Grace And Sin!

Psalm 19: 12-14 mentions three kinds of sin - Errors, Hidden Faults, and Willful Sins.

Errors - sins we commit and are not aware of. David said, "Who can discern (one's) errors?" We can commit error-sins for years as a Christian and not be aware of them, unless someone courageously and lovingly points them out.

Hidden Faults - sins we commit that we are aware of, but try to hide, hoping nobody catches on. David prayed often to God, "Forgive my hidden faults."

Willful Sins - Attitudes, thoughts, words, and actions that we know are wrong, and yet we do them anyway. David asked God, "Keep your servant also from willful sins."

But let us note that there is something encouraging here also. Though David knows he is a sinner, he is also still God's servant.

Even willful sin does not exclude us from God's Love.
God's Grace never gives up on us!

"Where sin increased, grace increased all the more." - Romans 5:20

Despite our sin, we are God's servant, not because of what we have done, are doing, or ever will do, but because of whom we believe in...

Christ, and the Finished Work Of The Cross.

Maybe that is why David asked God, "May my sins not rule over me." He knew God's servants should only have one ruler - and it ought not to be willful sin. He knew he was not perfect.

So David prays, as a humble man, "May the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight." And to whom does he make that request? " O Lord, My Rock, and My Redeemer."

These inner struggles are what make us alive today. These same struggles were shared by Jacob when he wrestled with God as in Genesis 32:28. Every God-believer is a God-struggler. Struggling with God is not a sign of unbelief or weak faith. It is a sign of an honest relationship, and even strong faith. Those who have no faith, have no need of grace, and no need to struggle with God. But all who have faith, struggle with God and the grace, and unmerited favor which He gives to us because of the imperfections we see in ourselves. Sometimes it is with a great ferocity, and other times it is a lesser intensity. He actually likes us to struggle with Him, because it always brings about change in our lives. Struggling with God shows that we take Him seriously to the Truth that He reveals to us in our lives each day as we journey forward, renewing our minds to what is true of us. Transforming us more and more into His image and likeness for the world to see. God's Grace is always more than enough to help us in our struggles with sin, strengthening us in our faith, showing us that He has everything we need in this life and journey today. Our true freedom and change comes through accepting His Grace, through His Son, Jesus Christ, and all that He has done to allow us to have that relationship again today.

Experiencing Life Together! (In Christ)

Each one of you is part of the Body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace.
Colossians 3:15

How wonderful it is, how pleasant, for God's people to live together in harmony! Psalm 133:1

.....Life is meant to be shared. God intends for us to experience life together. The bible calls this shared experience fellowship. The true meaning of fellowship includes unselfish loving, honest sharing, practical serving, sacrificial giving, sympathetic comforting, and all the other "one another" commands found in the New Testament.

.....Authentic fellowship is not superficial, surface-level chit-chat. It is genuine, heart-to-heart, sometimes gut-level, sharing. It happens when people get honest about who they are and what is happening in their lives. They share their hurts, reveal their feelings, confess their failures, disclose their doubts, admit their fears, acknowledge their weaknesses, and ask for help and prayer.

.....People wear masks today. They keep their guard up, and act as if everything is rosy in their lives. These attitudes are the death of real fellowship. It is only as we become open about our lives that we can experience real fellowship with God and others.

.....The Bible says, "If we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other... If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves.

.....The world thinks intimacy occurs in the dark, but God says it happens in the light. Darkness is used to hide our hurts, faults, fears, failures, and flaws. But in the light, we bring them all out into the open and admit who we really are. This requires two things, courage and humility. It means facing our fears of exposure, rejection, and being hurt again.

So why would anyone take such a risk today?

Because it is the only way to grow spiritually and be emotionally healthy.

.....The Bible says, "Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed."

.....We can only grow by taking risks, and the most difficult risk of all is to be honest with ourselves, God, and others. Nothing ventured, is nothing gained.

.....In real fellowship, we also experience mutuality. The art of giving and receiving, or depending on each other. Mutuality is the heart of fellowship. It includes the aspects of building reciprocal relationships, sharing responsibilities, and helping each other. The Bible is very clear on this subject, commanding us (over 50 times) in the areas of mutual accountability, encouragement, serving, and honoring. We are not responsible for everyone in the Body of Christ, but we are responsible to them. God expects us always to do whatever we can to help them. See a need, meet it.

.....In real fellowship, we also experience sympathy. Sympathy, or as some call empathy, is entering in and sharing the pain of others. Sympathy says, "I understand what you are going through, and what you feel is neither strange or crazy." The Bible says that we as Holy people are to be sympathetic, kind, humble, gentle, and patient. Sympathy meets two fundamental human needs: the need to be understood, and the need to have your feelings validated. Every time you understand and affirm someone's feelings, you build a new level of fellowship with that person. This increases your level of intimacy (IN-TO-ME-SEE) with them. It is in the times of deep crisis, grief, and doubt, that we need each other most. When circumstances crush us to the point that we find our faith in question, that is when we need believing friends the most. Friends who have faith in God for us, and to help pull us through. The Body of Christ is real and tangible for us today, even when God may seem distant in our lives, or our circumstances.

.....And the last thing I wish to share with you concerning real fellowship, is experiencing mercy and forgiveness. Fellowship is a place of grace, where mistakes are not rubbed in, but rubbed out. Fellowship happens when mercy wins over justice.

.....We all need grace and mercy today, because we all stumble and fall, and require help getting back on track. We need to offer that same mercy and grace to each other, and be willing to receive it from each other as well. God says, "When people sin, you should forgive and comfort them, so that they won't give up in despair."

.....You can't have fellowship without forgiveness, because bitterness and resentment always destroys it. Because we are all imperfect people who still sin, or miss the mark today, we will inevitably hurt each other when we are together for a long enough time, either intentionally, or sometimes unintentionally, but either way, it will take a massive amount of grace and mercy to maintain any fellowship throughout its lifetime.

.....The Bible says, " You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others." God's mercy is the key and the motivation for showing mercy to others. We will never be asked to forgive someone else more than God has already forgiven us.

.....Many people today are reluctant to show mercy and grace because they do not truly understand the difference between trust and forgiveness. Forgiveness is letting go of the past. Trust has to do with future behavior.

.....Forgiveness must be immediate, whether or not a person asks for it. Trust must be built over time. Trust requires a track record. If someone hurts you repeatedly, you are not expected to trust them immediately, and you are not expected to continue allowing them to hurt you. They must prove they have changed over time. The best place to restore trust is within the supportive context of a small group that offers both encouragement and accountability.

.....I hope and pray that after you read this, you step out in faith and use this message as a tool to guide yourself into a deeper aspect of fellowship, experiencing it, with God and others in the near future as you apply it in your own life and journey today, and forever.
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Gideon - Great Warrior! (Part 2)

Part 2

.....We left off in Part 1 where Gideon is appointed and empowered by God to free His people. Let us continue on in this study from Judges 6: 25-35.

1. Gideon's first task was to tear down Baal’s altar, which it seems was his father's, either for his own house or perhaps for the whole town. We can clearly see the power of God’s grace, to take the weakest of the weak, and raise up a deliverer, out of the family of one that was a ring-leader in Idolatry. God showed Gideon that it was not enough just to worship at that altar, which we hope he had not done, but he must tear it down; not consecrating the same altar to God , but utterly demolish it. God always commands us to tear down the monuments of superstition, and unbelief, to then empower us to His own service.

2. Gideon was then commanded to erect an altar to God, to Jehovah, his God, or Israel’s. It would have been an improper thing for him to build an altar, even to the God of Israel, especially for a burnt-offering and sacrifice, and it would have been construed as contempt, if God had not bidden him to do it. But now it was his duty and honor to be the one employed to do it. God directs him to the place where he should build it, on the top of the rock, a place to designate their overcoming, perhaps in the same place in which the angel had appeared to him.

The word here used for the rock, on which the altar was to be built signifies a fortress, or strong-hold, erected, to secure them from the Midianites; like a defeated King with the victorious king's foot on his throat, declaring victory before all. The wood, that was to be used for the offering, was to be from the image of Baal that was cut down, represented Humanity. God's victory over Humanity. The location represents for us today the place of victory, a point of no return, where God's enemies have been made a footstool for the Lord . Jesus spoke prophetically when He said, "Upon this Rock, (meaning Revelation,) I shall build this Kingdom, My Kingdom, (My Church.)"

.....On this altar, Gideon was to offer sacrifice. Two bullocks he must offer: his father’s young bullock, and the second bullock of seven years old. The former, we may suppose, he was to offer for himself, the latter for the sins of the people whom he was to deliver. It was requisite he should thus make peace with God, before he made war on Midian. Till sin be pardoned through the great sacrifice, The Finished Work of the Cross. These bullocks, it is supposed, were intended for sacrifices on the altar of Baal, but were now converted to a better use. Thus, when the strong man armed is overcome and dispossessed, the stronger than he divides the spoil, seizes that for himself which was prepared for Baal. Let him come whose right it is, and give it to him.

.....The image of Baal or whatever it was, that was the sanctity or beauty of the previous altar, must not only be burnt, but must be used as fuel for God’s altar, to signify not only that whatever sets up itself in opposition to God shall be destroyed, but also that the justice of God will be glorified in its destruction. God ordered Gideon to do this. Gideon had no zeal for religion, which made it was necessary for him to give proof of before he took the field, showing his valor there. It is by these same steps and degree that we embark upon our own callings today, towards the Church's Reformation, and Transformation, preparing the way for the Kingdom of God to be established here on this Earth.

.....Sin, which was the cause of all their troubles, must be taken away, else how should the trouble, and its effects, come to an end? This has already taken place for us today, but the people of God have forgotten and must be reminded of what has already taken place, renewing their minds to what is already true of them in Christ. And it might be hoped that by this example of Gideon’s, who was now shortly to appear so great a man, would be followed by the rest of the cities and tribes, and the destruction of this one altar of Baal would be the destruction of many.

.....Gideon was obedient to the heavenly vision, v. 27. He that was to command Israel, for God, and must be subject to God, without disputing, and, as a type of Christ, must first save his people from their sins, and then save them from their enemies.

Four things appear evident concerning the deployment of his mission.

1. He had servants of his own, whom he could confide in, who, we may suppose, like him, had kept their integrity, and had not bowed their knee to Baal, and therefore were allowed to assist him in destroying the altar of Baal.

2. He did not contemplate taking his father’s bullock and offering it to God without his father’s consent, because God, who expressly commanded him to do so, had a better title to it than his father had, and it was the greatest real kindness he could do to his father to atone for his sin.

3. He expected to incur the displeasure of his father’s household by it, and the ill-will of his neighbors, yet he did it. And, while he was sure of the favor of God, he feared the anger of men.

4. Though he feared not their resentment when it was done, to prevent their resistance in the doing of it, he prudently chose to do it by night, that he might not be disturbed in these sacred actions. And some think it was the same night in which God spoke to him to do it, and it is probable that he did it as soon as he had received the orders, immediately applying himself to the execution of them, and finished before morning.

Then, he was brought into peril of his life for doing it, v. 28–30, through the next series of events.

1. Gideon, when he had gone through with the mission, did not desire the concealment of it, nor could it be hid, for the men of the city rose early in the morning, as it should seem, to pay homage to Baal, which was the way many of them began their day with their god. It was and still is a shame to those who knew of the true God at one time, as their God, and yet, in the morning, directed no prayer to Him, nor looked up.

2. They all saw the destruction of Baal’s altar. It was soon discovered who had done it. Strict inquiry was made. Gideon was known to be disaffected to the worship of Baal, which brought him into suspicion, and positive proof immediately came against him: "Gideon, no doubt, has done this thing.’’

3. Gideon being found guilty of the fact, the Israelites arrived at the conclusion that he must die for what he did, and required his own father (who, by compromising to their idolatry, had given them too much cause to expect that he would comply with them,) to deliver him up. They requested his father to: Bring out thy son, that he may die. Be astonished, O heavens! How soon will idolaters become our persecutors!

.....He was rescued out of the hands of his persecutors by his own father, v. 31. There were those that stood against Gideon, that not only appeared at the first to make a demand, but insisted on it, and would have him put to death. Notwithstanding the heavy judgments they were facing themselves at this time for their own idolatry, they hated to be reformed, and walked contrary to God even when He was walking contrary to them. Yet, Joash stood up for Gideon and God; he was one of the chief men of the city. Those that have power today, may do a great deal for the protection of an honest man and an honest cause, and when they so use their power, they are ministers of God for good.

.....Joash had patronized Baal’s altar, yet now protects the one that had destroyed it. Why? Perhaps it was a particular esteem for him as a virtuous, valiant, and valuable man, who was never the worse for not joining with him in the worship of Baal. Today, there are many that have not the courage enough to keep their integrity themselves, yet still have a conscience left that makes them love and esteem those that do.

.....Maybe Joash, out of conviction, realized that Gideon had done well. His son, perhaps, had reasoned with him, or God, who has all hearts in his hands, had secretly and effectually influenced him to appear thus against the advocates for Baal, though he had complied with them formerly in the worship of Baal. Note, It is good to appear for God when we are called to it, though there be few or none to second us, because God can incline the hearts of those to stand by us from whom we little expect assistance.

There were two things Joash urges:

1. That it was absurd for them to plead for Baal. "Will you that are Israelites, the worshipers of the one and only living and true God, plead for Baal, a false god? Will you be so senseless? Those whose fathers’ god Baal was, and who never knew any other, are more excusable in pleading for him than you are. You are the ones that are supposed to be in covenant with Jehovah, and have been trained up in the knowledge of Him. You that have brought about all this mischief and calamity upon yourselves by your Idolatry, will you yet plead for Baal?’’ Note, It is bad to commit sin, but it is an even greater wickedness indeed to plead for it, especially to plead for Baal, that idol, whatever it is, which possesses the room in your heart which God should have.

2. That it was needless for them to plead for Baal. If he were not a god, as was pretended, they could have nothing to say for him; if he were, he was able to plead for himself, as the God of Israel had often done by fire from heaven, or some other judgment against those who put contempt upon Him. Here is a fair challenge to Baal to do either good or evil. The result of which would convince his worshipers of their folly in praying to one to help them that could not even avenge himself. After this, Gideon remarkably prospered, and thereby it appeared how unable Baal was to maintain his own cause.

.....But during this time, Gideon’s father gave him a new name, v. 32; he called him Jerubbaal: "Let Baal plead; let him plead against him if he can." They literally cursed him. And from that point, a challenge was issued to see if Baal had anything to say for himself against his destroyer, Gideon, who was empowered by Jehovah, the true and living God. They concluded by stating,"Now that Gideon is taking up arms against the Midianites that worship Baal, let him defend his worshipers if he can.’’

Stay tuned for the conclusion of Gideon,The Great Warrior, in Part 3.

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Gideon - Great Warrior! (Part 1)

Part 1

.....There are many great men spoken about in the Bible, but there is only one that God called a "Great Warrior," and that was Gideon. Let's find out why through the study of Judges 6: 1-35.

.....We begin our study with the children of Israel who find themselves in bondage again, impoverished, and distraught, for 7 years, needing deliverance, because of their Idolatry, which was considered evil in the sight of the Lord. They had forgotten that the Lord had delivered them out of the hand of all who had oppressed them. And so in their misery, they cried out to the Lord, who had heard their cry and answered their plea, calling, commissioning, and empowering Gideon, through an Angel of the Lord, to take upon himself, the command of their forces against the Midianites, (which means Strife, or a brawling and contentious people), and the Amalekites, (which means Sorrowful and Wicked). Guideon's father was now living, but he was passed by, and this honor was put upon the son, for the father kept up in his own family the worship of Baal (v. 25), which we may suppose this son, as far as was in his power, witnessed against. He was of the half tribe of Manasseh, (which means Causing to Forget) that lay in Canaan, (which means Lowland, to be brought into subjection, or humble). The Angel of the Lord that gave him the commission said, "I will be with thee." This divine messenger appeared here to Gideon, who considered himself the lowest of the low, yet was the perfect choice by God for this mission. But Why?

(1.) He was retired—all alone. God often manifests Himself to His people when they are out of the noise and hurry of this world. Silence and solitude befriend our communion with God.

(2.) He was employed in threshing wheat, with a staff or rod (so the word signifies), such as they used in beating out fitches and cummin (Isa. 28:27), but now used for wheat, probably because he had but little to thresh, he needed not the oxen to tread it out. It was not then looked upon as any diminution to him, though he was a person of some account and a mighty man of valour, to lay his hand to the business of the husbandman. He had many servants (v. 27), and yet would not himself live in idleness. We put ourselves in the way of divine visits when we employ ourselves in honest business.

(3.) He was distressed; he was threshing his wheat, not in the threshing-floor, the proper place, but by the wine-press, in some private unsuspected corner, for fear of the Midianites. He himself shared in the common calamity, and now the Angel came to him against Midian when he himself could speak so feelingly of the heaviness of their yoke. The day of the greatest distress is God’s time to appear for His people’s relief.

.....Let us now see what passed between the Angel and Gideon, who considered himself the lowest of the low, and knew not with certainty, till after He was gone, that He was an Angel, but supposed He was a prophet.

.....The Angel appeared to him with respect, and assured him of the presence of God with him, (v. 12). He calls him a mighty man of valour, perhaps because he observed how he threshed his wheat with all his might; a man diligent in his business. Gideon was a man of a brave active spirit, and yet buried alive in obscurity, through the iniquity of the times; yet here in his presence is this Angel, or Messenger of God, empowering him to undertake something great.

.....By this word, the Angel gives him his commission. If we have God’s presence with us, this will justify us and bear us out in our undertakings. He then inspires him with all necessary qualifications for the execution of his commission. "The Lord is with thee to guide and strengthen thee, and support thee.’’ And last, He assures him of success; for, if God be for us, who can prevail against us? If He be with us, nothing can be wanting to us. The presence of God with us is all in all to our prosperity, and in whatever we do.

.....Gideon was a mighty man of valour, and yet he could bring nothing to pass without the presence of God, and that presence is enough to make any man mighty in valour, and to give a man courage at any time. Gideon questioned God by saying, "O my Lord! if the Lord be with us, why then has all this befallen us? " All this trouble and distress from the Midianites’ incursions, which force me to thresh wheat here by the wine-press—all this loss, and grief, and fright; and "where are all the miracles which our fathers told us of?"

.....Gideon, as if not conscious to himself of any thing great or encouraging in his own spirit, fastens only on the assurance the Angel had given him of God’s presence, opening up the way to put the plans and desires of God into execution.

.....More questions are raised by Gideon concerning the delay of their deliverance: "Where are all the miracles which our fathers told us of? Why does not the same power which delivered our fathers from the yoke of the Egyptians deliver us out of the hands of the Midianites?’’ As if because God did not immediately work miracles for their deliverance, though they had by their own sins forfeited His favour and help, Gideon questioned whether God had wrought the miracles which their fathers told them of, or whether He had now the same wisdom, power, and good-will toward His people, that He had had formerly. This was the people's weakness. Forgetting what God has done.

We must not expect that the miracles which were wrought when the Church was first formed in the New Testament to continue to the same degree, when we as the Body of Christ have not kept close to Him, having revolted through our own religious traditions, losing our focus of the completed, and finished work of the Cross and Christ.

Gideon finds himself in the same spot that many of us who are called and chosen by God today.

.....He desires to have his faith confirmed concerning this commission; so he fleeces God to satisfy himself of his authority, and would be able to give satisfaction to others as to Him who gave him that authority. He therefore humbly begs of this Angel, to give him a sign, (v. 17). And, the commission is then confirmed by some act of God out of the common course of nature. "Show me a sign to assure me of the truth of this concerning which thou talkest with me, that it is something more than talk, and that thou art in earnest.’’ Now, under the dispensation of the Spirit, we are not to expect signs before our eyes, such as Gideon here desired, but must earnestly pray to God that, if we have found grace in His sight, He would show us a sign in our heart, by the powerful operations of His Spirit there, fulfilling the work of faith, and perfecting what is lacking in it. But the Angel accepted the request, and so gave him a further and longer opportunity of conversation with Him, (v. 18). Those who know what it is to have communion with God desire the continuance of it.

.....Gideon desired in courting the Angel to stay, that he might bring out some provision of meat for Him. He did not take Him into the house to entertain Him there, because he desired still to be in private and to converse with Him alone, (therefore he calls not for a servant to bring the provision, but fetches it himself). Upon the Angel’s promise to stay and dine with him, he hastened to bring out a kid, which, it is likely, was already boiled for his own dinner, so that in making it ready he had nothing to do but to put it in the basket and the broth in a vessel, and so he presented it, (v. 19). Establishing a Covenant. His present, a meat offering. For what we offer to God for His glory, and in token of our gratitude to Him, will be made by the grace of God to turn to our own comfort and satisfaction.

.....The Angel ordered him to take the flesh and bread out of the basket, and lay it upon a hard and cold rock, and to pour out the broth upon it, (A Perfect Picture of the Body and Blood of Christ), for which the Angel used the meat as an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto God, showing hereby that He was not a man who needed meat, but the Son of God who was to be served and honoured by sacrifice, and who in the fullness of time was to make Himself a sacrifice. Christ. He brought fire out of the rock, to consume this sacrifice, summoning it, not by striking the rock, as we strike fire out of a flint, but by a gentle touch given to the offering with the end of His staff, (v. 21). Hereby giving Gideon a sign that he had found grace in His sight, for God testified His acceptance of sacrifices by kindling them, in public, with fire from heaven, as with Moses and Elijah, in private, as this, with fire out of the earth, which was equivalent: both were the effect of divine power; and this acceptance of his sacrifice evidenced the acceptance of his person, confirmed his commission, and perhaps was intended to signify his success in the execution of it, that he and his army should be a surprising terror and consumption to the Midianites, like this fire out of the rock.

.....The Angel then departed out of his sight immediately, did not walk off as a man, but vanished and disappeared as a Spirit. Here was as much of a sign as he could wish. Gideon, though no doubt he was confirmed in his faith by the indications given of the divinity of the person who had spoken to him, yet for the present was put into a great fright by it, till God graciously pacified him and removed his fears, by speaking to him, (v. 23). It might have been fatal to him, but He assures him it is not. The Lord had then departed out of his sight, (v. 21). Gideon could no longer walk by sight, he now had to live by faith, that faith which comes by hearing; for the Lord said to him, "Peace be unto thee, all is well, and be thou satisfied that it is so. Fear not; He that came to employ thee did not intend to slay thee; (But to Empower Thee), thou shalt not die.’’

God is always ready to revive the hearts of those that tremble at His word and presence, and to give those that stand in awe of His majesty, the assurance of His mercy, and grace, empowering them for their calling!

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Growing In Grace!

.....Jesus Christ paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay. The Cross truly demonstrates God's love. The Bible says: Love conquers all, and also, that Love covers a multitude of sins. God clearly demonstrated His own love for us in the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. There is no greater act of love than to give your one and only son for the world. There is no F.E.A.R. in Love. Perfect Love drives out F.E.A.R., because fear has to do with punishment. The man who fears is not made perfect in Love, (1 John 4: 18).

.....Today, we are free to grow in Love for Him by the grace, (The Unmerited Favor) He has given us, that we may serve Him with joy, presenting our bodies as living sacrifices. Not presenting ourselves to an enemy whose motives and purposes are suspect at best, but to a Living God, a wise, loving, and powerful Heavenly Father, who's motives and purposes for us are founded in His perfect goodness.

.....The Law could never produce true growth in grace and actually worked against the process. 1 Corinthians 15: 56 says, " The power of sin is the Law." As long as people are kept under the Law, they are kept under the power of sin. Romans 7: 7-8 says, "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. But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the Commandments, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from the Law, sin is dead."

So, is the Law bad?

.....No, because in 1 Timothy 1: 8 it says, " The Law is good if one uses it properly." In it's proper use, God uses it as a mirror to show us the truth about ourselves, so that we will see our need for total dependency upon Jesus Christ. In it's misuse, it produces an "Outward Conformity" with an absence of Faith, Hope and Love. This results in a total lack of Christian maturity.

An example of this is a contrast between:

A City Dog, and A Country Dog.

.....I personally have had one of each, and the Lord revealed this to me through the Spirit while in my personal studies with Him. Have you ever had a dog that you kept in the house, or penned up in the backyard? What happens when there is a momentary crack in the doorway or fence? The dog takes off like a bolt of lightning! Give it a glimpse of freedom and he's gone. You end up chasing him up the street, constantly calling his name. Does he stop? No way! He would actually turn and seem to grin at you, and keeps running. The more you chase him, the faster he runs.

.....On the other hand, have you ever had or seen a country dog? Picture "Old Duke." There are no fences, but only miles of pasture and woods to run in. He can go wherever and do whatever he wants. But where is he? Right smack on the front porch of your house, sleeping, and resting contently. He is happy to hang around the house, waiting for his master to come and play or take him for a walk.

.....People are the same way. They can't stand to be in bondage! They remain in captivity if there are enough strong threats, persuasive deceptions, or peer pressure, but if you give them a crack of freedom in this situation, they are out there like a city dog.

.....This is what Christians do who have been kept penned up by legalism. Without a personal understanding of the Grace and Truth found in Jesus Christ to guide them, they see freedom only as an opportunity to indulge the flesh.

.....Christians are all too quick to condemn people who are so called, "Rebelling Against God," without first looking more closely and asking, "What are they really rebelling against?" Usually, people are actually rebelling against "Legalistic Religion," brought about by man's traditions, that has kept them in bondage, not against God Himself.

.....Do you really think the city dog is running from his master? No, he is running from the fence. He loves his master. He just hates being penned up. These kind of rebels are some of the most excited, dynamic believers, once the errors of legalism have been corrected in there lives.

Let's emphasize what God has added above and beyond the removal of the Law.

.....God's method of releasing us from the Law is by replacing it with His indwelling Life and Spirit. That is why the country dog stays near to the front door. Because he knows and loves his master, His freedom is not freedom from bondage, but freedom to be with the one he loves. In the same way, we grow to know and love Jesus Christ more intimately, and find ourselves experiencing incredible freedom, hardly ever thinking about the Law at all. The issue is not what I can or cannot do. I'm Free to know my Heavenly Father in an unhindered personal relationship. Then, through that relationship, God teaches my mind to think His thoughts. When I am wrong, He uses Grace to remind me who I really am, so that I can return to a dependancy upon Him. He doesn't just lock me back behind the fence. He is faithful even when we are not. Hebrews 13: 5 says, " He will never leave us nor forsake us." We may get deceived sometimes, or feel beaten down, but His Love and Grace continue to draw us to Himself as He continues to fulfill His Promise in Phillipians 1: 6 which says, "He who began a good work in you, will carry it out onto completion until the day of Jesus Christ. John 3: 30 says, "He must increase, and I must decrease." That is a good way to describe what growing in grace is like.

.....Through our trials, tribulations, and personal failures, we come face to face with our own inadequacy, and are forced to turn to Him for His total adequacy. He then lifts us up, and then we see that He still loves, and accepts us, even if He hates what we did. This causes us to be drawn to love Him, and to trust Him more, as we continue our walk through life.

.....In closing, I want you to know that God truly cares about you and me. There is nothing we can give Him, no service we can perform, no self discipline we can apply that He wants more than just us. He wants to reveal Himself, and His Love to us, and wants us to grow to love Him in return. This is how we grow in grace, abiding in the Truth of God's Word, especially the Truth which deals with our total acceptance, forgiveness, righteousness, and life in "The Finished Work Of The Cross." Within the Truth, we have the boldness to approach God, and get to know Him in a personal way. Through, a relationship, not religion.

We must abide in His Grace, in order to grow in His Grace.

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A Proper Self Image By His Grace

.....A proper self image is an identity based on Truth as it is taught in the Word of God. It is only as we learn and rest in what the word of God teaches us about our total acceptance before Him that we can become free, and then go on to love and accept others. The real focus of the Christian life is in knowing Christ. Until we rest in the finality of the Cross, we will never experience the reality of the Resurrection, which is Christ living in and through us today. We must rest in the fact that Jesus did it all, and it is a "Finished Work," or we will keep busy trying to "pay off our own debt," atoning for our sins. We will never enjoy a personal relationship with God or anyone else when guilt stands between both parties. God knows this, and that is why Jesus Christ has dealt with our sins once and for all. Total forgiveness for entire lives, Past, Present, and Future.

.....Concerning the old covenant, Hebrews 10: 11-12 says, "Day after day, the priest would stand, ministering and performing his religious duties, over and over again, offering the same sacrifices, which could never take away the sins. But when this man (Christ) had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God."

.....Hebrews 9: 14 says, "The blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleansing our consciences form dead works, and acts that lead to death, so that we may serve a living God.

.....The sacrifice of Jesus, God's Son, was and is not only superior because of the "once and for all" offering, but also because through it, God could reach where no ritual offering ever could, man's heart.

.....One place where we can see our common failure to understand the "Finished Work" of Christ is in our celebration of communion, the Lord's Supper. 1 Corinthians 11: 27 is commonly misquoted. The verse says, "Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord." Paul never said that the people must become worthy, he was talking about them examining the way in which they are celebrating communion. Because of the common misuse of this verse, we miss the wonderful picture of grace in the Lord's supper. We end up examining ourselves with morbid introspection, searching for, and confessing our sins, feeling painful regret.

.....The dominant emotion is often F.E.A.R. (False Evidence Appearing Real), and inadequacy. This is not what God intended, and misses the true point of the Lord's Supper. In 1 Corinthians 10:16, Paul refers to the observance as a "Cup of Blessing or Thanksgiving," not a cup of regret, or morbid introspection, seeing where we fall short and missed the mark. The Lord's Supper has become like the "Day of Atonement" for many, where the Israelites were to remember and confess their sins. The Lord's Supper is where we should be remembering the forgiveness of our sins. A time of true celebration. A time of joy, thanksgiving and unity in recognizing that we are one in Christ. The wrong way of taking communion produces a total concentration on self, never obtaining relief from the burden of guilt. And as I said earlier, with guilt standing between us and God, we will fail to rest in Christ's total forgiveness, and can never go on to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, (2 Peter 3: 18).

.....The Bible says we are right with God, completely, because of Jesus Christ's Finished Work on the Cross. We have been given the gift of righteousness, (Romans 5: 17), by His sacrifice. Christ has made us perfect forever, being sanctified or set apart from the world, and its ways. This our proper position in life today. Jesus Christ is the propitiation, (appeasement or satisfaction) for our sins, not for ours only, but also for the whole world. We need to celebrate communion in the way God sees us, through His Son's Finished Work.

.....I encourage you today to take communion in a different light and perspective, with a proper self image.

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