My Brother’s Keeper
By Rev. Mario Gonzalez
[Slide 1]
[Slide 2]
I. Scripture: Hebrews 3:12
“See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.”
II. Prayer
III. Introduction
Talk about the condition of the football player who died on the field during practice because of the heat. He seemed to have it all together (he sure was big enough). The problem was that he had a weak heart.
Your outside does not necessarily show your inside. But it’s what’s in your heart that tells the real story.
[Slide 3]
Matt. 12:34
“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”
When your heart is bad, everything else goes wrong. We can’t allow ourselves to be guided by our fickle hearts. Jesus must be our guide.
[Slide 4]
Jer. 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
IV. Body of Sermon
In the last couple of months God has really been speaking heavily to us and he has begun to really do an incredible work in our. This morning, I was led of the Lord to deal with one topic that we have a tendency of relegating to people who turn to cults. It’s a big word that really deals with some pretty basic stuff. The term is apostasy.
Apostasy Defined
Let’s first discuss a bit about the term itself. The term appears twice in the NT as a noun, specifically in,
[Slide 5]
Acts 21:21
And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
And in,
[Slide 6]
2 Th. 2:3
Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
In this case, the term used in Greek is aphistemi, which is translated to “turn away”. The Greek term is defined as…
[Slide 7 – Animate points in]
DEFINITION: APOSTASY
1. a falling away
2. defection,
3. rebellion,
4. abandonment,
5. withdrawal, or
6. turning away from what one has formerly turned to.
To apostatize means to sever one’s relationship with Christ.
Now this is significant, because apostasy is only possible for those who have first expererienced salvation, regeneration and renewal through the Holy Sprit.
Listen to what Psalm 119 says:
[Slide 8]
Psa. 119:9
[Beth] How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. 10. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. 11. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
He comes at you from the very beginning with the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet (22 in all). We are rooted when we allow his word to take root in our heart and as a result, turn away from sin.
[Slide 9 – Animate medium fade in]
Apostasy comes in two flavors:
a. Theological Apostasy - a rejection of the teaching of Scripture
1 Tim. 4:1
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.
b. Moral Apostasy - when we allow ourselves to become once again prisoners of our own sin and immorality.
Matt. 23:25-28
25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. 27. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
[Slide 10 – Animate medium fade in]
Make Apostasy Personal
Hebrews 3:12
“See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.”
[stop animation here]
See to it. It is a personal responsibility dating back to the Garden of Eden. Let’s read,
[Slide 11]
Genesis 4:8-9
8. Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
When asked, Cain knew exactly where his brother was. He was dead, because he had killed him.
• Talk about how we mind our own business when our brother or sister is dead and take no spiritual responsibility for them. Our attitude is, “They make their choices, let them live with the consequences.”
But this is not the heart of God. In John 21, Jesus repeatedly asks John, “Do you love me,” and then instructs him to “feed his sheep.” He consistently demands an action to affirm the confession of his love. If we really love Christ, then why aren’t we caring for his sheep?
Jesus teaches the importance we should place on His sheep in the Gospel of Luke,
[Slide 12]
Luke 15:1-7
1. Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” 3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
Apostasy is a sin of consent, where the observer is often more at guilt than the wanderer who is allowed to stray from the Shepherd.
• Talk about how full the church would be if we actually closed the back door of the church and went after the weaker sheep who fall pray to the enemy.
It is God’s will, notwithstanding the banter of those who place their faith on predestination, that all should come to a saving knowledge of Christ. The apostle Peter puts it this way,
[Slide 13]
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
God does not want to see your father, mother, sister, brother, husband, or wife go to hell. And it is our job to do our very best to make it so.
That being the case, it is important that we identify the characteristics of impending apostasy.
[Slide 14 – Animation Fade in Medium]
Steps that Lead to Apostasy
1. Believers fail to take God’s warnings seriously – GOD ALWAYS WARNS YOU!!!
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
James 1:13-15
13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
James 4:7
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
2. The realities of the world become greater than the realities of God
Matthew 13:18-23
18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 22 The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
Heb. 4:16
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
3. Through the deceitfulness of sin they become increasingly tolerant of sin in their own lives
1 Samuel 2:22-25; 27-29
22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; it is not a good report that I hear spreading among the LORD’S people. 25 If a man sins against another man, God may mediate for him; but if a man sins against the LORD, who will intercede for him?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the LORD’S will to put them to death…
27 Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal myself to your father’s house when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? 28 I chose your father out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your father’s house all the offerings made with fire by the Israelites. 29 Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me…?
Eph. 5:5-8
“For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person — such a man is an idolater — has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.”
4. Through hardness of heart and rejecting God’s way, they ignore the repeated voice and rebuke of the Holy Spirit
Heb. 3:7-8
So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts…”
5. The Holy Spirit is grieved (make him unhappy)
Ephesians 4:30-32
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
[Don’t bother to make a slide for Psalm 51 below. I will just read]
Psalm 51
For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you are proved right when you speak
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts [a] ;
you teach [b] me wisdom in the inmost place.
7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
[This is where our apostasy really starts getting dangerous]
6. His fire is put out
1 Th. 5:19
Do not put out the Spirit’s fire
7. He eventually departs from the faith, and if he continuous on his course unchecked, he reaches a point where no second beginning is possible
Heb. 6:4-6
It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
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[New animation – medium fade in]
God’s Merciful Promises to Us
James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
John 6:35-37
35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. 36 But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not. 37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
