TAKING INVENTORY OF OUR SALVATION
(Part 1)
2 Cor. 13:5
Morning Meditation 5/29/17
Verse 5 says, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?”
We are entering our final week of 1998. A lot of companies will be doing inventory this week. It is good for the Christian to take inventory also. I believe that Paul says in our text is good for us to consider today. He does not do this to cause doubt. He does it because it is a fact that there are those who get into the Church without being saved. Jesus taught this would happen.
He brings this out in the Parable of the Tares in Matt. 13:24-30. Then He interprets this parable in verses 37-43. We are not left in doubt as to the meaning. He likens the kingdom of heaven to this parable.
1.The one who sowed good seed is a “man.” Verse 37 says, “He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man.” After His resurrection Jesus committed the sowing of the seed to the Church; Matt. 28:16-20. The church was given the great commission after the resurrection and before the ascension.
2.The seed was sown in “his field” (vs 24). Verse 38 tells us “The field is the world and the good seed are the children of the kingdom.”
3.An enemy of Christ came while men slept and sowed tares among the wheat (vs 25). The field is the Lord’s. His enemy is Satan.. The Lord’s disciples are the “men” He puts in charge of the work.
4.When the “blade was sprung, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also” (vs 27). The tares are the “children of the wicked one” (vs 38). This teaches that there are unsaved people in the professing church.
5..The servants recognized the tares when they began to grow with the good seed. They asked, “Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? Whence then cometh the tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?”(vss 27-28) Note carefully His answer: “But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.” This teaches that while we do recognize SOME of the tares, we would not be accurate in our judgment, because of our inability to see the inward man apart from outer evidences.
6.Jesus’ rule is: “Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn” (vs 30). There will be an accurate separation between the wheat and the tares. There will not be one tare harvested as a true child of God and there will not be one child of God mistaken for a tare.
7.The harvesters are the angels sent by “The Son of man” (vs 41) “and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (vs 42). Hell is a reality for the TARES.
8.The believer who has God’s righteousness as a gift (Rom. 5:17) are described in the words, “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear” (vs 43).
Let me say this about the tares. It is evident that Jesus is teaching that we as believers may suspect someone of being a tare but we can’t know for sure. And because we can’t know for sure, if we were to attempt to root out the tare, we could possibly be rooting out a true child of God who is carnal and “walk as men” (1 Cor. 3:3). So the Lord of the harvest has not given us the responsibility of making that judgment. What then can be done about this situation? Two things:
1.Preach the Word like Jesus in John 6. In John chapter six where Jesus said, “For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed” (vs 55), and “Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day” (vs 54), and “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing” (vs 63), we are told, “many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with him” (vs 63). Those disciples were only natural men. We are told in 1 Cor. 2:14: “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” They just didn’t get it. They could not understand. So they ceased to identify with Him. In Churches where the Word of God is preached without compromise, it will take care of SOME of the tares. It is hard for the natural man to sit and endure something that don’t make sense to him. The best the natural man can do with the Word of God is to tolerate it.
2.Self examination. Our test says “Examine yourselves.” The word “examine” translates “peirazo” means, “to test: for the purpose of ascertaining the truth.” It means to take inventory. Self examination can also be hurtful. I have counseled people whose introspection kept them in the valley of despair. I believe Satan will help the person who does that. He wants us unhappy. Paul adds the reason of the introspection: “whether ye be in the faith.” Is Christ in you by faith? This is what he is saying. This is what it takes to be a Christian. Col. 1:27 says, “To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” It is the person of Christ that we are to look for. Not our failures or even our doubts. 1 John 3:20 says, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.”
What if you were to discover that you are a tare? This is the day of grace. It is gloriously possible for the tare to become a wheat. God is Creator and salvation is a creation. 2 Cor. 5:17 says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” The word “new” translates “kainos” and means, “recently made, fresh, recent, unused, and “creature” translates “ktisis,” and means, “the act of creating, a creation.” It is referring to an absolutely new creation, not the remaking or repairing of the old. God can take a tare and make a good wheat of him.
Many have gotten into the church through pressure tactics and made professions without proper consideration of the facts of the gospel. There was no real understanding of sin and repentance. Therefore, when they made a profession, they continued to live as they always did with the added responsibility of church attendance. I don’t want to make the plan of salvation hard for anyone. It’s not. But there are some things that one HAS TO UNDERSTAND. The facts have to be in the head before belief can be in the heart. “So then Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17).
The testimony of many is that when they went forward in the service, no one explained anything, and no one told them they should pray and trust the Lord as their personal Saviour. Now a person in this condition may feel that something is missing. They may be under conviction at times. But pride keeps them from admitting that they have never truly trusted Jesus as their personal Saviour and Lord.
I believe Paul was trying to help people like this when he said to the Corinthian Church, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” The word “know” translates “epiginosko” and means, “to become thoroughly acquainted with, to know thoroughly.” He is saying, “Do you not have continuous complete knowledge that Christ is in you?” Is this not a certainty with you? He then says, “except ye be reprobates.” A reprobate here is equivalent to a tare. The tares will be rejected when the angelic servants come at the time of the harvest. The word “reprobate” means, “disapproved or rejected.” The unsaved will be disapproved and set apart from His children at the time of the harvest.
As we close out this year, we would be wise to examine ourselves concerning our salvation. I know for an absolute certainty that Jesus Christ is in me by faith. I believe those to whom I write also know this. But I have learned after 44 years of ministry not to take anything for granted. Truth needs to be stated and those who hear can be helped by it as the HOLY SPIRIT makes application of that truth in their lives.
May God bless these words you our hearts.
In Christ
