red letters – Page 2

840. Buyer Beware: The Quid Pro Quo of Religious Forgiveness

January 2, 2022 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

A Bible verse often quoted is when Jesus told His Jewish disciples that if they did not forgive others for their sins, neither would God forgive them for their sins. In context, we see that Jesus wasn’t speaking to all future believers, but rather to people who were trapped within an old (obsolete) covenant which had certain requirements related to works rather than grace. The gospel within a new and better covenant is not based on a quid pro quo — “you do this, and God will do the same for you.” This would be the opposite of the great exchange and would not be good news to the hearers.

The Apostle Paul said something very different to believers in Christ compared to what Jesus stated. Once we realize and understand the magnitude of God already freely forgiving us through the blood of Jesus … we can now forgive others in a way that people under the law would have been unable to do. The difference between what Jesus said compared to Paul is found within two covenants that are not alike. The Old was still in place before the cross, but everything changed after that.

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826. Things Seldom Heard in Church: “Mount Sermon” Not a New Christian Teaching

September 26, 2021 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

If you are under the assumption that most of what Jesus spoke was meant to be applied directly for you as a believer in Christ, you’ll end up with all sorts of inconsistencies and potential confusion in your belief system. Within those red letters found in the Bible, the majority of what Jesus spoke was aimed at Jewish people who were under a hopeless position, living under the law within what is now an obsolete covenant.

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.

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804. The 800 Club: Looking Back – Embracing Hyper-Grace

April 25, 2021 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

We’re celebrating over 800 podcasts, looking back at some of our key discussions from over the years. Several years ago, we were listed in a book, along with other grace ministries, and were accused of “running from the words of Jesus.” Of course, we’ve always embraced the red letters, but there is a context of two different covenants to consider. Hyper-grace accusers are established in a legalistic mindset which tries to combine two very different covenants into one as they tout the need for a “balance” between law and grace.

So just exactly what does hyper-grace mean? It’s not what the religious business is trying to sell you, and Paul actually provides an explanation of God’s unlimited and overflowing grace in the book of Romans—where he declared that grace is indeed hyper. Don’t buy into the myths and fables that grace gives a license to sin or is considered to be cheap grace when there is “too much” of it. It is actually a legalistic, mixed-covenant approach which cheapens the law and will “license” people to keep sinning … but sinful behavior is never sourced or encouraged by the grace of God—quite the opposite.

During this episode we mentioned a past three-part series entitled The Dangers of Mixing Law and Grace. You can listen to the series here:
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3

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730. Red Letters Were Not Always Meant for You

November 24, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

“Jesus said it, I believe it.” “It’s a red-letter verse!” “We should obey everything Jesus said.” “When Jesus spoke to His disciples, it means He was speaking to us.”

These are a few of the comments you’ve probably heard over the years regarding the words of Jesus. What the pulpit may have neglected to tell you is that Jesus was born under the law and spoke about things regarding the Old Covenant in order to redeem the Jewish people from that bondage — it has become a covenant that is obsolete. Religion has copied and pasted many red-letter verses onto the church wall that were never meant to be applied into the lives of believers. We don’t discard these words of Jesus, but we embrace them within the proper context of the New Covenant and awaken to grace and truth realized through the Person of Jesus.

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729. Red Letters + Golden Rule = Spiritual Blues

November 17, 2019 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Most of us have been taught that Jesus ushered in a New Covenant at His birth and began to teach new guidelines and rules for believers and future Christians to follow. Having this mindset will cause us to begin filtering all of the Scripture through this faulty assumption, causing our lenses to see a fake gospel which isn’t really the good news at all. Even the so-called golden rule was not a new guideline for Christians, but it was an old statute from the law—a ministry that could only supply the Jewish people with death and condemnation. Jesus was on a mission to free people from such a bondage.

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Clash of the Covenants – new book from Mike

May 11, 2017 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

The brand new book, Clash of the Covenants - Escaping Religious Bondage Through the Grace Guarantee, from Growing in Grace co-host Mike Kapler is now available for Kindle on Amazon! Remember, you don't need a Kindle in order to read. Download the Kindle app on your computer, tablet or smartphone.

GOD IS NOT YOUR PAROLE OFFICER, HE BROKE YOU OUT OF PRISON!

Have you been robbed by religion? Have you ever wondered where you really stood with God? For everyone trapped in a mindset of wondering whether God is angry or disappointed with them due to a lack of performance or dedication, help is on the way. In fact, it already arrived more than a couple thousand years ago.

Christian churches are filled with people who have been hearing Bible teaching built upon a foundation of mixing together two very different covenants that are not alike. Frequently embraced in most Christian circles, the practice of combining the old and new covenants has resulted in a diluted version of the gospel. This religious formula has caused many to avoid the institutional church altogether, often puts them in a state of confusion, and leaves them hungering and thirsting for a new identity of righteousness, unaware it has already been provided.

The current reality of unconditional love, peace, freedom, forgiveness, and everything else that is good, has been gifted to us by God's grace through the finished work of Jesus Christ. This is the message most people have been longing to experience, but it may require a complete change of mind from a lifetime of traditional church doctrines that have left many drowning in guilt and feeling as though they are in a state of bondage. God has provided a way of escape from the burdensome religious business—it is through a New Covenant where it is impossible for us to fail, because Jesus is the mediator and guarantee of this better covenant, and it has been established on better promises.