May 2, 2022 Show with David Bissett on “Communion with God”

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May 3, 2022

May 2, 2022 David Bissett, Senior Pastor of Clifton Park Community Church of Clifton Park, NY, who will address: “COMMUNION with GOD” & announcing the Banner of Truth East Coast Ministers’ Conference!!

00:05: Live from the historic parsonage of the 19th century Gospel Minister George Norcross in downtown
00:10: Carlisle, Pennsylvania, it's Iron Sharpens Iron. This is a radio platform in which pastors,
00:23: Christian scholars, and theologians address the burning issues facing the Church and the world today.
00:31: Proverbs 27, verse 17 tells us, Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
00:38: Matthew Henry said that in this passage, we are cautioned to take heed with whom we converse and directed to have a view in conversation to make one another wiser and better.
00:50: It is our hope that this goal will be accomplished over the next two hours, and we hope to hear from you, the listener, with your own questions.
00:58: And now, here's your host, Chris Arnzen. Good afternoon,
01:10: Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Lake City, Florida, and the rest of humanity living on the planet
01:15: Earth who are listening via live streaming at ironsharpensironradio .com.
01:21: This is Chris Arnzen, your host of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, wishing you all a happy Monday.
01:26: On this very first live broadcast of May 2022,
01:33: May 2nd, we are thrilled to have a very first -time guest, a man that I have known for, known of,
01:45: I should say. I have known, I have been aware of his existence for many years and have known of his church's existence for even a longer period of time.
01:56: His name is David Bissett, and he is senior pastor of Clifton Park Community Church of Clifton Park, New York.
02:04: And I'm so delighted to have him on for the very first time on the show. And we're going to be addressing a very important theme, communion with God, which is also the theme of the upcoming
02:17: Banner of Truth East Coast Ministers Conference in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, where my guest
02:23: David Bissett will be one of the featured speakers. But it's my honor and privilege to welcome you for the very first time ever to Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, David Bissett.
02:32: Well, thank you, Chris. It's exciting to be a part of your radio ministry and to get a little more one -on -one time with you and letting the world listen in.
02:42: I'm looking forward to it. As am I, brother. And tell our listeners about Clifton Park Community Church of Clifton Park, New York.
02:51: Ah, Clifton Park. It's just north of Albany, New York. The Hudson Valley, people know, comes up from New York City.
02:58: And then near Albany, you have the confluence of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers.
03:05: Albany's an old settlement. Clifton Park is the northern side of the city. Our fellowship here, it was a church planted, actually planted by some
03:14: Presbyterians back in the late 60s, early 70s. And we're a fellowship that's non -denominational.
03:21: We're largely Reformed and Baptistic. We have some elders that lead the church. I have an associate pastor,
03:27: Brian Spivey. Been here 27 years, by the grace of God.
03:32: And it's a delight to have a people hungry for the Word of God and to have a community to raise my family, raise my seven kids here in Clifton Park.
03:44: Great. And if anybody wants more information about Clifton Park Community Church, whether you live in that area and you would like to visit or you're passing through, or if you have family, friends, and loved ones who are residents of that area, go to cliftonparkcommunitychurch .org,
04:04: cliftonparkcommunitychurch .org. And we have a tradition on this program.
04:13: Oh, before I even get to that tradition, I just want to make sure before I forget that one of my pastors at Grace Baptist Church of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, John Miller, told me to extend to you his greetings, and he was thrilled to know that you were my guest today.
04:29: Well, John's a dear fellow and a great preacher of God's Word. We just had him up here a few weeks ago for the installation of our associate pastor.
04:38: And John's preaching and he taught our Sunday school class was much appreciated.
04:44: Great. Well, we have a tradition, as I was just about to say, here on the program.
04:52: Whenever we have a first -time guest, we have that guest give a summary of their salvation testimony that would include the kind of religious atmosphere, if any, they were raised in and the kind of providential circumstances our sovereign
05:07: Lord raised up in their lives that drew them to himself and saved them. And I'd like to hear your story.
05:14: Oh, I love to tell it, and you said brief, so I'll try to be brief.
05:20: I could simply sing Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound. I was born and raised in Wisconsin, Chris.
05:28: My dad was trained in United Methodist Church and United Church of Christ, so I grew up as a
05:34: PK, but my dad was enthralled with neo -orthodoxy and liberal
05:40: Christianity. We did not see eye to eye on very many things.
05:45: But I grew up in that home, and I thought I was a believer. I had probably the biggest
05:50: Bible of all my friends. I don't think I ever read it. And when my best friend,
05:56: Ron Deasy, was converted, I thought he was in a cult. So I spent some time with him.
06:01: I dust off my Bible to try to help my friend. And through the course of those conversations and his clarifying what the gospel is, and by my reading the
06:12: Word of God for myself, the Lord worked upon my heart. So at the age of 18, as a senior in high school, kneeling by my bedside,
06:21: I prayed, Lord Jesus, I can't be a Christian on my own. I need your help.
06:27: And pled for his saving grace. So, in one sense, my experience is that of many
06:35: Christians growing up, nominally knowing about Christianity in the United States, but not knowing the gospel, not knowing the
06:43: Lord Jesus Christ. I knew several hymns by memory, but it hadn't pierced my heart and my conscience.
06:49: But by God's amazing grace, he did. That was way back in 1978.
06:55: That dates me. But God has been faithful to me and has blessed me all these years.
07:02: And that conversion story, each one's a wonderful story, but it's all about how
07:09: God opens our eyes and shows us Christ who saves sinners.
07:15: My life verse, Psalm 73 verse 26, which just flew out of my head because I'm nervous being on radio, my flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
07:32: No one can be a Christian by their own strength, by the grace of God. And I'm so thankful it came my way.
07:42: Praise God. And how and when did you learn of the doctrines of sovereign grace, which are commonly nicknamed reform theology,
07:51: Calvinism, the doctrines of grace, the doctrines of free grace comes by a number of nicknames.
08:00: How did you discover? How did you discover? How and when did you discover these truths that we hold very dear?
08:06: And when did you come to embrace them? Great question.
08:12: And as I answer it, I'm sitting two feet from a very large portrait of Charles Spurgeon that hangs here in my pastor's office.
08:22: And by the way, we call the doctrines of grace sometimes the second blessing. To understand more of how
08:28: God brings about our salvation, we need to talk theologically. We need to describe what's in the
08:33: Bible and how God works. So as a young Christian, I was studying the Bible. I was mentored by some great folks.
08:40: I joined university as a college student, so I was getting good biblical resources.
08:46: But the men who were mentoring themselves were reformed. So they would point me in the direction of solid preachers, good books to read.
08:55: I started following a preacher named James Montgomery Boyce and found out that he wasn't too far from Wisconsin.
09:05: At something called the Reform Conference. What was it, the
09:11: PCRT? Yeah, Philadelphia Conference on Reform Theology, which has a very vital place in my own heart and life, and my own coming to really understand and embrace the doctrines of sovereign grace.
09:28: And not only the PCRT, but actually going several years in a row to hear and see
09:36: Dr. Boyce preach in Manhattan, as well as the Philadelphia area with my late wife.
09:41: We both love Dr. Boyce. And it was such an honor for me because every time
09:48: I saw him, he vividly remembered who I was when he was still with us.
09:56: Before I had my own radio program, I worked as an account executive for WMCA Christian Radio, which is a part of the
10:05: Salem Media Network, the largest Christian radio network in the world. And every time
10:10: I would see Dr. Boyce, either at the radio station or at an event of some kind, he immediately recognized that I was the only reformed person at WMCA.
10:22: And he was very grateful for my presence there because of that. He's a great guy.
10:29: I have a couple of stories of my own about Dr. Boyce. But your question was coming to understand the doctrines of grace, and that is so important.
10:37: I hope your listeners are aware of this body of statements that we often call the doctrines of grace.
10:45: Again, it was the PCRT. I went to Wheaton, Illinois, and it was at the first one Dr. John Gerstner was preaching a message on depravity.
10:54: And I won't imitate Dr. Gerstner as we used to do. I have done my own imitations.
11:01: And in fact, R .C. Sproul loved my imitation of Dr. Gerstner when I met him in the basement of a church in Manhattan where he was preaching.
11:10: And the funny thing is that R .C.'s voice at that time was not very different from Dr.
11:16: Gerstner's. A lot of similarities, and Gerstner was Sproul's mentor, as you know.
11:22: But Dr. Gerstner simply preached the scriptures and placed it before us that man was dead in his trespasses.
11:30: He illustrated it. Others at the conference were speaking, Dr. Nicole, Dr. Boyce, a few other folks.
11:38: And I remember after that address sitting in the pew saying, if this is true, how can we decide to receive
11:47: Christ? So the doctrine of depravity was the cornerstone for me of the doctrines of grace and the answers that would follow
11:57: God's irresistible grace, his effectual call, these things.
12:04: So studying God's word will lead you to the doctrines of grace. And I would also certainly tip my hat to becoming a student of Charles Spurgeon.
12:14: Helped me greatly to understand the doctrines of grace and their sweetness, their evangelical, their warmly compassionate for those who seek to know the
12:25: Lord and to know his word clearly. You know, I'll bet you we were at the same
12:30: PCRT because one of the early PCRTs I attended featured
12:36: Dr. Gerstner and the names that you just mentioned.
12:42: And I don't know why. Roger Nicole, that was it. Roger Nicole, whose voice sounds, from my memory, very much like Henry Kissinger.
12:51: Very soft and just such a dear sweet man. A variety of voices, styles, but the same scripture, the same message.
13:00: So helpful. And these conferences were not just for pastors. We were a bunch of college students.
13:06: We drove six and a half hours from northern Wisconsin to sit in College Church in Wheaton, Illinois, and listen to this.
13:14: And I tell you, it's very formative. Good theology is important to growing your
13:21: Christian life. I don't know if indeed this was the same conference that I'm thinking of, the same exact one.
13:30: There was a very memorable scene at the conference where John Gerstner, with James Montgomery Boyce sitting behind him looking as white as a ghost, because I think he was fearful about the really outspoken way which
13:49: Dr. Gerstner said this, but he said, I think that he developed an acronym for Arminians that was lilac, if I'm not mistaken.
13:58: It could have been a different flower. It rings a bell. And he said, you cannot be a lilac
14:06: Christian, actually believe what you say you believe and be saved.
14:12: Let me repeat that. You cannot be a lilac Christian, actually believe what you say you believe and be saved.
14:19: And what he meant by that, I believe, is that if you take Arminianism to its logical conclusions,
14:25: I don't think he was discounting the salvation of evangelical Arminians, which is why
14:33: Dr. Boyce, I think, was very nervous by his statements. But I think he was saying, if you really were to take those views to their logical conclusions, you would have a false gospel.
14:45: Yeah, yeah. And Dr. Gerstner was well known for not sugarcoating the truth.
14:51: That's right. I'm in a place for that boldness. We might refer to Dr. Boyce as maybe the more intellectual of that squad.
15:00: Dr. Nicole, very gentle and persuasive, but the same message from all these men.
15:06: So that was formative in my life. I have several great people I point to as mentors, and the
15:13: PCRT was really the start of it, as well as some good men in college, some older classmates who took time with a young convert who thought he understood
15:24: Christianity to explain it clearly and carefully. Well, I'm going to give our listeners our e -mail address if they care to send in a question.
15:34: Since our guest today, David Bissett, is a pastor, we will broaden the subject matters over which you may ask him a question to any theological issue regarding the scriptures or even a pastoral issue.
15:51: But we are mainly, primarily speaking on the theme communion with God, and we would prefer questions on that theme.
15:59: And our e -mail address is chrisarnson at gmail .com, C -H -R -I -S -A -R -N -Z -E -N at gmail .com.
16:06: As always, give us your first name at least, your city and state of residence, and your country of residence if you live outside the
16:12: USA. Well, hearing a title like this, communion with God, very likely you may have listeners, perhaps they're new believers, and perhaps they're not very familiar with a lot of the terminology of Christianity.
16:33: They might immediately jump to the conclusion that you're speaking of the Lord's Supper, the
16:38: Eucharist, the Lord's Table, and of course that does, without question, involve communion with God, but there's a much broader and deeper issue involved in this theme and this phrase.
16:54: Perhaps if you could just define it right off the bat, so our listeners will know what direction we're heading here.
17:01: Yeah, and that's an associated topic to talk about the Lord's Supper, for there we do commune with our
17:08: Lord according to His wishes laid out in the Lord's Supper. But the way the conference is presenting it, and the small blurb that they put with the advertising material, is to draw upon the broader understanding that was popularized by the
17:25: Puritan John Owen, that our communion is with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, referring to our relationship and all the benefits that flow to us from this wonderful relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
17:42: When John Owen wrote about it, and we'll be talking about his book a little bit later, that's what he pointed out, and we ought to understand it's not simply a relationship with Jesus, as most evangelicals speak of, but with God the
17:56: Father, maker of Heaven and Earth, and with God the Holy Spirit, and there are dimensions to that, there are scriptures that highlight all of those angles and aspects, and it's a rich area of understanding for believers, to know that we have a real, living, vital, faith -nurturing relationship with our
18:20: God. It was the Apostle John who wrote in 1 John 1, as he opened that first epistle, he said, "...that
18:29: which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and have touched with our hands concerning the word of life, the life was manifest, and we have seen it, and testified to it, and proclaimed to you the eternal life, which was with the
18:45: Father, and was made manifest to us, that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that," here's verse 3, "...so
18:53: that you may have fellowship with us, and indeed," says John, "...our fellowship is with the
19:00: Father, and with His Son, Jesus Christ, and we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete."
19:07: Praise God. Well, before I start to dissect with you even further that theme of communion with God, do you have the specific topics that you are addressing, or topic singular, that you are addressing at the
19:24: Banner of Truth conference? Yeah, the Banner of Truth conference, I want to chime in a little bit later about the structure and the value of it, but the theme will be unfolded over the course of three days.
19:37: We start with an opening address, and I, Chris, was asked to bring the closing address, and they don't pre -assign that, they give you a free hand to select your scripture.
19:47: But in between, the speakers will be talking about how the
19:53: Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ mediate that communion, the connection between worship and communion.
20:00: On Thursday morning, there will be an address about the pastor's communion with God, in particular. I'm looking forward to hearing one of the addresses called,
20:09: The Shadow of the Almighty, because of a sweet scripture that I have in mind from Isaiah, how he is a shelter and a shadow to the weary soul.
20:21: These are all branches and dimensions of our communion with God. And I'm very excited about this conference, because not only does it feature you, it features
20:33: Rhett Dodson and Ian Hamilton, and a man that I consider to be the most powerful preacher alive on the planet
20:41: Earth, Conrad Mbewe, who I've heard him preach many times. In fact,
20:46: I don't know if you're aware of this, but the church where I was saved, which eventually became, went by the name
20:56: Grace Reform Baptist Church of Long Island, on Long Island, New York. It was originally called
21:02: Calvary Baptist Church of Amityville. But the very first American church where Conrad ever preached was
21:09: Grace Reform Baptist Church of Long Island in Merrick. And I was present there for it.
21:15: In fact, I helped promote it when I was working for WMCA Radio. And over a three -day period, we had, not including the members of our own congregation, we had over 500 visitors during that three -day weekend to hear
21:31: Conrad because of the radio commercials, which included a clip of him preaching. And he's become a very dear friend.
21:39: And if anybody wants to hear his interviews with me on this program, all you have to do is go to the ironsharpensironradio .com
21:47: website, click on Past Shows Podcast, and type in Conrad in the search engine, and nearly all of the interviews that pop up will be interviews with Conrad Mbewe.
22:03: I believe I have interviewed other people by that name, at least one other. But Conrad Mbewe's interviews certainly will come up.
22:12: And the conference also features John Payne and Chad Van Dixhorn.
22:20: So I'm really looking forward, God willing, to being there myself. It's always a great time of not only learning and being edified, but fellowship as well.
22:30: It is. It is. And I second your esteem for Brother Conrad Mbewe.
22:37: He's a humble man, a very devout brother, an encouraging and joyful brother, but he loves to open the word of God.
22:47: And there are a select few men I've ever heard that are so blessed and effective in preaching as Conrad.
22:57: Well, I want to give our listeners the website if they want to find out more about the conference and if they want to register for it.
23:05: You could go to BannerofTruth .org, BannerofTruth .org,
23:12: and then you can click on the Events tab, BannerofTruth .org,
23:18: and click on Events. And then you will click on East Coast Ministers Conference. And if any of our
23:28: West Coast listeners desire to attend the West Coast Conference, just click on West Coast Ministers Conference.
23:37: That one will be in November 1st through the 3rd in Ramona, California. But the one that's coming up very, very soon, the
23:46: East Coast Ministers Conference in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, is May 24th through the 26th.
23:51: So I hope to see many of you in my listening audience there in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, at the
23:58: Banner of Truth Conference. Go ahead. I would just encourage folks, if they're thinking about it, to check the website today.
24:07: I think registration closes very soon, just so they can prepare properly.
24:13: So give it a look at the BannerofTruth .org website. Amen. And we are going to go to a station break right now, because I don't want to interrupt you in mid -sentence.
24:30: So I think this would be a wise time for me to take our first break. If anybody listening would like to send in a question, as I've already told you, you can send it to chrisarnson at gmail .com.
24:43: chrisarnson at gmail .com. As always, give us your first name, at least, your city and state of residence, and your country of residence, if you live outside the
24:52: USA. Please only remain anonymous if your question involves a personal and private matter.
24:57: Don't go away. We'll be right back with David Bissett after these messages from our sponsors. As a mother,
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35:43: This is Chris Arnzen. If you just tuned us in, our guest today for the entire program is
35:48: David Bissett, the pastor at Clifton Park Community Church in Clifton Park, New York.
35:54: He's also one of the featured speakers at the upcoming Banner of Truth East Coast Conference, Banner of Truth East Coast Ministers Conference, and that is on the theme,
36:09: The Communion with God, and we are also discussing that theme right now. If you have questions, again, our email address is chrisarnzen at gmail .com,
36:21: c -h -r -i -s -a -r -n -z -e -n at gmail .com. As always, give us your first name, at least your city and state, and your country of residence if you live outside the
36:32: USA. Only remain anonymous if your question involves a personal and private matter.
36:38: And in fact, before we enter into the theme of The Communion of God, we do have a listener who has an off -topic question.
36:47: Okay. This is CM from Averill Park, New York.
36:57: And he says, Pastor Bissett, who is the man of lawlessness of 2 Thessalonians 2?
37:04: Oh, and then he's saying, just kidding. I think I know who
37:09: CM is, and I prompted him to throw me a few softballs. Oh, now
37:15: I see his first name is actually Chad. Yeah, he's a great brother, and well -read, too.
37:23: He could be a great host, a great interviewee yourself on your show.
37:30: Great. Well, his real question, apparently, is how do you keep up and maintain communion with God on a daily basis?
37:38: Further, will you be addressing the work of John Owen on this subject? And I assume he means in the conference, but perhaps he means in this interview, either or both.
37:50: So the first part of his question is, how do you keep up and maintain communion with God on a daily basis?
37:57: That's a great question, because it's a spiritual reality that we have access to the
38:04: Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. But part of the design of that communion is our fellowship with the
38:11: Spirit feeds and fuels our communion with God. And he mentioned
38:17: John Owen, so let me expand on that just for a minute or two on how we might maintain that communion, just to be encouraging.
38:27: We have the Spirit's help. When John Owen writes in his book, Communion with God, it's found in Volume 2 of his collected works, but there's also a separate paperback abridgment, so that's what
38:40: I'll quote from. As he talks about the role of the Holy Spirit, we have communion with the Spirit, but the Spirit helps us to understand our communion is with God.
38:49: He does five things, according to John Owen. He brings to our mind the words and promises of Christ, just the headings here.
38:59: He also glorifies Christ to us and before us. Third, the
39:05: Holy Spirit pours the love of God into our hearts, and there's a wonderful section there on Romans 5, verse 5, explained by John Owen.
39:14: You should see how marked up my copy of the book is. And he goes on to highlight how we have help.
39:21: Communion with God isn't a task or a duty, which is any bit of a drudgery.
39:29: It is a fountain of life. It is a refreshing aspect of our time in the
39:35: Word and our time in prayer and our time waiting upon the Lord. And I'm thankful the
39:40: Holy Spirit helps us to do that. Of course, the Holy Spirit uses the Word directly with the individual believer, but the
39:47: Holy Spirit, Chris, as we know, works through the church. He builds up believers through believers using their gifts in the lives of other believers in the local church.
39:59: And I'm pretty sure Chad's aware of that. But our communion with God is a gracious relationship and benefits from the
40:09: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that he gives. He draws us into and develops.
40:17: And it's possible to neglect these things. It's possible to not be benefiting from communion with God.
40:26: And I say that because the section John Owen goes into, he talks quite a bit about grieving the
40:31: Holy Spirit. If we resist those promptings, if the Word comes to our mind but we don't dwell on it, if we neglect to bring our troubles and our joys to the
40:42: Lord in prayer, we will not benefit from that communion. Our hearts can grow cold.
40:49: So we should be actively in the Word, in prayer, and asking the
40:55: Spirit to draw us into that fellowship. It's a sweet and joyful fellowship, as John said in 1
41:03: John earlier. Well, thank you, Chad. And guess what?
41:08: Since you are a first -time questioner, not only have you won the book that you asked about,
41:17: Communion with God by John Owen, you're also going to win a free
41:22: New American Standard Bible. So please give us your full mailing address in Averell Park, New York.
41:29: And we will have cvbbs .com. That's Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service. Cvbbs .com.
41:36: Ship that out to you, and we want to thank Banner of Truth right here in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, for providing with us a limited number of copies of this book by John Owen for listener giveaways.
41:51: And I think it would be wise to let our listeners know. I mean, it's unlikely that most of our listeners do not know who
41:59: John Owen was, but we have very often gotten e -mails with questions from new believers and even nonbelievers, on a rare occasion even a
42:10: Muslim or an atheist, an agnostic, a Roman Catholic, even on rarer occasions a
42:18: Jewish individual, Orthodox Jew. But for those of our listeners who are unfamiliar with John Owen, please let our listeners give us a thumbnail sketch of him, because he is truly one of the giants of Christianity.
42:34: And one of the things that I love about him is that even though he was a prominent and beloved academic, he was humble enough and wise enough and discerning enough to share his pulpit with John Bunyan, who did not have any formal education and was also an ex -convict, because he was arrested for proclaiming the gospel as a non -ordained minister of the gospel.
43:05: He was a Baptistic evangelist and minister and pastor and not ordained in the
43:11: Anglican Church. But if you could. Well, you've already kind of put some of the big spotlights on who
43:19: John Owen is. We have to remember that God's been at work throughout the centuries since the days of Jesus, and there was a wonderful work we call the
43:29: Reformation, 1500s in Europe, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox in Scotland.
43:35: And following on that robust recovery of the gospel, getting God's word in your own language, those were new things back then.
43:45: The Puritans in England in the 1600s, late 1500s into the 1600s, were a particular flourishing of biblical understanding, godly living.
43:58: I know Puritans are often pilloried as being dour and hard, but they were joyful.
44:06: They wore colorful clothing. They celebrated. They would feast and delight in the
44:11: Lord because of the truths they discovered. John Owen was a pastor in that period.
44:18: He was one of the nonconformist pastors in that day, and he was a leading theologian among the
44:25: Puritans. This man, lest we belittle him, could write voluminously in Latin.
44:34: He understood the Hebrew tongue. He took the book of Hebrews, which was written in Greek, and has a seven -volume line -by -line commentary.
44:45: In addition to that, his works fill at least another seven volumes, and they're still in print. People are still consulting
44:51: John Owen because of his theological understanding, primarily in sermons and commentaries and other short works.
45:03: He didn't write a systematic theology, per se, like others did. John Owen was a great influence.
45:10: He was dean of Christ Church in the University of Oxford. That's a significant place.
45:18: So he's got incredible academic bona fides, and I don't want folks to dismiss him because the world has different views of what a
45:28: Puritan is. He was a wonderful man. In fact,
45:33: Carl Truman has a short biography of him, and he calls him a Renaissance man. Quite interesting.
45:40: I haven't read that biography by Dr. Carl Truman. I'd like to get that. Yeah, I've got to get
45:46: Carl back on my show because I want to interview him on his new book, Strange New World.
45:52: Very important book. And he has been on before and has written a very glowing commendation of this program.
46:01: Well, thanks again, Chad, for that great question or questions.
46:08: And keep your eye open for the Bible. And, by the way, the book by John Owen, you're going to have to be patient with us because Banner of Truth is republishing it with a different cover.
46:21: So they have informed us that it may take several weeks before we can ship that out to you.
46:27: So just be patient with us. But you should get the Bible sooner than that. Thanks a lot. And, Chris, just a word on that short book,
46:36: The Abridgment on Communion with God. That's one of something Banner calls their
46:42: Puritan paper series. They have 75 excellent selections from a variety of Puritans on a variety of topics.
46:51: So not only pastors, but men and women, teenagers, a lot of folks ought to be tapping into what's available from the
47:01: Banner of Truth in those Puritan paperbacks. I could probably do a whole show on those paperbacks, the ones
47:06: I've read, but I commend them. They're very affordable. You can get one through Banner of Truth and have access to some of the great thinkers and passionate preachers of that era.
47:16: Yeah, I just had instantly recalled to my memory
47:23: The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs, which is a part of that series of Puritan paperbacks.
47:30: And all of those volumes in the Puritan paperbacks are must -reads.
47:37: And you will, for those of our listeners who are apprehensive when they think or when they hear a
47:44: Puritan wrote this, what possible application will this have to my life in the 21st century?
47:49: You'll be amazed how often the Puritans write, and in spite of any grammar or outdated vocabulary that they may have, if a work has not been translated in an updated
48:08: English edition, modern English edition, you will be amazed at how relevant these writings are, even in the 21st century.
48:18: It's just astonishing. And let me throw out the
48:23: Banner of Truth website again, since it's such a valuable ministry, BannerofTruth .org, BannerofTruth .org,
48:28: but I also want to make sure that when you order books by Banner of Truth, please, since you're listening to Iron Trip and Zion Radio, order them through CVBBS .com,
48:39: since they sponsor this program. That's Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service, CVBBS .com. And they have all of Banner of Truth's titles.
48:46: But I'm sorry, you were about to say something, David. Oh, I'm glad we're on to the Puritan paperbacks, and I have to chime in.
48:55: CVBBS has served me wonderfully for 40 -plus years when I've needed books.
49:01: They're great resources. The Puritan paperbacks, just to double down, a lot of your listeners,
49:07: I hope they're young listeners, Chris, because you've got a high -tech show here, and it's available on the Internet around the world.
49:13: I think modern Christian bookstores are filled with a lot of fast food types of books.
49:20: And, you know, if that's what you live on, you really don't get healthy if you just eat fast food.
49:27: And something can sound nice, but it doesn't have a substance or stain power to grow you and strengthen you.
49:34: I think Banner of Truth is so selective in what they publish, and these paperbacks, and other publishers are doing good work, but these paperbacks are quality, rich food.
49:46: And you'll read sentences and paragraphs that easily could change your life and ground you.
49:53: So I give them my highest commendation. We have another listener.
50:00: We have Bobby in Hartsdale, New York, who asks,
50:07: Can someone truly have communion with God and lose it, or is communion with God something that is only granted to the elect?
50:20: That's a complex question, but it's a really important question. And rather than try to dissect the question, let me try to provide an answer
50:30: I think that might be helpful. As I said earlier, communion with God is a gift of God to every believer, everyone who repents and believes in the
50:41: Spirit, brings about the new birth, and you belong to God, you're a child of God, you have communion. We call
50:47: God Father. The Bible even refers to Jesus Christ as our brother. And I could quote those scriptures.
50:55: We just talked about them at our church. Jesus Christ calls us brother, and then the Holy Spirit is present with believers.
51:03: Can we lose our salvation? We believe in the perseverance of the saints, as taught in the scripture.
51:09: Those whom God has saved he will bring to himself, Philippians 1 .6.
51:15: He who began a good work in you will see it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
51:21: I don't believe a true believer can be lost or plucked from the hands of our
51:26: Savior Jesus Christ. But the issue of communion with God, how we enjoy
51:32: God and sense his presence, we know that that sense of blessing and all those gifts, our perception of that can rise and fall.
51:44: We only have to read the book of Psalms to see how David was very honest about the ebb and flow, how he would question in his heart,
51:54: Lord, why have you drawn back from me, that sort of thing. And those are the perceptions and the sense and the flow of communion.
52:05: It can be hindered. As I said earlier, the grieving of the Holy Spirit becomes a hindrance to you.
52:11: So in other words, an elect person, especially when you are considering the understanding of backsliding,
52:19: I know that there are many Reformed Christians that don't like that term because it's an Old Testament term.
52:25: But the concept, I mean, it's patently and blatantly obvious that there are
52:33: Christians, not all, I mean, every Christian sins, but there are some Christians who temporarily fall into a deep, dark state of rebellion.
52:44: And I can even say, because I've said it many times in this show, I am one such person.
52:51: I, over a decade ago, fell back into or dived head first into a sin that was my prominent sin before salvation, and that is habitual unrepentant drunkenness.
53:07: And I was under church discipline, and I followed all of the orders of the elders in order to be restored to full fellowship and to demonstrate genuine repentance.
53:19: I went to a rehabilitation, a Christian drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility in Boone, North Carolina, called
53:31: Hebron Colony. I highly recommend anybody listening who is in that predicament to go there.
53:38: But it did, without question, halter and disrupt my communion with God during that season of darkness before I was restored to sanity.
53:51: But we're going to pick up right where I left off there. We have to go to our midway break, and I ask of you folks to be patient because the midway break is longer than the other breaks, because Grace Life Radio, 90 .1
54:02: FM in Lake City, Florida, requires of us a longer break in the middle of the show so that they can comply with the
54:09: FCC in airing their own public service announcements and other local things to localize this program geographically to Lake City, Florida.
54:18: While they do that, we air our globally heard commercials. Please respond to those ads as frequently as possible.
54:25: Don't go away. We'll be right back with David Bissett. Why can't we see
54:31: God? How do we know we picked the right Bible? Why do we go to church on Sunday?
54:38: Parents, if your kids have questions about God's Word and His creation, they would love to read our new reformed magazine called
54:47: Ignited by the Word. This magazine is packed full of devotionals,
54:53: Bible stories, church history, poems, activities, and more to encourage you and kids of all ages in their walk with God.
55:03: Created by a team of teachers, ministers, mothers, fathers, and more, we know how important it is to have
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55:29: If you're near retirement or thinking about retiring, you probably have questions.
55:42: How do you make your savings last? How much should you take out and when? You're ready for retirement, but are your finances?
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56:06: That's edwardjones .com. Or call 717 -258 -4688.
56:13: 717 -258 -4688. We here at Iron Sharpens Iron Radio are forever grateful for the generous financial support of Art Amundsen, Edward Jones financial advisor in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
56:27: Call 717 -258 -4688 today. Anchored in Truth Ministries is the mission arm of Grace Life Church of the
56:40: Shoals. Based in Alabama, it supports missionaries in over 13 countries around the world.
56:51: Anchored in Truth is in partnership with 36 church plants, as well as radio stations, theological seminaries, and various programs for unreached people groups.
57:03: With an aim to glorify God and reach the nations with the gospel, it is a blessing to see how
57:09: God has used Anchored in Truth in so many different contexts globally as well as locally.
57:17: To find out more about this vital work worldwide, visit anchoredintruth .org.
57:36: When Iron Sharpens Iron Radio first launched in 2005, the publishers of the
57:42: New American Standard Bible were among my very first sponsors. It gives me joy knowing that many scholars and pastors in the
57:50: Iron Sharpens Iron Radio audience have been sticking with or switching to the
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58:01: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Pastor Tom Buck at First Baptist Church in Lindale, Texas, and the
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58:17: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Andrew Rapport, the Founder and Executive Director at Striving for Eternity Ministries, and the
58:27: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Mark Rimaldi, Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church of Greenbrier, Tennessee, and the
58:36: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Christopher Cookston, Pastor of Prineville Community Church in Prineville, Oregon, and the
58:47: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Matt Tarr, Pastor of High Point Baptist Church in Larksville, Pennsylvania, and the
58:54: NASB is my Bible of choice. Here's a great way for your church to help keep
59:00: Iron Sharpens Iron Radio on the air. Pastors, are your pew Bibles tattered and falling apart?
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59:39: Every Christian who's serious about the Deformed Faith and the Westminster Standards should have and use the eight -volume commentary on the
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59:54: Joseph Morecraft. It is much more than an exposition of the Larger Catechism. It is a thoroughly researched work that utilizes biblical exegesis as well as historical and systematic theology.
01:00:07: Dr. Morecraft is Pastor of Heritage Presbyterian Church of Cumming, Georgia, and I urge everyone looking for a biblically faithful church in that area to visit that fine congregation.
01:00:18: For details on the eight -volume commentary, go to westminstercommentary .com, westminstercommentary .com.
01:00:26: For details on Heritage Presbyterian Church of Cumming, Georgia, visit heritagepresbyterianchurch .com,
01:00:35: heritagepresbyterianchurch .com. Please tell Dr. Morecraft and the Saints at Heritage Presbyterian Church of Cumming, Georgia that Dr.
01:00:42: Joseph Piper of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary sends you. Hello, my name is
01:00:54: Anthony Uvinio, and I'm one of the pastors at Hope Reform Baptist Church in Corum, New York, and also the host of the reformrookie .com
01:01:02: website. I want you to know that if you enjoy listening to the Iron Sharpens Iron radio show like I do, you can now find it on the
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01:01:25: Please be sure to also give it a good review and pass it along to anyone who would benefit from the teaching and the many solidly reformed guests that Chris Arnzen has on the show.
01:01:35: Truth is so hard to come by these days, so don't waste your time with fluff or fake news.
01:01:40: Subscribe to the Iron Sharpens Iron radio podcast right now. And while you're at it, you can also sign up for the reformrookie .com
01:01:47: podcast and visit our website and the YouTube page. We are dedicated to teaching Christian theology from a
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01:02:14: London Baptist Confession of Faith, please join us at Hope Reform Baptist Church in Corham, New York.
01:02:20: Again, I'm Pastor Anthony Invinio, and thanks for listening. If you love
01:02:31: Iron Sharpens Iron radio, one of the best ways you can help keep the show on the air is by supporting our advertisers.
01:02:39: One such faithful advertiser who really believes in what Chris Arnton is doing is
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01:04:30: Power of Jesus' Name This is
01:04:35: Pastor Bill Sousa, Grace Church at Franklin, here in the beautiful state of Tennessee.
01:04:41: Our congregation is one of a growing number of churches who love and support
01:04:46: Iron Sharpen's Iron Radio financially. Grace Church at Franklin is an independent, autonomous body of believers which strives to clearly declare the whole counsel of God as revealed in Scripture through the person and work of our
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01:05:09: If you live near Franklin, Tennessee, and Franklin is just south of Nashville, maybe 10 minutes, or you are visiting this area, or you have friends and loved ones nearby, we hope you will join us some
01:05:22: Lord's Day in worshiping our God and Savior. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions about Grace Church at Franklin.
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01:05:40: This is Pastor Bill Sousa wishing you all the richest blessings of our
01:05:45: Sovereign Lord, God, Savior, and King, Jesus Christ, today and always.
01:05:57: Hi, this is John Sampson, pastor of King's Church in Peoria, Arizona.
01:06:03: Taking a moment of your day to talk about Chris Arnzen and the Iron Sharpen's Iron podcast. I consider
01:06:08: Chris a true friend and a man of high integrity. He's a skilled interviewer who's not afraid to ask the big penetrating questions, while always defending the key doctrines of the
01:06:18: Christian faith. I've always been happy to point people to this podcast, knowing it's one of the very few safe places on the
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01:06:30: This is a day of great spiritual compromise, and yet God has raised Chris up for just such a time.
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01:07:14: Gary DeMar, president of American Vision, had to say about Iron Sharpen's Iron Radio recently.
01:07:21: Good to be back, Chris. I always enjoy our time. I have to tell you, you're one of the better interviewers out there, and I've been doing this for more than 30 years.
01:07:30: Wow, that's some compliment. How much joy are you for that? You don't have to owe me anything.
01:07:38: We're in good shape. I'm glad you said it on the air, so I don't have to brag about myself.
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01:08:24: Prince of Preachers to heart. The mission of Solid Ground Christian Books is to bring back treasures of the past to minister to Christians in the present and future, and to publish new titles that address burning issues in the church and the world.
01:08:37: Since its beginning in 2001, Solid Ground has been committed to publish God -centered, Christ -exalting books for all ages.
01:08:44: We invite you to go treasure hunting at solid -ground -books .com. That's solid -ground -books .com
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01:11:28: Before I return to my discussion with David Bissett, pastor of Clifton Park Community Church in Clifton Park, New York, and also one of the speakers at the
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01:14:23: Go to ironsharpenesironradio .com, click support, then click, click to donate now. Also, if you are not a member of a biblically sound,
01:14:31: Christ -honoring, doctrinally solid, theologically faithful church, no matter where on the planet
01:14:41: Earth you live, including a church like Clifton Park Community Church in Clifton Park, New York, if you're not a member of a church like that, please send me an email, because I have extensive lists spanning the globe of biblically faithful churches, and I may be able to find you a church, as I've already done with many people in our audience, all over the planet
01:15:03: Earth. So sometimes I can even find people, churches, within minutes from where they live all over the world, they didn't even know these churches existed, or they passed by the churches every day and didn't even know they were theologically sound.
01:15:16: So please send me an email to chrisarnson at gmail .com and put I need a church in the subject line, and that also goes for those of you who have friends, family, and loved ones without a biblically faithful church home.
01:15:27: That's chrisarnson at gmail .com, put I need a church in the subject line. That's also the email address where you can send in a question to David Bissett on the issue of the communion with God or even a broader array of subjects, since he is a pastor.
01:15:45: That's chrisarnson at gmail .com, and put your question, give us your first name, your city and state, and your country of residence.
01:15:55: Please only remain anonymous if your question involves a personal and private matter.
01:16:01: Right before the break, David, I was, as I have done many times on this program, told our audience of how church discipline not only rescued me from being in essence out of the communion with God because I was living in rebellion to him even as a believer, but I really was rescued physically.
01:16:23: I think that I probably would have been dead by now if I did not heed the warnings of my pastors on Long Island, New York, before moving to Pennsylvania.
01:16:33: And one of the reasons I frequently repeat that story is that I not only want people to know about Hebron Colony in Boone, North Carolina, where I found a sobriety that has lasted over a decade now, but also
01:16:52: I want people to not be under the impression that church discipline is a bad thing. It's something that you should be looking at as a gift from God, and when performed biblically and with love and with restoration as a primary motive and intention of the elders, it is a glorious experience and one that I thank
01:17:17: God for. And so connecting to this subject at hand, we were talking about can even a true believer, someone who is among the elect, have their communion with God taken away or interrupted or however you want to label it.
01:17:34: In fact, maybe you could label it more biblically for us. Well, I do appreciate your testimony there too,
01:17:43: Chris, and may God bless that to those that are struggling and having difficulty listening to spiritual leaders try to speak into their life.
01:17:53: And actually, before I get back to communion with God, let me also point out, just as a pastor, church discipline is about training and directive.
01:18:03: We can't confuse the word punishment with discipline. Parents discipline their children, meaning we train them.
01:18:11: We show them the dangers when they misbehave. We show them the right behavior. That's part of discipline.
01:18:17: A wonderful word is training and direction. It's not punitive.
01:18:23: The believer's sins are laid on Christ, and church discipline is meant to be restorative, as you said.
01:18:29: I would also point out, as our church has done in our own documents, there's so much church discipline that's informal, where we just come alongside a brother and say, hey,
01:18:40: I've been thinking about this thing you're doing and wanted to talk with you about it. It has a whole spectrum, and most churches practice informal discipline week in and week out, but it's only when that process breaks down or meets with resistance that it becomes more formalized.
01:18:57: And if a church is not conducting church discipline, to me it's a sign they are more concerned over your tithe and offering and your friendship and your liking them, and they're more concerned about perhaps your feelings than they are about your eternal soul.
01:19:19: Right. And more concerned with you than with God himself.
01:19:25: Yeah. So, fellow pastors, if you're listening, don't be shy about loving the people in your church enough to point out what needs changing, and to come alongside them with hope and with help.
01:19:40: Chris, I'm smiling because I know church discipline is very painful at times, but to just find again your joy in the
01:19:48: Lord, to see how gracious our Father is in leading us to recovery.
01:19:55: I think of the confident words of the prophet Micah in chapter 7, Do not rejoice over me,
01:20:01: O my enemy, for though I have fallen, I will yet arise. That's the hope we have when we do stumble.
01:20:09: Go ahead, I'm sorry. I'm ready to go back to the topic of communion with God in particular, but church discipline,
01:20:16: I'm glad it came up. Yes, and we do have a listener who has a specific question about communion with God.
01:20:24: We have RJ in White Plains, New York, who says,
01:20:30: What are the specific elements of communion with God that we can practically understand as joyful benefits of being a
01:20:40: Christian? Yeah, great question, and I can't answer it as an expert,
01:20:49: I can answer it as one who experiences communion with God. I'm so happy that the conference is going to show
01:20:58: John Owen's contribution to the topic, and many other contributions. We have the communion with God as believers, and we maintain that primarily through communing in his word and in prayer.
01:21:14: The word is when God speaks to us, prayer is when we speak to him, and reflecting on that prayer and letting the
01:21:20: Spirit direct our thoughts and our hearts and our minds. Let me try to be more specific.
01:21:28: I've got my copy of Communion with God, the abridged version by John Owen. In this, he talks about some of the aspects of our communion with the
01:21:39: Father. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, here he is speaking of the Father. He says, Let us see the Father as full of love to us.
01:21:46: Do not see the Father as one who is angry, but as one who is most kind and gentle.
01:21:53: So it's a wonderful reminder to say, what is your view of God? Perhaps you grew up with a father who was stern, and your physical human father didn't provide you with a lot of love and support in some ways.
01:22:08: Don't transfer that to your Father in Heaven. Let the scriptures remind you who this
01:22:14: God is and what he has done, how he loves you and longs to bless you and commune with you.
01:22:21: So one step further, thinking of what John Owen just said there, when the world tries to tell us what
01:22:27: God is like, oh, my God wouldn't do this, my God wouldn't do that, we can stray from the joyful experience of the one true and living
01:22:37: God. If we're only listening to the voices of our culture, or preachers who say your best life now and God exists to serve you, and they throw out all these other ideas, we need to let the scriptures show us the power, majesty, but the chesed, the loving kindness of our
01:22:57: God, directed towards sinners in the Lord Jesus Christ, because of his
01:23:02: Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. So these are some of the reflections.
01:23:08: This would be an element. I would make sure to look for what the scriptures tell me about my
01:23:14: Father in Heaven, that I understand who he is, I understand the nature of his love.
01:23:21: Another wonderful quote right on the heels of this from John Owen himself, he says, consider who it is who loves us.
01:23:29: It is the love of him who in himself is all sufficient, who is infinitely satisfied with himself and his own glorious excellencies and perfections.
01:23:38: It is the love of him who has no need to seek the love of others for himself, and he needs no one to make him happy.
01:23:48: He could, if he so wished, have rested with delight and satisfaction for all eternity, and the happiness of his own self -sufficiency.
01:23:55: But in spite of all this, the Father will love his saints also.
01:24:01: And Owen says the Father's love is such that he does not seek his own happiness and satisfaction only, but ours also.
01:24:11: It is the love of a God, the love of a Father, whose character is kind and generous.
01:24:18: Hallelujah. That's encouraging to me. Yes. You know, my human father could love me so much, and he passed on many years ago, but my
01:24:30: Father in Heaven, he's eternal, he's loving, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
01:24:36: We can talk about the quality of his love, the duration of his love, and all these things
01:24:42: John Owen is happy to do page upon page. But that was a very good question to ask about the elements, and focusing on God the
01:24:51: Father, I would say have the scriptures remind you who your Father is. Thank you,
01:24:57: R .J. and White Plains. Make sure you give us your full mailing address because you will receive a free copy of Communion with God by John Owen, and that will be shipped to you in several weeks when it is available.
01:25:11: Banner of Truth is revising that edition with a new cover, so we don't have physical copies yet, but you will get one,
01:25:18: God willing, in several weeks. And please make sure you give us your mailing address. We have a very faithful and longtime listener,
01:25:28: Grady from Asheboro, North Carolina, who says, Greetings, brothers. Before communion, the
01:25:34: Apostle Paul, through the Holy Spirit, tells us to examine ourselves. What's the best way to examine ourselves so we can make sure we're pure and holy before taking communion?
01:25:46: And as we were saying at the very outset of the program, that's just one element of communion with God, the
01:25:52: Lord's Supper, to which Grady is referring. And so if you could answer
01:25:59: Grady's question. Yes, and that's a great question because the two are related.
01:26:05: We call the Lord's Supper our time of communion because the Lord draws near his people in a very real and powerful spiritual sense.
01:26:16: So that's why we call the Lord's Supper communion. And your astute listener is well -versed in the
01:26:24: Scriptures. First Corinthians 11 has that phrase and command which many pastors read as they set forth the table, the bread, and the cup on Communion Sunday.
01:26:35: There the Apostle Paul says two things in First Corinthians 11, 27 and 28.
01:26:42: Whoever therefore eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the
01:26:51: Lord. Let a person examine himself, verse 28, let a person examine himself then and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
01:27:00: For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, verse 29, eats and drinks judgment on himself.
01:27:07: So that examination has several steps. Are you a believer? Is your faith in Christ?
01:27:14: And do you rightly understand what eating that bread and drinking that cup represent? It's not some superstitious sacramentalism that's being practiced.
01:27:26: I think that examination starts, are you a believer? What are you doing as you come near the table?
01:27:31: Are you remembering Christ's promises and his call upon your life as you eat?
01:27:38: Are you forsaking your sin and cleaving to him? And there's actually a third dimension of examination that's very important in the
01:27:47: Corinthian context. Do you understand that there are other believers coming to eat with you?
01:27:53: Discerning the body is not only, this is about Christ, the bread and the cup, but it's the body of Christ that comes to take it.
01:28:03: Just a reminder as a pastor to anyone who thinks they can just have communion by themselves at home, no you can't.
01:28:11: Communion is the corporate calling and privilege and blessing of the saints gathered in corporate worship.
01:28:19: And of course that does not mean that churches that meet in homes cannot have the
01:28:25: Lord's Supper. I just meant solo, you can't just go out and have communion on your own.
01:28:33: A lot of churches don't understand there's a corporate nature there. Discerning the body is the body of our
01:28:38: Lord, but also the local body of Christ, the believers. So the connection between communion with God and that Lord's Supper does call for a thoughtful participation.
01:28:50: Christianity is a thoughtful, thinking, rational faith.
01:28:58: It's not going through the motions, we've seen that. Roman Catholicism, people jumped across themselves or pray a rosary or some ritualistic point of reaching out to God.
01:29:10: Our communion is based in truth. I could go on.
01:29:15: Jesus spoke to the woman at the well. The Father is those who is seeking worshipers, those who will worship
01:29:23: Him in spirit and in truth. So that's part of our examination whenever we are in worship and having communion formally with the bread and the cup, but also in our
01:29:37: Christian life. Yes, and a part of the idolatry of Rome that people may be unaware of is when you see a
01:29:47: Roman Catholic cross themselves and genuflect when entering into a
01:29:54: Roman Catholic church. They're doing so because they believe Christ is physically present in the bread and wine.
01:30:03: Even the leftovers in the tabernacle. Even just the bread, they believe that that is
01:30:09: Jesus. So that is obviously idolatry.
01:30:15: And also what Grady asked about reminds us, although I count among my brethren those who believe in and practice paedo -communion,
01:30:27: I am strongly opposed to it. As are most paedo -baptists, interestingly enough. Because a baby cannot examine itself, obviously, nor can a young child who is too young and underdeveloped mentally to even understand the magnitude of what is happening.
01:30:50: Yeah. Well, thank you, Grady, and make sure we have your full mailing address. We obviously do, because you have submitted many questions to us going back to 2005 when we first launched this program.
01:31:04: But you have also won a free copy of the book that we are addressing in connection with the
01:31:10: Banner of Truth Conference, Communion with God by John Owen. And please be patient with us as it will take several weeks to get it into your hands since it is going to be a revised edition that is not yet physically in print.
01:31:27: One of the issues that involves the joy and the peace of being in communion with God is that we can truly know that Romans 8 .28
01:31:46: is not just a placard. It's not just something to hang on your dining room wall.
01:31:55: And, in fact, it is a precious truth that all things will work together for the good for those who love
01:32:03: God and are the call according to His purpose. But those who are not in communion with God should not be comforted with that truth.
01:32:12: Wouldn't you say that that is true, that we should not be throwing that teaching out, or that promise,
01:32:23: I should say, out to nonbelievers? Because it really is only a promise to God's children, isn't it?
01:32:31: Yeah, it is clear. The promises of God's Word, the specifics, especially surrounding communion, whether it's the formal practice and observance of the
01:32:44: Lord's Supper or our general desire to walk with God, those are promises made to believers.
01:32:53: You know, even some Christian hymns over the centuries have given some odd notions when they speak of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of all mankind.
01:33:05: That's going beyond what you were asking, but the promises of God are for the people of God, and it is still possible to become a member of the kingdom and to turn to Christ and join and avail yourself of those promises.
01:33:21: Amen. And one of those privileges of being truly in communion with God is the
01:33:29: Supper, because not only are nonbelievers in a church that's functioning biblically, not only are nonbelievers urged not to partake in the
01:33:42: Supper, but even if you're under church discipline and that issue of sin in your life that has become so serious that it required discipline, until it is resolved in the church, you are to refrain from partaking, and nor are you to partake of it when visiting another church if you're still under discipline in your own congregation.
01:34:09: People should not be looking for ways to circumvent.
01:34:15: Yes, exactly. Yeah, that's well said. That is a very valuable gift to be able to participate in as far as having communion with God.
01:34:27: But before I go to the final break, I want to make sure that you also whet the appetites of our listeners about the
01:34:36: East Coast Ministers Conference that the Banner of Truth will be conducting May 24th through May 26th in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania.
01:34:46: I'm assuming it's at Elizabethtown College once again. Yes. It's been the venue for a little while.
01:34:52: Yes. In years past, it's been at other college campuses, but they hold it on a campus,
01:34:57: Chris, as you know, because one of the aims of gathering, it's not just to hear famous speakers and then go back to your hotel room.
01:35:05: It's for the fellowship of other pastors, other elders, men in the church.
01:35:12: It's primarily a conference for men only. And the life you share by going from the session, walking across the campus to eat or walking to the dorm rooms, and you know that you can have an ice cream social one evening and men gather.
01:35:27: And you have conversations across denominational lines about what you've heard and how do you apply that and talking about books in the bookstore.
01:35:38: It's a rich time of fellowship. I put it on my calendar. I've been, praise
01:35:43: God, for 30 years. I've gone annually to this conference. It is a lifeline to me.
01:35:51: I've been a solo pastor for many years. I have an associate now. But it is a wonderful experience of fellowship.
01:36:00: And on the Banner of Truth website, you can actually see some video testimonials from pastors.
01:36:06: And if any of my brothers from Banner are listening, I can't wait to see you. I've got friends that I only see at the
01:36:14: Banner because of our separation, being in different states. And it is a blessing to have these men in my life.
01:36:20: They will pray for me and think of me. So that's one aspect of the
01:36:25: Banner Conference. And the same is with the West Coast Conference. And if you're in the United Kingdom, I think it's in Leicester, the
01:36:34: Banner Conference there. Yes, we definitely have listeners. We have listeners in the United Kingdom as well.
01:36:40: In addition to all over the world, 26 foreign countries that we know of, we have listeners.
01:36:47: Wow. Wow. Well, the Banner itself publishes books in most of the countries of the world, multiple languages.
01:36:55: So if some of your listeners' English is not their native language, Banner has something for you. A lot of titles in Spanish, for instance, but also some of the other important languages of the world.
01:37:07: So I cannot commend a conference more highly than this.
01:37:12: I've been to all of them, Chris. You've been to a lot of them. There's a quality here because God's Word is central.
01:37:18: There's God -centered singing and moments of worship. There's also a morning prayer time, and men will plead with you before the throne of grace as we pray together.
01:37:30: It stands alone. It stands alone among all the conferences available.
01:37:35: I would encourage your pastor to go if your church can't afford to send him. There are often scholarships available through the
01:37:42: Banner of Truth. The first year I went from my little church near Boston, I went because Jim Eshelman and Banner of Truth arranged a scholarship for Dave Bissett.
01:37:53: Wow, Jim Eshelman is a member of my congregation. I know him well. I can't wait to see him again.
01:37:59: I shouldn't have said my congregation, as my friend Bill Shishko of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church always reminds me, he chastises me when
01:38:08: I say my church or my congregation. He'll say, it's the Church of Jesus Christ, Chris, it's not yours.
01:38:15: Amen. We know what you mean. Grace Baptist in Carlisle is a precious church in the circle of Reformed Brothers.
01:38:26: You mentioned Pastor Miller. I admit their associate pastor there, Tom Richwine, one of the trustees of the
01:38:32: Banner of Truth is at Grace. I could go on and on more about Banner. If your listeners have some questions,
01:38:39: I could tell you a little bit about its ministry. They have a magazine that comes out every month as well as other resources.
01:38:46: But this conference is a gem. I'm so glad you're highlighting it today, Chris. Thank you.
01:38:52: Well, one of the things that I also like or love about the Banner of Truth conferences is the accessibility, typically, to the speakers.
01:39:04: There is no air of celebrity there. And it's great to get to sit down and share a meal with some of the speakers.
01:39:16: And also, when I go, I'm just so blessed not only to see old friends that I haven't seen in years, but also to meet face -to -face for the first time people who have been listeners in my audience for years.
01:39:33: I had the privilege of one day just by, quote, quote, chance.
01:39:39: We know this was under the providence of God. But I just happened to sit down at a table in the cafeteria to eat lunch where an
01:39:47: Indian pastor was sitting. I introduced myself, told him about Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, and he informed me where he pastors in India and said,
01:39:58: I've been listening to your shows for years and have submitted questions to you. So it was quite a providential meeting, and that always warms my heart deeply.
01:40:11: You're exactly right to mention that, Chris, about that flavor to the conference.
01:40:17: We all should know that Banner of Truth is largely started through the ministry of Ian Murray, a resident of Scotland, and a dear.
01:40:29: He doesn't often travel across to the U .S. anymore, but in the early years, going back to the 90s, when
01:40:34: I first started coming, he took time to meet with me. And when I gushed about my favorite
01:40:41: Puritan, Thomas Manton, and the sermons on Psalm 119, he said, David, would you share that with the conference tonight at the start of our meeting?
01:40:49: And here I am, a young 20 -something pastor. Ian draws me forward to share what
01:40:55: I had learned by this Banner book, and actually become a good friend. I don't know if Ian's a regular listener, but he's just had a birthday last month, and I think he's 92, and a dear friend,
01:41:09: Ian Murray. Wow, yeah. In fact, today, I just bought another copy for a friend of Ian Murray's book,
01:41:20: The Puritan Hope, at CVBBS .com,
01:41:26: at their physical location. When I was in there today, they're on Rittner Highway in Carlisle, and that is also a
01:41:33: Banner of Truth publication. It is, and that is an amazing little book about the end times, but I have to tell you, one of my favorite quotes in any
01:41:47: Banner book is found in that book. Wow. I can't bring it to my reaction,
01:41:53: I call it the Thornwell quote. Oh yeah,
01:41:59: J. H. Thornwell. Yes, and it's in the first third of the book.
01:42:05: I could pull out my highlighted copy if I were in my bedroom, and that quote tells us such precious things about the
01:42:12: Scriptures, God's plan for this world to make His glory known. That quote alone will give you the hope of the
01:42:20: Puritans, and I printed it out, I used to have it posted in my study as a young pastor.
01:42:26: It was such a blessing to me. Amen. Well, we have to go to our final break. It will be a lot briefer or more brief than the other breaks, so please be patient with us.
01:42:36: If you have a question, send it in immediately. We're rapidly running out of time. It's chrisarnson at gmail .com, chrisarnson at gmail .com.
01:42:43: Give us your first name at least, city and state, and country of residence. We'll be right back, right after these messages from our sponsors.
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01:49:15: Please visit us at truthloveparent .com. As host of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, I frequently get requests from listeners for church recommendations.
01:49:38: The church I've been strongly recommending as far back as the 1980s is Grace Covenant Baptist Church in Flemington, New Jersey, pastored by Alan Dunn.
01:49:48: Grace Covenant Baptist Church believes it's God's prerogative to determine how he shall be worshipped and how he shall be represented in the world.
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01:53:20: Welcome back. David Bissett would like you to now summarize what you most want etched in the hearts and minds of our listeners today about communion with God before this program ends.
01:53:35: Summarize? Summarize what you most want etched in the hearts and minds of our listeners about this subject that we've been discussing, the communion with God.
01:53:45: Yeah, yeah. Boy, that's such a big topic. It's like asking, what is your favorite hymn?
01:53:54: Because there's so many dimensions to this. As I was rereading Owen this week, I saw that we're talking about our relationship with Father, our relationship with the
01:54:03: Lord Jesus and the role of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life. I certainly come back to the scripture
01:54:11: I shared at the beginning, Chris, where John is writing, and he put the tagline after mentioning that fellowship, he said, and we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
01:54:22: There are far too many Christians that don't fully appreciate the love of God our
01:54:28: Father and the fellowship and communion of His Holy Spirit, that it should bring joy.
01:54:34: We're not talking about happiness and giddiness or being so heavenly minded that we're no earthly good.
01:54:41: We're talking about understanding and having our anchor set within the veil where our relationship with the
01:54:49: Lord is established by the work of Christ and there are benefits that flow to us now, there are promises for tomorrow, and we know the end of the story.
01:54:59: All these things flavor, color, and bring joy into our current life.
01:55:05: I think this world is scrambling to find meaning and place, and especially with all the cultural change going on,
01:55:14: Christianity has answers, and it has joy, delight, and purpose, and these things flow from understanding the communion we have with God, the fellowship we have with God.
01:55:27: We have a question from Susan Margaret in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, who says,
01:55:34: Are only those who are in true communion with God those whose prayers
01:55:40: God hears? Now, obviously, I know that God is omniscient and omnipresent, and he does hear what every man and woman and child utters, but there is a unique way where God only hears the prayers of his children who are true children, not the children of Satan.
01:56:02: So is communion with God a vital element of God hearing the prayers of his children?
01:56:11: Yeah, that is a really important question. It's a good question. I'm glad she's thinking of it.
01:56:18: I'm inclined to say this. Our Father hears our prayers not because we have maintained our communion or we sense and understand our communion.
01:56:31: He hears our prayers because Christ intercedes. The Spirit helps us pray.
01:56:37: I want to be very careful, Chris. I mean, we know the ups and downs of the Christian life. It's a
01:56:43: Monday, and I'm a pastor, and I say, Oh, if only I had done this yesterday or done that. We never merit
01:56:50: God answering our prayers. We can when we're in the dirt.
01:56:56: We can plead for God's love and kindness to come to us. We have no merit to enhance our prayer.
01:57:06: So it might be shocking to say that our communion with God does not determine our prayer life in a practical way.
01:57:13: Yes, when I'm close to my Father and understand the presence and help of the Spirit, I am much more ready to ask, and my prayers flow freely and with great confidence.
01:57:27: But any believer, if you have not been walking in communion with God, but you know the
01:57:32: Lord, your prayer of repentance, your prayer of hunger and thirsting for communion with God will be answered because of Christ.
01:57:42: We have Arnie in Perry County, Pennsylvania, who asks, Is there not a danger of those who are in false religions finding an emotional and gratifying peace that they believe is eternal but is only temporal and only a physical or emotional thing to claim that they know that they have a true relationship and communion with God but they are really worshiping a false deity?
01:58:10: I don't think there is a genuine peace available anywhere else outside of Christ.
01:58:16: I interact with nonbelievers quite a bit. I remember being a nonbeliever.
01:58:22: I thought I was religious. I thought I had a sense of peace. But it only takes the death of a loved one to shatter the worldly peace, the cross that we put on our hearts and minds that we think gives us peace.
01:58:36: True peace comes only with our faith in God through Jesus Christ.
01:58:43: I direct you to Romans 5 and Romans 8. That's where true peace comes in the world.
01:58:49: They think they have peace. People are spiritual. They look at rainbows. They sit in yoga positions. They think they're at peace.
01:58:56: It cannot stand the test of real life. Amen. And we are out of time.
01:59:03: I want to make sure I repeat the Banner of Truth website for more information on the East Coast Ministers Conference and all their conferences and books.
01:59:12: BannerofTruth .org, BannerofTruth .org and you can click on Events to find out more about their conferences, both their
01:59:19: East Coast, West Coast, and United Kingdom conferences. Also, if you want more information about Clifton Park Community Church, where my guest serves as the pastor, the senior pastor, go to CliftonParkCommunityChurch .org,
01:59:33: CliftonParkCommunityChurch .org. I want to thank you so much, Pastor Bissett, for being an extraordinary guest.
01:59:40: I look forward to your frequent return as a guest to this program. I've got more to say.
01:59:45: Well, I want you to come back. And I want to thank everybody who listened. I want you all to always remember for the rest of your lives that Jesus Christ is a far greater