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Branches are Not Sticks: Why God Will Never Cast You Away

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“Whoever comes to me I will never cast away” (John 6:37). Jesus promised he would never cast away those who come to him, yet some people fear he might. Because Jesus is fickle and he changes his mind a lot. Of course, that’s not true, yet some worry that it might be true, because of what he said here: If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. (John 15:6) How do these words make you feel? Read them again, then see which of the following responses best describes your reaction: 1. “I’m in trouble. I don’t know if I’m abiding, so I’m in danger of being cast into the fire.” This is the response of the uncertain or lukewarm mind. It’s the response of someone who has not fully understood the good news of grace. 2. “These words aren’t for me because I’m a good Christian. I’m not perfect, but I’m at least better than 50% of the people reading this.” This is the response of the self-righteous. Again, it’s the response of someone who has not [...]

Does Jesus Want You to Sell your Stuff? (Luke 12:33)

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The Bible is full of treasures that we are afraid to open. We fear scriptures that are meant to bless us, and we run from words that should fill us with joy. Here’s an example: Sell your possessions and give to the poor. (Luke 12:33) There is treasure here. Do you see it? Do you realize what Jesus is saying? “He’s saying we have to sell our stuff to be saved. Being rich is wrong because ‘it’s hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom’.” Nope. It is harder for the rich and self-sufficient to receive from the abundance of God’s grace, but the kingdom is received, not purchased. “Your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom,” says Jesus in the previous verse. “He saying we have to sell our stuff to be blessed. ‘Blessed are the poor’ and all that.” Nope. The poor are blessed if their poverty leads them to Jesus our Source, but poverty is not a blessing. Nor do we earn the Lord’s unmerited favor by selling our stuff. “Giving to the poor earns us heavenly brownie points.” Nope. If that were the case, why did Jesus do it (John 13:29)? Jesus didn’t need [...]

Are Unfruitful Branches Lifted Up?

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Here is possibly the worst verse in the Bible: I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit. (John 15:1-2, NIV) I say worst verse because this is a shockingly poor translation. A better one is, “He takes up or lifts every branch in me.” If you’re not bearing fruit for Jesus, God helps you. He doesn’t lop you. Several years ago I wrote an article entitled “What happens to unfruitful branches?” In it I argued that most Bibles get it wrong when they translate Christ’s words as cutting off or taking away branches. Lifting is better. (Full disclosure: I was inspired by a book written by Bruce Wilkinson called Secrets of the Vine.) I wrote that article and moved on, but it turns out the cutting vs. lifting issue has become something of a hot potato. I had no idea until someone sent me this passage from a book: “No Free Grace publication produced any evidence from the ancient world that said that unfruitful vines or branches were ‘lifted up.’” I was intrigued. You want evidence? I’ve got plenty. A bit more digging revealed that this [...]

What Are Heavenly Treasures?

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We know there are heavenly rewards, because Jesus says so, but what are they? Some say God is going to dispense treasure, mansions, and even cities to those who have proven faithful. “There had better be some reward for my hard work—a gold star at least—otherwise why I am working?” Others say there are no rewards at all. “Everything comes to us by grace alone, so there can be no rewards for effort.” I have problems with both views. My problem with the God-of-the-gold-stars is that he promotes a servant mentality when we are sons. And my problem with the idea that there are no rewards, is that it contradicts what Jesus said: Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. (Matt 6:20, NKJV) The issue of heavenly treasures or eternal rewards is riddled with question marks. It’s a subject that has been abused by some (“Store up treasure by giving to my ministry”) and left in the too-hard basket by others. Grace-minded folk seem particularly allergic to any talk of earning rewards, and this is understandable. Grace and rewards don’t go together. Yet Jesus said [...]

Can You Lose Your Salvation?

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Can you lose your salvation and become unsaved? When I first began writing about the gospel of grace this was a subject few people spoke about. It was too contentious, too uncertain, too hard. So one summer I set out to read every single scripture on the subject. Turns out there are about 300. About half of them say you can’t lose your salvation, while the other half seem to suggest you can. At first glance, these two groups of scriptures seemed to be in conflict with one another. One group was full of God’s unconditional promises; the other was full of conditional statements. But when I read these scriptures through Jesus-glasses, I found not one scripture that said you can lose your salvation. Although there are bad consequences to straying or falling from grace, having your Father unchild you is not one of them. (If this is news to you, I recommend reading this list of the top 12 promises regarding your eternal security. You will be encouraged!) Can you lose your salvation? No. Not a chance. God’s Word is crystal clear. So why do people worry that they can? They worry because they don’t know what makes the [...]

The Endurance of the Saints

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Image source There are nearly two dozen New Testament scriptures that speak of enduring or holding fast to the end. The wrong way to read these scriptures is to think, “I must sweat and strive and endure or be disqualified from the kingdom.” If the Christian race is a marathon, it begins at the finish line. Christ has already endured which is why, in him, we can have peace when troubles come. So why does the Bible contain so many exhortations to endure? Because you and I have a great need for endurance, and God has promised to supply that need (along with all our other needs) according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Php 4:19). It is essential that you see God as your need-supplier, otherwise you will get distracted by scriptures like this: There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name. This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. (Rev 14:11-12, NIV) The New International Version Bible makes it sound like your salvation is contingent upon your [...]

The “I Wills” of God

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At the foot of Mt Sinai the Israelites boasted “We will do everything the Lord commands” (Ex 19:8). Perhaps you have said something similar, but this is a fatal boast, and a recipe for disaster. Make an impossible promise and you will invariably break it. What the Lord demands you cannot provide. This is the lesson of the old covenant, yet many have not learned it. They’re stuck on the vicious cycle of making and breaking promises, repenting, then promising to do better next time. Oh, how we need a revelation of the new covenant that is based on his unbreakable promises to us. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. (Jeremiah 32:40) The difference between the old and the new is we will versus he will. In the old, we broke our word again and again, but in the new he keeps his word forever. It’s a huge difference. We no longer wobble on the shaky ground of our resolve, but we stand secure on the Rock of Ages. List all the promises [...]

Can You Fall from Your Secure Position (2 Peter 3:17)?

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Image source According to some, here is a scripture that says you can lose your salvation: Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. (2 Pet 3:17, NIV) Don’t panic. This scripture does NOT say you can lose your salvation: It doesn’t even mention salvation. Not even indirectly. “Your secure position” is a not a reference to your unbreakable union with Christ. Rather, Peter is talking about “your steadfastness,” to quote pretty much every other Bible translation. He’s talking about the steadfastness of your mind. Peter’s warning is about being swayed by “ignorant and unstable people” who distort the grace-based teachings of the Apostle Paul (see 2 Peter 3:15-16). We need to be on guard against unstable people lest we become unstable ourselves. So this has nothing to do with losing your salvation and everything to do with not being “tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming” (Eph 4:14). How do we become unstable? [...]

Have I Committed the Unforgivable Sin?

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Here is a conversation I have on a regular basis: Reader: “Paul, I’m worried that I have committed the unforgivable sin.” Me: “You haven’t.” Reader: “But I had these terrible thoughts about the Lord…” Me: “You didn’t commit an unforgivable sin.” Reader: “I shook my fist at heaven and said these wicked things…” Me: “Still no.” Reader: “But I took the Lord’s name in vain.” Me: “The good news is he forgives you. Jesus said, ‘Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven’ (Matthew 12:32).” Reader: “But the rest of that verse says those who speak against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. I’m doomed!” Me: “Uh-huh. So you think Jesus is gracious and forgiving but the Spirit of Christ holds a grudge? What’s wrong with that picture? Relax. The Holy Spirit keeps no record of your sin (Heb 10:17).” Reader: “I still worry that I committed the unpardonable sin.” Me: “Do you love Jesus?” Reader: “Of course.” Me: “What does Jesus mean to you?” Reader: “He’s my Lord.” Me: “You could not know that except the Holy Spirit showed you. The only thing that cannot be forgiven is rejecting what the Spirit says [...]

The Top 12 Promises on Eternal Security

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I have begun listing the many promises in God’s Word regarding the eternal security of the believer. So far I’m up to 130 scriptures, with more to come. It’s a  wonderful, reassuring list, but too long to reproduce here. So for the sake of brevity I have pulled the top 12 promises guaranteeing your eternal salvation. These are promises to treasure. If you are uncertain and insecure, these promises will give you a confident assurance of your future. 1. Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. (John 5:24) The insecure reads this backwards: “If I falter I’ll cross from life to death.” But Jesus said no such thing. You have crossed from death to life and it’s a one-way trip. You are not alive one day, dead the next, then alive again. The old has gone and the new has come. 2. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out… And this is the will of him who sent me; that I shall lose [...]

Does 2 Peter 2 Say You Can Lose Your Salvation?

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In this world of anxiety and fear, it is a radical thing to proclaim the eternal security of the believer: One with the Lord, your future is the same as his. No one can snatch you from his hand; nothing can separate you from his love. Yet every time I say things like this, someone will point to 2 Peter 2 as though this one chapter could undo the many promises of God and make Christ’s saving work of no effect. “Peter describes Christians who forsook the Lord and were condemned,” they say. “So much for once saved, always saved.” Hardly a month goes by when I don’t have occasion to talk about 2 Peter 2. In this chapter, Peter warns about false teachers who deny the Lord and teach heresy. Let there be no doubt he is not referring to Christians. These people are slaves of depravity (v.19) who never stop sinning (v.14). They are not saints but brute beasts who are condemned to perish (v.12). But were these sinners once saints? Were they Christians who lost the way, and fell beyond the reach of grace? This is an important question, because if they were once saved, then you [...]

Guilt is Powerful. Discover the superior power of a clear conscience.

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Guilt is powerful, it will chart your course for you. It will cause you to repeat destructive patterns and make excuses for allowing sin in your life. If you have guilt or shame, that area of life is defining you. The way out is to live from a new identity that is not defined by the past. Have you ever been vexed with something? Meaning something has a strong pull within you even though you don’t

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The post Guilt is Powerful. Discover the superior power of a clear conscience. appeared first on Forward Ministries.

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