CORRECTLY HANDLE THE WORD OF TRUTH, THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT
Hebrews 4:12,
“For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates even to dividing soul and
spirit, joints and marrow, it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
2 Timothy 3:16-17,
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,
rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may
be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Ephesians 6:17,
“Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the Word of God.”
2 Timothy 2:15,
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a
workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the Word of
truth.”
Correctly handled, the Sword of the Spirit/Word of God/Word
of Truth can lead a person to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and correct
and encourage those who belong to Christ. Mishandling the Sword of the Spirit can result
in preaching a false gospel (i.e. By grace alone through faith alone in Christ
alone, plus water baptism, plus Law, plus turning away from sin [turning away
from being a law breaker to being a law keeper]) that won’t save a person from
the wrath of God, and can strike fear and terror into the hearts of those who
belong to Christ when that should not be done.
It’s important that we have the Sword of the Spirit. It’s also important for us to learn to handle
the Sword of the Spirit correctly, to rightly divide the word of truth, so that
we don’t unduly injure or mislead someone else or ourselves.
I’ve been a believer in Jesus Christ since December of
1981. Over the years I’ve done extensive
traveling, and as a result I’ve attended many different churches and
denominations. Learning what I’ve been
learning for the past couple of years about right division (rightly dividing
the Word of Truth and correctly handling the Sword of the Spirit), when I look
back over the previous thirty eight years,
I don’t remember ever hearing a pastor or teacher giving a message that wasn’t
a mixed message, that is, mixing the teachings and instructions of the Kingdom
Gospel meant for Israel with the teachings and instructions of the Grace Gospel
revealed to the Apostle Paul after the Jews rejected their King and as a result
the earthly Kingdom promised to the Jewish patriarchs was put into a state of
postponement. In other words, not
rightly dividing the word of truth. I
know that some will balk at the idea that there are two Gospels, but I would
encourage you to read on, and if necessary, do more research.
Galatians 2:7-9 Greek,
The Gospel/message of the Uncircumcision to the Gentiles,
and the Gospel/message of the Circumcision to the Jews. Two Gospels.
The reason I’m writing this is because through the years
I’ve experienced confusion, distress, torment and even terror as the result of
mixed teachings. Being told on one hand
that I was secure in Christ (the Gospel of the Grace of God) and on the other
hand that I wasn’t (the Kingdom Gospel), and different Scriptures being used to
back up each position. I’m assuming some
of you that will be reading this have, to some degree, experienced some of this
yourselves. I would like to encourage
you that rightly dividing the word of truth will put these negative responses
to rest.
First, I’m going to show through Scriptures how the
theocratic earthly Kingdom that God promised to the Jewish Patriarchs is not
here, but in a state of postponement as the result of the Jews rejecting their
Messiah/King, and will be established when Jesus returns and sits on the Throne
of David to rule and reign over the whole earth. The reason for doing this is
because if someone can convince you the earthly Kingdom is here now, in
spiritual form, they can then convince you that you are under the instructions
of the Kingdom Gospel. Second, I would
like to show through the Scriptures that there are two Gospels, that we’re not
under the instructions of both, that the two should not be mixed, and that not
being under both, you will come to understand you are secure in Christ.
THE KINGDOM OF GOD
When you read about the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of
God in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, what you don’t read is a definition of
what those terms mean. There’s a reason
for that. Two thousand years ago the
Jews would have understood what those terms meant. They didn’t need a definition. They had the Old Testament definition. The Kingdom of God/Kingdom of Heaven would be
the fulfillment of covenants and promises God gave to the Jewish fathers
concerning a literal earthly Kingdom that God would establish on literal real
estate in the Middle East and a King of His choosing would sit on the Throne of
David and rule and reign over the whole earth.
But there have been many who have made the decision to make up their own
definition of those terms and convince others that God spiritualized all of it
and that the earthly Kingdom of God is here now in spiritual form. They’re wrong. It’s important to let Scripture interpret
Scripture and not read into Scripture something that isn’t there.
If the theocratic earthly Kingdom God promised to the Jewish
Patriarchs was here, then the following associated with the Kingdom would also
be in place:
The Jews would possess all of the land promised to Abram in
Genesis 15:18-21,
“On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said,
“To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great
river, the Euphrates—the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites,
Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”
The Israelites have yet to possess all of this land.
There should be a Temple in Jerusalem as described in Ezekiel
40-47. That Temple is not there.
There should be a river flowing out from under the Temple
into the Dead Sea, a river too wide to swim across, flowing into the Dead Sea
and turning the salt water into fresh water, with a great number of trees on
either side of the river with leaves and fruit that don’t fail for food and
healing. Ezekiel 47:1-12,
“The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and
I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for
the temple faced east). The water was
coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate
and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was
flowing from the south side. As the man
went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand
cubits and then led me through water that was ankle deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and
led me through water that was knee-deep.
He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to
the waist. He measured off another
thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had
risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. He asked me, ‘Son of man, do you see this?’
Then he led me back to the bank of the river.
When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the
river. He said to me, ‘This water flows
toward the eastern region and goes down in the Arabah, where it enters the Sea
(Dead Sea). When it empties into the
Sea, the water there becomes fresh.
Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because
this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows
everything will live. Fishermen will
stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for
spreading nets. The fish will be many
kinds—like the fish of the Great Sea.
But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for
salt. Fruit trees of all kinds will grow
on both banks of the river. Their leaves
will not wither, nor will their fruit fail.
Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows
to them. Their fruit will serve for food
and their leaves for healing.”
The temple, river, fish, trees, leaves, fruit and fresh
water are not there.
Jesus should be sitting on the Throne of David as told in
Psalm 2:6-9,
“I have installed My King on Zion, My holy hill.” I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He
said to Me, “You are My Son; today I have become you Father. Ask of Me, and I will make the nations your
inheritance, the ends of the earth Your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter; You
will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
and in Isaiah 9:7,
“Of the increase of His government and peace there will be
no end. He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and
righteousness from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”
and in Luke 1:31-33,
“You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are
to give Him the name Jesus. He will be
great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his
father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom
will never end.”
At this time Jesus isn’t sitting on the throne of David, but
as we read in Acts 7:56,
“Look,” he said, “I (Stephen) see heaven open and the Son of
Man standing at the right hand of God.”
and in Romans 8:34,
“Who is he that condemns:
Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the
right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”
and in Ephesians 1:20,
“…which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the
dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms…”
and in Colossians 3:1,
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your
hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.”
and in Hebrews 1:13,
To which of the angels did God ever say, “Sit at my right
hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”
At this time Jesus is sitting at the right hand of God, not
on David’s Throne.
There should be peace in Israel as written in Ezekiel 34:25,
“I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land
of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in
safety.”
There is no peace in Israel today.
There should be peace in the world as written in Isaiah 2:4,
“He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes
for many peoples. They will beat their
swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.”
There is no peace in the world today.
There should be peace in the animal kingdom as were told in
Isaiah 65:25,
“The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will
eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my
holy mountain,” says the LORD.
At this time there is no peace in the animal kingdom.
There should be peace between humans and animals. Isaiah 11:8,
“The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the
young child put his hand into the viper’s nest.”
Today, there is no peace between animals and people.
The Israelites don’t possess all the land promised to
Abraham. There is no Temple in
Jerusalem. Jesus isn’t sitting on the
Throne of David at this time. The Dead
Sea is still salt water. There isn’t
peace in Israel. There isn’t peace in
the world. There isn’t peace in the
animal kingdom. There isn’t peace
between people and animals.
Everything associated with the theocratic earthly kingdom
God promised to the Jewish Patriarchs is not here. Therefore, the earthly Kingdom is not here.
Some would use Luke 17:21 to make the argument that the
Kingdom of God is here in spiritual form where in some translations we read that
Jesus said the Kingdom of God is within you.
However, in some translations it is translated that the Kingdom of God
is in your midst or among you. I would
argue against “within you” and choose “in your midst” or “among you” because of
what we read in Acts 1:6-7 after Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection and just
prior to His ascension,
So when they met together, they (the disciples) asked Him,
“Lord, are you at this time going to restore the Kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know
the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority.”
We see in these two verses that Jesus had not spiritualized
the Kingdom of God on earth as some translations might imply in Luke 17:21,
that the Kingdom had not been restored to Israel at the time of Jesus’
ascension, and that the promised earthly Kingdom was postponed and is still
future and will be established when Jesus returns.
THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM
We find in Romans 15:8 that Jesus was sent to confirm the
promises made to the Jewish Patriarchs,
“For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews
on behalf of God’s truth to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs…”
Jesus Himself said in Matthew 15:24,
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”
and in John 20:21 Jesus says to the Apostles in Jerusalem,
“As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.”
When Jesus sent out the Twelve in Matthew 10:5-6 to preach
the Gospel of the Kingdom He said to them,
“Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the
Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep
of Israel.”
We see that the message that Jesus and the Twelve preached
concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom was a message for the Jews, the lost sheep
of Israel. And even after Jesus’
ascension the Apostles in Jerusalem continued to preach the Kingdom message
only to the Jews:
In Peter’s first famous sermon in Acts chapter 2,
In verse 14,
“Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem…”
and in verse 22.
“Men of Israel…”
and in verse 36,
“Therefore, let all Israel be assured of this…”
In Peter’s second famous sermon in Acts 3,
In verse 12,
“Men of Israel…”
and in verse 13,
“The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our
Fathers…”
and in verse 25,
“And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God
made with your fathers.”
The believing Jews who were scattered as the result of the
stoning of Stephen in Acts 8:1,
“On that day a great persecution broke out against the
church at Jerusalem, and all except the Apostles were scattered throughout
Judea and Samaria.”
took the message only to the Jews. Acts 11:19-20,
“Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in
connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch,
telling the message only to Jews. Some
of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to
speak to Greeks also (Grecian Jews, or Jews who had assimilated into Greek
culture), telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.”
And we see in James 1:1 that James wrote his letter to the
Jews,
“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To
the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings.”
In 1 Peter 1:1 we see the Apostle Peter writing to the Jews,
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. To God’s elect,
strangers in the world, scattered (Acts 8:1) throughout Pontus, Galatia,
Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia…”
and in 1 Peter 2:9,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy
nation, a people belonging to God…” This
is a covenant God made with the people of Israel in Exodus 19:5-6,
“Now if you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of
all nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be
for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”
and in 1 Peter 2:12,
“Live such good lives among the Gentiles…” Peter’s audience
are the Jews living among the Gentiles.
and in 1 Peter 4:3,
“For you have spent enough time in the past doing what
Gentiles choose to do…”
And in 2 Peter 3:1 we
find Peter writing to the same Jewish audience,
“Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you.” Same audience.
And we see the Apostle John
writing to a Jewish audience. 1 John
2:2,
“He is the atoning sacrifice for
our sins (the Jews), and not only for ours (the Jews) but also for the sins of
the whole world (the Gentiles).”
And the Book of Hebrews was
written to the Hebrews/Jews. Some would
say that the Apostle Paul wrote this letter, but Paul says in 2 Thessalonians
3:17,
“I, Paul, write this greeting in
my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write.” Paul made sure to identify himself in his
letters. There’s no indication in the
Book of Hebrews that Paul identified himself.
Again, the Jews were the audience
of the Book of Hebrews. Hebrews 8:8-12,
quoted by the writer from Jeremiah 31:31-34,
“The time is coming, declares the
Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the
house of Judah. It will not be like the
covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead
them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I
turned away from them, declares the Lord.
This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that
time, declares the Lord. I will put my
laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be My
people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor,
or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest.
For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no
more.” This is a covenant God made with
the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
This is not a covenant God made with the Gentiles. The audience of the Book of Hebrews are Jews.
Galatians 2:7-9 Greek,
“But on the contrary, having seen that I (Paul) have been
entrusted with the Gospel of the uncircumcision, just as Peter {with that} of
the circumcision the {One} for having worked in Peter for apostleship of
the circumcision did also in me toward the Gentiles-- and having known the
grace having been given to me, James and Cephas and John, those esteemed
pillars to be, {the} right hands gave to me and Barnabas of fellowship, that we
{should go} to the Gentiles; they however to the circumcision.”
The Apostles in Jerusalem continued to take their message to
the circumcision, the Jews.
The message/Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus and the
Apostles in Jerusalem preached was a message specifically for the Jews, the
lost sheep of Israel, concerning the theocratic, earthly Kingdom God promised
to the Jewish patriarchs. This message
was not for the Gentiles. Jesus was sent
to confirm the promises God made to the Jewish patriarchs. Jesus was sent only to the lost sheep of
Israel proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom.
Jesus sent His disciples to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom only to the
lost sheep of Israel, not to the Gentiles.
Later, the disciples/Apostles in Jerusalem wrote their letters only to
the lost sheep of Israel. The message in
Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Hebrews, 1 and 2 Peter, 1-3 John and Revelation were
written to the lost sheep of Israel concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom, the
earthly Kingdom God promised to the Jewish patriarchs.
THE GOSPEL OF THE GRACE OF GOD
After the Jews had rejected their
Messiah/King in Luke 11:14-15,
Jesus was driving out a demon
that was mute. When the demon left, the
man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, “By Beelzebub, the
prince of demons, He is driving out demons.”
and in John 19:15 the chief
priests told Pilate,
“We have no king but Ceasar.”
and in Acts 7, Stephen being
stoned as the result of testifying of Jesus, the earthly Kingdom promised to
the Jewish patriarchs was put into a state of postponement.
about a year later Jesus appeared
to Saul (who would become the Apostle Paul) in Acts 9:5,
“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” He replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you
will be told what you must do.”
We get more detail of what Jesus
said to Paul on the road to Damascus in Acts 26:15-18,
“I am Jesus, whom you are
persecuting,” the Lord replied. “Now get
up and stand on your feet. I have
appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have
seen of me and what I will show you. I
will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes
and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so
that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are
sanctified by faith in Me.”
Jesus revealed a mystery to the
Apostle Paul that had previously been kept hidden in God:
Ephesians 3:2-3, “Surely you have
heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you,
that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written
briefly.”
Ephesians 3:9, “…and to make
plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was
kept hidden in God, who created all things.”
Colossians 1:26, “…the mystery
that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints.”
Romans 16:25, “Now to Him who is
able to establish you by my Gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according
to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past…”
Today, God establishes a person
by the Gospel Jesus entrusted to the Apostle Paul and the proclamation of Jesus
Christ according to the revelation of the mystery that was revealed to
Paul. So, what is the mystery Jesus revealed
to the Apostle Paul?
That we are not brought near
to God through Israel or the covenants or the promises made to Israel: the
earthly Kingdom program. We are brought
near to God through the blood of Christ.
Ephesians 2:11-13,
“Therefore, remember that
formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called ‘uncircumcised’ by those who
call themselves ‘the circumcision’ (that done in the body by the hands of men)—remember
that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in
Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without
God in the world. But now in Christ
Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of
Christ.”
At the end of this post I’ll
paste the link to the post that reveals in detail the Gospel of the Grace of
God that the Apostle Paul preached, the Gospel wherein is the power of God
today to save a person from the wrath of God.
But now I’d first like to show you some of the the differences in the
instructions Jesus gave the Apostles in Jerusalem to teach to the Jews
concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom which is a Gospel of faith plus works, and
the instructions Jesus gave to the Apostle Paul to teach us concerning the
Gospel of the Grace of God which is by grace alone through faith alone in what
Christ has done alone. The instructions
are different. Things that are different
are not the same.
BAPTISM
In Matthew 28:19 Jesus instructed
the Apostles in Jerusalem to baptize,
“Therefore go and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit…”
Under the Kingdom Gospel a person
had to be baptized for the forgiveness of sins, or the cancelation of their sin
debt. Acts 2:37-38,
When the people heard this, they
were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what
shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and
be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness
of your sins. And you will receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit.”
But in 1 Corinthians 1:17 we find
Jesus didn’t instruct the Apostle Paul to baptize,
“For Christ did not send me to
baptize, but to preach the Gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the
cross of Christ be emptied of its power.”
Since Jesus didn’t send the Apostle
Paul to baptize, how do we receive the forgiveness of sins, the cancellation of
our sin debt? What did Jesus instruct
the Apostle Paul to teach us concerning this matter?
Ephesians 1:7-8,
“In him we have redemption
through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of
God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.”
We have the cancellation of our
sin debt through the blood of Christ, not through water baptism. We are taught by Jesus through the Apostle Paul
that there is only one baptism in Ephesians 4:5,
“…one Lord, one faith, one
baptism…”
and what that one baptism is in 1
Corinthians 12:13,
“For we were all baptized by one
Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given
the one Spirit to drink.”
Under the Gospel of the Grace of
God, water baptism is neither required for salvation, nor required after
salvation.
It’s important to note here that
the disciples/Apostles in Jerusalem, when preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom
during Jesus’ earthly ministry, did not preach the cross, the blood of Christ:
the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
Luke wrote the book of Luke for
Theophilus. In Luke 1:3 we find Luke
wrote an orderly account,
“Therefore, since I myself have
carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me
to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus.”
First Jesus sends the Twelve out
to preach the Kingdom of God in Luke 9:1-2,
“When Jesus had called the Twelve
together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure
diseases, and he sent them out to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the
sick.”
And then he sent the seventy-two
out in Luke 10:1,
“After this the Lord appointed
seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and
place where he was about to go.”
And then after these two events
Jesus tells the Twelve about his death and resurrection in Luke 18:31-33,
Jesus took the Twelve aside and
told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the
prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him,
flog him and kill him. On the third day
he will rise again.”
And then the Holy Spirit tells us
in Luke 18:34, in three different ways, that the Twelve didn’t get it,
“The disciples did not understand
any of this. It’s meaning was hidden
from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.”
And we read is John 20:9, after
Jesus’ resurrection,
“They still did not understand
from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.”
The message of the Cross wasn’t
part of the message of the Gospel of the Kingdom. In fact, if you read the Apostle Peter’s
first and second sermons in Acts 2 and 3, you’ll find Peter not preaching the
benefits of the Cross, but an indictment against the Jews for killing their
Messiah.
Under the Gospel of the Kingdom a
person had the cancellation of their sin debt through water baptism. Under the Gospel of the Grace of God a person
has the cancellation of their sin debt through the blood of Christ.
FORGIVENESS
Under the Kingdom Gospel, in
Matthew 28:20 Jesus instructed the Apostles in Jerusalem to teach others to
obey everything He had commanded them,
“…and teaching them to obey
everything I have commanded you.” Which
would include forgiving in order to be forgiven:
Matthew 6:12,
“Forgive us our debts, as we also
have forgiven out debtors…”
Matthew 6:15,
“But if you do not forgive men
their sins, you Father will not forgive your sins.”
But under the Grace Gospel Jesus
instructed the Apostle Paul to teach us that all of our sins have already been
forgiven.
Colossians 2:13,
“When you were dead in your sins
and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with
Christ. He forgave us all our sins…”
And to forgive because we’ve
already been forgiven.
Ephesians 4:32,
“Be kind and compassionate to one
another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Colossians 3:13,
“Bear with each other and forgive
whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Under the Gospel of the Kingdom a
person had to forgive in order to be forgiven.
Under the Gospel of the Grace of God a person forgives because they have
already been forgiven of all of their sins.
ENDURE
Again under the Kingdom Gospel in
Matthew 28:20 Jesus instructed the Apostles in Jerusalem to instruct others to
obey everything He commanded, which would include enduring until the end in
order to be saved.
Matthew 10:22,
“All men will hate you because of
Me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Matthew 24:13,
“…but he who stands firm to the
end will be saved.”
But under the Grace Gospel Jesus
instructed the Apostle Paul to teach us that we were sealed by the Holy Spirit
until the day of redemption. What is the
day of redemption? Romans 8:23,
“Not only so, but we ourselves,
who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for
our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” The redemption is when we receive our new
bodies.
The Holy Spirit is a deposit
guaranteeing our inheritance with the Lord from the moment we first believed
until the redemption. Ephesians 1:13-14,
“And you also were included in
Christ when you heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with
a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance
until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of His
glory.”
Ephesians 4:30,
“And do not grieve the Holy
Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
2 Corinthians 1:21-22,
“Now it is God who makes both us
and you stand firm in Christ. He
anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts
as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
2 Corinthians 5:5,
“Now it is God who has made us
for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing
what is to come.”
Under the Gospel of the Kingdom a
person had to endure until the end in order to be saved. Under the Gospel of the Grace of God a person
is sealed by the Holy Spirit the moment they first believe, and the Holy Spirit
is a deposit in that person guaranteeing what is to come.
THE LAW
Again under the Kingdom Gospel in
Matthew 28:20 Jesus instructed the Apostles in Jerusalem to teach others to
obey everything He had commanded which would include obeying the commandments.
Matthew 19:17,
“Why do you ask Me about what is
good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One
who is good. If you want to enter life,
obey the commandments.”
Matthew 23:1-3,
Then Jesus said to the crowds and
to His disciples: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’
seat. So you must obey them and do
everything they tell you. But do not do
what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.”
But under the Grace Gospel
concerning the law Jesus instructed the Apostle Paul to teach us:
Romans 3:20,
“Therefore no one will be
declared righteous in His sight by observing the law; rather, through the law
we become conscious of sin.”
1 Corinthians 15:56,
“The sting of death is sin, and
the power of sin is the law.”
Romans 5:20,
“The law was added so that the
trespass might increase.”
Romans 7:5,
“For when we were controlled by
the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our
bodies, so that we bore fruit for death.”
Romans 6:14,
“For sin shall not be your
master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”
Romans 7:4,
“So, my brothers, you also died
to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to Him
who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.”
Galatians 5:1,
“It is for freedom that Christ
has set us free. Stand firm, then, and
do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery (the law).”
Under the Kingdom Gospel a person
had to obey the Commandments in order to enter life. Under the Grace Gospel a person isn’t under
law.
CONCLUSION
Under the Gospel of the Kingdom a
person received the cancellation of their sin debt through water baptism, had
to forgive in order to be forgiven, endure until the end in order to be saved,
and obey the commandments in order to enter life. Under the Gospel of the Grace of God a person
has the cancellation of their sin debt through the blood of Christ, forgives
because they’ve already been forgiven, is sealed by the Holy Spirit until the
day of redemption, and is not under the law.
Things that are different are not
the same. The Gospel of the Grace of God
that Jesus gave to the Apostle Paul to teach us is not the same as the Gospel
of the Kingdom intended for the Jews.
We see that the content of the
instructions Jesus gave to the Apostles in Jerusalem to teach the Jews
concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom is different than the content of the
instructions that Jesus gave the Apostle Paul to teach us concerning the Gospel
of the Grace of God. These two Gospels
are not the same, and are not to be mixed.
Today God is dealing with man through the Gospel of the Grace of God,
not through the Gospel of the Kingdom which is in a state of postponement. The instructions Jesus gave to the Apostles
in Jerusalem concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom for the Jews are not how a
person is saved from God’s wrath today.
As the result of the Jews rejecting their King, Jesus revealed a mystery
to the Apostle Paul that had been hidden in God. Today a person is not saved by following the
instructions concerning the Gospel of the Kingdom. A person is not saved today by going through
Israel. A person is not saved through
God’s promises to Israel. A person is
not saved through Israel’s covenants. A
person is not saved through obedience to the law. A person is brought near to God today through
the blood of Christ, what Jesus accomplished for you at the cross, by grace
alone through faith alone in what Christ has done alone:
https://rightlydividingthewordoftruth77.blogspot.com/2021/03/gospel-of-grace-of-god.html
