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THE GREATEST LIE EVER TOLD
The numerous passages of the Epistles that warn us concerning the consequences of sin are often preached to the unsaved, but none of them was written to unsaved people. Unsaved persons are already dead in their sins. It is the Christians who will lose their eternal life, who will slay their own resurrection, if they continue to live according to the lusts of their flesh.
But what do we hear from pulpit and pew? You shall not surely die!
THE GREATEST LIE EVER TOLD
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: (Genesis 3:4)
"Ye shall not surely die." The emphasis in the Hebrew is on the word
"die." You shall not die of a certainty. There is a question whether you
actually shall die!
"The soul that sins shall die," the Scriptures declare.
Why is Satan so anxious to persuade us Christians that it is not certain we actually
shall die when we disobey God? No doubt it is because he himself has been sentenced to
eternal death in the Lake of Fire. Since then he has been attempting to rally the angels,
and mankind as well, in an effort to overturn the sentence of God against himself.
You shall not certainly die. We hear it all the time today. For this reason or that
reason, you shall not surely die!
The New Testament writings state clearly and emphatically that the Christian believer
who continues in sin shall not inherit the Kingdom of God but shall die spiritually.
Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth
fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. (John 15:2)
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ
our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
Romans 6:23 (above) was written to people who had believed and had been baptized in
water.
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. (Romans 8:13)
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you
before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not
inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:21)
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth
to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Galatians 6:8)
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be
spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; (Hebrews 2:3)
But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose
end is to be burned. (Hebrews 6:8)
Where does the cloud come from that prevents Christians from seeing what is written
plainly in the Scriptures?
The passages above were written to Christians. Today they are preached to the unsaved
regularly and vigorously, but they were not addressed to unsaved people. Unsaved persons
are already dead in their sins. It is the Christians who will lose their eternal life, who
will slay their own resurrection, if they continue to live according to the lusts of their
flesh.
But what do we hear from pulpit and pew? You shall not surely die. The
Scriptures, the Word of God, state that believers in Christ will die spiritually if they
do not choose to live righteously. But the Christian theologians, reflecting Satan’s
attitude toward God and His Word, cry out in one accord, "You shall not surely
die!"
The Scriptures teach clearly and emphatically that the Christian redemption always is
conditional, always is an opportunity.
Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to
whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (Romans 6:16)
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not
the unclean thing; and I will receive you. (II Corinthians 6:17)
Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or
else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place,
except thou repent. (Revelation 2:5)
The theologians hasten to proclaim: Salvation is unconditional. You cannot destroy your
relationship with God by your behavior. You shall not surely die!
What is the source of this blindness?
The Scriptures state that we Christians, like the Israelites, will die in the
wilderness if we do not continue serving the Lord.
I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord,
having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed
not. (Jude 1:5)
The Christian theologians announce: there is nothing you can do to injure your
redemption. Once you "accept Christ" you are saved for eternity. This is because
redemption is not dependent on your moral behavior.
What is the origin of this deadly misunderstanding, this inability to comprehend the
explicit Word of God?
The holy Scriptures assert that the righteous must press forward in faith at all times
or else they will draw back to destruction. To be saved we must "endure to the
end."
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the
end shall be saved. (Matthew 10:22)
But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition [destruction]; but of them
that believe to the saving of the soul. (Hebrews 10:39)
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure:
for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: (II Peter 1:10)
Christian teachers declare that those who would be saved need only make a mental and
verbal assent to the facts of redemption (facts the demons know only too well), and having
made such an assent they never again will have cause to be concerned about their position
in God.
This is antinomianism, an ancient heresy. There is poison here! We have noticed that
once Bible students are exposed to current Christian teaching they no longer are able to
comprehend Old or New Testament Scriptures. There is a spirit associated with
Christian
doctrine. Once this spirit enters the mind and spirit of the believer he or she no longer
is able to perceive what is written.
The spirit of which we are speaking presents an abstract redemption that removes the
believer from the real world and places him in a special realm shielded from judgment. The
Divine salvation becomes an arbitrary act of God designed for elect Gentiles (or for
whoever chooses to believe) and cannot be made void or injured in any manner for eternity.
The Divine redemption, it is conjectured, is utterly independent of the moral character
and behavior of the believer.
It is the greatest lie ever told. It is contradicted by every book of the New
Testament.
The divinely inspired Word of God proclaims that faith can live only in works of
righteousness.
Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. (James 2:17)
The position is taken that faith is an abstraction, existing alone and not dependent on
our behavior. We are saved by faith alone, it is claimed, in direct contradiction
of the written Word of God.
The truth is, abstract faith is not faith at all but mental assent. Works of
righteousness, godly actions, are the very life of true faith. "The just shall live
by faith" means the righteous think, speak, and act by faith in God rather than by
faith in their own ability.
"The just shall live by faith," an expression that originated in the Old
Testament and is repeated three times in the New, does not mean we go to Heaven on the
basis of a mental assent to the theological facts of redemption. In fact, the eleventh
chapter of the Book of Hebrews is the illustration of "the just shall live by
faith." The eleventh chapter of Hebrews describes works of obedience to God,
not mental assent to theological facts.
Why are we of today is insisting that if Christians continue to walk in the flesh they
shall not certainly die?
It is the greatest lie ever told and it has produced moral desolation in the churches
of Christ. As a result the governments of the so-called Christian nations are moral
wastelands.
The only moral guidance available to civil government is the light coming from
Christ-produced godly behavior and teaching of the Christian churches. But we have wrested
Paul’s doctrine of grace to mean that godly behavior, while desirable, is not a
crucial aspect of our salvation. The result is, our lampstand has been removed from its
place. The government has only our "imputed righteousness" to rely on for moral
guidance; and since imputed (legally ascribed) righteousness cannot be observed, the
government has no moral light to follow.
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your
Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)
"That they may see your good works."
"But I am saved by faith and do not need to practice good works."
"This was written to the Jews."
"It really means that if people would accept Christ they would be saved."
"If you stress righteous behavior you are guilty of preaching works. You are
guilty of `legalism’ (the current epithet applied to righteous, holy behavior). You
are a Pharisee."
What other ways do we have of making the Word of God of no effect?
The manner in which the Divine grace is presented today is the greatest lie ever told.
When the author received Christ, Ephesians 2:8,9 was emphasized as a "key
passage" to memorize.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8,9)
Why wasn’t the following verse included as part of the "key passage,"
since it reveals the outcome of Divine grace?
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)
We have been "created in Christ unto good works."
Why wasn’t this important aspect included?
It was not included in our early instruction because it exposes the satanic lie that
clouds Christian thinking.
We are not implying by this statement that those who led us to the Lord were attempting
to harm us, or that today’s preachers and teachers are deliberately destroying the
moral character of the believers. It is true, rather, that in the process of
"cleansing the temple" today, the "Book of the Law" has been found in
the trash of tradition." It is time, therefore, for all of God’s people to
repent. We have been deceived!
The exhortations of many preachers of the Gospel are flattering and wishy-washy. They
are not lifting up their voice like a trumpet and showing God’s people their sins.
Christ was not sent by the Father to excuse or "cover" the behavior of
God’s people. Rather, Christ was sent to destroy the works of the devil, to turn
people from ungodly behavior to godly behavior.
Let us continue our discussion by examining several aspects of the current
misunderstanding of God’s grace under the new covenant:
Does God see the behavior of the Christian and judge it or does He see Christ’s
righteousness and holiness instead?
What is the role of imputation (ascribed righteousness)? What are the limits of
imputation?
What is the new covenant?
Precisely what is the Divine salvation (redemption)?
Why would we be admonished to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling if
righteousness is imputed to us unconditionally and eternally?
What does Peter mean when he claims the righteous are saved with difficulty?
Why is it not true that Jesus already has "saved" us and that our motive for
righteous behavior is that we ought to try to please Him in appreciation for what He has
done for us?
Who is it that builds his house on the rock?
What is the meaning of the parable of the sower?
What is the purpose of the return of the Lord Jesus to the world?
In what manner do both the Catholic and Protestant approaches to righteousness come
short of the Glory of God?
Does God see the behavior of the Christian and judge it or does He see Christ’s
righteousness and holiness instead? There is a Christian maxim that views grace
(g-r-a-c-e) as "God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense." The implication
here is that Christ bears the cross alone and all the believers can do as they please.
There is an old hymn that takes issue with this concept ("Must Jesus Bear the Cross
Alone?"). The idea is definitely humanistic—well adapted to the wealthy
"Christian" churches of the twentieth century.
When the believer lies, does God judge the lie as sin or is the truthfulness of Christ
imputed (ascribed) to the individual?
When the believer practices fornication (and some church members do), does God judge
the fornication as sin or is the moral purity of Christ imputed to the individual?
How do the Christian lie and the Christian fornication differ from the lie and the
fornication of the unbeliever, in the sight of God?
This is an extremely important issue. How we resolve it in our mind affects the manner
in which we perceive the Christian redemption.
What is your answer?
What is the answer of the Scripture?
The New Testament teaches clearly and emphatically that the sin of the believer is
judged rigorously. If the believer continues to practice sin he may experience physical
and spiritual weakness, sickness, premature death, and even spiritual death, according to
the New Testament.
For example:
But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
(I Corinthians 11:28)
To "examine" ourselves is to judge our own conduct regarding righteousness
and unrighteousness.
For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself,
not discerning the Lord’s body. (I Corinthians 11:29)
Some of the Corinthian believers were not regarding the elements of the Communion
service with the proper reverence. The rich were becoming drunk and the poor went hungry.
The believers did not realize that the very elements of which they were partaking are to
be regarded as the Body of Christ. Their attitude was reprehensible.
Did God ignore their conduct and impute (ascribe) the holiness of Christ to them, or
did He judge their conduct to be worthy of "lashes"?
For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. (I Corinthians
11:30)
God revealed His displeasure with their behavior by sending weakness and sickness upon
them. Some died prematurely because God judged that their actions warranted their removal
from the earth.
For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. (I Corinthians 11:31)
God commands us to judge ourselves. We are to examine our behavior, resisting that
which is sinful and praying for strength to walk in righteousness, holiness, and obedience
to God. We can see at a glance that the concept that God does not see our behavior but
only the righteousness of Christ is incorrect—terribly incorrect! Fatally incorrect!
But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned
with the world. (I Corinthians 11:32)
If we refuse to correct our conduct, God will judge us in order to save us from being
under the same condemnation as the world.
While there are numerous statements in the New Testament (the second and third chapters
of the Book of Revelation and the Books of First John and Jude, for example, plus many
exhortations of Paul) that demonstrate beyond all doubt that God indeed judges the sins of
His people, the passage from First Corinthians (above) seems sufficient for the student
who is willing to flee from the prevailing Christian error concerning Divine grace.
What, then, should be our attitude toward the sins we are committing? We are commanded
to confess our sins, turning away from them with the Lord’s help. When we confess our
sins with the purpose of turning away from them, God is faithful and righteous to forgive
us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We wash the robes of our conduct and make
them white in the blood of the Lamb. We are to do this every day because we are living in
a morally filthy environment.
We Christians do sin, and we are not to evade this fact by stating that God does not
see our behavior. God sees every action we take. He hears every word we speak. He knows
every thought we think. God’s plan of redemption through Christ is able to transform
every one of our actions, our words, and our thoughts, until they are acceptable to Him.
This moral transformation is the Divine salvation, the Divine redemption.
God is judging His household today. Swift and terrible judgment soon will fall on every
nation in which the believers do not humble themselves, pray, seek God’s face, and
turn from their wicked ways.
It is an error of monumental proportions to claim that God does not see the actions of
the believer but only the righteousness of Christ imputed to him.
What is the role of imputation? What are the limits of imputation? The ascribing
(imputing) of righteousness (right standing with God) to whoever puts his trust in Jesus
is taught by the Apostle Paul in the first five chapters of the Book of Romans.
Paul, in the early chapters of Romans, is arguing against Jews. He was addressing those
who knew the Law of Moses and were trusting in the works of the Law (particularly, but not
exclusively, the Ten Commandments) for their redemption and righteousness in the sight of
God.
Paul spoke vehemently to the Orthodox Jews, warning them that God has given us His own
righteousness through Christ, having declared all of mankind to be bound in sin. Paul
explained that there no longer is a need to attempt to adhere to the statutes of Moses
because God will ascribe true righteousness to the individual who believes in the Lord
Jesus.
Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all
them that believe: for there is no difference: (Romans 3:22)
The role of imputed righteousness is to remove the condemnation of sin from the
believer so he may come to God for fellowship, and also for help as he seeks to overcome
sin and self-will. Having put our faith in Jesus we now, like the High Priest of Israel on
the Day of Atonement, are permitted beyond the holy veil so we may present our needs
before the throne of Him who dwells between the Cherubim of Glory.
Gentile teachers have made two tremendous errors of interpretation concerning
Paul’s teaching of imputed righteousness:
Gentile teachers, not realizing that Paul was contrasting faith in Jesus with the
observance of the many facets of the Law of Moses, have concluded that Paul was
contrasting faith in Jesus with godly behavior. The irony of this error is that godly
behavior is the very thing the Lord came to establish.
The second error is worse than the first. Gentile teachers believe that New Testament
grace represents a change in God Himself. Not understanding the temporary, provisional
nature of imputation, they are assuming that God no longer requires righteous, holy
behavior on the part of His servants and will have continuing fellowship with people of
unclean behavior on the basis of the blood atonement.
The Scripture immediately condemns such a viewpoint!
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not
the unclean thing; and I will receive you. (II Corinthians 6:17)
Permanent fellowship with God depends not only on the atonement made by the Lord Jesus
but also on our walking in the light of God’s will and holiness, on our coming out
from the filthy practices of the world.
Christian teachers and preachers suggest that God has given grace as an alternative
to godly behavior. Worse yet, they imply that this alternative is eternal. A thousand
years from now, it is said, we still will be praising God for His "grace." This
means, apparently, that we still shall be bound in sin and self-will but God will accept
us anyway.
If this were the case it would represent a change in God Himself, in His moral Nature.
It would be the most disastrous of all catastrophes that possibly could overtake the
creation. In this case, the Holy City would be holy by imputation, meaning that it was
filled with malice, violence, filthy moral behavior, and every other abomination that
previously had brought the wrath of God upon mankind. There would be no hope for those who
are looking for "new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
Christian teaching often is incorrect in its presentation of Divine grace under the
new covenant.
It is true that by our identification with Christ on the cross we are legally free from
the Law of Moses. But we are not free to live as we please, we are free only to be married
to Christ.
Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that
ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should
bring forth fruit unto God. (Romans 7:4)
Marriage to Christ brings a far stricter control over our moral behavior than ever
could be true of the Law of Moses.
We have a multitude of spiritual "singles" today who are married neither to
Moses nor to Christ. They are without law of any kind being a law to themselves. They
shall be judged as evildoers. The Lord Jesus does not "know" them or those who
are teaching them that their immoral, lawless behavior is acceptable to God.
What is the new covenant? Precisely what is the new covenant, the new testament,
the covenant that has superseded the Law of Moses?
Someone who knew only current Christian teaching would suppose the new covenant
consisted of God’s forgiveness of our sin so we can make our eternal home in Heaven.
This model of redemption is incorrect in method and objective.
God’s moral Nature is eternal. He never has changed and never shall change His
desire for mankind. God desires that every person practice righteousness, love mercy, and
walk humbly with God. This expression sums up the Law and the Prophets.
There was a problem with the worshipers under the Law of Moses. The problem was that
many Israelites did not practice righteousness, love mercy, or walk humbly with God. In
fact, the envy in the personalities of the Law-keeping leaders of Israel caused them to
demand the murder of Jesus of Nazareth.
Not being satisfied with people under the old covenant, God has created a new covenant.
According to today’s preaching, the new covenant primarily is one of forgiveness.
Because people are sinful, God has decided, on the basis of the suffering and shed blood
of Jesus on the cross, to waive His requirement that people practice righteousness, love
mercy, and walk humbly with God.
Sometimes it actually is stated that the commandments of the Lord and His Apostles are
not to be obeyed. God’s purpose in giving the commandments found in the New Testament
was not that we would obey them but to demonstrate that we must come to Christ and receive
the grace of forgiveness. Although this concept of the New Testament writings has been
advanced for many years it utterly is without foundation in the New Testament.
The problem here is that the teachers are making justification by faith the only aspect
of the Divine redemption. They are ignoring the all important works of sanctification and
consecration. If forgiveness of sins and imputed righteousness are the only aspects of
Divine grace, then the new covenant will never produce people in God’s image. It is a
tremendous misunderstanding of the program and objectives of Divine grace.
If this were true it would mean that the new covenant is inferior to the old, in that
the old required godly behavior. God has admitted (it is assumed) there is nothing He can
do to save people from their sins. He has decided to forgive them without attempting to
change them. What an erroneous concept!
How does God’s Word describe the new covenant?
First of all, let us point out the principal difference between the two covenants.
Under the old covenant, sin was forgiven through the atonement made by the blood of
animals. Under the new covenant, sin is forgiven through the atonement made by the blood
of the righteous Jesus, and then removed from us as we fight against it with the power of
the Holy Spirit working in terms of the authority of the blood of the cross.
The Mosaic covenant included forgiveness.
And he shall do with the bullock as he did with the bullock for a sin offering, so
shall he do with this: and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be
forgiven them. (Leviticus 4:20)
The new covenant includes the forgiveness and the removal of the presence (power,
compulsion, desire) of sin.
For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the
things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make
the comers thereunto perfect. (Hebrews 10:1)
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
(Hebrews 10:4)
And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same
sacrifices, which can never take away sins: (Hebrews 10:11)
"Make the comers thereunto perfect." "Should take away sins."
"Can never take away sins."
It is clear from the Scripture that the old covenant made provision for the forgiveness
of sin (Leviticus 4:20 above). The difference between the covenants has to do with the removal
of the presence and consciousness of sin, with making the worshiper perfect in conscience
and in behavior.
The Day of Atonement (set forth in Leviticus, Chapter 16) describes the atonement made
through the blood of the slain goat, and also the future removal of sin (not just the
guilt, but the sin itself) from the camp by the leading away of the scapegoat.
Forgiveness, and then removal.
God’s grace under the new covenant includes the blood atonement made on the cross
of Calvary, the body and blood of Christ given to us as food and drink, the indwelling and
anointing of the Holy Spirit, the conception and development of the incorruptible Seed in
us in the born-again experience, the gifts and ministries given by the Spirit to the
members of the Body of Christ, and the Word of God written by the Apostles of the Lamb.
There is no question that the Divine grace provided under the new covenant furnishes
sufficient authority and power to remove the presence of sin from the Church, leaving it
without blemish of any kind whatever. God’s grace is sufficient to perform what He
has promised!
The new covenant by no means is limited to forgiveness.
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: (Hebrews 8:10)
Does the verse above indicate that God has forgotten His Torah, His eternal Law?
Is it not rather true that the new covenant is infinitely stricter in that it has moved
the eternal law of God from tables of stone to the tables of the heart of man?
In the light of Hebrews 8:10, does it appear to you that the new covenant is primarily
one of forgiveness?
Have we not been grievously deceived?
It is time to repent! We have been deceived by Satan. He has managed to destroy the
Divine testimony in the "Christian" nations of today by perverting the teaching
of the Apostle Paul concerning the role of the grace of God under the new covenant.
Precisely what is the Divine salvation (redemption)? What is the goal of salvation? The
current model of redemption portrays the blood of Jesus as the means of keeping people out
of Hell and admitting them to Heaven to live forever. While this is true in an elementary
sense it is so simplistic as to be seriously misleading.
There is a real Hell. There is a real Lake of Fire. There is a real Heaven inhabited by
God the Father, Jesus, the saints, and holy angels and creatures of whom we know little or
nothing.
The purpose of the Christian redemption is not to make it possible for sinners to go to
Paradise, to Heaven, in their sin. Sinners always are of Hell and will go to Hell when
they die. The righteous always are of Heaven and will go to Heaven when they die.
Jesus did not come to admit sinners to Paradise, for that would repeat the original
problem of the garden in Eden. Jesus came to change sinners into righteous people so they
can inherit eternal life, Paradise, and all the other wonders and responsibilities that
await us in the future.
Jesus did not come to take the violent man to Heaven, He came to make the violent man
peaceful and gentle.
Jesus did not come to take the fornicator to Heaven, He came to make the fornicator
morally pure. The Lord Jesus came to put Paradise in us.
But didn’t Jesus state that morally unclean people would enter the Kingdom ahead
of the self-righteous? Yes, He did. Entering the Kingdom means that we have been delivered
from moral impurity. Sometimes the fornicators and the robbers enter the Kingdom ahead of
the religious people because the sinners see their need for Jesus, for His forgiving,
cleansing authority and power. No individual is as spiritually bankrupt as he or she who
sees no need of repentance and deliverance from worldliness, lust, and self-seeking.
The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Heaven is a
place. The Kingdom of God is a relationship to God through Christ.
Today’s Christian doctrine is so confused, so erroneous, that making one’s
eternal home in the spirit Paradise is presented as the goal of redemption.
In actuality the goal of salvation presented in the Scriptures is eternal life in the
Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of God is destined to be established on the earth.
The Lord Jesus did not come to change what we reap but what we sow. People always will
reap what they sow. If we desire to enter eternal life in the Kingdom of God we must sow
righteousness. This basic law of the Kingdom can never be done away, not by grace, not by
mercy, not by any other means. God does not change!
Salvation is moral transformation. This is what salvation is. It has no reference to
Heaven. The statement "salvation is moral transformation" does not mean if we
behave righteously we will be saved. It means, rather, that the righteous behavior itself is
the salvation.
The purpose of salvation is not that we go to Heaven but that we fulfill the many needs
that God has, such as a temple for Himself, a bride for the Lamb, righteous priests and
rulers to govern the nations of the saved, and several other roles and services. None of
these roles and services can be performed by a human being until he or she has been
changed into the moral image of the Lord Jesus and brought into complete, restful union
with the Father through Christ.
Notice how redemption is described by the Holy Spirit through the father of John the
Baptist:
That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies
might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of
our life. (Luke 1:74,75)
The above prophetic declaration could not be improved as a definition of the Christian
redemption.
"Being delivered out of the hand of our enemies."
"Might serve him without fear."
"In holiness and righteousness before him."
"All the days of our life."
This is salvation. This is redemption. It has nothing to do with going to Heaven. In
fact, the earth and its peoples will be the primary beneficiaries of the salvation created
in the elect.
We are not being saved from the earth to Heaven, we are being saved from Satan to God.
To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of
Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them
which are sanctified by faith that is in me. (Acts 26:18)
To be redeemed is to be turned from darkness to light, from the authority of Satan to
God.
Again we have a definition of redemption. It has nothing to do with going to Heaven but
with being turned from Satan to God. We do not receive forgiveness of sins until we are
turned from the power of Satan unto God.
The Christian salvation may be thought of as a journey. We commence in the image of
Satan and have Satan’s spirit in us. We think the thoughts of Satan, speak the words
of Satan, and perform the actions of Satan.
By the time we reach the end of the journey we are in the image of God and have
God’s Spirit in us. We think the thoughts of God, speak the words of God, and perform
the actions of God. This is what the Christian redemption accomplishes.
The Christian redemption includes forgiveness. But the forgiveness is a legal maneuver
based upon the atonement made on the cross of Calvary. It is a covering that makes it
possible for God to accept us while the transformation takes place.
When the transformation does not take place, the fruit the Farmer is looking for does
not appear, then we stand in clear scriptural danger of being removed from Christ. We have
turned the grace of God into an excuse for immorality
Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman
waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he
receive the early and latter rain. (James 5:7)
And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down. (Luke
13:9)
Salvation is moral transformation. To be saved is to be released from Satan and brought
into holy fellowship with God. Salvation is a continuing process in our life. Salvation
has a specific beginning, a specific divinely-guided program, and a specific conclusion.
It has an alpha and an omega. Jesus is the Author and the Finisher of our salvation.
He or she who endures to the end shall be saved. We cannot stop at one point on the
journey and state we are eternally saved. Rather, we can say, "I have been saved from
fornication, I have been saved from drunkenness, I have been saved from gossiping. I have
been delivered from the control of the enemy and the Lord Jesus is helping me to worship
Him and live for Him."
The righteous are saved with difficulty!
The part of us that has not as yet been redeemed from the hand of the enemy is still
under the authority of the Lake of Fire, except that Jesus keeps His protection over us as
long as we are abiding in Him and submitting to His rebukes and deliverances. We must
"work out" our salvation.
It is true that when we believe and are baptized we are saved from destruction in the
Day of God’s wrath. In this sense we can say "I am saved because I believe in
the Lord Jesus." We can live in the assurance of sins forgiven.
It appears that what it means to be "saved" differs from person to person.
Some people apparently experience a basic salvation and they are not challenged by the
Lord to go further. Others, as the Apostle Paul, are presented with a high
"mark" that they strive to attain throughout their lifetime. Some are destined
to sit on the Lord’s right hand. They will be required to drink the cup of suffering
of which Christ drank. To whom much is given, of him shall much be required.
The Scriptures are clear that there are a variety of ranks and callings in the Kingdom
of God. The Lord requires of us only that we grasp that for which we personally have been
grasped.
When we believe and are baptized we are saved from the wrath of God. After this initial
experience we must seek the Lord daily that we may be transformed in personality. If we
neglect to follow the Lord in the transformation and ministry He is requiring of us, then
we are a disobedient child. In this case, we may or may not be saved in the Day of Wrath.
If we are saved it will be as by fire. Salvation by fire will not prove to be a joyous
experience!
Because of our past experience as Christians it is almost impossible to think of
"being saved" as moral transformation. Perhaps our generation will never be able
to think of being saved apart from going to Heaven. But as long as we think in terms of
eternal residence in Heaven as being the goal of redemption, confusing the place termed Heaven
with eternal life and the Kingdom of God, we never will truly understand the Kingdom of
God or the Christian salvation.
Perhaps the children, the young warriors we are training now, will be able to make the
conceptual leap from Heaven to the Kingdom of God.
Why would we be admonished to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling if
righteousness were imputed to us unconditionally and eternally?
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now
much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. (Philippians
2:12)
Compare:
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I
have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (I Corinthians 9:27)
There is a careless spirit of security that often characterizes the Christian spirit.
This sense of careless ease views God as a kindly grandfather and "good old
Jesus" (as someone described the Lord) as a "regular guy" who would never
let Christians (especially Gentile Christians) suffer.
The Lord Jesus, the High Priest of God, would say to this spirit, this
"angel" of the Christian churches: "You are in deception. You suppose that
I have changed from the days of Noah, from the time of Sodom and Gomorrah; but I tell you
that in the hour of My coming the events shall be as in the time of Noah and of Sodom and
Gomorrah.
"You have been deceived by the spirit of humanism that is filling the world, the
spirit of man seeking to make himself God.
"You claim that God will not permit the saints to suffer. You understand neither
the Scriptures nor the history of the Church nor your own day.
"You suppose that My grace is an excuse for your continued careless, sinful
behavior. But I will bring every work into judgment and reward you according to your
works.
"You are attempting to use Me in order to attain your own goals and desires. Do
you not know that you are My slaves?—that I have purchased you with My own blood?
"The Scriptures command you to work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling, to pray that God will keep you from deception, to turn away from the world,
take up your cross, and follow me. Do so. The suffering that comes upon you is My judgment
of your sins. Its purpose is to save you from destruction.
"As many as I love I rebuke and chasten. Be not arrogant but fear the Lord. This
is the beginning of wisdom."
If salvation were unconditional, an eternal amnesty, then numerous passages of the New
Testament would make no sense at all.
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter
end is worse with them than the beginning. (II Peter 2:20)
How can we deny such a statement? By claiming that the Book of Second Peter is not part
of the sacred canon, the fully inspired Word of God? And after we have eliminated this
passage, what about the multitude of others that warn us to turn away from our lusts and
to walk in the Spirit of God?
What does Peter mean when he claims the righteous are saved with difficulty?
And if the righteous scarcely be saved [is saved with difficulty], where shall
the ungodly and the sinner appear? (I Peter 4:18)
A careful study of the entire fourth chapter of First Peter will reveal that it is
speaking of the need to judge and remove sin from the Christian personality. This is in
keeping with the concept of the new covenant as the Divine provision for removing our sin,
for making the worshiper righteous and holy in behavior.
The theme of I Peter, Chapter Four is that Divine judgment has begun in the household
of God. The judgment includes fiery trials that test and purify the believers. We are not
to be amazed at the suffering that comes upon us but are to rejoice, realizing that the
Divine chastening has as its purpose our redemption.
So great is the wrath of God against sin that the believers must be dealt with very
severely. It is difficult to save from destruction even the most righteous individual.
The Jewish race has had its holocaust, and now the Spirit of God is beginning to gather
the Jews from all nations where they have been dispersed and to install them in their own
land.
But the Gentile holocaust has not taken place as yet. It is coming soon. It will be far
more terrible than that which happened to the Jews.
Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and
also of the Gentile; (Romans 2:9)
The Jewish nation has been chastised first because it is God’s family. We cannot
imagine what will transpire when God begins to chastise the Gentiles!
To redeem an individual requires the mortgage payment made on the cross, and then much
fiery chastening as the sin is burned away. Zion always is redeemed with the spirit of
judgment and of burning, with the baptism of fire.
Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise
with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (I Peter
4:1)
Let us approach God with fear and trembling, being appreciative of all the fiery tests
that come our way, in the confidence that God is dealing with us as sons.
It is difficult for God to save even the righteous individual because the personalities
of all people—righteous and unrighteous alike—are filled with lust, deceit, and
rebellion against God. We are desperately wicked, and it is no easy task to save us from
the moral pit in which we were born and in which we live.
Why is it not true that Jesus already has "saved" us and that our motive for
righteous behavior is that we ought to try to please Him in appreciation for what He has
done for us? Why is this commonly accepted reasoning not true?
Those who teach and preach the abstract, mystical redemption we have mentioned, a
salvation independent of acceptable moral conduct on the part of the worshiper, suggest we
ought to try to be good. Their concept is that if God has been so kind as to overlook our
wickedness through Christ and to give us the hope of eternal bliss in a mansion in the
Paradise of God, then we ought to show our appreciation by godly behavior.
This may be termed the "gratitude" model for pursuing the Divine redemption.
Think of it: we ought to show our appreciation by godly behavior! This is an
ineffectual, powerless orientation to the Kingdom of God.
What is incorrect in the "we ought to show our appreciation" approach to
producing the new creation, the life-giving Bride that is to be married to the Lamb for
eternity?
"Showing our appreciation" is not the scriptural method of developing the
unblemished Bride of the Lamb.
The implication of the "gratitude" model is that acceptable moral behavior is
desirable but not an essential aspect of the Divine redemption.
In actuality, it is the transformation of our moral personality (as well as our body)
that itself is the Divine redemption.
The assumption is that the adamic nature can imitate the Personality of the Lord Jesus
if it is willing to make the effort. The truth is, the adamic nature must be crucified if
the process is even to begin!
In order to produce the new creation in which the old things have passed away and all
things have become new and are of God, all the elements of Divine grace must be employed.
The Spirit of God, the atoning blood of Jesus, the body and blood of Jesus as our daily
sustenance, and particularly the conception and formation of the incorruptible Seed in us,
must all play their part if we are to be transformed into the moral image of God.
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed
into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (II
Corinthians 3:18)
Man cannot change himself! Only the Spirit of God can change us. Have we learned
nothing in six thousand years? By no means are we able to lift ourselves by our own
bootstraps.
Our present environment is demonic, becoming spiritually darker each day. In addition,
our flesh is filled with the spirit of sin. Also, our self-will rejects vigorously the
idea that only the Lord Jesus has the right to sit on the throne in the depths of our
personality. We want to be our own God and act as we please.
We may desire to do good. But the demonic pressure is so great from within and from
without that our good intentions last about as long as a wooden toy in a bonfire.
If we are to come to God with the desperation required to resist lust, to resist
profanity, to resist violence, to resist occult practices, to resist spite, to resist
gossip, to resist our romantic urges, to resist our desire to break out of the prison in
which God has permitted us to be placed, then we first must be convinced that our conduct
will have a direct effect upon our resurrection; that we are to be clothed in our own
conduct in the Day of the Lord.
When an individual has been assured that no matter what he does he will go to eternal
bliss in a mansion in Heaven when he dies, he never will possess the inner fire, the
fierceness, the determination that are necessary for the successful pursuit of the
victorious Christian life. The promises of God are to the overcomer, the winner of the
race!
The concept that all will receive the same reward, independently of their conduct, is
from Satan. His purpose in this deception is to prevent the moral transformation of
God’s people. Satan understands very well that the Presence of God will not remain
with an individual who is disobeying God. It is the Presence of God that Satan fears.
Satan fears the Godhead, not the religious striving of well-intentioned people.
Do the Scriptures invite us to try to behave righteously or do they command
us to live righteously on the pain of destruction if we do not?
Please keep in mind that all of the following passages are addressed only to
Christians:
Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to
whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (Romans 6:16)
This means that if a believer, having been baptized in water, keeps on yielding to the
urges of sin, he will die spiritually. This hardly could be considered a gentle invitation
to live righteously accompanied by the assurance that eternal life already has been
guaranteed regardless of compliance with God’s laws.
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. (Romans 8:13)
This means that if a believer keeps on living in the appetites of the flesh he will die
spiritually. This is not a suggestion that he try to be righteous, accompanied by the
assurance that eternal life already has been guaranteed regardless of compliance with
God’s laws.
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness [immorality], Idolatry, sorcery, hatred, variance,
emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness,
revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time
past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians
5:19-21)
This means that if a believer continues to live in the lusts of the flesh he will not
inherit the Kingdom of God. None of these actions are permitted in the Kingdom. This is
not a mild directive to try to resist sin, accompanied by the assurance that eternal life
in the Kingdom of God already has been guaranteed to the believer regardless of obedience
to God.
For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an
idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. (Ephesians 5:5)
This means that if a believer is immoral, unclean, or covetous, he will not inherit the
Kingdom of Christ and of God. None of these behaviors are permitted in the Kingdom. This
is not a suggestion that the believer try to show his gratitude for a Divine amnesty,
accompanied by the assurance that eternal life in the Kingdom of God already has been
guaranteed regardless of whether or not the believer persists in covetous behavior.
We could add many other passages, but these should be sufficient to give the reader a
starting point from which to familiarize himself with the injunctions of the New Testament
concerning sinful behavior on the part of Christian believers.
No! It is not true that eternal bliss is guaranteed upon our profession of Christ as
Savior or that it is sufficient we make an attempt to act righteously in appreciation of
God’s love toward us. The gratitude model is an incorrect concept of the Christian
salvation and will lead (and is leading multitudes) to moral chaos.
Can you imagine the Lord saying to us, "You could do better if you tried, but it
really doesn’t matter because I am going to take you to Heaven to be with Me forever
whether or not you live a life of victory over sin?"
What does the Lord actually say, when speaking to a Christian assembly?
And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he
which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to
your works. (Revelation 2:23)
There is a phrase common to the Lord’s Word to the seven churches of Asia: "I
know thy works."
The Lord never rebuked His servants for their doctrine, neither in the Gospel accounts
nor in the Book of Revelation. His concern is with our works. This would not be the
case if current Christian doctrine came from the Spirit of God.
But what about the thief on the cross? Did not the Lord admit him to Paradise apart
from godly behavior?
First of all, we know nothing about the events of the thief’s life that led to his
request to be admitted to Christ’s kingdom.
Second, the Holy Spirit did not place this incident in the Scripture in order to
undermine and refute the commandments of the Apostles of the Lamb.
The story of the thief on the cross reminds us that Christ is willing to rescue the
perishing when they call on him. Its purpose is not to comfort careless, lukewarm
believers with the idea they will be "saved anyway."
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my
mouth. (Revelation 3:16)
Being spit out of the Lord’s mouth is not an illustration of the Divine
redemption.
In any case, the Lord Jesus did not bring the thief into the Kingdom of God but into
Paradise. The issue of the New Testament is not Paradise but the Kingdom of God.
Who is it that builds his house on the rock?
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him
unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: (Matthew 7:24)
"Heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them."
What does the above verse mean?
Does it mean if I hear what Jesus says and believe He is the Lord I will go to Heaven
when I die?
This is not what it states; this is not what it means.
Does it mean the Jews have to keep the Lord’s commandments but the Gentiles are
saved by grace and go to Heaven by grace?
This is not what it states; this is not what it means.
Does it mean I ought to try to do good but everyone knows that no one is perfect and as
long as we are in the world we shall sin?
This is not what it states; this is not what it means.
Does it mean that God knows we cannot do what He says and so we will go to Heaven if we
trust in Jesus?
This is not what it states; this is not what it means.
"Heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them."
What does this saying mean? It means if we will put into practice the moral directives
given during the Sermon on Mount (Matthew, Chapters Five through Seven), when the storm
comes we and our family will remain secure. Our "house" will not be moved
because it is founded on the Rock of the Word of the Lord.
If we are not able in our flesh to forgive our enemies, to leap for joy when we are
persecuted, then we are to approach God in prayer, requesting assistance in our time of
need. God shall, by His Virtue enable us to do what Jesus commanded.
If we call Jesus Lord! Lord! and then do not do what He taught, He will say to us in
that Day, "I never knew you. Go away from Me you evildoer."
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 7:21)
"Doeth the will of my Father."
Does this mean that only the Jews are required to actually do God’s will?
No, it means that every person who would please God must keep His commandments.
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth
is not in him. (I John 2:4)
The spirit of deception has so poisoned our minds that we cannot perceive what the Word
of God states clearly. We keep contradicting the Word, making it of none effect as we
attempt to force it into the mold of our manmade models of redemption.
Of particular danger is the model known as Dispensationalism. Beyond all doubt,
Dispensationalism, with its severing of the Old Testament from the New, the severing of
all previous covenants from the new, the severing of the Jewish elect from the Gentile
elect, its teaching of a special coming of the Lord prior to the scriptural and historic
coming of the Lord, its placing of a "Gentile Church" in Heaven, its view of the
Christian Church as a special dispensation in God’s plan, a "mystery" not
mentioned in the Old Testament, is totally destructive of coherent Bible interpretation.
If a person were to sit down and deliberately attempt to render the Scriptures
incoherent, to isolate the Jews from the Divine redemption, and to introduce moral chaos
into the Christian churches, he would have a difficult time improving on the theological
model termed Dispensationalism.
The Dispensational model of Bible interpretation implies that God does not know what He
is doing. God attempts a certain way of dealing with man, and when that doesn’t
produce the results He desires He attempts a different way. The covenants of God from the
creation of Adam are seen as disconnected efforts. Now God has abandoned all methods of
improving fallen man and has decided to receive him in his wretched moral state.
What a pitiful portrayal of God’s knowledge and power!
Perhaps we misunderstand the concept of Dispensationalism, but the above is what was
presented to us when we first became a Christian.
God knew what He was doing before the creation of the world. In the beginning God
created all things through to the new Jerusalem. Then He rested. We are to enter that
rest.
The only reason God gave the Law of Moses was to keep sin in check until the promised
Seed should appear. It never was contemplated that the Law of Moses would produce the new
Jerusalem, the Wife of the Lamb.
What is the meaning of the parable of the sower?
And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to
sow; (Matthew 13:3)
The parable of the sower means that the Kingdom of God is the Divine Seed from God that
is sown in the heart of an individual.
In some instances, Satan is able to snatch the Seed away before it germinates. The
person did not understand the Word.
Sometimes the Seed falls on stony ground and its root structure is not adequate to
support and nourish the plant in a time of drought. If the heart of the hearer is hard the
Seed may germinate, but in time of persecution or other trouble the Seed of eternal life
will die from lack of depth.
At other times the Seed germinates, but then thorns grow up and choke out the growth of
the Seed. If the hearer is occupied with money and the cares of life the Divine Seed of
the Kingdom will be choked out and perish.
In some cases the Seed is able to bear lasting fruit, varying in amount from person to
person. If the individual has an honest, good heart (referring to a basically honest
adamic nature even though the individual may or may not have gone into sinful practices),
the Seed of the Kingdom can bring forth the lasting fruit of righteous behavior.
The thoughtful reader can perceive quickly how the parable of the sower invalidates the
Christian formula—the concept of an abstract redemption that operates independently
of the behavior of the worshiper.
The parable of the sower demolishes another Christian tenet—the principle that all
people are hopelessly wicked. By stressing the truth that all of us were born in sin and
have a nature that sins and rebels against God, today’s teachers overlook the
numerous verses in the Old Testament and the New that attribute righteousness to people.
They would deny that the Seed, the Word of God, could ever fall into an "honest and
good heart" because (they would claim) there is no person on earth who has such an
inner nature.
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances
of the Lord blameless. (Luke 1:6)
But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with
him. (Acts 10:35)
The Book of Psalms in numerous verses discusses the righteous and the wicked.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation
of the righteous. (Psalms 1:5)
Christians in their haste to insist that there is salvation only through Christ (which
is true) have developed simplistic doctrines that are not scripturally balanced. The
overemphasis on the wickedness of man has caused Christian believers to ignore completely
the many, many commandments found in the New Testament. The Christians are under the
impression that any effort to live righteously is to be viewed with suspicion as
"legalism." "We are saved by grace apart from any works of
righteousness."
How terribly unbalanced this assumption is! How great has been the moral desolation
produced by an unbalanced presentation of Divine grace!
Jesus spoke no parable concerning going to Heaven when we die. Every parable of the
Lord concerns the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of Heaven. This fact alone renders
contemporary Christian theology irrelevant.
The Kingdom of God is a Seed that comes from God Himself. Some people never understand
it. In others it does not find sufficient soil. In yet others there are too many other
interests competing for the individual’s attention.
Of the four kinds of ground, three bear no lasting fruit. The Kingdom of God is not
formed in them permanently.
What does this say concerning the hopelessly inappropriate discussion concerning
"once saved always saved"?
In the fourth kind of ground, that of adamic personalities with integrity (without
integrity no person can make a success of the Divine redemption), the believers bring
forth the Kingdom of God in varying degrees. What is brought forth in the personality is
Christ, the Kingdom of God. The new personality is Divine in nature. It is a new creation.
My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,
(Galatians 4:19)
"Until Christ be formed in you." The saints in Galatia were saved and filled
with the Spirit of God. Now the task was to form Christ in them, corresponding to the
fourth kind of ground in the parable of the sower.
The parable of the sower is the most important of the parables of the Kingdom of God
given by the Lord Jesus. When we do not understand the parable of the sower it is
impossible to comprehend the Kingdom of God—the Kingdom announced by John the Baptist
and the Lord Jesus.
And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all
parables? (Mark 4:13)
What is the purpose of the return of the Lord Jesus to the world? The Christian
churches are continuing in a misunderstanding concerning the return of the Lord to the
earth. They suppose that the purpose of Christ’s coming is to catch up His Bride to
Heaven. However, this is not the reason for the Lord’s return.
The purpose for the Lord’s coming is to separate the righteous from the wicked in
the earth, to deliver the wicked to judgment, and to reward and exalt the righteous. The
meek shall inherit the earth.
As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end
of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of
his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a
furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous
shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
(Matthew 13:40-43)
Two are in the field. One is received [the meaning of the Greek term translated
"taken"] of the Lord, and the other laid aside or forsaken. Two are working at
the mill. One is received and the other is set aside.
The division is not between the Christians and the non-Christians but between the
righteous and the wicked.
The Christian churches are hoping to be caught away to Paradise in order to escape the
coming judgment.
In actuality it is the Lord’s will to prepare us now so we can stand in the hour
to come, and not only to stand but to reveal to the world the righteousness and holiness
of the God of Heaven. We can do this only as we are transformed by His Divine Virtue.
For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are
sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring
forth before all the nations. (Isaiah 61:11)
Having your conversation [behavior] honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas
they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold,
glorify God in the day of visitation. (I Peter 2:12)
In what manner do both the Catholic and Protestant approaches to righteousness come
short of the Glory of God?
As we understand it, the Catholic approach to righteousness is to acquire merit by
religious duties and to submit to specific priestly ordinances. The amount of merit gained
determines the state of joy encountered after death. The concept is that if we will
attempt to please God by obeying the Catholic Church we can attain an improved position in
the spirit realm after we die. The goal is eternal bliss in the spirit Paradise of God.
The Protestant approach to righteousness often is to virtually ignore our behavior, or
to assign it a minor role, and to concentrate on a correct mental and verbal response to
the theological facts of the Divine redemption. A belief in the facts of redemption is the
Protestant definition of, "the just shall live by faith." The goal is eternal
bliss in the spirit Paradise of God.
It is apparent that many fine saints have come from the ranks of the Catholic and
Protestant churches. How much richer would have been the harvest if the doctrine had been
scriptural?
The Catholic model is to attain Paradise by human efforts to obey the ordinances of the
Church.
The Protestant model is to attain Paradise by unswerving belief in the facts of the
atonement and the resurrection.
Both models are incorrect. We do not know how or when the goal of salvation changed
from the biblical Kingdom of God to eternal residence in the spirit Paradise. Early
Gnosticism is one possible source of the change in objective from establishing the Kingdom
of God on the earth to eternal residence in the spirit Paradise. Or, the source may have
been the developing doctrine of the Catholic Church.
First of all, let us note that the goal of redemption is to produce sons who are in the
moral and bodily image of the Lord Jesus and who are in union in Jesus in the Father.
These sons will serve as servants of Christ in the various roles and responsibilities
belonging to the ages yet to come.
Second, the method for producing such sons is for human beings to receive Christ by
faith, to enter by faith into His death and resurrection, and then to follow Him closely
as, through the Holy Spirit, He administers to us the several components of the Divine
grace. As we respond to the Divine grace a transformation occurs in our personality. We
are changed from an adamic person to a life-giving spirit.
And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made
a quickening [life-giving] spirit. (I Corinthians 15:45)
It is not a case of our living righteously and thus earning residence in the spirit
realm. Rather, the Divine salvation working in us produces a new creation of righteousness
and holiness.
As we have stated before, it is the moral transformation that is salvation, that
is redemption.
To be saved is to be transformed morally.
What are we saved from? We are saved from the authority and power of Satan.
What are we saved to? We are saved to the image of God, union with God, and fellowship
with God in all of His several programs and purposes. Salvation creates us in the image of
God, makes us "male and female" (changes us from an independent entity into an
integral part of Christ), produces fruitfulness in our personality, and establishes us as
a ruler over the works of God’s hands. The four results of the Divine redemption are
the fulfillment of the original fiat concerning man (Genesis 1:26-28).
We are not saved by works of righteousness we have done. Rather, Divine grace produces
salvation, that is, works of righteousness that we do. If righteous, holy, obedient
character is not being created in an individual, then we can state he is not being
redeemed from the hand of the enemy.
The arguments concerning whether we are saved by faith or works, or whether having once
been saved it is possible to be lost, become irrelevant in the model we are presenting.
How can one protest that he is saved whether or not he behaves righteously when it is
righteous behavior that itself is the salvation and proof of the salvation?
We have eternal security provided we continue to abide in Christ. But we must remember
the attitude of the Apostle Paul who strove to keep his body in subjection so he would not
be disqualified.
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I
have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (I Corinthians 9:27)
The meaning of the Greek term translated "castaway" is unapproved;
rejected; reprobate.
If someone protests, Paul would be rejected but he would still be saved, our response
is, this is to make eternal residence in a mansion in the spirit Paradise the goal of
salvation. This is what the protester means by "still be saved."
But if one adopts the view that the goal is eternal service to God in His Kingdom, then
to be rejected, unapproved, reprobate, disqualified, is seen to be an extremely
undesirable fate.
All arguments relative to redemption become misleading and inappropriate when one is
assuming that the goal is eternal residence in a mansion in Heaven.
We speak of being saved "as by fire." What does this mean? In terms of
Kingdom theology, being saved as by fire means that much of our inheritance and much of
our personality have been burned away. Our behavior has not pleased the Lord. Perhaps an
"Abraham" has prayed for us and we have been admitted to the Kingdom of God.
But, like Lot, our inheritance is impoverished and threadbare when it could have been a
mountain of fire and glory. It is likely we shall begin life again as a small child. It is
certain we shall not be a great mountain of fire and glory reigning with the Lord over
God’s creation.
The Apostle Paul, knowing the terror of the Lord, warned the Christians of Corinth that
each one of us shall be revealed at the Judgment Seat (Greek term, beema ) of
Christ.
For we must all appear [be manifested] before the judgment seat of Christ; that
every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether
it be good or bad. (II Corinthians 5:10)
It is taught today that the beema is a kind of awards banquet in which
participants receive recognition for their accomplishments. The truth is, the beema
was a court where accused criminals were brought to trial. Jesus was brought before the beema
of Pontius Pilate (Matthew 27:19).
Every Christian will be exposed before the beema of the Lord Jesus Christ. He
will receive from the Lord that which he has done in his physical body, whether good or
evil.
One principal reason why Jewish people have such a difficult time accepting Jesus as
Christ is that they cannot understand the Christian concept of Divine grace. The Jew is
taught from birth that God requires righteous behavior. What is this "grace"
that means you do not have to live righteously? Is God still the Holy Fire of Israel?
It may come as a blessing to the Jew who is seeking his Messiah to learn that the new
covenant is much more demanding, in terms of righteous behavior, than is the Torah.
Also, the new covenant provides the virtue, power, and guidance through which the
righteous behavior demanded by the new covenant can be put into practice by the worshiper.
No Jew under the Torah ever was required to present his body a living sacrifice
to God. Yet, presenting our body to God as a living sacrifice is the reasonable service of
worship of the new covenant. Now we have Christ Himself, the Son of God, who makes it
possible for us to meet all His requirements.
The new covenant is an infinitely stricter covenant, but a covenant containing
infinitely more grace to produce the righteousness the Lord requires.
Hopefully the spirit of delusion we have been describing will never be permitted to
enter the land of Israel to any great extent. The true Gospel of the Kingdom originated in
the land of Israel and is destined to return to the land of Israel in the last days.
We are not suggesting in this booklet that an individual can reject Christ and enter
the Kingdom of God on the basis of righteous behavior. This would be to contradict the
Scripture. No person can knowingly reject Christ and find favor with God.
Neither are we implying that the weak believer should despair because he is not being
successful in "saving himself." Never allow yourself to become discouraged no
matter how hopeless your case appears to be. The Lord will accept you and love you and
bring you through to complete salvation as long as this is what you desire.
The Christians who are in danger are those who, in an attitude of smug complacency, are
declaring that since they have assented verbally to the theological facts concerning the
atonement and the resurrection of the Lord and have made the correct verbal profession
they are eternally secure in Christ, even though they are filled with worldliness, lust,
and self-will. They are not humble of heart nor repentant. They shall suffer greatly
during the coming age of moral horrors until they bow the knee to the Lord Jesus.
It also is a fact that the most wretched sinner, no matter what he may have done, can
come to God through the Lord Jesus Christ and gain right standing with God. So great is
the redemption provided through Christ!
It absolutely and eternally is true that if anyone knowingly rejects Christ he comes
under the judgment of God; and also that the worst of sinners can be received of God if he
repents and calls on the name of the Lord Jesus.
These are unchangeable, Divinely established facts. The very heavens and the earth
shall pass away but God’s Word through the Lord Jesus shall never pass away.
Jesus gave us the Spirit of God so we would have power to bear witness of His atoning
death and triumphant resurrection. By far the most important part of the witness the Lord
desires is the evidence of Christ’s resurrection portrayed in the transformed moral
behavior of the believer. The blood of the cross has released us from Satan’s
authority. We now are qualified to fight in the Spirit of God against all the sin and
rebellion found in the "body of sin" located in our personality.
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts
thereof. (Romans 6:12)
People, including the Jews, are looking for the Presence of God in us. They desire to
see Jesus. But what they are beholding is the malice and wickedness that always proceed
from the adamic nature.
Because the current definition of "grace" assures us we shall not certainly
die even though we continue in sin and disobedience to God, that righteous and holy
behavior no longer are necessary in order to please God, there is no moral light for the
world to see.
We have been deceived by the greatest lie ever told.
Who among us will humble himself, pray, turn from his or her wicked ways, and seek the
face of the Lord?
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