2 Coríntios 13
Leon Morris · Citado em PreceptAustin
2 Coríntios 13:5
Morris writes that "Paul here reminds the Corinthians--and us--that it is quite possible for a man or woman to profess Christ and salvation, yet still be unsaved. They may even deceive themselves into thinking that such a profession has saved them. Therefore, we need to examine ourselves to prove ourselves. The sure proof is the realization that Christ is indwelling us, by the Holy Spirit, resulting in godly lives and glad acceptance of all the revealed Word of God, as inspired by the same Holy Spirit. (Defender's Study Bible) While this question might be redundant it is worth repeating -- is not self-examination one of the great benefits of frequent partaking of the Lord's Supper? (Rhetorical of course)... Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must examine (same verb dokimazo Paul uses in 2 Cor 13:5) himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep (DIE! TAKING COMMUNION CALLS FOR SERIOUS SELF-EXAMINATION GIVEN THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES FOR FAILURE TO DO SO!). 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. (1 Cor 11:27-32) Matthew
2 Coríntios 13:5
Morris explains that a reprobate is "one who has failed a proof test. It does behoove anyone who is doubting and disobeying God's Word to examine carefully the reality of His professed conversion to Christ. Every professing Christian needs to "give diligence to make your calling and election sure" (2Pe 1:10-notes See also Morris' note - This divine call and election in no way are contingent on human effort, either to obtain salvation or to retain salvation. See notes on 1Pe 1:2-5. The addition of these Christian graces is the natural outgrowth of the divine nature of which we partake; if they are not being cultivated, there is cause for examining the reality of our professed faith to be sure that we truly are trusting in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ). (Defender's Study Bible) Marvin Vincent on "reprobate" "An unfortunate translation. A reprobate is one abandoned to perdition. The word is kindred to the verb prove, and means disapproved on trial. Easton's Dictionary defines reprobate as That which is rejected on account of its own worthlessness (Jer 6:30; Heb 6:8; Gr. adokimos, "rejected"). This word is also used with reference to persons cast away or rejected because they have failed to make use of opportunities offered them (1Co 9:27; 2Co 13:5, 6, 7). The 1915 version of the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia has a longer definition of reprobate… This word occurs in the English Bible in the following passages: Jer 6:30 (RV "refuse"); Ro 1:28KJV; 2Co 13:5,6,7; 2Ti 3:8KJV; Titus 1:16KJV. In all these cases the Greek has adokimos. The same Greek word, however, is found with other renderings in Isa 1:22KJV ("dross"); Pr 25:4KJV ("dross"); 1Co 9:27KJV ("castaway" RV). The primary meaning of adokimos is "not-received," "not-acknowledged." This is applied to precious metals or money, in the sense of "not-current," to which, however, the connotation "not-genuine" easily attaches itself. It is also applied to persons who do not or ought not to receive honor or recognition. This purely negative conception frequently passes over into the positive one of that which is or ought to be rejected, either by God or men. Of the above passages 1Co 9:27 uses the word in this meaning. Probably Ro1:28, "God gave them up unto a reprobate mind" must be explained on the same principle: the nous of the idolatrous heathen is permitted by God to fall into such extreme forms of evil as to meet with the universal rejection and reprobation of men. Wettstein's interpretation, "an unfit mind," i.e. incapable of properly performing its function of moral discrimination, has no linguistic warrant, and obliterates the wordplay between "they refused to have God in their knowledge (ouk edokimasan)," and "God gave them up to a reprobate (= unacknowledged, adokimos) mind." Even Titus 1:16, "unto every good work reprobate," affords no instance of the meaning unfit, but belongs to the following rubric. The close phonetic resemblance and etymological affinity of dokimos to the verb dokimazo, "to try," "test," has caused the notion of "being tested," "tried," and its opposite of "being found wanting in the test" to associate itself more or less distinctly with the adjectives dokimos and adokimos. Thus the more complex meaning results of that which is acknowledged or rejected, because it has approved or not approved itself in testing. This connotation is present in 2Co 13:5,6,7; 2Ti 3:8; Titus 1:16; Heb 6:8KJV. In the first two of these passages the word is used of Christians who ostensibly were in the true faith, but either hypothetically or actually are represented as having failed to meet the test. "Reprobate unto every good work" (Titus 1:16) are they who by their life have disappointed the expectation of good works. The "reprobate (rejected) land" of Hebrews 6:8 is land that by bearing thorns and thistles has failed to meet the test of the husband man. It should be noticed, however, that adokimos, even in these cases, always retains the meaning of rejection because of failure in trial; compare in the last-named passage: "rejected and nigh unto cursing." (Reprobate - International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) John Piper in his book the Godward Life writes… O how serious is this matter of authenticity in the Christian life! A decision for Christ is not nearly so crucial as a life for Christ. Only reality counts with God. So let us learn three lessons: (1) "Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves" (2Corinthians 13:5), (2) "Enter by the narrow gate… For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few" (Matthew 7:13, 14, RSV), and (3) "You will know them by their fruits!" (Matthew 7:16), which is not justification by works but the indispensable evidence of justification by faith. If we were left to ourselves (William Secker, "The Consistent Christian" 1660) "What makes you better than anyone else?" 1 Corinthians 4:7 Reader, are there not the same lusts lodging in your heart—which are reigning in wicked men's lives? The reason why there is so little self-condemnation, is because there is so little self-examination. If we were left to ourselves but for a moment—we would destroy ourselves in that moment! We can defile ourselves—but we cannot cleanse ourselves. The sheep can go astray alone—but can never return to the fold, without the assistance of the shepherd. "Hold me up—and I shall be safe!" Psalm 119:117 The following is an excerpt from The Christian Soldier, or Heaven Taken by Storm by Thomas Watson, 1669 - A practical handbook on Christian living, showing the holy violence a Christian is to put forth in the pursuit after glory.... The fifth duty wherein we are to offer violence to ourselves, is SELF-EXAMINATION. "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Corinthians 13:5. This is a duty of great importance: it is a parleying with one's own heart, Psalm 77:7. "I commune with my own heart." David did put interrogatories to himself. Self-examination is the setting up a court, in conscience and keeping a register there, that by strict scrutiny a man may know how things stand between God and his own soul. Self-examination is a spiritual inquisition; a bringing one's self to trial. A good Christian does as it were, begin the day of Judgment here in his own soul. Self-searching is a heart-anatomy. As a surgeon, when he makes a dissection in the body, discovers the inward parts, the heart, liver, and arteries—just so, a Christian anatomizes himself; he searches what is flesh and what is spirit; what is sin, and what is grace, Psalm lxxvii. 7. "My spirit made diligent search." As the woman in the Gospel did light a candle, and search for her lost coin, Luke 15: 8—so conscience "is the candle of the Lord," Proverbs xx. 27. A Christian by the light of this candle must search his soul to see if he can find any grace there. The rule by which a Christian must try himself, is the Word of God. Sentimentality and public opinion are false rules to go by. We must judge of our spiritual condition by the rule of Scripture. This David calls a "lamp unto his feet," Psalm 119:105. Let the Word be the umpire to decide the controversy, whether we have grace or not. We judge of colors by the sun. So we must judge of the state of souls by the light of Scripture. Self-examination is a great and necessary duty; it requires self-excitation; it cannot possibly be done without offering violence to ourselves. 1. Because the duty of self-examination in itself is difficult: 1. It is a work of self-reflection; it lies most with the heart. It is hard to look inward. External acts of religion are easy; to lift up the eye to Heaven, to bow the knee, to read a prayer—this requires no more labor than for a Catholic to count over his beads; but to examine a man's self, to turn in upon his own soul, to take the heart as a watch all in pieces, and see what is defective; this is not easy. Reflective acts are hardest. The eye can see everything but itself. It is easy to spy the faults of others—but hard to find out our own. 2. Examination of a man's self is difficult, because of self-love. As ignorance blinds, so self-love flatters. Every man is ready to think the best of himself. What Solomon says of love to our neighbor is most true of self-love; "it hides a multitude of sins," Proverbs 10:12. When a man looks upon himself in the looking-glass of self-love, his virtues appear greater than they are, and his sins less. Self-love makes one rather excuse what is amiss, than examine it. 2. As examination is in itself difficult, so it is a work which we are very hardly brought to. That which causes a backwardness to self-examination, is, 1. Consciousness of guilt. Sin clamors inwardly, and men are loathe to look into their hearts lest they should find that which should trouble them. It is little pleasure to read the hand writing on the wall of conscience. Many Christians are like tradesmen who are sinking in their estates; they are loathe to look over their books, or cast up their accounts, lest they should find their estates low: so they are loathe to look into their guilty heart, lest they should find something there which should affright them; as Moses was affrighted at the sight of the rod turned into a serpent. 2. Men are hardly brought to this duty because of foolish, presumptuous hopes: they fancy their estate to be good, and while they weigh themselves in the balance of presumption, they pass the test. Many take their salvation on trust. The foolish virgins thought they had oil in their lamps, the same as the wise, Matt. xxv. Some are not sure of their salvation—but secure. If one were to buy a piece of land, he would not take it upon trust—but examine the title. How confident are some of salvation—yet never examine their title to Heaven. 3. Men are not forward to examine themselves, because they rest in the good opinions of others: how vain this is! Alas, one may be gold and pearl in the eye of others—yet God may judge him reprobate silver! Others may think him a saint, and God may write him down in his black-book. Judas was looked upon by the rest of the Apostles as a true believer—yet he was a traitor. Bystanders can but see the outward behavior—but they cannot tell what evil is in the heart. Fair streams may run on the top of a river—but vermin may lay at the bottom. 4. Men are hardly brought to examine themselves, because they do not believe Scripture. The Scripture says, "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9. Solomon said there were four things too astonishing for him, that he could not know. Prov 30:19. He might have added a fifth. The way of a man's heart. The heart is the greatest impostor; it will be ready to put one off with seeming grace, instead of saving. The heart will persuade that a slight tear is repentance; a lazy desire is faith. Now because the generality of people do not believe that there is such fallacy in their hearts, therefore they are so slow to examine them. This natural backwardness in us to self-reflection, should cause us to offer the more violence to ourselves in making a thorough investigation and search of our hearts. O that I might prevail with Christians to take pains with themselves in this great work of examination. Their salvation depends on it. It is the way of a harlot—she is seldom at home, Proverbs 7:11,12. "her feet never stay at home; now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks." It is a sign of an harlot-professor, to be always abroad, spying the faults of others; but is never at home with his own heart. Oh let us try our hearts, as we try gold, by the touch-stone. Let us examine our sins, and finding out this leaven, burn it. Let us examine our grace, whether it be of the right kind. One went into the field to gather herbs, and he gathered wild gourds—and then death was in the pot, 2 Kings 4:40. So many think they have grace, the right herb; but it proves a wild gourd, and brings death and damnation. That we may offer violence to ourselves in this great business of examination, let these few things be seriously weighed. 1. Without self-examination we can never know how it is with us. If we would die presently, we cannot tell to what coast we should sail; whether to hell or Heaven. It is reported of Socrates, when he was going out of the world, he had this speech, I am now to die, and the gods alone know whether I shall be happy or miserable. That man who is ignorant of the state of his soul, must needs have the trembling at the heart, as Cain had a shaking in his body. By a serious scrutiny of our hearts, we come to know to what prince we belong, whether to the prince of peace, or the prince of darkness. 2. If we will not examine ourselves, God will examine us. He will examine us, as the chief captain did Paul, by scourging, Acts xxii. 24. He will ask the same question as Christ, "whose is this image and superscription?" And if we cannot show him His own image, he will reject us. 3. There is secret corruption within, which will never be found out but by searching. "There is in the heart" (as Austin said) "hidden pollution." When Pharaoh's steward accused Joseph's brethren of having the cup, they dared have sworn they did not have the cup in their sack. Little does a man know what secret atheism, pride, and lust is in his heart until he searches. 4. The great advantage will accrue to us: the benefit is great whichever way things turn. If upon examination we find that we have not saving grace—then the mistake is discovered, and the danger can be prevented. If we find that we have saving grace—we may take the comfort of it. How glad was he who had "found the pearl of great price?" He who upon search finds that he has but the least degree of grace, is like one who has found his box of evidences; he is heir to all the promises, and in a state of salvation! And that we may go on the more successively in this work, let us desire God to help us to find out our hearts, Job 34:32. "That which I see not teach you me."—Lord, take off the veil; show me my heart; let me not perish through mistake, or go to hell with hope of Heaven. "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23-24. Torrey's Topic Self-Examination Self-Examination… Enjoined 2Cor 13:5 Necessary before the communion 1Cor 11:28 Should be engaged in With diligent search Psalms 77:6, Lam 3:40 With prayer for divine searching Psalms 26:2 Psalms 139:23, 24 With purpose of amendment Psalms 119:59, Lam 3:40 Advantages of 1Cor 11:31 Gal 6:4 1John 3:20, 21, 22 Nave's Topical Bible adds these general Scriptures concerning self-examination - Job 13:23, Ps 19:12 Ps 26:2 Ps 119:59 Hag 1:7 Mat 26:22 Mark 14:19 1Co 11:27, 28, 31 Gal 6:3, 4, 5 Other passages: Mt 7:5, Mt 25:7, Lk 6:42, 22:23, Acts 20:28 "What Is the State of Your Soul, My Friend?" Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.—2 Cor. 13:5. One day, as Felix Neff was walking in a street in the city of Lausanne, he saw, at a distance, a man whom he took for one of his friends. He ran up behind him, tapped him on the shoulder before looking in his face, and asked him, "What is the state of your soul, my friend?" The stranger turned: Neff perceived his error, apologized, and went his way. About three or four years after, a person came to Neff, and accosted him, saying he was indebted to him for his inestimable kindness. Neff did not recognize the man, and begged he would explain. The stranger replied, "Have you forgotten an unknown person whose shoulder you touched in a street in Lausanne, and asked him, 'How do you find your soul?' It was I: your question led me to serious reflection, and now I find it is well with my soul." This proves what apparently small means may be blessed of God for the conversion of sinners, and how many opportunities for doing good we are continually letting slip, and which thus pass irrecoverably beyond our reach. One of the questions which every Christian should propose to himself on setting out on a journey is, "What opportunities shall I have to do good?" And one of the points on which he should examine himself on his return is, "What opportunities have I lost?"—James. (New Testament Illustrations) I love Sammy Tippitt's books on revival and holiness. Here is a brief excerpt from his book on Fire in Your Heart … There are many reasons people come into the church today without entering by the highway of holiness. Many seek a feeling rather than the Lord God Himself… Two young people at the Communist Youth World Festival were converted instantly when they made this statement: "Ich glaube an Jesus" (I believe in Jesus). These two young lives were completely transformed when they made that statement. However, many people in Western Europe and the United States will say, "I believe in Jesus," but very little change, if any, is seen in their lives. What is the difference? When those two East German you said, "I believe in Jesus," they knew they could lose their educational and economic opportunities in life. But they really believed in Jesus. They believed in His life, death, burial, and resurrection so much that they were willing to forsake all opportunities in this life in order to know Him and follow Him. When someone in the West says, "I believe in Jesus, ' it can mean very little. It is usually socially and culturally acceptable to make the statement. But too often there is no repentance, no forsaking of the old life to follow the New-Life Giver, Jesus Christ. The need in Western civilization is for holy men to proclaim Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior. We need men who will not compromise but will call the nations to repentance. George Whitefield in 1739 said, I love those that thunder out the word! The Christian world is in that deep sleep. Nothing but a loud voice can waken them out of it! We need the courage, the commitment, and the message of the 18th century to again permeate the 20th-century church. Historian J. C. Ryle listed seven characteristics of the messengers during the Great Awakening of the eighteenth century: 1. They taught the supremacy of Holy Scripture. 2. They preached the total corruption of human nature. 3. They taught that Christ's death upon the cross was the only satisfaction for man's sin. 4. They preached the doctrine of justification by faith. 5. They taught the universal necessity of heart conversion and new creation by the Holy Spirit. 6. They spoke of God's eternal hatred against sin and of God's love for sinners. 7. They preached that there was an inseparable connection between true faith and personal holiness. They never allowed for a moment that any church membership or religious profession was the least proof of a man being a Christian if he lived an ungodly life. These awakeners continually cried, "No fruit, no grace." Jonathan Edwards believed that every experience of God could be counterfeited except those with an insight into His holiness. (See his book "Religious Affections" discussed above) An insight into the holiness of God will always produce a life-style of repentance. When one enters upon this highway called holiness, it does not mean that he is perfect. It does mean that he is walking down a road of change. Repentance means a change of heart or a change of mind. Throughout the Christian life we should be continually changed, or conformed, into the image of Jesus Christ. The revival in parts of Eastern Europe is not a paradise where Christians have now struggle with sin. Revival makes the child of God more aware of the holiness of God, but it does not eliminate the sin problem. Early in my Christian life a godly minister reached toward me and asked, "Do you se the blemishes on my hand?" I told him that I could not. He placed his had under a light and repeated the question. This time I could see them. Then as he began to move closer to the light, the blemishes became even more evident. What a perfect example of the true nature of revival! As the light of the manifest glory of God shines in out hearts, we can see more clearly our blemishes. There is only one thing we can do. Repent. (From the chapter entitled Holiness - the root of His grace - Part 2) LORD, GIVE US GENUINE BELIEVERS IN OUR CHURCHES! AMEN Joel Beeke - The reading of good sermons is the most underrated kind of Christian literature on the market today. In former centuries, the reading of sermons was the bulk of the mature Christian's reading diet. Most Puritan books, for example, are sermons edited for print. Sermon reading keeps believers in the Word, matures the soul, and whets the appetite for good preaching. It promotes Christ-centered thinking, healthy self-examination, and godly piety in every sphere of life. Though nothing can replace the Word preached, sermon reading has one advantage over preaching—the sermons that made it into print are usually the minister's best! Tolle Lege—"pick up and read" great sermon books, especially those of past centuries that are packed with spiritual meat." See J C Ryle's article - Self-Inquiry Self-Examination Jonathan Edwards Do I manifest an attitude of openness toward God that would invite him to “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts”? (Psalm 139:23-24) Is my heart eager to learn of “any wicked way” in me? Are my motives for self-examination correct—that I might be led “in the way everlasting”? Is it important for me to know whether or not I live in a state of sin? Do I live in the gratification of some lust, either in thought or in deed? Do I live in the omission of some known duty? Am I sinning against the light of my conscience in some way, by going on in known sins? Have I been careful, watchful, and diligent in observing myself for evidence of sin in commission or omission? Have I lived in some way which is inconsistent with my Christian profession, and is not suitable for disciples and followers of Jesus? Have I allowed myself to become blinded by the deceitful nature of habitually gratified sin? Have I invented ways of justifying my sinful practices, calling them by more virtuous titles, or rationalizing them in any way? Do I regularly ask friends and loved ones to show me the faults that I cannot see in myself? Do I overlook some sin in my life because it has become customary to me? Do I allow myself to commit some sin because it is not widely condemned among my fellow-man, or because I see it done by my peers? Am I selective in my obedience? Do I pick and choose which parts of my duty I will perform, neglecting those which are more distasteful to me? Do I set aside time regularly to read and meditate on the Word of God? Have I taken the utmost care to know myself, so that I may compare my thoughts, words, and deeds with the rule of holy Scripture? In what ways does my life agree (or disagree) with what Scripture teaches? Am I doing anything which might be considered a ‘grey area’; things that godly brethren would view as a way of sin? When I look upon this with the utmost strictness, can I see any sin in it? Do I live in any way that I might regret when I lie upon my death-bed? Is there anything I am doing that I would not want to be caught doing if Christ were to return that moment, or I should be taken out of this world and into eternity? Do I consider carefully what others (both friends and foes) say of me and to me, to discover whether I might be living in any way of sin? When I see faults in others, do I make use of the opportunity to examine myself, to see if there is the same fault in me? When I see another who is blind to his own sin, do I look to see if I am also blind to this same sin? Do I live in some way which profanes the Sabbath-day? Do I profane the Sabbath-day by conducting avoidable worldly business? Do I engage in speech which is not fitting for the Lord’s Day? Do I squander the opportunity afforded me to seek God and salvation in greater measure, because of vain, earthly pursuits I am accustomed to on this day? Do I slight the Sabbath by often coming late to church? Do I avoid participation in the ordinances of my church for some reason? Do I participate in worship by singing with heart and voice? (John 4:23-24; cf. Matthew 15:8) Am I frequently distracted during church, allowing my mind to wander freely? Do I spurn the message of God’s herald by allowing myself to sleep in church? Am I guilty of allowing scandals to exist within the body of Christ? Do I harbour and maintain a sin which is dear to me, hiding it from the eyes of the world and ignoring conscience? (Numbers 32:23; Hebrews 4:13) Do I neglect the duty of regular, private, prayerful reading of the Word of God? Do I gratify some sensual lust, either openly, or by relishing the thought of it in my mind? Do I somehow cultivate an appetite for carnal things? Do I allow myself to indulge in sinful anger? Do I live in hatred or ill will towards my neighbour? Do I rejoice at his misfortune? Do I live in envy of my neighbour’s prosperity, wealth, or honour among men? Do I cheat and defraud those with whom I deal? Am I trustworthy, dependable, and truthful? Do I pay the debts I owe in a timely fashion? Do I oppress anyone? Do I take advantage another’s necessity as an opportunity for selfish gain? Am I always honest when buying and selling goods and services? Have I left any wrong unrepaired, or failed to reconcile a relationship which has been damaged? (Matthew 5:23-24) Do I show the love of Christ by helping my neighbour in his time of need? Do I take necessary steps to reprove my brother who is in sin, first privately, then openly, in accordance with Scripture? (Matthew 18:15-17; Galatians 6:1) Do I entertain the company of lewd and immoral persons? Do I speak evil of others in gossip, slander, or flattery, or entertain such speech in conversations with others? Do I accept the ill report of another concerning my neighbour, without going to my neighbour to confirm the truthfulness of the report being circulated about him, and give him an opportunity to learn of it and vindicate his good name? Do I speak evil by lewd talk and coarse jesting, or entertain such speech in conversations with others? (Ephesians 4:29) Am I two-faced and disingenuous in my conversations with parties who are in disagreement over some issue? Am I strictly truthful in my conversations with others? Do I allow myself to shade the truth or exaggerate? Do I behave in any manner which does not exemplify Christ among the members of my household? Do I love the members of my household to a degree commensurate with their near relation to me? Have I caused or furthered any contention among my familial relationships? Am I honoring the marriage covenant by cultivating my relationship with my spouse? Have I sought to perform all those duties to which Scripture calls me, by humbly serving my spouse with deliberate diligence? Do I maintain any bitterness toward my spouse, even if it seems justified? Am I easily irritated with my spouse or other family members? Do I study my spouse so that I may suit myself toward her needs, temperament, and comfort? Or do I live to please myself first? Do I govern my wife imperiously, in an unbiblical authoritarian manner? Do I neglect the regular and diligent instruction of my children, overlooking this as a duty of the utmost importance? Is my discipline of my children fair, consistent, and effective? Does it combine the elements of correction and instruction? Is it done in a loving manner? Do I undermine my spouse’s attempts to discipline my children in any way? If a child, do I honor my parents by obeying them without protest? Do I accept their counsels and reproofs willingly? Do I harbor a rebellious attitude toward them? If a child, do I despise my parents for their weaknesses and shortcomings? Do I honor my parents in their old age? Does my conscience accuse me that I am living in any way of sin? Do I bear fruits which are consistent with a genuine profession of faith? Is grace flourishing in my soul? Is it growing and strong, or languishing? Has some habitual sin in my life paved the way for a greater sin? Is some habitual sin causing me to live in a spiritually darkened state, with cold affections toward Christ, in which I am grieving the Holy Spirit and inviting desertion by God? If I am in a doubting condition, could it be caused by some sin I have not forsaken? If I am in adverse circumstances, could some sin be the cause of it? If I fear suffering, illness, or death, could it be caused by some habitual sin that I have not forsaken? Self-Examination James Smith, 1842 "Let us search and try our ways — and turn again to the Lord." Lamentations 3:40 Affliction calls us to reflection, self-examination, and prayer. It is . . . a solemn pause in the discourse of human life; a short stop in the pilgrim's journey. The Lord calls us aside, and says to us, as Jesus to His disciples, "Let us go aside into a desert place and rest awhile." Look back, believer, upon the ways in which your God has led you; review His dealings with you; look at your conduct in reference to Him. Search your ways. What course have you been pursuing prior to this afflictive dispensation? What spirit have you manifested? What have you been habitually aiming at? Try your ways. Try them by the precepts of God's holy word. Try them by your professions; by the examples of holy men; try them by the character you have to sustain. Have you been doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with your God? Has your conduct declared plainly, that you seek a country, a city that has foundations, whose builder and maker is God? Have you been walking after the Lord — or contrary to Him? Have you been setting your affections on things above — or minding earthly things? Have you been laying up for yourself treasures in Heaven — or laboring more especially for the food that perishes? Do not put away the questions — but search and try your ways. Has the Lord reason to say to you, "O my people, what have I done unto you? How have I wearied you? Testify against me. Have I been a wilderness unto you? a land of darkness? Why have you so backslidden from me? " Turn again to the Lord — He invites you back! He acknowledges that you have done evil things as you could — but He says, "Yet now return unto me." Turn to Him with confession of sin, mourn over your follies and transgressions, and bemoan yourself before Him. Turn to Him with all the heart, not insincerely. He says to you, "My son, give me your heart! This sickness is sent to demand it, surrender it without hesitation, surrender it without reserve. As a Father — I ask your love! As a Savior — I ask your confidence! As a Friend — I, ask your company! As a God — I ask your entire dedication to my service and praise. You have deserved wrath — but you shall find mercy! You have merited condemnation — but you shall obtain remission! You may expect banishment — but you shall be accepted in the Beloved, to the praise of the glory of my grace." He says to you, "I have blotted out your sins as a cloud, and your iniquities as a thick cloud! Return unto me, for I have redeemed you. Only acknowledge your iniquity, that you have transgressed against the Lord your God — and he who confesses and forsakes His sin, shall find mercy. Will you not from this time cry unto me, My Father, you are the guide of my youth? Return, O backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings." What can be more precious? How can mercy be more free? He imposes no hard conditions, He requires no costly sacrifice, He says, "Confess — and be pardoned; ask — and be blessed; receive — and be holy; obey — and be happy." Oh say unto Him, Behold, Lord, I come unto you; for you are the Lord my God. Then you may sing: Instructed now I bow, And own your sovereign sway; I turn my erring footsteps back To your forsaken way! Self Examination James Smith, 1859 "Let a man examine himself" 1 Corinthians 11:28 These are two extremes apparent among professors of religion, some are always in doubt and fear, never satisfied of their adoption, or for long, rejoicing in their union with Christ: others are satisfied with the slightest evidences, and go on securely making sure that they are right. Such are too secure. To such the apostle would say, "Examine yourself whether you are in the faith." To be always in an unsettled state is wrong—but never to examine ourselves, in order to be sure that we are right, is equally so. Let us for a few moments, attend to this business of self-examination; and we propose three questions— First, Into what should we examine? Into the foundation of our hope, on what we are building for eternity? That we have some foundation, there can be no doubt—but is it God's foundation? That we are resting on something there can be no question—but are we resting on Christ, and on his finished work alone? Have we been stripped of everything of our own? Have we been brought away from all dependence on anything we have done, or can do; anything we have felt, or can feel? For it is as wrong to build on the work of the Spirit within us, as to build upon works done by us. The person, obedience, and sacrifice of Jesus alone, is the foundation God has laid for us to build our hopes upon. Then, from what does our satisfaction and pleasure arise? Does our satisfaction arise from what the Lord Jesus has done for us, and what the Holy Spirit has wrought within us? Or, in other words, Do we feel a solid satisfaction within, arising from the persuasion, that Christ has procured us a title to glory by his obedience unto death; and the Holy Spirit has made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light? And, is communion with God, a sense of our acceptance with God, and being actively employed for God, a source of pleasure to us? Again, what do we possess to prove the reality, the vitality of our religion? Have we the life of God in our souls? Does that life aspire to be like God, and urge us to seek deeper and deeper fellowship with God? Have we spiritual light? That light which discovers to us more and more our own depravity, our need of Jesus, and the emptiness and vanity of this present evil world. Have we living faith? The faith which looks to Christ for all, goes to Christ with all, and consecrates the person, his talents, and possessions, entirely to Christ. Have we a good hope through grace? An expectation of sharing with Christ, in all his future glory, simply through free grace. An expectation, raised by the promises, resting on the perfect work of Jesus, and saving us from apostasy and desperation. Have we peace with God? Peace which flows from reconciliation, proves our justification, and prepares us to brave the difficulties, and encounter all the troubles of our earthly pilgrimage. Have we love to God? Love to God for his love to us, for all the blessings he has conferred upon us, and for the bright prospects he has opened before us. Love to God in Christ, for his divine excellencies, pre-eminent beauty, and intrinsic glories. Once more, have we the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts? Have we received the Spirit as the Comforter, testifying of Christ unfolding the excellency of Christ, and witnessing to our interest in Christ? If any man has not the Spirit of Christ, in some measure, or degree—he is none of his. These then are the points into which we should examine. Second, By what should we examine ourselves? By the word of God, which is the infallible standard of right and wrong. Let us look at the promises, to whom are they addressed? To those, who seek the Lord—who hunger and thirst after righteousness— who mourn in Zion—who are peace-makers—the meek—the poor and needy—who endure temptations—who overcome enemies and oppositions, who are faithful unto death. Look at the descriptions given of the Lord's people. They are a poor and an afflicted people. They thirst for God, for the living God. They live by the faith in the Son of God, they walk by faith, and by faith they stand. They worship God in the spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. They bear fruits, even the fruits of holiness, and the fruits of the Spirit. Look at the precepts. They do not come up to these—but they approve of them, admire them, and even delight in the law of God after the inward man. We are not to condemn ourselves, if we do not find all the evidences set forth in the word; nor should we rest satisfied, if we do not find any. The work of the Spirit, is a progressive work. Besides which, there are seasons when our evidences are beclouded. At one time, we may be rejoicing in our adoption, and singing on the heights of Zion; at another time, we may be covered with a cloud, and have scarcely one evidence left. There are seasons, when, if it were not said, "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren;" we would have no confidence at all. We must not therefore judge hastily or rashly—but examine ourselves cautiously, and carefully, by God's most holy word. This then is the rule of judgment, the light by which we are to examine ourselves. Third, When should we examine ourselves? Before we take it for granted that we are Christians, or appropriate to ourselves the children's property. If we claim to be considered Christians—then let it be as the result of a close examination of the state of the heart and life; and of a careful comparing of ourselves with God's word. Let us examine ourselves, before we make a public profession of Christ. If we profess to be Christ's, and publicly take upon ourselves the name of Christ, and identify ourselves with the cause of Christ—we should be prepared to give everyone that asks us, a reason of the hope that is in us, with meekness, and with fear. Faith in Christ, is an essential prerequisite to the profession of Christ. So when we come to the Lord's table, we should examine ourselves whether we be his disciples or not; whether we have his yoke on us, his Spirit within us, and can discern his body in the elements set before us. And if laid on the bed of affliction, or tried in any particular way: it is well to search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord. When death is in immediate prospect, self-scrutiny is very befitting, that we may be able to rejoice in the Lord, face the foe with dauntless courage, and move onward towards eternity, looking with confidence to Jesus. Beloved, have you examined yourself? Have you come to a satisfactory conclusion? It so, let not every little trial or doubt, or suspicion, lead you to question your standing. On the other hand, if there are dark signs, if you can indulge in any sin, if you can allow the lusts of the flesh to reign, or if you can enjoy the world, its pleasures, pursuits, and vanities—then we say to you solemnly, "Examine yourself." Either you are a Christian, or you are not. Everything depends on the right solution of this question. If in Christ, you will resemble Christ, and are saved by Christ. If you have no resemblance to Christ, you are without Christ, and have neither part nor lot in his salvation. THE TRUE CHRISTIAN SELF-EXAMINATION By John Angell James, 1846 My dear friends, This address will reach you at the close of one year, or the beginning of another—in either case its congratulations and directions, its admonitions and cautions, will be in season. Bless the God of your mercies that he has guided, protected, sustained, and supplied you during another year of your pilgrimage in the wilderness state! Raise your Ebenezer, and inscribe upon it, "Hitherto the Lord has helped me!" and having given utterance to the fullness of a grateful heart, that you are "the living, the living to praise God," proceed to the work of self-examination. One use we should make of the end of our years, is to consider them as resting places on the hill of life, or stages in its journey, where we should pause, turn round, take out our map, and inquire whether we are on the right road, and what progress we are making. Another year is opening before you with all its unknown unimagined scenes; it may be your last; and will be to some of you. Could you read the book of destiny, you would find, perhaps, written opposite your name—"This year you shall die!" It is, therefore, a suitable admonition to address to you, "Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live." "For he who will die well and happily, must dress his soul by a diligent and frequent scrutiny; he must in this world—love tears, humility, solitude, and repentance." SELF-EXAMINATION is a duty enjoined upon us both by reason and Scripture. Observe with what vehemence the apostle enforces it, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Cor. 13:5. This, recollect, was addressed to professing Christians, and is an exercise in which all true believers have ever practiced themselves. No one can be really in earnest about the salvation of his soul, who never looks with solicitude into his spiritual state. There are two ends for which this duty is to be performed—first, to ascertain the sincerity and reality of our religion; and, secondly, its condition. In other words, to inquire whether we be in the faith, and also in what degree we are bringing forth, or neglecting to bring forth, its fruits. Somewhat analogous to what takes place in the conduct of the careful tradesman, who inspects his affairs to find out, in the first place, whether he is solvent; and in the next, what is the amount of his profits, and how, by avoiding past errors, or making up discovered deficiencies, he can increase his prosperity. So a diligent, watchful, careful professor, is anxious to know not only that he is a Christian, but how his religion can be improved and increased. It is true, some are happily partakers of so large a measure of the well-founded assurance of faith and hope, as to have few doubts about their state; and, indeed, little cause for doubts. They have so much of the spirit of adoption, as constantly to enjoy the witness of the Spirit of God, that they are his children. It is not so, however, with all Christians; and even those with whom it is, may occasionally examine with profit, the state of their souls, if it be only to increase their confidence in the reasons of the hope that is in them. How momentous is the question, "Am I really a child of God!" What consequences hang upon the decision of such a matter! The very possibility of self-deception here, is truly horrifying. To wake up from the sleep of death in hell instead of heaven, and find that we have made a mistake which requires an eternity fully to understand, and an eternity adequately to deplore! Such a mistake is made, it is to be feared, by multitudes in every age. And when we consider the deceitfulness of our hearts, our proneness to self-love, and the easiness of making a profession in this tranquil age of the church, there is such imminent peril of a fatal error in our own case, as should send us all to our closets, our hearts, our Bible, and our God—to examine whether we "are in the faith." It is a matter which none should take for granted. If we examine ourselves, it must be by some rule, and the only one of any authority in this case, is the word of God. The Holy Scriptures are the only touchstone which God will acknowledge. These are the balances of the sanctuary; the legal standard in the assay office of heaven; all that will not stand this test must be thrown aside, as reprobate silver. To the law and the testimony, then, must be our appeal. Our faith must be tested by the gospel; our practice by the law; and our spirit and disposition by the mind of Christ. He is the model, the pattern, the measure by which all his followers are to be examined, for both law and gospel are embodied in him. I will now lay down some RULES and CONSIDERATIONS and CAUTIONS by which this important business must be carried on. 1. Do not examine yourselves only by your own notion of what a Christian is and should be, and be satisfied if you come up to that, because that notion may itself be wrong. Many frame to themselves an exceedingly inaccurate idea of what is included in religion; and yet if they possess this, are quite contented. This is what the apostle calls, "comparing themselves with themselves," and has led in innumerable cases to self-delusion and self-destruction. Before you are satisfied, then, with the conclusion that you answer to your own idea of a Christian, take good care to examine by the Bible whether that idea itself be a scriptural one. 2. Do not examine yourselves merely by the creeds and catechisms, the formularies, rites, and ceremonies of any particular church; or by the sentiments, opinions, and criteria, of any individual uninspired writer; nor be satisfied if you imagine you come up to these standards. Such tests need themselves to be tried, for they are all fallible. The Bible, the Bible alone is the religion of Christians. Uninspired works may be used with advantage, as helps, but not as infallible standards. (I here recommend an exceedingly valuable little work, entitled, "Am I a Christian, or Aids to Self-Examination," by the Rev. Hubbard Winslow. It contains the celebrated "resolutions" of Jonathan Edwards, and rules for "Growth in Grace.") 3. Do not be satisfied with the good opinion of others upon your spiritual state. Some people are too prone to get rid of their fears and take refuge in the favorable estimate formed of their piety, by those who rank high in their view for judgment and experience. It is more safe, in some cases, to regard the sentiments of those who are prejudiced against us. Your friends cannot see your heart. Their kindness to you and affection for you, may lead them to form the best opinion they can, and their love to you may make them blind to defects which are incompatible with sincere piety, or at any rate, with that which is eminent. Besides, their own religion may be so defective and inconsistent, as to give easy credence, for their own sakes, to the reality of yours. Do not be flattered into self-deception. Let not their ignorant and injudicious adulation, stand between you and the Bible. It is what Scripture says—and not what your friends say—that must determine your state. 4. Do not consider that all is right because you are admitted to church membership upon the examination of a minister, or of a church—and conclude that your Christianity is sincere because your profession has been admitted to be credible. There is a path leading from the sacramental table, trodden by thousands, to the bottomless pit! 5. Beware of judging of yourselves, by partial and detached views of your conduct. To this we are extremely prone. Ever ready to depart from universal regard to the ways of God, we are disposed to rest on some one action or set of actions, as an evidence that all is well with us, and flatter ourselves on this ground, that we are the servants of Jehovah. It is conceivable that many may be prone from taste, situation, interest, or other circumstances to some one branch of Christian duty, who are lamentably remiss in others, the obligations of which though equally strong and plain, are unfelt and resisted. Self-examination must embrace the whole of the divine law, and the whole of our character. We must examine whether we possess that love to God and holiness which is the principle of all right obedience, and which if it be possessed, makes us willing and anxious to do the whole will of God. 6. Do not in default of present evidence, go back to past experience, and coupling this with perverted views of the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, conclude that you are Christians, although there be no satisfactory existing proofs of faith and godliness. When the conclusion is drawn from past, instead of prevent evidence, and the awakened conscience is hushed again to slumber by the opiate of such a sentiment as, "once a child of God, a child of God forever." The delusion is dreadful, and the consequences are likely to be horrendous and eternal. 7. Do not take up the business of self-examination in order to quiet a conscience, feeling the burden of its guilt, and to free the soul from painful apprehensions of the wrath of God. If you have not known the gospel scheme of salvation by grace, and justification by faith; or having known it, have fallen into sin, and thus lost the peace and comfort of your mind; your duty, and the way to quietness and assurance, is not to set about looking into your heart, and back upon your past conduct, to find out evidences of a state of grace; nor to seek the judgment of others, who in ignorance or in kindness, may endeavor to lull your solicitude and flatter you into a good opinion of your state, by reminding you of former zeal, and telling you that God often in sovereignty withdraws from his people because they cannot bear uninterrupted comfort. But instead of this, to apply at once by faith to the blood of Christ, which cleanses from all sin. You are to be directed to the cross, and to be required to believe the testimony that Christ will cast out none who come unto him. If this does not relieve you, God has provided no other ground of comfort, and you ought to beware of seeking any other comfort, either from yourselves or from your friends. Self-examination is never to be put in place of the exercise of faith; nor is it intended or calculated to give relief to the burdened sinner, or to restore the comfort of a trembling backslider. A person in either of these states of mind, may gain a short and fitful repose from the supposition that self-scrutiny has disclosed something in their favor, but it is a delusive, and will be likely to be a transient quietude, and like that produced by opiates for the body, it will soon pass off, and leave the spirit more restless and wretched than ever. 8. Do not be satisfied with a conclusion that rests upon the lowest possible degree of evidence in your favor. Our faith is susceptible of various degrees of strength, and its fruits may be brought forth in greater or less abundance. It is a fearful problem for any man to attempt to solve, to try with how little religion he may be a real Christian, and go to heaven. Do not compose yourselves to sleep with the idea, that though you are not so eminent as some others, and even have many glaring defects and inconsistencies, you are right in the main. It may be so; for weak faith, is sincere faith; and little grace, real grace. But how difficult is it for us to determine, when faith is so weak, and grace is so feeble, that they exist at all! Christ has said, "Herein is my Father glorified that you bear much fruit. So shall you be my disciples." John 15:8. If then the test of discipleship be much fruit, it is unsafe to rest our conclusion upon a little. The more we are conformed to the image of Christ, and the more we have of the mind that was in him, the more decisive is the evidence that we are in the faith. O who that is in any degree alive to the importance of salvation, and to the blessedness of an assured hope of it, will be content with those low degrees of evidence, which leave their possessors ever fluctuating between hope and fear? 9. Enter upon the work of examination with the double purpose of increasing both your joy, and your holiness. Religious comfort, joy, and peace in believing, are of immense consequence, not only to your happiness, but your safety. "The joy of the Lord is your strength." Neh. 8:10. "The peace of God which passes all understanding keeps your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ." Phil. 4:7.Scriptural joy makes duty cheerful, trials light, temptations powerless, and worldly amusements insipid. It is of importance therefore to increase it; and the self-examination of real Christians, by revealing the evidence of their sincere belief, produces this increase of the joy of faith. He who examines the state of his heart and life at the conclusion of one year, ought to do it with a view to correct what is wrong, and supply what is lacking, during the next. 10. No one should be satisfied with his own self-inspection, but by earnest and believing prayer, should entreat of GOD to search him also, and to make known to him his real condition. That man knows not the deceitfulness of his heart, nor is he duly impressed with the danger and consequences of self-deception, who does not occasionally with intense solicitude, present the prayer of the Psalmist, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23, 24. Ask, then, afresh, and with deep solemnity at the close of the present, or at the beginning of the next year, the momentous question, "Am I a sincere Christian—or only a professor?" Set apart an additional hour, to inquire into this great subject. O what are all other questions compared with this, but as the small dust of the balance? By all the value you bear for your soul, or your soul's salvation, I entreat you in the most solemn manner, to take up this matter, and spread it before the Lord in prayer. Take the following questions as a test— Have you a consciousness that you really believe in Jesus Christ, and are depending upon him, and him alone, for salvation? 1 John 5:10. Do you bring forth the fruits of faith, which are the fruits of the Spirit, as set before us by the apostle? Gal. 5:6, 22-25. Acts 15:9. 1 John 2:15; 5:4. Do you love God supremely, practically, habitually? 1 John 5:1-3. Do you love the children of God, for God's sake? 1 John 3:14. Are you complying with the apostle's direction in 2 Peter 1:5-10? On what principles do you act—those of the world or of the Bible? What is your predominant object, time or eternity—the world or salvation? 1 Cor. 4:18. Do you deny yourself for Christ's sake, or are you seeking only self-gratification? Matt. 16:25, 26. How do you employ your talents of property, intellect, influence? For God or self? Rom. 14:7-9. 1 Cor. 6:20. Phil. 1:21. How do you bear your afflictions? With submission or repining? Rom. 5:3. For a more minute and lengthened test of religious character, I refer you to my work, entitled, "The Christian Professor," where, in the chapter on "The Self-deceived Professor," you will find much to direct and caution you. But I will now suppose the great question settled, and that you have no serious reason to doubt that you are "in the faith;" still you have to examine into the degree and state of your religion—for it may be very defective, where it is real. In what condition then are you come to the close of the year? You were exhorted at the commencement of it, to make it a year of improvement, and great increase of holiness. Have you done so? Has the exhortation of your pastor been complied with? Have you sought and obtained an increased effusion of divine influence? Has the heavenly shower come down in its season? Have the dispensations of Providence, both in a way of judgment and mercy, been sanctified? Have you improved well your sabbaths, fifty-two more of which have been numbered to you? Where is the fruit of all the sermons you have heard? What are you the better for the renewed culture you have enjoyed? I dare challenge you, and ask you if I have remitted anything of my labor, fidelity, and anxiety for your welfare. Yes, have I not added to it? Have I sought to please you or to PROFIT you? Have I shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God? Am I not clear from the blood of all of you, if unhappily you should perish? Well, my dear friends, examine your conduct during the past year. Inquire how you have sustained your various relations, and have discharged your various duties. Masters and mistresses, have you been kind to your servants, just as to their wages, watchful over their souls? Servants, have you been honest, diligent, obedient, respectful, devoted? Fathers, have you kept up family religion with punctuality, seriousness, and affection, being careful of the spiritual welfare of your children? Children, have you been obedient, loving, dutiful? Tradesmen, have you been just, generous, true, faithful to your covenants, and considerate of your work-people? You rich, have you been liberal, humble, heavenly? You poor, have you been contented, submissive, trustful? You aged, have you been cheerful, weaned from the world, a godly example to the young? You young, have you been modest, active, useful? As professors, have you been careful to avoid little sins, to maintain a tender and enlightened conscience, a brotherly feeling, and a spirit of charity? All these topics should become matter of self-examination—here is a wide field of inquiry; traverse it all. You must come behind in no duty, but go on unto perfection. Do not think, however, that self-examination is only an occasional duty. It should precede every approach to the Lord's table, "Let a man examine himself," says the apostle, "and so let him eat." It should be interwoven with all our reading of the Scriptures, and hearing of the gospel; and, indeed, with the whole series of our actions. It should be a nightly exercise at the close of each day. Pythagoras, a heathen philosopher, said to his disciples, "Let not sleep seize upon your senses before you have three times recalled the conversation and accidents of the day." Seneca, another pagan, said, "At night, when the light is removed, and all is hushed and still, I make a scrutiny into the day, and hide nothing from myself." And now hear the language of a Christian bishop, on the necessity of this evening exercise, "If we consider the disorders of every day—the multitude of idle worlds; the great portions of time spent in vanity; the daily omissions of duty; the coldness of our prayers; the indifferences of our spirit in holy things; the uncertainty of our secret purposes; our deceptions and hypocrisies sometimes not known, very often not observed by ourselves; our lack of charity; our not knowing in how many degrees of action and purpose every virtue is to be exercised; the secret adherances of pride, and too forward complacency in our best actions; our failings in all our relations; the niceties of difference between some virtues and some vices; the secret indiscernible passages from lawful to unlawful in the first instances of change; the perpetual mistakings of permission for duty, and licentious practices for permission; our daily abusing the liberty God gives us; our unsuspected sins in managing a life certainly lawful; our little greedinesses in eating, and surprises in the proportions of our drinkings; our too great freedoms and fondnesses in lawful loves; our aptness for things sensual, and our deadness and weariness of spirit in spiritual employments; beside an infinite variety of cases of conscience that do occur in the life of every man, and in all communions of every life—then shall we find that the productions of sin are incredibly numerous and increasing, and the computations of a man's life intricate and almost inexplicable; and, therefore, it is but reason we should sum up our accounts at the foot of every page—I mean that we call ourselves to scrutiny every night, when we compose ourselves to the little images of death." By this frequent examination, we shall prevent little sins from growing into great ones, and acts from becoming habits; we shall stop the accumulation of those minor transgressions, which, if they do not become greater ones, diminish the luster of our profession, interrupt our peace, and prey upon our spiritual strength; we shall increase the tenderness of our conscience, promote our watchfulness, make our confession minute, our repentance particular, and greatly advance our holiness. And now, dear brethren, "yield yourselves to God" afresh at the commencement of another year, "as those who are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God." "I beseech you by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service; and be not conformed to this world , but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, that acceptable and perfect will of God." Rom. 12:1, 2. "As strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul." 1 Pet. 2:12. "Pass the time of your sojourning here in fear, forasmuch as you know you were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." 1 Pet, 1:17-19. Resolve, by God's grace, this shall be the holiest year, and the most useful one, of your whole life; then will it be the happiest; and even though it should be the last, it will be to your emancipated spirit as the year of release, of jubilee, and eternal salvation! EXAMINE YOURSELF! TEST YOURSELF! (2 Corinthians 13:5-10) By: Sam Storms One of the greatest problems we face in the church today is the number of truly born again believers who struggle with the assurance of their salvation. They are burdened with fears that they may have committed the unpardonable sin or that their daily failures indicate the absence of saving grace. Their consciences are tormented by the lingering memory of a tainted past. Anxiety eats away at their hearts like a corrosive acid. They are desperate for some word that will bring assurance to their disquieted souls. Although it is not my purpose here to provide counsel to those who struggle with assurance, one thing should be noted. Most often people who live in fear that they aren't saved are the ones who need worry about it the least. Unregenerate people couldn't care less about their sin or salvation. They are spiritually "dead" (Eph. 2:1), "darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them" and suffer from "hardness of heart" (Eph. 4:18). They have become "callous and have given themselves up to sensuality" (Eph. 4:19). They are, therefore, insensible to the beauty of Christ and indifferent towards the countless ways in which they violate his will and fail to honor him as God. That you should be painfully concerned over your sin and distressed by your failure to love and obey Christ as you know you should is precisely why I would feel free to encourage you and reassure your heart that you do, indeed, truly know him as Lord and Savior. It is the stinging conviction of sin that testifies to the Spirit's saving presence in your heart! But I must move on. If there are many who are saved but think they aren't, even greater is the number who aren't saved but think they are. Having walked an aisle when they were seven or prayed a prayer at the age of twelve, or perhaps on the assumption that living in the U.S. and being raised in a church necessarily entails salvation, these folk presumptuously believe themselves to be Christians whose eternal destiny is set and secured. D. A. Carson has articulated what we know all too well, that "there are millions of professing believers in North America today (to say nothing of elsewhere) who at some point entered into a shallow commitment to Christianity, but who, if pushed, would be forced to admit they do not love holiness, do not pray, do not hate sin, do not walk humbly with God. They stand in the same danger as the Corinthians; and Paul's warning applies to them no less than to the Corinthian readers of this epistle" (178). Here in 2 Corinthians 13:5-10, we find the apostle Paul issuing a pointed and passionate call to the Corinthian church. "Examine yourselves," says Paul, "to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? - unless indeed you fail to meet the test!" (2 Cor. 13:5). I have a two-fold aim in this meditation and it centers on this statement in 2Co 13:5. Although the broader paragraph (2Co 13:5-10) is important, my focus will be on this single passage. First, we need to understand how this call for self-examination related to the Corinthians to whom it was originally addressed. Second, I want us to consider how it applies today, to you and to me. Paul's exhortation is that they both "examine" and "test" themselves. What is important to note is that "the means by which the test is performed is Paul himself. Allegiance to him as their apostle is the criterion that determines whether Christ is present in their lives, since Paul is confident that he himself has already passed the test (2Co 13:6). To accept Paul's message of reconciliation is to accept God's message of reconciliation" (Hafemann, 493). In other words, the test is the degree to which they respond positively to Paul's claim to apostleship and especially to his proclamation of the gospel. He is operating on the assumption that "those in whom God is at work by his Spirit will recognize that Paul's holiness, sincerity, and way of life all derive from the same grace of God that Paul is now calling them to accept (cf. 1:12 with 6:1-2)" (493). This assumption also means that "those in whom Christ is present will not continue in the lifestyles of rebellion characterized in 12:21. Where Christ is, there is a life of growing holiness" (493). In 1 Corinthians 16:13 Paul urged them to "stand firm in the faith." Now he urges them to examine themselves to see "whether" they "are in the faith" (v. 5). In both cases, "faith" probably refers not to their subjective trust in Christ but to the Christian faith, i.e., those objective truths which constitute the Christian religion, what Jude referred to as "the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (v. 3). As I said, although this is not a direct reference to saving faith in Christ, to be "in" the faith certainly has in view one's theological convictions as well as ethical behavior. To "fail" the test is to discover, after self-examination, that Jesus is not, in point of fact, in them. Paul is not talking about the possibility of someone having Jesus in him, only then to apostatize and discover that Jesus is no longer there. His point is this: if the Corinthians are truly Christians, they will realize that Jesus is in them. And if Jesus is in them, they should be led to acknowledge that he is also in Paul, for it was through him that they came to saving faith. Surely there must be some merit to the claims of one who led so many to faith in Christ! In other words, "he will show them that their verdict about themselves will likewise be their verdict about him. That is, however they fare in their self-examination is how he also fares, because they owe their existence in Christ to him" (Barnett, 607). Certainly Paul believed that the majority of those in Corinth were true believers (see 3:1-3; 6:13). However, although confident that they will "pass the test," the possibility always exists that some may discover that they have "failed." In other words, the reality of self-delusion and false assurance must be faced. This is where we must turn our focus from the first century to the twenty-first, from the Corinthians and their spiritual state to us and ours. How should we today examine and test ourselves? Perhaps we should begin where Paul did, with the objective revelatory truths found in God's Word, "the faith" (v. 5), as he put it. Are we "in" it? Are my beliefs governed by Scripture or by personal likes and dislikes? Do I elevate my opinions above God's? Most important of all, who is Jesus to me? Do I accept Scripture's claim that he is God incarnate, that he lived a sinless life and died a substitutionary death, absorbing in himself the wrath of God I deserved, and that he rose again bodily from the dead? Do I set my hope in personal effort and sincerity and the confidence that my good deeds will outweigh or somehow trump my bad ones? What is my response to the apostolic message? Does it resonate in my heart? Do I relish the revelation of Christ about whom Paul and Peter and John and others wrote and for whose name's sake they gave their lives? Am I submissive to their teaching? Do I shape my life and recast my beliefs and formulate my choices to conform with the theological and ethical principles they defend? I must also test and examine myself by determining not whether I sin, because I most certainly do, but how I feel and respond when I sin. Am I unmoved and indifferent and cold toward my failures? Do I find ways to rationalize what I know is inconsistent with Scripture? Do I simply acquiesce to my sinful desires and lusts and illicit longings by saying, "Well, that's how God made me so it can't be wrong. I'm just being me. Surely God can't argue with that!" In short, writes Carson, "when a person is broken in spirit and contrite before the God of all justice, grace comes and pronounces absolution and grants confidence. But when a person is haughty and arrogant, the product of well-cultivated triumphalism, unconscious of grace or of any need for it, then grace flees and a stern apostle warns, ‘Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves'" (178). The last thing I want to endorse is a morbid, introspective obsession with the state of our souls, as if we are called upon each moment to take our spiritual pulse, oblivious and blind to the hurts and needs and desperate condition of those around us. But we must also avoid the opposite extreme that is characterized by presumptuous self-delusion and a proud indifference to the ethical demands of the gospel. In conclusion, and most important of all, when I realize that nothing in my life is perfect and that all my beliefs are to some extent flawed and that every effort I make is tainted by selfishness and sin, do I look to Jesus and to him alone, whose life and death and resurrection are my only hope? That is the ultimate test. Sam (Bolding added) Self-examination William Nicholson, 1862 "Let a man examine himself." 1 Corinthians 11:28 "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Corinthians 13:5 Self-examination is a duty of great importance, and which requires to be discharged with the utmost care and fidelity. It is a duty sadly neglected. If it were more regarded . . . there would be more individual holiness and happiness, there would be less formality and apathy in the Church, religion would be rendered more attractive to the world. If a man regularly investigates his secular affairs, he knows his state, and acts accordingly. If he neglects the investigation, the results may be painful. I. The Duty Enjoined. "Let a man examine himself." To "examine" means to inspect, to make trial, to enter upon a strict inquiry — and, for this purpose, to commence with our own hearts. We are also exhorted to "prove ourselves," to try ourselves as metals are tried: if found pure, they are approved; if not, they are rejected, and esteemed as reprobate. Jeremiah 6:30. This duty is personal. It begins at home, where the duty is required. Some are apt to examine other people uncharitably and with censoriousness. It is possible for us to see the mote in our brother's eye — when there is a beam in our own! Let us examine ourselves, 1. As to our acceptance with God. Have we ever been convinced of our lost estate? Have we ever felt ourselves to be spiritually helpless? Has Christ ever been revealed to us as our Savior? Have we been reconciled to God by faith in him? Have we ever rejoiced in pardoning love, justifying grace, and the privileges of adoption? 2. As to our faith. Do we heartily believe the doctrines of the Gospel? Do we live upon them? Can we say, like Paul, "I am crucified"? Galatians 2:20. Are we free from a self-righteous spirit? Has our faith any fruits or works — to prove its vitality? James 2. This is a point of such importance as to involve our salvation. If we are in the faith, all the other graces will follow in their train. If not in the faith, it matters not what else we are, our hopes and our work are all in vain. John 3:36. 3. As to our hope. If faith is right, then hope will be right. Hebrews 11:1. There can be no hope without faith. Does hope lift up our head in trouble? Does it deaden us to the world? 4. As to our connection with the Church. Is the church any better for us? Are we an honor to it, or an impediment to it? Do we desire, seek, pray for, and contribute to, its prosperity? 5. As to our behavior in the world. Are we separate or conformed? Do we shine in it? Do we seek its salvation? 6. As to the trials of life. Do we murmur and repine? Are we patient? Do we come out of them as gold refined? II. The Manner Self-examination. 1. With solemnity. Self-examination is a weighty affair — the business of the soul. It has an aspect on eternity! 2. By comparison. Compare our disposition, spirit, and conduct — with the preceptive part of God's word — with the examples of Christian conduct recorded there. 3. Impartially. Not attaching too much importance to our infirmities — not apologizing on account of our circumstances. Judge impartially, as in the presence of the heart-searching God. 4. Frequently. When we read and hear the Gospel — apply it. At the close of each day — on that bed, where, before morning, we may die. On the Lord's day. Before attending to the ordinance of the Lord's supper. See 1 Corinthians 11:28. 5. Prayerfully. Invoke God to do it for you, and to suggest to you your duty. Pray for forgiveness — for quickening — for strength — for faith, and vigorous life. "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!" Psalm 139:23-24 III. The Important Advantages Resulting from the Discharge of the Duty of Self-examination. It is essential to our growth in grace, our interest, and felicity. We need it. We are so liable to err — to become unwatchful — to neglect our duty. Self-examination will lead . . . to humility, to repentance, to faith, to healthy Christian growth. Self-examination will warn us of danger, and lead to our deliverance and safety. The mariner keeps a lookout, throws out his line, makes his observations, and repairs the smallest injuries. Just so, in the voyage of life, a Christian who would not make shipwreck of his faith, must be watchful and diligent, and make it his express business to look into his state, and ascertain his progress. Self-examination will lead to greater spiritual enjoyment. It will induce preparation for death, and give confidence and hope in the prospect of eternity Related Resources HENRY MAHAN SERMONS 2 Corinthians 13:5 A Saving Faith or a Religious Profession 2 Corinthians 13:5 Is My Faith Saving Faith 2 Corinthians 13:5 Testing Our Faith 2 Corinthians 13:5 True Saving Faith or Religious Profession JOHN MACARTHUR SERMONS 2 Corinthians 13:5-6 The Pattern of Sanctification: Authenticity, Part 1 2 Corinthians 13:5-6 The Pattern of Sanctification: Authenticity, Part 2 2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine Your Faith RICHARD BAXTER - 280 page book! THE MISCHIEFS OF SELF-IGNORANCE AND BENEFITS OF SELF-ACQUAINTANCE 2 CORINTHIANS 13:5.