The Law of God is made to expose the lawless, rebellious, ungodly sinners, unholy, profane
killers of their parents, murderers, immoral men, and homosexuals.
That's not a nice group to belong to.
And they will not inherit the kingdom of God because you have to turn from your sin, repent,
confess, and beg for mercy.
That was lordship Calvinist, lordship salvationist, John MacArthur, who often disguises himself
behind the term, saved by grace.
But clearly, as you just heard, you heard the evidence for yourself, he's a works salvationist.
Welcome to Truth Time.
Salvation according to John involves, first, the work of you turning from your sin.
Second, he says you have to repent.
Third, you've got to confess.
And coming in at number four on the John MacArthur list of how to be saved, you've got to beg
God for mercy.
And this from someone who will look you square in the eye and tell you that salvation is by grace through faith alone.
A lie.
Don't fall for it.
And works salvation is rotten.
I don't care if you knew or know some sweet little old lady who claims to have that old time religion and you just worship the ground she walks on.
Hey, apart from resting her faith in Christ and believing the gospel, she's as lost as the most vile person who's ever walked this earth.
When it comes to being good enough to save ourselves, there's none good, no, not one.
We all, Romans 3:23, we all fall short, ever last one of us.
In the grand scale of things, whether you're one of those who claims to live a holy life, or if you're in the worst of sinners crowd, you're on the same level playing field.
Perfection, not doing your best, but perfection is what's required for salvation.
And guess what?
If we're playing tag, you ain't it.
You fall short.
And both groups, the holy ones and the worst of sinners, both need the blood of Christ and His finished work applied to their account for salvation.
Apart from that, no one has a chance.
Same playing field.
I want you to do something.
Get in your mind the most holy person you have ever known.
Got it?
Okay, that person in your head, unless they've believed solely in Christ and what He accomplished
for them on the cross, and He has resurrected, they will not spend eternity in heaven.
Their holy living won't get them there.
It did nothing but give them a false sense of security, if they depend on that for their salvation.
And their biggest problem is they think they can lose it.
Hey, you know why they think they can lose salvation?
They haven't committed it to the Lord.
They haven't let Him have it.
That's where you'll finally find peace about your salvation when you let go.
Don't work to get it.
Don't work to keep it.
Let it go.
Let go of it and rest in Him.
Anything short of that demonstrates your lack of faith.
You don't really trust Christ with it.
Truth Time Radio, we're here today talking about how to live a debt-free spiritual life.
Should we live our lives day by day biting our fingernails and repenting, which many misdefine as turning from sins?
Are we to live day by day confessing and begging for mercy to be saved, as we just heard John
MacArthur say?
Sadly, people generally don't care if the Bible supports what they practice or not.
Just as long as they're given something to do to make them feel good about themselves, something they can brag they can boast about when it comes to their salvation.
That's our current pop theology of today.
But is pop theology rightly divided theology?
Is it the gospel that the Lord gave to the Apostle Paul to give to us?
You know, the gospel that says Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead, and by faith in that and that alone, we're saved.
Is it that or is it what Paul Washer says it is?
I'll give you another illustration, and it's been very helpful to many people.
It doesn't always happen this way.
Sometimes I have preached and people have come and talked to me for no fewer than a few minutes.
I've even had people come down the aisle crying out, what must I do to be saved?
Cry out to the Lord and be saved.
But that's not the way it happens always.
Remember preaching up north one time and a girl came forward and she says, I need to be broken, I need to be saved.
And I knew something of her case, I knew her father well.
And I said, but how many times have you been saved?
How many times have you prayed that prayer?
She said six.
And I said, it didn't do any good, did it?
She said, no.
My life is vile and sinful and I'm empty and lost.
And I said, well, there's no sense then in us repeating that same mistake, is there?
She said, no.
She said, what do I do?
I said, go home and cry out to God as though hell were opening up its mouth to swallow you down.
Cry out to God that He might save you.
What?
Now, this girl has come to him with the same question the Philippian jailer asked in Acts chapter 16, what must I do to be saved?
And instead of sticking with scripture and giving this girl the apostle Paul's gospel, no, he gave her the Calvinist Paul's gospel, the gospel of Paul Washer.
She came the next night and she looked just tore up, just totally broken.
And she said, I cried out to God all night and He did not answer me and I fell asleep and I woke up this morning and I'm just in such distress, I don't know what to do.
She says, what do I do?
I said, you have two options.
Most of you will think this is cruel.
I said, you have two options.
Stop crying out to God and go to hell or continue crying out to God till He saves you.
Again, you know, just in case he had a memory lapse and forgot the gospel, the first time the girl asked how to be saved, he gets another chance here to redeem himself.
And what does he do?
He messes it up again.
He still fails to give her the gospel, but rather gives her two options.
Just listen to the false dichotomy he sets up.
I said, you have two options.
Stop crying out to God and go to hell or continue crying out to God till He saves you.
She went home.
The next night I was there with her father and we were talking about these things and he was excited.
Most fathers would have been mad, but he was excited about what God was doing in his daughter's
life and the way that it was handled and everything.
And we were up there weeping and the old man was crying out for his daughter and then the music started and he went and sat back down and I took my seat up there in the front and I was sitting there.
I was still crying out for this lady and all of a sudden someone plopped down beside me.
Opened my eyes and looked and it was her.
She's glowing.
I said, what's happened?
She goes, if every person in the world got together and told me right now I was lost, I would still have the greatest of confidence that my God has heard my voice and He has saved me.
She said, I cried out all night and I fell asleep in just total distress and I didn't know what to do.
And I woke up the next morning and as soon as my eyes just flew open, she said, God pressed
upon my heart, I have saved thee daughter.
And she said, the love of God was shed abroad in my heart.
So thanks to Paul Washer, here's another person, this lady, with the false assurance of salvation.
All because of the works for salvation plan that you gave her.
Ephesians 2:8 declares that salvation is not of yourself.
But Paul Washer decided to ignore that and make it all about her and what she did.
And make no mistake, this popular lordship salvationist, this Calvinist, Paul Washer, he knows about Christ dying on the cross.
He knows about the resurrection.
But sadly, he gave this young lady who's in need of salvation, he gave her a false gospel.
One that turned inward.
He told her to go home and cry out to the Lord until He saves her.
He gave her something to do.
Think about that.
Salvation is not of yourself, but I want you, yourself, to go home and cry out all night long until you, yourself, can move God to activate your salvation.
Forget what the Bible says in Ephesians 1:13, that salvation happens after you hear the gospel and believe the gospel.
Forget that.
The Paul Washer plan of salvation is to go home and cry for it.
So now let's just think about what we've heard so far.
We've heard from two popular preachers in America today.
Two popular Calvinists, John MacArthur and Paul Washer.
John said, if you want to be saved, you must first turn from your sin, then confess your sin, and finally, then you've got to beg God for mercy.
And then here comes along Paul Washer.
He tells a long, drawn out, Pharasitical sermon story of how he told a woman who wanted to be saved to go home and cry out to God all night until he saved her.
And she actually came to him twice on two separate occasions about it because she didn't feel saved after doing it the first time.
So what does he do?
Does he take this opportunity to give her the gospel?
No, he sends her back to do it all over again.
I say this too much, but you can't make this stuff up.
Ignorance writes itself.
Hollywood ain't got nothing on these guys.
The gospel means good news.
Well, how can you be telling someone good news, the good news of how to be saved, when you've done nothing but tell them what they have to do to earn it?
If salvation's up to me, that's not good news.
I can't save myself.
The only acceptable thing for my forgiveness was bloodshed, past tense.
Bloodshed from a perfect sacrifice.
Then that perfect sacrifice had to also arise from the grave.
Something else I couldn't have done.
So if that ain't enough, if what Christ did on my behalf, if that's not enough, I'm in trouble.
If it's left up to me, that's not good news.
The good news is that I don't have to confess.
I don't have to beg or cry out all night long for forgiveness because I'm already forgiven.
It happened on the cross.
It took bloodshed from a perfect sacrifice.
It was a one-time deal.
It's finished.
Jesus paid for all my sin on the cross.
He was buried and He's risen from the dead.
If we could have done something, He wasted a trip.
He could have stayed home.
No, that's another gospel.
Both John MacArthur and Paul Washer are preaching another gospel.
Keeping short sin accounts with God only keeps sins at the forefront of your mind.
No, God says, believe the gospel.
That I took your sins, I put them on Christ.
Now walk in liberty.
Free from sin.
Free your mind from it.
And go be about the business of telling others this good news.
The 2 Corinthians chapter 5, ministry of reconciliation.
We're ambassadors for Christ.
This is our good news to go tell.
And have you ever noticed, I mean think about it, those who don't have this assurance.
Assurance of the finished cross work make horrible witnesses.
And most don't witness at all.
Because the religious system has them buried in self condemnation.
Never telling anyone of how Christ conquered sin on the cross because they don't even understand
it themselves.
No, they can only tell you what you need to do about it.
You need to do this.
You need to do that.
You need to quit this.
You need to start that.
Go home and cry.
Come down to the altar.
Repeat a prayer.
Say this.
Say that.
Do this.
Do that.
Like some who mismanage their money, they're drowning in debt.
Paul tells us, Romans 4:4,Tto him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
Really hear that today.
Whoever works for salvation, whoever works for forgiveness, is in debt.
Next time you hear works-based salvation being preached, remember this, Romans 4:4.
That's what repenting of your sins will do for you.
That's what confessing them will do for you.
That's what staying up all night, crying and begging for something to be done that has already been done, that's what that'll do for you, put you deeper in debt.
Then he says, next verse, Romans 4:5, watch, here comes the flip side, But to him that worketh not, in other words, stop doing these crazy things the preachers are telling you, to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith.
Now there's the good news.
His faith, not works, his faith is counted for righteousness.
Why didn't Paul Washer tell the girl that?
Why didn't he tell her how to walk debt free?
Debt free living is no works for forgiveness, no works for salvation.
Stop fooling yourself, thinking there's something you can bring to the table.
There's not.
Then just rest in him, he who came to give you a debt free life.
Romans 4:4, you work for it, you go in debt.
Romans 4:5, you don't work for it, your faith is counted for your righteousness.
Now that's good news, John MacArthur.
Galatians 1, Paul plainly told us that if anyone comes to you preaching another gospel than the one I've preached, let him be accursed.
That's what you're hearing from these fellows, a gospel that will put you in debt.
Nowhere in Paul's 13 epistles does he mention that you must first turn from your sins to be saved.
So those today running around screaming, repent, repent, misusing the word to mean a physical turn, a physical turn from your sin, they're preaching another gospel.
They have work in front of grace.
They have it in front of faith, a work in front of the gospel.
There's a book called Faith Alone.
At the moment, the author's name, it escapes me, but well-known lordship Calvinist John Piper wrote the foreword in this book.
And I find it quite ironic that in a book called Faith Alone, in the foreword, John says, and I quote, "How can a person be right with God? The stunning Christian answer is, Sola Fida, faith alone.
But be sure you hear this carefully and precisely.
Right with God by faith alone, not attain heaven by faith alone.
There are other conditions for attaining heaven, but no others for entering a right relationship with God.
In fact, one must already be in a right relationship with God by faith alone in order to meet the other conditions." End quote.
The foreword was written by John Piper, who himself authored a book called Future Grace, and the title alone screams red flags.
That's also false for the Church of the Body of Christ.
All over his 13 letters to us, our apostle, the apostle Paul, tells us of the grace that we have now.
Not future, not waiting on it, no, we possess it now, something John Piper knows nothing of.
Why?
Because he doesn't rightly divide the word of truth.
You see, it's Peter, the apostle of the circumcision, Galatians 2:7, that talks about future grace.
The chief apostle of Acts chapter 8, verse 1, Church at Jerusalem, he's the one that tells them about future grace.
That's not to us.
1 Peter 1:10, Peter says, Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you.
When, Peter, when will it come to your audience?
Verse 13, Be sober and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ, when Christ returns.
This is why MacArthur, Washer, Piper, and many others don't understand and are therefore unable to present a clear gospel and do it with precision and consistency.
It's because they don't rightly divide the word of truth, which would allow them to see the distinction of Paul's gospel.
John Piper's conditional faith sounds very Catholic, also very Mormon.
Both are very tricky about their supposed position on salvation by grace through faith.
Both Catholics and Mormons will say, Oh yeah, we believe that salvation is by grace through faith.
But when pressed, they'll say that grace only comes after we've done all we can do.
See the deception?
Satan is subtle.
Think about what we read from Piper's forward.
Getting right with God, he says, is different from getting into heaven.
What?
Pure lunacy.
It's oxymoronic.
This is how dumbed down we've become as people.
Someone can say this, yet still have a large following.
Mind blowing.
Today we have men who preach heaven can be earned.
Conditional salvation.
They'll say that in one breath, then do a 180 and say they believe salvation is by grace, which is unearned.
And almost no one picks up on it.
Zip right over their head.
Is it the genetically modified food?
Too many prescription drugs?
Perhaps something in the water?
What's going on?
If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost.
Second Corinthians 4:4.
Now think, Piper says, how can a person be right with God?
Faith alone.
Then he says, but there are other conditions for attaining heaven.
And notice he said conditions, plural.
Just how many, John?
The audacity and arrogance of these who teach to turn from Christ for our righteousness and to self for our righteousness.
One plus one equals two, and that equals self-righteousness.
You're either dressed in His righteousness or you're naked.
There's no in between.
Many today believe this works to attain heaven garbage.
Former Fox News host, Bill O'Reilly, some of you may remember when we exposed him for teaching another gospel.
He teaches works for heaven.
But one thing I admire about Bill, he admits it.
He doesn't hide behind the veil of grace.
Many of today's pop theologists, they hide behind terms like faith alone, grace alone, and finished work.
Well, here on Truth Time, you'll never leave wondering what our stance is on salvation.
We're clear.
Nothing's veiled.
You may not agree, but you'll never leave having to guess.
Most of the lordship Calvinists I've dealt with are wafflers, doublespeakers.
Some are basically closet Catholics who are good at using Protestant language.
Piper and others try to parse what they call initial justification and final justification, as if there's two stages to it, as if it's a process that precedes salvation.
They make justification provisional.
It's laced with contradictions, and for good reason, again, they don't rightly divide the word of truth.
But let's just dive down to the bottom here.
When put in plain English, they're saying you can't get into heaven by faith alone.
Their version of faith alone comes only after you've done the works to get it.
It's not a no-so salvation, it's a hope-so salvation.
Not saved, but being saved.
And that's also a heresy you'll find in the New King James Bible.
That's right.
I've got it right here.
Let's see, where's it at?
1 Corinthians 1, verse 18 in the New King James Version.
Listen, For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.
If you want fake news, go get yourself a New King James Version, which by the way contradicts its own self.
If you turn to Ephesians 2:8 in the New King James, it contradicts what it says in 1 Corinthians 1:18.
Ephesians 2:8, for by grace you have been saved, been saved, so they got that correct.
But which is it?
The New King James Version says being saved in one place, then waffles, and says been saved in another.
It's either being or been, it can't be both.
It's hard to have full assurance of your salvation in a Bible that not only contradicts the King James, but also contradicts itself.
You see, you better do your homework before you continue to believe and tell others that oh, all Bibles are, they're all saying the same thing, they're just worded different.
No, that's a lie.
Stop or go, up or down, being saved or been saved.
That's not just worded different, it is different.
Using the term being saved is equivalent to saying Christ is dying for our sins.
No, Christ died for our sins.
He's not still dying.
And we have been saved, we're not still being.
Hey, the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6.23.
If the wages of sin is death, who paid the wages?
Right, Christ.
What do you do for wages?
Work.
So if Christ paid the wages, then He did the work, right?
Now for salvation, what work is left to be done, huh?
Why won't crying out to the Lord all night long get your sins forgiven?
Because the wages of sin is death.
Why won't confessing your sins and asking for forgiveness get your sins forgiven?
Because the wages of sin is death.
Why won't begging God get your sins forgiven?
Because the wages of sin is death.
Church of Christ, let's just clear this up right now.
Why won't water baptism do it for you?
Because the wages of sin is death.
There's no death in getting wet.
No death in turning, crying, confessing, asking, or begging.
The gospel is Christ died for your sins, so your sins are forgiven.
The wages of sin is death.
Now that makes sense.
Now what you need is eternal life.
That's why He rose after three days.
How can you trust the Lord today?
By trusting the Apostle Paul's gospel for eternal life.
The gospel of John MacArthur, Paul Washer, John the Pied Piper, it won't do it for you.
It won't do anything other than put you in debt.
Someone should inform Piper that there is no such thing as saved by grace through faith initially found in any of Paul's letters.
It's saved by grace through faith once and for all.
When the Spirit baptized us into one body, 1 Corinthians 12:13, it was a one-time deal.
It's not, there's an initial and then there's a final baptism.
No, it happened all at once, once and for all.
2 Corinthians 1:22 says that God sealed us and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
How many times does He need to do that?
Colossians 2:10 tells me I'm complete in Christ, and I believe it.
It's salvation, not probation.
And it's complete, not partial.
It's not Jesus did His part, now I need to do mine.
It's Jesus did His part, and I believe it.
Do all the works they're telling you, or choose to live debt-free.
Keep Romans 4:4 in your mind.
Any work you do will only put you deeper in debt.
I'm out of time.
Let me ask you this.
How many educations do you get?
The one you're given, and the one you give yourself.
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