Mail Bag (April 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.

Opening the Mail Bag and Life Updates

Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry. My name is Mike Abendroth, March 31, 2020, in real time in NOCO time, somewhere in April. What�s going on here at the radio show? Well, yesterday I did about two and a half hours of filming for the American Gospel movie, Brandon Kimber�s third installment of American Gospel.

The first one I was going to be in was too sick. Then the second one I was in, and then now the third one. We�ll see if he likes any of the information, right? The whole thing isn�t me, obviously. I�ll probably, out of the two and a half hours, make it in five minutes, but it�s five more minutes than I deserve.

Sorry for the sniffles today. This is day 15 with this, I don�t know what it is. I know it�s not COVID. I did a COVID test, but just kind of sniffles and sinus stuff and all that. Anyway, I�ve gone from Mike Abendroth, because I drank so much broth for the colonoscopy, that now I need a new name because I�ve been doing Lactose Free, and that�s helping my stomach, and Gluten Free.

I don�t know if that�s helping or not, but I�m doing that as well. GMO Free, Fun Free, Pleasure Free, Tasting Good Free. I have some kind of Udu Udi bread or something in the morning, and a couple of eggs, and you can have corn stuff, right?

Corn isn�t popcorn, at least you could have. What else is good? I don�t know, a vegan ice cream bar or something, sorbet. All that to say, if you pray for me, thank you for that. I�ve really appreciated it.

I�ve gotten a lot of encouragement from really around the world. They are thankful that I�m alive. I�m thankful I�m alive as well. Heaven would have been great, obviously, but I�m glad I�m here, and I think God has given us that desire to be on earth and be with our family, and we are not in control.

That�s true, but I don�t think that�s a bad desire. I mean, I long for heaven that will be good. Who knows the pleasures that await there in the presence of the Lord Jesus, but I�m happy to be here. My daughter Haley and her husband, they�re expecting to be my first grandchild, so that�s really fun.

What else is going on? The church, Bethlehem Bible Church, bbcchurch .org. So many new people, and I don�t know how to explain it. Some probably are tired of COVID rules and a lot of COVID pressure in terms of masking, distancing, do they have service, livestream only.

I think some of that still exists here in Massachusetts, and I think people are tired of that, and I also think people want to learn the Scriptures, and they want to learn the Scriptures with the tincture of God is a generous, kind, benevolent Father.

If you hear preaching regularly as a Christian from a pastor who essentially presents God as angry, mad, condemning, and I�m not talking about to the unbeliever, I�m talking about to the believer, and the countenance of the pastor reflects that anger as well.

I don�t think that�s the right environment to be in. We think of fathers and we think about pity, provision, protection, discipline, but this whole idea of, you know, you go back to Luke 15 and the prodigal son and what he thought about his father, and then what the son that stayed there thought about his father, very, very insightful.

Anyway, that�s probably one of the reasons why people are here. Everything is set in the context of grace. We�re going through the book of Ephesians, as you know, Ephesians 6, this particular Sunday, and we don�t have room.

The parking lot is full, people are double parking or driving off, the sanctuary is too full, and if you know someone, this is seriously, you know someone that has a lot of money that wants to invest in churches, I�ve heard Hobby Lobby does this and other people, I don�t have the connections, but we need a new building, we need a bigger building, and it�s amazing, so many people, especially Southern Baptists, pour money into New England to plant churches.

Well, we are not a Southern Baptist church, but we could use the help. So I don�t ask for no-co money, you can give if you like, we have Patreon that you can give, or some people send in checks, that�s wonderful, thank you, I appreciate it, certainly don�t deserve it, it helps.

But for the church, I don�t mind asking. We need a bigger place, and we need a bigger church, and we need some money to do it. Asking you will receive. I�m asking the benevolent Father, Lord, on behalf of these dear people, for fellowship and for accommodating people that want to hear the Word of God preached through the lens of Christ Jesus, we need a bigger place, so please help us, that�s what we need.

Scripture, the Message Bible, and a Mailbag Letter

Well, what else is on schedule here for today? You know, occasionally I look at the Message Bible, and I�ve been preaching through Ephesians, so I just hear in front of me, and so I could go to Bazaar if I wanted, or Bazaar, or I could go elsewhere.

I�m just kind of interested to see what this says. Children do what your parents tell you. This is only right. Honor your father and mother. It�s the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, so that you will live well and have a long life.

Fathers don�t exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master. Servants respectfully obey your earthly masters, but always with an eye to obeying the real Master, Christ.

Don�t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily as Christ�s servants, doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter what happens to be giving the orders�no matter who happens to be giving the orders�this is small font, by the way�you�re really serving God.

Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are a slave or free. Well, I�ve read worse from the message, so I�ll just leave it at that. Again, sorry for the sniffles. I don�t know what is going on with this.

This is a miscellaneous show today, so I received an email March 31st. Dear Mike, my name is so-and-so and I�m a member of so-and-so Bible Church. My name is Jacob and I�m a member at Omaha Bible Church.

Bible Church? Isn�t that like a Dallas Seminary dispensational, elder-run, independent, non-affiliated, fundamentalist, I-fight-Christians-anywhere? What�s that? Who would ever be called Bible Church?

Oh, excuse me. Last time you were in Omaha, we chatted briefly. I think that was three years ago or so. Probably. I was supposed to be there last year, but coughing up a lung, two lungs I didn�t have.

I�ve been listening to No Compromise Radio here and there and I�m loving it. What do you mean here and there? We need Kofi around. He�s listening to every single show. Come on. What do you mean I�m listening here and there?

We want dedicated. This is a covenant of work show. This is C-O-W, cow show, and cow shows mean that you need to always listen. Always every day listen. Twenty-four and a half minutes of me talking.

Pastor Steve will be in tomorrow. We�re going to record some shows. I think we�re going to do the White Horse Inn Bible quiz. Maybe that�s already been played by the time this is all working. By the way, this particular man, Jacob, I think he�s a Husker fan based on what�s going on here.

Corn Huskers. �Thank you for all that you do through this ministry and beyond by exalting the Lord Jesus. Well, if he�s got that right at least, that�s our desire. That�s our goal. It�s not necessarily to be discernment ministry and expose everyone who compromises.

We have to start with ourselves, of course. But I want to talk about the one who never compromised, the Lord Jesus. It says, �If it were not for people like you and Pat I am assuming he�s talking about Pat Abendroth.

Maybe he�s talking about Pat, remember that lady man thing on Saturday Night Live, Pat. We�re talking about Pat Abendroth, Patrick James Abendroth. �How do you have kids named Mike and Pat and we�re not Irish?

How does that work? I would still be in the confusion that is dispensationalism, not knowing where my righteousness comes from. Well, I find that an interesting comment and I�m glad he understands. There are some dispensationalists that believe in active righteousness, Christ earning righteousness, meriting righteousness, obeying the law, not for himself.

He was already inherently righteous, but obeying for others on our behalf in our stead. But there are some in dispensationalism that don�t talk about the act of obedience and or teach against it. Of course, we think of people like Darby, J .N. Darby.

He was a dispensationalist, kind of maybe the intro to dispensationalism, modern dispensationalism or at least two generations ago. I mean, that�s the problem with dispensationalism. Which dispensationalism are we talking about?

And if you say, �Well, I�m kind of a leaky dispensationalist and I�m a five-point Calvinist and doctrines of grace, kind of a la John MacArthur. Well, the problem is, well, what about the original definition of dispensationalism or the second generation of dispensationalism?

Which dispensationalism are you talking about? And therefore, I think that that kind of makes it hard. I�m trying to think of who else would be a dispensationalist. I think Andy Snyder is still a dispensationalist but has taught against active obedience and taught that what Christ did on the cross was to forgive us our sins and not to give us an earned righteousness, a merited righteousness.

Many people don�t like merit. They don�t have any kind of earning. They have a hard time with Adam in the garden. So anyway, there are dispensationalists that don�t teach that. What happens is, once you move to the covenant theology side, then you realize a high premium on Christ�s active obedience.

And of course, J. Gresham Machen talked about there�s no hope without Christ�s active obedience. And certainly, one of the things you�ll find in churches, if they don�t talk about Christ�s obedience very much, they�re going to talk about your needed obedience a lot.

That�s what they�re going to do. Obedience is going to be talked about in one way, shape, or form. And when you stand before God, the ground, as it were, before God�s justice, the bar of His justice there in a courtroom setting, what would be the ground that you could stand before a thrice holy God?

Well, you say, �I have some evidence that I�m a Christian. There�s some fruit, and there�s God working in me. Would that be the ground? I mean, because our evidences, our fruit, our obedience and faithfulness certainly isn�t perfect.

And would not God�s holiness expose that imperfection? Well, we know what the answer is. The answer is, of course it would. How do we stand before God? Well, we�re going to need to be sinless. That�s certainly true, and that has been taken care of by the Lord Jesus for every single Christian.

Debt paid in full. Every sin debt. Can you imagine, Christian? All paid, paid in full. Past, present, and future sins, they�ve been taken care of. In Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins, Ephesians 1, 7.

Colossians chapter 2 talks about the same thing, forgiveness of all our trespasses. But there�s something else needed, and that�s going to need�that is a perfect righteousness, perfect law-keeping, summarized by the two great commandments.

Loving God, loving neighbor. And certainly, when you think of Jesus, isn�t that what you think of? Think of Jesus loving His Father, on earth obeying the Father, praying to the Father, having an eye toward the Father�s pleasure, I want to do what�s pleasing to my Father.

Thy will, not my will, be done. When you look at the Lord Jesus, sent to rescue and ransom the bride, the Father sent Him to do that, that�s exactly what He did. You look at Philippians chapter 2, and you think of being obedient to the Father, to the point of death, what?

Even death on the cross. That�s the extent of Christ�s love and reverence and honor for the Father. And the Incarnation shows that in all its brilliance. When you stand before God, you�re going to need obedience, and it�s not going to be, �Well, I tried to obey, but it�s kind of sincere obedience, it wasn�t perfect.

Our works now come out of gratitude, our works flow out of a desire to glorify God, and to honor Him, and to be faithful to Him. Him, and since God accepts us in Christ, think Romans 6, Union, think Ephesians 2, 22, and 23, and 24, God has put off old Adam, put on the new Adam.

We are positionally different, we are united with Christ. Therefore, since He accepts you, He accepts your works. But not as ground, not as judicial standing, but as evidence. Therefore, I'm happy to have people stuck in, help people who are stuck in some of these kind of situations.

You've been in my wife and I's prayers, and we're happy to know your health is improving, looking forward to the next time you're in Omaha. We were on the list to go to Israel, and we're so bummed that it fell through, perhaps next time.

Thanks again for all you do. Oh, what a kind letter. I'm just kidding. I'm just happy somebody listens, right? People want to know. And one of the things I've been stressing since I've gotten better, and thank you, by the way, Jacob, for praying.

I really, really appreciate it. Thank you. I've been trying to stress, yes, particular Bible passages and teaching the Bible, but I'm trying to give you, have you noticed, listeners? I'm trying to give you a lens to see through, to see the Scriptures through.

I don't mean Mike Ebendroth lens. I don't mean that at all. You wouldn't want to do that, would you? Of course you wouldn't. But when you look at Scripture, there's a way to look at it. I mean, all too often in my world and in my everyday world, my past world, we look at passages and we have word studies, and that's kind of what we're known for, right?

We know word studies, how many times the word is used, and we kind of put our blinders on and we just hover over the text and make sure we've got objective genitives, subjective genitives, nomic arists, what kind of particle this is, participle, gerunds, okay, fine.

God speaks to us in these last days, Luther said in Greek and Hebrew letters, that's true. But there's a context and there's a divine author and we need to see. And so if I can teach you the lenses of law gospel, the lens of duplex gratia, Christ for pardon, Christ for power, if I can teach you, okay, the commands of God for the Christian are from a loving father, not an angry judge.

If I can teach you those even three basic things, the law guides Christians. In other words, it doesn't condemn us because of the Lord Jesus has already taken the condemnation for our law breaking. If I could teach you those three or four basic things, they just keep coming up over and over and over.

I'm thinking about my message this weekend in Ephesians chapter six, where children need to obey their parents and honor their father and mother. Fathers need to watch out so they don't provoke their children to anger, but bring them up in the nurture or the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

They nurture them in the discipline and admonition or instruction of the Lord, and then slaves obey your earthly masters, and masters do the same to them. Well, what's the context of that? It's bathed in, it's soaked in, it's saturated in the whole concept of grace, and we respond with gratitude.

That's another thing, if I can just teach you, grace gratitude, you know, four or five things that you say, that's what No Compromise Radio talks about all the time. Well, the reason why I have to talk about it all the time is because we don't think about it all the time.

We're legalist at heart. We have legal temper. We have legal distemper. We have legal obedience. There is a difference between gospel obedience and legal obedience. Why do you obey? I mean, let's think about it for a second.

Everyone within evangelicalism, for the most part, I mean, conservative people, they think obedience is important for the Christian. Do you think it's important for the Christian? Faithful living, obedient living, obeying God's commands, do you think that's important?

And the answer is yes. Do I think it's important? Yes. Check out the last, I don't know how many sermons I preached on the topic. How many shows have I done on No Compromise Radio? Obey, but what's the motivation for obedience?

That's the real question that's at hand when it comes to sanctification. Why do we obey? How can we obey? What's the motivation to obey? How is sustained obedience possible? That's the question, not should we obey.

The answer to should we obey, short of true antinomians, short of hyper-grace people, we all agree, you, as a Christian, must obey. But why? How? What are the ramifications? Because God's angry at me, and I have an unhealthy, cringing fear of God, and He's going to crush me, and to condemn me, and come down on me so hard.

I'll teach you, I'll show you, no, no, no, and no. Therefore, if I've got to be known for something, I hope I'm known for this, because there's the tincture, the gospel tincture, as Thomas Boston talks about.

How does a father rightly talk to a son or a daughter? And if I rightly know to be kind, and tenderhearted, and forgiving, and loving, of course I want them to obey. But the tenor, and the tone, and the setting, that's why gospel preachers need to make sure they talk about the one Lord Jesus, who was that very thing, who was grace incarnate.

Think about Titus chapter 2. Of course we are to obey this Lord and Savior, our Lord and Savior. Of course. He set a wonderful example of obedience to the Father, but it was not an obedience that was this kind of obedience with a mad father.

No, no, a gracious father, oh, heavenly Father. The only time the Lord didn't say when addressing the Father, the Son to the Father, was on the cross when He said, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

So that we might not be forsaken, but there in this amazing, wonderful, mysterious, how can we comprehend the Father, as it were, turning His back on the Son, and then punishing Him, treating Him like He was a sinner, even though He never did sin, even though He didn't sin any time in thought, word, or deed.

But God the Father, now is God the judge, because He's judging our sins. This is a mystery, it's incredible, it's wonderful. But what I found is pastors are so concerned that there are false converts in the pews that that seems to be their main focus.

That's the tincture, even, is, you know what, you're a bunch of unbelievers, or there's unbelievers here, and they're gonna try to get rooted out by the pastor's proclamation and his prophetic teaching.

I think every single Sunday, I say, and if you're not a Christian, these promises aren't for you. If you're not a Christian, you need to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's the free offer of forgiveness, come buy water without price, milk without price, come here.

Here's this great Jesus who forgives, believe, trust, receive, rest, accept. I say that every week, but that's not my primary focus. I mean, you say, I've heard this show before, okay, good, well, I need to keep hearing it over and over and over, because this very week, I'm studying Ephesians chapter six in the command section, and as children obey, fathers don't provoke, but, you know, bring them up, nourish them, and make sure you, if you're a worker, slave, you obey properly, as you would in the Lord.

All these commands, it's true and true and true. We're not arguing, should a Christian obey? But we're arguing, why should a Christian obey? What's the motivation? Who is he obeying? I mean, the father gives these rules because it's good for us.

He wants our best. If he's given us the Lord Jesus, Romans 8, 32, won't he give us everything else? If he's not gonna spare his son, why would he spare other things? He gives us the greatest gift, he would give us other gifts.

You wanna know what's best for you at work? Obey your bosses, that's what's best for you, it's gonna go well with you. Children, you wanna know what's best? Obey your mom and dad, honor them, it's gonna go well for you.

This is just the way God has set it up. There's authority, but it's not this harsh authority. It's not this authority that is an exacting authority. This authority like my father on earth, where I was told to mow the yard and trim it, and I would mow it and trim it, and he'd come out and inspect it.

And I'm telling you, and this is like, you wanna know why I'm a weirdo? This is one of the reasons with daddy wounds, it never, ever was good enough for him. It was never, great job, son. It was never, I'm proud of you, I love you.

I might have got a love you without I love you when I went off to college, but that probably was about it. Maybe on his deathbed he said something, I don't really remember. That's not the main point here is my daddy wounds, but what kind of father would the heavenly father be?

Even if we have an earthly father that has fallen short and all of our fathers have. We wanna make sure when we think about scripture and we think about the commands, we think about the heavenly father giving these commands to Christians, not as an angry judge, but as a heavenly father that certainly wants his honor and glory, and he also wants our good.

And that's the whole context of legal obedience versus gospel obedience. My name is Mike Abendroth, this is NoCompromiseRadio .com.

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 bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.