Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: GPL
Program Code: GPL000021
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00:01 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn.
00:02 Can the righteous draw back to perdition? 00:04 Can an apostate be restored? 00:07 Join us now on "The Grace Pipeline" 00:08 to see what the Bible has to say about this. 00:34 Welcome to "The Grace Pipeline." 00:36 This series is based on a Bible study book 00:40 by the same title which I was privileged to write. 00:42 And today if you're following 00:44 along in this series companion book, 00:46 we are beginning in Chapter 11, to talk about guarding grace. 00:50 If we look back to the beginning in Genesis 3:1, 00:54 the Bible declares, "Now the serpent 00:56 was more cunning and he said to the woman, 00:59 'Has God indeed said.'" 01:02 Here we see that from the beginning 01:05 in the Garden of Eden, the devil has distorted 01:08 the word of God for the purpose of creating 01:11 doubt in the mind of humanity. 01:13 The serpent entrapped Eve by twisting God's words, 01:18 resulting in the fall of the first created couple. 01:21 Do you doubt that Satan continues to use 01:24 the same deceitful tactic today? 01:27 You know, I grew up attending a New Testing-- 01:30 New Testament denominational church where I never heard 01:34 the grace of God mentioned in a sermon. 01:36 As we sang "Amazing Grace," I would get a glimpse of it 01:41 and a heart felt hint of its meaning, 01:43 but any appreciation of its glory was rested from my 01:47 awareness by the teachings of my church and my family. 01:51 I was taught, God could not love me unless I was perfect. 01:56 And trying earnestly to win His love, 01:58 I became frustrated at my failures to achieve 02:01 perfection which was beyond my natural grasp. 02:06 I was caught in the devil's snare 02:08 and the teeth of that demonic trap of works 02:12 based salvation dug deep, wounding my soul 02:16 and creating within me a staggering insecurity. 02:20 And what happened is I dragged that steel tooth lie around. 02:23 My spiritual progression inched along in a slow crawl. 02:27 Although I loved Jesus Christ, I mistakenly believed 02:31 it was impossible to please the Father. 02:34 And as a young adult I felt doomed. 02:37 Actually, there were times when I just gave up, 02:40 abandoning my dismal efforts to save myself 02:44 and then I would walk in the ways of the world. 02:47 But God in His mercy would not let go off me. 02:50 When I heard of grace for the first time, 02:52 God sprung that trap open for me and shaking the devil-- 02:56 the devilish device from my foot. 02:59 I began a new journey with the Lord by changing churches. 03:03 You know, the services were different 03:05 than I was accustomed to, 03:07 and they seemed like a constant celebration. 03:10 It was exacting and it appealed to my emotions. 03:13 I read my Bible regularly and I felt satisfied 03:16 that I was fulfilling God's will. 03:19 Although I still had questions about grace. 03:21 I made no serious effort to search the scriptures 03:25 for greater understanding and I was walking 03:28 on dangerous ground unaware. 03:30 I thought that I had found God's true path of grace, 03:35 but I overstepped His boundaries that serve as our safeguard. 03:40 And when I did, it happened. 03:42 Snap the jaws of the devil's snare 03:45 clamped down on my other foot, 03:47 again slowing my spiritual progress. 03:51 This occurred over 30 years ago 03:53 when I was speaking with the new friend from the church 03:56 and I was shocked at something 03:58 that she was doing in a defense of her behavior. 04:02 She quoted her favorite scripture, 04:04 interpreting it according to the understanding 04:07 which had been delivered to her. 04:10 She said, "Shelley, 2 Timothy 2:13 says, 04:14 'If we are faithless, He remains faithful.' 04:16 We're God's children. 04:18 So no matter what we do, we can't fall from God's grace. 04:22 He loves us too much to lose us." 04:25 And unfortunately I allowed her single reference 04:29 to a single scripture taken out of context 04:32 to influence my immature concept of grace. 04:36 It was soothing to think that I could do no wrong 04:39 in the eyes of my Lord and I walked in that delusion 04:42 for nearly 2 years, dubbing anyone who focused 04:46 on obedience as legalistic and unlearned in grace. 04:51 One morning while I was reading 04:53 Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, 04:55 a verse lit up like a flashing neon sign 04:59 and Paul just had provided a brief history 05:03 of the wanderings of the nation of Israel, 05:06 telling of their transgressions and how they finally 05:10 exhausted the Lord's patience. 05:13 After explaining that God's judgment 05:15 against Israel was a warning to Christians, 05:19 he issued a warning and shared words 05:21 of encouragement in 1 Corinthians 10:12, 13. 05:26 Where he says, "Therefore let him 05:28 who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. 05:33 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man. 05:38 But God is faithful, who will not allow you 05:41 to be tempted beyond what you are able, 05:43 but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, 05:48 that you may be able to bear it." 05:51 What? "Let him 05:53 who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." 05:57 Suddenly I began to have second thoughts 06:00 about the security of my salvation. 06:02 Was it possible to fall from grace? 06:05 Was I ignoring God's way of escape 06:07 from temptation and danger of falling away? 06:11 I began studying in earnest and Scripture exposed 06:15 the error I had been lead to believe. 06:18 I studied my friend's favorite verse this time 06:22 within context found in 2 Timothy 2:11-13. 06:27 And it reads, "This is a faithful saying. 06:31 For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. 06:35 If we endure, we shall also reign with Him. 06:38 If we deny Him, He also will deny us. 06:43 If we are faithless, He remains faithful. 06:46 He cannot deny Himself." 06:49 What happened as I probe the meanings of these verses? 06:53 Truth appealed to solid reasoning and helped me 06:57 escape the snare of distorting God's word. 07:00 The Lord reversed my thinking, 07:03 graciously granting me the gift of repentance. 07:06 So what I'd like to do now is take this passage 07:09 and consider it within context of New Testament teaching. 07:14 In verse 11 of 2 Timothy 2, he says, 07:19 "For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him." 07:23 Paul frequently taught that Christians are to be 07:26 dead to self and sin, but alive to God 07:30 in His gift of recreated life through the regeneration 07:35 and the renewal of the Holy Sprit 07:37 born again believers are alive in Christ. 07:41 Now verse 12, "If we endure, we shall also reign with Him." 07:47 You know, Jesus promised 07:49 if we endure to the end we will be saved. 07:52 And Hebrews explains our need of endurance saying 07:57 that it is after we have done the will of God 08:00 as faithful followers of Christ then we will receive 08:04 the promise of reigning with Him. 08:07 Now verse 12 reads, if we-- 08:12 this is a second half of verse 12. 08:13 "If we deny Him, He will also deny us." 08:19 Denying Christ does not demand a verbal rejection. 08:24 Habitual disregard for His commandments 08:27 and deliberate sin are a denial of Christ. 08:31 We are rejecting His authority, refusing to abide in Him 08:35 and the power of His grace. 08:37 And consequently, we are disowning Him. 08:40 Paul identifies people of this mindset of-- 08:44 as pretenders saying in Titus 1:16, 08:47 "They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him." 08:52 And Christ warns in Matthew 10:33, 08:55 "Whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny 09:00 before My Father who is in heaven." 09:02 And another stern warning is found in Jude 1:3-5. 09:08 Where he says, "Contend earnestly for the faith 09:12 which was once for all delivered to the saints. 09:16 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, ungodly men, 09:22 who turn the grace of our God into lewdness 09:25 and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. 09:29 But I want to remind you that the Lord, 09:31 having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, 09:34 afterward destroyed those who did not believe." 09:40 Let me ask. Do our actions deny our loyalty to God? 09:45 Through the great commission Christ called His followers 09:47 to be ambassadors for Him. 09:50 And in 2009, I better understood this title 09:53 "Ambassador" and the position after hearing 09:56 Ambassador Bienvenido Tejano, who--he was here 09:59 speaking at 3ABN's corporate morning worship. 10:02 And he explained his role 10:04 as the Philippines ambassador to New Zealand. 10:07 It was his responsibility to know the exact will 10:10 of the nation's President and the code of regulations 10:13 for the government he represented. 10:15 He was accountable to speak and act 10:18 in perfect agreement with the Philippines leader and laws. 10:23 To violate either would be a denial of the authority 10:26 vested in him and no doubt grounds for dismissal. 10:30 Is this principle any less binding on Christians? 10:34 We are to be a living memorial of God's power for salvation, 10:39 a letter written on the heart by the Holy Sprit. 10:43 Now let's continue looking in 2 Timothy 2:13, 10:47 he--Paul writes, 10:49 "If we are faithless, He remains faithful. 10:54 He cannot deny Himself." 10:56 Ah, this was the verse 10:58 that I had twisted with unstable reasoning. 11:02 But considering the context of the entire passage 11:05 and the balance of Bible teaching, 11:07 the veil of deception was lifted from my eyes. 11:11 Paul's intent in verse 13 is to forewarn us. 11:16 If we do not believe in God's power to save us from sin 11:20 and we become unfaithful to Him, 11:23 God cannot help but to remain faithful 11:26 to His righteous character and His sure word. 11:31 His promises are trustworthy. 11:34 He will faithfully reward all who live by His divine grace 11:39 never forsaking the one who trust in Him. 11:42 But He will be equally faithful 11:45 to His promises of punishment for the wicked. 11:48 God anguishes over a lost relationship, 11:51 but he cannot deny His word 11:54 for that would be to deny Himself. 11:57 Christ promises that no one can snatch us 12:01 from our Heavenly Father's protective hand. 12:04 And Paul further promises that absolutely nothing 12:07 can separate us from God's love. 12:09 The unfailing love and concern of our protective and patient 12:13 Heavenly Father is our safeguard. 12:17 Peter assures us that through our faith 12:19 and the provision of God's grace, 12:22 we are kept by God's power for salvation, 12:25 but even so, grace does not eliminate free will. 12:29 It is possible to have 12:31 a form of godliness, but deny its power. 12:35 It is possible to choose to cast off Christ's yoke 12:39 and walk away breaking the heart of our loving Heavenly Father. 12:45 Hebrews 3:12 warns, "Beware, brethren, 12:50 lest there be in any of you an evil heart 12:53 of unbelieving in departing from the living God." 12:59 This warning to Christians clearly demonstrates 13:02 the possibility of taking a detour from God's 13:05 narrow path of life and walking away from His source of grace. 13:10 If we draw back from following in the footsteps of Christ, 13:14 we depart from the Father. 13:18 In Ephesians 5, Paul explains that children of God must 13:23 imitate their Father and walk in the power of His love. 13:28 We should always remain mindful of the cost of grace. 13:33 In His great love God sent Christ to die for us 13:37 and in consideration of Christ's sacrifice, 13:40 Paul counsels us that fornication 13:43 and covetousness and all uncleanness and filthiness 13:47 including foolish talking and coarse jesting 13:51 are not fitting for a child of God. 13:54 He ends with this stern warning in Ephesians 5:5-7. 14:01 "For this you know, that no fornicator, 14:04 unclean person, nor covetous man, 14:06 who is an idolater, has any inheritance 14:09 in the kingdom of Christ and God. 14:12 Let no one deceive you with empty words, 14:15 for because of these things the wrath of God 14:18 comes upon the sons of disobedience. 14:21 Therefore do not be partakers with them." 14:25 I have a friend of 30 years who once took 14:28 ministerial studies and lived for the Lord. 14:30 He understood and lived by righteousness by faith. 14:34 But sadly for the last 12 years, 14:36 he no longer practices righteousness. 14:38 He has drawn back from the Lord 14:40 and joined with the sons of disobedience. 14:43 He totally disregards God's commandments 14:46 and his life is a wreck. 14:47 What does God think about 14:49 the habitual pattern of sin in his life? 14:53 Listen to the Lord's warning in Ezekiel 33:18 and 19. 14:58 He says, "When the righteous turns from his righteousness 15:02 and commits iniquity, he shall die because of it. 15:05 But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does 15:09 what is lawful and right, he shall live because of it." 15:14 And the New Testament repeats 15:16 God's warning in Hebrews 10:36-39. 15:21 It says, "For you have need of endurance, 15:24 so that after you have done the will of God, 15:28 you may receive the promise. 15:30 'For yet a little while, and He who is coming 15:32 will come and will not tarry. 15:34 Now the just shall live by faith. 15:37 But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.' 15:42 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, 15:45 but of those who believe to the saving of the soul." 15:51 When we understand and receive the power of divine grace, 15:55 we will walk by faith. 15:57 No trial or tribulation can cause us 16:00 to draw away from God's protective hand. 16:03 We will not turn away from the truth 16:06 and seek teachings that tickle our itching ears 16:09 or be counted among those who twist scripture 16:12 to their own destruction and fall away 16:14 from grace as described in 2 Peter 3:16-18. 16:20 He says, "Some things hard to understand, 16:23 which untaught and unstable people 16:26 twist to their own destruction, 16:31 as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. 16:33 You therefore, beloved, beware lest you also 16:35 fall from your own steadfastness, 16:38 being led away with the error of the wicked, 16:41 but grow in grace and the knowledge 16:44 of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 16:48 You know, in the previous Chapter the apostle issued 16:52 a strong alert against the potential danger of apostasy 16:57 which simply means to fall away from the Lord. 16:59 He warned of the seduction of false teachers 17:02 who corrupt good morals 17:04 by speaking great swelling words of emptiness. 17:09 Their allure is lofty expression of liberty 17:13 from the restrictions of God's word. 17:16 Teaching people to walk after the flesh, 17:18 they delude Christians who had at one time 17:22 adhered to the truth, turning them aside 17:25 from the way of righteousness and from the Holy commandments. 17:29 This reversal of right doing by casting off 17:32 the restraining power of grace is compared 17:36 by Peter to a dog returning to his own vomit. 17:40 And he concludes in 2 Peter 2:20 saying, 17:43 "For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world 17:48 through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 17:51 they are again entangled in them and overcome, 17:56 the latter end is worse for them than the beginning." 18:01 You know, apostasy is a worse condition than ignorance. 18:06 For it is more difficult, although not impossible 18:09 to reach the heart of those who have turned away 18:13 from divine grace than to reach those 18:15 who've never heard God's precious truths. 18:19 God's mercy and divine grace are witnessed 18:23 in the Old Testament through His dealing 18:25 with the apostate king, wicked king Manasseh. 18:29 This selfish idolater and cruel murderer condemned by God 18:34 was later accepted and restored by God. 18:39 His history is found partially in 2 Kings 21 18:43 which abruptly breaks off to be resumed in 2 Chronicles 33. 18:48 Manasseh was the only son of King Hezekiah. 18:52 And he became his father's successor 18:54 to the throne at 12 years of age. 18:58 He was the longest reigning King of Judah, 19:01 but all the good that his father Hezekiah 19:04 had accomplished was undone by this wicked son. 19:08 The immature King fell under heathen influence 19:12 and treacherously turned his back on God 19:15 abolishing Israel's religious faith in the Lord 19:18 and leading Judah into a relapse of wide spread idolatry. 19:24 2 Chronicles 33:9 says, "Manasseh seduced Judah 19:29 and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil 19:33 than the natious-- nations whom the Lord 19:35 had destroyed before the children of Israel." 19:40 He introduced the horrifying custom of sacrificing 19:45 children to Moloch, causing his own son to pass 19:49 through the fire in the honor of the heathen idol. 19:52 He used witchcraft. He consulted spiritists. 19:56 He consulted mediums and he shed much innocent blood. 20:01 Manasseh practiced great evils on the side of the Lord. 20:05 And he provoked God to anger. 20:08 The Lord sent His prophets to warn and reprove him, 20:12 but Manasseh would not listen. 20:14 Rather, he responded with cruel persecution 20:17 of the prophets and though the time 20:20 and manner of Isaiah's death are unknown from Scripture, 20:23 rabbinical tradition holds 20:26 that when Isaiah was 90 years old, 20:28 he sought refuge in a cedar tree to hide from Manasseh. 20:32 And there he was sawn asunder, 20:35 sawn in two by command of the heathen king. 20:39 In about the 21st or 22nd year of Manasseh's reign, 20:43 his unfaithfulness to God 20:46 brought the Lord's judgment against him, 20:48 which led to Judah's ultimate destruction and exile. 20:53 Manasseh was captured by the captains 20:55 of the King of Babylon and he lost all of his 20:58 royal dignity when he was carried off 21:01 by his conquerors in iron bonds and fetters led by a rope 21:06 that was attached to a hook in his nose. 21:10 But, you know, in severe distress 21:12 at the cruel hands of his captors, 21:14 Manasseh's eyes were opened and he came to his senses. 21:18 The idols he served were unable to save him. 21:22 He became convinced God was the only true God, 21:26 Creator of the world. 21:28 And ashamed of his sin he repented 21:30 humbled himself and cried out to the Lord. 21:34 God listened and answered his prayers. 21:37 Manasseh entered into covenant with God 21:39 who graciously delivered him 21:41 and even restored the kingdom of Judah to him. 21:46 Manasseh abandoned his idolatrous ways 21:50 and tried to reverse the evil he had done. 21:52 He restored the altar of the Lord, 21:55 sacrificing to God only, 21:57 and commanded the people of Judah to worship Jehovah. 22:01 So it was that Manasseh died in peace with God. 22:06 As we consider Manasseh's rebellion against God, 22:09 his captivity by cruel enemies, his repentance, 22:13 his restoration to the kingdom, 22:15 and the transformation of his character, 22:18 we see God's long suffering patience 22:22 and the renewing power of His grace 22:25 to subdue even the most offensive forms of sin. 22:30 Manasseh's history parallels the New Testament parable 22:35 of the prodigal son who recognized his own 22:38 wretched condition and returned to his father. 22:41 Like the father of the parable, 22:43 our Heavenly Father's love is inexhaustible. 22:47 And He waits for His returning children with outstretched arms. 22:53 The hand of grace is never closed to the repentant sinner. 22:58 God delights in mercy and restoration. 23:02 What an encouragement this is to trembling hearts. 23:06 So you see there is hope for my friend. 23:10 The apostate can be reached if after suffering 23:13 the consequences of his faithless actions 23:16 his heart has not become so hardened 23:19 that he continues to resist the Holy Spirit. 23:23 Unfortunately, there are far more examples 23:25 of stony hearted apostates who do not sense a need 23:30 to humble themselves in return to God. 23:32 These will be recipients of His wrath on the Day of Judgment. 23:37 Hebrews 10:31 says, "It is a fearful thing 23:41 to fall into the hands of the Living God." 23:44 Why? Look at Hebrews 10:28 and 30-- 23:48 Excuse me, 28 and 29. 23:50 "Anyone who has rejected Moses' law dies without mercy 23:54 on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 23:57 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, 24:00 will he be thought worthy who has trampled 24:03 the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood 24:06 of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, 24:11 and insulted the Spirit of grace?" 24:18 You know, the Christian should not insult Christ 24:22 and the Sprit of grace by walking in the darkness of sin. 24:27 Ephesians 5:8-11 says this, 24:30 "For you were once darkness, 24:34 but now you are light in the Lord. 24:38 Walk as children of light for the fruit of the Spirit 24:42 is in all goodness, righteousness, 24:46 and truth, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. 24:51 And have no fellowship 24:53 with the unfruitful works of darkness." 24:57 If we walk in the light of God's word 25:00 with a heart that is renewed by the quickening grace 25:05 of Christ's righteousness, we will remain faithful 25:08 to our Lord and He will remain faithful to--to us. 25:13 We will not be counted among those 25:16 who insult the Holy Sprit and draw back to perdition. 25:20 We will be numbered among those 25:23 who believe unto the salvation of our souls. 25:26 We will guard the precious gift of grace. 25:30 Now I want to take just a moment 25:32 to stop and to pray for you because I know 25:38 that there are many people who are watching, 25:40 many people who are hearing my voice, 25:43 who grew up as I did thinking you can't please God, 25:49 who grew up thinking, "I give up, I've-- 25:53 I've gone to church all my life, but there is no pleasing Him." 25:58 Let me tell you something. 25:59 God is in the business of salvation. 26:03 Salvation belongs to God. 26:05 And He wants more than anything 26:08 as He touched the life of Manasseh, 26:12 when Manasseh turned back to Him 26:14 and He restored all things to Manasseh. 26:16 As the prodigal son was welcomed with open arms, 26:22 God wants to touch your life. 26:26 We need to remember that grace is the divine gifts 26:33 bestowed by a God of infinite love and these gifts 26:38 have supernatural power for salvation. 26:42 It's His divine assistance. 26:44 It is God who has given us Jesus Christ, 26:49 the Holy Sprit, and the Word to work in us to willing to act. 26:54 So let's pray. 26:55 Heavenly Father, I ask in the name of Jesus 26:58 on behalf of myself and my brothers and sisters. 27:01 Oh, Lord, we come to You. We want more of You. 27:04 I pray in Jesus name. Forgive us of our sins, Lord. 27:08 Grant us the gift of repentance and turn us back to You. 27:14 Turn us full faced to You, Father. 27:17 Let us understand Your love and Your grace 27:21 as it operates in our heart and helps us to guard grace. 27:25 In Jesus name we ask and in Jesus name we receive, amen. 27:30 Please join us on our next program where we will 27:33 continue this study and learn how we can stand firm, 27:38 positioned in the light of God. 27:43 So now our prayer is that you will grow in grace. 27:47 And in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ 27:51 to Him be the glory and forever. 27:55 Now and for ever, amen. Thank you for joining us. |
Revised 2014-12-17