Did He Die In Vain?

"I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain" (Galatians 2:21).

Those who grew up in church should ponder the above. Every church I know of, including the one I grew up in, teaches that salvation is being offered men, but that the offer must be accepted and received by faith in this life. The minimum requirement in my church is to “believe and accept” the gospel. The most legalistic of the churches teach one must repent, be baptized in water and join the church. Some even go so far as teaching that you can lose this salvation if you fall into sin later.

But however minimal the requirement...such teaching implies that Christ died in vain. Salvation is a free gift by the Grace of God, not by works.

“…for the free gift of God is eternal life…For by grace are you saved…for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men….” (Romans 6:23b; Ephesians 2:8; Titus 2:11-13)

God has guaranteed the salvation and reconciliation of "ALL people". That is trustworthy and should be accepted and taught...

“This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:9-11)

I have had only 2 persons, friends or foes, come to me IN PERSON to object to my telling them that the Bible teaches salvation of all people. One said that he could not agree with me because it went against everything he had been taught in church, but that he would study the Bible until he could tell me why. About one year later he simply said. “I have finished my study...and you are right.” The other just says it makes common sense that an omnipotent God whose nature is Love would find a way to save everyone he created, and that it had always bothered him that God would torture some people in hell forever.

"...there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all..." (1 Timothy 2:5-6)

Grace and Law...Reality or Illusion?

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth (aletheia) came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17)

The New Testament was written in Greek. I have read that in ancient Greek culture the Greek word aletheia was synonymous for “reality” as the opposite of “illusion”.

So, Moses received the Law, which had the illusion of providing a way for men to become righteous before God. But of course, it was only an illusion for mankind is not able to keep it, because…

“…it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God…” (Romans 3:10-11)

Most of what is taught among Christianity and all that is taught in other religions of the world is the “illusion” that we can do stuff to please God and therefore become "righteous" by those good works. That broad and proverbial religious road leads to destruction for…

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” and “…the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 3:23; 6:23)

The Law of Moses brings death to all who try to keep it and religious people who claim to succeed live in the “illusion” of self-righteousness. The "truth" (aletheia-reality) is that only by the grace of God will anyone become righteous, and that will occur for all when changed from flesh to spirit at the resurrection.  This “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ”.

This unmerited favor is freely given to sinners because the "truth" (reality) is that the written law kills people but the “Spirit gives life” to those same people at their resurrection by the "grace" of God. The Spirit will indeed grant life to dead sinners, abundant and everlasting. YEA Jesus! We are to proclaim that truth as our message…

“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life…for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (2 Corinthians 3:6; Romans 6:23)

Grace Rules!

“The Law was given so that the trespass would increase; but where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness, to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:20-21)

What value is there to the Ten Commandments, and the rest of the Law given Moses if its purpose was to increase trespasses?

Paul says it reveals just how sinful "all" people are...

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God …Is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too…" (Romans 3:23, 29)

What value is there to the Love and Grace of God?

"…at just the right time, while we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly…God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Therefore, since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from wrath through him?...For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord"  (Romans 5:6-8;6:23)

Paul says "grace" demonstrates that the love of God for sinners far exceeds the weight of their sin. The grace of God trumps the sinfulness of "ungodly" people...

All that we sinners can do about our sin is to have faith that God's "grace" is greater than our sin,  and wait for the final proof of the His love and mercy when we sinners are resurrected to receive "the free gift of eternal life"…

“For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive…The last enemy to be destroyed is death…so that God may be all in all…just as we have borne the likeness of the earthy man, so also shall we bear the likeness of the heavenly man…the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ?” (1 Corinthians 15:20-58)

Death, the wages of sin, is then swallowed up in the Victory. 

Grace rules!  

Have You Fallen Away From Grace

“…continue in the grace of God” (Acts 13:43)

Whether you think that only those who believe the gospel in this life will be saved, or as I, believe that all will eventually be saved after their resurrection when they believe, one thing we should have in common. This salvation from death, this resurrection to immortal life….is purely and solely by the unmerited favor (grace) of God. We do not choose it, we cannot earn it, and we will not be rewarded with it because of any good works that we do.

We first came to a knowledge of this unmerited favor by hearing the gospel of our salvation. We believed the good news, if at all, as a result of the gift of “faith” granted to us by the "grace" of God …

“…it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by GRACE you have been saved, through FAITH, and this is not from yourselves, it is the GIFT of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:5-9)

There are many good Christian people who sincerely believe that it is their commandment to go into to world and win people to Christ...in other words save people. That is not our commandment or role. Any commandment we have from God has to do with sharing the good news of unmerited salvation, not doing works that result in getting saved.

We will be rewarded for telling people the truth about salvation as a result of unmerited favor. And the truth is that God will save mankind when resurrected and “seated” with Christ Jesus in the “heavenly realms”, all by His unmerited favor - grace.  Our actions in this present life will only be acceptable to God and rewarded if we  believe and “continue in the grace of God”.

So do not let religious doctrines of men change what you first believed about your salvation. I have found that all of the doctrines of men add works in some form to that grace which saves. Those who teach such doctrines have “fallen from grace” to another gospel, which is "no gospel at all".

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel —which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ…You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace…” (Galatians 1:6-7; 5:4)

They were falling away in Paul's day, and people have been falling away from the gospel of grace for 2000 years.  It would be nice if the institutional churches would repent of its failed works, help those around them, and as far as salvation is concerned - “continue in the grace of God”…but don’t hold your breath until that happens.

The Transition From Law to Grace

“Now it occurred three days after, that he (Paul) calls together those who are foremost of the Jews. Now, at their coming together, he said to them "I, men, brethren, doing nothing contrary to the people or to the hereditary customs, was given up a prisoner out of Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans…For this cause, then, I call for you (the Jews), to see and speak to you…Now setting a day for him, more came to him in the lodging, to whom he expounded, certifying to the kingdom of God, besides persuading them concerning Jesus, both from the law of Moses and the prophets, from morning till dusk…Now there being disagreements one with another, they were dismissed, Paul making one declaration, that, "Ideally the holy spirit speaks through Isaiah the prophet, to your fathers, saying, 'Go to this people and say, "In hearing, you will be hearing, and may by no means be understanding, And observing, you will be observing, and may by no means be perceiving,"…Let it be known to you, then, that to the nations (Gentiles) is dispatched this salvation of God, and they will hear." Now he remains two whole years in his own hired house, and he welcomed all those going in to him…heralding the kingdom of God, and teaching that which concerns the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, unforbidden.” (Acts 28:17-31)

The book of Acts records the transition of God dealing exclusively with Israel under the Law of Moses to the current era in which God is dealing with the whole world of mankind (Jew and Gentile) under GRACE apart from the Law given to Moses for Israel. Looking back on that transition period Paul later writes to the Gentiles…

“You were, in that era, apart from Christ, being alienated from the citizenship of Israel, and guests of the promise covenants, having no expectation, and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12, CLNT).

In regard to the era of God’s dealing with Israel under His covenants with them, the Gentiles were “alienated from the citizenship of Israel”. They were “guests and sojourners…having no expectation, and without God in the world”.

During the transition period Paul wrote Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and 1 Timothy. During Paul’s imprisonment in Rome, the transition to pure GRACE was complete.  God’s dealing with Israel under the covenants was set aside, and the era of GRACE apart from the LAW began where there is no longer a distinction between Jew and Gentile that had existed during the transition. Paul wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 2 Timothy, Titus and Philemon after the transition was complete and wrote…

“Consequently, then, no longer are you (Gentiles) guests and sojourners, but are fellow-citizens of the saints and belong to God’s family.” (Ephesians 2:19 CLNT)

Failure to distinguish and rightly divide what went on during the transition period where Gentiles continued to be merely “guests and sojourners” from what we all have now is the source of all the divisions within the religion of Christianity. The mixture of law and grace is so engrained in the religion that it is now impossible to correct the errors.

Paul’s message of the grace of God in saving all mankind apart from the Law was being rejected toward the end of his life by the church. So he wrote to the few who remained faithful to the message, and encouraged them to keep reminding people to rightly divide the word of truth...

“Of these things be reminding them, conjuring them in the Lord's sight not to engage in controversy for nothing useful, to the upsetting of those who are hearing. Endeavor to present yourself to God qualified, an unashamed worker, correctly cutting the word of truth. Yet from profane prattlings stand aloof, for they will be progressing to more irreverence, and their word will spread as gangrene…” (2 Timothy 2:14-17 CLNT)

So I use Facebook and my BlogSpot to occasionally “remind” people who will listen of the GRACE of God and encourage them to “rightly divide the word of truth”.

Law or Grace

“Abraham had two sons…which…are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage (Law of God)…and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children—but the Jerusalem above is free (Grace of God), which is the mother of US ALL…So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free. Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free (Grace), and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage (Law).” (Galatians 4:22-5:1)

We sometimes get all theological when we talk about “covenants” and covenant living. But Paul is using the term “covenants” in reference to those God made with Israel (Both the Old and New Covenants are with Israel alone). They are used by Paul as an example of the simple truth that the GRACE of God has set ALL mankind free from the punishment demanded by the LAW of God in the Old Covenant with Israel. We do not avoid the punishment for the sin of Adam, which is “death”, but we will be freed from this death by our resurrection.

When the Law of God is the standard by which we are judged by God, what is the conclusion of the matter?

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…the wages of sin is death” (Romans 3:23; 6:23)

When the GRACE of God is the standard by which we are judged by God, what is the conclusion of the matter?

“For the grace of God hath appeared bringing salvation to all men…for by Grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God…for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord… the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory…” (Titus 2:11; Ephesians 2:11; Romans 6:23; Colossians 1:26)

So which applies today for mankind?  – Law which condemns the sinner, or Grace which saves the sinner?

“For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under LAW but under GRACE.” (Romans 6:14)

“For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not UNDER law but UNDER grace.”(Romans 6:14)

I recently posted about how a saint is one who believes what God says in his Word. How does that relate to obedience? And what does Grace have to do with believing God and being obedient to God?

It is simpler than you might think. What Paul is saying is that our eternal destiny is no longer dependent on “obedience” to the law, but is solely dependent on the “grace” of God. ALL mankind is UNDER the umbrella of God’s GRACE, not UNDER the condemnation of the LAW.

And when we are obedient to BELIEVE what God says…we are designated saints.

And what does God tell us about salvation, justification and reconciliation? That it was all secured by Jesus Christ on our behalf purely and solely by His merciful love and grace.

AS FOR ISRAEL: 

"For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God” (Ezekiel 35:24-26; 37:23)

AS FOR ALL GENTILES:

“I am entreating, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, pleadings, thanksgiving be made for all mankind…for this is ideal and welcome in the sight of our SAVIOR, God, Who WILLS that all mankind be saved and come into a realization of the truth. For there is one God, and one Mediator of God and mankind, a Man, Christ Jesus, Who is giving Himself a correspondent Ransom for ALL, the testimony in its own eras, for which I was appointed a herald and an apostle, I am telling the truth, I am not lying, a teacher of the GENTILES in knowledge and truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-7)