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"As among all the doctrines of the gospel, there is none opposed with more violence and subtlety than that concerning OUR REGENERATION BY THE IMMEDIATE, POWERFUL, EFFECTUAL OPERATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GRACE; so there is not scarce anything more despised or scorned by many in the world THAN THAT ANY SHOULD PROFESS THAT THERE HATH BEEN SUCH A WORK OF GOD UPON THEMSELVES, OR ON ANY OCCASION DECLARE OUGHT OF THE WAY AND MANNER WHEREBY IT WAS WROUGHT... THE HOLY WORK OF GOD'S SPIRIT IS TO BE OWNED." John Owen, A discourse Touching The Holy Spirit "Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee." Mark 5:19 |
My testimony has been boldly proclaimed on my website since day one. As John Owen stated in the quotation above, I have OWNED the holy work of God's Sprit, and I have DECLARED the way and manner whereby it was wrought upon me.
That's because, like the demoniac in the above verse, and like the Apostle Paul, like John Bunyan, like George Whitefield, like Charles Spurgeon, and like ALL GENUINELY born again Christians, I absolutely, utterly DELIGHT AND REJOICE in giving my PERSONAL TESTIMONY, that is, in telling people "how great things the Lord hath done for ME," -- not what the Lord has done in GENERAL, but rather, what the Lord hath done for ME -- for there is NOTHING that glorifies Jesus Christ MORE than THE PERSONAL TESTIMONY of a redeemed sinner. NOTHING.
I say, there is NOTHING that I or ANY GENUINELY born again Christian can do to glorify Jesus Christ, or can delight in more, than in giving our PERSONAL TESTIMONY. It was so with Paul, it was so with Bunyan, it was so with Whitefield, it was so with Spurgeon, and it has been so with EVERY GENUINELY born again Christian throughout history.
Moreover, although I had never heard of John Calvin, nor knew the first thing about CALVINISM itself, my testimony is THOROUGHLY Calvinistic. Indeed -- and I know whereof I speak, because I was THERE -- indeed, even though I have left much out, disclosing only the bare bones, as it were, read it carefully and you will discover that my testimony is CALVINISTIC through and through. But then, so it is with EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit, and that according to the Word of God. There are NO exceptions. None whatsoever.
The reason you don't find PERSONAL TESTIMONIES on the VAST MAJORITY of websites today, or hear PERSONAL TESTIMONIES from the VAST MAJORITY of preachers today, or hear PERSONAL TESTIMONIES from the VAST MAJORITY of professing Christians today, is because they don't HAVE one. That goes for Reformed and Arminian alike, or whatever camp you want to name. In short, the VAST MAJORITY of those who profess to be Christians today don't HAVE a PERSONAL TESTIMONY, especially not a GENUINE one. If they did, they would post it on their websites, and they would speak of it often, as Paul did, as Spurgeon did, as Bunyan did, as EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit does. The history of Christianity, beginning with the Apostles, confirms this truth DRAMATICALLY. As one saint noted --
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"A sinner saved by grace will always refer in his TESTIMONY to the MOMENT at which he EXPERIENCED new birth... You must be invaded by the Spirit of God by means of SUPERNATURAL recreation... BEWARE OF THE TENDENCY TO WATER DOWN THE SUPERNATURAL IN RELIGION." Oswald Chambers, Bringing Sons Unto Glory & Approved Unto God |
Every time the Apostle Paul was brought before a tribunal, as recorded in the extremely short time-span in the book of Acts, the first thing he did was launch into his PERSONAL TESTIMONY. Further, you will find Paul CONSTANTLY referring to his PERSONAL TESTIMONY throughout his Epistles. In the very brief accounts we have from Peter, you will likewise find him doing the same. So with John in his three Epistles.
The number of times Charles Spurgeon gave or talked about his conversion, that is, his PERSONAL TESTIMONY, only God knows. Same with Bunyan, who, besides the accounts he gives us in his theological treatises, gives us in his GRACE ABOUNDING the most rending and prolific PERSONAL TESTIMONY ever penned. Time would fail me to elaborate on this score.
That's because, as I said, there is NOTHING that GLORIFIES Jesus Christ MORE, or that DELIGHTS the redeemed sinner MORE, than in giving THE PERSONAL TESTIMONY, and EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit KNOWS IT.
Sadly, it is extraordinarily rare to hear a GENUINE testimony today. Most testimonies -- in the scarce instance that somebody actually gives one, that is -- consist of I, I, I, I...
I walked down an aisle; I made a decision; I said a prayer; I accepted Christ... I, I, I, I.
And so on ad nauseam. These are ALL false -- I say, FALSE -- testimonies. FALSE testimonies through and through. COUNTERFEIT testimonies through and through. Every single one.
A GENUINE testimony reveals what JESUS CHRIST DID, just as my testimony does, just as Paul's testimony on the road to Damascus does, just as Bunyan's testimony in GRACE ABOUNDING does, and just as ALL GENUINELY born again Christians' testimonies do.
The fact is, I don't care what YOU did, whether it was making a "decision" or "walking down an aisle" or "saying the sinner's prayer," or what-have-you. No, I don't care what YOU did. Neither does God, the FIRST CAUSE in regeneration and salvation. Glorify yourself some other time. My interest is in the glory of Jesus Christ. Accordingly, I don't care in the LEAST what YOU did. Rather, I want to know -- WHAT DID JESUS CHRIST DO???
Tell you what... I'll come back to that in a moment, for we are in the arena of SOVEREIGN GRACE now...
Accordingly, let it be known that the anti-Calvin schizophrenia and hysteria that is erupting from certain quarters today is nothing but the fruit of a condemned soul which HAS NO GENUINE TESTIMONY, for the ranter knows that if CALVINISM is true, which it is, then he is not saved. That's the ranter's dilemma, and he cannot come to terms with it, even though the Scripture could not possibly be plainer, but rather than humbling himself under the SOVEREIGN hand of Jesus Christ, his proud but blind and stupid spirit always resists the Holy Ghost, and thus, as Jesus Christ declared, he CANNOT believe SAVINGLY because he is not of Jesus Christ's sheep, for in order to believe on Jesus Christ -- in order to believe SAVINGLY -- one must FIRST be REGENERATED, for it takes SUPERNATURAL FAITH which flows FROM regeneration to believe SAVINGLY. [Acts 7:51; John 10:26]
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"All the professors that HAVE
NOT FAITH WHICH FLOWETH FROM BEING BORN OF GOD, will seek to enter in [to
heaven], AND SHALL NOT BE ABLE." John Bunyan, The Strait Gate |
If a person could exercise SAVING FAITH by his own natural ability, then REGENERATION would not be necessary, and if the natural man had FREE WILL, then he would not require POWER -- EXPERIENTIAL POWER -- to become a son of God. [John 1:12-13; Ephesians 1, Ephesians 2:8]
The reason PROFESSING Christians can't comprehend this, and the reason PROFESSING Christians deny CALVINISM in general, is because they have NEVER EXPERIENCED REGENERATION; they have NEVER EXPERIENCED THE RESURRECTION POWER of Jesus Christ in the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH, which, by the way, is how a person KNOWS he's ELECT, for once Jesus Christ has PERSONALLY introduced HIMSELF to a man, and INDWELT that man, and made that man a NEW CREATURE, that man KNOWS -- KNOWS INFALLIBLY -- that he is ELECT. And in fact, that's the ONLY way a man may KNOW that he is ELECT, that is, by EXPERIENCING the very RESURRECTION POWER of Jesus Christ in the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH. There AIN'T no exceptions.
Thus, you may take it as AXIOMATIC that he who asks how a man knows if he's ELECT or not, and that he who believes man has FREE WILL in his natural state, and believes that man is capable of exercising SAVING FAITH in his natural state, aye, you may take it as AXIOMATIC that such a man is INFALLIBLY UNREGENERATE, that such a man has NEVER EXPERIENCED THE RESURRECTION POWER of Jesus Christ in the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH, for in the MOMENT -- the very MOMENT -- a man EXPERIENCES the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH, in that very MOMENT, his histrionics against CALVINISM cease. Utterly and completely. And he -- from that very MOMENT -- becomes a strong proponent of CALVINISM himself, since CALVINISM is nothing but SOUND BIBLICAL DOCTRINE. There are NO exceptions. None at all, including John Wesley, who was not only MANIFESTLY UNREGENERATE, but who was in fact a devil incarnate, as the TRUE history of him and his life is just beginning to reveal. Click HERE for an example. No, there are NO exceptions. None.
Does that mean that all CALVINISTS are saved? Not by a long shot. In fact, MOST Calvinists today -- of those I'm aware of, that is -- are clearly NOT regenerate, for in their PERSONAL PRACTICE they unknowingly and unwittingly DENY certain of the critical elements of CALVINISM that they otherwise teach, particularly in the way and manner of how to PERSONALLY be saved, of how to PERSONALLY be REGENERATED, and that's one reason you don't find PERSONAL TESTIMONIES on CALVINIST websites any more than you do on anti-CALVINIST websites, viz., they don't HAVE a testimony. Not a GENUINE testimony. There just happens to be a certain Scriptural logic to CALVINISM that even the CARNAL man can find purchase in, for even the CARNAL mind can recognize PLAIN TRUTH as presented in the Scriptures. It's the SPIRITUAL comprehension of those truths that evade the CARNAL mind, and it is the SPIRITUAL truths ONLY that have any genuine efficacy.
Those who DENY CALVINISM, however, not only harm themselves, but others as well, for they present a FALSE gospel, which is NOTHING but a gospel of PRIDE -- NOTHING but a gospel of PURE, UNADULTERATED PRIDE -- a gospel of HUMAN SELF-SUFFICIENCY, and therefore a gospel which prevents ALL who heed it from coming to the point of such HUMILIATION that they are RIPE for the NEW BIRTH. In short, the anti-CALVINIST effectively slams the door on GENUINE GRACE, and thus, Satan ADORES the anti-CALVINIST.
As my testimony reveals, and as ALL genuine testimonies reveal, I BELIEVED in Jesus Christ AFTER he made me a new creature; I TRUSTED in Christ AFTER he indwelt me; I LOVED Jesus Christ AFTER he regenerated me; I CAME (like Lazarus), aye, I CAME to Jesus Christ AFTER he raised me from the dead (just as Lazarus CAME to Jesus Christ AFTER he was quickened and raised from the dead, AFTER he was made alive and delivered from the grave, AFTER he was loosed from the bondage of death); indeed, I COMMITTED my soul to Jesus Christ AFTER he gave me SUPERNATURAL FAITH, &c -- and so it is with EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit.
Only the feeble-minded and willful liars equate biblical COMMANDS with HUMAN ability, that is, FLESHLY ability. I say, only the FEEBLE-MINDED and WILLFUL LIARS equate biblical COMMANDS with HUMAN ability, that is, FLESHLY ability, and thereby demonstrate that they know NOTHING of EXPERIENTIAL REGENERATION, and that they have NO SPIRITUAL COMPREHENSION of the major doctrines of the Scripture, such as ORIGINAL SIN, the DEPRAVITY OF MAN, and the NECESSITY of the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH by the very RESURRECTION POWER OF JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, &c. [John 6:37: 6:44; 6:63; Romans 3:20]
For the ELECT, on the other hand, they realize that it takes SUPERNATURAL ability to become a TRUE Christian, aye, the ELECT are given the GRACE to SEE and FEEL that they are HELPLESS -- UTTERLY HELPLESS -- with regard to spiritual matters, and that it will thus take a MIRACLE -- a bona fide SUPERNATURAL MIRACLE -- for them to be regenerated, saved, born again, and that it is IMPOSSIBLE to become a Christian -- a TRUE Christian, without such a MIRACLE. Absolutely, utterly IMPOSSIBLE.
Oh yes, I THOUGHT I believed in Jesus before I was born again, but it was only AFTER I was born again that I realized that my faith was FLESHLY FAITH, not SUPERNATURAL FAITH given from above. Oh yes, I THOUGHT I had FREE WILL before I was born again, but it was only AFTER I was born again, when I was given a NEW WILL, that I realized that my old will was ENSLAVED and taken captive by the devil at HIS will, just as the Scriptures affirm, and so forth and so on, and he who CANNOT make the same claims is he who INFALLIBLY is NOT born again. There are NO exceptions. [Ephesians 2:8; 2 Timothy 2:26]
The wise man will CAREFULLY ponder the following quotations --
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"WHEN THE WORD OF THE LORD CAME TO ME WITH POWER, it was as new as if I had lived among the unvisited tribes of Central Africa, and had never heard the tidings of the cleansing fountain filled with blood, drawn from the Saviour’s veins... WHEN I FIRST DISCOVERED WHAT FAITH REALLY WAS, AND EXERCISED IT -- for with me these two things came together, I BELIEVED AS SOON AS EVER I KNEW WHAT BELIEVING MEANT -- then I thought I had never before heard that truth preached." Charles Spurgeon, Autobiography -- The Great Change - Conversion "NONE OF US BELIEVE BY NATURE: but after the Holy Ghost has convinced us of the sin of our natures, and the sin of our lives and duties, in order to convince us of our utter inability to save ourselves, AND THAT WE MUST BE BEHOLDEN TO GOD, AS FOR EVERYTHING ELSE, SO FOR FAITH (without which it is impossible to please, or be saved by Christ) HE CONVINCES US ALSO, THAT WE HAVE NO FAITH." George Whitefield, Sermon, The Holy Spirit Convincing The World Of Sin, Righteousness, And Judgment "How long have you believed? Would not most of you say, as long as we can remember; we never did disbelieve? THEN THIS IS A CERTAIN SIGN THAT YOU HAVE NO TRUE FAITH AT ALL, NO, NOT SO MUCH AS A GRAIN OF MUSTARD SEED... you must know that there was a time in which you did not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, AND THE HOLY GHOST, IF EVER YOU RECEIVED HIM, CONVINCED YOU OF YOUR UNBELIEF." George Whitefield, The Holy Spirit Convincing The World Of Sin, Righteousness, And Judgment |
Multitudes, even MULTITUDES, think they are born again when they are not, even though they can give no GENUINE evidence of such. And so I ask -- do you really think you're born again? Really? If so, what EVIDENCE can you give? I say, what EVIDENCE -- SUPERNATURAL EVIDENCE -- can you give? MULTITUDES, even MULTITUDES, are deceived herein.
I walked down an aisle; I made a decision; I said a prayer; I accepted Christ... I, I, I, I.
As I said, a GENUINE testimony reveals what JESUS CHRIST DID, just as my testimony does, just as Paul's testimony on the road to Damascus does, just as Bunyan's testimony in GRACE ABOUNDING does, and just as ALL GENUINELY born again Christians' do.
And as I also said, I don't care what YOU did, whether it was making a "decision" or "walking down an aisle" or "saying the sinner's prayer," or what-have-you. No, I don't care what YOU did. Neither does God, the FIRST CAUSE in regeneration and salvation. Glorify yourself some other time. My interest is in the glory of Jesus Christ. Accordingly, I don't care in the LEAST what YOU did. Rather, I want to know -- WHAT DID JESUS CHRIST DO???
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"MANY will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? AND THEN WILL I PROFESS UNTO THEM, I NEVER KNEW YOU: DEPART FROM ME, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY." Matthew 7:22-23 |
The ONLY people Jesus Christ will NOT say those words to are the people to whom he has PERSONALLY -- PERSONALLY -- INTRODUCED HIMSELF. Because Jesus Christ has PERSONALLY introduced HIMSELF to me, he will never speak those words to me, for it is not possible for God to lie, and thus, since Jesus Christ DOES know me -- because Jesus Christ has PERSONALLY introduced HIMSELF to me -- Jesus Christ will therefore NEVER say that he does NOT know me, as he will to those who are eternally damned, to those who PROFESS to be Christians but who CANNOT HONESTLY -- HONESTLY AND LEGITIMATELY -- testify that Jesus Christ has PERSONALLY introduced HIMSELF to them. There are NO exceptions.
As Bunyan said, not only will the world
be shocked at how FEW will be saved, but, as Bunyan also noted, the world will
likewise be shocked by the personages who will NOT enter the kingdom of heaven.
Great names -- great "Christian" names -- will shock the world on that day when
the Lord Jesus Christ stares at them with utter scorn and contempt and says to
them, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire."
[Matthew 25:41]
And make no mistake -- Jesus Christ will
say that to ALL who cannot HONESTLY and LEGITIMATELY testify to an UNMISTAKABLE
SUPERNATURAL EXPERIENCE in the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH. There are no
exceptions. The most conservative, devout professors of faith in Jesus Christ
will be utterly SHOCKED when Jesus Christ spurns and disdains them in that day.
There are conservative, devout professors of faith in Jesus Christ who don't DREAM that these words are true of them, but they will be SHOCKED on the day of judgment to find that those words ARE true of them, and that even their preaching of the gospel is EVIL in the sight of God -- yes, that even their preaching of the gospel is in fact an ABOMINATION in the sight of God -- because their preaching and their teaching is ALL FLESH -- ALL FLESH, which is an ABOMINATION in the sight of God, no matter how righteously they may appear before men -- for they cannot HONESTLY and LEGITIMATELY testify to an UNMISTAKABLE SUPERNATURAL EXPERIENCE in the MIRACLE of the NEW BIRTH, and thus they will be without excuse, for the Scriptures and the history of genuine saints will rise up and utterly condemn them for their lack of SUPERNATURAL faith, and SUPERNATURAL experience. There will be NO exceptions.
The great prayer warrior E. M. Bounds' observation was never truer than of this generation of apostate, unregenerate preachers --
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"Preaching is to give life; IT MAY KILL... This letter-preaching has the truth. BUT EVEN DIVINE TRUTH HAS NO LIFE-GIVING ENERGY ALONE; IT MUST BE ENERGIZED BY THE SPIRIT, with all God's forces at its back. TRUTH UNQUICKENED BY GOD'S SPIRIT DEADENS AS MUCH AS -- OR MORE THAN -- ERROR. It may be the truth without admixture; BUT WITHOUT THE SPIRIT ITS SHADE AND TOUCH ARE DEADLY, ITS TRUTH ERROR, ITS LIGHT DARKNESS." E. M. Bounds, Power Through Prayer |
Today's preachers and writers have no clue what that means. No clue whatsoever.
As has been stated by the Puritans and others, EVERY SINGLE CONVERSION -- every single GENUINE conversion -- is IDENTICAL to that of the Apostle Paul's -- not in MANIFESTATION necessarily, but in METHODOLOGY.
EVERY GENUINELY born again Christian can testify, like Paul, that he was ARRESTED IN HIS TRACKS, that he was ARRESTED IN HIS TRACKS BY NONE OTHER THAN JESUS CHRIST. By Jesus Christ HIMSELF. In EVERY GENUINE CONVERSION Jesus Christ HIMSELF shows up, not in the same PHYSICAL MANIFESTATION as he did with Paul, certainly NEVER bodily, but nevertheless, in EVERY GENUINE CONVERSION Jesus Christ HIMSELF shows up just as REALLY as he did with Paul. I say, just as REALLY as he did with Paul -- and I MEAN, just as REALLY as he did with Paul -- and as with Paul, in EVERY GENUINE CONVERSION, the sinner is ARRESTED IN HIS TRACKS BY JESUS CHRIST. By Jesus Christ HIMSELF. Again, there are NO exceptions.
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"HE THAT HAS HAD A CLEAR SIGHT OF THE SPIRITUAL GLORY OF CHRIST MAY SAY, I have not followed cunningly devised fables, but have been an eyewitness of his majesty, UPON AS GOOD GROUNDS AS THE APOSTLE PETER, when he had respect to the outward glory of Christ that he had seen." Jonathan Edwards, A Divine And Supernatural Light |
Of course, it doesn't GET any more CALVINISTIC than Paul's conversion. Paul's conversion is in fact CLASSIC CALVINISM. And so it is with EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit. EVERY ONE. There never HAS been an exception to this methodology in God's salvation of sinners, there is no exception to this methodology NOW, nor will there EVER be an exception to this methodology. Not in this world; not in the world to come.
As Paul magnified his office for the sake of the elect, so I magnify my testimony to demonstrate that Jesus Christ operates today just as he did two thousand years ago. And thus I tell you, I am not special -- what Jesus Christ did for me, he does for ALL who are GENUINELY born again. Not necessarily in MANIFESTATION, but in METHODOLOGY. No exceptions. [Romans 11:13]
Jesus Christ PERSONALLY introduced himself to me; Jesus Christ PERSONALLY introduced himself to Paul; Jesus Christ PERSONALLY introduced himself to John Bunyan, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards -- Jesus Christ has PERSONALLY introduced himself to EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit. NO exceptions.
When did Jesus Christ PERSONALLY introduce himself to YOU? What EVIDENCE can you give that he did so? I say, what EVIDENCE -- SUPERNATURAL EVIDENCE -- can you give that he did so? MULTITUDES, even MULTITUDES, are deceived herein, and so are YOU if you cannot HONESTLY testify that Jesus Christ ARRESTED YOU IN YOUR TRACKS -- SOVEREIGNLY, ELECTINGLY ARRESTED YOU IN YOUR TRACKS -- and PERSONALLY introduced HIMSELF to you, and INDWELT you -- SUPERNATURALLY AND MANIFESTLY -- and made you a NEW CREATURE, a creature that did NOT EXIST one MOMENT before. What EVIDENCE can you give?
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"The birthright and the blessing go together, MISS OF ONE, AND THOU SHALL NEVER HAVE THE OTHER." John Bunyan, The Strait Gate |
What EVIDENCE can you give of the BIRTHRIGHT? Delude yourself and lose your soul if you will. You'll have the VAST MAJORITY of the human race for your companions in everlasting damnation, you'll spend eternity in everlasting torment with the VAST MAJORITY of the human race in hell, where the worm never dies, and where the fire is never quenched, unless you repent of your foolish pride and bow at the feet of SOVEREIGN GRACE.
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"Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and FEW there be that find it." Matthew 7:14 |
I constantly hear someone say to me, "There are FEW who can give a testimony like yours."
Well now, there's an irony. Let's see... Jesus Christ, the Lord of Glory, stated that it is FEW that will be saved, and now someone says to me that FEW can give a testimony like mine, or like Paul's, or like Bunyan's, or like Spurgeon's, or like ALL GENUINELY born again Christians. Isn't that strange? FEW...FEW. My, my.
When did Jesus Christ ARREST YOU IN YOUR TRACKS -- SOVEREIGNLY, ELECTINGLY ARREST YOU IN YOUR TRACKS -- and PERSONALLY introduce HIMSELF to you, and INDWELL YOU, and make you a NEW CREATURE? And what EVIDENCE -- SUPERNATURAL EVIDENCE -- do you have that he did so?
As Bunyan said, the birthright and the blessing go together, and EVERY ONE that is born of the Spirit can give OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE of the birthright. EVERY ONE.
Intermission: I have a spiritual question for you -- Are you gnashing your teeth right about now? Or have you taken Jesus Christ at his word and are thus aching and groaning inside in a DESPERATE QUEST to become one of the FEW?
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"Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and FEW there be that find it... For many are called, but FEW are chosen." Matthew 7:14; Matthew 22:14 |
I say -- Are you gnashing your teeth right about now? Or have you taken Jesus Christ at his word and are thus aching and groaning inside in a DESPERATE QUEST to become one of the FEW?
And now here's a biblical question for you -- In the FIRST sermon that Jesus Christ preached in his own hometown of Nazareth, as recorded in Luke 4, out of the entire land of Israel and its surrounding locales, how many widows were saved? And out of the entire land of Israel and its surrounding locales, how many lepers were saved? How many?
Only EIGHT people were saved out of an ENTIRE WORLD in the days of Noah, during which time the population of the earth could have EXCEEDED ONE BILLION PEOPLE. Only THREE people were saved out of an ENTIRE METROPOLIS during the days of Sodom and Gomorrah and their two sister cities, during which time the population of the four cities could have REACHED INTO THE MILLIONS. Only TWO men were saved out of SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND men just prior to the entrance into Canaan during the Exodus. Examples could be multiplied.
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"In nature excellent things are few. The world hath not many suns or moons; it is but a little of the earth that is gold or silver; princes and nobles are but a small part of the sons of men. And it is no great number that are learned, judicious, or wise, here in this world. And therefore if the gate being strait, and the way narrow, there be but FEW that find salvation, yet God will have his glory and pleasure in those FEW... IT HATH BEEN THE ASTONISHING WONDER OF MANY A MAN, AS WELL AS ME, TO READ IN THE HOLY SCRIPTURE, HOW FEW WILL BE SAVED, AND THAT THE GREATEST PART OF EVEN OF THOSE THAT ARE CALLED WILL BE EVERLASTINGLY SHUT OUT OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, AND TORMENTED WITH THE DEVILS IN ETERNAL FIRE." Richard Baxter, A Call To The Unconverted "WHEN MEN HAVE PUT IN ALL THE CLAIM THEY CAN FOR HEAVEN, BUT FEW WILL HAVE IT FOR THEIR INHERITANCE. FOR MANY, I SAY UNTO YOU, WILL SEEK TO ENTER IN, AND SHALL NOT BE ABLE. Great, therefore, will be the disappointment that many will meet with at the day of judgment: FOR MANY WILL SEEK TO ENTER IN, AND SHALL NOT BE ABLE. Going to heaven, therefore, will be no trivial business; salvation is not got by a dream; they that would then have that kingdom must now strive lawfully to enter: 'FOR MANY, I SAY UNTO YOU, WILL SEEK TO ENTER IN, AND SHALL NOT BE ABLE" John Bunyan, The Strait Gate "Christ has told us that strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, and FEW there be that find it. There have been but FEW in all ages of the world. Many seek; and many hope that they shall obtain. There are but FEW that intend to be damned; while many hope that they shall some way or other find means to escape eternal misery. BUT AFTER ALL, THERE ARE BUT FEW SAVED." Jonathan Edwards, The Wisdom Of God "Although the greater part of people do foolishly fancy that they have closed with God in Christ Jesus sincerely and heartily; or, at least, they do, without any ground or warrant, promise a new heart to themselves before they depart this life; yet there be but very FEW who do really and cordially close with God in Christ Jesus as He is offered in the gospel; AND SO THERE BE BUT VERY FEW SAVED -- Strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and FEW there be who find it -- If people would believe this, it might help to alarm them." William Guthrie, The Christian's Great Interest - Part II "Duty obliges us, and the holy Scriptures warrant us, TO ASSURE YOU THAT THERE ARE VERY FEW WHO SHALL BE SAVED; that the whole world lieth in wickedness; and that IT IS A LITTLE FLOCK TO WHOM THE FATHER WILL GIVE THE KINGDOM." Henry Scougal, There Are But A Small Number Saved "There are only a FEW privileged who are translated into the kingdom of God's dear son." William Gurnall, The Christian In Complete Armour, Vol I, Part Second, Direction II - Second General Part "Those who pretend a great difficulty at present, in reconciling the ETERNAL PERISHING OF THE GREATEST PART OF MANKIND with those notions we have of the divine goodness, seem not to have sufficiently considered what was contained in our original apostasy from God, nor the righteousness of God in dealing with the angels that sinned... Wherefore, as we ought always to admire sovereign grace in the FEW that shall be saved, so we have no ground to reflect on divine goodness IN THE MULTITUDE THAT PERISH, especially considering that they all voluntarily continue in their sin and apostasy." John Owen, Christologia |
So I ask you once again -- Are you gnashing your teeth right about now? Or have you taken Jesus Christ at his word and are thus aching and groaning inside in a DESPERATE QUEST to become one of the FEW?
Resume: the VAST majority of those who profess to be Christians, both Reformed and Arminian, talk about anything and everything these days, regardless of the subject matter -- anything and everything, that is, except for ONE thing -- their PERSONAL TESTIMONY. In MOST cases, you will search in vain to hear them tell "how great things the Lord hath done for them." Utterly in vain.
That's because, as I said, they don't HAVE a testimony. Not a GENUINE testimony anyway. He who has a GENUINE testimony CANNOT keep it silent. It just ain't possible. Not for a GENUINELY born again Christian. Ain't possible at all.
The Scriptures COMMAND you to EXAMINE YOURSELF. I ask therefore -- do YOU have a PERSONAL TESTIMONY? [2 Corinthians 13:5]
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"Some are so ignorant that they know not what SELF-EXAMINATION is, nor what a minister means when he persuadeth them to try themselves, OR THEY KNOW NOT THAT THERE IS ANY NECESSITY OF IT... THEY HAVE AS GROSS CONCEITS OF THAT REGENERATION, WHICH THEY MUCH SEARCH FOR, AS NICODEMUS HAD. And when they should try whether the Spirit be in them, they are like those that knew not whether there were a Holy Ghost to be received or no... THE MOST COMMON AND DANGEROUS IMPEDIMENT IS THAT FALSE FAITH AND HOPE, COMMONLY CALLED PRESUMPTION, WHICH BEARS UP THE HEARTS OF THE MOST OF THE WORLD, AND SO KEEPS THEM FROM SUSPECTING THEIR DANGER." Richard Baxter, The Saints' Everlasting Rest "He that believeth the Scriptures to be the Word of God, believeth that men MUST BE BORN AGAIN, and also be PARTAKERS OF THAT FAITH WHICH IS OF THE OPERATION OF GOD [supernatural faith: Scott Jones], according as he hath read and believed, OR ELSE HE MUST AND SHALL BE DAMNED. And he that believeth this aright WILL NOT BE CONTENTED until, according as it is written, he DO PARTAKE OF and ENJOY the NEW BIRTH, and until he do find, through grace, THAT FAITH WHICH IS WROUGHT BY THE OPERATION OF GOD IN HIS SOUL. For this is the cause why men do satisfy themselves with so slender a CONCEITED HOPE that their state is good, when it is nothing so, namely, because they do not credit the Scripture; for did they, they would look into their own hearts, and EXAMINE SERIOUSLY whether that faith, that hope, that grace which they THINK they have, be of that nature, and wrought by that spirit and power THAT THE SCRIPTURE SPEAKETH OF. I speak this of an EFFECTUAL BELIEVING, without which all other is nothing unto salvation." John Bunyan, A Few Sighs From Hell |
Do YOU have a PERSONAL TESTIMONY? A GENUINE PERSONAL TESTIMONY? Don't fake it. That will only add more wrath to you on the day of judgment.
Instead, inquire at the feet of Jesus Christ. GO to Jesus Christ -- not to the pastor, not to the priest, not to the spiritual man down the street -- GO TO JESUS CHRIST.
Yes, it will take GRACE -- SUPERNATURAL GRACE -- to EFFECTUALLY OBEY that command. I say, to EFFECTUALLY OBEY that command, it will take GRACE -- SUPERNATURAL GRACE. Anyhow, GO TO JESUS CHRIST, and if you find that you can't go, if you find that you can't go EFFECTUALLY -- which is to say, if you find that when you go you don't EXPERIENCE the very RESURRECTION POWER of Jesus Christ -- thus, if you find that you can't go EFFECTUALLY thereby -- then you will need POWER, aye, you will need SUPERNATURAL POWER FROM ABOVE, you will need RESURRECTION POWER, and I can't help you there. There is only ONE PERSON who can help you in that case...
His name is Jesus Christ, so, as I said, Inquire at the feet of Jesus Christ HIMSELF. Ask and it SHALL be given you; seek and you SHALL find; knock and it SHALL be opened unto you, for Jesus Christ -- Jesus Christ HIMSELF -- promises. But don't stop short. Lay hold on eternal life, aye, lay hold on Jesus Christ HIMSELF. [Matthew 7:7]
Farewell, and the Lord Jesus give you a PERSONAL TESTIMONY not to be repented of.