Press where it hurts (continued)

Sinners will find all that is possible to justify themselves and reassure themselves so as not to surrender their lives to God, hiding behind all kinds of religious works. They will hide behind a crucifix, religious symbols, a Bible, or a religion, not to come on their knees imploring God to save them from their miserable sins. It sometimes happens that the Holy Spirit begins to seize a person and opens his eyes to his condition. Then, the Christian meets her and then discovers her in sadness and assures her that her sadness will now turn into joy, that God has forgiven her, and that she is now a child of God.

Did this person give up his sin ? Did she really repent ? Can this Christian then take responsibility for his salvation (or eternal perdition) ?

We must not be afraid to support where it hurts, in communion with the work of the Holy Spirit. Charles Finney explains that in the conversion of a man, there are often 4 agents : the Holy Spirit, the believer, the announced truth and the sinner himself. Every agent must do his part, and the Holy Spirit always does his.

We must, in collaboration with the Spirit of truth, use the right tools to "keep the sinner from hiding behind entrenchments" (quote from Finney). You will notice that when you proclaim the gospel, the first questions a sinner will ask you will be about the things that the Holy Spirit is working on and that he has to give up. Some will say : "If I accept the Lord, will I have to quit ? Does this mean that I will not be able to have sex before marriage ? Does this mean that I will not have the right to do this anymore ?". This is exactly the place to support. Yes, it is necessary to declare with truth what the Word of God announces and to preach the renunciation of the dead works, without succumbing to the desire to preach a half message reassuring the person that it is not so bad as that. Yes, she is basically bad, ready for hell, as long as she has not repented sincerely.

Jeremy Sourdril