Now let's turn to our Bibles once more, and this time to the second letter of Paul to Corinthians, chapter 13. And we'll begin reading to the first verse. 2 Corinthians 13. This is the close of the second letter of Paul to the church at Corinth. This will be my third visit to you. Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent. On my return, I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others. Since you were demanding proof, that Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God's power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you." 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. And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. Now we pray to God that you will not to do anything wrong, not that people will see that we have stood the test, but that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed. For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. We are glad whenever we are weak, but you are strong, and our prayer is for your perfection. This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come, I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority, the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down. Finally, brothers, goodbye. Aim for perfection. Listen to my appeal. Be of one mind. Live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints send their greetings. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. And we ask God again that he will bless us through the reading of his word. Now let's open our Bibles at that portion we've just read from the New Testament, the second letter to the Corinthians, chapter 13. And we want to look at this fifth verse. These are part of the closing exhortations of Paul to the church at Corinth. And this is how he makes this exhortation in verse 5. 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. And the New English Bible puts it this way, are you living the life of faith? And Danker, one of the commentators, puts it this way, whether you are controlled by the faith. In other words, the force of the question posed by Paul here, is to ascertain the question, are we as believers continuing true to the faith in conduct as well as in belief? In other words, is our faith one of the heart, not just of the head? And this is a thrust which is reflected in the way in which the New Revised Standard Version translates it. Are you continuing the truth of the faith in conduct as well as in belief? Now one of the abilities of man, of all of us, is that interesting ability to, as it were, to imitate In other words, we can imitate what others have made and what others have created. And of course you're aware of such things as imitation furniture. The ladies are probably aware of imitation jewelry, reproduction, plastic flowers, and the list is endless. In other words, man has that ability to imitate. But sadly, Man has another feature and that is the ability to counterfeit something that is like real and something that is at the end of the day unreal. In other words, man has the ability not only to imitate but to produce something that is meant to deceive. To give the impression that it's true, that it's real, but at the end of the day it's something that is not genuine and something that is deceptive. And of course, you know and you're aware of counterfeit money. It's produced for one thing. It looks real. It's meant to be accepted and passed as real. But you know that at the end of the day, it's not real. It's a counterfeit. Or again, jewellery. We know and have heard of counterfeit jewellery. Jewellery that looks right to the eye, attractive, maybe sparkles. But at the end of the day, it's not genuine. It's not a real piece of jewellery. It's a counterfeit. It is all the appearance of reality, but it's untrue. And of course, the ladies are again aware. Counterfeit designer clothes. Clothes which have all the appearance have been made by some of these top class designers, the cut, the shape, the color, and yet at the end of the day when you buy it, ladies, you find out it's not real, it's a counterfeit. It's simply something that has to seed you. Now when we turn to scripture, scripture warns us against one danger, and that is a counterfeit faith. A false faith which at the end of a day is not resting and trusting and abiding in Christ and His work. This is a faith which may deceive the church. It may deceive other Christians. But this is a faith which ultimately and finally will not deceive God on the day of judgment. It's one that will not deliver us from the condemnation that sin brings upon us all. And sadly, it will not end from where sin ultimately will lead us, and that is to hell, to a lost eternity. In other words, what is being spoken about here is a faith which is ultimately and finally not produced by the grace of God, by the Holy Spirit. You remember when the Apostle was writing in 1 Corinthians 12 and verse 3. This is how he puts it here. This is how he describes the origin of a true and a living faith. A faith that is real and not counterfeit. Listen to this. Therefore I tell you that no one who was speaking by the Spirit of God says, Jesus be cursed. And no one can say Jesus is Lord. except by the Holy Spirit. In other words, what the examination is really intended here to find out is what you profess, is your faith that you profess, one that is produced by the Holy Spirit, or is it produced by your selfish, sinful, deceiving heart. Remember how it's put in one sense very clearly in John chapter 3 and verse 3. Listen to how it's put here. In reply, Jesus declared, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. But the alternative reading in one sense to me is more attractive. Unless one is born from above. True living faith can never be produced by the natural man. The living faith, the faith of every true believer, is something as produced from above by that gracious work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds. And in one sense that's a test that the apostle was asking the church at Corinth. to do to themselves. In other words, look to see, is your professed faith something produced by yourself? It may be deceiving the church, it may be deceiving the other Christians, but the ultimate question is this, is your faith something not produced by yourself, but by that inward work of the Holy Spirit? In other words, is it true? You see, the counterfeit faith at the end of a day doesn't come from above. It comes out of a heart which the prophet Jeremiah describes, a heart which is deceitful and full of sin. In other words, it's a prayer to examine ourselves to see whether we are in Christ or not. Now what makes this statement, examine yourself, so urgent as this? It's not addressed to the outsider. It's not addressed to the man who makes no profession of faith. This is addressed to a professing church. It's addressed to professing believers. Believers who make a profess that they are trusting and submitting to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. And in other words, it's an exhortation for professing believers to look inward to the heart to see, is my faith produced by myself or is it produced by that gracious work of God? Now I turn to this verse for a simple reason that I'm old enough to remember that often when we came to the end of one year and stood at the edge of another, it was to practice of Christians to look at themselves, to examine their lives. They were conscious that they were living in a world under God. They were accountable to God. Their lives were accountable to God and they were conscious there was a day of judgment. And I can remember godly Christians coming to the end of one year and beginning another. They used that as a time for self-examination to see, am I in Christ? Is my profession real? Is it true? Arthur Way in his letters to the churches of Paul, he puts it this way. This is how he, as it were, paraphrases this particular exhortation. While the time is ready and left, make proof of yourselves to see if you are really holding to the faith. Test yourselves. Is it possible that you do not recognize your own condition, that you are not sure whether Jesus the Messiah is really among you? At He must be, Unless you have this proof of his presence among you and indeed FF proof puts it this way put yourselves to the test Do you not know yourselves? well enough to realize that Jesus Christ dwells in you for indeed he does unless You are counterfeits and the NIV puts it Unless you fail the test Now the object of Paul here is not simply negative. He's not simply out to, as it were, pull these Corinthians down, their profession down. Paul's aim in asking this question to examine themselves is simply this. to prove that their faith is genuine. It is God created. It was created through the Holy Spirit. In other words, to show that their profession is real and not counterfeit. In other words, it was to make these people look inward on one reason. My dear friends, if you are believers this evening, If you've been born again spiritually, if you're in Christ, if you're professing to rest and trust in Christ, if you're drawing upon Him and His grace and salvation, then this whole question, examine yourselves to see if you're in Christ, rest upon this fact. If you're a Christian, There will be evidence of that saving grace at work in the very center of your beings. That's what it's all about. And it's meant in many ways to encourage to maybe a Christian here this evening, you're full of doubts, you're uncertain. You're uncertain of your faith. You're uncertain of your profession. You're uncertain whether you're in Christ or not. You doubt it. And this call to examine yourselves is meant to make you look seriously within. to find evidence that you're in Christ. If you are in Christ, my dear friends, there will be evidence to show it and to prove it and above all to lead you to encouragement. Now, what is the context of these? What led Paul to this particular statement? And it was given rise because a certain group of the Corinthians, they were acquiring his apostleship. You have it there in 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 11. I made a fool of myself, but you drove me to it. I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior. to the super-apostles, even though I am not." In other words, they were challenging Paul's apostleship. They were saying, well, you haven't got a true apostleship. You're something less than what is a real apostle. In other words, they were questioning and querying the right of Paul to be an apostle and his authority. But above all, they were questioning whether or not Jesus Christ was speaking in and through him. Look at how it's put here in 2 Corinthians 13 and verse 3. Here he speaks it. Since you were demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me, he is not weak in dealing with you. In other words, they said, Paul, now show us the proof. Give us the evidence that you are, that Christ is speaking through you. In other words, they were challenging the very fact of Paul's profession. And so, this led Paul to say, the real factor, brethren, is simply this. Instead of examining me in the light of your accusations, in the light of what you think about me, you should examine yourselves. Examine not me. In other words, The call here is for professing believers, not to look at your fellow Christian, not to look at your minister, but to look inward at yourselves to see whether what you profess is true and real and genuine. It is of God the Holy Spirit and not of yourself. Now there are certain truths, brethren, that I believe are meant to be deduced from this particular call to self-examination. And the first is this. Merely belonging, brethren, to a community of faith, there's no guarantee I'm a Christian. I can remember at one occasion, I was invited to become a minister of a particular church. I met what you would call the session. And they asked me a question, what will you do when you come to this church? And I said, I will do two things. The first thing, I will build up the true believers in the faith and love of God and of Christ. And the second thing is, I will seek to save and bring to Christ those who are outside him. And so one man on the committee said, well, Mr. Johnson, it's quite clear you don't believe everybody in the church is a Christian. No, I don't. I don't believe everybody in the invisible church belongs to Christ. And the next question was this, you'll divide the church then. And I said, that's always what the gospel does. The gospel divides the church between the true and the false. And that's why this examination was addressed by Paul to the professing church. That not everybody within the professing church is really in Christ. And this is a call to examine yourselves. I belong to a lively church, but am I really trusting and resting in Christ and his once for all work? In other words, even being active in the faith, active in doing things, there's no guarantee that my faith is real and true. And of course, if we knew our Bibles, this was a trap. that the Jews continually fell into. Listen to how it's put in John chapter 8 and listen to verses 32. Here, you remember, to the Jews who had believed him Jesus said, if you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. Then they answered him, We are Abram's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say we shall be set free? There were the Jews, they said we are descended from Abram. Therefore, they made this distinction because I'm descended physically from Abram. I must be a true Israelite. I must be on the road to glory. I must be safe. I don't need this examination. In other words, again and again, the Jews fell into it. Again, you remember when the Apostle Paul was writing to the church at Rome. Listen to how he puts it here at the end of verse 28. He was dealing with this particular problem. A man is not a Jew. if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No man is a Jew if he is one inwardly. And circumcision is circumcision of the heart by the spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God." You see here the Jews were simply all the time falling into this thing, I'm descended from Abram, I've been circumcised, I've gone through the ritual. But there's never any real concern about where the problem of lay in the heart. In other words, the Jews and Christians are the same. Professing Christians, we can easily fall into the church. Again and again, people have often said to me, well, my mother and father belong to an evangelical church. And the deduction were made because my mom and dad were belonging to an evangelical church. Therefore, that left me safe. I can remember again another person said, well the man that baptized me was a believing Christian, so that makes me okay. The deception of the heart, men and women, because of certain associations, we can draw this conclusion. Look at the example of Judas. Nobody was more blessed than Judah sitting on to the most profound in ministry the ministry of our blessed Lord and Savior in his presence Seeing his miracles listening to his word his teaching And yet my dear friends he never came to a living faith in Christ he heard but he never obeyed You see, here we see people belonging to a lively, professing, active church, and yet Paul says to them, examine yourselves to see whether you be in Christ. You see, the danger that has been set forth under this call to self-examination, brethren, is this. Sitting under a faithful biblical ministry, and gospel ministry, being taught biblical truths, is no more proof that I am a Christian. Or again, the other danger we face is simply this, that we can belong to a lively spiritual church like this, and even be carried along by the momentum of spiritual goodness. In one sense you can put it this way, carried along by the faith of others. and yet not at the end of a day, come to a living, lively faith in Christ for myself." Jonathan Edwards in his works writes that people as individuals he saw were carried along by the spiritual as a momentum of the revival in his days. He saw what the revival was doing to churches. And he saw people being carried along, giving the impression that they were truly revived spiritually. And yet, he writes, coming to the end of that revival, those people turned out to what they really were. Their profession came to naught. They sank. They simply showed they were dead people. We can put it this way. It has happened to myself. You can be out and caught in a wave while swimming, and I couldn't swim. And you can be carried along with that wave, and people look at me and say, good swimmer. And then when the wave breaks, you go to the bottom, as I did. Carried along by the momentum and giving onlookers the impression that he's a good swimmer. When in reality, it's not you swimming at all, it's the force and the emotion, the strength of that wave that is carrying you along. That's what Paul is concerned about here. And that's the danger of belonging to a church like this. We can be carried along, my dear friends. and never for ourselves come to a living faith. And of course, this is exactly what our Lord warned us against. You remember in that great sermon on the mount? At the end of that sermon, listen to this. He puts it here in chapter 7 and verse 21 of Matthew. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, ye evildoers. In other words, he's speaking here about people, professing Christians, who will come with a certain confidence to the Lord on the day of judgment, and they will call him Lord, Lord. And here are people who are absolutely orthodox. They're well taught, they recognize who Christ is, they know it ultimately. He's the judge. He's the keys of heaven and hell. And they address him as one whom they recognize as the Lord, the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savior. And of course, they seem to back up their profession and say, by pointing things, we have prophesied, we have done many things in your name. They look to works. And what is our Lord saying? Depart. I never knew you. In other words, there was no true relationship with Christ. There never really was the fact that they knew him. You remember when Christ was in that great high priestly prayer? This is how he described what eternal life is. Now, this is eternal life that they may know you. And the word know doesn't mean know about. It means know personally. Living intimate faith, men and women. and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." But if you've been listening carefully, if you read that passage carefully, you will notice there's one flaw in their profession of faith. There's one flaw in their appeal to Christ, Lord, Lord. And that flaw is simply this, men and women. What do they appeal to at the end of the day? For entrance into heaven is not Christ, it's not his saving work, it's not his death in their place, it's my works. I've done this, I've done that, I've done the other thing, I've been active. Now, dear friends, if you're like me, the only thing you can plea when you come before Christ is His death and His work of grace. You see, what's the one thing that every Christian knows that the unbeliever doesn't know? That you're a sinner and that only Christ can save sinners. And my dear friend, if you're a believer tonight, you'll know that at the end of the day, you cannot appeal to Christ, even for the best things you've done. Your hope of going into Christ was his work alone. I can remember well as an assistant, the accountant of the great lever brothers died. He belonged to the church. Godly man. And in his will, And he was a man who was most active for Christ in that church. And in his will, he made this statement, When I am being buried, I ask my minister, preach one message saved by the blood of Christ. And the minister didn't preach his character, he preached simply Christ dying for sinners, shedding his blood. And my dear friends, if you're a true believer this evening, yes, we are called to good works, and if you're a believer, you will produce good works. But at the end of the day, it's not those good works that are going to open the door of glory. It's because Christ has died and paid the price of your sins perfectly once and for all and forever. We stand and we live under that once and for all death of Christ in your place. And you'll not be appealing to works on the day of judgment, because if I know my heart, the best of my works are soiled. I can only plead that perfect work, that perfect obeisance, that perfect death in my place. In other words, true faith, men and women, is something that arises from the heart. You remember when the Apostle Paul was showing that the Roman Christians were true and real. This is how he describes them in verse 17 of chapter 6. He puts it this way. But thanks be to God that though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You see, going back to that description of those people in Matthew 7, 21. They showed evidence, men and women, of the most subtle and dangerous conversion that can happen to you and me, and that is this. A conversion of the mind, but not a conversion of the heart. You and I can sit under a fine, godly, biblical ministry and have your minds filled with biblical truth and your minds convinced of biblical truth, even in justification by faith, substitutionary atonement. But never in your heart come to a living faith in that Christ which you've been convinced about His reality. That's why Paul sat here when he was describing these people. But thanks be to God that you used to be slaves to sins, but you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching from your heart. You see, where's my problem this evening? Where's your problem this evening? It's not the mind. If your problem was the mind, I'd be standing here preaching philosophy. But philosophy will never save us. That's why the most glorious message of salvation comes from God. Because the philosophy of man is impotent in the face of sin. It's that message that comes from God. Pointing sinners like you and I to Christ. To faith in Him and trust in Him. In other words, it's a faith which realizes where does sin arise? It's not because of my mind, it's because of sin. Out of the heart comes every conceivable type of sin. My dear friends, where are you resting tonight? When you come to think of your end and the day of judgment, are you looking over all the things that you've done within the church? Or are you resting? on that once and final and perfect and complete work of Christ. You're resting on Him and in His grace unto mercy and His goodness. But then there's another reason why we should examine ourselves. In one sense I'm loath to put this forward and yet I've been ministering long enough to realize we need it. We're entering another new year. But none of us, my dear friends, know what that year is going to bring forth. There will be those who are here this evening, who might not be here next year. You may be called to face and stand before God. And I can think of no more urgent reason, men and women, that you and I enter 2014 with the assurance that I'm in Christ and not resting in something else that is false, counterfeit, not real, won't save me. In other words, there's nothing more urgent than to realize that salvation is of God and it's in Christ. Do you remember when the Apostle John was writing to the church in Revelation? This is how he puts it, do you remember? He puts it clearly and unequivocally. Revelation chapter 14 and verse 13 this, Then I heard a voice from heaven saying, Write, of the dead who die in the Lord." There was one statement from Cranmer I've often looked at. Indeed, every time I read a funeral service, I used it. And Cranmer put it clearly and unambiguously in this way. In the midst of life, we are in death. of whom may we seek for help, but of Thee, O Lord." And my dear friends, that is reality. That's not human philosophy. That's the reality. As David said, all of us are but one step from the end. How much then we need to examine ourselves to see whether we are in Christ. Trusting and resting in Him. Belonging to Him. Having His assurance and certainty. Having that faith that even as he saw this morning the dying thief had, he heard those most gracious words coming from the one he had passed himself on, today you'll be with me in paradise. Why? Because his faith centered on Christ. It was real. It was true. It was not in anything else. And then look at the Pharisee who entered the temple. You have the record in Luke chapter 18. Here was a man who with confidence, a Pharisee, who went up to the very front of the temple, confidence. And he was a man who outwardly was a very trustworthy, reliable man. He was generous. He prayed, he fasted, he tithed. He was outwardly moral. But the reality was, that faith which he professed in God was really in himself. He was another form of little Jack Horner. You remember what he said? What a good boy am I. You see, what this man lacked, and what a true saving faith lacks is this, is humility. You remember when the Apostle Paul was describing his own salvation, and this is how he puts it in 1 Timothy 1, and listen again how he puts it in chapter or verse 1 or verse 15. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of whom I am the worst. but for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me the worst of sinners Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as examples for those who believe on him and receive eternal life." Humility. Here was that apostle who was so proud of himself You remember in writing in the Philippians, he talks about how he rejoiced that he was a Hebrew of Hebrews, that he was circumcised on the eighth day, that he had excelled in the law? Pride. No humility. But when he came face to face with Christ, And he saw his need and he exercised a living faith in Christ. What did that produce? Humility. Let me humbly suggest to you that one of the marks of a living and true faith, a real faith, one that's not counterfeit is this. It's a humbling experience. Before the Lord, you were humble. You realize nothing in my hands I bring. simply. To thy cross I cling. That's humbleness. The humbleness realizes in and of myself I'm not fit for glory, but by the grace of God I am fit. Listen to how the Apostle puts it. Colossians chapter 1. Giving thanks to the Father And here's a most wonderful statement, men and women, who has qualified you, who has made you fit to share in the inheritance of light, in the kingdom of light. For he's rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. My dear friends, one of the marks of true, genuine saving faith is this, it's humble, It doesn't exalt me. It doesn't exalt self. It doesn't exalt my works. It exalts Christ. Remember how Paul says, if I glory in anything, it will be in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But what is Paul asking us in closing to do? In other words, he calls us to do something to ourselves. Is he the failure of a counterfeit faith? Is this men and women? It never looks inward. A counterfeit faith looks at self, it looks at its works, but it never looks inward to the heart. You remember how the psalmist put it? Here he puts it in Psalm 139. And the psalmist expresses this great need, and listen to how he puts it here in verse 23. Now, Sam, 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 of truth. You see, The mark of an inward faith is that it looks inward. It looks to heart. It looks to the self. In other words, it is a faith that is concerned to find is the root of reality and truth. You remember how Paul puts it at the end of Romans chapter 7? Remember that great searching chapter? And this is how he comes to it. Listen to this. What a wretched man I am. Who will rescue me from this body of death? That's a Christian speaking. In other words, the Christian is a man or woman who's only too aware of the sin himself, but the desire to be rid of it. And he then, who shall deliver me? And then this magnificent statement, profession of it. Thanks be to God. through our Lord Jesus Christ. Isn't that magnificent? Now, dear believer, how often, like myself, you're being downcast when you look into your heart, you feel your weakness, your sinfulness, your unworthiness. And sometimes the devil says, are you a Christian at all? But when you cry out like Paul, O wretched man, wretched woman I am, you can also say, but thanks be to God who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Now what the apostle is asking us to do is to pierce through, is to look inward at ourselves. Let me illustrate. My late mother enjoyed cooking. particularly cakes. And I can remember well there was a ritual carried out every time she baked a cake. The baking tin, the baked tin with the mixture was put into the oven, and after a certain time that tin was pulled out. It was ceremoniously set upon a table beside the cooker. And first of all, she looked at the color. Brown, and that's encouraging. And then she went to, as it were, the cutlery table, and she pulled out what was a long knitting needle. And then she was to push that little knitting needle right into the very center of that cake. Ladies, you know more about it than I do. She pierced that needle right into the center, and whatever she felt, she would either say, it'll take another 20 minutes, Or she would say, it's right, it's true, it's good. And what the apostle is simply saying here is this, men and women. He's asking you to pierce through to the heart, to find out the evidence that Christ is in you. And what is that evidence? Well, you have it, let's put it this way. Here he is, you remember, writing to the Colossians. Listen again to those verses I've just read from 12 and 3. Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you, made you fit. My dear friends, do you praise God for the gospel? You look at yourself, you see how unworthy and fit you are for heaven. Does your heart rejoice in the gospel? Does it praise God for Christ? Look at it again. For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves. Do you rejoice now in Christ, in His grace, in His love and His mercy? And know that He's done to deliver you and save you. Do you rejoice in the fact that He has forgiven you? Or look at it again in chapter 3. Since then you have been raised with Christ. Set your hearts and things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds and things above. not on earthly things, for you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you will also appear with him in glory." Where does your heart rejoice this evening? Has God's grace so worked in your heart that you rejoice in the things of God, in the things of Christ, in his word, in the gospel? Let me put it to you this way. Do you never tire of hearing the gospel? If you're tired of hearing the gospel, there is something wrong. I remember the late Alan Stibbs saying to us as students, You must never, never fail to rejoice in one thing. That gospel. Because that's the entrance to glory. It brings you to Christ. And we can close by putting it this way. What's your attitude to Christ this evening, my dear friends? Do you love Him? Do you rejoice in Him? Do you thank God He died for you on that cross? Does your heart warm at Christ? You remember how the test, here he is writing Peter to 1 Peter. This is how he puts it here in that first chapter. And he puts it magnificently. Verse 8. He says this, though you have not seen him, You love Him. And even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him. And are filled with inexpressible joy and glory. Does that what the Gospel does to you? It lifts your heart. Sinner as you are, you praise God. The answer is in Christ. And all that He's done in my place. What's your attitude to sin this evening? Do you seek to cover it over, to hide it? Or when you sin, and as Christians we will sin, we're not yet glorified. Our salvation has to be completed. One of the most comforting statements in the Lord's prayer is this, forgive us our trespasses. The Lord knows that his children, until we are perfected and glorified, there will be the tendency to fail, but he's a forgiving God. But my dear friends, when you sin, does that grieve you? Does it grieve you because you realize that sin is against your Holy Father and against Christ? And do you, like David, wash and cry out, Lord, cleanse me from my sin. Wash me ere I die. Do you have that desire to be cleansed and forgiven every time you fall in sin? Does it grieve you? In other words, if you're happy in your sin, there's something seriously wrong. Does sin make you unhappy? Does His Word dwell in you? Does that Word influence you? Does that Word lead and guide you in the ways of truth? And above all, When you come to God, men and women, the Almighty God, who is greater than even our greatest thoughts, who is above us and beyond us, when you come to God, is there something within you which calls you to address Him, Father? And if that's the case, in other words, you come to God, you realize He's Almighty, He's Holy, He's Powerful. And yet there's something within you, the Holy Spirit, that leads you to cry out, He's my Father. And if that's there within you, it's not something that you're simply producing because you're taught. It's something that's there within you. And my dear friends, that's the inward work of a true saving faith, of the Holy Spirit. Remember Paul when he was writing to the Romans? The Holy Spirit enables us to call that great God Abba. The story is told about this man who was walking down the country road. And he looked into a field and there were three young boys in that field, each of them flying a kite. And he watched them through a gap in the hedge. And he saw that one of the boys never lifted his head. The other two boys were lifting their heads and following that kite wherever it went. But this third boy never lifted his head. And curiosity got the better of him and he went into the field and he went to this young boy and he says, why do you never look up to see where your kite is? And the young boy said to him, sir, I'm blind. I can't see it. And then the answer to the question was, well, how do you know your kite's still flying? I can feel his upper tongue, sir. And my dear friends, this is what a true living faith will do. It will continually draw you to God through Jesus Christ in difficult times, in stressful times, in normal times. That living faith in Christ will draw you closer to the Lord. Your desire will be for Him. examine yourselves, my dear friends, to see whether you're in Christ, except you fail the test. Let us pray. Oh, our gracious Father, we thank you for thy word, and we pray for grace, Lord, that we may examine ourselves, look inwards. We may see the signs in the presence of the evidence that you are there in our hearts, leading us and guiding us. And Lord, if we know the truth that we are not in you, that we're trusting in something other than Christ, grant us grace at this examination, this looking inward to your hearts will draw us to the one who said, come on to me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will rest. Lord, grant us grace that if we are not in Christ, And by your grace and mercy and that work of the Holy Spirit, you will draw us to the one whom you sent into the world to save us and to bring us to glory. And this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.