How to bring men to Christ 6

How to bring men to Christ 6

Luke xviii. 9‒14, can also be used in the following way; you can say

“there was a man in the Bible who felt he was all right, but was all

wrong. Let me read you about him.” Then read about the Pharisee who was

so sure that he was all right, but who was all the time an unforgiven

sinner; and make the inquirer see how untrustworthy our feelings are and

what the ground of assurance is, viz: God’s word. Prov. xiv. 12 can also

be used as showing that “there is a way which seemeth right unto a man

but the end thereof are the ways of death.”

 

 

5. The last class of those who entertain false hopes, are _those who say

they are saved though they are leading sinful lives_. In the case of

many forms of sin, a good passage to use is 1 Cor. vi. 9‒10. 1 John ii.

29 will also in many cases sweep away this false hope. 1 John v. 4‒5 is

useful as showing that one who is really born of God overcomes the world

and the fact that they are living in sin and are not overcoming the

world is evidence that they have not been born of God.

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER VII.

 

DEALING WITH THOSE WHO LACK ASSURANCE AND WITH BACK–SLIDERS

 

 

I. THOSE WHO LACK ASSURANCE.

 

Those who lack assurance may be divided into two classes.

 

 

1. _Those who lack assurance because of ignorance._ 1 John v. 13, will

show all such that we may know that we have eternal life. Often times

when you ask people if they know they are saved, or if they know their

sins are forgiven, or if they know they have eternal life, they will

reply, “Why no one knows that.” You can say to them, “Yes the Bible says

that all who believe may know it,” and then show them 1 John v. 13. John

i. 12 shows that Christ gives to as many as receive Him, power to become

the Sons of God. A good way to use this verse is to ask the inquirer

questions regarding it. “What does every one who receives Him receive

power to become?” The inquirer if he is attentively looking at the verse

will answer, “A son of God.” Then ask the next question, “Have you

received Him?” If he replies “Yes,” then ask him, “What are you then?”

It will probably be necessary to go over it several times but at last

the inquirer will see it and say “I am a son of God.” John iii. 36 can

be used in a similar way. Ask the inquirer “who do these verses say has

everlasting life?” “He that believeth on the Son.” “Do you believe on

the Son?” “What have you then?” In a little while he will see it and say

“Everlasting life.” Then have him say over and over again “I have

everlasting life,” and have him kneel down and thank God for giving him

everlasting life. One night I found a young man upon his knees at the

close of the service in great distress. I showed him from the Bible how

Jesus Christ had borne his sins and asked him if he would accept Christ

as his Saviour; he said he would; but he seemed to get no light and went

out of the meeting in deep distress. The next night he was there again,

professing to have accepted Christ but with no assurance that his sins

were forgiven. I tried to show him from God’s word what God said of

those who accepted the Saviour, but the light did not come. Finally he

rose to leave the meeting. I had just shown him from John iii. 36 that

God said that “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” As

he turned to leave me, he said, “Will you pray for me?” I said “Yes.” He

walked a little way down the aisle and I called to him and said, “Do you

believe I will pray for you?” He turned with a look of astonishment and

replied, “Yes, of course.” “Why do you think I will pray for you?” I

then asked. “Because you said so,” he replied. I said “Isn’t God’s word

as good as mine?” He saw it at once, that while he had been willing to

believe my word, he had not been willing to believe God’s word, and he

received assurance on the spot and knew that he had everlasting life.

John v. 24 and 1 John v. 12 can be used in a similar way.

 

Acts xiii. 39 is very useful in dealing with this class of persons. Ask

the inquirer: “What does this verse say that all who believe are?”

“Justified.” Then ask him, “Do you believe?” “What are you then?” It

will probably take two or three times going over it before he sees it

and when he answers “I am justified,” tell him to thank God for

justifying him and confess Christ, and see to it that he does so. Many

inquirers of this class stumble over the fact that they have not the

witness of the Holy Spirit. Show them from 1 John v. 10 that the witness

of the word to their acceptance is sufficient, and that, if they believe

not this witness of God in His word, they make Him a liar. Show them

further from Eph. i. 13, that it is after we believe the testimony of

the word that we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.” The

natural order in assurance is this: First, assurance of our

justification, _resting on the “Word of God.”_ Second, public confession

of Christ, “with the mouth,” Romans x. 10. Third, the witness of the

Holy Spirit. The trouble with many is that they wish to invert this

order and have the witness of the Holy Spirit before they confess Christ

with the mouth. From Matt. x. 32, 33, we learn that when we confess

Christ before men, then He confesses us before the Father. We cannot

reasonably expect the witness of the Spirit from the Father until we are

confessed before the Father. So confession of Christ logically precedes

the witness of the Spirit.

 

It is very important in using these texts to make clear what saving

faith is; because many may say that they believe when they do not, in

the sense of these texts, and so get a false assurance and entertain

false hopes and never find deliverance. There is a great deal of

careless dealing with those who lack assurance. Workers are so anxious

to have inquirers come out clearly that they urge them on to assurance

when they have no right to have assurance of salvation as they have not

really accepted Christ.

 

John i. 12, and 2 Tim. i. 12, make very clear what believing

is—receiving Jesus or committing to Jesus. Romans x. 10, will serve a

similar purpose by showing that it “is _with the heart_ man believeth

unto righteousness.”

 

 

2. _Those who lack assurance because of sin._ The trouble with those who

lack assurance is, often, that there is some sin or questionable

practice which they ought to confess and give up. John viii. 12; Is. lv.

7; Prov. xxviii. 13; Ps. xxxii. 1‒5, are useful passages in dealing with

this class of men, for they show that it is when sin is confessed and

forsaken and we follow Christ, that we receive pardon, light and

assurance. Often times it is well when one lacks assurance to put the

question squarely to him: “Do you know of any sin on to which you are

holding or anything in your life which your conscience troubles you

about?”

 

 

II. BACK–SLIDERS. There are two classes of back–sliders and they should

be dealt with in different ways.

 

 

1. _Careless back–sliders; those who have no great desire to come back

to the Saviour._ With such persons use Jer. ii. 5, drive the question

right home, “What iniquity have you found in the Lord?” Show them the

base ingratitude and folly of forsaking such a Saviour and Friend. Very

likely they have wandered away because of unkind treatment by professed

Christians, but hold them right to the point of how _the Lord_ treated

them and how they are now treating Him. Use also Jer. ii. 13, and show

them what they have forsaken and for what. Have them read the verse and

ask them, “is not that verse true? When you forsook the Lord did you not

forsake the ‘fountain of living waters’ and turn to ‘broken cisterns

that can hold no water?’” Illustrate the text by showing how foolish it

would be to turn from a fountain of pure living water to broken cisterns

or muddy pools. God has greatly honored this verse in bringing

back–sliders back to himself. Use Jer. ii. 19. When they have read it

ask them whether they have not found it “an evil thing and bitter”

having forsaken the Lord their God. Prov. xiv. 14; 1 Kings xi. 9, and

Luke xv. 13‒17, can often times be used with effect with an impenitent

back–slider, showing him the result of his wandering. I have a friend

who always uses Amos. iv. 11, 12, and often times with good results.

 

 

2. _Back–sliders who are sick of their wanderings and sin and desire to

come back to the Lord._ These are perhaps as easy a class to deal with

as we ever find. Jer. iii. 12, 13, and 22, will show them how ready the

Lord is to receive them back and that all he asks of them is that they

acknowledge their sin and return to him. Hos. xiv. 1‒4, is full of

tender invitation to penitent back–sliders and also shows the way back

to God. Is. xliii. 22, 24, 25, and Is. xliv. 20‒22; Jer. xxix. 11‒13;

Deut. iv. 28‒31; 2 Chron. vii. 14; 1 John i. 9; ii. 1‒2, set forth God’s

unfailing love for the back–slider and His willingness to receive him

back. Mark xvi. 7; 2 Chron. xv. 4; xxxiii. 1‒9, 12, 13, give

illustrations of great back–sliders who returned to the Lord and how

lovingly He received them, 1 John i. 9; Jer. iii. 12‒13; 2 Chron. xv.

12, 15; vii. 14, show just what steps the back–slider must take to come

back to the Lord and be restored to his favor, viz: humble himself,

confess his sins and turn from his sin. Luke xv. 11‒24, is perhaps the

most useful passage of all in dealing with a back–slider who wishes to

return for it has both the steps which the back–slider must take and the

kind of reception he will receive.

 

When a back–slider has returned he should always be given instructions