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 Part
1: This part is the writers response to
Rev. Muse's comments about a devotional that he had requested that Rev.
Muse make. Part 2 will be Rev. Muse's response to this response.
>>That however does not mean there is no place for the law in our lives.
The
law still serves as a guide for righteousness and for our behavior.<<
Yes,... true. I wasn't saying all laws need to be removed,... but,
we must remember,... God by His Spirit comes to live IN us. He's the
Living Word. He brings His laws with Him, and comes inside of us
and writes His laws on our hearts. As I yield to HIS control, He is
the one who keeps His Laws in my body, through the actions of
my body, which HE is in control of. He will keep His Laws through
me.
>> Second, the law condemns the unbeliever (holds us accountable before
God, not only for original sin in Adam, but for personal violations of his
law). Thirdly, the law acts as a "teacher" and leads us to Christ
(... when we realize our unrighteousness and come under conviction, it shows
us our need for Christ, thru who we can find forgiveness as well
as a righteousness that is not our own but that God offers to us in Christ
so that we can meet his standard of holiness). <<
Yes, before I was a believer, The Law showed me my sin and I
turned to Christ. The Law was a Teacher,... and it helped to bring me
to Christ. Now,... I have HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS. I stand in HIS
Goodness. Why should I try to match His Goodness,... which He
already gave to me? Seems like you are STILL trying to add to what
Christ has already given to us,... He has given us HIS Perfection,...
How can I add anything to HIS perfect-ness?
I am to Yield to HIS control. HE will keep His Laws through my
hands, and through my actions, and through my words.
and then you say . . .
>>1. We are to simply carry out love as believers. But you and I (sinful
creatures) do not know what love is apart from God's word (including his
law). So, we must continue to study his law in order to know how to love,
and to do so with biblical understanding. <<
God is Love. He comes to live again, through me. HIS love comes
out through my actions,... not ME trying to love others,... I am a sinner,
as you say. HE must be in control,... HE must be allowed to love
others through me. Otherwise, it's just me trying to keep his laws,
which I can't do,... or me trying to be good... which I can't do. Or
Loving others, also which I can not do. HE must do it!
and then. . . .
>>2. We are not to just think of Christ more, but we are also to give
focused attention to the sin in our life. We are to "mortify" it or "put it
to
death". The positive side of our walk with the Lord calls for us to
meditate on him more, but that does not mean that we just become holier than
thou having quiet times, and the sin in our lives will take care of
itself.<<
Seems like YOU are trying to do it all. As I focus on HIM, He works
in me and through me, revealing sin. I turn it over to Him and he not
only forgives it, but, as I give in to Him, he deals with it. As I read
His word, and see a sin problem,... I give it to Him and He deals with it.
If we focus on sin too much, we will sin more. The only solution is
to focus on HIM, and allow HIM to change us from the inside out!
"Conform to the image of His Son." (Romans 8:29 - Only God can
do that inside of us!)
The only way sin can be dealt with is if I pay more attention to Jesus
and spend more time In HIS word,... sin will die from neglect. That's
the only way it will die. Not being "holier than thou"... He's already
made me Holy,... I stand in HIS Holiness within me. As I spend time
with Him, He will kill sins desires inside of me. Only way sin will get
less and less control and less and less powerful.
and lastly . . .
>>You can't just exercise and eat right if you have it and it is attacking
you, you must also take measures to kill the cancer. The same is true in
our
spiritual lives... and therefore there is still need for the law, that
exposes our sin, that we might look to the Lord's grace and do all in his
grace and our strength to annihilate it.<<
Now YOU seem to be able to destroy cancer, too! We must do our
part, to eat right, and to see doctors, who can detect the cancer. God
(however) is the only healer. HE must take care of curing us. We can't
cure ourselves. HE must do it all. As long as you think YOU can do
something,... loving others, in your strength,... or keeping his laws, in
your strength,.. or trying to kill cancer in your own strength,... God will
let you try, until you come to the end of yourself and Give it all up to
Him, to take control, and to do it through you.
Thanks for listening...
Part 2: Rev. Muse's response to the response in Part 1
I respond to you as a fellow believer and fellow teacher in Christ, and my I
pray that you will receive this response in that spirit.
First, let me say that my brother has forwarded many of your devotions to
me, and I have enjoyed them and find your ministry to be very helpful and
encouraging. At the same time, I believe in the devotion I responded to
(and by the way, I guess it was my confusion, I thought I was responding to
him and not to you)... in that devotion, it appears to me, and I may be
wrong, but it appears that you have confused the righteousness that is ours
judicially and thru justification with the righteousness that belongs to
sanctification.
It is true that the believer is "RIGHTEOUS" before God. That's what 2 Cor
5:21 speaks of when it says "God made him to be sin for us, so that in him
we might become the RIGHTEOUSNESS of God." As the verse states, and as you
put it so well, this righteousness comes only "in him" and therefore our
only hope is found in him. Rom 8:1 speaks of the same thing when it says
"Therefore, there is NOW NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ
Jesus..." This refers to the fact that judicially we are "declared"
righteous before the throne of God due to the imputation of our sin to
Christ, and the imputation of his righteousness to us, as he serves as our
federal head and substitutionary representative.
However, this righteousness is NOT to be confused with the righteousness
that comes by way of sanctification. There is a difference between being
declared righteous and actually being righteous (the difference between
imputation of God's righteousness and infusion of righteousness). There is
also a difference between the righteousness that comes by way of
justification and the righteousness that is associated with sanctification.
(The Westminster Standards distinguish between several theological terms
that help make this point clear.
Justification - Justification is an act of God's free grace, wherein he
pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for
the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.
Sanctification - Sanctification is the work of God's free grace, whereby we
are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more
and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.)
You appear to be saying that in sanctification, that God simply works in
you, and that you simply have to turn it "ALL" over to him and ... have no
part in the mortification of sin. You put it this way: "As I focus on HIM,
He works in me and through me, revealing sin. I turn it over to Him and he
not only forgives it, but, as I give in to Him, he deals with it. " I agree
that we must turn it over to him, and that he forgives it and deals with it,
BUT THAT IS NOT TO SAY THAT MAN HAD NO RESPONSIBILITY." Think of all the
exhortations in God's word as well as what Paul says in Rom 8:13 "For if
you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit
YOU put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, ..." (Note: in
this verse, God calls for BELIEVERS to take an active role in putting sin to
death, not in a Meritorious way, but in keeping with our new identity, our
new position, our new relation to sin, etc. Here, those who have been
regenerated and given a new heart, are to submit to the Spirit, and turn in
ALL over to him, but in doing so, HE ALSO CALLS us to participate in (not
earn) our salvation in defeating sin, which is both God's enemy and ours.
Titus states the same thing when in Titus 2:11 he writes " For the grace of
God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches US to say No
to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright
and godly lives in this present age,.." (Note: God has already said NO to
sin, but here his grace teaches US to say NO to sin. This we do thru not
only submitting in Spirit to his Spirit, but in the proper exercise of our
mind, heart, and will, as we refuse (in his grace) to be dominated by sin,
but rather we mortify it and put it to death in our bodies. In this
exercise of God's grace, man does NOT "ADD to God's holiness", but
"participates" in it! Your inconsistency is seen in the fact that you say
"Why should I try to MATCH God's holiness" and later rightly state that we
are to "CONFORM to the image of His Son."
You are right in stating that as believers, we stand in "God's holiness".
But, that doesn't mean that a believer does not have the responsibility to
take an active role in knowing God's law and living by God's law. Think of
David's example with Bathsheba. He was clearly standing in "God's
holiness", but in the flesh, he sinned against God. In verse 3 of Psalm 51
he states For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
What did he transgress? On one level, we can say that he violated the
Spirit of God who lives within in; but on another level, one must admit that
the Spirit of God and the law of God are always in total agreement. The
same law that served as a standard of righteousness before we were saved
remains a standard of perfect righteousness. That's the reason the Psalmist
can write in Psalm 119 "Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk
according to the law of the LORD. Blessed are they WHO KEEP HIS STATUTES
and seek him with all their hearts." Hebrews 12:14 speaks of the believer's
responsibility in dealing with sin as well when it states "BE HOLY, for
apart from holiness no one will see the Lord." The greek literally says
"YOU, PURSUE holiness..."
The teaching that "we LET GO, and LET GOD" sounds holy, and it is easy to
say that others who (first look to God for ALL that is involved in their
salvation, including Calling, Regeneration, Repentance, Faith, Adoption,
Sanctification, and Glorification) also in sanctification humble themselves
before God's Spirit, serve God's spirit, but in doing so continue to study
God's law as a standard of righteousness, examine their own hearts as well
as the fruit of their hearts as evidenced often in the sin of the mind,
heart, and will, .. it is easy for the "LET GO, and LET GOD" folks to say
that this individual is "trying to do it all themselves"; but the TRUTH of
the matter is that the theology and teachings of the "LET GO and LET GOD"
mindset takes away from the glory of God by producing uneducated believers
(since there is no reason to study God's Law, ... especially if there is
belief that to "do so causes one to sin more" - not knowing the enemy and
it's ways is DANGEROUS! Knowing God's law caused the unbeliever to sin
more, and sometimes the believer as well as seen in Rom 7; but NOT when
looking to the Lord and depending upon his power.); it weakens the role of
the church in exercising discipline (because there are NO STANDARDS, since
every one just submits to the spirit and his laws are no longer useful), and
it brings does great harm to the pastorate as well thru error and
participation in leading others down the wrong path. On the other hand,
when believers understand their calling and participation in sanctification,
it results in the purity of the Church and the growth in holiness of God's
people.
I humbly and strongly recommend you take a look at "The Pursuit of Holiness"
by Jerry Bridges to learn more. If you do not have a copy, I'll be glad to
send you one. This book, along with his book "Transforming Grace" I believe
are a MUST in every believer's library!
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