Rob Johnson was born in the year 1952. Between 1952 and 1962 he felt forsaken by his father, first through life circumstances because his dad traveled in his work disappearing from Rob’s life for months at a time. His father died suddenly of a heart attack when Rob was at the tender age of ten. In his young mind he felt that this was his dad’s final rejection of him.

Rob is fifty-seven years old now. While at a low point in his life some thirty-seven years ago when he was around the age of nineteen, he was led by his sister in a sinner’s prayer and received Jesus Christ as His personal Savior. Up to that point he had been a drugged out hippy from the age of thirteen.

A couple of years after being justified by grace through faith and receiving the gift of righteousness in Christ Jesus, he became discouraged with his apparent inability to live the life of holiness that he believed Christ was requiring of Him. In his discouragement he turned from Christ and became a practicing Buddhist. If the truth were told, he was just seeking some peace of mind from the guilt of not being able to live up to Christ’s standards, as he understood them. His justification in Christ had been an easy choice, but he was coming to believe that his sanctification in Christ was a different matter all together, requiring a diligent and disciplined walk with Christ in obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit. That meant denying self, taking up his own cross daily and following Jesus. This, of course, is nothing that the flesh is anxious to do, and why so many professing Christians fail to do it through a lifestyle of chosen consecration unto God.

During the next couple of years he became more involved with Buddhist meditation and soon fell into lust with a young woman who was a practicing witch. At the end of that two-year period the natural disaster of his sins that accompanied his backsliding struck him hard, and he found himself in greater spiritual and emotional torment and pain than ever before. He also discovered that his girlfriend, the practicing witch, had been practicing her witchcraft on him! Needless to say, this made matters much worse. At a point in the relationship when she really had her talons sunk deeply into his heart, she decided to withdraw her affection from him. The sense of rejection put him in bed for a week.

Rob was suffering terribly, and being a practicing Buddhist, mentioned to his recently saved friend, Gary Halbedel, that Buddha taught, “Desire is the cause of all suffering.” His friend shot right back, “Rob, sin is the cause of all suffering.” This hit him like a brick right between the eyes. It was a real wake up call!

In his painful state he once again cried out to the Lord for forgiveness of his sins and deliverance from his suffering. The Lord miraculously saved him from a deep and dark spiritual quagmire and freed him from the torment that was a result of his backsliding. God gave Rob an open vision revealing his spiritual condition, and then, through the name of Jesus, saved him from it. As soon as he called on then name of Jesus, he was miraculously translated, or, if you will, transported from a dark and dank swamp where he was being hit at by poisonous vipers, to a high mountain where the fresh cool wind of God’s Holy Spirit was blowing in his face. After Rob came out of the vision, he knew that he had been delivered. He asked Jesus, “what should I do now Lord?” The Lord told him, “Go up in the attic and get your Bible.” God then showed Rob supernaturally through certain scriptures where he had been, and what he needed to do next. One of the scriptures the Lord impressed upon him was the story of the prodigal son. Rob was very thankful to the Lord for a new start and truly knew that he had been born again. His devotion was to Christ alone, and so he obeyed His instructions to the letter. Among other things, Rob’s relationship with the witch had to be terminated. This made her very angry, but Rob was glad to be free from the bondage of demonic oppression.

Not long after that, the Lord supernaturally delivered him from alcohol and nicotine addiction, and baptized him in the Holy Spirit. Then, he was called by the Lord to preach the gospel, accompanied by a confirmation of the Holy Spirit. He was later baptized in water in the name of Jesus. He attended a Bible school and graduated president of his class with honors, and for several years became actively involved with a number of Christian evangelistic, deliverance, and helps ministries.

Regrettably, however, through a misunderstanding, and having been judged un-righteously, he was deeply hurt by the junior pastor in the church he was attending at the time and was again overwhelmed with a sense of rejection. He was then asked to go on the road with an internationally known deliverance minister and Bible teacher. After a short time his ministry with this organization came to an end, leaving more wounds of rejection on his heart. Not long after that Rob was asked to be an associate pastor in another local church, but was soon rejected by the pastor and let go. Without going into all the circumstances and situations, or the details of the contentions, misunderstandings, and conflicts between all the parties involved, it is sufficient to say that the third failed relationship capped off Rob’s sense of rejection and sent him into a deep depression. Three strikes you’re out! He turned once again to alcohol and nicotine for relief from the pain. These experiences, and his response to them, started him on another course of backsliding that lasted for a couple of years.

A friend, who is a prophet, came to town to preach in a local church. Rob attended the service and was called out for prayer before the start of the meeting. He was delivered from a spirit of darkness and witchcraft that had bound him and his ministry for more than fifteen years. Rob didn’t know it at the time, but his soon to be fiancé, Stephanie, was in the congregation. Soon after that, the Lord brought him and his wife together, and they were married. They had two little girls, Chelsea and Brittany, born eighteen months apart.

Both Rob and Stephanie had a heart for Christian ministry and missionary work. They began leading worship together at a local alcohol and drug rehabilitation facility, and went on short-term missions to France and England. Within a couple of years they, with their two daughters in tow, set out for The Republic of Ireland by faith, having quit their jobs, sold their house, cars, and most of their possessions. They gave money from the sale of their things to ministries that care for the poor, and with the rest of the funds they purchased what was needed for their trip. Thus, they became full-time faith missionaries to the British Isles. This lasted for two years. After their overseas mission came to an end, being flat broke and in debt, they returned to America. The ministry opportunities that carried any hope of financial remuneration seemed to have dried up, and Stephanie was once again great with child.

Rob was discouraged and depressed and again rejection prevailed in his heart and mind. He felt that his first attempt at full time ministry had miserably failed on a personal level, even though many souls had been saved from their sins, and many believers had been encouraged in the faith during their two-year mission. He started doing secular work and burning the candle at both ends to get back on his feet financially. In truth, he started serving Mammon, thinking, “If the Lord won’t provide for us, I will!” I guess you could say that he had a major faith failure. The Good News is that “if we lose faith, Christ remains faithful, He cannot deny Himself!”

Rob and Stephanie had their third child, a boy they named Ian, who, due to a distressed delivery, developed cerebral palsy and autism. This was devastating to Rob, and it added greatly to his depression. He started working longer and harder hours and drinking more and more. He was hurt and angry at what his life had become, and his ministry became at best, an afterthought.

Part Two
Places Of Repentance, Restoration, And Revival

Over the last eighteen years Rob has received a large measure of repentance from serving Mammon and some genuine deliverance and healing from his sense of loss and rejection. He knows in his heart that his Savior and Lord will always be there for him regardless of what he or others may do because of human frailty and failure. “Though a righteous man stumbles seven times, he will not be utterly cast down.” He is learning to be “quick to forgive, quick to receive forgiveness, and quick to repent.”

Rob has been involved with fruitful hands on Christian ministry over the last several years as the Lord leads, including a missionary trip to Kenya, Africa, hurricane relief ministry in Florida, as well as mercy and visitation ministries in Atlanta, Georgia. He and Stephanie also served as both worship leaders and as elders in a local congregation for several years that included teaching in a Bible College. Rob was recently ordained a Community Service Chaplain through the University of Michigan after an intensive course of study and training. For the last nine years he has also been teaching the revelations that the Lord gives him as “a prophet of God, who will not tickle the itching ears of the people.” You can find his teachings on the “Feed My Sheep” blog page. He considers himself “the voice of one crying in the wilderness of cyber space, prepare ye the way of the Lord!”

About six months ago, through their Internet ministry, Rob was contacted by a pastor in Malawi, Africa named Duncan Nyozani and asked to come and minister there. He has not yet been able to take a mission trip, but he and Stephanie have been helping to support the young pastors ministry and family, his congregation, and thirteen orphans under his care through financial offerings, clothing gifts, and teaching materials. Duncan calls Rob “Papa” and Stephanie “Mum,” and they consider him “a son in the faith.”

On a very personal note, Rob is continuing to “personalize his revelations” or, if you will, “practice what he preaches,” regarding the “love walk” and a lifestyle of consecrated holiness unto God. Like all who are called to pursue this lofty goal, he has been successful in some areas and perhaps not so successful in others. The Lord is still “working in him to will and to do of His own good pleasure,” and Rob is actively “working out his own salvation with fear and trembling.” He continues to seek repentance from all his sins through both confessing them and forsaking them, and to “press for the goal of the heavenward call of God in Christ Jesus.” He is trusting in God’s mercy, which is “new every morning; great is His faithfulness.” By grace through faith, he is still striving against the “sins that so easily entangle him,” and he knows that the answer to all his struggles are to be found in learning to abide in the Vine through trusting and obeying Christ’s words. After all, Jesus has promised to never leave him nor forsake him, and he knows in his heart of hearts that he has “been accepted in the Beloved.” He continues to labor to enter into God’s rest through applying the knowledge of the truth and appropriating God’s grace through faith. Because God gave them to him, Rob’s three favorite Psalms are 23, 103, and 107. Check them out, and you’ll see why!

Rob and Stephanie have recently celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary. Chelsea is nineteen and attending her first year of college, Brittany is eighteen and plans to soon follow in her big sister’s footsteps. She is planning to live with her sister and attend the same college in the spring or summer of 2010. Ian is fourteen and in special needs high school. He’s the apple of his dad’s eye and in his opinion, Ian’s the coolest cat in town!

Rob has set December 31st through January 2nd aside for a time of solitary prayer, fasting, repentance, and one on One communion with the Lord. He is hoping this will serve as a springboard into a greater practice and performance of righteous living as he continues to pursue and perfect holiness daily in reverence of God. Please remember him in your prayers because I’m sure that you are and will be in his prayers throughout this exciting New Year in Christ. Rob’s prayer is that overcoming victory be yours in Jesus!

“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:6-8)
Remaining in Christ and Christ’s words remaining in the Christian believer is the great need of the centuries and of the hour! Regrettably, remorsefully, and hopefully repentantly, the church in general has failed to do this, and that is the reason many of us are in such insipid weakness, desperate want, and tottering on the threshold of apostasy! If we can find the courage to be honest with ourselves, we will have to admit that often we pray and ask God for the things we need and for the needs of others, (i.e. financial provisions, healing for our bodies and minds, deliverance from bad habits and demonic oppression, salvation from our highhanded and deliberate sins, etc), but tragically, much of the time our prayers go unanswered, and unless we repent and learn to remain in Christ and allow His words to remain in us, this will continue to be the pitiful, pathetic, painful, devastating, and extremely dangerous case!
“Without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He rewards them that diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6) “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails anything, nor un-circumcision, but faith working through love.” (Galatians 5:6) “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) “This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.” (1 John 3-4) Nevertheless, Jesus Christ Himself pondered, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)
It is important to realize that faith in Christ and faithfulness to His commandment to love God with our entire being and to love our neighbors as ourselves are one and the same, so unless we hear the words of Christ and also do the words of Christ, we are self-deceived if we think we are remaining in Christ and His words are remaining in us.
“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22)
It is by both hearing and doing the words of Christ that we remain in the faith! This is how we remain in Him! This is how we pass God’s test! This is how we prove His good, and acceptable, and perfect will! Question: What is God’s will? Answer: That the church be one with Christ in wisdom, purity, power, and love!
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and You in Me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.” (John 17:20-23)
It was because of His unity in plan, purpose, and pursuit with His Heavenly Father’s will that Jesus always knew whenever He prayed that His prayers would be answered because He always sought to do God’s pleasure instead of His own pleasure or the pleasure of anyone else. (i.e. self, Satan, and sin; not to mention Mary and Martha who wanted Jesus to show up and heal their brother Lazarus before he died, but God had another agenda and a better plan that resulted in His greater glory and a better testimony of the fact that His only begotten Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life. In other words, God’s way of dealing with the drama of Lazarus’s illness resulted in greater benefit on behalf of the people to whom Jesus was sent.) Anyway, let’s look at Christ’s prayer and testimony when He raised Lazarus from the dead.
“Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. And I knew that you hear me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that you have sent me. When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, ‘Take off the grave clothes and let him go.’” (John 11:41-44)
As was true of the Master, the same is true of the disciple.
“My little children let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.” (1 John 3:18-24)
The “prayer of faith” is the prayer of the faithful, and this is why the church was instructed, “Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.” (James 5:14-15)
At the time the above scripture was written, the church was under great persecution. To be appointed and to remain an elder would have required great faithfulness, and this quality in a man or woman would have given them the authority to pray the prayer of faith in the name of Jesus and get the desired results. There are elders in the church today who can do this, but regrettably they are the exception, not the rule. If you don’t believe it, go ask some elders in your church to pray for you and see if they get the desired results to their prayers! Some will flat out refuse to do it, saying that divine healing and miracles are not for today. A lie from the pit of Hell! Others might tell you that it’s God’s will that you fulfill the sufferings of Christ in your own body and therefore remain ill. A doctrine of devils! Others who do believe that healing is for today will pray for you, and when nothing happens, they’ll tell you to exercise patience, saying that God will heal you in His time and in His way. The problem is that you already are a patient and that’s why you requested prayer! In all fairness, it must be stated that the person requesting prayer must be in a place of faith also, not just the elders.
Having said that, to be able to pray the prayer of faith in the name of Jesus and get the desired results of our prayers should be the rule for all Christian believers, and there should be no spiritual pride attached to getting results. As followers of Christ, when praying the prayer of faith in the name of Jesus, we have only done what was expected and required of us as obedient servants. God deserves all the glory and credit for answered prayer because He has paid the ultimate price through allowing His sinless Son to suffer the unbearable consequences for our sins so that we might be prospered, healed, delivered, and saved! With this in mind I’d like to share a testimony with you.
Once Dr. Lester Sumrall was starting a church in the Philippines and was involved in a big building project. There was a woman in prison who had been arrested for prostitution. The newspaper had reported that while in her cell, bite marks had begun appearing on all parts of her body, both front and back. Many of the bite marks were in places that would have been impossible for her to inflict upon herself. The newspaper’s front page read “Bitten By Demons.” This was accompanied with a plethora of photographs of the woman and the bite marks all over her body. It was revealed in the article that the jailers would hear her screaming in the night and run to her solitary cell only to find her writhing in pain and crying out for help. The whole country had become aware of this case because it lasted for several months and had received full media coverage.
When the article came to Lester’s attention, the Lord told him, “Go and pray the prayer of faith over that woman and cast the demons out of her in My name.” Lester said, “Lord I’m very busy, can’t You send some other minister to do it.” The Lord replied, “I don’t have anyone else who can!” Lester went and ministered to the woman, and over a period of time, she was completely set free, and the pain and the bite marks disappeared, never to return again. The media also covered her deliverance, interviewing brother Sumrall, who gave God all of the glory. A great revival began in the city where he was starting the church, and it spread throughout the whole country! Many souls were saved and healed during this time, and many members were added to his congregation.
I shared that testimony with you, dear reader, to remind you, and myself, that in order to be available to be used of God to bring deliverance and healing to hurting human beings through the prayer of faith in the name of Jesus, we must remain in Christ and His words must remain in us. We must be sanctified, set apart, and prepared for the Master’s use as branches abiding in the Vine and bearing fruit to eternal life. If we are not, we must not waste other people’s time or unrealistically get their hopes up only to be dashed upon the rocks. Our prayers will not be answered! We will only bring reproach to Jesus Christ by using His blessed name in prayer while not getting the desired results from our prayers. This is most often the case because we are still harboring iniquity in our hearts and continuing in our un-confessed and un-forsaken sins instead of continuing in Him and His words continuing in us. Jesus always got the desired results when He prayed, and He is our example and goal!
“Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, The Lord knows them that are His. And let every one that names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” (2 Timothy 2:19)
Regarding the above testimony of Lester Sumrall, the Lord knew Lester was His and that he had departed from iniquity so he could pray the prayer of faith in the name of Jesus with authority and get results. But what must we conclude about the other professing Christian ministers in the area whom the Lord could not use?
And consider this scripture,
“Likewise, you husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.” (1 Peter 3:7)
In the above scripture we discover that if a husband does not honor (love and respect) his wife, his prayers will be hindered. What is true for the gander is also true for the goose! As Christian believers we must all walk in love towards God, each other, and the world if we do not want our prayers to be hindered.

Paul declared,

 “I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:3-5)
Jesus Christ told the church at Laodicea, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I will vomit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:15-16)
He also gave an ultimatum, “Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.”
For the professing and practicing Christian believers the only option is to be white hot and zealous in doing right, and to continue to pursue and perfect holiness (godliness) in reverence of God. “To be a disciple of Christ will cost you everything; not to be a disciple of Christ will cost you a whole lot more!” In other words, the cost of being a disciple of Christ is great, but the rewards for doing so and the consequences for not doing so are greater still. You might ask, what are the rewards for remaining in Christ and His words remaining in us, and what are the consequences for not doing so? The answer is simple; so let me be succinct. The rewards for obedience are, “you can ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.” (John 15:6) The consequences for disobedience are “your prayers will be hindered.” (1 Peter 3:7) Which will we choose?
Now, according to Jesus, having our prayers answered and having demons subject to us through His name is no reason to rejoice. This is just a bi-product of remaining in Him and allowing His words to remain in us. The real reason for remaining in Him and allowing His words to remain in us, and the real reason to rejoice is because in doing so we will assure ourselves that our names are still written in Heaven! (Luke 10:20)
With these things in mind we must ask ourselves, what will happen to those unbelievers who do not repent and believe the gospel? Jesus tells us that the unbelieving will have their place in the lake of fire. (Revelation 21:8) And what will happen to those backsliding professing Christians who do not wake up and put their energies into the things that are of eternal value through repentance from dead works and obedience to what they have received and heard regarding the word and will of God? What will happen to those who do not overcome the defiling of their garments through their sexual immorality, human debaucheries, slothfulness and spiritual sleepiness, and the hypocrisy of having a reputation of being alive while in reality they are dead? In other words, what will happen to those unrepentant, un-revived, backsliding, reprobate, and apostate professing Christians who fail to remain in Christ and allow His words to remain in them?
Let’s take a look at two scriptures regarding both people groups. Notice, if you will, that the first scripture, offered by Peter, promises that if unbelievers repent and are converted, their sins will be blotted out. Good News! Jesus spoke the second scripture that I will quote, and promises that the believers who overcome will be dressed in white and never have their names blotted out of the book of life. Good News!

The first is written to the unbelievers: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. (Acts 3:19-21)

The second is written to professing Christian believers: “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:1-6)

So, at the end of the day, we can have our prayers answered or hindered, and we can have our sins blotted out, or our names blotted out of the book of life. The choice is entirely ours! Which will we choose?

Consider the words of James to the church, “Be doers of the word, not hearers only deceiving your own selves.” (James 1:22) And, “You believe that there is one God; you do well: the devils also believe and tremble. But will you know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:19-20) And last but not least, “My brothers, not many of you should presume to be teachers, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation and be judged more severely.” (James 3:1) So, we see that our faith must be accompanied with corresponding righteous actions for it to be validated and living. Why? Because an invalid or dead faith cannot save us; it is only a living faith in the living God that can save us. Another word for a living faith is “faithfulness.”


If you don’t believe that the above scripture quotations mean a professing Christian, or especially, a Christian Bible teacher, could potentially end up in Hell, then consider the words of the Apostle John,

“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:3-4) And we know that ‘All liars will have their place in the lake of Fire. This is the second death.’” (Revelation 21: 8)


And consider the words of the Apostle Paul, who wrote two-thirds of the New Testament,

“I keep my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (I Corinthians 9:27)


The author of Hebrews, speaking of mature Christian believers writes,

“For the earth which drinks in the rain that comes often upon it, and brings forth herbs suitable for them by whom it is dressed, receives blessing from God: But that which bears thorns and briers is rejected, and is near unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.” (Hebrews 6:7-8)


Again, consider the exhortation of the Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples (not to sinners), who were soon to be faced with the temptation to deny or confess Him before men, and this, if they were to remain faithful, at the very real threat of being martyred in their service for Christ.


“Fear not them that kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell.” (Matthew 10:28)


It is interesting to note that unlike the sermons of most contemporary preachers who warn sinners about going to Hell, whenever Jesus warned of going to Hell, He was speaking to His disciples and not to sinners, except for twice when He was speaking to the Pharisees!


And again the words of the Lord Jesus Christ,
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:21-27)



And again, consider these words of the Lord Jesus Christ,
“He answered and said unto them, He that sows the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather ‘out of His kingdom’ all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 13:38-42)



And look at the words of Jesus Christ on this subject once again,
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. (John 15:5-6)



And last but not least,
“And the Lord said, ‘Who then is the faithful and wise steward, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will punish him, and put him with the unbelievers. And that servant who knew his master’s will, but did not make ready or act according to his will, shall receive a severe beating. But he who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, shall receive a light beating. Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required; and of him to whom men commit much they will demand the more. I am come to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled.” (Luke 12:42-49)



Now, for those of us Christian believers like Jimmy Swaggart and me, and perhaps even you, dear reader, who may not know how to live a victorious overcoming Christian life free from sin, but know that the answer to this perplexing question is found in the Bible, and not just in reading it, hearing it, or even preaching and teaching it, but much more so in trusting and obeying it, there is yet hope!


You may be asking, please tell us what is that hope? The answer is definitive,


“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27)


If you and I, as professing Christian believers, tried with all our energies and efforts to keep and practice the Word of God perfectly (without a revelation of the grace of the atonement and the gift of righteousness stored up for us in Christ, and released to us through the Holy Spirit) and were somehow successful, it would result in self-righteous religious pride. And remember, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18) If we were unsuccessful, it would result in spiritual frustration and drive us to abandon our efforts and remain in, or return to our sins, a condition of unrighteous licensed rebellion.


If we truly understand this dynamic, we will know why the concept of “sinless perfection” (which is a doctrine that teaches it is possible for Christian believers to never sin again after their initial conversion to Christ) is at best, unrealistically ambitious and at worst, heretically erroneous. Of course this does not mean that we, as Christian believes, are not required of God to pursue, perfect, and cultivate the fruit of holiness found in Christ Jesus. Nevertheless, “sinless perfection” will not be ours this side of glory.


When the Bible speaks of “repentance from dead works and faith towards God,” (Hebrews 6:1) it is not just referring to unrighteous works, but also self-righteous works. Concerning the Israel of God and the Hebrew people, “works of law” cannot make them righteous in God’s eyes, even though many of them are still trying to achieve righteousness through works of law. Concerning Christian believers, neither can “works of faith” make us righteous in God’s eyes, even though many of us are still trying to receive righteousness through works of faith!


Our righteousness is through a trust and reliance upon Christ for our salvation (justification, sanctification, and glorification), and our works of faith are a result of receiving God’s grace through faith and walking in the revelation of Christ’s accomplished work on the cross on our behalf and in our stead. Our righteousness is also dependent on yielding to the Holy Spirit’s continuing work in our spirits and souls, and patiently waiting in a state of perpetual hope for Christ’s finished work to be revealed in us at His second coming and the first out resurrection of the dead and living in Christ.


As we wait in the hope of His righteousness and glory to be revealed in us, we must also be in hot pursuit of the holiness, godliness, and righteousness already provided for us in Christ. This is accomplished by working with Him and not against in His efforts to reveal Himself in us, to us, and through us to the glory of God our Heavenly Father!


This is of course why the Apostle Paul wrote,
“That I may gain Christ, and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is of God through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on for the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things.” (Philippians 3:9-15)



So in closing, let’s sum up what we’ve learned. Not every one who professes to know Christ, and even teaches the Bible, actually practices doing Christ’s words; therefore these are liars who will have their place in the Lake of Fire. (1 John 2:3-4 & Revelation 21: 8) But sincere Christian believers, or if you will, those who are “loved by Christ” and “who love Christ in sincerity,” (1 John 4:19) are not like the hypocrites mentioned above (Luke 6:46) because they are the recipients of God’s grace (Ephesians 6:24) by which through faith they have been made “the righteousness of God in Christ.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) Because “they love Christ and keep His commandments, God the Father and God the Son have chosen to come and make their home with them!” (John 14:23)


If we are professing and practicing Christian believers and not as “those who draw back into perdition” (Hebrews 10:38), we have continued in His love by trusting in Christ’s blood and name for our salvation that has been made available through His righteous work on the cross, “Jesus having been made sin for us.” At that moment in time our sin nature was crucified with Him on the cross. We have also been “buried with Him through baptism” and “raised with Him from the dead for our justification.” We are now “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” and “seated with Christ in heavenly places.” (Ephesians 1:13 & 2:6)


Another way of saying this is that we have received “the gift of righteousness” (Romans 3:24) through continuing in Him and allowing His word’s to continue in us, (John 15:7) thereby not receiving God’s grace in vain. (2 Corinthians 6:1) We are also “pressing for the goal to win the prize of heavenward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:8) by “living and walking in the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25) This is accomplished in us through yielding our spirits, souls, and bodies to the Spirit’s leading and not to the dictates of our old sin nature because, “They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh, with its affections and lusts.” (Galatians 5:24) In other words, we are in the practice of “mortifying the misdeeds of the body through the Spirit.” (Romans 8:13) Through the Holy Spirit and obedience to Christ’s words, we have become and are becoming “doers of righteousness, (Romans 2:13 & 1 John 3:7) “not allowing sin to dwell in our mortal bodies that we should obey it in the lust thereof.” (Romans 6:12) Also, “the righteous requirement of the law (which is to love God with all of our being and to love our neighbors as ourselves) is fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit!” (Romans 8:4)


And last but not least, “we ourselves through the Spirit, by faith, eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.” (Galatians 5:5) This will be ours when Christ returns because at that time we will truly be the “spirits of just men made perfect.” (Hebrews 12:23) The Apostle John tells us, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2) Praise God, amen!

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Luke 18:9-14


"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.” Matthew 7:1-5


Earlier in this teaching I mentioned the twenty-four elders casting their crowns before the Lord’s throne. Let’s take a look at five crowns or rewards for righteous works of faith mentioned in the Bible that we as Christian believers can receive by grace through faith. They are the following:

The Crown of Life: Given to all who endure temptation and are faithful through trials. This crown is also given to those who love Him. (James 1:12)

The Crown of Righteousness: Given to all who keep the faith and long for and love His return. (2 Timothy 4:8)

The Crown of Rejoicing: Given to all who have helped bring others to Christ. (1Thessalonians 2:19)

The Crown of Glory: Given to all who serve and shepherd God’s people. (1 Peter 5:1- 4)

The Imperishable Crown: Given to those who have exercised self-control in all things and subdued their sin nature. (1 Corinthians 9:25)

So, we see that it is entirely possible for Christian believers to “practice righteous works of faith” without “spiritual pride” and receive “crowns” for our behavior. Why? Because, “Of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”

But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For in Christ neither circumcision nor un-circumcision avails anything but a new creation. Galatians 6:14

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor un-circumcision avails anything, but faith working through love. Galatians 5:6

In essence, these two scriptures are saying that one’s salvation from sin is not based on works of law but on grace through faith resulting in “a new creation” and “faith working through love” for those who are “in Christ Jesus.” Another way of saying this is, "That I might be be found "in Him," not having a righteousness of my own which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Philippians 3:9

For the professing Christian believer it is through receiving the knowledge of the truth, resulting in faith in the accomplished sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, that the “the world,” “the flesh” (sin nature), and the “old man” have been executed with Christ, resulting in his justification (innocence) from sin.

The power of heart belief and mouth confession:

‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’-- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, because if you shall confess (profess) with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and shall believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved: for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession (profession) is made unto salvation. Romans 10:8-10 (Also see Hebrews 10:23)

Respectively, the professing, practicing Christian believer (which obviously we are all called to be) has been crucified and is dead and buried to the behavior of the world, the dictates of flesh, and the practices of the old man, and is thereby, a new creation "in Christ," if he chooses to remain "in Christ." This will result in his sanctification by the righteousness that comes from God through faith. In other words, sanctification requires the Christian believer’s continuous and consistent infilling and yielding to the promptings of the indwelling Holy Spirit and obedience to the doctrine of Christ. This is how the Christian believer chooses to remain "in Christ" and become a disciple of Christ.

Jesus said, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more friut. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless in remains in the vine, neither can you, unless you remain in Me. I am the true vine, you are the branches. He who remains in Me bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. John 15:1-8

The power of consecrated Christian disciplines motivated by Christ’s love for us and our faithful appreciation of, and heartfelt love for Him:

For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore if any man be "in Christ," he is a new creature: old things are passed away; "behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:14-17

Again, whosoever believes in and professes their faith in Christ has had “the world,” “the flesh,” and “the old man” that resided within them executed and condemned by God with Christ on His cross, i.e. --- “I have been crucified to the world.” This has resulted in their justification. Whosoever believes in, professes, and practices their faith in Christ has had “the behavior of world,” “the dictates of flesh,” and “the practices of the old man” condemned and executed by God with Christ on His cross, and respectively has chosen to take up his own cross and follow Christ. i.e. --- “the world has been crucified to me.” (Paraphrased Galatians 6:14) This choice will result in the believers sanctification. We must understand that when we become a believer and professor of Christ we are justified by faith, but if we choose to be a disciple of Christ by remaining in Him and allowing his words to remain in us, as professing, practicing Christian believers, we will bear much fruit and our God and Father will be glorified! By the way, we are all called to be disciples of Christ, but the choice is ours. If we will choose to remain in Him and not in sin, He will choose us to be a part of the first out resurrection,(Revelation 20:6) but remember, "many are called but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:14)

Now, with this in mind, the word “believes” that the Apostle John used in his gospel is used in the present continuious tense, and it means, “Whosoever believes and keeps on believing.” (John 3:16) The word “disciple” comes from the word discipline, and it means “a disciplined follower of Christ.” The word “saint” comes from the word “sanctification.” The word sanctified means “separated unto God,” and the word saint means “one, who by the mercies of God, presents his body a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is his reasonable service. And is not conformed to the world, but transformed through the renewing of his mind, that he may prove what is the good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” (Paraphrased Romans 12:1-2)

Let’s take a look at a believer, a disciple, and a saint whose life was dramatically changed by an encounter with the risen Lord on the road to Damascus. (Acts 9:1-19) This fellow’s experience of meeting the glorified Jesus so affected his character that it didn’t just change the course of his life, but his name was changed also, from Saul to Paul! (Acts 13:9) In Hebrew the name Paul means “small.” All who have an encounter with the Lord and continue in Him as Paul did (Galatians 1:17-26 & 2:1) remain small in their own eyes; as a matter of fact, Christ becomes so large in them that there is little, or no room for their “old man,” which is the carnal element within human nature given to self-centeredness, self-seeking, self-pity, selfish ambition, angry resentment, and prideful boasting etc. Such a person’s ego becomes so small through this divine displacement and replacement that he becomes an ever increasingly difficult target for Satan to see, much less hit with his “fiery darts.” This was the case with John the Baptist (the forerunner and friend of the Bridegroom) in relation to Jesus Christ when speaking about himself and the soon summation of his ministry and life on this earth. “He must increase; I must decrease.” John 3:30 --- This concept of Christ increasing in the believer’s life as he decreases is the normal pattern of all sincere Christian believers who are “growing in the grace of God” (2 Peter 3:18) and not “receiving God’s grace in vain.” (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)

Also, it is important to understand that a saint of God is a stealth weapon in the arsenal of the Lord, pulling down satanic strongholds and destroying the works of the devil. Jesus said to His disciples when preparing for the cross, which would prove to be the spiritual, mental, and physical sacrifice of His life, “I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.” John 14:30 --- The Apostle John declared, “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was begotten of God keeps him safe and the evil one cannot touch him.” 1 John 5:18 --- Jesus spoke of His cross as His sanctification, resulting in the Christian believer’s sanctification. This is accomplished through Christ’s blood, God’s word, and the blessed Holy Spirit. So we see that the sanctifying cross of Christ, and the cross that the Christian believer chooses to take up through yielding to the Holy Spirit in obedience to Christ’s words results in his “putting off the old man,” and leads him to “putting on the new man who is created in righteousness and true holiness.” This is how the Christian believer experiences the sanctification that Christ died on the cross to provide for him. (1 Corinthians 1:30-31) This sanctification is also the means to his protection from “the evil one.”

After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: ‘Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. John 17:1,15-20

Now it is important to realize that the Apostle Paul was not just a professing Christian believer, but he was both a professing and practicing Christian believer (meaning that he was both justified and sanctified or, if you will, a professing believer in and a practicing disciple of Christ), and he spent a great deal of his life and ministry exhorting others to believe and behave as he did. The reason that Paul could say of himself, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” is because “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ” was in operation in his life. In other words, Paul had been granted “the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God” which meant he had come to know that he was dead to “the world,” and “the world” was dead to him. Because of Christ’s cross Paul’s sin nature had been crucified with Jesus and now, because of Christ’s resurrection, ascension, and the shedding of His Holy Spirit abroad into his heart, he had a revelation that Christ was now alive in him and increasing to the degree that he could say, “If any man be in Christ Jesus, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new!” This was both a profession of Paul's faith based on Christ’s accomplished work on the cross, and a practical reality based on his new life "in Christ" that was being continuously filled with, and led by the Holy Spirit as a practicing believer!

Can you, dear reader, realistically say this about yourself, not only as a profession of faith, but also in your practical experience? If not, there is still some “working out” to do, but take courage, you are not alone in your efforts, because “God is working in you both to will and do of His own good pleasure!” (Philippians 2:12) Nevertheless, this was Paul’s reality. It meant that he had come to “live in the Spirit,” by faith in Christ’s atoning cross, resulting in his justification as a professing Christian believer. It also meant that he had learned to “walk in the Spirit,” by yielding to, and following the leading of the Holy Spirit, resulting in an experience of consecrated sanctification as a practicing Christian believer. Was he perfected (glorified)? No, but he was pressing towards the perfection associated with, and anticipated by those awaiting the first out resurrection from the dead, through both living and walking in the Spirit.

It is through living and walking in the Spirit and by remaining continuously filled with the Spirit, through praying and singing in the Spirit, as we mortify the misdeeds of the body through the Spirit and worship God in Spirit and in truth, that we sow to the Spirit, and “from the Spirit reap life everlasting!” This is also how we bear and cultivate “the fruit of the Spirit, which is 'love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.” It is also how “the gifts of the Spirit” are in operation in our lives, which are “words of wisdom, words of knowledge, discerning of spirits, the gift of faith, gifts of healing, working of miracles, prophecy, tongues, and the interpretation of tongues.” And last but not least, it is how we avoid sowing to the flesh, thereby producing “the works of the flesh which are, sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.”

Now, this same spiritual revelation and these same transforming, or if you will, sanctifying experiences that were in Paul’s life and ministry are available to every born again, Spirit-baptized Christian believer. It is through both this “life in the Spirit” and this “walk in the Spirit” that “faith works through love” in our lives, and “the righteous requirement of God’s law, which is to love God with our entire beings (spirit, soul, and body) and to love our neighbors as ourselves, is fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit!” This happens when Christ is revealed to us, in us, and through us by the power and influence of the indwelling Holy Spirit. When this takes place, we are enabled to love and serve God and humankind as Paul and his fellow apostles loved and served. Why? Because we know that God loves us with the same love that he loved them. “God is no respecter of persons.” (Acts 10:34) The problem is that most of us don’t know what Paul and the other apostles knew, but we can! How? By the exact same, “spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him!” This very thing will lead us to a life of justification, sanctification, and glorification in Christ. In other words, it will lead an unbeliever to become a Christian believer, a Christian believer to become a disciple of Christ, and a disciple of Christ to become a saint of God! Now, it is also important to know that this path, if we choose to take it, will lead to both agony and ecstasy, to suffering for righteousness sake and to glory. In other words, this road will lead to a cross, a grave, a powerful resurrection, and a glorious ascension. I would like to add my prayer of faith with the Apostle Paul’s prayer on your behalf, dear reader, that God will give you “the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.” Amen!

Part Two

Experiencing the ecstasy, the glory, and the resurrection.

I would like to start part two of my teaching by quoting two ecstatic prayers offered to God by Paul on behalf of the church at Ephesus. In essence, Paul was praying that the believers in Ephesus would come to know God the way he knew God, and that they would have the same results in their lives and ministries that he was having in his.

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and every power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Ephesians 1:15-22

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family of heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height --- to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:14-20.

Experiencing the agony, the suffering for righteousness sake, and the grave.

Jesus testified, “No greater love does any man have than this, that he would lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) We know that Jesus Christ our Chief Apostle was the first to love God the Father and His fellow man like this through enduring the cross, and that the Apostle Paul, and all other "sent ones" are simply making feeble attempts to follow in Christ’s foot steps. After all, in Christ's suffering for our sins on the cross, He actually experienced Hell, bearing the consequences of our sin's so that we wouldn't have to! But let's see where faithfully following Christ lead the apostles?

For I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last, as men condemned to death; for we have been made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored! To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labor, working with our hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the off scouring of all things until now.
1 Corinthians 4:9-13

Let’s take a look at an itemized list of what the Apostle Paul suffered personally as a minister of Christ.

Are they ministers of Christ? I speak as a fool, I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, fasting often, in cold and nakedness— besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. 2 Corinthians 11: 23-38

Both the agony and ecstasy of “sent ones” is well expressed in the following two scriptures:

Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds. 2 Corinthians 12:12

Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Philippians 3:8-15

So we see that Paul, and the other apostles were special messengers sent by God, with signs and wonders following. And that suffering and glory walk hand in hand with the apostolic calling.

Now, not everyone is called into the office of apostle, and the twelve original New Covenant Apostles of Christ (minus Judas Iscariot) have a special status in God’s kingdom. Having said that, there are presently many apostles on the earth today, and there have been many anointed apostles other than the original twelve apostles of Christ throughout the history of the church. Whereas not everyone is called in the office of an apostle, as professing and practicing Christian believers who desire to come after Christ, we are all called by Him to do as He did, to walk as He walked, and follow in His footsteps as Paul and all other faithful apostles did and do. Remember the words of Paul to the Philippians, regarding “pressing for the goal of the prize,” resulting in their attaining to the first out resurrection of the dead, and as Peter put it, attaining to “an abundant entrance into the kingdom of God,” (2 Peter 1:9) “Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind.” (Philippians 3:15)

And consider the words of Jesus:

Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels. Luke 9:23-27

So we see that all Christian believers are called by Christ to follow His lead, and if we are faithful to do so, it will take us to an agonizing cross, a humbling grave, a powerful resurrection, and a glorious ascension.

Now, as individual Christian believers we each have our own cross to bear. It will not be the same cross for each of us, but it will be a cross that requires denying of self. This is played out in the daily activities of our lives as we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in obedience to the words of Christ. For one the cross may mean sacrificing himself/herself by working diligently in the market place to provide the basic necessities for his/her loved ones and family. To another it may mean pastoring a church, and feeding Christ's flock with the word of God. For another it may require visiting and caring for a person in a nursing home. For another it may mean visiting those in prisons and hospitals. For another it may mean loving unconditionally a child, a parent, or a spouse who has hurt them. For another it may mean caring for a special needs child or adult. To another it may mean forgiving a co-worker who has offended them. For another it may mean sacrificing certain personal needs to provide financially for widows and orphans. To another it may mean starting and operating an orphanage. To another it may mean leaving homes and family and lands to minister in a developing country and live in another culture to which one is unaccustomed. To another it my mean leaving their job and family to evangelize in their own nation. To another it may mean embracing martyrdom in their service to Christ. One thing is certain for all of us, it will mean "keeping ourselves unspotted by the world," because "without holiness, no one will see the Lord!"

The list of acts of self-denial goes on and on, and plays out in a myriad of personal situations and circumstances throughout one’s life. The essence of bearing one’s cross means following the leading of the Holy Spirit at all times, especially during times of temptations, tests and trials --- and doing so through the grace that Christ provides.

Why would anyone want to go through an agonizing cross and a humbling grave? Because, without the cross and the grave, there is no resurrection or ascension! Are you ready to take up your cross and follow Christ? I hope so!

Again, you might ask, why would you hope this for me! I will try to answer you with one simple sentence that sums up my meaning and message quite well.

Because, “To be a follower of Christ will cost you everything; not to be a follower of Christ will cost you a whole lot more!” Selah.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2: 8-10


“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:12-13


Notice, if you will, that the first scripture tells us, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, not of works, lest any man should boast.” And the next scripture tells us, “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” At first glance these two scriptures, both written by the Apostle Paul, seem to be contradicting each other, don’t they? Now, knowing that God’s Word could never contradict itself gives us reason for further examination of these texts.

If you want to know the truth, both scriptures are saying the same thing, in essence, when read in context of both complete verses. Also, please understand that the first scripture quotation is written in the past tense and deals with the subject of our justification in Christ. The second scripture quotation is written in the present tense and deals with the subject of our sanctification in Christ. At this point it would be good to understand, dear reader, that Christian salvation is made up of three experiences: justification, sanctification and glorification.

It is also important to understand that in practicing the discipline of biblical exegesis we learn that “a text taken out of context is a pretext,” so the key to unlocking the apparent paradox or contradiction in the previously quoted scriptures regarding faith and works lies in the fact that both scripture verses make reference to two other very important facts besides our faith and works. It is what I like to call “the God factor.” The first fact is that “we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” And the second fact is that “it is God who works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”

It is also important to notice and understand this: “Works of law” cannot save us, lest anyone should boast, but we have been saved by grace through faith in the accomplished work of Christ’s atonement for our sins, resulting in our present “works of faith,” or if you will “righteous deeds.” These works of faith and/or righteous deeds are inspired by 1) Our awesome respect for our Heavenly Father or, if you will, “The fear of the Lord.” 2) Our gratefulness to His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and 3) Our yielding to the promptings of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

So, at the end of the day, there is no room or reason for us to boast! In other words, any good work that is performed by a Christian believer is the direct result of God’s unmerited favor extended towards us through the atoning blood of Christ which is the result of our past justification in Him, and it is also the direct result of His divine influence upon our hearts and its reflection in our lives. This is made possible and is the result of the indwelling Holy Spirit because the work of Holy Spirit is the means by which we experience our current and continuing sanctification in Christ.

Now, the Gospel of the kingdom of God reveals that “we are created in Christ Jesus for good works,” and that through Christ Jesus, “God is working in us to will and do for His good pleasure.” Therefore we are to work with Him and not against Him, because if we don’t work with Him, there is plenty of reason for “fear and trembling.” “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, whether good or bad. Knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.” (2 Corinthians 5:10-11) “It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31) “Our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29)

It is through faith that we have been justified having experienced something marvelous of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and grace in our past. This took place when we believed in Jesus Christ and received Him as our personal Savior and Lord. It is through faith that He is working in us now, and we are also currently working with Him, in the continuing process of our present sanctification through “walking in the Spirit.” It is through faith that we will continue to follow His lead onward and upward towards the final goal of our salvation, which is a future and eternal experience of glorification. This will take place at the second coming of Christ and the rapture of the overcoming redeemed believers in Christ. In other words, those who overcome the accuser of the brethren “by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives to the death.” (Revelations 12:11) What we must overcome now, so that we will be able to overcome during the Great Tribulation, is the human propensity to sell out to Satan when under great temptation and unprecedented pressure. Always remember this, “Resisted temptation is the mark of true character.”

If we allow God to have His way in us through yielding ourselves (spirit, soul, and body) to the Holy Spirit’s directives, and if we allow ourselves to find our way in Him, through pursuing and perfecting holiness in reverence of God, it will result in an abundant entrance into the kingdom of Heaven (2 Peter 1:11). If, however, we don’t, it will result in eternal loss! (1 Corinthians 3:11-15)

It is essential for us to understand that, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” (Psalm 111:10) and that, “The holy scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 3:15) The holy scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation because they inspire a righteous fear of God’s judgment against our sins, a righteous hope of God’s rewards for our continuance in well doing, and a righteous revelation of what God has done through Christ on our behalf and in our stead. This revelation results in freedom from sin, and a profound gratefulness, thankfulness, love, adoration, commitment, and devotion to Christ on our part.

It is important to realize that it is through faith in Christ that we are saved, and it is through faithfulness to Christ that we inherit all that He has saved us for, namely His eternal Kingdom. Thus, our inheritance of God’s Kingdom is conditional, and based upon us working with Him as obedient sons, and not against Him as slaves to self, Satan, and sin, or if you will, “sons of disobedience.” So, victory is possible because Christ is in us through faith, and we are in Christ through faithfulness. Let’s take a look at a couple more scriptures regarding Christ being in us, and our being in Christ.

“To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27


“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17


“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” If you are hoping to win a marathon race and be awarded a prize at the end of the race for coming in first, you will have to exercise self-discipline and condition your body in advance. In order to win the race and the coveted prize at the end, you will have to train yourself properly by eating the correct diet. You will have to put your body through rigorous exercises, stretching your legs and expanding your lung capacity, and then resting your body at the proper times if you are going to be able to endure the hardships and the pace of the race. To fail to do so will diminish your hope and chances for success, victory, and glory. The Apostle Paul well understood the allegorical significance of self-discipline and the marathon race or the prizefight regarding his own spiritual success, victory, and glory.

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” I Corinthians 9:24-27


We must come to understand that winning the prize is about learning to trust God’s promises, as well as training ourselves to obey His commandments. We must do both, and thereby give it our best effort through the strength that Christ provides by the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit. In a phrase, “My utmost for His highest.”

“If anyone be in Christ he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all thing have become new.” If, after careful examination of one’s self, one discovers that the old things of one’s Adamic personality (the old man) are still dominating one’s personality, and the new things of Christ’s personality (the new man) are not dominating one’s personality, one must take the spiritual initiative to cast off the old man and put on the new man who has already been created in righteousness and true holiness.

Again, notice the different tenses in the following scriptures. The first is speaking of a past experience that happened when we first put on Christ through faith, resulting in our justification. The second is talking about something we must do presently in order to remain in Christ, resulting in our sanctification.

“Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.” Colossians 3:9-10 (Past tense…justification)


“That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24 (Present tense…sanctification)


So in summation let us rejoice in this revelation. The salvation experience of justification, sanctification, and glorification that is ours through being in Christ, and Him being in us, will lead us to a spiritual marriage of complete union with Him at His second coming and the rapture of the overcoming church. To God be the glory for the things He has done in our past, is doing in our present, and will do in our future through saving us from our sins. After all, the reason for Him removing our sins by nailing them to the cross is so that we might enjoy His presence both now and forever more.

I have discovered after almost fifty-seven years of life on this planet and after thirty-seven years of new life in Christ that what the Church, including myself, needs to understand above everything else is what the Apostle Paul called “the full counsel of God.” The following is a brief synopsis of my understanding on that subject, but it is by no means an all-inclusive exposition of what the Bible teaches.


The full counsel of God reveals what God has done in the past for the human race through Christ’s passion in His death, burial, and resurrection in order to save us from our sins. It also reveals what God is doing in the present through the Holy Spirit’s work in the earth to bring sinners to Christ, as well as what He is doing presently in the hearts of Christian believers in reminding us of, and relaying Christ’s words to us in order to bring us to spiritual maturity in Christ.


[Author’s Note: The entire New Testament reveals the above truth to one degree or another, and a large portion of the Old Testament points us to it, and yet a compact and concise example of this can be found in the first half of the book of Ephesians. (Ephesians, chapters 1-3) Please take a few moments and prayerfully read these chapters now on your own.]


The full counsel of God also reveals what God will do in the future at the end of the Great Tribulation period at Christ’s second coming and the first out resurrection of the dead and living in Christ from the earth.


[Author’s Note: Presently, the spirits of those who have died in Christ are in Paradise enjoying eternal life with Jesus as disembodied human spirits (Luke 23:43 & 2 Corinthians 5:8) as they await the first out resurrection of the dead.]


At a time in the future, Christian believers will be raised up to meet Christ and his angels coming from Heaven in the skies over Jerusalem. (Matthew 16:27)---At that moment in time they will receive immortal and incorruptible bodies. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)---Christ will rest His feet upon the Mount of Olives causing a great earthquake. (Zechariah 14:4)---Christ will fight and defeat the anti-Christ and False Prophet at the battle of Armageddon and cast them into the Lake of Fire. (Revelations 19:20)---He will have Satan bound and cast into “a bottomless pit” for a thousand years. --- (Revelations 20:1-3) Christian believers will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ for the things done in their bodies, whether good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10) and be given rewards and suffer loss according to what they have done. The consuming fire of God will test each person’s works. (1 Corinthians 10-14) Those who have not done the will of God, (God’s will for the justified believer is their sanctification, so that they might be glorified) even though some claim to acknowledge Jesus, calling Him Lord, Lord, and testify of having done great works (including charismatic works) in His name, they will still be rejected by Christ. (Matthew 7:22-24) Only those that Jesus recognizes as good and faithful servants will enter into His joy, (Matthew 25:23) in other words, he who overcomes self, Satan, and sin, by an appropriation of God’s grace through faith. (Revelations 3:21)


[Authors note: What will prove to be profitable for Christian believers when judged by Christ, will be whether or not Christ-like love for God the Father, and for their fellow man is found to have been active and alive in their lives. (1 Corinthians 13) --- This is the righteous requirement of God’s law that was fulfilled by Christ, and is also fulfilled in the Christian believers, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.]


Christian believers names must be found written in the Lamb’s Book of Life for them to escape the second death, which is Hell and the Lake of Fire. (Revelations 3:5) Christ will establish His millennial reign with His resurrected saints and faithful martyrs on the earth. (Revelations 20: 4)---After a thousand years of peace on earth, Satan will be loosed and lead a final rebellion against Christ and His saints. He will be quickly defeated by Christ and cast into the Lake of Fire. --- (Revelations 20:7-10) There will be a second out resurrection of the dead from Hades at which time the unredeemed sinners will receive immortal bodies. (Revelations 20:13)---All unbelievers will be judged by Christ at the Great White Throne Judgment for what they have done in their bodies and for having rejected Christ, and they will be cast into the Lake of Fire. (Revelations 21:8) ---This old earth will be destroyed by fire and a new heaven and new earth will be created. (2 Peter 3:10-13)---The New Jerusalem, the Holy City of God, will descend from Heaven and rest upon the new earth wherein dwells righteousness. (Revelations 21:1-7)


The full counsel of God reveals what all sinners and Christian believers can and must do now in response to what God has done, is doing, and will do in saving us from our sins. Sinners must repent and believe the good news. After this they must be baptized in water in the name of the Lord, and receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues in order for their initiation in Christ to be completed. (Hebrew 6: 1-3, Acts 2:1-4, Acts 8:14-17, Acts 10:44-48, Acts 19:1-7) Next, Christian believers must make every effort to add to their faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control, and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, love. (2 Peter 1:5-11)


[Authors Note: As Ephesians, chapters 1-3 is a good compact example of what Christ has accomplished for Christian believers, so Ephesians, chapters 3-6 is a good compact example of what Christian believers must do in regards to what Christ has done on their behalf, and in their stead. Please take a few moments and prayerfully read these chapters now on your own.]


The full counsel of God reveals that there are eternal rewards for those individuals who respond appropriately to what God has done, is doing, and will do in saving them from their sins. Jesus declared, “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne." (Revelations 2:26-28 & 3:21) It also reveals that there are eternal judgments for those individuals who respond inappropriately to what God has done, is doing, and will do in saving them from their sins. “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars---their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” (Revelations 21:8) --- Also see (Galatians 5:15-26 & 1 Corinthians 6:9-11)


The full counsel of God reveals that divine mercy is available to every individual sinner or backslider who chooses to respond appropriately to what God has done, is doing, and will do in saving them from their sins, by confessing all of their known sins to God and forsaking them. (Proverbs 28:13) This is true for all human beings who are granted repentance from their sins and exercise faith towards God, to the point of amending their wicked ways, even after a lifetime of inappropriate responses to the grace of God. Christ stands at the door of our hearts and knocks. If anyone hears, and opens their heart to Him, He will come in and eat with them, and they with Him. (Revelation 3:20) This implies relationship, fellowship, familiarity, and intimacy. This message was addressed to backsliding Christians, even though it is also applicable to sinners. God commands all souls to repent and believe the gospel, and He has, and will continue to grant all souls the opportunity and capacity do so, until the end comes. (Mark 1:15, Acts 2:38, Matthew 24:14, Acts 5:31, Act: 11:18, Acts 17:30, Acts 20:21) The only exceptions to this rule are the reprobate and/or apostates, because it is impossible to renew them again to repentance. (Hebrews 6:6)


The full counsel of God reveals that both sinners and Christian backsliders who are granted repentance from all of their known sins, are those who are so influenced by the conviction of the Spirit of grace, that they begin to seek a change in their character from a carnal state of being (behaving) to a spiritual state of being (behaving). They do this and are to continue doing this with their whole heart, mind, soul, and strength. They will not and must not relent in their desire and pursuit of holiness until the divine grace to be transformed is granted unto them in abundance from on High. (2 Timothy 2:25 & Revelation 2:5,16,21,22, 3:3,19, 2 Corinthians 7: 9 & 10)


[Authors note: For those poor backsliding souls who want to repent of all their known sins, but don’t seem to be able to, please know this: God’s desire is to grant you repentance even more than you desire it, therefore keep asking, seeking, and knocking, and it will be granted unto you. (Matthew 5:3, Luke 11:9, Luke 18:1) Also, know this: the kind of transformation mentioned here is only possible by remaining filled with the Holy Spirit and through the discipline of watchfulness and prayerfulness. One must stay awake and draw near to God, lest they fall into temptation, because the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41) ]


The full counsel of God reveals that once backsliders are granted repentance from all of their known sins in the manner stated above, it is possible for their hearts to be so filled with gratitude towards God, that the remainder of their lives on earth are lived in the pursuit, perfecting, and maintaining of holiness in reverence of God. Among other things, this means the avoidance of all known, deliberate, highhanded, willful, and habitual sins against God, their fellow human beings, and their own bodies. (Luke 7:47)


[Authors note: For Christian believers who do stumble and fall into temptation and commit various sins of the flesh due to infirmities of the body, human compulsions and impulses, and/or demonic strongholds operating in their minds that are more often than not brought about by generational curses, there is forgiveness and deliverance available to them through the conviction of the Holy Spirit upon their human conscience and the confession and forsaking of their sins to God. (1 John 1:9)]


Finally, the full council of God reveals that nothing, or no one, that causes offense will be allowed into the Holy City of God or upon the new earth wherein dwells righteousness. My brothers and sisters, now is the time when all offenses and sinful traits in human character and behavior need to be dealt with, confessed, forsaken, and overcome in order to inherit the kingdom of God and avoid the Lake of Fire. God has provided all grace available in order to do this. It is the responsibility of all human beings to repent and believe the gospel, be baptized in water in the name of Jesus, and receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. It is time for all Christian believers to work with God and not against Him in this great salvation by appropriating His transforming and overcoming grace through faith. I pray that all who read this document will determine in their hearts to do so. May all believe in Christ, and settle down into Him, and be not removed from Him. May God bless all of us in our effort and enthusiasm to do His will and live holy lives and godly lifestyles. May we all fall on the Stone and be broken before Him for our sins. May we all be granted repentance, and faith towards God. May we all be renewed, restored, revived, and sanctified in our spirits, souls, and bodies, unto the coming of the Lord. “Faithful is He who calls you who will also do it.” But remember, He will do it in us, to us, and through us, but not without us. Our cooperation is necessary. Philippians (2:11-13) Therefore, I will leave you with a final encouragement and warning, “Whoever shall fall on the Stone will be broken; but on whomever it shall fall, it will ground him to powder.” (Matthew 21:44)

The full council of God, (a good example of this is the Book of Ephesians) and the doctrine of Christ, (a good example of this is Matthew 5-7) for the salvation of sinners is founded on what God the Father has done through Jesus Christ’s “Passion,” by the spilling of His Blood and through the shedding of His Holy Spirit abroad into the Christian believers hearts. They also involve instruction in the way we faithful believers can, should, and must presently conduct ourselves because of His accomplished work on the cross on our behalf and in our stead. Jesus Christ has redeemed us from our sins and their terrible present day and eternal consequences. If sin had been allowed to continue unchecked, it would have resulted in unnecessary temporal suffering for sin far beyond what the redeemed have experienced to date, and far worse than that, the eternal torments of Hell and The Lake of Fire would be the destiny of every human being as it is now for every unrepentant and unredeemed sinner.


So, I guess my opening paragraph can be summed up in what Watchman Nee said, “Christianity is not a big “do,” but a big “done,” and, I might add, the importance of our proper response to what has been done through Jesus Christ. The essence of these revelation truths might also have inspired the title of Oswald Chambers’ best selling devotional book entitled, “My Utmost for His Highest.”


Now, salvation incorporates a past event (the justification of the Christian believer), a present experience (the sanctification of the Christian believer), and a future hope (the glorification of the Christian believer). All three are essential to the concept of what the Bible calls “salvation,” and therefore one without the other is an incomplete puzzle or a picture not quiet in focus.


Our initiation into this saving grace (to be found only in Jesus Christ) involves the following: Repentance from works that lead to death and faith towards God, water baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and baptism with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues.


First and foremost, we must learn to always focus our gaze on what Jesus Christ has done for us through His passion on the cross in dealing with our past sins. This is an expression of His unmerited favor that has been extended to us by His sinless life, atoning death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and eternal intercession and is to be received by us through faith, resulting in the justification” or “translation,” of our “spirit man,” what the Apostle Paul called, “the hidden man of the heart.” “For He (God) delivered us from the from [the powers of darkness and translated us (powerfully removed us) into the kingdom of His Son.” (Colossians 1:13) Secondly, we must recognize what He is presently doing for us in dealing with our sins through the divine influence of His Holy Spirit upon our hearts and its reflection in our lives resulting in the “sanctification” or “transformation,” of our human souls which incorporate our intellect, will, and emotions. “And be not conformed to the world but be transformed through the renewing of your mind that you might prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2) And thirdly, we must learn to rest in the eternal hope and blessed assurance that we will be glorified together with Him at His second coming and the rapture of the church, resulting in the “glorification” or “transfiguration” of our bodies. “For we know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.” (1 John 3:2) And “Christ in you the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27)



All aspects of our triune human constitution (we ourselves being created in the image and likeness of the triune Holy God) are expressed in a prayer of benediction offered by the Apostle Paul on behalf of the church at Thessalonica. “Now may the God of peace sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23) Next, Paul offers a statement of encouragement, and exhortation regarding the faithfulness of our God to answer this prayer. “He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:24) It must be understood that He will sanctify us completely, spirit, soul, and body unto the coming of the Lord, but He will do it in us, to us, and through us, but not without us. Our cooperation is expected. In other words we are required to work with Him in this sanctification process and not against Him. This will require our “consecration” unto Him and our separation from the sins that so easily entangle us. There are present and eternal rewards to be obtained through our chosen consecration unto Him, as well as present and eternal losses to be avoided in failing to consecrate ourselves unto Him. Therefore, we are exhorted, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is working in you, both to will and to do of His own good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12,13)


Our cooperating with Him is what the Bible calls “walking in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16), and what might also be referred to as “appropriating the grace of God.” "The grace of God has appeared bringing salvation to all people, teaching us to renounce ungodly and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:11-14).


A good metaphor for “working out,” or if you will, “walking out,” our own salvation could be the following. This life is a lot like a trek through a swamp. The swamp represents the seven deadly sins of lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride. God’s grace and the directives of His Holy Spirit represent a clear bright path of seven wide, dry, and flat stones that are sticking out, and standing well above the dark, murky, diseased, and dangerous swamp waters. These stones are the seven virtues: Chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness, and humility. Our mission, should we decide to accept it, is to use the path that has been so graciously provided for us by God the Father, in God the Son, through God the Holy Spirit, and make our way across the swamp to the solid dry higher ground on the other side of this life, the heavenly shore! Jesus, as the Son of Man, has already walked this path before us, therefore our journey is to be achieved by keeping our eyes on Him, “the author and finisher of our faith,” through “yielding our members to God as servants of righteousness and not slaves to sin,” through “following the leading and directives of the Holy Spirit,” and through “watching for, and avoiding the pitfalls of sin.” Jesus warned, “Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).


To fail to find the path through the swamp or to stray from the path will not only prove to be extremely dangerous, but absolutely disastrous. Regrettably, according to the words of Jesus Christ, many will do this horribly ignorant and rebellious thing, and only a few won’t! Jesus warned, “Many are called but few are chosen,” (Matthew 22:14). And, “Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate, and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13,14). Nevertheless, backsliders can rejoice that Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, and that He will leave the ninety-nine other sheep of His flock in order to seek and to save just one straying lost sheep that belongs to Him.


But we must "be careful if we think we stand lest we fall" Jesus warned, “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Remember, God’s will for us is our sanctification unto Him through the working of the Holy Spirit, and our chosen consecration unto Him through submitting our wills to His commandments.) On that day (The Day of Judgment) many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord. Did we not prophesy in Your name, and cast out demons in Your name, and do many mighty works in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-22).


I submit to you, dear reader, that one way to avoid this from happening to us is through an awareness of the seven deadly sins in order to avoid them. We can escape their consequences through continuing to confess our sins (day by day) and through godly sorrow (a continuing attitude of contrition for our sins) until repentance (the utter forsaking of our sins) is realized. This could be an aspect of what "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" means. (Please see Psalms 51, 103, and 107) Also the Apostle John tells us, “This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness (un-confessed and un-forsaken sins), we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light (of confessed and forsaken sins), as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out a liar, and His word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we come to know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. Whoever says ‘I know Him,’ but does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in Him: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same manner that He walked.” (1 John 1:5-10 and 1 John 2: 1-6)

The Seven Deadly Sins

Lust (Latin, luxuria)

Lust (or lechery) is usually thought of as excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual nature. Giving in to lusts can lead to sexual or sociological compulsions and/or transgressions including (but not limited to) sexual addiction, fornication, adultery, bestiality, rape, perversion, and incest. Dante's criterion was "excessive love of others," which therefore rendered love and devotion to God as secondary.

Gluttony (Latin, gula)
Gluttony

Derived from the Latin gluttire, meaning to gulp down or swallow, gluttony is the over-indulgence and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste. In the Christian religions, it is considered a sin because of the excessive desire for food, or its withholding from the needy. Depending on the culture, it can be seen as either a vice or a sign of status. Where food is relatively scarce, being able to eat well might be something to take pride in (although this can also result in a moral backlash when confronted with the reality of those less fortunate). Where food is routinely plentiful, it may be considered a sign of self-control to resist the temptation to over-indulge.


Medieval church leaders (e.g., Thomas Aquinas) took a more expansive view of gluttony,[3] arguing that it could also include an obsessive anticipation of meals, and the constant eating of delicacies and excessively costly foods.[4] Aquinas went so far as to prepare a list of six ways to commit gluttony, including:

Praepropere - eating too soon.
Laute - eating too expensively.
Nimis - eating too much.
Ardenter - eating too eagerly (burningly).
Studiose - eating too daintily (keenly).
Forente - eating wildly (boringly).

Greed (Latin, avaritia)

Greed (or avarice, covetousness) is, like lust and gluttony, a sin of excess. However, greed (as seen by the church) is applied to the acquisition of wealth in particular. St. Thomas Aquinas wrote that greed was "a sin against God, just as all mortal sins, in as much as man condemns things eternal for the sake of temporal things."
"Avarice" is more of a blanket term that can describe many other examples of greedy behavior. These include disloyalty, deliberate betrayal, or treason,[citations needed] especially for personal gain, for example through bribery. Scavenging[citation needed] and hoarding of materials or objects, theft and robbery, especially by means of violence, trickery, or manipulation of authority are all actions that may be inspired by greed. Such misdeeds can include simony, where one profits from soliciting goods within the actual confines of a church.

Sloth (Latin, acedia)

More than other sins, the definition of sloth has changed considerably since its original inclusion among the seven deadly sins. In fact it was first called the sin of sadness or despair. It had been in the early years of Christianity characterized by what modern writers would now describe as melancholy: apathy, depression, and joylessness — the last being viewed as being a refusal to enjoy the goodness of God and the world God created. Originally, its place was fulfilled by two other aspects, acedia and sadness. The former described a spiritual apathy that affected the faithful by discouraging them from their religious work. Sadness (tristitia in Latin) described a feeling of dissatisfaction or discontent, which caused unhappiness with one's current situation. When Thomas Aquinas selected acedia for his list, he described it as an "uneasiness of the mind", being a progenitor for lesser sins such as restlessness and instability. Dante refined this definition further, describing sloth as being the "failure to love God with all one's heart, all one's mind and all one's soul." He also described it as the middle sin, and as such was the only sin characterized by an absence or insufficiency of love.

The modern view of the vice, as highlighted by its contrary virtue of zeal or diligence, is that it represents the failure to utilize one's talents and gifts. For example, a student who does not work beyond what is required (and thus fails to achieve his or her full potential) could be labeled slothful.

Current interpretations are therefore much less stringent and comprehensive than they were in medieval times, and portray sloth as being more simply a sin of laziness or indifference, of an unwillingness to act, an unwillingness to care (rather than a failure to love God and his works). For this reason sloth is now often seen as being considerably less serious than the other sins, more a sin of omission than of commission.

The sloth, a South American mammal, was named after this sin by Roman Catholic explorers.

Wrath (Latin, ira)

Wrath (or anger or "Rage") may be described as inordinate and uncontrolled feelings of hatred and anger. These feelings can manifest as vehement denial of the truth, both to others and in the form of self-denial, impatience with the procedure of law, and the desire to seek revenge outside of the workings of the justice system (such as engaging in vigilantism) and generally wishing to do evil or harm to others. The transgressions borne of vengeance are among the most serious, including murder, assault, and in extreme cases, genocide. Wrath is the only sin not necessarily associated with selfishness or self-interest (although one can of course be wrathful for selfish reasons, such as jealousy, closely related to the sin of envy). Dante described vengeance as "love of justice perverted to revenge and spite". In its original form, the sin of wrath also encompassed anger pointed internally rather than externally. Thus suicide was deemed as the ultimate, albeit tragic, expression of wrath directed inwardly, a final rejection of God's gifts.

Envy (Latin, invidia)

Like greed, envy may be characterized by an insatiable desire; they differ, however, for two main reasons. First, greed is largely associated with material goods, whereas envy may apply more generally. Second, those who commit the sin of envy resent that another person has something they perceive themselves as lacking, and wish the other person to be deprived of it. Dante defined this as "love of one's own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs." Aquinas described envy as "sorrow for another's good.”

Pride (Latin, superbia)

In almost every list pride (or hubris or "vanity") is considered the original and most serious of the seven deadly sins, and indeed the ultimate source from which the others arise. It is identified as a desire to be more important or attractive than others, failing to give compliments to others though they may be deserving of them, and excessive love of self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God). Dante's definition was "love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one's neighbor." In perhaps the best-known example, the story of Lucifer, pride (his desire to compete with God) was what caused his fall from Heaven, and his resultant transformation into Satan. Vanity and narcissism are prime examples of this sin

Part II

Trust And Obey, For There’s No Other Way,
To Be Happy In Jesus, You Must Trust And Obey

I wonder when John H. Sammis pinned the above refrain to this great hymn of the church, entitled, “Trust And Obey,” in 1887, if he knew he was expressing the full counsel of God? My guess is that he did! The truth is, the more closely we Christian believers can come to doing these two simple things, namely trusting the promises of Christ and obeying the commandments of Christ, the happier we will be, and remember, the kingdom of Heaven is the realm of eternal happiness, and it is also “righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

So, it is important to realize the following simple Bible truth: Jesus Christ suffered and died on the cross, and was resurrected from the dead, in order to provide both forgiveness for our sins, and deliverance from our sins.

God’s provision of forgiveness for our sins and deliverance from our sins is revealed in the following scripture. “There is therefore now, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1) We enter into the realm of forgiveness for our sins through faith in the blood of Christ, and through the “washing of the water of the word,” and we enter into the realm of deliverance from our sins through the power of the Holy Spirit and through “the washing of the water of the word.” The Apostle Paul declared, “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the ‘washing of the water of the word,’ so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” (Ephesians 5:25-27) Jesus testified, “My words are Spirit and they are life.” The Apostle John proclaimed, “This is He who came by water and by blood - Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.” (1 John 5: 6-8)

With these truths in mind, there is no reason whatsoever for a Christian believer to ever carry the burden of condemnation, guilt, fear, and/or shame for sins committed against God or man if he has repented of them and confessed them to God and is trusting in His promise to forgive him and cleanse him from all unrighteousness. As a matter of fact, the only reason that one would be inclined to carry such burdens unnecessarily is because of a lack of knowledge, and therefore a lack of faith, in Christ’s promises and provisions regarding Christian believers sins. It should also be noted that where sin against ones fellowman is concerned, there are times, when possible, that it is necessary to make restitution for the sin committed through replacing the wrong deed that was performed with a right deed performed on behalf of the offended party, all the while remembering that reconciliation between the two parties, namely, the offender and offended is the goal.

There are far too many Christian believers living under condemnation, guilt, fear, and/or shame because they do not know about Christ’s promise and provision of forgiveness regarding their sins. Or if they have known, they’ve forgotten. Whatever the case, let me take this opportunity to remind you by quoting the following scripture.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

If you, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, have been carrying the unnecessary burden of condemnation, guilt, fear, and/or shame for your past sins, let me encourage you to confess them daily to God, and He will forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness as soon as you do so. Praise His Holy Name! “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died - more than that, who was raised - who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” (Romans 8:33-34) It is also important to forgive others there sins against us because if we won't God won't forgive ours. A good rule for Christian victory is to be quick to forgive, quick to receive forgiveness, and quick to repent.

So having dealt with the subject of forgiveness for our sins, let us now turn our attention to deliverance from our sins.

Do you not know that as Christian believers, we do not have to sin unless we just want to? (And the flesh always wants to.)

“Let not sin therefore reign in you mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace.” (Romans 6: 12-14) and, “They that belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts.” (Galatians 5:24) “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.” (Romans 8:13)

So, we see that the problem is not that we have to sin, but that we want to sin. Why?
Because “sin is pleasurable for a season.” It is so pleasurable that we forget that “the wages of sin is death.” So let us remember this truth and stop sinning. It is possible to do so by appropriating the grace of God, “for the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)

Now, “sin is the transgression of the Law,” and “anything that is not of faith is sin.”
Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God said, “I did not come to destroy the Law and the Prophets but to fulfill them.” And the Apostle Paul tells us, “The righteous requirement of the Law is to love the Lord our God with our entire being spirit, soul, and body and to love our neighbor as ourselves.” And, “The righteousness requirement of the Law is fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” Jesus also said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” And, “Love does no harm to its neighbor therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law.” Paul said, “If you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law” and “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness for everyone who believes.” Once again Paul testified, “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them but rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.” Philippians 3:8-10

Christianity is a religion founded on a relationship and a fellowship with God the Father, through God the Son, and by God the Holy Spirit. It is a relationship and a fellowship in the Spirit that results in righteous living. Whenever we sin, we break fellowship with God and in order to restore and resume fellowship with Him we must confess our sins, and also forsake them in order for his mercy to be fully appropriated. (Proverbs 28:13) This unbroken fellowship with God is available to us through faith in the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins and through yielding ourselves in obedience to the Holy Spirit directives for deliverance from our sin. Both are available to us through the “washing of the water of the word.”

Part III
Spiritual Warfare

Now the origins of sin is spiritual, but it manifest itself in human beings through thoughts, words, actions, and reactions. “There are six things that God hates, seven that are an abomination to Him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.” (Proverbs 6:16-19)

The Apostle Paul instructed, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints…” (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Let us also consider these words of the apostle: “For though we walk in the flesh, (physical) we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)

If we will seize the opportunity and subdue the flesh through walking in the Spirit we will defeat the devil through using the weapons of our warfare and will overcome everything the flesh and devil can throw at us. We will always be caused to triumph in Christ Jesus over every temptation, test, trial, situation, and circumstance in this life. We can choose to sow to the flesh and from the flesh reap corruption, or we can choose to sow to the Spirit and from the Spirit reap life everlasting. We can choose to love and serve God or love and serve sin. The former will lead to eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven, and the latter will lead to eternal death in Hell and the Lake of Fire. Again the choice is ours, and it is choice we must make daily. Jesus Christ proclaimed, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gain the whole world and loses or forfeits himself ? For whoever is ashamed of Me and my words, of Him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” (Luke 9:23-26)

“Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus, and to the faithful (trustworthy, sure, true) in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. According as He has chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He has made us accepted (highly favored) in the beloved.

Hebrews 6: 1-12

“Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrines of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God; of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this we will do, if God permit. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted of the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come. If they shall fall away, (apostatize, defect, desert, recant, retreat, turn, renounce) to renew them again to repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame. For the earth which drinks in the rain that comes often upon it, and brings forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receives blessings from God. But that which bears thorns and briers is rejected (unapproved, worthless, castaway, reprobate) and is near unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. For God is not unrighteousness to forget your work and labor of love, which you have showed toward His name, in that you have ministered, to the saints and do minister. And we desire that every one of you shows the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: That you be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

We see from reading these two passages of scripture that it is possible for those who have been accepted in Christ to be rejected by Christ. Nevertheless, in the latter scripture we also see that the authors are persuaded “better things” of their audience, and “things that accompany salvation, though they thus speak.” Why? “Because God is not unrighteous to forget their work and labor of love, which they have showed toward His name, in that they have ministered to the saints and do minister.” And then the authors go on to encourage their audience to “show the same diligence.” Why? “In order to have the full assurance of hope to the end. That they be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” It is also important that we take note of the fact that the glowing address to the Church in Ephesus, quoted in the former scriptures, was written to the faithful in Christ, not to those who had expressed a faith in Christ at some point in their lives and later turned their backs on Him and the Church through cowardliness and unbelief. I believe the likes of these would be those Paul refers to in other scriptures as, “the sons of disobedience.”

In speaking on this subject, let me be clear on a couple of points. A backslider could be defined as a spiritually immature or spiritually mature person, who, after having faith in Christ for his salvation, for some reason or another began behaving inappropriately in keeping with his profession of faith by returning to his former sinful lifestyle. This person may have never officially renounced Christ publicly or privately in word, even though he has done so to one extent or another in deed.

Now, the definition of an “apostate” is different. An “apostate” could be defined as someone who has come to a level of profound maturity in God through faith in Christ Jesus and experienced an abundance of His grace (i.e. those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted of the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come) and then for some reason or another made a conscious choice to renounce, reject, and/or refute Christ and their faith in Him. This could have been done privately and/or publicly, in both word and deed. Such as these have turned away from Christ and the salvation that He offers by turning from faith in Him, back to their former posture and position of unbelief.

For a former atheist, who had come to faith in Christ Jesus for salvation, this would require renouncing faith in Christ Jesus for the imputation and impartation of God’s righteousness (right standing with God) on his behalf, and returning back to believing that there is no God, much less one who justifies the ungodly through faith.

For former followers of Judaism, who had come to faith in Christ Jesus for salvation, it would require a renouncing of faith in Christ Jesus for the imputation and impartation of God’s righteousness on their behalf, and a turning back to believing that God does not justify the ungodly through faith in Jesus Christ. Such as these would return to the Law of Moses in a futile attempt to be justified through adherence to the Law. In this act they would, in essence, be saying that Christ is not “the end of the Law for righteousness for everyone who believes.” This was the case of those being spoken about in chapter six in the letter to the Hebrew believers.

It must also be noted that the apostates are not only those who, after having come to a mature faith in Christ for their position of right standing (righteousness) with God, choose to renounce that position through falling away from the faith and rejecting Jesus Christ in both word and deed, but it is also those who reject Jesus Christ’s claim of being the only legitimate way to the Father and attempt to replace Him with some other person, religion, or ideology. This is spiritual adultery at its worst, a subject that I will address in greater detail later on in this teaching.

Now, whereas there are obvious similarities between the backslider and the apostate, there are also obvious differences. The differences are pointed out in a scripture found in one of Paul’s letters to his “son in the faith,” Timothy.

“It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with Him, we shall also live with Him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him: if we deny Him, He also will deny us: If we believe not, yet He abides faithful: He cannot deny Himself.” 2 Timothy 2: 11-13

In God’s eyes there’s a big difference between losing faith in Christ for a season (due to infirmities and iniquities of the soul or situations and circumstances in this life) than there is to, after having received Christ and reached a level of spiritual maturity (through specific divine spiritual experiences), become faithless to Christ to the point of renouncing Him as the justifier of their souls either privately and/or publicly in both word and deed!

Again, the difference between the backslider and the apostate is explained thusly, “If we deny Him, He also will deny us (apostate). If we believe not, yet He abides faithful, He cannot deny Himself.” (Backslider) Whereas Peter, while under duress, denied that he “knew” Jesus, He never renounced Him in his heart as his means to achieving “right standing with God.” You see my point? I hope you see that the difference between the backslider and the apostate is a matter of one’s actions based on believing or not believing in Jesus Christ for one’s justification. Thus, in the eyes of God, apostasy is a more serious sin than backsliding.

Now, even though this may be true, backsliding is still a very dangerous business, and it is to be resisted and discouraged with all of one’s energy and with all of God’s grace, knowing that if the pattern is continued in without repentance, it could most assuredly lead to apostasy and Hell, or, at the very least, certain loss at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Nevertheless, there is still hope for the backslider during this present dispensation through the hope of renewed repentance and faith towards God, but according to the scripture, there is no such hope for the apostate. Why? Because “it is impossible to renew them again to repentance.”

This apparent loophole, of course, should not be a license to sin for the backslider because, “We must all stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ, to be judged for the things done in the body, whether good or bad.” And “If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord shall judge his people.” “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Now, the causes that lead to a sincere mature Christian believer becoming apostate or reprobate are difficult to imagine. The consequences that follow such behavior are extremely severe, because their condition stems from a soul that was at one time open and receptive to Christ and His purposes and experienced every gift that Christ had to offer of Himself in this life, most especially revelation knowledge revealing who Christ is, what He has done, and what it has cost Him to do it. And yet, the apostate still made a choice to deny Him!

Jesus told His disciples, “To whom much is given, much will be required.” James warned, “Be not many teachers, knowing that you will receive the greater condemnation.”

So we see that in God’s economy, with great privilege comes great responsibility. The archangel Lucifer is the perfect example of the apostate and reprobate, and we know that he is far beyond redemption. It is extremely sobering to realize that the scriptures teach that this same fate is possible for those who were once sincere mature Christian believers and then became reprobate and apostate.

Now, one of the reasons for me writing on this difficult subject is because the Apostle Paul warned, “Let no man deceive you by any means, that day (the day of the Lord, the second coming of Christ) shall not come, except there come a falling away (apostasy) first and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition (the anti-Christ).” Prior to his revealing there will be what Jesus called the “beginning of sorrows” and with this “revealing,” there will come great persecution against the elect of God. The scriptures point to that persecution and suffering of God’s people at the hands of the anti-Christ as being synonymous with a falling away from the faith. The faithful followers of Christ are not appointed to experience God’s wrath, but through our prayers will be instrumental in releasing it! In keeping with this, we will most assuredly experience the wrath of Satan during the Great Tribulation, and we will do so because we will choose to remain faithful to Jesus Christ instead of selling out our allegiance to the anti-Christ who will require all souls to worship him as God. Again, “It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with Him, we shall also live with Him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him: if we deny Him, He also will deny us:

It is high time for the Church of the living God to “wake up and strengthen the things that remain” because we are already in the beginning of sorrows, and we are quickly approaching the Great Tribulation.

In the parable of the sower, recorded in Matthew 13:3-8 and explained in Matthew 13:18-23, Jesus points out three reasons that the seed that was sown did not bear fruit, and they are all interconnected. For this lesson’s purposes, I would like to focus on all of them because I believe that understanding them is extremely important during these latter days in order for Christians to avoid becoming apostates. The seed that was sown on the path is represented as the heart of a believer who hears the word of the kingdom but does not understand it. The Bible teaches, “We enter the kingdom of God through much tribulation.” There are many Christian believers who have been taught that we will escape the Great Tribulation through a secret rapture prior to Christ’s second coming. There will most assuredly be a rapture of the church, but it will be at the end of the Great Tribulation, not prior to it. Many Christians who find themselves in the middle of the Great Tribulation will have already had the seed of God’s word snatched from their hearts by Satan through embracing this false teaching, and through their disappointment, confusion, despair, and despondency, they will become fruitless in their service to God.

The seed that was sown among thorns is what I believe to be the most accurate description of the Christian believer in the U.S.A. and the West in general. “This is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.” This unfruitfulness, in itself is bad enough, but I believe it could be a predecessor to the other example of unfruitfulness mentioned by Jesus, which leads to the believers “falling away.” “As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.”

In a sentence, if we are not living fully for Jesus now because we are either living in ignorance through having embraced a false eschatological doctrine, or we are living with regard to the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches, we will most likely deny Christ and fall away from the faith when threatened with tribulation and persecution on account of the Word.

As Christian believers we can avoid this pitfall now by rightly handling the Word of Truth, by becoming and remaining faithful to Jesus Christ, and by living a sanctified life in obedience to God’s will and word, as we “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, because it is God who is working in us, both to will and to do of His own good pleasure.” Let us work diligently now, “For the hour cometh when no man can work.” After all, the Holy Spirit has been sent by Christ to “lead us into all truth.” Let us follow His lead and not “the dictates of the flesh,” “deceiving spirits,” and “doctrines of devils.”

Speaking of deceiving spirits and doctrines of devils, there will be many professing Christians (apostates) in the latter days that embrace a one world religion under the deception of the False Prophet. They will do this for the sake of peace and unity with other religions. In doing so they will have sacrificed their allegiance to Jesus Christ who came to bring a sword of division between the enlightened and the deceived, or if you will, the believing and the unbelieving. (Please see Matthew 10:34-39) These will also persecute the lovers of the Truth and deem them as evil doers. They will think that they are doing God a service in persecuting and killing the faithful believers in Christ, because they will see us as evil does and trouble makers, and as those who reject their humanistic religion of “unity, peace, and justice” for all human beings. (John 16:2)

Now, the Greek word for adultery is “moicheia,” pronounced moy-khi’-ah. Webster’s – English – “adultery: voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a partner other than the lawful spouse.” The figurative Greek word for apostate is “moichos” - moy-khos’ and it means adulterer! In the same way that God requires faithfulness in the marriage covenant between a husband and wife, He requires faithfulness in the new covenant between Jesus Christ and the Christian believer.

The seventh commandment proclaims, “You shall not commit adultery.” Exodus 20:14. Jesus Christ proclaimed, “You have heard that it was said by them of old time, you shall not commit adultery; But I say unto you, that whosoever looks on a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart. And if your right eye offends you, pluck it out, and cast it from you: for it is profitable for you that one of your members should perish, and not that your whole body should be cast into Hell. And if your right hand offends you, cut it off, and cast it from you: for it is profitable for you that one of your members should perish, and not that your whole body should be cast into Hell.” Matthew 5: 27-30.

According to the teachings of Paul the un-confessed and un-forsaken sin of adultery, among other sins, will keep a Christian believer from inheriting the kingdom of God.

“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealously, fits of anger, rage, and wrath, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21.

Now, Paul also proclaimed, “Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.” He also said that one of “the fruit of the Spirit is faithfulness.” The others are love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, and self-control.

If we are to remain faithful to Christ now, and especially during the Great Tribulation, we must be born of the Spirit, baptized with the Spirit, live in the Spirit, and walk in the Spirit. This can only be accomplished by being continuously filled with the Spirit through praying in the Spirit, worshiping God in Spirit and in Truth, and speaking to ourselves with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody in our hearts to the Lord. And remember, Jesus Christ said, “My words are Spirit and they are life.” May we be faithful to Him through a life in the Word through the power of the Holy Spirit!

I will end this exhortation with the words of our Lord, that sum up the essence of the teaching quite well.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Abide in Me and I in you. As a branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. If you abide in Me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this you bear much fruit and prove to be My disciples. As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Fathers commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love as no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing, but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you. These things I command you so that you will love one another.” John 15:1-17

Accept - verb - To receive willingly. (the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord)

Acknowledge - verb - 1) To admit the reality or truth of. a. To express recognition of. b. To express gratitude for. c. To report the receipt of. (the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord)

Acquire - verb - 1) To secure possession of. 2) To come to have. (the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord)

Appropriate - verb - 1) To set apart for a particular use. 2) To take or use often, without permission. (the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord)

Apply - verb - 1) To put to a special use. 2) To give one self or one's efforts to. (the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord)

Human beings are triune beings. We are spirits, we have souls, and we live in bodies. We were created in God's image and likeness who is also a triune being, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one God in three Persons, Blessed Trinity.

“The knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord” incorporates the Christian believer’s past justification in Christ (which took place when we first believed the gospel message), present sanctification in Christ (which takes place as we continue to believe the gospel message and follow the directives of the Holy Spirit instead of the dictates of the flesh), and future glorification in Christ (which will take place when we finish the course, having kept the faith).

Believing the gospel message results in the salvation of the human spirit through translation, the human soul through transformation, and the human body through transfiguration. This great salvation that incorporates the past, present and future; the spirit, soul, and body; translation, transformation, and transfiguration; or, if you will, justification, sanctification, and glorification, is provided through Jesus Christ’s past death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead, His present intercession in Heaven for the saints, and the on going work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. This great salvation will be finalized in the future at Jesus Christ’s second coming, when He will rapture His church (the dead in Christ from Paradise and those who are alive in Christ from the earth) and establish His millennial rule on the earth. At the time of the rapture (the first out resurrection), the redeemed of the Lord will receive immortal and incorruptible bodies. There will be 1,000 years of peace on earth because the earth will be ruled by Christ and His saints.

Preceding this, the earth will experience the "beginning of sorrows," (chaos among nations and disasters in the earth.) There will be manifestations of false teachers and false Christ. The wrath of God will be poured out on the earth. There will be dictatorship in the Middle East, led by the anti-Christ and False Prophet. There will be a falling away in the church. The anti-Christ will stand in the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem a declare himself to be God. He will require the whole world to worship him and to receive his mark (666) in order to buy and sell goods. Those who receive the mark of the Beast will experience God's wrath in it's fulness. Many who refuse the mark will be beheaded for their faithfulness to Christ, but they will not taste of the second death, which is Hell. There will be great persecution and martyrdom of the elect of God. There will be Trouble like the world has never seen before or will ever see again. If those days were not shorten, even the very elect would be deceived, if possible.

At the end of this Great Tribulation Period (3.5 years), and at Christ's second coming, (in the eastern skies of Jerusalem with His fiery angels and redeemed saints) the anti-Christ and False Prophet will be defeated along with their armies by Christ at the battle of Armageddon. He will cast those two buggers into the Lake of Fire. Satan will be bound with a great chain and cast into a bottomless pit by a large angel.

At the end of Christ’s millennial reign Satan will be loosed from his chain and pit for a season and lead a final rebellion against Christ and His saints. Christ will quickly defeat him and his followers. There will be a second out resurrection of the dead from Hades as Hell's inhabitants receive immortal bodies. (Prior to this they where disembodied human spirits held captive and awaiting God's final judgment.) Christ will judge both saints and sinners at the Judgment Seat of Christ and The Great White Throne Judgment. He will judge the saints for their works, both good and bad. Some will receive rewards and some will suffer loss. Every faithful believer in Christ will be saved, however, for some, it will be as those barely escaping through the flames. Unrepentant sinners and "Christian" backsliders will be judged and condemned to Hell for having rejected and denied Christ in both word and deed. Satan will be cast into the Lake of Fire along with Hell and its inhabitants, the hypocritical and heretical, the fearful and unbelieving, the abominable and murderers, the whoremongers and sorcerers, the idolaters and all liars, along with those who practice adultery, fornication, sexual immorality, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, sedition's, heresies, envying, drunkenness, reveling and things such as this. The overcoming saints who have walked in the Spirit, and have thereby cultivated the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control, will be preserved by God as the heavens and the earth are destroyed by fire.

Thus says the Lord, “He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be His God, and he shall be My son.” Jesus said to His disciples, “In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world, and this is that which overcomes the world, even your faith.” God will create “a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness.” The Holy City of God will descend from Heaven and rest upon the new earth. There will be the marriage supper of the Lamb. The prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to pray will have been answered. “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.”

When an individual human being believes on the name of Jesus Christ, and Christ is received into his heart by faith, he is forgiven of his past sins inherited through Adam’s transgression, and propagated through his own ignorance and/or rebellion. He is thereby “born again, not of the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of the will of God.” According to the words of Jesus Christ, in order to see the kingdom of Heaven, we must be born again of the Holy Spirit.

“No man can come to the Father unless the Spirit draws him.”

This revelation knowledge or, if you will, this wisdom from above which is the grace of the Holy Spirit in bringing saving faith to a human being through leading him to believe in and receive Jesus Christ for his justification, is further accomplished through the provisions of God by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, who comes to reside within the Christian believer’s born again human spirit at the moment he becomes justified (innocent) through faith in Jesus Christ. Again, this residency of the Holy Spirit takes place when an individual believes the gospel message and is born again of the Holy Spirit. This residency is increased and enhanced when one is baptized in the Holy Spirit and receives power from on high to be a witness of Christ to the uttermost parts of the earth. Being born of God’s Spirit and being baptized in God’s Spirit are two separate and distinct experiences of grace made available to the Christian believer, and therefore required by God for the believer’s initiation into Christ. These two experiences of grace walk hand in hand with two other experiences of grace, which are repentance from dead works, and water baptism in the name of Jesus.

But God has established and ordained even more than these great enterprises and sacraments to assure our salvation by grace through faith. He has instructed us to remain filled with the Holy Spirit, to live in the Holy Spirit, to walk in the Holy Spirit, to be led by the Holy Spirit, to pray without ceasing in the Holy Spirit, and to worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth! He has given us these instructions through the written word of God, the Holy Scriptures. Jesus testified, “My words are Spirit and they are life.”

He has also given “some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors, and teachers for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, until we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

In order for us to benefit from this revelation knowledge which is the truth expressed in the Holy Scriptures and revealed to our hearts by the power of the Holy Spirit, and brought to our attention by the five fold ministry gifts mentioned above, we must accept, acknowledge, acquire, appropriate, and apply this knowledge of the Son of God by exercising a living faith in Him. Remember, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.”

Consider these words of the Apostle Paul that were given to him through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. “It is no longer I that live, but Christ that lives in me; and the life that I now live in the body, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Paul was granted a revelation that an exchange had taken place. This exchange incorporated Christ’s life of righteousness imputed unto him through the redemptive power of faith in His Blood, and imparted unto him through the regenerative power of the Holy Spirit. This grace resulted in his justification and sanctification in Christ through faith. This saving grace was exchanged for his life of self-righteous religion and unrighteous rebellion. Thus, he came to realize that he was totally dependent upon a relationship and fellowship with Christ through His Blood, His Word, and His Holy Spirit in order for his salvation to be attained to by faith. Through faith in the accomplished work of Christ, and the continuing work of the Holy Spirit, he was enabled to account himself dead indeed to sin and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. He encouraged the church to receive, live in, and walk in this revelation also, by walking in the Holy Spirit! “If any man be in Christ Jesus he is a new creation, old things have past away, behold, all things have become new,” and “they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts.” We are to “mortify the misdeeds of the body through the Holy Spirit.”

Paul accepted this truth by faith, and thereby consistently acknowledged it. By consistently acknowledging this truth, he acquired it, and having acquired it, he was enabled to appropriate it. In appropriating the knowledge of the truth, the knowledge of God, the knowledge of Christ by faith, he continually applied it in every situation and circumstance that he faced throughout his difficult and challenging life of faithful service to Christ, His church, and the world. This was all accomplished through his relationship with the Holy Spirit. He testified, “The same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead now dwells in us to quicken our mortal bodies.”

This revelation knowledge imparted to him by the Holy Spirit led him into a lifestyle and lifetime of faith and faithfulness to Christ, or, if you will, “the obedience of faith.” Towards the end of his life he testified, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing.” 2 Timothy 6-8.

The grace of God is the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for the blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” Titus 2:1-14.

Let us also consider this proverb. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path.” Proverbs 3:5-6.

We cannot experience the salvation that God has provided for us in Christ by leaning on our own understanding or looking to ourselves. We can only experience it by trusting in God with all of our heart, because “without faith, it is impossible to please God. They that come to God must believe that He is, and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.” “All things that pertain to life and godliness have been provided for us in Christ.” “But of Him, you are in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That according as it is written, ‘He that glories, let him glory in the Lord.’ ” “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” “The love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” And again, “The life that I now live in the body, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Jesus promised, “I will not leave you alone, I will send the Holy Spirit, and when He is come He will lead you into all truth. He will convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.”

“Now abide faith, hope, and love, these three.” All three of these godly qualities and character traits (faith, hope, and love) have been provided for us through Jesus Christ, but in order for us to benefit from them, we must accept, acknowledge, acquire, appropriate, and apply them consistently and continuously in every situation and circumstance in our lives. This, of course, is a learning process, and it is the work of the Holy Spirit to help us to do so. Thank God for the Holy Spirit who has been sent by Christ to lead us into all truth. May we learn to follow His lead! As we learn to obediently follow the leading of the Holy Spirit more closely, our spirit man, the hidden man of the heart, will begin to gain the ascendancy over our souls and bodies, instead of our souls and bodies having the ascendancy over our spirit man. When our spirit man, in submission to the Spirit of God, has the ascendancy in our lives, it leads to true spirituality and eternal life. This results in us receiving our inheritance in Christ, which is an abundant entrance into the kingdom of Heaven starting now and continuing for all eternity. When our flesh (sin nature) is given the ascendancy in our lives, it leads to carnality and eternal death, which is Hell. In our spirit man we have the unlimited knowledge of God, the unlimited faith of God, the unlimited hope of God, the unlimited righteousness of God, and the unlimited love of God. “We have the mind of Christ” for “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” In our souls we only have a limited understanding regarding the things of God, which is, in essence, a lack of knowledge. If we choose to live by our own limited understanding, we will perish, but if we live in, and walk in the grace of the Holy Spirit, through faith in the knowledge of the Son of God, we will experience eternal life both now and forevermore.

To be spiritually minded is life and peace, but to be carnally minded is death. The spiritually minded man accounts himself dead indeed to sin and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. He knows that sin shall not have dominion over him because he is not under the law, but under grace. He makes every effort to be found in Christ without spot or blemish, but his efforts are not only in trying to do right through following the commandments of Christ, but also in making every effort to grasp a better understanding, a greater revelation, of the fact that he has been made the righteousness of God in Christ. In other words, he does not get the cart before the horse by merely trying to do right, but he does right because of the revelation of the Word, the Blood, and the Spirit, that he has been made the righteousness of God in Christ. All of our righteousness apart from His gift of righteousness is as filthy rags. The operative phrase for us to contemplate is “In Christ.” The spiritually minded man recognizes that any good that comes from him is a result of him coming to Christ and continuing in Christ, and ultimately finishing his spiritual course in Christ. For it is "in Him that we live and move and have our being." If we are struggling with sins, strongholds, and curses in our lives and being overcome by them, we must examine ourselves to see if we are still in faith. If we are not, we must repent and return to our first love, and do the first works again. God has granted us the grace to do so. May we not receive His grace in vain.

I will leave you with a few scriptures to contemplate.

“This day I have placed life and death, blessings and curses before you. Choose life that you and your children may live.”

“All things are lawful for me, but all things are not profitable to me.”

“Then Jesus said to the Jews who believed on Him, 'if you continue in my words, then you are my disciples indeed, and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free. If any man is overcome by a sin, he is the slave of sin, and a slave does not abide in the house forever. A son abides forever, therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.' ”

“It is for freedom that Christ has made us free.”

May we learn to walk in the Holy Spirit and thereby accept, acknowledge, acquire, appropriate, and apply God’s amazing grace (which is the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord) in every area of our lives. (Spiritually, mentally, physically, financially, and socially) May we also continue in His words, the Holy Scriptures, “which are able to make us wise unto salvation through faith that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Amen!