Rookie Mistakes Series: #1 Withholding the Gospel (Part B)

You see, God does not block us out and says, you know what, you're too much of a sinner to be used, you're too dumb to be used.

Once dumb, always dumb. That's not true. That's not that Satan's line. God says, I want you to learn to read what is going on, to figure it out, and I want you to understand, I do love sinners. And you might not see their conversion for years, the fruit of your work, you may not see it in your lifetime.

That is not your concern, it's not my concern. This is Cross-Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher, Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through a series called Rookie Mistakes.

Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross-Reference Radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. And now here's Pastor Rick as he continues with his message called Withholding the Gospel in Matthew chapter seven. So not only is it ineffective, but it is dangerous. That's what Jesus is saying. We say, it's dangerous to the individual, yes, but it is also dangerous to the causes of Christ. Because the next guy that comes along that may have been the one that you may have watered the seed or planted it, and the next one comes along, there's work, more work than should be before them because of the damage the last Christian did. Remember, not too long ago there was the Christian that decided he wanted to paddle out to this island off the coast of India, where there was an indigenous people there, untouched by civilization pretty much. But he is determined to go to them and preach the gospel, and they killed him before he ever got to say a word that they could understand concerning Christ.

What a waste. This is the very thing Christ warned against. Well, that's an extreme case.

What about the lesser ones? I mean, who here says, I want to be used more by God than just coming to church or just raising my family or just keeping my job and being the Christian on site, the resident Christian. I want to be used by him. Well, there are steps to be taken, and I read some of them, to be blameless enough, for example, to be approved unto God, to be ready, to be led by the Spirit. That involves prayer. That involves the reading of your word, the study of the word, and not at the seminary level. I do not encourage seminary. I don't think all that have gone are bad people for going.

I think that they would have been good people for not going to. That's pretty much the end of that, but moving on to this, my great points that I have to make, and I do believe they're great, but not because they come from me, but because you sit before the Lord and you agonize over this over and over again. You shave it down. You craft it. You work on it. Your father, you say, I can't say that. That's too hard. Oh, no, I need to say this.

This is hard enough. Oh, this is a good one. Glad I thought of it, Lord. When you prepare things to preach, you should be getting thoughts into your head that you know are not originating with you. You say, that's a good point. I didn't see that earlier. No, you didn't. That's why I showed it to you, God speaking.

So these principles govern how we handle the gospel in the face of those who hate the truth. What do you do with that? They could be loved ones in our family.

What do you do? You get no special pass in this application. In our hearts, they do, because we love them. But you can't say, well, I will not preach to this person.

No leading. They're not family anyway. And then get in front of a family member, but I love them so much, I'm going to give them the gospel when God is saying, be quiet. I'm working on them. His warnings and instructions, may we not forget them.

They're not unclear, and they're not to be ignored. Who would want this on their epitaph? Who needs the Holy Spirit? I can figure it out myself. Or I figured it out myself. Not me. Sarcasm, of course. How many Christians like? Lean not on your own understanding. Trust not in your own ways. Acknowledge the Lord. We love that.

Do you live it? Why is it hard to live? Impulse. We begin to think emotionally. We begin to do the wrong thing. We forget the principle. We forget our training, and everything begins to unravel. And then we get discouraged, and we don't want to do it. Well, I've got many more verses to back all of this up, because without those verses, without those witnesses, it could be mistaken for just my opinion, with the seriousness again, the dogs, the hogs, metaphorically, because of how they treat what God says. And then I must know how to treat them for their treatment of what God says. Because the fight ain't over so long as his breath, the hope is not over.

And I want to be a part of it. And I suspect again that it's unpleasant for some believers to hear the things that I'm saying, because they've been so used to making the rookie mistakes that when it's addressed, it is uncomfortable. We don't take matters in our own hands. But what holy things does the church have? What holy things do Christians have? If you were asked that question, what would you say?

What would be your answer? If an unbeliever went to you and said, what holy things does the church have? And you're thinking about the casting of pearl before swine. It is again, as I said earlier, the truth of Jesus Christ.

It is illustrated in the book of Solomon. What is your beloved more than another that you so charge us? And what does she do? She goes on a rampage of expression, telling what is so wonderful about, you know, she's counted all his teeth, they're lined up like gold. He does the same thing to her. There's this attention to detail because they love each other. They care about each other. It's a picture of what the model relationship should be in Christ. It's attentive to detail because you love and you care. And so we don't take matters into our own hands.

Again, that's the rookie mistake. And the church has the gospel. And we've begun in the Spirit. When you came to Christ, what effort, what effort did you put out that got you saved? Zilch. Nada.

Nothing. And just accepting the gospel is not your effort. That's just a smart thing to do. And that's why Paul said to the Galatians, are you so dumb? Foolish is the word he uses.

But I think we need to hear a little bit more sometime to give you another word for the same word. Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect in the flesh? Are you developing as a Christian in your carnality, in your impulse, in your thinking you've got a better way than the principles set before you? Why are you listening to people coming in, undoing everything you've been taught from the Scripture and God's apostles? My first session was going to be Acts 2 42. I've got about 18 of them. We're not going to get all 18.

You might be happy about that at the end of this. But Acts 2 42 is the foundational verse for how we move as Christians. We move based on the doctrine of the apostles which is attached to the doctrine of the prophets of the Old Testament and the New, which is attached to the God of Genesis 1 1. These things are not detached.

They are joined together. Jeremiah, there were the prophets saying, oh there's going to be peace and God's not going to judge us for all the idolatry that we're doing and the sins that we're committing and the abuses that we're exercising on one another. God's not going to judge us. Peace is going to come. And Jeremiah's whole ministry was saying, you're lying.

It's not true. Judgment's going to come from God on the wicked, those who are impenitent. And at one point God says through Jeremiah, tell them this, yet I did not send them or command them. Therefore they shall not profit this people at all, says the Lord. Wait, there's a lesson in the prophets that tells me that if I'm not sent, I may not be profitable. Well that's the verse seven in Matthew's gospel. To be led by the Lord. It is difficult, but it is more difficult to not be led by the Lord. Many Christians jam the gospel down other people's faces so they can feel better about themselves. There, I did it. I'm not ashamed of preaching. You just made a mess. Hold the line. Numbers chapter fourteen. You know the story.

It's the story where the spies came back from the land. Joshua and Caleb were ready to go into the land and act on the promises of God. But no, the majority, the majority, which is always right, sarcasm, the majority said we can't do this. God was very displeased with that. He was more displeased that the people believe the majority report instead of him. And as a judgment, God said 40 years you're going to spend.

You will spend 40 years in the wilderness. Well when the people heard this, they were devastated. So they presumed that they could still go forward without God and be successful.

Well this is illustrated for us as saying to us, don't be like them. Numbers chapter fourteen verse 39. Then Moses told these words to all the children of Israel and the people mourned greatly. That's when he told them the judgment. And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain saying, here we are and we will go up to the place which Yahweh has promised for we have sinned.

Okay, we pause there. They repented. Well, they were guilty.

It just is perfect sense. But that does not mean they can reverse God's will and then take things into their own hands. It's not good enough. These intentions, he continues and Moses said, now why do you transgress the command of Yahweh? For this will not succeed.

Understatement. Do not go up lest you be defeated by your enemies. For Yahweh is not among you. Isn't that what Jesus just said? Don't cast the pearl before the swine. Don't take the holy things upon yourself and do with them whatever you want to do. As much as you might want someone saved, wait for the Lord. Remember Saul, King Saul, his life was filled with I'm going to do it my way. And he suffered all the way through. And so an encouragement to follow the Lord.

Who would object to that? He continues, he says, do not go up lest you be defeated by your enemy. Yahweh is not among you. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you and you shall fall by the sword because you have turned away from Yahweh.

Yahweh will not be with you. But they presumed to go up to the mountain top. Nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of Yahweh nor Moses departed from the camp. Then the Amalekites, the Canaanites, who dwelt in the mountain came down and attacked them and drove them out. Why didn't they just listen? Why did they think they knew better? You can hear the appeal of the man of God, of Moses. Don't do this.

Don't presume it. How many ministries do we see exercising a good cause without any leading until they get to the point where what? They exist to fundraise.

They exist to get your money. They may still have good intentions. They may be decent people. But they're not listening. And as a result, they're giving the ministry of the Holy Spirit a beggar's name. May pointing this out never make me feel better than they are or superior to them. But I am not going to abandon the principles for the sake of anyone's comfort.

That would be foolish. It is not enough to know scripture. We must adhere to the scripture. And there are those that are not moved by this. Matthew chapter 10 verse 14. And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.

What is that? You mean there is a feature that belongs to our faith that resists people, that repels them. Yes, absolutely. Now a question. No answer back. Rhetorical. But you can answer it in your heart.

Does that offend you? These are the instructions of Jesus Christ and he does not pull them back. Matthew 13, 58.

Now he did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief as much as he loved them. Acts chapter 14. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first. But since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.

You see? That's the application of not casting the pearls before swine. They went into the synagogue. They preached the word. It was rejected. Instead of continuing and insisting and forcing it, they moved to other areas.

What happens often in a Christian's life is that you've been ministering to someone and they become your pet project. Big trap. Big waste of time.

You just move on. No hatred. No animosity.

Maybe later they'll be ready. That's not your concern directly. It's all of our concern in our heart, of course. Acts 19, verse 9. But when some were hardened and did not believe but spoke evil of the way, that was the early name of Christianity, before the multitude, he, Paul, departed from them and withdrew the disciples reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus.

Paul said fine. We'll just go have church. Unbelievers don't want to hear what we have to say here. We'll preach to those who come through our doors. Matthew 15, 14. Jesus speaking.

Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind and if the blind leads the blind, both will fall in a ditch. The meanings are clear. You need no seminary professor to tell you what those verses mean. Another example is Herod Antipas who heard John the baptizer gladly but other passions overruled in the life of Herod and he beheaded John. Then the day came when Jesus was standing right in front of Herod. He is the only person in the Bible that Jesus completely ignored, said nothing in return to. Herod is saying do something. Show us the magic and are you the king? And Jesus, nothing. Herod had become the dog hog by his own will in the context of this verse that we are considering. This is liberating as a Christian who wants to share the faith.

This makes me say yes. I don't have guilt to share my faith. I better share it because I don't want Jesus to think I'm denying him or let's just throw it up in the air.

Maybe we'll get somebody. Do you think I don't have people I love just as much as you have people you love who aren't saved? What can you do about that? You stay focused on the precepts. You have to know when to withhold the gospel and when to let it fly. It comes from experience or you make these rookie mistakes, mistakes you should not have made as an experienced believer.

Everybody liked that song, right? You got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them. It's all about laundry. Well, we like the song because we understand in life we need discernment. We need to be able to distinguish when to do something from when not to do something. So that is why this text is on the list.

It is the lead text. My will was Acts 2 42, but God's will was it's the gospel. It's the gospel I want dealt with so that my people can be more effective at sharing their faith. And another thing that comes with this is waiting. It's a big part of war is waiting because it does more harm than good to not wait, to be presumptuous as I mentioned, to be stubborn.

What about those who do it the wrong way and get results anyway? That is the mercy of God in spite of breaking the principles. It is not an endorsement and you don't want to be that Christian. Caiaphas was the high priest at the time that they were going to murder Jesus Christ. It's a classic example of God using a fool to tell the truth.

I'm going a little extreme with this because it will sit better with you. Caiaphas, he prophesied. He was a rejecter of Jesus Christ, part of the murdering clan against him. John's gospel chapter 11 verse 51, now this he did not say on his own authority, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation.

Caiaphas is expedient that one should die for the nation. He didn't know what he was saying, but it was true. God knew what he was saying. God's people knew what he was saying. Because one gets away with violating a principle again does not mean that they are approved unto God. People can get saved at a Satan rally. Hearing something and all of a sudden the Holy Spirit penetrates through the darkness and makes them understand that what is going on here is now wrong to them. Thank God that he does this because we're all he's got to work with.

And all of us make rookie mistakes, but again, we don't have to keep making them, not so much. He has entrusted us with this unmatched truth of his salvation. Is not the book of Leviticus a classroom on protocol for the believer? You get, you read Leviticus, oh boy, the kidney's got to come before the liver or is it the liver before the kidneys?

I don't know. What do we do with the lungs? You know, all of these body parts are cut up of the animal and they're arranged in a certain way and the Levites, the Levitical priests had to know how to do it. And never would you see them take from the offering a piece of the ox or the lamb and throw it to a dog or a hog because they understood. They were able to make distinctions and they did not say, well, we know better than God, we're more interested in saving lost souls than God is, we're more capable, those are traps, just don't do it. He's entrusted us with these truths when we have to be firm. Not always will the outcome be good. Years ago when I was in, again, the industrial world, there was a particular man named Mike that I was sharing the faith with. We were working on the Brooklyn Bridge at the time, right on, you know, there's a walkway that goes across the bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn, or if you're from Brooklyn, then it goes from Brooklyn to Manhattan.

But never the same way. Anyway, so I'm sharing the gospel, we're changing the cables so when you hook onto the cable you have to wait for it to go up and you had a little, there was an interval of time there and he would ask me, tell me about, you know, your faith and I would share with him and he would be agreeing but that walkway at lunchtime would be loaded with women coming and walking across the bridge for exercise. And, is my wife here?

Because they were ugly women. Anyway, oh gosh, I couldn't resist. Anyway, Mike would, while I was sharing the gospel about fornication and lust and he would say, wait a minute, whistle at the girls and he'd come back and tell me some more. And after one or two times, wait a minute, he's mocking the faith. He's acting like he's right here with me and then right in front of my face he tramples it. So I said, Mike, I can't tell you any more about Christ to you serious. He was fine with that.

Three months later he was dead. What do you do with that? This is serious stuff. It's not a joke and Jesus didn't treat it that way and we can get so comfortable with the gospel that we lose sight of these things. These are beneficial lessons from the scripture. Preaching is meant to make us better. For the preachers, preparation for preaching is supposed to make them better.

It's called edification and we don't want to cheapen its message, devaluing it. Christianity has repelling powers that belong to it as well as attracting powers and we don't know where they are all the time, not easily. The gospel appeals to those whom the Holy Spirit is drawing and them only, John's gospel chapter six, verse 44, no one can come to me unless the father who sent me draws him and I will raise him up the last day. You see the control, the sovereignty and that I will raise him up. The father brings them. The father brings them to me. Nobody can do this.

This is exclusive. You can be a part of this if you'd like. You can be a part of it the wrong way or you can be part of it the biblical way.

Which will it be? Every Christian should walk away and say, I am stronger for that kind of a lesson, not weaker. And then there are those that say, so are we to leave them in doom?

Rookie question. It's a question that belongs to an amateur because the Bible has spoken on this. Matthew's gospel chapter five, but I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you. What am I going to pray for them? That they run out of ammo. They stop talking bad about me. Well, that's part of it, but the big part is this, that they would be out of the darkness, brought into the light because that's the only place that's going to bring the change for them. That's what we're here for.

And if you hate them, you won't pray for them because your emotions will get in the way. Been there. It is something we can overcome. And I'm about done and I don't want to be done. So we can slow down without stalling. We understand that. You're going to rush to save souls, slow it down.

You won't stall. Just love the Lord, worship the Lord, be ready, do what you're supposed to do. Don't think that if you are outside of scripture and your devotions, don't think that somehow God's going to find you magically useful.

Comes from hard work, close with this verse from Jude, verse 22, just a short part of it. And on some have compassion, making a distinction. You see, God does not block us out and says, you know what, you're too much of a sinner to be used, you're too dumb to be used.

Once dumb, always dumb. That's not true. That's not, that's Satan's line. God says, I want you to learn to read what is going on, to figure it out. I want you to understand I do love sinners. And you might not see their conversion for years, the fruit of your work. You may not see it in your lifetime. That is not your concern. It's not my concern, is our primary. Because you can't turn off your love and your feelings. But we have to believe by faith that God knows what he's talking about and that he can raise up witnesses from stones to our insult. What would it be? You know what, people were so hard headed, I had to use rocks.

I had to bypass them. Now that won't happen, but the point is made in his teaching. If these people don't stand up and worship, then the rocks will cry out. What a shame, God had to go to inanimate objects to praise his name. Every Christian would say, no Lord, I will praise you because your spirit lives in me.

I need to make one other point before this is over. This does not apply to the church. The church will preach the gospel in the assembly.

Whether there are hogs, dogs or saints present, it doesn't matter. We declare the gospel all the time. The application of the verse has to do with being out in the field, face to face with those who don't have what you have. Be strong, be encouraged, people get saved.

Just look around you and be part of the processes of God according to his ways. We're glad you joined us today to learn how to avoid some rookie mistakes in the faith. Pastor Rick will have more to share next time on Cross Reference Radio, a ministry of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia. If you'd like to listen to more teachings from Pastor Rick or if you'd like more information about this program, we invite you to visit our website, crossreferenceradio.com. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast so you'll never have to miss a program. Just search for Cross Reference Radio in iTunes, Google Play Music or your favorite podcast app. What a great way to keep God's word with you wherever you go. We hope you'll tune in again next time as Pastor Rick continues studying through the scriptures right here on Cross Reference Radio.