Luke 6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
47  Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:
48  He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.
49  But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

We have talked much about New Evangelicalism over my years as a pastor. I began my life in New Evangelicalism. I was born into a practicing Mennonite Brethren family. My parents took us to that church and they remained in that church all their lives. I left that church when I was around seventeen years old. I was a rebel and was turned off toward God by what I witnessed in that church and in my home. I would occasionally show up in that church for a couple of years just to make an appearance. I had no interest in God and the true God was not taught there by that time anyway.
At the age of twenty I moved out of province, looking for purpose for my life. On my way to what I thought would be my destination I stopped at a relative’s house for a visit. As I waited for them to wake up in the morning, I sat in my car and tried to get some sleep. I did not sleep well and during that restless night, the Lord was working on my heart. I knew there was a God and I knew there was heaven and hell. I was also sure that I was going to hell at that time. I did not view myself as a good person, but I was a very troubled person. The Lord had been gracious to me and even though I was lost, He kept me from certain evils that were taking place at that time.
That night, as I tried to rest, God made it very clear to me that I was lost and going to hell if I were to die. There was no one in the car with me. There was no preacher on the radio. I did not have a Bible open. However, the church that my parents attended had at one time taught enough truth that I knew about eternity. I knew the need to be saved and as God was dealing with me that night, I trusted in Him for my salvation. There is no ‘pray after me’, required in order to be saved. The Bible teaches that a person needs to repent toward God and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved. That is what I did. In the morning, when I saw lights come on in the house, I went to the door and knocked and was let into the house. One of the first things I told my Uncle and Aunt was that I had gotten saved that night. They were nominal Christians and they were pleased to hear that.
I did not know anything but New Evangelicalism at that time. My Uncle and Aunt were Mennonite Brethren, just like I had been raised. I went to church with them, but there was an emptiness and a frustration in my heart because as a born again Christian my spirit was not being fed. I did not want to rebel against God now, but I wanted to know Him. Within a couple of years of being saved, I got married and we eventually had a family, etc. I struggled for about fifteen years with spiritual matters because I was stuck in New Evangelicalism and that system is contrary to the Word and will of God. I knew there was something wrong with it, but I could not put my finger on what the problem was. God was not pleased with that system and still is not, and because the Holy Spirit dwells in every born again Christian, I could not be content in that corruption.
I was not a faithful reader of my Bible at that time, but I did read It. What I read did not add up to what I heard or witnessed in the churches we attended. We attended many different churches over those fifteen years. I was looking for something to satisfy that yearning in my spirit, but I was not finding it. At the age of thirty five, I submitted to going to Bible School and while at that school I was introduced to some Independent Fundamental Baptist preachers. This did not happen at the school, but at the church we attended while at that school. That school was a New Evangelical school and was not supportive of Independent Fundamental Baptists. I was the odd man out during my three years at that school. My instructors downgraded my papers because of things I wrote, but I wrote what I was discovering in the Word of God. They could not refute what I was finding, but they did not agree with it. God blessed me in those years and since.
I graduated from that school and went into the pastorate with that yearning still not settled in my spirit. I had still not found an Independent Baptist church to attend. It took about another five years before I actually met an Independent Fundamental Baptist pastor face to face. I contacted several via letters, but never received a response from anyone. Once I met one of them, he connected me with a couple of other pastors and that is what led to my moving our family out of New Evangelicalism and into the Independent Fundamental Baptist camp.
In our text, Jesus asked the Pharisees and their followers why they called Him Lord, Lord, but they did not do what He said. Jesus taught the same thing that we find in the entire Bible. Faith without works is dead. There is a danger that our human minds fall into quite easily. We tend to either over emphasize faith at the expense of works, or we over emphasize works over faith. The illustration of a clock is sometimes used. The pendulum of the clock swings to the right and to the left. If it stops in the middle it is no longer active. That is the failure of that illustration.
In Matthew 11 Jesus made this statement:

Matthew 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The “rest” that Jesus offers is not the absence of activity. It is the absence of that struggle to find peace and truth. That is the struggle that I had been facing. The Bible teaches us that we need someone to teach us the things that are written in the Word of God. The Bible also shows us that through the history of fallen man, there have been few godly teachers in any generation. That is not because God does not want more teachers. It is because few people submit to Him and thus qualify to be godly teachers. They are around, but not readily available. That is a sad fact.
The nature of lost man is that most never come to the place of salvation because they find a way to dismiss the convicting work of the Holy Spirit in their heart. I am thankful that God did not allow me to find that way of dismissal. I had experimented with alcohol as a lost person. I tried hard to deaden the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, but God was gracious with me and spared me from death at that time and showed me that was not the solution. I tried smoking but that did not work either. There were other drugs available at that time, but thankfully, I had no interest in that.
When God saved me, He did what Ephesians 2 tells us. He “quickened” me. He made me alive. The Holy Spirit moved into my heart and He took up residence in my heart. I was very ignorant and not being taught for those many years and thus the struggle. I knew there was something missing, but I did not know how to fix it. It was those Fundamentalist writers that showed me what was missing. The Bible is THE WORD OF GOD. It is not a book of suggestions. It is not open for debate. It is ABSOLUTE TRUTH. God has given me a hatred for New Evangelicalism. I do not hate New Evangelicals. I feel sorry for them and want to help them get out of that trap. Most are quite content to remain there. They demonstrate the Biblical fact that they are lost and spiritually dead.
That is not my assessment. That is what the Bible teaches. The Bible warns that there are few that find the narrow way which leads to life. That is because of the fight that most people engage in to keep away from the truth. The grasp of the devil is powerful on the heart and soul of man. The Bible declares:

II Corinthians 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

It is a dangerous thing to be a part of that crowd that says “Lord, Lord” but refuses to do what Jesus says. Our minds are powerful tools. Our natural environment is such that it grooms us for rejection of truth. We are born as lost sinners and our flesh desires the things of this world. It is natural to want what the world has to offer. New Evangelicalism teaches that we should embrace that natural desire, rather than listen to that still small voice of God that is at work to draw people out of bondage and into God’s peace.
Some of those reading this devotional, may scratch their heads and find it difficult to relate to what I have written. Every person is different, but there is a common fact that we all face. We are all born as lost sinners and we are all attracted to the world from birth. If we allow the devil to keep our minds blinded, we will not see the truth. If we do not allow ourselves to be exposed to the truth, it makes it much easier to dismiss the convicting work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
The church I was raised in had life at one time. That flicker of light was still there when I was a child. They still used the Word of God — the King James Bible at that time. The Bible tells us that God’s Word is quick and powerful. I knew I was a sinner and I knew I was headed for hell. As I was growing up, I saw too much contradiction in my family and in that church. It did not fit with what the Bible said. I could not get answers from anyone I spoke with regarding the questions that were in my heart. The devil used that to create such a frustration in me that I rejected God all together for a short time in my life. However, God is bigger than the devil and He won! He is GOD ALMIGHTY. He will save the repentant sinner. He will grant eternal life and peace of heart and mind to those who will submit to Him and be saved.
Sadly, that church I grew up in has completely lost its way. It has rejected the truth completely. It is still there and it is still active, but it is just a social club with a false gospel and a false Jesus. It is absolutely dead. That is very clear to anyone who has been made alive in Christ. It is one of thousands of religious clubs that entertains the hearts of sinners.
If you are one who is claiming Lord, Lord, but not doing what Jesus says, why not stop fighting and get saved. You can never know the peace of God in your heart without submitting to His will. You can manufacture a pseudo peace, but you will know it is not real if you will turn off that radio or that other noise that you have made a part of your life. Just become quiet before the Lord and listen to Him. Take the Word of God, the King James Bible, and read what God says. Find a true Bible-believing church and listen to what the preacher says. If you have questions ask them. Don’t let the many deceivers continue to take you down the garden path of destruction. This life is short. Eternity is a long time. In this short life, you need to decide where you will spend eternity. Be careful not to miss out on the most important choice in life. We are here to help you know the truth. God’s Word is the answer, not me.
Pastor Bartel