₦airaland Forum

afternoon

afternoon

jiggaz:
morning.

.

morning

“How do I know if my belief in Christ is in vain?” When a reader asked me this question recently, she was referring to Paul’s warning here:

Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. (1 Cor 15:1-2)

What you look through determines what you see. Read this scripture through works lenses and you will see an exhortation to “hold fast or die!” The message you get will be, “I’ve got to believe and never stop believing and never struggle, never doubt, never waver, otherwise I’m not saved.” And since faith without works is dead, you’ll tell yourself, “I have to prove my faith by producing fruit, keeping the commands, and doing everything the Bible says, or I won’t be saved.”

Don’t be fooled! This performance-oriented mindset will cause you to cut yourself off from Christ and fall from grace. You will end up trusting self and no longer continuing in the faith. I’m not saying that you will lose your salvation, but
other bad things could happen to you.

In his letters, the apostle Paul gives us some of the most
profound assurances of our salvation . In the passage above he is not preaching conditional salvation. He is not saying, “If you don’t believe perfectly every day of your life, you’re damned.”
The apostle of grace dedicated his life to the gospel of grace. We need to read his words, and indeed the entire Bible, through the lens of grace .

So what does it mean to believe in vain?

The context is resurrection. Paul is saying that if the gospel you hold to doesn’t reveal a resurrected Jesus, then you are believing in vain:

If Christ has not been raised from death, then we have nothing to preach and you have nothing to believe… If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins… (1 Cor 15:14,17)

Some people were saying that Jesus was dead or his resurrection was merely metaphorical. “Believe that ,” said Paul, “And your faith is useless. You are believing in vain.” In contrast, the gospel that Paul preached revealed a resurrected Jesus. Look how he hammers this nail in 1 Corinthians 15:

v.4 Christ was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures
v.12 how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
v.15 we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead
v. 20 Christ has indeed been raised from the dead
Jesus is not a dead martyr, he is a living King. He’s not on the cross, he’s on the throne! It’s essential that you see this
.

By this gospel you are saved

Salvation isn’t just for the hereafter; it’s for today. In the Bible the word for saved implies health, wholeness, and prosperity. (Yes, the p-word is actually in the Bible.) Jesus didn’t die merely to purchase your future salvation; he died so that you might share and experience his abundant life here and now.

But here’s the thing: unless you see Jesus exalted above, you’re not going experience his grace here below. If you don’t see yourself seated with Christ and reigning over your circumstances, you’ll live under your circumstances.
It all comes down to this: Who is Jesus to you? If he is merely a good teacher, a good friend, or a good Samaritan, you will never experience his resurrection power here and now. Your beliefs may bring you a measure of comfort, but if your life is essentially no different from an unbeliever’s, they are in vain.

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. (1 Cor 15:19)

Christ didn’t die and rise again merely to give you hope. Hope is good but hope that never bears fruit will make you sick (Pro 13:12).

In another post I told the story of a man who battled alcoholism for 40 years. He got saved and nothing changed. The drinking continued as usual. He was believing in vain. He believed in Jesus who died, but he didn’t have a revelation of Christ who was raised:

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth… (Php 2:9-10)

Alcoholism has a name and King Jesus has a Name and one must bow to the other. When the man got this revelation, he was delivered from his addiction.

What happened to him can happen to you. The problem or illness you are battling with has a name and King Jesus has a Name. The gospel declares that his Name is greater! You don’t need to speak to Jesus about your problem – he already knows and has already provided your solution. Instead, speak to your problem about Jesus.

Grace through faith

Jesus never prayed,“God, you may know not this, but Joe here has asthma and Sally is battling with depression.” Instead he spoke to the problems and commanded them to leave. Go and do likewise.

And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name … they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well. (Mark 16:17-18)

These words of Jesus ought to be inscribed on our hearts. They are not the words of a mere teacher or a dead martyr. They are the words of One who conquered death!
I get so excited talking about Jesus the Risen King and so did Paul. Others may preach a powerless Jesus but Paul (and I) will always point you to a cheerful King who has overcome the world.

“This is what we preach, and this is what you believed” (1 Cor 15:11).


https://escapetoreality.org/2015/02/12/believing-in-vain-1-corinthians-152/

morning

jiggaz:
morning.

...

jiggaz:
morning

...

In my country every car has to pass an annual road-worthiness test. As a poor student with a cheap car, I used to dread this test. Would the inspector say something about my dodgy brakes, the missing tail-light, or the cloud of black smoke coming out of the tailpipe? Would my car fail the test and be taken off the road?
You may have similar feelings of dread and anxiety when you read this verse:

Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? (2 Cor 13:5)

To the one who stands on his own performance, this is a frightening verse. It’s the sort of verse you might hear before communion or at the start of a service. “Are you saved? Really saved? Is there sin in your life? Come, let us examine our navels together!”

Before I was persuaded about my Father’s love for me, this scripture bothered me. Not anymore! How can I disqualify what Christ has qualified? How can I undo that which I never did in the first place? I am kept by grace, not self-examination.

The idea that we have to examine ourselves for sin is thoroughly humanistic. They didn’t even do this under the old covenant. Back in the day if you brought a lamb to the temple, the priest examined the lamb, not you. That was prophetic shadow of a new reality. When we do communion or worship, we’re supposed to examine Jesus, not ourselves. “Do this in remembrance of me” (1 Cor 11:24-25).

Do you not know?

Paul is NOT saying, “Examine yourselves periodically to make sure you’re still saved.” You are not a car. You are not subject to an annual road-worthiness test. This examination is about reinforcing what you should already know: “ Don’t you know that Christ is in you?”
(Incidentally, Paul often said “don’t you know?” (see Rom 6:3,16,7:1, 1 Cor 6:15,16,19). It was one of his rhetorical trademarks. “Don’t you know? By now you should know!”)

Paul wants you to know that Christ is in you. You need to know this. He’s told you several times already. You are in union with Christ Jesus (1 Cor 1:5,30, 2 Cor 5:21, GNB). You have been sanctified in Christ (1 Cor 1:2), and your body is
the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19).
But it’s one thing for Paul to say it, and another for you to believe it, hence his question:

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you… (2 Cor 13:5)

Are you convinced in your own mind that you are one with the Lord? Or are you still troubled by the fear-mongers and insecurity preachers?

In context, some of the Corinthians had been a bit snarky. “Is Paul even an apostle? Who does he think he is?” Paul is calling them out. “Stop testing me, and test yourselves. Be who you are in Christ. Stop playing the judgment game.”

Grade-A certified Christian

Some people use this verse to put Christians into two boxes: good Christians and bad Christians. Good Christians have perfect teeth and come to church with immaculate hair and well-behaved children. Bad Christians are those with unconfessed sin who may find themselves ejected from the family. Such thinking appeals to our sense of fairness, but it insults our Father who loves us no matter what . Daddy-God will never unchild his children!

Unless, of course, you fail the test? (2 Cor 13:5)

Who fails the test of being in Christ? The one who is not in Christ, meaning the unbeliever. If this is you, you need to repent and believe the good news about Jesus, that he loves you, died for you and now lives for you. If you are outside, the way inside is through the door of his grace. It’s turning to God and being persuaded that he loves you like a Father. It’s exchanging your broken down old life for the life of his Son. More here .

But if you pass the test, meaning you know Jesus as Lord, then don’t let the self-appointed fruit inspectors trouble you. Stop conforming to that old habit of self-examination and be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Do you not know that Christ is in you? Do you not know that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit, a holy and living sacrifice, pleasing to God?

When you examine yourself, see Christ Jesus in you. He is your life. One with the Lord you are as righteous and holy as he is (1 Cor 1:30). You are pleasing and acceptable to God, able to stand, because Jesus makes you so.

You are saved by grace and kept by grace. Believe it and be at peace.

https://escapetoreality.org/2016/01/15/examine-yourselves-2-corinthians-13v5/

morning

Are you familiar with the hymn In Christ Alone ? Do you know this hymn is not hundreds of years old? It’s not even 20 years old. In Christ Alone is a very modern hymn. It was written in 2001 by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend.

I mention this hymn because it has these wonderful lyrics
:
Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

“Wait a second, Paul. Are you saying God poured out his wrath on Jesus? That sounds twisted.”
I agree that there is something dreadfully wrong with the picture of a father killing his son to satisfy some legal need for blood. It falsely portrays God as guilty of filicide, the murder of his own child.

I know some people have been turned off from the gospel because they thought God killed Jesus. Never mind that Jesus said: “No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord” (John 10:18).

But how does the wrath of God figure into this? Did God pour out his wrath on Jesus? Some say he didn’t but the hymn says it does. Which is it?
Before I give you my thoughts, I want to highlight three extraordinary facts about the cross.

1. On the cross Jesus literally became sin

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21)

Someone once said, “Don’t marvel that you have become righteous. Marvel that Jesus became sin.” Indeed, this is a great wonder. What does it mean? Were our sins laid on him, as the hymn says? Or did the sinless son somehow become sin itself?

The words of Paul fire the imagination. We might imagine Jesus drawing the disease of sin out of the human race into himself. Every hurt, every wound, every offense, every ache, every wrong, every injustice, every crime, every murder, every lie and rape, Jesus somehow bore.
But that was only the beginning. Look at what happened next…

2. God condemned sin in Jesus

For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh (Rom 8:3, NKJV)

That word “condemned” is katakrinō . It is just about the strongest word for condemn you can find. It’s made up of the verb krino , which means to judge, and the word kata which means down or against. Think of the word catastrophe and you get the idea.

God hates sin. When Jesus became sin on the cross, God came down hard. How hard? So hard that the sins of billions were condemned in the space of a few hours. So hard that the Son of God himself couldn’t live through it. So hard that sin has been dealt with once and for all (Heb 9:26). The cross was a total catastrophe for sin and a total victory for us.
This is pretty amazing, but we have one extraordinary fact left…

3. God was with Jesus on the cross when he died.

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ… (2 Cor 5:18-19)

We have this idea that God was up there while Jesus was down here , but Paul understood that God was in Christ the whole time. How does that work? I don’t know. The Trinity is a mystery. I can’t prove this but I believe when we see God the Father he will bear the same nail marks as God the Son.
“But didn’t Jesus say God had forsaken him?”

I am sure that from Jesus’ perspective he felt forsaken but there’s a difference between feelings and reality. Remember, Jesus had never experienced sin. Yet on the cross he became sin. In the fog and haze of sin he lost sight of his loving Father. But that doesn’t mean God abandoned him. Not for a second.

We need to change the way we look at the cross. The cross was not God engaging in child sacrifice. That makes no sense at all. The cross was God becoming one of us, taking on board the sin that afflicts all of us, and condemning that sin in his own flesh. Now, with that foundation laid, we can return to our question.

Was God’s wrath poured out on Jesus?

In a manner of speaking, it was. Not because God the Father was angry with God the Son. That could never happen! But because they were working together with God the Holy Spirit to rid the human race of the scourge of sin.
True, the Bible never actually says God poured out his wrath on Jesus. But it does say this:

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! (Rom 5:9)

Jesus saved us from sin and he also saved us from the cure for sin – God’s wrath. If you are in Christ, you don’t need to worry about the wrath of God. Since Jesus experienced it, you will never will.

The cross demonstrates both God’s love for us and his judgment against sin. On the cross, God condemned sin. This is the glad-happy message of the cross. Sin has been dealt with once and for all!
Now that’s a hymn worth singing. That’s a tune you can dance to!

https://escapetoreality.org/2013/12/12/jesus-and-the-wrath-of-god/

Zackpraise:
Thanks OP

You welcome my bro...

crystalzoe:
I love Paul's write ups. I discovered his blog some three years ago and I realised my whole Christian life had been a lie. I'm now more secure in my relationship with the Lord. I understand, more than ever, my place in Christ. Nobody can take that from me ever again. God bless u op for bringing this truth to Nairaland.

Amen and Bless you too ..... am Happy for you... God is really using Paul mightily in the area of Grace..

OLUTOYOSI15:
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now I'm found,
Was blind, but now I see.

'twas Grace that taught,
my heart to fear.
And grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear,
the hour I first believed.

I think our Nigerian Christian mentality is blind and needs grace to see. God bless you OP.

amen... and you too bro...

mooregan:
Okay...He's my pastor and everything u mentioned, has been taught by him. You can check him on Facebook. He is worded with Grace.

alright i will....

Zackpraise:
waaaaa what an eye open Am bless man....tanks very much OP

You welcome.... all thanks to our Lord Jesus....

Djtm:
This is straight up awesome! Like totally absolutely awesome. You know what? You'll never know these things without revelation. After revelation, you begin to see Christ in everything. Before revelation you know the whole bible points to Christ, you can even teach it but you do not see how. When grace is revealed to you you begin to see how everything written in the bible points to Christ.

Knowing what Grace truly is makes your Christian journey far more easier. Only God knows how many times we sang "It's all about you Jesus" without we truly understanding what it really means.

Hebrews and the concept of the high priest became so much clearer to me after knowing what grace truly is.

Your magic eye 3D analogy is so on point. You wonder why you never saw Jesus in everything earlier on.

Many people erroneously assume you're telling them to live in sin when you preach about grace and eternal salvation, lol nah. I'm showing you how to be free from it.


Thing is, the human nature is hard wired to feel appreciated for their efforts. But everyone knows that Jesus is also "important", so what do they do? Mix the two! Preach some grace and some effort, but wrap the effort to look like it's grace. That's what we mostly have today. Grace + law. Spiritual prostitution.

I look forward to the spread of the grace message. It'll bring about deliverance for a lot of people and bring the Church to the operation of its full capacity.

Amen bro.... All thanks to our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ...

bennyann:
Hmmmm!
What you experienced with your then pastor can be seen in point 3 of your post. Meaning your "legalistic pastor" was using the carrots and sticks approach (thank God you understand better now and you'll no longer feel condemned). So we should pray for him to experience that level of grace.

What's happening to most churches, better still most Christians was represented in point 6. Whereby we're being sin-conscious than Christ-conscious. Believe me that's the main issue or challenge being faced by Christians and it brings about confusion even among churches.

And the corrections to all these confusions and disagreements was noted in point 8. We should have a stronger relationship with the living word than with the written word. "For the letter killeth but the Spirit giveth LIFE." That leads me to agreeing with you, when you say "Christianity is not a religion but a personal relationship with Christ."

However, we shouldn't forget - "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? GOD FORBID." for GRACE comes along with the GIFT of RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Of course bro.... Grace is never a licence to sin... Grace sets you free and you end up living a Holy life without you trying too hard becuase you dont want to hurt the One ( Jesus ) that loves you sooo much!!

afternoon..

jiggaz:
morning...

...

biggy26:
My bro. I'm so happy for u and rejoice with u. I always knew d message I was taught was a funny mix even though i was in a good even ministry.

I set myself apart for some time cos i had lots of questions, but God in His faithfulness met me. I almost came out of my skin when i found grace. Cant be deceived anymore, its too late. God bless Joseph prince! Creflo made a radical turn around, and now in naija, Paul Adefarasin.

The revolution is spreading, glory to God!!! Thats d true gospel!

Amen bro!! Amen!! Thats the True Gospel!!! I am now strongly ROOTED IN CHRIST JESUS!! And i can never be deceived again by any mixed Gospel ( Grace + Law )

bennyann:
This is a wow! I mean this is beautiful. I know it's God that has been living that righteous life through me for me. Now imagine I've really understood grace, then I'll explode.

This is great. I'm feeling fly right now. Oooooops! Gracious and glorious God. Everything I am goes back to give you glory. Thank you Jesus

Thanks OP, I pray God opens our eyes to see this message for what it really is And understand because most of God's children haven't gotten to that level. And I pray we get there sooner.

loool you welcome bro!! l discovered the Gospel of Grace in 2014 through Pastor Joseph Prince and i felt exactly like you!! i felt like flying!! lol..... Our Lord Jesus is soooo gracious!!! Between 2014 and now 2016, i have grown so much in the knowledge of Our Lord Jesus and His super abundance of Grace.. ....

Before i discovered the Gospel of Grace, i was not a serious Christian( i. e i don't study the word of God) cos the church i used to attend, my pastor always condemn me to Hell Fire because i didn't believe in living a legalistic religious life like them... lol. Between 2012 & 2013, i was living in depression cos truly i love God and i have 100% trust in Christ Jesus and His Finished work on the Cross, but my legalistic Pastor felt i was not doing enough like them and always tell me i will go to Hell if i don't live a legalistic religious life like them lol.

I couldn't live a legalistic life with do's and donts. Why my pastor condemns me is because i dress well, i have this cosmopolitan view of life, i couldnt be differentiated from unbelievers by mere looking at me and worldly knowledge ( according to them lol ). Because i didnt know much then in the bible, i kinda belived him that i will end up in Hell.... So from then, i started developing this hatred for God because i felt since He knew that i will still go to hell despite my being a Believer, why then did He create me? It was bad for me then. You see how over religious self righteous zealous Christians scare people away from Christ? I felt God was wicked for creating me since He will still send me to hell. But i didn't voice out my opinion then, cos i felt God will strike me dead!! lol.....


So my broda, from my write up you will see that Religion is bad for humanity.... Christianity is not a Religion, but a personal Relationship with Christ.... Christ has done it all and all we have to do is REST in His Finished Work and watch Him do His mighty works through us.... I now have soooo much knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and His Super Abundance of Grace and am still learning more... Grace is a person and that is our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!!!

Why is the devil fighting the Gospel of Grace? It is because he knows that if every Christian know about grace and who they are in Christ, the devil will be powerless!! And that is why he is fighting the Gospel of Grace!! This Gospel of Grace is all about our inheritance and identity in Christ but the devil doesn't want it cos he knows he will be powerless if Christians know the powerful truth.... The devil uses fellow Christians to fight the Gospel of Grace and i always laugh when fellow Believers fight me here lol. Some have called me Antichrist or Lucifer..... i laugh at their ignorance.... Some Christians feel good condemning fellow Believers or Unbelievers to Hell thinking they are scoring merits with God, i pity them. Christ said He didn't come for the righteous but for the sinners so they can come to repentance.
Truly, Heaven will be full of Surprises, the people you least expect to see in the kingdom will all be there, even sitting on Thrones...... and the so called self righteous ones might not even have any reward ( all their dead works burned in the fire ). Self righteous Christians should remember they are not God by condemning believers and unbelievers to Hell Fire, let the Holy Spirit do His work. Just share the Gospel and leave it at that, not threatening people to repent.

I always thank Jesus Christ for using Pastor Joseph Prince to set me free through the Gospel of Grace..... i now know who i am in Christ and my life have turned for the Best!!

The Gospel of Grace is moving rapidly around the world... America have been captured, India & China too..... Thanks to men of God sharing this POWERFUL TRUTH around the world like Pastor Joseph Prince, Andrew Wommack, Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyers, Paul Ellis and sooo many others.... I thank God for their lives.