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Study of Grace throughout the Bible.
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Bernie L. Wade, Ph.D.
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GRACE BY COVENANT
By Bernie L. Wade, Ph.D.
©2015
All Rights Reserved
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1
Harmony of the Covenants …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 9
Chapter 2
One Covenant …………………………………………………………………………………………………………..………………………. 22
Chapter 3
God’s Grace ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 34
Chapter 4
Sons ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…… 48
Chapter 5
Grace The Final Frontier ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 64
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RELIGION IS WHAT MAN SAYS THAT GOD SAID;
NOT WHAT GOD ACTUALLY SAID
- Bernie L. Wade
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FOREWARD
Watchman Nee once said “The Gospel of grace and the Gospel of the
kingdom are not two Gospels, but one Gospel looked at from two
different angles. Perceived from man’s perspective, it is the Gospel of
grace; perceived from God’s perspective, it is the Gospel of the
kingdom. “
There have been many angles taken by those claiming either of these
subjects – grace and the kingdom of God. The former deals with blessings
whereas the later deals with the demonic oppression of Satan. Neither is
wrong. It seems however that the gospel of grace has been misunderstood
by some and understood by others – although both parties think they are
right.
Bishop Bernie Wade effectively explains the foundation of Grace as defined
in God’s Word and puts it into perspective taking us from the beginning
until today. Many cannot and do not (try) to understand how important
grace was throughout God’s Word and is still foundational today.
I finished this study with a better understanding of God’s grace and His
covenant with us, His children. For the new didn’t replace the old; instead it
fulfilled it giving us a better and everlasting covenant sealed by the blood of
Jesus Christ at Calvary.
I pray that others can lay aside their differences of opinions and take the
time to read this study. Savor the scriptures and allow the Holy Spirit to
speak to your heart concerning His grace that’s working through His love
for us. For without the understanding of His love (through grace) we may
be but a banging gong or clanging cymbal.
Lea Bates
Listening in silence is the best way to hear from God
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Acknowledgements
Special thanks to my close friend, Barney P. Phillips, Ph.D., who works with
me closely and is a steady sounding board for the various ministry
endeavors we share and with whom we have worked closely to create Life
Track.
Thanks to Bishop Derrick Day, President of International Circle of Faith
(ICOF) who has helped me to re-examine my approach to presenting the
Gospel of Jesus Christ and in many ways contributed to the writing of this
book.
Thanks to the many who helped in some way with this project including but
not limited to Lea Bates, Cindye Coates, Ph.D., Ken Etter, Bernie Wade II,
Ralph Day, Ph.D. and Dr. Roderick Williams.
Thanks to the family of Life Church of Kentucky
http://www.lifecommunity.us. You are my heart song! I love all of you.
Unending appreciation and love to Daisy R. Wade, Th.D., my companion
for the past 30 years! I love you! I am glad that God knew what we were
doing when we met! The journey has been so sweet!
Thanks to the many who have sowed into our ministry. I am not speaking
here of finances (although that is appreciated). Rather, I am speaking of
the many who have walked a mile with us, shared a meal with us, lodged
us in their homes, and so many other acts of love and kindness. These
may not seem like much but these actions speak louder than words and
convey the Love of Jesus Christ to our family, ministry and to me.
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INTRODUCTION
My hope for this book is to find that common ground offered by the “Clear
Note and Certain Sound”1 of the Word of God. Too often we have what
should be a clear and certain sound muffled or distorted by the opinion of
men, the pressures of peers or the whim of society. Some strive to achieve
morality which is nice but even morality is a moving target based on the
dictates and values of the society from one generation to the next. Morality
has been defines as, “Whatever a society agrees upon and establishes
through consent, compromise and constant use defines reality.”
Thus, what was immoral to our ancestors may find itself perfectly
acceptable in today’s culture. Morality shifts at the speed of water boiling
and like a frog placed in the water, we miss the increasing temperature until
it is too late.
My desire is to write this book in a style that is easy to read, easier to
understand and uncomplicated to apply to your life. There has been no
effort to find larger words to explain simple ideas. Rather, we want the
simplicity of the message to help you mature.
When I was an 8th Grader in West Saint Paul Minnesota at Francis M.
Grass Middle School, my Economics teacher was Mr. Ligday. Robert C.
Ligday was a former Navy officer and in my mind quite a formidable figure.
I wasn’t quite sure what the Economics class was going to entail but that
Mr. Ligday had the answers was never in doubt. On the first day, Mr.
Ligday issued this challenge, “There is NOTHING in the world that is not
connected to Economics”.
Now, Mr. Ligday did not put the emphasis on nothing, but that is what I
heard. The result was that I set out to prove Mr. Ligday’s thesis to be
incorrect. Every day at the beginning of class I had a new idea to offer that
I was just sure Mr. Ligday could not connect to economics. Every day Mr.
Ligday proved my objection incorrect. I don’t know if he enjoyed the
exchange as much as I did, but I do know that he was the first teacher who
1 I Corinthians. Chapter 14. Verse 8.
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really challenged me. I would prove to work harder in his class than any I
was enrolled before and perhaps even after.
One day, I arrived at Economics class with my ultimate challenge. I was
ready but so was Mr. Ligday. Mr. Ligday started the class with the usual
“let’s see what Mr. Wade has thought up for today”. He spoke to his
students formally. In his class I was not Bernie, I was Mr. Wade. As an 8th
grader few of us were used to be addressed in that manner. I am not sure
what my classmates thought but I liked the approach.
So, class was in session and now I had to give Mr. Ligday my challenge.
With all the finality of a javelin thrower competing in World Competition, I
said, “A baby in the middle of the Ocean.” My classmates were impressed
I could tell! Could it be that Mr. Wade has trumped Mr. Ligday!? Mr.
Ligday must have been a good poker player or he was just playing along!
He gave it all of a few seconds to set in on everyone and then said, “How
did the baby get in the middle of the ocean? However, that happened was
related to Economics.” I was done, that was my last challenge to the
question. I understood clearly that everything was related to economics.
On a personal note, my friends tell me the Mr. Ligday that I reference here
was Robert C. Ligday, a respected Teacher & Coach WWII Navy Vet. He
passed in 2010, but the input and impact in my life continues. Thank you
Mr. Ligday!
I expect you are asking, what does that story about you in 8th grade have to
do with Grace? Hey, I am so glad that you asked! The answer is simple.
I told you that story so that you would understand that like as everything in
the world is connected to economics; everything in the Word of God is
connected to Grace!
GODS
RICHES
AT
CHRIST’S
EXPENSE
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HARMONY OF THE
COVENANTS
CHAPTER 1
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Throw Away the Old Testament
In our ongoing rush toward self appreciation it seems that some are willing
to make room for any or all theological positions (no matter how extreme).
The audacity of modern theologians is expressed in the arrogance of the
posture that they have somehow arrived at revelation not revealed to our
forefathers.
From a variety of venues I have had discourse with some ministers and self
appointed theologians that are disturbing. No, these are not those who are
promoting Chrislam, homosexual leadership in the Church, or a myriad of
other strange dogmas; although those are also quite disconcerting. The
faction I am referencing has perhaps cleared the way for the rest by
claiming Christians ought to ignore the Old Testament or just disregard it all
together.
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Here is a word picture. Take your bible out; get a scissors. Then, cut out
all the parts of the Old Testament that are not relevant to us! Go ahead, it
is just paper and ink if what we are to understand from the Universalists is
true. Yes, cut them right out; every single word is incorrect or irrelevant! If
you prefer, ‘Just take your bible and rip the Old Testament part right out!
Or better yet, just acquire a New Testament only version; the Old
Testament is not important’.
My friend Pastor Marilyn Grabowski, who liked to be called simply, Sister
Marilyn told me about a time when a chaplain of a prison that they were
ministering in took exception to the message they were preaching. Sister
Marilyn had her son take the prison chaplain his bible and a high lighter
with the simple instruction to high light the parts that he disagreed with and
they would not preach from them. The chaplain, seeing the wisdom of
Sister Marilyn, responded, “Never mind, preach anything in the Bible.” The
chaplain understood the danger of deciding what parts of the Word of God
should be cut out.
Based on the teaching of some, everything that God did from the beginning
of time till the coming of Christ is of no importance! What this crowd led,
by Modernists and Universalists would have us to believe that God was just
wasting time with Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua and a host of
others. They don’t present their dogma in such a direct manner, but it
would be hard to come to another conclusion.
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The Old Is Obsolete
Proponents of this faction offer dogmas such as, “the Old Covenant is
obsolete and has no legal authority.”2 These claim that the:
1. “Promises of the New Covenant (while admittedly already
established) are still in the future.
2. To be under the law means to be under authority and Christians are
not under authority.
3. The Core of the Old Covenant is the Ten Commandments… but the
writings of Moses are obsolete and no legal authority over Christians
… and the Law was the Covenant.”3
Their hypothesis is ok but deficient in substantiation. The idea of a lawless,
uncommitted people is not offered anywhere in Scripture to those who are
followers of the One True God. Rather, the concept of a disobedient, evil,
tempestuous, seditious, lawless, uncommitted people is exactly how God
portrays those who are the enemies of the Gospel.
“The Holy Spirit, both in the Old and the New Testament, spoke of a
general turning from the faith of Christ, and the pure worship of God. False
teachers forbid as evil what God has allowed, and command as a duty
what he has left indifferent. We find exercise for watchfulness and self-
denial, in attending to the requirements of God’s law, without being tasked
to imaginary duties, which reject what he has allowed.”4
The Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments arrived formally with the Law of Moses not at the
beginning of the Old Testament as some assert. The legal authority they
claim is dissolved lacks a court (official or un-official) to document their
claim. In fact, to make such a claim one would first have to document that
the Mosaic Law held such authority. Such authority must have been based
in something. In the case of the Mosaic Law the authority would have to be
based in the Covenant God made with Moses. The Covenant God made 2 Grace Communion International. The Old Covenant and the Law of Moses.
3 The Old Covenant and the Law of Moses.
4 Matthew Henry Commentary. I Timothy. Chapter 4. Page 1607.
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with Abraham is an Everlasting Covenant and as such never has lost legal
authority. Nowhere in Scripture is there such a claim as the dissolution of
legal standing. History, both that of Scripture and the Hebrews and the law
of other cultures and civilizations points to rather than away from the
establishment of law. A people that had grown from a family to millions,
who believed in the Covenant that their forefathers had established with
God, but had no set of rules or laws to govern them would find it necessary
to have law and order. The Mosaic Law brought that solution.
The Mosaic Covenant the Universalists suppose is itself new (at the time)
and they teach this also negates the former Covenant given to Abraham by
God. Thus, rather than one Everlasting Covenant by an Eternal God as
Scripture presents, they see a series of agreements, each voided by the
next or newest. Kind of a God who brings temporary agreements with
expiration dates. Makes one wonder what He will bring next?
The idea of voiding the Old Testament is serious. The Old Testament is the
history of creation. The Old Testament is the story of human history from
the first man and woman, Adam and Eve to the time of the Roman Empire.
To void the Old Testament is an attempt to invalidate the hundreds of years
or more from the beginning to Abraham and to remove more than 400
years from Abraham to Moses. Disregarding more than 400 years of God
interacting with mankind could lead to any number of conclusions.
The Law of Moses
“It is all-important, for the proper understanding of the law, to remember its
entire dependence on the Abrahamic covenant.5 ( Galatians 3:17-24 )
“That covenant had a twofold character. It contained the "spiritual promise"
of the Messiah; but it contained also the temporal promises subsidiary to
the former. The nature of this relation of the law to the promise is clearly
pointed out. The belief in God as the Redeemer of man, and the hope of
his manifestation as such in the person of the Messiah, involved the belief
that the Spiritual Power must be superior to all carnal obstructions, and that
there was in man spiritual element which could rule his life by communion 5 Smiths Bible Dictionary. The Law of Moses.
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with a spirit from above. But it involved also the idea of an antagonistic
power of evil, from which man was to be redeemed, existing in each
individual, and existing also in the world at large.”6
The Law of Moses “marked and determined the transition of Israel from the
condition of a tribe to that of a nation, and its definite assumption of a
distinct position and office in the history of the world. There must
necessarily have been, before the law, commandments and revelations of
a fragmentary character, under which Israel had hitherto grown up. So far
therefore as they were consistent with the objects of the Jewish law, the
customs of Palestine and the laws of Egypt would doubtless be traceable in
the Mosaic system.”7
“In close connection with, and almost in consequence of, this reference to
antiquity, we find an accommodation of the law to the temper and
circumstances of the Israelites, to which our Lord refers in the case of
divorce, (Matthew 19:7 Matthew 19:8) as necessarily interfering with its
absolute perfection. In many cases it rather should be said to guide and
modify existing usages than actually to sanction them; and the ignorance of
their existence may lead to a conception of its ordinances not only
erroneous, but actually the reverse of the truth.”8
“The first revelation of the law in anything like a perfect form is found in the
book of Deuteronomy. Yet, even then the revelation was not final; it was
the duty of the prophets to amend and explain it in special points, (Ezekiel
18:1 ) ... and to bring out more clearly its great principles. In giving an
analysis of the substance of the law, it will probably be better to treat it, as
any other system of laws is usually treated.”9
There is agreement from nearly everyone that sacrificial laws were not new
under the Mosaic Law. Christ was the Sacrifice to end all sacrifices. “The
Book of Hebrews is a word of exhortation, centering on Jesus Christ our
high priest. Hebrews is a look at the doctrine of the atonement in Hebrews,
6 Smith.
7 Smiths.
8 Smiths.
9 Smiths.
15 | P a g e
especially as it is laid out in 10:1-18. In this section of the book He is
upheld as the final sacrifice.”10
The Double Minded God
Some say that God really had two covenants.
Certainly, God is capable of making Covenant
with as many (or few) as He chooses. Yet,
what limited amount we know as humans tells
us that God is consistent as opposed to
contradictory, unchanging as opposed to
always shifting. It seems from the explanation
some give that He might be double minded.
All agree that sacrifices were part of the Abrahamic Covenant and even the
Covenant given to Noah. This is sometimes referred to as the Law of the
Gentiles by Rabbi’s in an attempt to make it seem inferior to the Law of
Moses rather than one continuous Covenant God made with mankind.
“The Jews believed that these laws dated back to the time of Noah, and
therefore applied to all nations”11 and became part of the Mosaic Covenant
passed through previous Covenants. Not new but continued; like new &
improved.
Some Modernists contend that the Abrahamic Covenant was somehow
voided by the Mosaic. On the one hand they claim that all the Old
Testament law is obsolete, and then in the same breath offer that “some
individual laws, of course are still valid.” Confusing? Yes, but, it is
refreshing to know that while these propose to discard the Old Testament
(or the parts they don’t like or understand); murder, rape and incest still
violate God’s tolerance of man’s behavior. It is a frightening thought to
think that somehow Christ Jesus deleted the 10 Commandments while
fulfilling the Promise he made to Abraham.
10
Early Christian Writings. Hebrews. Terry A. Larm. copyright © 2001-2015 Peter Kirby 11
Grace Communion International. Christians and the Law of Moses: A Study of Acts 15.
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All generally agree that God was seeking obedience and not sacrifices (I
Samuel 15:22). God brought His people out of Egypt seeking obedience.
We must not confuse that God is always seeking obedience. Sacrifice
made by man was only temporal. Only the sacrifice made by the
manifestation of God in the flesh through Jesus Christ is eternal (Hebrews
10:4). Even in the idea that God is a God of Judgment the point is
obedience and God is always extending Grace by His Covenant.
In all of these supposed obsolete covenants none of the theologians who
see this as throwing away the Old can give an exact point of ending the
previous covenant. Instead they hold to terms like ‘fading away’ as proof
text of their hypothesis; offering that one Covenant was still in effect for an
undisclosed amount of time while the other began. Thus, they give us
somewhat of a temporary version of Dual Covenant Theology.
Duel Covenant Theology
Dual-covenant or Two-covenant theology is unique in that it holds that
the Old Covenant or the bible's Law of Moses remains valid for Jews while
the New Covenant only applies to non-
Jews or gentiles.12 Grace is certainly not
the message of Dual Covenant thought.
The challenge for the Dual Covenant
adherents is that one is obliged to believe
that God in some form or manner has a
racist or separate tendency. When
challenged about the separatist nature of
the ideology they generally use Old
Testament ceremonial law (from the
Mosaic Law) to support their position.
According to the Dual Covenant idea God chooses people based on their
race or heritage. Now, we understand that they do not present their
position that way. This dogma became very popular in Europe and gained
12
Dual Covenant Theology. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual-covenant_theology
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much traction after World War II and the subsequent establishment of the
nation of Israel in 1948. Today, many espouse Dual Covenant Theology
and may not even realize what they are proposing.
Dual Covenant Theology teaches that God has made a special deal only
for Jewish (or Hebrew) people based solely on the fact that they were born
Jewish. The authenticity of their Jewish birth has never really been defined
by the adherents of this idea. This position gives kind of a ‘separate but
equal’ idea to God’s plan for mankind. This separate but equal theology
gives those who were born Jewish access to salvation but not through
Jesus Christ.
It is offensive to some that we would label Dual
Covenant Theology racist. In fact, it is more than
that racist. It is Anti-Semitic. Anti-Semitism was
born in Europe particularly Germany in the late
1800’s from the idea of Jew hatred. Anti-Semitism
is prejudice against, hatred of,
or discrimination against Jews as a national,
ethnic, religious or racial group.13
A person who holds such positions is called an "anti-Semite". Anti-
semitism is widely considered a form of racism. Separating Jewish people
to a plan for Salvation, but one not like that offered to Gentiles reeks of
racist ideology. The thought of the concept being based in Scripture is
simply wishful thinking. As my Southern friends would say, “That dog won’t
hunt!”
The truth is that Dual Covenant Theology is a marriage between modern
Zionism and the racial bigotry of Europeans and others towards Jewish
people. The marriage culminated in creating a nation state for those who
were Jewish by birth or conversion. This seedbed gave a platform to a
gaggle of self proclaimed theologians (many of whom deny they hold the
Dual Covenant position) who have vested themselves in dispensational
theology and perceive the nation of Israel as established in 1948 as the
13
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/antisemitism
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culmination of Biblical Prophecy. The prominent promoters of this ideology
have and continue to benefit financially from their position.
This theology claims that God has reserved a special season (the Great
Tribulation) to put the Jewish people
(who they see as God’s chosen people
because of their race) through a
special manner of torment which will
end with them leading or ruling in a
future Utopian world for 1000 years
where God will physically establish an earthly throne in the city of
Jerusalem. In many ways this is merely a revisit of ancient Zionism. The
most infamous proponent of ancient Zionism was Judas Iscariot who
apparently convinced himself that he would usher in the Kingdom by
betraying the Messiah.
It is interesting that to be Jewish one has to be born or converted. Dual
Covenant Theology offers no distinction between those who are born and
those who are converted to Judaism. Adherents generally respond to
queries in this area with, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is
written”, (Romans 11:26). Thus, their Dual Covenant position supports
their positions in other areas. This lack of foundational truth has spawned
a myriad of schemes like the infamous 88 reasons why the Lord in
coming in 1988.14
Most of the New Testament leaders and all of the initial converts [as far as
we know] were Jewish; not Gentile. In the Upper Room in Jerusalem on
the Day of Pentecost, and later the same day when 3000 more were
converted, these were all Jewish believers in Jesus Christ! The Covenant
they received from Jesus Christ is the one they passed down to all of us.
To attempt to separate this into two Covenants or a Dual Covenant after
the fact has no basis in Scripture exegesis. Further, the concept cheapens
the Gospel of Jesus Christ and makes the precious blood of Jesus Christ of
no effect to those who were not born Gentiles!
14
http://www.amazon.com/reasons-Why-Rapture-Will-1988/dp/B00073BM8O
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“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your
eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask
you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by
hearing with faith?” (Galatians 3:1-2)
The Apostles Decide
The Apostles understood that there was
only one Covenant that God had made
with man and sealed by the blood of
Jesus Christ. In his sermon of the day
of Pentecost, Peter specifically
addressed some of the Jews like this,
“Therefore let all the house of Israel
know assuredly, that God hath made
that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now
when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto
Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we
do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:36-38). This is the Gospel of
Jesus Christ given to a predominately (if not completely) Jewish audience.
The same message has been preached all over the world to Gentile
converts. Not another Gospel, not another Covenant. In Christ there is
neither Jew nor Greek (Gentile).
God’s covenant with Abraham is extremely important, but salvation in the
name of Abraham does not exist. Salvation is in the name of Jesus Christ
(Acts 4:12). When the apostles were arrested and brought before the
Jewish council in Jerusalem, Peter and the other apostles said, “The God
of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior,
for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:29-
31). There is a plethora of Scripture that makes it very clear that salvation
is one plan for both Jew and Gentile.
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Adherents of Dual Covenant Theology also do not take into account the
overabundance of Gentile converts under the Mosaic Law including those
like Ruth, Rehab and Tamar who end up in the Genealogy of Jesus Christ.
In a related topic they also conveniently ignore that Abraham and Sarah
were also Gentiles. In contrast, those who understand that God chose to
Covenant with man and has always had a Covenant in force (whether man
was keeping his end of the agreement of not) see Grace through an
Everlasting Covenant not through division based on racism.
From Noah to Apostle James
It is evident that the leaders of the New
Testament Church (including the Apostles and
the Elders) concluded that the Old Covenant,
even the major parts of the Covenant God
made with Noah, was still relevant to them and
to those who would come after them including
us.
We unmistakably see that the New Testament leaders vigilantly considered
the Noahic Covenant (or Law of the Gentiles), the Abrahamic Covenant
and the Mosaic Law. It is apparent that our Apostolic fathers, the leaders
of the New Testament Church rightly saw these as one progressive
Covenant. They understood that the law added through Moses had been
fulfilled in Jesus Christ and did not void the entire Old Testament nor did it
negate the various commands of God against murder, serving false gods,
rape, and more.
While physical circumcision remained appropriate and was not superseded
under the Mosaic Law, the leaders rightly concluded that physical
circumcision was only important from Abraham till the Advent of Christ and
was a type of the circumcision of the heart that came only through Christ
Jesus. Thus, circumcision was not a new feature brought through the
Mosaic Law but was rather a continuation of the Grace brought through the
Abrahamic Covenant. To bring sanity to the confused Apostle Paul wrote,
“But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by
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the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God. But he
is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of
the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but
from God.” (Romans 2:29).
Law of the Gentiles
In the decision of Acts 15 the Apostles then confirmed what is often
referred to as the Law of the Gentiles (what some refer to as the four
rules). Thus, freedom from the Law of Moses was not a rejection of the
entire Old Testament. These were the conclusions of the New Testament
Leaders as recorded in Acts 15, and drawn from the Old Testament
Covenant God made with mankind represented by Noah in Genesis 9.
Ultimately, it is James who is the Bishop of the Jerusalem Church that
makes this declaration as the consensus of the whole:
"But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of
idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from
blood."
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ONE COVENANT
CHAPTER 2
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Mind Meld
The idea of a mind meld was introduced
to most Americans by the character of
Spock in the 1960’s American
Television series Star Trek. Here the
character attempted to read peoples
mind through physically putting his hand
on their head.
In some misguided attempt to make the
modern culture mind meld with the
whole of Scripture some people have simply decided that the Old
Testament doesn’t matter. Have they actually given thought to the
position? Can we then ignore the Ten Commandments? Is it true that
there were merely the Ten Suggestions? Why would someone propose to
throw away the Creation story? Is the fall of man in the Garden something
that we need not be aware? What about the Great Flood? All cultures
and peoples believe in the story of the Deluge or the Great Flood but these
Modernist Universalists propose to discard it as irrelevant to Christendom.
The story of the miracles throughout the Old Testament, those related to
the Exodus, the journey through the Wilderness and the incredible,
repeated, deliverance of the people of the One, True God are marginalized
by the thought that the law has made the rest of the Old Testament
irrelevant. Although the Modernist has discarded the Old Testament,
Apostle Paul reminded us why it is important in his letter to the church in
Rome:
"For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our
instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of
the Scriptures we might have hope." Romans 15:4 NASB
The Modernists and Universalists have over pursued the law and thrown
the baby out with the bath water. We understand that the law was added
because of transgression but the law is not the whole of the Old Testament.
“Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased,
grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also
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might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord” (Romans 5:20-21).
Old Testament
The law is not nearly the whole of the Old
Testament as the law was added 430 years
after Abraham (Galatians 3:17). “Abraham
was the tenth generation removed
from Noah, being a direct descendant
of Shem, (Noah's son), the father of all the
"Semitic" peoples. When Abraham was
born, Shem was 390 years Old, and his
father Noah was 892 years old. Abraham
was 58 years old when Noah died. These are important facts, for, as we
shall see later, Abraham spent many years in the house of Noah and
Shem, and received instruction from them. Thus he learned all the details
about the Flood from the very men who built the Ark and survived the
Flood. (Noah knew Methuselah for many hundreds of years, who in turn
knew Adam for many hundreds of years, which means that Abraham
received first hand information about everything that happened since the
very first day of Creation!).”15
The Old Testament record reveals the character of God in many different
ways. In it we see His faithfulness, His justice, His compassion, His
holiness and many other things. We can be encouraged to go to God in
prayer, knowing that He has both the power and inclination to act on our
behalf--just as we see He did in the Old Testament time and time again.
Additionally, the Old Testament contains many prophecies and pictures of
Christ that gives us confidence in the truthfulness of the Gospel and also
lets us see the beauty of God's dealings with mankind. Isaiah 53 is an
amazing prophecy of the suffering Messiah and the Snake in the Desert
beautifully demonstrates the Gospel.
15
Abraham's Early Life. Nissan Mindel. Published and copyrighted by Kehot Publication Society
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It should be noted that much of the Old Testament is actually not simply
laws to follow, but stories of God's interaction with mankind. The Law is
contained in the Old Testament, but Genesis, Psalm, Proverbs,
Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon and the much of the prophets have little or
nothing to do with instructions on the Law.
Human Analogy
Apostle Paul gives us this analogy of the importance of the law as
contrasted with the even greater importance of the Grace given to man
through Covenant.
"To give a human example, brethren: no one annuls a man's will,
or adds to it once it has been ratified."
“To us that sounds incorrect because we can change
our wills and add codicils. But there were Roman and
Greek and Jewish laws under which this statement
would have been precisely accurate. What's important
is that there were (and are) kinds of testaments or
dispositions of property or inheritance arrangements or
oaths which cannot be cancelled or changed by
addition. Paul sets this up as an illustration of how the
Mosaic Law must not be interpreted as an annulment
or alteration of the terms of the Abrahamic covenant.”16
Other examples of this level of importance given are found in Scripture
such as in the edicts given by rulers of the Medes and Persians.
Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not
changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which
altereth not (Daniel 6:8). Since even the edict of earthly men has been put
down as unalterable, how much more should the Covenant of the Eternal
God be irreversible, unalterable and unchanging? Men and the laws of
men are ever changing but God remains the same. At one time in Rome
16 The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. Galatians Broken by His Cross, Healed By His Spirit. April 17,
1983. John Piper.
Cyrus the Great
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there was no record of a divorce in Rome for over 500 years. Yet, the
decadence that followed left a legacy that finds that statistic unbelievable.
Likewise in America, with divorce being normal, it is hard to imagine that
just a generation ago divorce was almost never heard of and that divorce
was difficult to obtain prior to 1969. To men whose laws and word mean so
little it is difficult to imagine a Covenant that God would make with man that
He would keep for thousands of years!
The point here is that the Law which is a reference to the Mosaic Law or
Law of Moses, which came four hundred and thirty years afterward
Abraham had no authority (legal or otherwise) to annul a covenant
previously ratified by God. The Promise of Grace by Covenant given by
God to Abraham had to stay in force. God gave the Covenant by Promise.
God gave the law to Moses. Both are conditional. Both are Covenant.
“God's dealings with Abraham showed that divine blessing is freely given
only to those who have faith not to those who try to earn it through works of
law.”17
The Relation of Abrahamic and Mosaic Covenants
What exactly are we referring to when we say speak of the law? The law is
fundamentally a restatement of the Abrahamic covenant applied to new
circumstances in redemptive history. “It is not nullification or a basic
alteration. In both covenants the only way to attain blessing from God is to
trust him for His Grace. And in both covenants final blessing depends on
a life of faith, not just a single act of faith. Or to put it another way: in both
covenants the promise of God's blessing comes by grace through faith and
is not earned. But in both covenants the faith which saves taps into God's
power in such a way that obedience results. And this obedience is such a
necessary extension of saving faith that in both covenants obedience to
God is a condition of final salvation. Not legalistic "works of law," but Spirit-
empowered "obedience of faith."18
17
The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. April 17, 1983. John Piper. 18
The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. April 17, 1983. John Piper.
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What the law could not do references that the Mosaic Law cannot usurp
Grace. The Law does not have the authority to annul Grace. Even under
the Mosaic Law Grace and Mercy and Grace had their place. Grace came
to man by Covenant and man holds no power to annul, alter, change, or
dissolve that Grace. God, of course, as the Testator of the Covenant
could have changed the terms, the outcome, but He chose to first give the
Covenant and then keep the Covenant. By GRACE are we saved; not of
works since it would give men opportunities to boast. By Grace; not law.
How did we get the Grace? By Covenant.
“In Genesis 22:16–18 God says to
Abraham after his obedience in offering
Isaac, "Because you have done this, . . . I
will indeed bless you and multiply your
descendants as the stars of heaven . . .
By your descendants shall all the nations
of the earth bless themselves, because
you have obeyed my voice." And
in Genesis 26:4, 5, God says to Isaac, "I will multiply your descendants as
the stars of heaven . . . and by your descendants shall all the nations of the
earth bless themselves: because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my
charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws."19
“In Genesis 18:19 God says, "I have chosen [Abraham], that he may
charge his children . . . to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness
and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised
him." It is apparent that God’s Covenant with Abraham was not
unconditional as some claim. God's ultimate blessing does depend on
obedience, but not on works of law-works that aim to earn God's blessing.
The obedience on which salvation depends is simply the way a person acts
in which he is really trusting in the promises of God. Such obedience is
simply a life lived by faith in God's power and love.”20 Of these and others
the writer of Hebrews 11 tells us, “These all died having not received the
19
The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. April 17, 1983. John Piper. 20
The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. April 17, 1983. John Piper.
28 | P a g e
Promise...” How did they die? “In faith”. Faith in what? Faith in the
Promise God made to mankind by Covenant.
“So when the law is given 430 years (after Abraham), it is wrong to think
that any fundamental changes were made in the stipulations of God's
covenant relationship with Israel. Of course, an elaborate sacrificial system
was created that wasn't there before. But basically the commands of the
law were simply a general outlining of what the life of faith would look like in
the theocracy. It would be terribly wrong to say that the Mosaic Law was
opposed in its teaching to the Abrahamic covenant.”21
Moses saw the law as simply a restatement of the conditions of the
Abrahamic covenant. He says in Deuteronomy 7:12, 13, "Because you
hearken to these ordinances, and keep and do them, the Lord your God will
keep with you the covenant and the steadfast love which he swore to your
fathers to keep; he will love you, bless you, and multiply you." (Cf. 30:16–
20; 8:18, 4:31.) For Moses the covenant made at Mount Sinai was a
reaffirmation and spelling out of the covenant made with Abraham.”22
Faith (Exodus 14:31; Numbers 14:11; 20:21; Deuteronomy 1:32) as
evidenced in its fruit was the requirement of both covenants. So Paul
seems fully warranted in saying that the law, which came 430 years later,
did not nullify or basically alter the Covenant ratified with Abraham. They
are in perfect harmony.
21
Piper. 22
The Law Does Not Annul the Promise. The Law. April 17, 1983. John Piper.
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We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, Knowing
that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of
Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be
justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by
the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (Gal. 2:15-16).
Reconciliation
The Bible as we have it is the history of God’s interaction with mankind.
Apostle Paul made it his mission to not only take the Gospel of Jesus
Christ to his fellow Jews. He also included in his mission to take this
Gospel to the Gentile nations that had been ostracized by the separatist
attitude of the natural Jew. This ostracization was primarily based on the
Pharisaical interpretation of the Law of Moses. Apostle Paul’s mission was
to help both Jew and Gentile understand the role of Jesus Christ in fulfilling
the Covenant God made with man in general and the natural Jew’s
Patriarchal father; Abraham in particular. The wisdom of the Apostle Paul
was a game changer for the New Testament church.
Apostle Paul helped both Jewish believers and Gentile believers
understand that they could co-exist in Covenantal relationship with Jesus
Christ. The explanations of Apostle Paul not only satisfied most of the New
Testament Christ followers but set the stage for some 2000 years of
advancement in Christ’s Kingdom. Apostle Paul’s revolutionary
understanding of what the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ
meant to Christ followers released non Jews, women, slaves, servants
caused many to understand that the promises made Abraham were fulfilled
in Jesus Christ giving them access to participate in the Grace that was
given by Covenant to Abraham and fulfilled in Christ Jesus.
Throughout history a plethora of theologians have taken various positions
for and against the explanation given by Apostle Paul of God’s Grace by
Covenant. Yet, we must allow that Scripture alone (Sola Scriptura) be our
guide. The sixteenth Century Reformer John Calvin gave this explanation:
Christ was given to us by God’s generosity, to be grasped and possessed
by us in faith. By partaking of him, we principally receive a double grace:
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namely, that being reconciled to God through Christ’s blamelessness, we
may have in heaven instead of a Judge a gracious Father; and secondly,
that sanctified by Christ’s spirit we may cultivate blamelessness and purity
of life.23 The Moravian Peter Bohler once urged Wesley to “Preach faith till
you have it, and then, because you have it you will preach faith.”
Muscle Flexing
Today, there are a plethora of theological positions
that have been developed and adhered to by various
denominations, groups, ministerial organizations and
the like. From these various positions instead of
Grace we have found many reasons for division.
Some of these we call Denominations, or the dividing
of the nation. God gave us one Nation, a Holy Nation
we have created something else.
The media, social and otherwise, seem to have had a sudden increase of
preachers proclaiming themselves “Grace Preachers”. Apparently this
classification is as opposed to preachers that do not preach Grace.
Strangely, many of these profess to have been somehow converted to
preaching Grace. From exactly what they converted varies but it is evident
that what they preached before was something else or in fairness (based
on their own explanation) another version of what should have been the
Gospel.
The concerning thing about this is that the reason for these conversions
often seems based in some perceived flaw, inability or injury caused by
those deemed not ‘Grace Preachers’ against these who are the self
proclaimed ‘Grace Preachers’. It is irony in itself that many of those
discussing this Grace do so in a manner that is quite condemning
apparently ignoring Scripture. “There is therefore now no
condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1). 23
John Calvin, John T. McNeil, ed., Institutes of the Christian Religion (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1960) III.xi.1, p. 725.
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Different Agendas
1. Grace by Scripture
There are at least three major groups that either are either referred to or
who refer to themselves as Grace Preachers. The first group is primarily
comprised of those who articulate the message Grace from the whole of
Scripture. These, like Apostle Paul, generally have a good understanding
of what both the word Grace and concept of Grace actually conveys. They
generally have keen understanding of the nature, purpose and plan of God.
This is a credit to the five-fold ministry and benefit to the Body of Jesus
Christ. From these accomplished people of God we definitely need to hear
more.
2. Grace Because of Offense
The second group generally seems to be copying or Polly parroting the first
group. On the one hand this could be a good thing as there is a need for
the message of Grace properly presented. Yet, the message of this group
reeks of offence. Constituents of this group should take the time to read
John Bevere’s book, The Bait of Satan and apply this to their lives.
Offense is not helpful to anyone. Grace is not a weapon.
Unfortunately, this second group is comprised of those who behave as
though they alone have discovered Grace. You know, like it wasn’t Noah
who found Grace but them! They portend like Grace is some version of
the Holy Grail known only to and by them and perhaps those they have
chosen to endow or who have heard their message. It is evident that the
‘us vs. them’ or the ‘Grace vs. the Un-graced’ tone of the constituents of
this group is born in hurt, injury and insult and certainly not based in the
Grace they proffer to dispense. Even while writing this we must take care
not to provide room to that which we hope to disperse.
This second group appears to want all others to be awed at their
prominence, self proclaimed authority and self exalted oratorical skill.
Some of these have gone so far as to proclaim that we no longer should
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use words like sin, repentance, blood, etc. While some of these may be
well intentioned they generally are doing more harm than good and their
association with the general tone of this group causes their message to be
ignored. The lack of merit generated by this group has caused detractors
to label them (and then tragically, by default, those from the first group) as
preaching hyper grace, greasy grace, sloppy agape and other unflattering
labels. These labels are not nearly as much about the message as they
are about the messengers.
This author is would certainly agree that if we are to error it should be on
the side of Grace but the novices that populate this second group discredit
the message. The very purpose of Grace is lost in their presentation.
3. Grace as a License to Live Lasciviously
Some want to pretend that this third group doesn’t exist but that is
counterproductive to the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The third
group is a repugnant bunch that is uses what they call grace for their own
lust by riding the latest wave of interest, media manipulation and hype and
taking advantage of some Christianeze. These subvert whole households
to their blasphemy.
Spokespersons for this third group has gone so far as to offer that the
Church will soon embrace all manner of sin and lasciviousness supposedly
(they say) under the banner of grace or rather their version of grace.
Further, these filthy dreamers discard large portions of Scripture under the
guise of their version of “grace”. These embrace all manner of strange
doctrines and dogmas like their new religion they call Chrislam. These also
advocate for practicing homosexual leaders in their churches and more.
Unfortunately, it is apparent that whole churches, movements and
denominations have fallen prey to their deception under these misguided
notions of Grace.
In contrast to the second and third group mentioned above, God’s Grace
freely provides what we have the inability to produce ourselves. Grace
elicits the confidence that He will accomplish that which he requires of us—
as we cooperate with and obey him.
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When we preach God’s Grace, we motivate our listeners to trust God in
confidence rather than shrink from him in fear. The purpose of the
Everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ is not fear but obedience; obedience to
Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 2:6-8 God "will give to each person according to what he has
done." To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and
immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and
who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
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GOD’S GRACE
“If you don’t know where you are
going… then any road will get you
there.” - Bernie L. Wade
CHAPTER 3
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Contending for Grace
What exactly is this Grace that so
either many claim, contend with or
about? It seems that Grace may
be found (Noah found Grace) or
discovered but it does not seem
that we have to contend for Grace.
Rather, it seems that contention and condemnation are the opposite of
Grace. Some self appointed grace theologians that would be right at
home in our second group propose that Grace is a concept presented only
in the New Testament. Some go so far as to offer that we don’t need the
Old Testament because there is no Grace there or that the whole of the Old
Testament is the law. These same contend that the Church has generally
gotten it wrong for the last two thousand years. This gives pause to
wonder how such an Un-Graced bunch could have brought the Church this
far. Perhaps it is because of that old hymn of the Church; we have come
this far by faith, leaning on the Lord!
These neophytes assert salvation through adherence to their new
revelations, understanding or enlightenment. If you were to overhear a
group of some of these it might well resemble the Publican’s prayer (See
Luke 18), “Lord, we are so glad that we are not like the rest of the
preachers. We are so thankful that we are among those few that have
discovered your real Grace. We are honored that we do not preach un-
grace. We are trying really hard to get the rest of the ministers to
understand you as well as we do but they are so far behind us in
understanding. We know that we have been chosen to bring the new
revelation of grace. Help the others if You can.”
You would be correct in thinking that this functions more like an
assemblage of Old Testament Pharisees than New Testament Christ
followers. Yet, these call this Grace. Sadly, when Christians talk like this,
they are — usually unwittingly — making something universal that happens
to be true about themselves. When a person says, “We (meaning the
Church as a whole) don’t know what Grace is” what they’re really saying is,
“I don’t know what it is.” If one is trying to say, “many Christians” or perhaps
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“I think that most Christians” … then that’s more accurate. The truth is that
there are many Christians who know what Grace is and practice it
regularly. There are many Christians who understand the kingdom and live
in its joy, peace, and righteousness. There are many Christians who know
what Christian community is, both its dark side and its glorious face.24
Preachers of Righteousness
Grace has been defined, not as a created substance of any kind, but as…
"The love and mercy given to us by Jesus Christ because
God desires us to have it, not because of anything we
have done to earn it.”
Every preacher of Righteousness should be a Grace Preacher. That being
said it is fair to say that some need help in their presentation but that
should not be used as an excuse for them to be disparaged; either from us
or by their peers. Equally, we should not be hesitant to point out that those
who do not preach Righteousness are simply not preaching Truth. Nothing
new here; yet, we face unnecessary division and it seems to be deliberate.
Grace has come to us by Covenant. Without Covenant we have no basis
for Grace. Without Grace we have no hope of salvation. “For by grace
you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it
is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
(Ephesians 2:8-9).
To give Grace proper placement we must shake the influence of dual
covenant theology, universalism, and other heresies and realize that the
God of the Universe is not double minded. God is not a nationalist or a
racist. This means that people who happen to be born Jewish don’t get a
special deal on salvation (as some teach) and God does not have two
people. Further, God does not have two separate Everlasting Covenants.
He has, since the Garden of Eden, covenanted with mankind repeatedly (in
continuity) making it clear that He valued Mercy or Grace above sacrifices.
242424
Beyond Evangelical. Christianeze Revised. Frank Viola. Adapted.
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This is the God pointed of Hebrews 1:1. God, who at sundry times and
in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.
What the writer is attempting to get us to understand is that God has used
various methods at different times to accomplish His will and to point
mankind to His Covenant. God is not schizophrenic in His interaction. He
has one purpose and that is to reconcile mankind to Him. Faith is the key.
Abraham understood this as have many others that without faith, it is
IMPOSSIBLE to please God.
The list of Christ followers in Hebrews 11 points to the importance of faith.
Verse 6 says it succinctly, “And without faith it is impossible to please God,
because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he
rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Everlasting Covenant
Genesis 17:7 is one of many
stumbling block verses for those who
see two separate covenants, but part
of the remedy for those who
understand that God is not a covenant
breaker and has only one Everlasting
covenant; the covenant He made with
mankind. “I will establish my
covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your
descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God
and the God of your descendants after you.”
“The Bible was written for no other purpose than to show the way of Life. It
contains history and biography, but these are parts of the Gospel Message.
Not one line is written except to reveal Christ; whoever reads it for any
other purpose than to find in it the way of salvation from sin, reads it in vain;
studied in the light of Calvary, it is a delight, and things that would
otherwise be obscure are made clear as the noonday.”25
25
The Everlasting Covenant by E. J. Waggoner. 1900. INTERNATIONAL TRACT SOCIETY, LIMITED, 59, Paternoster Row, E.C.
38 | P a g e
God is a God of Covenant. The covenant God made with Abraham was a
continuation of the covenant God made with Adam but unlike Adam who
broke God’s Covenant: Abraham kept the Covenant.
The idea that God would upgrade, change or usher in a New Covenant was
first prophesied by Jeremiah. Interestingly, in the context of Jeremiah 31,
the Prophet says that Israel found Grace in the wilderness (verse 2).
Jeremiah continues to offer newness to Israel through his prophetic
message including that Israel will again be a virgin (verses 4, 31). Then in
verses 31-34 we are told,
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the
covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the
hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke,
though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant
that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares
the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.
And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall
each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know
the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the
greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will
remember their sin no more.”
From this some have propagated the
idea that new is literal even though is it
obvious that making someone a virgin
again could not be literal and these have
also decided that new means that the
old is destroyed or abolished. Yet, the
covenant God made with mankind has
often been renewed or brought to
fruition. The idea that those before
Christ were devoid of Grace is not supported by Scripture. The fact
remains that Scripture gives us many views of God’s Amazing Grace.
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The First Grace Preacher
Fortunately, Grace was not born in
the New Testament. If mankind had
been burdened with waiting for
thousands of years for the Grace of
God we would no doubt, like the dodo
bird26,be extinct. It is certain that
even our first parents; Adam and Eve
benefited from the Grace of God in
that they did not die immediately in
spite of their egregious action against God. With the cursing of the serpent
in the garden, the salvific Covenant of Grace is announced for the first time.
Some have difficulty separating a God that is sinless and intolerant of sin
from His Grace. Grace is the gift of God and was manifest throughout the
Old Testament. In addition to Adam and Eve, Lot, Isaac, King David,
Queen Esther and a host of other benefited from God’s Grace.
The word, the concept and the idea of Grace are all brought to us in the
book of Genesis; in the beginning. In Genesis 6:8 we find, “Noah found
grace in the eyes of the Lord.” Some translations use the word favor in
place of grace which is also correct as grace and favor are synonyms.
Grace is the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the
salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.
A divinely given talent or blessing. "the grace of the Holy Spirit"
The condition or fact of being favored by someone.
Synonyms: favor, approval, approbation, acceptance, esteem,
regard, respect27
“The word “grace” appears for the first time in the Bible in Genesis. Noah
lived in the midst of the most heinously evil society the world had known,
but because he had found grace, God favored him with personal instruction
about the coming catastrophic judgment and the details for a new
beginning on earth. The language of Genesis 6:8 gives us insight into 26
http://www.bagheera.com/inthewild/ext_dodobird.htm 27
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_%28Christianity%29
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Noah’s character. “Found” is a simple active perfect verb, not a passive
one. Thus, Noah found favor—grace—in God’s eyes because he was
actively looking for it.”28 While it was Noah who found Grace, all of his
posterity (including you and I) benefited from his message, life and
Covenant (commitment) to God. Through Noah mankind is preserved and
the Covenant God makes with Noah becomes the beginning of the
Covenant that God extends to Abraham. New in Noah’s day and New
again in Abraham’s.
We refer to Noah as a preacher of Righteousness. In reality, there could
not be a better description of a Grace Preacher! Thank the Lord for Noah,
because without the Grace granted to him none of us would be here. We
cannot deny that Noah is the first Grace Preacher. Evidently, God intended
for us to know this key factor: Noah’s life was righteous—in spite of the
horrible condition of the world of his day. He was looking for God’s direction
and for the answers to his heart’s cry. “Noah wasn’t merely hanging around
waiting for the inevitable destruction that he sensed must come as a result
of the awful rebellion that surrounded him. Noah was anticipating a
response from God—and when God finally did give him instruction, Noah
“found” the favor that he sought!”29
The relationship between God and man is structured by agreements that
we call covenants. When God created the earth, He entered into a
covenant of works with Adam in which Adam could secure blessing if he
obeyed the terms of the covenant. Adam disobeyed and broke the
covenant of works by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Nevertheless, God was gracious to Adam. Though Adam died spiritually,
he did not experience physical death immediately because of God’s
forbearing mercy. Even more importantly, God gave hope that one day He
would remove the curses through an agent who would be faithful to the
covenant of works (Gen. 3:15; Rom. 5:16–17).
After the Great Flood we find God establishing His Covenant with Noah.
We have to concede that this was, for that time, a New Covenant and it
28
Noah Found Grace. Book of Beginnings. Volume 2 by Henry Morris III, D.Min. Institute for Creation Research. 29
Morris III, H. 2013. Noah Found Grace. Acts & Facts. 42 (1): 5-7.
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was the Everlasting Covenant. Yet, none of these provisions are contrary
to subsequent Covenants as they are part in parcel of the same Everlasting
Covenant. God’s Covenant with Noah and his sons is later referenced in
the New Testament (Acts Chapter 15) and confirmed by the collected
representation of all the New Testament Church including the Apostles as
part of the New Covenant even though the Everlasting Covenant given to
Noah was some 7000 years before. As we have previously mentioned,
some call this the Law of the Gentiles. This is a reference to the fact that
God established His law in Covenant with mankind after the flood. Thus,
man had a Covenant with God just like God made with Adam and Eve.
“Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring after you and
with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the livestock, and every
beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark; it is for every
beast of the earth. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall
all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be
a flood to destroy the earth.” And God said, “This is the sign of the
covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is
with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it
shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring
clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my
covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh.
And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When
the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting
covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the
earth.”
When God Covenanted with mankind He gave a physical sign of His
promise. God saves a remnant of His creation because of His great mercy.
But it is only a remnant. Though we can be confident of God’s great Grace,
we should never think that He will allow sin to go unpunished. Percentage
wise more perished than were saved by Grace.
We read of the Noahic Covenant in Genesis 8:20–9:17. The Noahic
covenant, like the covenant made with Adam, is a covenant made with all
of humanity; it is made at the “re-creation” of the earth, at the new
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beginning for the earth after the flood. This covenant is ratified by sacrifice
(8:20–21), and God promises never again to destroy the earth by means of
a flood. In this covenant, God pledges to preserve the stability of nature.
Such stability is necessary if He is going to enter history to save His
people. Moreover, since all living things will never again be destroyed
completely by God in a flood, we see that the whole earth is the beneficiary
of this Covenant. This demonstrates God’s Grace toward all of His
creatures and gives us a hint that one day all things will be renewed or
made new.
Mosaic Law
Moses found himself in the desert with millions of people who had begun
as a family of some 70 souls and were now a nation in their own right.
This group had no legal system. They had been slaves and as such had
operated in the limited sphere and understanding of slaves. Now, because
of the Exodus, God’s Grace had given them a new day. They were still
beneficiaries of the Covenant God had made with Abraham, but they had
no system to function in their daily lives. Moses, with the direction and in
some cases permission of God, gives them their first system of laws. This
we call the Mosaic Law. Some merely refer to this as the Law. One of
the common misconceptions is that this law somehow annulled,
superseded, or negated the Covenant that God had made with mankind
firth through Noah and then confirmed in Abraham. God had given
mankind a physical sign of His commitment, the rainbow. Abraham
reciprocated with a physical sign by requiring all males to be circumcised in
their flesh. This would continue to be the method even under the Mosaic
Law. Not by command; but by Covenant.
Adam Clarke gave this explanation; “I understand the Mosaic law. By
entering in, παρεισηλθεν, or, rather, coming in privily, see Galatians 2:4,
(the only place where it occurs besides), I understand the temporary or
limited use of that law, which was, as far as its rites and ceremonies are
considered, confined to the Jewish people, and to them only till the
Messiah should come; but considered as the moral law, or rule of
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conscience and life, it has in its spirit and power been slipped in -
introduced into every conscience, that sin might abound - that the true
nature, deformity, and extent of sin might appear; for by the law is the
knowledge of sin: for how can the finer deviations from a straight line be
ascertained, without the application of a known straight edge? Without this
rule of right, sin can only be known in a sort of general way; the
innumerable deviations from positive rectitude can only be known by the
application of the righteous statutes of which the law is composed. And it
was necessary that this law should be given, that the true nature of sin
might be seen, and that men might be the better prepared to receive the
Gospel; finding that this law worketh only wrath, i.e. denounces
punishment, forasmuch as all have sinned.”
Grace Trumps Sin
Christ followers speak of Scripture as
the unfolding drama of God’s
Covenant of Grace. We do this
because the apostle Paul speaks of
the Israelites, saying, “To them
belong … the covenants” (Rom. 9:5)
which is embracing of all the
instances of the confirmation of the
Eternal Covenant with mankind. The
Bible is a covenantal story, and one
that Paul, again, describes as “the covenants of promise” (Eph. 2:12).30
With must have this as our foundation. Like my example from the
Introduction, everything is related to Grace.
Even through the fall of man in the Garden of Eden Grace Trumps Sin.
Sin caused the fall, but Grace kept mankind from total destruction. In the
great flood Grace Trumped Sin. Sin caused the Holy God to become
repulsed at mankind but Grace caused mankind to be preserved. The
30
What Is the Covenant of Grace? Daniel Hyde Sep 26, 2014
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triumph of God’s abundant Grace over sin is explained in detail in the New
Testament usually while referencing the triumphs of the Old Testament. It
is in Acts Chapter 15 that the entire leadership of the Church, both Jewish
and Gentile, agreed that the ceremonial law was fulfilled in Christ. So, the
law added through Moses is trumped by Grace.
There is no mention in any of these texts of abolishing the entire Old
Testament or the Covenant God gave to Abraham. Rather, in Acts 15
there is a confirmation of the covenant that God made with Noah. The
Covenant God made with Noah sets the stage for the Covenant God
makes with Abraham. They are both are components of the Everlasting
Covenant. When you look in a mirror there is not suddenly two of you.
There is still only one of you. Likewise there is not two covenants; just one.
This Covenant was in effect long before Moses. The Covenant of Noah is
confirmed in Acts 15 and speaks directly to sin in the form of sexual
perversion, idol worship, and the exaltation of false gods. All of these were
components of religions that oppose the one true God. Where sin
abounds – Grace Triumphs!
Adam Clarke continues, “Now, it is wisely ordered of God, that wherever
the Gospel goes there the law goes also; entering everywhere, that sin may
be seen to abound, and that men may be led to despair of salvation in any
other way or on any terms but those proposed in the Gospel of Christ. Thus
the sinner becomes a true penitent, and is glad, seeing the curse of the law
hanging over his soul, to flee for refuge to the hope set before him in the
Gospel.” Thus the law comes that it may be made evident that it has no
power over the Grace of God. Where sin abounds – Grace Triumphs!
Apostle Paul writes, But where sin abounded - Whether in the world, or in
the heart of the individual, being discovered by this most pure and
righteous law, Grace did much more abound: not only pardon for all that
is past is offered by the Gospel, so that all the transgressions for which the
soul is condemned to death by the law, are freely and fully forgiven; but
also the Holy Spirit, in the abundance of his gifts and graces, is
communicated, so as to prepare the receiver for an exceeding and eternal
weight of glory. The law could not negate Grace. Rather, the law manifests
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the impact and power of Grace. Thus the Grace of the Gospel not only
redeems from death, and restores to life, but brings the soul into such a
relationship with God, and into such a participation of eternal glory, as we
have no authority to believe ever would have been the portion even of
Adam himself, had he even eternally retained his innocence. Thus, where
sin abounded, grace doth much more abound.
In Adam we find the extension of this Grace in God’s provision for clothing,
food and shelter that superseded the sin of Adam and Eve. Abundant sin?
Yes, but much more abundant was the Grace of God for the posterity of
Adam and Eve. This Grace carried on till Noah who found it apparently
when others could not or made a contrary choice.
In Noah’s day the wicked imagination of mankind manifests unimaginable
levels of sin and depravity. Because of this depravity, Moses in reflecting
the mood of God laments God’s feeling of regret at creating man. This is
much like a parent who becomes so disappointed by the actions of their
child. However, even in this worst of conditions, sin never triumphs over
the Grace of God. It may have looked bleak. Darkness may have seemed
like it would continue forever, but once again Grace Triumphs over sin.
The people of Noah’s day were focused on sin. Yet, where this sin was
abundant Grace once again trumps sin as mankind is preserved in the
Divine Favor or Grace found by Noah.
Jesus Paid our Debt
All of the Old Testament references are but a
foreshadowing of the power that would come
through the advent of the Jesus Christ and
through His shedding of Righteous blood. All
of the sin of the Old Testament was only
covered by the shedding of blood because
the blood shed there was not capable of
sealing a Covenant of Everlasting
Righteousness. We cannot be so blinded by the foreshadowing that we
are unable to see in the account of the Old Testament as this only speaks
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to the coming of the New Covenant that would speak to something more
powerful than the blood of bulls and goats.
The explanation of power of Grace though out the ages to triumph over sin
prompts Apostle Paul to point to the power of Christ that did not come at
Calvary or at the Resurrection but rather that was chosen before the very
foundation of the world and extended to mankind by Covenant.
In explaining Grace, Apostle Paul makes a point of speaking directly in
language that those who understand the Covenant would relate to as heirs
of the promise (will) of God. In Ephesians 1, he relates that we who God
predestined for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the
purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious Grace, with which he has
blessed us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his Grace
which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us
the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in
Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in
heaven and things on earth.
Title Deed
Many homeowners in America have come to their
ownership through a mortgage payment plan. In
this the potential homeowner covenants with a
bank or other lender that they will make the agreed
upon number of payments which returns to the
lender the principle with interest. After this is complete the potential
homeowner trades the payment plan in for the Title Deed for the property.
What a happy day when they make that final payment and receive the Title
Deed! It is common for there to be some sort of a celebration that often
even includes a ceremonial burning of the mortgage.
This is very similar to the progression we see in the Covenant God made
with man. Like the mortgage payment plan there are many payments that
are made toward the principle and interest. Eventually, in the fullness of
time, the debt is paid and the home is owned free and clear. Likewise the
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Covenant God made with man allows mankind to Covenant with God and
even though mans part of the agreement cannot totally satisfy the terms of
the Covenant, God has allowed that the Covenant terms are finally satisfied
by Jesus Christ. In effect, Jesus Christ comes to manifest the Title Deed
to the Covenant. No, wonder the writer of Hebrews (Chapter 11) said,
“These all died having not received the Promise!”. This tremendous list
of heroes of the faith all obeyed God by Faith in the Promise (Covenant)
given to Abraham. They believed that God would one day keep the
Promise and fulfill the Covenant.
Today, we have people claiming that God doesn’t honor the Covenant. It
would be like our home owners making 30 years of payments and then
when they make the final payment moving out of the house instead of
celebrating the getting the Title Deed to the property!? Or worse yet, like
the bank refusing to keep their end of the bargain and present the Title
Deed. Thankfully, God keeps His promises! I know that to think that God
would use some kind of sleight of hand on us sounds silly! Yet, that is what
some apparently think happened with the Covenant God made with man.
When Jesus Christ paid the price (our
debt; not His) so that we could receive
Eternal Life through the Holy Spirit which
is the deposit guaranteeing our
inheritance (Ephesians 3); rather than
praising God for His amazing Grace;
some propose that He reneged on His
promise. Yes, that does sound extreme! What we know is that God chose
this plan of Grace by Covenant before the beginning of time. So, before
mankind (Adam and Eve) sinned God had already planned for Grace to
Triumph! This triumph of Grace is through the blood of Jesus! While Christ
would not come chronologically first His sacrifice would be the blood that
would satisfy the terms of the Covenant of Grace. No other blood could
satisfy the terms of the Covenant; not Isaacs, not bulls and goat, only
Christ Jesus.
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SONS
CHAPTER 4
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Inheritance
If you pay attention you will notice that
much of Apostle Paul’s writing is set in
legal language. Those who lived before
Christ were granted the Grace by
Covenant. God purposed to Covenant
with man; most significant of which is the
Covenant He made with Abraham! In Christ Jesus we have obtained an
inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who
works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were
the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In Him you
also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and
believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the
guarantee of our inheritance …
The new covenant is the gospel of salvation. It describes how we have
been saved from sin and death so we can live forever in a loving
relationship to the center-point, Jesus Christ. He is God himself, who has
offered himself to us. If we want eternal life with God, it must be through
Jesus Christ. At its core, the new covenant is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It
is the message of salvation by Grace through faith in him. That is why it is
important for us to understand it and teach it. It is the basis of our eternal
life! Not another Gospel, not another covenant, not a new Gospel but
the fulfillment of all the law and the prophets the earnest of our
inheritance in that the Covenant Promise made with Abraham is Paid
in Full in the New Covenant brought by Jesus Christ.
The law and the prophets brought us to the forerunner of Christ in John the
Baptist, but the full proof of our inheritance of Grace would not come
through a mere man. Jesus Christ did what no other could do in paying
the price that would redeem mankind to benefit from the Covenant made
with him by God. That is why we emphasize Jesus Christ. That is why we
emphasize faith and grace. That is why we emphasize the new covenant,
the gospel and eternal life. All these are bound up with each other. The
gospel tells us that we can live forever with God—not because of good
things we have done—but because of what Jesus Christ did for us. God
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gives us this amnesty, forgiveness, and a new and wonderfully good
relationship with him. He tells us that he has accepted us, and urges us to
believe this message of his goodness and put our confidence in what He
has done for our salvation.
When Jesus announced a new covenant in his own blood (Luke 22:20), he
was announcing something dramatically new! Never before had God made
a covenant using human blood. The previous covenants had used animal
blood. Jesus made it clear that His coming was not to abolish the law but
to fulfill. Never before was there anyone who could provide the necessary
requirements to allow mankind to receive all of the promises of Grace by
Covenant.
Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the
Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” What
we get from Christ is the New and Improved Covenant; not the old and
discarded. New, just like the title deed to the house that we paid on for all
of those years is new, those who receive Grace do so by the New
Covenant!
What is the Difference Between Testament and Covenant?
Unfortunately, we use the words covenant
and testament as though they are the
same word. While there are similar in
some ways there is a difference. One of
the tragedies of pretending they mean the
same is that we have seen some lump the
entire Old Testament as the law. This is
quite a leap, and has led some of these to
conclude that we should ignore the Old Testament entirely!
Covenants in biblical times were sealed in blood. Often this was done by
severing an animal, with the implication that the party who breaks the
covenant will suffer a similar fate. In Hebrew, the verb meaning to seal a
covenant translates literally as "to cut". For example: It is presumed by
Jewish scholars that the removal of the foreskin for circumcision was used
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because it symbolically represents such a sealing of the covenant. While a
testament is similar to a covenant; it does not require the shedding of
blood. In other words, a testament is merely a promise or a contractual
obligation but a covenant was sealed in blood to signify it as much more
severe.
“The Bible is divided into two main sections: the Old Testament, which
preserves the Hebrew Scriptures from ancient times, and New Testament
which explains the New Covenant. Though both sections describe
covenants, they are called "testaments". But are they the same? Not
exactly. A covenant is an agreement between two living parties, as in a
marriage covenant, while a testament concerns the disposition of property
and favors after one's death, as, for example, in "last will and testament".
Our word testament is based on the Latin testamentum.
For example: "In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the
one who made it, because a will is in force only when somebody has died;
it never takes effect while the one who made it is living" (Heb.9:16-17). The
writer is telling us that Christ remembered us in His will. He left us a
priceless legacy: forgiveness of our sins, the removal of all guilt and the
promise of eternal life.
These are all part of the New Covenant agreement Jesus proposed, but
were not available until after His death. It was His "blood of the covenant,
poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" that made the process of
salvation possible.”31 To better understand the concept of a covenant we
must understand what a covenant conveys. To best explain the covenant
that God made with Abraham let’s look at the promise.
God Covenants with Abraham
“Genesis 17:1-8. When Abram was 99 years old, the LORD appeared to
Abram and said to him, “I am El Shaddai. Walk with me and be
trustworthy. 2 I will make a covenant between us and I will give you many,
many descendants.” 3 Abram fell on his face, and God said to him, 4 “But
31
http://www.nccg.org/FAQ071-Testament.html
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me, my covenant is with you; you will be the ancestor of many
nations. 5 And because I have made you the ancestor of many nations,
your name will no longer be Abram but Abraham.6 I will make you very
fertile. I will produce nations from you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will
set up my covenant with you and your descendants after you in every
generation as an enduring covenant. I will be your God and your
descendants’ God after you. 8 I will give you and your descendants the land
in which you are immigrants, the whole land of Canaan, as an enduring
possession. And I will be their God.”32 Like Noah, God’s Covenant with
Abram is inclusionary of all nations, not just 12 tribes. The Hebrew and the
Greek signify nations; and, in the Old and New Testaments, mean those
people who were not descendants of any of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Thus, God continues with Abraham His vision of Grace by Covenant.
God makes a Covenant between Him and Abraham. This is unparallel in
all of Holy Scripture and Noah makes all of this possible. That God would
make such an agreement with man is simply amazing and has impacted all
of the earth both for those who have followed the God of Abraham and
those who have rejected Him. While Abraham has at least 933 natural sons
there is a definite blood line that this covenant must follow and this
becomes a trail that leads to eternal destiny for all of mankind! All of the
descendents of Abraham will benefit but the emphasis becomes on Isaac;
the child of promise.
First, in what some pass over as insignificant God changes the name of
Abram to Abraham. It seems evident that the God of heaven was not so
bored that He needed something to do. It is a rare thing indeed for God to
insist on changing someone’s name. You may have many friends but that
love God but He has never seen it as important enough to change their
name.
This name change is perhaps the most significant indicator of the
importance of the Covenant and emphasizes the importance of this
Covenant. Abram ab (ab or aba means a father of high importance). The
32
Common English Bible (CEB) 33
http://jandyongenesis.blogspot.com/2011/03/abrahams-sons.html
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word אב ('ab) is not, like our word "father" reserved for the male parent and
used metaphorically for other people, but rather a word of unknown and
unparalleled meaning, which expresses respect to persons of authority,
including male parents. The word 'ab followed by the letter yod usually
makes the ab-part possessive. The construct אבי('abi) may mean "father
of," "my father," or form the adjective fatherly (literally "of father").34 Ra or
ram “The verb רום (rum) means to be high, in several literal and figurative
fashions. Some have equated this to the Egyptian god Ra. While this is not
the literal translation it does point to the fact that this man is of significant
importance in the viewpoint of the Almighty God even to the point that
many cultures recognized his importance. This verb is used to indicate
either literal height (Psalm 61:2, Job 22:12), the height of rank, statues or
glory (Numbers 24:7, 2 Samuel 22:47, Proverbs 24:7). Thus in the case of
Abram it signifies a father of considerable rank, importance or
significance”35 or some conclude a father that has power with God.
This man of great importance has an encounter with God and to signify the
importance of his mission God covenants with Abram and changes his
name to Abraham. God changes the name of Abram to Abraham and
Sarai to Sarah. So Abram (Noble Father) becomes Abraham (Father of
many Nations) and Sarai, (Princess) becomes Sarah (Mother of Nations).
Whether or not Abraham literally went around calling himself by the new
name is not important. That this was the Covenant name is the key. The
key here is Abraham was the name that God called him. In other words,
this was a prophetic pronunciation on the way that God saw him!
Some claim that Abraham was required to do nothing but that is not
correct. “God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant,
you and your descendants in every generation. This is my covenant that
you and your descendants must keep: Circumcise every male. You must
circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it will be a symbol of the
covenant between us. On the eighth day after birth, every male in every
generation must be circumcised, including those who are not your own
34
Abraham Meaning and Etymology. http://www.abarimpublications.com/Meaning/Abraham.html#.VOdHd_nF8t0 35
Ram meaning and Etymology.
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children: those born in your household and those purchased with silver
from foreigners. Be sure you circumcise those born in your household
and those purchased with your silver. Your flesh will embody my covenant
as an enduring covenant. Any uncircumcised male whose flesh of his
foreskin remains uncircumcised will be cut off from his people. He has
broken my covenant.” God is serious about His covenant and required this
blood token from every male descendant of Abraham as part of the
agreement that would continue this Covenant of promise until the time
would come that Jesus Christ would satisfy all the terms of the Covenant.
Irrevocable Inter vivos Trust
To understand the Covenant of God with Abraham we examine what in our
vernacular we would call an Irrevocable Inter vivos Trust. What this
means refers to inheritance (no wonder there is so much in the Bible about
inheritance). God gives to Abraham a Covenant in the form of a promise.
This is His will (not unlike a person might make a will) that outlines what
God is giving to Abraham. Never was there such an inheritance as God
promises to Abraham and his heirs. This is God’s Will or in other words
what Abraham can expect to inherit. The idea of irrevocable is expressed
in the Everlasting nature of God’s Covenant. This was not God making
idle promises. God was serious to the point that He promises Abraham an
Everlasting Covenant.
Inter vivos (Latin, between the living) is a legal term referring to a transfer
or gift made during one's lifetime, as opposed to a testamentary transfer (a
gift that takes effect on death). This term is often used to describe a trust
established during one's lifetime, i.e., an Inter vivos trust as opposed to
a Testamentary trust which is established on one's death, usually as part of
a will.
An Inter vivos trust is often used synonymously with the more common
term Living trust. In the case of what God’s promises to Abraham it is
irrevocable as long as the terms God gives Abraham are kept. Historically,
this Covenant has no equal. There is no Covenant made by God, or
anyone for that matter, that has both the natural and eternal significance of
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this amazing Covenant. By virtue of God conveying this Covenant on
Abraham, God becomes the Testator of this Covenant.
Testator is one who makes or has made a will; one who dies leaving a
will.36
So, this Covenant as we rightly call it is God’s will conveying to mankind
through Abraham all that He desires to bequeath to Him. This Covenant
God expects to be sealed through the shedding of blood and thus for man’s
part this becomes sealed through circumcision. Later, the event of
Abraham’s test with what seems will be the sacrifice of his only son Isaac
points out that only God will be capable of providing the blood that will seal
this Covenant permanently. In the interim, the test of Abraham with Isaac
is a prophetic vision of Calvary. At the conclusion of that test Abraham tells
Isaac that God will provide Himself the sacrificial lamb that will seal the
Covenant (Genesis 22:8). To help us understand the importance of the
promises of this Covenant and their significance to all of us, Apostle Paul
writes (Hebrews 9).
It is so that in Christ we have the cancellation of
the ordinances (Mosaic Law) that were against us!
“When you were dead in your transgressions and
the un-circumcision of your flesh, He made you
alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our
transgressions, having canceled out the certificate
of debt consisting of decrees against us, which
was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the
way, having nailed it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13-14). A certificate of
debt, also known as a bond, is a written promise.37
This is what Abraham received in the Covenant. A debt that Christ did not
owe, but he paid. We cannot have the old debt canceled, without (by that
very means) contracting a new one unless you were the one who cancelled
the debt. Since we (mankind) were not able to answer the great debt
against us, Christ paid the debt. “This debt is transferred from Justice to
36
http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/testator 37
Read more : http://www.ehow.com/facts_6926585_certificate-debt_.html
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Mercy. While sinners we are in debt to infinite Justice; when pardoned, in
debt to endless Mercy: and as a continuance in a state of grace necessarily
implies a continual communication of mercy, so the debt goes on
increasing ad infinitum. Strange economy in the Divine procedure, which
by rendering a man an infinite debtor keeps him eternally dependent on his
Creator! How good is God! And what does this state of dependence imply?
A union with, and participation of, the fountain of eternal goodness!”38
Worship in the Earthly Tabernacle
“Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly
sanctuary. When everything had been arranged like this, the priests
entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. But only the
high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never
without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had
committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way
into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first
tabernacle was still functioning. This is an illustration for the present time,
indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear
the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink
and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the
time of the new order.”
Here the Apostle Paul is explaining that the setting up of the physical
tabernacle was only a vision into what would come. Abraham was quite
satisfied with his personal encounters with God at the Valley of the Kings
with Melchizadec the King of Peace and in the Plain of Mamre when God
chooses to pay a visit to His friend Abraham. Abraham’s grandson Jacob
is confident that he prevailed when he wrestles with God face to face
demanding a blessing. Later, this face to face type of encounter with a
powerful God frightens the assembled multitude of Israel who asks that
God speak to them through Moses and not so directly. In response God
gives them an earthly tabernacle that is a natural pattern of spiritual things.
Thus, the natural foreshadowed the Spiritual. But Jesus Christ changes
38
Adam Clarke. The Book of Matthew. Page 140.
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ALL of that and ushers in the full promise of the Inheritance though a
tabernacle not made with hands eternal in the heavens!
The Inheritance Promised in the Covenant
Apostle Paul continues: “But when Christ came as high priest of the good
things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more
perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not
a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and
calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood,
thus obtaining eternal redemption for all mankind. The promise of the
Covenant was complete in Christ Jesus.”
“The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those
who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly
clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the
eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences
from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” What
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the natural could not do because man was unable to redeem himself, God
fulfilled. What man could not seal by circumcision is sealed in the blood of
Jesus Christ.
For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who
are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance — now that he
has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the
first covenant.
Apostle Paul continues to explain the importance of the Covenant made
with Abraham as the natural and the enforcement of the will of God in the
spiritual made possible when God robes Himself in flesh and provides the
only blood sacrifice that can absolve the curse of sin and trespass. “In the
case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it,
because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes
effect while the one who made it is living.” This is such a clear explanation.
God as the Testator of the will (Covenant) made with Abraham had to be
the one who brought to fruition the force of the Covenant. And of course
the blood of Jesus Christ is able to bring us so much more than even Able
who is the poster boy of Righteousness.
Apostle Paul continues, “This is why even the first covenant was not put
into effect without blood.” This Covenant made with Abraham was sealed
with the blood of every male. Then, “when Moses had proclaimed every
command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together
with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll
and all the people. He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God
has commanded you to keep.” This Covenant is clear reference to the
Covenant God made with Abraham. This is important as we see that “In
the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and
everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly
everything be cleansed with blood and without the shedding of blood there
is no forgiveness.”
The Promise God made to Abraham and sealed in Covenant to Abraham
and his descendants could only cover the sin and trespasses until in the
fullness of time when God manifest in the flesh and provided Himself the
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eternal earnest for the inheritance so that the Children of Abraham might
receive the promises of the Covenant God made with him.
The Covenant that God made with Abram (Abraham) is a promise not
just to Abraham but a promise to all the nations (people) of the earth.
A promise that can only be fulfilled in Christ and yet we have those
who desire to ignore, discard or toss away as insignificant this
amazing Covenant from God to mankind that is anchored in the blood
(covenant) of Jesus Christ!
Below is a sampling of the nations that are natural descendents of
Abraham and that is not nearly as significant as those who are Children of
Abraham because of Jesus Christ which of course impacts every nation
under heaven.
By Faith, or by Works of the Law?
Apparently, the Galatian followers of Christ became confused by legalism.
This is not surprising as legalism is a common pit fall of believers today.
The problem with legalism is that it is void of the Grace of God. Apostle
Paul, showing no attempt to be politically correct, calls them foolish and
chides them that they have fallen into a spell of witchcraft! He asks them if
they were perfected in the natural (by the flesh) or by the Spirit. He then
points out to them that their salvation is just like that of Abraham! Really?
Why Abraham? How could that be? Yes, Abraham was Old Testament,
but Apostle Paul is not confused by the fulfillment of the Promise to
Abraham that Christ fulfills. He understands that what the blood of bulls
and goats would never accomplish the Lamb slain before the foundation of
the world had indeed accomplished.
Abraham was not under the law, he was before the law! Because the
whole of the promise of the Covenant that Christ fulfills begins with
Abraham, his faith and his commitment to the Covenant that God made
with him and his posterity. Without Abraham there is no Covenant.
Without the Covenant there is NOTHING for Jesus Christ to come to fulfill!
It is rather silly to expect that Jesus Christ came to fulfill the law! What
would be the point? How does one fulfill legalism? Exactly how would you
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fulfill the law? On the other hand, fulfilling a Covenant makes total sense
and that is what Jesus Christ accomplished.
You can have the law without God. In fact, historically there were similar
law systems from the Code of Hammurabi to the Constitution of the United
States. All are like the law that God gave Moses but they are just the law.
Christ came to fulfill none of these! He came to bring the earnest of the
inheritance that He had promised Abraham. He came and fulfilled a
covenant.
“Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the
Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached
the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be
blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham,
the man of faith.”
So, we see that the faith of Abraham in the Old Testament is the
justification for the faith of New Testament Christ followers. Here we not
only see the fulfillment of the Covenant God made with Abraham but we
see that the Gospel was preached in the Old Testament to Abraham! How
then could we who are thousands of years after Abraham have any bearing
on the keeping of the Covenant God made with him? How can we ignore
the Gospel message of the Old Testament or the Grace Preachers of the
Old Testament who like Abraham believed God and it was counted to them
as righteousness.
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
Here is where many make an unfortunate
leap. For all who rely on works of the law
are under a curse; for it is written,
“Cursed be everyone who does not
abide by all things written in the Book
of the Law, and do them.” Now it is
evident that no one is justified before
God by the law, for “The righteous shall
live by faith.” However, Abraham who it has already been made
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abundantly clear is the man of faith was in the Old Testament not the New!
Yet he is justified not be the law which came after him through Moses but
rather by his faith. Faith in what? In the promise of God which Abraham
received in the form of Covenant!
“But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by
them.” Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse
for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— so
that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles,
so that we might receive the Spirit through faith. So the blessing of
Abraham which is summed up in the Covenant God made with him is the
source of the New Testament reception. To abolish, do away with or
ignore the Old Testament would negate all that God did through Abraham!
The Law and the Promise
In case his readers miss the point
that without Abraham there is no
covenant, no promise, no inheritance,
no will, nothing to entrust faith the
Apostle Paul continues: “To give a
human example, brothers: even with
a man-made covenant, no one annuls
it or adds to it once it has been ratified.” So, Apostle Paul references a
simple testament, will or document that a man might make and points out
that once you have written your will no one is authorized to annul it, add to
it or change the document. That is the whole point! The will is your
covenant of what you want to happen with your effects upon the event of
your passing. What point would there be in having a covenant that could
be altered at the whim of whomever?! Why would the God who is eternal
in the heavens even consider such an arrangement? What confidence
would we have in a God who reneged on His Everlasting Covenant? Only
with first having a Covenant and then having the one who made the
Covenant die (the death of the Testator) can there be inheritance.
The Great Apostle Paul concludes, “Now the promises were made to
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Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring
to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ.” How
do we ignore this other than on purpose?
“This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not
annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise
void. For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by
promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.” Here we see and
understand that the law which came more than 400 years after Abraham
received the Covenant from God had NO EFFECT on the Covenant God
had previously made with Abraham. The law had no ability to nullify,
change or alter the Covenant God had previously made with Abraham.
None! To teach, preach or otherwise conjecture (as some do) that based
on the fulfillment of the law coming in Christ we should then use that as a
reason to ignore, discard or abolish the entirety of the Old Testament which
includes the very Covenant to which we reference is heresy at best and
none could say it better than Apostle Paul did to the Galatian believers;
you have fallen under a spell of witchcraft!
Even in the law God makes the point that this is connected to the Covenant
He made with Abraham. “For I will have respect unto you, and make you
fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you (Lev. 26:9).
Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with
Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will
remember the land (Lev. 26:42).” This is not a New Covenant in the sense
of another Covenant, but a commitment from God to establish the
Covenant He made with Abraham based on the same terms He made with
Abraham. The newness of this Covenant would come in its fulfillment in
Christ Jesus!
You would rightly ask the Galatian church had; Why then the law?
Apostle Paul gives the answer: “It was added because of transgressions.”
For what period of time? “Until the offspring should come to whom the
promise had been made and it was put in place through angels by an
intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.
Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law
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had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by
the law.” “But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the
promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Now
before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the
coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until
Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith
has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are
all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into
Christ have put on Christ.”
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no
male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s,
then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.” This all
comes to pass through the Covenant God made with Abraham; not by the
law, nor through multiple covenants but one made by one eternal God who
sealed the Covenant by His own blood!
Without the Old Testament and the Covenant of Abraham we are without
explanation for the plethora of Scriptures that speak of the fulfillment of the
Covenant, the promise, the inheritance, and more. The law can satisfy
none of these! The Covenant with Abraham set the stage for the eventual
coming of Messiah to forever ratify the same Covenant; a New Covenant
fulfilled in the blood of Christ. Jesus Christ came not to make a completely
New Covenant devoid of connection to the promises made to Abraham but
to fulfill them. What would be the point in calling the law a Covenant or in
calling the coming of Christ a Covenant? Jesus Christ came for the
express purpose of fulfilling the Covenant He made with Abraham.
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GRACE THE FINAL
FRONTIER
CHAPTER 5
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In 2005 at the International Circle of Faith (ICOF)
Gathering of Eagles Conference in Edmonton, Alberta
Canada I spoke on the topic, Grace: The Final
Frontier. My text for that night was Acts Chapter 15.
In my mind I could hear the voice of actor William
Shatner [Star Trek’s Captain James T. Kirk] eloquently
saying “Space: The final frontier” as I read my
message title that night and gave it my own imprimatur: Grace: The Final
Frontier.
For many in the audience a message on
Grace was unknown territory. Some
admitted that they could not remember
ever hearing a message on the subject
of Grace. Fortunately, you don’t have to
travel on a star ship to reach Grace.
Christ already travelled the necessary
distance to bring Grace to you.
It certainly was in the mind of the Apostles in Acts Chapter 15 and more
clearly on the mind of Apostle James the Bishop of the Jerusalem Church
as he spoke of the importance of not putting those things on the non
Jewish converts that had been added through the Mosaic Legal system (or
law). As we have discussed, the Apostles in their coming together (Acts
Chapter 15) sought to bring unity and clarification to the role the Law of
Moses would play in the nascent New Testament Church. Their answer
was clear, concise and direct.
Unfortunately, those that call themselves the Church, or Christians or
Followers of Christ have added a plethora of their own ideas, conclusions,
and dogmas and created more than 41,000 differing religious systems (we
call denominations) to enforce or oversee their opinions. It is certain that
neither Jesus Christ nor the New Testament Church leadership would have
endorsed such chaos.
It seems strange to me that Grace should be spoken of in such a paradigm
as a frontier or the vast unknown. Yet, it is not Grace that is illusive but
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rather men have placed barriers and walls between those for whom Christ
gave His Life and the people He died to Save. Even though Grace has
been the cornerstone of man’s interaction with his Creator from the
beginning, it resonates with us that Grace still seems like a vast unknown.
I encourage you to take a voyage and discover Grace. Like the crew of the
famous Star Ship Enterprise it may be a 5 year voyage, or it may take an
entire lifetime, but I promise that the journey through God’s Grace will be
Epic.
The Whole of Scripture Speaks to the Covenant God made with
Abraham.
The essence of the Covenant of Grace is the same throughout the Old and
New Testaments—God saves sinners by Grace alone, through faith alone,
in Christ alone. But its historical administration has varied by time and
place. For example, the covenant of grace widened from the Old
Testament to the New Testament, as it was administered first with small
families (e.g., the families of Noah and Abram), then with the nation of
Israel, but now with the church, which is made up of people “from every
tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9). Also, it was
administered in the Old Testament through what the New Testament
authors describe as “types” and “shadows” (Heb. 8:5; 10:1), such as
sacrifices, the priesthood, and the temple, all of which pointed to their
reality, Jesus Christ (Col. 2:17).39
“Under the Old Testament, revelations were made at various times, by
various persons, in various laws and forms of teaching, with various
degrees of clearness, under various shadows, types, and figures, and with
various modes of revelation, such as by angels, visions, dreams, mental
impressions, etc. See Numbers 12:6, 8. But under the New Testament all is
done, simply, by one person, i.e. JESUS, who has fulfilled the prophets,
and completed prophecy; who is the way, the truth, and the life; and the
founder, mediator, and governor of his own kingdom. One great object of 39
What Is the Covenant of Grace? Daniel Hyde Sep 26, 2014
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the apostle is, to put the simplicity of the Christian system in opposition to
the complex nature of the Mosaic economy; and also to show that what the
law could not do because it was weak through the flesh, Jesus has
accomplished by the merit of his death, and the energy of his Spirit.”40
Scripture (hundreds of references, verses to a wide variety of the people of
God) expresses the importance of God’s Everlasting Covenant with His
people. There are many references and reminders of just how important
God holds the Covenant that He made with His friend Abraham. In all of
those references there is no indication that God’s Grace has been
exhausted or that He intends to do anything other than keep in force His
portion of the Covenant even when mankind ignored, violated or trampled
His Covenant. None of these things could persuade God from His will and
the promise of the same expressed through His Covenant with Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob. The concept of the coming Messiah is intrinsically tied to
the Covenant God made with Abraham, not the law.
In I Chronicles 16 God reminds the
Children of Israel that His Covenant with
Abraham is in effect for 1000
generations. 1000 Generations! Wow!
While we understand that is more
symbolic for unlimited generations even
just a 1000 generations is more than
40,000 years and we have only
journeyed a small portion of that number since the book of Chronicles was
written. In fact there is debatable evidence that the entire history of
mankind encompasses such a span. In Ezekiel 16 God rails on Israel
because of the multiple violations not of the law but of the Everlasting
Covenant that God made with their forefathers. Even the Ark (symbol of
the Tabernacle in the Wilderness) is called the Ark of the Covenant.
The Westminster Confession of Faith gives us this relevant summation:
“This covenant was differently administered in the time of the law and in the
time of the gospel: under the law it was administered by promises, 40
Adam Clarke Commentary. Hebrews. Chapter 1. Page 351.
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prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the paschal lamb, and other types and
ordinances delivered to the people of the Jews, all fore-signifying Christ to
come, which were for that time sufficient and efficacious, through the
operation of the Spirit, to instruct and build up the elect in faith in the
promised Messiah, by whom they had full remission of sins, and eternal
salvation; and is called the Old Testament.
Under the gospel, when Christ the substance was exhibited, the ordinances
in which this covenant is dispensed are the preaching of the word and the
administration of the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper; which,
though fewer in number, and administered with more simplicity and less
outward glory, yet in them, it is held forth in more fullness, evidence, and
spiritual efficacy, to all nations, both Jews and Gentiles; and is called the
New Testament. There are not, therefore, two covenants of grace differing
in substance, but one and the same under various dispensations. (7.5-6).”
The manifestation of the Covenant of Grace was progressively disclosed.
It began in the Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve sinned and God
promised a redeemer (Gen. 3:15), to Abraham the promise to bless the
nations (Gen. 12:2-3).
Another Preacher of Grace
The Old Testament is as qualified to
focus on the Covenant of Grace as is the
New Testament and it is the central
theme of both. Noah was not a lone
ranger railing against all others who were
not as filled with grace as he. We find
that it was Enoch (also a preacher of
Grace) and not Noah who preached
about the return of the Lord in judgment.
However, Noah is left to continue the line of men while Enoch is translated.
Jude 1:14-15
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying,
Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
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To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that
are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have
ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sin
ners have spoken against him.
It is noteworthy that Jude (a New Testament Grace preacher), in his one-
chapter epistle, referred not only to Enoch and Adam, but also to Moses,
Cain, Balaam and Korah, as well as to the sin of the angels and the
destruction of Sodom. Strangely, these are topics that many modern
preachers think are to be discarded.
Jesus Christ Beneficiary of Grace
It may seem odd to consider that Jesus Christ would be the beneficiary of
Grace by Covenant. It is certainly unique for the Testator of a Covenant to
also be a beneficiary. The Mosaic Law called for a mother who was
without child and had not yet been with her husband to be stoned.
Joseph, who is espoused to Mary (mother of Jesus), certainly knows that
he has not been with Mary in such a manner. Yet, in an amazing display of
Grace, Joseph (himself a beneficiary of Grace by Covenant) extends the
Grace of God to his fiancée, Mary, and to the unborn Child which is Jesus
Christ. “Though Joseph was a righteous man, and knew that the law
required that such persons as he supposed his wife to be should be put to
death, yet, as righteousness is ever directed by mercy, he determined to
put her away or divorce her privately, i.e. without assigning any cause, that
her life might be saved; and, as the offense was against himself, he had a
right to pass it by if he chose.”41
Apostle Paul gives a unique perspective in speaking of the heir, “Now I
say, that the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant,
though he be lord of all; but is under tutors and governors until the time
appointed of the father”(Galatians 4:1-2).
41
Adam Clarke Commentary. Gospel of Matthew. Chapter1. Verse 19.
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All Roads Have Two Ditches
Every driver understands that on the left
hand of the road is a ditch, but the right also
has a ditch. One ditch is no better than the
other. Jesus referred to the blind leaders
of the blind and the end result is all of their
followers ended up in a ditch. In the case of
the Gospel message, abusive, legalistic
and/or authoritarian leaders, pastors and
other ministers have delivered a picture of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that
is untrue, unrealistic or altered often leaving those who would follow Christ
confused, angry, or frustrated. This is certainly a ditch. Some of these
confused, angry and frustrated people in an attempt to justify the ‘ditch’ that
they have been directed toward have overcompensated by swerving
toward the other ditch. One ditch is no better than the other.
For the record I would say that if we are going to error let us error on the
side of Grace. However, the Gospel is not a represented by either ditch
and Grace is not limited to the New Testament. We cannot, we must not,
replace one error for another. We cannot exchange authoritarianism for
license. We cannot replace legalism with the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes
(no moral absolutes). Grace is the primary message of God to His
creation; beginning in Genesis and continuing till today. Grace was the
message that kept our first ancestors from immediate death. Grace was
the message that allowed Noah and his wife to be the progenitors of the
human race rather than the last living persons. Grace gave David life after
he murdered Uriah. Grace gave us the promise of a coming Messiah,
Grace gave us a resurrected Christ and Grace gives each of us an
opportunity for eternal life. By Grace are you saved, not of works, lest
you would boast!
If we look carefully we must conclude that both Noah and Enoch were
preaching grace. Yet, many of our modern preachers want to contend that
Enoch was preaching “un-grace”. By un-grace they apparently mean to
indicate a lack of grace. However, there is apparent Divine approval of the
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message of both Enoch and Noah. Both are righteous. Thus, it must then
be that they were both dispensers of the Grace of God.
By Grace are you Saved
Like Noah who found Grace, Apostle Paul points the New Testament Christ
follower to pursue finding Grace. “Let us then with confidence draw near to
the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in
time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16). Apostle Paul is obviously not confused
about the importance of the Old Testament or its relevance to the
Everlasting Gospel. Perhaps, previous to his conversion this was a
stumbling block for him, but afterward he understood that Jesus Christ was
the Promise of the Old fulfilled in the New.
He continues the theme in Chapter 5 of Hebrews, ”As in the seed of
Abraham all the nations of the earth were to be blessed, Abraham received
a sacerdotal blessing from Melchisedec, who was the representative of the
Messiah, the promised seed, to show that it was through him, as the high
priest of the human race, that this blessing was to be derived on all
mankind.”42 “As there is no account of Melchisedec ceasing to be a priest,
or of his dying, he is represented as still living, the better to point him out as
a type of Christ, and to show his priesthood to be more excellent than that
which was according to the law, as an unchanging priesthood must be
more excellent than that which was continually changing”43 and as a result
superior, Everlasting from before the time of Abraham to present.
The Levitical priesthood was merely a copy of the Melchisedec Priesthood
first modeled to Abraham and finally manifested in Jesus Christ. The order
of Aaron being now abrogated, to make way for that which had preceded it,
the order of Melchisedec. Thus, we see that Melchisedec is Priest before
the Mosaic Law and after Jesus Christ comes in the same original order.
“The priesthood, therefore, being changed, Jesus coming in the place of
Aaron, the law of ordinances and ceremonies, which served only to point
42
Adam Clarke Commentary. Hebrews. Chapter 5. Page 465. 43
Ibid.
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out the Messiah, must of necessity be changed also.”44 Melchisedec, who
was not only a priest, but also a king. None of the Levitical priests
sustained this double office; but they both, with that of prophet, appear and
were exercised in the person of our Lord, who is the Priest to which the
apostle alludes.
In Grace we see the original intent of God is manifest in Jesus Christ. The
Mosaic Law is but a part of that plan, brought to fruition specifically for the
Israelites as they transitioned from slaves to free and from a family to a
nation. A law (Mosaic) to give the people direction that would ultimately
point them to Christ, back to the original Covenant that God had made with
Abraham. Melchisedec is an agent of implementation and Christ coming
in the same manner delivers the Promise. Hebrews refers to this as an
oath and better covenant.
“THE NEW COVENANT, thus contradistinguished from the Mosaic, which
was the old covenant; and this is called the new and better covenant,
because God has in it promised other blessings, to other people, on other
conditions, than the old covenant did.”45
God Is Grace
Teaching, preaching, or prophesying
of God’s judgment upon those who
are ungodly and refuse to turn from
their ungodly deeds (sins) is also part
of the eternal message of the Grace
of God. This gives continuity to all
Scripture. Grace is not a ‘feel good’
or where we pick and choose what
parts of the Word of God we like. Rather, God is Grace. He alone is the
arbitrator of His Grace, His Goodness and His Divine Mercy.
Given that, the entirety of the message from God to mankind is about
Grace. Those who perished in the Great Flood and those who were saved 44
Adam Clarke Commentary. Hebrews. Chapter 5. Page 467. 45
Adam Clarke Commentary. Hebrews. Chapter 5. Page 471.
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were beneficiaries of Grace. Those who escaped Sodom and Gomorrah
and those who perished all were beneficiaries of God’s Grace.
Hebrews 8 gives us the account this way:
Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high
priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in
heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the
Lord, not by a mere human being. Every high priest is appointed to offer
both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have
something to offer. If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there
are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. They serve at
a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why
Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it
that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the
mountain.” But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to
theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one,
since the new covenant is established on better promises. Jesus Christ
was not held to the limitations of the promise and the chronological vision
of Abraham but as the manifestation of God He brought the promise and
the “New” to the Covenant. This is of keen importance to those who were
of natural Jews but of little understanding to the Gentile who had been
limited in their access to the Covenant primarily because of the
interpretation of the law.
For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would
have been sought for another. But God found fault with the people and
said: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new
covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not
be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the
hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my
covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord.”
This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time,
declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their
hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they
teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they
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will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will forgive
their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
Perfect Preacher of Grace
Job was a preacher of Righteousness. He found so much Grace (favor)
with God that he got the attention of Satan. Job is not the poster boy of
the Grace as license movement but he is one of God’s poster boys. The
reason some don’t understand Job is that they tell people that when you
serve God everything is perfect. While it is true in one sense it is not in the
context they present God’s Grace. In Job they miss the very point. The
message of Job is that we can be perfect; not as men count perfection, but
rather as God counts perfection. Job was perfect because he put God
first. Job says that even in death he will trust God! This is a man who
realizes God’s Grace at work in his life. Job, no doubt, had his
shortcomings. His wife and his friends certainly had an opinion on the
subject. However, God was of the opinion that Job was perfect.
To give a parallel from the times of Christ, we find the teachers bring to
Jesus a woman who was caught in the very act of adultery. Adultery is sin.
Adultery is punishable by death. Like the sin of her forefathers in the
Garden of Eden; the penalty was death. Jesus did not attempt to defend
the woman based on legalism, authoritarianism, church history, or His
personal feelings on the subject. The law was clear and the teachers were
certain. Rather, Jesus used the opportunity to point out that there was
something higher than the law.
Jesus, as the giver of the law,
was the same Lawgiver who had
granted Grace to Eve and Noah
and the only one who could
usher in a new or updated
Covenant. It was not a man’s
covenant so a man could not
accomplish what only God
manifested in the flesh would. In
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this scenario he grants Grace to the woman caught in the very act of
adultery. Here Christ demonstrates the earmark of Grace. Grace is not
about license but Grace is about the absence of condemnation. One of the
reasons some modern theologians are turning Grace into license is that
they don’t understand that Grace is about the lack of condemnation. Grace
doesn’t change the law. Jesus Christ came as both the lawgiver and the
testator of the Covenant of Grace made with Abraham.
Rather than condemn the woman Jesus first encourages the accusers to
determine who among them was without sin. This is not the abolition of law
and order but rather a time to reflect on their own sinful condition. Then
Jesus instructs those who were without sin to pick up a stone. However,
there were none among the teachers who thought themselves free from sin
as they were still largely impacted by the curse from the law. Perhaps they
had never even considered the point. They were so busy enforcing the law
that their own shortcomings may have never occurred to them. When
taken in the light of having a sinless nature to enforce the law there was no
one left. This is the culture of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. In Christ we
are in a culture where sin does not have the pre-eminence.
It is one thing to insist on the keeping of the law. It is quite another thing to
keep the law. Apostle Peter commented in Acts Chapter 15 (concerning
the law) “which neither we nor our fathers could keep.” What Jesus
does is not abolish or change the law. Rather he simply asks that those
enforcing the law be sinless. Grace trumps the law.
The Anti-Grace
“There is a growing movement in the Body of Christ that insists that the
primary offense in the church is its “sin consciousness” and the judgmental
attitudes that go with it. Certainly religious spirits are a problem and
legalism continues to bring many into misguided bondage. But if that were
all there was to the issue of the church’s condition now or then the letter to
the Corinthians would hardly have needed to have been written.”46
46
IS CHRIST DIVIDED? DISCERNING THE LORD’S BODY. Don Atkin and Brian Harrison. Page 21
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Those that claim Christ and offer hate are fortunately in the minority.
Grace is not a license for sin. Neither is Grace a platform to bludgeon
those with whom we disagree. Those who think that the purpose of the
Bible is to be used as a weapon to beat unbelievers or those who have
shortcomings or those who fall prey to sin do not understand Grace. Jesus
Christ came that we could have Abundant Life!
An example of those who abuse the purpose of God and frustrate Grace in
this manner is the 40 member Westboro Baptist Church. This group uses
the Bible to preach a message of hate that God never sanctioned or
endorsed. They are no doubt the poster child for those claiming Christ who
offer no version of Grace. This might be fairly called an Anti-Grace group.
This group has sponsored a plethora of activities that have no possible
support in Scripture. “Representatives of the Church offer their idea of
Grace by saying that “99.999 percent of people are going to hell”47. This is
hard to absorb in light of a God who gave His life that none should perish
but that all should gain eternal life.
The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness,
but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that
all should reach repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
Grace is not License
The opposite message of the Anti-Grace
promoting Westboro Baptist is the concept of
Universalism with a plethora of poster boys
none of whom we will give free publicity in this
treatise. These offer everything from the idea
that redemption or salvation will be offered in
hell, to the idea that Adolf Hitler and his
contemporaries will also eventually gain
eternal salvation. This is not reflective of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ or any of the terms of
His Covenant with man. How can we ignore the message of Hebrews 12? 47
Hellbound. 2012.
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Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy,
who hath trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of
the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath
done despite unto the Spirit of grace? Here the writer speaks of the most
important segment of the Covenant; the blood and connects this directly to
the Spirit of Grace!
In fairness, these are some of those who have turned the Grace of God
into lasciviousness. This we must not ignore, excuse or endure.
However, that is not a reason to expect that all who preach Grace are
turning that Grace into lasciviousness. The last thing we want to do in our
preaching is encourage sin. For the believing heart, it provides the very
motivation to say “No” to sin. It is Grace and Grace alone that will
empower people to overcome sin! The road to victory over sin is paved
with Grace. This Grace was given to mankind by Covenant and sealed
with the blood of Jesus Christ at Calvary.
Preaching Grace
Jesus was the ultimate Grace
Preacher. He was Grace
manifested in flesh. There are
many examples of His Grace. In
speaking to the woman caught in
the very act of adultery did not
condone her sin nor did he
pretend that she had committed
no sin. Rather, he commanded
the woman to go and sin no more. The reasons are many. Yet, we must
know that the culture in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ is one that is free from
sin. Sin is the enemy of God. God looks for those who are perfect. Not
perfect in a human sense; as we all could attest to our own shortcomings
and the faults of others. Yet, perfect as Christ looks on us. Free from the
desire to sin and set free by the blood of Jesus Christ from the curse of sin
that was against us.
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Grace will not rob a preacher of the right to say the hard words or make
challenges or ask for commitment. Jesus makes it clear. Neither do I
condemn you! The true sense of Grace is a lack of condemnation.
Jesus did not say that you are no longer guilty nor did he preach her a
sermon on the evils of sexual sin. Even in our repentance and baptism we
do not erase the deeds of the past. If you murdered someone they are not
magically transformed back to life because of your coming to Christ in
repentance and baptism. Rather, as in the case of this woman you are
transformed by the blood of Jesus Christ from carrying the weight of your
sin and the condemnation of the same on you to living in the Grace of
Jesus Christ.
Preaching grace with power will yield a greater long-term result than will
legalistic manipulation offered by those who have misplaced Grace. Grace
never has, and properly understood, never will encourage sin. Grace was
bought by Jesus Christ at the highest of prices. And grace dispensed from
that account will never take sin lightly. But it will address it from a different
posture—and actually empower victory over it.
1. Preaching grace does not mean avoiding a confrontation with sin.
2. Preaching grace does not mean avoiding a call to commitment.
3. Preaching grace does not mean serving up spiritual mush with no
caloric value for the soul.
But here’s what it does mean:
1. Preaching grace always keeps an eye on the incredible forgiving
nature of God.
2. Preaching grace does mean refusing to manipulate your hearers to
accomplish an objective in a fleshly, legalistic, or authoritarian
manner.
3. Preaching grace does mean loving your hearers in spite of how they
respond to your message.
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4. Preaching grace does mean trusting God to accomplish his
objectives in his way and in his time.
To my friends, from the first group we mentioned, who are truly Grace
Preachers, I salute you in the name of Jesus Christ, the only name given
among heaven whereby we must be saved! I charge you to keep the
message of Jesus Christ pure and to preach Grace by Covenant to all; both
Jew and Gentile, male and female, bond and free, happy and unhappy,
white, black, Hispanic, Indian, Asia, African and all others!
To those, from the second group we mentioned, who are trying to impress
the rest of us with your knowledge. I encourage you to study show
yourselves approved. Pray and ask God to give you wisdom and humility.
Those, in our third Group, who claim Grace while offering a license to sin,
are not Grace Preachers. Those claiming that the Church needs to change
its position on sin and those claiming that the Commandments of God are
no longer relevant are in error. We do ourselves, and the body of Christ a
discredit to protect such persons by claiming that there are not offering
license. To those who purposely seek to pervert the Gospel, I leave you
with the words of the great Apostle Jude.
“In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns
gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an
example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. In the very
same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute
their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. But
even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the
body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said,
“The Lord rebuke you!”
“Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the
very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will
destroy them. Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have
rushed for profit into Balaam’s error; they have been destroyed in Korah’s
rebellion. These people are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you
without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves. They
are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit
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and uprooted—twice dead. They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up
their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been
reserved forever. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them:
“See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy
ones to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts
they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words
ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” These people are grumblers
and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about
themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.”
Second Covenant and New Covenant
We would be remiss to ignore or not take time to examine and explain the
Scriptures that speak of a New Covenant or a Second Covenant. These
references are to contrast what Christ accomplished in fulfilling the
Covenant against the understanding people (primarily Jewish followers of
Christ) had of the Covenant made with Abraham.
None of these references speak to abolishing the Covenant. Nowhere is
this made clearer that Apostle Paul’s writing in Romans 9. “Who are
Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the
covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the
promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh
Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen.
“The term new covenant, as used here, seems to mean that grand plan of
agreement or reconciliation which God made between himself and
mankind, by the death of Jesus Christ; in consequence of which, all those
who truly repent, and unfeignedly believe in the great atoning sacrifice, are
purified from their sins, and united to God.
Christ is called the Mediator of the new covenant, Hebrews 9:15. And
referring to the ratification of this new covenant or agreement, by means of
his own death, in the celebration of his last supper, Christ calls the cup,
this cup is the new covenant in my blood: i.e. an emblem or
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representation of the new covenant ratified by his blood.”48 It is certainly,
“adding to”49 for those who assert that the ratification of the Covenant as
new means the dissolution of the Everlasting Covenant rather than the
fulfillment of the same. “Previously to the New Testament times, were
termed simply THE Covenant; were, after the incarnation, called the OLD
covenant, as we have already seen, to distinguish them from the Christian
Scriptures, and their grand subject, which were called the NEW covenant;
not so much because it was a new agreement, but rather a renewal of the
old, in which the spirit, object, and design of that primitive covenant were
more clearly and fully manifested.”50
Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all
Israel, which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham,
are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, they
which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but
the children of the promise are counted for the seed.
In Galatians 4 Apostle Paul tells us that the idea of two covenants is an
allegorical way of explaining the difference between the Covenant God
made with Abraham and the fulfillment of the same through Jesus Christ.
Romans 8, speaks of the better covenant. In our vernacular we would call
this New and Improved. This would be like Tide (laundry soap) offering a
new version of its product and marketing it as New and Improved. Still the
soap that the buyers have previously had confidence, but new in the sense
that it has added ingredients that will improve the user’s experience.
This does not mean that the original is no longer but rather it is exactly as
advertized – New, better, improved. Hebrews 12 tells us that the New
Covenant is better than the blood of bulls and goats, better than the blood
of Able, not like the attempts to covenant with those who keep not their end
of the Covenant. A Covenant like that made with Abraham (who was a
Gentile) that did not attempt to exclude Gentiles,
48
Adam Clarke Commentary. Gospel of Matthew. Preface. Page 6. 49
Deuteronomy 4:2, Revelation 22:19. 50
Adam Clarke Commentary. Gospel of Matthew. Preface. Page 6.
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1. “As the law was given on Mount Sinai, so the Gospel was given at
Mount Sion.
2. As Jerusalem was the city of the living God, (for there was the
temple, its services, sacrifices, etc.,) the Christian Church is now
called the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. In it is the
great sacrifice, in it that spiritual worship, which God, the infinite
Spirit, requires.
3. The ministry of angels was used under the old covenant, but that was
partial, being granted only to particular persons, such as Moses,
Joshua, Manoah, etc., and only to a few before the law, as Abraham,
Jacob, etc. It is employed under the new covenant in its utmost
latitude, not to a few peculiarly favored people, but to all the followers
of God in general; so that in this very epistle the apostle asserts that
they are all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them that shall
be heirs of salvation.
4. At the giving of the law, when the Church of the old covenant was
formed, there was a general assembly of the different tribes by their
representatives; in the Gospel Church all who believe in Christ, of
every nation, and kindred, and tongue, form one grand aggregate
body. Believers of all nations, of all languages, of all climates,
however differing in their color or local habits, are one in Christ Jesus;
one body, of which he is the head, and the Holy Spirit the soul.
5. The first-born under the old dispensation had exclusive privileges;
they had authority, emolument, and honor, of which the other children
in the same family did not partake: but under the new, all who believe
in Christ Jesus, with a heart unto righteousness, are equally children
of God, are all entitled to the same privileges; for, says the apostle,
ye are all children of God by faith in Christ, and to them that received
him he gave authority to become the children of God; so that through
the whole of this Divine family all have equal rights and equal
privileges, all have GOD for their portion, and heaven for their
inheritance.
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6. As those who had the rights of citizens were enrolled, and their
names entered on tables, etc., so that it might be known who were
citizens, and who had the rights of such; so all the faithful under the
new covenant are represented as having their names written in
heaven, which is another form of speech for, have a right to that
glorious state, and all the blessings it possesses; there are their
possessions, and there are their rights.
7. Only the high priest, and he but one day in the year, was permitted to
approach God under the system for those who were under the Law of
Moses; but under Grace by Covenant, every believer in Jesus can
come even to the throne, each has liberty to enter into the holiest by
the blood of Jesus, and, to real Christians alone it can be said, Ye are
come-to God the Judge of all — to him ye have constant access, and
from him ye are continually receiving grace upon grace.
The righteous perfect, or just men made perfect, is a Jewish phrase,
and signified those who had made the farthest advances in moral
rectitude. The Apostle used it to point out those in the Church of
Christ who had received the highest degrees of Grace, possessed
most of the mind of Christ, and were doing and suffering most for the
glory of God; those who were most deeply acquainted with the things
of God and the mysteries of the Gospel, such as the apostles,
evangelists, the primitive teachers, and those who presided in and
over different Churches.”51
Final Thoughts
When people of any race or background enter into a covenant
relationship with Christ, they, too, become Abraham's seed. As Paul
wrote in Galatians:3:28-29
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there
is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 51
Adam Clarke Commentary. Hebrews. Chapter 12.
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And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs
according to the promise."
God has only one people. His one people are comprised of people from all
stations and walks of life. His people are from every nation under heaven;
every tribe, every kindred, every caste, every culture, every skin color, and
more.
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