Over the years, I've heard Brother
Henry Mahan make a statement. I've heard it once, I've heard
it a hundred times, and I am more and more convinced that
it's so. He said, God in the Scriptures
has hedged us about on two sides. On the one side, we are hedged
in with the promises of God, lest we despair. and on the other
side with the warnings of God, lest we presume. We all like to have things neatly
sewn up in little packages, well organized and categorized, so
that we can say, I've got this taken care of, I've got that
taken care of, I've got that taken care of, and just forget
about things. In spiritual things, it can't
be done. Can't be done. I don't know about you, but I
have a very heavy, heavy concern. I want to know, I want to be
certain that the faith I have is true faith. Somebody said, well, you can't
doubt. If you doubt, you're damned.
Others said, if you don't doubt, you're damned. So you lose on
both sides. Well, I wish I didn't have any doubts, but I'll be
honest with you, I do. I do. I wish I didn't have any
struggles, but I do. I have some struggles, and I
suspect you do as well. I know men and women in this
book do, men and women who knew God. When the disciples sat at
the table and our Lord said to them, one of you is going to
betray me because one of you is a devil, every one of them
except the betrayer, said, Lord, is it I?" Every one of them,
except the betrayer. And then to keep from embarrassment,
he said, is it me? That same man who knelt before
God in repentance and joy and said, blessed is the man to whom
the Lord will not impute sin. That same one on the same occasion,
under the same circumstances, just a little while later, made
this petition. Lord, that same man who, as he
wrote to the young man Timothy and said, I know whom I have
believed, I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which
I've committed unto him against that day. That very same apostle
made this statement. He said, I keep under my body
and bring it into subjection, lest by any means when I have
preached to others, I myself should prove a castaway or I
myself should prove reprobate. John Newton, that man so greatly
used of God in his day after God had saved him from such a
life of debauchery, wrote those words we love to sing, amazing
grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once
was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see. And he
wrote the words of another hymn that I kind of tossed back and
forth as to when and how it ought to be used. Certainly not in
our public hymn books, in my opinion, but certainly the one
that echoes the experience of believers' hearts from time to
time. Here's a point I long to know. Often it causes anxious
thoughts. Do I love the Lord or no? Am
I His or am I not? Now this is the one thing I want
to know. Am I a child of grace? Am I born
again by the Spirit of God? Am I redeemed by the blood of
Christ? Am I truly united to Christ by
faith? You say, Pastor, you can't be
serious. I dare say my life. These questions lay heavily on
my heart. I desire neither to be presumptuous
nor unbelieving. You see, I know, I know there
are multitudes in hell right now. who lived and died in this
world with an absolute confident assurance that they were true
believers. There are multitudes in hell
right now who lived and died in this world and now suffer
the wrath of God, never questioning the matter of their salvation.
They made for themselves a refuge of lies, whatever it may have
been, and they hid themselves in that refuge, said, now there,
that's taken care of. We don't have to worry about
that anymore. Don't have to be concerned about that anymore.
The Apostle Paul said, I press for the mark. For the pride of
the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. He didn't just... Merle,
he didn't just have an experience and say, now that's everything.
That's it, I've got this thing sewn up. I don't want to wake
up in eternity and find out that my hope all these years has been
a false hope and a vain delusion. I don't want you to meet God
on the day of judgment without a wedding, presuming you've got
time. Therefore, I urge you, as I urge
my own heart, to take this matter seriously. Do I love the Lord
or not? Am I healed or am I not? I know God has a people in this
world whom he has chosen and determined to say, I know that
there is a remnant according to the election of grace, but
am I one of God's elect? I know, I have no hesitancy in
declaring, I'm absolutely certain this book teaches that Jesus
Christ has redeemed the people. He has redeemed a chosen race.
He has redeemed God's elect, every one of them, with his precious
blood by his sin-atoning sacrifice. And he is made of God unto those
chosen by God, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.
But am I one of those redeemed ones? I know that God the Holy
Spirit regenerates and calls by effectual, irresistible, sovereign
power every chosen, redeemed sinner at the appointed time
of mercy, grace, and love. But have I been called? Has God
given me life? Am I born of the Spirit? I know
also that every true believer has eternal life and will persevere
to the end. But am I a believer? I know that all the blessings
of grace are in Christ, all of it. Everything God requires from
sinners and everything God gives to sinners is in Jesus Christ.
Redemption by His blood, justification by His righteousness, sanctification
by His holiness, preservation by His power, acceptance by His
substitution. Everything is in Christ. My concern
is not about any of those things. My concern is, am I in Christ?
Are you in Christ? Or do we just have a little religious
delusion by which Satan's going to carry us to hell? Ralph Barnard
used to say, I think we ought to preach like everybody sitting
in front of us is going to hell right now. And I want to teach
you just like that today. I don't presume that anybody
here is born in God's spirit. Nobody. Nobody. I don't presume
that anybody here really knows God. And I do this because I
am admonished to Scripture to do so. I do this because the
Scriptures plainly give you this admonition. Examine yourself. Examine yourself. Whether you
be in the faith. Now, that's the issue. Examine
yourselves whether you be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know you not your own selves,
how that Christ Jesus is in you, except you be reprobate. Peter
said, wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling
and election sure. Now we must take this issue seriously.
There is a false faith. by which multitudes, confidently
resting in a refuge of lies, have soulless themselves and
convinced themselves that they know God when they have absolutely
no knowledge of God. There is a false faith by which
multitudes are deceived and perish forever in hell. And I'm not
just talking now about a false doctrinal faith, I'm talking
about a false presumptive faith. The devils believe and tremble.
The devils believe a whole lot more than most folks sitting
in Baptist churches do. The devils believe and they tremble. And
the fact is there are folks sitting in churches who believe all truths
but don't know the truth and haven't enough sense to tremble. False faith can sure enough be
deluding. According to Hebrews 6, it can
be greatly enlightened Very knowledgeable, experienced great faith. Read
the first four verses. False faith can have great knowledge,
great understanding, great experiences. False faith often excites the
affections like the stony ground. Here, boy, here's the words.
That's it! Let's go. I'm ready, boy. And
then withers away real quick. False faith will reform a man's
life like the life of a Pharisee. And I said, well, why on earth
would a man live such an austere life? Why would a fellow devote
himself to missionary work? Why would a fellow cut himself
off from all the enjoyments and pleasures of life? False faith.
False faith. False faith often, like the Jews,
speaks well of Christ. Those Jews, when they were attempting
to deceive, often spoke well of Christ. False faith, like
Saul, Confess your sin. Saul said to David, I've sinned.
You're more righteous than I am. I've sinned. You pray to God
for me. Ahab, in his false humility and false faith, humbled himself
and sat clothed in ashes, but he didn't know God. False faith
even repents, and repented unrepentant. Esau sought a place of repentance
and found it not, though he wept bitterly. Judas repented of having
betrayed the master and sold him for 30 pieces of silver,
but neither knew God. False faith causes people like
the Pharisees diligently to perform religious works and like Ananias
and Sapphira to be very charitable. Now, I've been around a while.
I haven't met anybody yet who gave half of everything they
own to the preaching of the gospel. Ananias and Sapphira did, and
died because they lied to the Holy Ghost. False faith, like
Felix, will sometimes tremble at the Word of God. False faith
often, like Lot's wife, enjoys great religious privileges and
depends on them. It may even preach, perform miracles,
and cast out demons, according to Matthew chapter 7. Like Diotrephes,
it attains high office in the Church of Christ. Like Demas,
false faith walks often with great preachers and is able to
deceive them. The Apostle Paul had Demas for
his companion and he looked at Demas as his buddy and he looked
at Demas as his brother. He looked at Demas as a faithful
man until finally he said Demas is forsaken. False faith. I don't believe a man can die
in peace if he didn't have true faith. Oh yes you can. Oh yes
you can. Those five foolish virgins were
just as peaceful as the five wise virgins. False faith will
even sometimes endure, persevere, and hold out to the day of judgment.
Lord, Lord, have we not done many wonderful works in your
name? Be pardoned. Now, I hope I've got your attention.
If I have the faith of God's elect, my faith will bear examination. If I don't, I need to find out
really. And if you have the faith of
God's elect, your faith will bear honest examination. And
if you don't, you need to find out. All who profess faith in
Jesus Christ, all who call upon the name of the Lord ought to
examine themselves, lest any perish in a false faith. Now
in our text, in the Song of Solomon, chapter one, verses five and
six, we see the church, the Shulamite, the bride, speaking to herself,
speaking about herself to the daughters of Jerusalem. Now,
I really don't know who the daughters of Jerusalem represent. I suspect
the daughters of Jerusalem represent all who profess faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ. But I don't know. We don't really
have any real basis for that. So it really doesn't much matter
who they are. But I know who the Shulamite is. The Shulamite
is that one who is that black but comely one chosen of Solomon
to be his beloved bride, and that Judah might represent you
and I in the church of God's elect. And this is how she speaks
about herself to the daughters of Jerusalem. I am black, dark,
dusky. But come thou, O ye daughters
of Jerusalem, as the tents of Keter, As the curtains of Solomon
look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked
upon me. My mother's children were angry
with me. They made me the keeper of the vineyards, but my own
vineyard have I not kept. And then in verse seven, she
speaks about herself to her beloved Lord. Hail me, O thou whom my
soul loveth, where thou feedest. where thou makest thy flock to
rest at noon, for why should I be as one that turneth aside
by the flocks of thy companions? Now, taking these three verses
for my text, I want to call your attention to four distinguishing
characteristics of true faith. If I have true faith, these things
are true of me. Ron Wood, if you have true faith, they're
true of you. And if these four things are not true of me and
of you, The faith we have, whatever it is, is just a vague delusion. Number one, true faith acknowledges
and confesses sin. What can I say about myself? God's people in this world are
charged both by the world and by self-righteous religionists
with many evils. But none of our enemies have
such a loathsome view of us as we have of ourselves. Do any charge me with evil? I've
heard a few of the accusations made. I hear them fairly often. But nobody has ever charged me with
any evil compared to what I know. I'm black. My own vineyard have
I not kept. In myself, by nature, in the
eyes of others, I'm black because of my actions. And I'm black
in my own eyes. You see, true faith, true faith
never defends itself. True faith never makes an effort
to justify itself. When Job answered the Lord, he
said, Behold, I am vile. What shall I answer? I laid my
hand on my mouth. I got nothing to say. He said, again, I have heard
of thee by the hearing of the ear. That's one thing. But then
he said, now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore, I abhor myself and
I repent in dust and ashes. You see, the believer is a man
or a woman Even a young person is a believer.
The believer is a person in whom there is a constant, unceasing
warfare. There is in every believer an
old man called flesh and a new man called spirit. The old nature
of Adam, the new nature of Christ. And these two are contrary one
to the other. The old man, Adam, never ceases
to sin and be sad, and never ceases to love sin, and lust
after ungodliness, and despise God. That's the nature of human
flesh. And that's the nature of your
flesh. Even after you're born of God, your flesh doesn't change.
Just flesh. That's what's born of flesh,
flesh. And it never changes. Someone said to me the other
day, I was preaching Out on the west coast someone said I just
I believe we see ourselves more and more wicked all the time
I said, well, that's true in a sense. That's not all there
is to it. We are more and more wicked all the time Last just
corrupts the cave lots. That's all it does But there
is a new man Born of the Spirit of God created in righteousness
and true holiness that loves God cannot sin The Apostle Paul
said, the flesh lusting against the Spirit, and the Spirit against
the flesh. These two are contrary one to the other, so that you
can't do the things you would. We're sinners by nature, sinners
by choice, sinners by practice, sinners at heart. Sins not measured
by our actions, but by our attitudes. You wonder, Brother, just what
kind of man am I? Just what kind of man am I? Wonder
what Brother Don thinks? Doesn't much matter. What kind
of man am I? Wonder what my neighbors think?
Doesn't much matter. What kind of man am I? Wonder
what history is going to say about me? Irrelevant. Irrelevant. I'll tell you what kind of man
you are. I'll tell you what kind of woman you are. Exactly what
you are in your inmost self. What you are that nobody knows
about but you and God. That's what you are. That's what
you are. And that's nothing but sin. That's
all. Sin is mixed with everything
we do. Everything. Well, that's not my experience.
OK, it's mine. And it's exactly what this book
teaches. Tell me, children of God, before you were converted,
did you ever imagine that a believer could love God so deeply, that
prayer could be so difficult as it is? I was talking to my
friend, Brother Harry Graham, last night, trying to encourage
him. He'd been such an encouragement
to me, and he said, I said, Harry, I pray for you. He said, well,
if the Lord leads you, you can. I remember him teaching me when
I was 19 years old, you won't pray unless God leads. Don't
care how hard you try, you can't work it out. You can say a word,
but not pray. Unless God, the Holy Spirit,
puts prayer in your heart, it's impossible. Impossible. And that's just what I told him.
I said, you taught me a long time ago, I can't possibly pray
unless God pays. Did you ever imagine that a believer,
you know, when, when you were thinking about these things as
a, as a unbelieving person, you give consideration to these things.
Did you ever imagine that a believer could be so discontent and grumble
so much against God's providence as you do? Did you ever think
that a believer could be so thoroughly attached to this world. I work. I hope you do. I work, and I'll be shaking it
off all the time. God, cut these strings. Just
cut these strings. And yet, I find myself clinging
to it more and more all the time. Did you ever imagine a person
saved by God's grace could be so reluctant, so timid, about
upholding Christ among his enemies? I expect those are things worth
consideration. Truly. True faith also has this characteristic. It rests upon the merits of Christ
alone. This is it now. I'm black. Our Lord said in Ezekiel 16,
He said, you are beautiful through my comeliness that I put on you. Comeliness. That means appealing,
attractive, accepting. How can that be? Here's a man
who acknowledges his loathsome blackness, his vileness, his
corruption. How can you say now, I'm comeliness? How can that be? Only in Christ. In my eyes, I'm black. In my opinion, I'm black. In God's opinion, I'm most beautiful. Turn over to chapter 4 and look
at this. Chapter 4. This is how the Lord God speaks
of us. The bride says, I'm black. And the Savior says, behold,
thou art all fair, my Lord. Behold, thou art all fair. How come? Because in Christ,
we're perfect and complete, washed in his blood, robed in his righteousness,
and he will at last present us holy, unblameable, and perfect
before the presence of his glorious I'm nothing, I have nothing,
I can do nothing in myself that God will accept. But I trust
the merits of Jesus Christ alone for my entire, absolute, everlasting
acceptance of God. That's my hope about you. That's
my hope. True faith loves Christ supremely. Notice these next words. Tell
me, O thou, who my soul cometh. Lord, you know all things. You know I often act otherwise. This dear lady sitting over here,
I've been married to her for 29 years. I've been loving her
for 30 years. Love her more all the time. Oh my soul, sometimes I act like
no possibility I love her. But I act a whole lot more faithful
in love to her. Robert Hall, the famous English
preacher, 150 years ago, was preaching a meeting in a large
city. Folks came from all around to
hear him. He was staying with a farmer. And one night, after
the farmer had gone to bed and was standing late at night, early
in the morning, Robert Hall was just standing, looking out the
window of the house, pouring down rain. He was just standing
there, and the farmer woke up. Descent something walked out
there and ask him said Pastor Hall What's troubling you? He said oh, can you tell me Can you tell me how a man can
know if he really knows God Farmer Paul for a long time and
he said Well, I reckon the man loves the Lord, he really does. In Hall's eyes, he's got him. He began to smile a little. He said, bless God, I do love
him. When the chips are down, when
everything's down, oh yes, I do love him. We love him because
he first loved us. And true faith seeks Christ continually. Tell me, where do you feed your
flocks? Why should I be as one who turns
aside from the flocks of your children? Tell me where you feed
them so I can feed them. In other words, let me ever follow
your steps, seek after you, welcome your people. True faith. True faith acknowledges and confesses
sin. True faith trusts Christ alone. True faith loves Him. And true faith seeks Him, oppressed
for the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ
Jesus.