The New Under Ground Church-THE TRUTH MUST BE TOLD: What Is With This Faith Of Ours?

Thursday, March 5, 2015

What Is With This Faith Of Ours?

Posted on March 5, 2015 by nhiemstra

I often mention J.B. Phillips’ translation of Paul’s description of Abraham. You find it in the fourth chapter of Romans, where Phillips writes:

The ancient promise made to Abraham and his descendants, that they should eventually possess the world, was given not because of any achievements made through obedience to the Law, but because of the righteousness which had its root in faith. For if, after all, they who pin their faith to keeping the Law were to inherit God’s world, it would make nonsense of faith in God himself, and destroy the whole point of the promise (Romans 4:13-14)

Now I need to point out that many believe that the biggest difference between salvation in the Old Testament, and salvation the New Testament, is that a man had to work to attain his righteousness in the Old Testament, and in the New Testament we receive it as a gift. Many also believe that in the Old Testament times, salvation came only through good works, and in the New Testament times, this was changed, and salvation comes solely by grace through faith. Well, we could spend page after page talking about this, but let me clear that error for you, because this was completely disproved by Abraham’s testimony.
Now, I fully admit that many of the commentaries of the Hebrew sages seem to emphasize doing God’s commands — what is usually called works and legalism. However, what is often missed is the reason for their obsession with doing. Their motivation, if you will, had nothing to do with gaining something from it, but rather, their obedience was a result of their overwhelming gratefulness of being one of God’s chosen people. Do you hear the difference? It wasn’t legalism, in the sense that we use the word. It was an appreciation for what Yahweh had done.
If you get right down to it, Scripture teaches that obedience, or sanctification for the New Testament believer begins the moment you are Born Again! The whole process of sanctification, where Jesus becomes your Lord and absolute authority in our life, is launched when you first experience Yahweh’s regenerating work, when He graciously gives the sinner a new heart and a new spirit of obedience. I mean, isn’t that what Ezekiel proclaimed:

“I will give them a single purpose and put a new spirit in them. I will remove their stubborn hearts and give them obedient hearts. Then they will live by my laws and obey my rules. They will be my people, and I will be their Elohim (Ezekiel 11:19-20)?

Then later he said,

” I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove your stubborn hearts and give you obedient hearts. I will put my Spirit in you. I will enable you to live by my laws, and you will obey my rules (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

Even Paul chimed in when he wrote,

Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence (II Corinthians 5:17).

With that, some will tell you that regeneration (if you will accept that religious term) marks the beginning of sanctification, and glorification marks its end. What they are saying is that “sanctification” reaches a climax or point of highest development the moment we see Christ and are instantly conformed perfectly into His image.
Yes, yes. They will throw out I John 3:2, where John wrote, “Dear friends, now we are God’s children. What we will be isn’t completely clear yet. We do know that when Christ appears we will be like him because we will see him as he is.” Or Paul’s comments, “Now we see a blurred image in a mirror. Then we will see very clearly. Now my knowledge is incomplete. Then I will have complete knowledge as God has complete knowledge of me” (I Corinthians 13:12).
What they will say is, “Hey, see here, if Jesus isn’t your Lord, you don’t have his Spirit and you are lost.” But as I read the Scriptures, there is what we refer to as, “Positional Truth.” Positional truth refers to our identity in being united with Christ that cannot be experienced but is known only by the revelation of the Holy Spirit and through the Scripture and received as true, by faith. Our relationship with Yahweh is established when someone becomes a believer (by faith alone in Christ). However, our fellowship is established when we are obedient to the Father’s Words.
So this doctrine on Positional Truth is speaking of our Relationship with God, which is once and for all established at the moment of faith in Christ. The author of the letter to the Hebrew church wrote,

“We have been set apart as holy because Jesus Christ did what God wanted him to do by sacrificing his body once and for all.
“Every day each priest performed his religious duty. He offered the same type of sacrifice again and again. Yet, these sacrifices could never take away sins. However, this chief priest [Jesus] made one sacrifice for sins, and this sacrifice lasts forever. Then he [Jesus] received the highest position in heaven. Since that time, he has been waiting for his enemies to be made his footstool. With one sacrifice he accomplished the work of setting them apart for God forever (Hebrews 10:10-14).

The Bible says throughout the New Testament that you have a certain position “in Christ” if you are a believer in The Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, all genuine believers are being sanctified — slowly, as they grow closer to their Father, they are gradually conformed to the image of Christ. However, anyone who remains unchanged, unmoved, who remains in bondage to sin obviously has no true knowledge of Christ. I explained this in another message where I compared David and Saul. One was accepted and honored, where the other was judged and rejected. Yet both of them were, to be polite, prone to appease their fleshly desires.
The reality is that once the Spirit of God draws you and you are “recreated,” or “born again,” there will be a desire, a longing, to know and experience the Lordship of Jesus. But sometimes, that longing remains dormant and slowly, as you remain in fellowship with other believers, it grows.
The bottom line is that when we first become followers of Jesus, we understand that grace is the key to our relationship with our Father. Without Grace, we nave no ability to approach our Creator.
That’s right. Before we take that step of faith and receive the Holy Spirit, we remain on a treadmill, putting all kinds of effort into our search, but unable to get any closer than when we first climbed on that treadmill. Oh but glorious day! The moment we respond to the call of our Savior, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, we jump off the treadmill and immediately begin our journey with the Holy Spirit enabling us, empowering us, guiding us, we see Jesus as our Lord and King — and paradoxically, our Brother! That is what blows my mind away!
The misunderstanding is that many teach that Grace is only a New Testament gift that was not available before to the birth of Jesus, and that the righteousness that is granted to those who worship Yahweh, which is indeed completely unmerited and unearned, is purely a New Testament concept.
Well, I don’t want to upset you too much, but this is not true. Yeah, yeah. I know that many believe that we must choose either Law or Grace. But if you will stay with me, I will show that there has been a tremendous misunderstanding.
You will never, never, never ever hear in the Scriptures that you must choose Law or Grace. It simply does not exist. That is one of many man-made doctrines. Now, just so you do not get the wrong idea and start sending me nasty emails, I assure you that the only way to a relationship with our Creator is through unmerited, unadulterated, Grace! It is (and always has been) a gift, that is now being offered to you through Jesus.
However, the Hebrews never believed they could “work their way to heaven.” They fully recognized that righteousness had to be a gift from YHWH (we know it as Grace). In one of the studies from Tom Bradford, of The Torah Club, he mentioned an excellent book and if you enjoy challenges, he recommended reading a book by E.P. Sanders, who some consider to be one of the great mainstream Christian scholars of our day; I am referring to Sander’s book, “Paul and Palestinian Judaism.”
Sander’s book is an excellent study on what Judaism and Paul are all about. Now I said “if you enjoy challenges” because it is a daunting book to study. Sanders provides extensive quotes from the Mishna, Zohar, and Talmud to draw a picture of what he calls Palestinian Judaism. And although it isn’t the point of his book, he does dispel many myths of the Hebrews that usually accuses them of having a legalistic and work-your-way-to-salvation based faith.
Sanders provided a quote from the Mishna Rabbah (an ancient Hebrew commentary) about why the Lord chose to save Noah, but destroyed the rest of the world. Just remember that this is from the same Hebrew men that we are told had no understanding of grace, and that grace did not exist until after Jesus came. In fact, it might interest you to know that the very first use of the word Grace in the Bible is not found in the New Testament Gospels, but in the sixth chapter of Genesis! Look at this excerpt from Mishna Rabba Bereshith on the book of Genesis:

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the lord (VI, 8). He delivereth him that is innocent (i naki), yea, thou shalt be delivered through the cleanness of thy hands (Job XXII, 30). R. Hanina said: Noach possessed less than an ounce (unkia) [of merit]. If so, why was he delivered? Only ‘Through the cleanness of Thy hands’. This agrees with what R. Abba b. Kahana said: For it repenteth Me that I have made them and Noach. But Noach was left only because he found grace; hence, But Noach found grace in the eyes of the lord.

Now that may have been confusing, but what he was saying is that “Noah (Noach) was delivered only by the cleanness of Thy hands,” the “thy hands” were referring to God’s hands, not the hands of Noah. Also, where it says that Noah only possessed an “ounce of merit,” it is simply an expression that means Noah had very little merit in his life. So little, that, according to these Rabbis, God did not just repent that he made all men, except for Noah; He repented that He made all men including Noah. So, it is somewhat of a mystery, the Rabbis thought, as to what it was that caused God to save Noah over and against some other people. Their answer? Grace. Favor that was totally unmerited. Did a little light come on in your spirit?
Were they wrong? Did, God actually expect them to work their way to righteousness, back in those pre-Jesus, ancient days? Well, these leaders of the Hebrews did not think so. Listen to this reference to Abraham, found in Genesis 15:6: “Then he (Abraham) believed in the LORD; and He (YHWH) reckoned it to him as righteousness.” Well, then Paul wrote,

For we have already noted that the Law can produce no promise, only the threat of wrath to come. And, indeed if there were no Law the question of sin would not arise.
The whole thing, then, is a matter of faith on man’s part and generosity on God’s. He gives the security of his own promise to all men who can be called “children of Abraham”, i.e. both those who have lived in faith by the Law, and those who have exhibited a faith like that of Abraham. To whichever group we belong, Abraham is in a real sense our father, as the scripture says: ‘I have made you a father of many nations’. This faith is valid because of the existence of God himself, who can make the dead live, and speak his Word to those who are yet unborn (Romans 4:15-17)

See? This is important to understand. In fact, go back and read it again. But Paul went on to explain how Abraham was the perfect example of faith!

Abraham, when hope was dead within him, went on hoping in faith, believing that he would become “the father of many nations”. He relied on the word of God which definitely referred to ‘your descendants’.

I love the simplicity of Phillips translation! When we face some difficulty, we get angry with our God. But not Abraham! His God had promised that he (Abraham) would be given a son. That was all it took. He didn’t put out any fleece to make sure it wasn’t simply wishful thinking. NO! Yahweh made him a promise and that was all it took. Paul goes on to explain how Abraham did it:

With undaunted faith he looked at the facts — his own impotence (he was practically a hundred years old at the time) and his wife Sarah’s apparent barrenness.

Now that is an important point. He didn’t wake up some day and think, “Hmm, I think God should give me a son.” Nope! Yahweh made the offer, and Abraham was fully aware that physically there was no way he would have a son.

Yet he refused to allow any distrust of a definite pronouncement of God to make him waver. He drew strength from his faith, and while giving the glory to God, remained absolutely convinced that God was able to implement his own promise. This was the “faith” which ‘was accounted to him for righteousness’.

So, what are you going to do with that?