Testimonies and Testiphonies (Updated 2022)

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.

Ministry Updates and Assurance Book Announcement

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry. Mike Abendroth, Steve Cooley, reporting for duty. Aye, aye, Captain. Steve, you recorded a couple shows when I was gone. I did. I�ve yet to listen to them. Shame on you.

Probably other people have, but tell me about your friend that you interviewed. Roshad Hendricks.

Roshad is somebody, I don�t even know how we first met up. Maybe it might be one of those things because No Compromise Radio listeners sometimes would identify me by my voice or whatever because they�ve heard me or they know who I am because of the show.

I�ve become semi-infamous in some places. So I ran into him a couple times. We became friends on Facebook and now I see him occasionally at a Summit G3, Summit Shepherds Conference. I like seeing him.

He�s a great guy. And boy, his Facebook feed, if you�re not friends with Roshad, I think it�s Roshad and Denisha because that�s his wife and that�s their account. And he�s always posting, well, he posts some silly stuff, but he posts some really deep theology and especially on the Trinity, sometimes I�ll just steal what he posts.

I mean, I steal from Steve Meister and Rich Barcelos too, but Roshad�s excellent to steal from. So I thought, here would be a great guy to have on the radio show just to show people because he�s not a full-time ministry, he�s not in seminary, he�s not an elder anywhere, although I don�t exactly know why that is.

But you talk to him and you�re just like, this guy knows a lot. You know, I mean, it�s like, I need to study because I need to know more than that guy. If he�s in my congregation, I need to stay ahead of him, right?

And that�s going to take some work.

Super, super sharp guy. At least we�ve got one week to get a little farther ahead than the regular folks because they�re paying bills by being a plumber or whatever. Yes, yes. That�s one good thing about being a pastor is that, well, we want the congregation to study.

People in the congregation can be more godly and often are. They can be smarter and often are, but at least we could just study all week to pour ourselves into that passage and teach them something.

Yeah, and you know, sometimes, I don�t want to really just go off on this tangent, but sometimes people ask me questions, �Why did you say this or �Why did you say that or �Why didn�t you do this

And I already, you know, I�ve already thought for the nine times out of ten, I�ve thought through those questions because I�m asking myself that all week long. Do I want to do this? Do I not want to do that?

And, you know, because I don�t want to do a data dump and because I know I�ve got to construct something along the lines of a sermon that�s going to be about 45 minutes, give or take, some things are not going to make the cut.

And so, I�ll just look at them and, you know, that was on the editing room floor or, you know, whatever. So, yeah, I mean, that�s just kind of one of the advantages of study. A lot of times, I mean, if we�re not learning more than what we�re saying, then we�re really cheating ourselves.

Amen.

Just two quick housekeeping notes. The book Gospel Assurance, a 31-day guide to assurance, will be out probably at the end of August. You can order through Amazon. I put together about 20 or so different theologians from 400 years ago, and every chapter is about assurance.

That means some chapters are about assurance, some are about Jesus, and I think it will help you. That should be out soon, and Israel will probably be filling up soon. So, if you want to get in on Israel, you can write me, Mike, at NoCompromiseRadio .com.

And that Gospel Assurance book, if you�ve not read it, you may not have assurance.

That�s right. The price just went from $14 .99 to $114 .99. You can�t have assurance without reading this book. Well, what happens, Steve, is I would teach about assurance in the last few years. I�ve been thinking about it a lot.

And I just wanted to give somebody a book to say, �Oh, after the conference, after the sermon, here, read this. Read one chapter. Read them 31 days in a row. I want you to think rightly about assurance.

Did you think about calling it Blessed Assurance?

I didn�t think about that, but I could have. I�m just asking. I think there�s another book written called Gospel Assurance, but it has a different subtitle, and it has a different theological bent. But that�s all I�ll say on air.

Oh, that�s a cliffhanger.

Testimony as Gospel Carrier, Not the Gospel Itself

So we�ve got some questions that have been given to me over the years. Here�s one that we�d like to talk about today. Steve, here�s the question. Some people teach that the gospel is their personal testimony.

Is that true? And can you talk about how a personal testimony is a result of the gospel, but not the gospel itself? So they kind of almost give the answer that they want us to give.

It�s funny, because I just saw something from R .C., you know,. �Your testimony is not the gospel. Well, why is that? Because it�s.

Steve, you mean to tell me you�re not the good news? No. I�m looking at you. No. You�re here sitting here with shorts on and your special shoes and everything. You�re not the good news?

My testimony should contain, and this is what I tell people when they give their testimony, right? I mean, if they never talk about themselves in their testimony before they get baptized, well, that would be really odd, right?

We�re not asking for a sermon. But your testimony, if it doesn�t contain the gospel, then I don�t really think it�s a testimony. It�s a, to quote somebody I know, �testiphony right? Because it doesn�t really tell us how you came to know Christ and how he came to impact your life.

But yeah, your testimony, and people like to do that, you know,. �Well, since I�ve become a Christian, thus and such has happened in my life. Okay, well, you just got� you just skipped over the whole heart of� well, you skipped the gospel.

So telling people the after effects of your life after the gospel is fine. But if you don�t give them the gospel, then how are they going to get saved? And they really need to hear about Jesus Christ, about his life and death and resurrection, and not about your drug problem.

And not about� Steve, Steve, Steve, you can�t argue with a changed life.

Well, actually you can, because plenty of people have changed lives and are not Christians at all, right? I mean, some people, you know, here�s a� this is kind of a trite example. But my dad, you know, I saw him� I mean, he�s been dead 10 years now, but one time I saw him and he�d quit smoking cigarettes.

And this was after, you know, like 40 years of smoking, sometimes three packs a day. I�m like, �Dad, how did you do it Well, I just quit. I just quit. I just quit. You know, just crumpled up and threw them away.

And I was like, �Hmm. So people do things like that. People, I mean, they can even heroin. I�ve known people. �How did you quit heroin �I just decided I was done. �Well, you�re not supposed to be able to do that.

�Well, I did. �Okay. That doesn�t, you know, that doesn�t mean that God changed their lives. They, you know, sometimes people do things on their own, just by willpower.

Steve, don�t you think people are confusing conversion, that is, what�s happened to me and my affections and appetites, new creation in Christ, they confuse that with actually what Jesus did? I mean, we�re receiving the benefits of what Jesus did.

But if somebody wants to preach the gospel, the gospel�s the same whether we�re alive or dead. Right. The gospel�s the same whether we�re regenerate or unregenerate. I got asked a question at a conference not that long ago, �Is the gospel different for believers and unbelievers

And I said, �Well, it�s news about Jesus, and so it�s the same. It�s a proclamation of who Jesus is. And that�s why when people talk this way, �Well, the only gospel some people will ever read, they won�t read Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, but they�ll read your life.

And I�m thinking, �The gospel according to Mike Yeah, please don�t. Just look at my life, do the opposite.

It�s the anti-gospel. Yeah, I mean, if you�re looking to me for good news, it�s going to be sad times for you, bro. Yeah. We�ve talked about it before. We haven�t used exactly this terminology, but it�s objective truth, right?

You said this last time, it�s outside of us. Historical. Yes. And so, you know, there�s an objective truth, and then there�s the impact that it has. You could call that the subjective result, I guess you could say, or whatever.

But what happens to Steve is not the gospel. It just isn�t. It�s the fruit of, you know, whatever fruit is in my life is a result of the gospel, a result of the outworking of the Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ in me.

But it has nothing to do with the objective truth of it.

Is it fair, Steve, to want to tell your friends the great things that God has done for you? Oh, yeah.

I mean, listen, when I tell people, and I used to do this all the time, when I�m going into the jail, right, and guys are coming out and we�re passing in the hallway, and they go, �Hey, how�s it going, Cooley

And I go, you know, �Compared to what I deserve, great. Or, you know, whatever I�d say, and they�d look at me like, �What happened to you You know, or, �Are you in trouble again Because once I understand who I actually am, you know, then I can tell people that.

But what it doesn�t do, that doesn�t save anybody. They still need to hear the truth about Jesus Christ. The changes that He�s made, the book of Steve doesn�t change.

Steve, I think it�s easier to talk about what God has done in my life than talk about God Himself and what the Son has done outside of my life, that is, to say, well, if you�re at a cocktail party or you�re at a, you know, I don�t know, a luau someplace or you�re at Thanksgiving meal, you can say, �Oh, yeah, this happened to me and that happened to me.

And it�s just, I think it�s more accepted, right, where people are just giving their own testimonies versus, here�s who God is and He came to die for sinners like you and you�re a sinner.

That�s harder. And how much more true is that, especially if you have a spectacular salvation story? In other words, like you were, like my friend Matthew, a heroin addict. Your whole life fell apart and everything like that.

People want to hear all that. I mean, unbeliever, believer, whatever, they want to hear, �Wow, wow, your life was terrible and now look at it, great.

Used to be a prostitute or terrorist.

Yeah. I mean, and that�s another caution, you know, when I�m telling people, when I�m prepping them for baptism, you know, I don�t care if you rob banks and, you know, you did all that and, you know, I mean, I think there�s a tendency to want to make the testimony as salacious as possible, you know, to throw in as many details as possible so that people will really be hanging on your every word and I�m like, okay, that�s just really the wrong motivation, right?

So true. There was a lady who came up to me after a Cleveland message, I think. I spoke with a few speakers and by the way, I was called a flock, it was, the other speakers and myself were called a flock of Pharisees, a flock of seagulls, a flock of Pharisees.

See, I would have thought it would be like more like a tribe or maybe a Ooh, tribe language. A tribe of Pharisees or

Well, I just thought flock of seagulls and that hair and everything, you know, it�s kind of interesting. I mean, I ran so far away, right? Anyway, she said, I have a question and she started to cry and I turned in such a way so she could turn her back to other people who were in the lobby and I was the only one to see her cry and we were standing there and she basically said, I don�t really have a dramatic testimony, so I don�t know if I�m saved.

And she had heard of all these people that had given dramatic testimonies and were thankful for the Pauline-type testimonies where you�re a killer and you�re going to be killed for the gospel sake. But what about a 15-year-old homeschool girl that her big sins are not unrighteousness, they�re self-righteousness, thinking that they�re good and they don�t smoke and they don�t do this and they don�t do that and they don�t do what the world does.

And I said, I did the classic R .C. thing, I said, do you believe in Jesus? Tell me who Jesus is. Oh, he was a real person, virgin born, he did miracles, he healed, he raised the dead, he raised himself from the dead, he�s coming back.

And I said, that�s a wonderful testimony, that�s about who Jesus is and now you believe him. And in light of believing him and him working in your heart, do you love him? Yes. Do you wish you loved him more?

Yes. Do you serve him? Well, I�m trying. Do you wish you served him more? You know, and talk like that. And I said, you have a wonderful testimony because it�s about the Lord Jesus. So every person listening, if you�re a Christian, you have a great testimony.

So focus on who Jesus is and your testimony will be great.

No Dramatic Testimony Is Necessary for Salvation

Yeah, amen. And, you know, I think also there are people who have testimonies like that and are just like, you know, my testimony is not that spectacular. And whenever I hear that, I go, good for you, right?

Because really all� God has protected you from certain sins. And that�s what they�re saying. You know, in the providence of God, I haven�t gone off a cliff and I really wish I had. No, no, you shouldn�t wish that.

You know, because those kind of things, you know, a lot of people don�t come out of. So praise the Lord that he didn�t bring that about in your life. And, you know, I�d rather have fewer regrets than more.

I mean, the longer your list of sins are, I mean, I�ve known people who became convinced and obviously this is a work of both Satan and the hardening of their own heart, but who are so confident that they�ve sinned so much that they cannot be forgiven.

You know, which is another point, people really need to understand the grace of God and the love and the forgiveness of God, that there is no sin that they can commit that cannot be forgiven. And, you know, people just feel like no God, no holy God could possibly pardon them.

Well, we�re happy here on the radio show that Jesus came to seek and save those that were lost. Yeah. Remember that old bumper sticker? It was on the back of my mom�s car. I found it. And it was this covert deal where you put a bumper sticker on your car or you had a pin that you�d pin to your lapel and it said, �I found it.

And then people were going to say, �What did you find And then I would always say, �Amway. Tupperware. It�s a great deal. What�s the cake one? What�s the pampered chef? Oh, yeah. Something like that.

Yeah. Magnets or something. I found it. Pyramid scheme. Yeah. No, I found Jesus. He�s changed my life. And we�re happy for changed lives, but there�s a seeker and there�s one found.

I have decided to follow Jesus.

Revivalistic Language, Decisionism, and Trusting God for Results

Which brings me to question two today. To what degree do you think revivalistic language has found its way, Steve, into the response that unbelievers should have when they hear the gospel? Say the sinner�s prayer, decide for Jesus, fully surrender, make Jesus Lord, come up front, anxious bench.

What do you think about all that kind of language? I don�t like it. Then you better press in more, dear unbeliever. You press into Jesus. Yeah. That�s a new one for me.

Press in. Press in. Yeah. Full court press in. I mean, that kind of language ultimately leads to, if that�s the kind of language that under which you�re converted, presumably, I think it turns you into a works-based person.

It�s not Sola Fide anymore. No.

Yeah. Yeah. Well, maybe it�s this, and I have in my notes, Steve, SMART, or as we say here in New England... SMART. SMART. SMARTY PANTS. Remember that old acronym, SMART, when it comes to setting goals, management by objectives.

Specific is the S, M, measurable, A, achievable, R, relevant, and T, timely. Can�t we, with revivalistic languages and people coming up, or language, people coming up and moving forward and all that, we can measure it at least.

Oh, yeah. Oh, you can definitely measure it. What is it in our hearts that says we need to somehow quantify growth so we can see that we�re doing the right thing? Is that it, versus all the language in the Bible that talks about seeds and growing and slowly and agricultural and farmers have to be patient, God gives the growth.

Yeah. I don�t think we really want to trust God. Who are you going to believe, God or your lying eyes? And we�d rather believe our lying eyes. I mean, who was it, the founder of Campus Crusade? Bill Bright.

Bill Bright. Who, you know, I read a story about him in Time Magazine. I believe it was after he died, and he claimed that one billion people had come to Christ during his ministry, and I�m not stuttering there, one billion.

And you just go, okay, so I think there�s some truth to that, that we want to see the results and all this, but I think there�s also just an arrogance that attends with it, right? Rather than giving all the glory to God and the results, whatever they may be, whether it�s one person or a billion, right, we want to somehow be able to measure it and feel good about ourselves, and I don�t know why, right?

You look at Jesus� ministry? I mean, were billions following him? No. Right? No. In fact, he chased them away, right? Right. Because he knew it was in the heart of man. John 2, it talked about many believed in him, but he didn�t believe in them.

And John 6, you know, he just gives them these words, and it�s like they all left, and he turns to the remainder, you know, the tight group, the disciples, and you guys going to leave too? And Peter says, well, who else will we go to?

Who else has the words of life? But yeah, Jesus did not know how to manage a megachurch, right? And by the way, you don�t need to write. I�m not saying that. That was just a joke.

Obviously, the just shall live by faith is found in the Bible a lot. Habakkuk 2, Hebrews, Galatians, Romans. Aren�t we supposed to be walking by faith in, of course, it�s shorthand for walking by faith in the risen Son of God who loved me and gave his life for me, etc., etc., sent by the Father.

But aren�t we supposed to walk by faith even in pastoral ministry? We�re to be faithful and discharge the duties outlined in the pastoral epistles, and then we have to walk by faith that the Lord is convicting, the Lord is applying, the Lord is regenerating, the Lord is taking home.

All these things, should not that be the pastoral charge, live by faith?

Couldn�t we just say this, you know, that he�s building his church?

I think that�s found maybe in some of the ancient manuscripts, some of the Byzantine ones, maybe. In the red letters, maybe. See, maybe the other thing we could talk about as the show is coming to a close, preparationism.

That is to say, okay, when I got saved, it was like John Bunyan, maybe here�s an illustration, for 18 months of conviction of sin, staying up at night, agonizing over my sin against the thrice holy God.

And then since that was my model, 18 months, it should be other people�s models when in fact other people can be convicted about sin for 10 minutes and then believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Law, Repentance, and Faith Alone in Gospel Preparation

Yeah. I mean, there�s a sense, again, where we�re helping the Lord. We want the assist and, you know, I even think of some methodologies where you can�t skip to Jesus, you have to lay the groundwork. You know, you have to convince, you have to set the stage for Jesus.

And I just think, I remember listening to one presentation once and I�m just like, well, what happens if, you know, in week 17 of this 40 Oh, I see where you�re going. Yeah. Of this 40-week program or however long it is, you know, somebody�s like, well, seems like there needs to be a Messiah, you know?

We can�t talk about that until later. Can�t spoil the surprise, you know, got to do, got to save it for the reveal. Well, what if they die? Well, I believe that they�ll be covered, okay, well, based on what?

Do we live in the Old Testament or the New Testament, you know, Old Covenant or New Covenants? People need to hear about Jesus Christ and not in week 17, not in week 40.

The only preparation, I think you�d agree with me, Steve, for the gospel is preaching the law so that they know their sin and misery. It�s nothing else that they have to do and they have to, and that�s why even we talk about sola fide and not sola metanoia, sola repentance, because even repentance is the fruit of that faith.

And we�re telling people, you�ve seen your sin because of the law, now we tell you about the good news and your response is to believe and to trust.

Give the bad news, then the good news, you know, here�s the bad news, you�re a sinner and you stand condemned, you�re estranged from God and there�s nothing you can do on your own to get back with Him.

And, you know, if you put that in stark enough terms, it sounds really, really bad, which it should. Mm-hmm. Considering that when you die, you�re going to, yeah, if you remain in that state, you�re going to hell, eternal punishment.

So, I mean, when you present the bad news like that, then when you come in with the good news, I think it sounds pretty good. Wait a minute, you mean that God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, Second Person of the Trinity to come to earth and, you know, live, take on humanity and live that perfect life that we�re supposed to and don�t, and then die a substitutionary death, then be raised on the third day?

That�s the good news.

We believe in that. Because what�s the other option? To get into heaven, watch Jesus�s life, and imitate Him perfectly. Yeah, that�s� He�s your more than example. He�s going to tell you exactly, you know, He�ll show you exactly what to do.

If you can live that life perfectly, you get to go in.

So, wait a minute, you mean honor my mother and father perfectly? Okay, well, I failed at that one. Love your enemies? Yeah, well, I failed at that one. Pray all at the right times. Do you have any good news for me?

That�s why Jesus is not just an example, although He is 1 Peter 2. He�s our substitutionary risen King. So, today on No Compromise Radio, we did a couple questions today. That was good, Steve. Good job.

If you want to hear Steve�s preaching this last summer in Acts chapters 2, 3, and 4, you can go to bbcchurch .org, and you can listen to his interviews with Rashad at nocompromiseradio .com.

Anything else? No, just have a great day and believe in the Lord.

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 1015 and in the evening at 6. We�re right on Route 110 in West Boylston. You can check us out online at bbcchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.