GraceUncovered

Authors home articles Gracelife

GRACE BLOGS COLLECTION

Blessed With Every Blessing

by

Back in the 1980s, I smuggled Bibles into China. I can remember the tears of joy that Chinese believers shed had when they received their first Bibles. Until they got a Bible, Chinese believers mostly relied on copied bits of scripture.

Many of us take the Bible for granted. We don’t really read it. We skim our favorite bits and ignore the rest. If a scripture seems tricky or the language is archaic, we just skip ahead to something we understand.

Which is a shame, because Paul did not say “Parts of scripture are useful for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). We need all of it.

Imagine you lived someplace where there were no Bibles. If you only had access to one book of the Bible, which would you pick? For me it would be a choice between the Gospel of John and the Epistle to the Ephesians. Or Romans. And Psalms. I can’t choose.

But for the sake of argument, let’s say I picked Ephesians. Why Ephesians? Ephesians has been called the crown of Paul’s writings. It is an epistle full of pictures of a great God who has poured out his grace and favor upon us.

I feel qualified to say this because I have just finished writing a verse-by-verse commentary for the entire letter. While writing The Grace Bible: Ephesians, I was often amazed at how much treasure was contained in even the smallest verses. Consider this example:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, (Eph. 2:3)

Let’s take a minute to look at these words closely.

“God and Father.” Everything Paul says in his breath-taking letter begins with a revelation of our God and Father and what he has done for us. God blessed us (Eph. 1:3); God chose us before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4); God predestined us to be his sons (Eph. 1:5); God redeemed us from captivity and forgave all our sins (Eph. 1:7).

Ephesians is not about what you must do for God, but what God has done for you, and what you can do because of what he has done. Because he has redeemed you, you can live free. Because he has blessed you, you can bless others. Because he has revealed his eternal plan, you can live with purpose.

“Blessed.” There are three blessed words in this verse: blessed be (eulogetos) means God is praiseworthy; blessed us (eulogeo) means God speaks words of favor and prospers us; and blessing (eulogia) means bountiful favor. We bless God because he has blessed or favored us with every kind of spiritual blessing. We praise him because he is an awesome God who has done awesome things.

“Has blessed us.” God has abundantly provided everything we need for life and godliness (Php. 4:19, 2 Pet. 1:3). He has blessed us with forgiveness (Eph. 1:7), salvation (Eph. 1:13), the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13), and an inheritance (Eph. 1:11). He has adopted us (Eph. 1:5), empowered us (Eph. 1:19), and built us into his holy habitation (Eph. 2:22).

We don’t need to beg and pound the gates of heaven to convince God to bless us. Our part is to acknowledge every good thing that is already ours in Christ Jesus (Phm. 1:6). Our part is to receive by faith that which God has already provided.

“Spiritual blessing.” The blessings of God originate in the heavenly or spiritual realm which means they are unmarred by this fallen world. God’s blessings are heavenly remedies for worldly woes. The blessings of God are not earned through service to the Lord or works of charity or by making donations. They are given to us freely by grace and received by faith.

“Heavenly places.” The spiritual realm is the geography of angels and demons. This realm includes the heavenly kingdom, where Christ sits enthroned (Acts 7:55, Eph. 2:6). It also includes the broader heavenly realm, where spiritual warfare takes place (Eph. 3:10, 6:12). “Heavenly places” should not be confused with the natural heavens or the starry sky. The spiritual realm is just as real as the physical realm, but the two realms are distinct.

“In Christ.” All of God’s blessings are received and experienced through our spiritual union with the Lord. “In union with Christ you have become rich in all things” (1 Cor. 1:5, GNB).

The word union does not appear in many English Bibles, but our union, or fellowship, with the Lord is mentioned hundreds of times in scripture. It is found in phrases like, “God with us,” “Christ in you,” “in Christ,” “with Christ,” “with him,” and “in him.” Like a branch on a vine, the believer is one with the Lord (John 15:5). “You are in me and I am in you” (John 14:20). Our union with the Lord is intimate, unbreakable, and the means by which we experience the abundant life that flows from the fullness of his love.

Selah.

I have just given you six entries or insights into part of one small verse. In my new book, there are nearly 700 entries covering every verse and phrase in Ephesians. The Grace Bible: Ephesians comes out at the end of August, but advance review copies are available now on Patreon and on the E2R Supporters’ page.

Keywords of Grace and Law

by

Every Bible teaching, sermon or message you have ever heard has been one of three kinds: law-based, grace-based, or a mixture of grace and law.

A law-based interpretation puts the emphasis on you and your works, while a grace-based interpretation puts the emphasis on Christ and his work. Law- and grace-based interpretations can be recognized by their different vocabularies.

Keywords of law

Words that often appear in law-based messages include; you must, you should, work, duty, debt, obligation, perform, produce, lack, service, strive, struggle, suffer, obey, sin, confess, convict, judgment, commandment, guilt, condemnation, penalty and punish.

Keywords of grace

Words that often appear in grace-based messages include; love, faith, rest, forgiven, favor, receive, believe, righteous, justified, accepted, abide, abundance, fullness, fellowship, beloved, sons, children of God, good news, hope, blessed, freedom, spiritual, new creation, life, light, truth, power and Jesus

(What keywords did I miss? Let me know in the comments below.)

The best kind of message is grace-based. The grace of God is what makes the good news, good news. The gospel of grace reveals the unconditional love of your Father and empowers you to partake in his whole and godly life.

What is the worst kind of message? It is not the law-based message, because any teaching that pushes pure law will soon have you running to Jesus in desperation (see Gal. 3:24).

The most dangerous teaching is the one that mixes grace and law. Such a message will leave you muddled and lukewarm. It will cause you to strive in the flesh and fall from grace. A message of mixture dilutes the law emptying it of its power to condemn our self-righteousness. And mixture also prostitutes your Father’s love by saying you must work to receive what God has freely provided.

New Testament examples

Believe it or not, but examples of all three messages can be found in the New Testament. Before the cross, Jesus preached LAW to those who lived under the law. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said preached a law of conditional forgiveness. “If you do not forgive, God will not forgive you” (Matt. 6:15). Jesus took the diluted law preached by the scribes and Pharisees, and elevated it. “You have heard it said… but I say unto you…” (see Matt. 5:27ff). Jesus magnified the law so that those who were under the law might see their need for a Savior.

After the cross, we got a new covenant and a new message. On the night he rose from the dead, he instructed the apostles to proclaim the forgiveness of sins (Luke 24:47) which underpins the gospel of GRACE. “All is forgiven. God holds nothing against you. Receive his righteousness and be reconciled to God.” (see Acts 13:38, Rom. 5:17, 2 Cor. 5:19–20).

Law, then grace. Old covenant, then new. That’s the Biblical progression. Because of the cross we are no longer under law but grace (Rom. 6:14). In the new covenant of grace, we have no relationship to the law (see Rom. 7:6, Gal. 2:19).

But some New Testament figures missed the transition. Even though Christ’s death on the cross rendered the old covenant obsolete, they acted like they were still under the law.

At the Council of Jerusalem there were some Pharisee-believers who insisted the Gentiles must live under the Law of Moses (Acts 15:5). They preferred law to grace.

In Galatia there were false teachers who insisted the Gentiles keep parts of the law, namely circumcision and special days like the Sabbath (Gal. 4:10, 5:2). The false teachers of Galatia were the first preachers of MIXTURE, and Paul said they were accursed (Gal. 1:9).

The falsest of false gospels

The message of mixture is the worst of all the false gospels. If someone came preaching immorality, you would reject it as licentiousness. If someone came preaching law, you would reject it as legalism. But mixture is subtle. Mixture has enough grace to be appealing and enough law to sound convincing.

The problem is grace and law don’t mix. Mix hot with cold and you’ll end up with something that is neither, and this is what makes mixture a false gospel.

Make no mistake, the message of mixture has been wreaking havoc for 2000 years. Mixture is poison passed off as medicine. Mixture is a ticking bomb wrapped in ribbons. If grace is God’s best idea, mixing grace with law is the devil’s best idea.

Mix the good news of grace with the bad news of law and you end up with a cheap law that nullifies grace and is no gospel at all (Gal. 1:7). The message of mixture is a distortion of the true gospel of Christ.

—

In the coming weeks, I plan to look at how the message of mixture appears in some of our more popular Bible commentaries.

If you can’t wait, check out my latest study note, “Which Bible Commentaries Are Grace Based (And Which Are Not).” It’s available now on Patreon.

What is Grace?

by

What does grace mean to you?

As C.S. Lewis famously observed, grace is the one thing that makes Christianity unique. Grace is what makes the new covenant new and the good news good news. But what is grace?

Do you know what it means?

I read a lot of grace books and I have found that very few define grace. They tell you what grace isn’t. Grace isn’t works. Grace isn’t law. Grace isn’t religion. But they don’t tell you what grace is.

Don’t you find it strange that we who have been apprehended by the grace of God don’t have good definitions of grace? It’s like being French and not being able to explain what it means to be French.

What is grace? What does grace mean to me?

What is the grace of God?

It is common to hear grace defined as the kindness of God, or his undeserved mercy or unmerited favor. These are fine definitions, but brief. Max Lucado said “Grace is God’s best idea.” Of all his works, it is his magnum opus. And a magnum opus deserves a magnum definition.

Since I have been writing about grace for some time, I thought it might be fun to put all my grace definitions in one place.

I am not claiming to have a handle on God’s amazing grace. Far from it. All I want to do is start a conversation. I hope you will weigh in with your own thoughts about God’s grace.

A biblical definition of grace

What is grace? Grace captures the goodwill, lovingkindness, and favor of God that is freely given to us so that we may partake in his divine life. Grace is God’s divine aid that supernaturally empowers you to be who he made you to be.

The Biblical noun for grace (charis) means favor or kindness, and is related to a word (chairo) which means to rejoice, be cheerful and well off. The grace of God leaves us cheerful and rejoicing. It leaves us better than it found us.

Grace is…

Grace is what the unconditional love of God looks like from our side. God is love and love that stoops is called grace. Grace is the love of God reaching down and gathering you in his arms.

Grace is God’s loving-kindness towards you. Grace is God blessing you with himself for no other reason than it pleases Him to do so.

Grace is the confident assurance that with God on your side, you can’t lose. Grace is his strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.

Grace is freedom from sin, guilt, and condemnation. Grace is freedom from the need to prove yourself. Grace is divine permission to be who God made you to be.

Grace is heaven’s cure for the world’s woes. Grace is the power of God that turns sinners into saints, haters into lovers, and orphans into sons.

Grace is being adopted into the family of God. Grace is realizing you are a dearly-loved child, the apple of your Father’s eye, and a co-heir with Christ.

Grace is God honoring us with his presence. Grace is God with us. Grace is the adventure of life shared with Christ.

Flavors of grace

Grace is favor, freedom, forgiveness and a million other blessings besides. Grace is God’s divine acceptance, his salvation and sanctification.

Grace is power, healing and prosperity. (What do you think the word blessing means?)

Grace is God blessing you for no other reason than he loves you. Grace is divine power to live abundantly in union with the One who loves you and calls you by name.

What does God’s grace really mean?

Grace isn’t a doctrine, or bunch of rules for you to keep, and grace is not God’s lubricant for greasing the cogs of self-effort. Grace is a Person living his life through you. Living under grace is like being married, only more so.

In a word, grace is Jesus. Grace is not one of God’s blessings but all of them wrapped up together in the One who is full of grace. Grace is the Gift of all gifts from the Giver of all givers.

Those are some of my thoughts. I would love to hear yours. What does the grace of God mean to you? In the comments below, complete this statement: “Grace is…”

—–

I have given you my definitions of grace. In the Bonus Content that accompanies this article, I look at some outstanding definitions of grace provided by notable authors past and present. Check it out now on Patreon.

The secret to successful Christian living

by

There is a secret to living this Christian life, and it’s a secret most Christians don’t know. If you knew this secret, it would set you free from dead works and insecurity. Here it is:

This is a faithful saying: For if we died with him, we shall also live with him. (2 Tim. 2:11, NKJV)

If you don’t know that you have died with Christ, then you won’t really live. Instead, you will spend your life trying to die; dying to self, dying daily, and crucifying the flesh.

“But isn’t following Jesus a matter of dying daily to ourselves and our desires?”

Nope. The phrase “die to self” isn’t even in the Bible.

When Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matt.16:24), he was showing us the way to salvation—it’s through the cross. If you would follow Jesus, then follow Jesus. Jesus died once and he will never die again. It’s the same with us. We were crucified with Christ once; we need never be crucified again. You do not need to die daily. Once will do the trick.

“But didn’t Paul say he died daily (1 Cor. 15:31–32)?”

Paul was referring to the dangers and hardships he faced in preaching the gospel. “I fought wild beasts in Ephesus!” He was not preaching a works-based theology of dying to self. We died to the law (Rom. 7:4, Gal. 2:19)—including the law that says you must die to self.

The problem with any message on self—even a noble-sounding message on self-denial—is that it promotes self. It fuels self-centeredness which lies at the root of all our problems.

In the church self-denial is usually packaged as a spiritual discipline. Don’t touch, don’t taste, don’t handle. But in truth it is nothing more than the age-old practice of asceticism, the belief that we can attain spiritual goals by abstaining from physical pleasures.

The truth is that you can do nothing to save yourself or make yourself pleasing to God. Jesus does it all. True gospel preachers understand this which is why they will never distract you by preaching messages that glorify self or self-effort. Like Paul they will say, “We do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord” (2 Cor. 4:5).

Double-minded Christianity

Christians who do not know they have died with Christ end up living two lives. On the one hand they are trying to walk in the new life they have received in Christ, but on the other they are trying to reform the old life they inherited from Adam. This is a recipe for misery. No one wants to be one person on Sunday and another on Monday. Live like this and it’ll tear you apart.

The cure for double-minded Christianity is not to “try harder” or “lift your game” or “follow these ten steps to a new you.” It is a revelation that your old self was crucified with Christ. What is your old self? It is the person you used to be before you met Jesus. It is who you were in Adam before you were put into Christ. Paul wrote that “we know that our old self was crucified with him” (Romans 6:6). Look at his choice of words; was crucified. Past tense. Done and dusted. Dead and buried.

Do you see how liberating this is?

The old man was unfixable. He was broken, corrupt, and completely screwy. He was a slave to sin and no amount of reform could fix him. But the good news is he’s dead. That incorrigible old so-and-so was nailed to the cross with Jesus and he no longer lives.

The end of the old man

Watchman Nee called this the gospel for Christians. “The self you loathe is there on the cross in Christ.” If the average believer could grasp hold of this truth—I died—half of our church programs would cease immediately. We would stop trying to reform the old man because the old man is dead.

Want to live, really live with Jesus? Then let this truth take root in your heart:

I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. (Gal 2:20)

Extracted and adapted from The Gospel in Ten Words

___________

Enjoy this article? Sign up to our free email list and we’ll notify you about new articles as soon they come out.

Want more articles and bonus features? Support E2R on Patreon and get exclusive content and sneak peeks of forthcoming book chapters.

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

by

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? [...]

Categories

Recent Posts