Jan 7^th, 2004 (Prayer Meeting Notes)

Int. When our Lord finished these sayings, they were astonished, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the Scribes. (Vr. 28-29)

1. Here, our Lord turns from false prophets to false professors.

2. (Mt 7:14) “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

3. (Mt 22:14) “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

4. C. H. S. said: “The difficulty of being right is increased by the fact that there are men in the world whose trade it is to make counterfeits.”

5. (Isa 8:20) “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”

6. C. H. S. said: “One must be on the look out for Mr. "Fairspeech, Mr. Smoothtongue, Mr. Doublemind, and Mr. Facing-bothways."

7. (Rom 2:17-21) “Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself?

a. (Rom 2:28-29) “ "He is not a jew which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh But he is a jew which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God."

8. John Macarthur says: "The barrenness of this sort of faith demonstrates its real character (cf. v. 20)—the faith that says but does not do is really unbelief. Jesus was not suggesting that works are meritorious for salvation, but that true faith will not fail to produce the fruit of good works. This is precisely the point of (James 1:22–25; 2:26)."

9. THOMAS WATSON said: "Many a man's knowledge is but a torch to light him to hell. Thou who hast knowledge of God's will, but doth not do it, wherein dost thou excel the devil, 'who transforms himself into an angel of light.'"

a. Thomas Hall in 1658 said: “"Formality, formality, formality is the great sin of England at this day, under which the land groans.-There is more light than there was, but less life; more shadow, but less substance; more profession, but less sanctification."

10. George Burder.in his Village Sermons, said in: "The Danger of Formality and Hypocrisy." "We have before us an eternal world, in which there are but two states, one inexpressively happy, the other inconceivably wretched; and in one of these we must soon be fixed." Therefore we must heed the Scripture warnings:

1. "Examine ourselves, whether we be in the faith.." (1 Cor 11:28)

a. Isaac Watts said: "To animate every Christian to this holy care and watchfulness, let us think what a terrible disappointment it will be, after we have made a profession of Christianity in our lives, to lie down in death in a state of sin and guilt, and to awake in the world of spirits, in the midst of the groans and agonies of Hell, surrounded and covered with everlasting darkness.

2. "Make our calling and election sure." (2 Pet 1:10)

a. Simon Peter urges “diligence” in this matter

b. (Prov 4:23) “Keep thy heart with all diligence;”

c. John Trapp says: "A man may as truly say the sea burns, or fire cools, as that certainty of salvation breeds security and looseness."

d. C. H. S. said: “Take care that thy faith is of the right kind—that it is not a mere belief of doctrine, but a simple faith, depending on Christ, and on Christ alone.”

e. J. F. & B. says: "As the minister is to give all diligence to admonish, so the people should, in accordance with his admonition, give all diligence to have all Christian graces, and to make their calling sure."

3. Many will seek to get in, only to find that it is too late.

a. (Mat 25:10-12) "And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. {11} Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. {12} But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not."

b. (Luke 13:26) "Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets."

4. Heaven will consist not of just hearers, but doers of the word. (James 1:22)

a. Hell will be filled with those that have built their house upon the sand instead of the Rock. (Mt 7:26)

11. Calling Jesus, “Lord, Lord” is not enough, for even Judas did that.

1. (Mark 14:45) "And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him."

12. Many belong to a local church that will never enter the Kingdom of heaven (grace).(Mt 7:21)

13. Many will say unto Jesus (Vr. 22) in the day of judgment: have we not prophesied, taught, publicly preached, in thy name; acknowledging thee to be the only Savior, and proclaiming thee as such to others; cast out demons, who had taken possession of the bodies of men; done many miracles, being assisted by supernatural agency to invert even the course of nature, and thus prove the truth of the doctrine we preached?"

14. CONSIDER THE STATEMENT, “IN THAT DAY”

1. J. F. & B. says: "What day? It is emphatically unnamed. But it is the day to which He had just referred, when men shall “enter” or not enter “into the kingdom of heaven.”

2. “That day” "when the Son of Man coming in clouds with great glory."

3. “That day”, "When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with all his mighty angels. (2 Thess 1:7-9)

4. “That day”, which is called "The Day of the Lord"

5. “That day”, which is called "The Last Day."

6. “That day), when "the door shall be shut" (Mt 25:1-10)

7. “That day”, when religious men like, Balaam, Saul of the O. T. and Caiaphas stand before the Lord lost forever.

8. “That day” when even those that "cast out devils" (Vr. 22) will find themselves unfit for heaven.

9. “That day”, when men shall discover that the Kingdom of God is not in word only, but in power. (1 Cor. 4:20).

15. Notice that phrase, “Lord, Lord” again in (Vr. 22)

1. Calvin says: “ "Christ again summons hypocrites to his judgment-seat, as we showed a little ago from Luke. So long as they hold a place in his Church, they both flatter themselves and deceive others. He therefore declares, that a day is coming, when he will cleanse his barn, and separate the chaff and straw from the pure wheat."

2. John Macarthur says: "Note that far from being totally devoid of works of any kind, these people were claiming to have done some remarkable signs and wonders. In fact, their whole confidence was in these works—further proof that these works, spectacular as they might have appeared, could not have been authentic. No one so bereft of genuine faith could possibly produce true good works. A bad tree cannot bear good fruit (Mt 7:18)."

16. Notice that awful sentence upon them. “Depart from me, ye that do iniquity.” (Vr. 22)

1. (Mat 25:41) "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:"

2. Many will be greeted on Judgment day with the words of (Mt 22:) “Friend, how camest thou in hither without the wedding garment?"

17. The Lord knows both the elect and the non elect.

1. (2 Tim.2:19) “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”

2. The hypocrite possesses but a form of godliness. (2 Tim 3:5)

a. The hypocrite (the actor) can put on a good act...so good that we can be totally engrossed in a movie about the old days.

18. Most church members only give God lip service.

1. (Mt. 15: 8-9.) "This people draweth nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honoureth Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me.”

2. (Mt 23:13) "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!")

3. For sinners of the worst description He always had a word of kindness, and held out to them an open door.

4. But formalism, He would have us know, is a desperate disease, and must be exposed in the severest language.

19. Formalism is a dreaded sin. J. C. Ryle on (1 Tim 3:5) said:

1. “Nothing is so common. “It is one of the great family diseases of the whole race of mankind.

2. “It is born with us, grows with us, and is never completely cast out of us till we die.

3. “It meets us in church, and it meets us in chapel. It meets us among rich, and it meets us among poor.

4. “It meets us among learned people, and it meets us among unlearned. It meets us among Romanists, and it meets us among Protestants.

5. “It meets us among High Churchmen, and it meets us among Low Churchmen.

6. “It meets us among Evangelicals, and it meets us among Ritualists.

7. “Go where we will, and join what Church we may, we are never beyond the risk of its infection.”

20. It is not how one starts out on his profession, but how he ends with it.

1. Rehoboam began well, and "for three years walked in the way of David and Solomon." (2 Chron. xi. 17.)

a. “But afterwards "he did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the Lord." (2 Chron. xii. 14.)

2. Abijah, according to the book of Chronicles, said many things that were right, and fought successfully against Jeroboam.

a. “Nevertheless the general verdict is against him. We read, in (1 Kings xv. 3.), that "his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God."

3. Jehu bragged about his zeal for the Lord, yet we read in:

a. (2 Kings x. 31.) "He took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin."

4. There are many places in our country which are appealing to the senses:

a. The buildings are beautiful, the music is beautiful, the service is beautiful, the singing is beautiful.

b. But God is not pleased, because they have a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof.

5. J. C. Philpot said: “A mere form of godliness joined to an unholy heart is of no value to God; The swan, although its feathers are as white as snow, yet its skin is black.”