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Radio Show Transcript, © 2001, Persuade The
World Ministries, Gordon James Klingenschmitt, Servant. Copying
and distribution (without editing) is highly encouraged.
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<Many more transcripts and free MP3 radio shows CLICK HERE>
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Opening introduction by Mark
McWilliams…
Welcome and thank you for joining this radio
broadcast of Persuade The World Ministries. You’re
about to hear our radio production of the book written and taught
by Gordon James Klingenschmitt, entitled “License To Sin,
The Number One Reason America Is Losing Its Moral
Foundation.” If you call us in the next hour,
we’ll mail you a free cassette tape of today’s
broadcast, which you can copy and give to your friends. Just
call our toll-free phone number: 866-Obey-God. That’s
toll free, 1-866-O-B-E-Y-G-O-D. Gordon James
Klingenschmitt is a graduate of the United States Air Force
Academy, and a seminary graduate of
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Thanks, Mark. Today’s segment is
the first of several in a mini-drama entitled, “The
Theological Adventures of Johnny Lukewarm and Pastor
Loophole.” Johnny Lukewarm, and Pastor Loophole.
Hmmm… But before we meet these two characters,
let’s read from 2nd Timothy chapter 3. “For
the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine.
Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them
a great number of teachers to say what their itching
ears want to hear. They will turn their ears
away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” People
often turn to counselors who tell them what their itching ears
want to hear. As is the case with our character, Johnny
Lukewarm, who turns to Pastor Loophole to get advice… So
let’s introduce the characters in our little drama.
Johnny Lukewarm is
a non-Christian who calls himself a Christian. He eagerly
desires forgiveness of sins, but has no desire to submit to the
rulership of God. Johnny Lukewarm is your average
college-aged student, and he thinks he “got saved” at
an evangelistic crusade when he (quote) “accepted Jesus as
his Savior.” But he never made Christ His Lord. He
just wants to go to heaven, He doesn’t want Jesus to be the
boss of his life. He’s not cold toward God, but
he’s not hot toward God either. He’s just
lukewarm.
With his itching ears like radar beacons, Johnny Lukewarm sweeps
the horizon for any available excuse to remain in his sins.
He searches high and low for reasons to escape absolute obedience
to God. “There must be some relief from this
conviction and guilt I feel. There must be some way to
avoid obedience to God.” he thinks to himself.
And fortunately for
Johnny, there are hundreds of false teachers out there, telling
him everything his itching ears want to hear, offering excuse
after excuse, loophole after loophole, on how to avoid submission
to God and keep enjoying his deadly sins. And that’s
OK with Johnny, because he really loves his sins more than God in
the first place.
Now the second character in our drama is an older, distinguished,
very wise preacher named Pastor Loophole. (Or so he
proclaims himself to be wise.) Pastor Loophole has a very
modern concept of the gospel, which he learned at a very liberal
seminary. Pastor Loophole believes God is loving and
merciful, in fact so merciful that God forgives without requiring
repentance or holiness! Pastor Loophole worries about
church-growth, and fears offending anyone who might becoming a
tithing member of his church.
Our opening scene takes place on a Tuesday afternoon. Johnny
Lukewarm has a counseling session in Pastor Loophole’s
office. Johnny requested the appointment himself, hoping to
clarify some Bible verses that make him uncomfortable. You
see, God wants Johnny to forsake one of his favorite sins. Maybe
it was prayerlessness, or lack of concern for the lost, or
materialism, or idolatry, or pride, or lust, or.....maybe God
even wants him to forsake all of these things at once! Anyway
the Holy Spirit is convicting Johnny to forsake his favorite sin,
impressing Johnny to the point of sorrow, tears, and genuine
feelings of guilt. Johnny knows he’s wrong, but he
absolutely refuses to surrender. After all, God wants him
to give up his favorite sin. But in this dangerous state of
unrepentance and resisting the Holy Spirit, he walks into Pastor
Loophole’s office for advice.
(Lower) “Please have a seat, Johnny. What seems to be
bothering you today?”
Johnny’s brow furrows with concern. (Higher)
“Pastor Loophole, I’m very upset about this particular
passage of scripture. It seems as though God is commanding
me to do something I really don’t want to do. Do I
really have to repent, and stop sinning, and obey God? Or
is there some other alternative?
(Lower) “Why, certainly there is, Johnny, you just relax.
I can offer you dozens of alternatives, and give you very logical
reasons why you don’t have to obey God.”
(Higher) “Oh, thank goodness.” Johnny breathes a
sigh of relief. He sits forward eagerly, with his itching
ears searching for some escape from the Holy Spirit’s
conviction. “For a minute there, I thought I’d
actually have to change my behavior and obey God!”
But the Spirit of
God is grieved away, and He slowly withdraws his conviction from
Johnny’s life. And Pastor Loophole’s excuses
begin with Loophole #1, entitled “God is a merciful,
compassionate God.”
Here’s Loophole number one:
(Lower) “Don’t
feel so bad, Johnny,” says Pastor Loophole, “God
understands you with great compassion. In fact, mercy and
compassion are the strongest part of God’s character. Jesus
taught that we should forgive 70 times 7 times whenever someone
sins against us,[1] so it must follow that God forgives you at
least 490 times—even if you delay repentance, or sin many
times in one day without repenting! You don’t have to
repent, in fact there are no requirements for obtaining
God’s mercy—just believe that you’re forgiven and
that makes it true! So don’t feel guilty, Johnny, God
wouldn’t condemn you for blatant, continual rebellion to His
authority. God is a very merciful God.”
TIME OUT !! Let’s look at the
scriptures, and analyze Pastor Loophole’s advice. Let’s
rightly divide the word of truth, and separate the truth from the
lies in Pastor Loophole’s advice. First, let’s
acknowledge the true part. God delights in showing mercy to
sinners. The Bible says Mercy triumphs over judgment!
[2] And we all need God’s mercy,
because we’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of
God. [3]
But here are the lies. Did you know it’s a lie that there are no requirements for obtaining God’s mercy? And it’s a lie that God shows mercy to everybody, no matter what they do or don’t do? But here’s the truth to replace the Lies: God shows no mercy to the unrepentant. God shows no mercy to those who don’t fear Him, change their hearts, repent, and submit to His rulership. Here’s what the Bible says: the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him…to such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.[4] If you don’t repent and do God’s commandments, Johnny Lukewarm, God does not forgive your sins.
Did you know that in the Bible, God gives three requirements for
granting forgiveness of sins? Three requirements! The
first is Atonement. The atoning blood sacrifice of
Jesus Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross is the
first requirement for God’s mercy. The Bible says Without
the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.[5]
The second is Repentance.
The sinner must voluntarily repent from sin, or forsake his known
sins, before God forgives those sins. Jesus taught If
somebody sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times
comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’
forgive him. [6] And in another
scripture, Jesus says, Unless you repent, you
too will all perish.[7] And again, the Bible says, Repent,
then, and turn to God, so that your sins may
be wiped out.[8] Now like it or
don’t like it, but repentance is in the Bible as a
requirement for receiving God’s forgiveness of your sins.
The third
requirement for obtaining God’s mercy is Faith in Jesus
Christ. Not just mental assent to certain facts, but
whole-hearted submission to the author behind those
facts—giving Jesus and His words authority over your mind.
Righteousness from God comes through faith
in Jesus Christ to all who believe [9] And
again, Jesus said, “Your sins are forgiven…Your
faith has saved you; go in peace.”[10]
We’ll define faith in detail in a future broadcast. But
for now, let’s just agree that whatever faith is, it’s
required by God before He forgives your sins.
So the Bible gives three requirements for obtaining
God’s mercy: atonement, repentance, and faith.
Now if you’re
listening out there, Johnny Lukewarm, how will you respond?
What will you do? The atonement was provided by Jesus on
the cross. But the repenting and the believing are
completely up to you. God will never repent for you. Neither
will He believe for you. You must repent and believe, or
God won’t forgive your sins. How do you access
God’s mercy? Repent and believe.[11]
Let’s take a break for a moment and pray. Would you
pray with me? Pray these words along with me to God. “Lord
I repent, and I believe. Lord, please forgive me for
delaying repentance, and right now I forsake my known sins.
Furthermore, I submit my heart and mind to the rulership of Jesus
Christ, right now. I believe him. I submit my mind to
him. I trust him, and receive Him to be my Lord in every
area of my life. Especially in those areas where I’ve
been resisting Him. Jesus, come and rule my heart right
now. In your name I pray, Amen.” Did you just
pray with me? Now if you just prayed with me, I want you to
write to me and get a copy of this book you’re hearing
presented right now. Here’s Mark with that
information.
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Middle segment by Mark McWilliams…
Thanks Gordon. He’ll be back in just a moment. But first, do you know somebody who needs to hear today’s message? If you call our toll-free number in the next hour, 866-Obey-God, we’ll mail you a free cassette tape of today’s broadcast, which you can copy and give to your friends. All our tapes are copyable and free, but please remember we need your donations to stay on the air and to give away these free tapes. So please pray and obey, then send us your best possible donation, after you receive your free cassette. (Gordon: Hey time out! If it’s your first time calling us, no donation is required! Just call us!) Our toll free number is 866-Obey-God, that’s 1-866-O-B-E-Y-G-O-D. And please specify you’re requesting today’s program. Do you believe America needs to hear these messages? If so, then we need you to sponsor us, by joining the Persuader’s Club with a monthly pledge of just $15. If you join the Persuader’s Club, we’ll also send you an autographed copy of Gordon’s book that you’ve been hearing. Just visit our web-site at persuaders-club.com. Or call us in the next hour at 866-Obey-God. Right now, let’s return to Gordon James Klingenschmitt.
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Thanks again, Mark. Let’s return again to Johnny Lukewarm, who’s getting advice from Pastor Loophole. Remember, Johnny Lukewarm was reading his Bible, and came across a command of scripture he didn’t want to obey. So he turned to Pastor Loophole, who tells him what his itching ears want to hear. And loophole number two is entitled, “God loves you unconditionally.”
“Don’t you remember my sermon last Sunday?” Pastor
Loophole reminds Johnny Lukewarm, as he gives Johnny another
excuse to delay repentance and remain in his deadly sins.
After reading half
of the Bible, and ignoring the half he didn’t like, Pastor
Loophole prepared his favorite sermon on God’s
“unconditional” love.
(Lower) “God
loves you unconditionally, with no strings attached. You
don’t have to change to be acceptable to God, because God
loves you just the way you are. In fact, the Bible says God
is love.[12] So Johnny, you
don’t have to repent, and God still loves you! Nothing
can separate you from God’s love!”
“Oh yes, God loves you. God doesn’t hate anybody,
and He never will. God may have been wrathful in the Old
Testament, but that was before Jesus came. Now God loves
you so much, He gave His son for you, to forgive you of your
sins, even if you don’t repent! God loves you so much,
that He can’t hate you, or be angry with you, or be wrathful
toward you, or punish you, even if you continue to enjoy your
sins!
Pastor Loophole
spins out his message of cheap grace, and Johnny Lukewarm leans
forward in his seat, his itching ears eager to hear every word.
(Lower) “Jesus loves sinners! He ate and drank with sinners.
God isn’t angry with sinners. So don’t worry
about your sins, Johnny, just soak in God’s love. God
will never hate you, even if continue to enjoy your sins. You
don’t have to repent or be holy to be loved by God.”
Johnny Lukewarm breathes a big sigh of relief. (Higher)
“Oh thank goodness,” He says. “I feel so
loved by God! Before I thought God might be angry that I
enjoy my sins, but now I know better! God loves me
unconditionally, even while I continue to enjoy my sins.”
TIME OUT !! Let’s sort out this
mess, and look at the scriptures, and rightly divide the word of
truth. Let’s separate the truth from the lies in
Pastor Loophole’s advice. First, I want to acknowledge
the true part. God is love. God shows love to
sinners. He is patient with them—God is kind to the
ungrateful and wicked.[13] God
so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,[14]
who died for us, while we were yet sinners. [15] This is all true. Amen. But
the lie is this: God never hates sinners. The lie is that
God tolerates sin. The lie is that God doesn’t require
holiness, and He’ll never punish unrepentant sinners. That’s
a lie! But here’s the truth to replace those lies:
Did you know the Bible says God hates certain kinds of
sinners? Some people today preach that God “loves the
sinner, but hates their sin.” That’s a cute
phrase, but it’s not in the Bible. God doesn’t
just hate sin, sometimes in the Bible God actually hates sinners
too! Think about this for a moment: God isn’t just
going to throw sins into hell, someday He’ll throw entire
sinners into hell, eyes and teeth and everything. It
won’t be sins gnashing their teeth in hell, it will be
actual sinners who gnash their teeth in hell.[16]
The Bible says, “The LORD detests
men of perverse heart, but he delights in those whose ways are
blameless.” [17] The Bible says, “The LORD
examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love
violence his soul hates.” [18]
The Bible says, “The LORD detests
all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will
not go unpunished.” [19] Now these verses, in your Bible,
directly state that God, the God of love, who gave his only Son
for us, personally hates or detests certain types of
sinners.
Some people listening out there may think these Bible verses are
hate speech. But they’re not hate speech if
they’re true. If they’re true, they’re words
of love, not hate. I love you enough to warn you. I’m
not trying to be your judge. Only God can judge you. But
I’m called to be a messenger sent from the One who will
judge you someday, and I love you enough to warn you. Johnny
Lukewarm, forsake your sins before they destroy you in hell.
That’s not hate speech, that’s love speech. But
Pastor Loophole has twisted the words “love” and
“hate.” Love is not the same as tolerance and
silence. And hate is not the same as rebuke and warning
about danger. Better is open rebuke than hidden love.[20]
So let me ask you Bible scholars out there: What’s the
one characteristic of God, most often mentioned in the Bible?
What do you think? What’s the one characteristic of
God, most often mentioned in the Bible? Is it God’s
love? Actually, the word “Love” is attributed to
God’s character 150 times in the King James Bible.
But the word “Wrath” is attributed to God’s
character 155 times. The Bible describes God 150
times as loving, and 155 times as wrathful. The Bible says God
is a righteous judge, a God who expresses his wrath every day.[21]
“But that’s in the Old Testament.” argues Pastor
Loophole. “God is more loving in the New
Testament.” Wrong again. Did you know the New
Testament book of Romans attributes “love” to
God’s character 7 times, but “wrath” 9 times?
And if you count the number of times Jesus taught about heaven,
it’s 90 times, but the number of times Jesus taught about
hell, it’s 88 times--virtually an even split, even in the
New Testament. The Bible says God is angry with the
wicked every day. [22]
Some people like to
pretend God’s wrath is subdued, but God’s infinite
wrath is just as strong as His infinite love. The Bible
says God’s wrath is just as great as the fear that is due
Him.[23]
Now in eternity, unrepentant sinners will know God’s
infinite wrath in all of its terrible fury. But those who
repent will know God’s infinite love. So Johnny
Lukewarm, if you’re listening out there, will you repent and
receive God’s love, or delay repentance and receive
God’s wrath?
Some people think there’s no such place as hell, that evil
people will just sort of be vaporized. That’s not what
Jesus taught. Jesus said in hell there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth. It’s hard to gnash your teeth when
you’re vaporized. People in hell won’t merely be
separated from God, God won’t just disappear, but He’ll
be present forever in your private hell, in your face forever, in
all of His infinite, furious wrath. Unless of course, you repent
and forsake your deadly sins.
(Higher) “But
that’s not fair,” Johnny Lukewarm complains, “how
can our tiny sins deserve eternal punishment in hellfire?”
That’s easy. If God is infinitely worthy of our
obedience, then our slightest disobedience makes us infinitely
worthy of His wrath. When the “tiniest” of sins
is magnified by the infinite amount God didn’t deserve that
sin, then one “tiny” sin becomes infinitely
incriminating. Apart from God’s infinite mercy which
could forgive our sins, excruciating eternal torture in the
flames of hell is the very least we deserve.
Yes, God loves
sinners for now, but there’s a time limit on that love, if
we don’t repent and forsake our deadly sins. If you
continue to enjoy your sins, your clock is ticking. Your
time is running out. God’s Spirit will not strive with
you forever. For the time being, God is patient with
you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to
repentance.[24]
For the time being, God shows His love
“unconditionally.” Today He sends rain on both
the righteous and the unrighteous.[25] But not forever. Someday
God’s patience will run out, and he will separate the sheep
from the goats. Someday God will display unconditional love
to the righteous, but unconditional wrath to the unrighteous.
The unrighteous will go away to eternal punishment, but the
righteous to eternal life.[26]
Now Pastor Loophole, if you’re listening out there, God
wants people to forsake their sins, and enter God’s kingdom.
Are you going to open the door to them, by teaching about
repentance, or slam the door in their faces by telling them they
don’t have to repent and live a holy life? Help people
submit to God’s rulership. I plead with you to
lovingly warn them to forsake their sins.
And to Johnny Lukewarm, if you’re listening out there, if
you haven’t forsaken your known sins, don’t call
yourself a child of God. The Bible says there’s one
way to know who the children of God are and who the children
of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is
not a child of God.[27] Don’t be fooled. These may
be the most loving words you ever hear.
Let’s pray together. Would you pray with me? Pray
these words to God with me: “Father in heaven,
I’m so sorry for taking your love for granted. I’m
so sorry for delaying repentance. I want to receive your
love, God, not your anger or your wrath. So I repent, right
now, and forsake my known sins. Come and rule my heart,
right now, and help me receive your eternal love, not your
eternal wrath. And as I forsake my sins, Lord, I receive
your forgiveness right now, through the sacrifice Jesus made for
me on the cross. Thank you Lord. Amen.” Did
you pray with me just now? If you prayed with me, would you
just raise your hand up to God? Wherever you are, if
you’re in your car, or your home, or in front of other
people, it’s OK. Just raise your hand to God as a sign
that you prayed with me and gave your heart back to God. Some
of you are receiving a physical healing in your bodies right now,
as God’s loving rulership takes over your heart. I
hope you’ll write to us and tell us about that. But if
you prayed with me, I hope you’ll write to us and get a copy
of this book you’re hearing. In this book and in our
future broadcasts, we’ll answer the questions you may have
about God’s love versus wrath, or faith versus works, or
eternal security or eternal salvation. And you’ll hear
more theological adventures of Johnny Lukewarm and Pastor
Loophole. So I hope you’ll write us tune in again next
time. Now here’s Mark with information on how to
contact us.
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Closing trailer by Mark McWilliams…
Thanks Gordon, and thanks everybody for listening. Do you know somebody who needs to hear today’s message? If you call our toll-free number in the next hour, 866-Obey-God, we’ll mail you a free cassette tape of today’s broadcast, which you can copy and give to your friends. All our tapes are copyable and free, but please remember that we need your donations to stay on the air and to give away these free tapes. So please pray and obey God about how much these teachings are worth to you, and return to us your best possible gift after you receive your free cassette. (Gordon: Hey time out! If it’s your first time contacting us, no donation is required! Just call us!) Our toll free number is 866-Obey-God, that’s 1-866-O-B-E-Y-G-O-D, and please specify you’re requesting today’s program. Now do you believe America needs to hear these messages? If so, we’re specifically asking you to join the Persuader’s Club, and to sponsor this radio broadcast with a monthly pledge of just $15. If you join the Persuader’s Club as a monthly partner, we’ll send you an autographed copy of the book you’ve been hearing, written and taught by Gordon James Klingenschmitt, entitled, “License To Sin, The Number One Reason America Is Losing Its Moral Foundation.” Just visit our web-site at persuaders-club.com. That’s persuaders-club.com. It’s the monthly donations of our Persuader’s Club partners who keep this program on the air. Now if you have comments or questions about today’s broadcast, you can email us at “persuadetheworld@yahoo.com,” Or you can always call us toll free, at 866-Obey-God. And if you remember, please tell us the call sign of the radio station you’re listening to. May God bless you, and thank you for supporting Persuade The World Ministries. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.
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<Many more transcripts and free MP3 radio shows CLICK HERE>
[1] See Matt 18:22
[2] James 2:13 (NIV)
[3] Romans 3:23 (NIV)
[4] Psalms 103:17-18 (KJV)
[5] Hebrews 9:22 (NIV)
[6] Luke 17:4 (NIV)
[7] Luke 13:3 (NIV)
[8] Acts 3:19 (NIV)
[9] Romans 3:22 (NIV)
[10] Luke 7:47-50 (NIV)
[11] Mark 1:15 (NIV)
[12] 1 John 4:8 (NIV)
[13] Luke 6:35 (NIV)
[14] John 3:16 (NIV)
[15] Romans 5:8 (NIV)
[16] See Revelation 20:15
[17] Proverbs 11:20 (NIV)
[18] Psalms 11:5-6 (NIV)
[19] Proverbs 16:5 (NIV)
[20] Proverbs 27:5 (NIV)
[21] Psalm 7:11 (NIV)
[22] Psalm 7:11 (KJV)
[23] Psalm 90:11 (NIV)
[24] 2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
[25] Matthew 5:45 (NIV)
[26] Matthew 25:46 (NIV)
[27] 1 John 3:10 (NIV)