The Lie of Grace

Love you all, praying for you.
 
I just love God’s Word.  It gives uncomfortable truth.  There is nothing like the love of God, and the mercy of God.  It covers everything.  The sin that separated you from God has been washed away by the blood of Jesus – for all those who have received His gift of Salvation, who have put their faith in Jesus’ death in their place, to cover their sin - and committed their life to him.  Sin separates you from God.  It always does.  Before you were a Christian, or after.   I John 3:2 – Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be - has not yet been made known.  But we know that when Christ appears, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.  (This is the rapture, when Jesus returns to remove all true Christians from the earth, to be spared from His wrath to come – and He is coming so very soon!)  All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.  (To purify yourselves means – separate yourself from the sin that you used to do – of the culture around you.)  Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.  But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins.  And in him is no sin.  No one who lives in him keeps on sinning.  No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.”  (This is a warning.)  Verse 7 - Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray.  The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.  The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.  The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.  No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.  This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.”  God is lovingly warning people.  Those who continue in sin – in other words – who decide to live a life of sin, compromised with the world, that God condemns - God said have neither seen Him nor known Him.  How can they keep on sinning if the seed of God is within them, they cannot.  So does that mean that if I sin, if I choose to do wrong… because let’s face it.  God always gives us a way out, and we don’t always take it.  If I deliberately move past that check of the Holy Spirit – ignoring the prompting, because I’m ticked off at something.  And some of my former colorful vocabulary slips out, because I didn’t yield to the Holy Spirit – who said, “Stop here, don’t say anything else.”  But I couldn’t help it (translation - chose not to heed the warning) and went ahead anyway.  Does that mean I’m continuing in sin and the seed of God is not in me?  No, that means that your sin nature is still being fed more than your spirit.  You haven’t learned to yield to the LORD, to resist the devil, choose grace, to walk in the Spirit instead of being controlled by sin.  It doesn’t mean you’ve never known Christ, or that you’re not forgiven if you ask… but it does mean that you need to mature.  You need to grow in the image and likeness of Jesus, not acting like you used to, not letting sin control you.  You need to learn how to choose grace instead of sin.  This is talking about those who choose a life, a way of living, that they know  God condemns and continue anyway.  They are in danger of the punishment and judgment of God.  Those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit, God said are past the point of no return.  Several have asked me about that, concerned that their struggle with their old nature – may put them over the edge.  Only God decides, He is to be feared!  But those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit aren’t concerned with that.  Those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit – at one time apparently knew God and were filled with His Spirit – but decided to reject Him, and God, and the life that God has for them - completely.   Neither I nor you, nor anyone else has the final say.  God is the One who decides.  But if your heart is convicted and your desire is to live like God wants you to live, not like you used to live… chances are you just haven’t learned to resist the devil yet, not that God has written you off.  He has victory for you!  It’s time to choose His Grace to overcome sin – not count as nothing - the sacrifice He made for you.  That’s Grace!  Grace to say “no” to sin, that’s power that you have, you just haven’t used it.  You were called to be free, to be an overcomer, to be victorious over the law of sin that still wants to control you, when you are now under a much more powerful law - the law of righteousness – that now controls you – if you submit yourself to God, and your body as an instrument of righteousness.  Romans 5:11-14 – In the same way, consider yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.  Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.  Do not offer the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life, and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.  For sin will not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.   So what’s the lie of grace?  Many say – “We’re under grace” – which is true. It’s what God did through Jesus.  And that grace is His power available for us to choose His way out - to overcome sin.  Grace is not for failure, Grace is for victory, for overcoming.  Mercy – His forgiveness is for failure.  Then they’ll say, “It’s not what you do, we’re under grace.”  What does that mean?  Part truth is the worst lie.  Can you do something to forgive your own sin, or earn your own salvation? No, of course not!  You cannot save someone else, if you’re in the same quicksand they are, and you certainly cannot save yourself, you’re a sinner.  Only the Sinless One can die in your place.  But He did, you died to sin, when you died with him, and you were raised to life - you’re free!  But to say it’s not what you do?  That just isn’t true.  God said to Cain – why are you downcast?  If you do what is right will you not be accepted?  But if you don’t do what is right, sin is crouching at your door, it desires to have you, but you must master it.  Cain didn’t have the blood of Jesus covering Him, nor the Holy Spirit, or Grace - the power to say no to sin, like we have.  But notice God said if you do what is right will you not be accepted.  He didn’t say ‘will your gift not be accepted,’ He said, ‘you.’  Clearly what we do is important.  “But that’s Old Testament.”  Sin is sin, whether Old or New Testament.  God said I have found David, son of Jesse a man after my own heart, he will do everything I want him to do.  It is what you do!  He didn’t say, he will believe everything I want him to believe, God said do.  David did what God told him.  And God said – that’s why he was a man after God’s own heart.  It is what you do.  “But that’s Old Testament.”  No, that verse is Acts 13:22 – New Testament.  God said even a child is known by his actions – whether his conduct is good and right.  That’s Proverbs, which applies today as much as it did 4000 years ago.  It’s still what you do.  Jesus was New Testament.  What He did for you was grace, what you do now – demonstrates your faith.  Jesus only did what His Father wanted Him to do!  That’s what made him sinless, not just that he didn’t cuss.  He did what His Father told Him to do.  What you do is important.  The first Do, is to believe in the LORD Jesus Christ.  That’s an important do.  But then God said we are to produce fruit in keeping with repentance.  NLT says – Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.  Those who continue in sin have neither seen him or known him.  Matt 12:37 - For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.  What you do is important, it’s what you do that defines you.  It defined Abraham, David, Jesus, Paul, and you. “It’s not what you do” – is the lie of grace.” Part truth, not whole truth.  You don’t do - for Salvation, you do - because of Salvation.  Because the Spirit of the living God, now lives in you!  Grace doesn’t excuse doing, it empowers doing!  “I thought it was what you believe?”  It is!  But what you believe will be evidenced by what you do.  The one with the five and three talents that doubled them were commended by God, the one who didn’t was condemned.  It’s what you do!  “But I knew you were a hard master, and reaped where you didn’t sow, and I was afraid I would lose it, so I buried it, and here you have back exactly what belongs to you.”  He wasn’t afraid of losing it.  He didn’t want God to earn more than he sowed, so he stole God’s interest, and increase.  God cast him out.  It is what you do!  It's what Jesus did.  It’s what David did.  God said don’t be deceived whoever does what is right is righteous, just as He is righteous.  I John 3:7.  Whoever knows to do good but doeth it not, to him it is sin. – James 4:17.   So it’s not just do’s and don’ts, God has plans for you – to walk in – for His glory and your good!    James said Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness when he offered his son Isaac on the altar.  Faith without works is dead.  His faith and his actions worked together.  What you do proves what you believe.  What you do demonstrates the grace that is yours through Christ Jesus – grace to say no to sin, grace to overcome it.  James 1:12 – Blessed is the man who perseveres under trail, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him (who obey him – if you love me, you will obey what I command)  Having believed… it is what you do.  The message of Grace – is not “what you do doesn’t matter”, it’s not Dorritos Theology – ‘crunch all you want, we’ll make more.”  “Sin all you want.”  Romans 6:1 - Paul said, should we keep on sinning so that grace may abound, God forbid!  We have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer!  V 6 – For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.”  Sin no longer is your master.  Whether doing things God told you not to do, but you did it anyway… or things that God told you to do, but you didn’t do it.  God’s grace gives you power to say no to sin, and overcome by the blood of the lamb, and the word of your testimony.  God’s Grace gives you power to do it! – what God commands, and what God told you to do - that you couldn’t do on your own.  His Grace is His power that enables you to do it.  It’s grace you have, but you have to choose it.   “It’s not what you do.” is just not true.  It’s misleading.  Cheap grace, false grace.  You can’t keep on living like the world does – and live for Christ.  What you do doesn’t save you, but what you do defines you.  It demonstrates faith.  It’s what lets you hear “Well Done.”  It’s what God is pleased with - Faith expressing itself in love.  Love is obey – Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commands” – it is what you do!, and loving others – is also obeying His command.  Believe His Word, and follow His commands - by grace – through faith.  Praying that you will know the grace that is yours – and choose it every time – to overcome sin that once controlled you.  To overcome not wanting to do what He told you.  This is important.  Jesus is coming soon, He’s coming for a pure bride, true Christians, not a bride that sleeping with someone else.  Ten virgins were waiting for the bridegroom, waiting for the rapture, only five left with him, the rest were left behind.  Some may say, you’re just trying to scare us.  If you were in a canoe, and I was on the bank shouting at you, and franticly waving my arms – to “Get Over to the side” There’s a waterfall ahead – it’s Niagara!  Would you say, “He’s just trying to scare us.”  No, you’d thank me.  You died with Christ, you are dead to sin, raised up with Him to live as Christ.  His Grace is power to say no to sin.  Don’t listen to people that say what you do doesn’t matter, they are deceiving you.  It does matter.  The good news is you have Grace to overcome sin, just choose it. You are under a new law the righteousness - so much more powerful than the law of sin that once controlled you.   Trust God, keep your eyes on Him, resist the devil, turn from your sin, don’t get entrapped again, you don’t have to, you have power now.  Praise God for the victory you have in Jesus and keep walking in His path and His plans for you!  They will lead to your good, and He will save you from the wrath to come.  He is coming so soon, people don’t realize, it’s 11:59 on the clock!  Jesus is coming back so very soon!  You need to be watchful, and prayerful, ready for his return – it could be today!  What sin is worth risking eternity for?  Don’t let sin control you, let righteousness control you, by Grace through faith.  Praying that everything God reveals, you will do with joy – so you will have a heart like David, and a life like Jesus.  Who only did – everything His Father wanted Him to.  There’s not only freedom there, and joy there, there’s salvation there, and there’s reward there. 
 
Love you all,
dad