TEXT: I John 5:13

SUBJECT: The Christian's Great Interest #5

On Wednesday nights, we're studying a book called The Christian's Great Interest. Because I was out-of-town last week, I moved the study to this afternoon. The book written about three hundred years ago by William Guthrie, a Scottish pastor.

It's topic is assurance. How do you know that you're saved? The author leaves no doubt: You know you're saved if--and only if:

Do you believe? Have you been changed? If so, you belong to God now and will go to heaven when you die.

But there's a problem: Your faith and new life may not be real. Is that possible? It is. Guthrie says,

You know that, of course. That's why you're scared. You have "faith"--but Simon the Sorcerer did too. You "repented"--but so did Ahab. You've followed Christ a while--but didn't Judas also do that?

If these men weren't in the Bible, you'd have nothing to worry about. But they are in the Bible. And that keeps you up at night.

How do you tell the difference between a hypocrite and a believer?

That's what we have in Chapter Five.

WHAT HYPOCRITES HAVE

In the first part, Guthrie explains what hypocrites and believers may have in common.

Salvation is not by knowledge, but all believers have some. We all know something about God, Christ, and the Gospel.

Do hypocrites? Yes they do. According to Hebrews 6:4, they are "enlightened". Some of them know so much they're made pastors and teachers in the Church. They "Prophesy, cast out devils, and do many wonderful works". With all this knowledge, they're still unsaved.

This shouldn't surprise you because the devils "believe in One God", confess Christ, and quote Scripture.

Hypocrites who know the Bible!

Believers know Christ. And more: We also feel Him. He stirs the hearts of His people. We "rejoice with a joy unspeakable and full of glory".

And so do hypocrites. They "Receive Word with joy" our Lord said. Excited hypocrites!

Believers talk about spiritual things. "Those who feared the LORD spoke often one to another" says the prophet. We talk about the Lord; about sin and grace; about Law and Gospel; about heaven and hell. And so on.

Surely hypocrites don't discuss these things--do they? Yes they do. They "draw near to God with their lips, while their hearts are far from Him". Bible-quoting hypocrites!

Believers feel their sins and confess them. "If we say we have no sins, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness".

Do hypocrites feel guilty when they sin? Do they fess up to their wrongs? I'm afraid they do. Judas felt badly about what he had done--so badly, he confessed his sins, gave back the money, and hanged himself! That's pretty bad! In 1857, Spurgeon preached a sermon with seven texts. Let me quote them for you: "I have sinned". Two of the men who said that, we're good. But the other five? Let me name them: Pharaoh. Balaam. King Saul. Achan. Judas. Notorious sinners all. Yet they felt their guilt and confessed their sins. Convicted hypocrites!

Believers have many good qualities and do good works.

And so do hypocrites. Paul was very selective in his colleagues. When Mark chickened out in Cyprus, we wasn't welcome to work with Paul anymore. But one man was: Demas. He must have been very brave and outspoken for the Lord. Yet the same man also "Departed from us, having loved the present world".

As for good works, remember the Pharisees who did so many of them: "Praying, fasting, giving alms". They were obedient hypocrites!

Believers know God personally. They've read about Him in the Bible, of course. But that's not all: They have "Tasted and seen that the LORD is good".

And so have hypocrites. Hebrews 6:4-5 has them "Tasting the heavenly gift, partaking of the Holy Spirit, tasting the good word of God and [feeling] the powers of the coming age". Balaam had this experience; so did King Saul. It was a true experience with the True God. Yet they weren't saved. They were hypocrites who knew God personally!

I find this very discouraging. If Guthrie stopped here, I'd go home doubting my salvation. I have all these things--I think--but so did Judas Iscariot. He wasn't saved. How can I know I am?

WHAT HYPOCRITES DON'T HAVE

Here's how: There is one thing the worst believer has, that the best hypocrite lacks: A new heart. Guthrie says,

Has your heart become new? You can't be saved without a new heart. And if you have a new heart, you are saved--no matter how inconsistent your life is.

Do you have a new heart? You do, says the old writer, if you have:

Guthrie chose his words carefully. Some motives are wicked, such as doing good so that people will admire you for it. That is a pride that mocks God.

Other motives, he calls "base". Not evil, but lower than they should be. Serving God to stay out of trouble is not wrong--unless that's the only reason for serving Him. Then it becomes wrong.

Believers worship and serve the Lord for various reasons, of course, but chiefly from a sense of His worthiness! We serve Him--not because He demands it so much--but because He deserves it! We join the heavenly choir:

Is this your attitude? Here's a little test. When something's to be done for Christ, do you say, "I have to" or "I get to". This is not a matter of words! The words reveal your heart. Think about it: You tell your kids, "You have to go to the dentist" and "You get to go swimming". Now, the new heart "gets" to serve the Lord. The old heart "has" to!

Compare the Psalmist with the hypocrites:

You can see the difference, can't you? Both were offering sacrifices to God, but one was doing it for God, the other was doing it to stay out of trouble.

What you do is not as important as why you do it. The new heart has new motives.

The key word is "first". The Lord may be on the hypocrite's list--even way up near the top. But He's never Number One. What is? It doesn't matter! For one person it's career; for another it's family; for another it's learning; for another, it's pleasure; for another, it's money. And so on.

Priorities are big, invisible things. But they're seen in the little choices of every day.

Think of spending. How many believers "Honor the LORD with their firstfruits?" Or does He get what's left over? Under the New Covenant, the amount you give is not fixed. But the Lordship of Christ over your money is! When did you last pray over your pay check? Do you pray before buying things? I'm not trying to put a guilt trip on you, but ask yourself: "What are my spending priorities? Myself or Jesus Christ?"

Think of your children. We all want what's best for our kids. But what is best for them? We all say, "God", but do your actions put the lie to your words? What do you emphasize to your children? What's gets the "quality time" of each day? Sports? Schooling? Music? Social life? Work? In their place, these things are good. But not in God's place! Put in God's place, they become idols. "No man can serve two masters!"

What is your priority? I don't care about numbers 2 to 1,000,000. But I care very much about number 1! If you've got a new heart, there is no rival to Jesus Christ.

This seems to contradict what he said before. In the first part of the chapter, he said hypocrites

So which is it? Are hypocrites broken or not? They are--but never to the point of being "emptied of their own righteousness".

When the hypocrite sins, he may feel terrible about himself and confess his sins from the heart. But deep down his pride is not broken. He resolves to do better the next time. Turning once again to himself for strength.

The believer knows better. To him, sins don't prove, "I'd better try harder, but something else: "I can't do anything on my own. I need an Almighty Savior working His will in my life".

That's brokenness; that's emptiness. That's proof of a new heart.

Hypocrites find satisfaction in Christ--and in what they are; what they do; what they don't do; what they give; what they know; where they go to church; and more.

But believers know better. Looking within, we feel nothing but shame. But looking to Christ, we feel nothing but joy. We're content not saving ourselves; we're satisfied with salvation in Christ only.

SUMMARY AND CLOSE

To have assurance, you have to be saved. If you're saved, you'll have a new heart. It won't be perfect, but it will be new. A new heart is not seen in what you know, how excitedly you talk, or how many good works you do.

A new heart is seen in a new motive, a new priority, a new brokenness, and a new joy in Christ.

Do you have these things? I know you're not perfect; maybe you're not very mature. But do you have them? Do you want to serve God because He deserves it? Do you put the Lord first--or try to at least? Do you know--not just say--you cannot save yourself or help God along with it either? Do you know Christ alone is enough for me?

If so, you have a new heart. You ought to have assurance. For God is telling you that you belong to Him and will be with Him forever.

If not, you don't have a new heart. And you'll never get to heaven without one. The Pharisees thought education and discipline were enough. If they knew the Law of God and tried hard to do it, God would receive them.

But our Lord put the lie to that sort of thinking: "Unless a man is born again, he cannot see [or enter] the kingdom of heaven". Nobody has yet. Nobody ever will. Including you. So get a new heart. You can't make one for yourself. Go to God and He'll give you one. For Christ's sake. Amen.