Understanding Christianity Sean Cole

If the gospel call goes out universally, why do some people accept it and others do not? Is it an issue of using free will to accept or reject the call, or is there another type of calling that overpowers the most resistant of hearts and causes a sinner to come to Christ?

How can a person who is dead in sin and who could not come to Christ accept the call, repent of their sins, and trust in Christ?

When an elect sinner hears the gospel call given outwardly through the preaching of the gospel, God also does an internal, effectual call that PRODUCES by grace the faith and repentance needed to come to Christ.

In other words, God has to cause the sinner to be born again and grant them saving faith as a gift of grace.

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Dr. Sean Cole concludes this sermon series on Spiritual Warfare by addressing some common, yet unbiblical, practices and beliefs that have taken evangelicalism by storm in the past 50 years. The four classic passages on spiritual warfare are Ephesians 6:10-20, James 4:7, 1 Peter 5:8-9, and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

We stand in the truth, resist the devil in the gospel, and take these false thoughts, arguments, and worldviews captive to Christ.

The ultimate issue is the Lordship of Christ and His truth. These strongholds are pulled down by the power of the GOSPEL.

However, since the late 60s, a newer type of spiritual warfare strategy has emerged markedly different from the historical model practiced for the first 2000 years of church history.

Can Christians be demon-possessed? Should we rebuke Satan and demons? What does it mean to bind Satan? Should we "plead the blood" in "power encounters" with the demonic?

How do these fairly recent practices compare with the historic understanding of spiritual warfare that calls us to STAND in the truth of the gospel? How do we practice discernment in this area?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y93LEbnlKLY

In this second sermon in the Spiritual Warfare series, Dr. Sean Cole preaches Ephesians 6:10-20. The choice is not whether you will engage in the battle as a Christian. You will be attacked, and you will face spiritual warfare as a reality. The question is, will you be EQUIPPED and PREPARED for the battle?

What does it mean to STAND? How do each piece of armor help you in this spiritual warfare?

Listen and find out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cc_gg_z3tj4

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What exactly is free will? How is natural liberty different than libertarian free will? Dr. Sean Cole explores Chapter 9 of the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession which teaches how the will operates in the four states of mankind.

First, how did free will operate for Adam before he fell in the Garden?

Second, how does free will operate for sinners who have not been regenerated by the Holy Spirit but are still dead in their sins?

Third, how does free will operate for a saved person who has the Holy Spirit living inside of them but still struggles with sin?

Fourth, how does free will operate when we get to heaven and will live eternally in our glorified and perfect bodies?

The rest of these paragraphs answer those questions, and they come from Augustine, who first articulated these four areas:

State One: Adam Pre-Fall: He had the power NOT to sin and the power to sin.

State Two: Unregenerate Man: Man lost the power NOT to sin and can only SIN and continue to sin.

State Three: Regenerate Man: Saved by grace, man now has the power NOT to sin through the Spirit’s work but will sin until he gets to heaven.

State Four: Glorified Man: IN heaven, we have the power NEVER to sin and live perfectly.

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Dr. Sean Cole begins a new sermon series on Spiritual Warfare. What exactly is spiritual warfare? What role does Satan play in my life? Does he have unlimited power? How do I fight the good fight? Do I have to engage in weird things like exorcisms or things I see in horror movies to fight Satan? In this first sermon, he answers some basic questions about this ongoing battle with the forces of evil. The battle began in Genesis 3 and will continue until Satan is thrown into the lake of fire. Ultimately, the devil wants to do two things to the church: (1) DISTORT the truth of the gospel, and (2) DISRUPT the unity of the Body.

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Dr. Sean Cole continues Chapter 8 of the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession on Christ the Mediator. He focuses on the WORK of Christ by addressing SIX truths including Limited Atonement:

(1) As fully God and fully man, he was thoroughly qualified to be our one Mediator.

(2) He perfectly fulfilled the demands of the Law and lived the life we could never live. (Active Obedience of Christ)

(3) He exhaustively endured God’s righteous judgment on the cross, bearing our sins.

(4) He victoriously rose from the dead, ascended to heaven and is now seated at God’s right hand, interceding for us as our King.

(5) He will literally return to earth in power and glory.

(6) Jesus actually, not potentially, paid for our sins on the cross, securing our eternal redemption, not just making us savable--DEFINITE ATONEMENT or particular redemption.

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