Always Be Ready for Exams

A timely challenge from pastor and International Bible teacher, Dr. Michael Yousaf. People don't want to believe that Jesus and Jesus only is the way to heaven and eternal life. So what do most of church people do? They would say, oh, let's lower the standards, water down the truth. If it offends people, let's not talk about it after all. People are the most important thing about the church, not the truth.

The Apostle Paul would tell us that this type of accommodation, this type of compromise will bring about disastrous eternity. Thanks for joining Dr. Michael Yousaf for this episode of Leading the Way. Well, the words final exam give most everyone a rush of adrenaline and dread. But the fact is that everyone is scheduled for a final exam, that test that will determine their eternal destination.

So get ready for a perspective changing message from Dr. Yousaf. He's called it, always be ready for exams. You remember back in the days of school when you get this one of those teachers who kind of has a habit of coming in totally unannounced and says, surprise test. I did not like those teachers. They claimed that surprise tests are supposed to ferret out those who are ready from those who are not. But the reason I didn't like them is because I am the kind of student who was the kind of students that kind of crammed the full year's knowledge in two weeks. And therefore I didn't know what to do with surprise exam. But then when I got older, all that changed. For some reason I went to the other extreme.

Now I am over prepared and always trying to be ahead of time. Which is fine. I'm not complaining.

I think it's wonderful. Those teachers drove me to it. But the Apostle Paul is not like those teachers. The Apostle Paul is the kind of teacher who warns you again and again and tells you that the test is coming, that the exam is coming. And he even go over the curriculum with you once or twice, three times. He prepares you for the exam and even then give you an open book exam.

And says, now is the time to take a test. Exam time. I'm sure if I ask the average student today, or even those of us when we're students, if I ask you about exams, most of you would say, I didn't like exam time. I think generally speaking, most students don't like exams. But in reality exams and tests are the only way to determine where the student stands. Exams and tests ferret out those who know from those who don't know. Exams and tests always determine the qualification of the person. And we have that in every profession. It will be law or medicine or accounting. They all have board examinations and they have board certification and I thank God for that. Imagine a guy who claims to be a brain surgeon. Never been through board examination or medical school.

That would be a disaster. But in the spiritual life it works the same way. It works exactly the same way. We have exams and we have tests. But these exams and tests are always, always self-administered. They do not come from the outside.

They come from the inside. These exams and these tests are for each individual's benefits. They're not for the benefit of anybody else except you and except me. And yet these exams and these tests count for greater consequences than anything else on the face of this earth. Because the results of these tests, results of these exams can determine your eternal future. The result of these exams and these tests can determine whether you spend eternity in heaven or you spend eternity in hell. The results of these exams can mean whether you hear from the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ those magnificent words, come my beloved inherit the kingdom that was prepared for you before the foundation of the earth.

Or hear the terrifying words that says I never knew you. Depart from me who have practiced lawlessness. That's the difference in the spiritual exam, in the spiritual test. And today as I conclude the series of messages of 15 secrets for the power of positive living, we will look at the exam.

Being ready, always ready for exam. This one probably is the most powerful instrument for positive living that I know. In fact, it is foundational to all the others. It's amazing how the Apostle Paul would go through all of the 2 Corinthians, talks about these things that God have taught him and these things that gave him power to live positively in the middle of fear and trepidation, in the middle of persecution, in the middle of imprisonment, in the middle of flogging. And yet comes to the end and he says the last one is foundational to them all. Look at verse 5 of 2 Corinthians 13. Test yourself to see if you are in the faith, examine yourselves. He said he's talking to believers.

Yes, be patient. I'm coming there. The Corinthians of old fell in the trap that some of our modern educators have fallen into today. I keep up with what's going on in the education world. And one of the great tragedy of modern education is this, that if the students are not keeping up, if the students are failing, if the students are not succeeding in school, the answer is the standards must be too high. Let's lower the standards. So to lower the standards, change the curriculum, don't insist on accountability. That's what seems to be going on in education.

But you know what? It is happening in the churches of Jesus Christ too. People don't want to believe that Jesus and Jesus only is the way to heaven and eternal life. So what do most of church people do?

They would say, oh, let's lower the standards. Let's just not talk about this particular truth. Water down the truth. Don't talk about it, about the central truth very often.

Talk about relationships and talk about all kinds of communications, talk about all kinds of things. Keep that out of the way. Leave it up to people to choose what they want to believe. Make it palatable so that those who don't like it don't get offended by it. If it offends people, let's not talk about it. After all, people are the most important thing about the church, not the truth.

Let's not talk about it. Pray tell me why in God's name should we change the truth of the gospel so it might be palatable for somebody who doesn't know it. We should be teaching it to them instead of changing it to accommodate to them. Because the apostle Paul would tell us that this type of accommodation, this type of compromise will never cause you to have a positive living. This kind of thinking will only lead us in the downward direction. This kind of thinking can only cause frustration and disappointment and we're seeing it all around us. The more the church says God is diversity and diversity is God, the more frustrated and depressed people become because they are going away from the central truth.

This kind of thinking can only bring about temporary easing of the conscious but in reality it will bring about disastrous eternity. And Paul said for true peace and joy, for assurance of heaven, for assurance of eternal future, instead of doubting the word of God, examine yourself and find out if you are in the truth, if you are in the faith or you're not. Examine yourself and see if you are in the truth or you have moved away from the truth.

It's your job, it's my job to know whether I know the rules or I don't. Examine yourselves and see if you have genuine salvation or not and God in His mercy, God in His mercy is not going to change the rules just to accommodate the people who don't like His rules. God is not going to change His gospel just to make it palatable for people who don't like it.

He ain't going to do it. He's a sovereign God. He is God after all and you and I have to accommodate to Him.

He doesn't have to accommodate to us. And so the question is this, who are the people who should be doing self-examination? Who are the people who should be examining themselves on a regular basis? Every one of us, every one of us, yours truly ahead of the pack, every single one of us to refuse to examine yourself on a regular basis, to refuse to administer the test to yourself on a regular basis.

It is not only arrogance but it is taking God's grace, it's taking God's salvation for granted and God doesn't like that. But here's the good news. No, no, no.

Here's the fabulous news. In this type of exam, in this type of test that the Bible talks about, you can be always a winner. In this type of test, in this type of exam, you can always be a success.

Even those who fail the test can succeed. In this type of examinations, to test whether you are in the faith or not can be summarized this way. I'll give you a big theological word for it.

Heads you win, tails you win. How about that? What do I mean by that? If I examine myself and I do on a daily basis, I don't wait till Sunday, I do it on a daily basis. If I examine myself and find that I'm in the faith, then I will be overjoyed. I'll be giving God glory.

I'll be thanking God for His grace and mercy. But if I examine myself and find myself have moved away from the truth, what is the next step? God has a carte blanche invitation, He has engraved invitation for me to repent and come back to the truth.

That's exactly what I mean by heads you win, tails you win. Because God promised to receive everyone, anyone who turns to Him. The moment I come face to face with the reality that I am not in the faith, that I have departed from the faith, that I have sinned gravely, God in His grace and mercy will not repent. He receives me, He embraces me, He forgives me, He restores me.

Heads you win, tails you win. It's a great theological term. Write it down so you don't forget it. And Paul told the Corinthians, examine yourselves, examine yourselves. And when he said that, you know what? He was very confident that they'll pass the test.

He really was. I'm going to show it to you from the Word of God. He was very confident that they'll pass the exam, that they're going to see Christ in them.

Listen to what he said, letter part of 5. He said, or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Christ Jesus is in you? Unless of course you fail the test. Or somebody might be asking the question, well, you know, how do I know that I'm in the faith? How do I know that I, if I close my eyes in death this afternoon, I will be in the presence of God without a shadow of doubt?

How do I know for sure? Somebody says, well, would my making a profession of faith so many years ago, and I even remember the date, would that be it? Not necessarily. Somebody says, well, you know, I prayed the sinner's prayer a long time ago.

Would that be it? Not necessarily. Somebody said, you know, I've been baptized, not even once I've been baptized, several times. Every church I go to, I get baptized.

God bless you. Would that it? No, not necessarily. You can be baptized every morning if you like. Someone who says, but I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

Would that be it? Not necessarily. Demons believe in Jesus Christ. The Bible said they believe and they tremble. They do. They are terrified of the day of judgment.

Do you know why? Because they read the Bible better than you and I do, and they know that the day is coming where they're going to be sent into the lake of fire. They know that. They know that. So let me give you four questions, four tests.

If you're taking notes, write them down. I have used them in my own life many a time, and I share them with you. Four questions that you can ask yourself to ascertain. Are you in the faith? Are you in the truth? Are you born again? If you close your eyes in death today, will you open them in heaven? Four questions.

Question number one. Are you eager to confess your sins the moment you sin? Or do you try to rationalize your sin? Or do you try to explain away your sin and say, well, you know, Michael, you don't understand. I was just under pressure and that just happened. Or my circumstances were such that I just could not be avoided.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Listen to what Jesus said. Blessed are those who mourn over their sin, for they shall be comforted. The Bible said that those who confess their sins will obtain mercy and forgiveness. You see, many people see confession of sin as negative.

I've heard preachers with my own ears. So we didn't talk about sin because it's such a negative connotation. Sin is negative.

Oh, I agree with you. Sin is negative. We don't want to turn people off. I promise you, you're turning them off from God. How would you come to the positive of experiencing forgiveness and restoration until you need to deal with the negative of confession of sin? In fact, God sees confession as very positive. It's the most positive step for healing. It's the most positive step for salvation. It is the most positive step for peace. It is the most positive step for joy in your life. Some have said, you know, admitting and confessing of sin is really harmful for one's self-esteem.

Give me a break. God said, it is the only way for real confidence and real assurance that you are in the faith. And that's very positive.

Very positive. Question number two, do you hunger and thirst for righteousness? Jesus again, Matthew 5, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are truly redeemed. That's literal translation. It doesn't mean that you never fail. It doesn't mean that at all. We're not into perfection here.

No, no, no, no, no. But what I'm talking about is have an aversion to sin and desire for righteousness. Deep down in your heart, you have a longing for righteousness in your relationship with the Lord, for righteousness in your relationship with others. And that is the one great indication if you are in the faith or not. You know the Pharisees who were condemned by Jesus, oh goodness, they did all the right thing as far as the external life is concerned.

As far as the outward appearance is concerned. They did the right thing. And the reason they were condemned by Jesus is because they did not have inner longing for righteousness.

That's why. Whether others are watching you or not, you're hungering for righteousness. Whether others know it or not, you're hungering for righteousness. Whether others oppose you or approve of you, you're hungering for righteousness. Whether others appreciate you or don't appreciate you, you're hungering for righteousness.

Mourning over sin, hungering for righteousness. The third question to test yourself to see if you're in the faith or not is this. Do I submit to the authority of God's Word?

Although I try to just explain it away, my life is busy, I'm running around and everybody does it. Today is a different day. Surely God doesn't expect me to pay a price for following Him. Surely God, and on and on and on.

Now, that could not be further from the truth. Jesus said, if you love me, you obey my commandments. If you love me, you obey my commandments. He did not say, obey my commandments if the price is right. He did not say, obey my commandments if the environment is conducive. He did not say, obey my commandments if everybody agrees with you. He did not say, obey my commandments if your friends are not against it.

No, no, no, no. Jesus said, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. And in John 8.31, Jesus said, if you abide in me, that is if you submit to my words, if you abide in my word, you are my disciples.

Do you mourn over your sin or do you rationalize it? Do you hunger for righteousness? Do you submit to the authority of the Word of God? Question number four, do you genuinely love God and love others?

In 1 John 5, 2, the Apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, he said, the proof of our genuine faith is our love for the Lord. And just in case somebody glibly said, well, yeah, I love God. The question is, how do you love God? How do you express your love for God?

How do you do it? Do you do it in words only or you do it tangibly, sacrificially? Oh, not only that, also in 1 John 3, 14, he says, loving other believers is a clear indication that you have passed from death to life. 1 John 3, verse 14, look, there's no use saying, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I believe and I met my profession of faith and I've been through all the motions and you have deep hatred for a brother or sister in Christ.

No one cut it. I don't make the rules. I'll tell you about them. Examine yourself, are you in the faith? Question number one, are you eager to confess your sin immediately when you fall into them or do you explain them away? Question number two, do I hunger for righteousness? Question number three, do I submit to the authority of the scripture? Number four, do I genuinely love God and others?

If your answer to all four questions is yes, yes, yes, yes, then give thanks to God. Praise Him for His grace and mercy. Give glory to God. But if your answer is no to any or all these questions, today you can begin.

Today you can start again. You can say, Lord, I have done all the external things. I got baptized. I joined the church.

I've done all the things that I thought I'm supposed to do in order to think that I'm a Christian. But deep down, I don't mourn over my sin and I don't hunger for righteousness. Lord, I don't obey your word. Lord, I do not love you with my whole heart.

I don't love my brothers and sisters in Christ with my whole heart. Lord, come into my life. Do well in me. I can promise you that's one prayer that God will answer within seconds. And He will come and dwell in you in the person of the Holy Spirit.

Would you like to talk about how to be prepared for your final exam? Well, you can begin that conversation with one of Leading the Way's Pastoral Team today. Fill out a contact form at ltw.org slash jesus. You know, in addition to being a pastor and an international teacher, God has given Dr. Yusuf the privilege of writing more than 50 books.

And we're so happy to introduce his next title right now, Never Give Up. No matter how hard these days may be, no matter how trying those times may become, no matter how challenging the situation is, don't ever give up on the gospel truth. Learn the keys to spiritual endurance, overcome spiritual burnout, and train up the next generation to stand firm on biblical truth with Dr. Yusuf's new book, Never Give Up.

At the end of his life, imprisoned in a Roman dungeon, the Apostle Paul urged his young disciple Timothy, Never give up on prayer. Never give up on biblical truth. Never give up on the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. In his brand new book, Never Give Up, Dr. Michael Yusuf unpacks Paul's rich words of encouragement found in 2 Timothy, words that will help you endure, flourish, and thrive in the midst of doubt, danger, and despair. Don't be ashamed of the word of God.

Don't dilute it to the point of unrecognition. In this encouraging book, Dr. Yusuf unveils four unique aspects of what it means to never give up biblical truth, a timely message as Christians around the world face mounting pressure to compromise their faith and abandon their biblical values. Dr. Yusuf also shares personal examples from his life and ministry of how he found the strength to stand for Christ amid the pressure to compromise.

Reorder your copy today for your gift of any amount and receive two bonus resources exclusively from Leading the Way. Be empowered to live for Christ in difficult times and learn how to leave a lasting legacy of faith for the next generation. Whatever the future may bring, don't surrender. Don't be intimidated.

Never give up on biblical truth. Pre-order your copy of Dr. Yusuf's newest book, Never Give Up, by giving a gift of any amount. Contact us today. Get ordering information from a ministry representative when you call 866-626-4356.

That's 866-626-4356. Now you can also learn more and get a peek inside Never Give Up when you go to ltw.org. That's ltw.org. This program is furnished by Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Yusuf, passionately proclaiming uncompromising truth around the world. Learn more at ltw.org.