park illegally. I mean, I'm straight as an arrow, you know.

Come on. It's one murder. I mean, come on. What are we talking about? David - It's just one little murder. Petey -

One violation of the, you know, of the code here. David - In the same passage, Luke chapter 13,

Jesus tells a parable about a fig tree that's planted. And that fig tree didn't have any fruit on it and it should have had fruit on it.

And so then it says, cut it down. Why should it use up the ground? And I think it's fair to say in a fair application, if you're listening today and you're not a believer, why are you existing on this earth?

You're made to worship Jesus and honor God with your body and your mind and your soul. And you don't.

What's the difference between you and the fig tree? It's the mercy of God that He just doesn't strike you down for taking up God's heir.

You should be bearing fruit and that you're alive is indicative of the mercy of God, giving you more time to settle out of court before judgment day.

Petey - God is gracious indeed. I mean, just think about our own lives and what

He, you know, brought us through, how He changed our hearts and our minds.

And you know, to anybody out there today who's not saved, I would just say, again, on that judgment day, what will you do?

What could you possibly say? How can you justify yourself? And if you're thinking, well, I don't even know if there is a

God. Well, yes, you do. You look around and you see the order of things, you see the power of God.

You can't really deny it. I mean, you can hope that there's no God. You can hope that you'll die and there's nothing afterward.

But God has set eternity in your heart. You know that there's something more. You know that you will stand before God one day.

And the only hope you have is to put your faith completely and fully in Jesus Christ, His perfect life,

His substitutionary death, His resurrection. That's all the hope there is. And I would encourage you to read the

Gospel of John, the Gospel of Luke. I mean, any of the Gospels. I prefer, you know, for first -timers to read the

Gospel of John. And just really look at the claims that Jesus makes about Himself over and over again.

He claims to be God. He is man. He is God. He was sinless.

Fully obeyed the law. Never did anything that He wasn't supposed to do. In other words, He's everything that we are not.

And that is why His death had infinite value and why it can be applied to us. Later in Luke 13,

Jesus said, Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.

And we would, with Jesus, call you, if you're not a believer, to strive to enter.

And we know that striving culminates in faith. Believing in what God said about the

Son. Believing in what God says about your sin and death and hell and eternity. What must

I do to be saved? The response is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. So that's what Steve and I want all our listeners to do.

Like the tax gatherer. Just say, be merciful to me, oh

God. Be in that Bible. Read it. Read about Jesus Christ. You can write us, info at NoCompromiseRadio .com

and we'd be glad to answer you. See you next time. No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth 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 10 .15 and in the evening at 6. We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston.

You can check us out online at bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.

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