Romans 16, I just want to read
a couple of verses. Verse 17 and verse 18. Paul had finished this great
epistle, the doctrinal part of it that we call it, and the practical
part. And he gives them these instructions
concerning these doctrines that he's taught them. In verse 17
he says, Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them, note them, which cause
divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which you have
learned, and avoid them. For they that are such serve
not the Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by good
words and fair speeches deceive the heart of the simple. The
book of Romans, you and I have studied it. We've preached to
it. We've taught through it. And
it has good doctrine in it, just like the whole Bible. Doctrine,
the teaching of the Lord. This is what the Lord says about
His doctrine in Deuteronomy 32. He said, My doctrine shall drop
as the rain. My speech shall distill as the
dew. as the small rain upon the tender
herb, and as the showers upon the grass." In other words, the
doctrine of the Lord is not violent. It does no harm. It doesn't sweep
the good away. It comes down gently upon the
heart. It's peaceable, isn't it? It's
easy to be received when the heart is prepared. Because I
will publish the name of the Lord, describe your greatness
unto our God. I give you good doctrine, he
said. Forsake not my law. Don't forsake my word. Don't
forsake my gospel. And our apostle here in this
verse says, you've learned this doctrine. You've learned the
doctrine of God. Where have you learned it? We
learned it from this epistle. We've learned it from the whole
Bible. We've learned it from this epistle,
the writings of this epistle. And he says here, when you've
learned it, when you have read it, when you have studied it,
when your mind has been opened to it, and you're settled in
it in your own heart, and God has brought it to your soul with
a measure of assurance. Then he says, you mark those.
You get this in your own heart to start with. Don't be out here
fussing about things you don't understand yourself. Get the
truth in your own heart. And then when you're established
in it, when you've been taught it, then, he said, mark those
which cause defenses, offenses, and debates, and hard feelings,
contrary to these doctrines which you've learned. And you avoid
them. The doctrine you and I have learned
from the book of Romans, we call them, among other things, the
doctrine of grace, don't we? The doctrines of grace. That's
not all that's in the book of Romans. But we learned those
truths from the book of Romans. Some call it the doctrine of
Christ. I love that. Some call it Calvinism. You and I very seldom use that
term here, but that's okay. If some want to refer to it as
Calvinism, as the five points of Calvinism, but we've learned
these truths from the Word of God. And quickly, what are they? What are the doctrines of grace
that you and I profess to learn and love? Well, we always start
out with total depravity. Have we learned total depravity
from the book of Romans? I think probably of all the epistles
of the apostles, Romans is the most clear on the doctrine of
man's depravity. Listen to these passages. There
is none righteous, no, not one. What does that mean? That means
there is nobody's heart that is pure before God. Nobody can
stand before God and God look upon them and say, you're a righteous
man. In and of ourselves, we are unrighteous. And everything that we do, everything
we think, everything our motives flow out of that depravity. If there's none righteous, no,
not one. If our hearts are bad, then what
does that mean? Everything we do is bad. There's
no fear of God before their eyes. Why? Because they're unrighteous. There's none that seeketh after
God. That's totally private, isn't
it? But you know it goes farther than that. In Romans chapter
8, he says the unregenerate mind, the carnal mind, is enmity against
God. What does that mean? It's hostile. Oh, I've loved God all my life.
No, you haven't. No, you haven't. And the reason
you don't know that is God never has taught you. God never has
taught you. We've learned that, haven't we?
And when does this depravity begin? When we're 12 years old
or 16 years old? We're born this way, aren't we?
In Romans chapter 5, we learn That by one man, one man's disobedience,
many were made sinners. When Adam was condemned, we were
condemned in him. That's depravity. The next one is unconditional
election. Listen to what Romans chapter
11 and verse 5 says, and this is the principle of election.
Paul said, At this present time there is a remnant according
to the election of grace. That's the principle of election.
It's of grace, not of works, not of merits, not anything that
God foresaw, but it's of grace. And if it's by grace, it's no
more of works. Otherwise, grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, it's no
more grace. Otherwise, works is no more. Election is God's purpose. Choosing a great host of people
in Christ before the foundation of the world according to His
own purpose and grace. We learned that, didn't we? We've
learned this from the book of Romans. Limited atonement or
effectual redemption. What does that mean? That means
all of those that Jesus Christ died for are redeemed. All of those whose sins He bore
will be saved. They will be regenerated. They
will never stand condemned before God. Nothing will ever be brought
to their charge. Listen to what He says in Romans
chapter 8. Who is He that condemneth? It is Christ that died. What
is He saying? If Christ died for you, there's
no condemnation. The death of Christ eliminated
all condemnation. Are you here tonight and you're
in Christ? Are you a believer in the Son of God? Then there's
no condemnation to you. Is there condemnation to those
in hell? There is, isn't there? We'll look at that again in just
a minute. The fourth thing that we've learned from this epistle
of Romans and elsewhere in the Bible is this. Effectual calling. Irresistible grace. Listen to
Romans chapter 8 and verse 29. And we've studied these things
for so long. You know where I'm going, don't you? I don't have
to even turn over there and read it to you. We can quote it, can't
we? Those he foreknew. He predestinated to be conformed
to the image of His Son, and listen, those He predestinated,
them He also called. And whom He called, them He justified. He justified everyone that He
called. That's what He said, didn't He? What does that tell us? That's
effectual calling. It has the power to gain the
end that it desires. I called them and I justified
them. That's effectual calling. Peter tells us to make our calling
sure, doesn't he? Make sure you have this inward
call, this effectual call that converted your soul, that brought
you to Jesus Christ, that brought your heart to repentance and
to full reliance upon Him. That's what effectual calling
is. It brings you to Christ. He calls you in such a way you
can't get away. You're broken. You have no rest
until you find that rest in Christ. That's called it. Perseverance
of the saints. Listen to Romans chapter 8 and
verse 29 again. Those He called, He glorified. Every one of them? Every one
of them. where sin abounded, grace did
much more abound. That is Romans chapter 5. Sin
shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the
law but under grace. That is Romans chapter 6. Thanks
be unto God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Romans chapter 7. All through
this book we see those He calls, He keeps them. They keep on keeping
on, though they do it through much weakness, infirmities, and
falling and failing, they are kept by the power of God through
faith. I have a magazine Brother Bob
Dishman gave me several years ago, September 8th, an October
issue, 2008, of the Gospel Trumpet. It's a Church of God magazine,
somewhat popular magazine and editor. Lavender is the man's name, Malcolm
Lavender. I want to read to you some quotes
from his magazine. And here's what the Apostle Paul
was saying, to mark those who cause divisions contrary to the
doctrine. You read men like this, Malcolm
Lavender, and you learn to be more patient
with men who listen to him, and women who listen to him, because
he feeds them these things. And he makes their heart evil-affected
towards the truth. And here's the primary way that
he does it. He hates the doctrines of grace.
He hates Calvinism. He makes no bones about it. And
this is the way he causes offense contrary to the doctrine that
we've learned. First of all, he does it by attacking those
who believe these wonderful truths. He attacks those personally. And that's the way the enemies
of truth do. They attack the messenger. They
did the Lord Jesus that way, didn't they? They couldn't refute
his doctrine, so what did they say? He's a Samaritan. He's not
even a Jew. He's of the devil. He's a liar. Don't listen to him. Why? If
you listen to him, you'll find out he makes a whole lot of sense.
So just remember, he's a sorry, sorry man. He's a deceiver. So don't even listen to him.
That's the way people do. They attack the messenger. And
here's what Mr. Lavender said, and I don't have
the magazine with me, but I wrote the quotes down and I wrote the
page. Page 1 of his magazine of the 2008 September edition. He said, Twisted minds of this
thinking pattern should cause us to cringe. Trust and support
should be withdrawn from minds that could so caricature and
blaspheme God. If you believe in the doctrines
of grace, you blaspheme God. And all support should be withdrawn
from you. Twisted minds. Well, I tell you,
I'll be honest with you, I do have problems in my mind. Don't
you? I do. But it's not because of
the doctrines of grace. Here's what he said on page 6,
and I quote. The demonic spirits who use men
to teach are not yet finished. Demonic spirits are working in
those who believe the doctrines of Christ. Page 7, and I quote,
When will Christians mark all sinning religionists and debar
them from the free spread of their damnable doctrines? Now get this, get this. We talk
about Islam, we talk about communism, we talk about a dictator for
a government that bars free speech. Here's a man who professes to
be a believer, a Christian, a man of God. And what does he say?
When will they be debarred from their free speech? Does he want
to put people in jail? Is he going to get a police force
to reside over the speech of men and whip you for it, debar
you? Attacking those who believe.
Don't that hurt to be attacked? If somebody calls you a blasphemer,
I'm sure it hurts you. Sure it hurts you. Second, he
causes offenses and division by attacking the doctrine with
unflattering Names. Page 7. A quote from page 7. Listen to this. The doctrines
of Calvinistic predestination is an unprecedented evil. Unprecedented? Unprecedented. That means it is worse than anything
else in the world. There is nothing to compare it
to. It's worse than that. To preach
that God has predestinated somebody to be conformed to the image
of Christ, that's unprecedented evil, he said. Page one, here's
another quote. What is it that causes a civilized
people to proclaim barbaric views that are not civil as predestination
to destiny? Has God predestinated men to
a certain destiny? Yes, He has. Predestined to be
conformed to the image of Christ. Listen to page 7, quote, How
did this hellish doctrine ever become tolerated in the ranks
of evangelism? Page 9, quote, The five points
of Calvinism are demonically designed To take something vital
assent from the gospel of Christ, the gospel of damnation silently
drifts forth from the shades of hell with the solace of false
security and the tranquilizing sleep of death." Evil, blasphemy,
God-reproaching, damnable, heresy. And all of this he says about
the doctrine of grace. Mark those who cause offenses
and divisions contrary to the doctrine which you have been
taught. Can you imagine what it would
be like to live in the same town where this man pastors? And meet his church members?
Can you imagine what they would think about you and call you?
How they would hate you and accuse you of all sorts of things. Why?
Because of what he's taught them. He fills their mind with evil
affection towards those who believe in the doctrine of Jewish grace. Thirdly, they do it this way.
They not only reproach those who believe it, they put unflattering
names to the doctrines, but they misrepresent the doctrine themselves. They set up a little paper tiger,
then they shoot at it. We've all experienced that. If
you've ever watched debates, that's what they do. They practice
that. They misrepresent what the other
fellows say, and that's what he does. Listen to page 1. They,
the Calvinists, claim that God in eternity predestinated the
non-elect to damnation apart from their actions. Page 13. Unconditional election,
he says, he describes it this way, elect only will be saved. All others will be damned regardless
of what they do. Has anybody that you know of
that believes the doctrines of grace says that men will be damned
regardless of what they do? What do we preach about damnation? The wages of sin is death. The soul that sinneth, it shall
die. Men don't go to hell because
God predestinated them to go to hell. Men go to hell because
they live and die in rebellion against God. Sin, when it's finished,
brings death, separation. That's it. No wonder so many
people hate predestination and election. They've been told that
God predestinated men to go to hell apart from sin. I would challenge anybody to
show me in the Scriptures and prove it clearly to me to satisfy
my conscience, were God ever predestinated anybody to hell
for any reason. There's no need for it. Men are
clawing with both hands to get there anyway, aren't they? Listen to page 13. He finds total
depravity this way. Cannot respond to God. Cannot respond to God. Well, that's not total depravity.
Total depravity is not being able to respond to God. Total
depravity means men are ruined by sin. They cannot and will
not come to God through Christ for salvation if they are left
to themselves. Men respond to God all the time,
do they not? Some respond and come to Christ
and live, and some do not respond, and
they continue on and die. But men respond all the time. Listen to John 6.44. It is written
in the prophets, they shall all be taught of God, every man who
hath heard and learned of the Father. What does he do? He responds,
don't he? And listen to Proverbs chapter
1, I called. I called through the open preaching
of my word. I called through providence.
I laid ye on your back on a sickbed. I called in many ways. And what
was their response? You refused. You refused. You see, total depravity ain't
that men don't respond. That's not total depravity. Total depravity means men are
so sinful and hateful against God that they cannot come and
they will not come to the Lord Jesus Christ. It's contrary to
their nature to do so. If men cannot and will not respond
to God, They can blame nothing but their
own sin. And that's a true thing. If a
man don't come to Christ after the Bible tells him to come and
warns him the consequences for not coming, he's got nobody to
blame but himself. But if a man does come, if he
does come, who gets the glory for it? The Lord. It's grace, isn't it? All that the Father gives to
me shall come to me. Blessed is the man that you choose
and cause to approach. You cause him to approach. I'll
tell you what's the matter with Mr. Lavender. I'll tell you what's
the matter with him. He don't know himself. God has never been pleased. to
teach him. All he thinks that he needs is
just a chance to come. He doesn't need any more than
anybody else needs, you see. Just give me what you give to
everybody else, a chance. And here's the difference between
me and everybody else. I'll take advantage of it where
they didn't. And I'll get the glory for you.
But Paul said, what do you have but what you've received? If
you've received it from God, the hand of His grace, why do
you glory as though you have not received it? Mr. Lavender not knowing himself,
he doesn't know God. He doesn't know God is sovereign.
He doesn't know God is free. He thinks God owes man. He owes him a chance. He owes
him a call. And he's strictly up to man to
take advantage of the mere opportunity. He says in page 9, The general
call comes to the nonelect, to which it is impossible to respond. The general call comes to the
nonelect, but it is impossible to respond. Well, let every man
examine his own heart and see why he does not come
to Christ. Why doesn't a man respond? I can't. You can't call for mercy? Really? You can't call for mercy? Lord, please show me mercy. You're God and I'm a sinner.
Save me! And if men won't do that, it's
not because they cannot, they will not. When God says, let the wicked
forsake His way, and He tells them that, and they will not,
then who's to blame? But see, this man's trying to
say we blame God. You blame God because you just
give them a general call and they can't respond to that. That's
what you've got to say. That's a misrepresentation of
what we're saying, isn't it? It misrepresents what we say.
Here's what he says about the atonement. Page 6. Christ died only for the elect.
This is the way he misrepresents the atonement. Christ died for
all the elect. And all others are eternally
damned, including unelected infants. Why are men eternally damned?
Because Christ did not die for them? That is not why men are damned.
Men are damned because of sin, aren't they? Let a man stand
before God with no sin in his heart No sin of thought, no sin
of motive, no sin of words and deeds. Let him stand before God
that way and see if God damns him. Men aren't down because
Christ did not die for them. Men are down because of sin. Christ's death is a precious,
precious gift. It can't be estimated for its
value. But He owes this gift to nobody. He was not obligated to die. He died for the ungodly. He died
for those who were without strength. A precious, precious gift. And to say Christ died for those
who finally perish is to devalue that gift. Did Christ die for
those who were in hell when He died? Is that not to devalue
the sufferings of the dear and blessed Son of God? That He who
was so grand and great and wonderful could bear a man's sins, and
then that man have to bear them again for all eternity? That's no value. And look what it does to the
justice of God. If Christ could die for a man,
and pay the full price that he owed to God, and God turned around
and charged that man again, is that justice? God cannot pay metropolis demand
first at our bleeding surety's hands, and then again at mine. That's not justice. How could
a believer, a true believer, have any assurance If he had
to know that Jesus Christ did just as much for those in hell
as He did for him. They're there and you may be
there. Because He did for them just
what He did for you. He bore their sins and paid their
debt, but there they are paying it again. What does that do to
the justice of God? I believe the death of Jesus
Christ atoned for all dying infants. And he misrepresents the atonement
of Christ and said we believe that the death of Christ was
not for infants. I don't know of any Calvinist
I know John Calvin believed that the death of Christ atoned for
all infants who died in their infancy. John Bunyan believed
that. Charles Spurgeon believed that.
John Gill believed that. Horatius Bonar believed that.
And all the Puritans that I've read about believe the same thing. I can't find a one who believed
that Jesus Christ did not die for infants who died in their
infancy. His blood atoned for infants
who died in their infancy. But this man here said, dying
infants was damned because Christ did not die for them. Well, I
don't believe that, and I can't defend anybody that does believe
that. If you're you and you believe that, then you'll have to defend
yourself. I can't defend you. And lastly, the perseverance
of the saints. Listen to what he says on that,
page 6, and I quote, eternally secure apart from any responsibility
or necessity of righteousness. Eternally secure from any responsibility. In page 13 he said this, Perseverance,
once saved, always saved, regardless of sin, Even incest. I don't know what he got against
incest, but maybe it was going on in some of his friends or
family. I don't know. But he made that point. I wonder what kind of sin or
how much sin Mr. Lavender would have to commit
before he's lost. Could a man who fell into incest
possibly be saved? Hmm, good question there. Do
we have it recorded in the scripture where this ever happened? Yes,
we do. And it happened to a child of
God twice. Locked, just locked. Got drunk with his daughters
and committed incest and had children by him twice. Does the
scripture condemn such a thing? Absolutely. Is it repulsive to
you and me? Absolutely. Is it repulsive to
God? Absolutely. But there it is. There it is. Could a man actually get drunk? Could a man actually get drunk? so drunk that he laid in his
nakedness and his own children came in and saw him? Could this
happen to a man? Do we have it recorded anywhere
in Scripture that it ever happened? Yes, it happened to Noah when
he was 400 and something years old. Could a man fall into adultery? Could a man commit murder? and
yet be saved? Don't the Scripture condemn murder? It sure does. It sure does. And that's an awful, awful sin.
We've got recorded in the Scriptures a man who committed adultery
and murder and was a saved man. David, the sweet psalmist of
Israel. What if a man fell into temptation
and fear and denied the Lord Jesus Christ? Surely, surely,
he's not saved. He may have been saved, but he
just come unsaved. That's what Mr. Lavender said.
You may have been saved before you denied the Lord, but when
you deny Him, you become unsaved. Do we have it recorded where
anybody ever denied the Lord? Yes, we do. The apostle Peter,
was that a horrible sin? It was so horrible he wept bitterly
because of it. But there's one thing about it.
I'll never do it. If I ever did it, I'd be lost.
I'll never commit incest. I'll never get drunk. I'll never
commit adultery. I'll never kill anybody. I'll
never deny the Lord. Let him that thinketh he standeth,
take heed lest he fall. And that's Mr. Lavender's whole
problem. He doesn't know himself. He doesn't know his next step
may find him committing some awful act of immorality. But all of us are capable of
it, aren't we not? And if these falls of these dear
saints of old teach us one thing, brothers and sisters, and we're
never to imitate these people, not in these sins, and we don't
imitate them, we know better. But if these falls of these dear
saints teach us one thing, it's this, that after all, We're saved
by grace and not what we do or don't do. Now, let a man take
that and go out there and try to take advantage of it if he
will. But that's the truth. That's the truth. And a man says,
I'll never do this or I'll do that. He's just showing he don't
know himself. He don't know himself. The sins of saints are a horrible
thing. They dishonor their Lord and
discourage one another. And it is for these sins that
the Lord often chastens them sober. But you know something? Not a one of these sins will
separate a true believer from the love of the Lord Jesus Christ.
They never did in those examples I read to you. And they never
will. These sins are awful. They're
black. They're filthy. They're defiling
things. But they're not so defiling that
the blood of Jesus Christ God's Son cannot and will not cleanse
it from their souls. It has that kind of power. I visit a man in prison. He's been in there several years
now for killing his wife. Shot her five times. He still weeps about it. He's
still broken about it. Do you believe the blood of Jesus
Christ can cleanse a man from that? I do too. I do too. These sins of these saints are
sins. They grieve the blessed Holy
Spirit of adoption. But they never grieve Him to
the point where He leaves them and lets them be damned. I will give you another Comforter,
and He shall abide with you forever. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of
God by which ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. And these sins of the saints,
though they are horrible and black, they do not change the
purpose of God for that one who has sinned. The Lord did not purpose to save
them yesterday and change His purpose today because of their
sins. But this man says otherwise.
He's offensive. It would offend you. You couldn't
sit under his ministry. You read these things and you're
offended by them. They cause great divisions among
people. And we mark them. We mark them. Not unto us, O Lord, not
unto us, but unto Thy Name give glory for Thy mercy. and your
truth.