The Unconverted “Believer” (5): The Narrow and Wide Gates

First Baptist Church Leominster

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Pastor Jason will come and read for us our New Testament reading, which is Acts 8, and there are several incidents recorded here in which the gospel is going forth into the world now, and it's moving out into the

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Gentile world. But first, there's an Ethiopian eunuch who is converted to the

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Word of God through Christ. Eunuchs, of course, were not permitted to really be involved in the worship of the temple of the

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Old Testament, but there's a prophecy in Isaiah that when the kingdom of the Messiah would come, eunuchs would have an equal part in place, and really this account of the

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Ethiopian conversion is a realization of fulfillment of that prophecy in Isaiah, and again he's converted through that fourth servant song of Isaiah 52 and 3.

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Acts chapter 8, And Saul approved of his execution.

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And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

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Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.

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Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the

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Christ. And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did.

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For unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who had them, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.

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So there was much joy in that city. But there was a man named Simon who had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great.

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They all paid attention to him from the least to the greatest, saying, this man is the power of God that is called great.

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And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. And when they believed

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Philip, as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

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Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized, he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.

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Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them

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Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the

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Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. Now when

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Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money, saying, give me this power also, so that anyone on whom

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I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. But Peter said to him, may your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money.

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You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the

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Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.

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And Simon answered, pray for me to the Lord that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.

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Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the

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Samaritans. Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.

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This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the

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Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot.

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And he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the spirit said to Philip, go over and join this chariot.

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So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, do you understand what you are reading?

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And he said, how can I unless someone guides me? And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

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Now the passage of scripture that he was reading was this. Like a sheep, he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth.

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In his humiliation, justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation?

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For his life is taken away from the earth. And the eunuch said to Philip, about whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this?

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About himself or someone else? Then Philip opened his mouth and beginning with this scripture, he told him the good news about Jesus.

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And as they were going along the road, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, see, here is water.

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What prevents me from being baptized? And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water,

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Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the spirit of the

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Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through, he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

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Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for the great salvation that we have in Christ Jesus.

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We thank you for your word, we thank you for your spirit, we thank you for your church. And Lord, as we continue our worship through the sermon, we pray that we would be attentive to what the word of God says.

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We pray that we would hear it, that we would understand it, and we pray by the power of the spirit that we would live it.

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Thank you, Lord, in Jesus' name, amen. Well, let's turn to Matthew 7 for today and next

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Sunday's message. Now, the notes are pretty extensive, but it's an important subject, and so I hope that you'll be patient with us as we try and work our way through all of this.

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It's important to be able to express on one occasion some of these important truths rather than dividing it up between a couple weeks.

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And so the notes are a little longer. Actually, I started it out the other day with 23 pages.

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I managed to whittle it down to 12. But this is important.

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Again, I'm not just for our benefit, but I'm hoping to be able to equip you so you're able to better bear witness of the gospel to others that you know.

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And so this matter of nominal Christianity, the unconverted believer, is very critically important to us.

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And so in this series in which we're addressing the unconverted believer, we have to consider what the word of God says about the conversion event itself.

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What is it to be converted? And so we do so today. Much nominal

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Christianity would be confronted and corrected if this was understood, if a proper understanding of this subject was taught and understood.

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Just what is conversion? Conversion takes place when the guilty sinner, due to his deep desire and determination, commits to believe wholly upon the

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Lord Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, resolving to submit his entire life to do his will.

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Conversion is that point of decision. And so in short, conversion is the experience when a sinner becomes a true

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Christian, a committed disciple of Jesus Christ. Conversion is transformative in that the life is new.

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And so upon conversion, a whole new life begins, so much so the apostle Paul calls the Christian life newness of life, newness of the

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Spirit, the new man, and even a new creation. But it's critically important for us to understand that true conversion can only be experienced through the life -transforming grace of God.

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Conversion takes place only when God affectionately calls a sinner from his life of sinful independence from God onto a life of love for God and love for God's people, a life of faith and obedience to Jesus Christ, his

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Lord. And so on the one hand, conversion is the result of the sinner's desire and pursuit to obtain salvation.

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You are commanded to become converted, Peter proclaimed. Repent therefore and be converted, that's a command, so that your sins may be blotted out.

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You cannot be forgiven of your sins unless you're converted. The ESV standard renders it this way, repent therefore and turn again, and that's what conversion really is, you're turning one way of life onto a new way of life.

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And so it's a command, this is what God would have you do, every person everywhere, this is what

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God would have you personally experience in your life. And if you don't, or if you haven't as of yet, you lie under the guilt and damnation of your sins.

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But on the other hand, conversion is the result of God's work of grace upon and in a person. Yes, it's your responsibility, but it's not going to happen unless God does something.

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Salvation is the result of God affectionately calling the sinner and enabling him by his grace to come to Christ in repentance from sin and faith.

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And multiple verses could be cited to substantiate this. And so we must pray to God to create in us a new heart so that we would be willing and able to turn from sin and to place our faith wholly and solely in Jesus as Lord and Savior.

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For unless and until he does so, becomes our Lord and Savior, we're forever lost and damned.

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Conversion is absolutely critical. The Lord Jesus declared that conversion was essential to salvation for everyone.

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Matthew 18, 1, following at that time, disciples came to Jesus and said, who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?

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And basically he says, it's not just a matter of greatness, it's who's going to be in the kingdom of God. Jesus called a little child to him, set him in the midst of them and said, assuredly, verily, verily,

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I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

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And the kingdom of heaven is the kingdom of God, it's salvation. It's a universal need of every person to be converted in order to escape

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God's judgment and his eternal punishment for sin. It's the individual responsibility of every person, everyone, everywhere, to desire and purpose to be converted to the

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Lord. But this willingness and ability for the sinner to be converted will take place only due to the grace of God working within his soul, for by grace you've been saved.

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Conversion is due to a miracle of God's grace. Conversion is an event that takes place suddenly.

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It is transformative. Granted, there's a work of God's grace in a person's life that precedes and prepares the sinner for his conversion, and the length of time and the nature of that pre -conversion experience, preparation as it were, varies from person to person.

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But the end is the same for everyone, true and lasting conversion that signals the onset of new life that is in Jesus Christ.

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Now God's work of preparation, in preparation to the conversion of a sinner unto Christ may be seen in the

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Apostle Paul's conversion. We'll read about that next week in Acts chapter 9.

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The Lord Jesus personally brought Paul to salvation while Paul was traveling to arrest

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Christians as far as the city of Damascus, imprisoned them, even killed some. And that's when the

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Lord Jesus, the glorified Lord Jesus, appeared to Paul on the roadway, and Jesus said to him, it is hard for you to kick against the goads.

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This reveals that the Lord Jesus had been dealing with Paul even before this event, and we read that Paul was there, he witnessed and even had a major part in the stoning of Stephen.

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That must have had a powerful witness upon Paul's heart. And so perhaps different times, goads, plural, over time, and later

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Paul wrote of his conversion, but when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through his grace to reveal his

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Son in me, that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood.

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God determined the time and place when Paul was converted unto Jesus Christ, but in preparation to his conversion, the

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Lord dealt with Paul's soul in order to show him his foolishness and uselessness in the way that he had been living.

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He had to really undo all of Paul's thinking about religion, about righteousness and what that entailed, and to reveal

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Paul to be the sinner who needed salvation. And so the Lord Jesus brought

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Paul to realize that he was hopelessly lost until and unless Jesus Christ set him free, and that's what he did on that road to Damascus.

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Solomon Stoddard was a pastor out here in Northampton. He was a grandfather to Jonathan Edwards.

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I think he pastored there for 60 years, a long time. And of course,

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Jonathan Edwards, his grandson, is commonly recognized as perhaps the greatest American theologian that we have.

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Yale University has an entire department on Jonathan Edwards' studies, and they're reproducing all of his writings.

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I think it's up to 24 volumes now. It's been said that Jonathan Edwards wrote down everything he ever thought.

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I mean, the guy was incredible. Well, his grandfather published a book in 1729 entitled

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The Nature of Saving Conversion. He wrote of God's work of preparation with view to the conversion event.

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And after stating that saving conversion is wrought at once by God, it's an event, it's a single and sudden event,

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Stoddard described God's preparation of the sinner for his conversion that takes place over time. There is want or the need ordinarily to be a great deal of time spent in a way of preparation for this change.

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In order to this change, there is want to be a work of contrition and humiliation.

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And though in primitive times, older times, this was before the Great Awakening that took place about 10 years later.

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We read of men passing through the work in a very little time. Yet ordinarily we find that much time is consumed in the work of preparation.

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Spurgeon went through seven years of preparation before his conversion. I went through two agonizing months.

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There are many temptations to overcome, flatteries and discouragements to be removed. Men lose a great deal of time falling into slumbers by backwardness to reform some evils, by trying to establish their own righteousness, by fearing they are not elect, that God has given them up to hardness of heart, by imagining their hearts to be better than they are, by their own unwillingness to own the justice and sovereignty of God, so that commonly several months are spent, sometimes years, before they get through the work of preparation.

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And yet conversion itself is wrought at once in the hearing of one passage in a sermon or by the remembering of one scripture.

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I bought three or four volumes of Thomas Hooker. He was the founder of Hartford, Connecticut, and he specialized in this sole work of preparation.

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Fascinating books that are available today. But we see in this matter of biblical conversion that there's much to understand and to comprehend and to interpret as we see

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God working in people's lives. And he points out it's quite common for the person who's being prepared to actually think that they've already been converted, or they mistake some of these interventions of God as conversion.

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But when conversion takes place, it is clearly transformative. Well, let's begin this morning by reading a portion of our

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Lord's Sermon on the Mount, in which he called forth people to enter into the life of being his disciples, who are true

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Christians to whom he has promised everlasting life. And normally this passage has begun to be read with verse 13 of Matthew 7.

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We're going to begin with verse 7. Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, you will find.

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Not, it will be open to you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds.

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And to him who knocks, it will be open. For what man is there among you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?

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Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your

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Father, who is in heaven, give good things to those who ask him? Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them.

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For this is the law and the prophets. And then here the Lord gives a command.

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Enter by the narrow gate, for wide is the gate, broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in it, because narrow is the gate, and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

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These are the words of our Lord as he was concluding his sermon on the mount. On the day that Jesus delivered this sermon, he had gathered before him all his disciples, and then there were many others that had gathered, curious listeners and observers, and he proclaimed to them the message of the kingdom of God.

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The sermon on the mount are the ethics of the kingdom. And he also described to the crowds whose kingdom's citizens were, and how they were to think, and how they were to behave.

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And he proclaimed to them the blessedness of being a citizen of God's kingdom, both in this life, but he also spoke about the difficulty that would be entailed, as well as the blessed life yet to come.

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And Jesus also had set before the crowds the righteous demands that he, the Lord of the kingdom, expected of those who claimed to be part of his kingdom.

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And this is what we have in verses 7 -13. Jesus exhorts his hearers to respond decisively and fully to all that he had set before them.

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The time of decision was upon them to begin to order their lives according to his teaching. The Lord first encouraged his listeners to seek and pray for the

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Father to open to them the gate that was before them. Ask, and you'll receive. Seek, you'll find.

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Knock, it will be opened to you. He assured them that God would open this gate to everyone who did so.

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There's no doubt here. If you ask, it's going to be open to you. Seek, it'll be open. You knock, it will be open to you.

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That's a promise. Entering this gate would give them access to the way of life governed and directed by the

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Lord according to the scriptures, according to the law and the prophets.

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And so upon the Lord opening the narrow gate before them, the Lord commanded them to enter and then begin their journey on this difficult way that would lead them to everlasting life.

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Everlasting life is at the end of the journey of this narrow road. Critically important.

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Because as we've already pointed out, evangelicals tend to push salvation only to that initial decision.

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Here, it's an entire life that lies before the disciple. And the end, the destination, is eternal life.

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Impressing upon them the importance of their decision, Jesus spoke in advance of the relatively few who would choose such a course of life.

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Few would find this small gate. Verse 14, this would not have been popularly received by the

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Jewish people before whom he was speaking. For his teaching was in direct conflict with what they had already always been taught and believed.

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The Jews thought that they were all to be citizens of the kingdom of God, for they thought it was promised to all Jews. For they were the physical descendants of their ancestor

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Abraham, to whom God gave his promise for salvation. And so they thought that their citizenship in the promised kingdom of the

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Messiah was secured to them by their physical birth. For them, their circumcision was the badge of their relationship with God.

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But throughout this sermon, Jesus proclaimed that something more was required of them. There was the individual need to respond to Jesus as the king if entrance into the kingdom were to occur.

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The way that would lead sinners onto eternal life could not be entered on the basis of being of Jewish descent.

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There was a way, a course of life to be observed and lived that was much narrower, much more restrictive, more narrowly prescribed than that which had been set before them by the scribes and Pharisees.

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And only those true children of Abraham would be allowed into the kingdom. These promised children of Abraham would have the same faith as their forefather, which we've already considered.

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They would do his works. The people listening to Jesus would have known instinctively that what he was teaching was radically different than what they had been accustomed to hearing.

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And things have not changed in 2 ,000 years, folks. If the teaching of Christ was radically different from that in the

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Jews of his days, or the Jews of his day had been brought up, it is equally, it is in equally sharp contrast with most concepts which now prevail in Christendom, according to Arthur Pink.

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The Jews were ignorant of the ways of God, though they attended their synagogues or taught weekly from the Bible.

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So it is today. There are many Christians, so -called, who were equally ignorant of the demands of Christ and the difficult way that leads to eternal life.

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If the Jews thought the rite of circumcision secured for them their salvation and their infancy, so today there are multitudes of people who would confess themselves as Christian because they were sprinkled as a baby, born into a

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Christian family, or because they accepted and received Christ and were baptized into a church.

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They believe that their profession of faith alone is their passport to heaven. Well, there is for them no narrow gate to enter.

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They don't believe it's true, and certainly no difficult way that must be traversed in order to enter eternal life.

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The way of salvation is viewed as an easy thing. You don't have to do anything. Just believe is what the world is being told, and the evangelical world is being told.

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We'll talk about it next week, but Arthur Pink says there are two great errors. The one is that you're saved by your works.

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Then he hits on Roman Catholicism, and the other is that you're saved without works. That's the error of evangelicalism.

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We're not saved by our works, but you're not going to be saved without works. Next week we'll talk about the way.

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Today we're talking about the gate beginning this life. Salvation is offered in a manner that requires no repentance and obedience.

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In much evangelism, it's offered on much easier terms than what the Son of God presented before His ears in the

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Sermon on the Mount, a sermon that everyone says they love and they follow. It's very restricted. And so most today view

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Christianity as the Jews once did. It's very broad, and it encompasses many.

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Again, Arthur Pink, and I read his book this week, entitled The Narrow Way and the

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Broad Way. In fact I ordered 10 copies, they should be arriving, and I would recommend you reading it.

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He wrote, And yet our

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Lord declared that few there be that find it, for it is a narrow way that appears obscure and insignificant when compared to the broad way that so many choose.

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The vast majority in Christendom today hold that somehow, in some way, the greater part of our fellows will get there.

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Hell, if there is such a place, is reserved for arch -criminals and villains, just as our prisons house only a small fraction of the population.

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The unfortunates and misguided ones. And why is it that there are scarcely any left among us who really believe that only the few will reach heaven?

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There can only be one answer, because it is now generally held that heaven can be obtained on much easier terms than those prescribed by Christ.

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The adulterous generation in which our lot is cast are quite sure that heaven can be reached without treading the only way that leads there, that the kingdom of God can be entered without passing through much tribulation, that we may be disciples of Christ without denying self, taking up our cross and following him.

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They do not believe that if their right eye offends, it must be plucked out, and if their right hand offends, it must be cut off.

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They do not believe that if they live after the flesh, they shall die, and that only if through the Spirit they mortify the deeds of the body, they shall live.

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They are fully persuaded that a man can serve two masters and succeed in making the best of two worlds.

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In short, they do not believe the gate is as straight, small, or as narrow as Christ declared it to be.

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All we have to do in order to be saved, we are told, is to respond to Christ's gracious invitation and come unto him.

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But that all is by no means the simple matter that many think, and that so many evangelists falsely represent it to be.

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We have to turn our back upon the world and forsake our cherished sins in order to turn our face unto

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Christ. Christ is the Holy One of God and will not be the minister of sin. Love for the things of the world closes the heart against him.

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Given the danger that we could so easily go with the masses to their ruin, given the fact that Jesus told us that we would be in danger of many false prophets who would tell us that it's not so, let's consider carefully the words of our

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Lord of Matthew 7, 13, and 14. Enter by the narrow gate, the small gate, straight gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction and there are many who go in it because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, that's eternal life, and there are few who find it.

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Notice our Lord described two gates opening onto a road, two different roads, that when traversed will bring the traveler to a certain destination and it would seem that once a person is resolved to set out on this course, having chosen to travel on one of these two roads, the arrival to its final destination is certain.

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The first road leads to damnation, the second road leads onto eternal life, and again it's our intention today not to address in detail the two roads, we'll do that next week

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Lord Willie, rather we intend to address the two gates which open to these two roads, the narrow gate over against the wide gate.

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And so let's consider the meaning of the gate. Notice our Lord described a gate which leads to each road, what does this mean?

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Well a gate of course is designed both to permit admittance, but also to prevent admittance to what lies beyond, and here

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Jesus commands those who desire salvation to enter this narrow gate. Very simply a gate is a point of entry which every soul must pass before entering each respective roadway.

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It is the entrance into the way of life as a disciple of Jesus Christ, it is the place and point of transformation and commitment, it is the place where one is faced with making a decision, do

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I choose the broad way or the narrow way? Do I choose the way of ease and sensual pleasure or the way of difficulty and true happiness?

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Matthew Henry wrote, the great concern and duty of every one of us is in consideration of all this, enter ye in at the straight gate, the matter is fairly stated, another clearly stated, life and death, good and evil are set before us, both the ways, both the ends, now let the matter be taken entire and considered impartially and then choose you this day which you will walk in, nay, the matter determines itself and will not admit of a debate, no man in his wits would choose to go to the gallows because it is a smooth pleasant way to it, nor refuse the offer of a palace or a throne because it's a rough dirty way to it, and yet such absurdities as these are men guilty of in the concerns of their souls.

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Delay not therefore, deliberate not any longer but enter ye at the straight gate, knock at it by sincere and constant prayers and endeavors and it shall be open, nay, a wide door shall be open and an effectual one.

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It is true we can neither go in nor go in without the assistance of divine grace but it is as true that grace is freely offered and shall not be wanting to those who seek it and submit to it, conversion is hard work but it is needful and blessed be

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God it is not impossible if we strive. Just those last few words, if we strive is not found in evangelistic preaching.

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It doesn't require any effort, you don't have to do anything, just believe

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Jesus is what he did and you can have salvation and still live, oh yeah you ought to follow him, you ought to live as he would have but that's not necessary after all he died for you.

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The Lord described one gate as the wide gate, it's easy to find this gate in fact just go with the flow, this is the way most people in the world order their lives, in fact it's the gate in which all people go unless they find and choose to enter the small gate.

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It's a wide gate because it's a gate that is easy to enter no difficulty is required here, it's easy to choose this gate it's a popular road to travel that appeals to the majority of the people this seems to people to be the logical place to begin, most people conclude this most certainly be the way that will provide me the happiest life that I could experience

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I'll go this way, the way of the wide gate. So we may conclude that this gate is easily found, easily entered it is easily the gate of personal choice and preference the prospect is an easy journey before one entering this wide gate, many have traveled this road before it's appealing, again it's easy, there's no humility required difficulty and suffering may be avoided or at least it's thought on this road and further this way does not require any change of one's behavior on behalf of those who travel it, no faith is needed although some may be preferred, no repentance is required although it may allow and even encourage some reform, some morality certainly no obedience is expected to anything outside your own mind and will in short, your liberty doesn't matter how you live, it matters how

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Jesus lived that sounds on the surface like a good thing, but it's not, it matters how you live, how

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I live it matters, certainly no obedience required, in short this wide gate opening into a broad way is a way of the atheist and agnostic but of the religionist as well and there are people of all religions and all

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Christian denominations traveling on this road and I suspect probably in almost all churches, it's a broad way, it's a way of the world from which the

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Lord Jesus was exhorted in very strong terms for his listener to turn away for he declared it's the way that leads to certain destruction, damnation is the end of this life, do you believe this?

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Do you believe our Lord's words? Well the Christian does and therefore has turned from this wide gate which opens to the broad way and so like a stranger in this world and to this world he's chosen another course for his or her life he was converted well let's consider this small gate that leads to the difficult roadway what is the gate of entry to this road and very simply the gate speaks of the entrance of a person into the life of faith and obedience to Jesus Christ, the life of a disciple going through that gate is embarking on a life that's governed by Jesus Christ and his teachings, to enter this gate is to repent of sin and to embrace

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Christ as Jesus as entailed in all of his commandments, it's a commitment to everything that he teaches and so entering this gate is to acknowledge and confess he is the

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Savior, I am the sinner who needs salvation, he is the teacher, I am his disciple sitting and learning at his feet, he is the leader,

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I am his follower walking in his footsteps, he is the master, I am his servant busy going about serving him and he is the

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Lord and I am his subject committing myself to obey his every directive and you're not a

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Christian unless you can say that yes that's me, it's not easy to find this narrow gate,

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Jesus said few there be that find it why is this so, because frankly people aren't looking for it they're quite content with the broad way, the way of self will the way of a self ordered existence, they think that that's the way of happiness, nobody tells me what to do,

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I'm going to make decisions for myself as to what I desire, delight in and want to do they think that's liberty, that's freedom it's not easy to enter this gate in contrast to the ease with which the broad gate may be entered, going through this narrow gate comes with great difficulty, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter this gate and it's just as impossible for you and me apart from grace, it's not easy to choose this gate for you see with man it's impossible in and of himself to enter this way, to turn from self willed living to a life ordered by this holy book does not come naturally or easily fallen man doesn't want to, further he's really not able to and further he won't do so unless God in his mercy performs an act of great grace in his heart that changes everything for the way that leads to life is contrary to his natural inclinations, contrary to his natural reasoning, contrary to human nature itself which itself bears evidence that this gospel has its origin with God no man would ever invent this kind of salvation as set forth in the

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Bible and so this gate is not easily found, not easily entered, it's not easily or readily the gate of personal choosing the prospect for a difficult journey is less than appealing difficult is the way most say

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I will take the broad way thank you for here through this narrow gate humility is required here suffering will be encountered the

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Lord suffered, Isaiah 53 those who follow him will likewise suffer in this world, here faith is needed belief in God's word alone but also faith in the promised destination, eternal life repentance is required, obedience is required grace is necessary and so which course have you or will you take, the broad or difficult road, the wide gate or the small gate and if God has moved you to choose this small gate and difficult road

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I would urge you to declare your faith and resolve, going through that gate is a commitment, a confession and of course the best biblical way to declare that that commitment is in baptism, identifying yourself with the

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Lord Jesus in his death and resurrection and your resolve to live unto him as he enables you and so do whatever the

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Lord would require you to do, resolve I will do it Lord I know

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I'm not going to do it unless you help me but I purpose to do it, that's my intention so as one wrote, be up and on your journey, enter at the gate at the head of the way, do not stand hesitating, if it be the right road you'll find the entrance somewhat difficult and exceedingly narrow for demand self -denial calls for strictness of obedience, watchfulness of spirit, nevertheless enter ye in the straight gate whatever its drawbacks, a fewness of pilgrims or straightness of entrance yet choose it and use it, true there is another road broad and much frequented or traveled but it leads to destruction men go to ruin along the turnpike road but the way to heaven is a bridle path, narrow path, there may come other days when the many will crowd the narrow way, many that the many will crowd the narrow way, in other words there may be times of revival that may be but at this time to be popular one must be broad broad in doctrine and morals and spirituals but those on the straight gate shall go straight to glory and those on the broad road are all abroad, damned well it's a small gate, it's not easily found so let's consider finding this gate finding this small gate is not easy apart from God's grace we don't desire it and therefore we do not look for it because of our sinful heart and ways we cannot change, it's impossible for us to convert ourselves by ourselves only the

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Holy Spirit can breathe into the lifeless soul the breath of life and enable him to live unto

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God he can do so easily and quickly even immediately if he purposes to do so,

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Jonathan Edwards gave a sermon, they had long titles for sermons back then a divine and supernatural light immediately imparted to the soul by the spirit of God shown to be both scriptural and rational doctrine in other words

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God can save a person in no time at all, immediately but true conversion does not always come easily and quickly in fact often times it comes through great struggle and that over time, our

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Lord said this was so again Jesus said enter by the narrow gate for wide is the gate, broad is the way that leads to destruction and there are many who go in it because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life and there are few that find it the small gate metaphor suggests the inability of anybody to find this gate apart from the grace of God, there are few who find it.

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John Bunyan sought to convey the difficulty of finding this gate in part one of the Pilgrim's Progress and the length of today's sermon is because we're going to read or consider some rather lengthy portions of Pilgrim's Progress, now

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Pilgrim's Progress is not inspired of God John Bunyan was not an inspired writer of scripture but in our opinion

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John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress sets forth biblical truth in a way that is so clear and graphic and biblical that it illustrates our understanding about these matters from the scriptures and so it serves as a very good source of illustration for us only with difficulty and great effort did his characters enter this wicked gate in other words a small and secure gate and this gained entrance to the narrow way that leads to the celestial city, leads to life and so Bunyan depicted

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Christian before his conversion living in a city called destruction but while there he came under great conviction for his sin upon reading the scriptures, graceless that was his name before he became

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Christian, knew he was to flee from that city of destruction but he did not know where or how to flee and so Christian sought counsel from evangelists and evangelists told him what he needed to do and here is the first portion, the man therefore read it and looking upon evangelist very carefully said whither must

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I fly? Then evangelist pointing with his finger over a very wide field, it was going to be some distance some time to get over there, do you see yonder wicked gate?

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The man said no, he was clueless, then said the other you see yonder shining light, notice the verses of scripture he said

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I think I do, then said evangelist keep that light in your eye and go up directly there too so shall you see the gate at which when thou knockest it shall be told thee what thou shalt do and the application is you come to somebody who is totally ignorant uninformed about the

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Bible and what not and yet they've come to understand maybe a verse, a command in scripture, one of the commandments, tell him to do it if you purpose to follow the

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Lord and follow his will he's going to lead you ultimately to himself

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Bunyan was showing that a person under conviction of sin may not know to what or where he is to go for his salvation graceless, did not know what to do or where to go he followed the direction of evangelist and began to run toward the gate but it took some time, he had to work through several hazards before finally coming to the gate, we won't go into that but then we read what happened when

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Christian approached this wicked or narrow gate finally coming to the narrow gate again a metaphor of conversion

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Bunyan depicted the difficulty involved in the time it took for Christian to find and to approach the gate which was the time and place of his conversion he'd been under conviction of his sin for some time after he started reading the

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Bible he desired to be eased from bearing the burden of sin on his back it was like a big burden that he was carrying, he'd been deceived and diverted to attempt to find another way, another means to rid himself of sin,

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Mr. Worldly Wiseman he became a legalist or sought to become keep the

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Ten Commandments, but as we read Bunyan's narrative notice how Bunyan depicted Christian having to knock and request entrance, he didn't just go up there and open the door and walk in as modern evangelism tells you you can do he had to knock and wait for the

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Lord inside to open unto him and to bring Christian through this gate this shows that God must of his own will bring a person into the

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Christian faith and I might interject this, this is why we started back with verse 7 in Matthew 7 rather than 13, ask and you'll receive, seek and you'll find, knock and it will be opened to you and Bunyan links that verse and Matthew Henry did too with enter the gate in verse 13 and so we cannot convert ourselves we must desire conversion then ask and seek and knock looking to the

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Lord to grant us true repentance and saving faith and so Bunyan wrote, so in the process of time

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Christian got up to the gate, now over the gate there was written knock and it shall be opened to you, Matthew 7, 7, he knocked and therefore more than once or twice saying may

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I now enter here will he within open to sorry me though I've been an undeserving rebel and then shall

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I not fail to sing his lasting praise on high and at last there came a grave person to the gate named

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Good Will, in part 2 it shows that that's Christ himself who asked who was there and whence or from where he came and what he would have,

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Christian this is a poor burdened center I come from the city of destruction but I'm going to Mount Zion that I may be delivered from the wrath to come

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I would therefore sir since I am informed that by this gate is the way thither know if you're willing to let me in,

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I am willing with all my heart and notice said Good Will and with that he opened the gate so when

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Christian was stepping in the other gave him a pull grabbed onto Christian and jerked him inside the gate then said

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Christian what means that why'd you do that the other told him a little distance from this gate there is erected a strong castle of which

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Beelzebub is the captain and from thence both he and them that are with him shoot arrows at those that come up to the gate if happily they may die before they can enter in then said

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Christian I rejoice and tremble so when he was got in the man of the gate asked him who directed him thither evangelist bid me come thither and knock as I did and he said that you sir would tell me what to do an open door is set before thee and no man can shut it and now

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I began to reap the benefits of my hazards he had become a Christian as it were

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Bunyan showed that the one who would desire to be a Christian must knock and ask waiting upon God to open the way unto him

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Bunyan was alluding to our Lord's words of promise Matthew 7 7 ask it will be given to you seek you will find knock it will be open to you for everyone who asks receives he who seeks finds to him who knocks it will be open but in contrast to this manner of coming to Christ today we're told that we have the power to open the door in fact there's a popular painting displayed frequently of Jesus standing outside the door to a dwelling and he's knocking so that the person inside will open to him in fact the door in the painting doesn't even have a doorknob because Jesus can't open the door and this is popular it's a popular painting but terribly dishonoring belief that Christ had no power to open the door of someone's heart it's thought you must open the door to let him in for he cannot do so unless he intrude upon your free will and this is not how the word of God portrays the

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Lord and our salvation he's the sovereign one he has to open to us or it's not going to be open now interestingly in part two of Christian Pilgrim's Progress he portrayed

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Christian's wife Christiana who reacted and rejected Christian in part one but then she came under conviction and she too wanted to go to the celestial city with her four sons and so they came to the wicked gate for they desired to begin this life of faith that would bring them eternal life and Christiana's neighbor tender hearted mercy who always had doubts about herself whether or not she'd be received at the gate mercy decided to go along with Christiana and here is

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Bunyan's portrayal of them approaching the gate which again Bunyan used to point to their conversion take note of the different details and the different depictions of the effort and time involved in knocking and waiting for entrance to be opened unto them wherefore methought

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I saw Christiana and mercy and the boys they had four sons go all up go all of them up to the gate to which when they were come they betook themselves to a short debate about how they must manage their calling at the gate and what should be said unto him that did open to them and so it was concluded since Christiana was the eldest that she should knock for entrance and that she should speak to him that did open for the rest so Christiana began to knock and as her poor husband did she knocked and knocked again but instead of any that answered they all thought they heard as if a dog came barking upon them a dog and a great one too and this made the women and the children afraid nor durst they for a while to knock any more for fear the mastiff would fly upon them and now therefore they were greatly tumbled up and down in their minds and knew not what to do knock they durst not dared not for fear of the dog go back they dared not for fear the keeper of that gate would spy them or see them as they went and should be offended with them at last they thought of knocking again and knocked more vehemently than they did at first and then said the keeper of the gate who is there so the dog left off the bark and he opened unto them but notice the effort and the time and the waiting

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God had to act on their behalf Christiana made low obeisance and said let not our lord be offended with his handmaidens for that we have knocked at his princely gate then said the keeper whence come ye where'd you come from and what is it that you would have what do you want

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Christiana answered where come from whence Christian did come and upon the same errand as he to wit to be if it please you graciously admit by this gate into the way that leads to the celestial city and I answer my lord in the next place that I am

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Christiana once the wife of Christian that now is gotten above Christian he's already up in the celestial city and with that the keeper of the gate did marvel saying what is she now become a pilgrim that but a while ago abhorred that life and then she bowed her head and said yes and so are these my sweet babes also and then he took her by the hand and led her in and said also suffer little children to come unto me and with that he shut up the gate this done he called a trumpeter that was above and over the gate to entertain

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Christiana was shouting and with the sound of trumpet for joy and so he obeyed and sounded and filled the air with his melodious notes but notice however mercy was still on the outside now all this while poor mercy did stand without trembling and crying for fear she was rejected but when

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Christiana had got admittance for herself and her boys she began to make intercession for mercy we pray for the lost don't we

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Lord let them come in too Christiana said my Lord I have companion of mine that stands yet without that has come hither upon the same account as myself one that is much dejected in her mind for that she comes as she thinks without sending for whereas I was sent for by my husband's king to come when she was back in the city of destruction received an invitation letter from the

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Lord come and join in this pilgrimage mercy happened to visit her and learned about this mercy didn't get a letter and so she really went to follow

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Christiana because she desired the things Christiana told her about but she didn't have the confidence the assurance that assured

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Christiana and then we read now mercy began to be very impatient and each minute was as long to her as an hour and wherefore she prevented

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Christiana from a fuller interceding for her by knocking at the gate herself and she knocked then so loud that she made

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Christiana to start it scared her and then said the keeper of the gate who's there and Christiana said it's my friend and so he opened the gate looked out but mercy was fallen down without in a swoon for she fainted and was afraid that no gate should be opened to her and there are some people that get very distressed and despondent before conversion because they can't seem to repent of their sin and believe on the

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Lord Jesus and they see themselves as hopeless and the Lord doesn't seem to answer their prayers but he opened the gate he looked out there she was and so he took her by the hand and said damsel

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I bid thee arise oh sir said she I'm faint there's scarce life left in me but he answered that that one once said when my soul fainted within me

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I remembered the Lord and my prayer came unto thee and to thy holy temple quoting Jonah 2 verse 7 fear not but stand upon thy feet and tell me therefore thou art come well

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I'd come for that which unto which I was never invited as my friend Christiana was hers was from the king and mine was but from her wherefore

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I fear I presume did she desire thee to come with her to this place did she desire thee to come with her to this place yes and as my

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Lord sees I'm come and if there is any grace and forgiveness of sins to spare I beseech thy poor handmaid may be a partaker thereof and then he took her by the hand let her gently in said

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I pray for all them that believe on me by what means soever they come unto me then said he to those who stood by fetch something and give it to mercy to smell on smelling salts thereby to stay her faintings and so they fetched her a bundle of myrrh and a while after she was revived and now were

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Christiana and her boys in mercy received of the Lord at the head of the way and spoke kindly unto him and spoke kindly unto by him and then said they yet further unto him we're sorry for our sins and beg of our

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Lord his pardon and further information what we must do I grant pardon he said by word and deed by word and the promise of forgiveness by deed and the way

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I obtained it and then he take the first from my lips with a kiss and the other as it shall be revealed quoting

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Song of Solomon and now I saw my dream he spoke many good words unto them whereby they were greatly glad and he also had them up to the top of the gate and showed them by what deed they were saved pointed them to the cross probably and told them with all that sight they would have again as they went along the way to their comfort again they were converted and they began a new life that's the point salvation is viewed only in a legal sense

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I'm forgiven I'm pardoned but salvation is not just forgiveness of sins as critically important as that is it's new life in Christ and so what

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Bunyan illustrated to this wicked gate was a setting forth a narrow gate of Matthew 7 13 entering through conversion a conversion is not easily experienced or acquired as most assume in modern evangelicalism many are told that anyone at any time can enter this gate and begin the

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Christian life with no difficulty without hesitation make a decision for Christ you know music is used testimonies are used emotional appeals are used to get people to make a decision but entering the

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Christian life is not an easy feat it requires a total surrender of one's heart and will unto the

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Lord Jesus which the unregenerate soul neither desires nor intends to do the

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Lord will not open the narrow gate of entrance into life unless and until there is total surrender to him as Lord entering the narrow gate involves a willingness for the

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Lord Jesus to direct you as you walk a narrow and difficult way that leads unto life but evangelicals have so dumbed down the straight gate the narrow way that it has become the wide gate and the broad way while promising people they have eternal life people think it's an easy thing to enter an easy way to travel but in reality for the many who go that way it leads to their own destruction and damnation now when we say that this gate is small and the way is narrow we're not saying that if you desire to enter this way of life you may fail to do so just the opposite is true the

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Lord Jesus promised to all who desire to come to him and to enter through this very narrow and specific gate will be granted entrance the

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Lord promised ask it will be given to you seek you will find that's a promise it knock it will be open you for everyone who asks receives and he who seeks finds to him who knocks it will be open you may not find it easy to enter but you may be assured that he will enable your entrance if you come unto him in faith asking seeking knocking is not conversion itself but it does reflect

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God's work of preparing the soul for conversion November of 1971

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I was an atheist a rebellious hardened blasphemer second week of January I was a converted person whole lot of work went on there two months time and where I was blaspheming

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Lord at the beginning at the end I was begging God to receive me for Christ's sake now entering the narrow gate entering this small gate is only possible to them who experience the converting grace of God and what does biblical conversion entail first it believes and embraces all the teachings of scripture regarding one's duty and the attaining of eternal life through Jesus Christ second it involves true repentance and repentance includes a remorse of former transgressions against God's law and the resolve to live in the future apart from sin unto the

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Lord and third repentance involves our complete surrender and submission to Jesus Christ the

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Lord and to be governed by the Bible alone through life Arthur Pink wrote it is by abandoning our idols and pleasures of sin that we pass through this straight gate and in a similar way

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Charles Spurgeon wrote you and your sins must separate or you and your God will never come together no one sin may you keep they must all be given up you must forsake them and pour them and ask the

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Lord to overcome them now that's not you know next week we'll talk about the difficult way and the sins that we struggle with nobody's ever eradicated from all sin in this life it's not talking about sinless perfection but when you go through that gate the matter of who's

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Lord of your life is settled forever Jesus is Lord and I lament and regret when

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I fail to please him entering this narrow gate is only possible to those who experience converting grace but it opens a way to a way of life the

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Word of God commands us to be converted but we will not be converted unless the Lord in his sovereign grace converts us unto himself the conversion is not easily experienced or acquired as most assume

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Matthew Henry emphasized this first the gate is straight in other words small conversion and regeneration are the gate by which we enter into this way in which we begin a life of faith and serious godliness out of a state of sin into a state of grace we must pass by the new birth this is a straight gate hard to find hard to get through like a passage between two rocks there must be a new heart new spirit and old things must pass away the bent of the soul must be changed corrupt habits and customs broken off what we've been doing all our days must be undone again we must swim against the stream much opposition must be struggled with and broken through from within it's easier to set a man against the world than against himself and yet this must be in conversion it is a straight gate for we must stoop or we cannot get in at it we must become as little children high thoughts must be brought down nay we must strip must deny ourselves put off the world put off the old man we must be willing to forsake all for our interest in Christ the gate is straight to all but to some straighter than others as to the rich to some that have been long prejudiced against religion the gate is straight blessed be

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God it's not shut up or locked against us nor kept with a flaming sword as it will be shortly talking about eternity well understanding again we have to kind of wrap things up but I really want to complete this forgive me for doing so but understanding this spiritual reality conflicts with the terrible

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Arab decisionism that is prevalent in evangelicalism that's on the back of most tracks while Jesus spoke of a door which he must open in order to allow entrance evangelicals set before sinners the idea that it is their door that they may open unto

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Jesus if they are willing this reflects two completely different understandings and practices of doing evangelism most evangelicals see evangelism as securing the sinner's acceptance of Jesus rather than Jesus' acceptance of the sinner this departure from the biblical and historical means of evangelism emerged in the early 19th century under a new kind of evangelist whose primary leader and inspiration was

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Charles Finney he was a heretic preached out here in New York and Pittsfield and here

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Connecticut he developed what came to be known as new measures which eventually developed into the modern evangelistic crusade methods of securing decisions by people to accept

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Christ but at that same time in history God raised up a wonderful man a reformed evangelist who withstood

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Finney actually debated him it says that 30 ,000 people were converted under this evangelist ministry as I held

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Nettleton you can see his house down there in East Windsor today just about 200 yards from the birthplace of Jonathan Edwards Nettleton would preach the gospel confronting challenging his listeners with their corrupting and damning sin telling them that unless God delivered them through his converting grace they would perish and be damned in their sin he refused to oppress people to make some kind of decision or commitment but urged them to seek through prayer and faith for the

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Lord to convert them unto himself and I've got just a couple short little accounts that I pulled from his biography that I'm presently reading and of people that were converted different walks of life this was in the first quarter of the 19th century 1805 to about 1825, 1830 he doesn't give their full name just initials

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RH age 19 after a conflict of serious impressions and opposition of heart for about six weeks was apparently on the 20th of April renewed in heart the first evangelical exercise that she had any knowledge of according to her own account was benevolence to her fellow men she would or desired that all men might be saved even if she were lost the divine law appeared to her holy just and good she felt submissive to the divine will a disposition to resign herself into the hands of God feeling that the judge of all the earth would do right she thus continued until Friday the 22nd when returning from a religious meeting

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Christian meeting she felt a love to God on account of the excellency of his character she loved holiness for holiness sake she then hated sin because in its own nature it is odious this was the first time that she had those consolations or comforts that the world cannot give nor take away here she dates her hope and rejoices in God her savior.

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BC age 20 years having had frequent tidings of conscience at times for more than a year past hopes that on the 14th of April she was born of the spirit and that she is now reconciled to God Christ appears to her altogether lovely and the chiefest among 10 ,000 her first gracious exercises appeared to be love to the brethren love to God and faith in the

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Lord Jesus she hates sin because it is exceedingly sinful she appears to have clear views of her own native depravity and of the obstinacy of her will she wonders at and adores the patience and long -suffering of God that she had not been long ago consigned to everlasting despair and then

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LOW age 12 10th of May was hopefully delivered from the thralldom of sin and Satan she expressed a singular conflict and conviction of sin for about a week her distress was seemingly too great to be long endured her cry was oh what a dreadful hard heart oh it seems as if I was in hell her conflict wore upon her bodily frame like a violent attack of fever in this youth it was clearly manifested that when the

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Holy Ghost the Comforter comes he'll convince the world of sin of righteousness and of judgment a person who had experienced a change of heart who had seen this trial through all her trials and conflicts would be led to conclude that a change in her is a real one she possessed less guile than those of mature years there is no dissembling and when grace was planted in her soul she did not seem to know it the first effect that it produced was a calm serenity of mind she did not know why she felt so she continued so for some hours not knowing if her dreadful distress would return upon her she took her

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Bible and perused it which the day before she perfectly hated because looking into it increased her torments this calm serenity appeared in the morning when she arose she thus continued towards noon when she informed me that she loved

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God that the Bible was a new book to her that she loved to read it and that the world did not appear to her as it did before that all was new she took me by the hand and she said she loved me and loved all

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God's creatures because God made them she said she knew that she was a great sinner she wondered how she could so willfully oppose

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God for so long she was right and reasonable and she was altogether wrong in being so stubborn and perverse she said she was willing to submit herself to the hands of God for God would do right with her she knew that it would be just if God sent her to hell here and submission seemed to be her first evangelical exercise and then love to the brethren.

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Widow A .C. age 50 fixes on the 3rd of May as the time when she hopes that her heart was renewed by the spirit of grace she had long before entertained a hope founded on her good works she had never before believed in total depravity she believed that to live uprightly and deal fairly honestly with mankind was sufficient to entitle her to salvation but at this time she found that her former hopes were nothing and that her righteousness was but filthy rags she now feels that all her hope is in Christ she's full in her belief of all the great doctrines of grace she places her confidence in God through Christ relying on the promises and then the last one

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J .B. son of E .B. age nearly 13 years on the last Sabbath in May or the first Sabbath in June his mother went to meeting church and charged him and her other child to be good children and not to play but read their books his father went to a distant field to see about his cattle and before noon this

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J. was struck with a deep conviction of sin he continued in a distressed state about 24 hours without food or sleep his mind seemed to be overwhelmed with a sense of dreadful nature of sin as committed against God something happened to him at the end of 24 hours which caused him to wipe away his tears to wash himself and cheerfully to partake of some food it's now about 2 months since this happened he has been from that time to this remarkably calm and serene in his mind he answers questions rationally says that he loves

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God and hates sin he does not fail in his daily devotions and reading the Bible he's altogether a change of deportment he appears to have a sense of the evil nature of sin the duties of the

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Sabbath and the sanctuary appear to be his delight it's apparent to all who knows this youth that a great change has taken place in him from being passionate petulant perverse and stubborn he's now humble patient forbearing and forgiving before we close

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I want to say a word with respect to those who grew up in a Christian family maybe you're young and you were taught and trained well in the

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Christian faith from youth by your parents for some like these they may not experience as some do the deep moving work of the

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Holy Spirit and the great transition of conversion that may take place in one who lived in the world or in defiance say of Christian parents you may be a believer in Christ today as a young person you are committed as a disciple of Jesus Christ to live for him as your

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Savior and Lord that's the essence of the matter you may be like the young sons of Christiana who came through the small gate together for you give evidence of your new life in Christ now what you're to do is to stand forward and confess your faith and commitment to Christ in baptism let us say that you are a young person you've grown up always believing the faith as your dad and mom have taught you they've taken you a hand from youth and have led you in the way you're to go and you believe them and you obey them because you love them you honor them you desire to please them you want their faith to be your faith well

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I would urge you to make a conscious decision to continue in that same faith and walk but now consciously in faith place your hand into the hand of the

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Lord Jesus purposing that you'll believe and walk to please him primarily you continue to love your parents and follow them but now you do so because Jesus Christ would have you do so and I'm sure that's what your parents would delight to see you do as well and so may our

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Lord be merciful and gracious to each of us and all of us that our conversion be confirmed to us and that we have abandoned all intention to live according to our own will we walk through that narrow gate and resolve to live and obey him amen alright let's pray

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Father give us understanding in these matters to faithfully represent you before others we fear our

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God for unconverted believers so called help us our

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God to represent you faithfully and your word faithfully to them and we pray for a great revival to take place in our land in our churches today our

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God awaken those that are asleep awaken those who are yet unconverted and give them a desire and a longing to truly know you and to be converted into the way of living as a