Thursday, November 15, 2007

How wonderful is the Gospel!

Romans 1:16 & 17

"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is God's power working unto salvation to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and a firm reliance, to the Jew first and to the Greek, for in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith(disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith). As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith."

Our part - Faith!

I have heard so many people, when I have "tried" to share the message of grace, say, "yeah but what about our obedience", or "you have to be careful that it doesn't lead you to license to sin".......when I lived a life of performance and was so focused on obedience(essentially in legalism) it only led to more sin and condemanation and guilt if I couldn't perfectly obedient or if I failed in my Christian "duties"!  Now, all I "do" is believe this message of grace with all my heart and have faith that what God's Word says is true, and this is leading to eager zealous time spent studying the word and an all consuming desire to know my God and Father intimately! You see God's not as concerned with our obedience as he would be desirous of our hearts being full of faith, leading to love and a desire to allow Him to live in us, through us -relinquishing all our own control and self-sufficiency. In the New Covenant Life there is blessing by believing, the Old Covenant way, blessing came by obedience. So it seems to me, if you are asking the question what about obedience you are under the Old Covenant. Jesus made a New Covenant with us all we have to do is believe by faith! Obedience is important, but it doesn't get you the blessing!(Read Romans 4). Romans 1:5 "It is through Him that we have received grace and apostleship to PROMOTE obedience to the faith and make disciples for His name's sake among all the nations..."
Our righteousness is not by efforts! You cannot have unmerited favor that you have to earn you cannot be fully justified by God and condemned by God at the same time.

"For it is by grace you have been saved -through FAITH, this is not from yourselves it is the gift of God, so that no one may boast."

Gospel, a righteousness from God that produces salvation, it is a gift, not by keeping the law, but by faith, from first to last empowering you and me (in Christ) to inherit the world. Wow!

Much of this post came from hearing Rob Rufus' message titled "How wonderful is the Gospel

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