Good day, Mdm!
A quarter year has passed. We're about 6 over months from mission trip. How are you coping with the preparation for this trip? Will you be confident to lay hands on the sick and speak a word of faith to the healing? When confront by a demon-possessed, will you be able to cast out the demon? How about sharing the good news among the village people? Are you ready to lead them to Christ?
Please do not be pressured nor worry by all these questions that I asked. As much as you may have questions to how this mission trip is going to be, I have no clue as well. But, one thing is for sure, Jesus will be there. Amen! When two or three are gathered in His name, there He will be in our midst.
Our identity in Christ is the most important point we need to settle as a believer. Why? Because the Bible says "as He is, so are we in this world.." Note that it is NOT in heaven, it is IN this world, Amen!
This verse itself is very powerful. "He is" speak of present tense. Not "He was", "He is" mean right now He still is! Amen! Today, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. Is Jesus sick today? No, so are we in this world. Is Jesus struggling with depression today? No, so are we in this world!
This is a real testimony. A lady went for mammogram and found to have lump in her breast. She was reminded of this verse. She asked herself this question "Does Jesus has lump in His breast today?" "No." she said and continued "So am I in this world!" She kept confessing this verse. Subsequently, she went back for another scan and the doctor could not find the lump anymore! Hallelujah! As He is, so are we in this world! Amen!
Why are we emphasizing so much about Jesus in the bible? There are many other characters, man & woman of God mentioned in the Bible, but why are we so focus on Him alone? Until we understand this significance thoroughly, God WILL NOT have effect on our life... We can afford not to understand the story of Moses, or the story of David, but the moment we do not understand who is Jesus and why He need to go to the cross, then we have "fallen from Grace."
What does it mean to be "fallen from grace" ? Fallen from Grace does not mean sin although the result of fallen from Grace is sin. If it is not sin, then what is fallen from Grace mean??? The only time when this phrase "fallen from grace" was mentioned in the Bible is found in Galatians 5:4.
Galatians 5:4 (AMP)
4 If you seek to be justified and declared righteous and to be given a right standing with God through the Law, you are brought to nothing and so separated (severed) from Christ. You have fallen away from grace (from God’s gracious favor and unmerited blessing).
Wow.. It is very clear the moment we choose to be self-righteous, we fallen from Grace. Christ has no effect on us when we try to perform and earn our right standing with God. And the Bible says you are brought to NOTHING!
I remember when I first became a Christian, a friend of mine said to me "Being a Christian is an uphill task." And I agreed with him back then. All along, I was focusing "I must not lie, I must love God, I must read the Bible, I must attend prayer meeting, I must this I must that....I I I... Self-focus... Very tiring.. Uphill task.
And yet, despite of all this "tough" conditions of being a Christian, I came to a point, just like the Israelite with pride saying (when the ten commandments was given) "Whatever You command me, I will do." "See God, I keep Your commandments!" I felt so "holy" then and before long I fell flat on my face and broke the Law.
Everytime, I "fell", I picked up myself and "work" towards holiness. And then, I "fell" again and it went on from cycle to cycle. I came to a point I dont trust myself anymore. And that's what the Law do. The Law is holy but it cannot empower us to be holy, the Law is just but it cannot make us just. The Bible says it this way in Romans 3:20
Romans 3:20
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Here the verse says that whatever we do, we can never be justified before God. The law will point us to our imperfection. The law will reveal our sins. The purpose of the law is to point us to the end of ourselves so that we know we need a Savior. Amen!
Worst of all, if we are under law, sin has dominant over us!
1 Corintians 15:56-57
56 Now sin is the sting of death, and sin exercises its power [i][upon the soul] through [j][the abuse of] the Law.
57 But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory [making us conquerors] through our Lord Jesus Christ.
To keep it simple, Law & Grace. Law = Old convenant = do good get good, do bad get bad.
Grace = New convenant = unearned, undeserved, unmerited favor of God
But then, there is a group that mixed law & Grace... The so called "balanced". Their thoughts are "Grace is good, but it can cause people to sin. We must keep the law, the ten commandments or else they will be out of control under grace."
What do you think God say about mixture of law & Grace?
Revelation 3:15-17
"I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,[g] I will vomit you out of My mouth."
Cold= under law
Hot = under Grace
lukewarm = mixture of law & Grace
When we are under a mixture of law & Grace, God will vomit... Wow, from here, we know that God want us to be hot (total relying on God) or cold (law written on stone). Because He know when we are under law, the law will point to the end of ourselves and realized we need Him.
If we are lukewarm, we acknowledge Christ and yet we try to keep our righteousness by works. Example, we acknowledge we are saved by Grace and then we start to perform works to keep our righteousness (self-rigtheous). At time, we seek God for help, at time, we try to take matters into our own hands. Christ is no longer the central source & focus in our life. Such mixture, God vomit....
Phew! So much for Law & Grace. Now, with this in mind.... go back to Grace Grace Week 27 : Great Faith, Little Faith
The reason why the disciples had little faith has to do with the law. Because they were Jews, they were required to memorize the torah from young. They knew the law by hard from young.
Whereas the centurion soldier was a non-Jews, he knew nothing about the torah. That's why he had great faith!
I hope your "eyes" are opened to this truth, for the truth shall set you free. Amen!
With that, here's a passage for you to meditate: (Jesus was speaking to the Jews who knew the law, yet He said the truth shall set you free. For sure the truth is not the law, isn't it? What is this truth???)
John 8:31-36
The Truth Shall Make You Free
31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.
32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.
36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
Shalom,
Bro
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