Oct. 13, 2024

Sanctification Redefined

Sanctification Redefined

We work on a new definition of sanctification

Spreaker Apple Podcasts Spotify PocketCasts Amazon Music Overcast Audible Castro iHeartRadio Castbox Podchaser TuneIn Deezer Pandora RadioPublic Podcast Addict RSS Feed YouTube Fountain PlayerFM Goodpods Podverse Podyssey Breaker Podurama Audacy JioSaavn
Spreaker podcast player icon Spreaker Spreaker Apple Podcasts podcast player icon Apple Podcasts Apple Podcasts Spotify podcast player icon Spotify Spotify PocketCasts podcast player icon PocketCasts PocketCasts Amazon Music podcast player icon Amazon Music Amazon Music Overcast podcast player icon Overcast Overcast Audible podcast player icon Audible Audible Castro podcast player icon Castro Castro iHeartRadio podcast player icon iHeartRadio iHeartRadio Castbox podcast player icon Castbox Castbox Podchaser podcast player icon Podchaser Podchaser TuneIn podcast player icon TuneIn TuneIn Deezer podcast player icon Deezer Deezer Pandora podcast player icon Pandora Pandora RadioPublic podcast player icon RadioPublic RadioPublic Podcast Addict podcast player icon Podcast Addict Podcast Addict RSS Feed podcast player icon RSS Feed RSS Feed YouTube podcast player icon YouTube YouTube Fountain podcast player icon Fountain Fountain PlayerFM podcast player icon PlayerFM PlayerFM Goodpods podcast player icon Goodpods Goodpods Podverse podcast player icon Podverse Podverse Podyssey podcast player icon Podyssey Podyssey Breaker podcast player icon Breaker Breaker Podurama podcast player icon Podurama Podurama Audacy podcast player icon Audacy Audacy JioSaavn podcast player icon JioSaavn JioSaavn

We work on a new definition of sanctification

WEBVTT

1
00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:03.399
All right, this morning, let's start. If you have the

2
00:00:03.439 --> 00:00:08.320
Trinity Hymnal, turn to page eight hundred and fifty six,

3
00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:16.160
eight hundred and fifty six. If just so everyone remembers

4
00:00:16.160 --> 00:00:18.000
where we are. We have been dealing with this idea

5
00:00:18.039 --> 00:00:21.480
of how Christianity deals with sin. We dealt with that,

6
00:00:22.160 --> 00:00:26.359
the different systems in Christianity, philological systems, and how they

7
00:00:26.760 --> 00:00:29.120
kind of deal with the reality of sin. Then we

8
00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:31.199
went through an entire history. We finished it in the

9
00:00:31.280 --> 00:00:34.359
last hour. We went from the first century to twenty

10
00:00:34.399 --> 00:00:38.039
twenty four, and how Christians have understood our relationship to

11
00:00:38.119 --> 00:00:40.520
the law. We kind of gave a definition of sin

12
00:00:40.799 --> 00:00:42.920
which involves the law. We went through all of that,

13
00:00:44.079 --> 00:00:46.200
and now in this hour, I'm not going to review

14
00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:49.280
any of it. You can go back and listen, but

15
00:00:49.439 --> 00:00:52.520
this entire hour because what we found is when we

16
00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:55.840
go through church history, we get to once we get

17
00:00:55.880 --> 00:00:59.119
to the sixteenth to the seventeenth century. In fact, we

18
00:00:59.200 --> 00:01:01.479
kind of got a little conspiratorial in the first hour,

19
00:01:01.759 --> 00:01:04.920
but it's hard not to get conspiratorial. So I will

20
00:01:04.920 --> 00:01:07.760
at least review this. If you go from the first

21
00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:11.040
century up to the sixteenth century, even into a little

22
00:01:11.079 --> 00:01:15.480
part of the seventeenth century. Basically Christianity taught this all right,

23
00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:19.799
that as Christians we sin and we need to the

24
00:01:19.840 --> 00:01:23.920
way we fight sin and grow, you know, in holiness

25
00:01:23.920 --> 00:01:26.480
and the way we move towards God is through grace.

26
00:01:27.920 --> 00:01:30.760
And of course you can see why this becomes very

27
00:01:30.959 --> 00:01:35.159
prominent in during this period of time because grace. We

28
00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:40.799
can in a sense receive grace, obtain grace through the sacraments.

29
00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:44.519
So you can understand how this works. I'm being a

30
00:01:44.519 --> 00:01:49.200
little conspiratorial, but basically, look at how the system is built, right, Hey,

31
00:01:49.680 --> 00:01:52.079
you're a sinner. You need to grow in holiness. How

32
00:01:52.079 --> 00:01:54.439
do you grow in holiness through grace? How do you

33
00:01:54.439 --> 00:01:59.200
obtain grace through the sacraments? Therefore, you need what the church,

34
00:01:59.760 --> 00:02:02.640
and you're never going to get to perfection, meaning you're

35
00:02:02.640 --> 00:02:06.280
going to need the Church forever because you cannot obtain

36
00:02:06.359 --> 00:02:10.319
this grace outside of the sacraments, and the sacraments can

37
00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:13.039
only be given to you by the Church. This makes

38
00:02:13.080 --> 00:02:17.319
the Church not essential yet and that's why it's a

39
00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:19.759
period of time it was very common to hear the

40
00:02:19.759 --> 00:02:23.680
phrase there is no salvation outside of the church, and

41
00:02:23.719 --> 00:02:26.360
you can see why. I know, it's very conspiratorial, but

42
00:02:26.400 --> 00:02:30.639
you kind of build a system that says you need us.

43
00:02:30.879 --> 00:02:34.759
Right well, after the Reformation and there's kind of a

44
00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:39.919
breaking away, the language changes. Now the language is you're

45
00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:44.080
a sinner, but you have power to now move towards holiness,

46
00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:48.560
and that power comes through the Holy Spirit, and you

47
00:02:48.599 --> 00:02:52.479
don't need the church for that. Now it's you, the

48
00:02:52.479 --> 00:02:55.520
Bible and the Holy Spirit to move you there. But

49
00:02:55.639 --> 00:02:59.080
even in that system they have to admit you can't

50
00:02:59.120 --> 00:03:03.439
be perfect. So this so from the now throughout church history,

51
00:03:03.599 --> 00:03:08.919
they kept using this phrase that basically sanctification was a process.

52
00:03:09.280 --> 00:03:10.759
We will refer to it. You may want to write

53
00:03:10.800 --> 00:03:12.520
this down. This is we're gonna talk about this entire

54
00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:19.879
hour progressive sanctification, progressive sanctification, which is what every church

55
00:03:21.039 --> 00:03:26.360
around here would teach. Progressive sanctification. Progressive sanctification. All right,

56
00:03:26.759 --> 00:03:28.759
you got that phrase down. Now, if you have the

57
00:03:28.759 --> 00:03:31.280
Westminster Confession of Faith open, did I give you the

58
00:03:31.280 --> 00:03:34.919
page number? All right? Do you see the heading at

59
00:03:34.960 --> 00:03:41.759
the very top of paging fifty six of sanctification of sanctification?

60
00:03:41.879 --> 00:03:43.759
All right, so we're gonna we're gonna go back to

61
00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:47.960
the Westminster Confession, which I don't have the year, Sarah,

62
00:03:47.960 --> 00:03:50.879
do you have the year for the Westminster Confession? You're

63
00:03:50.919 --> 00:03:54.879
you're our church historian. Okay, right, well, we know it's

64
00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:58.439
we know it's seventeenth century. I'm gonna go seventeenth century,

65
00:03:58.439 --> 00:04:03.400
all right, I'm gonna go seventeenth oh, sixteen hundreds, okay, right,

66
00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:13.280
seventeenth century, right, okay, So yeah, okay, so we're in

67
00:04:13.280 --> 00:04:17.920
the seventeenth century right now, seventeenth century. I'm gonna this idea,

68
00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:21.959
progressive sanctification becomes the norm right now. The difference is

69
00:04:22.160 --> 00:04:26.600
the progressive sanctification instead of needing the sacraments, it's going

70
00:04:26.680 --> 00:04:28.720
to be basically, the Holy Spirit's going to be the

71
00:04:28.759 --> 00:04:30.879
one that does it. Now, this may have a little

72
00:04:30.879 --> 00:04:33.639
bit of more sacramental feeling for it because it's Westminster,

73
00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:36.000
because you had some in the Reformed world who still

74
00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:39.959
held to somewhat of a sacramental system. Right, Lutherans hold

75
00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:43.439
to a sacramental system. Presbyterians in many cases would reference

76
00:04:43.480 --> 00:04:46.439
it as a sacramental system. So you still have that idea.

77
00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:49.480
Let's read what they say about sanctification here and see

78
00:04:49.480 --> 00:04:56.480
where our problems begin. You ready, Immediately, they who are

79
00:04:56.480 --> 00:05:04.360
once effectually called and regenerated, having a new heart, new

80
00:05:04.399 --> 00:05:10.439
spirit created in them. Now immediately I have every kind

81
00:05:10.439 --> 00:05:13.480
of problem because if they say we have a new heart, inevitably,

82
00:05:13.480 --> 00:05:18.160
where do they go? Ezequel thirty six? Why do I

83
00:05:18.160 --> 00:05:21.839
have a problem with that? Ezequel thirty six has nothing

84
00:05:21.879 --> 00:05:23.560
to do with you or me? And what does it

85
00:05:23.600 --> 00:05:26.360
say in Ezequel thirty six Once they get a new heart,

86
00:05:26.560 --> 00:05:31.399
what immediately follows and Exequel thirty six? Now then they

87
00:05:31.439 --> 00:05:35.839
go into the land that's not us, all right? So

88
00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:38.639
the new heart in Ezequel thirty six is about Israel

89
00:05:38.720 --> 00:05:40.519
when they go into the land. So already I have

90
00:05:40.560 --> 00:05:44.079
a problem, But my problem even gets worse if you

91
00:05:44.279 --> 00:05:48.360
and I have a new heart and a new spirit.

92
00:05:49.639 --> 00:05:54.079
Where does sin come from? Now? This is why so

93
00:05:54.199 --> 00:05:58.600
many of your Christian friends put sin where outside of us.

94
00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:00.519
So we got to get rid of Rocket, we got

95
00:06:00.519 --> 00:06:02.040
to get rid of Netflix, we got to get rid

96
00:06:02.079 --> 00:06:04.800
of everything, because that's where sin comes from. And so

97
00:06:04.839 --> 00:06:07.519
they're like, I'm gonna my kids are not gonna be

98
00:06:07.519 --> 00:06:09.879
taken over by the world. I'm gonna keep my kid.

99
00:06:10.759 --> 00:06:16.399
Your kids the problem, right, your kids the problem, and

100
00:06:16.480 --> 00:06:19.319
my kid. And because we're the problem, because sin is

101
00:06:19.319 --> 00:06:22.399
inside of us. So already I've got a major problem

102
00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:24.800
with this, right and again, And if we have a

103
00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:27.759
new heart and a new spirit, logically, why should we

104
00:06:27.800 --> 00:06:32.959
be then perfect? That's just a logical way of thinking. Correct,

105
00:06:33.079 --> 00:06:36.160
But what do they say? We have a new heart

106
00:06:36.199 --> 00:06:39.839
a new spirit created in them, are further sanctified really

107
00:06:39.879 --> 00:06:42.560
and personally through the virtue of Christ's death and resurrection

108
00:06:42.839 --> 00:06:45.079
by his word. Now look where they put the focus

109
00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:52.959
by his word and spirit dwelling in them? Now again,

110
00:06:53.319 --> 00:06:55.000
so now this is kind of moving a little bit

111
00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:59.399
away from the Catholic system. Right now, where do we go?

112
00:06:59.839 --> 00:07:04.480
The dominion? All right? Read this carefully. The dominion of

113
00:07:04.519 --> 00:07:09.519
the whole body of sin is destroyed. Now if the

114
00:07:09.720 --> 00:07:12.879
entire if the dominion of the whole body of sin

115
00:07:12.959 --> 00:07:17.839
is destroyed, what should happen? There shouldn't be any more sin? Right,

116
00:07:18.279 --> 00:07:21.879
And the several lusts thereof are more and more weakened. No,

117
00:07:21.959 --> 00:07:25.079
wait a minute, how is the luss more and more weakened?

118
00:07:25.120 --> 00:07:28.959
If it's all been destroyed. It's destroyed, but it just

119
00:07:29.000 --> 00:07:31.600
gets weaker. That doesn't make any sense, does it? Right?

120
00:07:32.480 --> 00:07:36.120
And mortified? And they're more and more quickened and strengthening

121
00:07:36.199 --> 00:07:39.000
all saving grace to the practice of true holiness, without

122
00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:42.040
which no man shall see the Lord. Now all right, there,

123
00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:44.439
I get nervous at that last part, right, because what

124
00:07:44.560 --> 00:07:49.000
is that implying without holiness no man will see the Lord? Well?

125
00:07:49.000 --> 00:07:55.360
What is holiness perfection? So if you say without holiness,

126
00:07:55.399 --> 00:07:57.639
no one will see the Lord? Who's gonna see the Lord?

127
00:07:59.120 --> 00:08:02.879
No one? So how do we understand that? Well, I

128
00:08:02.920 --> 00:08:06.600
am declared to be holy by imputed righteousness. Therefore I

129
00:08:06.600 --> 00:08:09.680
can see the Lord, not in practical righteousness, because I

130
00:08:09.720 --> 00:08:13.519
will never be holy. So we've got like major issues

131
00:08:13.519 --> 00:08:19.199
with this paragraph. Everyone agree Number two the sanctification and

132
00:08:19.959 --> 00:08:26.439
is throughout in the hole man yet and perfect in

133
00:08:26.480 --> 00:08:30.000
this life? They're abiding. Still some remnants of corruption in

134
00:08:30.120 --> 00:08:33.919
every part? Now wait, how can there be the remnants

135
00:08:33.960 --> 00:08:36.600
of corruption in every part if I have a new

136
00:08:36.679 --> 00:08:40.399
heart and a new spirit? That makes literally no sense?

137
00:08:46.120 --> 00:09:08.480
Uh huh, yeah, enable will Yet where is the remaining corruption?

138
00:09:09.000 --> 00:09:13.080
Does everyone understand? How just utterly illogical? This is where

139
00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:16.600
Christianity fall. This is the Christian system. Are you ready?

140
00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:22.799
You can't? Christ? Did he saved you? Now? You can?

141
00:09:24.360 --> 00:09:29.159
But you can't. That is the most insane thing I've

142
00:09:29.200 --> 00:09:31.679
ever heard of my entire life. Like every Christian should

143
00:09:31.679 --> 00:09:36.120
just be like. But Christians everywhere will agree to this

144
00:09:36.240 --> 00:09:39.440
and say amended this, and any criticism of it puts

145
00:09:39.440 --> 00:09:43.759
you where puts you outside of Christianity, and it should

146
00:09:43.799 --> 00:09:47.000
not do that, ladies and gentlemen. All right, So where's

147
00:09:47.039 --> 00:09:50.440
the remaining corruption coming from? It says, where arise at

148
00:09:50.480 --> 00:09:54.879
the continual irreconcilable war with the flesh lusting against the

149
00:09:54.919 --> 00:09:58.360
spirit and the spirit against the flesh. But if I

150
00:09:58.399 --> 00:10:02.440
have a new heart and new spirit, so you see

151
00:10:02.440 --> 00:10:05.879
what they try to do. You know, this becomes very gnostic, right,

152
00:10:07.039 --> 00:10:13.159
everything inside is good, but the flesh is bad. Well

153
00:10:13.200 --> 00:10:17.679
wait a minute now, when you when you reduce it

154
00:10:17.720 --> 00:10:20.159
to that, you see where this becomes almost hard to comprehend.

155
00:10:20.480 --> 00:10:24.720
So doesn't my body move and operate as a result

156
00:10:24.759 --> 00:10:28.840
of what I am inside? This almost makes the flesh

157
00:10:28.840 --> 00:10:32.320
as if it's somehow separate from its nature. And that

158
00:10:33.080 --> 00:10:39.960
makes no sense, right, the flesh everything is operated from

159
00:10:39.960 --> 00:10:43.320
what's going on inside? Right my mind? My like that

160
00:10:44.000 --> 00:10:46.240
just I don't even that doesn't even make any sense.

161
00:10:47.360 --> 00:10:52.440
Then look at the chapter or paragraph three in which war,

162
00:10:53.519 --> 00:10:57.159
although the remaining corruption for a time may may much prevail.

163
00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:00.000
Yet through the continual supply of strength from the same

164
00:11:00.039 --> 00:11:03.320
defying spirit of Christ, the regenerate part doth overcome, and

165
00:11:03.399 --> 00:11:06.120
so the saints grow and grace, perfecting holiness in the

166
00:11:06.159 --> 00:11:08.120
fear of God. Now that don't use the word, but

167
00:11:08.200 --> 00:11:12.159
ladies and gentlemen, that's progressive sanctification. All right. So here's

168
00:11:12.200 --> 00:11:15.960
what we're going to do. We're gonna look at progressive sanctification. Now,

169
00:11:15.960 --> 00:11:18.120
we're going to do something that's not allowed in churches,

170
00:11:18.399 --> 00:11:20.440
all right, We're going to look at the subject of

171
00:11:20.480 --> 00:11:27.120
progressive sanctification certification from a logical perspective. Now, this may

172
00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:31.159
get us in trouble, right, but I don't really care,

173
00:11:31.200 --> 00:11:33.799
because it's got to be considered. All right, everybody ready,

174
00:11:34.919 --> 00:11:42.039
all right? When you look at progressive sanctification from a

175
00:11:42.399 --> 00:11:49.799
logical perspective, you find there there are serious challenges to

176
00:11:50.080 --> 00:11:56.279
how progress and sanctification is typically understood and most Christian traditions.

177
00:11:56.519 --> 00:11:59.679
If you'll step back and look at it logically, there's

178
00:11:59.759 --> 00:12:03.519
serios challenges to how most Christians look at this. Christians

179
00:12:03.519 --> 00:12:05.240
are not willing to look at it from a logical

180
00:12:05.320 --> 00:12:09.159
perspective because they just accept this, even though they're saying

181
00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:13.320
something so contradictory. Hey, you've been completely changed. You have

182
00:12:13.360 --> 00:12:20.240
the power of God. You can do it, but you can't. Now,

183
00:12:20.440 --> 00:12:22.879
any reasonable person would raise their hand and go that

184
00:12:22.960 --> 00:12:26.960
makes no sense. Right. That'd be like telling a kid, Hey,

185
00:12:27.080 --> 00:12:30.960
when you get home today, you can do this, but

186
00:12:31.080 --> 00:12:36.679
you can't. But you better because they right, not even

187
00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:39.919
becomes yeah, Sarah's gonna even make it more frustrating. Right,

188
00:12:40.320 --> 00:12:42.759
this subject drives me to the point of just losing

189
00:12:42.799 --> 00:12:46.159
my mind because it just makes me so irritated with it. All. Right,

190
00:12:47.039 --> 00:12:50.399
So we're going to examine this in light of logic,

191
00:12:50.679 --> 00:12:53.320
fact and scripture. So this is what I did. I

192
00:12:53.399 --> 00:12:58.759
took my perspective about sanctification, that progressive sanctification is flawed

193
00:12:58.759 --> 00:13:01.759
and it doesn't work. And I tried to explain my

194
00:13:01.919 --> 00:13:05.240
perspective to AI, and I said, Okay, I want you

195
00:13:05.320 --> 00:13:09.279
to take my perspective and I want you to examine it. Right.

196
00:13:09.639 --> 00:13:14.840
So AI wrote out an entire examination of my perspective, right,

197
00:13:15.240 --> 00:13:18.639
and so this is its examination of what I offered it, right,

198
00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:22.360
And so we'll see what it has to say about

199
00:13:22.360 --> 00:13:25.519
my perspective. Okay, we may end up arguing well, I

200
00:13:25.559 --> 00:13:28.679
was already arguing with Ai over this, but it did

201
00:13:28.799 --> 00:13:34.639
say that my perspective is highly logical, so that's good.

202
00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:38.679
But it says it may not interact very well with

203
00:13:38.799 --> 00:13:47.279
traditional Christian teaching. And I'm like, okay, but it is

204
00:13:47.399 --> 00:13:52.480
highly logical. All right, here we go. They broke it

205
00:13:52.519 --> 00:13:57.279
down this way. Number one, If because it's taking my words,

206
00:13:57.720 --> 00:14:01.360
If the Holy Spirit is in power us to do better,

207
00:14:01.919 --> 00:14:06.960
but we can't achieve perfection, how is the empowerment meaningful?

208
00:14:07.879 --> 00:14:10.399
So it's taking those are my words? All right? So

209
00:14:10.399 --> 00:14:12.840
I'm gonna read this again. If the Holy Spirit is

210
00:14:12.840 --> 00:14:16.720
empowering us to do better, but we can achieve perfection,

211
00:14:17.679 --> 00:14:22.200
how is the empowerment meaningful? Hey, I'm giving you power

212
00:14:22.279 --> 00:14:26.320
to do it, but you can't do it? Well, how

213
00:14:26.360 --> 00:14:29.000
do we meaningful? Now? I think I could go beyond

214
00:14:29.240 --> 00:14:31.720
why this is so difficult, but we'll just see what

215
00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:34.679
it says here, all right? So this is how AI responded.

216
00:14:35.960 --> 00:14:40.000
You raise a crucial point. If the Holy Spirit is

217
00:14:40.039 --> 00:14:43.840
said to be empowering Christians but they still cannot achieve perfection,

218
00:14:44.519 --> 00:14:48.320
is an empowerment truly effective? In some ways, it might

219
00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:53.639
seem that this empowerment is more theoretical than real, especially

220
00:14:53.679 --> 00:14:58.080
if Christians continue to sin and break the law. Now,

221
00:14:58.159 --> 00:15:04.559
I will argue Christians continue to sin and break the

222
00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:09.360
law all right, because my definition of sin is that

223
00:15:09.440 --> 00:15:13.519
sin is a lack of conformity to God's law. It's

224
00:15:14.039 --> 00:15:17.879
a lack of obedience to God's law. It's a falling

225
00:15:17.960 --> 00:15:21.519
short of God's law. And we are not conformed to

226
00:15:21.559 --> 00:15:24.799
God's law. We disobey God's law, and we fall short

227
00:15:24.799 --> 00:15:29.559
of God's law in thought, word, deed, desire by what

228
00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:32.600
we do and what we fail to do. And this

229
00:15:32.759 --> 00:15:38.320
is internal and this is external. Now, that definition is

230
00:15:38.919 --> 00:15:43.159
consistent with Christian theology. Everything that definition right there is

231
00:15:43.240 --> 00:15:48.000
one thousand percent consistent with Christian theology. But that definition

232
00:15:48.279 --> 00:15:53.799
tells me what I'm perpetually in sin. So if I'm

233
00:15:53.840 --> 00:15:57.080
perpetually in sin, yeah, you tell me the Holy Spirit's

234
00:15:57.080 --> 00:16:01.679
empowering me. How can I measure empowerment Because any empowerment,

235
00:16:01.679 --> 00:16:05.919
it's just moving me from perpetual sin to perpetual sin.

236
00:16:06.519 --> 00:16:10.320
Power would be moving me from perpetual sin to not

237
00:16:10.600 --> 00:16:14.360
in perpetual sin, which would have to get me to perfection.

238
00:16:14.720 --> 00:16:18.039
So I think the whole empowerment thing is simply theoretical

239
00:16:18.200 --> 00:16:21.159
to make us feel better, but it's not anything real.

240
00:16:21.440 --> 00:16:25.879
So here is now the logical analysis by AI of

241
00:16:25.919 --> 00:16:28.600
all of that. Now it gives me its logical analysis.

242
00:16:28.600 --> 00:16:33.240
Are ready. If perfection is the standard set by God's law,

243
00:16:34.120 --> 00:16:36.519
and they quote Matthew five forty eight, if everybody want

244
00:16:36.519 --> 00:16:38.200
to look at Matthew five forty eight, you should know it.

245
00:16:38.679 --> 00:16:51.759
If you don't, what does Matthew five forty eight say?

246
00:16:51.799 --> 00:16:55.840
If everybody, we need to remember that forever, because that's

247
00:16:55.840 --> 00:16:59.440
the key verse to the Sermon on the Mount. Be

248
00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:03.080
perfect as I am perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect,

249
00:17:03.080 --> 00:17:06.640
depending on your translation, right, everybody see that? All right?

250
00:17:06.799 --> 00:17:09.680
So this is this is what AI says. If perfection

251
00:17:09.880 --> 00:17:12.039
is the standard set by God's law, and we would

252
00:17:12.079 --> 00:17:17.119
say it's not an If it is and no human human,

253
00:17:17.240 --> 00:17:19.839
even with the Holy Spirit's empowerment, can achieve it in

254
00:17:19.920 --> 00:17:23.119
this life, then the empowering of the Holy Spirit might

255
00:17:23.240 --> 00:17:28.400
appear ineffective and insufficient. And I would say it does, okay,

256
00:17:29.039 --> 00:17:31.920
if it's supposedly empowering me. Now I believe the Holy

257
00:17:31.960 --> 00:17:37.000
Spirit is selling me keeping me, which is a completely

258
00:17:37.000 --> 00:17:42.039
different thing. But if it's empowering me, if the standard

259
00:17:42.119 --> 00:17:45.839
is perfection, and the empowering never gets me there. Then

260
00:17:46.039 --> 00:17:48.599
how do I measure thee It's like moving chairs around

261
00:17:48.640 --> 00:17:51.640
on the Titanic. I'm gonna move the chairs here. The

262
00:17:51.720 --> 00:17:55.400
boat's going down. It doesn't matter where I move the chairs, right,

263
00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:00.599
So it's empowering me, I'm still sinning. Then how do

264
00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:04.640
I measure power? Do you see where my frustration is?

265
00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:09.279
They go on to say the distinction between Christians and

266
00:18:09.319 --> 00:18:15.200
non Christians might become blurred as both groups experience moral

267
00:18:15.240 --> 00:18:20.359
failure and imperfection. Is that not true? If Christians are

268
00:18:20.400 --> 00:18:23.039
said to be making progress and they put that in

269
00:18:23.079 --> 00:18:28.480
quotations because I'm talking about progressive sanctification, but that progress

270
00:18:28.519 --> 00:18:30.880
stills fall short of the standard of the law, then

271
00:18:30.920 --> 00:18:35.400
how is the progress different from self improvement of non Christians?

272
00:18:37.519 --> 00:18:41.920
Because non Christians can make self improvement, right, I mean,

273
00:18:42.599 --> 00:18:45.559
because everyone knows my story of my sister and all

274
00:18:45.599 --> 00:18:48.680
the stuff she was into, and you know, then now

275
00:18:48.720 --> 00:18:51.599
she's clean, you know, no drugs, no alcohol, and I've

276
00:18:51.680 --> 00:18:54.640
you know, watched some of the virtual you know, alcoholics

277
00:18:54.640 --> 00:18:59.440
anonymous meetings. I've been to alcoholics anonymous meetings and narcotics

278
00:18:59.480 --> 00:19:02.279
anonymous met and when you go to those meetings, there's

279
00:19:02.279 --> 00:19:05.720
all these people who were like, I used to be this,

280
00:19:05.960 --> 00:19:09.240
and now I'm this and none of that. And many

281
00:19:09.319 --> 00:19:11.319
of them have nothing to do with Christianity. They may

282
00:19:11.319 --> 00:19:13.559
believe in some higher power, but it's nothing to do

283
00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:17.319
with Christianity, so they can achieve that. You can hear

284
00:19:17.920 --> 00:19:22.720
Mormons talk about transformation, Muslims talk about transformation, Buddhists talk

285
00:19:22.759 --> 00:19:25.440
about transformation. You can people in the New Age talk

286
00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:32.759
about Satanists can talk. Anybody can, so that doesn't and

287
00:19:32.960 --> 00:19:36.640
guess what, they fail and we fail. So that just

288
00:19:36.680 --> 00:19:39.519
because all of this becomes crazy. So this is what

289
00:19:39.880 --> 00:19:46.480
AI says, you are logically correct. O good, that's good,

290
00:19:46.799 --> 00:19:50.720
and pointing out that if perfection cannot be attained and

291
00:19:50.720 --> 00:19:54.240
the law remains unbroken, unbroken by no one, then the

292
00:19:54.279 --> 00:19:56.680
claim that the Holy Spirit is empowering believers could be

293
00:19:56.720 --> 00:20:00.640
seen as somewhat meaningless because the intended goal perfect is

294
00:20:00.720 --> 00:20:06.000
never reached. All right, So they say logically, I am right,

295
00:20:06.720 --> 00:20:12.680
But then it says, however, biblically, they're gonna have some issues.

296
00:20:12.680 --> 00:20:14.559
All right, are you ready? Are you ready to go

297
00:20:14.599 --> 00:20:18.279
to some subscriptures? Go to Roman seven eighteen through nineteen.

298
00:20:23.640 --> 00:20:25.079
Now are they going to mean to Are they gonna

299
00:20:25.119 --> 00:20:27.000
use the Bible to agree with me or disagree with me?

300
00:20:27.119 --> 00:20:31.359
Let's find out. Go to Roman seven eighteen through nineteen.

301
00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:32.799
You read it and tell me if it agrees with

302
00:20:32.799 --> 00:20:37.680
me or disagrees with me? What is Roman seven eighteen

303
00:20:37.720 --> 00:20:49.680
through nineteen. Tell us? For I know that in me

304
00:20:49.880 --> 00:20:53.119
that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing, for

305
00:20:53.160 --> 00:20:55.960
to will is present with me. But how to perform

306
00:20:56.039 --> 00:20:59.920
that which is good? Now? Immediately to me? This proves

307
00:20:59.920 --> 00:21:03.079
me my point. If the Holy Spirit's giving me power,

308
00:21:04.319 --> 00:21:08.880
I would find find where to do it. Right. Yeah,

309
00:21:08.880 --> 00:21:11.480
this is an apostle, right, so I want to everyone

310
00:21:11.480 --> 00:21:13.960
to hear that again. But how to perform that which

311
00:21:14.000 --> 00:21:16.200
is good? I find not. If the Holy Spirit's the

312
00:21:16.240 --> 00:21:17.759
one giving you the power to do it, you should

313
00:21:17.759 --> 00:21:20.160
be able to find how to do it correct. For

314
00:21:20.279 --> 00:21:23.599
the good that I would I do not, but the

315
00:21:23.680 --> 00:21:31.680
evil which I would not that I do. They go quote,

316
00:21:31.720 --> 00:21:40.559
they quote Romans eight one through four, Romans eight one

317
00:21:40.599 --> 00:21:44.240
through four. Now, of course Romans seven twenty five. I

318
00:21:44.240 --> 00:21:47.200
think he always gets overlooked. Remember even AI skips Romans

319
00:21:47.200 --> 00:21:49.559
seven twenty five. I remember I told you how important

320
00:21:49.559 --> 00:21:52.000
I think Roman seven twenty five. Is I thank God

321
00:21:52.039 --> 00:21:54.240
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, so that with my mind

322
00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:56.640
I might myself serve the law of God, but with

323
00:21:56.759 --> 00:21:59.799
the flesh the law of sin. Well, if my flesh

324
00:21:59.839 --> 00:22:01.559
is serving the law of sin, what does that imply

325
00:22:03.440 --> 00:22:06.640
I sin? My mind is serving the law of God,

326
00:22:06.720 --> 00:22:10.240
and what sinse my mind? If we remember when we

327
00:22:10.319 --> 00:22:14.319
make repentance a change of mind, this makes perfect sense.

328
00:22:14.680 --> 00:22:18.039
What have I done in my mind? I've changed my

329
00:22:18.119 --> 00:22:21.799
mind and I now believe this is sin, this is right,

330
00:22:22.119 --> 00:22:25.400
this is wrong. God is right. I've changed. But in

331
00:22:25.440 --> 00:22:28.680
my body, what do I still do? That's exactly what

332
00:22:28.720 --> 00:22:32.920
Paul was saying earlier. I can't find the ability to

333
00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:35.960
do it. So what do I do? The things I

334
00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:37.559
want to do I don't do, and the things I

335
00:22:37.559 --> 00:22:40.039
don't want to do I do. Now, then go to

336
00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:43.960
Romans eight. There is therefore now no condemnation to them

337
00:22:44.000 --> 00:22:47.400
which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the

338
00:22:47.400 --> 00:22:49.440
flesh but after the spirit. Now I think the walking

339
00:22:49.480 --> 00:22:51.519
after the flesh and not after the spirit is what

340
00:22:51.559 --> 00:22:54.400
I do positionally, because then practically I still walk after

341
00:22:54.440 --> 00:22:58.839
the flesh. For the law of the spirit of life

342
00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:00.680
in Christ. Jesus had made me free from the law

343
00:23:00.680 --> 00:23:04.599
of sin and death. But please note the spirit of

344
00:23:04.640 --> 00:23:10.279
life in Christ, right in Christ. That's the key for that,

345
00:23:10.599 --> 00:23:13.359
for what the law could not do, and that it

346
00:23:13.480 --> 00:23:16.000
was weak through the flesh, God sending his own son

347
00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:18.039
in the likeness of his sinful flesh and for sin

348
00:23:18.319 --> 00:23:21.960
condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the

349
00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:24.799
Law might be fulfilled in us. Now, I think the

350
00:23:24.880 --> 00:23:28.279
law is fulfilled in us by how my position by Christ.

351
00:23:28.599 --> 00:23:31.359
I don't think it's fulfilled in practice, which would put

352
00:23:31.400 --> 00:23:33.559
me at odds with almost every Christian on the face

353
00:23:33.599 --> 00:23:36.799
of the earth. All right, now, they say it this way.

354
00:23:37.000 --> 00:23:40.079
Paul discusses the empowering of the spirit. I see, I

355
00:23:40.119 --> 00:23:43.240
don't know, and Christians are no longer under the law's condemnation,

356
00:23:43.559 --> 00:23:46.319
But he does not imply that Christians will achieve perfection

357
00:23:46.640 --> 00:23:50.160
to the law in this life. Even AI acknowledges, Paul

358
00:23:50.440 --> 00:23:52.720
never says that we can get to perfection. Well, if

359
00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:55.400
I can never get to perfection, this calls into question

360
00:23:55.480 --> 00:23:59.000
the entire idea of progressive sanctification. So let me state

361
00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:02.640
it this way. If you believe in progressive sanctification. How

362
00:24:02.680 --> 00:24:10.640
do you measure progress? Because inevitably everyone is falling short

363
00:24:10.680 --> 00:24:16.680
of the mark, so you're progressively falling short. So now

364
00:24:16.680 --> 00:24:22.039
to any measure, any kind of progress becomes what very

365
00:24:22.119 --> 00:24:25.680
subjective and you start measuring and what is Christians, at

366
00:24:25.759 --> 00:24:28.680
least from the seventeenth century on, we reduce it to

367
00:24:28.720 --> 00:24:34.079
measuring based off what some list, right, some list of

368
00:24:34.160 --> 00:24:37.559
like yeah, we don't go to this movie or we

369
00:24:37.599 --> 00:24:41.039
don't see these words, and it's just a very subjective,

370
00:24:41.240 --> 00:24:47.160
surface level thing, right. Paul's letter acknowledges a paradox. This

371
00:24:47.200 --> 00:24:49.839
is how they say it. The Holy Spirit empowers Christians

372
00:24:49.839 --> 00:24:51.920
to walk according to the Spirit, but at the same

373
00:24:52.000 --> 00:24:55.720
time believers still struggle with sin. So they argue the

374
00:24:55.720 --> 00:24:59.079
Bible seems to argue for the empowerment part, but at

375
00:24:59.119 --> 00:25:01.920
the same time, the Bible seems to argue that we

376
00:25:02.000 --> 00:25:06.359
still sin. So AI says, logically, I'm right, But they

377
00:25:06.359 --> 00:25:09.200
try to argue that the Bible tries to say both.

378
00:25:09.319 --> 00:25:12.759
I'm going to say, whatever a power that it supposedly

379
00:25:12.799 --> 00:25:18.200
demonstrates is explained by understanding it from our positional perspective,

380
00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:22.359
then it makes perfect sense. You can't say there's power practically,

381
00:25:22.599 --> 00:25:26.480
and then at the same time say there's no power practically.

382
00:25:26.880 --> 00:25:29.640
That just makes no sense. They go on to say,

383
00:25:29.680 --> 00:25:34.039
here's number two, and again they're borrowing my words. If

384
00:25:34.039 --> 00:25:38.240
the law is not how we measure progress, how can

385
00:25:38.279 --> 00:25:42.839
progress be measured without being subjective? That it's quoting my words, right,

386
00:25:43.319 --> 00:25:46.599
because how do we measure progress from a Christian's perspective

387
00:25:48.240 --> 00:25:53.519
by obedience to the law? Agreed? Well, how can progress

388
00:25:53.519 --> 00:25:56.920
be measured without being subjective if the law is not

389
00:25:56.960 --> 00:25:59.000
how we measure progress, because you would have to have

390
00:25:59.039 --> 00:26:01.799
a different way to measure. If I measure it according

391
00:26:01.799 --> 00:26:04.880
to the law, there isn't progress because what does the

392
00:26:04.880 --> 00:26:07.480
scripture say? If I break one point of the law,

393
00:26:08.039 --> 00:26:10.880
I'm guilty of all. I'm always breaking one point of

394
00:26:10.920 --> 00:26:14.119
the law. Therefore I'm always guilty of all. Therefore there's

395
00:26:14.160 --> 00:26:20.279
no way to measure progress. So here's what they say.

396
00:26:20.960 --> 00:26:23.759
This is what they say about my perspective. Your second

397
00:26:23.799 --> 00:26:28.680
point addresses the issue of subjectivity and measuring spiritual progress.

398
00:26:29.000 --> 00:26:32.480
If Christians can't measure their progress against the objective standard

399
00:26:32.559 --> 00:26:35.079
of the law, since they cannot keep it, then the

400
00:26:35.160 --> 00:26:39.279
idea of progress risks becoming a subjective or self defined concept.

401
00:26:39.759 --> 00:26:42.720
In that case, a person could claim they're making spiritual

402
00:26:42.759 --> 00:26:50.640
progress without any real objective basis for that claim. And

403
00:26:50.759 --> 00:26:53.960
I think that's Christianity in a nutshell. We all claim

404
00:26:54.079 --> 00:26:59.440
some progress, but there's no objective way to make that claim.

405
00:27:00.319 --> 00:27:03.000
Make the claim and then get mad at me if

406
00:27:03.039 --> 00:27:05.279
I call in the question your claim, But I can

407
00:27:05.279 --> 00:27:08.920
call in the question of your claim bases on why law,

408
00:27:09.440 --> 00:27:13.400
because God's law would say that's your progress. Well, guess what,

409
00:27:14.000 --> 00:27:15.880
You're still a center. You're still a center. You're still

410
00:27:15.880 --> 00:27:20.039
a center. You're still a center. All right. So here's

411
00:27:20.079 --> 00:27:24.960
their analysis of my perspective. If we discard the law

412
00:27:25.200 --> 00:27:28.519
as the measure of obedience or holiness, then the idea

413
00:27:28.559 --> 00:27:36.319
of spiritual progress becomes ungrounded. How can one objectively assess

414
00:27:36.440 --> 00:27:40.079
progress if there's no clear standard and which it is measured.

415
00:27:41.559 --> 00:27:45.759
This opens the door for anyone, including non Christians, to

416
00:27:45.799 --> 00:27:50.079
claim they're growing or progressing morally or spiritually as they would.

417
00:27:50.240 --> 00:27:53.599
There would be no clear external criteria by which to

418
00:27:53.839 --> 00:27:59.359
assess this growth. So now they're going to give me

419
00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:03.240
the biblical again. Logically, they agree with me logically, but

420
00:28:03.279 --> 00:28:05.279
then they have to say, what, but I'm supposed to

421
00:28:05.279 --> 00:28:08.599
look at this from a theological perspective. So here's the

422
00:28:08.640 --> 00:28:11.440
biblical perspective. Look at James one twenty two through twenty five.

423
00:28:19.920 --> 00:28:22.039
All right, James one twenty two through twenty five. You

424
00:28:22.079 --> 00:28:26.160
probably have an idea what it says. I'm trying not

425
00:28:26.160 --> 00:28:28.880
to read all of these because of time, but I

426
00:28:28.920 --> 00:28:31.519
want you to at least look at it. Yeah, probably

427
00:28:31.559 --> 00:28:34.759
have a pretty good idea. It's the famous passage about

428
00:28:34.759 --> 00:28:38.240
what being doers of the word and not hearers only

429
00:28:38.279 --> 00:28:41.759
deceiving your own selves? Right? Okay? Right? And wouldn't it

430
00:28:41.799 --> 00:28:43.200
be great if we could all be doers of the

431
00:28:43.200 --> 00:28:46.200
word and not just hearers of the word? Right? Right?

432
00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:49.039
Because I can guess what I can prove to all

433
00:28:49.119 --> 00:28:52.279
of you in five seconds. Your hearers are not doers.

434
00:28:53.039 --> 00:28:55.880
You know why. I can prove that be holy as

435
00:28:55.880 --> 00:28:59.000
God is holy. Now go do that this week? Are

436
00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:01.559
you going to do it? No? Therefore you're a hero

437
00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:03.920
and not a doer. So in reality, this is all

438
00:29:03.960 --> 00:29:07.039
of us. Correct, Well, how is AI going to handle this?

439
00:29:07.079 --> 00:29:10.400
Are you ready? All? Right? Here we go? This is

440
00:29:10.400 --> 00:29:14.480
how they handle it, all right. James seems to argue

441
00:29:14.480 --> 00:29:17.279
that obedience to the law, the moral law, is still

442
00:29:17.319 --> 00:29:21.039
a standard of Christian living, suggesting that progress in holiness

443
00:29:21.200 --> 00:29:26.000
should have observable effects in one's life. However, if Christians

444
00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:29.319
cannot keep the law perfectly, how much progress is sufficient?

445
00:29:29.839 --> 00:29:33.680
How is this progress evaluated? If breaking one commandment means

446
00:29:33.680 --> 00:29:37.759
breaking the whole law? Look at James two ten? What

447
00:29:37.799 --> 00:29:49.839
does James two ten saying? If you are offending one point,

448
00:29:49.880 --> 00:29:53.000
you're guilty of all that? So even AI now realizes

449
00:29:53.359 --> 00:29:56.039
I got a problem. Let me read that again. Right,

450
00:29:56.799 --> 00:30:01.759
if Christians cannot keep the law perfectly, how much progress

451
00:30:01.839 --> 00:30:07.079
is sufficient? How is this progress evaluated? If breaking one

452
00:30:07.119 --> 00:30:10.599
commandment means breaking the whole law? If breaking one commandment

453
00:30:10.640 --> 00:30:14.319
means breaking the whole law, there's no way to evaluate progress?

454
00:30:17.680 --> 00:30:21.400
All right? So number three again, they're borrowing from my words.

455
00:30:21.920 --> 00:30:24.279
If we can't keep the law and are in a

456
00:30:24.319 --> 00:30:29.720
perpetual state of sin, are discussions of progress just semantics?

457
00:30:30.480 --> 00:30:33.119
That's my words, all right? So let me read it again.

458
00:30:33.319 --> 00:30:35.279
If we can't keep the law and we're in a

459
00:30:35.319 --> 00:30:39.880
perpetual state of sin, our discussions of progress just semantics?

460
00:30:40.680 --> 00:30:42.759
I think obviously it is, But I asked it as

461
00:30:42.799 --> 00:30:46.039
a question instead of affirming it dogmatically. I gave my

462
00:30:46.160 --> 00:30:48.640
perspective and that but then asked it as a question.

463
00:30:48.759 --> 00:30:52.279
So then AI can offer its analysis, right, it says,

464
00:30:52.279 --> 00:30:54.680
your third point gets to the heart of the matter.

465
00:30:55.359 --> 00:30:58.480
If Christians continually are in a state of sin and

466
00:30:58.559 --> 00:31:02.039
breaking the law, then the discussion of progress could seem

467
00:31:02.519 --> 00:31:07.319
like mere semantics. After all, if believers are constantly guilty

468
00:31:07.319 --> 00:31:10.720
of violating God's law, how meaningful can any claim of

469
00:31:10.759 --> 00:31:14.079
progress really be? So it basically is just restating what

470
00:31:14.160 --> 00:31:18.000
I said. Okay, which is good. Then it says logical analysis.

471
00:31:18.079 --> 00:31:20.400
Then it gives me the logical analysis of what I said.

472
00:31:20.440 --> 00:31:22.759
Are you ready for its logical analysis? Here we go.

473
00:31:24.000 --> 00:31:28.079
You are correct and asserting that if breaking one part

474
00:31:28.160 --> 00:31:30.960
of the law means being guilty of breaking all of it,

475
00:31:31.279 --> 00:31:34.000
then a Christian is in a continual state of law breaking,

476
00:31:34.279 --> 00:31:40.079
which logically undermines the idea of real progress. How can

477
00:31:40.119 --> 00:31:43.319
we claim to be progressing towards obedience when in fact

478
00:31:43.640 --> 00:31:49.039
we're perpetually guilty before God. So again AI agrees with

479
00:31:49.079 --> 00:31:52.519
me logically logically, And I've always tried to make the

480
00:31:52.519 --> 00:31:55.559
point that logically we have to look look. I think

481
00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:58.759
we have to look at things logically to some level, right,

482
00:31:59.079 --> 00:32:01.519
And then if, as if logic and the Bible are

483
00:32:01.519 --> 00:32:03.799
in conflict, we've got to try to figure out what

484
00:32:03.880 --> 00:32:06.720
to do there, Right, do we just abandon logic? Well,

485
00:32:06.720 --> 00:32:10.559
if we abandon logic, then things become really I mean, look,

486
00:32:10.839 --> 00:32:13.480
if we abandon logic, here's where we come up with.

487
00:32:14.000 --> 00:32:18.920
Let's abandon logic. God empowers you to keep the law

488
00:32:19.039 --> 00:32:25.119
and obey him. However you can't do it. If abandon

489
00:32:25.359 --> 00:32:28.920
logic leads me to that, how can any rational person

490
00:32:29.240 --> 00:32:32.680
live in a Christian life with that system? I have power,

491
00:32:33.799 --> 00:32:37.640
but I can't But yet I have power. That seems ridiculous,

492
00:32:37.640 --> 00:32:40.240
does it not? Isn't that what we kind of mock

493
00:32:40.559 --> 00:32:43.920
charismatics for claiming they have the power to heal, but

494
00:32:44.119 --> 00:32:48.559
just ever seemingly to be able to actually do it. Well,

495
00:32:48.559 --> 00:32:52.240
then you're like, that's ridiculous. It's just if I'm going

496
00:32:52.279 --> 00:32:59.240
to criticize them, then I have to criticize us. Amen.

497
00:33:01.279 --> 00:33:04.559
They go on, Ay, it goes on. This creates a

498
00:33:04.599 --> 00:33:10.680
situation where claims of sanctification or progress seems like word games,

499
00:33:11.599 --> 00:33:16.079
claiming that things are improving, when in reality the fundamental problem,

500
00:33:16.640 --> 00:33:23.960
sin and law breaking persist. So it doesn't find any

501
00:33:23.960 --> 00:33:26.839
flaws in my logic, because I don't think there's any

502
00:33:26.880 --> 00:33:29.079
way to get around my logic right, because what am

503
00:33:29.079 --> 00:33:31.119
I doing. I'm going to what Scripture tells me about

504
00:33:31.160 --> 00:33:34.039
sin and then just logically applying that. Well, if I

505
00:33:34.119 --> 00:33:36.720
logically apply what it says about sin, then I can

506
00:33:36.759 --> 00:33:41.799
inevitably say we're all perpetually in sin. Now, as a church,

507
00:33:41.920 --> 00:33:44.000
what do we do with that fact? I don't know.

508
00:33:44.119 --> 00:33:46.160
I know what most Christians do. They get ticked off

509
00:33:46.200 --> 00:33:48.880
at me and claim it's not real. But they can't

510
00:33:49.200 --> 00:33:51.119
prove to me that it's not real, So then they

511
00:33:51.160 --> 00:33:55.720
just leave because they can't prove to me that what

512
00:33:55.759 --> 00:33:58.680
I'm saying is wrong, so they just leave. Well, you

513
00:33:58.759 --> 00:34:03.319
can go leave and play Disneyland, but reality says you

514
00:34:03.359 --> 00:34:10.119
can go to another church. You're still sinning, but go

515
00:34:10.239 --> 00:34:13.360
feel better pretending that we're with all the other nonsinners.

516
00:34:13.840 --> 00:34:17.119
Maybe maybe we're the only sinful church in Abilene and

517
00:34:17.360 --> 00:34:20.199
the surrounding areas, But I have a feeling that we're

518
00:34:20.239 --> 00:34:23.440
no more sinful and no less sinful than anybody else,

519
00:34:23.880 --> 00:34:26.519
including the atheist sitting on their couch today getting ready

520
00:34:26.559 --> 00:34:35.199
to watch football. Amen. All right, So biblical perspective. Uh oh,

521
00:34:35.280 --> 00:34:38.719
here we go. Look at Roman seven twenty four through

522
00:34:38.760 --> 00:34:52.039
twenty five. I love this paragraph for it everybody reads

523
00:34:52.119 --> 00:34:54.000
Romans seven twenty fourth through twenty five. What does it

524
00:34:54.039 --> 00:34:59.000
say a wretched man that I am? Who will deliver

525
00:34:59.119 --> 00:35:00.920
me from the body of death? Thanks be to God

526
00:35:00.920 --> 00:35:03.599
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So I myself serve the

527
00:35:03.679 --> 00:35:05.280
law of God with my mind, but with my flesh

528
00:35:05.280 --> 00:35:07.679
I serve the law of sin. Finally, AI got to

529
00:35:07.760 --> 00:35:10.920
Romans seven twenty four and twenty five. This is good.

530
00:35:11.079 --> 00:35:13.599
Now what is AI about to say? Are you ready?

531
00:35:14.239 --> 00:35:18.599
Everybody listened to these words carefully. Okay, here we go, right,

532
00:35:18.719 --> 00:35:20.320
I want to go to an AI church. I don't

533
00:35:20.360 --> 00:35:22.360
want to go to a person's church. I've decided AI

534
00:35:22.480 --> 00:35:24.199
is going to be the best church. Okay, are you ready?

535
00:35:24.239 --> 00:35:29.679
Here we go. Paul's personal experience reflects this ongoing tension.

536
00:35:30.320 --> 00:35:33.639
He recognizes that he is continually guilty of sin, even

537
00:35:33.639 --> 00:35:37.239
though he desires to obey God. However, he also recognizes

538
00:35:37.440 --> 00:35:42.199
that the solution to this dilemma is Christ's righteousness and

539
00:35:42.239 --> 00:35:46.320
the grace of God, not his ability to make progress

540
00:35:46.400 --> 00:35:58.280
and keep being the law. That's perfect all right? So

541
00:35:58.880 --> 00:36:03.320
AI asks ask me this question, are your points logical,

542
00:36:04.320 --> 00:36:07.840
fact based and consistent with scripture? So it asked me

543
00:36:07.880 --> 00:36:11.360
this question, Hey, do you think my position is logical,

544
00:36:12.119 --> 00:36:17.199
fact based and consistent with Scripture? I say yes, What

545
00:36:17.280 --> 00:36:20.719
does AI say? Logically? So they're going to examine those

546
00:36:20.719 --> 00:36:24.559
three things? Is my view logical, fact based and consistent

547
00:36:24.599 --> 00:36:29.079
with scripture? All? Right, here we go. Logically, your points

548
00:36:29.079 --> 00:36:32.960
are sound. If the Holy Spirit's empowerment does not lead

549
00:36:32.960 --> 00:36:35.519
to perfection, and if Christians continue to break the law,

550
00:36:35.639 --> 00:36:37.880
then the claim of real progress could indeed be seen

551
00:36:37.880 --> 00:36:42.000
as either subjective or an overstatement. Additionally, if Christians are

552
00:36:42.000 --> 00:36:45.280
perpetually guilty of breaking the law, claims of sanctification could

553
00:36:45.280 --> 00:36:51.280
seem like philologically philological semantics, then meaningful progress. So logically

554
00:36:51.320 --> 00:36:55.800
they say, check, I'm good, and I stand by my look.

555
00:36:55.840 --> 00:36:58.440
I try not to be dogmatic about some of my hypotheses,

556
00:36:58.480 --> 00:37:01.320
but on this one, I'm just absolute dogmatic because I

557
00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:03.960
can prove it as long as unless you tell me

558
00:37:04.000 --> 00:37:06.480
my definition of sin is wrong. And then you've got

559
00:37:06.480 --> 00:37:08.239
to tell me what Jesus what God meant when he

560
00:37:08.280 --> 00:37:10.880
said be holy as he is holy, Because if you

561
00:37:11.280 --> 00:37:14.559
change the definition of sin, then you've got to redefine

562
00:37:14.559 --> 00:37:17.119
what God's holiness is, and now you're going to change

563
00:37:17.119 --> 00:37:20.800
who God is. You see the inevitable result there? If God,

564
00:37:20.840 --> 00:37:26.280
if holiness means God, then anything apart from perfection is sin,

565
00:37:26.599 --> 00:37:31.360
which is us continually right, So how about fact base?

566
00:37:33.000 --> 00:37:35.320
The fact that Christians continue to sin and cannot keep

567
00:37:35.320 --> 00:37:39.320
the law is well supported by both scripture and experience,

568
00:37:39.840 --> 00:37:43.599
which cracks me out because how would a I know Okay, hey,

569
00:37:43.639 --> 00:37:46.800
I can't really say, but we know I can say,

570
00:37:47.440 --> 00:37:49.760
is it fact based? What do I always say to

571
00:37:49.800 --> 00:37:52.840
a charismatic? Well, if healing is guaranteed in the intellement,

572
00:37:55.559 --> 00:37:59.000
I can challenge them, right, well, I can just say,

573
00:37:59.079 --> 00:38:01.079
if you have a new home and a new spirit.

574
00:38:02.960 --> 00:38:06.199
What I said this, even when the controversy was building

575
00:38:06.199 --> 00:38:08.519
in this church? What did I tell people, don't argue

576
00:38:08.519 --> 00:38:13.199
with me, just go be perfect? Did any of them

577
00:38:13.239 --> 00:38:16.159
decide to go be perfect? No? They decided to leave.

578
00:38:17.599 --> 00:38:22.239
Why because it's easy to land and be perfect? Right?

579
00:38:23.079 --> 00:38:26.920
Just what and my perspective am I telling you, hey,

580
00:38:28.079 --> 00:38:30.840
don't be perfect? Do I tell anyone not to be perfect?

581
00:38:31.079 --> 00:38:34.320
Do I tell anyone to sin? But people get mad

582
00:38:34.360 --> 00:38:38.880
at me simply because I just say we're sinners like that,

583
00:38:39.199 --> 00:38:41.559
that's a weird reason to get mad at me. I'm

584
00:38:41.559 --> 00:38:44.400
not telling you not to go be perfect, go be perfect,

585
00:38:45.400 --> 00:38:47.599
so you should be like, Okay, I'm gonna show you,

586
00:38:48.000 --> 00:38:51.280
but you should stay here to show me that you

587
00:38:51.320 --> 00:38:53.480
can be perfect. Then I can bring you up here

588
00:38:53.519 --> 00:38:57.719
and go everyone I was wrong because they have achieved perfection,

589
00:38:57.880 --> 00:39:01.280
and then we could all acknowledge them. Using a wrestling phrase,

590
00:39:01.639 --> 00:39:05.320
we can acknowledge them as our example of perfection, but

591
00:39:05.400 --> 00:39:08.280
we will never acknowledge them as our example of perfection,

592
00:39:08.480 --> 00:39:12.199
because they will always be an example of sin, just

593
00:39:12.360 --> 00:39:17.159
like I am. I am your example of a sinner

594
00:39:18.840 --> 00:39:24.039
who just went to seminary. Okay, that's the only difference. Okay,

595
00:39:24.239 --> 00:39:28.920
all right, So I like that it says it's well supported.

596
00:39:29.000 --> 00:39:32.440
The Bible consistently teaches that human beings, even those redeemed

597
00:39:32.440 --> 00:39:35.760
in Christ, are still plagued by sin until they are

598
00:39:35.880 --> 00:39:45.119
glorified until the So even the AI acknowledges that even

599
00:39:45.159 --> 00:39:51.159
within scripture, everyone is plagued with sin until glorification. Okay,

600
00:39:51.440 --> 00:39:56.119
I believe that Christian that all systems of theology make

601
00:39:56.320 --> 00:40:01.360
the same mistake. We go grab what is me for glorification,

602
00:40:01.840 --> 00:40:06.960
and we drag it into now what a charismatics do?

603
00:40:06.960 --> 00:40:10.440
Do we believe healing is guaranteed in the atonement? Yes?

604
00:40:11.039 --> 00:40:14.320
When when I get a new body, what do they do?

605
00:40:14.920 --> 00:40:18.320
Go grab that promise and make it for now? Do

606
00:40:18.400 --> 00:40:20.239
I believe that there will be a time that I'll

607
00:40:20.280 --> 00:40:24.119
be completely free from sin? Yes, but I can't grab

608
00:40:24.159 --> 00:40:30.079
it and bring it into the now. Now. Sin is

609
00:40:30.119 --> 00:40:32.320
wrong and I'm guilty of it, and I should fight

610
00:40:32.400 --> 00:40:36.239
against it. But I have to acknowledge whatever fight against

611
00:40:36.320 --> 00:40:40.280
one sin, and from a human perspective, let's just again,

612
00:40:40.320 --> 00:40:43.559
nobody likes me to say this is really it's irrelevant

613
00:40:43.599 --> 00:40:47.920
because any victory over one sin, I'm still a sinner. Now,

614
00:40:47.960 --> 00:40:50.239
I'm not saying that excuses any sin. That's where everyone

615
00:40:50.239 --> 00:40:54.119
accuses me. I'm not excusing sin, any sin in me.

616
00:40:54.280 --> 00:40:57.519
I'm not excusing I've never I hope you've never thought

617
00:40:57.559 --> 00:40:59.800
I've excused any sin. I've always tried to acknowledge. I'm

618
00:41:00.360 --> 00:41:03.039
I'm a sinner because I'm a sinner. But and I'm

619
00:41:03.039 --> 00:41:05.400
not saying it's right, but I know that even if

620
00:41:05.440 --> 00:41:08.840
I didn't commit certain sins, and I can stand here

621
00:41:08.840 --> 00:41:11.440
and pat myself on the back. Just because I didn't

622
00:41:11.440 --> 00:41:16.159
commit that sin, I'd still be a sinner. See whatever

623
00:41:16.320 --> 00:41:18.840
sin that you could find in me, and say, how

624
00:41:18.960 --> 00:41:21.960
dare he? How dare that he did that? Even if

625
00:41:21.960 --> 00:41:24.400
I didn't do that, you should still be looking at

626
00:41:24.440 --> 00:41:27.679
me as I'm a sinner. But you don't only because

627
00:41:28.719 --> 00:41:31.199
if I don't commit a certain sin, then everyone's okay

628
00:41:31.239 --> 00:41:38.159
with me. That's just a weird Christian way of thinking, right,

629
00:41:38.320 --> 00:41:40.639
So fact base, they say, I'm good to go. All right,

630
00:41:40.679 --> 00:41:43.519
how about consistent with scripture? All right, here we go

631
00:41:45.079 --> 00:41:47.840
my critique or they say your critique, because they're addressing me,

632
00:41:48.639 --> 00:41:55.559
your critique align aligns with a clear biblical understanding of

633
00:41:55.639 --> 00:42:01.480
the human condition post conversion. They say that my view

634
00:42:01.800 --> 00:42:06.079
aligns with a clear biblical understanding of the human condition

635
00:42:06.559 --> 00:42:09.559
post conversion. And this is where I get in trouble

636
00:42:09.599 --> 00:42:14.360
with everyone, because I believe my condition post conversion practically

637
00:42:14.440 --> 00:42:17.719
it's the same as it was pre conversion. What do

638
00:42:17.760 --> 00:42:22.719
I believe changed post conversion? My position with God? I

639
00:42:22.840 --> 00:42:26.480
go with Luther, which says, at the same time, I

640
00:42:26.559 --> 00:42:36.639
am a saint and a sinner at the same time. Amen.

641
00:42:38.480 --> 00:42:40.639
While the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit works and

642
00:42:40.679 --> 00:42:42.840
believers to grow in holiness. And this is where, of course,

643
00:42:43.199 --> 00:42:45.320
is going to go. With that typical view, it also

644
00:42:45.400 --> 00:42:48.199
teaches they will never achieve perfection or perfectly keep the

645
00:42:48.280 --> 00:42:51.679
law in this life. Therefore, any notion of progress must

646
00:42:51.760 --> 00:42:56.639
be carefully defined to avoid overstatement. So it simply will

647
00:42:56.679 --> 00:42:59.079
say this Christianity is going to continue to teach that

648
00:42:59.119 --> 00:43:01.679
we have the Holy Spirit to empower us. So the

649
00:43:01.719 --> 00:43:04.000
best AI can say is what can you have to do?

650
00:43:04.039 --> 00:43:06.840
Then you got to really define what you mean and

651
00:43:06.880 --> 00:43:09.960
not overstated. And if you really define what you mean,

652
00:43:10.400 --> 00:43:14.119
you're going to find yourself admitting what progress is really

653
00:43:14.239 --> 00:43:18.639
just kind of semantics. Now it says, what is the

654
00:43:19.639 --> 00:43:22.440
It says this leaves us with a thiological tension. So

655
00:43:22.679 --> 00:43:26.000
this is what AI says. Okay, if I consider your perspective,

656
00:43:26.280 --> 00:43:29.519
I've got a problem here. There's a thiological tension. So

657
00:43:29.679 --> 00:43:32.119
this is how it describes. It calls it a thiological

658
00:43:32.159 --> 00:43:36.800
dilemma that I've created. Okay, right, See when y'all say

659
00:43:36.960 --> 00:43:40.320
I don't understand even AI doesn't understand me. Or here's

660
00:43:40.360 --> 00:43:45.840
what AI says. Progress and sanctification is a biblical doctrine,

661
00:43:46.599 --> 00:43:50.119
but that progress is often described and in a non

662
00:43:50.199 --> 00:43:54.239
perfectionist term, the goal is Christ's likeness, but it has

663
00:43:54.360 --> 00:43:58.320
never achieved in this life. Perfection is the standard of

664
00:43:58.360 --> 00:44:00.920
the law, but Christians are justified by keep by christ

665
00:44:01.000 --> 00:44:05.239
imputed righteousness, not their own law keeping. Thus your critique

666
00:44:05.320 --> 00:44:09.360
highlights a key point. Sanctification must be understood in terms

667
00:44:09.400 --> 00:44:12.800
of growing dependence on Christ and the work of the Spirit,

668
00:44:13.320 --> 00:44:15.880
not as an attempt to measure up to the laws

669
00:44:15.880 --> 00:44:21.159
of demands in any ultimate sense. Now I like this

670
00:44:22.000 --> 00:44:24.719
all right, Now I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna change

671
00:44:24.760 --> 00:44:29.559
this a little bit. Yeah, I'm gonna go to the back. Okay,

672
00:44:29.760 --> 00:44:34.239
So your critique highlights a key point sanctification must be

673
00:44:34.599 --> 00:44:39.960
understood in terms of growing dependence on Christ. Now there,

674
00:44:40.039 --> 00:44:43.239
I love because I think that's what sanctification is. Right.

675
00:44:43.719 --> 00:44:49.639
The more I'm sanctified, the more I realize what that

676
00:44:49.760 --> 00:44:53.519
I'm a sinner. See, I think the growth and sanctification

677
00:44:54.119 --> 00:44:57.760
is the growth in becoming more aware of my sin,

678
00:44:58.960 --> 00:45:03.320
which then makes me more dependent on Christ. So I'm

679
00:45:03.360 --> 00:45:11.000
gonna change sanctification as the grow growth and understanding your sinfulness.

680
00:45:12.039 --> 00:45:15.800
The more I we have actually taught about this in

681
00:45:15.840 --> 00:45:19.159
this Church before I really understood this concept. The closer

682
00:45:19.199 --> 00:45:21.159
I get to God, the more I will realize what

683
00:45:22.559 --> 00:45:25.559
how sinful I am. The more I grow as a Christian,

684
00:45:25.840 --> 00:45:29.440
the more I will realize how far I am from

685
00:45:29.480 --> 00:45:32.360
being what I should be. What I always make the joke.

686
00:45:32.400 --> 00:45:38.440
What is education? Yeah, education is you growing in your

687
00:45:38.559 --> 00:45:42.480
understanding of how dumb you are. Right. The more I

688
00:45:42.480 --> 00:45:46.480
study Scripture, the more I understand how dumb I am right.

689
00:45:46.800 --> 00:45:48.679
The more I grow as a Christian, the more I

690
00:45:48.719 --> 00:45:50.920
realize how and so then what does it lead to?

691
00:45:51.119 --> 00:45:56.320
Sanctification leads to a growing dependence on Christ and his righteousness.

692
00:45:58.199 --> 00:46:01.039
The more where you are of your sin, the more

693
00:46:01.079 --> 00:46:05.840
you're being sanctified, the more you somehow convinced that you were.

694
00:46:06.039 --> 00:46:12.360
And that's why I think younger Christians almost inevitably it's

695
00:46:12.519 --> 00:46:18.599
younger Christians younger married Christians, because younger single Christians realize

696
00:46:18.599 --> 00:46:20.880
how much they say right. They know they're struggling with

697
00:46:20.920 --> 00:46:23.599
things they don't want to admit, but they because we

698
00:46:23.719 --> 00:46:25.880
know the biggest sin you know in the world is

699
00:46:25.920 --> 00:46:28.360
you know, physical relations is the biggest thing in the world.

700
00:46:28.360 --> 00:46:30.920
You know, so, but once you get married, that's at

701
00:46:31.000 --> 00:46:34.239
least temporarily taken care of. Right, so then you can

702
00:46:34.280 --> 00:46:37.920
be like, I'm young. Dun dun, dun dud And so

703
00:46:38.079 --> 00:46:40.960
then you can be like, I'm growing. Yeah, you're growing

704
00:46:41.000 --> 00:46:43.519
because you're not committing that sin you were struggling with,

705
00:46:43.599 --> 00:46:46.320
because now you're free to do that. Right. You see

706
00:46:46.320 --> 00:46:49.280
the game that gets played here. So so and so

707
00:46:49.559 --> 00:46:53.480
you're young, you're you're you're excited about God. That's a

708
00:46:53.480 --> 00:46:56.000
good thing. You got zeal for God. That's a good thing.

709
00:46:56.039 --> 00:46:59.800
Nobody should throw water on that. You're passionate, you're studying scripture.

710
00:47:00.079 --> 00:47:02.719
Everything is great, and I think that lasts. But if

711
00:47:02.760 --> 00:47:06.719
you continue to grow, if you continue to grow and

712
00:47:06.840 --> 00:47:10.320
be honest with yourself, twenty thirty years down the road,

713
00:47:10.480 --> 00:47:18.239
you're gonna look back going there's a lot of spiritual pride, arrogance, unloving, condemning,

714
00:47:18.559 --> 00:47:21.320
being judgmental. And you know what, I've realized, after twenty

715
00:47:21.360 --> 00:47:26.519
or thirty years of this, I'm still a sinner. I

716
00:47:26.559 --> 00:47:30.320
think sanctification is growing into that reality. Now I disagree

717
00:47:30.320 --> 00:47:34.840
with AI's use of this. So it's a sanctification is

718
00:47:34.920 --> 00:47:37.559
understood in terms of growing dependence on Christ and the

719
00:47:37.599 --> 00:47:40.440
work of and the work of the Holy Spirit. I say,

720
00:47:40.440 --> 00:47:42.440
I struggle with that work of the Holy Spirit. Now,

721
00:47:42.519 --> 00:47:44.760
if you say the work of the Holy Spirit is this,

722
00:47:45.400 --> 00:47:49.320
because the Spirit is in me and I'm growing, the

723
00:47:49.360 --> 00:47:52.519
Spirit convicts me more and more of that imperfection that

724
00:47:52.719 --> 00:47:56.000
is inside of me, because the Holy Spirit knows the

725
00:47:56.039 --> 00:47:59.679
imperfection inside of me, because the Holy Spirit is inside

726
00:47:59.679 --> 00:48:03.800
of me. Right, So that if we say it that way,

727
00:48:03.840 --> 00:48:07.360
then I'm okay, all right it Sanctification is not an

728
00:48:07.360 --> 00:48:10.960
attempt to measure up to the law demands in any

729
00:48:11.079 --> 00:48:16.320
ultimate sense. Otherwise discussions of progress risks becoming subjective are

730
00:48:16.400 --> 00:48:22.239
merely a semantic exercise. This tension between being justified in

731
00:48:22.360 --> 00:48:26.800
Christ yet still sinful in practice is the paradox of

732
00:48:26.840 --> 00:48:31.119
the Christian life, which points us back to the centrality

733
00:48:32.119 --> 00:48:35.639
of grace. Are you ready for this? So this entire

734
00:48:35.679 --> 00:48:41.599
discussion produces this paradox, and it points us back. I

735
00:48:41.679 --> 00:48:44.639
love it. This is Ai, ladies and gentlemen, points us

736
00:48:44.679 --> 00:48:50.800
back to the centrality of grace and the amputation of

737
00:48:50.920 --> 00:49:02.199
Christ's righteousness. AI has to realize what it's imputed righteousness

738
00:49:02.599 --> 00:49:05.880
that's our only hope in this So and all of this,

739
00:49:06.119 --> 00:49:09.719
when we say progressive sanctification, What can how are we

740
00:49:09.800 --> 00:49:12.760
going to define progressive sanctification from this point forward in

741
00:49:12.760 --> 00:49:16.079
this church, right or hopefully when you even when this

742
00:49:16.159 --> 00:49:19.239
church is gone, when whenever this church comes to an end,

743
00:49:19.400 --> 00:49:22.280
hopefully for the rest of your Christian life. Progressive sanctification

744
00:49:22.400 --> 00:49:27.880
is what a progressive growth in your awareness of your

745
00:49:28.079 --> 00:49:33.239
sin and thought, word, deed, desire. By what you do

746
00:49:33.559 --> 00:49:37.960
and not do internally and externally, you grow more. And

747
00:49:38.039 --> 00:49:41.000
why do I grow more and more into that? Because

748
00:49:41.000 --> 00:49:45.440
I have the spirit inside of me doing what reveal,

749
00:49:45.599 --> 00:49:48.679
making it known, convicting me of it. Right, I've got

750
00:49:48.679 --> 00:49:51.280
something inside of me making it known, so I feel

751
00:49:51.320 --> 00:49:53.559
more and more guilty. And so then what does that do?

752
00:49:53.840 --> 00:49:58.400
Sanctification then, is growing an awareness of sin and growing

753
00:49:58.559 --> 00:50:05.199
in a greater dependent upon imputed righteousness, not in a

754
00:50:05.280 --> 00:50:08.760
growing desire to try to do better, because even doing

755
00:50:08.800 --> 00:50:13.000
better is such a game. Right If I do better

756
00:50:13.360 --> 00:50:16.360
in this, am I doing better in that? And the

757
00:50:16.400 --> 00:50:19.159
inevitable result is, even if I appear that I'm doing

758
00:50:19.239 --> 00:50:23.320
better external doing better may not actually mean anything. I

759
00:50:23.360 --> 00:50:28.719
think the God that I'm not like these people, and

760
00:50:28.800 --> 00:50:32.239
the other person was like, Lord, I I'm unworthy of everything.

761
00:50:32.280 --> 00:50:36.920
Who went home justified the one, not the good person,

762
00:50:37.400 --> 00:50:40.480
the sinner. Now in our minds, no, no, no, no,

763
00:50:40.559 --> 00:50:43.440
the good person is the same person the person doing

764
00:50:43.440 --> 00:50:47.440
the better. They cannot be really saved. No. Sanctification is

765
00:50:47.440 --> 00:50:49.440
where we become more and more aware of saying, what,

766
00:50:50.320 --> 00:50:53.800
I'm a sinner. I'm a sinner and my only hope

767
00:50:53.840 --> 00:50:56.760
is imputed righteousness. It's not in trying to do better.

768
00:50:57.119 --> 00:51:00.679
If Christianity gets reduced and Christianity is been reduced to

769
00:51:00.800 --> 00:51:04.039
just a system of trying to do better, we try

770
00:51:04.079 --> 00:51:06.000
to do better, we try to do better, but we

771
00:51:06.039 --> 00:51:11.239
play games because we and again I think, I mean,

772
00:51:11.280 --> 00:51:15.079
we know this. Statistics prove this. You have people raised

773
00:51:15.079 --> 00:51:21.519
in a Christian home, when do they leave Christianity about seventeen? Right,

774
00:51:21.639 --> 00:51:26.559
what happens, They're no under parents' control, Right, So they

775
00:51:26.559 --> 00:51:28.599
go and they and they may live in all kinds

776
00:51:28.639 --> 00:51:32.719
of sin. When do they come back? Those who come

777
00:51:32.760 --> 00:51:40.719
back come back after they're married. Why, some of that

778
00:51:40.840 --> 00:51:43.639
sin and that desire is now they have a way

779
00:51:43.679 --> 00:51:45.840
to fulfill it. So now they come back and then

780
00:51:45.840 --> 00:51:48.920
they're like, oh, now I'm moral and I don't know

781
00:51:48.920 --> 00:51:51.320
what's wrong with the kids in the world. Today. I

782
00:51:51.360 --> 00:51:54.840
don't know what's wrong with the world. It's so shut up.

783
00:51:56.880 --> 00:52:03.119
That was you. Now you talk a big game because

784
00:52:03.159 --> 00:52:06.079
now you're married, you have kids, and so now you're

785
00:52:06.119 --> 00:52:09.519
all mister Godley and talk a big game. But in

786
00:52:09.519 --> 00:52:13.800
many cases you want to look at them and got

787
00:52:13.880 --> 00:52:16.079
You're the same person I knew when you were a

788
00:52:16.119 --> 00:52:24.159
teenager what happened. And this is why many Christians and

789
00:52:24.679 --> 00:52:27.599
even the church itgnos this right. So the church has

790
00:52:27.599 --> 00:52:34.280
emphasized what forever, getting married as early as you can.

791
00:52:35.400 --> 00:52:38.800
Why because you can avoid one major area of sin.

792
00:52:38.920 --> 00:52:40.920
Because what's the biggest area of sin in the church

793
00:52:41.079 --> 00:52:44.079
is that one area? Is it not? I mean, that's

794
00:52:44.119 --> 00:52:53.320
the sin? This is so many other things are perfectly okay, gossip, pride, backstabbing,

795
00:52:53.440 --> 00:52:56.440
lying to see, it's all we make a million excuses

796
00:52:56.440 --> 00:52:59.880
for that. And so really Christianity is just about one sin,

797
00:53:00.039 --> 00:53:02.159
if you think about it, which is just ridiculous, is

798
00:53:02.199 --> 00:53:04.840
it not, because that one sin is always listened with

799
00:53:04.880 --> 00:53:08.480
all the other sins, right, idolatry, convesteousness. I mean we

800
00:53:08.480 --> 00:53:11.400
can go on bitterness. I mean we're supposed to do

801
00:53:11.440 --> 00:53:15.519
all things without complaining and grumbling. Nobody gets church excommunicated

802
00:53:15.559 --> 00:53:19.199
for grumbling and complaining. Man, I should have made that

803
00:53:19.280 --> 00:53:21.400
a major sin in this church, right, And anytime anyone

804
00:53:21.480 --> 00:53:24.079
grumble complain, I'm like, we're gonna have church discipline now.

805
00:53:24.159 --> 00:53:27.119
Everybody like, well, you can't church discipline someone for that. Oh,

806
00:53:27.199 --> 00:53:29.280
but if they commit this sin, everyone would be like,

807
00:53:30.559 --> 00:53:34.400
throw them to the wolves. Right. It's such a weird game.

808
00:53:35.079 --> 00:53:37.639
So how do we define sanctification. I'll make sure we

809
00:53:37.719 --> 00:53:43.079
leave with this understanding. Sanctification is a Christian systematically progressively

810
00:53:43.119 --> 00:53:46.719
growing in an awareness of their own their own sin,

811
00:53:47.480 --> 00:53:51.000
not growing in an awareness of everyone else's sin. That's

812
00:53:51.079 --> 00:53:54.039
typically what we do, right, growing an awareness of our

813
00:53:54.079 --> 00:53:56.840
own sin. We will credit that to the Holy Spirit

814
00:53:56.880 --> 00:53:59.119
being inside of us, which makes sense. He's inside of me.

815
00:53:59.199 --> 00:54:01.039
He knows what's going on inside of me. He sees

816
00:54:01.079 --> 00:54:03.920
that sin, right, Okay, So I become more and more

817
00:54:03.960 --> 00:54:07.360
aware of it, and this leads to not me becoming better,

818
00:54:07.599 --> 00:54:10.079
but this leads me to growing in my dependence upon

819
00:54:11.000 --> 00:54:14.920
imputed righteousness, because I realize any attempt to do better

820
00:54:15.440 --> 00:54:19.119
is ultimately going to be futile. It's like I'm on

821
00:54:19.239 --> 00:54:22.639
the Titanic. It's going down, and if I move all

822
00:54:22.760 --> 00:54:26.000
the chairs to the other side of the ship. It's

823
00:54:26.000 --> 00:54:29.280
still going down. If I run down to my room

824
00:54:29.519 --> 00:54:32.480
and clean it all up, the boat is still going down.

825
00:54:33.159 --> 00:54:35.440
If I go put on my best suit and sit

826
00:54:35.519 --> 00:54:40.400
on the deck, I'm still going down. Right, Well, inevitably,

827
00:54:41.519 --> 00:54:44.639
I have a sinful nature, and the boat's going down

828
00:54:45.119 --> 00:54:50.320
until it's raised again, and then the sin is gone.

829
00:54:50.440 --> 00:54:53.519
Now am I justifying in it? I'm not everyone. I

830
00:54:53.599 --> 00:54:56.000
have to say it online because we're like you justify you.

831
00:54:56.119 --> 00:55:02.760
I'm not justifying anything because God says it's sin. Now,

832
00:55:02.800 --> 00:55:06.400
I may not understand God's system, right. God says be holy,

833
00:55:06.440 --> 00:55:10.239
but he doesn't make me holy. That's bothers me. Right, Hey,

834
00:55:10.360 --> 00:55:12.199
I don't want you to sin, but I'm not gonna

835
00:55:12.199 --> 00:55:15.239
stop you from sinning. Well that's a little frustrating. So

836
00:55:15.320 --> 00:55:18.840
I understand that there's things that don't make sins. But

837
00:55:18.920 --> 00:55:21.360
I can try to take this system and at least

838
00:55:21.400 --> 00:55:25.639
acknowledge this. God is going to fix the problem. And

839
00:55:25.719 --> 00:55:29.440
maybe the whole point here now is that he saves

840
00:55:29.480 --> 00:55:33.440
me by an imputed righteousness. That's the whole point. And

841
00:55:33.480 --> 00:55:36.480
so then I am to be because remember, the whole

842
00:55:36.480 --> 00:55:39.880
point is he confounds the wisdom of the wise. Right, Well,

843
00:55:39.880 --> 00:55:43.239
one confounds the world more than anything that I can

844
00:55:43.280 --> 00:55:48.920
be saved and yet a sinner. That is confusing? Is

845
00:55:48.960 --> 00:55:52.800
it not? Well, because I'm not saved by what I do?

846
00:55:53.280 --> 00:55:57.760
It's my salvation is supposed to be about whom Him,

847
00:55:58.280 --> 00:56:00.679
not me. We want to make it about me and

848
00:56:00.719 --> 00:56:03.679
how he changed me where I can. And we said, well,

849
00:56:03.719 --> 00:56:05.800
I'm not to get the glory, but you want everyone

850
00:56:05.840 --> 00:56:08.440
to look at you. No, the if shoe is he

851
00:56:08.639 --> 00:56:13.599
saved me even though I'm a sinner, So it magnifies

852
00:56:13.639 --> 00:56:19.239
what his grace and his righteousness, not mine. I think

853
00:56:19.280 --> 00:56:22.360
that that makes at least some level of sense. Right.

854
00:56:22.960 --> 00:56:28.480
So sanctification is the process as we progressively moved to

855
00:56:28.519 --> 00:56:31.280
a deeper understanding of our own sin and guilt. We're

856
00:56:31.280 --> 00:56:33.880
broken and humbled by it, which drives us to a

857
00:56:33.920 --> 00:56:38.960
deeper reliance upon the imputed righteousness of Christ. That is sanctification.

858
00:56:39.440 --> 00:56:42.679
Every other definition of sanctification, I'm going to argue, is

859
00:56:42.800 --> 00:56:50.119
trash because all these other definitions are basically what God

860
00:56:50.159 --> 00:56:53.719
empowers you to do it, but you can't do it.

861
00:56:54.199 --> 00:56:59.599
That makes no sense. This one makes perfect sense. But

862
00:56:59.679 --> 00:57:03.320
I have right, This one makes more sense I'm made

863
00:57:03.360 --> 00:57:05.599
more aware of my sin and I have to rely

864
00:57:05.679 --> 00:57:10.639
on His imputed righteousness. That makes sense, because I can't

865
00:57:10.840 --> 00:57:17.679
right That one makes logical sense. And what is the

866
00:57:17.760 --> 00:57:21.360
standard is the law is the constant standard, right, But

867
00:57:21.440 --> 00:57:25.159
we do not modify the law. The law stays intact

868
00:57:25.360 --> 00:57:28.400
this way, right, because if I'm going to define progress

869
00:57:28.440 --> 00:57:30.880
and maintain the right definition of the law, there can't

870
00:57:30.880 --> 00:57:33.760
be any progress. This one can be progressed because what

871
00:57:33.800 --> 00:57:36.440
am I admitting. I'm admitting more and more that I

872
00:57:36.519 --> 00:57:40.159
violate the law. So the law stays the law. I

873
00:57:40.239 --> 00:57:42.719
grow in my understanding of how much I violate the law,

874
00:57:42.920 --> 00:57:46.519
which then drives me to a greater reliance upon imputed

875
00:57:46.599 --> 00:57:51.039
righteousness that maintains everything. That does not have me reverting

876
00:57:51.079 --> 00:57:53.840
back to Catholicism. That doesn't have me reverting back to

877
00:57:53.880 --> 00:57:57.039
a Sacramental system. It doesn't have me reverting into claiming

878
00:57:57.079 --> 00:57:59.079
the Spirit has given me some power that it doesn't

879
00:57:59.079 --> 00:58:02.599
really give me the power for it's logical, it's biblical,

880
00:58:02.960 --> 00:58:08.639
it's consistent. It just ticks everyone off. I don't know why,

881
00:58:11.000 --> 00:58:13.039
but I've I mean, we've watched it in this church.

882
00:58:13.119 --> 00:58:16.719
I don't get it. I can show I can emails

883
00:58:16.719 --> 00:58:18.880
and YouTube comments. I can show you this will just

884
00:58:18.960 --> 00:58:22.039
literally drive every Christian to the point of screaming at

885
00:58:22.039 --> 00:58:24.079
me saying I'm a heretic. I'm like, how am I

886
00:58:24.159 --> 00:58:29.039
a heretic? This is consistent with historical biblical orthodoxy, which

887
00:58:29.119 --> 00:58:34.719
maintains the standard and maintains the reality of sin, and

888
00:58:34.880 --> 00:58:38.920
is logically consistent. And he said, well, but what about

889
00:58:38.960 --> 00:58:41.760
this scripture? This scripture, any scripture that says I should

890
00:58:41.760 --> 00:58:44.679
be doing this is law and it's and I know

891
00:58:44.800 --> 00:58:48.480
I can't and Christ did. And if it says certain

892
00:58:48.519 --> 00:58:50.719
things that may be speaking of my position, not my

893
00:58:50.800 --> 00:58:55.599
practical reality, because it has to be right, there's no

894
00:58:55.679 --> 00:58:59.159
other way of understanding it. So I will stop there,

895
00:59:00.400 --> 00:59:03.559
all right, twelve oh five. Usually I go twelve twenty. So, kid,

896
00:59:03.639 --> 00:59:05.400
you got a little bit of a break, not too much,

897
00:59:05.480 --> 00:59:07.679
all right, So let's pray, Lord God, we come before

898
00:59:07.760 --> 00:59:12.159
you this afternoon. Lord, I hope this new understanding of

899
00:59:12.360 --> 00:59:16.480
sanctification is correct. Lord, I pray that it is consistent

900
00:59:16.480 --> 00:59:19.360
with your word. And Lord, I pray that we would

901
00:59:19.400 --> 00:59:24.280
consider this in much detail, give this much discussion amongst ourselves,

902
00:59:24.840 --> 00:59:27.840
And Lord, I pray that we just continue trying to

903
00:59:27.960 --> 00:59:31.159
understand the Christian life and what it should look like,

904
00:59:31.960 --> 00:59:34.400
and ask for forgiveness when we know we fall short,

905
00:59:34.440 --> 00:59:37.119
which is continually. We have this in Jesus name, I got,

906
00:59:37.119 --> 00:59:41.480
people said,