Theword

?THE GRASS WITHERS, THE FLOWER FADES, BUT THE WORD OF OUR GOD STANDS FOREVER.? (ISAIAH 40:8)

Pastor Ernest Martinez

The Community Church of Devore

Is the Lord still with you? Now they say (whoever they are) that the darkest hour is right before the dawn. I am convinced that our darkest hours spent here on earth are nothing compared to our eternal home. Peter exhorts the believers in Christ: ?After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen {and} establish you.? ( 1 Peter 5:10 )

Unfortunately we often suffer, not at the hands of non-Christians, but at the hands of Christians. Being in church is like the ultimate spiritual boot camp. We all have been pressed, pulled and pushed and yet maintain that God is the Lord over All. We have had to examine not only our spiritual struggles, but examine our doctrine and beliefs. We have to ask the tough questions. Let us all come to an understanding of what Paul meant when he told Timothy:

?Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.? (1 Tim. 4:16)

Not that anyone of us could save another, for truly salvation is of the Lord. But I think we can get unbalanced because of our self-worth issues that tell us that people?s salvation are determined by my witness. I think we all see ourselves and how much we come short and therefore must some how work harder to maintain our salvation. We can come short of God?s Grace by overlooking our sin or making light of sin and making excuses for it, or we can come short of Grace by trying to live a righteous life by focusing on sin and getting rid of it and being zealous for prayer and study of the Word for the sake of sin and not for the sake of Jesus Christ.

Pursuing righteousness and godliness is a great goal; a wonderful goal. But as the Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 13:1 ? 3: ?If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have {the gift of} prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed {the poor,} and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.?

We are to flee the lusts that wage war against our souls, and we are to confess and forsake our sins, but we are not to focus so much on law and sin that we forget about Christ. We must not forget to lift up Christ Jesus. We must not forget that it is because of God?s love and grace that we have the power and authority to refuse to sin. If we are filled with the grace and love of God, we will be abhorred by our sin and run to Christ. I have emphasized throughout my ministry ?Law? and ?Sin,? and it is true that if one continues in sin then the love of God is not in them. But it is also true that those who have given their lives to Christ will see God. Some fear if we teach the Grace of God to often and too boldly some will use that as an excuse to sin. Well to them I say that their judgment is just if they think that those of us who love God want to sin and use the Grace of God so we can continue in sin. Some are fond of quoting Charles Spurgeon so I give you his exhortation:

?My dear believer, if you feel tormented by sin within you and your holiness seems battered and spotted, you can be fully persuaded that He who has promised complete salvation is able to do it.?

The writer of Hebrews was not worried about us falling short of the ?Law? of or ?Works? but falling short of ?Grace.? He said: See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;?.? ( Hebrews 12:15 ) Grace enables us to walk worthy, as Paul implored the Christians of Ephesus: ?Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,?.? Grace gives us the power to overcome sin. It keeps pride and self-righteousness at bay, and it gives us hope.

We must handle the Scriptures accurately, this much is true. Paul told Timothy ?All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.? (2 Tim. 3:16 ? 17) Jude said: ?Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.? But some in their zeal seem to mishandle the truth. Charles Swindoll once wrote:

?Now, this has nothing to do with sincerity. Many, perhaps host, people who mishandle the Word are very sincere. And it really has little to do with theology. Some who have their theology fairly well in place can still mishandle Scripture. It also has nothing to do with personality. There are gifted teachers dripping with charisma who can sway an audience and hold them in the palm of their hand, yet be guilty of mishandling Scripture. It certainly has nothing to do with popularity. Famous, highly visible personalities in Christians circles who can draw large listening audiences can (and often do) mishandle Scripture. So let?s put to be, once and for all, the idea that if a person just ?loves the Lord,? he or she will be preserved from mishandling Scripture. No, even those of us who believe in the inerrancy of Scripture and affirm the importance of sound doctrine can be guilty of biblical abuse.? (Growing Deep in the Christian Life, pgs. 69 ? 70)

We must judge as the Bible says, but we must understand that true judgment is from God. As James said: ?Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge {of it.}? ( James 4:11 ) Paul said: ?Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern?? (2 Cor. 11:29) We must have an intense care and love for each other to help each other overcome sin. Let us look to Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith. Let us not use our liberty in Christ as a mask for sin. Let us walk worthy, forgiving each other as Christ forgave us.

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Published on: 2005-06-30 (1878 reads)