Act 16:30 -31 Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” ……“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved..”
To begin with It’s not just believing and trembling like satan, James 2:19 “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.” Nor is it just believing that Jesus was a teacher come from God. That’s not enough to save you! John3:2. Nicodemus came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.”
So how are you born again, saved and how do you escape hell and enter heaven.
Believe!! Believe what?
*Believe that you’re a sinner, believe you’re in a desperate situation, you’re desperately alienated from God and must truly repent and turn from your sin.
*Believe that you have no hope of reconciliation and you will in this life live godlessly and in the next life you will suffer eternal torment.
*Believe that you are “condemned already” and need a pardon.
* Believe that God sent His Son into the world in the form of a man to die as your substitute.
* Believe that Jesus took your place and that He took the full fury of the wrath of God upon Himself and He is waiting to pardon you.
*Believe that the affirmation that God’s justice was satisfied by the fact that God raised Jesus…from the dead. And when God raised Him from the dead He was saying, “I am satisfied.” And then God exalted Jesus to His right hand where He sits at the right hand of God on the throne and God says when that was done, when He offered Himself and satisfied My justice, I gave Him…Philippians 2…a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee in the universe must bow and every tongue must confess that Jesus is Lord. Romans 10:9 That’s what you believe. That’s the gospel.
And when you believe that by faith, simply believing that, God in His mercy takes the righteousness of Jesus Christ and credits it to you because your sins were credited to Christ when He died on the cross. The Father knew you were there when the Son died. Your name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life before the foundation of the world and the atonement that Christ made was for you. And you come to believe and you receive the credited righteousness. And then you live in this life with God in your life and in eternity in the presence of God in absolute perfection.
That’s the gospel. That’s Christianity. That’s it. 2 Cor 5:21 For he (GOD) hath made him (JESUS) to be sin for (US) who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
The BENEFACTOR – is GOD – it’s all His plan, it comes out of His love.
The SUBSTITUTE – is JESUS CHRIST, who took your place, the perfect God/Man. He knew no sin, but was declared sinful with your sin.
The BENEFICIARIES – all of us for whom Christ died, those who will believe.
AND THE BENEFIT – you receive the righteousness of God credited to you as if you were equal to Jesus Christ in holiness. You are declared holy, and some day you when you receive a glorified body, will be made holy. But until then you’re covered with the righteousness of God in Christ. And it becomes yours through faith. Believe, repent, put your faith in Jesus Christ.
What is Lent?
What does it mean?
Does the Bible support the observance of Lent?
Did the apostles observe it?
Lent is a forty-day period of time that proceeds the holiday commonly called Easter. During this time, observers tend to give up something they like (such as a food, like meat or certain meals or a form of secular entertainment, like television) essentially as a form of “fasting” for the purposes of getting closer to God or for penance.
Specifically many:
…observe Lent by fasting, performing penance, giving
The word “lent” comes from a Germanic word meaning “Spring,” and refers to the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Saturday. The ashes are made from the “blessed” palms used in the last year’s Palm Sunday celebration. The ashes are christened with Holy Water and are scented by incense. Then the ashes are used to mark a cross on your head. This shows that you are doing pennance; practicing marital abstinence, and fasting. This follows a, ”salvation by works doctrine.” By doing these good works it is also supposedly possible, to reduce someone’s time in purgatory.
Some poor religious souls feel that they have to work their way up to Easter Sunday, and they celebrate Lent. That is, forty days of eating no meat, and supposedly, expressing penitence for sin. In most cases this is, hypocritical, because, before Lent, people tend to pile up the sinning, since they have to do without for a while.
In fact, there are two Lenten words. One is “Mardi Gras,” and the other is “Carnival”. In the United States we’re familiar with Mardi Gras. In other parts of the world, they celebrate carnival. It is a time of unbridled sinning, of drunkenness, rioting, sexual misbehavior, getting ready for penitence in view of Easter.
Carnival comes from words that we’re familiar with. ” Carne,” means meat. “Val,”means farewell. Carnival means farewell to meat. So you have a big party before you get “spiritual” and then you hope that it’ll all turn out good in the end, and if you’re penitent enough, maybe someday God will raise you up, and save your soul.
There is no biblical reference to this practice whatsoever, and the New Testament Church knew nothing of it.
It comes from the mystery, cult, religions of Babylon. It is one of Satan’s strategies, to cloud the issue by substituting ritual for faith alone. Lent consists of 40 days of deprivation and has nothing to do with the Bible. It is never advocated in the Bible, but is borrowed from the worst kind of paganism, which has nothing to do with anything Christian.
Every Sunday true believers celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord, and as believers, we should be preparing and repenting each day of the week, every week, not just Lent. Each Sunday is the “big event.” We should engage in soul searching and repentance not just a during a 40 day ritual, but rather, every day, all 365 of them (24 x 7) not just in a certain season. Ephesians 4: 1- 4 gives us a good idea of the believers daily walk, and it certainly is not seasonal.
” Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.” Ephesians 4:1-4
Are we all infected with the SIN virus?
This weeks verse is 2 Corinthians 5:21 – It reads “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
The Bible makes it clear, first of all, that all people are sinners by nature and by choice. In fact, all people are sinners from birth. And thus all people are born alienated from God who is holy. He cannot look upon sin, nor can he fellowship with sinners. That alienation because of sin prevents us from knowing God. He is too perfectly holy to have anything to do with sinners, except to reject them.
Now that kind of reality proves that the most deadly virus in the world is not the HIV virus, it is the SIN virus. Like the HIV virus, it kills everyone it infects, only unlike the HIV virus it infects everyone. It kills not just in time but in eternity, it kills not just physically but spiritually. There is no cure for the HIV virus, but thankfully there is a cure for the SIN virus. In fact, God has made it possible for sinners to be cured so thoroughly and completely that they can be reconciled to God and have eternal fellowship in His presence.
And that is the good news, that is what Christianity preaches, that’s the gospel. There is a cure for the SIN virus so that the hostility between people and God can end now and forever and sinners can be reconciled to holy God. In fact, if you look back at verses 18, 19 and 20 you see several times the word “reconciled” in one form or another. Verse 18 says, “God who reconciled us to Himself.” Verse 19, “That God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself.” And at the end of verse 20 we call on sinners to be reconciled to God.
This is the good news that you don’t have to live godlessly in time, and you don’t have to live godlessly in eternity. You don’t need to suffer through this life without God and to suffer eternal torment without God in the life to come. Reconciliation is possible.
Now as we analyze this verse together I want to consider three aspects:
* the benefactor,
* the substitute,,
* the beneficiaries and benefits.
That really sums up how God can reconcile sinners.
Who is the benefactor. The verse begins, “He made…” Now if you’re a Bible student the first question you’re going to ask is to whom does “He” refer? The answer comes quickly, look one word back at the end of verse 20…God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf. The point is it’s God’s plan, He’s the benefactor. God is behind the whole reconciliation plan. He designed it. He worked it out. It is His plan.
There could be no reconciliation unless God initiated it. There could be no reconciliation unless God activated it. There could be no reconciliation unless God applied it. He had to design it and He has to execute it. It cannot come from any human source. Nothing man could do, could produce reconciliation with God. It isn’t anything we do or don’t do. In fact all of our efforts in the religious realm amount to filthy rags, the Bible says.
The world is literally filled with religion and all of that religion apart from Christianity is man producing a plan with the aid of Satan in which he can initiate reconciliation with God. That is the fatal flaw of all world religions no matter what name they come under.
Who is the substitute? He made Him who knew no sin.” That’s the identification of the substitute. Who is it? Him who knew no sin. That narrows the field to one. It’s not a human being for there is none of them who is righteous, no not one. They’ve all sinned and come short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23. There’s no human being who qualifies.
Who is the one who can bear the full wrath of God against sin for somebody else because He doesn’t have to bear it for Himself? No sinful person could be a substitute, no sinner could die for another sinner because he would have to pay the penalty for his own sin. There had to be a sinless offering. And it had to be a human being because it had to be man who dies for man, but he couldn’t be a sinful human being or he would have to die for his own sin and couldn’t provide atonement for somebody else’s. So it had to be a sinless man.
Well the only way to have a sinless man was to have a man who was God because God alone is sinless. So if you’re going to have a sinless man you have to have a man who is God. And that’s exactly what God designed…that the second member of the trinity, sinless and perfect, equally holy with the other two members of the trinity would come into the world in the form of a man. He was not to have a human father, Joseph was not the father of Jesus and Joseph knew it. The angel told Joseph, “That which was conceived in her was of the Holy Spirit.” So that Jesus had a human mother that He might be a human, but God was His Father so that He was the God/Man, the sinless human being.
The beneficiaries are all of us for whom Christ died and who will believe and receive the benefits. And what did He provide us? “In order that,” we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” There’s that imputation. What is the benefit? We become righteous before God. This is what justification does. And the righteousness that we are given is the very righteousness of Christ. Paul wrote in Philippians 3:9, “We are now found in Christ not having a righteousness of my own,” he says. Not some righteousness derived from keeping the law but a righteousness through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God. It’s imputed to us. He’s holy. God imputed sin to Christ and imputed righteousness to us sinners. We’re sinful, God imputes holiness to us.
By. Way of summary,
The benefactor is God, it’s all His plan, it comes out of His love.
The substitute is Jesus Christ who took your place, the perfect God/Man.
The beneficiaries, all of those who will believe.
And the benefit, you receive the righteousness of God imputed to you as if you were equal to Jesus Christ in holiness.
And some day you will be made holy. But until then you’re covered with the righteousness of God in Christ. You can do nothing except ask and it becomes yours through faith, believe, repent, and put your faith in Jesus Christ.
I am confident that a number of those who would describe themselves as “reformed” are born again believers. However, there are some dangerous unbiblical doctrines within the Presbyterian church. I would like to address two big issues: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
These are described as sacraments. To begin with, the teaching of “sacraments” is NOT found in the Bible. A search of the Word of God will not find any mention of the word “sacrament.” Jesus never instituted any sacraments. A sacrament is defined as “A formal religious act conferring a specific grace on those who receive it.” In simpler words, you get something by doing it. The Word of God does NOT teach this. The Presbyterians in their small catechism define a sacrament as…
Q92: What is a sacrament?
A92: A sacrament is an holy ordinance instituted by Christ, wherein, by sensible signs, Christ, and the benefits of the new covenant, are represented, sealed, and applied to believers.
That words “sealed” and “applied” are very dangerous words. The moment that a lost sinner acknowledges his sinful condition and turns to Christ for forgiveness, he is regenerated Ephesians 4:30 declares that it is God’s Holy Spirit that “seals” the believer, NOT baptism, “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Baptism DOESN’T “apply” anything.
We should be extremely alarmed when the Presbyterians (or anyone) teaches that Christ is applied by baptism. Just as the Lutherans, Presbyterians speak double-talk. Presbyterians are teaching heresy when they teach that baptism and the Lord’s supper are sacraments by which grace is imparted to the believer. It is very important for anyone reading this article to realize that there are NO mystical or magical powers in baptism or the Lord’s supper.
The Constitution of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, Chapter 27 – “Of The Sacraments,”
TESTIMONY 3: “We reject the view that sacraments are mere symbols and not means of grace.”
That is erroneous and unbiblical
Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are Only Symbolic
Jesus clearly said in Luke 22:19 concerning the Lord’s supper, “And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.” Thus, the Lord’s Supper is simply an ordinance (a command) for believers to REMEMBER His work of atonement. Remembering is NOT a means of grace.
Likewise, baptism is only symbolic of the Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection. Romans 6:4 reads, “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Notice the word “like.” In baptism, the believer identifies with Christ. Just as Christ died, was buried, and rose again, so should we crucify the old man unto life anew. Jesus was baptized to identify Himself with a rejected people, whereas the believer is baptized to identify with a rejected Christ.
The Word of God does NOT teach sacraments. There is no mention of being sealed or having anything applied to us by baptism. Baptism will get you wet my friend, that’s all.
Baptism and Repentance
There is a great misunderstanding about “repentance.” Such verses as Mark 1:4 confuse many people because they do not take into account the rest of the Bible. Mark 1:4 reads, “John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” By itself, this verse seems like It is teaching baptismal regeneration, but it certainly is NOT. This verse is referenced in Acts 11:16, “Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.” And a few verses later in Acts 11:21 we read, “And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.”
This is Biblical repentance…turning to the Lord. Please note that NO mention of baptism is found in Acts 11 other than the one reference to John the Baptist in verse 16. Clearly, baptism was not required for their salvation in Acts 16, just as it has never been required. John preached the same gospel of Jesus Christ as we preached today, salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Presbyterians are correct in their church constitution to admit that Baptism is NOT necessary to become a Christian. The Bible often mentions faith without baptism, but never mentions baptism without faith. Faith is all that God requires to be saved. Unfortunately, Presbyterians are wrong in their understanding of baptism…
The Constitution of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, Chapter 27 – “Of Baptism,”
CONFESSION 1: “Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admission of the party baptized into the visible church; but also, to be unto him a sign and seal of the covenant of grace, of his ingrafting into Christ. Although reformed theology teaches this, it is an unbiblical concept.
The Lord’s Supper is not a sacrament!
According to the Larger Catechism, as Received by the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church…
Q168: What is the Lord’s Supper?
A168: The Lord’s Supper is a sacrament of the New Testament, wherein, by giving and receiving bread and wine according to the appointment of Jesus Christ, his death is showed forth; and they that worthily communicate feed upon his body and blood, to their spiritual nourishment and growth in grace; have their union and communion with him confirmed; testify and renew their thankfulness, and engagement to God, and their mutual love and fellowship each with other, as members of the same mystical body.
To their “spiritual nourishment and growth?” Show me that in the Bible. When Jesus said “…Take, eat; this is my body” in Matthew 26:26, He wasn’t literally saying that the disciples were eating Jesus. This is obvious from Scriptures such as 1st Peter 2:7, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” It is the Word of God that nourishes us to grow in grace, NOT the Lord’s supper. The Bible never mentions anything about the Lord’s supper and growing in grace. It is dangerous to add to the Scriptures what it does NOT say.
OSTEEN: “I DON’T KNOW” by Clint Archer
Bestselling author Joel Osteen is the preaching pastor of the biggest church in America. There are regularly 30,000 attendees who pitch up to hear his sermons. This is quite a responsibility. Especially considering Hebrews 13:17 warns that pastors will give an account for each soul in their flock.
And I’m not even referring to the zillions who plug into the televised programming, nor the touring success of sold-out stadiums that hold 60,000 fans (at $10 a ticket).
But when he was interviewed on the Larry King Live show, the result of being ill-prepared for ministry was painfully obvious. I feel for him as Larry grills him on this sensitive topic.
KING: Where were you ordained?
OSTEEN: I was ordained from the church there, Lakewood, under my dad’s ministry.
KING: So you didn’t go to seminary?
OSTEEN: No, sir, I didn’t.
KING: They can just make you a minister?
OSTEEN: You can, you can.
KING: That’s kind of an easy way in.
… [then Larry turned up the heat; I italicized the repeated phrase that makes my point] …
KING: …we’ve had ministers on who said, your record don’t count. You either believe in Christ or you don’t. If you believe in Christ, you are, you are going to heaven. And if you don’t no matter what you’ve done in your life, you ain’t.
OSTEEN: Yeah, I don’t know. There’s probably a balance between. I believe you have to know Christ. But I think that if you know Christ, if you’re a believer in God, you’re going to have some good works. I think it’s a cop-out to say I’m a Christian but I don’t ever do anything …
KING: What if you’re Jewish or Muslim, you don’t accept Christ at all?
OSTEEN: You know, I’m very careful about saying who would and wouldn’t go to heaven. I don’t know …
KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They’re wrong, aren’t they?
OSTEEN: Well, I don’t know if I believe they’re wrong. I believe here’s what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God will judge a person’s heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don’t know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don’t know. I’ve seen their sincerity. So I don’t know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.
[…Then Larry pounces on the fact that Osteen is known as a prosperity preacher…]
KING: What is the prosperity gospel?
OSTEEN: I think the prosperity gospel in general is—well I don’t know. I hear it too. I don’t know. I think what sometimes you see is it’s just all about money. That’s not what I believe. It’s the attitude of your heart, and so you know, we believe—but I do believe this, that God wants us to be blessed. He wants us to be able to send our kids to college, excel in our careers. But prosperity to me, Larry, is not just money, it’s having health. What good is money if you don’t have health?
[…Then Larry asks about the tragedy of 9/11 terrorist attacks…]
KING: But don’t you want to know, why would an omnipotent—assuming he is omnipotent—God permit that?
OSTEEN: I don’t know, Larry. I don’t know it all.
KING: A deformed baby had nothing to do with free will.
OSTEEN: Exactly. I don’t claim to know it all. I just think that trusting God means we’re going to have unanswered questions and God is so much bigger than us we’re never going to understand them all. And I tell people that have lost a child or that have gone through some kind of tragedy, you’ve got to have a file in your mind called an I don’t understand it file. And you’ve got to put it in there and not try to figure it out and not let it ruin the rest of your life and not get bitter. And that’s what we see so many people do.
[…then a caller phones and asks …]
CALLER: …Do you know why it’s not God’s will that everyone is healed of cancer?
OSTEEN: You know, I can’t answer that. I think it’s a good question.
[…then another caller…]
CALLER: … I’m wondering, though, why you side-stepped Larry’s earlier question about how we get to heaven? The Bible clearly tells us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and the only way to the father is through him. That’s not really a message of condemnation but of truth.
OSTEEN: Yes, I would agree with her. I believe that.
KING: So then a Jew is not going to heaven?
OSTEEN: No. Here’s my thing, Larry, is I can’t judge somebody’s heart. You know? Only God can look at somebody’s heart, and so—I don’t know. To me, it’s not my business to say, you know, this one is or this one isn’t. I just say, here’s what the Bible teaches and I’m going to put my faith in Christ. And I just I think it’s wrong when you go around saying, you’re saying you’re not going, you’re not going, you’re not going, because it’s not exactly my way. I’m just…
KING: But you believe your way.
OSTEEN: I believe my way. I believe my way with all my heart.
KING: But for someone who doesn’t share it is wrong, isn’t he?
OSTEEN: Well, yes. Well, I don’t know if I look at it like that. I would present my way, but I’m just going to let God be the judge of that. I don’t know. I don’t know.
Ok, so Pastor Osteen doesn’t know who goes to heaven, he doesn’t know why Muslims/Hindus/Jews are wrong, He doesn’t know what the prosperity gospel is, he doesn’t know why God permits suffering, or why God doesn’t heal everyone. These are pretty important topics for the pastor of America’s biggest church.
It would seem that a few years of seminary could have helped prepare him for the ministry of preaching God’s word and pastoring God’s flock. The “success” of Osteens ministry goes to show that oratory, charm, and dare I say good looks, can draw a crowd. But what is the content that the crowd is imbibing when their host isn’t quite sure of the gospel?
I often think of the parable of the CEO – Business Owner who had to leave town on urgent business. He did not have time to meet with his key leadership or any of the employees in his company before leaving, so on his flight out of the country, he wrote a lengthy letter. He informed them that he would be gone for some time, and while he was gone, they were to accomplish a number of things. He was gone for six months.
Without notice, the CEO returned. He pulled into the company parking lot and immediately noticed the weeds growing next to the building. He had left instructions on the landscaping that he wanted done while he was away.
As he entered the reception area, he immediately noticed the dust that had collected on the furniture. The receptionist quickly put away her nail file, sat up and said, “Good morning, sir.”
He walked past the receptionist, into the warehouse where some of his staff had put up a Ping-Pong table. The equipment was silent and his staff was involved in what seemed to be a party.
They stopped when they saw him and came over to him.
He stammered out, “There were things I wanted accomplished, but the equipment is silent, the weeds are growing outside, and the staff is playing instead of working the phones. Didn’t you get my letter?”
“Oh, that! You bet we got it! We made photocopies for every employee and we all took an entire day off just to read it. Man, what a letter! It was great! In fact, we’ve created smaller groups of employees who meet weekly to discuss the letter. Some of our employees have even memorized parts of the letter. It is so good!”
Then, everyone fell quiet under the gaze of the CEO. He asked, “Did you do what I told you to do in the letter?” “Oh, no sir. You see, sir, we’re still studying the letter.”
Submitted by Pastor Bruce Daughtery, Woodland Park Baptist Church.
Forgiveness, justification and sanctification are three distinct blessings that the believer is blessed with at the moment of trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour (Ephesians 1v3). The act of accepting Christ as Saviour is one act, yet it results in many specific benefits including these three.
* Forgiveness is the forgiveness, pardon or remission by God of all the believer’s sins (Acts 13v38;Ephesians 1v7; Colossians 2v13; 1 John 1v9).
* Justification means to make right or righteous before God. (Romans 3v22; 5v1, 17; 2 Corinthians 5v21)
* Sanctification is to be set apart for God (2 Thessalonians 2v13; 1 Peter 1v2).
Forgiveness for the judgment of our sins is one event with a permanent effect, but forgiveness for sins that interrupt our fellowship with the Father is a continuous process (1 John 1v9). While justification is one event with a permanent effect, sanctification is both one event with a permanent effect and a process. We will consider only justification and sanctification.
JUSTIFICATION
Meaning
The Biblical meaning of the believer’s justification is not the same as it generally means today. Today justification means to find the falsely accused person innocent. However in the New Testament it means something better. Romans 4 verse 2-3 says “For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.” Therefore “justification” means to be “counted {or reckoned} righteous” before God. So God makes the guilty righteous in His sight at the point of faith in Christ.
The sinner’s Answer
Who personally qualifies to be justified? Romans 3v19 says “Now we know, that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” So every individual of all generations and all nationalities in the whole human race is guilty before God’s justice, stands condemned in His sight and is subject to His divine wrath on sin.
However God found the answer by sending His only begotten Son to the cross so that He might bear our sins (1 Peter 2v24) and His blood be shed (John 19v34) as the basis of justification. See Romans 5v9 “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”
Faith is the means of Justification
So how can a sinner receive the righteousness of God (Romans 3v22). Romans 3 verse 28 says, “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” Romans 5 verse 1 says, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Consequently by faith in Christ a sinner receives justification as Romans 5v17 says “For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)” So on the basis of Christ’s obedience, death and resurrection God can justly justify believing sinners. Belief means total reliance on. Also the Greek word “logizomai,” meaning ‘to put to one’s account,’ appears eleven times in Romans chapter 4, but it is translated by three different words – ‘count, reckon, and impute’. So God takes His righteousness and credits it to the believing sinner and declares him righteous.
The Present and Future Condition
The believer has been declared righteous. Romans 8v1 says “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, …” shows that this is a once-and-for-all declaration which saves him from the sins of the past, and secures his spiritual future. But as believers continue to sin, but to a lesser extent, after they are justified how can they still be righteous in God’s sight? 1 Corinthians was written to an assembly/church when they were in a low spiritual state but 6v11 says “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” This is positional truth (or our standing in Christ or our relationship to Christ), and is what the Godhead makes the believer based entirely on faith in Christ alone. The believer’s sins do not affect the believer’s position, standing or place, in this case of justification, before God because it is based upon Christ alone. But the believer’s sins do mar the believer’s practise (or state before God or his fellowship with the Father) and produce a feeling of guilt and separation from God. The believer needs then to confess their sins and God the Father will forgive them and restore their fellowship. 1 John chapter 1 verse 9 declares, ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness’.
SANCTIFICATION
Although sanctification is found in both the Old and New Testaments, our consideration below is how it applies to the believer in Christ. This is in four stages:
2 Thessalonians 2v13 “But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” God chose us in His sovereignty and the Holy Spirit, as the Divine Agent, sanctified and separated us to believe the truth. It is a Divine act that precedes faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as one’s own Saviour. See also 1 Peter c1v2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” which in that verseincludes the activities of the Triune God
2. Positional Sanctification
Acts c26v18; “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”
1 Corinthians c1v2 “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours.”
1 Corinthians c6v11 “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” and to which their sole title is the death of Christ.
So whenever a person is born again, he is positionally sanctified because of faith in Christ alone. So all believers came into the state of separation to God from the world when they are born of God. The practical truth, or our daily state, is the working out of such truth. 1 Corinthians 1v30 says, “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made (i.e. becomes, is made the source or basis of) unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.” This is a once-for-ever eternal separation unto God is part of our salvation.
Continuing sanctification.
This is the present practical setting apart of the believer to God from the world, sin and self. It is a process by which he becomes more Christlike. This is the sanctification that Paul prays for the Thessalonians and isfound in
1 Thessalonians c4v3-4; “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour.” This sanctification is God’s will for the believer. (seealso 1Thessalonians 4v7).
John c17v17 “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” Ephesians c5v26 “That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.” (See also 2 Corinthians c3v18).
So sanctification is brought about by the Holy Spirit when we are obedient to the Word of God. Such practical sanctification is a process that should continue as long as the believer is on earth. He will never achieve perfection or sinlessness on earth (see Galatians 5v17), but he should ever be pursuing that goal.
Future Perfect Sanctification refers to the believer’s final condition in heaven.
1 John c3v1-31 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”
Ephesians 5v25-27. “Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of the water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”
When the believer goes to be with the Lord, he will be morally and physically (Philippians 3v21) like the Lord. This glorified state will be our ultimate separation from sin and total sanctification to God in every respect.
So justification and sanctification are different Biblical teachings.
The Council of Trent, held in the 16th century, was Rome’s response to the Reformation, and pronouncedanathema on anyone who says “that the [sinner] is justified by faith alone–if this means that nothing else is required by way of cooperation in the acquisition of the grace of justification.” They said in the “Decree Concerning Justification,” Chapter 7, “… Justification itself, which is not only a remission of sins but also the sanctification and renewal of the inward man through the voluntary reception of the grace and gifts whereby an unjust man becomes just and from being an enemy becomes a friend, that he may be an heir according to hope of life everlasting.” The Roman Catholic church, and probably others, confusesjustification with sanctification and even links it with good works. It was not until the Reformation that its true meaning of the great truth of “Justification by Faith alone” began to emerge and with its blessed effect.
What are the Implications?
If sanctification is included in justification, then the justification is a good works process and not an event. That makes justification progressive and not complete. Our standing before God is then based on subjective experience and not secured by God’s happy and objective declaration based on His perfect Son. Justification can therefore be experienced and then be lost. Assurance of salvation in this life becomes practically impossible because security can’t be guaranteed as it depends on us. Then the ground of justification is, ultimately, the sinner’s own continuing good works, not Christ’s perfect righteousness and His sacrificialwork on the cross.
What’s so important about the doctrine of justification by faith alone? It is the teaching upon which the confessing individual stands or falls with its implications for the church. Without justification there is no glorification – nothing but judgment for our sins. So God sanctifies whom He justifies and justifies those whom He sanctifies. So it is really important.
From about 500 A.D. until about 1500 A.D., a full thousand years, the church was engulfed in sacramentalism. Sacramentalism is a religion of ritual and ceremony without reality. In other words a church has become, CHRIST, so that the focal point is
* not to worship Christ but to worship the church,
* not to be right with God but to be right with the church,
* not to have a personal and intimate relationship with the living God,
but to function through the ritual, ceremony and rites of the church. This was known as the Dark Ages.
It was dominated by the Roman Catholic Church. There was also the existence of the Eastern or Greek Orthodox Church. The Church
* prescribed certain sacraments,
* certain ceremonies,
* certain forms of religion,
and rituals involving candles and beads and penance and all kinds of external functions by which through some automatic operation in outward form, a person could be made right with God.
These prescribed religious acts and duties and functions and ceremonies really made a person right with the church, not God but the church had become Christ. And the issue was to worship the church and not Christ.
Martin Luther came along in the 1500’s, and attacked the heretical and blasphemous institution and its sacramentalism successfully. And what prompted his heart was what he said to the Diet at Worms when he had to defend himself, when he said,
“My conscience is captive to the Word of God.”
He found that the Word of God ran contrary to sacramentalism. But during that one thousand years, the Word of God was taken out of the hands of the people and they were subject to whatever interpretation to the Word of God the church gave.
It was only when Luther discovered the reality that the Bible taught “the just shall live by faith,” that he realized the tremendous error of the church. A thousand years had gone by, a thousand years of great danger to the souls of men as the church propagated sacramentalism instead of true Christianity.
So much was Luther devoted to the Scripture that he was compelled to denounce sacramentalism. He said,
“Neither sacrament nor priest but faith in the Word of God justifies you. What concern of yours would it be if the Lord spoke through an ass, as long as you hear His Word in which you may hope and believe.” And then he said, “I recognize neither the father, the mother, the relative, the government nor the Christian church that wants to prevent me from listening to God’s Word,”
And, one of the things the church did during that time of the Dark Ages, was keep the Word of God out of the hands of the people so they might not interpret it for themselves.
Luther recognized that ritual and sacrament had substituted the church for the Lord of the church. And the church of Luther’s day was in bondage to its sacramental idol.
It had a ritual without a relationship.
It had penance without forgiveness.
It had ceremony without Christ.
Sadly Sacramentalism is alive and well and multitudes of souls of men are still kept in bondage by Roman Catholicism, which was, and is, more aggressive in sending people to hell, than sending them to heaven.
Justification is distinct from sanctification because in justification God does not make the sinner righteous; He declares that person righteous (Romans 3:28; Galatians 2:16). Notice how justification and sanctification are distinct from one another:
Justification imputes Christ’s righteousness to the sinner’s account (Romans 4:11b);
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Sanctification imparts righteousness to the sinner personally and practically (Romans 6:1-7; 8:11-14).
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Justification takes place outside sinners and changes their standing (Romans 5:1-2,
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Sanctification is internal and changes the believer’s state (Romans 6:19).
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Justification is an event, sanctification a process.
Those two must be distinguished but can never be separated. God does not justify whom He does not sanctify, and He does not sanctify whom He does not justify. Both are essential elements of salvation.
Why differentiate between them at all? If justification and sanctification are so closely related that you can’t have one without the other, why bother to define them differently? That question was the central issue between Roman Catholicism and the the true believers
Im the sixteenth century, and it remains the main front in renewed attacks against justification.
Justification in Roman Catholic Doctrine
Roman Catholicism blends its doctrines of sanctification and justification. Catholic theology views justification as an infusion of grace that makes the sinner righteous. In Catholic theology, then, the ground of justification is something made good within the sinner–not the imputed righteousness of Christ.
The Council of Trent, Rome’s response to the Reformation, pronounced anathema on anyone who says “that the [sinner] is justified by faith alone” This means that nothing else is required by way of cooperation in the acquisition of the grace of justification. The Catholic council ruled “Justification … is not remission of sins merely, but also the sanctification and renewal of the inward man, through the voluntary reception of the grace, and of the gifts, whereby man of unjust becomes just.” So Catholic theology confuses the concepts of justification and sanctification and substitutes the righteousness of the believer for the righteousness of Christ.
Am I Just splitting Hairs?
The difference between Rome and the Reformers is no example of theological hair-splitting. The corruption of the doctrine of justification results in several other grievous theological errors.
If sanctification is included in justification, the justification is a process, not an event. That makes justification progressive, not complete. Our standing before God is then based on subjective experience, not secured by an objective declaration. Justification can therefore be experienced and then lost. Assurance of salvation in this life becomes practically impossible because security can’t be guaranteed. The ground of justification ultimately is the sinner’s own continuing present virtue, not Christ’s perfect righteousness and His atoning work.
What’s so important about the doctrine of justification by faith alone? It is the doctrine upon which the confessing church stands or falls. Without it there is no salvation, no sanctification, no glorification–nothing. You wouldn’t know it to look at the state of Christianity today, but it really is that important.
More than 150,000 people die every day. That’s 4.5 million each month, a number that exceeds the population of Los Angeles. Add to that the number of dead throughout human history—it’s a staggering figure. Tragically, many of those people died without knowing Christ. What fate awaits them? Do they really Rest In Peace, or do they find a different reality beyond the grave?
Sadly, those who reject God and His way of salvation don’t find rest when they die. They enter into eternal hell where there’s no peace for the wicked. That’s a grim, terrible reality, and it’s what the Bible teaches.
The Bible is the only authority source that tells the truth about death, hell, and eternity. The Bible has the final word on that subject—and on every subject—because it is a revealed book. It has come from God, from the spiritual realm, and has the answers about where all of us will spend eternity one day.
So, what does the Bible teach about hell?
Hell Is
Far from legend, myth, metaphor, or allegory, the Bible presents hell as a real place where wicked people suffer the wrath of God. Consider these vivid portraits of hell from three different New Testament writers:
Then the King will say to those on His left, “Depart from me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels.”…These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. (Matthew 25:41, 46)
If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. (Mark 9:43)
And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15)
Scripture presents a terrifyingly clear case for a literal hell. It’s a place where God punishes unbelievers for all eternity. Contrary to what some so-called evangelicals are teaching, hell is not a state of mind or a hard life on this earth. Your state of mind can change; your circumstances can improve. Hell never changes, never improves. Hell is not chastisement; it’s everlasting, insufferable punishment at the hands of an angry God.
According to the revelation Jesus gave to the apostle John, the fate of every unbeliever is to,
…drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger. And he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night. (Revelation 14:10-11)
Jesus and Hell
Though every New Testament author acknowledges the doctrine of hell, Jesus has the most to say about it. The existence of hell wasn’t something He questioned, debated, or defended, and He certainly didn’t apologize for it. He assumed the reality of hell just as much as He did the resurrection (John 5:28-29). Jesus viewed hell as a real place, a certainty, and so should you. in fact, He’s the model on how you should think about hell.
When Jesus talked about hell, His purpose was always to warn, not to raise questions or plant doubts. Consider the graphic words He used to portray hell—they clearly aren’t meant to provide comfort, but to frighten.
According to Jesus, hell is a place of outer darkness (Matthew 22:13) where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12). Hell is a fiery furnace (Matthew 13:42, 50) of unquenchable fires (Mark 9:48-49). Hell is a place of spiritual and bodily destruction (Matthew 10:28) where there are endless torments (Luke 16:23-24). Hell is most certainly a place, a horrific place where agonizing conditions exist.
No Way Out
Hell offers no means of escape, rescue, or relief—no way out, ever. The occupants of hell are sealed in their damnation (Rev. 22:11). Friends and family can’t help; God won’t help. The time for mercy has passed.
As one who knows exactly what awaits the wicked, Jesus told the story of a rich man who was tormented in hell:
And the rich man cried out and said, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.”
But Abraham said, “Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.” (Luke 16:24-26)
Dante seemed to understand that message. His imaginary inscription over hell’s entrance, “Abandon hope, all ye who enter here,” rightly pictured hell as a place where mercy and hope are left at the door.
The Word of God leaves no doubt about the existence or nature of hell. With clarity and authority, God has told us everything we need to know about hell, and how to avoid it through the merits of Christ.
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