The Cursed Fig Tree

"Now in the morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only; and He said to it, 'No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you.' And at once the fig tree withered. Seeing this, the disciples were amazed and asked, 'How did the fig tree wither all at once?' And Jesus answered and said to them, 'Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, "Be taken up and cast into the sea," it will happen. And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.'" Matt. 21:18-22

"On the next day, when they had left Bethany, He became hungry. Seeing at a distance a fig tree in leaf, He went to see if perhaps He would find anything on it; and when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, 'May no one ever eat fruit from you again!' And His disciples were listening." Mark 11:12-14

Some Christians have had a difficult time with this passage, unwilling to accept it and unable to reconcile how Jesus could do such a thing. These Christians fail to know who Jesus is, or even how just His actions were. On a grander scale, like Dispensationalists, they fail to grasp the significance of this passage. Jesus was about to enter the temple and cleanse it, overturning the tables of the money changers. 

Mark records for us that "it was not the season for figs." This does not mean that it was not yet time for the fruit to start growing and ripen before being gathered, and thus Jesus was acting irrationally. At the end of March, smaller green figs, growing from the sprouts of the previous year, appeared simultaneously with the leaves. They are ripe in May or June. The larger figs that develop on the spring shoots, much like a plum, are gathered from August through October. In other words, there ought to have been something on this tree. From the outside, the tree presented itself as a fruitful tree, being full of foliage. But upon inspection, there was no evidence of fruit. This is important!

The reason Jesus cursed this tree is found much deeper. This pretentious but barren tree represented Israel. Jesus provides the interpretation for this event the next day: "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it" (Matt. 21:43). Jesus even tells a parable of a fruitless fig tree where fruit was sought but there was none (Luke 13:6-9). The disciples, however, did not have to wait until the next day for the interpretation. The counterpart for the fig tree would be found in the temple cleansing shortly thereafter.

From the outside, the temple presented itself as a place of worship, a place where even the Gentiles could go to get close to God. In fact, the largest part of the temple was the outer court, known as the Court of the Gentiles. Because the Jews hated Gentiles so much, they filled this court with so much stuff that they pushed the Gentiles out. Not only were they selling oxen and sheep and turtle doves for the Passover at atrociously marked up values, but they were also cheating people who brought their own animals by telling them that they were not acceptable, selling them one of their provided animals, and then turning around and selling the animals they took from these people to others. From the outside, the temple looked like a place of worship, but upon closer inspection of the inside, it was anything but.

The cursing of the fig tree was just one of the many times that Jesus would predict the downfall of unfruitful Israel. Not long after this, Jesus would predict the permanent destruction of the temple: "Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. And He said to them, 'Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down'" (Matt. 24:1-2). There will never be another temple because we, Christians, are the temple of God: "having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit" (Eph. 2:20-22). What is so difficult for Dispensationalists to understand about this?

Who are they who produce the fruit of the kingdom? Christians! Believing Jews and believing Gentiles, together, as one body of Christ, the Church. The fig tree was acting hypocritically. It was in full foliage, and was therefore expected to provide fruit. Those inside the temple were also acting hypocritically. Like whitewashed tombs, they appeared beautiful from the outside, but on the inside were full of dead men's bones. Outwardly they appeared righteous  and religious to men, but inwardly they were full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Jesus hates hypocrisy, and His righteous anger is always justified, just as He will be justified when He casts people into Hell for all eternity for having broken God's laws. The fig tree symbolized God's judgment of Israel.

The Hard Truth About Marriage

"Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, 'Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?'
He answered and said, 'Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE, and said, "FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH"? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.'
They said to Him, 'Why then did Moses command to GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE AND SEND HER AWAY?'
He said to them, 'Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for fornication, and marries another woman commits adultery.'
The disciples said to Him, 'If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.'
But He said to them, 'Not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.'" Matthew 19:3-12

There were two schools of thought during Jesus' day. The school of thought from Jewish rabbi Hillel believed that a man could divorce his wife for any reason. This was derived from Deuteronomy 24:1 where it says, "...she finds no favor in his eyes..." The school of thought from Jewish rabbi Shammai believed that a man could only divorce his wife for the cause of adultery. This was derived from Deuteronomy 24:1 where it says, "...he has found some uncleanness in her..." These Pharisees were tempting Jesus, testing Him so that they could trap Him and turn one of these groups against Him.

Pharisees: Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?

Jesus: Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE, and said, "FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH"? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.

Jesus answered the Pharisees by asking them, "Have you not read...?" He went to the source of authority on marriage, which is the Word of God. Scripture is our final authority! "From the beginning..." Jesus directed them to creation, where the first marriage was instituted. At creation, God made two from the one, taking woman from man, and then He joined the two into one, making the two one flesh. "What God has joined together, let not man separate." Not even the government! Have you ever noticed that when you want to get married you go to a church, but when you want to get divorced you do not? You have to go to the government, and not even the government has the authority to annul a marriage.

Pharisees: Why then did Moses command to GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE AND SEND HER AWAY?

Jesus: Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for fornication, and marries another woman commits adultery.

"From the beginning it has not been this way." Jesus once again directed them to creation, the very beginning with the first marriage. The Rule is this: "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery." The Exception is this: "Except for fornication." Fornication is pre-marital sex. In order to understand the exception, and what fornication truly is, we need to examine Deuteronomy 22:13-21 and Matthew 1:18-25. What is the man in Deuteronomy 22 accusing his wife of? Pre-marital sex. Fornication. Why did Joseph want to divorce Mary, even though they were only betrothed and not yet married? Because he thought she had committed pre-marital sex. Fornication. According to Jesus, had this been the case, Joseph would have been justified in divorcing Mary.

Disciples: If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.

Jesus: Not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.

"If it is like this, it is better not to marry." The disciples understood precisely what it was Jesus was saying. Like most people today, they thought Jesus was being awfully strict; that it was very difficult and unfair. "Not all men can accept this statement." Which statement? The one that the disciples had just uttered. By "eunuchs" Jesus means people who remain sexually inactive, who cannot engage in the intimacies of marriage. "He who is able to accept this, let him accept it." Accept what? That it is better not to marry if you cannot divorce your spouse for any reason.

Let us address some common errors that people, even well meaning people, Christian people, believe and teach though they are contrary to the Word of God.

ERROR #1: Baptism washes away unscriptural marriages. This belief teaches that if someone entered into an adulterous marriage before he/she became a Christian, after he/she was baptized then the marriage is cleansed and therefore becomes an acceptable marriage. Let us apply this false reasoning to some other marriages. Does baptism somehow change a homosexual marriage or polygamous marriage into an acceptable marriage? No, it does not! Repentance needs to be present.

ERROR #2: Non-Christians are not amenable to the law of Christ. This belief teaches that marriages before becoming a Christian are irrelevant, even if you have been involved in numerous adulterous marriages. God's law of marriage does not become applicable only when you become a Christian! "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent" (Acts 17:30). God's law applies to everyone! All men are amenable to the law of Christ! Read 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. Even before they were Christians, they were "adulterers." That means God's marriage law applied to them.

ERROR #3: If one party in the marriage commits fornication, then both parties are free to remarry. This belief teaches that both the innocent party and the guilty party are free to remarry after a divorce due to fornication, but this is not taught anywhere in the Bible. Matthew 19 is written in such a way that it releases the innocent party while binding the guilty party. The guilty party is not free to remarry.

ERROR #4: If children are involved, God will allow an unscriptural marriage. When children are involved, it does make it more difficult from an emotional standpoint, but it does not change the fact that the marriage is unscriptural and unlawful. Some people argue that a home, a family, should not be broken up. But is this biblical? It is not wrong to stop living in sin. In fact, it is a requirement! People involved in a remarriage that is not the result of death or fornication are living in a constant state of adultery, and cannot continue in that state with God's blessing. These people need to repent by ceasing the unscriptural marriage. If two homosexuals are married and one of them later becomes saved, he/she cannot remain in that unscriptural marriage. Divorcing in this case is not wrong because the marriage was not scriptural to begin with. In the Old Testament, God did not permit His people, the Israelites, to marry people from heathen nations. Read God's law in Deuteronomy 7:3-4, and then read His command in Ezra 10:10-11 after the Israelites had disobeyed His law: "Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives." Even though they had children with these heathen people, they were to separate themselves from them. Couples cannot remain in a relationship contrary to the will of God regardless of children being involved. The father should still look after his children because that is the right thing to do!

ERROR #5: You can divorce for any reason, with God's approval, as long as you do not remarry. This belief teaches that as long as you never remarry, you are free to divorce your spouse for any reason whatsoever. But this false idea violates every passage in Scripture. "What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate." This includes yourself!

ERROR #6: A spouse who is abandoned is free from the marriage and has the right to remarry. This belief teaches that a person is free to remarry in the case of abandonment, and 1 Corinthians 7:15 is often cited as the proof text for it. But 1 Corinthians 7:15 does not teach this! "Not under bondage" does not mean you are free from the marriage. The ESV renders this as "is not enslaved." You are not a slave to your spouse. Be faithful to God. If the unbeliever wants to leave, let them leave because if you try to force them to stay, they will make your life a living hell, as Proverbs frequently describes. What do you do if your spouse abandons you? "But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not leave her husband (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife" (1 Cor. 7:10-11).

The Pharisees had asked Jesus, "For what reason can a man divorce his wife?" Jesus had replied, "What God has joined together, let not man separate." God's basic law of marriage is not difficult to understand. It says: Stay Married!

No Such Thing As A Carnal Christian

There are not two classes of Christians, one holy and one carnal. Such an idea is absurd nonsense. The Bible teaches no such thing!

"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?" 1 Cor. 3:1-4, KJV

You could read 'worldly' here, which would work, but the Greek word sarkikos (σαρκικός) means "fleshly; having the nature of the flesh," and by implication, "unregenerate." To say you can be a Christian and yet be of the flesh is demonstrative of not knowing a thing about Scripture and what it teaches. What was it the Apostle Paul said again?

"So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God" (Rom. 8:12-14).

As if that was not enough, how about when Scripture declares these things?

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth." Matt. 6:24

"For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Tim. 6:10

"If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me." John 15:18-21

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Rom. 12:2

"You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." James 4:4

"Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves 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 boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever." 1 John 2:15-17

"Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you." 1 John 3:13

Loving the Father in 1 John 2:15 and doing the will of God in verse 17 are not separate things. If you love God, you will love what He wills. It is nothing but empty talk to claim that you love God but not to love what He loves. No reasonable person buys stock in a company that is sure to go bankrupt, and verse 17 informs us that the world is passing away. The idea of a carnal Christian is an oxymoron; it is contradictory. Those who teach and believe in carnal Christianity have these facts to contend with:

"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it." Matt. 7:13

"For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live." Rom. 8:13

"Abstain from every form of evil." 1 Thess. 5:22

"Strive for peace with all men, and that holiness without which no one will see the Lord." Heb. 12:14

"If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:6-7

"Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.'" John 8:12

Scripture does not hold any punches. It says you are either all in, or you are all out; there is no fence-sitting. You are either a Christian or you are not. Those who typically attempt to argue for "carnal Christianity" tend to utilize the "sin argument," trying to make excuses for themselves and defend some sin pattern in their life they do not want to repent of. Sometimes a good, hard look at what Scripture says about the Christian is needed so that we can examine ourselves and see if we are truly in the faith. Because Scripture makes it clear that we can be deceived about this. Do not think so? Read Matthew 7:21-23. It is impossible to be an unregenerate Christian.

We have all been taught that we are saved by faith, but we have not been taught, or even taught well, the relationship between trusting Jesus, loving Jesus, and obeying Jesus? You cannot trust Jesus (have faith in Him) if you do not love Jesus, and you cannot love Jesus if you do not obey Jesus. Every New Testament author sees these things as connected. Trusting Jesus, loving Jesus, and obeying Jesus are inseparable. They are all the path to eternal life because they are the same path! How many times does Scripture need to state something for it to be true? For those who think you can be less than the Bible declares a Christian to be and simply be a nominal "Christian" only, self-righteously trying to defend sin patterns in your life you have been commanded to repent of, contend with these statements:

"So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, 'If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine.'" John 8:31

"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." John 14:15

"He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him." John 14:21

"Jesus answered and said to him, 'If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me.'" John 14:23-24

"If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you." John 15:10-15

"By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked." 1 John 2:3-6

"Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight. This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us." 1 John 3:21-24

"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. " 1 John 5:3

"And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it." 2 John 1:6

If we are truly and genuinely Christians, according to 1 John 5:3, our love for Jesus overcomes the obstacles of disobedience and makes His commandments a joy to keep rather than a burden. Similarly, according to verse 4, our faith in Jesus overcomes the obstacles of disobedience and makes His commandments a joy to keep rather than a burden. Both faith and love. Faith toward Jesus and love for God. Faith and love are a part of each other; faith which loves God and love which trusts God. If you do not love Jesus and trust in Jesus, then of course His commandments will be a burden to you, and you will continue in your disobedience because you are not a Christian. You think you are a Christian, but every line of Scripture says otherwise.

No Such Thing As A Backslider

Want biblical evidence that there is no such thing as a "backslider"?

"But Jesus said to him, 'No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.'" Luke 9:62

Not to mention that the word never occurs in the New Testament, and the five words that occur in the Old Testament all have the meaning of "faithless, unfaithful, turning away, rebellious, apostate, apostasy." John 6:66 and 1 John 2:19 describe apostates. They were never believers to begin with. They could not "backslide" because they never slid forward in the first place.

http://bereansdesk.blogspot.com/2012/03/backsliding.html

Those who typically attempt to argue for "backsliding" tend to utilize the "sin argument," trying to make excuses for themselves and defend some sin pattern in their life they do not want to repent of. Sometimes a good, hard look at what Scripture says about the Christian is needed so that we can examine ourselves and see if we are truly in the faith. Because Scripture makes it clear that we can be deceived about this. Do not think so? Read Matthew 7:21-23.

First John is the litmus test for every genuine believer. If the things written there do not describe or define you (or me), or the direction in our life (meaning we are not stagnant), then there is a problem (because the rest of the New Testament agrees with everything found there). If those things are not true of us, and we are not growing in them, then as Paul challenges in 2 Corinthians 13:5, we might want to examine ourselves to see if we are truly Christians or if we have merely latched onto some gimmick as a "Get-out-of-Hell-free" pass. There are many false gospels being peddled out there (pray a prayer, walk an aisle, sign a card, make a decision, let Jesus into your heart, try Jesus, etc., etc., etc.), and if you do not have the right one, you are still on that broad road that leads to destruction. The biblical Gospel is repentance and faith (trust) in the Person and work of Jesus the Messiah. You cannot have faith in a prayer, faith in having walked an aisle, faith in having signed a card, of even faith in your faith... If your faith is not placed in and on the proper object, then your faith is no faith at all. And if your faith is not put into action, then your so-called faith is vain, empty, useless, and dead, as James informs us. "Actions speak louder than words." What you really believe will always be lived out in your life. As Charles Spurgeon said, "If there is one fact, one doctrine, or one promise in the Bible, which has produced no practical effect upon your temper or conduct—be assured that you do not truly believe it." Scripture agrees.

The Greatest Hour of Idolatry

Did you know that the morning of worship is the greatest hour of idolatry in the Western world? If you were to enter most churches and ask people to describe the God they are worshiping, you would find that it would not resemble the God of the Bible. If you were to do a week long Bible study on the attributes of God in most churches, teaching the classical, historical view of the attributes of God, by the time you got to the sovereignty, justice, righteousness, and wrath of God, you would have church members standing up and shouting, "That's not my god! I could never love a god like that." This is because most self-professing nominal "Christians" worship a god made in their own image to suit their own agendas and ideals. They do not know Who God is.

In the book of Psalms, God rebukes Israel because they thought God was just like them. He is nothing like us and we would do well to stop committing idolatry by trying to project our faults and limitations upon Him. God is thrice holy. All his attributes are holy, from His love, grace, and mercy to His sovereignty, justice, and wrath. One does not trump the others. Those who worship God are to do so in spirit and in truth. Of course these people could never love the biblical God, because they have never been saved to begin with.

Did you know that because we are made in the image of God, every time we sin we are telling the universe, "That's what God is like." We are defiantly shaking our little fists at God in rebellion and disobedience. And then you want to argue that eternity is not a fair punishment for our sin? We sin against an eternally holy God. If you were to lie to your child, they can do nothing to you. If you were to lie to your husband or wife, you are probably sleeping on the couch. If you were to lie to your boss, you are going to lose your job. If you lie to your government, that is treason and you can expect to see the inside of a prison. What changed? It is the same sin, so why the difference in punishment? If you step on a bug, not much will happen to you. If you kill a puppy, you will probably be charged. If you kill a vagabond, you will do some time in prison. If you kill the President of the USA, you are getting the death sentence. What changed? It is the same sin, so why the difference in punishment? It is because of who you have sinned against. Because you have sinned against an eternally thrice holy God, eternal punishment for your sin is a just response.

If we, as fallen sinful beings, burn with indignation against real injustices in this world (not "social injustices"), how much more a perfectly holy God?

Entertainment Does Not Win Souls

"The devil has seldom done a cleverer thing than hinting to the church that part of their mission is to provide entertainment for the people, with a view to winning them."

(i.e., The biggest lie the devil ever told is that churches could win souls with entertainment.)

—Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892), from an aptly

titled sermon, "Feeding Sheep or Amusing Goats?"

In an excerpt from "Restoration of Truth and Revival," (Sword and the Trowel, December 1887), Spurgeon wrote:

"The Lord our God, is holy, and He cannot compromise His own glorious name by working with persons whose grovelling tastes lead them to go to Egypt—we had almost said to Sodom—for their recreations. Is this walking with God? Is this the manner in which Enochs are produced? It is a heart-sorrow to have to mention such things, but the work of the Lord must be done faithfully, and this evil must be laid bare. There can be no doubt that all sorts of entertainments, as nearly as possible approximating to stage-play, have been carried on in connection with places of worship, and are, at this present time, in high favour. Can these things promote holiness, or help in communion with God?"

One would almost think that Spurgeon had visited many churches here today in North America, and the rest of the world. Francis Schaeffer once said, "Tell me what the world is saying today, and I'll tell you what the church will be saying in seven years." Pretty sad when the church is imitating the world instead of setting itself apart as holy, like it was commanded, to be a light on a hill.

What Is Repentance?

And Are We Required To Do It?

As a result of the bankrupt theology of Dispensationalism, many professing Christians these days believe that repentance is a "work" and that it is not required as part of the process of salvation. For part of the answer to this issue, see my previous article Are We Saved By Faith Alone?.

So, what exactly is repentance? According to Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, to repent means "to be sorry"; "to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one's life," "to feel regret or contrition," "to change one's mind." It means to agree with God about His assessment of us; that we are wretched sinners deserving of eternity in Hell. Repentance involves doing a 180. It means to STOP what you are doing, the direction you are going; TURN AROUND; and START doing the opposite, going in the opposite direction. It is turning FROM your sin and turning TO God.

When Jesus said, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of heaven is at hand; REPENT and BELIEVE the gospel" (Mark 1:15), He was telling them to turn from the wickedness of their ways. As Matthew Henry said, “By repentance we must lament and forsake our sins, and by faith we must receive forgiveness of them. By repentance we must give glory to our Creator whom we have offended; by faith we must give glory to our Redeemer who came to save us from our sins. Both these must go together; we must not think either that reforming our lives will save us without trusting in the righteousness and grace of Christ, or that trusting in Christ will save us without the reformation of our hearts and lives. Christ has joined these two together, and let no man think to put them asunder. ... Thus the preaching of the gospel began, and thus it continues; still the call is ‘Repent and believe, and live a life of repentance and a life of faith.’” (Emphasis mine.)

Some individuals attempt to contest all of this. They want to argue that it has nothing to do with our sin, but only with placing one's faith in Christ. If that were so, then how do you explain this passage? "If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he REPENTS, forgive him" (Luke 17:3; see also verse 4). Is your brother placing faith in you? Quite obviously not! So repentance is something different from faith. What does repentance mean in 2 Corinthians 7:8-10? Clearly, what these individuals are attempting to argue is not what the Bible teaches.

Acts 20:21 gives the exact formula I described above in the second paragraph: "repentance TOWARD God [from what?] and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." Hebrews 6:1 contains the same formula, giving us the other side of it: "repentance FROM dead works and of faith TOWARD God" Acts 26:20 agrees: "they should repent and turn TO God." If repenting means to turn to God, as we saw in Acts 20:21, what does it mean here when it adds "and turn to God"? Acts 26:20 also talks about "performing deeds appropriate to repentance." What does this look like? "He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need." (Eph. 4:28). That is a complete 180 right there!

Not to mention that in the context of the command to repent by John the Baptizer, he said to the Pharisees and Sadducees, "You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruit [demonstrate evidence] in keeping with repentance" (Matt. 3:7-8; cf. Luke 3:8). But if that was not clear enough, how about when Scripture says, "REPENT of this wickedness of yours" (Acts 8:22)? How about this passage? "I gave her time to REPENT of her fornication; and she did not repent" (Rev. 2:21). That is turning from the wickedness of our ways right there!

John the Baptizer's ministry began with, "REPENT, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 3:2). Jesus' ministry began with, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of heaven is at hand; REPENT and BELIEVE the gospel" (Mark 1:15; cf. Matt. 4:17). The disciples, when they were sent out, "preached that men should REPENT" (Mark 6:12). All throughout the entire New Testament are commands to repent. Jesus told His disciples that "Christ would suffer [His crucifixion] and rise again from the dead the third day [His resurrection], and that REPENTANCE for the forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations" (Luke 24:46). What about when God's Word states that "God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should REPENT" (Acts 17:30)? Jesus even stated, "I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to REPENTANCE" (Matt. 9:13; Mark 2:17; Luke 5:32). Jesus twice says, "unless you REPENT, you will all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3, 5). He also stated that "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who REPENTS than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance" (Luke 15:7).

Acts 5:31, 11:18, and 2 Timothy 2:25 inform us that repentance is a grace from God. Romans 2:4 informs us that the kindness of God leads us to repentance. If we are chosen by Him, He has granted to us the ability to repent. There is no faith without repentance, and there is no repentance without faith. They are two sides of the same coin. They go hand-in-hand. You cannot have one without the other.

Concerning Jews

We do neither hate the Jews, since it is from them that salvation comes, Jesus being of Jewish descent, nor do we worship the Jews, making Scripture and prophecy about them, when it is entirely and solely about Christ Jesus.

The Jews were chosen as God's nation to be a light among the Gentiles. They failed in this. God prophesied about the Gentile inclusion, bringing the Gentiles in among Israel. In the New Testament, we see this prophecy come to fruition. Paul even addresses it in Romans 11:17-24.

Paul takes the nation of Israel and divides them into two groups: believing Israel, and unbelieving Israel. According to Romans 2:28-29, unbelieving Israel are not true Jews. Believing Israel are true Jews. According to Romans 9:6-8, unbelieving Israel does not belong to Israel. Believing Israel does belong to Israel. According to Romans 11:17-24, Galatians 3, and Ephesians 2:11-22, believing Gentiles are grafted in with believing Israel and made partakers of the promises. According to Romans 2:29, believing Gentiles are true Jews along with believing Israel. The Gentile inclusion is an expansion of true Israel, spiritual Israel. Speaking to Christians, which consist of believing Jews and Gentiles alike, Peter quotes from the Old Testament and calls us "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession."

Those who hate the Jews and blame everything on them, as wicked and perverse as they may be (though we are no different, being part of humanity also), are not only in the wrong, but they are also guilty of murder. Jesus stated that if you hate someone, you are guilty of murder within your heart.

Those who worship the Jews, making everything in Scripture about them and creating a false narrative and false prophecy about the temple being rebuilt, sacrifices being reinstated, and the Jews ruling the nations (things the Bible does not teach), are also in the wrong, and they are guilty of idolatry.

When Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70, He said that not one stone would remain upon another. He never said anything about it ever being re-built. In fact, Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, went on to inform us that we, the Church, are the temple of God. That God is building and fashioning each one of us into this temple. The book of Hebrews makes it abundantly clear that the Mosaic Covenant is obsolete and that there is no going back. Why would you return to sacrifices when they were an imperfect foreshadowing of Christ Jesus, Who was the sacrifice to end all sacrifices?

If you hate the Jews, then you are in the wrong because salvation came through the Jews. If you worship the Jews, then you are in the wrong because everything in Scripture pointed to Christ Jesus. National Israel is nothing! God's people are Christians, obedient followers of Christ Jesus, which consist of Old Testament saints and New Testament saints, Jews and Gentiles. There is only one way to salvation, and that is through Christ Jesus. "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through Me!"

Are We Saved By Faith Alone?

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of heaven is at hand; REPENT and BELIEVE the gospel!” Mark 1:15

We are commanded to repent, to turn from the wickedness of our ways. It is not optional! It is non-negotiable! As Matthew Henry has said, “By repentance we must lament and forsake our sins, and by faith we must receive forgiveness of them. By repentance we must give glory to our Creator whom we have offended; by faith we must give glory to our Redeemer who came to save us from our sins. Both these must go together; we must not think either that reforming our lives will save us without trusting in the righteousness and grace of Christ, or that trusting in Christ will save us without the reformation of our hearts and lives. Christ has joined these two together, and let no man think to put them asunder. ... Thus the preaching of the gospel began, and thus it continues; still the call is ‘Repent and believe, and live a life of repentance and a life of faith.’” (Emphasis mine.)

Read James 2:14-26.

There is no faith without repentance, and there is no repentance without faith. They are two sides of the same coin. John the Baptist, Christ Jesus, and the Apostles all taught repentance and faith. With the above passage, people often want to argue that it is about doing good deeds. Verses 15 and 16 might be about good deeds, but what about when you get to verse 21? What “works” was Abraham performing when he offered Isaac as a sacrifice? It was not works of the Law, because the Law would not exist for another 400 years. It was not a good deed, even though we were created to perform them. So what kind of “works” did he perform? As John Owen has said, “Obedient faith is that which saves.”

When Peter had faith that he could walk on the water, what did he do? He had to step out of the boat. When the woman with the issue of blood had faith that touching Jesus’ clothes would heal her, what did she do? She had to reach out to touch them. Faith in action (or living faith) cannot be separated from faith. The two go hand-in-hand. Faith in action (or living faith) perfects and completes faith. Without it, faith is useless, empty, dead, and in vain, as James tells us.

If you look at every instance of faith in Scripture, whether saving faith or otherwise, it is always seen with the corresponding action. If I believe sitting in a chair will support my weight and not collapse beneath me, I actually have to sit in it in order to complete that faith. If I am hanging from the edge of something and you tell me to let go because you will catch me, it does not matter how much I believe you will catch me if I never let go. My faith in your catching me is proven the second I let go. My letting go corresponds to my faith in you catching me.

Every day we exercise faith. The brakes on your car are made to work a certain way, but sometimes they do not work as they are supposed to. Whenever we use them, we are trusting (having faith) that they will work as they are supposed to and not fail. The same trust we put in a parachute to save our lives if we jump out of an airplane about to crash, we need to place in Christ Jesus. But guess what? Having faith in that parachute does nothing if we do not put it on before jumping out of the plane. It does not matter how much faith I have in the parachute to save my life if it is still on the plane and I am hurtling toward the earth.

The very first words out of Christ’s mouth when He began His ministry were, “Repent and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Repentance is having a change of mind. It is doing a 180. It means to STOP what you are doing, where you are going; TURN AROUND; and START doing the opposite thing, going in the opposite direction. It is turning FROM your sin and turning TO God. If there is not a change of relation to my sin, then there is not a change of relation to Christ. If there is a change of relation to Christ, there will also be a change of relation to my sin. See Romans 6, 8, 1 John, et al.

We are not saved by our repentance, but by the same token “faith alone” does not save either (James 2:14). “Faith alone” is imperfect and incomplete (v. 22). Faith always, without fail, requires the corresponding actions for it to be genuine. We are saved by grace alone (Eph. 2:5, 8)! Both repentance and faith are gifts granted to us by God.

Once again, there is no faith without repentance, and there is no repentance without faith. As Paul Washer has said, “The evidence that you have repented in the past is that you are continuing to repent today; the evidence that you have believed in the past is that you are continuing to believe today.”

“REPENT and BELIEVE the gospel!” Mark 1:15

The Comment Section

by Sidewalk Prophets from The Things That Got Us Here

Somebody posted something
Somebody disagreed
Somebody started typing things
They probably didn't mean
And now my heart is breaking
As I read every word
Sticks and stones are nothing
Compared to how this hurts

We all wanna know we matter
We all wanna know we're loved
More the same than we are different
Desperate just to be enough
But it's like we've all forgotten
How much we're all connected
When I read the comment section

I've been the harshest critic
I have bullied like a king
Tyrannical and comfortable
Here behind a screen
We all have our politics
But politics aside
All of us are only human
With a fragile heart inside

We all wanna know we matter
We all wanna know we're loved
More the same than we are different
Desperate just to be enough
But it's like we've all forgotten
How much we're all connected
When I read the comment section

Love your enemy
Be kind to both of things
Imagine what this world could be

We all wanna know we matter
We all wanna know we're loved
More the same than we are different
Desperate just to be enough
Yeah, it's like we've all forgotten
How much we're all connected
When I read the comment section
When I read the comment section