Crossing God's Deadline | Part 2

0:00 Are you at risk of crossing God's deadline? Listen to Adrian Rogers. The Bible teaches that you can so insult God, you can say no to the Holy Spirit of God so many times that God's Holy Spirit of God will cease to work in your heart. Genesis chapter 6 and verse 3, God said before the flood, my spirit will not always strive with man. Don't get the idea that Holy Spirit conviction is going to stay in your heart and in your life. You may come to a place of sudden destruction in your spirit as well as in your mind where the Holy Spirit of God no longer speaks to you and God no longer draws you. Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring the dynamic teaching and convicting lessons of Adrian Rogers. Can a man spiritually pass the point of no return? can he be so willfully rebellious that God will give up on him?

0:59 The answer, frighteningly, is yes. In part one of today's message, we learned that we must listen to the warnings God graciously gives us before we reach the point of no return. If you have your Bible, turn to Proverbs 29, as Adrian Rogers reveals more about crossing God's deadline. Can a man spiritually pass the point of no return? Can he so stubbornly and arrogantly sin against God? Can he be so willfully rebellious that God will give up on him? The answer to that question is yes. And that's a frightening thing. there is a deadline. And if a man, woman, boy, or girl crosses that deadline, his doom is sealed and he has no hope. You say, but Pastor, God is a God of love, infinite love. Yes, He is. But He's also a God of wrath and a God of judgment. And when you say that God is a God of love, that is truth, but it's not all of the truth. It is part of the truth. And when you try to take all part of the truth and make part of the truth all of the truth, that part of the truth becomes an untruth.

2:20 So we need to see all of God's Word. I want you to look at this verse of Scripture because it is terrifying in some ways. Proverbs chapter 29 and verse 1, He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. There's a time I know not when. There is a place I know not where which marks the destiny of men to heaven or despair. There is a line by us not seen which crosses every path, the hidden boundary between God's mercy and God's wrath.

3:22 And to cross that line means that there's no hope for you. I've been told that in the Niagara River, I've never seen it, but in the Niagara River that rushes down to Niagara Falls, at first the Niagara River is very placid and very slow, but it reaches a point where it rises and picks up speed. and there's a sign there, I'm told, on the river bank which says the point of no return. Now, you can be in that river for a long time, but when you come to that place, you're not going to turn around and go back. That is the point of no return and you are going over the falls if you pass that point. It is the point of no return. Now, there are four definite truths that are in this one verse. And so I want you to take Proverbs chapter 29 and verse 1 and keep it open in your hand.

4:16 And if you don't have a Bible with you, listen to it again. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed and that without remedy. Four thoughts I want to lay on your heart today. And I pray God the Holy Spirit will etch them upon your consciousness and rivet them into your mind. The very first is spiritual conviction. God does convict us. We are often reproved. Now, nobody goes to hell unloved, unwarned, unconvicted. Not a one. He that being often reproved. God strives with us. God knocks on our heart's door. God reproves us. God calls us over and over and over again. The Bible says, he that being often reproved, many times reproved, it would have been glory's mercy if God had just warned us one time, wouldn't it?

5:16 But over and over and over and over again and again and again and again, God reproves. That's the first thought, spiritual conviction. Here's the second thought, stubborn rebellion. Stubborn rebellion. him. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck. That means what we say today is bowing up the neck. Just saying no, jutting out the chin, saying I will not do what God would have me to do. How do you harden your neck? Well, you're in Proverbs 29. Just go back to 27 and look, if you will, in verse 1. Some harden their neck by procrastination. Post not thyself of tomorrow. For thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. You have the idea, well, yes, God has spoken over and over again. And one of these days, one of these days I'm going to give my heart to the Lord. Tomorrow, but God's Word says don't boast about tomorrow. And so you may harden your neck by procrastination. You say, well, I'll do it but later. Or you may harden your neck by pride and saying, I'm not going to go down and make a fool of myself. Or you may harden your neck to the pleasures of this world and say, I'm a lover of pleasure more than lovers of God. But now there's a third thing I want you to see in this text. Now look at it. He that being often reproved, that's spiritual conviction. And hardeneth his neck. That's stubborn pride. Then notice there comes also our stubborn rebellion. Then there comes sudden destruction. Sudden destruction. Look at it. He that being often reprove, spiritual conviction, and hardeneth his neck, stubborn rebellion, shall suddenly be destroyed. Sudden

7:22 destruction. That's what God's Word says. There comes a time when you cross the deadline. Now, God will bring judgment. God is a God of love, but He's also a God of wrath. Now, how may that sudden destruction may come to you? Well, first, it may come to your mind. Not merely to your body, it may come to your mind. Not merely to your soul, the destruction may be in your head. God will destroy your ability to think right. You say, Pastor, where is that found in the Bible? Well, I want to give you a passage of Scripture, and if you want to turn to it, you can turn to it. Or if you just want to listen to it, it's found in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, verses 11 and 12. The Bible says, For this cause God shall send them strong delusion. God sending delusion?

8:16 Well, pastor, I thought God was here to teach us the truth. Do you mean God would delude a person? Do you know what delude means? It means to be deceived. For this cause, God will send them strong delusion. Well, why would God send people strong delusion? Well, he goes on to say that they should believe the lie. You mean God wants people to believe the lie? That's what it says. Well, you say, I don't understand that. Well, it gets worse, that they all might be condemned. damned. Now, wait a minute, pastor. Are you telling me that God sends delusion, that people would believe lies, that they might be damned? That's what it says, black print on white paper. Well, why would God do that? He goes on to say, these are the ones who did not believe the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. God spoke to them. God gave them truth over and over and over again. Now in this passage, and listen very carefully, the opposite of truth is not error, it is sin. You see, you're faced with the truth. And you know that if you receive that truth, that you'll have to turn from your sin. So here's a man, over here he has truth. Over here he has sin. And so when he's faced with the truth, he refuses the truth, he embraces his sin. The opposite of truth here is unrighteousness in this passage of Scripture. And when that man turns from his truth, he's being often reproved, he hardens his neck, he turns toward his sin, then the baggage that he has is strong delusion.

9:52 You see, that is the baggage. That is the just judgment. When a man says, I had rather have my sin than God's truth, God says, all right, with your sin you will be given strong delusion. And that's the reason that so many people are in false cults today. A man may come to this church and hear the gospel preached and get all bent out of shape and say, I didn't go to Sunday morning to hear that kind of garbage. He doesn't ask whether it's true or not. Three weeks later, he's at home. His kids are in Sunday school. His wife is out shopping. He's sitting there reading the papers with his whiskers grown out. Got a six-pack of embalming fluid by his side. Somebody knocks at the door. He goes to the door. Who is it? Two of Jehovah's false witnesses. And he said, what do you want? They said, we're here to tell you there's no hell. He says, come on in. And he believes a lie. You say, well, he may be sincere. He's sincerely wrong. But when he knew the truth, when he knew the truth, he loved not the truth, but he had pleasure in unrighteousness. And for this reason, God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie that they might be damned who believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed. There may be the destruction of the mind through delusion. There may be the destruction of the spirit through desertion. Did you know that you can't be saved just any time you get ready to be saved?

11:27 Don't get the idea that one day you'll just whistle and say, God, come save me. Jesus said, no man can come unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him. Did you know that? Did you know that unless the Holy Spirit of God brings you unto conviction, you'll never be saved? It's not my preaching that puts you unto conviction. I'm just the Western Union boy. The message is his, and he is the one that has to put you unto conviction. But the Bible teaches that you can so insult God, You can say no to the Holy Spirit of God so many times that God's Holy Spirit of God will cease to work in your heart. Three times in the first chapter of Romans, God speaks of giving up on people. And God gave them up, and God gave them up, and God gave them over. The old-time preachers used to call that when the lights go out on the road to hell. The Holy Spirit of God no longer speaks to a man.

12:22 Genesis chapter 6 and verse 3, God said before the flood, my spirit will not always strive with man. Don't get the idea that Holy Spirit conviction is going to stay in your heart and in your life. You may come to a place of sudden destruction in your spirit as well as in your mind where the Holy Spirit of God no longer speaks to you and God no longer draws you. There was a pastor, used to pastor in Arkansas, Joe Henry Hankins. Kind of a Jeremiah type of guy would weep when he preached. He said he was preaching in his church. And God was there that morning. He gave the invitation. He said he saw a young man in the balcony. You know, people get the idea up in the balcony that I can't see you. Can you see me? He was preaching And he said during the invitation That young man in the balcony Was under conviction, it was obvious He was under conviction, he said come And give your heart to Jesus, he said I saw That man as he closed his hymnal And started out and then he stepped back And opened it and started to sing again Sang another stanza, he stepped out and then he stepped Back, finally he closed The book and put it down and started out And Dr. Hankins says, thank God he's coming to Jesus.

13:44 But he said he turned and walked out and went out of the church and never came back. Dr. Hankins said a few weeks after that, he said this boy was stricken with a disease. And the doctor said he would not survive. Hankins found his name, went to visit the boy at his bedside. He said, son, I want to ask you a question. He said, were you in church on thus and such a time? Yes, sir. Son, I was watching you in the balcony. It seemed to me that you were under conviction and that you wanted to be saved. Was that right? Yes, sir, that was right. Well, son, I saw you step out and step back several times. Why was that? He said, preacher, when you gave that invitation, I wanted to get down there where you were so bad.

14:37 I felt I could jump over the balcony and get down there. Well, son, why didn't you come? He said, I remembered my sin, my favorite sin. His sin, I believe, was a sin of immorality. And he said, I knew if I went down there, I'd have to give up my sin. And he said, I was in a battle. And he said, I made up my mind. And I would keep my sin and I left the church. Dr. Hankins said, son Have they told you how sick you are?

15:10 He said, yes, sir I know I'm going to die You don't have to beat around the bush He said, well, son, if you're going to die You can't have that sin anyway Why don't you give your heart to Jesus? And Dr. Hankins said, that boy said something That sent a chill over him He said, preacher, there's something you don't understand.

15:34 He said, when I closed that book and stepped out of that church, something died within me. I can't give my heart to Jesus. Hankins said he wept and pled for that boy's soul. But he died without saying yes to the Lord Jesus Christ because in his spirit there was something that was destroyed. God says, my spirit will not always strive with a man. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed. There may be the destruction of the mind, strong delusion. There may be the desertion of the spirit where the Holy Spirit of God no longer speaks to your spirit. There may be the sudden death of the body.

16:18 You say, well, pastor, I've got plenty of days to live. How do you know? It may be the last sermon you'll ever hear. he that being often reproved and hardens his neck shall suddenly be destroyed. It just takes one bad incident at an intersection for you to be out in eternity. Don't get the idea, friend, that eternity is way out yonder.

16:45 It's only a heartbeat away. It's the only thing between some people here in hell is that heartbeat, that little heartbeat. That's all there is between you and hell. The Bible says there is but a step between me and death. Notice what he says. He that being often reprove that spiritual conviction and hardeneth his neck that stubborn rebellion shall suddenly be destroyed. That's sudden destruction. Now listen to the next part and I'm finished. And that without remedy. That is settled destiny. settle destiny. Don't get the idea that you're going to die and stand before God and ask God for a second chance. There'd be no second chance.

17:39 The Bible says it's appointed unto man once to die, and after this, the judgment. It doesn't say there's a second chance. In Luke chapter 16, the Bible tells of a rich man who died, and the Bible says in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torment. And he said, Father Abraham, send Lazarus that he might dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame. And he looked for some alleviation of the pain, the suffering in hell. Whatever hell is, I don't want you to go there. You say, is that literal or figurative? For your sake, I hope it's literal. Because the figure, if it's figurative, the figure is never as strong as the reality. Whether it's literal or physical, makes no difference to me. God took the lexicon of heaven and he described a place called hell as hellfire. Talked about a man there in hell wanting a drop of water to cool his tongue. And then God spoke to him and said, son, just remember in your lifetime, all of the things that happened, how good I was to you and you didn't repent. And now there's a great gulf fixed. Lazarus can't come where you are. Lazarus was in heaven and you can't go to where he is. God didn't say there's a second chance. Think about it. Hell is a bottomless pit. How could you use a bottomless pit as a stepping stone? How could you ever get out of a bottomless pit? God brought me here to tell you today that He loves you with an infinite love and that He has spoken to you over and over again and He's speaking to you today. But God says, if you continue to harden your neck, you'll be destroyed. And when you are, there'll be no second chance. It will be without remedy, without hope. I look this up in a number of different

19:47 translations, but they all mean the same thing. No hope, without a second chance, without a remedy, without a cure. He that being often reproved and hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. But why would God reprove you? Because He loves you so much, and He wants to save you today. Pastor Rogers, would Jesus save me today? Yes. Pastor Rogers, are you sure? Yes, I'm sure if you'll call upon him. You say, what if I've crossed the deadline? If you'll call upon him, you haven't. Let me give you good news. Anybody who wants to be saved can. The man who crosses the deadline, he has no desire to be saved.

20:42 But if you have a desire to be saved, that's because the Holy Spirit of God is working in you. And if you want to be saved, you can be saved. And I thank God that the Bible says, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And if you were to show me one time, one place where anybody, anybody were to ask Jesus to save them and He didn't save them, I'd close my Bible and never preach again. If you'd like to be saved, I want you to pray a prayer like this out of your heart. Dear God, that's right, just speak to Him. I know that you love me. I know that you want to save me.

21:18 Jesus, you died to save me. You promised to save me. If I would only trust you, I do trust you, Jesus. Would you tell him that? I trust you now, Jesus. I believe you're the Son of God. I believe you paid for my sin with your blood. I believe that God raised you from the dead. I receive you now. I trust you now as my Lord and Savior. Forgive my sin. Cleanse me Save me Jesus Pray that from your heart Save me Jesus Did you ask him? Then by faith pray this way Thank you for saving me Jesus Would you pray that? Thank you for saving me I receive it by faith You are my Lord and Master I will follow you and live for you the rest of my life And I will never be ashamed of you You are my Savior, my God.