Sometimes as Christians, we can have a very lop-sided view of God, for we equate His mercy and compassion with His love, and pretty much cast out His holiness and wrath as something that no longer applies. This is completely in error, for our God is love, and is just and perfect in all His ways, which includes His righteousness, holiness and wrath. The God we serve and worship today as New Testament believers, is exactly the same God who made Himself manifest to the Old Testament believers too!
“Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: ‘I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God.
Isaiah 44:6
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8
As mentioned previously, everyone who comes to salvation in Christ comes in the same likeness, and that is as a guilty sinner condemned to the wrath of God against sin. This is not the opinion of any man, but of God, for He gave His Law that everyone should stand guilty before Him, leading all who believe to the saving grace of Christ crucified (Rom 3:19 , Gal 3:24).
What is more, as guilty sinners before a Holy, Righteous and Unchanging God, we must be totally aware of His attitude towards man in His fallen, wicked and unrepentantly sinful state.
God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day. Psalms 7:11
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; The LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. Psalms 5:4-6
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
These references to Scripture are not intended to beat up sinners with, nor is the descriptive list in the verse above an exhaustive one, intended to point self righteous fingers at some particular sin or another. Rather these passages have been included to show that, regardless of how righteous we may be in our own eyes, we are sinners before God, and have no right to enter His presence and Kingdom whatsoever. If we are to do so at all, it is solely by His hand, by His choice, and by His provision. For He is a Just and Righteous Judge who cannot overlook our sinfulness, for to do so would be to deny the very Justice He promises.
He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.
Deuteronomy 32:4
From this place of accepting the true character of God Almighty revealed through His Word, and understanding that He is not the One who is ever going to change, the whole Gospel message begins to make sense. For it is only when we begin to understand these things, that we can begin to see the reason God had to do something to save us, rather than just change His mind towards us, which in itself would mean that He is no longer unchanging, which in turn would bring His Eternal Perfection into question.
The amazing thing about the Gospel is that through Jesus Christ the Messiah, we have revealed to us Almighty God who so loved those He has created, He sent His own Son directly into creation to bridge the gap between the perfection of God and sinful man. By His own will, and through His own blood, Jesus Christ paid the price acceptable by God, that would clear the penalty of sin for all who would choose to accept this sacrifice, and put their trust in Him.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. John 3:16-18
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3:23-26
Therefore through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the Cross, a divinely planned exchange takes place, wherby the penalty for sin that is rightfully ours is placed upon the shoulders of Christ instead, and the Righteousness of Christ is imparted to us as if it were our own. This is the miracle of the Gospel message, and is found absolutely nowhere else!
For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21
To even begin to understand our salvation in Christ then, we must come to terms with the true nature and character of the Unchanging One we dare to call Father. For we cannot truly claim to come into an intimate and personal relationship with God the Father without recognising Who He actually is. Nor can we claim to stand in His presence without acknowledging the enormous price that was paid upon the Cross by His own Son, in order to cleanse us from our sin and declare us to be justified before God in the first place.
How I love my sweet, sweet princess Holly. And oh how beautiful it is to think that my love for her cannot even compare to the love that my Father has for me. Thank You Lord.
Success in God’s eyes is being totally fulfilled in ministering to him. Such servants aren’t striving to “make it” or seeking earthly security. They only want to know their Lord and to minister to Him.
Think about the 100 prophets hidden by Obadiah (1 Kings 18:4). They lived an isolated existence in caves for at least three to four years, during a severe famine. These men had no outside ministry. They were completely out of the public’s view, forgotten by most people. They couldn’t even share in Elijah’s victory on Mount Carmel. No doubt, the world would call them failures, insignificant men who hadn’t accomplished anything.
Yet God had given these devoted servants the precious gift of time. They had days, weeks, even years to pray, study, grow and minister to the Lord. You see, God was preparing them for the day when he would release them to minister to his people. Indeed, these same men would shepherd those who returned to God under Elijah’s ministry.
Years ago, the Lord blessed me with this gift of time. Before I ever pastored a church, I went into the woods and preached to the birds and trees. I had no plans, no agenda, no dreams. I only wanted to get to know God’s heart. So I prayed daily, seeking the Lord and ministering to him. And I marked my Bible from cover to cover. I was hidden, not seen by anyone. But God knew my address all along.
My advice is, “Quit looking for ministry. Spend your time seeking God instead. He knows where to find you. He’ll summon you when he sees you are ready. Forget what others are doing. Strive to be a success at God’s throne. If you’re ministering to the Lord and praying for others, you are already a success in his eyes!”
Originally posted 2009-08-22 13:14:11. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
As pointed out in the first two parts of this series of articles, the work of salvation is completely out of our hands, and entirely in the hands of God. Through the call of the Gospel, and His act of choosing us and making us alive to believe and receive the Gospel (regeneration), we are graciously brought to the point of believing what Christ has done on our behalf, and trusting our very lives to His completed work at Calvary. However our salvation does not end here, for us to idly sit back, embrace the ways of the world, and wait for Christ to return for us. Rather it is the very beginning of our walk with the Lord, and it is a path that we should tread reverently with all fear and trembling, remembering full well it is really a path we have no right in walking, save alone for the grace and mercy of God Himself.
For those who would consider themselves to be a Christian, and yet display very little fear of God in their lives, and do not acknowledge what He is able and willing to do to those who mock Him, I suggest you listen to these words very carefully:
So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.”
(Romans 11:5-8)
So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” ———
——But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
(Romans 11:5-8 & Romans 11:17-22)
The gift of faith has been given then, not as an end in itself that we may idle away time until Christ returns, but as a catalyst that produces a divinely inspired change in the believers life. This is why it is known as “conversion”. As a believer is drawn into faith in Christ by God’s hand, the first thing this faith will produce is repentance, which is a change of mind and heart, away from the sinful ways of the flesh, and instead towards God and His ways. When we are first converted especially, and also at times we have stumbled during our walk with Christ, the realization how we have wronged the Lord can fill our heart with sorrow.
For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it; though I did regret it. For I perceive that the same epistle made you sorry, though only for a while. Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
(2 Corinthians 7:8-11)
So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.”
(Romans 11:5-8)
The sorrow of the worldly is directed in a selfish manner, usually producing an attitude of self pity that tends to blame others for the predicament that our own sinful desires place us. However Godly sorrow is of an entirely different nature. The believer is convicted of their own sinfulness and selfish ways, and made completely aware how this attitude has grieved the Lord and Saviour they so love and desire to follow. It is from this place of harsh realisation, that the true believer will desire to put away all that offends the Lord, and instead seek to replace their own ways with His ways, by the power of His Spirit. This attitude of repentance and faith towards the Lord is both the beginning of conversion, and the process by which the believer is transformed from glory to glory into the likeness of Christ Himself.
I’m sure that I’m not on my own in recognising this, there seems to be a growing number who are quick to turn away from the truth declared in the Bible, and are even quicker to condemn those who choose to cling to that which the Bible declares as the truth, as being legalistic. Through the rank and file of the emergent church, this sentiment is always boldly on display. There is always an attitude of wanting to attempt to twist the Scriptures with human intelligence, in order to justify a love of sin within us, which is usually recognised by an unwillingness to condemn sin for what it is. As a result, we are left with a growing band of self professing Christians, who denying the right of God to be true and every man a liar, choose rather to use their own knowledge of good and evil, and their own ability to discern between the two elements, to trump that which God has chosen to reveal to us through His Word. My own concern is that this “emergent church” is not really confined to a denomination or movement in its own right, but seems to be a cancer that is riddled right the way throughout Christendom, from the most traditional to the most progressive of church fellowships.
Ironically what those who cling to this mentality seem to miss, is the very thing they seem to be searching for! In a well meant desire to tell everyone of the love and freedom to be found in God, they display their own ignorance of God and His ways, by attempting to find a more effective, relevant and convenient way to share the good news of salvation. In choosing to ignore the truth of God’s demand for holiness, and the sheer magnificence of His Righteousness, and the utter dreadedness and certainty of His Wrath one day being poured out upon the ungodly of this world; a warped gospel is presented to the lost, that in reality, is no gospel at all.
The true Gospel of Christ will have a magnificent and saving effect on those who hear and believe, for it will drive the proud to their knees before the Cross of Christ, causing them to experience the reality of their own sinfulness and wretchedness. At the same time, it will take those who are already broken and willingly casting themselves upon His mercy, and lift up their heads that they may cast their eyes upon the One who is their Deliverer. Through a legal application of God’s Law, and a liberal measure of the Grace and Mercy of God, all who will believe are brought to the place of justification through His blood. This will go on to a transformed life, being lived out for His glory alone, and will lead to an ongoing sanctification of the believer, as they are conformed day by day into the image of their Saviour. The truth is, this is the place of freedom, for it is the place, and the only place, where we experience death and rebirth in a real and tangible way. We are as far removed from the struggle of self justification under a harsh and unmerciful law, as a dead man is removed from his duties on this earth.
In contrast, the modern or emergent church, leads those who listen to its message, not into freedom and liberty of justification in Christ, but simply a place of ignorance. The place they are led to may well seem different, even refreshing, but it is not salvation in Christ. Rather it is a place where the Law of God is willingly ignored, and the ungodly mass together in defiance of God’s truth, but feeling strength in numbers they preach messages that scratch one anothers ears, and put their consciences back to sleep.
For those who profess Christ as Saviour I urge you to consider something. Whilst we live and breath the air of this world, we await a city to come, and whilst we do so, we share in the reproach of our Saviour until He returns and receives us eternally unto Himself. Although we share the blessedness of knowing Him, and though spiritually we are perfect in Him, in the flesh we are as evil and wretched as we always were. The instrument that connects our spiritual nature to that of our flesh is our mind, and that is now where the spiritual battle between good and evil rages. When we are in a position of understanding this truth, we will begin to take every thought captive to Christ and submit it to His Word. We will be so aware that our mind can be used for both the glory of Christ, and the wickedness of our own sinful flesh, we will eagerly and willingly surrender it back to the Lord at every point we can.
The proud, lofty and self righteous will always attempt to take the moral high ground in order to impose their proud and legalistic thoughts upon others, even to the extent of trying to impose them upon God Himself if that were possible. Whereas those who have looked upon the perfect Law of God full in the face, and felt the stab of pain as their wretchedness is exposed for what it is, the reality of God’s grace and mercy toward them is beyond measure. As a result, instead of attempting to take any high ground at all, instead you will find their lives laid down at the feet of their Saviour in total and utter submission to all that He is, and all that He has said and done on their behalf. This is the true place of freedom in Christ, and where the fullness of His love is expressed, for it is a place of complete death to oneself, and being made alive in Him as a new creature. What’s more, it is a place that will never be found when one follows the path of the false gospel preached by those who deny the truth of His Word in even the smallest part.
Originally posted 2009-11-13 21:17:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Is there more than one road to Heaven? Is there more than one way in which the soul of man can be saved? This is the question which I propose to consider in this paper, and I shall begin the consideration by quoting a text of Scripture: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
These words are striking in themselves; but they are much more striking if we observe when and by whom they were spoken. They were spoken by a poor and friendless Christian, in the midst of a persecuting Jewish Council. It was a grand confession of Christ.
They were spoken by the lips of the Apostle Peter. This is the man who, a few weeks before, forsook Jesus and fled: this is the very man who three times over denied his Lord. There is another spirit in him now! He stands up boldly before priests and Sadducees, and tells them the truth to their face: “This is the stone that was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
For many years my wife and I have struggled financially, and still do even to this day. Don’t get me wrong, the Lord has always, always provided for our needs, and has always come through at the times we have desperately need an answer, but for reasons only He knows, He has allowed us to be in a constant battle with this issue.
Whilst it is my hope that the Spirit of God will suddenly open my eyes to see something that I need to repent of, and then suddenly it will all be over. But thanks to His great mercy and kindness, I have found the strength and confidence to fix my hope upon that which is to come when I see Him face to face, and willingly face this predicament for as long as He sees fit.
Upon watching the following video, it sickened me to think how long I had suffered this ludicrous and unbiblical teaching, and came to breaking point because of the reproach, shame, and hopelessness it puts upon those who so desperately need answers. These men are on the same level as drug pushers, and pimps in my opinion, but at least the pushers and pimps don’t lead so many astray from the Lord as these wolves in sheep’s clothing.
To follow on from the previous message; The Gospel Holds the Power, I would like to encourage those reading this message to consider how to administer the power of the Gospel effectively. For if it is true what I shared from the scriptures previously, that the Gospel itself is the power of God unto salvation, as believers we must learn how to avoid hindering its power towards those we preach.
I will keep this message very short, as I am providing a youTube video of a sermon preached by Paul Washer, entitled “The Idolatry of Decisional Evangelism”. In this message Mr. Washer makes a strong case against the common way in which unbelievers are invited to make a decision for Jesus, and invite Him into their heart through the sinners prayer. I know from personal experience that it was so in my own conversion, and as a result, much of what is discussed in this video was very true in my own life too. Not particularly that it is wrong to be led in a prayer of repentance, but that the source of ones assurance of salvation is anchored often on the sincerity of the decision we make, rather than the work that the Holy Spirit has begun within our heart.
One thing we must remember is that the power to save lies solely in the Hands of God, and must be a work solely carried out by the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians 2:8,9 we are told that it is “by grace we are saved, through faith; and that not of ourselves, but it is a gift from God, not of works that anyone should boast.” We are also told in John 6:44 that “no-one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws (from root word meaning – to drag), and I will raise him up at the last day.”
As Christians responding to the Great Commission of Christ made to all of us to preach the Gospel, we must learn to preach it correctly, and learn promptly how to administer it correctly too, when people respond in faith. We must take extreme care to maintain the attitude of Jesus, and say and do that which we have seen our Father do, and the prime way of doing this is by labouring in His Word, that we may rightly divide and discern the truth from all that we hear.
I pray earnestly that all who read this message will find the time to listen to this video, for as hard hitting and uncomfortable that it may be to some, it is a message I believe all Christians must take heed to. For if we continue to attempt to preach the Gospel in our own power, dampening down the words of the bible to make them more palatable to men, and sharing only part of the message, we are in danger of nullifying its power. Not only that, but we are also in severe danger of finding ourselves making promises on behalf of God that He has never made, having the blood on our own heads of those we failed to warn of His judgement of sin; and becoming guilty of preaching a different gospel than that which we have been given through the bible.
Galatians 1:8-12
8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
11 But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.
12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
John: Jesus is so good to me constantly, and I repay Him by hammering in yet another nail into His bleeding hands.
John: How I hate it when I realise the biggest hypocrite in my life is me.
John: Received good advice from my sister Steph today: "Be like a leaf on the wind of the Spirit of God, and trust where He will blow you." Praise You Lord!
John: Heard a great saying today: "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. However you can feed it salt and make it thirsty!"
John: First Bible study of the New Year for us today
Mr PSb: Great blog you have here - I'm subscribing! Keep burning the flame of truth my bro.
Steph: Just saying a quick hello and have been really tied up with fixing my clutch on my car with Manny. Catch you real soon. Hope you are really well!!!
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Sometimes as Christians, we can have a very lop-sided view of God, for we equate His mercy and compassion with His love, and pretty much cast out His holiness and wrath as something that no longer applies. This is completely in error, for our God is love, and is just and perfect in all His ways, which includes His righteousness, holiness and wrath. The God we serve and worship today as New Testament believers, is exactly the same God who made Himself manifest to the Old Testament believers too!
As pointed out in the first two parts of this series of articles, the work of salvation is completely out of our hands, and entirely in the hands of God. Through the call of the Gospel, and His act of choosing us and making us alive to believe and receive the Gospel (regeneration), we are graciously brought to the point of believing what Christ has done on our behalf, and trusting our very lives to His completed work at Calvary. However our salvation does not end here, for us to idly sit back, embrace the ways of the world, and wait for Christ to return for us. Rather it is the very beginning of our walk with the Lord, and it is a path that we should tread reverently with all fear and trembling, remembering full well it is really a path we have no right in walking, save alone for the grace and mercy of God Himself.
I’m sure that I’m not on my own in recognising this, there seems to be a growing number who are quick to turn away from the truth declared in the Bible, and are even quicker to condemn those who choose to cling to that which the Bible declares as the truth, as being legalistic. Through the rank and file of the emergent church, this sentiment is always boldly on display. There is always an attitude of wanting to attempt to twist the Scriptures with human intelligence, in order to justify a love of sin within us, which is usually recognised by an unwillingness to condemn sin for what it is. As a result, we are left with a growing band of self professing Christians, who denying the right of God to be true and every man a liar, choose rather to use their own knowledge of good and evil, and their own ability to discern between the two elements, to trump that which God has chosen to reveal to us through His Word. My own concern is that this “emergent church” is not really confined to a denomination or movement in its own right, but seems to be a cancer that is riddled right the way throughout Christendom, from the most traditional to the most progressive of church fellowships.
