Don't Lose Sight of Those who Need Jesus!

"...There's not just critics, there's also converts. There's not just ignorance of foolish people, there are people who need Jesus. And what can happen is when the ignorance of foolish people is so loud, you can lose sight of, ear for, heart toward those who do not yet know Jesus. You can waste all your time engaging those who want to criticize you rather than devoting your time to serving those who need Jesus. And what Peter is saying is don't waste all your energy defending yourself, use your energy to serve. To do good. To be a servant. He says to live as people who are free. Free from sin, free to worship. Free from Satan to Jesus. Free from self to love neighbor. Free not to do as we want, but free to do as we ought....What he says is DON'T use your freedom as a cover up for evil. Because we are a minority group, because the world is watching, because how we conduct ourselves speaks of Jesus and his people, we need to be exceedingly careful...."

-Mark Driscoll

http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/trial/submission-to-authority

First, REPENT!

"All you need to do to be a heretic is accommodate sin, tolerate sin, bless sin, sanction sin, excuse sin, not oppose sin. [Packer] said 'The 1st word of the Gospel is REPENT! That's what Jesus preached....Anyone that does not call their people to repentance does not love them, does not love the Lord, does not love the Word.' I agree with him. I think that's a brilliant insight. We live in a day when it's all about encouragement & pithy truisms & nice insightful statements & motivational speeches. And there is not the declaration, proclamation that God's word is true & that everyone needs to repent! And that's the word that Jesus preached! Ultimately there will be opposition. Some repent & others do not. The Puritans were fond of saying 'The same sun that melts the ice hardens the clay.' Meaning when you preach, those with soft hearts will melt & repent. Those with hard hearts get angry & upset, they argue, they gossip, they fight...."

-Mark Driscoll

http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/trial/temptation-from-hypocrisy

Driscoll on Resisting Idols - from 1st Corinthians sermon series

"Some of you are frustrated with God because you believe that God is bad....Assume that God IS good, God DOES love you, and God isn't giving you your idol because it's not good for you. You'd be doing Romans one; you'd be worshipping created things rather than Creator God. And it may not be that God isn't willing to give you a spouse or kids or a house or a job or whatever it is because none of those things are in and of themselves bad. God MAY be withholding them because your heart is evil, and you're looking for a little god and he's not going to give away the golden calf. He's not going to make that for you."

Pastor Mark Driscoll, June 18, 2006

http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/1st-corinthians/resisting-idols-like-jesus