Bell wrote:"How shall we know that such men are coming to Christ? Answer: do they cry out at sin, being burdened with it, as an exceedingly bitter thing? Do they fly from it, as from the face of a deadly serpent? Do they cry out of the insufficiency of their own righteousness, as to justification in the sight of God? Do they cry out after the Lord Jesus to save them? Do they see more worth and merit in one drop of Christ’s blood to save them, than in all the sins of the world to damn them? Are they tender of sinning against Jesus Christ? Do they favor Christ in this world, and do they leave all the world for His sake? And are they willing (God helping them) to run hazards for His name, for the love they bear to Him? Are His saints precious to them? If these things be so, these men are coming to Christ"(John Bunyan)
[URL=http://www.mountzion.org/johnbunyan/]]]MUCH PROFIT TO BE HAD READING THIS MATERIAL[/URL]
Yea!
Michael Hranek wrote:John Yurich USASomeone made a wonderful observation here on SermonAudio it was along the lies of:Peter denied Jesus because he pretended he wasn't a believer.Judas betrayed Jesus because he pretended to be a believer.John Y, I can pretty much
it should have read
...along the lines of.
John Yurich USA wrote:I am 100% assured that I will escape Hell because I received Jesus as my Personal Savior during an Altar Call at my brother's Non Denominational Church by praying to Jesus and asking Him to become my Savior.
Peter denied Jesus because he pretended he wasn't a believer.
Judas betrayed Jesus because he pretended to be a believer.
John Y, I can pretty much come to the opinion the reason you cling so desperately to the prayer you said in your brother's nondenomination church is deep deep down inside you know the frightening reality you are a guilty hell deserving unwilling to repent sinner who loves your sin far more than Jesus Christ who died for you.
Why IMHO if Jesus saved you! If you actually received Him NOT JUST said a prayer at Him. If Jesus Himself actually saved you from your sins He would change your life way too much for you to be able to continue in the sins you now love to indulge.
Ah but violently clinging to this prayer you said gives you a way you can disquise yourself as being right with God while you enjoy the passing pleasures of sin and deliberately ignore that He is Holy.
prince charles wrote:Totally excellent ! ive been looking for a tract was thinking about writing my own but why not use this ! its better than anything i could write - ok just make it smaller print it off and then use plastic laminate to seal it
John UK wrote:Maybe someone should start printing tracts like [URL=http://www.spurgeon.org/tract07.htm]]]THIS[/URL] again. Sure beats all these modern tracts using modern versions, doesn't it?
sharing this with you wrote:"The highest form of selfishness is that of the man who is content to go to heaven alone." (J. C. Ryle)
Several months ago, I was at a very low point of my life. I made a decision to turn away from sin. I knew I was sinning against God. I promised God I would never do that again. It was my true repentance. At that moment, the Holy Spirit came upon me and dwell in me. An overwhelming sense of peace washed over me. God supernaturally took away my worldly desire and replaced it with a new desire to live a godly life. All of a sudden what I liked to do in the past, I no longer like to do. My heart was renewed and in line with God's. I started having growing thirst for God's words. I have been studying Bible. I download sermons and teachings from many pastors, theologians, and scholars. I put them in my MP3 player and listen to them all the time at least 4 hours a day. I just can't get enough of them. I used to think Bible was boring. Now I love it. Before my conversion, I had no clue what it would be like to be saved. No one told me what happened to me was my conversion. The Holy Spirit just revealed that to me. I also have the urge to minister to others to bring them to Christ. I was never that way before.
Can any one tell me if you have the similar experience?
Parables wrote:Bless you too. Truly.
Parables wrote:I know "parables" are not just an interesting title we give to the numerous teachings of Jesus in the gospel accounts. It is indeed a truth, but the truth is IN the parable.
"...the simplicity that is in Christ..." - 2 Corinthians 11:3
"...I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked...when I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end. Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction." (Psalm 73)
webwatch wrote:Parable of the Net - Matthew 13Again, the kingdom of heaven is like...
I know "parables" are not just an interesting title we give to the numerous teachings of Jesus in the gospel accounts. It is indeed a truth, but the truth is IN the parable. Of course you don't believe the kingdom of heaven is a net, or that there is a shoreline, or that "sitting down" is God sitting down, or vessels are vessels. Pictures are pictures. There is a thousand words behind each one. You believe the kingdom is LIKE a net, people are LIKE a sea, there is something LIKE a beach. The actions and events thereafter are LIKENED to the real thing. And what is the blazing furnace LIKENED to? Has Jesus defined what a blazing furnace is before? Or has our theology books and pulpit defined it us? "Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked.
How is it we are more compelled take the fire matters literally yet do not take the water events literally? Is there really a sea, a lake, a furnace? A lake of fire? A good water and fire mixture? Some sort of divine-heavenly chemistry? Correlate all the "fire" mentioned in the OT and NT and perhaps its purpose and representation will become clearer.
Disagree wrote:All will definitely eventually obtain salvation from sin. Because that is God's loving will...eventual reconciliation of all to God
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:47-50)
Good and bad are clearly sorted out with the bad cast out into a furnace of fire. This is not a popular doctrine but it is Biblical truth.
May the LORD be your light and salvation. (Psalm 27)
webwatch wrote:Universalism has become sadly common even among evangelicals...Here's how universalism can be defined from Wikipedia..."
"Universalism" does not INCLUDE other religions. People do not know God through Hinduism, not through Buddhism, not through Islam. There is no such thing as a Hinduism who knows God. But they will all have to be reconciled to Christ in order to have spiritual life and to know God.
All will definitely eventually obtain salvation from sin. Because that is God's loving will. But only a few will be saved in this age as children of God. That is also God's will. The rest remain as the children of wrath as we all once have been.
God does not get wounded by our sin. WE have been wounded by our sin. Christ was wounded FOR our sin. God has setup the world so that we sin, and through suffering we know Christ, and through Christ we know God - who is love.
The definitions of universalism used against universalism have been pathetic and were probably created by people who hate the idea of eventual reconciliation of all to God and who have not a good understanding of it, if any.
TheFacts wrote:"Man's depravity, as a result of the Fall, is total. All men are born into this world spiritually dead, blind, and deaf to the things of God; the sinner's heart is desperately corrupt. His will is not free; it is in bondage to his evil nature..."
"His evil nature is in bondage to his will"? How can that possibly be? Man cannot possibly select to be in his evil nature or his good and righteous nature at the simple twitching of his will. It's hard enough to choose whether to get up in the morning sometimes. "There is none righteous", "There is none good but God" has said enough that his will is EVIL! Utterly depraved. Utterly sad history of humanity of nothing but sin, war, and death at all different levels of severity. Selecting evil over good, selfishness over love, seems a bit biased in society at the moment. And the will of man is free? Free from what? Free from sin? Free from spiritual death? Free from bondage and decay? Free from God?
Consider what Jesus told Peter in Matthew 18:23-35 23) ... The Kingdom of Heaven is like a human king who wished to settle accounts with his attendants.
There will be a reckoning --- and men, in their desire to have NO ACCOUNTABILTY, preach/teach a nonexistent sLoPpY grace that perverts GOD'S TRUE NATURE (*SPACIFICALLY HIS MERCY*) -- men want so to make for themselves a god that requires nothing and offers everything ... masters of compromise.
Each and every one of us owes a debt we cannot pay and some of us have fallen on our knees begging for GOD'S FORGIVENESS ["IN" CHRIST AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS] AND GOD FORGAVE AND CANCELLED our debt.
Each of us must acknowledge the .. T R U T H .. in that story/parable Jesus spoke to Peter --- THAT FOOL THOUGHT HE WAS SECURE HAVING BEEN LIBERATED/ABSOLVED OF HIS INSURMOUNTABLE DEBT. - Dare we think ourselves to be SECURE within the "ReLiGiOuS" UNBALANCED teachings of men WHEN GOD'S WORD SAYS OTHERWISE ??? - BEST .. H E A R .. Matthew 18:23-35 it holds far reaching consequence that men have not spoken.
Veritas Vincit !!!
KK
TheRealFacts wrote:His evil nature is in bondage to his will.
TheFacts wrote:His will is not free; it is in bondage to his evil nature.