Appendix

If you live a consistently carnal life, what happens?

What’s at stake?

IV. Results of Consistently Living a Carnal LifeA. What is at stake in your Christian life?

1. We have already determined biblically that no believer can lose his salvation.

What’s at stake?

2. Some believers worry that teaching the doctrine of eternal security will cause grace to be abused; however, because God designed the biblical fact of eternal security, we should not shrink from teaching it.

What’s at stake?

3. Always remember that true biblical grace does not produce disgrace. I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it!1 Peter 5:12b

What can you lose?

B. A Christian cannot lose his salvation, but if he chooses to walk according to his flesh rather than by the Holy Spirit, he will lose out.1. Being carnal comes with a high price tag. A

carnal believer can become so spiritually confused he loses all certainty that he is saved.

What can you lose?

a) God’s will is that you be fully assured of your salvation and attain to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding. (Colossians 2:1-2) Doubting your salvation nullifies that wealth.

What can you lose?

b) Your salvation cannot be lost, but you can begin to struggle with doubts.

c) You can lose your knowledge of the truth and forget that Christ once for all purified you from your sins. 2 Peter 1:8-11

What can you lose?

2. If you live carnally, you lose your fellowship with God. 1 John 1:3-10, Luke 15:11-24a) God hates sin because sin breaks our

fellowship with Him. 1 John 1:6-7b) God invites us to abide in Christ and

commands us to not walk in darkness (the flesh). John 15:4-5, Ephesians 5:6-18

c) A Christian who continually walks according to the flesh has no intimacy with Christ.

What can you lose?

3. When a believer lives according to the flesh, he loses his joy for life.a) He loses the joy of the Lord. Nehemiah

8:10bb) King David did not lose his salvation

when he sinned, but he did lose his joy in life. He prayed that God would restore the joy of his salvation. Psalm 51:12

What can you lose?

4. When a believer walks by the flesh, he loses his capacity to serve the Lord.a) God saved us by His grace so that we

might serve Him. Ephesians 2:10b) God wants each of us to be faithful in

our service. Titus 3:8

What can you lose?

c) If we seek to selfishly protect ourselves, we lose the spiritual race for the eternal prize. Mark 8:34-35, Galatians 6:7-9

d) The Holy Spirit cannot produce His goodness through carnality; therefore, the carnal believer loses his usefulness to God. Galatians 5:16-23

What can you lose?

5. Fleshly living causes loss of effectiveness as a minister.a) The believer loses his fruitfulness when

he ceases abiding in Christ and begins walking according to the flesh. John 15:1-5

What can you lose?

b) Your testimony before the world is important. Carnal believers lose their ability to impact others for the Lord. Matthew 5:10-16

c) God never commands us to work for our salvation, but He does command us to work out our salvation so that we shine forth as lights in this dark world. Philippians 2:12-16

What can you lose?

6. A believer who lives by the flesh loses his confident outlook on the future.a) Having hope for the future allows us to

enjoy the present. Romans 15:13b) The believer who refuses to live by the

Spirit loses his eternal perspective and suffers from spiritual nearsightedness. 2 Peter 1:3-9a

c) The Lord commands us to look to Jesus, but the carnal believer has lost that focus. Hebrews 12:1-2

What can you lose?

7. A believer who lives carnally will lose rewards at the judgment seat of Christ (Bema).1 Corinthians 9:27, 2 Timothy 4:6-8a) God wants to say to you, “Well done,

good and faithful servant.” Luke 19:17

What can you lose?

b) But if you choose to walk by the flesh, you will enter heaven with nothing of value to show for your life. 1 Corinthians 3:15, 2 Corinthians 5:6-11

c) God wants every believer to get a full reward (2 John 1:8), but carnal believers will be ashamed at Christ’s appearing. 1 John 2:28, 4:17

What can you lose?

8. Being carnal keeps the believer from triumphing over the world in his daily life.a) The apostle Paul knew that a believer

could become a castaway, shipwrecked in his spiritual life. 1 Corinthians 9:27, Romans 8:13

What can you lose?

b) Through carnality, the believer returns to eat his own vomit and wallow in the mire.2 Peter 2:18-22

c) The prodigal son remained a son even while he was with the pigs, but he was defeated as a person because of his carnality. Luke 15:11-32

What can you lose?

9. Carnality upsets a believer’s spiritual life so that he never reaches his full potential.a) The carnal believers in the church of

Laodicea became lukewarm and blocked Jesus from their church life. They were religious yet carnal. Revelation 3:14-22

What can you lose?

b) Carnality makes instability. 2 Peter 3:17c) Our goal should be to grow in grace and

in intimacy with our Lord Jesus Christ.2 Peter 3:18

What can you lose?

10.Carnality causes a believer to reject a good conscience and sways him disastrously from the historical teachings of the faith.a) God wants us to fight the good fight of

faith, stay true to the teachings of His Word, and maintain a clean conscience. 1 Timothy 1:18-19a

What can you lose?

b) Some believers , e.g., Hymenaeus and Alexander, were shipwrecked in their faith.1 Timothy 1:19b

c) Hymenaeus and Alexander did not lose their salvation, but through church discipline were turned over to Satan for the destruction of their bodies in order to learn not to blaspheme. 1 Timothy 1:20

What can you lose?

d) The church may discipline carnal believers so they will learn to not blaspheme.1 Corinthians 5

e) Child of God, much is at stake! You have much to lose!

faith alone in Christ alone

V. The only prerequisite for salvation is faith alone in Christ alone.A. Over 160 references in the New Testament

show that salvation is based on faith alone in Christ alone. (Taken from J. B. Hixson’s book, Getting the Gospel Wrong)

faith alone in Christ alone

B. The Gospels1. Luke 7:48-50; 8:12; 18:42 2. John 1:7, 12; 2:23; 3:15, 16, 18, 36; 4:39,

41, 42; 5:24, 45-47; 6:29, 35, 40, 47; 7:38, 39; 8:24, 29, 30; 9:35-38; 10:24-26; 11:15, 25, 26, 41, 42; 12:36, 46; 13:19; 14:1-6; 17:20, 21; 19:35; 20:29, 31

faith alone in Christ alone

C. The Book of Acts1. Acts 3:16; 4:4, 32; 8:12, 37; 9:42; 10:43, 45;

11:17, 21; 13:21, 39; 14:1, 23, 27; 15:7, 9; 16:31; 17:4, 5, 11, 12; 18:8, 27; 19:4; 20:21; 21:25; 26:18

faith alone in Christ alone

D. The Pauline Epistles1. Romans 1:16, 17; 3:22, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30;

4:3, 5, 9, 11, 13, 16, 23, 24; 5:1, 2; 9:30, 32, 33; 10:4, 6, 9, 10; 11:20, 30-32; 15:13

faith alone in Christ alone

2. 1 Corinthians 1:21 3. 2 Corinthians 4:4 4. Galatians 2:16, 20; 3:2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14,

22, 24, 26; 5:5 5. Ephesians 1:13, 19; 2:8; 3:17 6. Philippians 1:29; 3:9 7. 1 Thessalonians 1:7; 2:10; 4:14 8. 2 Thessalonians 1:10; 2:12, 13; 3:2 9. 1 Timothy 1:16; 3:16; 4:3, 10 10.2 Timothy 1:12; 3:15

faith alone in Christ alone

E. The Other New Testament Epistles1. Hebrews 4:2, 3; 6:12; 10:39; 11:6, 7, 31 2. James 2:23 3. 1 Peter 1:21, 2:6, 7 4. 1 John 5:1, 5, 10, 13 5. Jude 5