Understanding the Process of Salvation in Romans (Part 4 - He staggered not, but was strong in faith)

Start this lesson series here: 
Understanding the Process of Salvation in Romans (Part 1)

Understanding the Process of Salvation in Romans (Part 4 - He staggered not, but was strong in faith)

Rom 4:3-5  For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

In the beginning of Romans, Paul appealed to us (the reader of his epistles) that we should have faith in ‘the faith’; our doctrine that God inspired Paul to write, that contains the principles which should govern our lives. We should have faith not only in the words he wrote, but we ought to have faith that they are the very words of God, 1Cor.14:37; God’s will for us, His desires for us, the way He wants us to walk and function as members of the Body of Christ.

Now, in chapter four of Romans, after having delivered the doctrine of justification: concerning the wrath of God, concerning His righteousness and justice, and concerning His love for us through His Son, Paul writes to us of faith, again, appealing to us to have faith in the gospel, in like manner that Abraham had faith in God, believing that He was able to do what He promised Abraham,

Rom 4:20  He [Abraham] staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;  (21)  And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.  (22)  And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

God's Forbearance and Righteousness revealed in Christ

God's Forbearance and Righteousness revealed in Christ

Rom.3:24-26  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  (25)  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;  (26)  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Imagine I told people that the only way to be justified with God was to jump across the ocean to another country; obviously, that would be impossible. Without God's grace, this would serve as a good illustration of how unattainable it is for us humans to be justified before God. However, what does the human heart do? What about sinners who believe they can earn their salvation through their efforts? In their ignorance, they attempt this challenge regardless—one person jumps two feet and falls far short, while another jumps twenty feet and, instead of acknowledging how far he still is from the other side of the ocean, turns around and says, "Look how much better I am than that guy."

The point of the matter is, the man that jumps the furthest is in the deepest water. It's the people in this world who compare themselves with drug addicts and serial killers and pedophiles that are in the most trouble because they're comparing themselves to everybody around them and refusing to acknowledge how far short of the glory of God they've fallen. They think they are in a different category because they are not as bad as those people. They seem to ignore the fact that in the sight of God, they are as guilty and vile as addicts, murderers and pedophiles. What does John say, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” 1Jn.1:8. People who think they are more righteous than the person next to them are deceived and lie to themselves. The scriptures say that all have sinned, and all have come short of the glory of God. 

Our salvation does not end at the cross! There is MUCH MORE to what Jesus did for us!

His cross marks the start of your salvation, His resurrection is God's power to run the race and win the prize of the high calling of God.

Don't be blinded in your mind by the enemy. Don't remain ignorant and childlike in the faith. Get into the Word of God and let it educate and sharpen you unto the full redemption plan of God and His purpose for your future and vocation in the ages to come. Our Lord's cross marks the start of your salvation; His resurrection is God's power to run the race and win the prize of the high calling of God.

Read this important message here:

https://thebigpictureviews.blogspot.com/2024/09/his-cross-marks-start-of-your-salvation.html

Understanding functional death and spiritual life in Paul's doctrine

Understanding functional death and spiritual life in Paul's doctrine

The reason a lot of people don’t have assurance of salvation today is because their faith has never been rooted and grounded in the first cornerstone of the Romans foundation, concerning the righteousness of God. Israel was ignorant of God's righteousness, and because of that, they continued to establish their own, Rom.10:1-4. One can distinguish a man who has placed his trust in the righteousness of God from one who has not. The man who hasn’t, is still trying to establish their own righteousness through the works of the law. Righteousness under the grace doctrine is not our own righteousness, nor our repentance, nor some religious experience we had 25 years ago. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believes. Our faith today is rooted and grounded upon the very righteousness of God through Christ, Rom.3:21-28.

Look at Rom.5:21: “That as sin hath reigned unto death...” How then did sin reign unto death? Through Adam's disobedience and the law of God. Let’s continue, “As sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness.” Now let’s ask, “who’s righteousness is this verse speaking of?” Yours and mine? God’s grace doesn’t reign through our righteousness, God’s grace reigns through the righteousness of His Son. You have access now to the grace of God because of Christ's righteousness, not yours. And the purpose of this grace that now reigns through righteousness is to get rid of the death that came by sin and to bring eternal life. Life and death deal with your relationship to sin and righteousness. A man that’s bound to sin is a man that’s in death. A man who cannot live unto righteousness is a man that’s dead to God. Romans 6 and 7 speaks a lot concerning death, but this is not death in the context of our physical death. Much of the context of death in these chapters is functional death, meaning that a person has no profit to God and cannot function in the spirit of righteousness and godliness. 

Manifesting true righteousness through obedience to Christ

Manifesting true righteousness through obedience to Christ

Romans 6:16 presents a profound concept: "Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness." 

This verse is intriguing, and many people miss the peculiarity of it. Take a look at what it says. One is either a servant of sin, which leads to death, or a servant of obedience, which leads to righteousness. You might be persuaded to interpret the verse saying that one is either a servant of sin leading to death or a servant of righteousness leading to life. However, this interpretation is contrary to what Paul taught. Let me explain. Although Paul, as pertaining to the old covenant  said, "For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them", Rom.10:5, and to the Galatians he said, "for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law", look what he said pertaining to our grace doctrine, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.  (21)  I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.", Gal 2:20-21. You see, Paul didn't say that you serve sin unto death or righteousness unto life; there's something else you have to obey, and its obedience. But what does that mean?

Romans 5:19 tells us: "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." 

Fulfilling the law by walking after the Spirit [of the written Word]

Fulfilling the law by walking after the Spirit [of the written Word]

There is a spirit that's been given to us in the word of God, and when we let it fill our hearts, it begins to work effectually in us to free us from the law of sin and death, so that we can serve God. In Rom.8:2-4, Paul tells us, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (3) For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: (4) That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." The sin in our lives has already been judged, and we don’t have to carry that judgment anymore. Yes, sin exists, but we are not obligated to follow it: we are not a debtor to the flesh. God has not asked us to fix our flesh; he's asked us to reckon it dead. Quit trying to fix it. The moment we try to fix it is the moment we've given it back its power. It's dead, it's condemned; we don't have to fix anything in it.

God did this so that we could fulfill His law, which we couldn’t do in the flesh because of our sin, and now through his Spirit, the righteousness of the law is being fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit. The moment we try to fix our sinful nature ourselves, we lose the battle. God has freely given us the gift of life through His Son, who has risen from the dead. We need to learn how to come into union with Christ, because without this union to Christ through the written Word, we can be a redeemed soul that delights in God and wants to do God's will, yet never find the power to do what God wants. It’s important to understand how to live in unity with the Son of God through the Spirit [of the written Word], so that He can work his life in us to bring forth fruit unto God.

That FORM of Doctrine (Part 2 - Inform)

That FORM of Doctrine (Part 2 - Inform)

Start this lesson series at with the Introduction here.

Inform (Information - The Work of Faith)

Rom 6:17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart THAT FORM OF DOCTRINE which was delivered you.

If you are not delivering a sound form of doctrine, all you are doing is preaching stories and fables based on a vain imagination.

Rom_1:21  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

1Ti_1:4  Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith:

2Ti_1:13  Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

What do we mean by form?

The doctrine and sound words that Paul gave to us by inspiration of God is structured in a specific form. It’s in the form of a curriculum that is designed to save us and then educate us from babes in Christ to sons of God. Since it has a design, we cannot just live on a few favourite scriptures. We cannot isolate a few passages and not study the form.

Present your Bodies (Part 3)

Present your Bodies (Part 3)

Where is the dead body going to get life from?

1Cor 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

God breathed into the nostrils of the man, and he became a living soul. But since the fall of Adam, man is now dead in trespasses and sins. Where’s man going to get life from now? The law? Philosophy? Science?

Rom 8:10  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

The law of sin and death is no longer the only law operating in a believer. There is now another law operating within them too; the law of life and righteousness that frees them from the law of sin and death.

Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Rom 8:11  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

Righteousness and Life of Christ functional in us. (Dead to sin and delivered from the law)

Righteousness and Life of Christ functional in us. (Dead to sin and delivered from the law)

God put you under grace not so that Adam’s sin and death could continue to reign in you. He put you under grace so that the righteousness and life of His Son could work in you to produce fruit unto holiness for Him. This message provides a clear and understandable presentation of how grace works in us, and how to correctly understand the foundational concepts of Romans 6 and 7. 

I encourage you to listen to this video and learn some valuable insights of how grace changes us.

Righteousness and Life of Christ functional in us. (Dead to sin and delivered from the law)

Concerning SIN, the confession of sin, and defeating sin

Concerning SIN, the confession of sin, and defeating sin.

IN RESPONSE TO THIS MEMBER’S COMMENT:

We will sin until we are in eternity with the Lord, when sin will no longer exists. It’s important to confess our sins to Him daily, perhaps begin each day surrendering our will to His. It’s possible to sin less and less though…

ANSWER:

I agree that we certainly will sin less as our minds and hearts get renewed by the living Word of God and our thoughts and actions are brought under the obedience of the Word.

As concerning confession, it is good to sense remorse for sin and come to God with a contrite heart, but there is no need (or law) dictating the importance and ‘must’ regarding daily confessing our sins. Please don’t misunderstand me. I come to God with remorse and sorrow for falling in moments of weakness, but it will not affect my relationship with God if I do not confess my sins every day. Why? Because God already sees you as absolutely righteous because of Christ. His righteousness has already been applied to you. Your flesh remains corrupt and prone to sin, but your spirit is perfect in His sight. If one places oneself under a law (or under a rule) to confess sins, as with any other rule to try to work out your own righteousness, all it will do is bring condemnation. We must be careful not to have laws dictate our relationship with God. We should aim to come out from under law as children and to grow up in the truth of the Word and walk in the liberty of the spirit as sons of God. To be bound by the dictates of laws which can never be perfectly followed anyways is not the way God indented for us to walk.

Why is it that those who argue against the simplicity of obtaining righteousness never tend to strive against the simplicity of obtaining unrighteousness!?

Why is it that those who argue against the simplicity of obtaining righteousness never tend to strive against the simplicity of obtaining unrighteousness!

Have a look at these two verses in Romans 5.

Rom 5:12  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 

…….

Rom 5:19  For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 

There are many people who are fully convinced of our guilt before God because of the sin of ONE man which was imputed to all of us and declared us to be sinners and guilty before God. But I find it interesting that there are very few people who are fully convinced of our justification before God because of the righteousness of ONE man which was imputed to us who believe in Him who declares us to be righteous and innocent before God.

If by one man sin came into the world and death by sin, surely it stands to reason that by one man righteousness came into the world and life by righteousness.

Questions on the two kinds of righteousness.

Comment in response to the following post: 
https://thebigpicturelink.blogspot.com/2024/03/two-types-of-righteousness.html

COMMENT:

So, if it’s two types of righteousness what is Paul expressing here Romans 10:3-5 and in Deuteronomy 6:25; Romans 7:7 and in 1 John 3:4

If you say there are two types of righteousness, one by law and the other by faith, then how can Paul say one thing in the above verses and then turn around and say the opposite in those scriptures you put in your answer? 

Oh yes, Paul is also teaching from the Old Testament! So where in the Old Testament does it prophecy TWO types of righteousness?

2 Peter 3:15 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

2 Peter 3:16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

Two Types of Righteousness

Two Types of Righteousness

The Bible speaks of two types of righteousness. There is a righteousness of the law and there is a righteousness of faith.

Php 3:6-9  Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.  (7)  But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.  (8)  Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,  (9)  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Paul clearly points to his own righteousness, which is of the law and by man’s works, but then he mentions another righteousness which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.

DM#18: Our spiritual position and physical condition

Doctrine of the Mysteries #18

Our spiritual position and physical condition

Read the five verses below slowly and carefully and then compare the first two verses to the last three. There is a HUGE difference in how Paul describes the believers at Corinth.

1 Cor 1:2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are SANCTIFIED in Christ Jesus, CALLED SAINTS, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord,

1 Cor 1:30 But of Him YOU ARE IN CHRIST JESUS, who became for us wisdom from God —and RIGHTEOUSNESS and SANCTIFICATION and redemption—

1 Cor 3:3 ...for YOU ARE STILL CARNAL. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?

1 Cor 5:1 It is actually reported that THERE IS FORNICATION AMONG YOU, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father's wife!

1 Cor 5:2 And YOU ARE PUFFED UP, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you.

Do you notice a difference? Paul is writing to the Christians at Corinth, a city infamous for its immorality. The last three verses reveal the low spiritual condition of the Corinthians, the fact that they were still carnal Christians, full of pride and still babes in the understanding of spiritual things. BUT, Paul calls them 'saints' in the first verse! Did you get that!

DM#4: The grace gospel, to all nations

Doctrine of the Mysteries #4

Rom 1:14 I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. (15) So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. (16) For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (17) For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

The grace gospel, to all nations

When the Lord chose Paul to be the apostle and minister of the Mysteries, He indicated to Paul that this message was for everyone, saying,

Act 9:15 … bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:

Similarly, Paul confirms this condition in our key verse saying that he was a debtor to the Greeks and the Barbarians. The term, Greeks, could denote “those who dwelt in Greece”, but it can also be synonymous with those who are civilized, or refined, or the wise. As for Barbarians, the term itself, properly denotes one who speaks a foreign language, or a foreigner, and the Greeks applied it to all who did not use their tongue. See the following verse for example,

Understanding Sin Under Grace

Understanding Sin Under Grace

When Paul tells the Roman believers, “You're not under the law but under grace” (Rom 6:14), he then rhetorically asks, “what then, shall we sin because we're not under the law but under grace?” (Rom 6:15). The answer should be obvious, but Paul hammers it down when he says, “God forbid!”

So, how do we understand this? As grace believers, do we have liberty, or is sin still sin under grace?

Yes! Sin is still sin. Grace does not redefine what sin is. In other words, lying, for example, is still wrong. However, what God’s grace does do, is free you from the penalty of death that sin demands. If you're not under the law, then the penalty of sin is not going to be imputed to you, Rom 5:13.

However, even though sins penalty is not imputed to you, and even though you won’t go to hell for it, there is a consequence. 

In Rom 6:16, Paul says, “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”. 

The issue of sin for a believer today is not an issue of wrong, but of relationship. You can't serve God while obeying sin! You cannot grow spiritually if you obey sin. Christ will not be formed in you. The Word will not take root in your mind. Your relationship with God will suffer. Faith will diminish. Paul informs us that sin results in death, not the eternal death, but a death to the functioning of the Word and God's Spirit within us. Sin still kills the work of the Spirit within us. On the other hand, if we obey righteousness, then the Word thrives in us, and through that Spirit we mortify the deeds of the flesh.

Since we, as believers, are not under the law, but grace, the law cannot condemn us to an eternal death. However, if we choose not to be renewed and influenced by the written Word but rather to continue in sin, then we forfeit our effectual service to God, and our ‘reward’ in the ages to come! That's the issue today. It is not about losing salvation or hell. It is not about laws and rules. If you want to serve God, then know that you can't live in obedience to sin.

Two systems of righteousness

Two systems of righteousness

Rom 4:4-5  Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.  5  But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

This verse highlights two systems of righteousness. One where a person can work for righteousness, and where righteousness is later indebted to that one. The second is where one does not work for it, but it is accounted to them freely because they choose to believe that God will keep His word and justify them.

Most of the religious world is under the system where they are trying to earn righteousness by their works. The world’s major religions of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and even most denominations of Christianity are entrapped in a works system that is trying to indebt God into paying them with righteousness for their works. What separates true believers from religion is that they have placed their trust in Christ and believe that God will justify them for their faith and not their works.

Can we fall from grace by our will to sin? What does the Bible say?

QUESTION/STATEMENT:

Heb 10:26-27  For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,  27  But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Hebrews 6:4 and several others make it plain that a person may choose their sin over salvation and many do. Saying that they weren’t really saved beforehand is twisting the Word of God to make it say what it plainly does not.

We are in agreement that salvation is by grace through faith alone, without any mixture of works. We seem to disagree that a Christian will continue in grace despite choosing willful sin. The Bible clearly teaches that we can fall from grace by our will to sin.

It is not law, but rather the written Word within us that mortifies the flesh and defeats sin

... Continued from this post.

It is not law, but rather the written Word within us that mortifies the flesh and defeats sin

We, as humans, associate that which is good with law or morality. Society functions in relative peace and safety because of the law. We teach our children obedience to the law, believing it will protect them and serve them when they leave the proverbial nest. The law, rules, regulations, standards, general morality in practice, and any other term to describe a form of decency and acceptability in thought and action, is the base element that suppresses evil, curbs sins, and keeps us functioning in our relationships with others, and our faith in God.

Now, the law might be the common way that humans try to curb evil and keep morality in check, but the Word of God has different advice for this very issue. The Bible tells us that sin and evil is in the flesh, Rom.7:17-20, 24. It teaches us that although the law is good, Rom.7:7, 12, 14, it has little effect on the root cause of sin, Rom.7:9. The Word of God does not attempt to ‘band-aid’ the root of evil, it provides a different solution, one that mortifies the flesh, and in so doing, nullifies sin, Rom 6:7.

The Four Cornerstones of Romans (Part 9: Widowed from the Law by Christ's Death)

Start this post series from the beginning, here.

The Four Cornerstones of Romans (Part 9: Widowed from the Law by the Christ's Death)

In Romans chapter 6, Paul has put much focus on the truth that we have died to the old Adamic administration, and therefore we have much to learn and know to renew our minds to this fact. It is our minds, and the pattern of our thinking, that must come up to the same level as the reality of our justification in heaven. Because of its foundational context, this knowledge is the first thing that we should learn, and know, after we get saved. Our minds must become so in tune with what Christ’s administration means, that our actions, reactions, thoughts, and language, should change to match the reality of the attributes in this new administration we have been transferred into.

But, where Romans 6 talks about our death to Adam’s administration, it is chapter 7 that introduces our separation from another stumbling block, —the law. Paul likens the believer to have been married to the law, but now, through Christ’s death, and our union with His death, we have been widowed from the law. As important it is to understand that we are dead to Adam’s administration, it is of equal importance that we understand our widowed status to the law.