GRACE NOT A LICENSE TO SIN

 

August 15, 2011

NO EXCUSE FOR SIN – GRACE NOT A LICENSE TO SIN.

The most common sham/mistake in Christianity is using the grace of God to override the Word of God. Many Christians knowingly break God’s word then think it’s okay because they are under grace. Jesus said he didn’t come to destroy the law but to fulfill it and that the new covenant of love, grace, and mercy still is held together by the old law…Matt 22:40. The Mosaic law made the Jewish people obligated to follow them, the new law of love allows us room to stumble without having the wrath of God breathing down our necks, but in no way does it allows us to to act improper and think all is forgiven. Just b/cus we have grace & mercy does not mean we now have a license to sin. Far from that!! Only those who OBEY will inherit the kingdom. That’s why the fallen angels were removed… b/cus they did not obey, & the bible says it. God wants those who will willingly obey and have faith (faith & works). We will replace the fallen angels… but that’s another subject.
Let’s look at all the scriptures that pertain to this to dispel the confusion among Christianity. Scripture: “What shall we say then? SHALL WE CONTINUE IN SIN THAT GRACE MAY ABOUND? CERTAINLY NOT! HOW SHALL WE WHO DIED TO SIN LIVE ANY LONGER IN IT? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, EVEN SO WE ALSO SHOULD WALK IN NEWNESS OF LIFE. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, THAT OUR OLD MAN WAS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM, that the body of sin might be done away with, THAT WE SHOULD NO LONGER BE SLAVES OF SIN.” Romans 6:1-6  Look what Jesus says about slaves of sin, Scripture: “Jesus answered them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, WHOEVER COMMITS SIN IS A SLAVE OF SIN. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.’” John 8:34-35
& this is what a lot of Christians don’t seem to understand. The Bible says to WALK IN THE NEWNESS OF LIFE, and also says to WALK in the Spirit, b/cus walking is a continual thing. Once we stop walking, we are no longer in the Spirit, & we are back in the flesh, subject to death. It’s like walking to the store. If we stop walking, we’ll never get to the store. We’ll never get to where we going. We’ll never attain to Righteousness if we stop walking in the Spirit. Scripture: “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; ONLY DO NOT USE LIBERTY AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE FLESH, but through love serve one another. all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Galatians 5:13-16  And indeed Jesus came to fulfill and establish the law, not destroy it, Scripture: Jesus says: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I DID NOT COME TO DESTROY BUT TO FULFILL.” Matthew 5:17
So if that’s the case, what is the difference between now and then? For those who receive God’s grace, like you said Carlos, we do not sin, we walk in the Spirit, but should we make a mistake, we will be o.k., as Jesus says in this Scripture: “My little children, these things I write to you, SO THAT YOU MAY NOT. And IF anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. Now by this we know that we know Him, IF WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS.” 1 John 2:1-3 So, even tho Jesus is the propitiation for our sins, we STILL have to keep His Commandments.  And when we do the Scripture says: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not WALK according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS has made me free from THE LAW OF SIN AND DEATH.” Romans 8:1-2 You see how there are 2 laws here? Here’s another Scripture that mentions 2 laws: “Where is boasting then? It is excluded. BY WHAT LAW? OF WORKS? NO, BUT BY THE LAW OF FAITH.“ Romans 3:27 Scripture: “Do we then make void the law through faith? CERTAINLY NOT! ON CONTRARY, WE ESTABLISH THE LAW.” Romans 3:31
Scripture: “FOR SIN SHALL NOT HAVE DOMINION OVER YOU, for you are not under law [of sin & death] but under grace [Law of the Spirit of Life aka Law of Righteousness]. WHAT THEN? SHALL WE SIN BECAUSE WE ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW [of sin & death] BUT UNDER GRACE [Law of Righteousness]? CERTAINLY NOT! Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, YOU ARE THAT ONE’S SLAVES WHOM YOU OBEY, whether of sin leading to death [in the law of sin & death], or of obedience leading to righteousness [in the Law of Righteousness aka the Law of the Spirit of LIfe]? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, YET YOU OBEYED FROM THE HEART that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin [law of sin & death], you became slaves of righteousness [Law of Righteousness aka the Law of the Spirit of Life].” Romans 6:15-18
Realize, both laws (the law of sin & death and the Law of the Spirit of Life aka the Law of Righteousness), both are the same law meaning they both cover the 10 commandments, but 1 law (the law of sin & death) is governed in the flesh, & the other law (Law of the Spirit of Life aka the Royal Law of Righteousness) is governed in the Spirit. In the Law of the Spirit of Life (as long as you walk according to the Spirit, which means you have to do away with the things in the flesh & continue to keep the commands), then if you make a mistake, God is gracious towards you & you will still live b/cus he will pardon your sins, tho you must continue to walk in the Spirit. In the law of sin & death, there is no room for mistakes. If you sin once you break the commands & are subject to death. This is the difference between the TWO laws. Same law, different outcome. In one law you have grace & mercy (the Law of the Spirit of Life aka the Royal Law of Righteousness) & in the other law you don’t (the law of sin & death). See the Scripture: “For what the law [of sin & death] could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh [born through sinful flesh], on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh [by fulfilling the works of the law perfectly], that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not WALK according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” Romans 8:3-4 See what the scripture says about the Law of the Spirit of Life aka the Law of Righteousness (the Royal Law), to those who decide that they can still sin: “If you really fulfill the ROYAL LAW [of the Spirit of Life aka the Law of Righteousness] according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ YOU DO WELL; BUT IF YOU SHOW PARTIALITY, YOU COMMIT SIN, AND ARE CONVICTED by the law [of sin & death] as transgressors. For whoever shall KEEP THE WHOLE LAW [of sin & death], AND YET STUMBLE IN ONE POINT, HE IS GUILTY OF ALL. For He who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law [of sin & death]. So speak and so do as those [in the Spirit] who will be judged by the LAW OF LIBERTY [which is the Law of the Spirit of Life aka Law of Righteousness]. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” James 2:8-13
So, here is the fulfillment of the law (meaning the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus fulfilling the law of sin & death)… Scripture: “Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second IS LIKE IT: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40 Those were the commandments that were told in of OLD, in the old testament in Deuteronomy 6:5, Deuteronomy 10:12, Deuteronomy 11:13, Deuteronomy 30:6, & Joshua 22:5.  Scripture: “Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘You shall not covet,’ and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” Romans 13:8-10 Scripture: “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for ‘LOVE WILL COVER A MULTITUDE OF SINS.’ Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, MINISTER IT TO ONE ANOTHER, AS GOOD STEWARDS of the manifold GRACE of God. IF ANYONE SPEAKS, LET HIM SPEAK AS THE ORACLES OF GOD. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 1 Peter 4: 8-11 The people who are doing that don’t sound like people who are busy sinning and living in the flesh, but are people who are busy doing the work of God and walking in the Spirit.
Here’s more fulfillment of the law… Jesus says in this Scripture: “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; ABIDE IN MY LOVE. IF YOU KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS, YOU WILL ABIDE IN MY LOVE, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” John 15:10  Scripture: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, IF GOD SO LOVED US, WE ALSO OUGHT TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER. NO ONE HAS SEEN GOD AT ANYTIME. IF WE LOVE ONE ANOTHER, GOD ABIDES IN US, AND HIS LOVE HAS BEEN PERFECTED IN US. BY THIS WE KNOW THAT WE ABIDE IN HIM, AND HE IN US, BECAUSE HE HAS GIVEN US HIS SPIRIT. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.” 1 John 4:7-16
Scripture: “Now by this we know that we know Him, IF WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. HE WHO SAYS, ‘I KNOW HIM’ AND DOES NOT KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS, IS A LIAR, AND THE TRUTH IS NOT IN HIM. BUT WHOEVER KEEPS HIS WORD, TRULY THE LOVE OF GOD IS PERFECTED IN HIM. By this we know that we are in Him. HE WHO SAYS HE ABIDES IN HIM OUGHT HIMSELF ALSO TO WALK JUST AS HE WALKED. Brethren, I WRITE NO NEW COMMANDMENT TO YOU, BUT AN OLD COMMANDMENT WHICH YOU HAVE HAD FROM THE BEGINNING. THE OLD COMMANDMENT IS THE WORD WHICH YOU HEARD FROM THE BEGINNING. Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. HE WHO LOVES HIS BROTHER ABIDES IN THE LIGHT, AND THERE IS NO CAUSE FOR STUMBLING IN HIM. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and WALKS in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” 1 John 2:3-11
God shows GRACE & mercy on us, so we must also show mercy on others. This is the fulfillment of the commandments.  See the Scripture: “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, ‘Teacher, WHAT SHALL I DO TO INHERIT ETERNAL LIFE?’ He said to him, ‘WHAT IS WRITTEN IN THE LAW? What is your reading of it?’ So he answered and said, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ And He said to him, ‘You have answered rightly; DO THIS AND YOU WILL LIVE.’ But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’ Then Jesus answered and said: ‘A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?’ And he said, ‘He who showed mercy on him.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’ Luke 10:25-37 Scripture: “But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?” 1 John 3:17
How is loving one another fulfilling the commandments? Because when we love one another, we love Him, and we are able to fulfill all the commandments in love (remembering that God is love, so we are able to abide in Him), as long as we walk in the Spirit, and in our faith in Jesus Christ… this is faith with Works (of love). How is love works? B/cus think about it. When you do something for someone and get paid for it, that is work. But when you do something for someone without pay, that is love. Faith without works is dead. “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? CAN FAITH SAVE HIM? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body [an act of love], what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:14-17 “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” James 2:24 And those works are indeed the fulfillment of the commandments / the fulfillment of the law!!  Scripture: ” Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, ‘Which is the first commandment of all?’ Jesus answered him, ‘The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ THERE IS NO OTHER COMMANDMENT GREATER THAN THESE.’ So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, IS MORE THAN ALL THE WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND SACRIFICES.” Mark 12:32-33 B/cus we are made in the image of God, & no one has seen God at anytime, when we love our neighbor, we are also loving God and fulilling the Royal Law. This is why love is the fulfillment of the law.
It does not excuse us to go sin, as the Bible says, there is no excuse for sin. Scripture: “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, BUT NOW THEY HAVE NO EXCUSE FOR THEIR SIN.” John 15:22 Those who try to make an excuse for sin, or use Christ as an excuse to sin (as if Grace excuses them to sin), the Scripture says: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who SUPPRESS THE TRUTH IN UNRIGHTEOUSNESS, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, SO THAT THEY ARE WITHOUT EXCUSE, because, ALTHOUGH THEY KNEW GOD, THEY DID NOT GLORIFY HIM AS GOD, nor were thankful, BUT BECAME FUTILE IN THEIR THOUGHTS, AND THEIR FOOLISH HEARTS WERE DARKENED.” Romans 1:20-21 So, how should we behave? Scripture: “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— AS FREE, YET NOT USING LIBERTY AS A CLOAK FOR VICE, BUT AS BONDSERVANTS OF GOD. Honor all people. LOVE THE BROTHERHOOD. FEAR GOD. Honor the king.” 1 Peter 2:15-17