GRACE BLOGS COLLECTION
But what religion has frequently failed to recognize is what was accomplished by Jesus at the cross and resurrection, which allowed for the annulment of that ministry—where Jews were unable to attain righteousness—and Gentiles had no hope or covenant at all. God was able to tear down the barrier of commandments and bring these two groups together in Christ by fulfilling the law perfectly in us.
But if you’ve been taught by church ideology that when Jesus was speaking to His disciples … that He was also talking to you … then you’ll jump to some inaccurate conclusions when it comes to the gospel of grace.
Are we dismissing, ignoring or running from the words of Jesus? Absolutely not. Understanding the ministry of Jesus as a man walking the earth—and what He spoke at that time—needs to be considered in the proper context in order to come to a greater knowledge of the truth.
Five years ago we did a foundational 20-podcast series called "Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants" that will help in understanding all of this. The first episode of that series can be found here, and you can listen to the subsequent parts from there, or you can listen via the YouTube playlist here.
This week we have a spontaneous heart to heart about church denominations and the wide variety of different perspectives and teaching available. How did we get to this place where elements of both law and grace seem to be the norm?
This is a bit of a foundational introduction into upcoming podcasts where we’ll talk about some things that are seldom heard or taught in most churches—but should be.
In the meantime, the bigger point is missed because we’re thinking in terms of a lone verse or two instead of the bigger picture, which is the gospel of grace. We continue the emphasis on context in 1 Corinthians Chapter 6 … as we look at a couple of verses used by those on the legalistic side of the fence to bring doubt and uncertainty into the hearts and minds of believers in Christ.
This week, we look at a short passage contained within the 5th chapter of Galatians that is often considered by covenant clashers as a not so veiled threat by the Apostle Paul regarding their eternity and their works. Considering the new covenant context about everything he said in his letter up to this point over several chapters, Paul is attempting to reassure people, not to suddenly shift gears and scare them into going from grace back to trusting in their works.
Individual verses can be used as “topics” for sermons, while the pastor may have little or no understanding about the gospel from a New Covenant perspective. We’re working toward a short passage containing a few verses in Galatians chapter 5 which is often used to bring people back into a works mentality … and leaving them in a state of confusion when it comes to God’s grace.
The question we need to ask is … exactly what work or works can people do to ensure they are in an acceptable position with God? What act can we possibly perform to ensure we’re saved, forgiven, accepted, blessed and perfectly loved? Our honest answer should be that we can add nothing to the finished work and shed blood of Jesus. He “did” for us what we can never “do” for ourselves.
They’ll come up with all kinds of different ways to convince you (from the Bible!) that you’ll need to repeatedly keep seeking more forgiveness from God. They somehow think there are methods and formulas which are more effective than the blood of Jesus—which was shed one time. It’s time to stop and ask ourselves a question … why do you think Jesus’ blood only needed to be shed once, and not over and over again?
If you can identify with any of this, our program this week is dedicated to you. We’ll provide some encouragement to help you accept that you’ve already been accepted by God … and this will never change.
Telling believers they need to change will not be nearly as effective as helping them to understand they have already been changed. Trying to become somebody that you think you are not will become a frustrating, lifelong endeavor which never seems to find the end of the rainbow. On the other hand, once we grow in the understanding of our identity, we can begin to live from who God says we already are as believers “in Christ.”
In this race, we get to start at the finish line, which is a place of rest. Under the Old Covenant, the Jewish people were working at pursuing what they could never attain. Unfortunately, many believers who abide in a new and better covenant are chasing after what has already been given to them.
Paul spoke to the Galatian churches in frustration because after receiving the Spirit of God freely by faith, they had been persuaded to begin trusting in the works of the old law in addition to faith in Christ. Paul called this a work of the flesh. Its roots go back to the same tree Adam ate from when everything collapsed. It was called The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It was an unbelief problem as Adam decided to turn from trusting in the sufficiency of the life of God … and chose to begin trusting in the knowledge of both good and evil. He was told it would make him more like God, but it had the opposite result.
Many believers today are struggling with the same thing. They are working at trying to become more like God, and it becomes more about doing—or not doing—instead of being or resting in who God has already made them to be.
Anyone can separate and pluck-out Bible verses, miss the context, and then wonder what in the world they mean. One of many examples is found in the first three chapters of the book of Romans. Paul was taking chapters to explain how the entire world had fallen short of God’s glory because of sin—whether Jew or Gentile. But in these passages, he also reveals the good news of God’s righteousness and acceptance being made available as a gift by a source known as faith, which occurs apart from the works of the law of commandments which came through Moses.
So whether one was a Jew under law or a Gentile without the law, all fell short, and all now have the same access to God by faith in Jesus Christ. But right-standing with God has never been attained or based upon what one does.