Thomas Watson was an old puritan and a fantastic preacher. He lived in the 1600's and wrote a variety of books. My favorite is his small book titled "The Doctrine of Repentance." A book sorely needed today with so few preachers actually preaching on the subject. I have a quote by Watson that is quite timely even though he said it in the 1600's. I felt it something I should do in light of the deaths of Michael Jackson and Steve McNair. Beware of the lure of the world.

"The heart of fools is in the house of pleasure."
Ecclesiastes 7:4

A fool prefers toys and trifles-above things of greatest
worth. Just so, wicked and ungodly men prefer their lusts
before the Lord. Upon choice, they prefer the honors, the
riches and glory of the world-above their own souls and
the great concerns of eternity.

I have read of the foolish people of Ceylon, who preferred
a consecrated ape's tooth-above an incredible mass of
treasure. Such fools are all unholy people, who prefer the
toys, the trifles of this world-above the pleasures and
treasures which are at God's right hand. The world is
full of such fools.

Says one-"If you behold the lives of men, you will judge
the whole world to be a house of fools!" Ah, friends!
What folly can be compared to that of men's spending
their time, their strength, their lives, their souls-in getting
the great things of this world, and neglecting that one thing
necessary-the salvation of their souls! Oh, what vanity is
it to prefer . . .
a smoke of honor,
a blast of fame,
a dream of pleasure,
a wedge of gold,
a Babylonish garment,
and such like transitory trifles and trash
-before a blessed eternity!

This past Tuesday I went down to Amelia Island, Florida. Me and my family did some fishing and we did well. :D The day started out slow. The spot we noramlly go was taken so we were forced to go to a different spot which stunk. The fish weren't biting at all. Some time later they left and we got our normal spot. I caught 2 black drum which look something like this,

I also caught a good sized spotted sea trout and a whiting on steroids. The Lord blessed that day. I love being in His creation and enjoying the works of His hands. How anyone could think it somehow evolved by random chance baffles me.

Quite often I feel the enemy within. When I'm reading the Word and vile thoughts from my former life flood my mind to the point I'm not real sure how to combat it. The flesh will often rage so much that I feel like I'm being torn in two. The evil within is almost like a damn to me. The massive wall of concrete is holding back the water but it could break at any moment from the intense pressure. Here is a prayer from The Valley of Vision. If you don't have this paperback by Arthur Bennett then shame on you. It costs about 12-15$. It expresses what i often feel about The Dark Guest within,

O Lord,

Bend my hands and cut them off, for I have often struck thee with a wayward will, when these fingers should embrace thee by faith.

I am not yet weaned from all created glory, honour, wisdom, and esteem of others, for I have a secret motive to eye my name in all I do.

Let me not only speak the word sin, but see the thing itself.

Give me to view a discovered sinfulness, to know that though my sins are crucified they are never wholly mortified.

Hatred, malice, ill-will,vain-glory that hungers for and hunts after man's approval and applause, all are crucified, forgiven, but they rise again in my sinful heart.

O my crucified but never wholly mortified sinfulness!
O my life-long damage and daily shame!
O my indwelling and besetting sins!
O the tormenting slavery of a sinful heart!

Destroy, O God, the dark guest within whose hidden presence makes my life a hell.

Yet thou hast not left me here without grace; The cross still stands and meets my needs in the deepest straits of the soul.

I thank thee that my remembrance of it is like David's sight of Goliath's sword which preached forth thy deliverance.

The memory of my great sins, my many temptations, my falls, bring afresh into my mind the remembrance of thy great help, of thy support from heaven, of the great grace that saved such a wretch as I am.

There is no treasure so wonderful as that continuous experience of thy grace toward me which alone can subdue the risings of sin within:

Give me more of it.

It is extremely important to distinguish, by the scriptures, between what Christ did and what resulted from that work. Did Christ die for an offer of salvation, or for a people?

1. Federal Work - A legal union with Christ, God is oficially one with His people being legally united by covenant.

Is. 42:1-6 = a covenant to the people.

Galatians 3:10-29 = Legal oneness, Mediator,a curse for us, baptized into Christ have put on Christ(1 Cor. 12:12).

Galatians 2:19-21 = His atoning work looked upon as our atoning work, making us legally one with Him.

Romans 6: 1-14 = Buried with Him, raised with Him, died with Him, live with Him (oneness).

Colossians 2:11-13 = Buried with Him, risen with Him, quickened together with Him (oneness).

Ephesians 2:5-6 = Quickened us together with Christ, raised us up together, made us sit together (oneness).

Making Us Legally ONE With Him In All That He Did!!!

Hebrews 2:10-18 = Abraham's seed are all one (verses 11,17).

Ephesians 5:30-32 = They 2 shall be ONE flesh.Speaking ofChrist and His church. (oneness).

Ephesians 1:15-23 = His body; Once we grasp the meaning of our covenant (Sinaitic & Abrahamic) with Christ, we can then understand the vicarious and substitutionary work of the atonement.

2. Substitutionary Work (In the place of, on behalf of)- He acted on behalf of, and in the actual place of, those He would suffer and die for. He is substituted for us because He i one with us. We are identified with Him, and He with us.

Isaiah 53 = Wound for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, chastisement of our peace was upon Him.

Matt. 20:28 = a ransom for many.

1 John 4:10 = sent His Son to be the propitiation (an appeasement, satisfaction) for our sins.

Luke 22:19 = My body which is given for you.

1 Cor. 11:24 = My body which is broken for you.

2 Cor. 5:14 = If Christ died for all then the all are legally regarded as having died too!

The Vicarious Death of Christ has been Reckoned as the Personal Atonement of the Believer!

3. Penal Work - Disobedience to the law demanded punishment. If Christ was to be OUR substitute He had to be made like us so that He could suffer OUR just deserved penalty for our failure in all points. He was our substitute in receiving OUR just deserved punishment.

Is. 53:8 = Who was He stricken for? Notice it is specific.

2 Cor. 5:21 = Made Him to be sin for us.

1 Peter 2:18-25 = Suffered for us.

Ezekiel 18:4 = The soul that sins will die. Compare with Psalm 89:14.

Romans 3:19-26 = Calls for the fulfillment of the terms of the law.

1 Peter 3:18 = He suffered for sins. Compare His poverty (Luke 8:3), His suffering reproach (Matt. 8:20), His suffering temptation (Matt. 4:1-11), His suffering in God forsaking Him (Ps. 22). David said he never saw the righteous forsaken yet at the cross the Father forsook Christ. Why?

Before Christ's death Jesus never called anyone His brother or sister in a spiritual sense. After the cross e is not ashamed to call us family (Heb. 11:16). Why? What happened at the cross to change things? I'll end by this wonderful quote from Arthur W. Pink,

In closing, we call attention to one other deeply important value of the types and the use to which they may be put: they furnish an infallible rule by which can be tested any man's (our own included) interpretation of the New Testament Scriptures concerning the Atonement! He who denies the penal and vicarious nature of Christ's death, repudiates the clear testimony of the types; he who sets aside the efficacy of His sacrifice by reducing it to a merely "making possible" the salvation of men does likewise, for the types know nothing of an ineffectual sacrifice. So too in them we see plainly the limitation of God's love to His elect people, for no lamb was provided for the Egyptians, nor did Aaron make any atonement for the sins of the Midianites and Ammonites!

Not many people know that the bible teaches repentance and faith are gifts from God. Most people think their faith is acceptable to God, but how can sinful, corrupt faith be acceptable to a God who demands perfection (Matt. 5:48 )? Here is a list of verses that show that repentance and faith are gifts,

Ephesians 2:8-9For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, (9) not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

Acts 16:14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard [us]: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.

Acts 18:27 And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace:

Php 1:29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

2 Timothy 2:25-26in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, (26) and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand [to be] a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

Acts 11:18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

Galatians 1:15-16But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, (16) to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,

2Pet 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that [pertain] unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

1Cor 4:7 For who maketh thee to differ [from another]? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive [it], why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received [it]?

1John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, [even] in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

Consider the ramifications of this on your theology.

This was written by Dr. James White and I thought it so good I'd post it on my blog. If you are catholic consider these things.

10) Have you listened to both sides? That is, have you done more than read Rome Sweet Home and listen to a few emotion-tugging conversion stories? Have you actually taken the time to find sound, serious responses to Rome's claims, those offered by writers ever since the Reformation, such as Goode, Whitaker, Salmon, and modern writers? I specifically exclude from this list anything by Jack Chick and Dave Hunt.

9) Have you read an objective history of the early church? I refer to one that would explain the great diversity of viewpoints to be found in the writings of the first centuries, and that accurately explains the controversies, struggles, successes and failures of those early believers?

8 ) Have you looked carefully at the claims of Rome in a historical light, specifically, have you examined her claims regarding the "unanimous consent" of the Fathers, and all the evidence that exists that stands contrary not only to the universal claims of the Papacy but especially to the concept of Papal Infallibility? How do you explain, consistently, the history of the early church in light of modern claims made by Rome? How do you explain such things as the Pornocracy and the Babylonian Captivity of the Church without assuming the truthfulness of the very system you are embracing?

7) Have you applied the same standards to the testing of Rome's ultimate claims of authority that Roman Catholic apologists use to attack sola scriptura? How do you explain the fact that Rome's answers to her own objections are circular? For example, if she claims you need the Church to establish an infallible canon, how does that actually answer the question, since you now have to ask how Rome comes to have this infallible knowledge. Or if it is argued that sola scriptura produces anarchy, why doesn't Rome's magisterium produce unanimity and harmony? And if someone claims there are 33,000 denominations due to sola scriptura, since that outrageous number has been debunked repeatedly (see Eric Svendsen's Upon This Slippery Rock for full documentation), have you asked them why they are so dishonest and sloppy with their research?

6) Have you read the Papal Syllabus of Errors and Indulgentiarum Doctrina? Can anyone read the description of grace found in the latter document and pretend for even a moment that is the doctrine of grace Paul taught to the Romans?

5) Have you seriously considered the ramifications of Rome's doctrine of sin, forgiveness, eternal and temporal punishments, purgatory, the treasury of merit, transubstantiation, sacramental priesthood, and indulgences? Have you seriously worked through compelling and relevant biblical texts like Ephesians 2, Romans 3-5, Galatians 1-2, Hebrews 7-10 and all of John 6, in light of Roman teaching?

4) Have you pondered what it means to embrace a system that teaches you approach the sacrifice of Christ thousands of times in your life and yet you can die impure, and, in fact, even die an enemy of God, though you came to the cross over and over again? And have you pondered what it means that though the historical teachings of Rome on these issues are easily identifiable, the vast majority of Roman Catholics today, including priests, bishops, and scholars, don't believe these things anymore?

3) Have you considered what it means to proclaim a human being the Holy Father (that's a divine name, used by Jesus only of His Father) and the Vicar of Christ (that's the Holy Spirit)? Do you really find anything in Scripture whatsoever that would lead you to believe it was Christ's will that a bishop in a city hundreds of miles away in Rome would not only be the head of His church but would be treated as a king upon earth, bowed down to and treated the way the Roman Pontiff is treated?

2) Have you considered how completely unbiblical and a-historical is the entire complex of doctrines and dogmas related to Mary? Do you seriously believe the Apostles taught that Mary was immaculately conceived, and that she was a perpetual virgin (so that she traveled about Palestine with a group of young men who were not her sons, but were Jesus' cousins, or half-brothers (children of a previous marriage of Joseph), or the like? Do you really believe that dogmas defined nearly 2,000 years after the birth of Christ represent the actual teachings of the Apostles? Are you aware that such doctrines as perpetual virginity and bodily assumption have their origin in gnosticism, not Christianity, and have no foundation in apostolic doctrine or practice? How do you explain how it is you must believe these things de fide, by faith, when generations of Christians lived and died without ever even having heard of such things?

And the number 1 question I would ask of such a person is: if you claim to have once embraced the gospel of grace, whereby you confessed that your sole standing before a thrice-holy God was the seamless garment of the imputed righteousness of Christ, so that you claimed no merit of your own, no mixture of other merit with the perfect righteousness of Christ, but that you stood full and complete in Him and in Him alone, at true peace with God because there is no place in the universe safer from the wrath of God than in Christ, upon what possible grounds could you come to embrace a system that at its very heart denies you the peace that is found in a perfect Savior who accomplishes the Father's will and a Spirit who cannot fail but to bring that work to fruition in the life of God's elect? Do you really believe that the endless cycle of sacramental forgiveness to which you will now commit yourself can provide you the peace that the perfect righteousness of Christ can not?

I recently saw this post on GS and it ticked me off. I don't want to embarrass the person so I'm not going to put their name. They claimed to be a christian but have now renounced it. What is sad is that this person has no idea what genuine historic christianity is. This was their post,

I always knew the bible contained violent content, but after looking at everything closely, I now know I can no longer consider myself a Christian.

Its not just about the violent content too. I always ask myself questions, like, who are Christians to decide that they're right, and they're the only right religion? Then I realized its the same for other religions, they all say the same thing. I realized its completely arbitrary, most of the time, you preach what you were born into.

I don't know who this person is or what church they attend or attended but they have no idea what historic christianity is.

1. There is no such thing as a former christian. 1 John 2 says,

19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.

Why does John say this? Because he understands that salvation is a sovereign work of the Spirit (John 3:1-8 ). Once God, who is perfect, saves someone they stay saved (Phil. 1:6). I'll illustrate it like this. A man is scheduled to preach at a church but he doesn't show until the end of the service. When that pastor asks why he's late he says, "I'm sorry but my car got a flat and while I was changing the tire I was hit by a 2 ton semi going 75 mph. The pastor calls him a liar. The man responds, "Why would you call me a lair? How dare you!" The pastor responds, "You are a lair! It is impossible to have an encounter with a 2 ton semi and not have a scratch on you." What is the point of that story? The same applies to God. It is impossible to have an encounter with the Creator of heaven and earth and not be changed. This person was never saved to begin with. Growing up in a religious family does not make you a christian.

2. This person states they they looked at everything closely. I'll respond wit the link this person posted in the same post as proof that the bible isn't tre - evilbible.com. Notice that whoever did the site doesn't even have a basic understanding of what he or she is quoting. For proof look at this quote from evilbible,

It always amazes me how many times this God orders the killing of innocent people even after the Ten Commandments said "Thou shall not kill".

For those that are knowledgeable you understand how ridiculously ignorant this quote is. Look up the hebrew word for kill in Exodus 20-21. That is enough to show the stupidity of this quote. My main point though is that this person is lazy. They didn't do any research at all. When one knows this little about historic christianity it is no wonder they were duped by the ignorance of evilbible.com.

3. The hypocrisy is oozing from this person's post. They complain about the violence in the bible yet their avatar depicted a woman with blood oozing down her face with her hair soaked in blood.

I hope those that read this post will take things more seriously than this person did. They were in no way a christian. Calling yourself one does not make you one.

This is one of my favorite prayers out of Arthur Bennett's The Valley of Vision. I recommend you get it as soon as you can.

When thou wouldst guide me I control myself, When thou wouldst be sovereign I rule myself. When thou wouldst take care of me I suffice myself. When I should depend on thy providings I supply myself, When I should submit to thy providence I follow my will,
When I should study, love, honour, trust thee, I serve myself;
I fault and correct thy laws to suit myself, Instead of thee I look to man's approbation, and am by nature an idolater.

Lord, it is my chief design to bring my heart back to thee. Convince me that I cannot be my own god, or make myself happy,
nor my own Christ to restore my joy, nor my own Spirit to teach, guide, rule me. Help me to see that grace does this by providential affliction, for when my credit is god thou dost wing them away,
when pleasure is my all thou dost turn it into bitterness. Take away my roving eye, curious ear, greedy appetite, lustful heart;
Show me that none of these things can heal a wounded conscience,
or support a tottering frame, or uphold a departing spirit.
Then take me to the cross and leave me there.

I watched Patricia Ireland on Bill O'Reilly the other night. You can watch the segment here - LiveLeak. Notice what she says in the segment. Notice how often she uses the word "own." The reason the woman has an abortion is selfishness orto quoteIreland, "her own dreams." The baby gets in the way of that. Th point is that she had sex and didn't want to deal with the consequences of her decision so she had an abortion. John Piper dealt with the issue of why abortion was happening and said this,

One answer is given in James 4:2 (following the punctuation of the RSV and NASB):

You desire and do not have; so you kill.

Desire what? More financial security perhaps or more leisure or more education or more unrestrained teenage sex activity or more career options or the avoidance of a child who may be handicapped, or perhaps just less hassle for the next 18 years. We desire, and the desires may be good or bad.

But then comes the pregnancy-the beginning of a divine work of person-forming in the womb. And the result? The desires are threatened. We desire and then, because of the pregnancy, we cannot have. The child is going to cost money; or cramp our travel plans and our leisure; or keep us out of school; or hinder our career advancement; or consume thousands of hours with a possible handicap; and limit our freedom in a hundred ways for the next 18 years or more.

Now what? James says, "You desire and do not have; so you kill." We kill marriages and we kill unborn babies because they cut across our desires; they stand in the way of our unencumbered self-enhancement. And we live in a culture where self-enhancement and self-advancement is god. And if self-enhancement is god, then the One who is at work in the womb shaping a person in his own image is not God and the assault on his work is not sacrilegious, but obedience to the god of self.

That states it perfectly. That is what Obama meant when he said he didn't want his kids punished with a child. i often hear the pro-choicers chant, "reproductive rights!" My response is whose? I'm all for your rights, but we aren't talking about yours. We are talking about another human beings rights. That is a human being inside the womb. No amount of fancy word games can change that. The pro-abortioners like to quickly play the emotion card and ask, "What about the instance of rape?" My reply is why punish the child? I'm all for getting the disgusting criminal who broke the law but why punish the human being inside? He or she did nothing wrong. Why kill him or her?

The truth is, there is no logical or moral argument to defend abortion. None whatsoever except in the obvious case of when the mother's life is in danger. Not to mention that it is a breaking of the 6th commandment, "Thou shalt not kill!"

This is written by Gary Hendrix. It is so good I wanted to post it here on my blog. My God grant repentance to those who read it.

Evangelistic methods employed in evangelical Christianity over the last century and a half have given rise to a policy of equating salvation with a profession of faith in Christ. Many never doubt the eternal destiny of their souls because they followed the procedure prescribed from the pulpit or in the "gospel" tract. They have been told that to question one's salvation is to question God. They have obediently followed steps 1, 2, 3, and 4 which supposedly adds up to salvation; therefore, because they have followed the plan, they assume themselves to possess eternal life. However, I encourage every professor of faith in Christ to "give diligence to make your calling and election sure" (2 Peter 1:1O).

Scripture provides ample cause for us to assert that there will be multitudes of Professing Christians cast into Hell at the Day of judgment (Acts 8:5-24; Gal. 4:19, 20; Heb. 6:1-6; 10:23-31; 2 Pet. 2; Jude). The most profound warning to professors was issued by our Lord Himself and recorded in Matthew 7:21-23. He stated unequivocally that in that Day many would make their profession, would declare Him to be "Lord," and even point to certain apparent spiritual achievements in an attempt to substantiate their claim to salvation. However, He will in turn command their damnation! How that ought to stir each individual who professes faith in Christ! Why will such a tragedy occur? The answer is contained in verse 21 and the conclusion of verse 23 - they do not the will of God, but rather they "work iniquity," even though professing allegiance to Christ. The phrase "work iniquity" means to perform against the law, suggesting that one lives in utter disregard of God's holy law.

The picture is simply this: many who are confident of their relationship to Christ and make this profession with all boldness will spend eternity under the wrath of God. All they have is a profession. The practice of their daily lives is a contradiction of true piety. They turn the grace of God into lasciviousness by making "once saved always saved" a license for sin. There are multitudes who will readily admit that they are "backslidden" but refuse to consider the possibility that they have never received the "grace of God that bringeth salvation." I suggest that it is expedient for all who name Christ as Saviour to carefully examine themselves to see if they be in the faith.

Evidence of Saving Grace

The New Testament contains many portions of scripture which are to be employed by the professing Christian in self- examination. However, for the sake of conciseness, only one passage will be appealed to at this time.

I John 3:1-10 gives the most emphatic declaration of true Christian character found in Holy Writ. John's major contention is simply stated in this proposition: the child of God will strive after holiness and will in fact maintain a pattern of righteousness.

This contention is based on three arguments developed in I John 3. First, John refers to the believer's keen anticipation of Christ's retain. He alludes to our relationship with God in the inner man. The world knows us not - that is, it does not recognize our true identity as the children of God - because our likeness to God is spiritual and not physical. However, John suggests that our present appearance is by no means permanent. Christ will return and when He appears we sliall appear with Him, conformed to His perfection internally and externally. Every true believer has this hope within and longs to be perfect, even though he knows that perfection will not be realized until Christ returns. Therefore it is this truth of grace which led John to declare with all confidence, "every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure."

All who possess spiritual life are anxious for Christ to return in order that they might attain to perfection. Yet, till that happens, the people of God - each one of them - strive to purify themselves from all that is contrary to godliness. Spiritual complacency is foreign to the child of grace. He is hungry for experimental righteousness and until his Lord returns he will watch against the uprising of dormant lusts and every thought that exalts itself against God.

Secondly, every true Christian will practice righteousness as a direct result of Christ's work upon the cross. John reminds us that the Son of God "was manifested to take away our sins." The word translated "take away" means to bear, and is a direct reference to the vicarious death of the Lord Jesus Christ in behalf of His people. Romans chapter six teaches that God sent Christ not only to take away or bear the penalty of sin, but also to put away the strength of the sin nature; "our old man was crucified with Him ... that henceforth we should not serve sin" (6:6). Consequently, the true believer can never again be under the dominion of sin! He may fall victim to temptation, but he will never again be under the tyranny of the Adamic nature (2 Cor. 5:17). The death of Christ assured that upon conversion the Christian will have a new master and cannot be held captive by sin again, even though he will not attain perfection this side of eternity. Sanctification, not perfection, is the experience of life for every believer!

Finally, we conclude our treatise with John's irrefutable statements in verses 7-10. Verse seven is a clear warning against man-issued confidence of salvation. "Let no man deceive you" ought to be a warning not only to those who profess salvation, but also to ministers who practice the deplorable habit of telling inquirers that they have been saved. Assurance of salvation is a matter for the exclusive ministry of the Spirit of God! Then we have the primary test of every profession, "he that doeth righteousness is righteous." A righteous standing before God (justification) is always demonstrated through the practice of righteousness. Righteousness is simply obedience to the law of God and commands of Christ. Those who are antinonmian in their living (utter disdain and careless disregard for the moral law of God) stand in an extremely precarious position before the Holy Judge of the universe. While good works cannot bring justification, they always result from justification and regeneration (Eph. 2: 10).

John dogmatically asserts that those who sin are of Satan. The word translated "commit" signifies doing or practicing. The apostle is here speaking of a man's habitual manner of living. Thus, the purpose of Christ's coming was to destroy the work of Satan, namely unrighteousness. Our Lord came to put away sin. For that reason alone the practice of righteousness, the obedience to the law, and the absence of habitual sin must be essential to any assurance of salvation.

However, the crux of our argument comes in verse nine. John points to the new birth and says, "whosoever is born of God does not commit (practice) sin." Then he offers the following explanation: The seed of Christ (the life of God) resides in every regenerate man which makes the pursuit of sin impossible, because sin is the very antithesis of God. For one to profess faith in Christ and remain in the practice of sensual appeasement and ungodliness is the epitomy of contradiction and, furthermore, indicates spiritual deception. True faith must produce good works (James 2).

The apostle concludes with the declaration that holiness is the manifestation of true salvation. "Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God," which is to say that if one continues in sin, even though he professes Christ as Saviour, he has not been born into the family of God. This is the clearest description of a Christian found in scripture; thus, it behooves every professor to examine himself thereby!

Application

For those who have persevered thus far in reading, you have seen the uncompromising demand for holiness in each one who professes to be a child of God. Now I must inquire, how do you view yourself in light of I John chapter three? Remember, God's demands do not bend for anyone! Without holiness no man will see the Lord! (Heb. 12:14). My dear friend, does your heart pant after holiness or do you comfortably condone your sin? Are you content with open disobedience or do you mourn every passion which wars against the Spirit? No one can give you assurance and you had best not rely on anything other than the undeniable witness of the Spirit within your heart - a witness that craves righteousness and hates even the garment spotted by the flesh. Oh do not draw back from self-examination; rather ask God to reveal the true state of your soul!

I hope the Lord blesses you. Without holiness no man shall see the Lord.