Grace, Belief, and Obedience
Grace, Belief, and Obedience
Divine grace helps and encourages us as we seek to serve the Lord. But Divine grace never is to be an alternative to obeying God's will!
Grace is not a softening of the demands of God. It is not "unmerited favor" in the sense of accepting disobedience to God's will. Grace is, rather, the removal of the demands of the works of the Law of Moses so we are free to follow the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus.
Grace also is our help in serving God.
Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16.)
As for the demands of God:
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)
Since the above actions do not reflect God's moral Nature, and are of the nature of unclean spirits, it shall remain true for eternity that "those who live like this will not inherit the Kingdom of God."
If such is the case, where do mercy and grace fit in.
Mercy and grace also are of the Nature of God and are revealed in His great patience toward us and His willingness to assist every individual who calls on Him for help.
But God never finally receives to Himself that which is spiritually unclean or rebellious.
The terrible misunderstanding of our day is that the God of the Old Testament has changed and now receives unclean spirits into His Presence.
Therefore, "Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." And, "I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty." Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. (II Corinthians 6:17-7:1)
The Spirit of God is our Law. Not obedience to the Law of Moses, but obedience to the Spirit of God. These are not the same at all!
The grace of God frees us from obedience to the works of the Law of Moses that we may be obedient to the directions of the Spirit of God.
It no longer is obedience to the Law of Moses that brings righteousness to us, but obedience to the Spirit of God. Genuine belief always leads us to obedience to God. If it does not, it is not genuine belief but mental assent.
It is not a coincidence that the Law of Moses that came from Sinai occurred on the day of the Feast of Pentecost. This illustrates that the Law of Moses was the Law of the Old Covenant, while the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus (Pentecost) is the Law of the New Covenant.
It was not disobedience to the Law of Moses but disobedience to the revealed will of God that prevented Israel from entering the land of promise.
Just think of the many times that Israel was led by God's revealed will, including the parting of the Red Sea, the daily manna, and the cloud by day and the fire by night.
And these Israelites were not born-again. How much more should we who have received all the blessings of the New Covenant look to the Lord Jesus for His revealed will?
What role, then, does the Bible play? The Bible presents the infallible will of God in a general manner. But in our day to day life we need specific details if we are to make fruitful decisions.
The grace of God is misunderstood in our day, isn't it?
Let us turn now to the seeming contradiction between Paul's statements in the early part of the Book of Romans that appear to show we are saved by faith alone and our behavior is relatively insignificant. Then there are the many passages in his Epistles that insist we put away our old nature and put on the new nature that is renewed in Christ.
I say "seeming contradiction," because there simply are no true contradictions in the entire Bible.
It is not what we do that is so important to Christ, it is why we do it that determines whether or not we are in the rest of God. Christ wants to conduct every part of our life.
If my understanding is correct, there are two primary teachings that have destroyed the moral strength of the Christian churches in America.
The first teaching is that Divine grace is a substitute for growth in godly behavior.
The second teaching is that our salvation is complete if we believe in the facts concerning Jesus Christ, and that our behavior is not related to our salvation in a significant manner.
Both of these widespread teachings can easily be shown to be errors when we turn to the New Testament.
And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief. (Hebrews 3:18,19)
Notice carefully the two words, "disobeyed," and "unbelief."
In your opinion, was God displeased with their disobedience in not pressing forward into Canaan? Or was God displeased with their unbelief?
Obviously, obedience and belief are inseparable.
It was not enough for the Israelites to enter Canaan and subdue the inhabitants. If they were to please God, they had to follow His leading.
What if the Israelites decided to enter Canaan using their own military plans without listening to God, taking the people captive without putting them to death? Would God have been pleased?
What if the Israelites remained where they were and just believed that God would bring them into the land of promise apart from any effort on their part? Would God have been pleased?
Perhaps we realize intuitively that God wanted them to listen to Him, to believe what He told them, and then to act on it.
In the early part of the Book of Romans, Paul emphasized that we are not saved by works but by faith. In today's preaching, Paul often is perceived as saying that we are to do nothing but believe in Christ if we want to be saved.
Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. (Romans 4:4,5)
For instance, I saw a picture of a Christian sitting on the edge of his bed and looking about contentedly. He was illustrating that there is nothing we do to be saved and go to Heaven.
Another example comes to mind:
Some years ago, a documentary was shown in our church. It portrayed a godly missionary couple who went to live among a native tribe.
They did not present the Gospel until they had gained the trust of the natives.
When they believed the time was ripe, they presented the Gospel and baptized the people.
After this, the leaders asked them what the natives were to do now.
The missionaries replied, "Nothing."
Nothing? There is nothing to do after we are baptized in water? Only a New Testament filled with exhortations to spiritual growth.
Such is the fruit of understanding the Apostle Paul to mean we are saved by grace through "faith alone."
But this is not what Paul meant, according to His Epistles.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1,2)
Paul goes on, in Chapter Twelve of the Book of Romans, to give directions for Christian service.
The missionaries could have pointed to this passage, couldn't they?
All of the writers of the New Testament emphasized the effort we are to make to live a godly life. According to these writers, the penalty for not cleansing ourselves from ungodly behavior is to not inherit the Kingdom of God.
And envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19)
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