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Its In The Book

By Pastor Robert Hanna

Scripture Reading:Proverbs 30:5 to 6

How often do we hear defense of a doctrine or interpretation in the declaration,"THE BIBLE SAYS".And how frequently do we encounter those who justify their denominational stand with,"Every promise in the book is mine".By the same token, how staunchly do these same zealots affirm,:We obey every commandment of God ".One cannot help but wonder at the number of various and sundry and divergent sectarian divisions.For if all of the above convictions are valid , why need there be but one persuasion that of total compliance with the every instruction to be found the entire body of scripture?

"Every word of God is pure:He is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.Add thou not unto His words,lest He reprove thee,and thou be found a liar (Prov. 30:5,6). What shall we do, then,with: HEAL THE SICK,CLEANSE THE LEPERS,RAISE THE DEAD,CAST OUT DEVILS..."(Matt.10:8)? And how shall we regard the instruction to"MAKE THEE AN ARK OF GOPHER WOOD;ROOMS SHALT THOU MAKE IN THE ARK,AND SHALT PITCH WITHIN AND WITHOUT WITH PITCH: (Gen..6:14)? The obvious answer of course, is that in neither example was god commanding you and me to do these things.

In the first instance referred to above, Jesus Christ, during His earthly ministries ["I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel"(Matt. 15:24).],was dispatching His twelve disciples to perform a miraculous ministry for which He was empowering them and equipping them specifically .And the other instruction was given to Noah exclusively and related only to the circumstances of Noah's generation.

What is the significance, then of that terribly frightening word "DISPENSATIONALISM"? It simply defines the application of Gods own instruction to his saints:"Study to shew thyself approved unto god, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed,RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD oF TRUTH"(2 Tim.2:15)Detractors will do well to heed God's admonition rather than the shackles of tradition!

Scripture Quotations taken from the Holy Bible (King James Version)

Taken from the book: The Truth About The Truth: by Pastor Robert Hanna

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Saved By Grace

(Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: {9} Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Grace is "unmerited favor", it is not something that you earn. You are saved by grace and it is not because of anything you do or merit. Your salvation is NOT based on your performance or works of any kind.

Saved by grace means that God is doing you a favor and He is disregarding what you deserve or merit. This means that God is giving you what you do NOT deserve and/or could NOT merit.

"Saved by grace" means that you can do no performance good enough to earn it. God, the giver of grace, is dealing with you solely on the basis of love and mercy. Salvation is a gift of God.

(Romans 11:6 KJV) And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

Grace is the opposite of works. The two cannot be mixed together in any way. Even the tiniest amount of works destroys grace. Whenever works are involved then it can be said that it is no longer grace. It is 100% grace or 100% works, no mixture of the two is allowed; it is always one or the other.

(Romans 4:4-5 KJV) Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. {5} But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

If you have to work for your salvation, then it would be considered a reward, something that is merited, earned or something that is owed to you. In other words, if you have to work for salvation then that would make God indebted to you; God would owe you salvation in return.

If you receive something by grace, it is given to you as a free gift, you do nothing to earn it. This is the exact opposite of a reward.

Salvation is "by grace" and absolutely no works are involved in obtaining or maintaining one's salvation, for even the slightest amount of works makes it no more grace.

Although, salvation is by grace you need faith to receive God's gift. Faith is not a work. Faith concerns the placing of trust, confidence or reliance in someone else and their works, instead of depending on your own works to save you.

For by grace are you saved through faith means that you place your trust, confidence and reliance on what God has given to you because Christ died for your sins, was buried and rose again on the third day.

Faith is the only thing that will not insult God, who is being gracious to you, faith will never destroy grace.

Quote from: ElmerGlue on October 06, 2003, 06:00:23 PM

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 06, 2003, 03:05:51 PM

...
Grace is the opposite of works. The two cannot be mixed together in any way. Even the tiniest amount of works destroys grace. Whenever works are involved then it can be said that it is no longer grace. It is 100% grace or 100% works, no mixture of the two is allowed; it is always one or the other.

Jam 2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
Jam 2:18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
Jam 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
Jam 2:20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
Jam 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?
Jam 2:22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
Jam 2:23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.
Jam 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
Jam 2:25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent [them] out another way?
Jam 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

James 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Some say they contradict each other, that James teaches salvation by works and Paul salvation by grace.

Which one is right?

Both are!

James is not written to the church the body of Christ it is written to Israel.

Notice: James 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.

These verses do not contradict one another. One passage is written to Israel the other to the church the body of Christ.

"Grace & Peace"

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Gospel, Gospel, Who's Got the Gospel? (Part 1 of 3)

In Paul's letter to the Galatians we read of a problem that had developed in the Galatian churches. Some had come into these assemblies preaching another gospel and the Galatians were being led astray by their teaching.

I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. Galatians 1:6-9

Notice that Paul makes clear that the other gospel being preached was not completely without basis. That is, it was not unscriptural. It was however, undispensational. The Jews who were coming from Jerusalem to trouble the saints in Galatia were adding elements from the Gospel of the Circumcision, to Paul's Gospel of the Uncircumcision.

And certain men which came down [to Galatia] from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. Acts 15:1

In order to avoid the problem faced by the churches of Galatia, we must understand the content of the various gospel messages of Scripture.

The Gospel of the Circumcision

In Galatians 2, Paul refers to two different gospel messages, the gospel of the circumcision, and the gospel of the uncircumcision.

But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter; Galatians 2:7

We shall first consider the content of the gospel of the circumcision.

In order to understand the gospel of the circumcision we must go back to the place where God instituted circumcision, the book of Genesis.

And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. Genesis 17:9-11

God instituted circumcision as a sign of the covenant that He made with Abraham. The "Gospel of the Circumcision" is the good news that that covenant contained. God initially revealed this good news to Abraham in Genesis 12.

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Genesis 12:1-3

The good news is repeated again in Genesis 15.

And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. Genesis 15:5-7

The two main elements of the Gospel of the Circumcision are a people and a land. Notice that in both passages above Abraham is promised a vast multiplied seed. Abraham was to be the father of millions of descendents. Obviously, if Abraham was to have millions of descendents, those descendents would need a place to live. This need is filled in the granting of a land to Abraham. The dimensions of this land are spelled out in scripture. (See Genesis 15:18-21) There is also a third bit of good news implied in the promise of Genesis 12. Abraham's descendents were to become a "nation". This indicates a governmental structure to rule over the promised people in the promised land. We will deal with this promise more fully later when we discuss the Gospel of the Kingdom.

Once we understand the content of the Gospel of the Circumcision, it is clear that it cannot apply to us. As Gentiles (those who are not physical descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), we are not a part of the people and land promised to Abraham. We are specifically excluded from the Gospel of the Circumcision.

The Gospel of the Uncircumcision

In the Galatians passage quoted above Paul mentioned another gospel message, the Gospel of the Uncircumcision. Even the name would indicate to us that this gospel is very different than the Gospel of the Circumcision. Paul defined the content of this gospel later in the book of Galatians.

But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. Galatians 6:14,15

The heart of the gospel message that Paul preached is that circumcision profits nothing. (See also Galatians 5:2.) This is a marked contrast to the message of the Gospel of the Circumcision. Paul expanded upon the truth of the Gospel of the Uncircumcision in his letter to the Ephesians.

Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: Ephesians 2:11-16

Today access to God is not through a nation of circumcised Jews but through "one new man", the Church, the Body of Christ. In the Body of Christ circumcision and uncircumcision are not an issue. Jews and Gentiles are reconciled together in Christ, and in Him, reconciled to God.

As uncircumcised Gentiles, we can rejoice in the fact that today God is offering a gospel that includes us. No longer are we on the wrong side of the "middle wall of partition". We can now take our place, in Christ, as a part of the "household of God" (See Ephesians 2:19). This is the message of the Gospel of the Uncircumcision.

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Gospel, Gospel, Who's Got the Gospel? (Part 2 of 3)

The Gospel of the Kingdom

The next gospel message that we will consider, the Gospel of the Kingdom, is closely related to the Gospel of the Circumcision that we discussed above. It is the gospel message that Christ proclaimed during His earthly ministry.

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. Matthew 4:23

The most evident content of the Gospel of the Kingdom was that the Kingdom of Heaven was as hand. This is the message proclaimed by both Christ and His twelve apostles.

From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 4:17

These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 10:5-7

The Gospel of the Kingdom brings clearly into focus the third element of the Gospel of the Circumcision that God revealed to Abraham. The Gospel of the Kingdom explains in detail the governmental structure that will be put in place to make the people and land promised to Abraham a nation. Obviously, the roots of the Gospel of the Kingdom can be traced back to God's promise to Abraham, but it is in a promise to another Old Testament saint that we see it more fully expanded and explained. This explanation comes in the promise of Nathan, the prophet, to David.

And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. I Samuel 7:12-16

David is promised that it will be his lineage that will rule over the people of Israel in the promised land forever. This promise is to be fulfilled not only in David's son Solomon, but ultimately in his son, Jesus Christ.

And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Luke 1:30-33

During His earthly ministry, Christ made clear that he would not bring in the kingdom at that time, but would return a second time to establish the kingdom.

And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. Luke 19:11,12

This parable is a beautiful description of Daniel's prophecy concerning Christ's receiving of kingdom authority.

I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:13,14

It must be noted that while the Gospel of the Kingdom was certainly very good news for the recipients of that kingdom, it was very bad news for those that would oppose the establishment of God's kingdom on the earth. In order for the kingdom to be established, the opponents of that kingdom must be destroyed. This is exactly what happens at the return of Christ.

And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. Revelation 19:19-21

It is only after Christ has destroyed the opponents of the kingdom that His reign of peace can begin.

The Gospel of the Kingdom is good news about the coming of Christ to establish a literal, visible, physical, earthly, kingdom, sitting on the throne of His father, David.

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Gospel, Gospel, Who's Got the Gospel? (Part 3 of 3)

The Gospel of the Grace of God

The Gospel of the Grace of God is a gospel message that is closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision that we discussed above. The Gospel of the Grace of God is the message of salvation that is proclaimed to and by the Church, the Body of Christ, the topic of the Gospel of the Uncircumcision.

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24

It should not be surprising to find that the time in which the Gospel of the Grace of God is preached, is called the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: Ephesians 3:1,2

While it is true that God has, throughout history, offered grace to various individuals and groups. (See Genesis 6:8), the thing that is unique about the Dispensation of Grace is that God is offering grace to ALL men. That is why the Gospel of the Grace of God is so closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision. Today grace is not being offered only to the physical descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. All men, without distinction, have been given the opportunity to be reconciled to God through the Body of Christ.

But now in Christ Jesus ye [Gentiles] who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both [Jew and Gentile] one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Ephesians 2:13-18

For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26-28

The wrath of God that was to come to prepare for the establishment of the earthly kingdom has been withheld. Today God is not punishing the inhabitants of the earth for their sin and rebellion against Him. We can see a beautiful type of this offer of grace and mercy in the salvation and ministry of Paul.

And I [Paul] thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. I Timothy 1:12-16

Paul was the chief of sinners. He was leading the persecution of the kingdom church in early Acts. So intense as his hatred for God's people that the Scripture tells us that he was "breathing out threatenings and slaughter" against them. Certainly if there ever was a man that deserved the wrath of God, it was Saul. But instead of pouring out judgement and wrath, God reached down in mercy and grace and saved Saul. He then sent him to the world with the Gospel of the Grace of God, a gospel of which Paul was a pattern.

The Gospel of the Grace of God tells the good news of God's wrath withheld. It offers grace, mercy, and peace to all men. It is the message of the Church, the Body of Christ in the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

Who's Got Your Gospel?

The gospel messages for today are the gospels proclaimed by Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles in the Age of Grace; the Gospel of the Circumcision and the Gospel of the Grace of God. It is the message proclaimed by these gospels that he refers to as "my gospel" and that plays a key role in our establishment in the faith.

Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, Romans 16:25

We cannot be established in the faith and lead a life pleasing to the Lord if we are following another gospel. Our gospel message is found in the epistles of Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles.

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BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST
by Dennis Kiszonas

Introduction

A few years back, a family in our area of New Jersey started coming to our church. After a while, someone came from their old church to visit them and asked them, "Where are you going to church now?" This family told them where they were going, and the people from their old church responded with surprise, "You don't want to be going to that church. They don't believe in baptism!"

I want to start out by saying one thing very clearly: I want to affirm this, and I want to make it absolutely crystal clear that I believe in baptism.

As I went through what God says in His Word on the subject of baptism, I got excited. This is the sort of topic that gets you thrilled. There is one thing that you need to remember, though, if you're going to enjoy the study of baptism. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10,

"Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all of our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea" (vv. 1-2).

Paul goes back to the Old Testament book of Exodus, and he says, "Brothers and Sisters, I want you to know this. I don't want you to be ignorant about this - how that all our fathers, in the cloud and in the sea, were baptized into Moses." These people were baptized. If you go back to Exodus 14 and 15, you will find five times in those chapters where God tells us that, when those people crossed the sea with Moses - when they were baptized into Moses - they crossed that sea on dry ground.

The principle I want to bring out here when we begin this study, is that, according to the Bible, you can be baptized without getting wet. These were all baptized into Moses. They were identified with Moses when they crossed that sea on dry ground, and they did not get wet at all.

There are so many people who, immediately when they see the word "baptism," attach to it the idea of water baptism. But if you study the word of God, you'll find out that most of the time when the word "baptism" is used, it is not talking about water baptism in any sense. If you don't automatically connect baptism and water, you will be on your way to an understanding and a blessing - you will even get thrilled and excited about what the Bible teaches about baptism.

My Experience with Baptism
Having said that, I need to tell you that I didn't always feel excited about teaching or talking about baptism. My first few years in the ministry, when I was the pastor of a church in Chicago, I didn't talk about baptism. I didn't baptize anybody. I didn't understand it. I didn't know why we did it. Our church theoretically believed in it, but I had problems.

"And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved, but he who does not believe shall be condemned'" (Mark 16:15-16).

I knew Romans 4:5 - "But to him who does not work, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness." Faith without works saves a person, according to this verse. Ephesians 2:8 and 9 - "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." A person is saved by grace through faith - without works, without sacraments, without ordinances, without rituals, without religion. Then I came to Mark 16 and I read in verse 16, "He who believes and is baptized shall be saved." That bothered me. Why did the Lord say "and is baptized"? Isn't it enough to be saved by faith alone? So I had a problem with baptism.

I read books, and they tried to explain it away - some books told me to just tear the page out of my Bible - and I didn't talk about it. I thought I'd just wait until I understood it before I began to teach on the subject.

So I went on in my Bible to Acts 2. What a wonderful chapter. In the church where I was pastoring and in the school from which I graduated, we said that the church began in Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost. And so of course you would be thrilled to get to teach that passage where it all began! What an important chapter! ... But I never preached on Acts chapter 2. I would get down to verse 38, and Peter said something which embarrassed me. In verse 37, the people in the crowd are pricked in their heart and convicted of their sin of crucifying the Messiah, and they say to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Then in verse 38, Peter answers:

"Repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."

I would get to that passage and it would embarrass me because, if I were there on the Day of Pentecost and the crowd said to me, "What shall we do?" I wouldn't have said, "Repent and be baptized." I would have said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved," just like Paul did in Acts 16:31. But every time I would read this and every time I thought it was time to preach on Acts 2 - "where the church began" - I would get to this verse and I would say, "No. Can't preach on this one either."

I got to Acts 22, thinking I could start in the middle of the book . . . but I only got as far as verse 16. Ananias here is speaking to Saul and he says,

"And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord."

What? I thought he was saved on the road to Damascus. . . . and since when does baptism wash away your sins? Here was another verse on baptism that didn't compute in my system. I didn't understand it, and I decided we wouldn't preach on the book of Acts.

Baptized Into Christ Con't

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BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST (Part 2)
by Dennis Kiszonas

So I went over to 1 Peter and chapter 3. (Surely there was something in my Bible that I could preach!) In verse 21, Peter says,

"There is also an antitype [figure] which now saves us - baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

What? Baptism now saves you? I didn't preach that! I didn't believe that! The Bible says, "By grace you have been saved through faith" - not of works, not of religion, not of baptism; it's faith in the Lord alone! I read the commentaries. They did their exegetical gymnastics, twisting and turning the Scriptures, trying to show that Peter doesn't really mean what he's saying. Again I said, "Is there anything in the Bible I can preach?"

I went through Ephesians. I got to Ephesians chapter four and read:

"Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism." (vv. 3-5).

I read in this passage that, according to what Paul teaches, baptism is supposed to be something that has united us - something that brings Christians together, something that makes us one body - and we are to protect that unity. Yet, as I looked around Christendom, I saw that baptism was not something that brought us together, but was something that fractured the body of Christ into hundreds of different denominations.

I remember in my last year of seminary I went to see my professor. "Doctor," I said, "Here I am finishing three years in this seminary and I'm going to be leaving here soon to go out and pastor a church somewhere, but I don't know into which church I should go. I don't know where I fit in. I'm a Catholic kid that got saved, and the Lord called me into the ministry, but with the 400 different denominations (or something like that), I don't know where to go!" And the old professor sat there and smiled at me, and asked me just one question: "What do you believe about baptism?"

He's absolutely right. Baptism is the one thing that has divided Christendom into hundreds of denominations.

"Who do you baptize?" Do you baptize adults, children, or babies? Do you baptize believers only? Each one of those has divided itself into a group of denominations.

"How do you baptize?" Do you sprinkle the water? Do you pour the water? Do you dunk them one time, or do you dunk them three times in the water? Again, according to what your answer is, you sort yourself out as to which church you join.

"What does baptism mean - what does it do?" Does it save you? Some people believe that - a very large part of Christendom believes that they are saved because they were sprinkled with water. Does it wash away original sin? Is it the sign and seal of a covenant? Or is it a testimony after you've been saved by faith? Whatever you believe as to those things will sort you out further still into what group you belong to.

And then you could ask: "Are you seeking another baptism - the baptism of the Spirit?" Then your answer would open up a whole new variety of denominations which you could consider.

Whatever you believe about baptism, you are in the minority. There is no majority viewpoint on the doctrine of baptism. This doctrine that Paul said was supposed to bring us together has in fact divided us into hundreds of denominations with contradicting and conflicting doctrines. There was a time - and I'm sure if we didn't have such a good government, it would be today - when Christians murdered Christians because they didn't believe the same thing about baptism!

As I was going through Ephesians, I'll never forget the Sunday I got to this verse. I asked myself, "What does Paul mean by one baptism? Which one?" If you read the books, you'll find that everybody is trying to turn two into one - or three into one. . .

I read one day how someone had asked one of the old Brethren preachers, "What do you say about baptism?" His answer - "I don't say anything about baptism." I believe we would be a lot better off if there were more preachers like him today than preachers who gloss over and twist the very Word of God to make it fit their denominational traditions - the traditions of men. These men take the Word of God and don't think twice about changing the words and changing the meaning and then saying, "It doesn't mean what it says - it's wrong." But thank God there is an answer to the confusion.

Baptism was not meant by God to be a divisive, fracturing type of doctrine. The answer to the many questions the doctrine of baptism has raised can only be found by "rightly dividing the Word of Truth" and studying the Bible the way God gave us the Bible - dispensationally. . . . and that is what I would like to do in the following pages.

Baptized Into Christ Con't

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BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST (Part 4)
by Dennis Kiszonas

BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST CONTINUED
Biblical Baptism

Now flash ahead 1,500 years to the Jordan River and these types that we see become reality. Here came the greatest of the prophets, John the Baptist, and he was saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." What kind of a kingdom will it be? In Exodus 19:6, God says that Israel would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. John comes and announces the imminent coming of the kingdom. The Israelites needed to assume their rightful part in that kingdom of priests. The first thing they needed to do was to be ordained. How were priests to be ordained? Back to Leviticus . . . they needed to be washed with water, anointed with oil, and sprinkled with blood.

And so these people lined up by the river, ready to be baptized with water. The ordination had begun. They had seen this many times in the temple. They had seen priest after priest being washed (baptized), anointed, and sprinkled as they were ordained for the ministry. They knew what it was about and so they came as a multitude down to the Jordan.

But wait! Someone else came.

"Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent him, saying, 'I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?' And Jesus answered and said to him, 'Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness'" (Matthew 3:13-15).

What righteousness did Christ need to fulfill? The righteousness of the law, as commanded by God, in Leviticus chapter 8. The Lord Jesus Christ is to be the High Priest of Israel and needs to be ordained. He comes to the river and John says, "No. I'm not going to do this." The Lord says, "Yes you are, for we are going to fulfill all righteousness. The law says that I must be washed with water in order to become a priest." Immediately afterwards, in verses 16 and 17:

"When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him. And suddenly a voice from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'."

The Lord Jesus Christ was first washed in the water like Aaron. But unlike Aaron who had oil poured upon him to anoint him to his ministry as a priest, the Lord Jesus Christ was anointed with no one less than the Holy Spirit by God Himself. Peter understood this, for he says:

"That word you know which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. . . " (Acts 10:37, 38).

God Himself came into the ordination and anointed His Son - not with oil, but the real thing which oil only symbolized as a type. There were many people in the history of Israel who had been anointed - the priests, the kings, and the prophets - but this man was the anointed One. Peter says about Him, "God has made Him to be both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36). ("Christ" is from the Greek word Christos, meaning "the anointed Messiah")

How do you become a priest? First, you are washed - baptized - in the water. Then, you are anointed with the oil. Finally, daubed in blood from your ear to your foot. Christ had been washed with water in the Jordan. Then he was anointed with the Holy Spirit Himself. But there was one more baptism.

"I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled. But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished" (Luke 12:49, 50).

When we see in the Old Testament Moses daubing the blood on the ear, the hand, and the foot of Aaron, then sprinkling him, splattering that blood on the priests, we know now that it was pointing ahead to Jesus Christ, the High Priest. The Anointed High Priest of Israel, after being baptized with water in the Jordan, and being anointed with the Holy Spirit by God, was then baptized with blood - splattered from head to foot - as the whip broke open His skin, as the thorns pierced His brow, and as the nails tore his hands and feet. He was baptized in His own blood that He might complete His ordination and offer Himself as a sacrifice.

We looked at Aaron's ordination and at the Lord's ordination, but now we return to the people of Israel. They were to become a kingdom of priests, and they needed to be ordained to enter into Messiah's priesthood. John the Baptist began this ceremony to prepare the people, but he said,

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Matthew 3:11).

John was, in effect, saying, "I can only take you this far, through one part of the ordination. But the One who comes after me will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." We turn to the book of Acts and we see the realization of this on the Day of Pentecost.

"When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4).

What was happening? Peter explains it in verses 16:

"But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of my Spirit on all flesh'."

God is baptizing here with the pouring out of His Spirit, the pouring out of the anointing oil on these who desire to enter the kingdom of priests. As we continue in verses 32 and 33, Peter says,

"This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear."

There is one last part to the ordination. In his first epistle, Peter reveals the final stage of the priestly initiation.

"You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 2:5).

Peter calls these people "a holy priesthood." How did they get ordained? They were washed in the water, they were anointed with the Spirit by the Messiah, then, looking in the beginning of the book, we see that they were,

"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience, and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ" (1:2).

They had been fully ordained - washed in the water, anointed with the Spirit, and sprinkled not with the blood of a goat or ram, but with the blood of Jesus Christ.

All of these baptisms that we have seen so far, as beautiful as they are, were all part of a prophesied program of God. They were all part of a message which promised entrance into a kingdom here on the earth. This was God's plan for the nation of Israel. These were Jewish baptisms. We know from reading on in the Bible, through the book of Acts, there came a time when God set aside the nation of Israel and postponed their kingdom.

Baptized Into Christ Con't...

He had sent them John the Baptist. The Lord Jesus Christ had come to the nation. The Holy Spirit had come and filled the disciples. Israel's response: murder, murder, murder. They stood by as John the Baptist was beheaded. They handed over the Lord Jesus Christ to crucifixion. They themselves picked up the stones and stoned Stephen, a man who was filled with the Holy Spirit. In Acts 7 and 8, the nation of Israel was cast away and that earthly kingdom was put "on hold."

Then a wonderful thing happened. From heaven's glory, the Lord Jesus Christ reached down in unfathomable grace and mercy to a man traveling down a road with vengeance and bitterness in his heart - a man named Saul - who was on his way to persecute the saints of God. He was a man who was called "the chief of sinners," and the leader of Israel's rebellion against the Lord. The Lord reached down and stopped that man in his tracks, saving him by His grace. This man's name was changed from "Saul" to "Paul" and God made him an apostle.

He was called as an apostle not to the nation of Israel, but rather to the Gentiles. An apostle not of an earthly kingdom, but of the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ. An apostle not of a prophesied program, but of a secret - a mystery - hidden in God from before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 3:9).

Part of that revelation called "the mystery," which the Lord Jesus Christ revealed to Paul, was a baptism. It was not a baptism of water, not a baptism of oil, nor a baptism of blood. It was a baptism that was unknown before the apostle Paul. You can search the Scriptures from Genesis up to Paul's writings and you will not find even a hint of it.

The first mention of this new baptism is in the book of Romans and chapter 6.

"Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?" (v. 3)

In 1 Corinthians 12:12 and 13, Paul writes,

"For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free - and have all been made to drink into one Spirit."

He writes about a baptism that is only part of "the mystery" which is found only in his letters - a unique baptism for us who are living in the dispensation of the grace of God. Here is a baptism that is not at all related with entering into an earthly kingdom, but a baptism that brings you into the Body of Christ. It is not a baptism of the priesthood - not a washing in water, not an anointing with oil, not a sprinkling of blood. It is not even a baptism of Messiah pouring out His Spirit on His people. It is a baptism that is an operation of the Holy Spirit Himself, taking a believer, the moment he puts his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, fusing him into the body and person of the Lord Jesus Christ so that he becomes one with Him (1 Corinthians 12:12). Paul was able to look at the church in Corinth and see Christ, not many individual members. They were one with Him. They were Christ!

I don't think there can be any doubt that the "one baptism" of which Paul writes in Ephesians 4:5 is the same baptism which he wrote about in Romans 6 and 1 Corinthians 12. It is the fact that one Spirit baptized us into one body. This is the one baptism for this dispensation of the grace of God in which we are living.

Someone will inevitably say, "Hey, wait a minute! Didn't Paul baptize some people with water? And if he baptized some with water and the Holy Spirit baptized them, that's two baptisms, right?" Let's check it out.

We need to realize that in the early ministry of the Apostle Paul in the book of Acts, he not only baptized people, but he circumcised them too (Acts 16:3). After all that Paul had written in Galatians about not practicing circumcision, he takes one of the Galatians, Timothy, and circumcises him. Continue reading in the same book and you see how Paul cut his hair to keep a Jewish vow. You observe Paul going into the temple to offer a Jewish sacrifice. You hear Paul speaking in tongues. You watch Paul baptizing people with a Jewish baptism. The question is, "Should we follow him?" or "Is that an example for us?"

Take a look at what he says in 1 Corinthians chapter 1.
"I thank God that I baptized none of you . . ." (v. 14a)

A good Baptist, isn't he? But then he remembers a few:

". . . except Crispus and Gaius. . . . I also baptized the household of Stephanus. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect" (vv. 14, 16-17).

Among the many things that could be said, I want to make one point: When Paul preached his gospel (the gospel of the grace of God), from the beginning of his ministry to the end of his ministry, he did not have to preach water baptism along with it. When Peter preached his gospel (the gospel of the kingdom), he had to preach water baptism. Everywhere Peter preached he preached water baptism. Christ had sent him to preach water baptism and the kingdom (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15018). Paul says, "I was not sent to baptize." It was never an intrinsic part of his gospel. In fact, as we read the letters of Paul, we find nowhere that he beseeches, or commands, or exhorts, or recommends, or says anything to the effect that members of the body of Christ ought to be baptized in water.

Why then did he baptize? He writes:
"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know just as I also am known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).

The Greek word for "dimly" (KJV: "darkly") is enigma, which means "a puzzle." At this point in his ministry, during the book of Acts, as Paul looked at his own ministry he could say, "I don't know it all yet." We could ask, "Paul, why did you cut your hair, why did you keep that vow, why did you offer that sacrifice, why did you speak in tongues, why did you baptize those people with that Jewish baptism?" There are several reasons, but I believe there are times when Paul would say, "It is kind of an enigma, isn't it? Even I, at that time, didn't know the whole thing yet."

But there came a day when the Lord Jesus Christ completed that revelation of the mystery to the apostle Paul in prison at Rome. At that time he moved into the full light of that revelation that Christ gave to him. We read about it in the prison epistles - Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon - and in the pastoral epistles. Paul says, now having the full knowledge of the mystery, "There is one baptism" - one Spirit baptizing us into one body (Ephesians 4:5). And in Colossians 2:15, he tells us that, when we are in that one body, baptized into Christ, we are "Complete in Him."

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BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST (Part 7)
by Dennis Kiszonas

Note the order: First, you heard the gospel. Second, you believed - you trusted the Lord as your Saviour. And Paul says that at that moment, God's Holy Spirit moved in with that baptism. It was not only the baptism, but also a sealing in Him. We are not part of the vine and the branches, where the branches can be cut off if they're not fruitful and be thrown into the fire. We are members of His body and sealed in Him, safe and secure.

Being baptised into His Body, we are seated with Christ in heaven - now!

"Even when we were dead in trespasses, [He] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:5, 6).

We may be walking about on this earth, but we are members of Christ's body, and our head is in heaven. Because I am one with Him, I am already seated with Him in heavenly places. Ephesians chapter 1 and verse three tells me that, because I am seated with Christ in heavenly places, God, my Father, has blessed me "with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ."

Being baptised into His Body, we are joined to each other with a spiritual bond.

"Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph. 4:3).

The same Holy Spirit that came to live in me is the same Holy Spirit that came to live in you. I don't understand how the same person can be in me, in you, and in each member of Christ's body, but this tells me that this one baptism by one Spirit into one body has pulled us all together - not only individually into the Lord Jesus Christ, but also with one another. When you see that unity, you begin to look at fellow Christians in a different light. You begin to treasure each one. God the Spirit is dwelling in each one to make us one body by this one spiritual baptism.

By this one baptism, I am placed into Christ and Christ into me. I become one with Him as a member of His body.

By this one baptism, I'm not only in Christ, but I'm sealed in Him forever.

By this one baptism, I have been seated in the heavenlies and have been blessed with all spiritual blessings.

By this one baptism, I've become one with Him and one with each member of Christ's Body forever.

I believe in baptism - this greatest baptism in all the Bible, baptised into the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

A Final Word . . .
Maybe you've been baptised with water or had some kind of "religious" experience, but you can receive this real baptism. The Lord Jesus died on the cross to bear my sins and your sins, to pay for them once for all time. Whoever you are, no matter where you've come from, no matter what you've ever done, if you have never trusted in Him, He's waiting for you and He's inviting you now to trust in Him as your Savior. Stop trying to save yourself. Stop depending on a church, a sacrament, some ritual prayers, or a religion. God will save you tonight if you will simply put your faith in, and rely on the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior. At that very moment, God the Holy Spirit will baptize you and will place you into the body of the Lord Jesus Christ. You could never be closer to God than that. If you want to be saved right now, trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and God will save you.

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Quick Too ... (Part 1 of 2)

Do you want to be more useful to the cause of Christ? Every believer that I know does. I know believers who spend time in prayer and in study, but have difficulty in ministering to others, both lost and saved. (It must be remembered, of course, that we may plant, or we may water, but it is God and God alone who gives the increase.) But whether our preaching is to the lost or to the saved (to the former we preach the ministry of reconciliation; to the latter, the full knowledge of the Son of God) there are several universal precepts taught in the Epistle of James that, if heeded, would free us to be so much more useful in ministering to others, and would also eliminate much of the grief that we experience and administer on a day to day basis.

" Therefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was." (James 1:19-24)

The problem as outlined in these verses is that too many believers are...

Slow to hear:

There seems to be very little honest Bible study today and as a result we have a very worldly and immature Body of Christ. Actually this has been going on since the inception of the Body of Christ. For example, the Apostle Paul calls the Corinthians carnal (1Corinthians 3:1-3); he marvels that the Galatians turned so quickly from the truth; he calls the Hebrews dull of hearing (5:11-14); to the Romans he repeatedly poses the questions: "Are you ignorant, brethren?" and "Do you not know?" But though the problem is not new, neither is the solution:

[What the natural man needs to hear is the gospel of the grace of God: That Christ Jesus died on the cross of Calvary for him; every sin was died for, every transgression completely blotted out. This is the only message in Scripture that we are called to preach to the unsaved. What the regenerated man needs to understand is what Paul in Ephesians variously calls: the full knowledge of the Son of God; the manifold wisdom of God; the unsearchable riches of Christ. Understanding these deep things of God glorifies God and should be of utmost importance to all believers.]

The Bible says:

" ...man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD." Deuteronomy 8:3

" Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not." Proverbs 8:33

" ...the just shall live by faith." Habbakuk 2:4

" Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that you may be wise in your latter days." Proverbs 19:20

" ...faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Romans 10:17

" For the LORD gives wisdom: out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding." Proverbs 2:6

" But as for you, continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2Timothy 3:14-17

Please note that Bible study, in order to honor God, must be as God intended. Let me briefly explain:

All Scripture is certainly profitable as stated above, but we should remember that this passage of 2Timothy was written after 2Timothy 2:15, which states: "Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." If we do not rightly divide the word, we will have disastrous consequences, and our study will be terribly unprofitable and will dishonor God
.
"..and account that the long suffering of our Lord is salvation--as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which those who are untaught and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know these things beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked..." (2Peter 3:15-17)

The Bible must be studied systematically. It must be examined carefully in order to know exactly what is being taught. The Bible is not a mere collection of historical facts, or interesting suggestions for living, it is the word of God, and must be received as truth. (1Thessalonians 2:13)

In order to have a profitable study, we must have a clear understanding of where we are in God's program: Our Lord's earthly ministry was to Israel nationally. He, as the Redeemer, fulfilled prophecy by coming to establish God's Kingdom upon the earth. (Isaiah 9:6-7) His messengers were the twelve Apostles, of whom Peter was chief. This prophetic program, called the Kingdom of Heaven, was temporarily put on hold because of Israel's national rejection of Messiah. Then God, in loving kindness, began a new, unprophesied program called the dispensation of grace. (Ephesians 3:1-13) The message of this program is, basically, that there is no longer any difference between Jew and Gentile (Ephesians 2:11-22); God is saving all without distinction based upon Christ's triumphant death upon the cross of Calvary. This message is called the Gospel of the grace of God, and God's messenger is the Apostle Paul. This is where we find ourselves today.

So, while all of the Bible is written for us, only Paul's epistles are written to us and about us. This does not mean that none of the rest of God's word is applicable to us, only that the same distinctions which the Holy Spirit made in His writing of Scripture, must be made in our study of it. This is what is meant by rightly dividing the word of truth.

Another aspect of being slow to listen is in our every day dealings with humanity. Often, we simply do not pay attention when others are speaking. Maybe we are thinking about what we are going to say next in a conversation, or perhaps the person to whom we are listening is boring. Whatever the case, it is rude and can result in a lost hearing. Listen when other people are speaking. Listen without interrupting. If you want others to listen to you, you must give them the same courtesy.

Swift to speak:

The difference in Scripture between a fool and a wise man is not merely what they say, but also when they say it. The Bible says the wise man holds his tongue. There is no law that says a person must have an opinion about everything, much less a law that says that a person must voice every opinion he or she has. Before we speak we might ask ourselves a few sobering questions such as: Is what I'm about to say going to honor God or dishonor Him? Is what I'm about to say going to build up the person to whom or about whom I'm speaking, or will it tear down? If what I'm about to say is necessarily critical, can I find a diplomatic way and an opportune time to say it? Is what I'm about to say necessary? Is it kind? etc. Think a matter through and consider all the facts before speaking. Ask God for His help in being patient. Ask God for His help in reasoning things out. Once the words are out of our mouths it is impossible to take them back.

The Bible says

" The heart of the righteous studies to answer: but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things." Proverbs 15:28

" He that has knowledge spares his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holds his peace, is counted wise: and he that shuts his lips is esteemed a man of understanding." Proverbs 17:27-28

" He that answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame unto him." Proverbs 18:13

" A talebearer reveals secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit conceals the matter." Proverbs 11:13

" Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles." Proverbs 21:23

" He that covers a transgression seeks love; but he that repeats a matter separates very friends." Proverbs 17:9

" A man has joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!" Proverbs 15:23

" But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear" 1Peter 3:15

" Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how you ought to answer every man." Colossians 4:6

" And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in
weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." 1Corinthians 2:1-5

(What an excellent Scriptural example of how we should speak when ministering to others.)

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Quick Too ... (Part 2 of 2)

Swift to wrath:

When someone wrongs us in some way a common reaction is to become angry. Anger then tends to have a snowballing effect. It seems that many times, once we are angered, we very rapidly lose control of the anger and become less and less tolerant of everybody and everything.

Though Scripture recognizes there are times when anger is justifiable and though we even have instances of our Lord in His earthly ministry becoming angry, it must be noted that our Lord was only angry when His ministry to man was impeded, or when man's worship of God was impeded. (See John 2:15; Mark 10:14; 3:5)

The Bible says:

" He that is soon angry deals foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated." Proverbs 14:17

" He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalts folly." Proverbs 14:29

" The discretion of a man defers his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression." Proverbs 19:11

" Be not hasty in your spirit to be angry: for anger rests in the bosom of fools." Ecclesiastes 7:9

" He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty..." Proverbs 16:32

" A wrathful man stirs up strife: but he that is slow to anger appeases strife." Proverbs 15:18

" But now you must also put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth." Colossians 3:8

" Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice." Ephesians 4:31

Hearers of the word only:

This is a real tragedy because it makes for a really carnal believer. We hear the word of God and yet willfully continue to dishonor God by gratifying our own desires. The Corinthians had the benefit of being taught by the Apostle Paul himself, yet: sexual immorality was widespread; denominationalism was boasted of; there was drunkenness at the Lord's supper; the believers there were ridiculously stingy, and so on.

Paul discusses another aspect of this problem in 1 Corinthians when he says: "We know that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." There are saved people who gather a lot of Scriptural knowledge but do not allow the Holy Spirit to use that knowledge to God's glory. They then use this knowledge as either a toy or as aweapon. This kind of carnality is extremely obnoxious.

But whatever our sin preference, none of us is a doer of the word as we ought, and the only Scriptural motivation for serving Christ is the overflowing grace of God.

Let us put this in proper perspective: Before we trusted Christ we were hopeless, Godless, wretched, ruined sinners (notwithstanding our morality and all perceived goodness), headed directly for, and deserving no less than an eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire.
"But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:4-10)

Notice that Paul here (as well as his other epistles) first emphasizes what God has done for us in pure grace (i.e. the crosswork of Christ); then, and only then, he beseeches us to serve God on that basis. So if we can see the awful spiritual and physical agony that Christ went through on the cross to accomplish our salvation and not be moved to serve God, then there is something horribly, horribly wrong with us.

" For the love of Christ constrains us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain." 2Corinthians 5:14-6:1

" For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." 1Corinthians 6:20

There seems to be very little honest Bible study today and as a result we have a very worldly and immature Body of Christ..

The difference in Scripture between a fool and a wise man is not merely what they say, but also when they say it.

" He that has knowledge spares his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holds his peace, is counted wise: and he that shuts his lips is esteemed a man of understanding." Proverbs 17:27-28

" And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."
1Corinthians 2:1-5

When someone wrongs us in some way a common reaction is to become angry. Anger then tends to have a snowballing effect. It seems that many times, once we are angered, we very rapidly lose control of the anger and become less and less tolerant of everybody and everything.

" Be not hasty in your spirit to be angry: for anger rests in the bosom of fools."
Ecclesiastes 7:9

This is a real tragedy because it makes for a really carnal believer. We hear the word of God and yet willfully continue to dishonor God by gratifying our own desires.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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GraceLife Bible Studies
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Does Sin Matter? (Part 1 of 3)

QUESTION: While reading several of your articles on the web, I had a recurring question. When you state that we are not under the law, but under grace, (a position that I definately agree with) do you mean that we are free to sin, or that sin does not matter? The more I strive to live for God, the more I see sin in my life. I believe that we are called to live a holy life before God. How does this fit in with the doctrines of the Grace Church?

ANSWER: Freedom in Christ has the appearance of being dangerous by some because each Christian is free to do what they want. What if Christians don't "want" to do what it is right? What if they don't "want" to obey God's Word? Then what? Is it okay to sin? Freedom in Christ is really not dangerous at all. It is the "lack" of freedom that is dangerous. Paul wrote the Galatians: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." (Galatians 5:1) He told them: "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?" (Galatians 5:7) Paul wrote: "I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?" (Galatians 3:2-3) The Galatians were turning away from the Grace that had saved them to the Law that had chained them. Sounds like a strange thing to do, but many Christians still do that today.
Paul wrote the Corinthians about the veil that covered the hearts of the Israelites. "But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unvelied faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:16-18) A wonderful thing is happening to Christians who understand, experience and enjoy the Freedom that is "in" Christ. We are becoming "like" Him. What does that have to do with sin? Look at the very next words Paul writes to the Corinthians.

"Therefore, since through God's mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God."
2 Corinthians 4:1-2

Freedom in Christ leads to a different lifestyle; a different desire. Sin is not something we "want" to do. Christ "in" us desires a different path. Christ's will becomes our will because He "wills" in and through us. Christ lives His life in us. The life Christ lives will be a life that desires that which is righteous because He is righteous and we have become "the righteousness of God" in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:21) That happened to us because "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us." (2 Corinthians 5:20)

I believe the more we experience Christ's Freedom, the less we will want to sin. This is a major difference between "GraceLife" and "LawLife." The more we understand and enjoy the Freedom Christ came to give us, the less we'll be concerned with laws. Paul wrote that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." (Galatians 5:22-25) There is no law against the Fruit of the Holy Spirit. Our sinful nature, with its passions and desires, has been crucified. Our sinful nature hung on the Cross with Christ.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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GraceLife Bible Studies
http://www.gmaf.org/studies.html
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Does Sin Matter? (Part 2 of 3)

Paul went into depth about the issue of Christians and sin. Sin does matter.

"The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin--because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. for sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace."
Romans 5:20-6:14

Some of the keys to understanding sin and the Christian are:

We died to sin

We may live a new life

We have been united with Christ

Our old self was crucified

We are no longer slaves to sin

We have been freed from sin

We can count ourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus

We should not offer the parts of our body to sin, as instruments of wickedness

We should offer the parts of our body to God as instruments of righteousness

Sin will not be our master

We are under Grace, not Law

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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GraceLife Bible Studies
http://www.gmaf.org/studies.html
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Does Sin Matter? (Part 3 of 3)

Christians have a "new" life in Christ. We are not the same. Our old self, the old sin nature, was crucified. We are no longer slaves to sin. We have been freed from sin! We have a new ability to live a righteous life because of Christ Who is "in" us. He will live His Righteousness in us and through us.
I think most Christians would agree that sin is wrong. The Bible makes that pretty clear. What seems to trouble Christians is what sin is and how not to do it. I've met many Christians through the years who have big differences about certain kinds of sins. Churches and hairs have been split because of the differences. However, we probably agree about the major ones.

Paul wrote that the acts of the sinful nature are obvious: "sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like." (Galatians 5:19-21) Paul wrote another sin-list to the Corinthians: "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." Paul reminds us that we were like that once, but we've been changed. "And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-11) Paul wrote the Colossians to "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all." (Colossians 3:5-11) Paul wrote the Ephesians: "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." (Ephesians 4:31)

Sin does matter. It is not something Christ wants a Christian to do. However, Jesus knows what we were. He knows our former "sinning" experience. He knows what we know. He knows what once occupied our minds and time. He knows what was once the desire of our hearts. He knows the struggles Christians can have with sin. Fortunately for us, Christ did something about it. He died on the Cross and crucified our old self. Through Christ we died to sin. We are no longer slaves to sin. We are freed from sin. We are alive to God "in" Christ Jesus!

Unsaved people have no choice about whether they will sin. They are born sinners. They do what comes naturally to them. They sin continually. Saved people, God's Children of Grace, have choices. We are dead to sin. Christ "in" us will live out His Will through us. His Will is for us to live righteously. We have a choice about what we do. What does that have to do with Freedom?

"You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbors as yourself.' If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other."
Galatians 5:13-15

Does sin matter? You bet it does. Sin killed the Kindest and Most Loving Person I've ever known. It killed Jesus. Sin destroys people. It wrecks families. It leads people to jealousy and murder. It causes people to rob, steal, lie, cheat, maim, abuse, and victimize. It is at the heart of all wickedness. If we understand what sin really is, we won't want to do it. The resurrected Christ "in" us will live His Righteousness through us. That defeats sin. We are dead to sin and alive to God "in" Christ Jesus. As we agree with God and cooperate with Him, Christ will feel at home in our hearts. Then we will be rooted and established in His love, and will have the power, "together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know His Love that surpasses knowledge and we will be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." How can that be? We depend on Christ "in" us to do it all. "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:14-21)

"Grace & Peace"

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Bible Ambassadors
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Contradictions?

There are obvious contradictions in the Holy Bible - the written Word of God - that cause much of the confusion in people today because of a lack of understanding in How To Study The Bible. We will address some of these issues from time to time in hopes it will help you, or someone you know, grab hold of God's simple truths. Isn't it amazing how mankind wants to complicate what God made very simple?
One of the issues causing abundant confusion today is whether or not we must do good works to be saved, or do good works to maintain our salvation. Look at the following two scriptures:

James 2:26 - For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

Romans 4:5 - But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Now those are both quotes from the inspired, authorized Word of God. Yet they definitely have different messages . So then, which one is right? Which one does God want you to follow? And why?

The key to KNOWING which one of those passages applies to YOU, so that you can "walk in the Spirit" correctly is 2 Timothy 2:15. A contradiction is a noticeable difference . There is very obvious or noticeable difference between the passages above. Do not skirt around those differences by quoting a scripture most use that has nothing to do with the issue. That is, they attempt to answer (which is not an answer but an evasion) that "Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, today and forever. [Hebrews 13:8] They do that because they do not KNOW the key to understanding the difference. It is an attempt to hide their ignorance which means they do not know. Ignorance does not equal stupidity; it means lacking in knowledge. But you CAN KNOW. God provided a key. The key - again - is 2 Timothy 2:15 in a King James Bible: (Modern versions change the wording because they also "don't know." God forbid they would deliberately change the meaning of God's Word.)

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Please note: We AGREE with Hebrews 13:8. Jesus Christ IS the same in every way and every day. That scripture, used as a rebuff, is a "duck blind." Though Christ never changes - GOD never changes - how he deals with or dealt with mankind has changed. If that is not true, then perhaps you better "sell all you have" and follow Christ. Including your computer and your big screen TV!

Remember, the subject here is differences between passages addressing the same issue, and how to deal with them. It has a very simple solution. Man seems to want complicated solutions, therefor overlook God's very simple solutions - in this case - "rightly divide the Word of Truth." How do you do that?

First of all, it helps tremendously to understand 2 Timothy 2:15. Remember, don't try to complicate it. It means what it says. It says, "rightly divide". In some circles you will hear (or may have been taught) that it means to "correctly handle" (some perverted Bibles version) or to "correctly teach." That might look good if you stop at the first word there - "rightly." No problem agreeing that rightly and correctly mean the same.

Where the error comes in is that they quit there and try to ignore the other word God gave - "divide." Actually, that is being kind, because they don't truly ignore it, they change its meaning when they teach the passage. Now, no matter how hard I try, I can't make divide mean handle or teach . It does mean to separate , to cut or, interestingly, distribute . (As in "dispense.") You do not need now to go to the Greek to learn what has already been translated from Greek to English.

So God said to you and me (James was written specifically to Christian Jews scattered abroad who were part of the Little Flock and not the Body of Christ), that WE are to "rightly divide the Word of Truth." And WE (the Body of Christ) are to follow our own apostle (Romans 11:13) who told us that we are to " worketh not, " but are to walk in God's grace. The WORD of God then can be DIVIDED.

Divided into what? Well that is another whole study, but this should excite you enough to want to do that study because it will open up the whole Bible to you in a way you have never seen it, enjoyed it or been excited by it. But the first clue is that it is full of division, from Genesis to the Revelation. Beginning with the division in creation between the heaven and the earth . Enjoy! Get to the division of Prophecy versus The Mystery!

"Grace & Peace"

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Studying The Bible
A webpage dedicated to studying the Word of God
http://www.fortunecity.com/millennium/treearbor/603/studymain.html
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Grace, and Gospel, plain, and simple

"Click here for scriptural proof of what is below"
http://www.angelfire.com/tx/simplegrace/scripturalproof.html

Hey YOU! ....... yeah I mean YOU!

Do you know where your never dying soul will go
when that sinning flesh you are carrying dies?
There is a place of fiery, eternal Judgement for those that deny God ...... and here's the bad news !
WE ALL DESERVE TO GO TO THERE !
Now don't go gettin religious on me !
you cant get to heaven by things you do !
NO MATTER IF YOUR GET, DUNKED IN, SPRINKLED WITH, OR POURED ON WITH WATER, .... IT AINT GONNA SAVE YOU !
Here's the good news !
Did you know that Jesus Christ died for all of your sins?
Thats what I said !
ALL of em!
EVERY LAST PUTRID, UGLY, STINKIN SIN THAT YOU COMMITTED !
JESUS CHRIST PAID FOR WITH ALL OF HIS BLOOD !
and not only that !
HE WAS RISEN AGAIN TO SAVE ANYONE WHO WILL BELIEVE !
JESUS DID ALL THAT NEEDED TO BE DONE TO SAVE YOU !
whats that ? .... you say I am beating you over the head with the bible?
well .... if I could get you to trust the Love of God in Jesus Christ by beating you over the head with a bible .... I'd be playing bongos on your cranium !
but thats imperfect me .... God aint like that ! .... he will let you go your way by choice .... but mind you .... there are ETERNAL CONSEQUENCES !
ok .... here it is again .... the good news !
JESUS CHRIST DIED FOR YOUR SINS, WAS BURIED, AND WAS RISEN AGAIN THE THIRD DAY ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES.
Now ! .... you heard the good news .... you have NO EXCUSE if you choose not to trust God .... at his judgement, you cant say nobody told you !
throw off disbelief, throw off religious works .... they cant save you !
Trust Jesus and what he did at the cross to save your soul from the deserved fiery, everlasting torments.
When you first decide to TRUST what Jesus Christ did, he will save you instantly, and eternally !

CHOOSE WISELY !

"Grace & Peace"

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Eternal Life Ministries, Inc.
http://members.ccgnv.net/elm/
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I Was Religious But Lost
by Dorothy Woodall

Though raised in a religious home and thus believing I was a Christian, I was never taught that heaven was a free gift and I could know for certain that I had eternal life.

Not knowing where I would spend eternity when I died -- whether in heaven, hell or purgatory -- I grew up with a deep fear of death. Active in a works-oriented system, I was involved with rosaries, novenas, masses and other rituals.

Not until I went away to college was my faith challenged, when a roommate told me that all my rituals and works did not make me a Christian. She shared with me that Christ died for my sins, He was buried and rose again (I Corinthians 15:3,4), but it was too simple just to believe these facts about Him and expect to be saved.

At the age of 23, however, God gave me understanding of His plan of salvation. I understood the Gospel of the grace of God, was convicted by the Holy Spirit and began to comprehend these spiritual truths:

"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost" (Titus 3:5).

"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8,9).

"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Romans 4:5).

As I continued to search the Scriptures, I learned that all my past works were like filthy rags in the sight of a holy God. "But we are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away" (Isaiah 64:6). But it seemed too easy just to believe that "Christ died for my sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" (I Corinthians 15:3,4).

Though I had always believed in God and knew Jesus was the Son of God, I had not believed that He died for me personally and all I had to do was to believe what God said about His son.

Now that I understood those truths, the best I knew how I told God I believed He sent His Son to die on the cross for my sin. I was going to trust Christ as my personal Saviour -- not my church, not its leaders, not its traditions, nor the idolatry it entails.

With trusting Christ and Christ alone came the assurance that if I were to die right then, or even today, I would be in heaven -- not based on what I did, but by believing what Christ did for me at Calvary.

"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God" (I John 5:13).

Now that I had settled the matter of my eternal destination, I began to search the Scriptures even more to see if these things were so. I learned about the ministry of the Holy Spirit, who came to dwell in me the moment I trusted Christ as my Saviour, and I was baptized into the body of Christ. "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are all called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Ephesians 4:4-6).

As I grew in grace and knowledge of the Lord, I began to understand my role as a wife and mother. Christ had given me liberty for this age of grace, not the bondage that the Law gave Israel. I saw that prophecy and tongues were not for today, but were for Israel. "Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away" (I Corinthians 13:8).

Instead of having to sell my possessions to follow Christ, I saw that I am to set my desires on things above, as commanded in Colossians 3:1,2, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth."

With my salvation secure and my destination settled, I began to see my position in Christ. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ... To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace" (Ephesians 1:3,6,7).

If you are religious -- depending on your works or your religion to get you to heaven -- why not trust Christ and Him alone as your all-sufficient Saviour, at the same time settling your eternal destination and your position in Christ?

Eternal Life Ministries, Inc.
10818 Cherith Lane
Clermont, FL 34711
352.242.0830
E-Mail

"Grace & Peace"

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Grace Age Church
http://www.graceagechurch.com/index.htm
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TRINITY

If we are willing to accept and teach the truth as outlined in Ephesians 4:4-6, we can do away with a lot of confusion and division among the local churches and denominations. Many false teachers have lied to us and tried to make us do certain things to help the Lord out and to make us have a part in our salvation, but when we know the truth, we can see that He did it all.

Ephesians 4:14 that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.

Ephesians 4:4 there is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. 6. One God and father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

There is one body: This is the Body of Christ (the church Eph 1:22-23), which is the only true church for this age. There are other churches in the Bible but they are not the body of Christ (Acts 7:38; Matt 18:17). One Spirit: This is the Spirit of Almighty God and this Spirit is God for God is a Spirit. If we are true believers, then we have the Spirit of God and we become the Temple of God.

The Holy Spirit is God:
He strives (Genesis 6:3)
He teaches (Luke 12:12).
He convicts (John 1:8).
He directs (Acts 13:2).
He makes intercession (Romans 8:26).
He inspires (II Peter 1:21).
He sanctifies (I Peter 1:2).
He is God (Acts 5:3-4).
He is truth (John 16:13).

One hope: This is that which is called that blessed hope. It is also called the catching away or rapture of the church (I Cor 15:51-53; I Thes 4:13-17). This is when we shall all not die but we will all be changed. This earthly body must be given a heavenly body. (I Cor 15:40-44). One Lord: There can be but one Lord for the Body of Christ and He is the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us and rose again. This same Lord is also God:

He has all power (Matthew 28:18).
He is all knowing (Col 2:3).
He was in the beginning (John 1:1).
He is God (John 8:58).
He gives redemption (Col 1:14).
He is present everywhere (Matthew 28:20).
He became a Man (John 1:14)
He created all things (Eph 3:9; Col 1:6).

One faith: This is not our faith but the faith of Jesus Christ (Romans 3:22; Gal 3:16). One baptism: This is the baptism of the Spirit that places us into the Body of Christ (I Cor 12:13). This is not the water baptism that was done in other ages.

One God and Father of all:
He makes covenants (Genesis 9: 1-17; Gen 12:1-3)
He is one God (I Chronicles 8:6).
He is a redeemer 9Isa 63:16).
He is the master (Mal 1:6).
He is the I AM (Ex 3:14).
He is JEHOVAH (Ex 6:3).
He is by whom the whole family in haven and earth is named (Eph 3:14-15).
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all God and all three are one.
The Spirit raised him (Romans 8:11).
The Father raised him (Romans 6:4).
He raised himself (John 10:18; John 2:19-20).

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Grace and The Truth Ministry
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/home2.htm
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The Unpardonable Sin
by L. Peterson
Matthew 12:31-32; Mark 3:2-30; Luke 11:14-23

The above caption is not exactly scriptural for the subject of which we write, but used for convenience. What do we mean by this?

Down through the years we have heard many messages on this subject spoken of in the foregoing scriptural reference. These messages have always been captioned 'The Unpardonable Sin'. This caption is a misnomer, that is, the title does not truly represent what the scriptures teach. The Word of God does not say it cannot and will not be forgiven, on the contrary it teaches that it will be forgiven and in fact gives us the exact time and place that it will be forgiven. We shall present this in the course of the message. In Mark's Gospel, where in the King James version it says 'hath never forgiveness, but it is in danger of eternal damnation' (Mark 3:29) it should rather read 'hath not forgiveness', 'not' has limits whereas 'never' carries the sense of timelessness and is thus called 'unpardonable'. Thus the use of the caption 'The Unpardonable Sin' because it is best known to Christians by this language. In order to come to the heart of our subject, we must follow certain steps or rules employed in the interpretation of any given scripture.

The first step in our progression of this study is to learn to whom our Lord was speaking. This is always important in any biblical analysis. If this rule were employed in the study of God's Word we would not have all the 'isms' and differences that we have today in so-called Christian circles. It is said, 'you can prove anything by the 'Bible'. This is almost true if the above rule is not respected. In this particular case our Lord was speaking to the Nation Israel. Gentiles were excluded and the Church, which is Christ's body, was non-existent and not even prophesied. How hard it is for some Christians to realize that our Lord never came to organize the Church. It is true as W.R. Newell has written in his booklet, PAUL'S GOSPEL, 'Christ when on earth did not start anything'. Romans 15:8 declares: 'now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers'. Thus it is well to know that whatsoever our Lord had to say about this particular sin it was to the Chosen People; it has nothing to do with the people today. In fact, this particular sin cannot be committed today. Dr. Chafer writes in his theology (Vol.7 page 48) 'It should be noted that this sin against the Holy Spirit consisted in asserting that Christ's' works, which were wrought by the Holy Spirit, were accomplished on the contrary by Satan. Such a setting could not be found now since Christ is not in the world as He was then, nor is He undertaking in the same way to do works by the Holy Spirit. It is, therefore, impossible for this particular sin to be committed today'. Today we preach the Israel and that is the 'vengeance' of 'the day of the Lord', or the tribulation period.

Here, in Hebrews 10:28,29, Israel is charged again with a threefold sin, the last far more sever than the first two and unforgiven Note these sins: Verse 28, 'despised Moses' law', a blatant rejection of God the Father, Verse 29, 'trodden underfoot the Son of God....., rejection of God the Son, Verse 29b, 'done despite unto the Spirit of Grace'. This latter is the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. 'Despite' in the original language means 'insult' or 'outrage'. Because of this one thing remains 'the day of the vengeance', or the time of tribulation, or the day of the Lord' at which time Israel is forgiven this sin and restored again to national and spiritual favor with God.

In Joe 2:12-29 we have presented to us the story of Israel's repentance for committing this sin of which we are writing. Scofield has captioned this, and properly so, 'Repentance of the Jews who are in the Land'. All Israel is called upon to repent. They acknowledge that they have been without God as in former covenant relationship for they declare in verse 17, 'wherefore should they say among the people, where is their God?. Upon cleansing and repentance God answers them in divine favor. Before their repentance they have been in deep sorrow and suffering, actually, it appears to them that God was never to receive them again in fulfilling the covenant promises of the Old Testament. It appeared that God was going to give the Gentiles their heritage. Verse 17 says 'spare they people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen (Gentiles tiles) should rule over them.' Had they believed the prophet Hosea, they would have known that they would be restored to divine favor. Hosea 3:3-5 says, 'Thou shalt not be for another man; (God speaking of husband and wife relationship) so will I be for thee. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice and without an image and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel The prophet is speaking of the day when they, the chosen people, repent and are forgiven the sin of which we have been writing , i.e., the so-called 'Unpardonable Sin'.

In conclusion may we remind you then, that this sin is not personal, it is not possible to commit it today. It has nothing to do with 'the Church which is Christ's body'. It is a misnomer to call it 'unpardonable' for it is pardoned in the great tribulation period at the 'time of Jacob's trouble'. Today the Jew is not in any sense standing in divine favor above other peoples. 'All have sinned (Jew and Gentile) and come short of the Glory of God'. Today, in this age of Grace, God is calling out from all peoples sinners who are saved by grace plus nothing, adding them to the church which is Christ's body. Today Jew and Gentile, lose national identity and become a 'new creation' as spoken of in 2 Cor. 5:17. This becomes the highest and greatest of all God's creation for we Jew and Gentile, become 'flesh of His flesh and bone of His bone'. for this we bow before our God in worship, adoring Him and thanking Him for such marvelous grace.

Pastor Lloyd Peterson

"Grace & Peace"

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WHY ALL THE CONFUSION ?

"Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things." 2 Timothy 2:7

Did you ever wonder why there is so much confusion in religion today? Why is it that you can hear so many people teaching contradicting doctrines when they all use the Bible? There is an answer.

Most of the confusion and contradicting doctrine that you hear today is a result of failing to obey God’s command in II Timothy 2:15, to “Rightly Divide the Word of truth”. Most people do not distinguish between the KINGDOM MESSAGE of Christ and his apostles found in Matthew through John and Hebrews through Revelation and that of THE MESSAGE OF GRACE given to and through the apostle Paul in ROMANS through PHILEMON.

We are told to RIGHTLY DIVIDE THE WORD OF TRUTH, and to follow PAUL, and failure to do so results in confusion.

WE ASK THAT YOU EXAMINE PRAYERFULLY SOME SCRIPTURAL FACTS KEEPING IN MIND WHAT PAUL SAID IN 1 Corinthians 14:37:

If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.

ALL REFERENCES ARE FROM THE KING JAMES BIBLE.

1. PAUL IS THE APOSTLE TO THE GENTILES.

Romans 11:13 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:

Romans 15:16 That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.

2. PAUL RECEIVED HIS MESSAGE BY DIRECT REVELATION AND HIS WORDS ARE THE WORDS OF CHRIST FOR TODAY.

Gal 1:11-12 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

3. PAUL LAID THE FOUNDATION FOR THE CHURCH, CHRIST’S BODY.

1 Cor 3:10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth there upon.

4. PAUL WAS THE FIRST MAN EVER SAVED TOTALLY BY GRACE.

1 Tim 1:16 Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.

5. PAUL WAS GIVEN THE DISPENSATION OF THE GRACE OF GOD.

Eph 3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:

6. PAUL'S MESSAGE WAS A MYSTERY N0T MADE KNOWN UNTIL REVEALED TO HIM.

Eph 3:3-5 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;

7. PAUL PREACHED A DIFFERENT GOSPEL FROM PETER AND WAS SENT TO A DIFFERENT PEOPLE. THE APOSTLES ACKNOWLEGED PAUL’S MINISRTY AND WERE IN AGREEMENT WITH IT.

Gal 2:7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;

Gal 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

WHILE WE DO NOT WORSHIP PAUL, WE DO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT HE WAS GOD'S CHOSEN VESSEL TO MAKE THE MESSAGE OF SALVATION BY GRACE KNOWN IN THE DISPENSATION OF GRACE AND WE ARE TOLD TO FOLLOW HIM. (1 COR 11:4)

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From: Timely Messenger

FAITH AND HOPE

Faith and hope came into being through sin. Unfallen man knew nothing of faith, nor did he know of hope. Faith and hope were born after the Lord gave to fallen man the first promise, the first announcement of redemption (Genesis 3:15). Then Adam and Eve believed and hoped for that which the Lord had promised. And ever since, when man accepts what God has spoken, the exercise of faith and hope has followed. But those who do not accept God’s Word know no faith and have no hope. What dying Jacob said, “I have waited for thy salvation” (Gen. 49:18), has been the faith and hope of all Jewish believers in the Old Testament. They believed in a coming One, they hoped for life and glory.

Beautifully it was expressed by that Old Testament saint to whom the Holy Spirit had given the assuring revelation that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. When Simeon held the Child in his arms, his faith and hope were realized. He blessed God, not the Child, for he knew that Babe he held in his arms was the Blesser and needed no blessing from him; then he said, “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy Word; for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation” (Luke 2:25-30).

And we also who have accepted the Word of God and believed on Him Who came, live now by faith and look forward in hope, for we are saved in hope and wait for the hope of righteousness, the blessed consummation glory, which will come when He comes again. Some day our faith will terminate in sight; we shall see Him as He is. In that day our hope will end for we shall possess all we hoped for. Unbelief knows no faith and has no hope. For all who do not believe, who refuse to accept God’s revelation, there comes the day when faith is impossible, and over the portals of the place of outer darkness is written “Leave hope behind.” What a delusion it is when men teach today that the sinner who lived on in sin, who refused God, who died without faith in Christ and without hope, will have another chance, or that there is such a thing as universal salvation. Now is the accepted time, and only now.

"Grace & Peace"

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The key to understanding the bible (Part 1 of 3)

The Bible is the world's most marvelous book, all because it is God's book. It is wonderful that God wrote a book, even more so that He has preserved it intact through history and has even provided for it to be translated into the languages of the nations. We have His Word, preserved for us and translated into our own language so that we can hold it in our hands, read it and see for ourselves just what God has said. This is all a marvelous blessing! But there is more.

It is important to recognize that God has also provided us with a divinely prescribed method for understanding it. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable," II Tim. 3:16 declares. But if we are to gain the profit from God's Word that He has placed there for us, we must approach it in His way. Thus II Tim. 2:15 Instructs:

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

Clearly our study of the Word is for the purpose of showing ourselves "approved unto God." This is to be our one great goal, our objective: to have God's approval, to be workmen who have no need to be ashamed before Him. But how is this objective to be reached? The answer is given with equal clarity: "Rightly dividing the Word of truth." This is the key to having God's approval on our service for Him - the key to understanding His Word.

"Rightly dividing the Word of truth" is a reference to the dispensational approach to studying the Bible and it is clear that this is the correct approach if we are to have God's approval on our lives and ministries.

It is important to notice that Paul says "rightly dividing the Word." The clear implication is that there is a wrong way to divide it. Paul does not, as many seem to suppose, simply say we are to make divisions in God's Word. No. We are to make right divisions - correct, proper distinctions. Great care is called for at this point for, remember, it is God's Word we are handling. This is not the Word of a doctrinal statement, a church creed, or tradition of human view point; this is the Word of Almighty God!

As we approach it, therefore, we want to approach it in God's way, properly recognizing the distinctions He has made in it. Just how to do this is the important question.

Since it is Paul who instructs us to rightly divide the Word, it would seem safe to ask Paul just how this should be done. So, instead of going to Darby, Scofield, Larkin, Hodges, Calvin, Strong or the like, let's turn to Paul and see if he can help us understand just how God's Word is to be "rightly divided"

A three fold division

God Himself never changes. In His person, essence and character. He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb. 13:8). His dealing with man, however, have undergone various changes down through history - changes made necessary by changes in man himself. Identifying these changes is a basic issue in studying the Bible dispensationally for a dispensation is a particular program that God administers (or dispenses) for man's obedience. For examples of man's changes, compare Ex. 31:15 with Col. 2:16; Lev. 11:7,8 with I Tim. 4:4; Matt. 5:19 with Rom. 6:14; Psa. 51:11 with Eph. 4:30; Gen. 17:11 with Gal, 6:15; etc.

In Ephesians 2 the Apostle Paul gives us a panoramic view of his understanding of the way God's dealing with mankind have been divided. He does this by making a clear, distinct and easily identifiable threefold division: Time Past (vs. 11,12), But Now (v. 13), The Ages to Come (v. 7).

Time Past: During "Time Past" there was an unmistakable distinction made between the circumcision and the uncircumcision, between the nation Israel and the Gentiles:

"Wherefore remember, that YE BEING IN TIME PAST GENTILES IN THE FLESH, WHO ARE CALLED UNCIRCUMCISION BY THAT WHICH IS CALLED THE CIRCUMCISION IN THE FLESH MADE BY HANDS;
"THAT AT THAT TIME YE WERE WITHOUT CHRIST, BEING ALIENS FROM THE COMMONWEALTH OF ISRAEL, AND STRANGERS FROM THE COVENANTS OF PROMISE, HAVING NO HOPE, AND WITHOUT GOD IN THE WORLD" (vs. 11,12).

The terms circumcision and uncircumcision identify a basic physical, racial and social distinction; one that was "in the flesh" and "made by hands." It was, in fact, so real and intense that they were obviously "calling" each other names! But there was more:

In this "time past" status, the Gentiles were also spiritually alienated from God and thus said to be "without Christ." This is said to be their condition because they were "aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise."

Thus the physical distinction only pointed to the more important spiritual alienation the Gentile masses occupied in Time Past.

The basic issue in Time Past is this division between the circumcision and the uncircumcision, between Israel and the Gentiles. When you find this issue governing the way God was working with men, you know immediately you are in Time Past.

But Now: Eph. 2:13 indicates that in the But Now period all this has changed. No longer are Gentiles considered "far off" but rather this distinction has been eliminated and now "those who were far off are made nigh."

"BUT NOW IN CHRIST JESUS YE WHO SOMETIMES WERE FAR OFF ARE MADE NIGH BY THE BLOOD OF CHRIST.
"FOR HE IS OUR PEACE, WHO HATH MADE BOTH ONE, AND HATH BROKEN DOWN THE MIDDLE WALL OF PARTITION BETWEEN US" (vs. 13,14)

So there is a Time Past, the basic characteristic of which is the separation between the circumcision and the uncircumcision, between the Jew and the Gentile. Then there is But Now where Jew and Gentile are dealt with on an equal basis and in the same manner. During But Now there has been a change in the way God deals with the nations, for "the middle wall of partition" has been "broken down." There is one remaining section:

The Ages to Come: Much is to come in the future as God brings His purposes to fruition and hence the final division:

"That IN THE AGES TO COME HIS MIGHT SHEW THE EXCEEDING RICHES OF HIS GRACE IN HIS KINDNESS TOWARD US THROUGH CHRIST JESUS" (v. 7).

So we have Paul's threefold division: Time Past, But Now, and the Ages to Come. How can the Word of God be laid out according to this? Let's see.

PART 2 of 3

TIME PAST

Time Past is marked by the basic characteristics of the separation between circumcision and uncircumcision. We know where circumcision came from. It began with Abraham as a sign of the covenant God made with him and his seed after him.

In Genesis 17 the Lord confirmed His covenant with Abram, changed his name to Abraham and instituted the sign of the Abrahamic Covenant-circumcision:

"And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
"This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; EVERY MAN CHILD AMONG YOU SHALL BE CIRCUMCISED.
"And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and IT SHALL BE A TOKEN OF THE COVENANT BETWIXT ME AND YOU.
"And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.
"He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, MUST NEEDS BE CIRCUMCISED: AND MY COVENANT SHALL BE IN YOUR FLESH FOR AN EVERLASTING COVENANT.
"AND THE UNCIRCUMCISED MAN CHILD WHOSE FLESH OF HIS FORESKIN IS NOT CIRCUMCISED, THAT SOUL SHALL BE CUT OFF FROM HIS PEOPLE; HE HATH BROKEN MY COVENANT" (Gen. 17:9-14).

Thus "circumcision in the flesh made by hands" was a sign of the special status given to the seed of Abraham by God. It was an outward sign of the spiritual privilege God had given to them and was a required mark of their identity and covenant privileges.

So the division between the circumcision and the uncircumcision began in the book of Genesis. It was there, with Abraham, that God began to erect "the middle wall of partition" between Jew and Gentile by giving to Abraham and his seed circumcision as "the sign of the covenant."

In Genesis 22:17,18 God states His purpose in that covenant and in thus separating the nation Israel from all other nations of the earth:

"That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the starts of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
"And IN THY SEED SHALL ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED; because thou has obeyed my voice."

Numbers 23:9 declares concerning Israel's special status:

"... LO, THE PEOPLE SHALL DWELL ALONE, AND SHALL NOT BE RECKONED AMONG THE NATIONS."

God not only erected this "middle wall," He also reinforced it by the giving of the law through Moses:

"Behold I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
"Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
"FOR WHAT NATION IS THERE SO GREAT, WHO HATH GOD SO NIGH UNTO THEM, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
"And WHAT NATION IS THERE SO GREAT, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?" (Deut. 4:5-8).

We see from this that what is generally referred to as the "Old Testament" is in fact part of Time Past. But when does the change occur? When do we move into the But Now status? And what about the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ?

Paul sheds real light on this latter question when he writes:

"Now I say that JESUS CHRIST WAS A MINISTER OF THE CIRCUMCISION for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers" (Rom. 15:8)

Note well that the character of our Lord's earthly ministry is defined as His being "a minister of the circumcision." Thus we learn that the period covered by the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John is in fact part of Time Past. The distinction between the circumcision and the uncircumcision still formed the basis of God's dealings with men at that time.

There is no way one can read the records of our Lord's earthly ministry and fail to see this basic fact. For example, in His first great commission to His Apostles, He declares:

"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying GO NOT INTO THE WAY OF THE GENTILES, AND INTO ANY CITY OF THE SAMARITANS ENTER YE NOT:
"BUT GO RATHER TO THE LOST SHEEP OF THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL" (Matt. 10:5,6)

Later when they besought Him to work a miracle for a Gentile woman, He pointedly told them:

"I AM NOT SENT BUT UNTO THE LOST SHEEP OF THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL" (Matt. 15:24).

Further, John 4:22 records His words to the woman at the well in Samaria:

"Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: FOR SALVATION IS OF THE JEWS."

Too often such passages are simply ignored-no doubt because they are not properly understood. Such plain words, however, cannot be gainsaid or mistaken. They mean what they say and their implication is clear: the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ demonstrates itself to be a part of Time Past. Thus the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are properly placed in the Time Past division when we "rightly divide the word of truth."

The same is true of the early Acts period. In His post-resurrection commission our Lord clearly maintained the advantaged status of the circumcision:

"And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, BEGINNING AT JERUSALEM" (Luke 24:47)

After some 40 days of personal instruction from their resurrected Lord in things "pertaining to the kingdom of God," the apostles understood that the program of God still focused on Israel and her coming kingdom:

"When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, LORD WILT THOU AT THIS TIME RESTORE AGAIN THE KINGDOM TO ISRAEL?" (Acts 1:6)

That this understanding was in no way a mistake of human frailty is borne out by the fact that on the day of Pentecost, Peter, speaking "as the Spirit gave (him) utterance," three times specifically limits his message to the nation Israel:

"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, YE MEN OF JUDAEA, AND ALL YE THAT DWELL AT JERUSALEM, BE THIS KNOWN UNTO YOU, AND HEARKEN TO MY WORDS:
"YE MEN OF ISRAEL, HEAR THESE WORDS..."
"THEREFORE LET ALL THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL KNOW ASSUREDLY..." (Acts 2:14, 22, 36).

Thus the understanding of Peter and the eleven as to just where they stood in the program of God gives clear evidence that they still functioned in the Time Past division, when Israel was still in the place of honor and advantage.

Peter is identified in Galatians 2:8 as the apostle of the circumcision and as such preached "the gospel of the circumcision" (Gal. 2:7). It is in this capacity and with this message that he declared to his nation:

"YE ARE THE CHILDREN OF THE PROPHETS, AND OF THE COVENANT WHICH GOD MADE WITH OUR FATHERS, SAYING UNTO ABRAHAM, AND IN THY SEED SHALL ALL THE KINDREDS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED.
"UNTO YOU FIRST GOD, HAVING RAISED UP HIS SON JESUS, SENT HIM TO BLESS YOU, IN TURNING AWAY EVERYONE OF YOU FROM HIS INIQUITIES" (Acts 3:25,26).

Throughout their ministry as recorded in Acts the Pentecostal believers declared their testimony that

"The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
"Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, FOR TO GIVE REPENTANCE TO ISRAEL, and forgiveness of sins" (Acts 5:30-32).

In fact, Israel's special privileged position extended even after they were scattered from Jerusalem by persecution, for Acts 11:19 tells us:

"Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen traveled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, PREACHING THE WORD TO NONE BUT UNTO THE JEWS ONLY."

The record is clear: The books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and the early part of the book of Acts properly belong in Time Past.

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The key to understanding the bible (Part 3 of 3)

BUT NOW

When, then, does the change to the But Now position occur? When did the circumcision and the uncircumcision being reconciled into one body begin to take place? Ephesians 3 supplies the answer:

"For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
"IF YE HAVE HEARD OF THE DISPENSATION OF THE GRACE OF GOD WHICH IS GIVEN ME TO YOU-WARD:
"HOW THAT BY REVELATION HE MADE KNOWN UNTO ME THE MYSTERY...
"WHICH IN OTHER AGES WAS NOT MADE KNOWN UNTO THE SONS OF MEN, AS IT IS NOW REVEALED UNTO HIS HOLY APOSTLES AND PROPHETS BY THE SPIRIT:
"THAT THE GENTILES SHOULD BE FELLOW HEIRS, AND OF THE SAME BODY, AND PARTAKERS OF HIS PROMISE IN CHRIST BY THE GOSPEL" (Eph 3:1-3,5,6)

From the record it is evident that the Apostle Paul was the instrument our ascended Lord used to initiate the program of grace for the Gentiles by way of a message he calls "the mystery" - a secret purpose which God kept "hidden" in Himself until He revealed it to and then through the Apostle Paul.

With the raising up of Paul we move from Time Past into the But Now section and cross what in fact is the most important boundary line of the Bible-that between prophecy and the great mystery proclaimed by Paul. It is into these two great subjects that the Bible is basically divided.

Manifestly there is a great difference between Peter's preaching of that "which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His hold prophets since the world began" (Acts 3:21) and Paul's proclamation of that "which was kept secret since the world began" (Rom. 16:25).

This secret message has to do with the breaking down of the middle wall of partition and the placing of Jew and Gentile into one body on an absolutely equal basis through simple faith in the cross-work of the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:13-22). How is it that this "mystery" message can now go to the Gentiles without regard to Israel's former status? Romans 11 answers:

"I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather THROUGH THEIR FALL SALVATION IS COME UNTO THE GENTILES, for to provoke them to jealousy."
"...THE CASTING AWAY OF THEM (IS) THE RECONCILING OF THE WORLD..."
"FOR I WOULD NOT, BRETHREN, THAT YE SHOULD BE IGNORANT OF THIS MYSTERY, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that BLINDNESS IN PART IS HAPPENED TO ISRAEL, UNTIL THE FULLNESS OF THE GENTILES BE COME IN" (Rom. 11:11,15,25).

Our Lord set the nation Israel aside during the Acts period and from heaven's glory introduced a new program through a new apostle. With the revelation of this new program we move into the But Now period and thus we read Paul now declaring:

"FOR I SPEAK TO YOU GENTILES, INASMUCH AS I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES, I MAGNIFY MINE OFFICE" (Rom. 11:13)

Romans through Philemon are the books, then, that fit into the But Now division. These are the books that detail what God is doing during the present dispensation of grace.

THE AGES TO COME

After the present dispensation is brought to a conclusion, there is still much that God has to accomplish. Since His prophetic program for the nation Israel has currently been interrupted in order to form the Body of Christ, the first order of business would logically be it's completion.

Appropriately, the grouping of books following the Pauline epistles is called the Hebrew Epistles. They, in fact, fit doctrinally into the Ages to Come. Consider Hebrews 2:3-5:

"How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation, WHICH AT THE FIRST BEGAN TO BE SPOKEN BY THE LORD (Matt. thru John), and was CONFIRMED UNTO US BY THEM THAT HEARD HIM (early Acts);"
"For unto the angels hath He not put into subjection THE WORLD TO COME WHEREOF WE SPEAK (Heb. thru Rev.)."

The distinction between the circumcision and uncircumcision is also again in vogue in the Hebrew Epistles, and thus we find such things as:

"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, TO THE TWELVE TRIBES which are scattered abroad, greeting" (Jas. 1:1).

"BUT YE ARE A CHOSEN GENERATION, A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD, AN HOLY NATION, A PECULIAR PEOPLE..." (1 Pet. 2:9).

AN IMPORTANT QUESTION

Thus we see that the Word of God itself provides us with the key to its own proper understanding and right division:

TIME PAST: In Matthew through John we find the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ to the nation Israel. In the book of Acts we have the fall of Israel and salvation going to the Gentiles through the ministry of the Apostle Paul.

BUT NOW: Romans through Philemon provide the doctrine for the present dispensation of grace.

AGES TO COME: Hebrews through Revelation focus on the ages to come when God will bring to fruition His purposes for both the nation Israel and the Body of Christ.

We are not the only people in the programs and purposes of God. People in other ages need Scripture to instruct them in the specifics of God's dealings with them just as we do. Remember: All of the Bible is for us but it is not all to us nor is it all about us. If we fail to recognize this important fact we will never be able to property understand just what God is doing today nor will we know just what He would have us do.

An important consideration remains: The "middle wall of partition" has been broken down and now there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile in God's program. Thus you are part of "the nations," The Apostle Paul says unequivocally, "I am the apostle of the Gentiles (i.e., the nations), "Who then, is your apostle? There can be no answer but that Paul is your apostle, for he was raised up by our ascended Lord specifically that he "should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles" (Rom. 15:16).

"Verily, verily, I saw unto you, HE THAT RECEIVETH WHOMSOEVER I SEND RECEIVETH ME; AND HE THAT RECEIVETH ME RECEIVETH HIM THAT SENT ME" (John 13:20).

Thus it is in Paul's writings alone that we find the doctrine, position, walk and destiny of today's church, the Body of Christ.

"Grace & Peace"

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Part 1 of 2
How to be Filled
with the Spirit

The most blessed possession anyone can have (i.e. eternal life) is offered to all today as a gift of God’s grace. It’s offered freely to be received by faith. God gives the believer life. He “…has quickened us together with Christ…And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 2:5&6) That is a lot of togetherness in Christ. The next verse goes on to tell us what God’s purpose for it all is: “that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace and kindness towards us through Christ Jesus.” God is looking forward to demonstrating to men and angels the exceeding riches of his grace. All that we have as believers, we have it:

In Christ,

By His grace,

And through faith in the working through His Word.

“For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Eph. 2:10)

Salvation from the penalty of sin by Christ’s redeeming work on our behalf is a wonderful thing in itself. But that is just the beginning of the blessedness that the believer has by God’s grace. That is just the induction to the blessed life that we know as eternal life. Salvation is but the start of the working of God in the believer. Most believers never proceed much beyond this rudimentary knowledge in their understanding. Therefore, God says, “…Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore, be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit…” (Ephesians 5:18). Understanding and doing the will of God is here associated with being filled with the Spirit.

To be filled with the Spirit is probably (or at least ought to be) the most sought after concept found in the scripture. It is also among the most misunderstood concepts found in the Word of God. There are abundant misconceptions on what it is to be filled with the Spirit. The misconceptions abound largely because people go to the second chapter of Acts and conclude that the pouring out of the Spirit of God upon all flesh as described there is or the norm for Christianity today. There, in Acts 2, being filled with the Spirit was an automatic experience for the believers involved. Also, it was involved with miraculous phenomenon; notably speaking in tongues (Acts 2:4).

Yet when we consider our text in Ephesians 5:18, we find that being filled with the Spirit is presented not as an automatic experience but as a goal that believers are admonished to achieve. Also, it is a goal that is within the reach of every believer.

We note also from the Ephesians passage the effect that being filled with the Spirit has on the believer.

“Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Ephesians 5:19 & 20).

As we study this passage in Ephesians further, we find that being filled with the Spirit affects every aspect of the believer’s interpersonal relationships and his attitudes towards duties and the filling of God given roles. It produces a harmonious relationship of wives toward husbands and husbands toward wives; of children toward parents and parents toward children, of employees toward employers and vice versa. Truly then we see the importance and the great benefit for believers to be filled with the Spirit.

Comparing scripture with scripture of Ephesians 5 with Colossians 3, we find something most interesting. There in Colossians 3, we find the identical effect presented:

“…Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

The passage goes on to talk about the same positive effect in the interpersonal relationships of husbands toward wives and vice versa; of children toward parents and vice versa, of employers toward employees and vice versa. However, the cause that produced this effect in Colossians chapter 3 is “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom…” Being “filled with the Spirit” in Ephesians 5 is a cause that produces the same effect as “letting the Word of Christ dwell in you richly” does in Colossians 3. It is therefore simple logic: If A=C and B=C then A=B. Specifically, since being filled with the Spirit produces the same results as letting the Word of Christ dwell in us richly does, we now understand that to let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly is to be filled with the Spirit.

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Part 2 of 2
How to be Filled
with the Spirit

As we come to Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, the one to whom God gave our instructions for the dispensation of the Grace of God, we find that the Holy Spirit is the active agent of God working in the world today. The salvation that God the Father planned, and God the Son accomplished, the Holy Spirit ministers. The Holy Spirit does this through the lives of people through the written Word.

Now then, we understand how one can be filled with the Spirit—by letting the Word of Christ dwell in us richly in all wisdom. Consider this admonition that we might appropriate the wonderful desired results in our interpersonal relationships. First consider exactly what the Word of Christ is. Obviously, one could say “the Word of Christ” is the Bible. And truly, the Bible is the Word of Christ. The pages of scripture from cover to cover present His character and His personality as well as the sufferings that He endured for us and the glory that was, is, and shall be His. Our Lord tells the religious leaders of Israel to: “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.” To the disciples on the road to Emmaus, “He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:27).

As we study the Old Testament we see Jesus Christ as the unstated subject and author for

“The testimony of Jesus as the Spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10). It is as Peter told the house of Cornelius: “To him gave all the prophets witness” (Acts 10:43). All of the Old Testament prophets spoke of a salvation that would center in Jesus Christ. Peter speaks of this in I Peter 1:10-12, “of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when, it testified before hand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which we now reported unto you by them that now preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven…” Peter here speaks of a salvation that was spoken by the prophets that involved the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow. Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, likewise “was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied. saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us [i.e. Israel] in the house of his servant David; As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began: That we [Israel] should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us.”

We see so far in all that we have looked at, that the prophets’ presentation of Jesus Christ pertains to a salvation of Israel. He is Israel’s Messiah (Matthew 16:16) as we see Him in prophecy. However, when we come to that portion of scripture that we know as the Pauline epistles, we find the “Word of Christ” to be far more to us than simply being Israel’s Messiah.

The word for “word” in Colossians 3:16 is the word that we get our English “logic” from. It is a reference to a logical concept of Christ put into words on the pages of scripture. God has revealed a concept of Christ in Paul’s epistles that is different from the concept presented in scripture either before or after them. Paul describes the concept of Christ as He is presented in the prophets as knowing Christ “after the flesh…” (2 Cor. 5:16). That term simply points to the fact that the prophets spoke of Christ as the king who would reign on a physical throne on the earth over a physical kingdom through the nation of Israel. But, the fact that the concept of Christ, as presented to us in Paul’s epistles is different than what went before, is evident by Paul’s statement “…when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, to reveal his Son in me, that I should preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me;…” (Galatians 1:15-17). This is a revelation of Jesus Christ that predates in time the revelation of Jesus Christ in glory as John writes of Him in the Revelation (Rev. 1:1) or Peter (I Peter 1:13). This revelation is “…The preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery.” (Romans 16:25). And this revelation is unique to the Pauline epistles for it is through him that the Lord revealed it (Ephesians 3:1-3). This revelation of Jesus Christ describes the Lord Jesus as the head (Colossians 1:18) over (and together with) the church which is His body (Ephesians 1:22) so as to form “one new man” (Ephesians 2:15); the new creature of II Corthinians 5:17. That entire body of doctrine that Paul refers to in Romans 16:25 and Ephesians 3:3 is what he refers to in Colossians 3:16 as “The Word Of Christ”. It describes that most blessed and special relationship whereby each believer is joined to Jesus Christ as “members of his body and his flesh and of his bones.” It spiritually is a relationship to Jesus Christ that is so close and so tight that, as we walk by faith in His Word (i.e. the Word of Christ—the mystery), Christ lives His life out through the believer.

The “Word of Christ” is then a set of instructions contained in Paul’s epistles. This information enables the believer to think the way Christ thinks, to see the world the way Christ sees the world, to have the sonship spirit that Christ has, and to understand God’s plan and purpose for man as Christ understands. In short, we have the mind of Christ. (I Cor. 2:16) As the believer saturates his heart and mind with the Word of God, bases his decisions in the pathways of life from the Word, and stands on the truth of the Word, he is filled with the Spirit. The Word of God and the Spirit of God are inseparable. The Word of God never works apart from the Spirit of God, nor does the Spirit of God work apart from the Word of God. The believer can not be filled with the Word of God apart from studying the Word of God. God works in us in three sequential steps:

Step One – God makes us a new creature when we individually believe the gospel that Christ died for our sins and paid the debt in full.

Step Two – God instructs us from His Word, the Bible. This is done by God as the believer receives the Word of God “…not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.” (1Thes 2:13)

Step Three – The Spirit of God leads the believer: “For as many as are led of the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” (Rom. 8:13) But, God can not lead someone until He has instructed Him from His Word. And, He can not instruct someone until He has made that person a new creature for “…the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1Cor.2:14)

Now let’s consider the admonition of Colossians 3:16 further. Note that is says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” The word “let” implies to us that yieldedness on our part is necessary. God does not save anyone against that person’s will. He does not justify us against our will. Rather, He offers eternal life as a gift to all but imparts that gift only to those who respond in faith. So too, God will not make a believer faithful against the believer’s will. Rather, He presents His will to us and waits on us to conform our will to His will as He has revealed it to us in the Pauline epistles. As we do humbly yield to the will of God as revealed in the word of God rightly divided, the indwelling Spirit of God then takes the written Word of God and produces the life of Christ in the believer. The believer is then filled with the Spirit as long as he/she so lives out the Word of God. The Word of Christ is thus:

· The Word of Life (Philippians 12:16) because it produces the life of Christ in the believer.

· The Word of His Grace (Acts 14:3; 20:32) because it is truly “good news” to the believer that God deals with us on the basis of grace today in the Dispensation of grace.

· The Word of Truth (Ephesians 1:13) because nothing more needs to be said.

· The Word of Promise (Romans 9:8) because it presents the promise of God that will never fail.

· The Word of the Truth of the Gospel (Col. 1:25) because it is the good news of the hope laid up for us in heaven.

· The Word of Faith (Romans 10:8) because our faith can rest in the faithfulness of God.

· The Word of Reconciliation (II Corinthians 5:19) because, in it God is acting to reconcile us, His one time enemies, to Himself.

· The Word of Christ (Colossians 3:16) because it presents Christ to the world the way God wants Him presented today.

M . J. Tiry

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Articles- A Passion for Souls (Part 1 of 3)
2 Peter 3:9

I want to focus our attention on the thing that is closest to the heart of God - the salvation of souls. I want you to see from the Scriptures that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit have an intense passion to see lost people saved. The idea of winning the lost to the Lord Jesus, the idea of evangelism is not the preacher’s idea. It is not something that the evangelist has thought up. It is not something that the Sunday School teacher does just to occupy time or to entertain children. But this idea of winning lost people to the Lord Jesus originated with the Godhead. These Three unite in a desire for believers to be placed in union with the Lord; become heirs and joint-heirs with the Lord Jesus; have the comfort and the hope of knowing that Heaven is their home. I want you to know that passion comes from the heart of God.

Turn with me to 2 Peter 3:9.

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

Here we are instructed, “the Lord is not slack.” The word slack means to be off schedule. God is not off schedule. It tells me that the program of God is not an accident. God has a plan and that plan is moving on with every tick of the clock, with every breath and with every heartbeat. The implication that we can draw from this verse is - time is running out. The whole context here is the fact that Jesus Christ is coming back and if we are to get our friends and loved ones saved we must win them now! You and I are living in what we know as the Dispensation of the Grace of God. That doesn’t mean the grace of God was not manifested in other dispensations, but it does mean that the grace of God has never been displayed so large, so big, so wonderful, and so wide as in the day and age in which we are now living. Today is really a day of opportunity. It is a day wherein those who are called “ambassadors” of the Lord Jesus are not only equipped with the “word of reconciliation” but are commissioned to be the ministers of reconciliation. We, members of the Body of Christ, are dispensers of the wonderful Grace of God. We really are living in the day and age of great opportunity for poor lost sinners and God has entrusted us with that responsibility.

So, the Lord is not off schedule but to us-ward is “longsuffering.” Why is that? Let me suggest it is because of God’s number one attribute – love. Who is God? The Bible says, “God is love.” That’s why the Apostle Paul said, “God commendeth (ie., recommends) His love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ Jesus died for us.” There is no greater love. It is greater love that a father or mothers. So, here is a loving God who, as we are told, is “not willing that any should perish.”

God didn’t send His Son just to save those who are worthy. He didn’t send His Son just to save those who behave. The truth is, He sent His Son to demonstrate His wonderful grace and love to those who were fist-shaking, enemies of God. The Bible says, "while we were yet without strength” - when we were alienated from God. Guess what? The sinner doesn’t come looking for God. The Bible says, “no man seeks after God.” Guess who came seeking the lost one? It was the Father through His Son. Again, the Bible tells us, “we love Him beause He first loved us.” God took the initiative. “God soooooo… loved the world.” He’s the greatest lover in the entire universe. Saving the lost sons of Adam was the passion of God’s heart – it is the thing closest to Him – “not willing that any should perish.”

Please go with me now to the Book of Exodus.

“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; peradventure I shall make an atonement for your sin. And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them” (Ex. 32:30-34).

I want you to see something here in the history of Moses. Notice the punctuation in verse 32. “Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.” Moses is so distressed over Israel’s sin and at the same time he had a great love for them – he is deeply and emotionally caught up in the reality of the moment - that he doesn’t finish the sentence! He is so overcome with passion for the people of Israel that he tells God to “blot me out of thy book.” Question, Where did Moses get such a passion? I’ll tell you what I believe. I believe somehow Moses saw the heart of God. He saw and felt God’s love and remembers what God had said of His love for the Israelites,

“The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt” (Deut. 7:7-8).

“At the same time, saith the LORD, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. Thus saith the LORD, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee” (Jer. 31:1-3).

I want to tell you something. A man left to himself – a man left to his own desires and his own wishes does not seek the lost sinner. If Moses had a passion for his own people then he got it from God! This is an amazing passage of Scripture. The nation of Israel had sinned a great sin. They were in jeopardy. Moses is filled with passion for these sinning Israelites. He is so taken up with passion. The very thought of these people being destroyed because of sin is more than he wants to comprehend. There is a love in his heart for people. Please notice again what he says. He prays a prayer that cannot be answered. “And if not, blot me I pray Thee out of Thy book which Thou has written.” Oh, such passion. To feel the heartbeat of God and then look at the neighbors, friends and loved ones who are in jeopardy of punishment because of sin and are lost - is something the “flesh” does not desire!

Please go with me to Romans Chapter Nine. I want you to see that we find almost exactly the same passion from the lips of the Apostle Paul. Here he says,

“I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh” (Rom. 9:1-3).

Again I remind you that the natural man, a man left to himself, doesn’t think thoughts like this. Let me be foolish and be transparent with you - I confess that if the salvation of the lost were left up to Lee Homoki and the desires of my flesh, I’d say, “to hell with most of them.” To care for others beyond my own little world is not a natural desire. The desires of my flesh are quite normal and I am quite sure are like yours too. If I’m left to my Adamic nature, I am concerned primarily with my own needs and welfare. However, the believer can have a desire that is not our own. It comes to us with salvation through faith in Christ. It is born from God Himself for God is love. – It is a divine love and nature. It is not father’s love, mother’s love, brother’s love, sister’s love, grandma’s love, grandpa’s love – as wonderful as that is it is no match for God’s love and impartation of His Nature (2 Pet. 1:4; Rom. 5:5; Gal. 5:22).

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Articles- A Passion for Souls (Part 2 of 3)

The Bible uses a special word for divine Love – “agape.” It’s the kind of love that only God is and only God has. God the Father, in this Dispensation of Grace, has commissioned those who are believers to be ambassadors, to be receptacles and dispensers of His love.

Now, Paul turns and he looks and he shares something that is not natural but comes from God,

“I say the truth in Christ. I lie not. My conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost. I have a great heaviness and a continual sorrow in my heart for I could wish myself accursed.”

Now stop for a moment and think. Paul is expressing a deep serious desire. Paul is saying this is the way he feels. He feels so bad about his lost kinsmen’s impending peril and is so serious about seeing them saved that, if possible, he would be willing to go to Hell for the sake of their salvation. No! God is not going to fulfill Paul’s desire in exchange for the salvation of his brethren.. Paul has expressing a desire that God is not going to answer. And No!! Paul is not going to lose his salvation. The Bible very clearly teaches once a person is saved – they are always saved - once safe - always safe! We know that the Bibles teaches in this dispensation a believer cannot lose their salvation – no, we can’t be accursed – we can’t be cut off, but we can quench the Holy Spirit and we can grieve the Holy Spirit (1Thess. 5:19; Eph. 4:30) which is a serious sin. Oh how much Paul cared!

Somebody needs to care. Moses cared. The Apostle Paul cared. He looked around and said, “Oh God, I Care.” I want you to know that there are millions upon multiplied people who think nobody cares. Do you remember the story when David was running from his own son, Absolom? Absolom had every intention of killing his own father. David took his mighty men and he went back into the wilderness fleeing for his life and he cries out, “I looked to my right and I looked to my left and no man, nobody cared for my soul.” And, I double guarantee you there are lots of people out there like that. I’ll guarantee you there are boys and girls right now who are absolutely convinced that nobody cares about them.

Remember the crippled man (Acts 3:1-10)? Forty years they brought him and they laid him by the Pool of Bethesda. There was a legend that an angel would come down and stir the pool and when the waters of the pool were troubled, they believed that the first one into the pool would be healed. And when he was approached he said “I don’t have anybody, I don’t have anybody, I don’t have anybody who will care enough to help me into the pool.” And I double guarantee you that there are men and women that you rub shoulders with and work with every day who would say, “I have no one who cares.” Do they want help? Do they know where to go for help? And, if they did know, who would be there to help?

Do you remember the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch? This is a really religious man. He has already gone to Jerusalem. He has already worshipped but he comes home empty. Religion isn’t the answer. Ceremony isn’t the answer. Ritual doesn’t help and now he finds himself alone in a chariot reading the Scriptures. Then, our loving God sent Phillip, the evangelist, and he attached himself, the Bible says, to him and asked him, “Understandest thou what thou readest?” To which, the Eunuch said, “How can I, except some man should guide me” (Acts 8:30-31)? He tells Phillip I don’t have anybody, I don’t know anybody to tell me what this means. And I double guarantee you that there are people, religious people, Bible in their hands but nobody to tell them what it means. Of course, Phillip immediately opens to the same place where he was reading and began to preach unto him Jesus Christ. I wish I could tell you there are millions, and millions of faithful witnesses ready to go wherever God calls, sharing the love and passion of God, but you know that I can’t. Where are the laborers? Look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest” (John 4:36).

I’m thankful there are some who care but not near as many people as there ought to be. However, there have been some who care and I want to remind you of them. I want to ask you, Why do you think they did what they did? Why did they go? Was it so they could get a pat on the back? …So that they could be recognized? …So they could become famous? …So they could become rich. No! They did what they did because somehow or another by the grace of God, God shared His love, they embraced the love of the Lord Jesus Christ through His death burial and resurrection. They simply believed the testimony of God the Father that Jesus Christ satisfied the sin debt. They obeyed the call of God on their lives and when God said, “go” – they went! I want to tell you, you can’t spell “Gospel” and leave out the word “go.” I’ll tell you why they did what they did. It is because they knew that God had not only saved them but God had commissioned them. The Bible says, “that those who live,” this is the Apostle Paul speaking. “That those who live” …what does that mean? It is talking about those who are saved. “That those who live should not henceforth live unto themselves.” We are to live for the Lord Jesus. So as God has saved us; He has also commissioned us and given us the Word and the ministry of reconciliation. He even dared to call us “saints.” However, edH HhhhhhHe went beyond that and sent us to be His ambassadors. Some have gone.

It was passion that caused David Livingston to die in Africa vowing to fulfill his duty to the Lord. I wish I could tell you the whole story. I wish I could tell you. I wish I could get you in to feeling the passion of the call and circumstances. They had sent a man by the name of Stanley to search for Livingston and tell Livingston, “Enough is enough, enough, enough, enough, come home, come home, come home.” And, when he found David Livingston he said “no, no,” The story is he knelt by his cot in the dark jungles of Africa and he entered in his diary that night, as Stanley departed home for England, “All that I am, all that I shall ever be I rededicate myself, body, soul and spirit for the cause of Jesus Christ.” He never got up from his knees. He died as he prayed. Where did he get that passion? Where does it come from?

It was because of passion for souls that John Knox prayed for Scotland, “Oh God give me Scotland or I’ll die.” You know what Mary Queen of Scots said? She said, “I fear John Knox and I fear his prayers more than all the armies of England.”

John Wesley. Why did John Wesley do what he did? They say that John Wesley knew the Bible better than any other man. He considered the world to be his parish. He preached on horseback. I boasted this morning that this year I’ll probably travel 20,000 miles in a comfortable motor home. You know what John Wesley did? Year after year he traveled as many as 20,000 miles on horseback to preach the Gospel.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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http://www.bdtlb.org/phpshop/
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Articles- A Passion for Souls (Part 3 of 3)

You know my Dad. I want to tell you a story about my Dad. I’ll tell you what you don’t know about my Dad. Dad was my hero – he still is. When I grew up I never sat on my father’s lap but what I didn’t smell strong drink. My Dad was almost 50 years old and so far as I know he had never been inside the four walls of a church. He didn’t fear God and he didn’t fear man. But when I was about 14 years old, believe this or not, my father stood on a street corner and a total stranger walked up to my father and gave him the Gospel. He told him that God loved him and Christ died for him. So far as I know, the first time my father ever heard the Gospel my Dad got saved. “Amazing Grace!” Believe me, my Dad got converted! I never knew my father ever to take another drink. I never ever heard my father take God’s name in vain again. I can tell you my Dad wasn’t perfect but something wonderful happened when Christ came in. But here’s the rest of the story. I never knew my father to shed a tear until one day he heard the song, “Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” I remember watching the tears run down my father’s cheek – remember he is 50 years old. You don’t go off to Bible College to study for the ministry at 50 years of age. They won’t let you in – you’re too old, they said. But as Dad studied his Bible he knew that God had called him. I can still remember he called the pastor over to the house, Pastor George Whitman, and he said, “Pastor, do you think God can use me. Can God use me to go back to the Indians where I grew up and teach them about the Lord Jesus?” And for thirty-three years my father preached the Gospel on the Navajo Indian Reservation. I don’t know whether you know it or not but my Dad was probably the most popular preacher on the Navajo Indian Reservation. I say this to the testimony of the faithfulness of my father. Dad knew how to turn every conversation into a presentation of the Gospel. Dad led more people to Christ by accident than most people do on purpose. Where did he get the idea? “God so loved the world – not willing that any should perish.” It is called the grace of God! It is called the kind of grace that not only saves somebody but takes a saved sinner and He commissions him to go. There aren’t many like that.

I want to tell you about another one. Pastor/Evangelist Finley Hunter. I wish I could tell you how much I owe to Finley Hunter. I can remember saying, “Watch out for him he’s in a cult.” And I watched him. I found out that he knew the Bible better than any other man I had ever met. I found out that he answered questions I couldn’t answer and didn’t know anybody else could answer. I knew that he believed that the Bible was the Word of God. I knew that he believed the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. I knew that he believed that salvation was “by grace through faith and not of yourselves, not of works lest any man should boast.” I know that he believed that there was a heaven to gain and a hell to shun. I’m thinking to myself, “that don’t sound like a cult to me.” But do you know what impressed me most? If you know Finley Hunter, he was like my Dad, he never met a man that he didn’t witness to. And, I’m trying to tell you dear friends that there are thousands and thousands of people out there who don’t know the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh! God gives an army of Finley Hunters!

Where do we get that kind of passion? Is it possible that the cults and the isms have more passion for people than we do? Do you know where we were just last Wednesday? We were in Salt Lake City. We went to the Mormon Temple Square. We were met at the entrance and were greeted with a smile and warm “Hello!” They were bold. They didn’t say, “Look at these big beautiful buildings.” They said, “Come in and let us tell you what we believe.” Last summer we spent most of our summer in New York City. The Jehovah’s Witnesses were everywhere. And they are, like the Mormons, a false cult with a false doctrine, a false gospel. Both are sincere, lovely, energetic, enthusiastic, but preaching a false gospel. They weren’t sent by God but God has sent us to preach the Gospel of the Grace of God!.

I wrote some things down about the Lord Jesus. I want you to listen to them. Where did Moses get this passion? Where did Paul get this passion? Where did David Livingston get this passion? Where did John Knox get his kind of passion?” Where did John Wesley get the passion? Where did my Dad get the passion? What motivated my dear friend Finley Hunter? …Brother Joe Mason. Missionary John Rachoy and others? I want to tell you it is the love of God. The love of God that is not willing that any should perish. It comes from the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus who had compassion for sinners who needed the protection and the shelter from the wrath of God. Hear His passion. Feel His passion. Feel it. Lost sinners they need protection and shelter from the awful wrath of God. Here’s what Jesus said, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem thou that killest the prophets and stonest them that are sent unto thee how often would I have gathered thy children together even as a hen gathereth her chicks under her wings and ye would not.” Jesus had compassion for sheep that had no shepherd. Here’s what He said, “But when He saw the multitudes He was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd.” Jesus had compassion on the sick and those that had no physician. Here’s what He said, “And Jesus went forth and saw the great multitude and He was moved with compassion towards them and He healed their sick.” Jesus had compassion on the hungry that had no provision. Do you know anybody that is hungry? Do you know anybody who is sick? Do you know anybody who is lost? “Then Jesus called His disciples unto Him and said ‘I have compassion on the multitude because they continue with me now three days and they have nothing to eat. I will not send them away fasting lest they faint on the say.” Jesus had compassion for those who were blind. Do you know anybody who is spiritually blind? “So Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes and immediately their eyes received sight and they followed Him.” Jesus had compassion on the lepers who were the untouchables. Do you know any untouchables? Do you know any dope addicts? Drunkards? People with incurable diseases? “And Jesus moved with compassion, He put forth His hand and He touched him.” Do you know any homosexuals? Do you think they need Jesus? Do you know anybody with AIDS? Jesus had compassion on the Demoniac. A demon possessed man who had no peace. There is no peace in this world apart from Jesus. In a very real sense the whole human race is to some degree or not, maybe not demon possessed, but demon oppressed. Here’s what Jesus said, “Howbeit Jesus suffered him not but said unto to him “go home to thy friends and tell how great things God hath done for thee and hath had compassion on thee.” Jesus had compassion for the widow with a dead son. Do you know somebody who is lonely – a widow, a widower? Someone who says, I don’t have any family members. I have no place to turn. Jesus sensed their need. Here’s what He said, “And when Jesus saw her He had compassion on her and said unto her ‘weep not.”

Please give attention to this: We can say we have the love of God but if the love of God does not move us out from our place of complacency – if the love of God does not move you out of your comfort zone – if the love of God does not move you to obey what the Bible has commissioned us to do and exercise our ambassadorship then I submit to you that you are as a “sounding brass and a tinkling symbol.”

Friend, would you pray with me: Dear God, I need to be reminded of your wonderful amazing grace and love. I pray you will give me a passion, a like passion that Paul had for his kinsman according to the flesh. I pray dear God for our Grace Movement, you how badly we need revival. I pray, please raise up a whole army of people who love the Lord. Help me be an ambassador, help me to tell somebody, please Lord, help me not to forget to give away that gospel tract, help me Lord to look for opportunities, help me to care - that’s what I need Lord. I need to care. Help me I pray.

by Evangelist S. Lee Homoki

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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A Little Light Bible Fellowship
http://www.alittlelight.org/
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Question: What is the difference between "law" and "grace"?

Answer: Under the law system, God's relationship with man was on the basis of man's obedience to God's divine law. Failure to obey resulted in withholding of blessings, punishment, separation and death.
God's command to man was "thou shalt..." and his promise was "I will..." Some examples are found in Exodus 20: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain." "Thou shalt not kill." "An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee." (verses 3, 7, 13, 24)

What was the problem with the law? Simply put, man failed to keep it and thus man became guilty of all. "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." James 2:10 The law was weak in the flesh. When Christ shed his blood on the cross, he condemned sin in the flesh and liberated us from the law. "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Romans 8:2-4

What was the purpose of the law? To teach us that we are sinners and that we are in need a Saviour. "Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." Romans 3:19-20 "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." Galatians 3:24-25

Under grace, God's relationship with man is based upon His mercy in giving man total and complete forgiveness for sins. The sacrifices under the law could not take away sins. "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." Hebrews 10:4 These sacrifices were only a temporary solution. God provided a permanent solution by taking away sins with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. "Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." Hebrews 10:9-13

Because man fell short of God's glory by sinning, God set forth Jesus Christ as our propitiation (or fully satisfying sacrifice). "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Romans 3:23-26

The law taught us of our short comings and our need for salvation. Grace teaches us of our completeness in Christ. "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespases; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it." Colossians 2:6-15

The law required continual obedience. Grace requires one time acceptance. The law worketh wrath. "Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression." Romans 4:15 Through grace, we have peace. "THEREFORE being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Romans 5:1-2 "Moreover the law entered that the offence might abound, But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 5:20-21

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Faith Bible Church
http://www.bygracethrufaith.org/
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Are You Going To Heaven?

Are you sure? Most people think that we are all born good, and have to do something really bad to go to Hell. But the Bible says we are all born bad and headed for Hell--unless we get saved.

Are you saved? We call the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior. Well, the purpose of a Savior is to save people. So I ask again, are you saved? You may have even sung "Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me." But are you saved? You can be! Right now. The Bible says:"...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved..." (Acts 16:31). It doesn't say, "Believe and be good." It just says believe! Why, even the devil knows that people are saved by believing: "...then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved." (Luke 8:12)

By now, I'm sure you are wondering what you have to believe about Christ in order to be saved. Well, just listen as the Apostle Paul reminds the Corinthians about what they believed to be saved: "...I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received...by which also ye are saved...how that Christ died for our sins..." (1 Cor. 15:1-4)

Obviously, to be saved you must believe that Christ died for our sins. So the only question is, do you believe God when He says that Christ paid for your sins? If you do, the Bible says you are saved.

However, if you don't believe God when He says that your sins are all paid for, then you'll just have to keep on trying to pay for your sins in your own way--being good, being religious, etc.--something the Bible says you can never do: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us..." (Titus 3:5)

Why Not Believe And Be Saved Right Now!

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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The Magnified Word
http://www.magnifiedword.com/index2.htm
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How Excited Are You About Being Saved?

Emphasis on Evangelism

By Steve Todd

Are you exacted enough to tell others? Are you thankful enough to tell others? Are you grateful enough to be associated with the Lord to tell others? Are you concerned for souls enough to tell others? Are you compelled to tell others?

I'm convinced that once a person ...

* Knows they are saved (I John 5:13, Rom. 5:1);

*Understands from what they have been saved ("In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;" 2 Thess. 1:8-9);

*Realizes unto what they are saved (2 Cor 4:17, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this -,present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us " Rom. 8:18);

* Assumes their purpose in life (... "and (God) hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; 2 Cor 5:18);

* Acknowledges their privilege, calling, commission, and entrustment of the "good news" ("But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts. " I Thess. 2:4), ... sharing Christ will become a way of life.

Telling others about the free gift (Rom. 5:18) will become, not only a priority, but the goal of everything you do. We should not allow this hectic world in which we live cause us to lose sight of the cross work of the Lord Jesus Christ and all He accomplished for us at Calvary ("And be not conformed to the world. but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. " Rom. 12:2), Satan desires to get us so caught up in this world that we forget our mission here. His plan is to snare us into worries and involve us with our cares so deeply that our focus is lost. Even preachers are prey to his evil devices.

Understanding the dispensation of the grace of God and all it entails is so very important. But once a person learns it, Satan shifts his aim to pre- venting you from sharing it. He is not as concerned then with what you know, but with what you tell. So don't let him succeed in keeping you silent and afraid to speak.

If we don't share these sentiments and live our lives this way, we need either to come to a greater understanding of all that we are and have in Christ and refresh ourselves about these truths or to seriously consider whether we have simply an intellectual understanding of Christ rather than a personal relation- ship with Him.

I encourage each of you to plan each day, not around what you need to accomplish for yourself, but around all there is to accomplish for Christ's sake and His glory ("Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or what so ever ye do, do all to the glory of God. " I Cor 10:31).

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Enjoy The Bible Ministries
http://www.enjoythebible.org/
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The Gift of God Few Christians Seem to Want (Part 1 of 2)

By Keith R. Blades

God is a giver of gifts. In both God's program with Israel and in His program with us today in this dispensation of His grace, gifts from God are commonly spoken about. For example, in connection with Israel's program we find the following...

"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the GIFT of the Holy Ghost." (Acts 2:38)

"Every good GIFT and every perfect GIFT is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." (James 1:17)

"How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and GIFTS of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?" (Hebrews 2:3-4)

"...and have tasted of the heavenly GIFT,..." (Hebrews 6:4)

Then to us in this dispensation of grace we can find the apostle Paul saying,...

"For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper GIFT of God, one after this manner, and another after that." (I Corinthians 7:7)

"Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable GIFT." (II Corinthians 9:15)

"Whereof I was made a minister, according to the GIFT of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power." (Ephesians 3:7)

"But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the GIFT of Christ." (Ephesians 4:7)

In both of God's programs the pre-eminent gift is the gift of eternal life. But it is not the only gift, as the preceding verses show. And if we add to these the issue of the various spiritual gifts that operated at the beginning of this dispensation of grace, it is all the more obvious that God truly is a giver of gifts. In view of this the doctrine of gifts is of great interest. However, amidst all the talk and fervor that there is over the issue of the gifts of God, there is one gift that is often overlooked, or seldom mentioned. In fact, when it is pointed out for the gift of God that it is, it is usually not very well received. Indeed, few Christians seem to even want it. Yet it is a gift that the Apostle Paul recognized was a special privilege of God's grace to have given to him, and therefore he cherished it and teaches us that we should do the same. This special gift of God is the gift of suffering for His sake. The Gift

In Philippians 1:29-30, Paul taught the saints at Philippi that they needed to realize that it truly was a gift and privilege of God's grace unto them to suffer for the cause of Christ as they were doing.

"For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, BUT ALSO TO SUFFER FOR HIS SAKE;

Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me." (Philippians 1:29-30)

That suffering should ever be thought of as a gift and a privilege is something hard to accept. It grates against our customary thinking as well as our wants. Hence, the Philippian saints were having some difficultly with it, especially now that their suffering included "having the same conflict" Paul was experiencing. Nevertheless, their suffering for Christ's sake was indeed a gift and privilege of God's grace unto them, and they needed to realize that so they could respond to it properly. Instead of murmuring and complaining, they needed to rejoice. Instead of not wanting to so suffer, they needed to have Paul's attitude to such sufferings. And so should we.

"According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death." (Philippians 1:20)

"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;" (Philippians 3:10)

"Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:" (Colossians 1:24)

Paul understood that it was a gift of God and a privilege of His grace to suffer of Christ's sake. Hence, he didn't simply endure it or tolerate it. He wanted it. He cherished it. He even rejoiced over it. For he knew that suffering for Christ's sake was not only a gift of God, it was a very special gift; an honored gift of God through which an opportunity to glorify Christ was granted to him. Two Kinds of Suffering

Before we consider this any further it is important for us to recognize that not all suffering is suffering for Christ's sake. Far from it. Instead, Paul teaches us that there are primarily two kinds of suffering that we can experience in this world, and the most common of all is the suffering we have in common with all men.

In Romans 8 Paul describes the source of our most common suffering as "the sufferings of this present time."

"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18)

The "sufferings of this present time" are just that , the sufferings that we will experience during this "present time" because of the "bondage of corruption" that still grips creation. In common with all creation we suffer the effects of corruption as we eagerly await "the redemption of our body." Hence, Paul says,...

"For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body." (Romans 8:22-23)

As corruption takes its toll, the whole creation, including ourselves, "groaneth and travaileth in pain." Sickness, disease, decay, and death; along with other effects of corruption like accidents, bloodshed, pestilence, being victims of crime and evil, and the like are our common lot. Hence, pain and suffering because of "the bondage of corruption" will be experienced by us for as long as this dispensation of grace continues on. This, once again, we have in common with all creation, and therefore the "sufferings of this present time" are not to be thought of by us as suffering for Christ's sake. However, suffering for Christ's sake is not something that is common to man. Rather, it is a kind of suffering that can only come upon us who belong to Christ, as we become the objects of both the world's hatred of Christ and Satan's despising of us. Paul introduces us to the reality of this special kind of suffering further on in Romans 8.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Enjoy The Bible Ministries
http://www.enjoythebible.org/
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The Gift of God Few Christians Seem to Want (Part 2 of 2)

By Keith R. Blades

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter." (Romans 8:35-36)

As Paul shows by citing the similar situation described in Psalm 44:22, the sufferings that he talks about here are "for thy sake." Therefore, they are not sufferings that are simply common to man. Instead, they are sufferings for Christ's sake. They are what Paul describes in greater detail in II Corinthians as "the sufferings of Christ."

"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ." (II Corinthians 1:5)

The "sufferings of Christ" are sufferings that come upon us as those who hate Christ make us the object of their hatred. In particular, they are sufferings from the Satanic policy of evil against us, as Satan vents his anger and takes out on the body of Christ that which he cannot take out on Christ Himself. Hence, this kind of suffering is very special in nature and we need to recognize it as distinct from the "sufferings of this present time." Yet much more than this, suffering for Christ's sake needs to be recognized by us as a privilege of God's grace; a gift given to us of God; a grace by which we are granted the marvellous opportunity to actually glorify God and magnify Christ, which is the exact opposite of the Adversary's intention in causing us to suffer. And this is something we should want and something about which we should not be ashamed. To The Glory of God

Briefly put, there are three particular ways that God is glorified when we suffer for Christ's sake.

First, as Paul teaches in Romans 8, instead of having us think that we have been separated from the love of Christ by such sufferings, God has provided it so that...

"Nay, in all these things we are MORE THAN CONQUERORS through him that loved us." (Romans 8:37)

To be "more than conquerors" means much more than just not being defeated by the sufferings. It means more than not being made to think that because we suffer we have been separated from the love of Christ. It means that they actually work to our advantage. Instead of making us think that we have been separated from the love of Christ, they actually become the means by which we are able to appreciate God as "the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort." Paul teaches us this in II Corinthians 1 where he says,...

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort;

Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."

For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ." (II Corinthians 1:3-5)

There is no way that we can come to appreciate God as "the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort" if we do not need mercy and comfort. Hence, it is especially by means of "the sufferings of Christ" that God has designed for us to understand and appreciate Him as such. And when we appreciate Him as such, we glorify Him as we "bless" him for His mercy and comfort, just as Paul did. Because of this, in all these things we truly are "more than conquerors through him that loved us." Second, God is glorified when we also appreciate the excellency of the power of His word working within us, stabilizing us, comforting us, and so enabling us to endure the sufferings. Hence in II Corinthians 4:7ff, after describing his own understanding and appreciation for this in view of "the sufferings of Christ" he endured, Paul says,...

"For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God." (II Corinthians 4:15)

Through the example of Paul's own "spirit of faith" we are taught about the "excellency of the power" of God's word to likewise work within us. As he was "always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be manifest in our body," we are shown how that same "life of Jesus" is designed to be manifest in us. And when we realize this as Paul did, and give God thanks for the same "excellency of His power" working in us, it redounds to His glory. Thirdly, God is glorified as this same "excellency of the power" of God's word working within us is put on display to the chagrin of Satan and his principalities and powers in the heavenly places. Paul teaches us this in II Corinthians 11 and 12, especially as he recounts the time at which he learned it.

"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given unto me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (II Corinthians 12:7-9)

When the Lord told Paul, "my strength is made perfect in weakness," Paul was not the only one whom God expected to recognize that truth. The "messenger of Satan" was going to realize it too, and in turn Satan himself would be confronted with it. In this dispensation of grace the "excellency of the power" of God's word is not only being made manifest to us and for our appreciation, it is also being put on display to Satan and his cohorts. God is confronting them with the issue of the superiority of the power of His word working within His saints to successfully equip them to withstand and overcome any of their opposition. And in this God is glorified.

With God having designed it so that we can actually glorify Him when we suffer for Christ's sake, it is little wonder that Paul was not ashamed to do so. It is little wonder that he gloried in his infirmities and said...

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." (II Corinthians 12:10)

Suffering for Christ's sake was a gift of God that Paul gladly received. He understood the significance and privilege wrapped up in those three words, "for Christ's sake." Therefore he wanted the gift. He cherished the gift. And he rejoiced over the gift. May we, as ones to whom the same gift is given, learn to do likewise and not refuse the gift as is so often done.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Grace Bible Church located in Warren, Michigan
http://www.rightlydividing.org/
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Israel and Many Lost for the Same Reason
by Pastor Thomas Bruscha

Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. Rom 10:1-4

God's requirement for right standing before him is our absolute perfection. Most people think, "I'm not too bad, I think I'll make it to heaven." Are you perfect? Absolutely perfect? Never failed once in your life? Have always done what God has said to do? Never once broken any of his laws? Well, if you're that perfect, then yes, you can make it. But don't think that you're pretty good and that's good enough. Pretty good isn't good enough. You'll be going to hell. Many people are ignorant of God's standard of absolute perfection. But how can this absolute perfection be achieved? The Israelites, as many people do today, went about to establish their own righteousness. That's not how to get absolute perfection. The righteousness that's required for you to get to get to heaven is found in Romans 10:14 "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." God wants you to realize that you're unrighteous because Jesus Christ died to pay for your sins and when you believe on him, God will give you his righteousness and then accept you because he'll place you in Jesus Christ and see you as having the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Do you know what the difference is between a saved person and a lost person? A saved person has believed what Jesus Christ has done for him and understands that salvation is a free gift. RO 5:15, 6:23. A person is lost for one or two reasons: 1) Either they've never heard the gospel of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the full payment for their sin (and, therefore, they're lost), or, 2) they've heard it and not believed it. They say, "No, you can't just believe what Jesus Christ did. You can't just believe that he died on the cross, paid for my sins, and that's enough to save me. I've got to do something, too." And as soon as they say, "We've got to do something, too," do you know what they're doing? They're going about to establish their own righteousness. When a person tries to offer to God their own works, do you know what's going to happen to them? They're going to go to hell. There's only one person in this world who's ever pleased God the Father, who has ever lived rightously before his eyes. He said, "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased." Mt. 3:17. The beloved son who never disobeyed God the Father, went to the cross where God made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in Christ. God places us in Christ and we're found righteous. God gives this to us on the basis of faith. "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness for everyone that believeth."

You see, every person who still goes about to establish their own righteousness is lost. When you ask a person, "If you were to die today do you know where you'll spend eternity?" If that person starts to answer the question by saying they've gone to church, or prayed, or have been water baptised, or take communion, or go to confession or begin by saying, "I did" and then start answering the question by sharing what they've done, look again at that verse and realize that this person is going about establishing their own righteousness and you need to pray for them that they might be saved from the penalty of their sins. But if a person answers, "Well, I could never do anything worthy of going to heaven, but Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid for my sins. I trust him to be my savior. God will save me from the penalty of my sins and give me eternal life and the righteousness of Jesus Christ" this person has pleased God and received righteousness on the basis of faith. See, God doesn't want your eyes on yourself, but on his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. If you've never understood this, you've never been saved. You're saved when you understand what Christ has accomplished for you by believing solely on the person and work of Jesus Christ for your salvation.

So, why is it when you come to the Bible, the book of Romans is addressed to Gentiles? And salvation is come to us? And it came to us, as we'll learn in Chapter 11, through the fall of the nation Israel. But why did they fall? Well, they stumbled over Christ. They didn't think they needed a savior, they were going to do it themselves.

We live in a country which is very much Gospel hardened. People don't want to hear about the gospel, "Oh, saved, yeah, I heard about being saved. Christ died for my sins. Yea, yea, yea." They're tired of hearing about it. Every once in a while you'll get someone who never really understood the gospel and will choose to believe. But on the most part everyone has had pretty much an opportunity to be saved and just haven't had ears willing to hear.

In Chapter 10, we realize that Israel is not saved and the praying Paul's heart desire is that they would be saved. The reason they are not saved is not because they didn't believe in God, they believed in God. It's not because they didn't work for God, they had a zeal for God. So these people believed in God and were working hard for God. And it's not that weren't rightous, they pursued the righteousness of the law.

But see, none of those things saved them. In fact, these very same things become a stumbling block to the nation of Israel because they didn't realize that the way to be found rightous in God's sight is through Jesus Christ. They needed to realize that no matter how hard they tried they could never live good enough. No matter how moral they've lived, they'd never live perfect enough for God to receive them. They needed to come to God as sinners and believe that Jesus Christ was and is the answer for their means of righteousness.

I learned from Chapter 10, verses 1-4, a very important lesson. That is, out of everybody who professes to be a Christian, everybody who professes to be saved, the only people who are really saved are those who are not trying to save themselves. Those who are not trying to offer God their zeal, or their works, or their righteousness. Because that's what kept Israel from being saved. Being ignorant of God's righteousness, verse 3, and going about to establish their own righteousness, they have not submitted themselves to God's righteousness. To be found right in God's sight is through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and that alone. When you believe that Christ died for YOU, to pay for YOUR sins, and to cleanse YOU of ALL your sins then God imputes righteousness to your account. He puts the righteousness of Jesus Christ to your account and declares you saved from the penalty of your sins.

In fact, Romans Chapter 5:16,17 righteousness is called a gift because, once you receive the truth, God gives you the righteousness required for you to be saved and to be holy in his sight. And you must believe that. Whereas, while you are striving for your own righteousness, you're not submitting yourself to the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And so, when I begin talking to people who say they are Christians, and I ask them, "Are you saved?" they'll say, "Oh, yes" . Then I will ask, "How are you saved?" and they'll say, "Well, Christ died on the cross for my sins." I then continue, "What are you trusting in to get you to heaven? If you were to died today, and God were to ask, 'Why should I let you into heaven?' what would you say?" many of them will say, I go to confession, I pray regularly, I've been baptised, and on the list goes on. And I'm thinking, here's someone not submitting themselves to the righteousness of Christ.

Mankind has been trying to establish their own righteousness through all different kinds of means, dreaming up all kinds of ways, to the point where he thinks he is actually cleaning up his life enough to present himself before God, but the answer is only found in Jesus Christ, that's verse four. And until a person says that they're saved by no other means, other than through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and thereby receive the righteousness of Jesus Christ as a gift from God, through faith in Christ, they're not saved from the penalty of their sins yet. Are you depending only upon the work of Jesus Christ? "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness." It's not through the Ten commandments ~ being zealous of the law. It's not by your works. "Christ is the end of the law for everyone that believeth."

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Grace Bible Ministries
presents DICTIONARY OF THE GOSPEL
by Thomas M. Bruscha
http://www.gracebibleministries.org/GBMstudies/DictGospel/DictofGospel.htm
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

DICTIONARY OF THE GOSPEL

A paperboy on the street corner yelling, "GOOD NEWS, GOOD NEWS, READ ALL ABOUT IT," will sell some newspapers. But if he were more specific and announced how this good news affects the public, he would sell even more papers. For instance, suppose he yelled; "GOOD NEWS, GOOD NEWS, READ ALL ABOUT IT. MAN INVENTS CURE FOR OLD AGE!" Now that would sell newspapers.

That is the purpose of this book. No, not to sell papers, but to inform you in a specific way about the good news that affects your eternal destiny. You see, the term "GOSPEL" means "GOOD NEWS." The good news published in this book is God's good news to you about an opportunity you have been given to receive eternal life freely.

There are many messages of "good news" in the Bible, but the message of good news for this present age is the good news that God has provided for everyone a free, total, and complete salvation from all our sins.

The book of Romans in the Bible is God's great explanation of how this salvation was accomplished. The simplicity of the gospel is that: (I Corinthians 15:3,4)

CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS, WAS BURIED, AND ROSE FROM THE DEAD THE THIRD DAY, ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES.

However, involved in that death and resurrection was a very precise, strategic, and technical accomplishment of a victory which God has won over sin, over death, and over Satan.

Now God desires you to know, to understand, and appreciate this "GOOD NEWS." For that reason the book of Romans used technical language that--when understood--thrills the heart of every Believer. When these technical terms are not understood, it results in confusion. Romans 3:21-28 heralds the good news of our salvation with such terms and doctrines as:

"Righteousness" "Faith"
"Imputation" "Remission"
"Justification" "Forbearance"
"Grace" * "Reconciliation"
"Redemption" * "Sanctification"
"Propitiation"

* The last two terms are from other portions of Scripture which shall be included in this study of "SALVATION."

There is much more confusion amongst Bible students over the question of salvation.

1. Is a person saved through faith alone?

2. Are works part of salvation?

3. Can a person know for sure he is saved?

4. What if a person sins again after being saved?

5. Can a person lose his salvation?

All of these questions can be answered simply, just by understanding the meaning of the terms which are listed on the previous page. This is why it is our purpose in this book to define these terms. At the end of the book we will review these questions and see how easily they are answered.

These eleven terms constitute what is called "THE GOSPEL." Therefore we have entitled this book:

"DICTIONARY OF THE GOSPEL"

READ ON!

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Faith Bible Church
http://www.bygracethrufaith.org/index.html
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Jesus Christ: The Ministry of Paul (Part 1 of 2)
By Kevin Heyle, Kansas City, MO

Today in our fast paced society we hear so much about motivation, goals, strategies, and productivity. There are countless seminars on how to make improvements in anyone of these areas. A vast amount of money is being spent trying to motivate people in all areas of life. Whether it is the corporate world, manufacturing, education, physical fitness or any field one can imagine. One area in which this is rapidly taking place is within the church. Countless books, magazines, and sermons are available proclaiming some new program or series to motivate the pastoral staff for ministry, equip the saints for evangelism, or just to fill the pews. In others areas it is about knowing more, studying more, and articulating doctrine to others. Do not be mistaken, there is some good to be found in all of these, but how are these to be integrated into ministry? Let's take a look at the moving force behind one of the greatest evangelists, the Apostle Paul, in what role he played as church planter, preacher and teacher.

What was it that moved or motivated the Apostle Paul? Did Paul methodically lay out his goals and work towards them? What was his strategy in working towards those goals? Is there a formula we can find that will produce the results that we find in Paul's ministry? In Romans 15:14-21 the Apostle Paul givesus a good synopsis about his overall ministry.

“Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another. Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because of the grace given to me by God, that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Therefore I have reason to glory in Christ Jesus in the things which pertain to God. For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient - in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man's foundation."

Motivation

We recognize Paul as the distinct apostle to the Gentiles who was given the revelation of the mystery of the dispensation of grace (Ephesians 3:1-10). However is the mystery itself the real motivating factor behind Paul? Does Paul continually appeal to the mystery to motivate others? Hopefully our response is a resounding no. This may be a surprise to some, but read the passage again. Notice not what but who is the focus. It is Jesus Christ! Paul reminds us of the grace given to him by God so that he might be a minister not of the mystery but of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. Paul viewed himself as a minister of Jesus Christ not a minister of the mystery.

As a minister of Jesus Christ, Paul was preaching and proclaiming Jesus Christ. Take for example our world's system. Within nations there are various ministries such as the ministry of the interior, ministry of agriculture, ministry of foreign affairs. Each minister is known for what he is proclaiming in regard to his respective ministry. The minister of Foreign affairs is not going to be giving advice in regards to the internal exchange of commodities. He is known for his specialization in foreign policy and not for the regulation of agricultural products however, he may have dealings with the ministry of agriculture in handling trade relations between nations. But primarily he is known for foreign affairs. Just as Paul was a minister of Jesus Christ. He was known for proclaiming Jesus Christ to the lost for salvation and to the saved for strength in living the daily life. Paul realized what the risen and glorified Lord Jesus Christ had accomplished on his behalf, that it so overjoyed him, he wanted all to know. Not only that, but he had been given specific instructions from the risen Christ (Gal 1:12).

So as to not be misunderstood, his ministry did in fact include the mystery. For we can not truly understand Jesus Christ apart from the mystery. Paul tells us in Romans 16:25 that the preaching of Jesus Christ is according to the revelation of the mystery. What is to be understood is that Jesus Christ is the issue and the focus, not the mystery. It is not what saves but Whom. It is not what gives us strength to live our lives but Whom. It is not what that loves us but Whom. It is not what we will go to battle for but Whom. It is not what motivates us but Whom. It is not what we know but who we know. The focus must be Jesus Christ. If we substitute anything or anyone else we will lose that focus.

As we examine Paul's letters we see he mentions the "mystery" roughly 17 times. On the other hand he mentions Jesus Christ 118 times and Christ Jesus 65 times. This does not include where he references the titles separately. The numbers alone should be indicative of who was continually on Paul's mind. But let's examine some selected verses to help us get a better idea of what Paul is getting at.

--1 Corinthians 3:11 “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

--1 Corinthians 16:22 “If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come!”

--1 Timothy 6:3 “If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, [even] the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine with accords with godliness.”

Paul always focuses his ministry on Jesus Christ.

Back to our Romans 15 text. Paul goes on to clarify what he glories in. He glories in Christ Jesus in the things that pertain to God. He finds his motivation, his strength, his joy and his glory, in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was truly Paul's only concern. He wrote to the church in 1 Corinthians in chapter 2 verse 2 saying For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Paul was consumed with Jesus Christ. He goes on in 9:16 For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! Paul was bound by his love for his Saviour. Galatians 6:14 is even stronger. "But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." It was what Christ accomplished on the cross that motivated Paul.

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Faith Bible Church
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Jesus Christ: The Ministry of Paul (Part 2 of 2)
By Kevin Heyle, Kansas City, MO

Goal

With the motivation of Christ, Paul also worked toward a goal. He mentions it here as desiring that the Gentiles be acceptable and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. This was not only his goal for others but also for himself. Paul desired that all be transformed into the image of Christ. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Corinthians 3:18). We are told in Romans 8:29 that we are to be conformed to the image of Christ. It is to that end that Paul labored. To the Galatians he wrote My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you (4:19). His desire was to present the saints blameless and perfect (complete) before the Lord at the day of Christ. The following verses add clarity.

1 Thessalonians 3:12,13 And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ will all His saints.

Colossians 1:28-29 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.

Paul's goal was for everyone to be conformed to the image of Christ. He even desired the same goal for himself. The following are brief excerpts from Philippians 3:7-11. But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ...that I might gain Christ...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death. Not only was Paul's motivation Jesus Christ but He was also his goal.

Strategy

Now that we have a beginning motivation and a goal in sight, we need to determine how we are going to reach that goal. What was Paul's strategy in reaching the end goal of Jesus Christ? Again back to our text of Romans 15 and verses 18 and 19. For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed...by the Spirit of God.... Whose working or strategy is involved here? It is only of the Lord Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit. Look back at Colossians 1:29 and see that it is Jesus Christ who works in us mightily. Notice the two prepositions in the two verses, "in" and "through." Not until the Lord works in us can He work through us. It first must be an inward work before an outward work can truly take place. Can an outward work take place with no inward work? Of course. Because we know God's word never returns void. God will always honor His word when it is 'preached' but it does not have as powerful effect as when it is truly believed and has become a part of the 'preachers' life (1 Thessalonians 2:13). A greater testimony is one that is lived rather than only spoken. Our only strategy is believing God, taking Him at His word allowing Him to do the work. The perfect work that Jesus Christ began in you, He will also complete it until the day of Christ (Philippians 1:6). We can work and strategize and predict and contort and try all we want for some end to be accomplished but if Christ is not in it, or we have not truly believed it, it is to no avail.

Productivity

Output, fruit, and results are what the world is after. Paul also looked for these things. The fruit he was after is more than likely not what most are laboring towards. Lets be honest, how many are truly after numbers or proving ourselves right to others? Our flesh looks to these as indicators of our own productivity. As you have probably realized by now, he wanted Jesus Christ to be preached. He knew if Jesus Christ was preached; Jesus Christ would be the motivation; Jesus Christ would be the goal; Jesus Christ would be the strategy and Jesus Christ would be produced. What a marvelous unending cycle. Oh what wonderful simplicity we find in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 11:3)

Essentially the productivity Paul was after was godliness. "Godliness" and "Christ likeness" or "Christ formed in you" are all synonymous terms. A clear picture of this is in 1 Timothy 4:6-11. In verse 7 he says exercise towards godliness he follows up with verse 10 saying For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, especially of those who believe. The end is godliness. Paul was laboring so that godliness would be produced in those who believe. Godliness is the outward manifestation of Jesus Christ.

Paul lived a life of faith, believing that the Lord could and would accomplish what He promised in His Word. Paul was not looking for the results most of us look for today. We try to measure our own ministry or other' achievements by what we see on the outside. This is not faith. This is not our concern. If it was, we would have been told to walk by sight and not faith. Who is it that knows the hearts of men? It is certainly not you or I. That is the Lords business. Paul makes that quite clear in 1 Corinthians 4:3-5. We do not even know our own hearts; it is only the Lord who does. When we begin focusing on the outward appearance we immediately step outside the bounds of faith. We are then looking downward and not upward. Our circumstances then begin to dictate our actions and not the Lord working through us. Anything done apart from faith is sin. Romans 14:23.

For the wisdom of the world is foolishness with God (1 Corinthians 3:19). We must realize we are not of this world and the wisdom this world teaches will not work in our lives, in our families or in our churches. Our motivations, goals, strategies and productivity should not be of this world but of God. He has a much better plan and purpose in which to be involved. Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways (Psalm 128:1) The way is Jesus Christ.

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Berean Bible Church
http://www.bereanbiblechurch.com/
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Fallacies Of Traditional Thinking

Forgiveness

Doug Dodd s.b.g. – Berean Bible Church – Edgewater, Florida

The Church That Preaches What The Bible Teaches

INTRODUCTION

There are many misconception that occur in bible study due to a failure to "rightly divide the word of truth". When we "rightly divide the word of truth" we give to Israel what belongs to Israel and we give to the body of Christ what belongs to the body of Christ.

Under Israel’s economy or dispensation forgiveness was handled differently than in the dispensation of the grace of God in which we now find ourselves. This is because Israel was kept on a "short account" system. That is, they had no long term provision for sin. Sin had to be dealt with quickly and the Levitical sacrificial system was instituted for this purpose.

It is instructive to note that God used this system to blind and fool Satan into believing he could somehow circumvent the purposes and plans of God. In the Old Testament Satan constantly bombarded that nation with false gods and religious systems to prevent Israel from being in favor with God. Later in the New Testament Satan literally drove the Lord Jesus Christ to the cross thinking - Mat 21:38 … This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

How surprised he must have been on that morning when Christ rose from the dead!! As Paul reminds us… 1 Cor 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: 8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

One of the things that the Lord Jesus Christ bought for us in his death, burial and resurrection was total and complete forgiveness. Total and complete forgiveness was not available until after the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and the setting aside of the nation of Israel.

Traditional thinking errs by not observing this distinction. Therefore you have religious institutions which have implemented "sin management systems" to handle sin that is already forgiven.

They do this by:

having people to "confess their sins" either to God or a priest
by a false sacrifice system
by indulgences and prayers
We will now contrast some verses between instructions given to Israel and those given to the church the body of Christ.

VERSES FOR CONSIDERATION

Mat 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

These verses clearly instructed Israel, during the earthly ministry of Christ, that to get forgiveness they must first forgive others. This was part and parcel of the "short account system". However, in the dispensation of the grace of God, forgiveness is handled NOT on a short account system but totally and complete.

Eph 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

The operative word in this verse is HATH! It is past tense. We do not forgive others today in order to obtain forgiveness – we do so because we HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED fully pardon based upon the finished cross work of Christ in his death, burial and resurrection.

Notice again…

Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

Notice this is all trespasses! This is good news indeed! I am not motivated by fear of failure to forgive but I am motivated by the grace of God working in me to forgive as God does… for Christ sake!

CONCLUSION

A dispensational change in the fundamental application of forgiveness takes place in the dispensation of the grace of God with the result being total and complete forgiveness based on the finished cross work of Christ in his death, burial and resurrection.

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The Crusader's Home Page
http://members.aol.com/CRUSADER1S/index.html
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RIGHTEOUS BEFORE GOD

"There is none righteous, no not one."
"How should man be just with God?"
(Romans 3:10 and Job 9:2)

Since man is a sinner and God is holy, how can they meet? Job asked this question thousands of years ago, and man is still asking how he may become righteous in the eyes of God, or how God might excuse him for his sin. Job's three friends each had a solution to the problem; each one had a different idea, but the foundation of all three was a salvation based on human works. So, today, men are still offering the same answers as did the three friends of Job.
First - Bring God down to man's level. That is Demonism.
Second - Evolve man to God's level. That is modernism.
Third - Put on a nice, outward appearance. That is ritualism.

There is always a way "that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death" (Proverbs 14:12).

To Job's three friends, God said. "Ye have not spoken unto Me things which are right, like My servent Job." Therefore we conclude that Job knew the right answer and that his three friends were wrong. Job's answer was:
"For He is not a man as I am, that I should answer Him and we should come together in judgment. Neither is there any DAYSMAN betwixt us that might lay His hand upon us both" (Job 9:32-33). In otherwords, Job said that there must be a MEDIATOR, or a go-between, if he was to be accepted by God. What kind of a mediator did Job need? What kind of a mediator does man need today?

First of all, that mediator must be both God and man, and not only that, He must also be a REDEEMER, in order to redeem man from sin. And Job could say: "I know that my REDEEMER liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth" (Job 19:25). In I Timothy 2:5 we read: "There is ONE MEDIATOR between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus." That One who was in the form of God, but made Himself of no reputation and took upon Him the form of a servent, came in the likeness of men, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:5-8). By His death on the cross He became the Redeemer of mankind.

"For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich" (II Corinthians 8:9).

How then, can man receive the blessings of this matchless work of grace? First let us see how it is not obtained:

NOT BY WORKS

"Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9)
"Not by works of righteousness which we have done" (Titus 3:5)
"All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6).
"For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God...Abraham believed God, and it (his faith) was counted unto him for righteousness" (Romans 4:2-3).

"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Romans 4:5).

NOT BY THE LAW
(The ten Commandments)

"A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ,....for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Galatians 2:16).

"If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain" (Galatians 2:21).

The purpose of the law is to stop all mouths; and it is the instrument by which the whole world is proven guilty before God. See Romans 3:19-20.

The law curses. "For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is everyone that continnot in all the things which are written in the book of the law to do them" (Galatians 3:10).

The law is called the ministration of death, "written and engraven in stones," in II Corinthians 3:7.

"The law was our schoolmaster, to bring us unto Christ" (Galatians 3:24). "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth" (Romans 10:4), and He "took it out of the way, nailing it to His (Colossians 2:14). And now - "Ye are not under the law, but under grace" (Romans 6:14).

"THEREFORE" -

"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law" (Romans 3:28).

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1).

"By Him (Christ) all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:39).

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).

John Bunyan wrote the following lines: "The righteousness of God, that is a righteousness of God's completing, a righteousness of God's bestowing, a righteousness that God gives unto and puts upon all them that believe, a righteousness that stands in the work of Christ, and that is imputed both by the grace and justice of God, the righteousness by which we stand just before God from the curse, was performed long ago by the Person of Jesus Christ."

By grace we are saved - Eph. 2:8-9.
By grace we are redeemed - Gal. 3:13.
By grace we are brought near - Eph. 2:13.
By grace we are justified - I Tim. 1:15.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grace Impact
http://graceimpact.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(Part 1 of 3)

Building Strong Believers
HOW NOT TO BE A SPIRITUAL WIMP!
The Pauline Design for Edification

BY RICHARD JORDAN

Paul's purpose in penning his treatise to the Romans is his treatise to the Romans is stated quite clearly at the outset:

"For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, TO THE END YE MAY BE ESTABLISHED;
"That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the MUTUAL FAITH both of you and me" (Rom. 1:11,12).

The book of Romans is establishment truth, written to ground its readers in "the mutual faith." This, of course, is not merely a reference to a desire to get them saved for the epistle is addressed to those who already were saints (v.7). Rather Paul's desire was that they be firmly fixed and settled in the same understanding of the grace of God to us in Christ which he had.

Paul envisioned strong believers. Saints who would not be "tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine." Saints who would not succumb to "the slight of men and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." Saints who could endure hardness. Saints who were spiritually tuff and resilient. He knew this did not "just happen," but that it was the result of being established in sound doctrine.

After masterfully setting forth "the faith" he desired the saints to mutually share with him, he concludes with a further statement concerning establishment truth:

"Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,
"But now is made manifested, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
"To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen" (Rom. 16:25-27).

This concluding benediction has often been overlooked both as to its purpose and content. It is, in fact, a concise statement of Paul's design for the establishment of believers in "the faith."

If the Body of Christ is to be edified by "perfected saints" doing "the work of the ministry," as Eph. 4:12 suggests, it is vitally important that we be--and that our ministries produce--perfect saints. How better to do this than to allow the one who gave us this charge to also instruct us as to how to produce perfected, established and matured saints for the work! Hence Paul's explanation of how believers are established is basic to doing the work of the ministry his way.

Look again at these verses. It is God Himself who alone has the capacity to establish--to stabilize and make strong--the believer. And how does He do so? Paul clearly sets forth a three-fold process:

"Now to Him that is the power to stablish you ACCORDING TO

MY GOSPEL,

and

THE PREACHING OF JESUS CHRIST
ACCORDING TO THE REVELATION
OF THE MYSTERY...

and

THE SCRIPTURES OF THE PROPHETS..."

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grace Impact
http://graceimpact.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(Part 2 of 3)

Building Strong Believers
HOW NOT TO BE A SPIRITUAL WIMP!
The Pauline Design for Edification

BY RICHARD JORDAN

The three-fold pattern is clearly defined:

1. My Gospel: This is the foundation of God's purpose. Knowing the details of the gospel of grace committed to Paul gives an orientation to Gods grace which equips us to live on the planet earth for His glory.

2. The preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery: This is the fullness of God's purpose. Understanding God's previously unrevealed intend to form a new agency, the Body of Christ, gives us an orientation to God's goal which grounds us in the ultimate plan of God.

3. The Scriptures of the prophets: This is the future of God's purpose. While the first two comprise the scope of the special message committed to Paul, the "scriptures of the prophets" encompass all of Scripture--in light, of course, of Paul's revelation. Understanding how the programs of prophecy and mystery relate into one great overriding purpose provides an orientation to God's glory as we see these programs come to fruition.

This a progressive pattern designed to set forth "the form of sound words" committed to our trust (II Tim 1:13). And it is this form--this pattern of divine thinking-- which produces the "godly edifying" that results in spiritual maturity. Let's look at it briefly.

"MY GOSPEL"

This is a reference to the special message committed to his trust by the risen Christ. Notice the two basic issues which lay the foundation for stability:

"MY gospel"--Dispensational Distinctions. Failure to recognize the distinctive nature of Paul's apostleship and message brings endless confusion as to where we stand in the program of God. Such confusion is foolish, however, for Paul plainly declares:

"For I SPEAK TO YOU GENTILES, INASMUCH AS I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES, I magnify mine office" (Rom 11:13).

Paul is our Apostle--in contrast with Peter and the Twelve who were Israel's apostles (Matt. 19:28, Gal. 2:8). Thus Paul's gospel is our gospel--in contrast to that proclaimed by Peter and the Twelve before him (Gal. 1:11,12; 2:6-9). this is all the more important when we remember Paul's solemn pronouncement that one day soon "God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel" (Rom. 2:16).

"My GOSPEL"--Doctrinal Orientation. It is not enough to simply know who our Apostle is--we must know what he has said to us. We must be oriented to the grace of God as revealed through Paul. It has too often been assumed that an understanding of the distinctive ministry of Paul made one a "grace believer." This simply is not the case: We must go on to an understanding of the grace and love of God to us in Christ if we are to be genuine grace believers.

That Paul's gospel deals with salvation in Christ through his work on the cross is clear from 1 Cor. 15:1-4. To Paul was delivered the capstone of divine revelation concerning the cross-work of Christ. In Romans Paul lays four foundation principles of grace:

Justification by grace (Rom. 1-5): The finality of the cross is set forth here as nowhere else in Scripture. The justice of God is demonstrated to be free to give eternal life to anyone having perfect righteousness (1:18-3:20). Since we lack this righteousness through the cross of Christ. He is thus free to give both righteousness and eternal life to everyone who "believes in Jesus" (3:21-4:25). This new "grace wherein we stand" provides complete security, both during present tribulations as well as into eternity future (5:1-21).

Living under grace (5-8): The reality of the resurrection life through our total identification with Christ is next set before us. Because we are no longer "in Adam" but are now "in Christ" (5:12-21) we are to live consistent with our position in Christ (6), the current program of grace (7), and the power of the Holy Spirit (8).

These chapters provide the largely untapped keys for the believer's life in time: Rom. 6 identifies the step that deals with the principle of sin and provides the answer to its power. Rom. 7 denotes the struggle with the principle of the law and shows the answer to its bondage. Rom 8. sets forth the walk based on the principle of "life in Christ Jesus" as motivated by the Spirit of life.

Dispensation of Grace (9-11): The fall and future of Israel are examined so that no one will think Israel's program is still in effect today or that it has been done away with permanently. The present interruption of prophecy and its future resumption are clearly explained.

Serving by Grace (12-16): The fruits of our Sonship status in Christ are practically demonstrated. Practical instructions in grace-age-living give the believer a model for decision making by the "renewed mind" grace produces.

Thus Romans gives the foundation for the grace-life. It gives members of the Body of Christ an understanding of how we have been equipped and motivated to live on a daily basis in the details of our lives by God's grace and for His glory.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grace Impact
http://graceimpact.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(Part 3 of 3)

Building Strong Believers
HOW NOT TO BE A SPIRITUAL WIMP!
The Pauline Design for Edification

BY RICHARD JORDAN

THE MYSTERY PROGRAM

The next step in the edification process is built upon the previous. Once we understand who we are in Christ and how that new identity has equipped us with amazing divine assets, we are ready to move on to the advanced issues of just why God is forming the Body of Christ. This is the special focus of "the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery."

This unprophesied program is, of course, in stark contrast with the long prophesied program preached prior to Paul. A simple comparison of Acts 3:21 with Rom 16:25 sets forth conclusively: In Acts 3:21 Peter is preaching that "which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began." The message of Rom 16:25, on the other hand, "was kept secret since the world began." If words mean anything, these are two different messages.

Prior to the ministry of the Apostle Paul, Jesus Christ was presented as the prophet, priest and king of the nation Israel (Deut. 18:15, Psa. 110:4, Jer. 23:5,6)--all in accord with what God "spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began" (Luke 1:70, Acts 3:21). When we come presented in a new way--as the head of the Body of Christ. This unprophesied purpose of God is completely different from the way Israel and the prophets has viewed Christ.

This unprophesied program was first revealed to and through the Apostle Paul. He declares:

"For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
"If ye have heard the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:
"How that BY REVELATION HE MADE KNOWN UNTO ME THE MYSTERY; (as I wrote afore in a few words...)
"WHICH IN OTHER AGES WAS NOT MADE KNOWN unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the spirit:
"That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his holy promise in Christ by the gospel" (Eph 3:1-6).

It is vital that believers get the "big picture." Notice that Paul assumes the Ephesians had already grasp "the gospel"--he assumes their prior grounding in Romans-truth, just as Romans assumes the believer will proceed on to the further truths set forth in Ephesians. These are not two different messages but rather two different aspects of one message: foundational truth and advanced truth built on that foundation.

After being grounded in our equipping in Christ to function as member of the Body of Christ on planet earth (Roman's foundational truth), Paul now moves on to explain the place for this new agency in the plan of God. This is the special purpose of Ephesians. There we learn of our:

Calling(1-3): The wealth associated with our calling as members of the body of Christ is detailed so that we might "abound in wisdom and prudence." "The hope of His calling"--what He has called the Body of Christ to accomplish; "the glory of His inheritance in the saints"--how Christ will take possession of a redeemed universe through the saints; "the greatness of His power us-ward"--sharing in Christ's authority as head of all things; these are the advanced truths which set forth the goal of God's present purpose.

Conduct (4:1-6:9): The worthy walk to be manifest in our conduct as members of the Body of Christ is dealt with in clear and practical terms.

Conflict (6:10-6:24): The warfare brought about because of our conflict with the Satanic policy of evil designed to thwart God's purpose for the Body of Christ is explained and the believer's armor is identified.

These advanced truths erect a superstructure of divine edification in the believer's soul and provide a spiritual edifice of sound doctrine which gives a sense of our place in the overall purpose of God. With this "big picture" in hand, we are all able to move on to the final step in Paul's pattern for our perfection:

THE SCRIPTURES OF THE PROPHETS

As the first step orients us to the grace of God and the second to the goal of forming the Body of Christ, this final crowning step in the edification process orients us to the glory of God to be manifest in the ages to come.

Just as the great doctrinal books of Romans and Ephesians match the first two, the letters to the Thessalonians fit the third.

I Thess. details the events surrounding the closing of the dispensation of grace and the exodus of the Body of Christ from the planet earth. The Rapture is mentioned at the closing of each chapter and we learn details concerning its pre-tribulation scheduling (1:10), the judgment seat of Christ (3:13), the actual details surrounding our catching up to meet the Lord in the air (4:13-18) as well as the faithfulness of God to see these events to completion (5:23,24).

In like manner II Thess. focuses on the revelation of Christ at His prophesied "second coming" and its distinction from His unprophesied coming. Again, this prophesied coming is detailed in two of the three chapters with one of the Bibles completest descriptions of the rise and career of the Anti-Christ given in 2:3-12. II Thess. is clear that the only thing holding back these prophesied events is God's present purpose--a purpose which has temporarily interrupted the prophetic program.

DIVINE DESIGN

This edification process establishes the believer in the faith and provides the capacity for the faithful service for Christ as we walk by faith. This divine design can be seen in the way Paul's epistles has been preserved and collated in God's Word:

Romans not only stands first in the order of Paul's epistles, it is also the great book of foundational doctrine about the cross. The next great doctrinal epistle is Ephesians, which progresses on to the advanced mystery truths concerning the church, the Body of Christ. The Thessalonian letters comprise the final great doctrinal books and focus on Christ's coming both in mystery and prophecy. By the way, the Pastoral Epistles (I&II Tim., Tit., Phile) detail the functioning of the local congregation as the manifestation of the Body of Christ. The epistles lay themselves out thusly:

Romans:
Faith looking back to the Cross.

Ephesians:
Love looking around at the Church.

Thessalonians:
Hope looking forward to Christ's Coming.

Pastorals:
Fellowship working in the Congregation.

About this edification process Paul wrote Timothy:

"As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine.
"Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather that GODLY EDIFYING WHICH IS IN FAITH: so do.
"Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience and of faith unfeigned" (I Tim. 1:3-5).

If we are to be--and produce--strong believers, able to be good soldiers instead of hopelessly confused and impotent spiritual wimps, we must obey this commandment.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
THINGS THAT DIFFER
BY C. R. STAM
http://www.geocities.com/protestantscot/ttd/ttd_chap1.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

INTRODUCTION

RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD
OF TRUTH

"Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth."

--II Tim. 2:15.

* * * *

Those who seek to teach the Word rightly divided frequently encounter the objection that "All [or every] Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable . . ." (II Tim. 3:16). It is argued from this passage that it is dishonoring to God to divide the Bible into dispensations and emphasize the differences between them, since it is all for us, from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22.

Does this mean, then, that II Tim. 2:15 and II Tim. 3:16 contradict each other? Surely they do not. The fact is that, written only a few paragraphs apart, by the same author, to the same person, about the same Book, these two verses complement each other. II Tim. 2:15 explains how God's workman may get most out of the Bible, while II Tim. 3:16 declares that all of it was given for his profit. All Scripture is indeed profitable when "rightly divided," but when wrongly divided or not divided at all, the truth is changed into a lie and becomes most unprofitable. Thus II Tim. 2:15 is the key to II Tim. 3:16 and to the understanding and enjoyment of the Word of truth.

One difficulty is that multitudes of Christians shrink from the effort involved in studying the Scriptures with a view to rightly dividing them. And, alas, their spiritual leaders often encourage them in their lethargy.

Some years ago we heard a preacher exclaim: "Some say, 'This is for the Jew and that is for the church. This is for us and that is not for us.' I take a whole Bible!"

Did he mean that we should not distinguish between God's program for Israel in Old Testament times and His program for the body of Christ today? Certainly not, but it sounded so. Did he mean that those who do thus divide the Word do not believe the whole Bible? No, but he gave that impression. He discouraged his hearers from endeavoring to rightly divide the Word of truth by implying that those who do so discard parts of the Bible as not for them. And this preacher was representative of a large proportion of the spiritual leaders in the church today.

Is it any wonder that the Christian masses use the Bible merely for devotional reading and often neglect even that? How can they be expected to have an interest in the study of the Scriptures when their leaders themselves fail to set the example? And one need but look about him to see the delinquency here. Where are the Bible teachers of yesterday? What has happened to the great Bible conferences that were held all over the land? How many pastors teach the Word to their congregations? And the missionaries and evangelists: is there not a widespread feeling that they do not need to study the Scriptures too thoroughly since "their business is to win souls"?

As a result, the vast majority of believers really understand very little of God's Word. They know the basic facts of salvation but seem quite satisfied to remain ignorant of precious truths which, if they but searched to find them, would make them workmen whom God could approve, not needing to be ashamed of their service for Him.

But rather than study to attain to a better understanding of the Word and become proficient in its use, many actually boast that they are satisfied with "the simple things"!

And this after all the earnest prayers of Paul that believers might have the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ (Eph. 1:17), that they might know what is theirs in Christ (Eph. 1:18-23) and comprehend the breadth and length and depth and height of it! (Eph. 3:18). This after all his labor and strife and conflict that they might have "the full assurance of understanding" (Col. 1:28-2:2). This after all his prayers that they might "be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding" (Col. 1:9). This after his stern rebuke of those carnal babes to whom he could preach no more than Christ crucified; whom he had to feed with milk alone because they were not able to digest solid food! (I Cor. 2 and 3).

Slothful Christians often consider themselves quite spiritual merely because their emotions are easily aroused. They boast of their contentment with "the simple things" while they should be ashamed of their indifference to the written Word of God. They claim great devotion to God, yet neglect the one great means of knowing Him better. They profess fervent faith in Him, yet scarcely trouble to find out just what He has said. They do not, like David, meditate upon God's Word day and night nor, like the prophets, "enquire and search diligently" as to its true meaning.

The results of this attitude toward the Word are appalling, for such may trust Christ for salvation, but beyond this they exercise, in most cases, a blind, superstitious faith that cannot but dishonor God. Feelings are taken for facts and their own wishes for God's Word. They go into wrong paths, saying, "But I prayed very earnestly about it and now feel perfectly at peace." They say, "The Lord spoke to me," and refer to some feeling rather than to some passage of Scripture consistently applied. Thoughtlessly they say, "If it's in the Bible I believe it," yet as they read the Bible they take to themselves only what warms their hearts and leave the rest unapplied, not knowing exactly why.

But those who boast of their contentment with "the simple things" and oppose dispensational Bible study on the ground that all the Bible is for us, have certainly missed the fact that all Scripture was given that the man of God might be perfectly fitted and fully equipped for his work (See II Tim. 3:17).

There is a great difference between the "child of God" and the "man of God" and no one who remains an infant in the truth can be approved as a workman for God or as a soldier of Jesus Christ, for the workmen God approves must know how to rightly divide the Word of truth and the soldiers He honors must know how to wield the Sword of the Spirit.

We can sympathize with those who have begun to study the Bible dispensationally and have found it confusing. The study of almost any subject is confusing at first, but as we persevere we begin to understand and to reap the fruits of our toil. Indeed, to any thoughtful person the Scriptures must continue to be confusing until he learns to rightly divide and so to understand them. And what joy can compare with that of coming into a fuller understanding of God's Word?

It is written concerning the great spiritual revival under Ezra, when the law was read and explained to the people of Israel:

"And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, BECAUSE THEY HAD UNDERSTOOD THE WORDS THAT WERE DECLARED UNTO THEM" (Neh. 8:12).

On the resurrection morning two disciples trudged wearily toward Emmaus, heart-broken because their Master had been crucified. They did not understand that according to the prophetic Word He must suffer and die before entering into His glory. Then the Lord Jesus Himself drew near and, unrecognized, explained this to them from the Scriptures until they understood and believed and rejoiced.

"And they said oneto another, DID NOT OUR HEART BURN WITHIN US, WHILE HE TALKED WITH US BY THE WAY, AND WHILE HE OPENED TO US THE SCRIPTURES?"(Luke 24:32).

Studying the Bible dispensationally may seem confusing at first but actually it dispels confusion, explains difficult problems, reconciles seeming contradictions and lends power to the believers ministry.

If I should step inside a modern United States Post Office all would doubtless seem very confusing to me. But it would be a mistake to suggest piling all the mail neatly in one corner and handing it out promiscuously to all corners as some would do with the Bible. The postal employees must "rightly divide" the mail so that each person receives what is addressed to him. What seems like confusion to the novice is really a simplification of the work to be done in getting each person's private mail to him.

It is granted that in the Bible even that which was addressed to those of other dispensations is given to us for our learning and profit, but we must not confuse this with our own private mail or make the mistake of carrying out instructions meant particularly for others.

While I am reading mail addressed personally to me, a friend may hand me, for my interest or information, mail addressed to him. His mail and mine may all prove informative and profitable, but I must still be careful not to confuse the two, expecting to receive things promised to him or carrying out instructions addressed to him.

Thus all the Bible is for us, but it is not all addressed to us or written about us, and if we would really understand and enjoy it; if we would really know how to use it effectively in service for Christ, we must be careful always to note who is addressing whom, about what and when and why.

Read this Book:
THINGS THAT DIFFER
BY C. R. STAM
http://www.geocities.com/protestantscot/ttd/ttd_chap1.html

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Berean Bible Society
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Day of Itching Ears (Part 1 of 2)
By Cornelius R. Stam

For the professing Church the day of theological controversy has passed. Ecumenism is now the word on every tongue. Church leaders appear to have become convinced that the stifling confusion in the Church can be overcome only by all of us getting together, minimizing our differences, and emphasizing those doctrines on which we all agree. As a result, some of the most important doctrines of Scripture are neither denied nor affirmed; they are ignored. But little matter, for the objective now is not to be true to the written Word of God but to see to it that the Church is "strong" and commands the world's respect.

Ecumenism, sad to say, has made significant inroads among evangelical believers too. All too seldom do men of God stand up to defend by the Scriptures the truths they believe and proclaim. The theological debate has given place to dialogue, in which two individuals or groups sit down together to discuss their differences and see if there is not some basis for agreement. This appears generous and objective, but too often convictions are compromised and the truth watered down by such undertakings, with the result that the Spirit's power is sacrificed for numerical strength. No man of God can speak in the power of the Spirit when he places anything before the Word and Will of God. Nor can the Church ever be truly united and strong unless she puts God's Word and Will first and takes her place in the world as Christ's ambassador on alien territory (See II Cor. 5:20).

But what do the Scriptures say about this new "open-mindedness," this new "let's all get together" trend?

OUR LORD'S WARNING
During our Lord's earthly ministry He warned His disciples: "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees" (Matt. 16:6).

The disciples did not immediately grasp the significance of the Lord's warning. Realizing that they had forgotten to take bread with them, they supposed that He referred to the leaven which their bakers used and concluded that the Pharisees and Sadducees were evidently out to poison their food!

To correct this mistake our Lord had but to remind them how, with but a few loaves, He had fed five thousand people at one time and four thousand at another. They themselves had taken up baskets full of the fragments on both occasions. Surely, then, He could supply them with food!

"Then understood they how that He bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees (Ver. 12).

Someone was out to poison them—spiritually! It is doubtful that the Pharisees and Sadducees meant to propagate poisonous doctrines, but in their pride and hypocrisy they were the ready tools of Satan. It was because of the destructive qualities of these doctrines that our Lord had used the term "leaven" to describe them. Where false doctrine is concerned, it takes but a little to do a great deal of harm. Referring to this very thing Paul warned the Galatians that "a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump" (Gal. 5:9).

What was so dangerous about the teachings of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? In general it was that the Pharisees added to the written Word (Matt. 23) and the Sadducees took from it (Acts 23:8). Both were dangerous, and our Lord warned His disciples to BEWARE of both. We do well to take this lesson to heart, for the Pharisees and Sadducees are with us still—those who add to the Word of God and those who take from it.

THE DOCTRINE OF THE PHARISEES
"The doctrine of the Pharisees" has held a prominent place in the Church throughout its history. The Reformation did not put an end to it by any means, for still today vast numbers of religious people subscribe to it.

The leaders of Christendom have added all sorts of rituals, restrictions, and requirements to God's revealed program for His Church in this dispensation of Grace, and multitudes of sincere believers follow like sheep, instead of searching the Scriptures daily to see whether these things really do belong to His program for our day.

Look at the members of Christ's Body. Many have placed themselves under the Law, while others are trying to recover the miraculous signs of Pentecost, or are striving to carry out a "great commission" that is not theirs. They observe holy days, baptism, footwashing, and all sorts of other forms and ceremonies which are contrary to God's program for this dispensation, as revealed in the epistles of Paul. As a result the Church is a Babel of confusion and Satan is well satisfied.

How perverse is the heart of man! God reveals the Substance and lo, His people go back to the shadows! He demonstrates the all-sufficiency of Christ's redemptive work and behold, His people continue to observe the rites that pointed to it. Indeed, they add ceremonies which He never commanded at all! In grace God postpones the judgment and the earthly reign of Christ, to offer grace and reconciliation to His enemies and lo, His servants do not even understand and go about vainly trying to "establish His kingdom."

They do not deny that we are commissioned to proclaim God's offer of grace and reconciliation, but they add another commission and so confuse the God-given message. They do not deny the all-sufficiency of Christ's finished work, but they add unscriptural and undispensational teachings and forms and ceremonies, and so confuse and adulterate God's clear message of grace.

This is "the doctrine of the Pharisees" and it is dangerous.

Added error blinds men's minds to the truth. Those who add the so-called "Great Commission" to God's program for this dispensation cannot fully appreciate the glory of our Lord's "great commission" to Paul and to us (II Cor. 5:14-21; Eph. 3:8,9; et al). Those who go back under the Law of Moses or even back to Pentecost cannot fully appreciate the glory of our Lord's finished work or "the exceeding riches of His grace." Those who observe footwashing, water baptism, or holy days cannot fully understand the mystery of God's purpose and grace. These added things hang as a veil before their eyes and blind them to the glories of their position in the heavenlies in Christ as members of His Body.

Our Lord charged the Pharisees with "teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" and with "making the Word of God of none effect through your [their] tradition" (Mark 7:7,13). This is being done on every hand today as religious leaders add to God's glorious "grace" program ceremonies and observances which belonged to former dispensations, or which He never commanded at all. This is dangerous to our spiritual welfare and we should "beware" of it.

THE DOCTRINE OF THE SADDUCEES
But if Satan cannot deceive us with "the doctrine of the Pharisees" he will seek to accomplish his purpose through "the doctrine of the Sadducees."

In comparison with the bigoted Pharisees, the Sadducees were the "advanced thinkers" of their day. Not that they did not also substitute human tradition for the Word of God, but they made more of the human intellect and refused to believe certain truths which were supernatural in character. The Sadducees have a host of followers in our day with its emphasis on the intellectual.

But our Lord warned His disciples against the Sadducees too. He said "Take heed....Beware" and described their doctrine as leaven because a little of it can spread so fast.

This warning is sorely needed today since some sincere Christians, wishing to be intellectual and open-minded, place themselves in positions of great spiritual danger.

On the premise that they are mature and are seeking for the truth, such people often spend their time examining all the different viewpoints they can find and so make shipwreck of the faith. We should be careful about assuming that we are mature either intellectually or spiritually. To the puffed-up Corinthian believers Paul wrote:

"Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become [take the position of] a fool, that he may be wise" (I Cor. 3:18).

"And if a man think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know" (I Cor. 8:2).

The fact is that we cannot trust our intellects. Surely the sharp disagreements among the world's greatest intellects should teach us this. These disagreements exist because, as the Bible teaches, the human mind, like the human heart, has become depraved by sin.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Berean Bible Society
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Day of Itching Ears (Part 2 of 2)
By Cornelius R. Stam

THE THESSALONIANS, THE BEREANS, AND THE ATHENIANS
But were not the Bereans commended for listening with open minds to teachings which they had never heard before? Yes, when they were confronted with them. It was the Athenians, not the Bereans, who made it their policy to consider as many viewpoints as possible on every subject (Acts 17:18-21).

The strength of the Bereans was that they kept close to the Scriptures. When confronted with some new doctrine, they did indeed give it an interested hearing, but then "searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so" (Acts 17:11). Had they found anything in Paul's message which contradicted the Scriptures they would immediately have rejected it. And for this God calls them "noble." They were the truly great, the spiritual aristocracy of their day.

Too many believers today aspire to be like the Athenians rather than the Bereans. They say they wish to have open minds, and this is good if it is remembered that an open mind is like an open mouth; not everything should be put into it.

The Athenians went to the other extreme from the Thessalonians, who would not even consider a new doctrine when confronted with it—would not even consider it in the light of the Scriptures.

The Bereans were the wisest of the three. They kept close to that blessed Book, and, when confronted with unfamiliar teachings, immediately subjected them to the test of Scripture.

This is the wisest course even if only because we are all limited in time and strength. Obviously we cannot spend a great deal of time looking into the conflicting teachings of men without sacrificing a great deal of much-needed time for Bible study, and in the measure that we do this we are bound to grow spiritually weaker.

THE QUESTION OF EXPOSURE
There are those who argue that believers cannot be strengthened against error without being exposed to it. Our Lord knew better. He did not invite the Pharisees and the Sadducees to address His audiences. Rather He warned His audiences against the "leaven" of the Pharisees and the Sadducees and kept teaching His hearers the truth.

The depravity of the human heart and mind is such that the believer is not strengthened against error by constant exposure to it; he is strengthened against error by feeding consistently upon the Word of God. Exposure to error strengthens the believer only as it drives him to the Word of God. Show me a Christian who is always "considering all sides" and I will show you one who will fail dismally to give the Scriptural answer to false teaching—if indeed he is not taken in by false teaching himself. But show me a Christian who spends his time with that blessed Book and I will show you one who, strong in the faith, can easily answer his adversaries by the Scriptures. Paul wrote to young Pastor Timothy:

"I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ.... Preach the Word....For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears" (II Tim. 4:1-3).

And what was to be the result of this "itching ears" condition, this passion to hear teachers of all schools of thought expound their various doctrines? Hear the divine prediction:

"And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (Ver. 4).

What thoughtful student of the Word will deny that we have reached this point in the history of the professing Church, that the day of "itching ears" is upon us?

The desire to "give everyone a hearing," as it were, may seem superficially to indicate spiritual greatness, but actually it is of the flesh and is based upon the exalted presumption that it is safe for me to trust my intellect, even though the greatest intellects have disagreed over the most vital subjects. Where our intellects are concerned we are wiser to heed the Spirit-inspired exhortation of one truly great intellect, the Apostle Paul:

"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (II Cor. 10:5).

The Apostle Paul did not assume that his followers were mature enough to consider all religious viewpoints. He delivered his God-given message and warned his hearers and readers against false teachings.

To the Corinthians he wrote:

"But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (II Cor. 11:3).

Reminding the Colossians of his labor and strife and toil and conflict to establish them in the faith, he warns:

"Beware lest any man spoil [rob] you....Let no man beguile you..." (Col. 2:8,18).

He did not suggest to the Ephesian elders that it might be big of them occasionally to invite the legalists or the gnostics or some other heterodox teachers in to address their audiences. He rather impressed upon them their responsibility to protect their congregations from false teaching. Read carefully and prayerfully his very words, as found in Acts 20:28-31:

"Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the Church of God, which he hath purchased with His own blood.

"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

"Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

"Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears."

Even those two outstanding pastors, Timothy and Titus, were warned against the "leaven" of false teaching. The apostle exhorts Timothy:

"Take heed unto thyself and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee" (I Tim. 4:16).

This passage explains why some pastors have been unable to save their hearers from error and spiritual shipwreck. Certainly it teaches the danger of false doctrine to both pastor and people.

Throughout his two epistles to Timothy the apostle warns his son in the faith against those who "teach otherwise" and exhorts him to "fight the good fight of the faith." How earnestly he beseeches young Timothy to stay close to the Word of God and especially to the Word of God committed to him for this present dispensation:

"O Timothy, keep [guard] that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding...oppositions of science falsely so called" (I Tim. 6:20).

"Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

"That good thing which was committed unto thee keep [guard] by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us" (II Tim. 1:13,14).

In his letter to Titus the apostle declares that a bishop must be "blameless as the steward of God" (Titus 1:7).

"Holding fast the faithful Word... that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and convince the gainsayers" (Ver. 9).

Never does Paul advise even the strongest, most mature man of God to seek out the doctrines of those who "teach otherwise" so that they may know how to deal with them. He rather exhorts them to keep strong in the truth, ever ready to meet false doctrine with the Word of God.

When you are confronted with the familiar sign, "BEWARE OF THE DOG," be wise and keep out of the way. If you ignore the warning and have to flee torn and bruised, that is your fault. Nor can you expect God to protect you from spiritual harm and loss if you ignore His admonition to beware of false doctrine.

Do not presume: "I am mature. I will never be confused or overthrown by error." BEWARE! This is the course of obedience. This is the course of wisdom. This is the course of humility.

Every believer should remember that "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God...because they are spiritually discerned" (I Cor. 2:14). It was by the Spirit that our eyes were opened to the most vital truths which confront mankind. Therefore it behooves us to protect ourselves from error and spiritual harm by consistent, prayerful, believing study of that blessed Book of which the Spirit is the Author.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
GRACE BIBLE STUDY
Home Page
http://www.ourchurch.com/view/?pageID=100484
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

GRACE BIBLE STUDY
Are Paul's Acts Epistles Written to You?

The following is a list of some of the doctrines and commandments to the grafted Gentile of the Acts period. Ask yourself, are you observing these things to the letter and do they apply to you today?

1. You are commanded to hand over anyone who commits fornication to Satan for the destruction of the flesh (1 Cor. 5: 1-5).

Do you know of anyone who is committing fornication? Have you turned them over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh? Some try to spiritualize this, but clearly death was the sentence and was no different than the fate of Ananias and Sapphira for lying to the Holy Spirit (see Acts 5: 1-10).
2. If you are rich in faith (Gal. 3: 8,9) then you are Abraham's seed (Gal. 3:29) and blessed with your father Abraham in the New Jerusalem. Note: the New Jerusalem comes DOWN out of heaven to rest upon the earth (Rev.3:12, 21:10).

Is this your earthly hope? Are you Abraham's seed?

3. You could be "cut off" if you boasted of your position as a grafted in Gentile, (Rom.11:18-22). Are you a grafted Gentile? Does this apply to you today?

4. Is the New Jerusalem your Mother (Gal. 4:26)?

5. You are commanded to observe 4 NECESSARY things, (Acts 15:20), "But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood."
Do you obey these commandments to the letter?

6. The Jew is FIRST in blessing. That would make you, a Gentile, second (see Rom. 2:10).
Rom. 1:16. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the JEW FIRST, and also to the Greek.
Does this apply to you today? Are you in second place concerning the gospel of Christ. Why not?

7. During that time many believers were given the gift of healing, (1 Cor. 12:9).
Can you heal today without hesitation or know of someone who can?

8. You are looking for the hope of the Second Coming at the "last trump" (1 Cor.1: 7,8). You will be returning with Christ to the earth to judge the world with Him (1 Cor. 6:2). Is this your hope? Please see this article for further study.

9. Are you a partaker of Israel's spiritual things? Rom. 15:25, 26

10. Do you take up offerings for Israel? Rom.15:26

11. Does the root (Israel) bear you and not the other way around? Rom. 11:17,18.

12. During the Acts there were 3 baptisms, the baptism of the Holy Ghost, a water baptism, and a baptism unto Christ's death. See this article for further study. Yet, we read in Paul's PRISON epistles that the Church has only ONE baptism (Eph.4:5). Why is it that you don't observe all three baptisms in Paul's Acts epistles?

Note: it has been said that Paul no longer baptized with water during the Acts. This is misleading. What Paul is saying in effect in 1 Cor. 1:17 is that his main purpose was to preach the gospel, not to baptize. Some understand that to mean that he stopped baptizing all together, but from the following verses it can be proven that Paul did not stop baptizing: Acts 16:33, 18:6-8, 19:1-6. Do you have 3 baptisms?

13. Are you spiritual ministers of the New Testament (covenant), Note: 'covenant' and 'testament' are the same Greek word, 'diatheke' (2 Cor. 3:6).
If so, you are commanded to "this do ye" and partake of the cup of the New Covenant (1 Cor. 11: 25,26) "TILL HE COME". Have you ever partaken of the cup of the New Testament unworthily? Paul wrote that those who did not partake of the cup worthily were "sick" and that some "sleep". What do you think "sleep" means in 1 Cor. 11: 29, 30? For an answer see John 11:11-14.
14. Paul gave you ordinances to observe. Why don't you observe them all at this time?
1 Cor. 11:2. Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.

It has been shown that it would be difficult if not impossible to HONESTLY observe ALL the doctrines commanded to the grafted Gentile of the Acts period shown above. Surely you are not allowed to pick and choose which doctrines and commandments you would like to obey if you believe that Paul's Acts epistles are written to you. But if you find them difficult or impossible to obey, there's no need to worry. All difficulties will be removed once the Bible student recognizes that a NEW HOPE and calling applies to the faithful Gentile today. This new hope, the Mystery, began when God "SENT" His salvation to the Gentiles (Acts 28:28) after the divorce of Israel in Acts 28:23-27. All ordinances have been abolished.

Eph. 2:13. But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
14. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15. Having ABOLISHED in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
16. And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
17. And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.
Col. 2:13,14
13. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14. Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

And no longer is the Gentile blessed with father Abraham on the earth, but with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Eph.1:3, 2:6). The books written to this called out faithful company after Israel was set aside in blindness and the earthly Kingdom postponed are:
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1&2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. We are told to set our affection on things ABOVE not on things of the earth. You won't find anything concerning Abraham or an earthly hope in those books. See this study for details concerning this hope. Search and See.

Col. 3:1. If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
2. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
3. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
4. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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JESUS LOVES ME
http://www.jesuslovesme.org/newWeb/pages/oneTrue.html
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The Mystery Of The Cross

The distinctive message of Paul's gospel is the key that unlocks the Scriptures. Paul's gospel is as misunderstood and rejected today as he was in the first century. His gospel alone is the gospel of the good news of the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ. It reveals how that Christ died for (in the stead of, in the place of, because of) our sins according to the scriptures. It tells us that he was buried and rose again, according to the scriptures.

When Paul preached his gospel the only scriptures in existence, were what we know as the Old Testament. Paul, as a master of the scriptures, saw the only true interpretation of the Cross of Calvary is in the Old Testament passages that deal with atonement. The meaning of Calvary focused and he saw the crimson thread of the substitutionary atonement, from Genesis through Malachi. From Eden's gate to the Temple sacrifices, the drama of Calvary was foreshadowed. The great expositions of Paul on the meaning of Calvary came from Leviticus 16, Exodus 12, Genesis 22, Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, and other key passages. Jesus had given Israel clues to His true mission. He told them to read the story of Jonah and know what would happen at His death. He told them Abraham rejoiced to see His (Jesus') day, when the ram of God was caught in the thicket by his horns. Jesus told them to meditate on the brazen serpent lifted up to a dying people, and they would know what Calvary would mean. It is the Old Testament scriptures that tell the story of how God, in the person of His Son Jesus Christ, stepped into the sinner's place and stead and bore the wrath that was due him. Because he was a true substitute, He tasted the death that belonged to the sinner and descended into the darkness that awaited him. Jesus Christ satisfied God for all that was charged to the sinner, and was raised to be accepted in glory in the sinner's stead. This is the true gospel that saves the sinner from his sins and seperation from God. This gospel alone places him in Jesus Christ at the right hand of God! This is the true gospel that gives peace with God and absolute assurance of salvation. This is the gospel that fixes our eyes on Christ our righteousness, not our filthy rags of dead works.

Religion talks about Calvary, but few preachers have any comprehension of what really happened there. They prattle on about Good Friday, Palm Sunday, Easter morning and the rest of the religious rags of tradition. Few know of Wednesday's crucifixion or the fulfillment of Passover and its Lamb. The churches never speak of the three days and nights Jesus spent in the heart of the earth. Paul said he descended to the lower parts of the earth, or as in Romans 10:7, the "abussos" or bottomless pit. He did not spend three days and nights in the pit, but in the lower parts of the earth, known as Hades. His visit to the pit was only to leave the sins of the world that He bore away at the Cross of Calvary. This is where He took them and from which they will never return to doom and damn the believing sinner. Before the day of His death had ended, Jesus crossed the great gulf that seperated the rich man and Abraham, and met the believing thief in Paradise.

At His resurrection He emptied Paradise of the Old Testament saints, and took them with Him as proof of His victory over sin, death and Hell. There is so little preaching of Jesus' ascension to His Father and our Father, His God and our God. It is Paul who tells us that Jesus, as the High Priest of heaven, sprinkled His eternal and incorruptible blood on the mercy seat of heaven for the eternal redemption of all who would believe. (See: John 20 and Hebrews 9:11-14) No wonder Paul was the most hated man of his time. Paul's true gospel ends man's pride and his pitiful efforts to establish his own righteousness in the sight of God. Righteousness cannot be obtained by obeying the golden rule, practicing the beatitudes, reciting the Lord's prayer or the Apostle's creed. Man cannot be saved by doing penance at the command of some earthly priest or preacher, or repeating meaningless creeds and learning dead dogmas. Paul's gospel rends the veil between man and God from top to bottom. It leaves nothing between the sinner and God but the torn veil of Jesus' body and the altar of heaven sprinkled with a better blood than Abel's. There, God the Father welcomes all who will, to enter boldly!

Make sure you are rightly dividing the word of God. Make sure you are hearing the true gospel. Believe in your heart the record God gave of His Son. Here it is: God made Jesus Christ a substitute in judgment for you and in return, gives you the riches of His grace. This is a free translation of this blessed gospel as found in II Cor.5:21:

Thou Lord Jesus art my righteousness
And I am thy sin;
Thou hast taken what was mine
And given me what was Thine;
What Thou wast not, Thou didst become,
That I might become what I was not.

The godly One substituted for the ungodly and God is satisfied for eternity with the finished work of His Son Jesus Christ! God will freely impute His own righteousness, to the believing sinner. This is the only true gospel and it is the good news we are spreading by the Jesus Loves Me Ministry. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth and check out what we offer. Our heart's desire is that in all things, Jesus Christ shall have the preeminence. May you see no man, save Jesus only--the proof of God's love and incredible grace!

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Writings of Clyde Pilkington
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Cyprus/3717/clyde.html
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A FORGOTTEN TRADITION

Often, when we speak of tradition, there is one that we have forgotten. It must be remembered that there is another, godly tradition that we are to follow. It is the Pauline tradition.

"Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle"(II Thessalonians 2:15).

"Now, we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us"(II Thessalonians 3:6).

We are to receive the traditions of Paul because:

(1) He is our DIVINELY appointed pattern.

"Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting" (I Timothy 1:16).

A pattern is "that which is to be copied or imitated" (Webster), "a sketch for imitation" (Strong).

Therefore, Paul writes:

"And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes, that ye may learn in us . . ." (I Corinthians 4:6).

"Wherefore I beseech you that you, be ye followers of me. For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus . . . who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ . . ." (I Corinthians 4:16,17).

"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ" (I Corinthians 11:1).

"Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do . . ." (Philippians 4:9).

"But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life . . ." (II Timothy 3:10)

(2) He is our DIVINELY appointed apostle.

"For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office" (Romans 11:13).

(3) To him has been committed this current DISPENSATION.

"For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, if ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward" (Ephesians 3:1,2).

"Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God" (Colossians 1:25).

This current dispensation was committed to Paul as a trust.

". . . a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me" (I Corinthians 9:17).

"According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust" (Timothy 1:11).

". . . the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me . . ."(Galatians 2:7).

"But hath in due times manifest His word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour" (Titus 1:3).

The word commit means "to give in trust; to put into the hands or power of another; to entrust; to put into any place for preservation; to deposit" (Webster), "to deposit (as a trust or for protection), to entrust" Strong (#3908, #4100).

The word trust means a "charge received in confidence; that which is committed to one's care; something committed to a person's care for use or management, and for which an account must be rendered" (Webster).

As we receive the truth of this dispensation, we also receive the dispensation itself.

". . . which is given me to you-ward" (Ephesians 3:2).

". . . which is given to me for you" (Colossians 1:25).

"O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust . . . And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also"(I Timothy 6:20; II Timothy 2:2).

Why was Timothy to commit his trust to faithful men?

"Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful" (I Corinthians 4:2).

We now have a trusteeship that has been committed to our own trust. We need to be faithful to Paul's pattern — Paul's tradition — and be ever so careful of the traditions of men!

Are we following Paul's traditions, or man's?

Clyde Pilkington

Gladstone, VA

------------------------------------------------------------
Visit Clyde's web site at http://www.pilkingtonandsons.com

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Adelaide Grace Ministries
http://www.geocities.com/adelaidegrace/
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Berean Workman
http://www.bereanworkman.com/
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Grace Alive
http://www.gracealive.us/index.html
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Grace For Today
http://www.gracefortoday.org/
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But Now org.
http://www.butnow.org/
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Grace Points
http://www.gracepoints.com/index.php
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GraceLife Bible Studies
http://www.gmaf.org/studies.html
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Bible Ambassadors
http://www.bibleambassadors.org/index.html
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Studying The Bible
A webpage dedicated to studying the Word of God
http://www.fortunecity.com/millennium/treearbor/603/studymain.html
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Eternal Life Ministries, Inc.
http://members.ccgnv.net/elm/
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Grace Age Church
http://www.graceagechurch.com/index.htm
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Grace and The Truth Ministry
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/home2.htm
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Grace Bible Church
Chattanooga Tennessee
Pastor : Steve Atwood
http://www.understandingyourbible.com/
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Grace Bible Church
1450 Oak Hill Road
Fort Worth, TX 76112-3017
(817) 451-0937
Gregg Bing, Pastor
Charles Wages, Pastor Emeritus
http://www.gracebiblechurch-fw.com/?subpages/default.shtml
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Suncoast Bible Fellowship
http://www.suncoastbible.org/
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Berean Bible Church
Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin
http://www.grace2day.com/
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Bible Doctrines to Live By, Inc.
http://www.bdtlb.org/phpshop/
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A Little Light Bible Fellowship
http://www.alittlelight.org/
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Faith Bible Church
http://www.bygracethrufaith.org/
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GEMS OF GRACE TRUTH
Parsons Publishing Company
http://parsonspublishingcompany.com/
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The Magnified Word
http://www.magnifiedword.com/index2.htm
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Enjoy The Bible Ministries
http://www.enjoythebible.org/
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Grace Bible Church located in Warren, Michigan
http://www.rightlydividing.org/
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Grace Bible Ministries
presents DICTIONARY OF THE GOSPEL
by Thomas M. Bruscha
http://www.gracebibleministries.org/GBMstudies/DictGospel/DictofGospel.htm
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Berean Bible Church
http://www.bereanbiblechurch.com/
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The Crusader's Home Page
http://members.aol.com/CRUSADER1S/index.html
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Grace Impact
http://graceimpact.org/
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THINGS THAT DIFFER
BY C. R. STAM
http://www.geocities.com/protestantscot/ttd/ttd_chap1.html
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The Berean Bible Society
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
GRACE BIBLE STUDY
Home Page
http://www.ourchurch.com/view/?pageID=100484
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
JESUS LOVES ME
http://www.jesuslovesme.org/newWeb/pages/oneTrue.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Writings of Clyde Pilkington
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Cyprus/3717/clyde.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on November 01, 2003, 09:35:24 PM

Are you going to most more Brother?

Brother Love :)

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Paul's Grace Message"
http://www.voy.com/21122/
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PART 1 of 3

The Great Blunder Of The Church

By Pastor J.C O'Hair

In writing of "The Great Blunder Of The Church" we are giving special attention to the great blunder of confusing and mixing the hope, calling and program of the Church, which is designated, "the body of Christ." Many have been taught the great blunder of mixing law and grace, which mixture produces a perverted gospel which subverts the soul. But the great blunder, to which we refer, which includes frustrating the grace of God by bringing into the reign of grace some of Israel's program from under the reign of the law, goes far beyond that. Many spiritual "grace" preachers, who would never intentionally mix law and grace, do mix the "kingdom of heaven" program, in the synoptic gospels and in the book of Acts with the program designated "the dispensation of the grace God." They also failed to rightly divide the word of truth as to the different ministries of Peter and Paul, as stated in Galatians 2:7 to 9.

It must be obvious to any one who gives the matter even a little thoughtful consideration, that plenty of blunders have been made to bring about the present condition in Christendom, with the Christian Church divided into more than two hundred sects and factions, preaching messages that differ in many points, and carrying on many different spiritual programs. In as much as the Lord Jesus Christ was, and is omniscient, He is not surprised at the confusion, rivalry, competition and controversies in His divided Church; but surely it must grieve Him. According to His own words, "a house divided against itself cannot stand. "Matthew 12:25. Therefore, the visible church organizations are doomed to an awful fall. We thank our Heavenly Father that there are on earth, and in heaven, many sinners are saved by grace, who are joined to the Lord Jesus in an eternal inseparable union, members of the one body mentioned in Ephesians 4:4 and described in Paul’s epistles. This the true Church will be salvaged out of the wreck and ruin of Christendom.

Any Christian or Bible reader, does not see in the scripture the fact that there is but one Church of Christ in this particular "grace" period in which we live, and in which men have lived for nearly 1900 years, must be incurably stupid. Hear God's plain statement:" there is one body." Ephesians 4:4.

Romans 12:4 and 5

"For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another."

Yes, God has but one true Bible Church in this particular age of grace, and the one Head of the one Body is the Lord Jesus Christ, the glorified Son of God in heaven.

1 Corinthians 12:13

"For by one Spirit are we all BAPTIZED into one Body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit."

Ephesians 2:15

"Having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in Himself of twain ONE NEW MAN, so making peace."

"One Body ". "One New Man". "Christ and His Church one Flesh." "Ephesians 5:30 and 31.

We repeat that the one and only Head of the one True Body (Church) is the Lord Jesus Christ Who is in the heavens. Ephesians 1:19 to 22. In striving to emerge from the dark ages denominationalism undoubtedly has been unavoidable. In some instance it has safeguarded weak and ignorant Christians. But surely it has been the trick of Satan to cover up the glorious truths in God's Book concerning the hope, calling, program and destiny of the one true Bible Church which is the Body of Christ.

In speaking of the sad spectacle of the Church on earth, so hopelessly divided that nothing but the coming of Christ can ever bring His saints together, we are not referring to the division known as "Roman Catholicism" and "Protestantism." The Romanist claim over two hundred million adherents. They are so completely Judaized that the communicants have to be saved in spite of the perverted doctrines and unscriptual practices included in heir ritualistic religion. There is utterly no hop for them except as the individual Romanist is delivered by the gospel of the grace of God from his mixture of Judaism, Christianity and paganism.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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"Paul's Grace Message"
http://www.voy.com/21122/
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PART 2 of 3

The Great Blunder Of The Church

The ritualism of Romanism came as a result of that which began in the day of the apostles. Read the issue of the Jerusalem council, in Acts 15, and note the question in Acts 15:10 and decision of that council in Acts 15:24 to 29. We quote the question:
Acts 15:10

"Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?"

Then note the words from the Holy Spirit by the pen of Paul: "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump." Galatians 5:9. The ritualism, fanaticism, religious legalism and "salvation by works" movements in Christendom have come as a result of the leaven of Judaism, mixing Israel's program into the "grace" program which the risen Christ gave to Paul.

Paul speaks of himself, in the first person pronoun, about 1,200 times in the Bible. He had a most unique ministry, as he had a unique conversion and very special dispensations. Note these words:
Ephesians 3:1 and 2

"For this cause, I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to youward."

For several centuries Christians have been emerging from the corrupted Christianity of the dark ages and the progress has been very slow. Christians, trying to escape from one religious blunder, have gone into another and denominationalism and tradition have much retarded the recovery of "Body" truth, and hindered in the matter of obeying 2 Timothy 2:15 for the intelligent, Scriptural selection of God's spiritual program for members of the Body of Christ, so that members might walk worthy of the calling wherewith they are called. Ephesians 4:1.

Virtually every group, assembly or organization of Evangelical Christians as incorporated in its Church creeds and instructed its members to practice, something Israelitish; something of religion which the Lord never intended for the period of grace. The selection from the Bible of that which belongs to God's spiritual program and the rejection of that which does not belong is sometimes no easy task. But surely God has some intelligent Scriptural principle, in obedience to 2 Timothy 2:15, by which the Spirit-taught students of the Scriptures may know how to appropriate and apply the Scriptures to walk well pleasing unto the Lord.

Quite frequently the members of one denomination, who have their established denominational program, are ungraciously intolerant with the members of another denomination, whose denominational creed and practices differ in some details, even thought the members of both denominations may agree as to the inspiration of the Scriptures, the eternal Deity of Lord Jesus Christ, salvation by faith in Christ's redemptive work and in other fundamental doctrines.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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"Paul's Grace Message"
http://www.voy.com/21122/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

PART 3 of 3

The Great Blunder Of The Church

We shall not have time to go into all these details; but surely our reader will agree with us that, because of traditions and fears of men, nearly every organized group of Christians has arbitrarily, promiscuously, and capriciously selected, from the Four Gospels, the Psalms and the Book of Acts, some of the messages and program of Israel which has no rightful place in the Body of Christ. From the earthly ministry of Christ and His apostles, and from the Church of the "Acts" period, they have selected or rejected such of those religious programs as seemeth good to them without apology, or explanation, or intelligent Scriptural exegesis, and nearly one hundred percent of them have, intentionally, or unintentionally, carried over something that rightly belonged to Israel's God given program, but which has no place in God's spiritual program for the Body of the mystery, "Ephesian 3:9.

The Great Blunder has resulted from many blunders. We name several of them. Men of God have taught that the Old Covenant began with the first chapter of Genesis and that the New Covenant began with the first chapter of Matthew. They have not learned that there is not one statement concerning the Old Covenant in the Book of Genesis, because the Covenant of Sinai, made "Old" by the death of Christ, was not given until Exodus 20. Christian men seem to have forgotten that the Nation Israel had its beginning about 1800 years before Christ and that the people who lived before Jacob's name was changed to Israel, were not Israelites. They have failed to note, and there by governed in their Church creeds, the division God mentions in Romans 5:13 and 14, and Galatians 3:19 "From Adam to Moses when there was no law (no Old Covenant)" and "the law (Old Covenant) was added to the Abrahamic covenant until Abraham's Seed ( Christ ) came."

Christian men apparently have failed to note that both the Old Covenant and the New Covenant were Israelitish. Jeremiah 31:31 to 37.

Many Christian preachers have preached to God's people, under grace, in the body of Christ, the earthly kingdom promises, made to Israel, belonging to an entirely different dispensation. Christians have for centuries been taught that Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Daniel, John the Baptist, Peter and Paul all belonged to the same Church. Their preachers and teachers have failed to differentiate between Jesus of Nazareth in the mist of Israel in Palestine, Paul's mystery, "Christ in you the hope of glory." Acts 2:22 and Colossians 1:24 to 27. Many of them have overlooked the fact that Jesus on earth was Israel's minister of the circumcision, sent only to Israel, made under the law to redeem Israel. Romans 15:8, Matthew 15:24; Galatians 4:4 and 5. Many of them have failed to recognize the period of the Book of Acts, the place of Israel in the Book of Acts, and the very important truth of Galatians 2:7 to 9. We quote these verses:

Galatians 2:7 to 9

"But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me (Paul), as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter:

(For He that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same in me toward the Gentiles);

And when James, Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision."

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Grace Net
http://www.freewebs.com/gracenet/index3.html
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THE FUZZY GOD

by Dr. Carl Wieland

If you ask around, you find that there are not at all many hard-core atheists about. Most people say they believe in "god", but I want to suggest that they are usually not talking about the Creator God of the Bible, but about a false, "fuzzy" god, whom I shall label "fuzzgod" for short.

Unless our concept of God is totally based upon what God has revealed about Him- self, the word "God" has no fixed content, and communicates no objective meaning. As evolution has eroded trust in the reliability of the Bible, many churches have begun contemplating such ideas as whether God could be referred to as "she". Let’s face it--if people are only talking about a god of their own imaginings (which is all that is possible if the revelation of the true God is effectively discarded) they might be conceivably talking about a three-horned cosmic cow.

On the other hand, once revelation is accepted as authoritative, there is no room for argument on the subject of God’s "gender." Having been told that God is spirit, we are plainly told that He wishes believers to address Him as Father, not mother--end of discussion.

Let’s list some features of this popular god of today:

l. "Fuzzgod" is not a god of holiness. Whereas the true God hates sin and has repeatedly acted in judgment in history, fuzzgod wouldn’t do anything like that. Fuzzgod only makes people feel good, not bad. Fuzzgod is convenient to give comfort when you need warm fuzzies, and doesn’t really mind about you cheating on your tax. Fuzzgod is good to send just about everyone to heaven (or maybe arrange reincarnation).

2. Fuzzgod accommodates everyone’s opinions. We’ve all heard people say what they think God would or wouldn’t do, oblivious to the pronouncements of the Bible. They must be talking about fuzzgod, since the true God gas set down what is right and wrong regardless of our opinion.

3. The character of the true God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Many regard that as a little stodgy today--unwilling to change (evolve) with the times. Not like fuzzgod, who is quite flexible, depending on the need--sort of fuzzy around the edges. Fuzzgod’s adherents are similar. I remember asking a hospital chaplain whether he was theologically liberal or conservative. He replied, "Whichever the patient wants me to be."

4. Fuzzgod is broadminded--offering many different ways to truth and enlightenment, whereas God the Creator says there is only one way to Him, through the death and sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.

5. Fuzzgod is only "sort of" the creator of all things. When fuzzgod’s devotees are engaged in sinful actions, it’s convenient to focus on the "impersonal" aspects of the idea that we just evolved from animals- less sense of responsibility that way. But when they want meaning or purpose to existence, the idea of fuzzgod as some sort of vague, impotent guiding force to the evolutionary process helps in a fuzzy sort of way.

The "unfuzzy" miracle- working God of the Bible tells us clearly that He did not stand by while millions of years of death and accidents did the creating. That sort of powerful God, who caused billions of dead things to be buried in rock layers because of judgment on a sinful world, is quite uncomfortable for the unconverted.

A Christian commercial on public TV features children telling us that "God made everything." I suspect it will do little to wake people up to the Gospel because most would respond, "Yeah, I know that God (they mean the fuzzy variety) let everything evolve." A fuzzy god leads to a fuzzy (or non-existent) Gospel.

All of this underscores why it is so important to make it clear that pro- claiming and defending Genesis creation is about more than just "God making things." It is about the authority of the Bible, and the power and nature of (the true) God. It is about the reality of the Fall and the origin of sin. Thus the ultimate concern is about the whole message of salvation--only through the blood of Jesus Christ.

--from Prayer News (Creation Science Foundation Ltd

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on November 06, 2003, 04:13:53 PM

Another wonderful web-site and a great study. Thanks A4C

AMEN!

Brother Love :)

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 09, 2003, 12:56:45 PM

God's word should rightly be divided accordingly:

Galatians 3:28. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

All are one and the same in Christ, the body of Christ, little flock, brethren, etc. James addresses brethren as does Paul so they must all be one in Christ as the body of Christ and not divided as your post suggests.

Unity is always stressed!

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Ambassadors For Christ
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pointe/4451/page2.html
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The Gospel Of The Uncircumcision (PART 4 of 4)

By Duane Gallentine

This Gospel of the Circumcision is the cure-all Israel needed in Peter's day as God, through the Twelve Apostles, offered Israel the Kingdom. That Nation had rejected God the Father in allowing John the Baptist to be killed. They had demanded that God the Son be crucified. And during the early chapters of the Book of Acts, the Holy Ghost empowers the Little Flock, with Peter at the helm, to offer unto Israel the Gospel of the Circumcision: "Repent and be baptized..." is its invitation (Acts 2:38). During the first part of the book of Acts repentance, water baptism, and the remission of sins goes to "the children of the prophets, and of the covenants which God made with our fathers,..." (Acts 2:14, 22, 29, 36;3:25; 4:10; 5:31). The three-fold provision of the good news of the Circumcision was once again offered to Israel [Acts 3:17-21] based upon the New Covenant/Testament blood sacrifice of Israel's True High Priest, Jesus Christ.

In Jeremiah 31:31-34 Israel's God announces that He will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. This passage lists the identical provision of the Covenant of Circumcision, the Old Covenant/Testament, the Covenant of Peace and the Everlasting Covenant. It is:

Jeremiah 31:33--I, Jehovah, will be Israel's God. The Circumcised will have Jehovah as their God. The Lord will give Israel anew heart to know Him--Jeremiah 24:7. This new heart will not fail;
Jeremiah 31:33--The House of Israel shall be MY PEOPLE, for they shall return unto Me with their whole heart which He gives them;
Jeremiah 31:38-40/Ezekial 36:24--Jehovah will bring redeemed Israel into their own land.
At last, the Circumcised will be found in righteousness and with peace in the Land. The Record of Peter's preaching as found in the book of Acts is based upon these Covenants of promise made with the Fathers, including the Covenant of Circumcision. Peter offered all the house of Israel (Acts 2:36, etc.) the fulfillment of the Covenants of promise. When carefully studied, Acts 3:13-26 reveals the three-fold provision of the Circumcision.

At Pentecost those Israelites responding by faith would obey the revelation given through Peter's preaching and enjoy the blessings within the GOSPEL OF THE CIRCUMCISION. Then and only then, Israel would find her remedy for her sin problem. Through this Gospel they would walk in obedience to the Law. Israel would receive the blessings of the New Testament/New Law through Jesus, the Messiah. Faith plus Works done in the Flesh equals blessing in the Land-see James 2. This is a Law, Work, Flesh System of operation.

But the Record of the stoning of Stephen in Acts 7 shows the Nation of Israel joining the heathen in rejecting God's Anointed. Israel, at this point, was judged by God to be like the nations: IN UNBELIEF. We read of this declaration in Romans 11:30-32. In the Prophetic Scriptures it was revealed that God would unleash His wrath and sore displeasure when Israel joined the heathen in rebelling against the Lord and His Anointed (Psalm 2:1-5). During that judgment, God would send forth His angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come."--Revelations 14:6,7.

But something wonderful and gracious happened!! The minutes of that prophetic hour of judgment did not begin to tick away. This is where the due time testimony [1Tim 2:6-7; Titus 1:3] of the Epistle to the Galatians boldly announces a NEW Apostle, Paul, with that NEW Gospel called "THE GOSPEL OF THE UNCIRCUMCISION".

"But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen;..."---Galatians 1:15,16
"Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing, For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law."---Galatians 5:2-3
"For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love."---Galatians 5:6
"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature."---Galatians 6:15
As Paul preached "THE GOSPEL OF THE UNCIRCUMCISION" to the Galatians it is very clear that the Gospel which he had taught them was not associated or mingled with the good news of the Circumcision. In fact concerning Paul's gospel of the Grace of Christ, circumcision becomes a curse making Christ profiting the Body of Christ nothing. Grace becomes vain! (Galatians 5:2-4).

These Galatians were the descendants of the heathen that were given up at the tower of Babel. God had made no covenant with them. They were strangers from all those Covenants of promise and were without Christ (Ephesians 2:11, 12). BUT NOW through the gospel Paul preached, these who were afar off from God as He dealt with Israel over the centuries, find GOOD NEWS through Paul's office of Apostleship, Message, and Ministry. They who had no hope, find hope in the Gospel of the Grace of God during this Dispensation of the Grace of God. Israel's rejected Christ/Messiah, even the King of Israel, is NOW the Hope of the uncircumcised being made the Head of the One Body of Christ!! (1Tim 1:1; Eph 1:19-23).

Today in this present Dispensation of Grace, the Gospel of the Circumcision that Peter labored under has temporarily been put into abeyance by God [the diminishing of Israel from Acts 7 to the end of Acts28] so that the present Word of Truth may bring to fullness the working of God amongst the heathen nations or UNCIRCUMCISED via this new Gospel of the Uncircumcision. This is a Grace, Faith, Spirit System of operation. In this new system there is no racial, religious, economical or national benefit with or from God in being circumcised or Law keeping (Eph.1:3).

Since the close of the Book of Acts, God has approved of only one Gospel being proclaimed. It is the Gospel of the Grace of God--Acts 20:24--in this Dispensation of the Grace of God--Ephesians 3:1,2. It has appeared, and will continue to appear, to all without distinction until the fullness of the Gentiles become in--i.e. the Body of Christ be complete (Titus 2:11,12; Romans 11:25). At such time when the Body is complete, God will conclude this Dispensation in the catching away of that One Body (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) and bring about the revitalization of Abraham's descendants, National Israel, through THE GOSPEL OF THE CIRCUMCISION.

In closing, to any and all who mix the two Programs of God--Prophecy and Mystery--the different Gospels--the Gospel of the Kingdom, the Gospel of the Circumcision, or the Gospel of the Uncircumcision; Israel and the Body of Christ, or degrades Paul's distinct Message of Grace, God pronounces a strong warning unto them:

"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed."--Galatians 1:8,9.
Especially, may the Christian worker beware and take heed [1Corinthians 3:10; 1Timothy 4:16] how he buildeth the house of doctrine upon the foundation of our soul salvation by faith alone in,

"Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures"--see 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.
The foundation with its super-structure that reaches into the heavenly places has been laid and built by Paul. It consists of the Sound Doctrines that Paul alone received by direct revelation of Jesus Christ according to the Mystery (Galatians 1:11,12; Ephesians 3:1-4). Paul is the Apostle of Jesus Christ to/of the Gentiles, with the Gospel of the Uncircumcision, according to the will and commandment of God (Galatians 1:1; Titus 1:1-3; Romans 1:5). His ministry and 13 Epistles manifest the Gospel of the Grace of God which reveals Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the Mystery. By teaching the same Sound Doctrine that Paul taught, we shall be found by Christ to be faithful stewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Timothy 2:2; 3:14; 4:7-8; Romans 14:10-12; 1 Corinthians 3:10-15). Only Paul's Gospel is God's message for the saving of the eternal soul during this present Dispensation!

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on November 11, 2003, 04:33:24 PM

Hey Brother, now thats some good Meat, thanks again.

Amen

Brother Love :)

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Discerning The Times
http://www.discerningthetimespublishing.com/main.htm
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With a Bible in my hand
by Terence D. McLean

WHAT ABOUT UNANSWERED PRAYER ??

At one end of the field, the visiting football team huddles in the end zone and prays. Just then the home team does the same beneath the opposite goal post.

What does the Lord hear?

In unison, the opposing teams might pray "Lord, we pray that you will give us the victory and let us knock the snot out of those other guys."
Christian Broadcasting Network President Pat Robertson prays that a hurricane would veer away from the CBN's offices in South Carolina and it does, only to hit and kill people in New Jersey.
Even Adolph Hitler said that God was on his side.
In his book OUTRAGE: FIVE REASONS WHY O.J. SIMPSON GOT AWAY WITH MURDER
agnostic lawyer Vincent Bugliosi writes "Saying that 'God answered my prayers' necessarily means two things: that God has the power to answer prayers, and more important, for the 99 percent of the other humans who pray and beg for God's merciful intervention in time of desperate need, God told
them to take a walk, get lost, He couldn't care less."
With the critical and logical mind of a cynical lawyer, Bugliosi continues by asking "Don't you think the Jew at Auschwitz prayed to God to be spared.
Maybe we have been praying to the wrong entity all along. People who believe in prayers could hardly do worse praying to the devil." (pgs 250-251)Should you listen to the so-called Christian radio or television broadcasts, you will undoubtedly hear several people "bind Satan, in the name of Jesus,"
during the course of the broadcast day. The obvious questions are "Why must you bind Satan more than once: how does that rascal keep getting loose?"

There is a bumper sticker out there which asks "If Jesus saves, why can't He ubgone57?" That would be a good question for today's crop of 'faith healers' to answer.
When the tornadoes tore through many cities this spring, people were killed and property damage was considerable. One pastor standing in the rubble that had been his church told the CNN reporter that "God is trying to tell us something."
Attorney Bugliosi would look at the disaster area with its dead bodies and sarcastically ask, "why would anyone feel he (God) is all-good or want to spend eternity with this type of being?" (Ibid. pg 251)
The answers to the questions people have about prayer are actually quite easily found and understood, but learning the answers requires knowledge of the Bible.
And while we would reasonably expect that agnostic authors would not have read the material, it is the sad truth that most Christians are equally unlearned.
Fact is, Adam and Eve didn't need to pray: God walked and talked with them in the garden.
After God kicked the First Family out of the garden and Cain killed his brother, mankind learned it was estranged from its maker and "then began men to call upon the name of the Lord." (Genesis 4:26)
When God gave His covenant to the nation Israel over 2500 years later, prayer became much more sophisticated. Under that covenant "If my people (Israel) which are called by my name (Lord God of Israel), shall humble themselves (by
keeping all the laws and statutes) and pray, and seek my face (which God had hid from them since the sin in the garden) and turn from their wicked ways (by performing the Mosaic law); then will I hear from heaven." (II Chronicles
7:14)
But without keeping all the laws, statutes and their end of the covenant, God promised to "pluck them up by the roots." (lI Chronicles 7:20)
When Jesus Christ, who said "I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel' (Matthew 15:25) and declared that "salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22) instructed how to pray, He broke some new ground.
Matthew 21:22 is plain that "All things, whatsoever ye (Israel) shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."
If that weren't only for Israel, I wouldn't be bald.
Fact is, God set his dealings with Israel aside (Romans 1 i), and with the change, prayer was again altered.
Paul tells the church in which there is neither Jew nor Gentile but a new creature, "We KNOW NOT what we should pray for as we ought ...we KNOW that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:26, 28)
One verse tells us what we know, the other tells us what we don't know. And from those passages we see that God has again intervened to change the mechanics of prayer.
No longer walking in the garden with man, no more with His face turned away, no more operating under the Jewish covenant, no longer the ministry of the Messiah, God tells us today that He is not up in heaven waiting for our prayers to tell Him how to run things.
And because we are on a sin-cursed planet with Satan as the "god of this world" (II Corinthians 4:4), we should be relieved that the ultimate responsibility is God's, not ours.
God has now told us what he wants us to know through His Bible, not through tornadoes.
When Christians under grace, (not Jews under the law), are instructed about prayer they are told to "Let your requests be make known unto God" (Philippians 4:6)
And...
And what, exactly?
And you will get whatever you ask for, as the faith healers say?
And you will get one out of a million, as the agnostic suggests?
And God may say 'No,' as weak-spined theologians postulate?
The answer is 'None of the above."
"And the peace of God, which passeth ail understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7)
Keeping track of everything "passeth our understanding" and since we are "strangers from the covenants of promise" (Ephesians 2: i2) we are much ahead to accept God's peace rather than to require authority over Him in prayer.
God says to tell Him everything, learn to be thankful for everything, and be anxious about nothing, for God will work whatever happens for the good of them that love Him.
Amen

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Bob Hill's Biblical Answers
http://www.biblicalanswers.com/index.htm
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Question: Where does the trumpet fit into the rapture?
I have tried to figure out for a long time why a trumpet is associaged with the rapture. I know we have 7 trumpets in the Revelation, But they all have their own uique Place and purpose. Where does a trumpet fit into the Rapture?
In Christ,
Rodney

Answer:
Dear Rodney,
I'm not sure just what it is that you don't understand about the trumpet in the rapture, so I'll tell you what I think. When we consider the trumpet sounding, we must realize that Paul wrote the comforting passages about it blowing to the body of Christ at Thessalonica and Corinth. 1 Th 4:13-18: "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words."
This whole thought was new to the Thessalonians. He had told them about many other things but not about the rapture. Notice, he says, "I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren." Since this was new, then it was not revealed in the Old Testament or Christ's Olivet discourse. Further, they seemed more concerned about the condition of their dead loved ones than a theology of eschatology. He wrote this to comfort them, "lest you sorrow as others who have no hope," so they would have hope in the resurrection of their loved ones. But Paul went further. He showed them an event where they would be united with their loved ones in the air. Notice, this hope is based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ, "for if we believe that Jesus died and rose again." In a similar manner, His resurrection is based on our justification. Then he described the rapture. Why does he give them this information? He wanted to comfort them, "Therefore comfort one another with these words."
The other passage about the rapture, 1 Co 15:51-54 is more important, theologically: "Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed - 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (I think it should be translated: in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, in the last trump), at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound (While this trumpet is sounding, actually during the last note (trump), the dead will be raised and we who remain until the coming of the Lord will be changed.), and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
This passage is more important because the whole event is called a mystery. The secret in 1 Corinthians 15:51,52 is not the concept that some will not see death, for our Lord expresses this idea clearly in John 11:25-26: "he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, but he who lives and believes in Me will never die." The secret is the event itself.
Now, the second coming, including the gathering of the elect, is well prophesied: Mat 24: 29-31: Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
The event of Mat 24 was no mystery to Paul. Let us recall here the precise definition of 'mystery.' A mustayrion is not an ambiguous or mystical revelation, but an unrevealed truth. The LXX of Dan 2:19 employs mustayrion to render the Persian (Aramaic) raz, 'secret,' in reference to Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Daniel did not receive from Nebuchadnezzar a vague or shadowy revelation of the dream. Rather, until the God of heaven revealed the secret to His prophet, the content of the dream was completely concealed to him. Likewise, the secret of the rapture was not the subject of ambiguous or shadowy revelation before Paul, but was concealed in God. This definition, of course, does not preclude the discussion of the rapture in Paul's earlier epistles to the Thessalonians, for the mustayrion of Ephesians is discussed in Romans. Since the rapture is a mustayrion, the disclosure of the church's hope prior to the revelation of the secret church through Paul is also a mystery.
We can see from the portion of scripture in 1 Thessalonians that Christ is bringing with Him those who died. He will descend from heaven with a shout, the voice of an archangel, and the trumpet of God. The dead in Christ will rise first. The rapture is Christ's coming and our going. We "shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." We'll all be changed at the last sound of the trumpet. What an event. But although these two passages describe the rapture, they do not give us the time when it will take place. In considering the time of the rapture in relation to the tribulation, we must remember the nature of the mystery.
Since the nature of the mystery shows us that the body of Christ is never referred to in biblical prophecy prior to Paul's conversion, we can make some conclusions about when it occurs. They are: Prophecy about the people in the tribulation would not refer to the body of Christ. Prophecy about the day of the Lord would not apply to the body of Christ. Prophecy about the people under the wrath of God would not apply to the body of Christ. Therefore, the rapture, since it only applies to the body of Christ, must take place prior to the prophetic program which follows for the next 1,007 years, and the trumpet of the rapture has nothing to do with the trumpets of the tribulation.
In Christ,
Bob

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 1 of 4)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

A contention exists as to whether Paul was the new 12th Apostle chosen by the Lord Jesus Christ to fill Judas' office, or was it Matthias, from the account of Acts:1.
The purpose of this paper is to lay out the clear meaning of Scripture in this matter with the hope of correcting wrong doctrine.

I. Peter's Contention To Fill Judas' Office

A key element in understanding the importance of a "12th" apostle is the fact that God ordained the office of Apostle. These men were given a unique ministry so that while they were counted as disciples of Christ, they were also distinct as to power, authority and mission above the others.

Matthew 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickeness and all manner of disease.
Ephesians 2:20 And (you, the Ephesians), are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner .

Some of the elements unique to apostleship shall be explored later. There is no dispute that the individual with the "rank" of Apostle not only had special training, responsibilities and authority, but also, a fixed position in the ages to come.

Matt 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Note: In Ephesians chapter 2 we find, "times past": pre-body of Christ, prophesy program. "But now": body of Christ, mystery program, dispensation of grace. "Ages to come": post "but now", continuation of prophesy program.

Peter's intent then, in Acts 1, was to fill the office given to Judas, and vacated by Judas' death.

Acts 1:20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishopric let another take.

The importance of this being an existing office, needing to be filled, and not a new position, created for whatever purpose, is this: Paul never lays claim to Judas' office.

In Paul's 13 letters he often lays claim to the office of Apostle given to him by the Lord Jesus Christ. At no time does he refer to the "12th" position, vacated by Judas. This fact does not demean Paul's apostleship. This fact indicates that Paul's apostleship was different than the 12. (A point to be explored later)

Upon the completion of the casting of lots, (which from the context seems to include the 120, not just the 11), Matthias was now considered the "12th" apostle.

Acts 1:26 And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Why be concerned with an exact number of apostles? Why not let the remaining apostles carry on with their work? The answer is in the verse prior to the one we just quoted:

Acts 1:25 That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

When the Lord Jesus came to this earth it was to establish his kingdom. John the baptist prepared the way as foretold by scripture. Thus we find Old Testament believers waiting for the kingdom. Over and over again in the 4 gospels: the issue is the kingdom.

In Matthew 10, we find the Lord Jesus is giving the twelve finite instructions of their mission and deportment.

Matt 10: 6-7 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The Lord Jesus himself established the 12 offices. In the ages to come we find that these same men will each be judging the tribes of Israel, and that even their names are eternally inscribed in the physical foundations of the New Jerusalem.

Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the lamb.

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 2 of 4)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

Where does the apostle Paul claim the office of Judas? Paul clearly defines a new apostleship to the Gentiles. The original twelve, before the age of Grace did not deal with the gentiles other than through the house of Israel.

Matt 10:5-6 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

After the Lord Jesus ascends into Heaven we find the apostles still speaking to and confining their ministry to Jews:

Acts 2:39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

In Galatians 2:9, Paul and the circumcision apostles agree: Paul and Barnabas will go to the heathen and the twelve will confine their ministry to the circumcision.

The apostles at this point are clearly obeying their command to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And do what? Preach the kingdom so that they would receive it:

Acts 2:30 Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne.

God's long-suffering with his children, Israel, allowed him to continue to offer them the Kingdom even after they crucified His Son. And had the Jews accepted this, the 70th week of Daniel would have started as prophesied. However, as we know, God intervened with something unforeseen by His prophets, the Age of Grace.

We can define what Peter, the apostles and all the rest were doing:

Acts 2:42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Acts 6:4 But we will give ourselves (the twelve, vs 2) continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.

What word are they talking about, the Pauline Epistles? Of course not. The word they received from the Lord Jesus to preach the Gospel that He gave them: "The kingdom of heaven is at hand."

Does Paul cease from manual labor like the twelve to give himself continually to prayer and to preaching the Kingdom? No, quite the opposite. We will explore this in more detail in the discussion of Paul's unique apostleship.

The office given to Matthias in Acts 2, was clearly and only the office given to, and vacated by, Judas Iscariot, the one who delivered the Lord Jesus to be crucified. The study of Judas himself and his relationship to Jesus and the twelve is not part of our study here. The point here is that Scripture does not link Paul's apostleship to Judas' apostleship.

II. Peter's Preparation

The main character in the events surrounding the choosing of Matthias is the Apostle Peter. It is important to study this man and his actions in this matter.

The Lord Jesus and his disciples, in the account of the Last Supper/Betrayal by Judas, went to the mount of Olives. Twice he gave the disciples (including Peter) instructions to pray:

Luke 22:40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.
Luke 22:46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation

Instead of entering into prayer, we find the disciples all sleeping, and needing to be awakened as Judas and the multitude approached.

Contrast this to the beginning of the book of Acts, where we find the same group after Jesus has ascended into Heaven:

Acts 1:15 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication......
Acts 1:24 And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, show whether of these two thou hast chosen.

Peter, as will become abundantly clear, is a changed man in the book of Acts. In the gospels we find him in the garden not praying as the Lord Jesus commanded so that he would not fall into temptation, then in Acts, we find him praying so that he would know just what to do.

In the garden he is sleeping, in Acts he is leading a group in obeying scripture.

We don't find Peter, prior to Acts, directing his actions by scripture. Instead, we see him an impulsive, passionate man, given to rash acts and statements:

Mark 8:32,33 And he (Jesus) spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men..

It has been said that Peter was a changed man after Acts 2:1, the day of Pentecost. However, it seems more reasonable to point to Acts 1:14 to find a Peter that now "savourest the things of God".

The Peter we find in Acts is "continuing" in prayer, and, before he moves to action, is bringing the scriptures to bear:

Acts 1:16 Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled which the Holy Ghost, by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was a guide to them that took Jesus.* ref PS 41:9
ref: Ps 41:9 Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.
Acts 1:18 Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity.....
ref: Zechariah 11:12 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of Silver.

Acts: 1:20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate....

ref: Ps 69:25 Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents.

Acts 1:20 ....and his bishopric let another take.

ref: Ps 109:8 Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

Is Peter quoting these scriptures capriciously? Has he offered these Old Testament verses simply to support his own version of right and wrong?

The implication of disagreeing with Peter on the choosing of Matthias opens to question his entire understanding of scripture. And more than that, the principle of looking to scripture to comment on scripture!

Prophesy would have no meaning without the fulfillment. And so, reading Peter (or anyone involved in the choosing of Matthias), do we say now that these men do not understand the scripture at this point and we cannot hold their interpretation as valid?

But what does scripture say about the Apostle's understanding of the scriptures?

Luke 24:45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,

The book of Acts is a continuation of the book of Luke. To end Luke with Peter understanding the scriptures, and have Acts begin with Peter not understanding the scriptures is a dangerous leap of logic.

One must also reckon with the fact, as we previously discussed, that Peter and the group were praying. If their thinking in the choosing of Matthias was so far off and their actions misdirected, who were they praying to?

A principle of Bible study when determining the character of a person, is to watch for key words such as worship or prayer as an indication of their heart and acceptance before God.

The clear implication of Acts:1 is that the group was united before God in prayer and that they were seeking to move in the will of God in their next action.

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 3 of 4)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

III. Qualification Of An Apostle

One would be hard-pressed to make a list of exemplary qualities that would lead anyone to choose the men that Christ chose as Apostles.

Without question, Judas was an Apostle. His assimilation into the group and ministries of the twelve was so complete, that at the last supper, he is pinpointed by the Lord Jesus as the betrayer, and no one picked up on it. More than that: the rest of them were asking if they were the traitors.

Many a misguided sermon extol the energies, education and qualifications of an unsaved Saul of Tarsus. The implication is that God "redirected" all of Saul's assets into a new
saved Paul.

Paul himself comments on this:

Philippians 3:8 .....for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.

The clearest qualification of apostleship is their choosing by God Almighty:

John 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name; those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled.

The Greek definition of apostle is: a delegate, an ambassador of the gospel; officially a commissioner of Christ (with miraculous powers): messenger, he that is sent. Strongs #652.

We can see from the translation that the office of apostle focuses and receives its qualifications, not from the office holder, but from the "commissioner", the Lord Jesus Christ.

Trying to find out why Christ chose the men He did would be a wasted effort. Noting His instructions to them, however, will be of great value.

We find in Matthew the account of the choosing of the apostles. Here they are told for the first time where to go, what to do and how to do it:

Matthew 10:6-8 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

The 12 apostles were only to go to the house of Israel and not directly to the Gentiles.

Matthew 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not.

Are the Gentiles excluded by this command? Most certainly not. Until the apostle Paul,
any person who would enter the kingdom of heaven would need to enter by the system that God had set up, that is, through his people Israel:

Genesis 18:18 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?

Throughout scripture we find a distinction, existing or removed, between the Jew and the Gentile. The Jew being God's people chosen to receive the kingdom. The Gentile being the heathen whose only hope of entering the kingdom was through Israel.

What were the apostles to do? Preach! Preach what? That the kingdom was at hand!
At hand meaning that it is right in front of them, not far off, not at some unknown future date, but right here and now.

To prove the message and their commission, the apostles were given miraculous powers to heal, raise the dead and power to cast out devils. This is consistant with the life as it will be in the kingdom: no sickness, no death, Satan bound. The children of Israel did indeed taste of the ages to come:

Hebrews 6:5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

What would have been a successful conclusion to the apostles mission? That all Israel would accept Christ as Messiah and the Kingdom "at hand" would arrive.

Even after the death of the Lord Jesus, the apostles had no other focus:

Acts 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

The mission that the Lord Jesus gave to the 12 did not change immediately after his death. They were to tell God's people, and through that vehicle, all people of the world, who Christ was:

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

We find Peter, in Acts 2, being filled with the Holy Spirit, understanding the Scriptures, preaching to Jews, from all over the world, that the Jesus they crucified was the king!

Peter reminds them of the miracles of Jesus and the apostles, showing them who Christ was. He makes it abundantly clear that this is David's son, who is to sit on David's throne and rule as their king.

Acts 2:30 Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;
Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

The importance of pinpointing the message that the 12 were preaching is that we can understand that Paul's apostleship was not the same, and that Matthias was chosen to carry on a work and message not given to Paul. God's program in the first part of the book of Acts was still what Paul refers to as "Times Past": the 12 were still calling for Israel to receive the kingdom.

Acts 2:39 For the promise, is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

What promise? God's convenant with Abraham. The Messiah was to come and save the Jews, and make them the ruling nation of the world.

John the Baptist was to make Israel ready, calling them to repentance, baptizing them as a sign of cleansing. The apostles are doing the same even after Christ's death:

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Note that Peter's call is to "every one of you" (Jews from all over the world). Scripture tells us the number that responded:

Acts 2:41 Then, they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

We now see a distinction among those that heard the message:

A: every one of you
B: they that gladly received

This message by Peter was one of God's last offers to His people to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their King. Sadly, only three thousand accepted, making the total number of Jews we know accepted Christ as Messiah about 3,120.

Had they all accepted, Daniel's 70th week would have begun. They did not! God instituted a new dispensation of grace. The dispensation given uniquely to Paul, not the twelve.

Do we find Paul preaching that the kingdom of God is at hand, or salvation is through the Jews? No, his message is different. Also, the people who he is to give the message to is changed:

Acts 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Paul now preaches faith as the only condition for salvation.

I Timothy 2:7 Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.

We have already determined that the 12 were not to go unto the way of the gentiles. Clearly Paul had a different mission. We also find that the apostles and Paul did not formally agree on the different missions until a number of years after Paul's conversion:

Galatians 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

Was this when Paul first knew that his apostleship had a different focus than the rest? No, from the time of his conversion we find that Paul was now to go to the gentiles:

Acts 9:15 But the Lord said unto him (Ananias), Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 4 of 5)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

IV. Paul's Qualification and Mission

No one, even just glancing at the scriptures, would ever come to the conclusion that Paul was not an Apostle. All the signs that the twelve displayed when Jesus walked on this earth, and afterwards, were also displayed by Paul.

Paul does not claim the office through any authority other than that of God Almighty.

Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

The difference between the 12 and Paul lies not in the office itself , but in how God is dealing with the world i.e.. "dispensation".

The preaching of the 12, as we have discussed, concerned the kingdom which was to be established here on earth as prophesied. Paul had a new message, the literal, physical, visible earthly kingdom of Christ was no longer the issue. A mystery was revealed to Paul: an age of grace, completely hidden from all men until now.

Romans 16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel ,and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,

Compare this to what Peter and John preached:

Acts 3:21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

Paul is not saying "my gospel" to personalize his ownership of it. The truth is, this new dispensation of Grace was given uniquely to Paul, and to us through Paul. It is "his" gospel in distinction to the good news preached by the 12, (the kingdom of heaven is at hand).

The discussion of the uniqueness of the church age and God's program for this present time, is too vast to approach here. Suffice it to say, to miss the importance of what God has revealed to Paul, for Paul to teach us, is to miss the point of Paul's role as the minister or caretaker of this dispensation.

Colossians 1:25 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God;

The Lord Jesus chose 12 Jewish men, who are to reign over the 12 tribes in the future kingdom of Christ on this earth. At no time do we find any of the twelve setting aside their standing as a Jew, partaker of the convenant with Abraham.

We, however, find that Paul takes his "Hebrew of the Hebrews" status, and rejects that standing in favor of what he now has in this age of Grace.

Philippians 3:8-9 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win christ, and be found in him not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.

Paul's epistles clearly distinguish the change God has made from dealing with man through the law, and now through Grace. Clearly, many of the errors and problems Paul deals with are due either to the mixing of law and grace or the outright return to law for justification before God.

Paul's most important qualification for Apostleship is that it is God's will:

2nd Corinthians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus christ by the will of God,....

Paul also clearly understood his unique mission:

Titus 1:3 But hath in due times manifested his work through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our savior.

Paul's qualification for apostleship was not only distinct but superior to the original 12. Superior in the sense that God has issued a new dispensation, the prior program is now suspended until the rapture of the Church.

Does Paul preach that the kingdom is at hand or that salvation is of the Jews? Peter and the other apostles certainly did. What does Paul say about the difference between him and the 12?

Galatians 2:6 But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

How can it be that the 12, to whom so much was revealed and entrusted, could not tell Paul anything new or indeed, increase his understanding? Instead, Paul instructed the 12:

Galatians 2:7 But contrariwise, when they saw the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;

We find here that Paul now teaches the 12 about the mystery. Before this meeting only the gospel of the circumcision (salvation is of the Jews) was understood. From this point on, Paul is teaching something new and different, the age of Grace.

It also appears that three men were the first to understand:

Galatians 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas, the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

There is without a doubt a clear distinction between Paul and the 12 as far as mission. In fact, Paul needs to publicly rebuke Peter when he , in practice, returns to separation between Jew and Gentile.

The Body of Christ is not instructed to follow the 12, but instead to follow Paul:

Philippians 3:17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.

If the Body of Christ were called to imitate the 12, we would have to distinguish between Jew and Gentile again. That is not the case now, but will be after the rapture when God's time table/prophetic program, is again set in motion.

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 5 of 6)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

. Did Peter Act Alone?

Peter clearly is the main character in Acts chapter 1, but who was involved in the choosing of Matthias?

Acts 1: 13-14 identifies for us the Apostles, Mary, Jesus' brethren and "the women". We then get a more general count of the group:
Acts 1:15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty.)

The purpose of this point is that the text is making perfectly clear that what is being done in Chapter 1 of Acts is being done by a group acting in unity.

Acts 1:14 These all continued with one accord....

The reader should now ask: who are these, and what are they continuing?

We need to look back to the start of Acts to find the noun to which the pronouns following refer:

Acts 1:2 ... had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

From this point until verse 10, this same group is described by 18 pronouns until identified by another title by the two men in white apparel:

Acts 1:10 ....Ye men of Galilee....

The context of the passage is that this unique group, not the people in general, are getting instructions concerning the return of Christ, the kingdom , what their role is, where they are to be and with whom they will be dealing.

Peter, then, when he stands up to speak, continues to identify this particular group:

Acts 1:17 ...numbered with us...
Acts 1:21 ...which have companied with us...

Acts 1:22 ...he was taken up from us...a witness with us...

Luke, in narrative also continues the pronouns identifying the group:

Acts 1:23 And they appointed...

Acts 1:24 And they prayed

Acts 1:26 And they gave forth their lots....

Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

Acts 2:2 ... where they were sitting.

Acts 2:3 ... appeared unto them...sat upon each of them.

Acts 2:4 ...and they were all...

One cannot follow the text of the choosing of Matthias and come to the conclusion that Peter alone is responsible for what is going on.

It appears scripture is revealing the opposite: That this little flock was moving in concert. There is no indication that a forum existed wherein an individual would keep silent over wrong doctrine.

The implications of Matthias' choosing being an act out of the will of God, and in disobedience to the instructions of the Lord Jesus, indicts the entire group of believers in Acts 1 and 2.

Assuming that they were wrong, when did they go wrong? Was it when they were praying with one accord? Was it when they agreed with Peter's use of scripture? Was it in the casting of lots?

Again, assuming they were wrong: what do we say about the praying? The context supports that they all moved ahead firm in the belief that this was God's will. We then, must now approach scripture and question whether or not anyone praying, worshipping or claiming to know the will of God, is actually in the will of God, apart from the context of the passage.

Again, assuming they were wrong: where is repentance? How can such a group, giving God the credit for leading them in a wrongful act, claiming that the scripture supports this sinful deed, move ahead, receive the Holy Spirit and the power promised by the Lord Jesus, and become witnesses to the uttermost parts of the earth, without having changed their minds about their sin?

Is repentance assumed? If so, where does one insert it? And if we can insert repentance anywhere we choose to make the text fit our doctrine, why can't we do the same anywhere we please in the Bible?

To assert that all the believers were wrong to choose Matthias for whatever reason, and that scripture is silent as to their repentance over the act, is a dangerous practice in the study of God's word.

One would think that with so many people involved, and the events of early Acts being so critical to the understanding of the Church age, somewhere, someone in scripture would speak against what happened!

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 6 of 7)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

VI. Lots

Much can be made of the way a choice was made between Barsabas (Justus), and Matthias. It has been offered as proof against the action that by using lots, they were, in fact, leaving the decision up to chance. Certainly God would not show his will in this manner.

Scripture, however, speaks of "lots", not as a game of chance or a device by which the lucky one wins. Clearly, lots were used to identify something, and most often the identification was considered to be the will of God.

Today, if someone offered to throw dice, and somehow interpret the results to identify the will of God, we would disregard them as failing to understand God's word. Also, we would call to question their doctrine that would allow such an act.

How then, do we deal with:

Acts 1:26 And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

The answer comes from seeing when this is taking place and by whom the lots are being used. Knowing this, we can look to scripture to comment on scripture.

1 Corinthians 1:22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

Aaron, the high priest was instructed to use lots, thus knowing the will of God in choosing the scapegoat, dealing with the people's sin:

Leviticus 16:8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats, one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat.
Joshua, speaking for the people, would use lots seeking to determine what to do:

Joshua 18:6 ....that I may cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.

Joshua 18:8 ...that I may here cast lots for you before the Lord in Shiloh.

Joshua 18:10 And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord:

King David, as well, understood the working of God through lots:

1 Chronicles 24:31 These likewise cast lots....in the presence of David the king.

One of the most familiar passages concerning lots is:

Jonah 1:7 And they said every one to his fellow, come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.

In this case, we do not have the priests, leaders or kings casting the lots, but heathens, who had just called upon their gods for rescue.

If God, in times past, spoke through lots, and Peter, the 10 other apostles and the balance of the 120 were not to be part of choosing a new apostle, why doesn't scripture tell us that the lot fell on no man? Is this passage to be understood as the one time that God was not speaking through the lots?

Suffice it to say, scripture shows that God did indeed reveal his will through the use of lots. And, unlike modern day gambling, there is no grumbling about the results. Whatever the process was in casting lots, the results were final. When lots were cast to determine God's will in a matter, the answer was received and believed.

It appears that those using lots understood that they were indeed going to receive an answer, and that, that answer was not to be questioned.

Again, knowing that in Luke the Lord Jesus opened the apostles' understanding of the scriptures, and that lots are used throughout those same scriptures: how can we then say that the casting of lots regarding Matthias was an impetuous, wrongful act?

The Christian today needs to understand that the scriptures are complete. We should not be looking for, or expect to receive a sign from heaven. Every instruction in righteous living is already given to us in God's word.

Understand, in the age of Grace, in which we now live, there is no Jew or Greek, no distinction among men in God's eyes except saved and lost. So, while the Jews require a sign, there will be none, but we have something greater:

1 Corinthians 1:23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks, foolishness;

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 7 of 8)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

VII. Twelve / Eleven

We often refer to the 12 apostles as "the twelve", indicating the unique importance of the office and the finite number of the group.

In scripture we find "the twelve" used as a number and/or title, i.e.:

Matthew 26:14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,

Here Judas is identified to the group of 12, the other 11 not being present.

Matthew 26:20 Now when even was come, he sat down with the twelve.

Here, all twelve apostles are present and identified as a group.

Understanding when twelve, (or eleven) is used as a number, a number/title or a title alone, will help identify what scripture says about Matthias' apostleship.

After the death of Judas, Matthew, Mark and Luke refer to the "generic" group as "the eleven."

Only John, of the 4 gospel accounts, uses "the twelve" after Judas' death:

John 20:24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

Here, it appears, "the twelve" is used for the identification of Thomas' apostleship. We know that Judas is dead and that "his bishopric" was to be taken by another. Giving Thomas the title "one of the twelve" does not negate the fact that he was 1 of 11 other men who were also "one of the twelve."

Paul also used the term, "the twelve":

1 Corinthians 15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:

Why is the apostle Paul indicating that "the twelve" are witnesses to the resurrection? Scripture plainly tells us that the number was now eleven:

Luke 24:9 And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.

The answer could be in what tense we read 1 Corinthians 15:5. If Paul is pointing to people who can attest first hand to the fact that Christ rose from the dead, wouldn't his argument be much more credible if his witnesses could indeed give testimony?

He alludes to this fact in the next verse:

1 Corinthians 15:6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.

Paul is telling the Corinthians, you can verify my words with the twelve apostles and most of over 500 people, not all, because some are impossible to talk to now.

Paul is saying, not the twelve, solely as a title, but the twelve, alive and present on the earth as he wrote those words.

If scripture means what it says:

Acts 1:26 ...and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Then Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:5 is also numbering Matthias with the eleven. There is not a problem calling Matthias as a witness to the resurrection because:

Acts 1:22 Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness of his resurrection.

In fact, Paul is calling on the very qualification that Peter preaches Judas' replacement must have.

If the principle is true that scripture is the best commentary on scripture, then Paul here agrees with the all those in Acts 1, that Matthias is to be counted as one of the twelve.

If "the twelve" of 1 Corinthians 15:5 is a title for the 11 men, then, what is "the eleven" of Acts 2:14. Is it also a title for the same group? Again, we have a problem with scripture not saying what it means.

There should be no dispute that the apostolic offices, chosen by God, number only 12, and that those 12 have a position in the kingdom to come, in relationship to Israel:

Matthew 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Luke 22:30 That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Also, these 12 offices will be elevated for all eternity:

Revelation 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the lamb.

Is it any wonder that the 12th office needed to be filled? The desire to fill it with Paul's name does injustice to his position as apostle to the Gentiles and his mission of being the household manager of the dispensation of Grace.

VIII. Peter's Failures

Preachers and "scholars" alike have extolled the humanity of Peter by calling out the times in scripture he has done wrong. The next step in giving us encouragement is to then site his position as apostle, writer of scripture and witness to the life and cross-work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The point here of discussing the record of Peter's failures is to contrast them to his "error" in Acts:1.

Peter had an amazing response, when shown by the Lord Jesus that he, (Jesus) would suffer, die and rise again:

Matthew 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.

The text then leaves no doubt as to the error of Peter's words and the wrong reasoning behind them:

Matthew 16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

Peter also makes promises he will not keep:

Matthew 26:33 Peter said unto him, though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee...

Of course we know the response of the Lord Jesus, and the events that took place during the trial and crucifixion:

Matthew 26:34 ...before the cock crow, thou shat deny me thrice.

Peter again, at the last supper, is wrong concerning the Lord Jesus washing his feet, and is immediately corrected:

John 13:8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.

Paul rebukes Peter in the matter of compelling the Gentiles to live like Jews. The text makes clear that it was not just Peter, but other Jews as well, including Barnabas, that were in error.

Galatians 2:11 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.

In this last instance we have to be informed about the misdeed so that we can understand the rebuke.

If Paul needs to explain Peter's error and correction here, why is he silent about the choosing of Matthias?

If scripture time and again leaves no doubt as to the error of Peter's thinking, words and actions, how can it be silent in Acts:1?

If we can read error in Acts:1, and blame Peter for it, do we then suspect error in other accounts concerning Peter's preaching and leadership? The implication is that we cannot trust the apostle Peter and fear that he is leading us astray in every situation.

The danger of making such a stand on the silence of scripture is a dangerous practice that will allow any interpretation to be given.

IX. Theophilus

If you were to receive a letter from someone, you would expect that the writer would want you to understand what was written.

So it is with Luke and Theophilus:

Luke 1:3-4 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, that thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.
Acts 1:1 The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began to do and teach,

A fair question to now ask is: what was Theophilus to understand concerning the choosing of Matthias?

If Luke has perfect understanding, and explains in order the events of the life of Christ and the Acts period, why would he be silent on the correction regarding Matthias?

Imagine the book of Acts being read by Theophilus and he reads how Matthias was numbered with the eleven and comes to the conclusion that he will not number Matthias with the eleven. How is it reasonable to assume we are to read Acts: 1, understand that all that is taking place is error, and then move on to Acts: 2, not having any inclination that the error was corrected?

When Theophilus read:

Acts 1:24 ....Thou Lord, which knowest the hearts of all (men), shew whether of these thou hast chosen,
Should he have understood that God was not part of this? That he wasn't about to show anything concerning these two men? Would he be expected to read what is written and understand the opposite? It seems that if Luke wanted Theophilus to know that Matthias was not to be chosen, he would have set it forth in order like he said he would.

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 8 of 9)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

X. Conclusion

Simply working backwards from Acts 1:26, the numbering of Matthias, at what point can anyone say, "here is where they went wrong!"?

Can it be the lots? How then can you separate the action from what went on before, and how do you resolve the Old Testament use of lots?

Can it be in the praying and calling God to choose between the two men? How then do you deal with the prayer that got them to this point?

Is it limiting the choice to those who had part from the beginning? No, because God could have said no, wait. Besides that, getting to the point of choosing has to be as wrong as the choice.

Was it wrong for Peter to reference scripture? If so, then he did not have an understanding of the Bible in spite of what scripture says.

Was the error somehow conceived by the group? Paul lays claim to a position not given by men:

Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

But can't Matthias make the same claim?:

Acts 1:24 ....Thou Lord, which knowest the hearts of all (men), shew whether of these thou hast chosen,

And, once you have isolated the error, when does it stop?

The implications of reading into scripture what is not there, are mind boggling. Matthias certainly is the 12th apostle. Chosen correctly to take the office vacated by Judas.

Paul is also an apostle. Chosen by God to be the minister of a new dispensation:

Acts 9:15 ...for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

The people of Israel are God's earthly people, with an earthly kingdom, primarily earthly promises and earthly blessings. The Body of Christ is God's heavenly program with spiritual blessings and one household manager, the apostle Paul.

by: Joseph E. Gollwitzer
7/1/96

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on November 22, 2003, 11:02:15 AM

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PAUL OR MATTHIAS - THE 12TH APOSTLE (PART 1 of 4)
By: Joseph E. Gollwitzer

A contention exists as to whether Paul was the new 12th Apostle chosen by the Lord Jesus Christ to fill Judas' office, or was it Matthias, from the account of Acts:1.
The purpose of this paper is to lay out the clear meaning of Scripture in this matter with the hope of correcting wrong doctrine.

I. Peter's Contention To Fill Judas' Office

A key element in understanding the importance of a "12th" apostle is the fact that God ordained the office of Apostle. These men were given a unique ministry so that while they were counted as disciples of Christ, they were also distinct as to power, authority and mission above the others.

Matthew 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickeness and all manner of disease.
Ephesians 2:20 And (you, the Ephesians), are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner .

Some of the elements unique to apostleship shall be explored later. There is no dispute that the individual with the "rank" of Apostle not only had special training, responsibilities and authority, but also, a fixed position in the ages to come.

Matt 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Note: In Ephesians chapter 2 we find, "times past": pre-body of Christ, prophesy program. "But now": body of Christ, mystery program, dispensation of grace. "Ages to come": post "but now", continuation of prophesy program.

Peter's intent then, in Acts 1, was to fill the office given to Judas, and vacated by Judas' death.

Acts 1:20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishopric let another take.

The importance of this being an existing office, needing to be filled, and not a new position, created for whatever purpose, is this: Paul never lays claim to Judas' office.

In Paul's 13 letters he often lays claim to the office of Apostle given to him by the Lord Jesus Christ. At no time does he refer to the "12th" position, vacated by Judas. This fact does not demean Paul's apostleship. This fact indicates that Paul's apostleship was different than the 12. (A point to be explored later)

Upon the completion of the casting of lots, (which from the context seems to include the 120, not just the 11), Matthias was now considered the "12th" apostle.

Acts 1:26 And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Why be concerned with an exact number of apostles? Why not let the remaining apostles carry on with their work? The answer is in the verse prior to the one we just quoted:

Acts 1:25 That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

When the Lord Jesus came to this earth it was to establish his kingdom. John the baptist prepared the way as foretold by scripture. Thus we find Old Testament believers waiting for the kingdom. Over and over again in the 4 gospels: the issue is the kingdom.

In Matthew 10, we find the Lord Jesus is giving the twelve finite instructions of their mission and deportment.

Matt 10: 6-7 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The Lord Jesus himself established the 12 offices. In the ages to come we find that these same men will each be judging the tribes of Israel, and that even their names are eternally inscribed in the physical foundations of the New Jerusalem.

Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the lamb.

Good Study Bro.

Thanks again

Brother Love :)

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 06, 2003, 06:23:39 PM

The problem with this interpretation and many of the dispensational approaches to scripture interpretation is that you end up having James and Paul preaching two different Gospels. I have found a good rule of thumb for testing any theory such as yours is can I build a case for it from the Words in Red. If Christ didn't teach it then I am not going to let someone dig it out of the the apostle's illuminating writings because all they did or could do was build on what Jesus laid as a foundation.

As far as works go Jesus taught the need for repentance and following Him, both of which involve works, so I believe they play apart in our acceptance of the free gift of grace. He knocks but we must open.

Even the apostle Paul in Second Thessalonians said that the Gospel was more than just Good News, that the Gospel itself was to be obeyed, and obedience implies works.
2 Thess 1:8
8In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

It comes down to this - You cannot truly believe in someone if you do not obey their message, and it is only through a true faith that we can properly and fully accept the free/gracious gift of salvation.

Quote from: michael_legna on December 04, 2003, 04:04:20 PM

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 06, 2003, 06:23:39 PM

"He that is ignorant of Paul's gospel, cannot have certainty of his own salvation nor lead others into assurance Paul is Christ's messenger sent to you and to me by a Risen Christ." By Paul; we know the promise "Which God, That Cannot Lie, Promised Before The World Began!"

Grace & Peace

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 22, 2003, 04:48:24 PM

I have spent many hours reading all the studies you posted Ambassador, I loved them all. I just got to this one, thanks for posting it.

Your friend and Brother

The Crusader

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Gospel, Gospel, Who's Got the Gospel? (Part 3 of 3)

The Gospel of the Grace of God

The Gospel of the Grace of God is a gospel message that is closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision that we discussed above. The Gospel of the Grace of God is the message of salvation that is proclaimed to and by the Church, the Body of Christ, the topic of the Gospel of the Uncircumcision.

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24

It should not be surprising to find that the time in which the Gospel of the Grace of God is preached, is called the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: Ephesians 3:1,2

While it is true that God has, throughout history, offered grace to various individuals and groups. (See Genesis 6:8), the thing that is unique about the Dispensation of Grace is that God is offering grace to ALL men. That is why the Gospel of the Grace of God is so closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision. Today grace is not being offered only to the physical descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. All men, without distinction, have been given the opportunity to be reconciled to God through the Body of Christ.

But now in Christ Jesus ye [Gentiles] who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both [Jew and Gentile] one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Ephesians 2:13-18

For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26-28

The wrath of God that was to come to prepare for the establishment of the earthly kingdom has been withheld. Today God is not punishing the inhabitants of the earth for their sin and rebellion against Him. We can see a beautiful type of this offer of grace and mercy in the salvation and ministry of Paul.

And I [Paul] thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. I Timothy 1:12-16

Paul was the chief of sinners. He was leading the persecution of the kingdom church in early Acts. So intense as his hatred for God's people that the Scripture tells us that he was "breathing out threatenings and slaughter" against them. Certainly if there ever was a man that deserved the wrath of God, it was Saul. But instead of pouring out judgement and wrath, God reached down in mercy and grace and saved Saul. He then sent him to the world with the Gospel of the Grace of God, a gospel of which Paul was a pattern.

The Gospel of the Grace of God tells the good news of God's wrath withheld. It offers grace, mercy, and peace to all men. It is the message of the Church, the Body of Christ in the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

Who's Got Your Gospel?

The gospel messages for today are the gospels proclaimed by Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles in the Age of Grace; the Gospel of the Circumcision and the Gospel of the Grace of God. It is the message proclaimed by these gospels that he refers to as "my gospel" and that plays a key role in our establishment in the faith.

Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, Romans 16:25

We cannot be established in the faith and lead a life pleasing to the Lord if we are following another gospel. Our gospel message is found in the epistles of Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles.

Amen

The Crusader

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 06, 2003, 07:01:49 PM

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Gospel, Gospel, Who's Got the Gospel? (Part 3 of 3)

The Gospel of the Grace of God

The Gospel of the Grace of God is a gospel message that is closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision that we discussed above. The Gospel of the Grace of God is the message of salvation that is proclaimed to and by the Church, the Body of Christ, the topic of the Gospel of the Uncircumcision.

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24

It should not be surprising to find that the time in which the Gospel of the Grace of God is preached, is called the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: Ephesians 3:1,2

While it is true that God has, throughout history, offered grace to various individuals and groups. (See Genesis 6:8), the thing that is unique about the Dispensation of Grace is that God is offering grace to ALL men. That is why the Gospel of the Grace of God is so closely related to the Gospel of the Uncircumcision. Today grace is not being offered only to the physical descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. All men, without distinction, have been given the opportunity to be reconciled to God through the Body of Christ.

But now in Christ Jesus ye [Gentiles] who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both [Jew and Gentile] one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Ephesians 2:13-18

For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26-28

The wrath of God that was to come to prepare for the establishment of the earthly kingdom has been withheld. Today God is not punishing the inhabitants of the earth for their sin and rebellion against Him. We can see a beautiful type of this offer of grace and mercy in the salvation and ministry of Paul.

And I [Paul] thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. I Timothy 1:12-16

Paul was the chief of sinners. He was leading the persecution of the kingdom church in early Acts. So intense as his hatred for God's people that the Scripture tells us that he was "breathing out threatenings and slaughter" against them. Certainly if there ever was a man that deserved the wrath of God, it was Saul. But instead of pouring out judgement and wrath, God reached down in mercy and grace and saved Saul. He then sent him to the world with the Gospel of the Grace of God, a gospel of which Paul was a pattern.

The Gospel of the Grace of God tells the good news of God's wrath withheld. It offers grace, mercy, and peace to all men. It is the message of the Church, the Body of Christ in the Dispensation of the Grace of God.

Who's Got Your Gospel?

The gospel messages for today are the gospels proclaimed by Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles in the Age of Grace; the Gospel of the Circumcision and the Gospel of the Grace of God. It is the message proclaimed by these gospels that he refers to as "my gospel" and that plays a key role in our establishment in the faith.

Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, Romans 16:25

We cannot be established in the faith and lead a life pleasing to the Lord if we are following another gospel. Our gospel message is found in the epistles of Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles.

My Gospel The Gospel of the Grace of God

Amen

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on October 07, 2003, 12:59:48 PM

Ambassador, I have had felloship with Dennis Kiszonas, he is a good brother and a great teacher. This study has always been one of my favorites (On this subject)

Your friend and brother

The Crusader

<:)))><

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Is Hell real?

Many churches say it is not; that it is merely symbolic, or a myth. Some churches go as far as to say Jesus taught nothing but love--that He never judged or condemned anyone, and that everyone will eventually be with Him for eternity. Rather than being honestly ignorant of what the Bible plainly teaches, such people pick and choose which parts of the Bible they want to believe, and ignore the rest. But if the words of Jesus mean anything, then Hell is real, and real people go there. He believed in it, even if many professing Christians do not.

* * *

Unless you repent, you will perish (Luke 13:3)

When the Son of man [Jesus] shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory; and before Him shall be gathered all the nations; and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides His sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-32).

So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:49-50)

But the children of [Satan?s] kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12).

And cast the unprofitable servant into utter darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:3 ).

And cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 24:51).

There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen, and ate sumptuously every day; and there was a beggar named Lazarus, who, covered with sores, lay outside the rich man?s gate. And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried away by the angels to Abraham?s bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried. In Hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus with him. And he cried and said, "Father Abraham, have mercy on me! Send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame." But Abraham said, "Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received good things; likewise, Lazarus received evil things. But now he is comforted, and you are tormented. Besides this, between us and you there is fixed a great gulf, so that they which would pass from our side to you cannot, nor can those who would come from your side? (Luke 16:19-26).

And if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is better for you that one of your body parts should perish, rather than your whole body
be cast into Hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you that one of your body parts should perish, and not your whole body be cast into Hell (Matthew 5:29-30).

And these [the unrepentant] shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal (Matthew 25:46).

But the fearful, and unbelievers, and the abominable, and murders, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death (Christ?s Revelation to John, 21:8).

* * *

So what do you think? Did Jesus believe in a literal place called Hell? Did He believe and teach that those who reject Him will spend eternity there? Did He take Hell seriously enough to warn people about it? Make no mistake: Jesus said that hell is real, and that real people go there.

Quote from: Ambassador4Christ on February 28, 2004, 10:36:04 AM

Good subject, good study and a good web-page.

Thanks Ambassador

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PART 1 of 3

Are You A “HOPE-SO” Church Member
or a “KNOW-SO” Bible Christian?

Pastor J. C. O’Hair

The apparent indifference on the part of the multitudes is appalling. Men and women, old and young, carry on as though they expect to remain on earth forever, with utter disregard for the Bible statements, “So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God,” and, “Man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

”The profound ignorance of so-called intelligent people concerning spiritual truth is pitiable and deplorable, if not inexcusable.

Then again apart from the deceiving power of one who is accused of deceiving the whole world there is no excuse, apology, or explanation for the manner in which thousands of religious people, who pretend to follow the teachings of Jesus, pervert Divine truth, audaciously, repudiate, God’s message of redemption, and arbitrarily substitute some human religious philosophy which is without power or value so far as salvation from sin is concerned.

Perhaps more than fifty per cent of the adults of the United States are either affiliated with some kind of religious organization at the present time, or have belonged to some such organization in the past. But it is no exaggeration to declare that the great majority of the present or former members of these religious organization are either ignorant or confused as to God’s message of salvation, the Bible way from earth to heaven. And it is also true that the great majority of those who believe this message, who not only know the true way but are on that way. are equally ignorant and confused as to the believer’s position, membership, hope, and calling in the true Bible Church. This is because they have little, if any, knowledge as to what the Bible teaches concerning the Church of thriving God, the Body of Christ.

THE BELIEVER’S ASSURANCE

Let us consider these two Bible verses “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.” 1. John 5:13
“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with neekness and fear.” 1. Peter 3:15
Here we learn that God, the Father, wants His redeemed children to know that they have eternal life. They are to know this on the authority of God’s statement in the Bible, because they are trusting in Jesus Christ, what He has done, what He is now doing, and what He is yet to do.
Note something of what He has done:
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” 1. Peter 3:18
“Neither by the blood of goats and caves, but by His own blood He (Christ) entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” Hebrews 9:12“But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sin for ever, sat down on the right hand of God.” Hebrews 10:12
Then note what faith in Christ and His redemptive work accomplishes for the believer:
“For if, when we were enemies, we were, reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His Life.” Romans 5:10
“But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” Ephesians 2:13
“He that beliveth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that beliveth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John 3:36
“But to him that worketh not, but beliveth on Him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” Romans 4:5
“And by Him all that believe are justifies from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.” Acts 13:39
Then note the spiritual benefits, which the believer enjoys because of the present ministry of the living Christ in Heaven:
“For Christ is not entered into the holy paces made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” Hebrews 9:24
“What shall we then say to these things?” “If God be for us, who can be against us?” “Who is he that condemneth?” It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again. Who is even at the right hand of God, Who also maketh intercession for us.” Romans 8:31 and 34
“Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Hebrews 7:25
“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” 1. Peter 1:5
Therefore, on the authority of God’s Bible, every person who believes God’s Word and trusts God’s Son should say with confidence and positive assurance what John wroth in 1. John 3:2:
“Beloved, now are we sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that. when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.”
Here we read what believers are, and what they shall be. But let us never forget the statement in 1> Corinthians 1:29, “no flesh should glory in His presence.”
Note how the greatest of all Christians stated this in Philippians 3:3 – “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.”
Note again Ephesians 2:9 – “Not of works, less any man should boast.”
See how this statement is joined with other statements –
“That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; Not of works; lest any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:7 to 10
A great and blessed time is ahead for believers, saved by grace. True believers really believe Romans 11:6—
“And if by grace, then it is no more of works; otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace, otherwise work is no more work.
”If and when the believer, knowing that by nature he is unworthy and unrighteous, is saved by grace through faith in the redemptive work of the worthy Son of God, Jesus Christ the Righteous, he will not glory in his goodness, his religious activities, or in anything that he can do to help get him into heaven. He will know that he is going to heaven by grace, by faith in the work of Another; that he is God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works. The believer is saved because he is the recipient of God’s grace; because eternal life is the free gift of God through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23). Then he can say – “I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
The true Bible Christian knows that it is an insult to God to try to make the redemptive work of Christ more efficacious by adding religious ceremonies or to endeavor by any human scheme or service to supplement the grace of God and the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Note again carefully Romans 4:4 and 5.
“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”
With such knowledge and with such an experience the believer can be ready, and should be ready, at all times to give an answer to any one who asks him for a reason of the hope that is in him. This should be done with meekness and fear, but with absolute confidence, and positive assurance. In other words, when asked the question, “Are you saved?” or “Are you sure you are going to heaven?, the person, who is trusting wholly and solely in the grace of God and in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, should answer humbly, but boldly, "Yes, by the grace of God and on the authority of God'’ Word. I certainly am."” "These things are written that ye may know that ye have eternal life.”
“In hope of eternal life, which God, that can not lie promised before the world began.”
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.”
“Verily, verily I say unto you, he that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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PART 2

Are You A “HOPE-SO” Church Member
or a “KNOW-SO” Bible Christian?

Pastor J. C. O’Hair

JOINING THE CHURCH

Multitudes of unsaved religious individuals, for different reasons, have become members of some religious organizations; have joined some organized company of people – church. The Greek word translated “church” in the Bible is “ekklesia,” which means “called out.” God’s Word thus instructs God’s “called out” people – “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is.” Hebrews 10”25
God’s Word, in 1. Corinthians 14:23, mentions the church coming together. In Acts 14:27, we read that the church was gathered together. Therefore, by Scriptural authority, believers in different communities should gather in assemblies for worship and Bible preaching. But they should first be members of the one true Bible Church before they gather in an assembly with other believers for worship and Christian service. Many, many people who are members of some religious church organization are not members of the true Bible Church. Note the Bible description of the Bible Church of the present dispensation: “the Church which is His (Christ’s) Body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all.” Ephesians 1:22 and 23.
“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the Body of Christ; Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:12 and 13
Now let us carefully note how being joined to Christ and His Church is described in the Bible:
“Christ, from Whom the whole Body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the Body unto the edifying of itself in love.” Ephesians 4:15-16
“For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one Body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the Body is not one member, but many.” 1. Corinthians 12:12 and 14
“For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office; So we being many, are one Body in Christ. and everyone members one of another.” Romans 12:4 and 5
Believers are joined to Christ. Believers are joined to one another. Believers, by the work of God, are made members of Christ’s Body and the two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery; but I speak concerning Christ and the Church. Ephesians 5:32. Only God by the Holy Spirit can join the believer to the Bible Church.
Then note the future of the true Bible Church:
“That He might present it to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing: but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Ephesians 5:27
“When Christ, Who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.” Colossians 3:4
This should cause diligent, thoughtful, serious meditation and consideration on the part of every religious person who is hoping to get into heaven because of membership in some church organization, whether that person is enthusiastically and emotionally religious or an inactive and indifferent member.
This is a very serious and important matter, something that the individual can settle this side of death. But the sinner who dies unsaved will remain forever unsaved. So let each one ask of himself this question. “Am I a member of the Body of Christ?” “have I been baptized by one Spirit into this organism, this one true Bible Church?” What a tragedy that multitudes of deceived, religious church-members are going religiously to perdition! The very moment any sinner today is saved by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, that individual becomes a member of the one and only Bible Church, and this is accomplished without application to, or examination by, any group of church officers.
Then note in Ephesians 4:4 and 5:
“THERE IS ONE BODY, AND ONE SPIRIT, EVEN AS YE ARE CAKKED IN ONE HOPE OF YOUR CALLING; ONE LORD, ONE FAITH, ONE BAPTISM.”

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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PART 3 of 3

Are You A “HOPE-SO” Church Member
or a “KNOW-SO” Bible Christian?

Pastor J. C. O’Hair

A CHRISTIAN IN PRINCIPLE

In religious circles we hear of orthodox and unorthodox Christians, of Liberals and fundamentalists, in the Church. Let us be assured that a Christian infidel is an impossible paradox. Many church organizations are under the domination and legislation of Christianized agnostics who accept the Bible with many reservations, criticisms and eliminations. These so-called Liberals claim that Bible must be interpreted in the light of modern science and scholarship; that Christianity must be properly related to modern psychology. They demand for themselves and for their followers a reasonable faith, a natural religion, and a revised Bible, with the discard of all that is miraculous. They pose as benefactors who are seeking to deliver Christianity from the non-progressive, narrow-minded, ignorant, old-fashioned “literalists” who are not up-to-date in their thinking.
These “psuedo-Christians” are described in 11 Corinthians 11:13 to 15:
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming into an angle of light. therefore t is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
”Encouraged by the boldness, if not the eloquence and leadership of these deluded counterfeit Christians, so many people are in a state of spiritual lethargy, indifference and ignorance, apparently devoid of any fear of God or eternal perdition. This majority is made is made up groups and individuals who make no pretense at subjecting themselves to the authority of God’s Word in their decisions or indecisions concerning their eternal destiny. Many of them condescend acknowledge that Jesus Christ was very superior character, the courageous and noble Son of Mary and Joseph, who was honest in his convictions. They classify Him who died for His fidelity to His convictions, for His loyalty and devotion to God, as a good man who was hated, persecuted and killed because was hated, persecuted and killed because He was misunderstood and the world was not then ready for His ideal philosophy. Of course, they do not object to being called “Christians,” if it be understood that they do not believe in the verbal inspiration of the Scriptures, the eternal Deity and virgin birth of Jesus Christ, or redemption by His shed blood, or in the bodily resurrection of Christ. They say, “We are Christians in principle, that is, we accept the moral teaching, the ethical philosophy of Jesus Christ, as set forth in His sermon on the Mount and the Golden Rule, as an excellent standard of behavior .” “We know that this world would be a better world, if the people in it would try their best to obey and follow Jesus, the ideal man.”
They deny the very existence of the great adversary who, in the Bible, is accused of the crime of deceiving the whole world. Perhaps they have never even heard 11 Corinthians 4:3 and 4:
“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost; 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.”
If they have ever heard this, they paid no attention to it. Of course the self righteous individuals among them do not believe that they are blind, and the very idea of their being lost is absurd. But God’s Word is true and the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only Divine power that can or will save a human being. God’s Word tells the truth when it declares that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God; “there is none righteous, no not one.” God’s Word is, that righteousness cannot be found in the natural heart. God’s Word is that the unrighteous man cannot become righteous by imitating Jesus Christ; by being good with the help of Jesus, the Teacher; by any human reformation scheme; by self-control or religious education. There is but one place in the universe of God where the unrighteous man can find for himself righteousness, and that is at the cross of Calvary. Note 2. Corinthians 5:21:
“For He hath made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”

CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOUR

Hear this very interesting statement concerning some folks who claim to be Christians: “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient and unto every good work reprobate.” Titus 1:16 Note on the other hand what God expects of those who claim to be His children, who claim to love the Lord Jesus Christ as believers: “That they might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God.” Colossians 1:10 “Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:11 “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crocked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of life.” Philippians 2:15 and 16 The Christian is exhorted in the Holy Scriptures to walk circumspectly toward sinners. The Christians have a tremendous responsibility toward the unsaved sinners all about them. Christians are in the world but not of the world. They should not be worldly. They are crucified to the world. They are nor to be conformed to the world. “For God, Who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shinned in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” 2. Corinthians 4:6 The sinner is dead in sins. The Christian is dead to sin. Note Colossians 3:3 to 5 “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ is God. When Christ, Who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ”Not only many unregenerated, religious church members, but many saved church members are careless and carnal in their conduct. They testimonies are worse than worthless; they are harmful. The unsaved sinners, beholding such inconsistencies in the lives of those who claim to belong to Christ, discount the worth and value of Christianity, the saving and keeping power of the Lord Jesus Christ. What a shame that any member of the Body of Christ should be a detriment to the cause of Christ and a stumbling-block to any sinner of the way to the sorrows of the second death. Christ said to His Disciples, “ye shall be My witnesses.” Every Christian should be able to honestly and constantly say with Paul “But by the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain.” 1. Corinthians 15:10 But let no sinner believe that he can or will escape God’s wrath in that awful day of judgement because of the faults, failures, and frailties of some professing Christian. The thing to do is to get past the inconsistent professors to the Lord Jesus Christ, and Calvary, and then, by the grace of God, go back and show that disloyal witness how to be a genuine Christian in the midst of a world of lost sinners. Hear God’s warning to sinners: “And as it is appointed unto me once to die, but after this judgement.” Hebrews 9:27“Because He have appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man Whom He have ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead.” Acts 17;31 Every sinner will keep appointments. God offers to the believer a way of escape. Hear the words of the Lord Jesus Christ – Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come unto condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24 “JESUS, WHICH DELIVERED US FROM THE QRATH TO COME.” 1. Thessalonians 1:10 Why not just this moment take God at His Word, be the recipient of His wonderful grace, believe that you are the ungodly sinner for whom Christ died, receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour and God for Christ’s sake, will forgive you for all your sins and you will stand in His holy presence as though you had never sinned.

THE END

Posted By Brother Love :)

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That I May Know Him (PART 1 of 2)

Phil 3:10 "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death:" That I may know him, not just know about him, not just know what he said and did, not even just what he wants to do in and through me, as important as that is, but that I might really know Him. I want to know his love, his acceptance, his compassion, his tenderness, and his peace. I want to share with him every aspect of my life; my thoughts and fears, my ups and downs, my daily grind and my special times too. I need to know by faith the reality of his presence in my life as stated in Heb 11:1. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." I need to know intimately the God-man who Phil 2:6-8 says, “humbled himself and became obedient unto death.” I need to know in my heart the one who overlooked the city of Jerusalem and wept bitter tears over his chosen people in Mt 23:37-38, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold your house is left unto you desolate.” The one who saw what would happen to Israel over the long years of his absence.

I need to know the One whose whole life was spent in the service of others, never once acting out of his human flesh, but did always the will of the Father John 4:34. “Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” I want to know the precious one who went up Calvary’s hill to die a cruel death for me; (Psalm 22:1-2 “My god, my god, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God I cry in the daytime but thou hearest not: and in the night season, and am not silent) not for any wrong that he had done, but for me who was dead in my sin, his enemy, alienated from God, without hope, selfish, self-centered, worthless, a possession of Satan, spiritually dead and bound by my sin. And in dying that cruel death took all my sin and all my sins and paid the price for me that I was powerless to pay. He died for me, was buried for me, and rose again for me, that I might possess all the blessings of God in this life and forever in eternity.

I want to know in my life the power of his resurrection, the power that raised him from the dead Ro 1:4 “And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead”. I need to know the power that overcame death and hell 1 Cor 15:55-57, “O death where is thy sting? O grave where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin: and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” so that I might know the reality of the resurrection power that lives in me by the indwelling Christ in order to live this life under the grace of God. If I know the power of his resurrection I will be free to do and be all that he has made me to do and be. Ro 8:1-4 “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” I will have the power to deny myself as Jesus denied himself while here on earth.

I want to learn Eph 1:17-19 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened: that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what is the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power.” If I learn his wisdom I will not be concerned about what others think of me; I will make choices that are good and sound and benefit others. If I learn the hope of his calling I will not be concerned about the circumstances of my life, but about whom I am in the circumstances of my life. If I learn the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints I will not be concerned about the riches of this world. And if I learn that it is his power that works in me I will not be defeated at every trial that comes my way, but will be able bear my burdens with love and mercy and grace, because it will be his strength that carries me through.

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Women Under Grace
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That I May Know Him (PART 2 of 2)

I desire to know the fellowship of his suffering. Our precious Lord suffered his whole life on earth; he was misunderstood by most, fawned over by those who only wanted what they believed he had to give them, disbelieved by the very people he came to save, rejected, tempted, reviled, persecuted, mocked, scorned, and deserted by his only friends, and finally killed. Yet through it all he maintained the attitude of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. Does that sound familiar, like what he has promised us as the fruit of the Spirit? Not in weakness, but in the strength of knowing whom he was and what his purpose was. Not as a doormat, but as one who knew where his strength came from and never lost sight of it. We are privileged, if we choose to do so, to bear in some small measure 1 Tim 4:10 “For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe”, the reproach of Christ. When we choose to do what is right no matter how hard, when we choose to be the one to go the extra mile, not in our own strength, but in his, we begin to know the fellowship of his suffering. Paul tells us in Phil 3:8 that he counted everything in his life as dung, that he might win Christ. Notice that it is the fellowship of his suffering. He never leaves us alone but goes through the hard times with us. Just as Jesus suffered the indignity of becoming a man and living on this sin-cursed earth as a lowly servant, always in communion with his heavenly Father, always obeying from the heart the Father’s will, never giving in to the world, the flesh, or the devil, so too may we, if we so choose, do the same. Phil 2:3-5. “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than ourselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus".

And finally, I want to be made conformable to his death. As I identify with him, Ro 6:3-4 “Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life”, and as I yield my members as his for his use Ro 12:1 “I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service”, and as I believe Phil 1:6 “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ”, that as he hath begun a good work in me he will finish it, I begin to understand a little of this.

But here Paul says “Being made conformable”, a process, a journey, and a lifetime. As we learn the true meaning of the these things we begin to see that this is no joy ride. It is serious work, and it is impossible for us to do. As we walk day by day with this loving Lord, as we learn step by step to rely on the Holy Spirit and the Word, as we moment by moment recognize it is all of him and none of us, as we argue with him about the changes he wants to make in our lives, plead with him not ask this of us, as we finally give in his promptings, we learn to trust that he knows what is best for us Ro 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose”. Ro 12:2 states “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God”. And 2 Cor 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” We need to bring every thought to the obedience of Christ? That’s what it says. Now we have a choice, we can daily, in every situation, choose to allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, or we can continue to live in our carnal flesh and try to justify our choices and actions. We can choose to know him, to allow him to live in us, to be the servants of the living God who has in grace given us everything we need to live the life he intended us to live for his glory, or we can choose to serve ourselves and thereby further the cause of Satan by bringing shame to the gospel of Christ. We often boast of Gal 2:20, “We are crucified with Christ,” but do we also heed verse 21 that tells us not to frustrate the grace of God? We can, and often do frustrate the grace of God by our lack of prayer, our lack of trust in the Word, and our failure to obey. We frustrate it by our unwillingness to give up what we want for someone else’s welfare. Jesus was willing to give up everything for us; Paul was willing to give up everything for Christ. The question we need to answer is, what are we willing to give up for this kind of relationship with our God who loved us and gave himself for us, who has entrusted us with the riches of his grace and the message of reconciliation for the lost, and who has already blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places.

We will never in this lifetime achieve all God intended for us to achieve, but we can press on toward the mark, we can learn as much as we can about this great love and grace and mercy he has given us. We can daily nourish this relationship so that it will grow and flower and flourish. We can share what we learn with others and bring to them the same hope and encouragement and love and grace that we have received. And when we leave this world we will not be afraid, or sorrowful, but confident and joyful; we will look forward to at last see the face of the one who made it all possible, the one that we have grown to know and love. Praise and glory be to Him forever.

THE END

Posted By Brother Love :)

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My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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MAGNIFIED WORD
http://www.magnifiedword.com/index2.htm
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EMPHASIS ON EVANGELISM

"...to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery" Eph. 3:9a

by Oscar Woodall

A MOST TREACHEROUS DOCTRINE

"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that ca/led you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

Which is not another, but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek top/ease men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ"

Galatians 1:6-12.

In my 33 years of assurance of salvation, my foremost desire has been to be a part of observing lost souls being saved and saints being encouraged in their faith in the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ.

One of the doctrines proclaimed that brings most confusion to lost and saved people is the one that will agree in the inspiration and preservation of God*s infallible word regarding the doctrines of the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ; his sinless life; his death, burial, and resurrection for the payment of our sins; his second coming to reign on earth; as well as other essential teachings of the faith; and then state that a person can be saved and subsequently lost. Having confessed these first positions, the one of eternal security (mentioned last) has a striking effect at the heart of the gospel of the grace of God.

A leading "Christian psychologist," broadcasting on many radio stations, openly admits that he believes a saved person can later be lost. He agrees with his party-line denomination that an individual can "will" to enter God*s family and then can "will" to get out of it. Do you think a person of this persuasion is a fellow believer in Christ? I would not! Why not? I know that NONE of my brothers or sisters in Christ are going to hell. Anyone who thinks they can get in and then back out of God*s family has one of two problems. Either they have not trusted in Christ and him alone, or they have been placed (or have placed themselves) under a law/performance system.

Our great comfort and task in training soldiers for spiritual warfare is the following assurances:

1. We cannot judge a man, however we can judge a message. "...The Lord knoweth them that are his..." 2 Tim. 2:19.

2. We should be suspiciously vigilant and anxiously concerned for others being deceived.

"Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me.

For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another her gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him" 2Cor 11:1-4.

So BEWARE! May each of us who are saved saints of the Most High God develop and increase the ministry of "CAREFRONTATION." Aggressive personal soul winning is the order for today for us as the ambassadors for Christ. Interesting and exciting war stories will follow, not classroom or theoretical events, but front-line experiences.

Mr. Woodall lives near Orlando, Florida, with his wife, Dorothy. He is the founder of Eternal Life Ministries, and is active in personal evangelism everywhere he goes. He ministers the Word of God regularly in jails and prisions.

Posted By Brother Love :)

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My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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BibleWritings.com
http://www.biblewritings.com/index.html
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DON'T BE A DISPENSATIONAL DUMB BUNNY!

Those who desire to share the truths found in the ministry of the Apostle Paul, should always be on the alert, to be vigilant and using wise insight. We must focus our presentation clearly. Someone has said that many in the world have made a decision to reject our message of Christ. The reason for this may be a poor presentation as to who Jesus Christ really is. In other words, they may NOT have rejected Christ; they have really rejected a poor dispensational presentation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Say it isn't so, but may be it is true? If it might be true, what needs to be changed? How do we refocus? Let's discuss a few considerations that might be of value in witnessing.
As we deal with truth for today, never make an issue sound as if a choice must be made between Jesus versus Paul. This is a loser. There is a story about a minister who was attempting to show how Paul's ministry fits into the Bible as part of God's progressive revelation. His mistake was to appeal to those listening, that they must make a decision between the teachings of Jesus and the later, progressively unfolded truth that Paul was given to bring to light. A believer in the audience took his family and left the church.
Most people will do the same. But, what could have been done to change the final decision from rejection to reception? There needs to be a proper perspective. Who is Paul, anyhow? Is he an apostle? Yes! But let us remember what kind of an apostle Paul claimed to be. He represented Jesus Christ. He was an apostle of Jesus Christ. Paul was a servant. But he was a servant of Jesus Christ.
Here we begin to focus in on the real issue. In explaining Dispensational truth, we want to present the Lord Jesus Christ as the mover, maker and shaker of all that happens in this world today. Let's illustrate.
Remember when Jesus first sent his disciples on a preaching mission? Cf. Matthew 10:1-15 and Luke 9:1-6 They are told where to go, with what message and what preparation and/or provisions are needed. They were to have a tough faith. They were told to leave most everything behind. They were to leave with an empty wallet. There was to be no suitcases. There was to be no change of clothes. This almost sounds like the wilderness journey out of Egypt. God will provide. But at the end of our Lord's ministry, he changes all those former guidelines. Cf. Luke 22: 35-38. He asked them if they had lacked anything when he had sent them out before. They had lacked nothing. But now he charges them to carry the wallet (with something in it) a bag, shoes, a garment and a sword (not to be used to kill). The point to be made is that the Lord made the changes.
Consider this: There are many publishers of Bibles, who make a point of stating that certain Bibles are Red Letter Editions. We are all familiar with this emphasis. They are referring to the words of the Lord Jesus as being in red print for easy identification. These red-letter words are found in the four Gospels, Acts and Revelation. But, there is also a false emphasis not recognized by most undiscerning buyers. That false emphasis is that these words in red are much more important than any other part of the Bible.
We are dealing with sincere efforts by publishers to do a service to purchasers. But it acts as a boomerang, rather than a good buy. Why? There are several reasons. With a perception that these red letters are more valuable than all the black letters, the Bible is now read on a tilt. This is not a normal method for reading and studying the Bible. There is more harm than help given. Readers and students become color prejudiced.
There are many places in the Gospel records where Jesus speaks. John 3:34 says that the one God sent speaketh the words of God. The emphasis of the Lord Jesus as found primarily in John's Gospel portrays all of His words as coming from the Father.
"My doctrine (word, teaching) is not mine, but his that sent me" 7:17 "He that is of God heareth God's words…" 8:47 "He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken of myself: but the Father, who sent me, he gave me a com- mandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. …………………… whatsoever I speak, therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak". John 12:48-50 "He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings; and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's, who sent me." 14:24 "For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me;….." 17:8
The Lord states also that his work and the will he performed were not his, but the Father's. cf. John 4:34; 5:30; 5:36, 38-39; 9:3-4; 10:32, 37 What we have here are the statements of the Lord, that his will, work and words are in a real sense NOT HIS, but are the Father's. Our conclusion : All the words of the Lord Jesus as found in the Gospels should not be in red, but black.
Furthermore, all the words of Paul in his epistles should be the ones in red. Why ? Because Paul states that his message is second hand. They are really not his. He was given everything he taught from the Lord Jesus. Cf. Gal. 1:11-12; I Tim. 6:3; I Thess. 4:15; I Cor. 11:23; I Cor. 15:3.
Our approach, then, to teaching the truth, rightly handling the word of God is to keep a balanced presentation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our emphasis is on the Lord Jesus Christ and what he is doing today. It is not so much as to what Paul teaches, preaches and proclaims as it is what the Lord Jesus Christ is teaching, preaching and proclaiming through His loyal Apostle, slave and minister, PAUL.
The words are the same. The message is the same. But the method is not to contrast Jesus and Paul. There is a contrast, but it is between the words and teaching of the Lord Jesus when he was on earth and the teachings of the same Lord Jesus who gives further truth and revelation from his place in glory, after the cross, after his resurrection and after his ascension.

Posted By Brother Love :)

My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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Tampa Bible Fellowship
http://www.tampabible.org/it_takes_all_kinds.htm
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It Takes All Kinds (PART 2)

Pastor Keith Baxter, Tampa Bible Fellowship, Tampa, Florida

People need to first realize their need for a savior and the Pharisee did not think he needed God, but God needed him. He thought that he was righteous enough, but our righteousness is filthy. There is nothing that we can do that is good

Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Then people will say “well he has a good heart” but Jeremiah tells us that our heart is wicked.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Proverbs 28:26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.

We can’t trust our heart, if we do then we are just foolish, this issue of self righteousness has been Israel’s problem all along.

Romans 10: 3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.

4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

They should have just told God that they couldn’t keep the Law and they needed Him to do it for them, but instead they tried to use the law to establish their righteousness. Even Paul righteousness of the Law

Philippians 3:6…touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

Is considered nothing but dung

Philippians 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung…

Now he doesn’t claim his righteousness but being found in Christ

Philippians 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

We can’t be righteous through the law but we find that we are all just sinners.

Romans 3: 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

But we can be righteous through Christ

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

As before stop trying to establish your own righteousness and see that you are not perfect in God’s eye, but he is willing to save you by his mercy and grace.

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us…

The last person we are going to look at is an Unbeliever. Someone who is just not going to believe that they are a sinner, or that the Lord Jesus Christ is all they need to trust in to be saved. A good example of this is one of the malefactors on the cross next the Lord.

Luke 23: 33 And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.

39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.

40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?

41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

This man was thinking of himself, but only physical salvation off of the cross, when he should have been thinking of is spiritual salvation.

Even for the unbelieving they will have an eternal destination … the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

It is simple. All God wants you to do is believe him, he doesn’t want your religion, righteousness or good works, but a believing heart.

Romans 4:5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

It is through belief that he will justify

Romans 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

And save men today.

1 Cor 1:21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

What is it that we are to believe? Well there is only one thing that stand between saints and sinners and that is blood of the Lord Jesus Christ on the CROSS.

We need to simply believe that Christ died for our sins, was buried and rose again.

1 Cor 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

If you are still relying on your religion, or think that you are righteous and are not in need of a Savior or even yet just don’t want to believe at all. Then stop, think, and believe and be saved from eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire.

The Philippian jailor asked one simple question…

Acts 16

30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…

Posted By Brother Love :)

The Timely Messenger
My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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The Timely Messenger
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/timely.html
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"It Is Finished!"

By Greg Bing

The Scriptures record seven times that Jesus spoke while He was being crucified. As He neared the point of death, having hung on that cruel cross for approximately six hours, one of the final things Jesus said is recorded in John 19:30, “It is finished!” Then, “bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.”

What did Jesus mean when He said, “It is finished?” What was finished? Let's examine this statement and the context in which it was spoken.

To begin with, let's look at what the statement, “it is finished,” did not mean, basing our conclusions on how Jesus spoke the words.

Not the Last Gasp
of a Worn Out Life
Though Jesus had endured terrible sufferings, His words were not the last gasp of a man whose life was simply worn out. As we read further in John 19, verses 31-33 describe what happened after Jesus died. It was the Preparation Day (the day before the Sabbath), so the Jews, not wanting the bodies of these men to remain on the cross on the Sabbath day, asked Pilate to break their legs and thus hasten their death. The Roman soldiers came and broke the legs of the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus, but when they came to Jesus they found that He was already dead, so they did not break His legs. This was quite unusual, for the process of crucifixion usually took longer than this to kill a man, even a man who had suffered as much physical punishment as Jesus had endured. When news reached Pilate, he “marveled that Jesus was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time” (Mark 15:44).

While He hung on the cross, Jesus remained fully alert until the moment He died. John 19:28 declares, “After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, `I thirst'.” Jesus was fully aware, even as He suffered on the cross, of all the things that had happened. He knew that the work He had been sent to do was now accomplished. He was also aware of all that was prophesied in the Old Testament Scriptures concerning Him and His death. He knew that there remained a prophecy in Psalm 69:21 that was yet to be fulfilled, therefore He uttered the words, “I thirst.”

One of the reasons Jesus remained alert is found in Matthew 27:34, where it states, “They gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink.” Sour wine mingled with gall was a drink that was given to numb the senses and help decrease the pain during crucifixion. Jesus, as soon as He tasted the drink, knew what it was for, and therefore refused to drink it.

Not an Admission of
Defeat or Failure

When Jesus said, “It is finished,” it was not an admission of defeat or failure. Many people envision Jesus uttering these words quietly, almost in a whisper, as if He were, in dejection, giving up or surrendering to death. The Scriptures indicate something quite different. Matthew 27:50 states that before He died, Jesus cried out with a loud voice. Comparing the various gospel accounts, I believe the words Jesus cried out with a loud voice were “It is finished!”

After crying out these words, John 19:30 says that Jesus bowed His head and gave up His spirit. If He bowed His head, this implies that it was erect when He cried out, “It is finished;” another indication that Jesus was not admitting defeat or failure.

Not a Cry of Despair
from a Helpless Martyr
As Jesus hung on the cross, the crowds taunted Him, saying, “Save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matt. 27:40). Could Jesus have come down from the cross? As the Son of God, He certainly had the power to do so, but as a man, Jesus “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8).

Going back once more to John 19:30 we read that Jesus “bowed His head and gave up His spirit.” The word “bowed” carries the idea of laying down the head to rest, as opposed to simply letting the head drop. The expression “gave up” means to deliver or give over into the hands of another. Who did Jesus give His spirit to? Luke 23:46 records what are likely His final words, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” After saying this, “He breathed His last.” Please notice the order of the events described here. Jesus laid His head down to rest before He died. If He had died first, His head would simply have fallen as He slumped in death. After laying His head to rest, then Jesus gave up His spirit and died.

Jesus' death was certainly not the despairing cry of a helpless martyr. No one took Jesus' life from Him. Jesus Himself chose the moment that He would die. He willingly and voluntarily gave up His life for our sins. In Galatians 2:20 Paul refers to the Lord Jesus Christ as, “... the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” In John 10:17-18, Jesus Himself declared, “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

Next: What the Expression “It is finished!” Did Mean

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The Timely Messenger
My Favorite Web-Sites And Studies
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The Timely Messenger
http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/timely.html
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"IT IS FINISHED"
by Greg Bing

Continued

Jesus uttered the words, "It is finished!" as He neared the point of death, having hung on the cruel cross of Calvary for six long hours. What do the words, "It is finished" mean? Why did Jesus make this declaration from the cross? We looked last month at what Jesus' words did not mean. They were not an expression of relief from a man whose life was simply worn out. They were not an admission of defeat or failure. They were not a cry of despair from a helpless martyr. Jesus was fully alert all the way up to the point of death (John 19:28). He held His head erect and cried out with a loud voice, "It is finished!" (Matt.27:50) and then He laid down His head and gave up His spirit (John 19:30) into the hands of His Father (Luke 23:46). No one took Jesus' life from Him. He voluntarily gave it up, sacrificing Himself for the sins of the world (John 10:17-18)

nbsp; Let's now turn our attention to what the word, "It is finished," do mean. The expression, "It is finished," is translated from only one word in the Greek: "tetelestai" which is from the root word "teleo," a word whose basic meaning is "finished." However, this Greek word is very expressive and has several shades of meaning. Each of these meanings gives us a better understanding of why Jesus spoke this word from the cross.

To Bring to a Close, To Finish, To End
The word "teleo" in one sense means to bring to a close, to finish, to end. It is used in Matthew 11:1 where it states, "Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished ('made an end of' in KJV) commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities." What was finished or brought to a close when Jesus died? For one thing, it brought to a close His sufferings, yet He didn't utter this cry simply to indicate His relief that His physical sufferings for our sin were finished. The gospel message is not just that Christ died, but that "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (I Cor. 15:3-4). As Jesus hung on that cross, He "bore our sins in His own body on the tree" (I Pet. 2:24). Jesus was "made sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (II Cor. 5:21). As Jesus bore our sins there on the cross, God the Father turned away from His only begotten Son and utterly forsook Him (Matt. 27:45-46). What unbelievable agony this must have been for Jesus. At the point of death, Jesus declared that His sufferings for out sins were now ended.

The death of Jesus was not only the end of Jesus' sufferings for our sins, but also the end of the work the Father had sent His Son to do. Thus , we often refer to the finished work of Calvary. This finished work involved three different aspects: (1) Jesus made propitiation for the sins of the whole world (Rom. 3:25, I John 2:2). The righteous and holy requirements of God were now satisfied. The wages of sin had been paid (Rom. 6:23). (2) Jesus' death therefore made it possible for the whole world to re reconciled to God (II Cor. 5:18-19). (3) By the shedding of His precious blood, Jesus provided redemption for all men from the slavery of sin and death (I Pet. 1:18-19, Eph. 1:7).

Though Jesus' finished work made it possible for all to be saved, only those who believe in Him, trusting and relying upon His finished work to save then from their sins, will realize this wonderful gift of salvation from God (John 3:16, Rom. 3:24-26).

To Perform, Execute, Complete, Fulfill
The word "teleo" also means to perform, to execute, to complete or fulfill. It is used in Luke 2:39 where it states that Jesus' parents "performed all things according to the law of the Lord... ." It is also used in Luke 18:31 when Jesus, "took the twelve aside and said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished." The word means to perform or fulfill as to content, which means in every single detail, and to perform or fulfill as to form, which means in the exact manner and at the prescribed time.

Jesus had performed and accomplished the will of God. Just before Jesus uttered the words, "It is finished," John 19:28 states that Jesus knew "that all things were now accomplished." Jesus' very purpose for coming into the world was to do the will of the Father (Heb. 10:5-7), just as the Psalmist prophesied (Psalm 40: 6-8). Jesus was delivered up to be crucified "by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God" and then raised from the dead because it was not possible that death should hold Him (Acts 2:23- 24). The word translated "purpose" ("council" in KJV) refers not to the desire of God, but to His determined will which cannot be changed. God's eternal purpose was "accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Eph. 3:11) in every single detail and in the exact manner and time proscribed by the Father (cf. John 12:23-33).

Jesus had also performed and accomplished the word of God. Look again at John 19:28 which says, "After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst," but it was extremely important, for there was a prophecy of Scripture that had yet to be fulfilled. Psalm 69:21 reads, "They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.: After saying, "I thirst," they "filled a sponge with vinegar (or sour wine), putting on hyssop, and put it to His mouth." It was after Jesus had received the sour wine that He declared, "It is finished," for He knew that every prophecy of Scripture concerning His death had now been accomplished.

Every Old Testament promise and prophecy concerning the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was fulfilled perfectly. When Peter preached to the people of Israel in the early part of the book of Acts he declared, "Those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has this fulfilled" (Acts 3:18). In John 19 alone, there are several specific prophecies which are identified: vs. 24 "They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cat lots" (Psalm 22:18), vs. 36 "Not one of His bones shall be broken" (Psalm 34:20), and vs. 37 "They shall look on Him whom they pierced" (Zech 12:10).

Will be Continued...

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"It Is Finished!"
By Greg Bing

(Continued)

In our last two issues, we have been looking at the expression, "It is finished!" which Jesus uttered from the cross as He neared the point of death. What did Jesus mean when He made this delcaration?

Last month we saw that the expression, "It is finished," is translated from a single word in the Greek: "tetelestai." The root of this word, "teleo," means "to finish," but it has several different shades of meaning. We looked at two of these different meanings in our last issue: 1) to bring to a close, or to finish and 2) to perform, execute, complete or fulfill.

Let's look at two more meanings of the word.

To Pay a Debt

During Jesus' lifetime the word "teleo" was used in the sense of paying a debt, such as a tax or tribute. Matthew 17:24 describes how those who collected the temple tax came to Peter and asked him, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?" Today we often see the words "PAID" or "PAID IN FULL" stamped or written on receipts or invoices. Archaelogists have recovered tax receipts from the 1st and 2nd centuries with the Greek word "tetelestai" written across them, indicating that this particular debt had been "paid in full."

Each of us are sinners (Rom. 3:23), and because of our sin, we are in debt. Romans 6:23 teaches that the wages (payment, debt) that must be payed for our sin is death. When Jesus died on the cross of Calvary, He cried out "Tetelestai!" indicating that the debt or price for our sins had been "paid in full." He paid the price to redeem us or free us from the penalty of sin. The price that He paid was not gold or silver, but His own precious blood.

"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." (Eph. 1:7)

"Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, ... but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." (I Pet. 1:18-19)

I John 2:2 tells us that Jesus Himself "is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." God was propitiated or satisfied with Christ's payment for our sins, therefore Jesus cried out, "Paid in full!"

Many people today feel the need to perform some type of good works or religious works in order to be saved. Nothing needs to be added to Jesus' finished work. He paid it all!

A Military Cry of Victory

The word "tetelestai" has also been used in military situations as a cry of victory. When Jesus used this word on the cross, remember that His head was erect, and He cried out with a loud voice, "Finished!" He had won the victory; the victory over Satan, over sin, and ultimately over death.

Following the sin of Adam and Eve, God spoke these words to the serpent (Satan): "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed (Christ); He (Christ) shall bruise your (Satan) head, and you (Satan) shall bruise His (Christ) heel." Enmity speaks of hatred or an enemy relationship. In this prophecy in Genesis 3:15, God announced that Satan would bruise the heel of Christ, a blow which is not fatal, but that Christ would bruise the head of Satan, a blow which is fatal. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He struck the fatal blow to Satan's head and won the victory over him. Hebrews 2:14 tells us that Jesus became a man ("partook of flesh and blood") that "through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil."

Jesus' death on the cross not only paid the penalty for our sins, but it also provided a way for the believer to have victory over sin; victory over our old sin nature. Romans 6:10 tells us that Christ not only died for our sins, but He also died to sin. We are identified with Christ in His death, thus we also died to sin (Rom. 6:2). Before we trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior, we are slaves to our old sin nature (Rom. 6:17). When we trust in Christ we are made a new creation in Him (II Cor. 5:17). Being united with Him in His death, we read that "our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with (`rendered powerless'), that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Rom. 6:6). We have been "freed from sin" (Rom. 6:7). This wonderful victory over sin and its enslavement of us was won by our Savior when He died on the cross.

After three days in the tomb, Jesus was raised from the dead. "God loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it" (Acts 2:24). Christ won the victory over death for all eternity. The last few verses of I Corinthians 15, which is often called the resurrection chapter, describes this wonderful victory over death that Christ won on our behalf:

"... Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (I Cor. 15:54-57)

Once For All

The Greek word "tetelestai" is the perfect tense form of the verb "teleo." The Greek perfect tense, which is not easily expressed in English, is used to describe an act which was completed in time past, but which has a continuing state or results. It describes something that never has to be repeated <197> something that is done once for all! When Jesus died on the cross, He finished the work the Father sent Him to do; the work of eternal redemption; a work that will never have to be repeated.

"... We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (Heb. 10:10).

"For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all..." (Rom. 6:10)

Conclusion

"It is finished!" It is only one little word in Greek, but, as you can see from this brief study, it has so much meaning. With this one word, Jesus spoke volumes about what His sacrificial death accomplished for us.

If you have never trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, you are outside of Christ and therefore separated from God. In this lost condition, nothing that Christ finished, performed, paid and won on Calvary has been realized or experienced in your own life! Won't you carefully consider the things we have looked at from God's Word. Think about God's wonderful love for you; a love that was demonstrated when God sent His own beloved Son into the world to die for your sins (I John 4:9-10). Consider what Christ accomplished on your behalf through His finished work on Calvary.

Apart from Christ, you are still living under the penalty of your sins: "the wages of sin is death." Yet, God offers you the greatest gift that has ever been given: "the gift of God is eternal life, in Christ Jesus our Lord." You can receive this gift right now by simply believing in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior (John 3:16, Eph. 2:8-9).

When you trust in Christ, resting and relying upon Him and His "finished" work on the cross of Calvary, God places you "in Christ." Your debt of sin is "paid in full." You have peace with God and are at peace in your heart, knowing that you are "complete in Him" (Col. 2:10).

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Did The Body Of Christ Begin At Pentecost?

Many Christians assume the Body of Christ began on the day of Pentecost. Without ever stopping to prove why (I Thess. 5:21) they then move ahead to establish their doctrines concerning this dispensation with this as the key. Have you ever considered what actually took place on Pentecost? What follows is a list of fourteen reasons why the church could not have begun at Pentecost.

There was already a church in existence on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41, 47). This church was not the church which is His Body (Eph. 1:22-23), because this was hid until it was revealed to Paul (Eph. 3). This church, to which the believers of Pentecost were added, was the kingdom church and was based on the confession of Peter that Jesus was the Christ (or Messiah). Peter was then given the keys to this kingdom church and power to "bind" and "loose" (Matt. 16:15-20; cf John 20:23).

Peter preached the "Last Days" of Israel on Pentecost and not the first days of the church which is His Body (Acts 2:16-17).

There is no indication in Acts 2, or anywhere in scripture, that the Body of Christ is being formed on Pentecost.

Pentecost was a Jewish feast day given in the Law of Moses (Lev. 23, Deut. 16). In the dispensation of the Grace of God there is no observance of days and they are spoken of as "weak and beggarly elements" and "bondage" (Gal. 4:9-11). It is inconceivable that the Lord would begin a church on a feast day which He had for another economy.

There was no casting off of the nation Israel on the day of Pentecost, as was necessary for the establishing of the Body of Christ (Rom. 11:11-15, 32). On the contrary, the first real offer of the kingdom was made by Peter on Pentecost. The kingdom was not offered during the Gospels, it was only said to be "at hand". It actually was impossible for it to have been offered until after the New Testament was established by the death of Christ (Luke 17:24-25, 24:26). Christ must first have suffered and then have entered into His glory (I Pet. 1:11).

The Body of Christ is a joint body of Jews and Gentiles. Peter only addressed Jews at Pentecost. Notice the words, "Ye men of Judea", "Ye men of Israel", "Ye", "You", "Your", "Men and Brethren", and the "House of Israel" throughout the passage.

Part of the Pentecostal celebration was the two wave loaves of Lev. 23. This is used as a type of the "Jews and Gentiles" by many dispensationalists, but this cannot match the clear teaching of I Cor. 10:17 which shows that the body of Christ is one bread.

Part of the message that Peter preached on Pentecost involved water baptism as a requirement for salvation (Acts 2:38). Water baptism has no part in the gospel message committed to Paul for the Body of Christ (I Cor. 1:17, Eph. 4:5).

On the day of Pentecost the promise of the Father was fulfilled to Israel. This was a spiritual baptism where Christ was the baptizer, and Israel was baptized into the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11-12, Acts 1:5). This spiritual baptism is quite different from the baptism of this dispensation, where the Holy Spirit is the baptizer and the believer is baptized into the Body of Christ. The student of the Bible should learn to make a difference where God makes a difference. There are two different spiritual baptisms: one is to the kingdom church, the other is to the church, which is His Body. One is associated with signs and wonders, and the other is not (I Cor. 12:13, Rom. 6:3-4).

Pentecost was a fulfillment of prophecy (Acts 2:16, 33, 3:24), whereas the body of Christ was a mystery which had been kept secret since the world began (Col. 1:24-26).

If there was any dispensational change, the Apostles were completely unaware of it, for they continued at the Temple (Acts 2:46, 3:1, 3, 8,11, 5:20-21, 25, 42).

The Twelve and the kingdom church at Jerusalem also continued, throughout the book of Acts, to observe the Law (Acts 21:20-25, 22:12).

The kingdom church, in accordance with the kingdom teachings of Christ, sold their possessions and established a common treasury (Acts 2:44-45, 3:6, 4:32-35).

Peter, in his message on the day of Pentecost, did not preach the Gospel of the Grace of God, which is the clear and distinctive message of Paul given to him by revelation.
Some would argue at this point that God started the Body of Christ here, despite the accounts given in Acts 2, and that Peter was simply ignorant of it being formed. This is hard to believe since Peter had his understanding opened (Luke 24:45), the indwelling of the Spirit (John 20:22), the Baptism of the Holy Ghost (Acts 1:5), and the filling with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4). No, Peter was not ignorant - he was completely aware of the program which Christ was carrying out at Pentecost and was right on target.

By Clyde L. Pilkington, Jr.

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BEING FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

by Dennis Kiszonas

The Apostle Paul wrote, in Ephesians 5:18, "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit."

This study is a brief consideration of what it means "to be filled with the Spirit," and what the evidence is of His filling.

1.) What does it mean to be "filled with the Spirit"?

Sometimes in the Bible we read of someone being "filled" with joy, or sorrow, or anger, etc. What does that mean? To be "filled" is to be controlled by something, under the influence of something: So joyful that they were under the control and under the influence of joy, or of sorrow or of anger.

To be "filled with the Holy Spirit" is to be under the control of the Spirit, or under the influence of the Spirit.

Ephesians 5:18 starts out with the command not to be drunk. I used to read that verse and wonder, "Why put these two so seemingly different commands in one verse? 'Don't be drunk with wine but be filled with the Spirit'? Then I realized: to be drunk with wine is to be filled with wine, under the control or influence of wine in much the same way that we are to be filled with, under the control or influence of the Spirit. The two parts of the verse go together very well.

When we are drunk with wine, we take in a foreign substance which has an effect upon our brains, and as we begin to think differently, under the influence of the alcohol, we begin to talk differently and act differently. So also when we allow the Holy Spirit to fill us, He begins by renewing our minds, our thinking comes under the influence and control of the Holy Spirit, and when our thinking changes, our speaking and acting changes. We are under the Spirit's control and influence.

Paul's command in Eph 5:18 is a present tense imperative which indicates "be always filled, controlled, and influenced by the Spirit," or "keep on being filled by the Spirit." Not a momentary action, but a constant condition.

2.) Earlier in Ephesians Paul told us that we all have the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13 said that first we heard the good news that Christ died for us. Then we believed in Him as our Savior. Finally, we were sealed in Christ with the Holy Spirit. And in Eph 4:30 we learn that the Holy Spirit is never going to leave us, we are sealed unto the day of redemption (the day of the rapture). We may grieve Him, cause Him sorrow as He sees how we act, but He will never leave us.

Every Christian has the Holy Spirit. We are never commanded to "receive the Holy Spirit." But every Christian is not filled with the Holy Spirit. So we are commanded, not to receive the Spirit, but to be filled with Him. He is in us, but He may not be in control. We may be saved, and yet we may not be "spiritual." And so Paul writes, "Let the Spirit be in control of your life."

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BEING FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

(PART 2)

3.) How do we know if we are filled with the Spirit? What is the evidence of His filling, of His control, of His influence?

Here's where the doctrine gets controversial! Some churches and denominations claim "we're Spirit-filled--and the others aren't!" Other churches and denominations say "We're not a Spirit-filled church, and we don't want to be!" Spirit-filled has come to have a certain meaning based upon certain supposed evidence: Spirit-filled means speaking in tongues, or acting in some strange manner, etc.

But what does the Bible say the evidence is of the Spirit's filling?

The Body of Christ today is broken into thousands of different denominations and groups. And each group has their verses in the Bible to prove that they're right and the others are wrong. And they all point to verses in the same Bible, yet they all disagree with each other. It is an awful tragedy to see the Body of Christ broken again, divided and confused. What is the reason for all the confusion? The failure to "rightly divide the word of truth" (2 Tim 2:15).

Take the commands in the Bible about food for example:

In Gen 1:29 God gave Adam the herbs of the earth and the fruit of the trees to eat as his food. Then later in Gen. 9:1-4 God added to Noah the meat of the animals, fish and fowls to eat as his food. Then God commanded Moses in the Law to eat only some meat, fish and fowls as food, only "kosher" or clean food (Lev. 11) Finally the Lord told Paul that we could eat any kind of food, that every creature was created for our nourishment and nothing was to be forbidden or refused if it is received with thanksgiving (1 Tim 4:3-5).

Now let's imagine there were four preachers: One preached that we could only eat fruits and vegetables. He preached Gen. 1:29. His followers would start the "Vegetarian denomination." The second preacher preached that we could eat only "kosher foods" and he preached Leviticus. His followers could start the "Kosher denomination." The third said "We can eat any kind of food as long as we gave thanks for it." And he preached Paul's letters and his followers would be "followers of Paul."

All three would be "Biblical" -- they all had their verses in the Bible. All three would be "scriptural." But two of them would be wrong. Because, though they were scriptural and Biblical, they weren't "dispensational." They failed to "rightly divide the word of truth."

It was the Apostle Paul alone who wrote, "If you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God that was given (by the Lord Jesus Christ) to me for you (the gentiles)" (Eph 3:2). The Lord gave Paul the dispensation of grace for us today and that includes the instructions on what kind of food we can eat.

But this is an illustration of how all the denominations and various divisions got started. They may be Biblical and scriptural, but they fail to be dispensational, and fail to follow "our apostle" for this dispensation of grace, the Apostle Paul, not about food, but about salvation, assurance, prayer, and even the filling of the Spirit, and that's why there is so much disagreement, division and confusion in the Body today.

When we want to know what the evidence of being filled with the Spirit is, there are several Biblical and scriptural answers, but there's only one dispensational answer.

The first person said to be filled with the Spirit is found in Exodus 31:1-5. His name was Bezaleel. And the evidence of being Spirit-filled was that he was a master craftsman, a carpenter, a jeweler, a metal worker. Moses was building the tabernacle and God supplied him with a Spirit-filled craftsman.

Later in the Bible, in Acts 2, we read that the disciples were filled with the Spirit and the evidence then was the ability to speak in other languages (or 'tongues'), so that Jews in Jerusalem who came from other countries could understand the apostles' message in their native languages (Acts 2:11).

The Holy Spirit filled people in other dispensations, but the evidence was different in each dispensation. What is the evidence of His filling in the dispensation of grace? Its not being a master craftsman as in Exodus, or speaking in a foreign language as on the day of Pentecost.

We know that because the Corinthian church spoke in languages (tongues) more than any other of Paul's churches (1 Cor. 1:4-7) but they were not spiritual believers, Paul said they were not spiritual but carnal Christians (1 Cor. 3:1-4). The gift of languages (tongues) was never a sign of spirituality or of being "Spirit-filled" in the dispensation of grace. The most carnal church spoke in languages more than any other church.

The evidence of being "Spirit-filled" in this dispensation of grace that we're living in today is found in Ephesians 5:18-6:9. This is the only place in Paul's letters where he writes about being filled with the Spirit, and here's where he gives us the description of a Spirit-filled believer:

Eph. 5:19 "Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord." Singing and joy are evidences of the Spirit's filling.

5:20 "Giving thanks always for all things..." A thankful, trusting attitude is an evidence of the Spirit's control, not fearful, not complaining.

5:21 "Submitting to one another..." The evidence of the Spirit's control is seen in our relationships:
Spirit-filled wives submitting to their husbands (5:22) and Spirit-filled husbands loving their wives just as Christ loved the church (5:25), and Spirit-filled children obeying their parents and Spirit filled parents raising their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (6:1-4), and Spirit-filled employees doing their work as unto the Lord and Spirit-filled employers respecting and honoring their employees (6:5-9).

It is interesting that in this passage that starts with the command to be Spirit-filled (Ephesians 5:18) and then gives this long list of the evidences of the Spirit-filled life (5:19-6:9), Paul never mentions speaking in languages (tongues) as one of the evidences. That was never an evidence of spirituality or of the Spirit's control in the dispensation of grace. The evidences of spirituality are things like: a husband loving his wife, a joyful believer making melody in his or her heart to the Lord, a peace-filled believer giving thanks for all things to God the Father, etc. A Spirit-filled believer is a believer who is manifesting the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in his/her life.

The Body of Christ is broken into thousands of denominations, all claiming to be biblical and scriptural, but all divided from the others, and nowhere is the division sharper, the breaks more clear-cut than in the doctrine of the Spirit-filled life. But the answer, as always, is to "rightly divide the word of truth" (2 Tim 2:15). The Lord Jesus gave the Apostle Paul the dispensation of grace for us today and that included the provision of the Holy Spirit, His control and His influence to renew our minds and to transform our lives. The command to be "Spirit-filled" is not just for some Christians (the "spirit-filled ones"), but it is for all of us, and it is not a momentary experience, but a constant and ever growing influence as we "let the word of Christ dwell in us richly." (Col 3:16).

Note the results of letting the word of Christ dwell in us in Col 3:16-4:1 and compare them to the results of being Spirit-filled in Ephesians 5:18-6:9. They're the same! To become Spirit-filled, we need to spend more time in His word, and let it "soak in." As we "behold the Lord Jesus Christ" in His word, God the Holy Spirit transforms us to be like Him, He exerts that wonderful influence and takes that gentle control of our lives, He fills us to become like Him.

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ChristiansUnite Forums

Theology => Apologetics => Topic started by: Ambassador4Christ on October 04, 2003, 07:41:03 PM