Archive for the ‘Grace’ Category
Scriptural Text Should Always Be Read In Their Context
A single verse of scripture can be read on its own and one can derive a certain meaning from its words. However, when read in their context the meaning most often changes and the true meaning comes to light. A good example is John 1: 12
John 1:12 KJV – But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Just using this verse one could say that all who receive Jesus and believe on His name, God would make them His children, but is this what the verse means?
Let’s see this verse in its context from John 1: 10 – 13
John 1:10-13 KJV – He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons (children) of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Jesus had come into His world and no one received Him or believed on Him. So what happened? The answer is found in verse 13 which explains, and makes clear, what verse 12 really means.
Verse 13 begins, “which were born” – born again. When someone is born again they become a child of God. In addition, the word “will” in verse 13 actually means determination or choice. We are told that being born again did not happen because we are born into a Christian family ( not of blood )nor by the will of the flesh ( determining or choosing to do good works ) nor by the will of man ( determining to receive Jesus and choosing to believe on Him ). We are born again by the will of God.
When reading verse 12 in context it is easy to see, by verse 13, that one is made a child of God – born again – first by God. Then the one born again receives Jesus and willingly believes on Him according to the will of God, and not by the will of man.
So you can see that reading a verse by itself will not reveal the true meaning of it without reading it in the context in which it was written.
The What Why and How of Salvation
There are a number of Christian Religions but only two ways of salvation being preached.
The more popular one is a man-centered one where man must choose to be saved and then do or say something in order to receive God’s forgiveness and salvation.
The other, least popular, way is God-centered where He forgives and saves as He wills because man is unable to save himself.
The place to find the answers is in scripture; God’s holy word. We will look at the What the Why and the How of salvation as found in the Word. Then we will see what is the Response of the one that is saved when called by God.
The scriptures are all quoted within the context in which they were written, to understand better why God wrote them in the first place.
The What…
2 Timothy 1:8-9 KJV – Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.
Here we see that the first thing God does is save us as He wills. Then He calls us. But why must He first save us? Read the following verses to see the Why.
The Why…
Ephesians 2:1-5 KJV – And you hath he quickened , who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Twice in these verses we are told that man is dead ( spiritually ) because of our sinful condition and are children of wrath like everyone else. But God makes us alive which sets us free and It is by His Grace that we are made alive. So How does Grace save us?
The How…
Titus 3:5-7 KJV – 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;
6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Being saved by Grace is simple. We see that it is not by our will that we are saved but by God’s Grace which is the washing of regeneration ( born-again) and the renewing of the Holy Spirit. We are forgiven, saved and made new by being born-again. We are justified – saved – by the Grace of God. Having been saved, what is the Response of those saved and called?
The Response of Those Saved and Called…
Romans 10:8-10 KJV – But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
When we are Saved ( born-again ) we are made alive in the spirit and given a new heart. One filled with love and faith, having been given to us as a gift when we were saved, and with faith we confess Jesus as our Lord and believe that He was raised from the dead and is alive and watching over us.
Scripture clearly says that God ( The What ) saves us, ( The Why ) for we cannot save ourselves because of our sin nature, ( The How ) by grace which is the act of making us alive , born-again, then calls us. ( The Response ) with the faith given to us as a gift when we were born-again, we confess Jesus as Lord and believe that God has raised from the dead and we confess our salvation found only in Jesus.
So there you have it; The What, The Why, The How and The Response of God’s Salvation. What say you?
A synopsis…
Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace. Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 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; For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Justified by the Faith of Jesus Christ – Alone
Gal 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. (KJV – also found in the 1599 Geneva Bible)
Salvation by Grace is accomplished by what Jesus has done for us because we cannot do for ourselves what is necessary to be given the right to become a child of God. Galatians 2: 16 is a fine example of justification by Faith Alone by what Jesus has done for man.
We need to be justified by the faith of Jesus for we cannot justify ourselves by our faith “IN” Christ Jesus. You see, faith is an action of our own will and in Ephesians we read:
Eph 2:8, 9 For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Therefore, if we are justified – made righteous – by our faith in Christ then we have something about which we can boast for we can say, “it was by my faith in Jesus that I was justified.” That would mean we were justified by the work of our own will, and Ephesians 2: 8, 9 says otherwise.
Remember, Grace is the act of regeneration (born again) and at that time, we are not only justified by the faith of Jesus but we are also given the gift of this faith, mentioned in Ephesians, and it is with this faith we believe in Jesus. We need this gift of faith for before we are born again, we have no faith with which we can believe, and neither can we use the work of our will to generate the faith needed to be justified. Justification occurs at the time we are born again by God’s Grace and we are given the gift of faith with which to believe in Jesus.
However, be forewarned, many of the newer versions of the bible have drifted away from Reformation Theology and have discreetly brought to their readers a theology of the Law of works by changing many verses that say, “faith of Jesus” to “faith in Jesus”. In doing so they have taken the whole theology of Grace Alone and changed it into a grace plus works or a more open version of man-centric theology that says man can save himself of his own free will.
It takes God’s will to open ones understanding of His plan of Salvation and that man is born again (justified), not by blood nor by the will of flesh nor by the will of man but by the will of God.
Salvation is all of God from start to finish and salvation is all of Grace, and Grace Alone, and we are Justified by the Faith of Jesus and by His Faith Alone.
Saved By Grace – The Act of Being Born Again
Grace, salvation and born-again, many words being bandied about, what do they all mean anyway? Good question and one in which we will find out the answers but first, let us see some of the verses where these words are used in the Bible. To give us an idea of their meaning.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born-again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Titus 3:5 (KJV) 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;
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, (God) hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Now as to what these words mean here are their Biblical descriptions taken from the original text.
- Grace – the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life.
- Saved (salvation) – to save, that is, deliver or protect (literally or figuratively)
- Born-Again – to regenerate: – be born from above; again,
Being born-again is the action done by the grace of God by which He saves people, and this action all takes place in one moment of time as described in this verse from Titus 3: 5:
Titus_3:5 (KJV) 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;
We know from Ephesians 2:5, 8 that salvation is by God’s grace and In these verses, we see God saving people through the act of regeneration, of being born-again, by the renewing work of the Holy Spirit all done by the grace of God.
Simply put, when we are born-again by grace we are saved for all eternity. All this is the work of God, done by His will as He chooses and when He chooses upon whom He chooses. That is why it is said that, “Salvation is all of God.”
God must do all that is involved in anyone’s salvation for no one will ever be saved otherwise. Man, being dead in his sin will never, of his own will, ever choose to proclaim Jesus to be Lord and believe on Him.
Only when anyone is saved by the grace of God will they be able cry out to God for forgiveness and to confess Jesus as Lord and to believe on Him that He lived, He died for sins, and He rose again from the dead to give us eternal life.
Salvation occurs by being born-again by the will of God on account of what Jesus has done for they who will be saved. For in Jesus, there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved, nor is there any other way of salvation. We must be saved by God’s grace – the act of being born-again – and by grace alone or we will not at all ever be saved.
God’s Purpose In Election
- that the purpose of God according to election might stand,
- to show His power
- to make His power known
- make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy
A number of Christian religions do not like to speak about the doctrine of election, because this doctrine takes man’s will out of the equation of whom will be saved; for man cannot save himself.
The following verses, and more throughout the New Testament, makes it clear that God saves whom He wills to save for the reasons listed above. It is by God’s will that man becomes saved and not by man’s choosing of his own will whether he wants to be saved.
If God had not predestinated before time began (Ephesians 1: 3-6), who would be saved, and then save them, no one would ever be saved. Because man, of his own will is not able to save himself (John 1: 13) (Titus 3: 5).
Read these versus and see for yourself the reason God saves as He wills.
Rom 9:11 (For being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil,that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
Rom 9:12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
Rom 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Rom 9:14 What shall we say then? unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Rom 9:15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16 So then not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19 Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed him, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Rom 9:22 if God, willing to shew wrath, and to make his power known,endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
It has been said many times, “but what if there is someone who wants to be saved but is not among the elect, what then?”
From Romans we read:
Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Rom 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
Even of his own will man will never seek after God.
In addition, in John 6 we read:
Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
Man is so mired in his own sinfulness that unless God works a miracle in him he would never choose, of his own will, to believe on Jesus and to confess Him to be Lord.
This is why God predestinated those whom He wills to be saved: to show His mercy, and to display His power and love on mankind by choosing to save a people for His own even though no one deserves to be saved and cannot save themselves.
What about you, do you know where you stand? Do you want to be saved? If not, then why do you care, but if you do want to be saved read this from Romans 10:
Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Rom_10:13 (KJV) For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved
Is this what you want? Do you really want to be saved according to God’s mercy? Can you confess that Jesus is Lord? Do you feel the desire to call out to God for forgiveness? Will you come to God on His terms and not yours? Only by God’s will can anyone do these things, and only they whom God has chosen to be saved will ever confess by the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus is Lord.
God’s power may be at work in you at this very moment. Maybe your heart, as it is being made new, fills you with a desire to come to Jesus. Instinctively you want to know Him, to follow Him, to love Him. Whoever you are, may you be saved by God this very hour.
The Most Important Reason for the Coming of Jesus…
When we think of Christmas, we think about a baby lying in a Manger, surrounded by Shepherds, animals and three Wise men. Of course, many have taken liberty of those events and few really know what happened that first night. However, that is another story for another time. What we want to know is what was the real reason for the coming of Jesus.
Yes, Jesus came to save His people, His sheep if you will, from their sins. As known from verses like this:
Mat 1:21 And she (Mary) shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Knowing this, why did His people need to be saved from their sins? Read the following selected verses from 1 Thessalonians 1: 4-10 to see the answer:
“Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God. For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, And you became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivered us from the wrath to come.”
Yes, one-day God’s wrath will be brought upon the earth and all who have not believed on the Lord Jesus will be forced to face His wrath because of man’s disobedience, sinful activities and rejection of Jesus as we read in John 3:36:
Joh 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides on him.
Is this what you want to face? You do not have to do so if you have the following desire in your heart:
Rom 10:9 That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, you shall be saved.
Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Jesus’ coming to earth was to deliver His people from facing the wrath of God because of their sins. Upon the cross, when Jesus said, “It is finished.” Right then is the moment for when Jesus completed the task for which He came, to deliver his people from facing God’s wrath. This, my friends, is the most important reason for the coming of Jesus, to deliver His people from the wrath to come.
As God works in your heart, and if you are filled with the desire to come to Jesus, confess Him to be your Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead and you will find that you have already been delivered from facing the wrath of God.
A Psalm Of Thanksgiving…
Psalm 100:1-5 KJV
1 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
All things that God gives to His children come as a blessing and should be received with praise and thanksgiving.
Read the rest of this entry »For Whom Was The Law Made?
1Ti_1:9 (KJV) Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane…..
Nothing could be clearer than this one scripture verse that the Law, better known as the Ten Commandments, is for anyone who are not Christians.
Christians are no longer under the Law, but under Grace (Romans 6: 14), set free from the Law of sin and death (Romans 8:2) and that Christ has redeemed them from the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:13).
So, if Christians are no longer required to be obedient to the Law, then what is the purpose of the Law for the those described in the above scripture of 1 Timothy 1:9? In Galatians 3:24 we read, “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.”
The Law is not for they who belong to Christ but for everyone else who are not Christians. Either they will be taught by the Law to repent of their sins and come to a saving knowledge of Jesus or it will be their judge to show them guilty of their disobedience to God and be thrown into the Lake of fire on judgement day.
As for Christians, they no longer are required to be obedient to the Law but neither does it give them free rein to sin all they want. It is God who works in each and everyone who are His children and He disciplines them as needed.
In doing so Christians will come to have a desire to be obedient to God in the framework of “love God and love your neighbor”. Anyone who calls himself or herself a Christian and is not bothered by doing sinful acts shows them not to be true Christians in the first place.
In short, the answer to the question of “For Whom Was The Law Made?” is very simple. If you are not a Christian, a true born-again disciple of Jesus, then it was made for you.
Will you not, by the grace of God, repent of your sins and bow before Jesus to confess Him to be Lord and believe that God has raised Him from the dead and be saved from facing the wrath of God because of your own sinfulness. I guarantee that you will not enjoy the alternative.
Why Christians Live By Faith
Gal 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
There is nothing we have done to be found worthy of salvation or anything in which we can have faith to be declared righteous before God.
When we first believed in Jesus as Lord it was due to the fact that we were first born-again, not because we were born into a Christian family, nor because we had done good works, nor because of our own will, but by the will and Grace of God. It is at this point that the righteousness of Christ was imputed to us (covering us) so that when God would look at us He would see Jesus and not our unrighteousness. As we read in Romans 3:22…
Rom 3:22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe.
Being justified, that is made righteous, is not because of any works of our own but by the righteousness of Christ. As we see in Galatians 2:16…
Gal 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.
We have no righteous works of our own upon which we can have faith for salvation and be found worthy of going to Heaven. It is by faith that we believe in Jesus that He has done for us what we could not do for ourselves, and that is to become righteous before God.
We can never be justified, or be found righteous, by our works for no one is justified before God by works of the Law. Jesus came and fulfilled the Law’s requirements for becoming righteous, and it is by the faith of Jesus, not ours, that we stand righteous before God.
Christ died for sins. His perfect obedience to the Father made Jesus the only righteous person who ever lived. His righteousness is given to all who believe in Him and proclaim Him Lord so that when God looks at us He sees, not our unrighteousness, but the righteousness of Jesus.
It is for us to do nothing more than to trust in the works of Jesus the Son of God who loves us and gave His life for us, that Christians, who are made righteous by the death of Jesus, might live by faith and faith alone.
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