Don’t Tempt God

10 June 2014

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“Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” (Matthew 4:5-7)
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It is true that God has said that He will never leave us nor forsake us but that does not give us a license to sin expecting the grace of God to save us.

Paul deals with this same devilish application of scripture in the Roman letter. At the close of chapter five, Paul makes the wondrous conclusion that the grace of God exceeds all our sin. Our salvation is secure in the power of God’s grace not in our ability to remain sinless. Praise be to the God of all grace! Paul then plays devil’s advocate a presents a false application of this principle of grace.

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” (Romans 6:1)

Paul answers this foolish way of thinking with the very strong negative “God forbid.” Then he gives his reason.

He has already shown that we were once dead in sin and slaves to only do the sinful will of the flesh, but now we are dead to sin. Sin is no longer the governing principle in the life of the born again child of God. We are no longer bound by our depravity. We have been given power over sin and we can let it reign in our lives or we can mortify it and live righteously.

If a person has the desire to continue living in sin with the idea that God’s grace will cover it, he is either still dead in his sin or he is thinking like the devil. Either way he is speaking and acting like a fool.

We are called to recognize our standing in Christ. Therefore, we are to walk as one who is dead to sin but alive in Christ.

Tags: depravity, devil, harmony_of_the_gospels, jesus, matthew, sin, temptation

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.

Living in Liberty

Elder Bryce Lowrance

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