The Berean Call Podcast

This is number 239 in our series of “Get Biblical Understanding.” In this session we’re reading many but certainly not all of the biblical verses that have to do with a Deterrent.

Webster’s dictionary of 1828 (which many of its definitions are taken from the Scriptures) records the act of deterring as discouraging or stopping by fear; to stop or prevent from proceeding, by danger, difficulty or other consideration which disheartens, or countervails the motive for an act.

We are often deterred from our duty by trivial difficulties.

ROMANS 14:12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

1 CORINTHIANS 10:5-6 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

1 CORINTHIANS 10:7-11 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

1 CORINTHIANS 11:27-29 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

2 CORINTHIANS 13:10 Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction.

2 THESSALONIANS 3:14-15 And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

Thanks for listening and we hope you’ll join us again as we search the Scriptures in order to “Get Biblical Understanding.”

The message of this treasured epistle is just as clear and convicting today as it was to the early churches of Galatia: We are justified by grace through faith alone - not by works of the law.

Join T. A. McMahon and radio guests (Greg Durel, Mike Gendron, and Jim McCarthy) as they discuss this powerful Pauline epistle and its relevance to your daily walk.

View the full series: https://www.thebereancall.org/galatians

More about the Bible: https://www.thebereancall.org/topic/bible

Our website: https://www.reachingcatholics.org

Our main website: www.thebereancall.org

Store: store.thebereancall.org

Download our app: www.thebereancall.org/app

Sign up for our email updates: https://www.thebereancall.org/subscribe

My guest for this series (we’ll probably do a number of programs) is Paul Wilkinson, and we are critiquing together a program which Hank Hanegraaff did with Dr. Gary Burge, a professor at Wheaton College. Dr. Burge champions Christian Palestinianism, and Hank is a big supporter of that. 

So what we're trying to do is encourage our listeners to, first of all, listen to what Hank and Gary are talking about, and then be Bereans. "Search the scriptures to see if these things are so." So we're going to pick up with a clip from the last few minutes of our program last week, just...you listen to it, and then Paul and I will bring in our evaluation, our critique.

Question: I’ve read your Q&A on eternal security, but I’m still left with this nagging question: Can an individual who made a confession of faith in Christ come to a place where he ceases to believe? Don’t we have examples of this in the parable of the sower and the seed in Matthew 13?

Response: In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:18-23), we are given examples of those who have opportunity for salvation. We believe the first example represents almost everyone in the world because no one leaves this world without being presented, in some compelling way, the hope of salvation. As Romans 1:20 states, “They are without excuse.” The analogy indicates that many are hardened against believing the gospel. The second example tells us that some will show a superficial interest in the gospel, but it won’t last long. The third example relates to those who try to make the gospel fit their hope of salvation, which is manmade and worldly. In examples one through three, the people did not believe the gospel. Only example four presents an individual who truly believes the gospel and receives eternal life. Such a person then demonstrates (not gains) the reality of full salvation by showing some degree of growth and fruitfulness in Christ.

This is number 238 in our series of “Get Biblical Understanding.” In this session we’re reading many but certainly not all of the biblical verses that have to do with a Deterrent.

Webster’s dictionary of 1828 (which many of its definitions are taken from the Scriptures) records the act of deterring as discouraging or stopping by fear; to stop or prevent from proceeding, by danger, difficulty or other consideration which disheartens, or countervails the motive for an act.

We are often deterred from our duty by trivial difficulties.

ACTS 5:10-11 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.

ACTS 12:21-23 And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.

ACTS 13:6-12 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

ACTS 13:40-41 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.

ACTS 19:16-17 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

ROMANS 9:28-29 For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha.

Thanks for listening and we hope you’ll join us again as we search the Scriptures in order to “Get Biblical Understanding.”

The message of this treasured epistle is just as clear and convicting today as it was to the early churches of Galatia: We are justified by grace through faith alone - not by works of the law.

Join T. A. McMahon and radio guests (Greg Durel, Mike Gendron, and Jim McCarthy) as they discuss this powerful Pauline epistle and its relevance to your daily walk.

Tom: Thanks, Gary. My guest for today’s program and for next week is Paul Wilkinson, who we would normally be talking to at his home just outside Manchester, England. And this time, however, he is in studio with me here in Bend, Oregon. 

Paul is one of the speakers at our Berean Call conference this year, and so I can look him straight in the eye as I grill him with my mind-numbing questions, or something like that. Does that sound…Paul, does that sound too intimidating for you?

Paul: It would be if I didn’t know you, Tom.

Join Dave and Tom as they engage in an in-depth, verse-by-verse examination of the Gospel of John. We hope you will be challenged and convicted as you listen to these insightful, exegetical discussions compiled from nearly four years of Search the Scriptures Daily radio programs. Open your Bible and get ready for an edifying pilgrimage into God's Word.

Question: Scriptures such as Exodus 34:7 and Numbers 14:18 seem to indicate there is such a thing as generational sin caused by the sins of our ancestors. Shouldn’t we pay more attention to those who have been involved in “deliverance” ministries?

Response: No. We should pay more attention to the context of the scriptures being used to see whether or not someone’s teaching is true to God’s Word. In both Exodus 34:7 and Numbers 14:18 God is dealing with a people according to His covenant of law. His covenant included blessings and curses; obedience brought blessings and breaking the law brought curses. Even though the sins of God’s covenant people would reap destructive consequences throughout generations, nevertheless God’s justice, grace, and mercy were made manifest to the individual. The entire chapter of Ezekiel 18 addresses that fact: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him [the righteous], and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him [the wicked]” (Ezekiel 18:20).

As a basis for their insistence upon the need to “break off” iniquities of one’s father in order to free an individual, deliverance ministries lean heavily on Old Testament scriptures. Yet even those Old Testament scriptures look forward to Christ, the Servant who will bear these iniquities (Isaiah 53:11) and pardon all of them (Jeremiah 33:8).

Deliverance ministries (and others who emphasize “generational sins,” “iniquities,” and “ancestral curses” affecting believers) are in danger of putting themselves under a “curse.” The New Testament clearly teaches that believers are not under the law; that “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us...” (Galatians 3:13). Therefore, those who impose the law upon believers deny the gospel and become subject to Paul’s condemnation in Galatians 1:9: “If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”

Finally, “generational curses” are said by many of the deliverance teachers to be the implements of Satan and his demons to create problems for Christians. Supposedly, sins of our ancestors bring about curses for which demons are making us pay today. The primary problem with this teaching is that there is no example in Scripture of demons cursing anyone. God curses, not Satan. And even when Satan’s instruments such as Balak try to have God’s people cursed, it is of no effect (Numbers 23:23). So, while curses may be the demonically generated devices of fear and destruction in the sorcerer’s world of animists, shamans, witches, voodoo priests, and other pagans, as far as the church is concerned, they are simply part of Satan’s scam to deceive—especially experientially driven—and, consequently, spiritually gullible Christians.

This is number 237 in our series of “Get Biblical Understanding.” In this session we’re reading many but certainly not all of the biblical verses that have to do with a Deterrent.

Webster’s dictionary of 1828 (which many of its definitions are taken from the Scriptures) records the act of deterring as discouraging or stopping by fear; to stop or prevent from proceeding, by danger, difficulty or other consideration which disheartens, or countervails the motive for an act.

We are often deterred from our duty by trivial difficulties.

MALACHI 2:3 Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.

MATTHEW 25:24-27 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury.

MATTHEW 25:28-30 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

LUKE 10:13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.

ACTS 2:43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.

ACTS 5:5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.