“Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:” (I Timothy I:17-20)
The problem here has to do with an absence of faith rather than conscience.
And it is a common problem that sincere believers must face. Some more than others.
For a good portion of my young Christian life, I was afflicted by a kind of hyper conscience over a great many things. And on a couple of occasions, it almost destroyed me.
Taking the extreme here, consider this verse that often confuses believers over the issue of forgiveness.
“…there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins…” (Hebrews 10:26-31).
This verse is often misunderstood regarding how sin, in a believer’s life, might cause him to lose his salvation. And, having sinned, is left without remedy.
However, it doesn’t mean that.
It means that the Lord has already provided us with everything we need. Whenever we sin.
It means nothing remains to be done in order to have forgiveness.
In other words, there is NO additional work to be done. There is NO additional forgiveness one must search for beyond the complete sufficiency of Jesus Christ.
Continue reading “How God Forgives Us: Conclusion – No Other Sacrifice”
Sometimes, we follow things received by tradition rather than from the Word of God.
One of the most common misunderstandings of this Christian life is in relation to our sins and our fellowship with God.
We have been taught incorrectly about HOW to stay in fellowship with God. The effect of this misunderstanding is a continual inward anxiety over our performance and right-standing with the Lord.
“For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.“ (John 1:17)
Grace only exists in the Person of Jesus Christ.
No other religious belief offers grace.
Every other religion and belief system is based upon what man has done.
True, biblical Christianity is based upon what Christ has done.
Therefore, God sets before every man a choice in how he will approach God.
Either he will stand before the Lord based upon his own fulfillment of God’s perfect law OR He will stand before the Lord based upon the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ.
There is no middle ground.
Continue reading “The Most Unique Gift”
God didn’t need 6 days to create the universe. He didn’t even need 6 seconds. Nevertheless, he chose to use that specific, limited number of days. No more and no less.
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15)
I miss hearing the old hymns played the old way in church. There are a lot of old hymns not heard anymore. They have been replaced with what might be called “Christian mantras”. Shallow, repetitive songs with a beat. Not much to distinguish them from average pop music.
There is one old hymn that comes to mind called, Arise, My Soul, Arise! I first heard this hymn back when I visited Bob Jones University while I was still in high school. We had just arrived at the school and were in the dining commons for dinner. Back then, you met in a huge hall, with the rest of the student body, to share dinner together. Just before dinner, someone on an upper balcony would lead the whole building in a hymn.
When that hymn was played, I was blown away. I saw the Lord’s power and majesty when listening to all those voices joined together. That is one of the reasons I decided to go to that school. It was not a perfect place, but it had the reverence and respect for the old hymns I had grown up with. I found there a great mixture between the Fundamental Baptist and the old-time Methodist style. Something you rarely see anymore.
The words of that hymn stick with me today. I am referring to the original score and words by Charles Wesley in 1742.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (II Timothy 1:7)
Fear can pretty much dominate most other emotions in our lives. One can endure most anything if there is hope and love present. But fear will kill you both physically and spiritually.
“And it was the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.” (Luke 23:49)
The sixth hour would have been high noon. This is the pivotal point of all history. Right here during these 3 hours. Everything before and everything after has its focus on that moment.
Upon that cruel post, the Son of God suffered the agonies of all the sins of all men and women who ever had and ever would live. He became “sin for us”. He took all the penalties of all our sin upon Himself.
God took our punishment so that we would not have to face His holiness on our own. That means ALL of it. Not just a little bit, a partial bit, 99.999%. 100% of the wrath of God poured out upon Christ in that moment.
Eternal Approach 
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