Surpassing the Law is a process of “works for a while” wherein a saved person is passing through on the judgment of God to the sin.
As what earthly father do to his son is what God our Father that is in heaven do to us. God let us to experience his judgment by the so called chastisement of God. The way God discipline us so we can learn to obey his will is by chastising us. And God chastisement or his punishment is not pleasurable. But God do it in his own pleasure. Read Heb 12:6-11
God chastise to impute deep in our being his will for us. Do you know what are God’s will? There’s nothing else except the Law which is the Ten Commandments. It contains his will, his perfect will actually for everyone. God’s will for us is not to get angry (anger is the same as murder), not to look with a lust (lustful look is the same as adultery), not to steal (even if it is small of value), not to tell a lie (even to speak with exaggeration- also form of lying) and others that included in the Law that Jesus said, “Now I tell you”. God hate those sins. And when we keep on sinning, God judge us. Read 1Cor 11:31-32
Apostle law #4 is about the “training” or the “works” we must enter upon until we become so “well practice” in surpassing the Law or until the Law “Now I tell you” turn to be a part of our daily practical Christian living. In the meantime during that training God will let us personally experience his punishments as what like the earthly good father punish (chastise, discipline) his son.
When God chastise us (through problems, sufferings, hardship, and difficulty of many kinds) we must submit even if it is painful on our part. Though God chastise, it gives a positive indication that we should be encourage and confident to continue. Because on that case, we are indeed belonging to be a God’s son and God really loves us (Heb 12:6). So let us press on.
Consequently, after we “practice thereby” or “works for a while” (in surpassing the law) we can now personally experience and say the sweet psalm of David, “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want…thy rod and thy staff they comfort me (Psa 23:1-6). God will not put away his chastisement, but this time His chastisement (His rod) is not anymore displeasing but pleasurable and provides us comfort.
Showing posts with label Law. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Law. Show all posts
Chapter 4: Is the Sting Really Gone?
O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1Co 15:55-57)
As what the scriptures said above, we have victory and many believers believe the sting of death or the sting itself was gone. Is it really gone?
Two important points we as Christian must fully understand about these verses.
1. We have the Victory but only in the spiritual realm.
In the spiritual realm we already gained the victory God gives it to us through our Lord Jesus. The devil, the sin, death and law has no more power to undertake our spiritual position in Christ (2 Cor 5:17).
“In the spiritual realm we are victorious through Christ, he conquered death, sin, and the world. But in the natural realm as we are in this physical body we must overcome, wrestle and gain victory on the sin dwelling in the member of our body which is the flesh that is contrary to the desire of the Spirit”
2. We have to gain Victory in the natural realm which related to our physical being.
Understand that our whole being consist of the unseen and that can be seen, our spiritual being-the unseen and our physical being which can be seen. We have no problem in the spiritual being because it was already given complete solution through Christ.
Regarding the physical being which is also called the physical body the problem of sin is not yet resolve. The condition of the body is in a real danger of the fire of hell (Read Mar 9:43-48; Rom 7:15-20). This body that the bible called “flesh” must be conquered and must be put to death. The bible said, flesh is contrary to the spirit, the spirit regenerated by the Spirit of God resides within us. The flesh always contends to the desire of the Spirit, that’s why as what apostle Paul said “What I want to do I cannot do”, is the same thing happening within us (Rom 7:15-20). In our inmost being we want to pray and read the bible wherein our spirit is very willing. But the body which is the flesh is in no way cooperating what the spirit desires. (Gal 5:17)
Why vast majority of professing Christians their faith has been destroyed, others abandoned the faith and many are weak or have dead-faith? We must recognize the root caused how and why it happens. And we must find the core of sin as of where is sin first conceive and occur.
• It is the sting of death which is sin living in our physical being which in our body the flesh as of what was Paul seen in his own body was the sin who do it (Rom 7:20). Jesus said it is better to pluck out the right eye and cut the hand if it caused us to commit sin and throw it out than your whole body be thrown in hell. (Mat 5:29-30)
• It is the sting that makes us not doing the good things we want to do such as to pray, read, meditate and other spiritual thing necessary for spiritual growth. In simple statements, the sting makes us lazy in the things of God while it pulls us to be crazy to the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and to the pride of life.
• The flesh that has sting ingrained in our being keep pulling us to the sin we (inwardly) hate of doing. Unless we are not full of Holy Spirit we cannot powerfully overcome the sin dwelling in the members of our body. Neglect of the things of God consequently leads us not to become victor but a victim. It was said that, “lack prayer, less power”. In addition, the more ignoring (not surpassing) the law which is the Ten Commandments, the more sin will keep you falling back to your former condition.
• And to be more accurate, it is in the mind where the very core of the problem lies. In our inner self there was called the “Battle of the Mind” many Christians are unaware of. They overlook of what the bible said that we are call to fight the enemy not with carnal weapons (Eph 6:12). We must wage war and the fight begins first in the mind. But when Christian lacks spiritual disciplines (such as prayer and the Word) it will results to a carnal minds. And in reality in the church there are Christians who are called carnal Christian. Their one foot is in the church and the other foot is on the world.
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. (Jas 1:15)
Therefore, DO SOMETHING to be save completely from the "sting of death". And that something a saved person should do is to surpass the Law.
Next Page
As what the scriptures said above, we have victory and many believers believe the sting of death or the sting itself was gone. Is it really gone?
Two important points we as Christian must fully understand about these verses.
1. We have the Victory but only in the spiritual realm.
In the spiritual realm we already gained the victory God gives it to us through our Lord Jesus. The devil, the sin, death and law has no more power to undertake our spiritual position in Christ (2 Cor 5:17).
“In the spiritual realm we are victorious through Christ, he conquered death, sin, and the world. But in the natural realm as we are in this physical body we must overcome, wrestle and gain victory on the sin dwelling in the member of our body which is the flesh that is contrary to the desire of the Spirit”
2. We have to gain Victory in the natural realm which related to our physical being.
Understand that our whole being consist of the unseen and that can be seen, our spiritual being-the unseen and our physical being which can be seen. We have no problem in the spiritual being because it was already given complete solution through Christ.
Regarding the physical being which is also called the physical body the problem of sin is not yet resolve. The condition of the body is in a real danger of the fire of hell (Read Mar 9:43-48; Rom 7:15-20). This body that the bible called “flesh” must be conquered and must be put to death. The bible said, flesh is contrary to the spirit, the spirit regenerated by the Spirit of God resides within us. The flesh always contends to the desire of the Spirit, that’s why as what apostle Paul said “What I want to do I cannot do”, is the same thing happening within us (Rom 7:15-20). In our inmost being we want to pray and read the bible wherein our spirit is very willing. But the body which is the flesh is in no way cooperating what the spirit desires. (Gal 5:17)
Why vast majority of professing Christians their faith has been destroyed, others abandoned the faith and many are weak or have dead-faith? We must recognize the root caused how and why it happens. And we must find the core of sin as of where is sin first conceive and occur.
• It is the sting of death which is sin living in our physical being which in our body the flesh as of what was Paul seen in his own body was the sin who do it (Rom 7:20). Jesus said it is better to pluck out the right eye and cut the hand if it caused us to commit sin and throw it out than your whole body be thrown in hell. (Mat 5:29-30)
• It is the sting that makes us not doing the good things we want to do such as to pray, read, meditate and other spiritual thing necessary for spiritual growth. In simple statements, the sting makes us lazy in the things of God while it pulls us to be crazy to the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and to the pride of life.
• The flesh that has sting ingrained in our being keep pulling us to the sin we (inwardly) hate of doing. Unless we are not full of Holy Spirit we cannot powerfully overcome the sin dwelling in the members of our body. Neglect of the things of God consequently leads us not to become victor but a victim. It was said that, “lack prayer, less power”. In addition, the more ignoring (not surpassing) the law which is the Ten Commandments, the more sin will keep you falling back to your former condition.
• And to be more accurate, it is in the mind where the very core of the problem lies. In our inner self there was called the “Battle of the Mind” many Christians are unaware of. They overlook of what the bible said that we are call to fight the enemy not with carnal weapons (Eph 6:12). We must wage war and the fight begins first in the mind. But when Christian lacks spiritual disciplines (such as prayer and the Word) it will results to a carnal minds. And in reality in the church there are Christians who are called carnal Christian. Their one foot is in the church and the other foot is on the world.
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. (Jas 1:15)
Therefore, DO SOMETHING to be save completely from the "sting of death". And that something a saved person should do is to surpass the Law.
Next Page
Chapter 3:The Law, The Sin and the Struggle Within
The fact remains that when a Christian still commits sin and yet still saved is quite understandable because no Christian is perfect. However, when a born-again Christian had been for many years continually, habitually and intentionally committing sin and still goes to church, praising God, give tithes and offering and shouting halleluiah amen, that’s a different tale to tell. We could think and ask ourselves, are they really Christian? Are they truly saved?
Actually we cannot tell what and who they really are because God only knows and besides if we directly pinpoint them we are prejudice for we have no right to judge anyone. The only thing we could properly do is we better give them the benefit of the doubt. Let us presumably think that maybe they are false convert or belonging to the so called ‘’stony Christian’’ or the ‘’thorny Christian’’. Much better, for us not to become judgmental of others, let us think that maybe they are the kind of Christians who have been struggling in their spiritual life.
Struggling with sin is what the apostle Paul has been went through when he became a Christian. From being a baby Christian and growing up to the faith and in the knowledge of God until he became powerful in the Word of God, he eventually passed through and overcome the sin he said are living in the members of the body. He found out the truth and came to the understanding of himself in relation to the law, the sin and the struggle with sin. In Rom.7:7-25, apostle Paul clearly expound on that matters, and by thoroughly studying on that context we would come up to a point that we need to ‘’work out our salvation’’ to be save completely from the ‘’sting of death’’ which is the sin.
The Law, The Sin and The Struggle with Sin Rom 7:7-25 NIV
Romans 7:7
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet."
We know killing a person is murder and taking other man’s wife is adultery. But as we come to the knowledge of the Word of God and his law, we have known better than before about the law. We come to know that anger is also a murder and lustful look is the same as adultery (Matt.5:21-22; 1 Jon 3:15), we have known what sin really was.
Rom 7:8-9
But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
Out of the ‘’sin of omission’’ that we have ever since from our childhood, now comes out more sin, such as the ‘’sin of commission’’ and many other sin (as in the figure page 4) in which sprang to life. It’s like to a sleeping giants that had been awaken from a very long sleep and it turns out that we could not help ourselves and we could not resist but to submit and be a slave. There’s nothing we can do to escape from the slavery of sin. The sin becomes our master. Therefore, the more knowledge of the Word of God and his moral and spiritual law, the more sin of omission and sin of commission we have, and the more sin we have the more death on our spiritual life.
Rom 7:10-11
I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.
The law that supposed to bring us life were actually brings death and the law that supposed to set us free makes us a slave to sin. Something goes wrong, that was because the law deceive us but it doesn’t mean the law is evil. It simply means, that the devil that was at from the beginning that deceive Adam and Eve, was the same devil that deceive all mankind including us and all generation to come. By his all craftiness and deception, satan makes us in the beginning a ‘’childhood-well used-sin of omission-sinful nature-mindset’’ to a severe state as of being a ‘’childhood-demonic-worldly-anger-murderer-mindset’’. The devil took the advantage of the law, and it seems just like this: Satan says, ‘’Don’t kill, don’t murder but you can be angry, that’s ok, and that’s it. Satan business is to tell the truth but not the whole truth, the truth that he always tells is actually a lie. So then, that’s what he did to all the rest of the commandments. He uses the law to deceive, destroy and bring a spiritual death to us.
Rom 7:12-13
So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
Not only the law is holy, righteous and good, much more it is perfect (Psa 19:7). When we are not yet a believer, we knew something about the law. We know lying is evil, we know stealing is evil, to kill is evil and to take man’s wife is evil, perhaps that’s all we know. But as ourselves becoming a believer we came to know God and his law even much better than we have known it. We eventually understand and recognized all kinds of sin. Such as anger is also murder, lustful look is adultery and much of the other commandments. We begun to realize many sin we have against God and to others. Also we prove that the sin is really sinful and evil because it doesn’t do good and better for us as well as to others. We have seen that sin oftentimes resulted to a broken relationship among the brethren and to individual .The presence of God and the interest on the things of God fade away that consequently leads to death- lack of spiritual life.
Rom 7:14
We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin.
As we grow in the knowledge of the Word of God, we look the law as it was not just the same as natural as the way we look at before. When Jesus said, ‘’You have heard that it was said long time ago...then, ‘’But I tell you now..., it means Jesus had taken the law for himself from the natural and bring it into spiritual law. So the law that was well explained and well defined must be obey not in the natural way, not in literal way but beyond of what the natural and carnal man can do. It must be done in spirit (by faith) and in all truth as of what the commandments really means and says so, and as what was expected of God. It must be pleasing and acceptable to him, and can only be done with faith. For without faith it is impossible to please God.
In other words, surpassing the law is what God required from us. We must surpass the law by faith accompanied by works of the law- The 10 commandments.
Surpassing – Outstanding: of a quality far superior than others. (Encarta Dictionary)
Surpass – To go beyond what was expected; do better than somebody; be beyond somebody’s ability
Rom 7:15-20
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not wantto do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
Anyone who wants to be a disciple of Christ will be like as what Paul went through. Whenever he desire to do good he did evil instead. The same is true that happens every time we desire to do good. We desire to read the bible and pray but instead we always ends up having more time watching T.V. Inwardly we agree with the Word of God and everything we’ve learned from it, all are good and right to do but we oftentimes do the opposite.
Our situation turned much worse, and there’s one thing that we must understand in ourselves. The sin that we do is not actually us who do it but it is the sin living in the members of our body (the hand and the eyes). The sin that awakens and arises was indeed the sin that does evil. Jesus said, ‘’It is better to lose one part of the body than for your hole body to go into hell’’’ Mat 5:29-30. It means there is a sin (of lust) living in the parts of the body, particularly in the hands and in the eyes that causes to do evil. This body that has a sinful nature lives nothing good. That is the real situation of our body and the best thing we could do is to put the body (flesh) to a total death. We must continually put to death the misdeeds of the body.
Rom 7:21-23
So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.
There are 3 laws at works in our whole being: God’s law which is, ‘’The 10 commandments’’, the Law of mind which is ‘’The mind agree with the law’’ and the Law of sin which is ‘’The wages of sin is death’’ (spiritual death/physical death). These 3 laws are always goes opposite to each other or the so called, ‘’Waging war within us’’.
Our whole being is consist of 3 parts: 1 Thess 5:23
• Spirit – ‘’We are born in Spirit’’ Jon 3:3-5 / Inner being that delights in God’s law / Desirous of God’s will /Want to do good
• Soul (lat.word-psyche) – Mind – The place where the struggle always begin / A constant battle in the mind / The major point of attack of satan is in the mind / Idle minds is satan playground
• Body (flesh) – Parts of the body that by nature is sinful: Eyes, Hands, and Tongue / slave to sin / the part that actually do evil / destined for destruction and hell / Nothing good lives there
According to Gal 5:17, the body (flesh) is contrary to the Spirit. There are actually in our whole being an occurring constant battle, a war between Spirit and the flesh, a war within. Therefore we could say that our real enemy is not on the outside but is on the inside.
Again, anyone who wants to be a disciple of Christ will be like just Paul. In some degree or another, every Christian will experience a struggle with sin. If not there’s a problem with them (they are spiritually blind). All will pass through on an experience like Paul and there’s no one is exempted.
The good news is, struggling with sin is a good indication of spiritual growth. Similar to a caterpillar that struggle to come out from the cocoon to become a beautiful butterfly, so we too, we will pass through on a experience of struggle to get out from the ‘’cocoon of sin’’ that enslaving us a long ago. Then, ‘’for a while’’ and as we ‘’practice thereby’’ and as we press on we shall come forth as a newness of the creation.
Struggle- throw one’s limbs or body about in violent effort to get free; strive hard
Struggling – ‘’waging war’’ (We must wage war against the sin, the devil, and the flesh)
Rom 7:24-25
What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
We must see ourselves how wretched man we are (as Paul sees himself) in the sight of God because of our sinfulness. We must see ourselves as lost and in danger of the fire of hell. We need to see ourselves as helpless to escape from the slavery of sin living in the members of our body and nothing we can do about it. In that point, it is where now we begin to look for help (that’s what Paul did) and there’s no one else we can turn except to God. That is the moment God will begin to move within us thus godly sorrow that leads to genuine repentance will allow for us. Then, if we continually humble ourselves and be diligent to surpass the law, God will give us the will and the divine enablement to overcome “little by little” the sin that brings death until we reach the goal of our faith-Salvation (save completely from the sting of death). In other words, saved completely from the sin ingrained, dwelling and living in the members of our body.
Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! We need not to become feel guilty anymore and we need not to be intimidated from the accusation thwarts by the devil in our mind day and night. We can resist him and he will flee indeed. Just continually “work out your salvation” by surpassing the Law.
Next Page
Actually we cannot tell what and who they really are because God only knows and besides if we directly pinpoint them we are prejudice for we have no right to judge anyone. The only thing we could properly do is we better give them the benefit of the doubt. Let us presumably think that maybe they are false convert or belonging to the so called ‘’stony Christian’’ or the ‘’thorny Christian’’. Much better, for us not to become judgmental of others, let us think that maybe they are the kind of Christians who have been struggling in their spiritual life.
Struggling with sin is what the apostle Paul has been went through when he became a Christian. From being a baby Christian and growing up to the faith and in the knowledge of God until he became powerful in the Word of God, he eventually passed through and overcome the sin he said are living in the members of the body. He found out the truth and came to the understanding of himself in relation to the law, the sin and the struggle with sin. In Rom.7:7-25, apostle Paul clearly expound on that matters, and by thoroughly studying on that context we would come up to a point that we need to ‘’work out our salvation’’ to be save completely from the ‘’sting of death’’ which is the sin.
The Law, The Sin and The Struggle with Sin Rom 7:7-25 NIV
Romans 7:7
What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "Do not covet."
We know killing a person is murder and taking other man’s wife is adultery. But as we come to the knowledge of the Word of God and his law, we have known better than before about the law. We come to know that anger is also a murder and lustful look is the same as adultery (Matt.5:21-22; 1 Jon 3:15), we have known what sin really was.
Rom 7:8-9
But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
Out of the ‘’sin of omission’’ that we have ever since from our childhood, now comes out more sin, such as the ‘’sin of commission’’ and many other sin (as in the figure page 4) in which sprang to life. It’s like to a sleeping giants that had been awaken from a very long sleep and it turns out that we could not help ourselves and we could not resist but to submit and be a slave. There’s nothing we can do to escape from the slavery of sin. The sin becomes our master. Therefore, the more knowledge of the Word of God and his moral and spiritual law, the more sin of omission and sin of commission we have, and the more sin we have the more death on our spiritual life.
Rom 7:10-11
I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.
The law that supposed to bring us life were actually brings death and the law that supposed to set us free makes us a slave to sin. Something goes wrong, that was because the law deceive us but it doesn’t mean the law is evil. It simply means, that the devil that was at from the beginning that deceive Adam and Eve, was the same devil that deceive all mankind including us and all generation to come. By his all craftiness and deception, satan makes us in the beginning a ‘’childhood-well used-sin of omission-sinful nature-mindset’’ to a severe state as of being a ‘’childhood-demonic-worldly-anger-murderer-mindset’’. The devil took the advantage of the law, and it seems just like this: Satan says, ‘’Don’t kill, don’t murder but you can be angry, that’s ok, and that’s it. Satan business is to tell the truth but not the whole truth, the truth that he always tells is actually a lie. So then, that’s what he did to all the rest of the commandments. He uses the law to deceive, destroy and bring a spiritual death to us.
Rom 7:12-13
So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
Not only the law is holy, righteous and good, much more it is perfect (Psa 19:7). When we are not yet a believer, we knew something about the law. We know lying is evil, we know stealing is evil, to kill is evil and to take man’s wife is evil, perhaps that’s all we know. But as ourselves becoming a believer we came to know God and his law even much better than we have known it. We eventually understand and recognized all kinds of sin. Such as anger is also murder, lustful look is adultery and much of the other commandments. We begun to realize many sin we have against God and to others. Also we prove that the sin is really sinful and evil because it doesn’t do good and better for us as well as to others. We have seen that sin oftentimes resulted to a broken relationship among the brethren and to individual .The presence of God and the interest on the things of God fade away that consequently leads to death- lack of spiritual life.
Rom 7:14
We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin.
As we grow in the knowledge of the Word of God, we look the law as it was not just the same as natural as the way we look at before. When Jesus said, ‘’You have heard that it was said long time ago...then, ‘’But I tell you now..., it means Jesus had taken the law for himself from the natural and bring it into spiritual law. So the law that was well explained and well defined must be obey not in the natural way, not in literal way but beyond of what the natural and carnal man can do. It must be done in spirit (by faith) and in all truth as of what the commandments really means and says so, and as what was expected of God. It must be pleasing and acceptable to him, and can only be done with faith. For without faith it is impossible to please God.
In other words, surpassing the law is what God required from us. We must surpass the law by faith accompanied by works of the law- The 10 commandments.
Surpassing – Outstanding: of a quality far superior than others. (Encarta Dictionary)
Surpass – To go beyond what was expected; do better than somebody; be beyond somebody’s ability
Rom 7:15-20
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not wantto do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
Anyone who wants to be a disciple of Christ will be like as what Paul went through. Whenever he desire to do good he did evil instead. The same is true that happens every time we desire to do good. We desire to read the bible and pray but instead we always ends up having more time watching T.V. Inwardly we agree with the Word of God and everything we’ve learned from it, all are good and right to do but we oftentimes do the opposite.
Our situation turned much worse, and there’s one thing that we must understand in ourselves. The sin that we do is not actually us who do it but it is the sin living in the members of our body (the hand and the eyes). The sin that awakens and arises was indeed the sin that does evil. Jesus said, ‘’It is better to lose one part of the body than for your hole body to go into hell’’’ Mat 5:29-30. It means there is a sin (of lust) living in the parts of the body, particularly in the hands and in the eyes that causes to do evil. This body that has a sinful nature lives nothing good. That is the real situation of our body and the best thing we could do is to put the body (flesh) to a total death. We must continually put to death the misdeeds of the body.
Rom 7:21-23
So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.
There are 3 laws at works in our whole being: God’s law which is, ‘’The 10 commandments’’, the Law of mind which is ‘’The mind agree with the law’’ and the Law of sin which is ‘’The wages of sin is death’’ (spiritual death/physical death). These 3 laws are always goes opposite to each other or the so called, ‘’Waging war within us’’.
Our whole being is consist of 3 parts: 1 Thess 5:23
• Spirit – ‘’We are born in Spirit’’ Jon 3:3-5 / Inner being that delights in God’s law / Desirous of God’s will /Want to do good
• Soul (lat.word-psyche) – Mind – The place where the struggle always begin / A constant battle in the mind / The major point of attack of satan is in the mind / Idle minds is satan playground
• Body (flesh) – Parts of the body that by nature is sinful: Eyes, Hands, and Tongue / slave to sin / the part that actually do evil / destined for destruction and hell / Nothing good lives there
According to Gal 5:17, the body (flesh) is contrary to the Spirit. There are actually in our whole being an occurring constant battle, a war between Spirit and the flesh, a war within. Therefore we could say that our real enemy is not on the outside but is on the inside.
Again, anyone who wants to be a disciple of Christ will be like just Paul. In some degree or another, every Christian will experience a struggle with sin. If not there’s a problem with them (they are spiritually blind). All will pass through on an experience like Paul and there’s no one is exempted.
The good news is, struggling with sin is a good indication of spiritual growth. Similar to a caterpillar that struggle to come out from the cocoon to become a beautiful butterfly, so we too, we will pass through on a experience of struggle to get out from the ‘’cocoon of sin’’ that enslaving us a long ago. Then, ‘’for a while’’ and as we ‘’practice thereby’’ and as we press on we shall come forth as a newness of the creation.
Struggle- throw one’s limbs or body about in violent effort to get free; strive hard
Struggling – ‘’waging war’’ (We must wage war against the sin, the devil, and the flesh)
Rom 7:24-25
What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
We must see ourselves how wretched man we are (as Paul sees himself) in the sight of God because of our sinfulness. We must see ourselves as lost and in danger of the fire of hell. We need to see ourselves as helpless to escape from the slavery of sin living in the members of our body and nothing we can do about it. In that point, it is where now we begin to look for help (that’s what Paul did) and there’s no one else we can turn except to God. That is the moment God will begin to move within us thus godly sorrow that leads to genuine repentance will allow for us. Then, if we continually humble ourselves and be diligent to surpass the law, God will give us the will and the divine enablement to overcome “little by little” the sin that brings death until we reach the goal of our faith-Salvation (save completely from the sting of death). In other words, saved completely from the sin ingrained, dwelling and living in the members of our body.
Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord! We need not to become feel guilty anymore and we need not to be intimidated from the accusation thwarts by the devil in our mind day and night. We can resist him and he will flee indeed. Just continually “work out your salvation” by surpassing the Law.
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Chapter 1: The Paradox of the Biblical Salvation
Paradox – “A statement seemingly absurd or self-contradictory, but really found in truth”
Created by:
Elmer's Work
Updated July 21, 2008
Copyright 2008
Christ Admonition on the Law
“Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” Matt.5:19-20
The Paradox of the Biblical Salvation
“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but how much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling”. Phil.2:12
“For you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls”. 1 Pet.1:9
By carefully analyzing the two verses, it is very logical to think that there’s must be something needed to be done before a salvation can be attained. The verses shows that one must act towards salvation until it becomes complete or until the goal have been achieved. The verse implies works that are progressive. The Paradox of the Biblical Salvation is that Salvation is by Faith and equal by Works.
The emphasis gave by the Apostle Paul instructing the Philippians to be more obedient and continue to “work out the salvation” was for a reason not because they have not yet received the so called “Sola Fide” (salvation through faith alone) and not because they are not yet assured of salvation. What Paul meant here is that one must continue to work and make every effort to save themselves from what is called the “Sting of Death.” The so called “Sting of Death” means nothing else but sin. (The sting of death is sin 1 Cor.15:56)
It's very clear apostle Paul and Peter is not talking to the unbelievers-the unsaved. They talk straight to the believers instructing them to make effort to "Work Out the Salvation".
Next Page
Created by:
Elmer's Work
Updated July 21, 2008
Copyright 2008
Christ Admonition on the Law
“Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” Matt.5:19-20
The Paradox of the Biblical Salvation
“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but how much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling”. Phil.2:12
“For you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls”. 1 Pet.1:9
By carefully analyzing the two verses, it is very logical to think that there’s must be something needed to be done before a salvation can be attained. The verses shows that one must act towards salvation until it becomes complete or until the goal have been achieved. The verse implies works that are progressive. The Paradox of the Biblical Salvation is that Salvation is by Faith and equal by Works.
The emphasis gave by the Apostle Paul instructing the Philippians to be more obedient and continue to “work out the salvation” was for a reason not because they have not yet received the so called “Sola Fide” (salvation through faith alone) and not because they are not yet assured of salvation. What Paul meant here is that one must continue to work and make every effort to save themselves from what is called the “Sting of Death.” The so called “Sting of Death” means nothing else but sin. (The sting of death is sin 1 Cor.15:56)
It's very clear apostle Paul and Peter is not talking to the unbelievers-the unsaved. They talk straight to the believers instructing them to make effort to "Work Out the Salvation".
Next Page
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