Believers today are being challenged
and exhorted to develop a better self-image, and to exercise more
self-love. It is our intent to present both the
unscriptural, and the scriptural aspects of this important facet of the
Christian life.
If I have anything prominently before
me except the Lord Jesus, that thing, however good it is, becomes a screen for
something of myself, and where there is any self- consideration, the region of
spirituality is lost. It may be an amiable thing, but because it is of man and
not of God, it is not spirituality. --J. B.
Stoney
Fall Of The
Fall
There is a growing number of
Christians for whom the fall has fallen. To the degree that the believer
weakens his concept of the fall, he weakens his Christian life and service.
Error concerning the fall results in error concerning the two Adams; and error
concerning the two Adams results in error concerning one’s spiritual growth and
outreach.
Totality Of The
Fall
Scripture leaves no doubt as to the
totality of the fall. It was utter, and irrevocable. God made it very clear to
Adam that if and when he should sin, he would surely die. And the day that Adam
disobeyed God’s single stipulation, he died spiritually--he died unto God. And
all the race of mankind died unto God in Adam that day.
"For as in Adam all die" (1 Cor.
15:22). As a result, "it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the
judgment." "Therefore, as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to
condemnation" (Heb. 9:27; Rom. 5:18). "As it is written, There is none
righteous, no, not one." "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God" (Rom. 3:10, 23).
Without question Adam was originally
created in the image of God. "And God said, Let us create man in our image,
after our likeness...."So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
created he him" (Gen. 1:26, 27).
But when Adam died to God, his
God-like image perished with him. "And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not
always strive with man, for that he also is flesh" (Gen. 6:3). "That which is
born of the flesh is flesh" (John 3:6). "Among whom also we all had our manner
of life in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the
flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others"
(Eph. 2:3). "For to be carnally (fleshly) minded is death....Because the carnal
mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither,
indeed, can be. So, then, they that are in the flesh cannot please God" (Rom.
8:6–8).
The extent of the apprehension of the
depth and utter ruin of the first Adam nature caused by the fall, determines the
extent to which the new life in Christ can be brought to full growth in the
believer; for just so far as man clings to one supposed "good thing" in him, so
for the power of the Cross is nullified in his life, and so far the growth of
the new life is constricted in him.
Freedom from the dominion of sin is
the message of the Cross, but it can only be realized in experience up to the
extent of the believer’s recognition of the fall, and a consequent offcasting of
the fallen life of the first Adam at the place called
Calvary.
Anomaly
Those who slight the fall refer
consistently to the image of fallen Adam as "marred," or "blurred," or "in need
of restoration." They dare not consider Adam’s image a total ruin because they
are seeking its restoration, its reformation. For them it is back to the
unfallen Adam, via Christ!
There is a strange anomaly at the
core of the Reformation realm. On the one hand they go to the extreme of
teaching that the fall was not beyond recovery of the original; while on the
other hand they go so far as to insist that man is so dead in sin that it is
impossible for him to believe--"total depravity."
These Calvinists insist that the
Spirit must first regenerate the dead-unto-God individual, thereby giving him
life in order that he may believe unto life. This the Covenant theologians
refer to as "monergistic regeneration: the faith which receives Christ for
justification is itself the free gift of a sovereign God, bestowed by spiritual
regeneration in the act of effectual calling." --J.I.Packer
"Faith Cometh By
Hearing"
The Scriptures present the reverse of
this theory. "To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name
whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43). First
believe, then receive. John writes, "He that heareth my word, and believeth on
him that sent me, hath everlasting life" (5:24). First hear, then believe, then
receive. "The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of
the Son of God; and they that hear shall live" (John 5:25). As a result of
hearing, the dead are given life.
James, Peter, and John all clearly
testify to the fact that life is entered into by believing, by faith. James:
"Of his own will begot he us with the word of truth (1:18). Peter, "Being born
again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God" (1
Pet. 1:23). John: "But these are written, that ye might have life through his
name" (20:31).
God commanded Israel to choose life.
"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before
you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore, choose life, that both thou
and thy seed may live" (Deut. 30:19). Concerning this plea to choose life, Dr.
L.S. Chafer wrote:
God having designed that man as
creature ... more»
Does the Christian have one, or two
natures*; has the old man been eradicated, or
not?
I believe there are two keys that unlock the
scriptural answer. The one is the doctrine of the two men, and
the other is the doctrine of position. First we will consider
the two representative men--the First Adam and the
Last Adam who constitute the foundation of all God's dealings with
humanity.
[*nature - an inherent propensity,
inclination, bent, or disposition.]
"THE FIRST MAN" -- When "the
first man, Adam," sinned, he died positionally--totally
dead to God: spirit, soul, and body. Thereafter his position was manifested in
his condition; he began to die experientially. In God's mercy, it was some 930
years before Adam fully experienced the inevitable outcome of his
position of death.
Adam, as head of the human race, took all of
humanity into that position of death. "In Adam all die" (1 Cor. 15:22).
All in Adam have his life and therefore are "by nature the children of
wrath" (Eph. 2:3). The Adamic life is the source of sin in
everyone, whether unsaved or saved (Rom. 5:12).
Due to the Fall, Adam became
"flesh"--not only his body, but his soul and spirit as well. "My
Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh" (Gen.
6:3). Hence the race spawned by Adam and Eve is "flesh.""That
which is born of the flesh is flesh" (John 3:6). It is not that the natural
man has flesh, or is in the condition of flesh; he is
flesh.
Paul wrote, "For I know that in me (that is,
in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing" (Rom. 7:18). Note well that he said
"my" flesh. As a believer Paul was indwelt by his Adamic life, the old
man, and he assumed full responsibility for his sinful actions.
In his position Paul was not
"in the flesh," but "in Christ Jesus." Still, in his
condition his Adamic life was present with him, and he owned
full responsibility for its sinfulness. He said, "Whatever a man soweth,
that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh, shall of the
flesh reap corruption" (Gal. 6:7,8). He also said that the believer will,
at the Bema, suffer loss for the fleshly deeds done in the body.
Because the first Adam sinned and became mortal
flesh, he was superseded by the spiritual Last Adam, the "new Man."
This constituted condemned Adam the "old man." The fallen Adam is the
old man, he is the flesh; he possesses a sinful nature. One complete
man.
The Word speaks of the activities of the old
man, both in the unsaved and the saved, as "the wills of the flesh,
the desires of the flesh, the workings of the flesh, the
wisdom of the flesh, the purposes of the flesh, the warring
of the flesh, the glorying of the flesh." It also refers to those
who "walk according to the flesh, after the flesh, and make a
fair show of the flesh." Here we have the personification of the old
man--identically manifested before and after one's salvation.
A man is a substantive entity, a person. The
traits, or characteristics, of a man are non-substantive, and comprise his
nature. A nature is a composition of attributes, and is not to be considered a
substantive entity. Some of the positive characteristics of the
old man, aspects of the old nature, are love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self-control. However lovely,
these are but fleshly facsimiles of the fruit of the Spirit as found in
Galatians 5.
On the other hand, some of the
negative fleshly characteristics of the old man, aspects of
that same old nature indwelling every man are, "adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, hatred, strife, jealousy, wrath,
factions, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and
the like."
Beautiful and beneficial as the positive
characteristics of the flesh may be, all, including both the positive and the
negative, are rejected of God. Why? Because their source is the condemned Adamic
life. For "in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good
thing."
"THE SECOND MAN" (the Last Adam) --
Who can deny that the Lord Jesus has two natures? And if two natures, two lives:
He is the Son of God, and He is the Son of Man. He is perfect God and Perfect
Man in hypostatic union--the oneness of the God-Man.
The blessed aspects of the Lord Jesus'
divine-human life and nature are His love, His joy, His peace, His
longsuffering, His gentleness, His goodness, His faithfulness, His meekness, and
His self-control. All positive--no negative. He was and is, and ever shall be,
impeccable.
THE POSITION FACTOR -- Consider the
believer's positional history. Before anything was brought into
being--the universe, the world, Adam--I, a chosen, elect, and called person was
conceived in my Father's heart and purpose. (See Eph. 1: 4, 5; 2 Tim. 1: 9; Ps.
139:16).
My Father called the world into being, and
created Adam to be head of the human race for that world. I was identified
positionally with the source of humanity. When Adam sinned and thereby
positionally died to God, I died in him. When he became flesh, I became flesh in
him. When he was condemned, I was condemned in him.
The rejected old Adam was replaced by the
accepted new Man, the Last Adam. When the Father sent His only begotten Son into
the world, He subjected Him to the death of the Cross in order to rescue me from
my Adamic death, because He loved me as His chosen one from all
eternity.
While the Lamb of God was on the Cross, my
Father laid all my as-yet-uncommitted sins upon Him, and ... more»
--
Every honest believer who knows anything at all about the extensive and
all-important Romans Seven experience, realizes that the sins in his Christian
life are identical in character to those he experienced prior to salvation.
They are "the works of the flesh," the same all-too-familiar traits of the
person of the first Adam.
They are not the manifestation of some residual sinful habits,
left behind by a long-gone, eradicated, Adamic source. And they certainly
aren’t countered and replaced by the development of "good" new habits. Imagine
the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our indwelling Christian life, having to develop
habits!
Every believer who knows the liberating Romans Eight life, "the
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (v. 2), realizes that the
righteousness manifested in his Christian life has its source in the indwelling
life of the Last Adam, "the fruit of the Spirit." "That the life also of Jesus
might be made manifest in our mortal flesh" (2 Cor. 4:11).
The nature is the essential character of a person, a
life, the quality or qualities that characterize a person. The traits, the
attributes, comprise the nature of a man—whether it be the first Adam man, or
the Last Adam Man. We have the life of Adam, hence his sinful nature; we
have the Life of the Last Adam, hence His new and divine nature. The
Christian has two (2) life sources within, and the manifestation of their
natures is the undeniable evidence thereof—"the works of the flesh," and "the
fruit of the Spirit."
To mention but a few of the more prominent present-day
eradicationists—the late Martyn Lloyd-Jones (via his voluminous writings), John
MacArthur, David Needham, Charles Solomon, John Stott, Charles Stanley, Bill
Gillham, and Bob George.
Further Personal History
-- Positionally free from the
Adamic life through my death unto sin in the Lord Jesus, the Father was at
liberty to identify the essential me with His Son; and in His resurrection I was
recreated "alive unto God" in Him. When He arose, as the beginning of the (new)
creation of God (Rev. 3:14), I arose with Him in "newness of life"—a totally new
creation (2 Cor. 5:17).
When the Lord Jesus, now Head of the new heavenly creation (the
Church), ascended to the right hand of His Father, He took me with Him. The
Father, having re-created me in His Son, raised me up and made me to sit
together in heavenly places in Him. "And hath raised us up together, and
made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6). Abide
Above!
I was positionally separated by death via the Cross from the first
Adam, to be recreated in union with the Last Adam in His resurrection and
ascension. Old Adamic things positionally passed away in the death of
Calvary. In my condition, they are (slowly) passing away as I
grow spiritually. Actually, finally, they will totally and
eternally pass away at my death or at the Rapture--whichever comes first. "Even
so, come Lord Jesus."
There I am in my glorious position, "hidden with Christ in God"
(Col. 3:3). In the Lord Jesus I am a new creation, I am accepted in the
Beloved, complete in Him, sanctified in Him, perfect in Him. With that
position, who can question his unconditional eternal security?!
All of that, and much more, has been held in spiritual
escrow for me ever since the One who is my life ascended to the right hand of
the Father. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath
blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ"
(Eph. 1:3).
All had to be completed positionally before a single
Christian and the Church could be brought into being, because Christianity is
founded upon and springs from the finished work of Christ. "And ye are
complete in Him, who is the Head of all principality and power" (Col.
2:10).
The Condition Factor
-- Born into the world in the life
and image of the first Adam, I grew up a condemned sinner, "dead in trespasses
and sins" (Eph. 2:1). In His foreordained time and purpose the Father called
me, and by His grace and the Spirit-caused conviction of sin, I responded in
unconditional faith—responsibly accepting the Lord Jesus as my own Saviour.
At that moment the Holy Spirit, by His indwelling, brought me the
life of the ascended Lord to be my Christian life. Then and there I was placed
in my position as a new creation in the Last Adam. Nevertheless, the old Adam
life continues to indwell my body of mortal flesh.
In the Spirit’s time I came to know of the positional truths of
the Word concerning me—from Romans 5:12 on throughout Paul’s Church Epistles. I
saw that I had judicially died to sin on the Cross, crucified with the Lord
Jesus (Gal. 2:20).
In time, and years of that, I learned via Romans Seven not to
struggle against the fleshly life of Adam within, but to count by faith upon the
positional truth of the finished work of the Cross. "For in that He
died, He died unto sin once; but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.
Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to have died indeed unto sin, but to be
alive unto God in Jesus Christ, our Lord" (Rom. 6:11).
Likewise reckoning upon my position—"alive unto God in Christ
Jesus"—the Holy Spirit centers my heart and mind upon the One who is my
Christian life. As I behold Him by means of the Word, in personal fellowship
and worship, the Spirit of Christ causes that completed life to manifest the
"fruit of the Spirit." With ever increasing growth I am conformed to the image
of the Son. "But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory
of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, ... more»
This is the traditional Pentecostal aberration: "Total
Depravity does not mean that human nature is essentially and completely
evil, but that every part of it is damaged and infected by inherited
Adamic sin. "It is insisted that there is no new nature involved at conversion,
but rather the impartation of spiritual life that regenerates the old Adamic
nature.
Eradication: This is the teaching that all sin is
eradicated from the sinful Adamic nature. The Wesleyan "pure heart," is
attained when the "second blessing" experience of the "Pentecostal flame"
consumes the sinful propensities of the old Adamic nature. Presto, new divine
nature!
2)
Arminian
One-Naturism
Another type of "one-naturism" is set forth by J. Sidlow Baxter in
his book, A New Call to Holiness. This holiness theory is that of
amelioration of the sinful Adamic nature. Dr. Baxter writes:
"Sin is a diffused infection of thought, desire, motive, impulse,
inclination, and even of instinct, right through the moral nature. From the
moment the Holy Ghost fully possesses us, He begins to correct, purify, refine,
inbreathe and renovate all the qualities, tempers, urges, propensities, and
functions of the mind, the sensations, and the will. This is how holiness
begins and continues to be inwrought" (p. 116).
This is the humanistic theory of change in contradiction to
the spiritual principle of exchange; "Not I, but
Christ."
3) Covenant One-Naturism
The most prevalent and insidious type of "one-naturism" today is
that of Covenant Theology. Through the error of considering Romans 6:6 to be
actual (condition), rather than positional, it is claimed that the old
Adamic man is actually crucified, dead, and gone--eradicated. Those holding
this view are forced, however, to admit to indwelling sin in the Christian.
Some teach that it is simply a residual influence left over from pre-salvation
days.
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones and Dr. Jay Adams refer to indwelling sin
as "old habits." Dr. John MacArthur terms it the "old coat of humanness." Dr.
Charles Solomon says it is the "energy of residual sin." Another erroneous term
for the indwelling old man is "condition of flesh." The one-nature proponents
separate the alleged eradication of the old man from the indwelling "flesh."
However, the Word teaches that "flesh" is a person, as well as a
condition. "My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is
flesh" (Gen. 6:3). "Fathers of our flesh" (Heb. 12:9) sire progeny of flesh.
Belief in the eradication of the old man tends to relieve the Christian of much
of his responsibility concerning the activity of his indwelling Adamic
life and nature. He is wont to place the blame for his sinning upon Satan, and
upon "residual tendencies" and "habits" developed prior to salvation.
But here is the crux of the matter: it is not possible for the
source of indwelling sin to be eradicated, while retaining sin, the
product of that sinful source. Effect must have a cause! If you sin,
you have its source, i.e., Adam.
Dr. Lloyd-Jones taught that "The old man is non-existent. Your
old self is gone" (Romans Six, p. 65). Dr. MacArthur: "The old man is
dead, destroyed, removed…it isn’t around" (Tape GC 2147). Dr. Solomon:
"The old man and sin nature no longer exist in the Christian" (Rejection
Syndrome, p. 106). Dr. Bob George: "That old man is dead and gone; he will
never exist again" (Classic Christianity, p. 90). Dr. Bill Gillham: "I
claim by faith that the old man is extinct" (Lifetime Guarantee, p.
187).
What the one-nature eradicationist fails to understand is that death ever
means separation! Separation from God is living death. I, as a
new creation in the Last Adam, was positionally separated from the first
Adam at the Cross (Gal. 2:20). Hence I reckon myself dead (separated) from sin
and its source, the sinful indwelling old Adamic man. This is the meaning of
Romans Six.
Breached
Bulwarks-- There are
three great fissures in the Dispensational dike, through which doctrinally
contaminated Covenant theology is pouring. These inundating law-streams arise
from three sources: (1) Israel’s New Covenant, (2) Israel’s Sermon on the Mount,
and (3) Israel’s Millennial Kingdom.
These rifts are not only caused by Covenant-engineers from the outside, but
also Dispensational-sappers from the inside. Unless these torrents are
terminated, the Church will suffer greater devastation in the grip of Covenant
Theology than she has from the turmoil and personal wreckage caused by the
Arminian Charismatic chaos.
Pauline
Dispensationalism -- Our theme is as follows: The Church is to be
kept separate from all else, including Israel and her Law, via clear-cut
Pauline Dispensationalism.
The Lord Jesus Christ loves His Church, for whom He gave Himself on the
Cross. He did so that He might cleanse and sanctify her with the washing of
water by the (rightly divided) Word of truth. He would present her to Himself a
glorious Church, not having Charismatic spot, nor Covenant wrinkle, nor any such
thing, but that she should be holy and without earthly Jewish blemish (Eph.
5:25–27).
The glorified Lord delivered His sanctifying and glorifying message
exclusively to His Bride through Paul—a life-giving Word infinitely higher than
His earthly message to the nation of Israel. The Pauline Gospel, governed
by Pauline Dispensationalism, belongs to the Church.
Dual
Gospels--Most dispensationalists and all Covenant
theologians fail to realize that there are two Gospels, each dependent
upon the Blood of the Cross. The one Gospel is earthly (Kingdom), the
other is heavenly (Grace). Both Gospels are “according to Jesus,” and
present only one way: by faith.
One Gospel was ministered by Christ on earth, during His pre-Cross
humiliation, and was exclusively addressed to Israel regarding her
Millennial Kingdom. The other—altogether “new creation” other—was ministered to
Paul by the glorified Lord Jesus Christ; after Calvary, from heaven, exclusively
to and for His chosen heavenly Body.
John the Baptist’s, Jesus’, and the Apostles’ Gospel concerned the Messiah
and His Kingdom-specifically and repeatedly referred to as “the Gospel of the
Kingdom” (Matt. 4:23; 9:35; 24:14; Mark 1:14; Luke 9:2, 6). The other, “the
Gospel of the Grace of God, “was neither preached nor mentioned until Paul went
forth to declare it (Acts 20:24; Rom. 3:21–28; Eph. 3:1–3).
Heaven-based
Church -- The Church’s Source is in heaven; as a unique body she
was brought into being on earth at Pentecost. She will return to her eternal
Source and abode in heaven at the Rapture—not partially, but each and every
member of His completed Body. The glorious heavenly Church has no relationship,
no continuity, with anything prior to the Cross, nor after the Rapture. His Body
will be completed; His spotless Bride presented to Himself in heaven.
Paul’s heavenly Gospel is exclusively for the Church. One need not go down to
earthly Israel for anything! Why should a heavenly citizen, “blessed with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, stoop to purloin
some “spiritual” blessing from comparatively poor Israel? Like the wealthy
shoplifter, in the 5 & 10! The Bride shares the throne with her Bridegroom,
whether in heaven, or on earth.
Anti-“Ultra”-- Before going further, be assured that the
dispensational aspects of the Word presented here are simply normal, clear-cut,
Pauline teaching. We have always been opposed to all so-called “ultra,”
“extreme,” [or post-Acts2] Dispensationalism. We insist that the Church was born
on the day of Pentecost; we insist upon the privilege and responsibility of the
Lord’s Supper; we insist upon believers’ baptism by immersion. We have been
associated with the Bible Church movement for over half a century; we are just
seeking to give God’s revelation to Paul its proper place and nothing more—there
is no more!
Heavenly
Gospel-- The
Gospel for the Church, the Gospel of the Grace of God, Paul’s Gospel, is not
mentioned in the Scriptures until 1 Corinthians 15:3–5. “For I delivered unto
you first of all that which I also received [from Christ in glory], that
Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was
buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the
Scriptures; and that He was seen…”
“But I make known to you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached by me
is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I
taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Gal. 1:11, 12).
“For I [the glorified Lord] have appeared unto thee [Saul] for this purpose, to
make thee a minister and a witness of these things which thou hast seen, and of
those things in which I will appear unto thee” (Acts 26:16).
“All the Apostles (except Paul) accompanied the Lord and followed Him to the
cloud (Acts 1:9). Paul sees Him the other side of the cloud, and it is this
which characterizes his entire ministry.”
The glorified Lord directly communicated to Paul not only the great
fundamentals of the heavenly Church Gospel, but totally new revelation
concerning His Body—truths that He never shared with the nation Israel. These
truths concerned our identification with Christ crucified, buried, resurrected
and ascended; our heavenly position; our co-heirship and co-reign with our
Beloved Bridegroom, and much more.
Dr. Chafer wrote, “The current neglect of the extensive doctrine of the
Church is not only blameworthy, but has led to a considerable array of baneful
errors. The Church is the purpose of the Father in the present dispensation, and
His supreme purpose in the universe” (Systematic Theology IV: 54).
Infinitely
Above-- All the while the
Lord Jesus’ heavenly Gospel in content and position is infinitely above the
Kingdom Gospel that He shared with earthly Israel—which they rejected.
Those who do not center in the truths which the ascended Lord
communicated directly to Paul will not know who and where they are
in ... more»
Question: "What does it mean to pray in Jesus' name?"
Answer:
Prayer in Jesus’ name is taught in John 14:13-14, “And I will do whatever you ask in my
name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything
in my name, and I will do it.” Some misapply this verse, thinking that saying
“in Jesus’ name” at the end of a prayer results in God’s always granting what is
asked for. This is essentially treating the words “in Jesus’ name” as a magic
formula. This is absolutely unbiblical.
Praying in Jesus’ name means
praying with His authority and asking God the Father to act upon our prayers
because we come in the name of His Son, Jesus. Praying in Jesus' name means the
same thing as praying according to the will of God, “This is the confidence we
have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears
us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we
asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15). Praying in Jesus’ name is praying for
things that will honor and glorify Jesus.
Saying “in Jesus’ name” at the
end of a prayer is not a magic formula. If what we ask for or say in prayer is
not for God’s glory and according to His will, saying “in Jesus’ name” is
meaningless. Genuinely praying in Jesus' name and for His glory is what is
important, not attaching certain words to the end of a prayer. It is not the
words in the prayer that matter, but the purpose behind the prayer. Praying for
things that are in agreement with God’s will is the essence of praying in Jesus’
name. more»
1. Grace is God acting
freely, according to His own nature -- as Love; with no promises or obligations
to fulfill; and acting of course, righteously -- in view of the cross. 2.
Grace, therefore, is uncaused in the recipient: its cause lies wholly in the
GIVER, in GOD. 3. Grace, also is sovereign. Not having debts to pay, or
fulfilled conditions on man's part to wait for, it can act toward whom, and how,
it pleases. It can, and does, often, place the worst deservers in the highest
favors. 4. Grace cannot act where there is either desert or ability: Grace
does not help -- it is absolute, it does all. 5. There being no cause in the
creature why Grace should be shown, the creature must be brought off from trying
to give cause to God for His Grace. 6. The discovery by the creature that he
is truly the object of Divine grace, works the utmost humility: for the receiver
of grace is brought to know his own absolute unworthiness, and his complete
inability to attain worthiness: yet he finds himself blessed -- on another
principle, outside of himself! 7. Therefore, flesh has no place in the plan
of Grace. This is the great reason why Grace is hated by the proud natural mind
of man. But for this very reason, the true believer rejoices! For he knows that
"in him, that is, in his flesh, is no good thing"; and yet he finds God glad to
bless him, just as he is!
The Place of Man under
Grace:
1. He has been accepted in
Christ, who is his standing! 2. He is not "on probation." 3. As to his
life past, it does not exist before God: he died at the Cross, and Christ is his
life. 4. Grace, once bestowed, is not withdrawn: for God knew all the human
exigencies (needs) beforehand: His action was independent of them, not dependent
upon them. 5. The failure of devotion does not cause the withdrawal of
bestowed grace (as it would under law). For example: the man in I Cor. 5.1-5;
and also those in 11.30-32, who did not "judge" themselves, and so were "judged
by the Lord, -- that they might not be condemned with the world"!
The Proper Attitude of
Man under Grace:
1. To believe, and to
consent to be loved while unworthy, is the great secret. 2. To refuse to
make "resolutions" and "vows"; for that, is to trust in the flesh. 3. To
expect to be blessed, though realizing more and more lack of worth. 4. To
testify of God's goodness, at all times. 5. To be certain of God's future
favor; yet to be ever more tender in conscience toward Him. 6. To rely on
God's chastening hand as a mark of His kindness. 7. A man under grace, if
like Paul, has no burden regarding himself; but many about others.
Things Which Gracious
Souls Discover:
1. To "hope to be better"
is to fail to see yourself in Christ only. 2. To be disappointed with
yourself, is to have believed in yourself. 3. To be discouraged is unbelief,
-- as to God's purpose and plan of blessing for you. 4. To be proud, is to
be blind! For we have no standing before God, in ourselves. 5. The lack of
Divine blessing, therefore, comes from unbelief, and not from failure of
devotion. 6. Real devotion to God arises, not from man's will to show it;
but from the discovery that blessing has been received from God while we were
yet unworthy and undevoted. 7. To preach devotion first, and blessing
second, is to reverse God's order, and preach law, not grace. The Law made man's
blessing depend on devotion; Grace confers undeserved, unconditional blessing:
our devotion may follow, but does not always do so, -- in proper measure.
Studies in
Deuteronomy
by William R. Newell
Instead of
blessing the people altogether on the ground of promise, that is altogether in
view of Christ's coming work, He says "If you obey My law, I will bless you."
Obedience first, then blessing, is the order under the law. There is nothing for
the people to fall back on, except their own obedience now. They may indeed
remember that they are God's chosen people, according to His covenant with the
fathers: but the law has come in since those days, and they are under it. So
Moses insists, in Deuteronomy, on their obedience as the condition of
everything, as they are about to enter their inheritance.
Now the
position of the Christian is entirely different. It is of absolute importance
that we understand this. Thousands upon thousands of Christians today are in
bondage because they do not see the essential difference between our position
and that of Israel under the law. Now, Israel depended upon their own obedience
to get their blessings in the land. Christians get their blessings because
Christ obeyed in their stead. This gives them rest of heart, so that they have
leisure to love God for His own sake, and learn to delight in His will.
But there are hardly any Christians who dare believe this. That is, they
cannot apprehend such grace as this. They think, of course, that their blessings
depend upon their faithfulness, their earnestness, their consecration, etc. But,
this is not to be under grace (where God says we are Rom. 4:14) but under law;
that is, under responsibility to do, in order to have, which is the order of the
law, not that of grace.
Grace says, "You have been blessed already, in
Christ Jesus, with all spiritual blessings." Eph. 1:3 The only obedience that
pleases God now, is the obedience of FAITH, which enters boldly in, and
appropriates these things that Christ's obedience unto death has secured for us.
Now I know someone will read these words who will say: ''Yes 'but we must do
our part', ere we ... more»
What is shared herein is designed to further your
acquaintance with the Lord Jesus on high, and to enrich your fellowship with Him and with
the Father. Through prayerful meditation in None But the Hungry Heart #5, we trust the
Holy Spirit will bring about a strengthening of faith and an upward drawing of heart.
Furthermore, it is hoped that these thoughts may provide
you an opportunity to try your "faith wings"--to learn more fully the need to
abide above, and thereby walk here below in the "Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:2).
"And this I pray, that your love may
abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment (discernment); that ye may
approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day
of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto
the glory and praise of God" (Philippians 1:9-11).
"We love Him, because He first loved
us" (1 John 4:19).
We first come to know something of the Lord Jesus' love by
what He did for us; but that is only the basis for coming to know His love in what He is
to us. The first is known at the Cross, the latter is entered into through personal
fellowship with the risen Lord.
"There are three steps in appreciation of His love for
us. First, I learn that He loves me so much that He saved me. He is our treasure 'My Beloved is mine' (Song of Solomon 6:3). The second step of affection is the consciousness that He loves me
so much that He has a right to me. He would have me for Himself. 'I am my Beloved's' (Song of Solomon 6:3).
"The third step is the consciousness that He loves me
so much that He wants my company 'His
desire is toward me' (Song of Solomon 7:10). Love's
delight is found in the company of its object. May we know in a deeper way, and in a
fuller measure, the sweetness of personal intimacy with 'the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me' (Galatians
2:20).
"Much ministry is lost upon us as to any practical
result, because we are not prepared to be detached from things here, so as to be simply
here for Christ. And the preparation for this is to come personally under the influence of
the blessed attractiveness of the Lord Jesus. When we sit under His shadow with great
delight, everything else becomes so small, and loses its hold upon our hearts."
-C.A.C.
"But we all, with unveiled face
beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory
to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18).
"Saul armed David with his armor....
And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not tested them" (1
Samuel 17:38, 39).
Years of preparation are worth a moment of truth! Rest
assured that once we are developed and trained by the Holy Spirit, the work whereunto He
has called us will be ready and waiting (Acts
13:2). "Our Lord must have an instrument which He
has formed in the fire and to which He has given peculiar knowledge of Himself."
"The greater the knowledge committed to a servant, the
more necessary and important it is that he should be much alone with God about it, in
order that he may realize the nature and effect of it on himself before he undertakes to
make it known to others.
"It rebukes the haste and readiness with which many
now enter the ministry, attempting to impress others with a measure of the truth which
they have not proved for themselves. Surely the servant should ever be able to say: 'I believed, and therefore have I spoken' (2
Corinthians 4:13). It is better to lose time as to work
in preparation for service than to lose time in repairing one's mistakes in undertaking a
work for which one is not yet qualified."
"A servant's discipline must always be in advance of
the service prepared for him. He cannot lead beyond the point to which he himself has been
led. But when the depth and reality of the truth has been established in his own soul, he
is made the channel of it."
"I have found that many a thing which I had presented
in an extreme way because I was sure of it, I put forth in a simpler and a more real way
when I had touched it in my own experience." -J.B.S.
"That which we have seen and heard
declare we unto you" (1 John 1:3).
"I count all things but loss for the
excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord" (Philippians 3:8).
Positionally, our Father subjected our old nature to the
Cross and its resultant death. Experientially, He applies the work of the Cross to our old
life, thereby progressively holding it in the grip of that death. He is
"unforming" the old nature in death, and conforming the new nature in life.
"Life more abundant requires that what He did for us
shall be made good in us. In His Cross He dealt with our sins, and He also dealt with
ourselves; but that is something which has to be made good progressively. It is as we
ourselves are dealt with in the power of the Cross that the way is made for His life to
express itself in ever deepening fullness.
"The fact is that it is the old life which is in the
way of the new life and its full expression. It is the natural life which obstructs the
course of the divine life. Thus what has been done for us has ... more»
Occasionally, we receive correspondence
from individuals (liberal, progressive, postmodern, moral relativist, monist, etc.)
being judgmental and seeking to censor our liberty in
Christ and our obligation to exercise discernment.
Curiously, these individuals fail to see the hypocrisy of their own position--that of
engaging in the very behavior which they CLAIM is religiously, philosophically or politically unacceptable. Typically,
they quote Matthew 7:1 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged."
as a 'proof text'
to the exclusion of what the rest of Scripture has to say on the subject.
Of course, their motive is often that of intimidating anyone who would seek to discern
error/falsehood from truth, immorality from virtue. Consider the following thoughts written by Miles J. Stanford.
The
terms "judge," or "judgment," are used in different ways in the Word of God;
their meanings and usage are mainly governed by the context in which they are
found.
When they mean to condemn, to sentence, or to punish, man
[individually] is to leave that prerogative with God. "Vengeance is
mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19). [During
"the times of the Gentiles," God has
established government--civil authority--as His earthly delegated
representative/agent to administer justice upon evildoers. See
Romans 13:1-7.]
At other times the
words mean to distinguish, to decide, to determine, to conclude, to try, to
think, and to call into question. This is what God would have believers do
in love, especially as to whether or not preaching and teaching is true or false
to His Word. Paul wrote, "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet
more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; that ye may approve things that
are excellent" (Philippians 1:9,10).
The Lord Jesus both warns
and commands to "Beware of false prophets" (Matthew 7:15).
We could not "beware," or know a false prophet unless we exercised
true judgment. For that we are given the correct standard:
"To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to
this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:20).
There are realms in which the believer is generally not to judge. In
most instances he is not to judge whether or not a person is saved, if he
professes to be scripturally* born again.
"The Lord knoweth them that are his" (2 Timothy 2:19).
Nor are we to judge another's motives. Only God can see into the heart
and know the motives that underlie actions. (1 Corinthians 4:1-5)
[However, Scripture does allow for some exceptions--e.g. Philippians
1:15-18].
And we are not to judge believers concerning the
eating of certain kinds of foods or drink, or keeping certain days, etc.
(Romans 14; 1 Corinthians 10:23-33; and Colossians 2:16,17)
All too many believers remain immature or are actually drawn into error
because they seek to exercise love apart from Scripture-guided discernment and
judgment. Christians who are mature, of "full age," are
"those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good
and evil" (Hebrews 5:14).
One of the reasons for the Church being
in such a sickly condition today is that believers have not obeyed the commands
of God's Word to judge error. "Now I beseech you, brethren, mark
them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye
have learned, and avoid them" (Romans 16:17).
The false teachers make the "divisions," and not those who protest
against their errors.
An often misapplied Scripture is
"Judge not" (Matthew 7:1). This is a command against
hypocritical judgment, and is not directed to those who in love and
sincerity discern whether a teacher or teaching is true or false to the Word.
"Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what
judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall
be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy
brother's eye, but considereth not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how
wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and,
behold, a beam is in thine own eye. Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out
of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of
thy brother's eye" (Matthew 7:1-5).
Actually, the last statement
of this Scripture commands sincere judgment: "then shalt thou see clearly
to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." We are not to
forget nor seek to avoid the fact that our Lord Jesus commanded us to "judge righteous judgment." He commended one,
"Thou hast rightly judged." He asked others,
"Why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?" (John 7:24;
Luke 7:43; 12:57). Paul wrote, "I speak as to wise men;
judge ye what I say." Again, "He that is spiritual judgeth
all things" (1 Corinthians 10:15; 2:15).
It is all too common and easy for Christians
to assume a critical and censorious attitude toward those who do not share their
opinions about matters other than those which have to do with Bible doctrine
and moral practice. But it is our privilege and duty to do all we
can to encourage their spiritual growth. We are to love and pray for one
another, and to consider ourselves lest we be tempted. The safest and most
profitable thing to do is to judge ourselves.
"For if we would judge ourselves, we should not
be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened (child trained) of the Lord,
that we should not be condemned with the world" (1 Corinthians 11:31,32).
It will make all the difference if we judge our own faults as uncharitably
as we do the faults of others; and judge the failings of others as charitably as
we do our own!
* Mr. Stanford's statement was
written several decades ago, ... more»
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A thought by A.W. Tozer on evangelicals.
