Should We Question Someone's Salvation in Correction and Rebuke?

Warning Without Questioning Salvation

Is there a place for firm warning? Absolutely. But even in warning the saints, you don't call their salvation into question. 1 Corinthians chapter 6, right? We're familiar with chapter 5, where Paul rebukes the whole church for not removing a man who is living a debaucherous life of sexual immorality.

And then, Paul rebukes the church in Corinth because they're suing each other in court. I mean, it's not going well. But then, what does he say? Do you not know, like, have I not told you that people who do all of these things, and he lists a number of sins, will not inherit the kingdom of God?

But then, what does he say? Such were some of you. But you were washed, you were justified, you were sanctified, you've been united to Jesus. That's what he says. So again, notice he doesn't call their salvation into question.

Not one moment does he do that. He warns them. Why would you do something for which the wrath of God is coming? But then he grounds them in what? Their identity and their union with Christ. Put off the old man, put on the new man, live like who you are.

And that's why our emphasis and our tone sounds a little bit different. Because that's the way that we're meaning even to exhort and admonish and encourage the saints. And even to correct and warn, we're not doing that in a way that calls salvation into question.

We're doing that completely after the pattern of the apostles, grounding people in their union with Christ and their identity in Him.

Weakness, Grace, and Resting in Christ

Paul says where he's struggling with the thorn in the flesh, he's asked for help three times. And Jesus responds with, my grace is sufficient for you. For when you are weak at your weakest points, you are then strong.

Because you have to rely on a person that's stronger than yourself. And there's this constant war that's between the believer and his flesh. And Justin, this is where people get really upset with us and call us antinomian.

Because we are not flesh bound preachers. We're spirit bound preachers. Right. We're teaching people to let go of the flesh and run to the rest. Now, sometimes when people hear us say rest, they think we're saying to relax, kick it up and coast.

That's right. Kick your feet up. It's not what we're saying.

No. May I quote Jesus? He says, come to me all who are heavy laden by the law of requirements of the flesh. And I will give you rest from those laws because I'm going to give you my righteousness. For my yoke is easy.

My burden is light.

And then he says, abide in me.

That's right.

Which is what we're trying to encourage people to do.

We will fight and wrestle and we will exert energy. But it's always by means of resting in Christ and the sufficiency of Christ. So we must first and always rest in him so that the burden we carry is not heavier than it needs to be.

Which is what we feel preaching does. Is that we are trying to encourage people with the wonderful call of coming to Christ and resting upon him to do the work that is set before them. This is Ephesians 2, right?

But we don't want to offer an additional burden upon them. True love cast out all fear, all doubt, all worry that I'm doing enough. You'll never going to be doing enough. I don't know if some of these preachers realize they are trying to preach to convince the flesh, but they call it spirit based preaching.

Like if he says walk by the spirit, you cannot disconnect the person and work and role of the spirit from the walking. You are literally in line with following with the realities and the truth of the person who is sanctifying you, saving you.

And I'm not, this is not a let go and let God type of theology at all. People are going to quote this. They're going to put it out on YouTube and see John said, let go and let God. No, but it's every day saying that I will not put confidence in the flesh.

I don't know how many times Paul has to say that. Well, then you have to have confidence somewhere because you're about to pull off an act that no one can do, which is to love neighbor and love God. How are you going to do that?

Well, I'm going to wake up every day believing in the truth and the freedom and the sufficiency of Christ in his word. And that's the weapons of our warfare versus I'm going to trust in the manipulation of my flesh.

Spiritual Disciplines and Walking by the Spirit

We don't word it that way. We call them spiritual disciplines. You and I discipline our flesh every single day. We have to tell it no, get out of the way and obey.

We establish patterns and habits to try to help us in that. Yeah, for sure.

We have to turn our eyes away and turn our hearts away and turn our flesh away from things. But we do that because we're walking by the spirit, not so that we can walk in the spirit. And there's a difference.

If you want to control the flesh, you walk by the spirit. Unfortunately, the kind of antinomian accusations that are coming our way are saying, John, that doesn't work. I've literally had people tell me preaching grace does not produce holiness.

And then I said, OK, well, then you're either not preaching grace correctly or you don't understand holiness. Though there's a confusion somewhere.