Spurgeon On Regeneration, The New Birth

HT: Saved By Grace.

And, my brethren, it is quite certain that no man ever begins the new birth himself. The work of salvation was never started by any man. God the Holy Spirit must begin it. Now, the reasons why no man ever started the work of grace in his own heart, are very plain and palpable: firstly, because he cannot; and secondly, because he will not.

The best reason of all is because he cannot--he is dead. Well, the dead may be made alive, but the dead cannot make themselves alive, for the dead can do nothing. Besides, the new thing to be created has no being. The uncreated cannot create. "No," but you say, "that man can create." Yes, but can hell create heaven? Then sin may create grace. What! Will you tell me that fallen human nature that has come almost to a level with the beasts, is competent to rival God; that it can emulate the divinity in working as great a miracle, and in imparting as divine a life as even God himself can give? It cannot. Besides, it is a creation; we are created new in Christ Jesus. Let any man create a fly, and afterwards let him create a new heart in himself; until he has done the lesser he cannot do the greater.

Besides, no man will. If any man could convert himself, there is no man that would. If any man said he would, if that were true, he is already converted; for the will to be converted is in great part conversion. The will to love God, the desire to be in unison with Christ, is not to be found in any man who has not already been reconciled with God through the death of his Son. There may be a false desire, a desire grounded upon a misrepresentation of the truth; but a true desire after true salvation by the true Spirit is a certain indication that the salvation is already there in the germ and in the bud, and only needs time and grace to develop itself.

But it is certain that man neither can nor will, being on the one hand utterly impotent and dead, and on the other hand utterly depraved and unwilling; hating the change when he sees it in others, and most of all despising it in himself. Be certain, therefore, that God the Holy Spirit must begin, since none else can do so.

See also: Justification & Regeneration-God Doesn’t Forgive Someone Without Changing Their Heart-Kevin Williams

Spurgeon - Woe Is Unto Me If I Preach Not The Gospel

HT: Chronicles of an Evangelist.

"Suppose that we do not preach the gospel, and warn the wicked man, so that he turn not from his iniquity, what then? Hear this voice: “He shall perish, but his blood will I require at thine hand.” What will my Lord say to me if I am unfaithful to you? “Where is the blood of those people who gathered at Newington Butts? Where is the blood of that crowd which came together to hear you speak, and you did not preach the gospel to them?” Oh, it were better for me that I had never been born than that I should not preach the gospel! “Woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel” of Christ, for men perish where there is not the Word of God!"

– C.H. Spurgeon

10 Indictments Against the Modern Church- Improved Audio-Paul Washer

(Click HERE To Watch High Quality Pop-Out Video)
Paul Washer delivers a powerful and much needed 2 hour sermon:
(Every Christian needs to hear.)
10 Indictments Against the Modern Church.


Improved Audio Below:

What Is This Babbler Trying To Say? by John Newton

(Letters of John Newton) sent to me by Matt Haney.

"What is this babbler trying to say?" Acts 17:18

The Apostles were accounted as foolish babblers. We are no better than the Apostles; nor have we reason to expect much better treatment--so far as we walk in their steps.

On the other hand, there is a way of speaking of God, and goodness, and benevolence, and morality--which the world will bear well enough. But if we preach Christ as the only way of salvation, lay open the horrid evils of the human heart, tell our hearers that they are dead in trespasses and sins, and have no better ground of hope in themselves than the vilest malefactors; if we tell the virtuous and moral, as well as the profligate--that unless they are born again, and made partakers of living faith, and count all things loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ--that they cannot be saved--this is the message they cannot bear!

We shall be called knaves or fools, uncharitable bigots, and twenty harsh names! If you have met with no treatment like this--you should suspect whether you have yet received the gospel; for, depend upon it--the offense of the cross is not ceased!

"You are out of your mind, Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane!" Acts 26:24

Regeneration pt 2, God Does Not Save Without Radically Changing The Heart-Kevin Williams

Following on from our Sunday morning sermon The New Birth pt 1-No Heart Transplant, No Heaven, we now take another look at this vital but misunderstood doctrine of regeneration., and that God NEVER justifies a man without radically changing their heart.

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
2 Cor 5-17 - Regeneration pt 2, God Does Not Save Without Radically Changing The Heart-Kevin Williams - 37 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

New Birth pt 1-No Heart Transplant, No Heaven-Kevin Williams

The New Birth in John 3 is one of, if not the, most misunderstood texts in Christendom. In this sermon we look at:

-How many professing Christians have a superficial faith that does not save.-How Catholics try to gain authority and respect over people by wearing fancy robes.
-How Protestant/Evangelicals are not much better and try to gain authority and respect over people by qualifications.
-When a person, no matter how uneducated speaks God’s truth with the power of God upon his life, it cuts like a knife because it is God’s Word.
-The rank heresy of the prayer book that teaches the new birth is water baptism, and how there are many people in Hell because they’ve believed this falsehood.
-How all ministers who teach baptismal regeneration will have to give an account to God, who will require stricter judgment from teachers.
-That the new birth is not making a decision of Jesus.
-What the new birth actually is.

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
John 2:23-3:15 - The New Birth pt 1-No Heart Transplant, No Heaven-Kevin Williams - 29 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

John Owen - Jesus Christ Is The Beam Of His Father's Love

"The light of the sun comes to us by its beams. By its beams we see the sun, and by its beams the sun touches us. Jesus Christ is the beam of his Father's love and through him the Father's love reaches down and touches us. By Jesus Christ also we see and experience and are led up to the Father's love. If we, as believers, would meditate on this truth more and live in the light of it, there would be great spiritual growth in our walk with God.

This growth in our walk with God is what we are to aim at. Many dark and disturbing thoughts arise to hinder our walk with God. Few can rise to the height of the Father's love by faith, so as to rest their souls in his love. They live far below it in the troublesome region of hopes and fears, storms and clouds. Abiding in the Father's love, all is peace and quiet. But how to rise up to the height of the Father's love they do not know. It is God's will that he should always be seen as gentle, kind, tender, loving and unchangeable. It is his will that we see him as the Father, and the great fountain and reservoir of all grace and love. This is what Christ came to reveal. Christ came to reveal God as a Father (John 1:18). It is the name of God as Father which Christ declares to those who are given him out of the world (John 17:6). And this is what Christ leads us to, because he is the only way of going to God as a Father (John 14:5,6). He leads us to God as love. By this, Christ gives us the rest which he promised us. We believe in God through Christ (1 Peter 1:21). Faith seeks out a place for the soul to rest. This rest is presented to the soul by Christ, the Mediator. By Christ the soul has access into the Father's love (Ephesians 2:18). Believers find that God is love, and that he loved them from eternity. Believers learn that it was God's will and purpose to love them from everlasting to everlasting in Christ, and that all reason for God to be angry with us and treat us as his enemies has been taken away. The believer, being brought by Christ into the bosom of the Father, rests in the full assurance of God's love and of never being separated from that love. This is the first act of communion which the believer has with the Father."~John Owen From the Puritan Paperback's, R.J.K Law abridged version of "Communion With God."

Unbeliever Baby Dedications- Great For The Gospel

In England it is a tradition that even unbelievers take their babies to some sort of baptism or baby blessing ritual service. And from the professing church are generally two approaches to this:

1. Simply say no to all non-Church goers, and so miss the chance to preach the Gospel, and clear up the superstition that infant baptism does not get people into Heaven. And in which case the unbelievers only then go to number 2, who confound their superstition.

2. Like many liberal and Anglo-Catholic Churches, just infant baptise everyone, and leave the unbelievers with their superstitions and confusion about how people enter Heaven.

Now when I arrived at St. Paul's [Note: I am no longer affiliated with this church (24/9/08)] they had a 'Baby Dedication Service' for non-church goers, however the format of this, just looked exactly like an infant baptism ritual, and I doubt whether a single person who sat through one of these services could tell the difference.

But we now have instead: a 'Baby Dedication Service', for unbelievers, which consists of:
-Two Scripture readings, Luke 2:22, 25-3, and Mark: 10:13-16, and v42 (the millstone verse), with the Lord’s Prayer in between.
-A Gospel Sermon, (which must clear up the misconceptions about baby rituals), 12-15 min.
-A charge to parents and ‘God-parents’.
-Then a dedication of the baby.
-Dismissal.
About 25 minutes in total.

It is a wonderful opportunity to preach the Gospel, the only message which can save these people, and show them the love of Christ, to a church full of unbelievers on a regular basis.

Here is one short Gospel sermon I gave at one such event:

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).

Luke 23:39-43 - Baby Dedication Service - You're Either A Mocker of Christ Or He Is Your All-Kevin Williams - 14 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

Paul Washer- Arminianism Is A Door That Has No Mansion, Hyper-Calvinism Is A Mansion That Has No Door

“I would lay down such a dark path, such a dark picture of sinners, I would still do that. I would lay down a high view of God, but I would have finished many of my sermons, with a greater, greater cry of the love of God for men… Don’t make simply preaching against sin your end, make it the means to an end, to convince men of their need of God, and then assure men of the power of Christ to save…. Open the door [of Salvation] wide, because I can assure you my friend it is wide. I heard an illustration while I was in Holland, and it’s really good: Arminianism is a door that has no mansion, Hyper-Calvinism is a mansion that has no door. Be very, very careful, there are people out there preaching today, opening a door wide to nothing, there are others who are preaching a great and glorious salvation but not opening the door wide enough.” ~Paul Washer, The Joy Set Before Him, part 1.

From the series: Paul Washer-A Journey into the Gospel With Friends

If Your Heart Is Unchanged, You Are Not Saved - Spurgeon

HT: Saved by Grace.

Christ will be master of the heart, and sin must be mortified. If your life is unholy, then your heart is unchanged, and you are an unsaved person. The Saviour will sanctify His people, renew them, give them a hatred of sin, and a love of holiness. The grace that does not make a man better than others is a worthless counterfeit. Christ saves His people, not IN their sins, but FROM their sins. Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord.
—Charles Spurgeon

See also: Justification & Regeneration-God Doesn’t Forgive Someone Without Changing Their Heart-Kevin Williams

Behold-You Must Run To The Person Of Jesus Like Zacchaeus-Kevin Williams

In this Gospel sermon, we show there is nothing more important than getting to the person of Jesus Christ, and finding forgiveness and peace with God in Him.

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
Luke 19:1-10 - Behold-You Must Run To The Person Of Jesus Like Zacchaeus-Kevin Williams -31 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

New Born Baby Zechariah

On Saturday, my wife Zoe gave birth to our new baby son Zechariah, weighing 7 lb 1. Here are a couple of photos and a little video of him.

The Radical Effect of the Fall of Man -Kevin Williams

Whilst many people know about the fall of man, most do not realize, the radical extent of the fall, and just how severe it is. This has implications on how we do church, and how we do evangelism. In this sermon we go through Scripture and let the Word of God speak for itself.

This sermon is no.4 in our series “The First and Essential Principles of Christianity.”

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
Rom 5:12-19 + Gen 3 - The Radical Effect of the Fall of Man-Kevin Williams -42 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

Puritan Fellowship Now On Facebook

Puritan Fellowship is now on Facebook.

If you have a Facebook account then you can sign up for Puritan Fellowship HERE.
(If you don't have Facebook then I don't blame you as to me it's the most boring thing in the world. I just signed up to put the Gospel on it.)

Are you opposed to people owning guns? by John Piper

The following is an edited transcript of the audio.

(This question stems from the last lines of a blog post John Piper wrote titled "Guns and Martyrdom.")

The context of my comment was that the missionaries in 1956 who were martyred in Ecuador—Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Roger Youdarian, and Peter Fleming—were all speared to death, but they had guns. (This came out through research, and I saw it in a documentary.) And they shot their guns in the air as the spears were going through their chests. They could've saved their lives by just shooting horizontally, but they didn't. They shot in the air because they decided earlier that they were ready to go to heaven but these natives were not. So why would they kill them rather than being killed themselves?

In relation to that, our Supreme Court just declared that the Second Amendment right to bear arms includes not just the right of a militia to bear arms, but the right of a person to have a firearm in his house.

And as I contemplated those two events—the missionaries' decision and new decision of the Supreme Court—I thought, "If somebody enters my house as a thief, he probably is not ready to go to heaven either." So then I just ended the blog with, "I hope you don’t use your economic stimulus check to buy a gun."

I've never had one. I've never owned a firearm. I had a pellet rifle when I was little and I killed squirrels. But I'm sort of ashamed of the way I killed squirrels, because I didn't eat them or do anything with them. I just felt it was cool, and I don't think that's a very wholesome thing.

No, I am not a pacifist. I am not a pacifist principally, and I'm not a pacifist actively.

Somebody wrote and asked me, "Would you protect your daughter if you had a gun?" I wrote back a one-word answer, "Probably," and what I meant by it was that the circumstances are so unpredictable. What would you do? Shoot the guy in the head? Or shoot him in the chest? How about the leg? Or just throw the gun at him, or hit him over the head with it? Of course I'm going to protect my daughter! But I'm not aiming to kill anybody, especially and intruder who doesn't know Christ and would go straight to hell, probably. Why would I want to do that if I could avoid it?

So no, I'm not a pacifist. I believe there should be a militia, and I believe in policemen with billy clubs and guns who should take out guys who are killing people. And I believe in a military to protect a land from aggression. And I believe that father's should protect their children, even using force. But if they can avoid killing somebody, of course they should avoid killing somebody. And having a gun is a good way not to avoid killing somebody.

We don't need guns in our houses.

And I'm not against hunters. Don't get on my case about that, saying that Piper doesn't believe that you can have bows and arrows and rifles, etc.

And I'm not going to get in your face if you have a gun lying in your drawer. I just think it's not very wise.

Those who live by the gun will die by the gun.

By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: desiringGod.org

The Heart of the Gospel by Charles Leiter

HT: No Cross, No Crown.

“But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” (Rom. 3:21-26)

Here Paul declares that Christ died to pay our sin debt so that God could “justify”sinners and at the same time remain “just” Himself. Throughout the Old Testament, sins were merely “passed over,” the payment of their guilt being rolled forward year after year until the Lamb should come whose death could truly take them away (Hebr. 9:15). All during this time, it appeared that God was being unrighteous, since He justified men (like Abraham and David) without justice being truly satisfied. Therefore it was necessary that Christ should die “publicly,” openly demonstrating God's righteousness for all to see, by making full satisfaction for sin on the cross. In this sense, Christ died, not only to justify men, but to justify God! His death on the cross vindicated and demonstrated the absolute justice of God in justifying His people. As a “propitiation” (i.e. a wrath-removing sacrifice) for our sins, Christ turns away God's judicial wrath from us. We are “justified as a gift” (Justification is absolutely free to us.), “through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Justification was very costly to God). We are justified by receiving the “gift of righteousness” (Rom. 5:17) “even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ” (Rom. 3:22).

Are you still under the wrath of God? “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). There is a “fountain for sin and impurity” (Zech. 13:1). “The blood of Jesus, God's Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). No matter how great your sins may be, they are nothing compared to the infinite worth of Christ's blood! (1 Pet. 1:18-19; Acts 20:28). “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Rom. 5:20). Come to Him! He invites and commands you to come; you need not fear that you are being presumptuous by coming: “And let the one who is thirsty some; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost” (Rev. 22:17; Matt. 11:28). Come to Him! Take the water of life! Cast your sins upon Him and trust Him as your sin-bearer. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved” (Acts 16:31).

[This article is an excerpt from the book "Justification and Regeneration" by Charles Leiter, available at www.heartcrymissionary.com]

The Radical Claims of Christ-Kevin Williams

In this sermon, No.3 in our series “The First Principles Of Christianity” we look at the radical claims that Jesus made. Many today, claim that Jesus was just a good teacher or a prophet, but deny that He is God, but as we show here, Jesus has not left us with the option of patronising Him.

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
Luke 21:33(+var) - The Radical Claims of Christ-Kevin Williams -31 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:

Undeniable Evidence The Bible Is God’s Word-Kevin Williams

In this sermon, No.2 in our series “The First Principles Of Christianity” we show the certainty that The Bible is the Word of God, with the evidence of:
-Archaeology.
-The Bible’s many scientific foresights.
-The enormous manuscript evidence.
-The eye witness testimony.
-The Bible’s inbuilt proof of detailed and accurate prophecy.

Click on blue link to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
2 Tim 3:16 - Undeniable Evidence The Bible Is God’s Word-Kevin Williams -32 min

Listen to this and other Puritan Fellowship Sermons on itunes here:

http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/rss/

You can now download our sermons on your mobile phone,
our mobi address is:
http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/mobile/

You can also download our sermons HERE.

Why Everyone Deep Down Knows God is True-Kevin Williams

In this sermon, (last Sun eve) part 1 of “First and Essential Principles of Christianity” series, We show that evidence for the existence of God is so clear, that you really have to bury your head in the sand to deny the Creator God of the Bible.

Play or Download mp3:

Rom 1:18-22 - God Doesn’t Believe in Atheists, Why Everyone Deep Down Knows God is True-Kevin Williams -27 min

Listen to this and other Kevin Williams sermons through i-tunes:
Our new podcast feed for our sermons on itunes and alike is:
http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/rss/

You can now download our sermons on your mobile phone, our mobi address is:
http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/mobile/

You can also download our sermons HERE.

Away With Rituals & Legalism - Jesus Turns Man Made Religion On Its Head-Kevin Williams

In this sermon we look at:
-How Jesus did away with the bondage of man-made rituals and legalism.
-Alcohol. If wine was given by God to gladden the heart, but drunkenness is a sin worthy of Hell, then ‘how drunk is drunk?’ How much is okay for a Christian to drink?
-There are no Holy buildings in the New Testament.
-The Gospel.

Play or download sermon here:
John 2:1-11 - Jesus Turns Man Made Religion On Its Head-Kevin Williams -22 min

Listen to this and other Puritan Fellowship Sermons on itunes here:

http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/rss/

You can now download our sermons on your mobile phone,
our mobi address is:
http://sermon.net/PuritanFellowship/mobile/

You can also download our sermons HERE.

Kevin Williams-Moved To St. Paul's Church, Fleetwood

Note: Since the article below was written, Myself (Kevin Williams) and my family have since left St. Paul's 24th Nov 2008.

Myself (Kevin Williams), and my wife Zoe and children are pleased to announce we have moved to Fleetwood, after being called by God, to St. Paul’s Church on Darbishire Road there.

There are many challenges ahead, so please keep us in prayer, especially that our Awesome and Mighty God would continue to go before us as He has been doing, and that He will pour out His Spirit and open doors for the Gospel in this town, and in our meetings, that I would be faithful to His Word and that I would be a good husband and father.

Our first services, last Sunday went very well, and the two sermons are being uploaded to our sermons online page.

The Church itself has its own story, when in 1908, believers resigned from the local Anglican church when it went Anglo-Catholic, and these believers then built the church building themselves, making bricks from pebbles and sand from the beech.

More Experience of Christ Results in Greater Concern For The Lost

HT: No Cross No Crown.

“The more living experience there is of Christ, and the stronger the faith of believers in the truth of his word, the greater will be their concern for the conversion of others.”
~Iain Murray

Your Lord Is Very Jealous Of Your Love - Spurgeon

HT: Thoughts on the Way.

"Your Lord is very jealous of your love, O believer. Did he choose you? He cannot bear that you should choose another. Did he buy you with his own blood? He cannot endure that you should think that you are your own, or that you belong to this world. He loved you with such a love that he would not stop in heaven without you; he would sooner die than you should perish, and he cannot endure that anything should stand between your heart’s love and himself." ~Charles Spurgeon

Sermon Recommendations

Due to moving house and church (details will follow soon), we are still waiting for an internet connection to be set up, so once again, here are some previous recommended sermons we feel may be edifying for you:

Jonah 4:1-2 - Prayer-Jonah’s Phenomenal Belief in the Awesome Power of God, A Lesson To Us All-Kevin Williams - 45 min

2 Cor 5:17 - Justification & Regeneration-God Doesn’t Forgive Someone Without Changing Their Heart-Kevin Williams - 54 min

Rom 7:13-25 - The Early Church View of the Romans 7 Man in the Often Ignored Context -Kevin Williams - 51 min

Zech 12:10 - Gospel Sermon-Have You Truly Looked on Christ Pierced For You?-Kevin Williams - 36 min

Jer 29:11+var - Christian, You Are Israel & God Only Has Thoughts of Love & Peace Towards You-Kevin Williams - 59 min

Click on blue links to play or (Right-Click/Save-As to Download mp3).
Listen to these and other Middleton Puritan Fellowship sermons through i-tunes:

Helpmeet From a Different Era - Susanna Spurgeon

Susanna Spurgeon speaks glowingly of the focus of her life in their Nightingale Lane home,

“Our children grew apace in the sweet country air, and my whole time and strength were given to advance my dear husband’s welfare and happiness. I deemed it my joy and privilege to be ever at his side, accompanying him on many of his preaching journeys, nursing him in his occasional illnesses, his delighted companion during his holiday trips, always watching over and tending him with the enthusiasm and sympathy which my great love for him inspired. I mention this… simply that I may record my heartfelt gratitude to God that, for a period of ten blessed years, I was permitted to encircle him with all the comforting care and tender affection which it was in a wife’s power to bestow.”

Then, after these ten years, she fell ill and he cared for her.

From, “The Life of Susannah Spurgeon,” by Charles Ray, The Banner of Truth Trust, p173

John MacArthur Speaks on the Broad Salvation of the Pope, Billy Graham & Clarke Pinnock

6 min

The Goal of a Text - Paul Washer

"The goal is not for you to master a text. The goal is for the text to master you."~Paul Washer

You Can't Do More Than Pray Until You've Prayed - John Bunyan

"You can do more than pray, after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed."
~John Bunyan