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I am sorry. Are you saying you do not walk in righteousness at any point in your life?
You do not understand building your house upon the rock?
There is nothing in the 10 commandments or the sermon on the mount I have a problem with.
But you guys are talking deeper than this, you are using the word perfection as if you fail all the time.
Yet you claim to be born again, walking in the light where it is impossible to walk in darkness because you have a new heart.
You cannot hold to a model of a perfect new heart, and then fail so simply, or the model is wrong.
If you hold a christian can walk in the flesh, you admit their is choice involved.
If someone who is saved walks in rebellion or sin, ie sleeps around, ignores the consequences, sears his conscience, in your eyes he cannot have been saved at the beginning?
I can only testify Jesus said people among us would be like this. Many will grow cold and love in their hearts die.
It is an eternal reality, if love dies you are just a husk without a heart.
Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. If we do not abide in Him and His words in us, we become a dry dead stick only worthy to be burned. It is as clear as day, some will walk this path. But it does not deny the power of Gods love, if you put it into action.
But you do not believe this because you have tried and failed. This just confirms your heart state was not right and you chose a different path. But there still is hope, rather than just giving up and saying all are saved except the obvious no hopers.
You do not understand building your house upon the rock?
There is nothing in the 10 commandments or the sermon on the mount I have a problem with.
But you guys are talking deeper than this, you are using the word perfection as if you fail all the time.
Yet you claim to be born again, walking in the light where it is impossible to walk in darkness because you have a new heart.
You cannot hold to a model of a perfect new heart, and then fail so simply, or the model is wrong.
If you hold a christian can walk in the flesh, you admit their is choice involved.
If someone who is saved walks in rebellion or sin, ie sleeps around, ignores the consequences, sears his conscience, in your eyes he cannot have been saved at the beginning?
I can only testify Jesus said people among us would be like this. Many will grow cold and love in their hearts die.
It is an eternal reality, if love dies you are just a husk without a heart.
Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. If we do not abide in Him and His words in us, we become a dry dead stick only worthy to be burned. It is as clear as day, some will walk this path. But it does not deny the power of Gods love, if you put it into action.
But you do not believe this because you have tried and failed. This just confirms your heart state was not right and you chose a different path. But there still is hope, rather than just giving up and saying all are saved except the obvious no hopers.
You do not talk about Jesus in the sense of what he said and meant.
You deny Jesus's words have any authority spoken before the cross.
You deny the basic commands to obedience and following Jesus as a human being.
You deny sanctification or choice in the walk with the Lord.
You claim good works are adding to salvation and not just a reflection of love working out from the heart.
You deny confession of sins.
You deny repentance.
You claim to have a new perfect nature in you, which fails to have victory over the flesh.
You accuse everyone who does not hold your view of hyper-grace of not being christian.
You have created a split personality to the nature of being a born again christian without any evidence.
You deny walking in righteousness, and constantly admit to sinning, but will not specify what sins or how.
So saying all the grace stuff is meaningless with this vast array of beliefs and positions which deny your actual true communion with the Lord. There is not one word spoken by Jesus you can not accept without denying Him.
The most we can do is interpret its meaning and put it into the right context. But this appears to not be the hyper-grace way.
Unfortunately I have met these strategies before, changing positions to suit an argument and not being consistent. It is called creating a mirage, and is not honest in its nature.
You deny Jesus's words have any authority spoken before the cross.
You deny the basic commands to obedience and following Jesus as a human being.
You deny sanctification or choice in the walk with the Lord.
You claim good works are adding to salvation and not just a reflection of love working out from the heart.
You deny confession of sins.
You deny repentance.
You claim to have a new perfect nature in you, which fails to have victory over the flesh.
You accuse everyone who does not hold your view of hyper-grace of not being christian.
You have created a split personality to the nature of being a born again christian without any evidence.
You deny walking in righteousness, and constantly admit to sinning, but will not specify what sins or how.
So saying all the grace stuff is meaningless with this vast array of beliefs and positions which deny your actual true communion with the Lord. There is not one word spoken by Jesus you can not accept without denying Him.
The most we can do is interpret its meaning and put it into the right context. But this appears to not be the hyper-grace way.
Unfortunately I have met these strategies before, changing positions to suit an argument and not being consistent. It is called creating a mirage, and is not honest in its nature.
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:3
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Matt 7:2
My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.
1 cor 4:4
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.
1 Cor 4:5
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.Phil 4:8
John 15:3
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Matt 7:2
My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.
1 cor 4:4
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.
1 Cor 4:5
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.Phil 4:8
Dear reader,
Reading an article about hyper-grace a preacher who claimed he had not denied Jesus's words were irrelevant to a christian prior to the cross. It was called a slander.
In books, preaching and articles this is exactly what he had said.
Now a person who claims righteousness and yet lies so easily without a conscience has a serious spiritual failure.
And among teachers who are teaching such heresy, this is serious. No man can be taken seriously with this level of manipulation and playing to a non-critical audience.
So if I list basic beliefs this group has and someone says I am miss-representing them, either they are not aware of what is being taught or they are not consistent or honest with the theology they are signing up to.
In the Lord there is no halfway house on these issues, they are that fundamental and important.
Reading an article about hyper-grace a preacher who claimed he had not denied Jesus's words were irrelevant to a christian prior to the cross. It was called a slander.
In books, preaching and articles this is exactly what he had said.
Now a person who claims righteousness and yet lies so easily without a conscience has a serious spiritual failure.
And among teachers who are teaching such heresy, this is serious. No man can be taken seriously with this level of manipulation and playing to a non-critical audience.
So if I list basic beliefs this group has and someone says I am miss-representing them, either they are not aware of what is being taught or they are not consistent or honest with the theology they are signing up to.
In the Lord there is no halfway house on these issues, they are that fundamental and important.
And that would be Myth 8: Hyper-Grace Preachers Disregard the Words of Jesus
Hyper-grace preachers say the words of Jesus are not for us. They have no authority and are irrelevant to the modern church.”
One of the strangest claims made against hyper-grace preachers is that we are dismissive of the pre-cross teachings of Jesus. In point of fact, hyper-grace preachers are the only ones taking Jesus seriously. When Jesus is preaching law, we say that’s authentic law, not to be taken lightly. And when Jesus is revealing grace, we bow in awestruck gratitude. We would not dare re-interpret his words with qualifiers and caveats.
In contrast, those who preach a mixed-grace message dismiss the hard words of Jesus as hyperbole and exaggeration. “Jesus didn’t mean what he said about chopping off limbs or being perfect.” Like the Pharisees of old, they pick and choose those commands which are to be followed while disregarding others as metaphorical, unreal, and not to be taken seriously.
To be fair, the misperception that hyper-grace preachers reject the teachings of Jesus is based on a kernel of truth, which is this: Everything Jesus said is good, but not everything Jesus said is good for you. Or to put it another way, Jesus spoke words the whole world needs to hear, but you are not the whole world.
What you hear in the words of Jesus reflects what is in your heart. If you are standing on your own righteousness you will hear law like you’ve never heard it before. “You have heard it said … but I say unto you …”
Jesus preached tough, merciless law that leaves no margin for error. “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48).
The message is clear. Either you must be perfect or you must be represented by One who is.
However, if you already know that you are not perfect, you need to hear Jesus’ words of grace. You need to hear him speak about his Father who loves you, cares for you, and offers you his righteousness (Matt. 6:33).
A mixed-grace preacher reads the words of Jesus selectively but a hyper-grace preacher values everything Jesus says. He recognizes that Jesus is the perfect Physician who always prescribes the perfect medicine. He gives law to the smug and grace to the needy.
No matter who you are or where you are on your journey, Jesus has life-saving words for you
You can click on the blue in the above words to go to more information if interested..
Hyper-grace preachers say the words of Jesus are not for us. They have no authority and are irrelevant to the modern church.”
One of the strangest claims made against hyper-grace preachers is that we are dismissive of the pre-cross teachings of Jesus. In point of fact, hyper-grace preachers are the only ones taking Jesus seriously. When Jesus is preaching law, we say that’s authentic law, not to be taken lightly. And when Jesus is revealing grace, we bow in awestruck gratitude. We would not dare re-interpret his words with qualifiers and caveats.
In contrast, those who preach a mixed-grace message dismiss the hard words of Jesus as hyperbole and exaggeration. “Jesus didn’t mean what he said about chopping off limbs or being perfect.” Like the Pharisees of old, they pick and choose those commands which are to be followed while disregarding others as metaphorical, unreal, and not to be taken seriously.
To be fair, the misperception that hyper-grace preachers reject the teachings of Jesus is based on a kernel of truth, which is this: Everything Jesus said is good, but not everything Jesus said is good for you. Or to put it another way, Jesus spoke words the whole world needs to hear, but you are not the whole world.
What you hear in the words of Jesus reflects what is in your heart. If you are standing on your own righteousness you will hear law like you’ve never heard it before. “You have heard it said … but I say unto you …”
Jesus preached tough, merciless law that leaves no margin for error. “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48).
The message is clear. Either you must be perfect or you must be represented by One who is.
However, if you already know that you are not perfect, you need to hear Jesus’ words of grace. You need to hear him speak about his Father who loves you, cares for you, and offers you his righteousness (Matt. 6:33).
A mixed-grace preacher reads the words of Jesus selectively but a hyper-grace preacher values everything Jesus says. He recognizes that Jesus is the perfect Physician who always prescribes the perfect medicine. He gives law to the smug and grace to the needy.
No matter who you are or where you are on your journey, Jesus has life-saving words for you
You can click on the blue in the above words to go to more information if interested..
I do understand Gods Perfection. The description of His Perfection is in the 10 Commandments.
A further description of His Perfection is in the fruits of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5.
His Perfection is chronicled all throughout the bible, specifically in the Gospels. I suppose I would say its spiritually discerned.
Your obvious mistake is bringing down the description of Perfection found in the law to a point where you think you fulfill it by your deeds and behaviour.
A careful reading of Matthew 5 should show any person that they fall short of this mark.
I think having Faith, or even Hyper-Faith in the promises of God found in His Word, is not a sign of spiritual failure but a sure sign of Spiritual Succes in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
Psalm 46:10 “Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Do you understand that first part about being still, not striving?
A further description of His Perfection is in the fruits of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5.
His Perfection is chronicled all throughout the bible, specifically in the Gospels. I suppose I would say its spiritually discerned.
Your obvious mistake is bringing down the description of Perfection found in the law to a point where you think you fulfill it by your deeds and behaviour.
A careful reading of Matthew 5 should show any person that they fall short of this mark.
I think having Faith, or even Hyper-Faith in the promises of God found in His Word, is not a sign of spiritual failure but a sure sign of Spiritual Succes in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
Psalm 46:10 “Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Do you understand that first part about being still, not striving?
Two issues. Was Jesus right to say it is better to pluck out your eye or remove your hand than be thrown into Hell? Yes.
If you do not deal with lust and desire, intimacy and being really loved, it will destroy you. Unfortunately plucking your eye out or removing your hand will not change the state of your heart, but it is showing the importance of righteousness and the issues that drive the heart.
Perfection. We are to follow Jesus's example, but Jesus's example is not clear. What is clear is Jesus's commands.
What is also clear is Gods love for the evil and the good. This we are called to do in righteousness.
Now I find it strange that those who claim to have a perfect, pure new heart, now confess sin enslaves their soul, and that defeat is the only image that dominates their mind. To stop this self condemnation which they blame the law to do, they say ignore your conscience and just accept Gods forgiveness into eternity and do not be careful about your behaviour, because you are in Christ it does not matter.
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.
2 Cor 7:1
Here is Paul encouraging us believers to purify ourselves, perfecting holiness.
This is not a man who believes he has a perfect pure heart with no need of perfecting or without the possibility of contamination, rather we go from a place of impurity to a place of purity.
You hate this idea, calling it evil, because you believe we do not have redeemed hearts which need sanctification over time, and this teaching is evil and wrong. But here is Paul teaching it.
The road to hell leads by denial of ones conscience and not looking at how you behave. That is walking in darkness and letting slavery to sin run riot. If your conscience condemns you, then deal with it, confess and seek help from others, get real and know this is not a place God wants you to be in. Abandoning the faith does not deal with failure it just obscures it.
If you do not deal with lust and desire, intimacy and being really loved, it will destroy you. Unfortunately plucking your eye out or removing your hand will not change the state of your heart, but it is showing the importance of righteousness and the issues that drive the heart.
Perfection. We are to follow Jesus's example, but Jesus's example is not clear. What is clear is Jesus's commands.
What is also clear is Gods love for the evil and the good. This we are called to do in righteousness.
Now I find it strange that those who claim to have a perfect, pure new heart, now confess sin enslaves their soul, and that defeat is the only image that dominates their mind. To stop this self condemnation which they blame the law to do, they say ignore your conscience and just accept Gods forgiveness into eternity and do not be careful about your behaviour, because you are in Christ it does not matter.
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.
2 Cor 7:1
Here is Paul encouraging us believers to purify ourselves, perfecting holiness.
This is not a man who believes he has a perfect pure heart with no need of perfecting or without the possibility of contamination, rather we go from a place of impurity to a place of purity.
You hate this idea, calling it evil, because you believe we do not have redeemed hearts which need sanctification over time, and this teaching is evil and wrong. But here is Paul teaching it.
The road to hell leads by denial of ones conscience and not looking at how you behave. That is walking in darkness and letting slavery to sin run riot. If your conscience condemns you, then deal with it, confess and seek help from others, get real and know this is not a place God wants you to be in. Abandoning the faith does not deal with failure it just obscures it.
Let me break this down. As a redeemed christian, walking in righteousness, grace and truth, I am not walking in perfection as God intended? If this is so then the gospel is empty.
Now the problem is in reality others only see the outer man and not the inner man, which God knows, so real righteousness will be revealed when Jesus returns.
What your criticism is no one can walk like this.
"A careful reading of Matthew 5 should show any person that they fall short of this mark."
This is not true but a confession of areas you have not walked rightly in before the Lord. The truth is you do not fully believe God knows you and has accepted and forgiven you as you are today. Whatever the failure you are feeling condemned about, the Lord can deal with it. But you do not believe that.
The problem is simple in the end. Is Jesus's standard worthy of working towards? Is His promise of eternal life real and the Kingdom here today? If you believe these are true, then however your failure expresses itself, you are to seek help, to share, to work it through, to know Jesus went to the cross to make the impossible possible. Slavery is real and how it binds the soul very deep. In His strength everything can be achieved, but you have to give up doing it in your own strength and admit where you are and why.
Now the problem is in reality others only see the outer man and not the inner man, which God knows, so real righteousness will be revealed when Jesus returns.
What your criticism is no one can walk like this.
"A careful reading of Matthew 5 should show any person that they fall short of this mark."
This is not true but a confession of areas you have not walked rightly in before the Lord. The truth is you do not fully believe God knows you and has accepted and forgiven you as you are today. Whatever the failure you are feeling condemned about, the Lord can deal with it. But you do not believe that.
The problem is simple in the end. Is Jesus's standard worthy of working towards? Is His promise of eternal life real and the Kingdom here today? If you believe these are true, then however your failure expresses itself, you are to seek help, to share, to work it through, to know Jesus went to the cross to make the impossible possible. Slavery is real and how it binds the soul very deep. In His strength everything can be achieved, but you have to give up doing it in your own strength and admit where you are and why.
Philippians 4:21-22 (NASB)
[SUP]21 [/SUP] Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you.
[SUP]22 [/SUP] All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household.
Even those saints in Corinth that were having sex with the temple prostitutes, those that were fighting amongst each other. ...taking each other to court...getting drunk at communion...eating all the food so that when the poor people came, there was no food left for them....that were as carnal as can be.....they were still called saints.
1 Corinthians 1:2 (NASB)
[SUP]2 [/SUP] To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:
have been sanctified = perfect passive
perfect tense = The basic thought of the perfect tense is that the progress of an action has been completed and the results of the action are continuing on, in full effect. In other words, the progress of the action has reached its culmination and the finished results are now in existence
passive voice = this means that an action has happened to you, you are not involved in the action,. you receive the action
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NASB)
[SUP]9 [/SUP] Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals,
[SUP]10 [/SUP] nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
[SUP]11 [/SUP] Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
Paul was telling the saints to identify with who you were now in Christ....not with your former ways of living.
Either we are either unrighteous ( unbeliever ) or justified/declared righteous in Christ ( believer ).
We were a sinner before Christ. Now we are a saint ( because of Him and our real selves are in Christ Jesus..the new creation, the inner man....the new man created in Christ Jesus in righteousness and holiness Eph 4:23-24 Col)
We have a new nature in Christ now. We are saints that sometimes sin.
It's all in the identity. Confess who you are in Christ - not what you were.
If we don't see that we are new creations in Christ, that He is our righteousness and life - we will never grow up! We can be a Christian for 50 years..even pastor a church for 60 years and still be a baby Christian.
2 Peter 3:18 (NASB)
[SUP]18 [/SUP] but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
[SUP]21 [/SUP] Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you.
[SUP]22 [/SUP] All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household.
Even those saints in Corinth that were having sex with the temple prostitutes, those that were fighting amongst each other. ...taking each other to court...getting drunk at communion...eating all the food so that when the poor people came, there was no food left for them....that were as carnal as can be.....they were still called saints.
1 Corinthians 1:2 (NASB)
[SUP]2 [/SUP] To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:
have been sanctified = perfect passive
perfect tense = The basic thought of the perfect tense is that the progress of an action has been completed and the results of the action are continuing on, in full effect. In other words, the progress of the action has reached its culmination and the finished results are now in existence
passive voice = this means that an action has happened to you, you are not involved in the action,. you receive the action
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NASB)
[SUP]9 [/SUP] Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals,
[SUP]10 [/SUP] nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
[SUP]11 [/SUP] Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
Paul was telling the saints to identify with who you were now in Christ....not with your former ways of living.
Either we are either unrighteous ( unbeliever ) or justified/declared righteous in Christ ( believer ).
We were a sinner before Christ. Now we are a saint ( because of Him and our real selves are in Christ Jesus..the new creation, the inner man....the new man created in Christ Jesus in righteousness and holiness Eph 4:23-24 Col)
We have a new nature in Christ now. We are saints that sometimes sin.
It's all in the identity. Confess who you are in Christ - not what you were.
If we don't see that we are new creations in Christ, that He is our righteousness and life - we will never grow up! We can be a Christian for 50 years..even pastor a church for 60 years and still be a baby Christian.
2 Peter 3:18 (NASB)
[SUP]18 [/SUP] but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
One can be self-focused or Christ-focused. We choose to be Christ focused and to believe what He did for us on the cross and in our resurrection with Him with the creation of the new man.....the inner man of the heart created in Christ Jesus in righteousness and true holiness. We identify that our "old man" died with Him and that we have been raised up in the new man in Christ now.....
D.I.Y. Holiness...this one might hurt!
Practical holiness is a term to beware of as it often comes hiding a fishhook. Much of it is pure mixture, as the following soundbites illustrate:
Holiness preaching that emphasizes what you must do is carnal Christianity. Make no mistake, it comes straight out of the old covenant. Heed this sort of teaching and you will exalt the flesh at the expense of grace. And it won’t make you holy.
There are at least four ways to determine whether the holiness message you’re listening to reflects the condemning covenant of the law or the new and liberating covenant of grace:
Old covenant holiness is based on who you are (a bit of a reprobate) and is sold as a list of things you must do; new covenant holiness is based on who Christ is (our holiness – 1 Cor 1:30) and what He has done (sanctified you – Heb 2:11, Rom 11:16)
.
Old covenant holiness emphasizes sacrifices you are expected to make; new covenant holiness emphasizes the perfectly perfect sacrifice of the Lamb, by which you were “perfected forever” (Heb 10:14).
Old covenant holiness is sold as a process of increasing sanctification – something “we grow into” as we become more like Christ; new covenant holiness is presented as a done deal (Heb 10:10).
Old covenant holiness comes with a big stick – “the Lord will condemn you if you don’t deliver”; new covenant holiness has exhortations but no sticks because there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1).
Ok...how do we walk out this holiness stuff then?
To be holy is to partake of His wholeness; it is to stop acting broken (because in Him we are not broken) and to allow Him to express His whole and beautiful life through us.
The challenge is that being holy is a new experience for us. As sinners, holiness was totally alien to us. That old lifestyle was characterized by brokenness and hurt. Now that we are in Him we have to learn to walk in our new and God-given identity.
The wrong way to approach this is to think of yourself as a flawed sinner trying to become holy. That’s not who you are and that’s not how it works. Instead, see yourself as a toddler learning to walk. Just as you wouldn’t spank an infant if they stumbled and fell, neither will your heavenly Father spank you. He doesn’t condemn you when you fall; He encourages you to get up and walk!
He has given you everything you need for life and godliness. In Christ you lack nothing. You just need to work out who you already are and what He has already given you. This is the adventure of holy living.
Practical holiness is a term to beware of as it often comes hiding a fishhook. Much of it is pure mixture, as the following soundbites illustrate:
- “Following Christ is a lifestyle.” (True.) “We’ve got to keep His commands to be His disciples.” (Nope – that’s backwards. That’s putting the fruit before the tree.)
- “Find out what pleases the Lord.” (Okay!) “Keeping His instructions pleases Him.” (No it does not – that’s faithless, law-based living that nullifies grace and inflames sin – read Romans 7. Jesus pleases the Lord. Trust Him.)
- “If you sow to the flesh you will reap destruction.” (Yep). “So we have to be earnest in getting people to change their behavior.” (But that’s sowing to the flesh! You’re setting them up for failure.)
Holiness preaching that emphasizes what you must do is carnal Christianity. Make no mistake, it comes straight out of the old covenant. Heed this sort of teaching and you will exalt the flesh at the expense of grace. And it won’t make you holy.
There are at least four ways to determine whether the holiness message you’re listening to reflects the condemning covenant of the law or the new and liberating covenant of grace:
Old covenant holiness is based on who you are (a bit of a reprobate) and is sold as a list of things you must do; new covenant holiness is based on who Christ is (our holiness – 1 Cor 1:30) and what He has done (sanctified you – Heb 2:11, Rom 11:16)
.
Old covenant holiness emphasizes sacrifices you are expected to make; new covenant holiness emphasizes the perfectly perfect sacrifice of the Lamb, by which you were “perfected forever” (Heb 10:14).
Old covenant holiness is sold as a process of increasing sanctification – something “we grow into” as we become more like Christ; new covenant holiness is presented as a done deal (Heb 10:10).
Old covenant holiness comes with a big stick – “the Lord will condemn you if you don’t deliver”; new covenant holiness has exhortations but no sticks because there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1).
Ok...how do we walk out this holiness stuff then?
To be holy is to partake of His wholeness; it is to stop acting broken (because in Him we are not broken) and to allow Him to express His whole and beautiful life through us.
The challenge is that being holy is a new experience for us. As sinners, holiness was totally alien to us. That old lifestyle was characterized by brokenness and hurt. Now that we are in Him we have to learn to walk in our new and God-given identity.
The wrong way to approach this is to think of yourself as a flawed sinner trying to become holy. That’s not who you are and that’s not how it works. Instead, see yourself as a toddler learning to walk. Just as you wouldn’t spank an infant if they stumbled and fell, neither will your heavenly Father spank you. He doesn’t condemn you when you fall; He encourages you to get up and walk!
He has given you everything you need for life and godliness. In Christ you lack nothing. You just need to work out who you already are and what He has already given you. This is the adventure of holy living.
Let's not wait until the Messiah has to set our theology straight when He returns and re-establishes the law of Yahweh as being the law of the land, let's seek to subject ourselves to it today, while cleaving to the understanding that it is only by grace that we are saved. For while the law can save no one, we are called to live as Messiah lived and walk as He walked. He was not a Sabbath breaker or swine eater. And He who is the same yesterday, today and forever now wants to manifest His life through us. Let's allow Him to do that!
Ok. Confession of sin is a problem.
Now if you believe you have command authority, or what you say dictates what you are, confessing sin makes you a sinner, which in this model means you are no longer saved and are worthy of judgement.
"The wrong way to approach this is to think of yourself as a flawed sinner trying to become holy. That’s not who you are and that’s not how it works."
This is the straw man argument, a flawed sinner trying to become holy. We are redeemed sinners with imputed righteousness, empowered by Jesus's example if we follow. If following we are transformed, washed clean, made new.
The flaw in the hyper-grace is to believe we are actually pure and holy, we have the knowledge and ability to walk.
The argument that we are toddlers, already admits we need to change, to grow, to be sanctified.
The reason for falling is not applying Jesus's love and acceptance to our hearts, and letting reality dawn. Sometimes it can be behaviour history, or how we normally react to situations needs to change. The first step is to admit you have failed, to confess it, and to ask Jesus to help you through the situation, to repent of the situation and walk aright. Nothing is simply one action in isolation, often many things have to change for sinful behaviour to be broken.
The problem is both understanding of sin and who we are in Christ, and who Christ is, is all important. The idea that any part of this is wrong is where heresy creeps in.
It is very difficult to talk about such subjects when the concepts behind faith vary but with the same language.
Also some rightly see Jesus's love and acceptance of us as we are is the key to walking, but righteousness and the law are important factors also.
In a real sense we are always mortals dependent on communion with the Lord or sinners saved by grace. It is important to always keep in mind our fragility, and we only stand because of Christs work within us.
Now if you believe you have command authority, or what you say dictates what you are, confessing sin makes you a sinner, which in this model means you are no longer saved and are worthy of judgement.
"The wrong way to approach this is to think of yourself as a flawed sinner trying to become holy. That’s not who you are and that’s not how it works."
This is the straw man argument, a flawed sinner trying to become holy. We are redeemed sinners with imputed righteousness, empowered by Jesus's example if we follow. If following we are transformed, washed clean, made new.
The flaw in the hyper-grace is to believe we are actually pure and holy, we have the knowledge and ability to walk.
The argument that we are toddlers, already admits we need to change, to grow, to be sanctified.
The reason for falling is not applying Jesus's love and acceptance to our hearts, and letting reality dawn. Sometimes it can be behaviour history, or how we normally react to situations needs to change. The first step is to admit you have failed, to confess it, and to ask Jesus to help you through the situation, to repent of the situation and walk aright. Nothing is simply one action in isolation, often many things have to change for sinful behaviour to be broken.
The problem is both understanding of sin and who we are in Christ, and who Christ is, is all important. The idea that any part of this is wrong is where heresy creeps in.
It is very difficult to talk about such subjects when the concepts behind faith vary but with the same language.
Also some rightly see Jesus's love and acceptance of us as we are is the key to walking, but righteousness and the law are important factors also.
In a real sense we are always mortals dependent on communion with the Lord or sinners saved by grace. It is important to always keep in mind our fragility, and we only stand because of Christs work within us.
And that would be Myth 2: Hyper-Grace Preachers are Against Confession
“Hyper-grace preachers say it’s wrong to confess sins. They say confession is a form of unbelief.” Actually, every hyper-grace preacher believes in the power of confession. We say things like, “confession is good for you,” and “confession is healthy.”
But what is confession?
Like the word repentance, confession is a word that has been mangled in the machinery of manmade religion. Instead of bringing healing to the hurting and life to the dead, confession is seen as the cost of admission into the house of grace. “You wanna be clean? Then ‘fess up you miserable sinner! Tell God your dirty little secrets.” But that’s not what confession is.
To confess literally means to agree with or say the same thing as another. Biblical confession is agreeing with God. It’s verbalizing faith in His goodness and acknowledging your dependence upon Him (Rom. 10:9–10). It’s saying, “God, I believe You are faithful and true and will do all that You promised.”
But some people have a different definition of confession. They think confession is something you must do to make yourself clean, righteous, and forgiven. “I have to review all my sins to receive forgiveness.” This is a dead work. Confessing-to-be-forgiven is like washing with dirty water. No matter how hard you scrub you won’t make yourself clean.
Faithless confession puts the focus on you and what you have done, but faith-based confession puts the focus on Christ and what He has done on your behalf.
Does that mean we should never confess or that it’s wrong to confess our sins? Not at all. Biblical confession is good for you. It will help you to walk in the grace that God has provided…
One of the clearest descriptions of confession comes from Max Lucado:
Confession is not complaining. If I merely recite my problems and rehash my woes, I’m whining … Confession is so much more. Confession is a radical reliance on grace. A proclamation of our trust in God’s goodness. “What I did was bad,” we acknowledge, “but your grace is greater than my sin, so I confess it.” If our understanding of grace is small, our confession will be small: reluctant, hesitant, hedged with excuses and qualifications, full of fear of punishment. But great grace creates an honest confession. (Grace, p.83)
We don’t repent and confess to get God to forgive us. We repent and confess because God has forgiven us. Your repentance and confession won’t change God, but it will surely change you. It will help you receive God’s life-changing grace. As Clark Whitten says, “Confession is for my healing, not for God’s forgiveness.”
Those who don’t understand this may point to 1 John 1:9 which seems to say God’s forgiveness is contingent upon our confession of sins. This scripture is so widely misunderstood that it gets mentioned in just about every book on grace. To paraphrase Andrew Farley, John cannot be saying God forgives us on account of our confession because just a few verses later he says we are already forgiven on account of Jesus’ name.
When you sin it takes no faith to beat yourself up and agree with the Accuser who calls you a sinner. It takes faith to look at the cross and say, “Thank you, Jesus, for carrying all my sin.” It takes faith to praise your Father for His superabounding grace that is greater than your transgression.
And it takes faith to agree with the Holy Spirit who says, despite what you did, you are still righteous, acceptable, and pleasing to God
“Hyper-grace preachers say it’s wrong to confess sins. They say confession is a form of unbelief.” Actually, every hyper-grace preacher believes in the power of confession. We say things like, “confession is good for you,” and “confession is healthy.”
But what is confession?
Like the word repentance, confession is a word that has been mangled in the machinery of manmade religion. Instead of bringing healing to the hurting and life to the dead, confession is seen as the cost of admission into the house of grace. “You wanna be clean? Then ‘fess up you miserable sinner! Tell God your dirty little secrets.” But that’s not what confession is.
To confess literally means to agree with or say the same thing as another. Biblical confession is agreeing with God. It’s verbalizing faith in His goodness and acknowledging your dependence upon Him (Rom. 10:9–10). It’s saying, “God, I believe You are faithful and true and will do all that You promised.”
But some people have a different definition of confession. They think confession is something you must do to make yourself clean, righteous, and forgiven. “I have to review all my sins to receive forgiveness.” This is a dead work. Confessing-to-be-forgiven is like washing with dirty water. No matter how hard you scrub you won’t make yourself clean.
Faithless confession puts the focus on you and what you have done, but faith-based confession puts the focus on Christ and what He has done on your behalf.
Does that mean we should never confess or that it’s wrong to confess our sins? Not at all. Biblical confession is good for you. It will help you to walk in the grace that God has provided…
One of the clearest descriptions of confession comes from Max Lucado:
Confession is not complaining. If I merely recite my problems and rehash my woes, I’m whining … Confession is so much more. Confession is a radical reliance on grace. A proclamation of our trust in God’s goodness. “What I did was bad,” we acknowledge, “but your grace is greater than my sin, so I confess it.” If our understanding of grace is small, our confession will be small: reluctant, hesitant, hedged with excuses and qualifications, full of fear of punishment. But great grace creates an honest confession. (Grace, p.83)
We don’t repent and confess to get God to forgive us. We repent and confess because God has forgiven us. Your repentance and confession won’t change God, but it will surely change you. It will help you receive God’s life-changing grace. As Clark Whitten says, “Confession is for my healing, not for God’s forgiveness.”
Those who don’t understand this may point to 1 John 1:9 which seems to say God’s forgiveness is contingent upon our confession of sins. This scripture is so widely misunderstood that it gets mentioned in just about every book on grace. To paraphrase Andrew Farley, John cannot be saying God forgives us on account of our confession because just a few verses later he says we are already forgiven on account of Jesus’ name.
When you sin it takes no faith to beat yourself up and agree with the Accuser who calls you a sinner. It takes faith to look at the cross and say, “Thank you, Jesus, for carrying all my sin.” It takes faith to praise your Father for His superabounding grace that is greater than your transgression.
And it takes faith to agree with the Holy Spirit who says, despite what you did, you are still righteous, acceptable, and pleasing to God
F
Being a Christian is not a religious exercise of conformity to the historic life of Jesus Christ. The Christian life is not an imitation of Jesus, but yes it is the manifestation of His life and character in our behavior, "that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal body" (2 Cor. 4:10,11).