In his sermon, 'A Mark of Spiritual Death and a Mark of Spiritual Life,' Trent Moody explores the concept of spiritual death as described in Ephesians 4:17-19. He argues that the ability to sin freely without conviction is a sign of spiritual death and slavery to sin, not freedom. Moody warns that living without conviction is dangerous and unnatural, as it results from a practiced suppression of one's conscience. He emphasizes that a calloused heart is the result of continuous sinning without repentance, leading to spiritual deadness. Conversely, Moody describes a mark of spiritual life as hating sin and being convicted by slight worldliness. He encourages believers to have a tender heart and to quickly repent of sins, highlighting biblical examples of Joseph, Daniel, and David. The sermon calls for self-examination and a commitment to battling sin through the Spirit of God, urging listeners to live differently from the world and to foster a heart that is sensitive to the conviction of sin.

All right, good to be here. Glad to see all of you all. And Scott, you kept hitting on something that is really the main point of what I want to speak to you all today about. And it is found in the book of Ephesians, if you'll turn there Ephesians chapter 4, and I want to look at verses 17 through 19 and focusing on one specific statement in that. And as we look as you're turning there Ephesians 4 17, I want you to be thinking about this and I want to talk to you about this, a mark of spiritual death and a mark of spiritual life.

And the focus of this is going to be broken down into two points and The first one is this and it's kind of what is listed in your paper there that you have and it's the third point on that I think is the last page there. To be able to sin freely without any powerful conviction of sin And that is a mark of spiritual death. Ephesians chapter 4 and I'm gonna read verses 17 through 19. Paul writes this, this I say therefore and testify in the Lord that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart, who being past feeling have given themselves over to lewdness to work all uncleanness with greediness. Let's pray.

Our gracious Heavenly Father, as we have opened your Word, we pray that you would pour out to us your wisdom by your Spirit. I pray, Father, that you would give us strong conviction towards even the slightest sin. Lord, that we would walk holy before you in all of our life, in the walk with our wives, with the walk with our children, Lord, and here specifically in the walk with our sons, that we would show them how to live a holy life and that we would encourage them to live a holy life and Lord that pours out into our businesses and it pours out into our entertainments and every area of life so God would you please grant us wisdom and Lord I pray that you would grant repentance to every heart here this morning. We ask it in Christ's name, amen. So I want to speak to you this morning about one of the marks, as I mentioned, of or a warning if you will of spiritual death.

And if you look at this passage I believe that you'll see that and Scott mentioned that a few times that we don't want to walk in the ways of the Gentiles. We should we should look totally different than the Gentiles look and how we live our lives and how we think and how we how we spend time with our families and how we entertain ourselves and how we work and in all things. And this is a mark of that spiritual death and something that we should examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith. This is not unique to men and sons. This is common to all men, all men and women.

And the mark is this, to be able to sin freely without any powerful conviction of sin. And if you'll notice in verse 19 he says this, who being past feeling have given themselves over to lewdness to work all uncleanness with greediness. They are past feeling. So living without conviction, often in this world, the Gentiles would say that is freedom. To live without conviction means in their minds that they have broken the chains of this Christianity that has ruled in this country for so many years.

And they would say that is freedom. But I'm here to tell you this morning, to live without conviction of sin is not freedom, but that is slavery. You are a slave to sin. The spiritually dead man concludes that being able to sin freely without conviction is the most liberating thing that they will find, but the fact is is that it is the most deadly thing that they can find. They believe that they have finally escaped these shackles of Christianity, and really this is atheism, and at the very least practical atheism, and when we live in that way, it is atheism.

We are living as if there is no God. Because remember, what Scott has told us is that we are living before a sovereign God who has sovereign rights over your life. You cannot live your life apart from God in your life. And what that means is, is that everything that you do and everything that you think is brought before the all-seeing eyes of God. You cannot live autonomously.

You're not a God unto yourself, although that is how many people want to live and especially young men because that's what we're focusing on here. I know when I was your age I believed in God but I was no greater it was no greater faith than the demons as found in the book of James. The demons believe and tremble. I didn't tremble. The demons had greater faith than I did.

And so I lived as if I was my own God. And I conducted myself as if I was the one who could make the rules. And I could determine what was good and what was evil and this is idolatry. So the belief of being your own God makes you an idolater. Every little child is born with this rebellious tendency in their heart.

They want what they want and they want it right now. In some it is more clearly seen, but it is in every one of us. All you have to do is take a toy away from a two-year-old and you will see that they will begin to kick and scream and if they were big enough they would kill you. They would kill you to receive what they want and this spirit of autonomy is the lie of the devil and it is it is what we saw in the book of Genesis, in chapter 3, where the devil tells Adam and Eve that you will be like God, knowing good and evil. This is a lie from the Father of lies.

To live without conviction of sin is not to live as a free man, but to live as a slave in the shackles of sin. As Paul mentions in Romans chapter 6 verse 16, he says, do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one slave whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness." So Living without conviction, I want you to get this in your mind, is not freedom, but slavery. The second part of this first point here is living without any conviction is not natural, but practiced, and that is why it is so dangerous. It's not natural and let me explain. For you younger ones, what this means is is that the ability to sin without conviction is something that is practiced.

The book of Romans, again Paul says this, it is not, he says in 2 14, he says, for when Gentiles who do not have the law by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, being the law of God, are a law to themselves who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness between themselves, their thoughts accusing or else excusing them. I want to read from the ESV real quick because the wording there I believe is helpful. For when Gentiles who do not have the law by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves. Even though they do not have the law, they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them. So that's why I say this is not a natural thing to sin with absolute no conviction of sin.

Even a young child when they sin, when a young boy is asked a question from his mother or father, did you do this? Did you take that candy? And they say no, but they did. They know because of the law written on their heart that they have violated a law. God put it there.

They understand this. The danger to this is, and this is why I say that it is a practice, and what Paul is saying is that when that law is written on their heart and when they lie to their parents or they take something that they should not take or they do something that they should not do, their conscience will convict them about this. But we see here in Ephesians 419 who being past feeling have given themselves over to lewdness to work all in cleanliness with greediness and then in 1st Timothy 4 to speaking lies with hypocrisy having their own conscience seared with a hot iron so when I say that this suppression of conviction is a practice, I want you to understand what it is like. It is like working and how many of you have ever worked with a shovel? You've had to dig something.

Any little boys here having to work with a shovel? If there's any hand that is down right now, fathers, buy shovel and let them dig something. Something. They need to learn what a shovel can do, and they need to work. But if you've ever worked with a shovel without gloves on, like I spent most of my childhood, I found something very quickly that what would happen.

And what would happen to my hands is, by the end of the day, I would develop blisters upon my hand. And that blister was very tender to where I wouldn't want to pick that shovel up anymore. Okay, that is because of that rubbing there. Now I'm using this illustration of a shovel and digging, not because a shovel and digging is sinful, but because it points to something that I think is very important, is that when we use that shovel and it causes that blister it becomes tender. We actually want to be tender-hearted towards the Lord.

That when there is something in our life that is not right, when we have sinned against God, that it is uncomfortable to us, that there's this conviction of sin that we feel it. But the problem is that when you use a shovel continually, that blister becomes something else. It becomes a callus. How many of you little boys have had blisters. It may not be from a shovel, I hope it's from a postal digger or something, but you had a blister and then later you found that boy my hands are kind of rough.

And that spot I've seen my little boys take little, don't do this, I've seen my little boys do this and they'll take needles and they can stick it right through that callus and don't even feel it. And that is what the heart is like that practices sin. They don't feel the prick. It's a practiced thing and it's a deadly thing. To continue to sin without any conviction is a sign of spiritual death.

I hope you feel the weight of that. Little boys, I hope you feel the weight of that. To continually sin without conviction is a sign that you're spiritually dead. These that Paul was writing to he's describing the way the Gentiles are. They are past feeling.

They don't feel the conviction of sin because they're dead to God. They are spiritually dead. They don't feel the prick. The first time you sin at the first when you sin because God has written the law on your heart by nature you feel it but as you practice it you become past feeling. When continually sinning without repentance your heart becomes hard.

That's why God describes this or like so often in the Old Testament as being stiff-necked or hard-hearted and that's why I said he wanted to take the heart of stone out and place within you that heart of flesh. That heart of flesh would feel the convicting power of God. It's a work of the Spirit of God. I'm not saying that you can just make yourself feel convicted, but I do want you to examine yourself. I want you to be careful that when you sin that you feel it.

The first time you sin you feel it. The second time you feel it. But if you continue into the hundredth time you don't feel it and that is deadly. That is why we see what we see in our culture today. The Bible speaks in Romans chapter 1 that God has given them over to a debased mind.

This, what we see right now, this is the judgment of abandonment. They, God has said, look where it goes. He has abandoned them and in abandoning them they are experiencing the natural consequences of a culture who does not fear God nor feel the conviction of sin. What used to be done in dark rooms is now professed as being glorious and good and they not only want you to be okay with it they want you to celebrate it. This is spiritual death of a culture as well.

Romans 8 13 and 14 says this, for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit, by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. So oftentimes I heard growing up that being led by the Spirit was this feeling that you had that God wanted you to go do something. Now God can do that. But Paul tells us here in Romans chapter 8 that being led by the Spirit of God is this, you're putting to death the deeds of the flesh.

That is being led by the Spirit. You want to know if the Spirit of God is in you and that you are living and walking in the Spirit, it means that you're putting to death the deeds of the body. Examine yourself. Are you at battle with sin? If you're not, you are not led by the Spirit of God, and you are not of God.

But if you are battling sin, You are of God. So if you are one of those who can sin freely without any real conviction of sin, then I call you to repent and believe the gospel. There is no doubt lost people here today. Repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and He will give you, because that's what the Spirit came to do, to convict the world of sin. Remember, let's look here in John, turn to 1 John chapter 2 at what John writes about this, 1 John chapter 2, because the danger here is young men and older men is that we have, we live in a world And we live in a world that is mixed between wheat and tares.

And the worldly system and the God of that worldly system has an advantage against us because we are natural men and our natural tendency is towards the things of the flesh. And so we have passages like this that says, do not love the world. Verse 15, do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

And the world is passing away, and the lust of it. But he who does the will of God abides forever. Do not love the world nor the things in the world." So I ask you this question, where are your affections? Are your affections towards the things of God or are your affections towards the things of the world? That is a question that the consequences of are life and death, eternal.

But now I wanna turn to the other mark, which is the opposite of this one, and it is a mark of spiritual life. I've hinted on these things already, but it is this. The mark of spiritual life is to hate the idea of sinning and to be convicted by the slightest worldliness. The Bible says, come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. We're to look differently than the world.

As Scott was just saying, we are to look different, we are to talk different, we are to act different, we are to dress different, we are to be different. They should look at us and say you are weird. That's what the world's response to us should be. You're strange, you're unusual. Don't shy from that.

Praise God for that. Be thankful for that because that means that you are different. You are not like them. You're not like the world, but you're like God's people. So I want us to understand that it is a great blessing, a great blessing to have a tender heart before the Lord, a tender heart that is convicted even over the slightest transgression.

That is not natural. That is a work of the Spirit of God and so we should desire this tender heart before the Lord and I want to encourage you to be quick to turn from your sins. Don't let it sit there. Don't wait an hour. Don't wait a day.

Don't wait a minute. When we sin, let us be quick to turn from that sin. Let us hate even the idea of sinning and even the slightest bit of worldliness. Do not suppress, do not push down this conviction of sin, but rather be thankful for it like the psalmist. Listen to what he says in Psalm 32, I acknowledge my sin to you and my iniquity I have not hidden.

I said I will confess my transgressions to the Lord and you forgave the iniquity of my sin." Praise the Lord. That's the heart of a true believer. Remember what Paul says again in Romans 8 and 13, for if you live according to the flesh you'll die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live for as many as are led by the Spirit of God these are the sons of God. And so hating sin is a mark of spiritual life. It is a sign that you have the Spirit of God living in you.

The psalmist writes in Psalm 34, 18, the Lord is near to those who have a broken heart and saves such as have a contrite spirit. I want you to think young men, think on the stories of Joseph, think on Daniel, think on Josiah, think on David, men who were grieved over the slightest sin as soon as they were aware of it. They were grieved over these things not because they never sinned, but because they had sinned and they knew the terrible consequences of sin. Therefore David prayed this in Psalm 51, have mercy upon me, O God, according to your loving kindness, according to the multitude of your tender mercies. Blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is always before me against you.

You only have I sinned and done this evil in your sight, that you may be found just when you speak and blameless when you judge. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity and in sin my mother conceived me. Behold, you desire truth in the inward part and in the hidden part you will make me to know wisdom purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean wash me and I shall be wider than snow make me hear joy and gladness that the bones that you have broken may rejoice that's the Speaking of that conviction there, the bones that you have broken, he says, may rejoice, hide your face from my sins, blot out all my iniquities, create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. That should be our prayer. Lord, create in me a clean heart.

Please. That is my prayer for each one of you. Remember Joseph's words when tempted to sin. He said, how then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? No one was gonna see.

Yes they were. God would see. God always, I tell my boys this all the time, God sees you in the darkness as if you were in the light. He sees every thought, He sees every word, He sees every action and motivation of your heart. You cannot hide from God.

Though you go to the deepest part of the sea, behold God is there. You cannot hide from God. Remember David's words again in Psalm 19, keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins, let them not have dominion over me. Psalm 38, for I am ready to fall and my sorrow is continually before me, for I will declare my iniquity, I will be in anguish over my sin. Oh Lord, cause us to be in anguish over our sin, the slightest sin.

1st Corinthians, Paul says, for godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted, but the sorrow of the world produces death. And then lastly a verse that I want you to memorize is found in 1st John and you probably already know it. 1st John 1 9 I speak this to my children constantly and to myself constantly 1st John 1 9 he says this this is the good news if we confess our sin he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Let's say that together. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

That is the merciful God that we have. So that is my prayer for you that God would give you a tender heart of conviction and that as soon as you sin that you would confess your sin because God is ready and willing to cleanse you from all sin and to produce a beautiful spirit within you, to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. That's the faithful God that we have. Let's pray. Our Father, we Thank you for your word.

We thank you for the warning and we thank you for the encouragement, Lord, that you are ever ready to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Lord, if we would come with broken and contrite hearts, and Lord, even that is your gift, please grant us broken and contrite spirits and hearts. Lord, grant us a heart that is so quickly grieved over sin that we would feel the prick of sin instantly. Lord, I pray for these young men. There is no doubt a young man or men here who are who are dabbling and right two feet jumped in the midst of sin.

Lord I pray that you would convict them of their sin and draw them back with cords of loving kindness that they would experience the conviction as David did and that they would turn that they would see that being right with God is greater than all the sin that the world has to offer in its pleasure. Oh Lord would you grant us this we pray in Christ's name Amen.