The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

The Spiritual Man in Romans 8

5 “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.

6 “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

7 “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

8 “So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

9 “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” - Romans 8:5-9

The spiritual man, or true Christian, is vividly contrasted in Romans 8:5-9 with the carnal or fleshly man who minds the things of the flesh (v 5), is in a state of spiritual death (v 6), and is in a state of enmity (active rebellion) against God. Such a person is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be (v 7); and further, he cannot please God (v 8). Therefore he is repugnant to God and abides under His just wrath unless sovereign grace enters and changes him into a new creature in Christ.

“To Be Spiritually Minded Is Life”

Now, in verse 9, the apostle makes a statement that no man can get around or argue against, nor can it be made to mean anything else than what it says- “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Why? Because if indeed a man has been born again, regenerated by the Spirit of God, then he is a spiritual man. God has done something for him and in him-he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The course or bent of his life is changed! For now he has the very life of God dwelling in him!

God tells us in Ezekiel 36:26,27: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” Yes, this is something that God does for us and not we ourselves. This is a work that will cause us to desire to walk in the Spirit and seek after godliness, righteousness and true holiness. It is a work of grace from start to finish, and gives God the glory; verse 27 is emphatic-”and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” We will mind the things of the Spirit, by the grace of God.

“To be spiritually minded is life “ (Rom 8:6). This statement is the key to the whole Christian life, and is the reason why the true Christian no longer walks after “the course of this world” (Eph 2:2), but after the Spirit. Our Lord said, “I give unto them eternal life “ (John 10:28; 17:2,3); and “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). Yes, this life is the very life of God dwelling in the children of God. Therefore, having the life of God in them, certain things are said about them that are not said of the unregenerate, the unsaved-no matter how religious they may be, or how many professions, rededication’s and experiences they have had. Let us see some of these things in Romans 8 about God’s children.

Romans 8

1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Verse 1 teaches that the spiritual man is no longer under condemnation, because he has passed from death unto life; for Christ has utterly wiped out the damning evidences of the broken law which always hung over his head. The Savior took these and nailed them to His cross (Col 2:14), and thereby removed the guilt and penalty of all the sins of all His people before a holy God. Then He cleansed them by faith in His precious blood and provided for them a spotless robe of righteousness, wherein they stand before God perfect in His Son.

2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Verse 2 says that the law of the Spirit of life in Christ hath made the spiritual man free from the law of sin and death, so he has now been made free from the consequences of sin, which is eternal death. He has become a servant to God, whose fruit is now unto holiness and whose end is everlasting life (Rom 6:22).

3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Verse 4 teaches that the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in this spiritual man because he is in Christ, and now able to walk after the Spirit. Like David, he delights himself in the law of God (God’s Word), and his bent of life is to please God and walk in His commandments bringing forth fruit unto holiness.

5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.

Verse 5 tells us that he is a man who minds the things of the Spirit. His mind is set on the things of God; they delight him most. So he seeks after them in the Word of God, in the fellowship of the saints, in public worship with the people of God, and in his private life of communion with God.

6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Verse 6 shows that he is a man who possesses the very spiritual life of God, and who is at peace with God because of his union with Christ and his present state of justification. He is no longer in a state of spiritual death, hating God; but he delights in God and cries that the Holy Spirit will work in him “the fullness of God” (Eph 3:19) in progressive sanctification in this life. He desires that his faith might be increased, so he may please God in all things; for he knows that the just shall live by faith and not by sight (Rom 1:17).

12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.

13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

Verses 12-13 show that he is not a debtor to the flesh, to live after the flesh; for if he lives after the flesh, the life of God is not in him and he will die. But because the life of God is in him, he desires by the Spirit to mortify the deeds of the body, (to put to death the deeds of the fleshly nature), so he will live unto God.

14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Verses 14-17 teach that since he is now a child of God, the greatest evidence he has to his soul that this is true is that he acknowledges to be led by the Spirit: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Such a person has received the Spirit of adoption, whereby he cries, “Abba Father.” He knows that God is his Father, this is real to him, for the Holy Spirit bears witness with his spirit that this is so. Therefore, he is an heir of God and a joint-heir with Christ. He knows the inward working of the Holy Spirit whereby he has received the firstfruits of his inheritance, so he groans within himself, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of his body (v 23).

24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?

25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Verses 24-25 show that he knows by experience that he lives in hope-in the hope and joyful expectation of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ; who will give him his new body and take him to be with Him where He is forever, in a place of rest and holiness where there will be no more sin.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Verse 28 sets forth the truth: “All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” The Holy Spirit also teaches the believer that God foreknew him in eternity, that he was included in God’s plan of predestination to be conformed to the image of God’s dear Son. And having predestinated him, God also calls him by His Spirit and justifies him in Christ, and will at the last day glorify him in his blessed Savior forever (vv. 29,30).

Also he knows that Satan, the world, the flesh and even he himself, can lay nothing to his account before God, because it is the triune God Himself who justified him and counted him righteous in Christ. And being one of God’s elect, no charge will ever be brought against him in heaven. Again, he knows that Christ will not condemn him, because He died for him, arose for him, and is at the right hand of God as his Representative, where He ever lives to make intercession for him till He gets him to glory (vv. 33,34). Then to seal the whole transaction of love and grace in Christ for his soul, the spiritual man learns from verses 35-39 that there is absolutely nothing that can separate him from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus his Lord!

The Spiritual Man

Now, it is because of all this which the triune God has worked in this soul by the Holy Spirit, and which was provided for him in the blood and righteousness of Christ, that he is a spiritual man-a man indwelt by the Holy Spirit-and therefore minds the things of the Spirit. He desires to walk in this pathway of righteousness and true holiness; he hates any other way, and desires to show forth the praises of Him who called him out of darkness into the marvelous light of His unchanging grace. This is the bent and trend of his life, and he can say with the apostle Paul: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20).

But the contrast in Romans 8 is with the man who still minds the things of the flesh, who walks after the flesh, and calls himself a carnal Christian. He knows nothing of these things that make the children of God spiritual, because they can only be spiritually discerned by those whom the Holy Spirit has regenerated, who have been saved by grace, and by faith have entered into that living union with Christ. The question is: Do you and I walk after the flesh, or after the Spirit? There is no middle ground of carnal Christianity, “for to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Rom 8:6).

My last word and prayer is that God by His Spirit will awaken each one of you who are deceived by this fatal error of “carnal Christianity” before it is too late, that He will deliver you from the wrath to come, that you may be justified by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ-not by the faith that is alone, but by the faith that bears the fruit of good works. For in James 2:17, “Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” This is what I have set before you continuously-The gospel of “carnal Christianity” is a gospel that does not lead to works of righteousness and holiness; and the Scriptures speak plainly: “Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14).

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

Carnal versus Spiritual in Romans 8

This radio pastor totally ignored the greater light given us in other parts of God’s Word. Romans 8:5-9: “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded [fleshly minded] is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal [fleshly] mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”

Now the first thing that can be said about these verses is they do not teach that the apostle is drawing a line between fleshly (carnal) Christians and spiritual Christians. No! He is drawing the line of demarcation between the regenerate and the unregenerate, the wicked and the righteous, the unsaved and the saved, the children of the devil and the children of God!

Many are taught that these verses do teach there are fleshly or carnal Christians, who walk habitually “after the flesh,” and spiritual Christians, who walk habitually “after the Spirit.” No, such teaching is error according to Romans 8:3-4, “God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” -for what reason? “that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us” And who is the “us”?-Those “who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” You see, the righteousness of the law will be fulfilled in the children of God, for this was the reason Christ died and rose again. And I ask again, in whom is this righteousness fulfilled?-Only those who are born again by the Spirit of God and are in the Spirit, walking after the Spirit and not after the flesh!

Again, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh” (Rom 8:5). What does the word “flesh” mean here? The word “flesh” means fallen human nature, human nature as it is before the Spirit of God begins His work in a person. It is man left to himself-born, developing, and growing in life in this world outside the activity of God upon him. He is habitually dominated by the nature with which he was born. This fleshly, or carnal man, is said here to “mind the things of the flesh.” He does not think of them occasionally, but these are the things he minds and thinks of habitually, and the trend or bent of his thinking is toward earthly things. Why? Because they please him most of all. These are the things that give him the greatest satisfaction, and therefore are the things which he seeks after wholeheartedly. So a man who minds the things of the flesh is a man who knows not God and His Christ, whose understanding is darkened, and who is alienated from the life of God. But the trend and bent of the lives of the children of God is after righteousness and holy living, by the grace of God.

Now, Romans 8:6, “For to be carnally minded [or fleshly minded] is death.” What is the apostle telling us here?-that the man who minds fleshly or earthly things as described in verse 5, is in a state of spiritual death. He is not a carnal Christian, going to heaven when he dies because he made a profession of faith and joined a church. No! He is dead in trespasses and sins, and is on his way to hell, to abide under the just wrath of God for ever, unless sovereign grace lays hold of him and makes him a spiritual man. Yes, he is alive physically, but spiritually he is a dead man. He is completely dead to God, so God is not in all his thoughts; he lives as if there were no God. Spiritual death is to be outside the life of God! Therefore, he is in a living death; he is merely existing. That is why he minds the things of the flesh, those worldly things out of which God is shut, and is governed and controlled by his fallen nature. He is shut out from the life of God; and if he dies in that condition, he will to all eternity be shut out from the life of God. Nothing more terrible can be contemplated. That is the meaning of spiritual death.

Notice now what verse 6 says about the spiritual man: He is “spiritually minded,” and has eternal “life and peace.” He is alive unto God. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3). Now verse 7: “Because the carnal [fleshly] mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” This explains why the mind of the flesh is death: If a man is at enmity against God, that is, in active rebellion against God, he is obviously outside the life of God. This means he is dead spiritually.

I see in these verses positive proof that the apostle is not comparing and contrasting two types of Christians, but rather is comparing and contrasting the non-Christian and the Christian, the child of the wicked one, unsaved and lost, and the child of God who is saved and kept in Christ. You see, a man cannot be at enmity against God and be a Christian at the same time! No, there is no such thing as a “carnal” Christian, for all Christians are spiritual men who have been born of the Spirit, given a new heart and the very nature of God. Thus we see why we cannot build a doctrine like carnal Christianity upon such a passage of Scripture as I Corinthians 3:1-4. God has given greater light in Romans 8:5-9 that no such doctrine exists.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

Two Types of Christians?

“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.” - I Corinthians 3:1

The sole basis of this false teaching of carnal Christianity is the belief that there are two types of Christians in the world today-carnal and spiritual. A misuse of Paul’s words in I Corinthians 3:1-4 is one of the major factors. We will consider these verses of Scripture in the light of Romans 8:5-9, which set forth the fact that they which walk in the flesh as the course of their life cannot please God (v 8), and are therefore spiritually dead.

The “Carnal Christian” in I Corinthians 3

“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?” (I Cor 3:1-4).

Now first of all, we need to look at these verses as they are set in the context of this entire book of I Corinthians. This letter was written to correct many errors which had sprung up in the church at Corinth, and these errors and sins can be found in 1:11; 5:1; 7:1; 8:1; 11:18; 12:1; and 15:12. The apostle Paul deals with them thoroughly and calls for repentance and searching of heart: “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (II Cor 13:5). And after giving them the history of Israel in the wilderness, he warns: “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (I Cor 10:12).

Let us consider the immediate context of I Corinthians 3. In the last seven verses of chapter 2, the apostle by the Spirit shows that no man can know the things of God except the Holy Spirit teach him; which He does by comparing spiritual things with spiritual from the Word of God, thereby saving us by the grace of God and giving us the mind of Christ. Notice also in these verses, that Paul calls them “brethren,” and tells them that he could not speak to them as mature, full-grown Christians, but as babes in Christ, who were being fed on milk and not meat. Being babes, they desired the sincere milk of the Word (I Peter 2:2), whereby they were alive unto God, and spiritual. But as they were caught in this error of glorying in men (either Paul, Apollos or Peter-1:12; 3:4,21,22), they were showing their fleshly nature; and he certainly desired to show them their error and bring them to repentance. This was that they would grow into mature, full-grown Christians, and no longer grieve the Holy Spirit who indwelt them (6:19).

Here again we must remind ourselves of the truth that these Corinthian Christians could not make sin the practice and rule of their lives; for if they did, they would show that they were never the children of God, but lost and not knowing Christ (I John 3:9,10). He is speaking to spiritual men in this passage, but rebuking them for walking in this error of glorying in men. How do we know this? Again, by comparing spiritual things with spiritual, as the apostle tells us in verses 9-16 of chapter 2.

An Example

This is why those who teach and preach this false gospel of carnal Christianity completely miss the truth of God’s Word, because they will not and do not compare spiritual things with spiritual. They build a false doctrine upon a few verses of Scripture, ignoring the greater light found elsewhere in the Bible. I know what I’m talking about, for I’ve heard it with my own ears.

Recently as I was returning from a preaching engagement, I heard a radio preacher take I Corinthians 3:1-4 and preach this false carnal Christian doctrine as I had never heard it preached before. In essence this is what he said: “Don’t let anyone deceive you about these verses, for they certainly teach that there are two types of Christians: one who is spiritual, and one who is carnal and walks after the flesh.” He said, “Indeed the carnal Christians are the plague of the church; they make God weep because they will not walk in the Spirit, but they are still Christians and will go to heaven when they die because they have made a profession of faith.”

And he went on to describe these carnal Christians as ones who did not pray, who did not read their Bibles, who partook of the sensual pleasures of the world, who very seldom went to church, who very seldom gave a penny to the work of the Lord, and who were immersed in the world and could not be distinguished from the world! He said the sad part about it was that God was helpless to make them spiritual Christians, because He did not want to cross their free will; that even though they had not bowed to Christ as Lord of their lives, yet He was obligated to take them to heaven when they died because they had trusted Him as their Savior!

As I rode along in my car hearing this false gospel being preached; I wept, because this false prophet was sealing precious souls in their sins, promising them heaven when they in fact were on the road to hell. It was blasphemy, because this kind of so-called salvation brings no glory to God, but rather obligates God to save rebels while they stay in their sins and refuse to bow to His authority as Lord of all.

I began to pray to the Lord to give me strength to cry out against this false doctrine till I die, and set forth God’s true way of salvation that calls for complete surrender of all the keys to all the rooms of our hearts, and a bowing to Jesus Christ as Lord of our life, to break the power of sin.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

The Fatal Results of Carnal Christianity

“These also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.” - II Timothy 3:8

We come now to II Timothy 3:5-9, which show the fatal results of this false gospel. “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.”

False Teachers

Let us look first at the expression in verse 6: “For of this sort are they.” This “they” are those preachers, teachers, evangelists, personal soul winners, and counselors, who have heard and lived under the power of this false gospel of carnal Christianity, and who have a form of godliness, but deny the power of God in salvation to break sin’s captive hold upon them. They are “blind leaders of the blind,” who preach and teach error and false doctrine, bringing in damnable heresies, thereby leading captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts. Having embraced this false gospel themselves, they now proceed to teach, preach and feed it to others, making them twofold more the children of hell than themselves (Matt 23:15). They not only proclaim this false doctrine and error from the pulpit, but they have great success getting into the homes. They worm their way in there, to lead away after them the women, called here “silly women” (spiritually-dwarfed women). These women are ever willing to learn, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth about themselves, or the holy and sin-hating God.

We have also a description of these in II Peter 2-“There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways [their immoral ways and lascivious doings]; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of [God’s name brought in disrepute, maligned and defamed]. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words [cunning false arguments] make merchandise of you [that is, they will exploit you for their lustful use]...having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children; which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray...while they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage” (vv1-3,14,15,19).

From these verses, again we see that these men who have embraced this false gospel of easy believism and carnal Christianity, are now the proclaimers of it. These have set themselves against the grace of God, the love of God and the holiness of God, by leading captive silly women laden with sins. They lead them astray with their many lusts, their immoral practices, into a way of life that leads to destruction! They teach them a way that makes no demands upon their sins, but leads them into sin by saying-”Once saved, always saved. The blood covers it all; it makes no difference how you live.”

Liberty?

They promise you liberty, yet you have not renounced sin, “brought forth fruit for repentance,” or desired a life of holiness. Neither have you seen the death grip that sin has upon you. They desire to bring you under their control, so you will follow their pernicious ways, their immorality and unbridled lust. And as Satan seduced the woman Eve and then her husband, Adam, so Satan (through these false preachers and teachers) seduces the women of our day, and not only the women, but all who follow the pernicious ways of his ministers (II Cor 11:3,13-15).

For many years I have observed and counseled men and women, and watched the lives of some missionaries, preachers, teachers and church members. More than anything else, I have been grieved to see that the prevalent sin among them is this sin of unbridled lust, adultery and fornication, free “love” and petting, all done under the guise of “liberty” in Christ! They excuse themselves by saying: `We are under grace and not under law, you know. Sin is not the concern, for my sins are all put to the account of Christ. This was all taken care of when I got saved. I don’t have to confess sin any more, for I John 1:9 is not for the believer, but it’s for the sinner? So sin doesn’t bother me!’ Yes, while they promise you liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption.

More and more as men and women, young people, boys and girls, are brought into the church on mere lip profession with no vital knowledge of sin or repentance, then this sin of lust will run rampant. And these false prophets and teachers will resist the truth and hold the truth in unrighteousness and ungodliness. No wonder Paul says they are men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith! These men are hostile to the truth, utterly corrupted in their mind, and are counterfeits so far as faith is concerned. “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate” (Titus 1:15-16).

This is a sad, sad picture painted upon the pages of Holy Writ concerning men and women who hold the truth in unrighteousness, palming themselves off as Christians, while they live in the secret or even open sins of adultery, fornication and uncleanness. And the fatal part about all of this is that men twist the Scriptures to suit their own sinful ways and their corrupt minds, so they can go on sinning while yet they think they are safe for heaven!

Real Life Illustrations

Let me illustrate this: I heard of a man who pastored a church where soon it became known that he was a practicing homosexual. His elders had him admit this, and then asked for his resignation. Then he asked them a few questions: “Gentlemen, don’t we believe that if one has the experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit and speaks in tongues, then he is a saved man?” They said, “Yes.” “All right; did you see me get the baptism and speak in tongues?” They again answered, “Yes.” “All right,” he said, “if I have spoken in tongues and have the baptism of the Holy Spirit, then I am saved; so if God accepts me in my lifestyle, why can’t you?” They all looked down; and he stayed on as pastor! These men and this pastor went directly against the Holy Scriptures, for the practice of homosexuality is an abomination unto the Lord (Deut 23:17-18)! God does not save a man in his sins, but from his sins, giving him a hatred for them. If he yet loves them and stays in them, rest assured that he is deceived!

Again, I knew of a pastor who said God told him to leave his wife and children and take up with another woman in his congregation, so he would have more time to peach and wouldn’t be cumbered with a large family. But God told him nothing of the kind! He just twisted the Scriptures for his own use. I tell you what God’s Word does say: “Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge” (Heb 13:4). And in I Corinthians 6:18 God tells us: “Flee fornication.” He gives no man the license to take advantage of a woman who is laden with the guilt of sin and led away with divers lusts, saying to her: “God doesn’t mind for us to give over to our natural feelings for each other, for surely it would not be lust, but love. Are we not one in the family of God? Why then can’t we be one in our natural feelings for each other?” God will bring into judgment those who take advantage of the sacred office of the ministry, to use it as a cloak under which to give in to their lusts!

Personal Applications

Again I say, we must beware of this religion that puts the emphasis on emotions, for if emotions are not directed to God and His glory, they will always lead to the satisfaction of the fleshly nature. We are aroused in our emotions when we start hugging and kissing, passing it off that “we are members of one family, the family of God, so it is surely all right for us to do this.” This leads to nothing but sensuality, the indulging in sensual pleasure and lust. I have seen the results of this with my own eyes, and it is not a pretty sight. And how much more does God hate it. If I had the time, I could give you many more illustrations from my own observation, for I have come in contact with many; but this will suffice.

I must cry unto the living God to hold me and keep me by His Holy Spirit, and not let me fall into this same pit, for I am a man subject to like passions as any man. Daily I hear the words, “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness” (II Tim 2:22). “Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation [behavior], in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (I Tim 4:12). “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil 4:8).

This word was not only meant for every man who claims to be an ambassador for Christ, that he would give heed to how he conducts himself in that sacred office. It was also meant for my own heart, that I would keep myself unspotted from the world (James 1:27) and do all things for the glory of God. And it was meant for every woman who is seeking the knowledge of the truth of God and of yourself, that you would be careful to try the spirits, so you will not be carried away with every wind of doctrine. In fact, this word was meant to try all our hearts, to see if we be in Christ and have embraced His Gospel, or if we have been deceived by this false gospel, which is another gospel and leads to hell.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

This is were we must agree, The True Gospel demands Repentance not just one time but continual Repentance. This is one of the greatest evidences of salvation, you have repented and you are continuing to repent ever being conformed to the image of HIS Son. Are you continuing to be Transformed?

The True Gospel Demands Repentance

The true Gospel of the grace of God demands repentance, the laying down of your arms of rebellion before God. Here is where you learn to take the blame for your sins and lost condition. You can’t blame your mother, your wife, your husband, your sister, your children, your environment, or even your own helplessness, but you take the blame, and plead guilty before Him. You confess in specifics and not in generalities: “God, oh my God, I stole those goods; I took your name in vain; I lied; I cheated; I hate my mother; I hate my sister; I am the adulterer, the adulteress; I am to blame for my unbelief and for my evil nature.” You see? Sin is confessed, the heart is laid bare before God, and you take the blame before Him because you are to blame. Yes, you come like David did in Psalm 51:4, crying to God: “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight.”

“For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter” - II Corinthians 7:11

The repentance that is godly and works godly sorrow in you because of your sin against God, is described in II Corinthians 7:11. It is that repentance which produces carefulness, clearing, indignation, fear, vehement desire, zeal, and revenge. This godly sorrow for sin produces the fruit of repentance in this way as the Holy Spirit works in you, showing to you your sin before God.

First, there is carefulness wrought in you-carefulness to confess every sin and lay bare your heart before God.

And then there is a clearing of yourself before God-a coming clean with God, confessing all, hiding nothing, and taking the blame for all your sins.

Then the word indignation is used-indignation against sin, a hatred for it, a crying out against it, and a fleeing from it.

Then we see the word fear-fear of sin, fear of sinning, and fear of adding iniquity to iniquity.

Then there is vehement desire-the desire to be through with sin and to know Christ. In other words, you want Christ and His salvation more than you want anything else in the world.

There is zeal-zeal in fighting against sin and fleeing from it. And then there is the word revenge-carefulness to acknowledge the righteousness and justice of God in sending you to hell as your just desert for sin.

Personal Application

Have you ever asked God to take vengeance against your sins? Have you ever confessed to Him that if you receive your just wages, it would be punishment in hell? In other words, you want God to be just in whatever He does with you. When you come there, taking the blame before God, you can reckon that God will have mercy upon you for Christ’s sake, for this is true repentance-that which God both requires and provides.

Now we have seen some of the reasons so many are deceived today by this false gospel of carnal Christianity. Because they do not know God’s way of grace and salvation, they are strangers to the power of the true Gospel, strangers to the power of the blood of Christ, and strangers to the reality, beauty and glory of this risen Christ. There is no vital, living union between their souls and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

The Deception of Carnal Christianity

“Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” - II Timothy 3:2-5

My heart is heavy because of the spiritual darkness of our day and the unconcern for holiness and righteous living that is so manifested among so-called Christians. As I face this sad spiritual condition, my soul cries unto our living God, “O Lord, rend the heavens and come down; in wrath remember mercy, pour out Thy Spirit of grace and supplication upon us, for we need Thy redeeming grace in this hour!”

Never were there so many millions of nominal Christians on earth as there are today. Never was there such a small percentage of true believers. Not since before the days of the great reformation has Christendom been so crowded with those who have a form of godliness, but who are strangers to its transforming power. I seriously doubt whether there has ever been a time in history of this Christian era when there were such multitudes of deceived souls within and without the churches who verily believe that all is well with their soul, when in fact, the wrath of God abideth on them.

“A Form of Godliness”

Surely the Scriptures we have been using from II Timothy 3 apply to the condition we find today in Christendom, as verse 5 expresses: “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.” Surely there is more light today upon the Word of God than there has ever been, for Bible Study groups are springing up everywhere; but there is less life in Christ than ever before. There are more professions today than there have ever been, but less sanctification of life. Seemingly everybody seems to be “born again”; but where are the fruits of the new birth? There is more fasting, praying and preaching than ever, but where is the practice and the power of true religion in Christ? As Isaac said to Abraham, “Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb?” (Gen 22:7). Where is the Christ-like life?-those to whom the Lord Jesus Christ is precious and a living reality?

Yes, we see many works and many duties; but where, is the life, the power, and the truth? Surely the voice is Jacob’s voice-everybody is “saying it right”-but the hands are the hands of Esau, for the man has never been made a new creature in Christ Jesus. The problem today is that the vast majority of Christendom has missed Holy Spirit conviction; and therefore men are ignorant of their sinful condition before God, and His holy requirements. For only the Holy Spirit of God can give a man a new heart and nature, and give him power to turn to God from his idols. Without Holy Spirit conviction, there is no new birth; and if you miss the new birth, you miss conversion; and if you miss conversion, you miss repentance; and if you miss repentance, you miss saving faith; and if you miss saving faith, you miss Christ!

Reasons for the Deception

The reason why this false gospel of carnal Christianity has been so widespread and so widely received is because it makes no demands upon you. It gives only a “form of godliness,” a covering, which allows its converts to indulge in any of the sins enumerated in II Timothy 3:2-4, and yet claim they are saved and on the road to heaven. And we know that the Holy Spirit is here describing these so-called “Christians” and not the world, because of verse 5 where He says, “Having a form of godliness.”

Why are so many deceived today concerning God’s way of salvation? Men are deceived because they do not know that regeneration is imperative. “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Yes, people are using the term “born again” today, but they know not what it means. They believe it is something that man does-a decision he makes, a commitment or rededication. But the new birth is something that God does. It is wholly and completely of God’s power and of God’s grace! In regeneration the sinner lies passive; it is in conversion that he is active to repent and believe, and to turn to God from his sins. So it is because a person has been born again by the Holy Spirit of God that he repents and believes, in conversion. This is the evidence of his regeneration. He is not born again because he repents and believes; but he repents and believes because he has been born again by the Spirit of God. It is God’s work, not man’s!

Why are so many today deceived as to God’s way of salvation? They know not that there must be a new creation, a miracle of grace worked in the soul to make fallen man a new creature, that it may be said of him, “Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” The new Jerusalem in heaven is for new creatures. Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people, not for those with only a form of godliness, but for those who have a new heart and a new nature. Those who have been changed by the power of the Gospel of the grace of God in Christ.

Men are deceived because they are ignorant of the fact that God must communicate to the heart a principle of holiness before there can be any holy affection, holy motions or holy fruits. And certainly, without holiness “no man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14). But by nature man does not possess one grain of holiness! This must be worked in the soul by the regenerating power of God’s Spirit. And this is why you must experience His convicting work-to convince you that you have no goodness or righteousness that God will accept. Yes, He shows you that all you can bring to Him is sin, for that is all that you are! As he tells us in Isaiah 1:5-6, “The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.”

So ignorant are the vast majority today of God’s way of salvation, and so blinded by their love of sin, they do not take time to hear God’s Word which says there must be a denying of self before anyone can become a follower of Christ (Matt 16:24). This is setting aside all of our wisdom, righteousness, strength, desires, will and interests (Rom 5:6; Isa 64:6). Yes, by the Holy Spirit’s operation in us, we must be cut off from all that which is of the flesh and see ourselves before God as a lost sinner. “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Have you ever been lost, spiritually lost before God, not knowing the way out of your ruined, spiritual condition, where God, for Christ’s sake must save you or you would be eternally lost? Has Christ ever found you, the lost sinner? If not, this is the reason you have missed Christ, and why He is not precious and real to you-It is because you have never known your lost, ruined condition before God. Christ saves only lost sinners; He died only for lost sinners!

Men are deceived by this false gospel of carnal Christianity because they have never known that there must be a renunciation of the world before anyone can be a follower of Christ. “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15). There also must be a crucifixion of the world to us, and us to the world, or we shall never enter into the blessings of the atonement purchased by Christ on the cross (see Gal 6:14).

Also, men are deceived because they have never known that to walk with Christ in that living, loving, and lasting union, there must be a plucking out of right eyes and cutting off of right hands. A mortifying of the flesh with its affections and lusts that we die daily (Matt 5:29-30).

Those deceived by this false gospel know not that there must be a taking up of the cross if any man will come after Christ; and this will cost him ungodly companions, the scorn of professors, and many a tear and groan (Luke 14:27). They know not that the Christian life is a fierce wrestling and a continual fight (Eph 6:12); it is a race that has to be run with patience (Heb 12:1). There is no discharge from the army of Christ (Eccl 8:8). They know not that God requires truth in the inward parts, which shows itself in a life of self-denial. If the professed Christians of today really knew all these things, they would not be so confident of heaven, when in actuality they are total strangers to the requirements of the kingdom of heaven. They would rather embrace a gospel that makes no demands upon them, and walk on the broad way that leads to hell, deceived by the false gospel of carnal Christianity.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

What is it that we truly love? the battle with self is one of the biggest if not the biggest battle that we have. D.L. Moody one said "I have more trouble with D.L. Moody than any other man on the planet" that is so true, Thank God for salvation & the Grace of God to not have to yield to the flesh any more. What do you yield to most of the time? Read on and let's see.

The False Gospel: No Change in Affections
“Lovers of Pleasures”

2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 “Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4 “Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” - II Timothy 3:2-5

Another fruit of carnal Christianity which comes under the heading of wrong affections is: “Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God,” (II Tim 3:4). And I say, what a sad commentary upon the poor, deceived, so-called “carnal Christian,” to believe that he can be saved, that he can be a child of God, an heir of heaven, and yet love pleasures more than he loves God! “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt 6:21); and if your treasure is this world and its pleasures, then your heart is not right with God; and fruit will not be brought forth unto perfection! When the seed, the Word of God, is sown among thorns, it is choked with cares, riches and pleasures of this life, and cannot bring forth fruit unto life, or unto perfection (Luke 8:14).

Sensual Pleasures

Now what kind of pleasures are these that men are said to be lovers of, more than the lovers of God? These are sensual pleasures and vain amusements; this is clearly brought out in Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, and in the Amplified Translation of the Bible. This being so, we need to define the word “sensual” and see how it is used in the Word of God.

The word sensual means “fleshly, carnal, self-indulgent, worldly, lewd, sexual, promiscuous in sin, glutton, epicurean, lustful, immoral, and unrestrained lust”; in other words, everything that appeals to the fallen nature of man that would satisfy his depraved heart. This is said to be the fruit of the carnal Christian gospel-lovers of sensual pleasure more than lovers of God-for these very people who practice this love of sensual pleasure, and who love the flesh and the things of the flesh more than God, are told that they are saved because of a profession of faith they made. But again, verse 5 warns us: “from such turn away,” lest we be drawn into the same deception with them!

If you live in and love sensual pleasures more than you love God, no matter what you profess, you are dead, spiritually dead, while you live, and therefore you are an enemy of God and a stranger to grace and the holy ways of the Lord. For without holiness, “no man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14).

James 4:1-4

One of the strongest portions of Scripture against you is found in James 4:1-4, where you are called “adulterers and adulteresses,” and enemies of the living God, the Holy God who hates sin. Listen to God’s Word, first in the King James translation as we go verse by verse, and then in the Amplified Version.

Verse 1: “From whence come wars and fightings among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?”

“What leads you to strife (discord and feuds) and how do conflicts (quarrels and fightings) originate among you? Do they not arise from your sensual desires that are ever warring in your bodily members?”

Verse 2: “Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.”

“You are jealous and covet [what others have] and your desires go unfulfilled; [so] you become murderers. [To hate is to murder as far as your hearts are concerned.] You burn with envy and anger and are not able to obtain [the gratification, the contentment and the happiness that you seek], so you fight and war. You do not have because you do not ask.”

Verse 3: “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.”

“[Or] you do ask [God for them] and yet fail to receive, because you ask with wrong purpose and evil, selfish motives. Your intention is, [when you get what you desire] to spend it in sensual pleasures.”

Verse 4: “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”

“You [are like] unfaithful wives [having illicit love affairs with the world] and breaking your marriage vow to God! Do you not know that being the world’s friend is being God’s enemy? So whoever chooses to be a friend of the world takes his stand as an enemy of God.”
Hard Questions

Now let us see if we are lovers of sensual pleasures more than lovers of God (spiritual adulterers and adulteresses); or if we are indeed children of God, by asking the following questions: Do we love to watch and feed upon the majority of programs that are shown on television which appeal only to the sensual, fleshly nature? Do we feed upon the magazines, newspapers and books that appeal to our sensual, fleshly nature? Do we secretly desire to do these things, even though we would not openly do them? Has sin become such a commonplace thing that we can indulge in the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, and go on saying: “All is well with my soul,” while we actually remain enemies of God and strangers to the way of grace?

Do we love God and His righteousness and holiness, or do our hearts rebel against the narrow way of self denial and a life of separation from the world? Do we secretly despise the way of grace, the way of repentance, the way of bowing to the authority of God’s Word and to the Lordship of Christ? Do we follow after our own will and do our own thing without prayer and waiting upon God for His leadership? Do we love the sexual, lewd, lustful, self-indulgent way of the world; or do we indeed love God and His holiness, and seek to please Him in a life of separation from the world? Let us face these questions, and ask our hearts where we stand before God.

“Love Not the World”

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (I John 2:15-17).

What is the “world” spoken of here? It is the reign or kingdom of the carnal mind, the mind of the ungodly system which is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. Wherever that mind prevails, there is the world. It is the “ungodliness and worldly lusts” of Titus 2:12. It is fallen human nature acting out itself under the influences of the devil, the god of this ungodly world. Its spirit is hostile to godliness; because it is dominated by carnal ambition, pride, self-pleasing, and sensuous desires and interests. The principles which govern this world, the powers which operate it, the end which it seeks, all are earthly, sensual, devilish, and not of God and holiness. The opinions of the world are false; its aims are selfish, its pleasures are sinful, its politics are corrupt, its honors are nothing but bubbles and do not last. And since the world is the sphere of rebellion against God, His people are commanded not to love it. They are not to esteem it as their portion or treasure. They are forbidden to set their affections upon it (Col 3:2).

To love the world and its sensual pleasures is to give it the first place in our hearts, to idolize it, to make everything else subordinate to the acquisition and enjoyment of it, and to de­spise whatever comes into competition with it. It is to make its vanities the chief objects of our pursuits, to share its friendships, to court its smiles, to conform to its ways, and to find our happiness in what it yields to us in its pleasures. When the world is loved, it possesses and governs the soul, overcoming conscience, the principles of holiness, and the Word of God. Its influence is subtle, powerful, and perilous, and leads to damnation and hell!

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.” One may renounce the world systems that Satan governs as a whole, and yet the heart secretly still clings to some of its parts. No, it is not sufficient that I just renounce the world, but I should detach my affections from everything which seeks to claim them. I am not to value any object of the world if it hinders the performance of my duties to God, if it dulls my relish for His Word, or chills the spirit of praise and prayer. I am to prefer nothing to spiritual things. I must not delight in anything which would cause me to lessen my esteem of Christ and heavenly things, for I am to love Him supremely; my affections must be set on things above. I may use many of the things that are in the world, but I must not abuse them. I must not put my trust in them; I must not place my happiness in them. In other words, I am to love nothing above God, equal to God, nor apart from God.

Personal Application

Are you living after the flesh and bearing the fruit of the false gospel of carnal Christianity; or are you living after the Spirit and bearing the fruit of the Spirit, which is Christ-likeness? “They that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die [the death of the unrighteous, the ungodly]: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live”-live eternally with Christ in glory! (Rom 8:5,6,12,13).

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

Are you rich? that's something that most of us don't have to deal with, at lest in this world. We are commanded to lay up treasures in Heaven. This rich Young Man had great wealth in this world. The only problem is that the wealth of this world will perish, he was rich but not rich towards God and that's all that counts. Praise God I have been made rich through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Calvary. Where does your wealth come from?

The Rich Man in Luke 12

15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:

17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?

18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.

19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

22 And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. - Luke 12:15-22

Let us go back to the parable of the farmer in Luke 12, and I ask, what was wrong with this farmer? Was it the fact that he was successful? Of course not! Nowhere does Scripture condemn success or riches as such. God never rejected Abraham, Job or Joseph of Arimathaea for being rich and successful. What was wrong then with this rich man? Had he acquired his wealth by dishonest means? There is nothing in this parable that points in that direction. On the contrary, we are given the impression that the man had become rich because of God’s blessing on the labor of his hands, causing the soil to be so fruitful that it produced bountiful crops.

These verses clearly indicate what was wrong. The rich man shows that he did not know himself. He failed to realize that his body was mortal and would not live on for many years. He was deceived by the deceitfulness of riches, of which our Lord warns us in Matthew 13:22: “The care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.”

Also, he did not take into account the fact that the ample goods in which he rejoiced could not satisfy his soul. He had nothing for his soul, and this is where the deceitfulness of the sin of covetousness lies: It seeks after pleasure and enjoyment of the physical body while the soul is given nothing to feed upon. We read in Isaiah 44:20 about this covetous man: “He feedeth on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

And my friend, if you have provided only for the body, the mind, for your family and for all your physical needs, you are in a terrible fix. You are deceived as to the true state of your soul, for it is the soul that lives on after death; the body goes back to mother earth where worms will eat it while awaiting the day of resurrection. You’re either going to be raised to resurrection of life to enjoy eternal life with Christ for ever; or you’ll be raised to everlasting damnation and contempt (John 5:29), to be cast out from the presence of God and to pay for your sins in hell for ever! And “What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matt 16:26). Your little religious profession and carnal Christian gospel are not going to hold you then, for James 1:26 tells us, “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.”

We see then, that covetousness is actually the worship of self, which is the embodiment of all evil. Because self is upon the throne of the heart, everything of this life becomes servant to the gratification of all fleshly and selfish desires. Selfishness is essentially- My right to my own self and all that I touch for my pleasure and for my glory: me, my, and mine. That’s covetousness! It says in essence, `I’m concerned only for myself, so I will get what I want no matter how I get it or who I hurt, and no matter how I lie or how many lives I wreck; I’m going to do just what I want to do!’ You may think you will cover it with the cloak of religion, but that’s the heart of rebellion against God; and if that spirit is not broken, you’re going to wind up in hell without hope and without God! Young person, you may boast yourself in your youthful age, and trust in the uncertainty of the future; but know this that God has neither promised you nor owes you a tomorrow! He could say to you what he said to the rich man this very day-”Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee, then whose shall those things be?” You can’t take anything with you, for “we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (I Tim 6:7); six feet of earth makes us all just alike!

Blinded by his covetousness, this rich man (which our Lord calls a fool) was not rich toward God; and so he indeed fell into “temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts.” And because of his sinful love of money, which while he coveted after, he “erred from the faith” and pierced himself through with many sorrows (I Tim 6:9-10). See how he was using the time for self, which the Lord had given him to prepare for eternity. What an awful thing it is for a man not to be rich toward God! This is the worst poverty a man can have, for if you are not storing up treasures in heaven, you are treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath! (Rom 2:5). If you are not in Christ and are not sending treasures ahead to the next world by His grace, you’ll receive the wages of sin, which is eternal death! (Rom 6:23). Yes, your soul is poor indeed if you know nothing about the riches of God’s grace as it is offered freely in the true Gospel of Christ, and the power of His grace as it reigns over sin in the soul!

Choking!

Oh my dear soul, you may profess to be saved, and come to the house of God, but you cannot hear the Word of God as it is preached, because sermons die in covetous hearts! This is why covetousness is such a damning sin-it hinders the Word of God from taking hold in your heart. How? You are there physically, but your soul is taken up with the world and its pleasures, and you are thinking about how to make more money-you do not want to hear of a life of self denial, so your soul is robbed of the blessing! You go on, pining and working, and looking forward to nothing but the deceitfulness of riches and the pleasures of this life. You have no time for the Word of God! You have no time to meditate upon the goodness and grace and the mercy of God who has given you time to repent. You’re content with a few tears or with a few verses of Scripture; you’re content to give a few dollars and to lose your soul because you are not willing to break before God and become a self-denying one.

It is said of the thorny ground hearers in the parable of the sower (Matt 13:22) that the seed received among thorns is lost because the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of the riches and pleasures of this life choke the word, making the hearer unfruitful. Yes, and this covetous heart makes a man fit only for hell! Therefore, no matter what his profession may be, we know that covetousness keeps a man from praying, believing and studying the Word of God, for a covetous man cannot live by faith. He trusts in “things” rather than the living God who gives us richly all things to enjoy (I Tim 6:17).

Personal Application

If God has shown you that this is your heart, why don’t you fall down before Him in repentance, crying unto Him for mercy against this sin that closes the heart against God, against your fellow man, and against providing for your never-dying soul! Cry out against this false gospel that has deceived you into believing all is well with your soul because you made a profession, and yet allowed you to continue in this sin because somebody told you that you were safe, though you were just a “carnal Christian.”

Oh may God work! May He have mercy; may He come down in power and in much assurance, and deal with your soul as only He can! May He work mightily and effectually in giving you a heart of grace-a heart to cry out after Him as never before, “Lord, break the power of sin in my life!” I would not let Him go; I would keep crying after Him! Daily I would cry, “Oh Lord, don’t leave me to myself! Continue to break the power of sin, giving me victory over it as You promised in Romans 6:14!” So bring every sin to Him and cry out against it, that He might cleanse it by His blood and deliver you by His power, giving that grace which is needful that you may close in with Him by faith, casting your never-dying soul upon Him. Then you will find in the true Gospel, the Lord Jesus Christ to be your all in all!

Tomorrow we will see the Lovers of Pleasures, Where is your treasure?

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

Covetousness, How deadly this sin is. selfishness and greed all rolled up into one. This one of the dangers of the doctrine of carnal Christianity let's see how this unfolds.

The False Gospel: No Change in Affections
“Covetous”

2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 “Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4 “Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” - II Timothy 3:2-5

Introduction

Let us look at another of the fruits that spring from this tree of the false gospel of carnal Christianity. Staying with the truth taught that their affection is all wrong, we consider now the word “covetous,” or lovers of money. This is a carnal fruit of which God’s Word gives us many warnings by commandments and examples. Listen to I Timothy 6:9-10: “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. for the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, [stretched themselves to the limit after] they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

In spite of these words of warning that a man who loves money (whose heart is eaten up with covetousness) has erred from the faith, the false gospel of carnal Christianity tells its converts that this love of money and what it will buy is natural. They say they are still babes, or carnal Christians, and everything will be all right by and by because they have made a profession; so they are saved and saved for ever.

In spite of our Lord’s warning in Luke 12:15: “Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth”; in spite of Ephesians 5:5 telling us that a covetous man is an idolater, which breaks the second and tenth commandments; in spite of I Corinthians 6:10 which says that a covetous man shall not inherit the kingdom of God-in spite of all these warnings against covetousness and the love of money, this false gospel continues to tell its converts that they are the `King’s kids’ and that the King’s kids should have everything!

The Damning Effects

But let us further consider the damning effect of the fruit of this false doctrine of carnal Christianity! The Greek word for greed (or covetousness) is very descriptive: it means to thirst for more, always having more, and still more! It is as if a man, in order to quench his thirst, takes a drink of salt water which happens to be the only water available. This makes him even more thirsty, so he drinks again and again until his thirst actually kills him. And so it is with the sin of covetousness or greed. It is the uncontrolled yearning to have, to have more, more and still more, until covetousness kills the soul of man as he abides under the curse of God for ever. As Proverbs 27:20 tells us: “Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.” What a sin! Oh my friend, it’s a deep-seated sin in the soul: “The eyes of man are never satisfied.” Covetousness damns a soul to hell!

Then we see that this fruit-covetousness, the love of money-is deceitful. Our Lord warns us with a parable in Luke 12:16-21 about a rich man who was eaten up with this sin. “The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

This covers it all! Covetousness makes a man treasure up for himself upon earth things for which he has no need, and lay up no treasure in heaven toward God. Covetousness deceives a man about his values. He places emphasis on things and misses the blessings of living for Christ and for others. And when this sin is found in a professing Christian, it is a blight upon Christianity. Surely one is deceived who lives in this fatal sin of covetousness, hiding under the false gospel of carnal Christianity, saying: ‘All is well with my soul because I have made a profession of faith.’

Again, covetousness is a damning sin because it hinders the Word of God coming into the soul! Through covetousness a man sees only his wants rather than the needs of his soul, so it blinds the eyes of his understanding and closes his ears to hearing God’s claims upon him and his life in the true Gospel. Through self- interests, his ears are closed to the precepts and commandments of the Word of God that God has given for the good of mankind and for His own glory. Instead of really seeking first “the kingdom of God and hi righteousness” (Matt 6:33), he runs greedily after the world, grasping and loving the things of the world. Blinded by his sinful nature because the power of sin has not been broken in his life, he heeds not the warnings of God’s Word which are given to protect and help him. So under a pretense of religion, he actually refuses the greatest good (God) and chooses the greatest evil (sin) at his own peril. As he blindly pursues his own depraved desires, he says in his soul: `I’m saved, but I must have my way: I’ll have that woman or that man if I have to break up their marriage to get them. I’ll have my pleasure and my drink, my money, my home, my job, my good times in life and my way, no matter what the consequences!’ This is the essence of evil, and the heart of every man or woman outside of Christ, even though they are told that they are carnal Christians and will go to heaven by and by because of a profession of faith!

Covetousness blinds the soul into believing a lie, into thinking he is doing the will of God, but that he has the right to do with himself as he pleases! So in his deception he is actually telling the Lord not to get in his way! But my friend, if God never comes in mercy to your soul and you die in this condition, you’re in a terrible fix. Hell from beneath will move to meet you at your coming, no matter what you profess to believe! Did you know that? Oh that God would open the hearts of every one of you who have been deceived, that you may see and cry unto God to break the power of covetousness in your heart and life! Cry unto God to come to your rescue, and to apply His precious blood by the power of His Spirit to cleanse your soul from this sin. Only God can deliver you.

Next we will take a look at the Rich Young Ruler and we will see that covetousness is actually a worship of self. check back tomorrow.

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

A life of self-Denial, does that sound like the Christianity that is preached by in large today? Salvation is you being transformed, changed, made different, changed into a New creation. Have you?

The False Gospel: No Change in Affections
“Lovers of Their Own Selves”

2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 “Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4 “Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” - II Timothy 3:2-5

The affections of the carnal professor of Christianity are all wrong. The Bible teaches that they are “lovers of their own selves, covetous... lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (II Tim 3:2,4). Now, where a man’s heart is, there his affection will be also (Matt 6:21); and where a man’s heart is not broken from the love of self, then his life is filled with all the other sins which we have described previously. God hates selfishness; and He delivers us from it as we’re given new life in Christ Jesus. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Cor 5:17).

A Life of Self-Denial

We want to focus now on this second aspect of wrong affections, that men are naturally “lovers of their own selves.” The Word of God calls us to a life of self denial, where our affections must be set “on things above, not on things on the earth” (Col 3:2). Therefore, as our Lord was so much against selfishness, He warned His followers in the gospels many times about being lovers of self. We are to forsake our own way and our self-esteem (love of self). Now, as we go into these Scriptures, I will let you decide if a man whose life is controlled by this sin could possibly be a child of God. Or is he not rather a deceive soul-deceived by this false gospel of carnal Christianity?

In Luke 14:26 we hear our Lord giving us these startling words: “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” Yes, that’s startling, but these are the words of the eternal Son of God, and He cannot lie. In other words, He is saying, “In comparison for His love for Me, to follow Me in this present evil world, then it is as if a man hated his father and mother and wife and children and brethren and sisters; and yea, his own life also.”

But brethren, this is not the only place where our Lord speaks along this line! Matthew 16:24,25: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” If I seek to save my life by not practicing self denial in the Christian faith, then I’m going to lose it all! Really, I have saved nothing, but have lost it all. But if I will lose my life for Christ’s sake, and will cease to be a lover of my own self more than a lover of God, then I will keep my life unto life eternal. Then again in John 12:25: “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” All right, go on pampering your life, never becoming a self-denying one-doing what you think is best to satisfy the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life-then you will lose that life that you have sought to save and love; but “he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.”

You see, what our Lord is saying here in these Scriptures and in many others is that there is no place in His kingdom for “lovers of their own selves”-for His kingdom is made up of those who love Him supremely and deny themselves. Again, he that loves his life better than Christ shall lose it; but he that hates his life in this world, preferring the favor of God and an interest in Christ before his own life, shall keep it unto life eternal.

The Error in Love of Self

Further, we see in these Scriptures the total consequence of an inordinate love of life, and an inordinate love of self. You see, many a man hugs himself to death, and loses his life by over-loving it. He that so loves his animal life or passions as to indulge his appetite and make provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof, shall thereby shorten his days and shall lose the life he is so fond of; he shall not inherit an infinitely better life, which is the one with Christ in glory after this death. He that is so much in love with the life of this body and the ornaments and delights of it, that for the fear of exposing it he would deny Christ, shall lose it; that is, he shall lose a real happiness in the other world, while he thinks to secure an imaginary one in this world.

This is what is so deadly wrong with this false gospel of carnal Christianity that produced this fruit of “lovers of self” or selfishness. It preaches that we are living in an enlightened age and that we are to love ourselves, money and pleasure, for “did not Christ come to give life, and that more abundantly? Are we not the `King’s kids’, and should not the King’s kids have the best in life?” Yes, our Lord did say He came to give life and that more abundantly (John 10:10), but remember, He came to give spiritual life to His people, which is life more abundant -not a life of abundance of material things that promotes the love of self, money and pleasure to the damnation of our souls! If this is the inclination of your heart, my friend, your affections are all wrong because of sin!

Follow me now! For I know the argument of the carnal professor who desires to stay in his sins and desires to make the best of both worlds. Matthew 22:39 says, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” And people take this and ask selfishly, “But doesn’t God tell us to love our neighbor as ourselves? And how can one love another unless he knows how to love himself?” Or, “For you know that unless a person learns to love himself properly, he will never learn to love his neighbor.” Don’t be fooled by all of this carnal reasoning, even though it sounds very plausible; the Scriptures do not teach this!

Our Lord’s command to love others as you love yourself merely assumes that you love yourself greatly, and that is the standard He applies to loving others. He is saying to take care of the needs of others as you take care of your own needs; and to look after someone else’s hurts the way you look after your own self when you are hurt! The reason men and women use this carnal reasoning and twist the words of our blessed Lord in Matthew 22:34-40 to teach something He did not say, is not that they may love their neighbor more, but that they may indulge in the things and pleasures of this life more. Face it fairly and squarely, get down to the root of it, and you’ll find that this is the motive, my friend. In this way one can indulge their fleshly appetites-their fleshly desires to embrace another man who is not their husband, or another woman who is not their wife; to forsake the responsibility of family, children and home, and live in a world in which they are the king or the queen! And they excuse themselves by saying, “Oh, but I must find myself; I must find my roots. I must have self-esteem, and I must...” Yes, they think they must have all of this, and they’ll go to hell with it, too! But the sad part about all this is, that they still believe they are saved! They still put on a form of godliness, while yet they live only for self!

Paul’s Example

Now let me give you a Scriptural example of a soul who lost his life for Christ and really saved it: It is illustrated in the life of Saul of Tarsus who became Paul the Christian, the child of God, the missionary. He said, “I had plenty of self-love and self esteem, and confidence in the flesh, but what things were gain to me [this self-love, self esteem and fleshly confidence], those I counted loss for Christ. Yes doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for Whom I have suffered the loss of all things [my self-love, my self esteem, and my self confidence in the flesh] and do count them but dung [refuse] that I may win Christ, and be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith” (paraphrased) (Phil 3:4-9).

Then again in Romans 7:9, the apostle said, “For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died”-to my self-love, self esteem and self confidence. I saw myself to be nothing but a hell-worthy sinner, abiding under the just wrath of God. And my friend, the apostle carried this estimation of himself all through his life until he died. For even after his salvation he spoke of himself in this way: “I am the least of the apostles” (I Cor 15:9); “Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given” (Eph 3:8); he styled himself the “ chief of sinners” (I Tim 1:15); and finally said, “I be nothing “ (II Cor 12:11). There’s no self-love here, no self esteem or self confidence, but here is one who had learned the lesson of the first beatitude very well: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”-I am nothing; I have nothing; I know nothing; and I can do nothing of myself-and that’s how the apostle came to see himself as he grew in the grace of God. So we see the truth of John 12:25 illustrated in Paul who was once Saul of Tarsus: “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” Are you a lover of self more than a lover of God?

Personal Application

Are you high in your self esteem and your self-love and self confidence? If so, then self is your idol, and no idolater can enter the kingdom of God (I Cor 6:9); and we are to flee idolatry (I Cor 10:14). Further, true children of God “worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh” (Phil 3:3). “Lovers of self more than lovers of God” is the fruit of this false gospel of carnal Christianity. Christ says: “He that does not deny self and follow Me cannot be My disciple.” The true Gospel of the grace of God says: “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” and the man who is poor in spirit knows he is nothing, he has nothing, knows nothing, and can do nothing apart from the grace of God; therefore he does not love his life, but rather hates his life in this world that he may keep it, by the grace of God, unto the life to come!

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity by L. R. Shelton, Jr.

This is why I believe that there is no Love in the Church today, by in large the church is so full of lost "carnal Christians" that there affections have not been affected. Have our affections changed?

The False Gospel: No Change in Affections
“Without Natural Affection”

2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

3 “Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

4 “Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” - II Timothy 3:2-5

Introduction

Truly these are dark and perilous days in which we live, when voices from every quarter are heard saying, “Follow me, for I have the truth.” But surely we should heed the Scripture which warns us, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (I John 4:1). Therefore, based upon this Scripture of warning and others, I have been warning of the false gospel of carnal Christianity which has swept the world, and our nation more than any other, today.

Why is this so? Because it is a false “gospel” that allures the flesh; a false doctrine that has a form of godliness, but denies the power to deliver from the tyranny and power of sin. For it takes the Word of God and makes it teach that all a man has to do to be saved for heaven and made safe from hell, is to make a decision for Christ-give a mental assent to a set pattern o Scriptures-and just as long as a man or woman, young person or child has “believed,” it doesn’t really make any difference how they live, even if it be in open rebellion against God! So with God’s Word we have been waging war against this false gospel of carnal Christianity, showing the fruitage of the vast majority of Christendom today, the professors or converts of this false “gospel,” whose conduct belies the genuineness of their profession.

Reading now from II Timothy 3 in the Ampli­fied Bible:

“But understand this, that in the last days there will set in perilous times of great stress and trouble-hard to deal with and hard to bear. For people will be lovers of self and [utterly] self-centered, lovers of money and aroused by an in­ordinate (greedy) desire for wealth, proud and arrogant and contemptuous boasters. They will be abusive (blasphemous, scoffers), disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and pro­fane. [They will be] without natural (human) affection (callous and inhuman), relentless-,admitting of no truce or appease­ment. [They will be] slanderers-false accusers, trouble makers; intemperate and loose in morals and conduct, uncontrolled and fierce, haters of good. [They will be] treacherous (betrayers), rash (and] inflated with self-conceit. [They will be] lovers of sensual pleasures and vain amusements more than and rather than lovers of God. For [although] they hold a form of piety (true religion), they deny and reject and are strangers to the power of it-their conduct belies the genuineness of their profession. Avoid [all] such people-turn away from them. For among them are those who worm their way into homes and captivate silly and weak-natured and spiritually dwarfed women, loaded down with [the burden of their] sins, [and easily] swayed and led away by various evil desires and seductive impulses. [These weak women will listen to anybody who will teach them]; they are for ever inquiring and getting information, but are never able to arrive at a recognition and knowledge of the Truth” (vv. 1-7).

Oh what a picture the Holy Spirit has painted here of the fruits of this false gospel of carnal Christianity! May our eyes be open to see the depths of this deception. We have shown how these false converts behavior is all wrong, described under the words and expressions, “blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, traitors, and heady.” Then we have seen how their opinion-of themselves and others-is all wrong, described under the following words and expressions: “boasters, proud, high-minded, and despisers of those that are good.”

Their Affection Is All Wrong

Thus it logically follows that their affection is all wrong, as these words and four expressions describe: “without natural affection” (v 3), “lovers of their own selves, covetous” (v 2), and “lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (v 4). Remember the apostle is speaking of those who profess to be saved-not the out-and-out worldlings who have never made a profession of religion-but those who have been deceived by the false gospel of carnal Christianity, who have a form of godliness.

The first of these last four expressions is: “without natural affection.” What an expression! What a description of our present day “Christian” society! Without natural affection means that they are callous, and have no respect, love or obedience to one another or to the Lord. Husbands and wives, parents and children, brothers and sisters, all living under strained relationships, have no communications, not caring for or loving each other!

How has all of this come to pass? Sin is the tap root of our home problems today. What sin? The sin of disobedience! God’s order in the home has been destroyed; God’s Word in the home has been destroyed; God’s name in the home has been destroyed; and God’s worship in the home has been destroyed. Therefore, all natural affection has been lost and men have become lovers of their own selves.

Husbands and Wives

God’s Word declares that His order for the home is Christ, the Head of the man; the husband, the head of the wife; and the parents, the head of the children (I Cor 11:3; Eph 6). When that order is destroyed, then the home is destroyed; and the fruit of all this is “without natural affection.” Let us face it and face it squarely: Our trouble today lies in the government of our homes, and not in the government of our land! There is chaos and confusion because men have not taken their place in the home obedient to their Head, Christ. They know nothing about being the head of wife and children, or of ruling them in love and by example. Many claim to be saved, and yet have not bowed to the Lordship of Christ as rightful Head! Therefore, the line of least resistance is taken in their home.

Also, many homes are in a state of confusion today because the whole home revolves around wives who have never submitted to the lordship of their husbands. “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church” (Eph 5:22). “Ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands... even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord” (I Peter 3:1,6). Women’s Lib. is not biblical; it is of this false gospel of carnal Christianity which allows women to preach and to usurp authority over the man! Certainly God’s Word is not against the woman, but He has graciously and lovingly laid down the order for the woman in the home. And only as she bows to the authority of God’s Word in obedience will there be peace and harmony, love and affection.

Children

And we see the children today are also in rebellion against God’s Word. They have risen up to take the command in the home, in the school, in the college and university. There is not natural affection for the parents, nor for the Word of God, which says: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right” (Eph 6:1). Yes, this is right because it is God’s way, God’s order. Oh, what a sad picture we see today of children growing up in the home and church, with no sense of sin, no sense of responsibility, living, coming and going as they please; and yet being told they are saved because they have made a profession of faith! I make no apology for saying: No child or young person is saved or will ever be saved, unless he has learned obedience to his parents. In salvation, God breaks our wills, breaks our hearts, and gives us a hatred for rebellion and a love of obedience. Yes, I believe God’s Word is very plain that obedience is one of the truest marks of a saved soul.

Personal Application

What is our hope in all of this confusion that the preaching and practicing of the false gospel of carnal Christianity has taught us? Listen and I will tell you: My dear father, go on your knees before God and confess that you have rebelled against His authority and His Christ. Confess that you have taken the role of least resistance with your family; confess that you have neglected God’s Word and His worship in the home. Call upon the name of our living God in Christ’s name, asking for mercy. Tell God that you deserve hell, but ask for His mercy in Christ. Cry unto Him for faith to trust Him in sincerity and reality, and to work His work of grace in your heart. Then start your family worship. Read the Scriptures with your family, praying for and with them. Take your place in the home as its head, looking to Christ by His Spirit to work in you and your family all that is needed for salvation and your walk here upon this earth. Do not give your affection and time to anything else!

To you, my dear mother and wife, go to you knees with your husband; confess to God that you have lived in rebellion against Him and His Word, His authority and your place in the home. Cry unto Him for the grace to take your place in the home as an obedient wife, recognizing your husband as your head, and submitting yourself unto him as unto the Lord. Ask God to give you by His Spirit a broken heart and a contrite spirit, so you will be enabled to take your place in the home. Come to Christ for repentance and faith; trust Him with all your heart, and look to Him to work out each and every problem in your life and home.

Then to you, dear children and young people, I will say that the only place of true happiness is found at the feet of Christ in obedience to Him and to His authority over you, which is your parents-your father and mother.

Our blessed Lord loves to hear precious souls crying unto Him for mercy and laying down their arms of rebellion against Him in repentance. Remember, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels when a poor sinner comes to God in repentance (Luke 15:10). It is Christ Himself Who is rejoicing, for He is seeing of the travail of His soul and is surely satisfied. You see, He desires to save you; He waits to be gracious to repenting sinners. He delights to give new hearts and new lives, for this is the very reason He came down to earth’s depths and suffered and bled and died and arose from the grave-so poor sinners like you and me may be reconciled to the thrice Holy God. But He will only receive you as a repenting sinner, and this grace of repentance He will Himself give you (Acts 5:31).

I tell you from His Word and from my own personal experi­ence that the Lord Jesus Christ waits to be gracious to you; He will receive repenting, believing sinners, just as you are, and will make you and your homes over! And my dear father, mother, and young person, when He gives you a new life and a new home, you will no longer be without natural affection, but love will flow from your heart. You will then begin to live in peace, love, hope, and joy, and in the blessings of your eternal God, who loved you and gave Himself for you in Christ.