Law
vs. Grace
As taught from the Christian
Bible.
A study by: Timothy M. Youngblood.
Copyright © The
Master's Table
The subject of whether we as Christians are under the Law or Grace is one of the greatest controversies among literally hundreds of Christian denominations. This subject of Law vs. Grace is a perfect subject that can divide the two groups, and has divided friends, and family down through time and will continue to do so until Christ returns. It seems that we have two types of Christian schools of thought and I believe the reason for this is because there are conservative Christians, and Liberal Christians which cause doctrinal interpretations that are either liberal, or conservative. Although Churches may divide and disagree, God is not divided, and He hates confusion, so Christians truly need to come to understand what God means in terms of grace.
Another big question among conservative, and Liberal Christians that corresponds with Law vs Grace is the subject of losing salvation after we have accepted Jesus as our savior, and if we can lose salvation; how? Are we only to be concerned with accepting Jesus alone, and is that all there is to it? This question of "Law vs. Grace" is a very important point of the gospel message that is to be preached to the entire world, and if we don't come to understand the truth concerning the gospel of the Messiah, then how are we to faithfully complete the commission He has given to the Church? How are we to be faithful servants of our Lord if what we teach is in error? So for the sake of doing God's will, let's study to find the truth from the christian scriptures, and not inject what we think, or what someone have taught in times past. I'm sure Christians will agree that we need to get ourselves out of it and get on with our Father's business.
Is Grace Unconditional?
I have read a lot about Grace lately and it seems that many are adopting the
teaching of Grace alone, or better put, that Grace is Unconditional. They
propose the concept that we can't stop sinning so we just need to accept ourselves
as we are. This concept teaches that Christ is victorious over sin and we
don't have to do anything to earn or keep it. They teach that all sin is vanquished,
and that we are over comers in the Messiah alone, not in our overcoming
anything. They accuse those who try to keep the commandments of just trying
to please God so He will accept them and that is not necessary because, as
they put it, God has already accepted everyone no matter what we do. The teaching
that we need to accept ourselves as helpless sinners is also proporting that
to try and change is just being self-righteous, and is an attempt at trying
to feel spiritually superior to people who do things that disgust and offend
us. This sounds good to many people because we all try and fail, and never
seem to overcome every time and the truth is that we can't overcome EVERY
TIME because we are still in the flesh. We do find in scripture that the flesh
is corrupt, but should we accept this to the point where we quit trying and
accept the teaching of Grace alone is all we need and anything else is a lack
of faith?
I must say this kind of teaching is very dangerous to Christians because it speaks to our human nature that wants to receive salvation, but do as we please also. This teaching will cause many to justify their sins and thus let down in the good fight to overcome. What we need to understand is that God wants us to quit sinning because sin is not good for anyone. It is not a matter of God just placing some do's and don'ts before us, but a matter of life or death! We will find in this study that we MUST fight the flesh, and yes, this will please God our Father and Jesus our elder Brother, and just as we all want, it will also make the world a good place for all to live. Surely we as forgiving and loving parents may overlook a child misbehaving and not enact a just punishment the first time, but would also expect the child to do better in the future. Why would we expect God to be any different when it comes to such things?
The very first truth we as Christians should agree on is that we are saved (redeemed) through the blood of Christ if we believe the Holy Father sent Jesus, and if we accept Jesus as our savior. Let's read what Paul stated in his letter to Timothy. "However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all long-suffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life." 1 Tim 1:16. The very word "believe" in this scripture is to have faith in Christ or, to entrust especially one's spiritual well-being to Christ. To not do this would be rejecting salvation and the new covenant. So with that question answered, let's get started in this study concerning Law vs. Grace by asking and answering some other basic questions. To do this we must understand some important history such as, why did Jesus have to establish a new covenant, and what makes the difference between the old covenant, and the new? Just what did God promise Abraham, and how does that effect the new covenant that we are under by accepting Jesus as our savior? (For more on this see related links at the end.)
The very important key here is to understand what is meant in respect to the old covenant law, and what has been done away with. If you placed yourself in the shoes of a Jew, understanding their beliefs, and their keeping of the law during the time of Jesus the Messiah's ministry you would understand why they rejected Jesus' teachings. Many don't understand that Jesus came to redeem mankind from the ceremonies and rituals of the old covenant, as well as redeeming us of the death penalty all mankind was under for breaking the law of God. When we study the old covenant we find that it was a predecessor of the new covenant, and had many symbols that represented the coming Messiah.
Although it's not recorded in scripture that Jesus ever preached using the word grace, we find in our research He taught the concept of grace. This means that the very fact we now can receive eternal life by the blood sacrifice of Jesus, is in fact the grace of God by faith, and not by the keeping of the law! The Jews at the time, and today, could not accept this, even though it's stated many times in their old writings and prophecy's concerning the coming Messiah. It is a fact that we can preach Jesus and the gospel message using the Old Testament alone just as the apostles did, as any bible student should know, the New Testament was not written during the apostles ministry. So it is there, in the Old Testament, that we can find the intent of God the Holy Father through Christ.
So what is Grace?
Let's take a good honest look at what "the Grace of God" truly is
and learn why God gives it to us. Let's not consider the Webster's Dictionary
definition on the word Grace because the meaning we are looking for needs
to be defined from its source and the time of its intended meaning. I use
the Strong's concordance to define words because it's the most reliable source
to date. The word grace in Hebrew (Old Testament) is from Strong's No. 2580
chen (khane); which is graciousness, i.e. kindness, favor, or objective (beauty).
So we see the term grace in the Hebrew meaning Kindness, precious, or well-favored.
But does it denote mercy, forgiveness, and salvation? The word mercy in the
Old Testament is from Strong's no. 2617 checed (kheh'-sed); kindness; by implication
(towards God) piety, reproof, or beauty. The words that stands out here is
kindness and pity because that is what one must have towards another
in order to forgive and not punish. Notice that the definitions of Grace and
Mercy are very much alike, but neither one mentions the other within each
definition.
In order to be well rounded in understanding we also need to consider the scriptures that denote God's forgiveness then, now, and in the future. One such scripture in Psalms 86:5 reflects that King David understood the terms Forgiveness and mercy, denoting also what the Apostles meant as the grace of God. King David wrote, "For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You." How did the apostles use the Greek word grace, and does it really denote mercy? The Greek definition of grace means, "The divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in our life." Or to say, it's the influence of the Spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them. This statement is very important to the understanding of the grace of God in relation to our salvation and will be understood in greater detail on into this study. *
We understand from New Testament scripture that we can't earn God's grace, and that grace is freely given because God first loved us and has mercy (or pity) without our earning it. Freely given denotes that the one receiving it does not have to do anything to receive it, and this is true, but where many go wrong in their understanding is that they believe it should be freely continued, however freely given does not necessarily mean freely continued. The point is that God is not under any obligation to give us grace, but because He loves us so much, He is willing to overlook our past sins and many of our weaknesses. The big point here is that God is giving those that are sincerely trying, room to grow. But does that mean people should be able to just treat the gift of God with disrespect? If you were forgiven a debt you owed of $10,000 should you go borrow another $10,000 thinking its fine because they will not demand payment? If you were the banker and found someone had this attitude what would you do? Jesus has paid the penalty for our sins, and the grace of God does give us room to grow, but we should never treat this love and grace from God with an ungrateful attitude. God is just that...God, and whether He continues grace in any ones life is totally God's right and should never be judged by any person because God judges righteous Judgment based on all circumstances in each persons life, which no one can know and understand but God!
Grace and condemnation:
The facts are that there will be those who are condemned so we can't rightly
study the subject of the grace of God without understanding the condemnation
of those that reject the blood of the covenant, or have the attitude of un-thankfulness,
or disrespect towards the gift of God. According to our research of the scriptures
God will forgive as long as we have a real true repentant heart, but He will
reject those that treat the gift of Christ cheaply. I'm sure that you have
heard of the doctrine "once saved always saved." Is it realistic
to believe that all that have come to Jesus will be saved regardless of the
converts actions, and attitude, good or bad? Let's let the words of the author
of the book of Hebrews answer this question, as he is more qualified than
we are to answer this question. "For it is impossible for those
who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become
partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the
powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance,
since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an
open shame." Heb 6:4-6.
Also brethren we find scripture in II Th 2:11-12, that warns if we choose pleasure over righteousness we will be condemned. "And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness." Another example is the scripture where Jesus was teaching about the seed sown and how some fell on good ground and some on bad ground, and how this was relating to our choosing pleasure over righteousness. I direct you to the seed that fell among the thorns and what Jesus stated. "Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. Matt 13:22 22.
This denotes that the person hears the word but wants the riches and pleasure of this world more than truth which is in fact every ones free will choice, but please understand that they were offered salvation! They heard the truth but rejected it! Remember I stated above that freely given denotes that the one receiving it does not have to do anything to receive it, but where many go wrong in their understanding is that they believe it should be freely continued, but freely given does not necessarily mean freely continued as we see here by Jesus' own teachings. Let's not forget the old saying that we attract what we dwell on, and what we dwell on we become! So brethren if we allow Satan to deceive us into an attitude that we are saved no matter what we do, then we run the real risk of falling into the trap of becoming lax, and careless with God's grace!
There is another trap being placed on many loving and sincere people that can lead in the wrong direction. Let's cover the law of love a little here so we will be careful not to fall for the kind of love that is not of God. This may shock you but there is a kind of love that is not from God. We need to keep things in proper perspective and realize that to have the love of God does not mean we accept false doctrine, or pagan worship in order not to offend people; or to love others so much we don't tell them what is sin such as homosexuality, and witchcraft is condemned by God. To truly love others that are deceived or still weak is to teach them the truth so they too can receive the true Messiah for salvation and understand how to use the Power of His sacrifice. Love is the greatest and most important commandment because God's true love in our hearts will have understanding of other's weaknesses, and addictive habits. True love will have mercy, and compassion on those that fail without condemning them, realizing we all need God's mercy. The love of God can see what a person can become, not what they are, and this is the way God the Father and Jesus views us, and is the way we should view others. Those of us that have God's Holy Spirit working with us have help overcoming where others may not be able to do so until they too accept the help that can only come from God. You see, again it is because we accepted, first the Messiah as the Son of God and His sacrifice, and through walking in the His Spirit daily we are able to overcome, not because of the law, or because some people are better, but because we have changed over time and have come to "desire" to do what is good. This is what the Holy Spirit does in us as was stated above. *
The point many Christians miss concerning this is that God wants us to quit sinning because we have come to understand what sin is. Because we understand that sin destroys all in its path and when one comes to truly understand what that means then one quits sinning because they have changed with understanding and not just because of law. Like "giving" for example; if we give only a tenth because of what we believe is a current command from God then we only have conformed to the letter of the law, however if we give (Even more than a tenth) when there is no command to do so, and when no one is watching, then we have become what is intended, loving others like Jesus and the Holy Father.
The gospel of Jesus is that we should "repent" which means to turn from our old ways but many don't understand that He also meant it to mean to turn from the old covenant and turn to the new covenant. (See our study titled The Covenant as taught from the Book of Hebrews) Repent also means we must turn to God the Father, and also do what the very word "Faith" means which is to place our spiritual salvation in Jesus the Messiah which means to rely on and have assurance (Faith) that Christ alone can give salvation and that salvation is not of ourselves. As we have seen in the book of Hebrews the Law of Moses was done away at Christ' resurrection and as we saw from scripture in other studies God is looking at the heart now and not the law because He writes His law in our hearts.
Imputed Righteousness:
Again we must look closly at a word in the Hebrew language to understand what
is meant by Imputed Righteousness. It's recorded in the Old and New
Testament scriptures that Abraham was called the father of the faithful. Was
this because he never sinned? No this was not because he never sinned, but
because he "believed" God. This point is very important to
understand because we can't be justified or have imputed righteousness
if we don't believe that God sent Jesus as our savior. You might ask why
is it so important to believe in order to receive salvation? Let's ask another
question in order to answer this one. What really happened when Eve, and then
Adam disobeyed God? They rejected God through their unbelief!
God told them what He wanted them to do, and they instead, believed and obeyed
the serpent! The whole point God has been making down through time is that
His children, or creation, have rejected Him through disobedience.
God wants us to accept Him, and believe what He says because He, and all He commands are good and right for all living things. We must realize and fully understand that God hates, at the top of His list, "Unbelief" because to disbelieve God is to reject the right way to true prosperity and happiness, not only for ourselves, but for our neighbors as well, which includes all living things on earth. We must come to "believe God" just as Abraham did even to the point of giving his only son's life even after God had promised to raise up many nations by this seed. Notice in this scripture. "He did not waver at the promise of God through "unbelief", but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what God had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore "it was accounted to him for righteousness." Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification." Rom 4:20-25
We find that in the original Greek translations the latter part of this verse
I underlined should read, "and was raised again for our acquittal."
The term "acquittal" is a better term as it means that we are relieved
from the punishment for our sins, not that we have not sinned. Notice the
word "Imputed" also has the same meaning as attributed, or given
as if to have or make righteous, or justify. Not that we are righteous, but
that we are counted "as" righteous. We need to understand
this because many are teaching, and many believe, that we must be righteous,
or that we need to be under the law if we are to enter the
Let's look at what Paul explained in the book of Galatains verse 3:16-29. "Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect. For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise. What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.
Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith, which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." Notice the very important points here that denote "No Longer" being under that law of Moses and what that law was for. It was a tutor and much of it was added because of transgressions, or better put, disobedience.
Now let's go on down to chapter five of Romans and see what else Paul said about this subject. "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this "grace" in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God and not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." Rom 5:1-6. The part of this verse that states "by the Holy Spirit who was given to us" should read; "by the Holy Spirit which is given to us" as the word "who" was added when the true word in the Greek is "ho" and is a neuter word as the English word "it" denotes thing. The Holy Spirit is not a person so the word "who" should not be used here. Also notice the point that the love of God has been poured out in our hearts which also reinforces the fact that we should become like Jesus and not desire the lust of the flesh any longer. (See related subject The Gospel of Jesus the Messiah at the end.)
Paul goes on to teach in chapter five that by one man (Adam) sin and the judgment of condemnation came upon all mankind, but through one Man (Jesus) salvation is offered or made available to all mankind. Many teach that this means that "all" mankind will receive salvation, but this is not the case. Again, grace is "offered" to all mankind, but all are not accepting it. If it were then as I stated above what do we do with all the scriptures that state those who "accept" Jesus will be saved, and all that "reject" Him will be condemned to eternal death? Also there are many scriptures that state the wicked will be condemned, that is, those that continue in unrighteous life-stiles, and those that have an unrepentant heart. Brethren, there is a big difference between someone that sins out of weakness, and someone that is evil, or someone that disrespects the gift of grace. Again, the grace of God has to be accepted in order for it to be used, and the person using it has to be sincere. Remember, the demons believe and know God, but still continue to rebel.
Grace and Law:
What about grace and works, or keeping the law? Many times we have people
teaching one extreme or the other. Some teach we don't need to do works if
we are under grace, and others teach that we need to keep the law or we will
be condemned. What is the truth? The truth is that we should accept the grace
of God and as a result we will keep the law of love. Please understand;
God has not done away with His law, namely the Ten Commandments. The law of
God is good and for our benefit, but where many miss the mark here is that
they fail to realize the law of God has changed from a physical law to a spiritual
law. What God has done away with through Jesus is the "penalty"
of the law, which is eternal death.
Also under the old covenant there were, most of the time, immediate consequence to sin, which was the penalty of the law that in many cases are deferred under the law of grace. This does not mean we can, for example, drive reckless and expect not to have an accident. We must understand that to be redeemed from the curse of the law has more to do with eternal death, or eternal life than anything else. Remember, when sin came into the world, God stated that we shall surely die because of it, but Christ came to make atonement for us because of their great love and mercy. "Christ has "redeemed" us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.") Gal. l 3:13.
Let's look at what Jesus stated concerning the law and His role in redeeming those that would accept Him. "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." Matt 5:17. We know Jesus was speaking of the law here as spiritual because in verses 38-39 we read, "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' "But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." Jesus went on to relate that if we lust after a woman in our heart we have already committed adultery with her. Jesus showed throughout Matthew chapter five that He was changing the law from physical to spiritual, meaning we are to change from with-in because we see the light of God's goodness, not because of a law in itself. He also made this point clear when He stated, "It's not what goes into the mouth that defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." Matt 15:11. Meaning that we need to change from with-in, which is a spiritual change that can only come from the cleansing blood of the Christ, and through the power of the Holy Spirit from the Holy Father.
Now let's look at what we read concerning Jesus statement that He came to "fulfill the Law." Paul shows the true intent of the term "to fulfill" in Rom 10:3-4. "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes." We see this same message being preached by the apostle John. "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. Notice the term "BELIEVE" being used in this scripture? As stated above, it is very important to understand why we must believe, which is to look to and trust God with all things in our lives, now and forever.
We see in Gal 4:4-5. "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Notice the term " to REDEEM those who were UNDER the law," Also we see in Rom 7:1-6, that the redeeming of God's people from under the law by Jesus is likened to a woman who is free from her husband when he dies. Brethren, Jesus died to free us from the old covenant law so we can be free to be remarried to Him under the new covenant. Let's read it. "Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another-- to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter."
Notice he stated that "we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter." This is to say the Holy Spirit will impart the fruits of the Spirit to us and therefore we will keep the commandments that Jesus stated was still important which is the Ten Commandments. Remember the denotation of grace that we looked at before? "It's the influence of the Spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them." * also notice Paul stated that we will SERVE in the newness of the Spirit. Remember the scripture where Jesus stated, "we are a slave to whom we obey?" John 8:34-36. "Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. "And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed." To be a slave to sin is the same thing as to become addicted to drugs, sex, or wine and to become addicted happens because we choose and love the world and pleasure more than God and even more than anyone else!
Some may say that we can overcome and never sin again but we know Jesus understood
we will sin because He stated "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.
The spirit truly is willing, but the flesh is weak." Mark 14:38.
This is a warning statement to watch and pray because we are still living
with the weakness of the flesh, but this does not mean we should just give
in to it either. Again, was the law of Moses evil? No! But the new covenant
of grace means we don't have to be under the old covenant with the old hierarchical
priesthoods strict sacrificial rites and that we are free from
Exod. 16:23 shows that cooking was forbidden on the Sabbath. Exod. 16: 29 show that it was forbidden to travel at all on the Sabbath. Jer. 17:27 states they were not to carry a burden on the Sabbath. Exod 35:3 commands that no one shall kindle a fire on the Sabbath day for any reason, so if your fire went out, to bad. In Exod. 31:14 and Exod. 35:1-3, God stated that anyone who profanes the Sabbath, (which meant what we just listed above) shall surely be put to death! Have you kept this law and put your mate or child to death because they went out to eat, or turned on the stove on the Sabbath? Let's truly give thanks for the grace of God through His Son Jesus our Messiah.
Jesus made a very profound statement concerning the Sabbath laws in Matt. 11 and 12. Remember when Jesus stated He would give rest to those whom labor and are of a heavy burden? Matt. 11: 28. Well Jesus continued His point in Matt. 12 when He was confronted by the Pharisees about picking corn on the Sabbath, He responded by saying, "But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless. "For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath." The point brethren is that salvation does not come from the perfect keeping of the Sabbath the way it was done under the old covenant, but ONLY through Christ! Remember Jesus stated that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath, but does this mean we should quit keeping the seventh day Sabbath? No! It means we keep it because we want to rest on the seventh day Sabbath, and because we know that God has placed His presents in that time from sun-set on the sixth day till sun-set on the seventh day. You see, now we are free to worship as children loving their Father. (See study on the Sabbath for more understanding on why we should keep the Seventh day at the end of this study)
Now let's read what Paul stated about this subject of the law. "Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bond-woman, the other by a free-woman. But he who was of the bond-woman was born according to the flesh, and he of the free-woman through promise, which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar--for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children--but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written: "Rejoice, O barren, you who do not bear! Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor! For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband." Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? "Cast out the bond-woman and her son, for the son of the bond-woman shall not be heir with the son of the free-woman." So then, brethren, we are not children of the bond-woman but of the free." Gal. 4: 21,31.
Also we see Paul being very clear as to what law he was referring to in Col 2:14-17. Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the stake. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ." Notice that he stated the very Gospel message that the substance is of the Christ!
These scriptures are very clear on the fact that we have been freed from the law and are under grace and although someone may come along and say, Timothy Youngblood is teaching the old Protestant religion saying we can do what ever we want and we are saved. I say no brethren, I'm not teaching that misconception the Protestant Church teaches, but it is very important to understand the points that Jesus made when He stated that He came to fulfill the law. Remember what I stated in the first paragraph of this study that there are conservative Christians, and Liberal Christians, and that we have doctrinal interpretations that are either liberal, or conservative? This is the very reason I made that point, so we can understand that both are right in most points, however, we need to read ALL the scriptures and come to understand that there is not a contradiction, but a matter of misunderstanding because of the way misguided ministers have FOCUSED people to one side or the other.
We need not be just liberal, or conservative, but Christian in all we teach! The fact is that Grace works with the law which is the Ten Commandments, which includes the seventh day Sabbath. Paul shows in the above scriptures that Jesus is the end of the law, which means that the old ceremonial, and ritual laws are done away and that the new covenant brings the Holy Spirit to those that accept Jesus as their savior and as a result they, by walking in the Holy Spirit, will fulfill the law because of a change of heart. Again it is a matter of the physical law vs. the spiritual law. When walking in the spirit of the law we will come to understand the old saying that sin is not hurtful because it is forbidden; but it is forbidden because it is hurtful. Jesus whom we should follow stated that ALL the law and the Prophets could be hung on the two Great Commandments which is to love God with all your heart soul, and mind, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. Matt 22:37-40. If you look at this statement close you will see that Jesus was denoting the Ten Commandments. The first four are denoting loving and worshipping God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and the fifth command is our relationship with our parents. The last five commands are, loving our neighbors as the second great command states.
Also we find more understanding along these lines in Acts 13:38-39. "Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses." How much more clear can it be when stated that, "everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses?" They were preaching to the Jews that were still under the law at the time. The people under the law, which includes the Jews today, are still trying to be justified by the keeping of the law of Moses, and are obliged to keep it all. That includes the washings, wave offerings, burnt offerings, and all other laws under the old covenant.
I would like to ask Christians that try to keep the letter of the law and also state they believe Jesus alone is their salvation, why do you feel justified when you keep it, and condemned when you don't? I would also like to ask the Jews where their salvation has been for almost 2,000 years if they have not been giving burnt offerings in the temple? Brethren, the point here is that we don't need to keep the law for salvation, and we should never let some preacher convince us we are sinning if we don't go to his feast sight or have Sabbath services the exact way their Church does it. The truth is, if we don't accept the fact that Jesus came to free us from that old covenant law then we will be rejecting Him and could very well lose salvation!
If we love Him:
Please understand that I do believe as Jesus Himself stated that if we love
Him we would keep His commands. John.14:15. And I believe that we should work
on our weaknesses, but as long as I'm feeling true regret for my weakness
I believe that Jesus' mercy and compassion will apply to me. I'm saying scripture
shows that we are justified by faith in Jesus, and being justified
does not mean we should do what ever we want to do. What it means is that
we will keep His commands if we love Him, and we will also love as Jesus loves
because the Holy Spirit is allowed to love and work through us. This does
not do away with good works as we do find scripture that tell us that our
faith should produce good works in us as we live in the Spirit.
Let's read James 2:14-20 for more on this "What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe-- and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?"
How plain can it be stated? But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?" The point is that "we are not justified" by our works, and we are not under the law, but we should produce good works out of the change from a carnal to a spiritual way of thinking. This goes back to the fruits we should produce because the Holy Spirit is working in us. As I have stated in the study "By their fruits" the list of the fruits of the Holy Spirit are not things we do because of a command or a list of do's and don'ts, but because the Spirit lives in us. Keeping the law of God does not do away with grace, because we are saved through the grace of God and not the law. Where people have become confused on this issue is that they come to believe that if we are under grace then the penalty of the law, which is eternal death, cannot affect us no matter what we do. They come to believe in what is called "once saved always saved" as we covered above, but this concept is absolutely wrong as we read in many scriptures. Again, I will go so far as to say that this teaching can cause one to lose their salvation and the reason is because in time it causes one to let their guard down and become slothful in their Christian growth.
The wicked will be condemned:
Our research has found that in many scriptures the wicked will be condemned,
and the righteous shall be saved. This sounds confusing to some because we
all sin. If we all sin then we all should be condemned right? This is where
many conservative, and Liberal Christians have a problem. What we need to
understand and keep in mind is that God understands our weakness of the flesh,
and it's the attitude of the person God is looking at. It's those with a humble
spirit and a tender heart that God loves. I have stated in other studies that
we can't be saved if we live our lives in sin and then try to repent on our
deathbed. This is not to say one can't repent on their deathbed because we
must remember the thief on the stake next to Jesus that repented and Jesus
granted him salvation that very day.
This man's repentance was sincerely from the heart, as was reflected by his statement to the other thief next to Jesus. The point is that we can't think we can be evil and selfish all our lives and hope we can get a priest to bless us before we die. God most likely will not accept this type of repentance, and this is the very point of the Great White Throne judgment. The people that have accepted Jesus as their savior, and are truly trying to live their lives by the power of the Holy Spirit, and the written scriptures, loving God with all their heart will be judged accordingly. Those that are trying to fool everyone and are truly hypocrites, unrepentant, worshipping other god's and teaching others lawlessness will also be judged accordingly. Those that commit the unpardonable sin and accept the mark of the beast will not be in the book of life!
I have taught for years that those whom accept the mark of the Beast will be condemned, and that this must be the true warning to the Christian Church today. (See Rev 13:8.) I feel strongly that true Christians should warn others of the dangers of rejecting Jesus through idolatry, as that is the way Satan has, and will cause people to worship him, and receive the mark of the beast. Remember brethren, if we reject the true Messiah we shall be condemned, and to accept the false Christ is to reject the true one. Satan wants people to believe that God will not condemn those that receive the mark so Satan can continue to lead them into eternal death. Many people today do not want to believe that God is coming in judgment bringing death and destruction with Him, but He will bring judgment regardless if anyone believes it! This is the very reason we must understand this subject of Grace in relation to the false teaching that once we receive salvation we can't lose it. Please keep this in mind as we continue through this study because many misguided teachers are teaching that the grace of God and salvation is for all mankind regardless of religion or the actions of evil people.
They teach that most everyone will be saved at the Great White Throne Judgment. That all religions are worshipping the same god and we should worship with them so we all can be one. This idea does not even add up in light of all the scriptures that warn us to not reject Christ, or not to accept the false Christ, and to not accept the mark of the beast. To worship Buddha, or the sun god is not to worship God the Father and Christ. The scriptures are clear in stating that if we do then our names would not be in the book of life, and those not found written in the book would be destroyed in the lake of fire. Rev. 20:10-15. Also Rev 9:20-21. "But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. And they did not repent of their murders or their Sorcery's or their sexual immorality or their thefts." Some may say they are not worshiping any false god's...but are you sure? You might want to read our book "The Great Apostasy" before you come to any conclusions.
Again brethren, the fact is that the grace of God is "offered" to all mankind, but many are rejecting true doctrine, true repentance, the true Messiah, and the true gospel message He taught. We MUST keep in mind that if we don't come to the true Messiah believing His gospel not some man's gospel, we are in great danger of our names not being in the book of life. There are those that are coming in the name of Christ, but are teaching a false gospel of what is disguised as the "Love Gospel." Many misguided ministers have preached a gospel of the love of God so long that it has turned into a gospel of tolerance. Professing Christians have become permissive in their attitude towards those whose opinions and practices are contrary to the scriptures. Even homosexuals are considered normal and their lifestyle is accepted in professing Christian Churches today.
A homosexual person can be a Christian, but they MUST admit that their lifestyle is wrong and repent. Let's never forget the very important fact that God has great mercy, and long suffering towards us. God does not delight in the suffering of anyone, but desires for all to come to repentance. But just because God "desires" all to come to repentance does not mean they will! God will work with us as long as we are truly trying to overcome, and He has great compassion for our weak attempts. He understands our weak flesh holds us back, and He also through grace gives us His power to become more like Him. He will know when we are using grace as an excuse to do what we want to do. It's then that God will send a trial to teach, and as a plea for repentance, and when He is working with us this way we need to be submissive to the Holy Spirit and ALLOW it to work in us.
Repentance and change from within:
The one thing that we must develop before we can become Spirit begotten Children
of God and being allowed to enter in His kingdom is holy righteous character,
and this can't come about except through choice. Remember as I taught in the
paper "The choices we make," we must experience good and evil and
come to desire the good over evil if we are to become like God. The apostle
Paul warned that the unrighteous will not inherit the
The reason God created us physical is so we could not live forever if we choose the way of evil. Remember that God banned us from the tree of life so we could not eat of it and live forever until we come into His Kingdom. We find in the book of revelation that it is then that mankind will be allowed access to the tree of life. Let's read it. "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." Rev 2:7. And in Rev 22:14-17. "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the Churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely."
What is the great point of what God is doing? God wants a family that's concerned for the good of all the creation. God wants a family that has His mind and desires to fulfill His will. God wants a spirit family that will love Him and trust all He commands knowing He loves us, and knowing He is all wise. God wants a spirit family that is full of the love that can only come from God. This love from God is a true love, which is the type of love that goes away from the self, and out-ward towards others. As stated above this love does not condemn, but can see what we can become. This love will also hate evil because evil destroys all it contacts.
We must receive this love by submitting to God before He will ever entrust
us with the power He has. We can't expect to be in the
He who overcomes will be there:
As we have seen in this study, if we come to "love God" and His
ways, and come to have His character of forgiveness, which is born out of
love we can be in the
God is all-powerful, and He is standing ready with all His power to help us overcome the down pull of our human nature. He has His angels standing ready to help and His Holy Spirit opening our minds as we study His word so we will be able to withstand the many cunning attacks of those who would try to take our salvation. Salvation is for you now under the grace God gives, so please don't let someone convince you to put off what you should be doing, believing you already have it forever. Please don't get trapped in the thinking that you don't need to be diligent and continue to seek the fullness of God's Holy Spirit. Don't let anyone convince you that you don't need to know the difference between false and true doctrine. Don't become discouraged when you fail, and please never become discouraged to the point where you give up the fight. I want to meet you there.
We must go away from the self, and reach out to others with this great news of the Gospel that God the Holy Father sent to us by way of His Son Jesus and its the doing and giving of the gospel message that helps us grow in it. This good news that we can be forgiven, and that we need to forgive, and we can be under the fantastic grace of God never having to fear, or be under the law like the Hebrews were is the greatest news ever given! We can experience the true freedom in Christ knowing we will not have to go through this life alone, knowing that God will never leave or forsake us. He is always there, and will always send help and comfort in time of need so we can walk with Him even in this weak flesh. The love of God is the great key to the grace of God, (The two Great Commandments) and true heart-felt forgiveness, and understanding towards those that may offend is the true love of God in action.
Related links.
The Covenant
(The Book of Hebrews)
Just
what is Sin?
The Gospel of Jesus
the Messiah:
Is the seventh
day the Sabbath?
"By their
fruits"
Judge Gently
Author unknown
Pray don't find fault with the person who limps or stumbles along the road, unless you have worn the shoes they have worn, or struggled beneath their load. There may be tacks in the shoes that hurt, though hidden from view, or the burden they bear placed on your back might cause you to stumble too.
Don't sneer at the person who's down today, unless you have felt the blow that caused their fall, or felt the shame that only the fallen know. You may be strong today, but still the blows that were theirs if dealt to you, in the selfsame way or the selfsame time might cause you to stagger too.
Don't be harsh with the person who sins or pelt them with word or stone unless
you are sure yea, doubly sure that you have no sins of your own!
For you know perhaps if the tempters voice should whisper as softly to you
as it did to them, when they went astray it just might cause you to falter
too.