Posts Tagged ‘faith of Jesus’
Why Do Christians Embrace An Obsolete Covenant?
Heb 8:13
In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first obsolete. Now that which is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
It is amazing how many Christians, Pastors and individuals, are enamored with the Old Testament Covenant. Listening to Pastors on radio and television, one hears more sermons on Old Testament scripture than on scripture from the New Testament.
The Old Testament Covenant was a man-centered works based system of religion. It was a cause and effect religion, as is the New Testament Covenant, the difference being who is the cause and who is the effect.
The Old Covenant was a system based on laws, commandments, rules, regulations, ordinances and rituals that man was to do in order to receive favor from God. It was a blessings and a curse system like what is found in Deuteronomy 28 where you have Blessings for Obedience and Curses for Disobedience.
In this system, the cause was Israel. By entering into a Covenant with God, and doing what God required, the effect was God giving blessings for obedience. The same worked if Israel was disobedient; a curse was brought by God because of their disobedience.
Therefore, in a man-centered works based system all Israel had to do was to prove that they could be obedient as God wanted. Israel tried and failed.
In Hebrews 8: 8, 9 we read this:
Heb 8:8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
Heb 8:9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
Do you see it? God said, “they continued not in my covenant and I regarded them not.” Because of their failure to be obedient, God dis-regarded Israel.
At this point God said that because of their failure to be obedient to the Old Covenant this is what He would do; continuing in Hebrews we read:
Heb 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
Heb 8:11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
Heb 8:13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first obsolete. Now that which is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
(Note: to find out about whom is the Israel mentioned in verse 10, read Romans 9: 6, 7 and Galatians 4:28. The new Israel is Christians.)
God intended, from the beginning of time, to replace the Old Covenant with a New Covenant; a Covenant of Grace where God’s works would be the cause and man’s response would be the effect, just the opposite of the Old Covenant, a covenant of failure.
In the New Covenant, man is born again by the will of God, and man is kept saved by the will of God and man is given eternal life in Heaven by the will of God.
No longer would God require man to be justified by his works of the Law as we read in Galatians 3: 11
Gal_3:11 (KJV) But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
We also read this 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.
However, as mentioned at the beginning, man still thinks he can be justified by his works and still tries to do what is in the Old Covenant. That is why many sermons are based on Old Testament scripture. It is amazing. Maybe that is why Paul wrote to the Galatians when some of them were trying to do this and he told them:
Gal 3:1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
Gal 3:2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
Gal 3:3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?
Verse 3 above is exactly what being justified by the Old Covenant was to do – being made perfect by works of the flesh.
Yes, one can find history in the Old Testament scriptures, also some promises of God looking ahead to the covenant of grace and not of works, as well as beautiful poetry of the English language. Other than that, Christians should be focusing on the New Testament scripture verses, learning from them like:
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Php 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
2Ti_1:9 (KJV) 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,
These are but a few of the gems, the nuggets that can be found throughout the New Testament Covenant of grace.
As a Christian, you have but two choices when it comes to pleasing God. You can try to be obedient to the works of the Law found in the Old Covenant, which no one has ever been able to do, except for Jesus who did so for those who are saved, or you can do what the New Covenant of grace says in living by faith.
Gal_3:11 (KJV) …no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
Remember…
Heb 8:13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first obsolete. Now that which is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
Come Unto Me and Rest
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (KJV)
On a given Sunday from the past, I gave a message on this verse. While it was well received, I always had this nagging feeling that there was something I was missing.
The title of that message was, “Finding rest in a busy world.” So, naturally my focus was on how coming to Jesus could give us rest, physical rest, from how we burden ourselves with our jobs and the worries of life, which can weigh heavy on our hearts.
Fast-forward a number of years…
For quite some time, I have been studying scriptures on the difference between the works-based man-centered religion of being under the Law of the Old Testament and the faith-based God-centered relationship of being under grace in the New Testament.
One verse I had read, in studying living under grace, had a clause in it that kept sticking in my mind. Found in Romans, Galatians and Hebrews, all it said was, “The Just shall live by faith.”, but how do the just live by faith. Faith in what?
Then I remembered the verse on which I had previously preached from Matthew and two words kept coming to mind; “labour” and “rest.” Then it hit me. I had considered Matthew 11: 28 all wrong from a Christian’s point of view.
You see, the word “labour” means – to feel fatigue, work hard, be wearied, and the word “rest” means – to refresh: – take ease, rest. However, I had been looking at this verse in a worldly way, in how works of any kind can be a heavy burden on us, not allowing for any rest.
Instead, I should have been looking in how this verse is related to salvation found only in Jesus, and how Christians should view this verse. Especially in how we need to cease from trying to be obedient to the works of the Law and just rest in our salvation, and live by faith in the works of Christ.
In Galatians 2: 16 we read:
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)
And in Hebrews 4: 10 we read:
Heb_4:10 (KJV) For he that is entered into his(Jesus) rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. (on the seventh day after creation).
Once a person is saved, we no longer need to keep on trying to be obedient to the Law for our salvation or even in keeping our salvation for we are no longer under the Law but under Grace.
The Law only serves to show us our sinfulness while grace shows how we are forgiven, saved and justified by the faith of Jesus and in His works in His perfect obedience in fulfilling the Law, and not by any works of righteousness, we may think we have done.
When Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” not only was He talking about salvation but also in how Christians can have rest living by the faith of Jesus. That is why it is said, “The just shall live by faith.”
We can rest in the finished work of Christ. Instead of doing any works of righteousness, we feel we must do.
So, go now dear Christian, believe in the love of our Lord Jesus, and live by His faith that was given to you with which to believe in Him when you were born-again and you will have the rest that He promised.
A New Year and A Newness of Spirit
Rom 7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
With the beginning of a new year, as Christians we should look to a “newness of spirit”, wherein we should practice walking in the Spirit and not according to the works of the Law.
By doing the works of the Law, we are unwittingly trying to be justified by our obedience to what the Law says, even though we have been delivered from the Law. For now, we are not under the Law but under grace.
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.
Gal_5:18 (KJV) But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
By walking in a newness of spirit, we are led by the Spirit of God Who works in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). It is God who works in our spirit to guide us according to His will to do those things that he has ordained for us to do. In doing so, we walk according to the Spirit with the faith of Christ and not by the works of the flesh in trying to be obedient to the Law.
In walking in the spirit, we now serve God in a newness of Spirit, by looking to God to do His will and not by looking to ourselves in doing our will. By seeking to do things our way we will always fail. Walking in a newness of spirit, seeking to do God’s will, can we have any expectations of being successful in our walk with our Lord Jesus.
As Christians, we are dead to the Law and we no longer serve it, and as a new year begins, we can have a new beginning in serving God by serving in the newness of Spirit.
Your Faith Did Not Save You
You’ve heard it and you’ve seen it in print. If you just accept Jesus by faith you will be saved. The plain teaching today is that you can be saved from your sins if you will just have a little faith in Jesus. The problem with all of this is that in your sinful state you are dead in sins and are unable to respond to any calling to having any faith of any kind in Jesus for salvation.
In the following passages we read:
And you hath he quickened, that were dead in trespasses and sins… Ephesians 2: 1
even when we were dead in trespasses… Ephesians 2: 5
And you, being dead in your trespasses… Colossians 2: 13
As you can see, before you are “born again” you are dead, spiritually dead, and are unable to do respond to anything pertaining to Jesus. Just as Lazarus was physically dead in a physical grave, you are spiritually dead in a spiritual grave. When the call comes to “come forth” you must be given to ability to do so, just like Lazarus was given the ability to respond to Jesus’s command to come out of the grave. Before you can come out of the grave you, too, need to be given the ability to do so before you can answer the call to come forth.
Now we know this verse well:
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast… Ephesians 2: 8, 9
Here we are told that it is by “grace” that we are saved through faith that is given to us with which we can believe on Jesus. That is very clear in this verse. Any faith that we have is given to us as a gift from God so that we cannot boast about how “our” faith saved us. So, if it isn’t by “our” faith that we are saved, then by whose faith are we saved?
Now here is where the problem arises with today’s modern language translation bibles. Look first at the following verses; you will recognize them all.
1. Romans 3:22
This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
2. Romans 3:26
he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
3. Galatians 2:16
know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.
4. Galatians 3:22
But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
These all came from the New International Version (NIV) translation of the bible, and many of today’s modern translations say the same thing, in one way or another. The question is this. If we are dead in trespasses, as we have read, how then can we generate any kind of faith in order to believe? The answer is… we can’t. However, the answer to this problem is easy. It is not by “our” faith with which we believe!
Now, read this verses. They are the same four as above, but they are from the 1599 Geneva Bible. All but forgotten in our day, the Geneva Bible was the most widely read and influential English Bible of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. A superb translation, it was the product of the best Protestant scholars of the day and became the Bible of choice for many of the greatest writers and thinkers of that time. (from Bible Gateway.com)
1. Romans 3:22
To wit, the righteousness of God by the faith of Jesus Christ, unto all, and upon all that believe.
2. Romans 3:26
Through the patience of God, to show at this time his righteousness, that he might be just, and a justifier of him which is of the faith of Jesus.
Know that a man is not justified by the works of the Law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we, I say, have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the Law, because that by the works of the Law, no flesh shall be justified.
But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by the faith of Jesus Christ should be given to them that believe.
Do you see the difference? Today’s translations state that we are saved by “faith in Jesus”. However, as we have seen we are spiritually dead in trespasses and are unable to respond with any faith at all, and what faith it is that we use is given to us by God that we may believe.
You see, the little word “in” is from the Greek word “apo'” which should be translated “of” and not “in”, basically meaning “taken from or off of”. As in “off of” or “from” Jesus, i.e. “faith of Jesus”.
This is where the 1599 Geneva translations comes into its own. The Geneva Bible states clearly that it is by the “FAITH OF JESUS” that we are saved. This is the faith that is given to us as a gift by God so that we can believe. This way we cannot boast about “our” faith, because we have none, and it is by the “FAITH OF JESUS” given to us that we believe.
This may help you to understand this:
For I say through the grace that is given unto me, to everyone that is among you, that no man presume to understand above that which is meet to understand, but that he understand according to sobriety, as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith… Romans 12:3
When we are called to come to Jesus we cannot do so unless God gives us the ability to do so (see John 6: 44 and John 6: 65), and He gives us a measure of faith with which to believe, and the faith that is given to us is the faith of Jesus that He had with the Father when He was here on earth. We have no faith of our own and, even if we did, it would be an imperfect faith that we would have to rely upon for our salvation, However, the faith of Jesus is a perfect faith. A faith which gives us the ability to come to Jesus and to believe on Him.
So you can see that, if you are saved, if you are born again by the Spirit of God that is was not by the result of any faith of your own, but by the “FAITH OF JESUS” that you are saved. This way you cannot boast of anything as it is a gift of God, given to you so that you could believe with a perfect faith. A faith that would be offered, accepted and held by God for eternity. For it is by the “FAITH OF JESUS” that you are justified and saved.
Think of this. By whose faith would you like to base your eternal salvation upon? Your faith or the “FAITH OF JESUS” given to you with which to believe? To me the answer is clear and I hope you will agree, for only by the “FAITH OF JESUS” are we justified and saved…..
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