GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION

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In Christ-The New Man
Part two
By Pastor Joe S. Leftwich

How would you describe the average Christian's understanding of what it means to be "saved" and how he should live the Christian life in today's world? Who does he believe himself to be? How does he understand his relationship and responsibilities to God?

Most conservative Christians believe that they are saved, usually quoting John 3:16. Most believe that they should attend church, get involved in Bible classes, support missions and the local church in its endeavors to spread the gospel. And most have pastors who preach ninety-five percent of their Sunday messages with texts from the four Gospels. Their pastors probably cover the essential beliefs and activities as Christians until Jesus comes again to rapture His Church, His Body.

Now let us look at the contrast in messages as given by Paul in his epistles and those given by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4 that Jesus was born under the Law. God's administration here on earth covered by the Gospels was a life under the Law. The Apostle John wrote in John 1:11: "He came unto His own, and His own received Him not." What gospel was being preached by Jesus? Mark 1:14,15: "Jesus came, into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand." And in Matthew 4:17: "From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'"

Where, by whom, and to whom was this message of the kingdom of God to be preached? This is recorded in Matthew 10:1-8: ''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 sickness and all manner of disease .... 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. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils .... "

The message, the messengers, and the ones to whom the message was given were all a different administration than what one finds in Paul's epistles to "the Church which is His Body." Surely this is enough material to make the case that the four Gospels were written to the Jews, and purposely excluded the Gentiles when Jesus said specifically, "Go not into the way of the Gentiles." Another clear indication of the difference between the Gospels and the other books of the New Testament was the whole way of life at that time.

Let's review the period of the Gospels: The Law, the Temple, and the offerings were in full operation during all of the life of Jesus on this earth. God made His offering of The Lamb of God, His Son, "without blemish and without spot" for the sins of Israel.

Through past ages and generations the prophets spoke of the coming Messiah, who would be the Great Deliverer of the Jews; Jesus was that Messiah. He was born under the Law. He came to His own while under the Law and His own received Him not. There are hundreds of prophecies in the Old Testament concerning the Messiah that are fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

The Father's giving of His Son as an offering for sins through Israel and the Son's coming to give Himself are recorded in John 1:1-14. John wrote in Verse one, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God;" and in Verse 14, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory .... "

Jesus, to fulfill the requirements of the Law concerning His being offered by God as "The Lamb of God" for sin, must be observed for the required period of time to be declared that He was without blemish. Jesus fulfilled this requirement by living among them for thirty-three years and was declared to be without blemish. He was the only acceptable offering for the sins of the world. He lived His life and ministered among His people right up until it was time for Him to be offered by His Father for the sins of all mankind, from Adam and Eve to every man, woman and child who will ever be born into this world, which was ultimately revealed "in due time" through Paul's gospel (1 Tim. 2:3-7).

O Lord, my Redeemer, thank You for using Your law as a tutor to lead me to Jesus Christ.
Your law was so correct regarding my desperate need of a Savior.
 Now I rejoice that I am no longer under that tutor.
 What a delight to relate to You by faith and not by performance.
 How wonderful to look to a gracious, loving Person, the Lord Jesus, instead
 of to a perfect unyielding standard, the law.
 Lord Jesus, please complete in me the good work of Your grace
 that began when I first believed in You.
I pray,and give thanks. Amen.

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In Christ-The New Man
Part three


So the four Gospels were all about God's coming to His own as their Messiah. He loved them and had a feast prepared for them but they would not come to the table. He came to His own and His own received Him not. The Son also gave Himself up as an offering for us Gentiles. The offer is still open.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John have recorded for all eternity the coming of the Son of God into the world as a baby born to Mary and Joseph, His life as a child, His ministry to "His own," the Jews, reaching, teaching, healing, and performing miracles. I don't know of any references in the Gospels about Christ coming to the Gentiles. Therefore, I urge that we understand and accept the obvious purpose of the Gospels.

I believe it is a grievous mistake for Gentiles to claim the Gospels as their guide for being born into the Body of Christ. The writings of the Apostle Paul contain God's invitation to the Gentiles: I Corinthians 15:1-4: "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved .... For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how 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."

The four Gospels on the other hand record Jesus, born under the Law, coming to His own (the Jews), preaching to them day after day, demonstrating His Messiahship, and proclaiming His love for them and giving Himself as an offering for sins, first for the Jews, then for the Gentiles. God's gospel, given to Nicodemus, is John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." This was the message of John to his people, the Jews, that they might enter the kingdom of God.

"'Christ in you' is the seminal truth of our lives as Christians here on this earth ... :'

Why am I emphasizing that the Gospels were written primarily to the Jews? Because there are a great number of Christians, including many pastors, who live in the Gospels with John 3:16 as their salvation verse and missionary programs patterned after them. The missionary program Paul proclaims is that of every believer having been appointed as a living ambassador for Christ, permeating the world as messengers for Christ. God sent another message and another messenger to the Gentiles: the message of Grace through His messenger, the Apostle Paul.

So hopefully, we have proved that the four Gospels are not the source of God's message for this age for which Paul has been chosen as God's apostle to reveal His message to the Gentiles. Hopefully, we have also proved that the four Gospels, precious as they are, do not reveal this mystery that the Apostle Paul has been divinely chosen to reveal. So let us seek to understand this great revelation of God's Mystery: Christ in you the hope of glory.

I see Romans 5:9,10 as being the transition statement of God from life under the law of sin and death to life under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. So, my fellow believers in Christ, reason with me as we look at these two verses that describe this transition: "Much more, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him" and "much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life."

Think with me for a minute, why does Paul use the phrase "much more"? Notice where he uses it. He uses it just before "having been justified and saved by His blood from the wrath of God." What could possibly be "much more" than being saved from the wrath of God? I thought this was what being saved was all about! But Paul tells us there is something "much more" than being saved from the wrath of God. What is it, Paul? Paul answers briefly and succinctly, "We shall be saved by His life."

"We shall be saved by His life." This is really what all the rest of our study is about. It is about our being in Christ, new creatures in Christ, and we will find that this is what it means to be "saved by His life." Before you were saved from the wrath of God, you were dead in trespasses and sin. But when you believed the gospel you were made alive in Christ! You were dead in trespasses and sin but now you are being saved by His life.

We are going to learn together what this life in Christ and being saved by His life is all about. The Christian is unique, he is a "new man" in Christ! This is what is meant by being "saved by His life;" "Christ in you, the hope of glory"! We can understand being saved by His death, burial, and resurrection, but then we must discover an adequate meaning for our "being saved by His life."

Frankly, my mind is settled on the question. I have been made alive in Christ and I have been made a new creature in Christ; my life in this mortal body, this body of flesh, is being saved by my being in Christ. "For if while 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"!

We have looked at the message, now let us look at the messenger.
The designated messenger to the Gentiles is the Apostle Paul. In Acts 9:15,16, the Lord sent Ananias to minister to Saul, telling him, "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."

Conclusion: it was Paul and Paul alone that was called to go to the Gentiles. I am a Gentile, so I reason that God would have me go to the writings of Paul for instructions about who I am, what God expects of me and what provisions He has given for my being able to carry out His instructions. Why do we Christians who believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ go to the Gospels, which were written to the Jews who were under the Law, for instructions about how we are to live our lives under Grace?

    To Be Continued!

I pray dear Lord of manifold grace,
I earnestly yearn to grow in every aspect of Your grace.
Lord Jesus, I humbly desire to find increasing intimacy with You.
Please work Your grace deeply into my heart  and manifest it fully,
as you live your life through me.
I will trust you to make all the choices,
and give you praise and credit for all.  Amen

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In Christ-The New Man
Part four
By Pastor Joe S. Leftwich


God's gospel to the Gentiles now includes the resurrection of Christ, and is proclaimed by Paul in his letter to the church at Corinth in I Corinthians 15:3-4: "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how 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."

Paul's salvation message includes Christ's resurrection and adds the fact that the believer is baptized into Christ. This baptism is not symbolic. We believers have been placed into the body of Christ. There are about 55 phrases using the phrase "in Christ." We can now say that Paul teaches that every believer in the gospel, as he has given it, is a new creature, or creation, in Christ.

I submit that today's popular mixing of these messages given by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John to the Jews and that of the Apostle Paul to the Gentiles is a confusion of God's administrations of Law and Grace. Those living under the Law could, as Jesus told Nicodemus, be "born again" and have eternal life; but nothing is said to Nicodemus about being "new creatures in Christ." If one understands even a little bit about what God has done for the believer in the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, he will not confuse these messages.

As a new creature in Christ, God can now reveal spiritual truths to you about His will for your life. A part of this revelation to us is found in Colossians 1:27: "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."

Stop in some of these places and just memorize and meditate. These are majestic statements. Think about it! God willed, God exercised His will to make known the "riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles" defined as "Christ in you the hope of glory"! If we are to attempt to understand a revelation of this magnitude, we must study the Scriptures in which it is revealed.

Paul has defined the core meaning of this revelation as being "Christ in you." Think about it! God through Paul is revealing this "Mystery" to "His saints," you and me who have believed His gospel. Ask yourself, what fits this explanation better than what we are now studying? It fits exactly this extraordinary truth of God taking us, who were dead in trespasses and sin, and making us alive in Jesus Christ, and making us new creatures in Christ.

With this in mind, read this benediction from Paul: "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 manifest, 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" (Rom. 16:25-26).

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In Christ-The New Man
PART FIVE
By Pastor Joe S. Leftwich



God has prepared us with power and promises to carry out any instructions He gives, so that we can live our lives in the flesh, in this world, well pleasing to Him. We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. He wants us, you and me, to act in our own lives to carry out His will. For example, look at something God asks you to do that would have been impossible before becoming a new creature in Christ. "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." Paul wrote these words to the Corinthian Christians in II Corinthians 7:1.

Given our preparation by God as explained in the list of things God has done in every believer to prepare us to live a life well pleasing to Him, what should your response be to His request? How about, "Yes Father, I know that You would not ask me to do something that I could not do. I will start identifying those things in my life that are contrary to Your will and do some cleansing of myself from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

We know that we will never "perfect" holiness; we will never do a complete cleansing of ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit while we are living here on this earth in this mortal body of flesh, which has a nature of strong desires it wants satisfied, but we can be "perfecting" (working on) it. So let us take a look at what we are faced with in regard to our flesh. Our flesh has appetites and is constantly suggesting to our minds that we fulfill these appetites whether or not they are moral, legal, or healthy.

Even though we are "renewing our minds," we will still have old memories of the things we did in the flesh that were contrary to God's will, but were very pleasing, and our flesh, calling on these memories, constantly suggests that we do those same things we enjoyed so much. This is a lifetime battle, "for the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other; so that ye cannot do the things that ye would" (Galatians 5:17).

The Scriptures list three sources of temptations: the lust of the eyes (coveting); the lust of the flesh (food, sex, etc.), and the pride of life (vanity, arrogance: Look at who I am, or what I have, or what I have done!). Are you able to distinguish between lust and the natural healthy desires one has, to succeed and enjoy the good things of life? One difference is that lust will lead you to break God's laws. The natural enjoyment of our desires that are in accordance with God's will is what life is all about. Adam and Eve were meant to enjoy gratification of the natural desires that God had given them for food, beauty, sexual relations and having children.

One lust is the desire for sexual fulfillment outside of God's will. Enjoying God's gifts is wonderful Lust is disastrous. Lust is never satisfied! Lust knows not logic; it knows only: "but I want it." But you can now say, "You can't have it!" It may take many repetitions and a period of time to put to death these deeds of the flesh, but we are directed to make this a lifetime quest. Lust begins in the brain as a thought that enters the ear gate or the eye gate. This is an extremely important subject and is worthy of more time than we have in this basic core study of Scriptural observations about lust. Lust is a strong desire for something that will bring immediate personal, sensual gratification without regard as to whether it is moral or lawful Biblical lust carries the idea that it has gone beyond just being tempted. Lust cares not a whit about what damage is done or who it offends or hurts.

You, believer in Christ, are living in and ruling from, your brain. This is made clear from such instructions from Paul as Romans 6:12, 13: "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin; but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God." One's brain is the only part of who we are in which information is taken in, thought about, and in which decisions are made and sent out as commands to the members of our body to carry out.

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In Christ-The New Man
PART SIX
By Pastor Joe S. Leftwich


These are direct instructions to Christians in this verse, "let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof." Can you refuse to obey your lusts? God says you not only can, but that you should. God does not ask you to do something that you cannot do. As we discovered earlier, we can be using Romans 8:13: "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." Let's highlight this last half of this last sentence, "But if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."

Satan tempts by bringing thoughts to one's mind. The thought itself is not sin. What one does with that thought determines whether it becomes sin. Is the thought entertained, encouraged and enjoyed, or recognized for what it is and rejected? Satan put some thoughts into the mind of Jesus that if they had been entertained and acted on would have been sin. But Jesus, knowing His enemy's strategy, immediately answered with quotations from the Scriptures. Satan can put thoughts, terribly wrong thoughts, into our minds, but if they are immediately recognized for what they are and rejected, it is a victory of our new man's battle with the flesh.

The natural man doesn't have concern about such things. To him they are just natural appetites to be satisfied any way they can. I Corinthians 2:14: "But 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." The Christian, on the other hand, has guidelines to follow. Under Law or under Grace, it is still wrong to lie, commit adultery, cheat, or steal. In fact, the believer has a higher standard, he is not to commit adultery in his heart.

While we are doing battle, it is comforting to know that as believers under Grace our actions do not determine our eternal destiny. That has already been settled for eternity. The believer has already been seated at the right hand of God in Christ Jesus in heavenly places. He wants us to know that we are secure in Him, and God never changes His mind!

The law has no power to change a man's heart. It can only reveal trespasses: "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" (Rom. 8:3-4). Because of what God has done, even though we now walk according to the flesh, God has made it possible for us to walk according to the Spirit!

Remember, "they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit," and "to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Rom. 8:5-6). What kind of a "mind-set" do we have?

Romans 8:9: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His."

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In Christ-The New Man
PART SEVEN---CONCLUSION
By Pastor Joe S. Leftwich



This tells us that the believer is "in Christ." We, as spirit beings, were dead in trespasses and sin, but now have been made alive in Christ and raised up with Him and seated with Him at the right hand of God in heavenly places in Christ. This is our eternal position.

To affirm the obvious, the Scriptures say that we are right now seated at the right hand of God in heavenly places in Christ. And yet experientially we are alive in our old mortal body of flesh here on earth; here on the battlefield of this world, living our new lives in Christ as ambassadors for Christ in our old body of flesh with all its old natural desires and appetites. This, from a natural point of view, seems to be an untenable position, but from a spiritual point of view we have already been assured of the victory.

These spiritual truths cannot be proven by science and are not experienced by natural man's senses: thinking, seeing, feeling, hearing, or tasting. The things we learn from God are learned only through faith, believing what the Spirit of God has said to us through the Holy Scriptures.

I pray that you have a good grasp of this situation because it is from this description of who we are in Christ that we are going to study Paul's epistles, discovering, interpreting and implementing his instructions as to how we can and should live our lives in a manner well pleasing to God.

We are called "His workmanship": "For we are His workmanship, created in Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph.2:10).

Please see this: that God has made it possible for you, a believer in Christ, to partake and participate in your own spiritual growth and development. We, being who we are "in Christ," can "by the Spirit of God" be putting to death the deeds of the body, thereby "perfecting holiness"; not "PERFECT holiness" but "PERFECTING holiness." These are God's words not mine!

Paul, by the Holy Spirit has asked us to "cleanse ourselves": "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Cor. 7:1). Why would Paul ask us to do this? Do you think he really wants us to cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit? Absolutely! Will we be completely successful? Absolutely not! But we can constantly be applying ourselves to the concept of putting to death the deeds of the flesh in the spirit of obedience to His Word.

Do you agree that Romans 8:13, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live," is a good verse to implement 2 Corinthians 7:1: "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God"? This is an ongoing perfecting of holiness in our lives that we can and should be doing for the balance of our lives here on earth in our flesh.

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SPIRITUAL VICTORY
by C. R. Stam

        If we go to the Scriptures and claim, by faith, the Spirit's help in overcoming our sins, we enter into the enjoyment of the fullness of spiritual life and blessing. If we fail to do so, we wither and die --- as far as our spiritual experience is concerned. We can never lose our salvation, of course, for "everlasting life" was obtained by faith in Christ, not by walking in the Spirit. This is confirmed by the fact that the same apostle who pleads: "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God," hastens to add: "WHEREBY YE ARE SEALED UNTO THE DAY OF REDEMPTION" (Eph. 4:30).

          But failure to appropriate God's gracious provision for victory over sin does result in death as far as our Christian experience is concerned. This is what the Apostle means, when he says, by the Spirit:

          "FOR TO BE CARNALLY MINDED IS DEATH; BUT TO BE SPIRITUALLY MINDED IS LIFE AND PEACE" (Rom. 8:6).

          "FOR IF YE LIVE AFTER THE FLESH, YE SHALL DIE: BUT IF YE THROUGH THE SPIRIT DO MORTIFY [PUT TO DEATH] THE DEEDS OF THE BODY, YE SHALL LIVE" (Rom. 8:13).

          To the careless Corinthians, the Apostle Paul exclaimed:

          "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

          "For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's" (I Cor. 6:19,20).

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THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL OF GRACE
by C. R. Stam

"...the gospel... is come unto you, as it is in all the world, and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth" (Col. 1:5,6).

How wonderful to see the gospel of the grace of God do its work! Paul had never even seen the Colossians. He had only sent missionaries to them from Ephesus with the good news of the grace of God, but this had produced amazing results.

Wherever the gospel of the grace of God is preached in its purity it produces results. No one hearing that message can go away the same. Either he will consider it utter foolishness and be hardened by it, or he will see its vital importance and be softened by it. Ultimately he will either be eternally condemned, or eternally saved and justified by his response to that message.

"The preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (I Cor. 1:18 ).

"Christ crucified... unto them which are called... the power of God and the wisdom of God" (I Cor. 1:23,24).

"The power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth" (Rom. 1:16).

Mark well: it is "the gospel of the grace of God," the "preaching of the cross," that produces such results. The law of Moses never did, "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh," God sent His Son to accomplish for us (Rom. 8:3,4). This is why Paul proclaimed, at Antioch of Pisidia:

"Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38,39).

God’s message to us is a message of love, proclaiming to even the vilest sinner that he may be "justified freely by [God’s] grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:24).

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Eden's Religion
Steve McVey


Like many Christians are, I was a religious person for many years. I'm not anymore. It shocked me years ago when, for the first time, I saw plainly from the Bible that neither was Jesus. In fact, it was religious people who were His strongest opponents.

The word "religion" finds its origin in the Latin word, religare. It means "to bind" as in the sense of placing an obligation on somebody. (World Book Dictionary) That's exactly what religion always does. It focuses on behavioral mandates that are supposedly necessary to satisfy what God expects from us, but nothing could be further from the truth.

The roots of religion go all the way back to the Garden of Eden. There were two trees in the Garden of Eden that were right in the center. One was the Tree of Life and the other was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The latter was "the religion tree." Why would I suggest that? It's because it provided knowledge about what is good and what is evil - the cornerstone of all religion. Eating from that tree brings a person into the religious world of discerning right from wrong in an attempt to do the first and avoid the latter. Isn't that what religion still does today? It tells us the things we ought to be doing and the things we ought to be avoiding? There's just one problem with the religious approach. God told us to avoid it altogether.

Note carefully in the Genesis narrative that our Creator didn't say eat from the good fruit on the tree but avoid the evil. He said not to eat from that tree at all - ever. His desire for you is that you live in union with Him, not out of religion. Morality isn't an issue at all when our actions flow from His indwelling Life. At that point, our behavior transcends morality. In fact, it is miraculous.

The sad reality in the modern church world is that the religious world of "Christianity" is unwittingly promoting the fruit of the forbidden tree as though it were the answer to our needs. We may say that we are defenders and proclaimers of the gospel, but in reality we are often peddling the poisonous, albeit good fruit the Serpent himself deceived Eve into eating.

The answer for us all isn't to improve out behavior. It's not to stop doing bad things and start doing good things. The fact is that even if we could eliminate all evil behavior and replace it with nothing but good behavior, we'd still have the same problem. We would still be up the wrong tree. Our Father is calling us to abandon the fruit from the poisonous tree of religious behavioral modification. He is inviting us to partake from the Fruit of the Tree of Life every day. He invites us to find our Sustenance in the living Christ, who said, "Take, eat. This is my body which is broken for you." Because of His grace we are able to freely eat from the finished work on another tree that stood on Golgotha two thousand years ago. Eating from that tree, we will never hunger again.

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THE MIGHTY CREATOR!
By Paul Hume



Scripture Reading: Gen. 1:1; Rev. 4:11;Col. 1:16-17


A small girl who lived in a remote section of the country was receiving her first Bible instruction at the hands of her elderly grandmother, and the old lady was reading the child the story of the creation. After the story had been finished, the little girl seemed lost in thought. "Well, dear," said the grandmother, "what do you think of it?" "Oh, I love it. It's so exciting," exclaimed the youngster. "You never know what God is going to do next!"

How thrilling it is to know that the visible and invisible elements of this universe and world of ours is the product of the perfect and only Creator: God the Father in the Person of His Son by the agency of the Holy Spirit! How sodden and sterile is the popular so-called "scientific" hypothesis that this universe and our world is simply the product of evolving matter with energy to motivate it! Nay! It is refreshing to be anchored to the "old landmarks" of the Truth and declare, "Thou art worthy, 0 Lord, to receive glory, and honor, and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created" (Rev. 4:11). View the Sovereign Creator:

"The great God was all alone amid the awful silence of His own vast universe. But even at that time, if time it could be called, God was sovereign. He might create or not create according to His own good pleasure. He might create this way or that way; He might create one world or one million worlds, and who was there to resist His will? He might call into existence a million different creatures and place them on absolute equality, endowing them with the same faculties and placing them in the same environment; or, He might create a million creatures each differing from the others, and possessing nothing in common save their creaturehood, and who was there to challenge His right? If He so pleased, He might call into existence a world so immense that its dimensions were utterly beyond finite computation; and were He so disposed, He might create an organism so small that nothing but the most powerful micro-scope would reveal its existence to human eyes." (A.W. Pink). Are you part of His new creation?

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BAPTIZED INTO HIS DEATH
by Russell S. Miller



"Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ, were baptized into His death" (Rom.6:3)?

It is a sad commentary indeed that after 2000 years the vast majority in fundamentalism still labors under the so-called "great commission" and, consequently, is manifestly confused and divided over the subject of water baptism. However this "baptism" of which Paul speaks here in Romans 6:3 is so absolutely absent of water that most of those who water baptize fail to see that believers in the dispensation of grace are actually "baptized into His death". This is why Paul can write in Galatians 2:20:

"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."

And not only that, but the Apostle further states that it is the old Adamic nature in all of us that was crucified with Christ:

"Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, THAT THE BODY OF SIN MIGHT BE DESTROYED, THAT HENCEFORTH WE SHOULD NOT SERVE SIN" (Rom.6:6).

And what's more, in this baptism, "...the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" (Gal.6:14).

Furthermore, the Apostle Paul writes by divine inspiration in I Corinthians 12:13 that upon believing in the Lord Jesus Christ we are baptized into the Body of 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." And this was revealed to Paul "by the revelation of Jesus Christ" (Gal.1:11,12).

We have been so completely identified with the Lord Jesus Christ in His death, burial and resurrection that Paul goes on in Romans 6 to declare:

"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" (Rom.6:4).

No wonder the Apostle exhorts:

"God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Gal.6:14).

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THE PROPHETIC WRITINGS
Part One of Two
By James Krieg
Romans 16:25



We get many letters at Canyonview Bible Seminary from Sunday school teachers and Bible study leaders concerning the differences in translations. The teacher frustration comes when the class is content to amalgamate the various translations and pronounce the majority opinion as correct. But the majority opinion is not always correct. And especially when you mix in the paraphrased versions it can be quite misleading.

Romans 16:25-26 is one passage that falls into this category; the majority opinion of translations can lead to a poor interpretation.

Rom 16:25 (KJV) 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,

Rom 16:26 (KJV) But now is made manifest, 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:

A better translation from the Greek would read thus:

16:25 "And to the one being able  to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of the Lord Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery having been kept silent in times eternal,  BUT NOW having been manifested and made known to all the gentiles through the prophetic writings according to the arrangement of the eternal God for the obedience of faith, to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to him is glory forever, amen."

The phrase "prophetic writings" is what we will examine in detail here.

Dropping back to verse 25 to pick up the context, Paul states that the tenants of this gospel and the preaching of Christ through him established believers today. He says this gospel is in accordance with revealed mystery truth. It is a mystery because it was kept silent in all past ages.

The great Pauline phrase "but now" begins verse 26. BUT NOW it is not kept silent any longer. His gospel has been manifested and made known through the agency of the prophetic writings.

Most of the nine translations I have before me, not all, translate the Greek phrase as writings of the prophets. With this translation the reader would normally think of the writings of the Old Testament prophets (cf. Acts 28:23; Rom. 1:2). But by a quick recall we see this totally contradicts verse 25. God kept silent concerning the revelation of the mystery when He communicated with the Old Testament prophets.

The problem is that "writings of the prophets" is an incorrect translation. Looking closely we first of all see the word "graphe."  We get our English word "graphics" from this and it is translated writings in scriptures.

The next word, "Prophertikos" is the one that seems to give us problems. First of all, we need to see what part of speech this is. It is an adjective. The English word "prophet" is a noun, not an adjective. To translate the adjective form we use the word "prophetic." Plain and simple, if we translate this "prophet " we use the wrong part of speech.

We can see from verse 25 that it could not be the Old Testament prophets through whom the new revelation of the mystery was made known. Therefore, who did write the "prophetic writings"?

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THE PROPHETIC WRITINGS
Part Two
By James Krieg
Romans 16:25




This needs to be our first question. What is a prophet? It is a two part Greek word meaning before and meaning to speak or tell. A prophet is one who speaks before a group of listeners.

In our modem day minds we think of a prophet as one who tells the future. This is not the primary emphasis of a New Testament times prophet. We see in John chapter 4 that the woman at the well knew Jesus was a prophet because He knew something about her past. Paul tells Titus about one of the Creten's prophets (Titus 1:12), that is, one of the Creten's public speakers. This prophet spoke concerning the present condition of the people.

In First Corinthians 14:1-5 , Paul speaks of prophets edifying the people. They were not proclaiming eschatology, but, as laying a foundation of new truth for the church (Eph. 1:22), they spoke the things that would establish the believers' lives in the dispensation of Grace.

We conclude that a scriptural prophet is one who is gifted (Eph. 4:11) with the ability to interpret and proclaim God's message for the people of his time. If this man writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he would produce prophetic writings.

Was Paul a Prophet?

Paul never makes a direct claim to being a prophet. However, he does claim to be a preacher, an apostle and a teacher (2 Tim. 1:11). Acts 13:1 talks about many prophets and teachers in Antioch, Paul was there. In First Corinthians 13:9, he uses the first person pronoun "we"; we prophesy.

We Can say with confidence that Paul qualifies as at least a prophet, an interpreter or proclaimer of God's Word. And his writings should be regarded as prophetic writings.

1n Conclusion, who wrote the prophetic writings in Roman 16:25? From our study we must conclude that Paul is talking about his own writings. First, he qualifies as at least a prophet, second, at the time Romans was written (56-58 AD) his writings were the only ones through which the "having been kept silent" mystery was manifested and made known.

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The Middle Wall of Partition
Part 1 of 4

"For he is our peace, who hath made both one,
and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us." --Ephesians 2:14

BY RICHARD JORDAN


Disunity can occur in many ways. The "middle wall of partition. "which stood around Israel's temple and to which the Apostle Paul here alludes, illustrates the tremendous distinction and division that existed in "time past" between the nation Israel and the Gentile nations.

Paul identifies this division as two·fold. First there was the fleshly distinction where racial and social division was obvious:

"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" (Ephesians  2:11).

No doubt the emphasis of Paul's pen was on "called"--"called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision." That the Jews often used the term "uncircumcision" as an insult aimed at the despised and outcast Gentiles cannot be doubted. It was so thoroughly established in Jewish thinking as a term of derision that even young David is heard exclaiming about Goliath: "who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" (1 Samuel 17:26b).

If Israel was guilty of "name calling" surely the Gentiles were no better. Notice that Paul identified Israel as those who are "called the circumcision." Clearly Gentiles returned the reproach with equal disdain. Who can miss the sting of mocking accusation at "being Jews" in Acts 16:20, John 18:35 and else where?

There was, however, something far more important to Paul than this racial and social division. In "time past" God Himself had made a far more critical distinction between the Circumcision and Uncircumcision, between Israel and the Gentiles. Ephesians  2:12 records this:

"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."

Israel had a clear advantage while the Gentiles were at an equally distinct disadvantage. The religious and spiritual disadvantage of the Gentiles is simply unmistakable.

Place Romans 9:4,5 along side Ephesians  2:11, 12 and this is set in bold relief:

ISRAEL'S ADVANTAGE (Rom. 9:4,5)

1.    "Who are Israelites" (v4)
2.    "The adoption" (v4)
3.    To whom Christ came (v.5)
4.  "Whose are the fathers" (v.5)
5.    The Covenants and the law (v4)
6.    The service of God" (v.4)
7.    "The promises" (v4)

GENTILES' DISADVANTAGE (Ephesians 2:11,12)

1.    "Gentiles" (v.11)
2.    "Uncircumcised" (v.11)
3.    "Without Christ" (v.12)
4.  "Aliens from Commonwealth of Israel" (v.12)
5.  "Strangers from the Covenants" (v.12).
6.    "Without God" (v.12).
7.    "Having no hope" (v.12).

In "Time Past" God Himself had made a difference between Jews and Gentiles; "But Now!"

"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" (Ephesians  2:13-15).

The Jews had enclosed the inner portions of their temple with a "middle wall of partition" and they jealously guarded it. Paul was all too familiar with this fact for it explains the reaction he received in Acts 21:28-30. Luke records that when the Jews saw Paul in their temple, "they laid hands on him" and:

"Crying out, Men of Israel, help: This is the man, that teacheth all men every where against the people, and the law, and this place: and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place.

"(For they had seen before with him in the city Trophimus an Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)

"And all the city was moved, and the people ran together: and they took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were shut."

Continued

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The Middle Wall of Partition
Part 2 of 4

"For he is our peace, who hath made both one,
and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us." --Eph.2:14

BY RICHARD JORDAN



According to the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, a century ago excavations at the temple site unearthed portions of this wall and discovered this inscription: "No man of another nation is to enter within the fence and enclosure round the Temple. Whoever is caught will have himself to blame that his death ensues."

This wall, of course, only stood as testimony to the divinely ordained barrier that separated Jew and Gentile. ''In the flesh" there was bitter hatred and enmity such as could never be excused. But before God there was a distinction too, for it was God Himself who had erected the real "middle wall of partition" that separated Jew and Gentile.

Romans 1 succinctly proves that the Gentile's alienation was their own doing. There Paul presents the sad history of rebellion , evil thinking and self-will that resulted in the three·fold declaration:

          "Wherefore God gave them up ... " (v.24).
          "For this cause God gave them up ... " (v.26).
          "God gave them over ... " (v. 28 ).

As a wise old preacher once said, "Light rejected becomes lightning!" Thus God cast away the nations of the earth and turned to one solitary figure:

"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" (Gen. 12:1-3).

Abram obeyed God and when he was 99 years old, God changed his name to Abraham and erected His "middle wall of partition." Gen. 17:4-14 records the event:

    "As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
    "Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
     "And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
     "And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
     "And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
      "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."

Now there were to be two peoples in the world: the Circumcision and the Uncircumcision.

CONTINUED