When we think of God's Word, we don't always remember that Jesus and the Word of God are One and the same. When we honor the Word, we honor Jesus. Because the Bible is divided into two covenants, we as Christians seem to have a difficult time understanding it. We, as Christian people, Gentiles if you will, weren't ever under the Law of Moses. This Law was given to the Hebrew people and they were under covenant with God; not us. Ephesians 2:12 (Amplified) says that, "(Remember) that you at that time were separated (living apart) from Christ (excluded from all part of Him) utterly estranged and outlawed from the rights of Israel as a nation, and strangers with no share in the sacred compacts of the (Messianic) promise (with no knowledge of or right in God's agreement, His covenants) and you had no hope (no promise); you were in the world without God."
When you read the Word in this way, it makes you wonder how we managed to put ourselves under the Law (which is passed away) that we were never partakers of to begin with. Now that grace has come and the Law is fulfilled in Jesus, how do we become under the Law? Hebrews 8:13 (Amplified) tells us, "When God speaks of a new covenant (or agreement) He makes the first one obsolete (out of use and annulled because of age) is ripe for disappearance and to be dispensed with altogether."
We've allowed ourselves to be under condemnation from our old lives instead of walking in the liberty of our new life. We've allowed ourselves to be saved by our covenant of grace and walk under the condemnation of the old covenant. Some want to say we are using grace in order to still walk in the flesh, but that isn't true for the real child of God. Do we still make mistakes? Of course we do, but the Blood of Jesus still took care of our mistakes.
We try to understand what the Word is telling us to do, but because we don't distinguish between covenants, we still get confused. Even now, we don't seem to realize that it's the Holy Spirit Who is building the Church. Jesus came as the Lamb of God to die in our place. When He rose from the dead and was seated at the right hand of the Father, His part as a man was fulfilled. Now, He has sent the Holy Spirit to reveal to the Church what He has done.
We read in John 16:13-15 (Amplified), "But when He, the Spirit of truth (the truth giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all the truth (the whole, full truth). For He will not speak His own message (on His own authority), but He will tell whatever He hears (from the Father, He will give the message that has been given to Him); and He will announce and declare to you the things that are to come (that will happen in the future)."
The things that were to happen in the future, is the entire New Testament because the new birth, the forgiveness of sin and righteousness by faith was yet to come. Verse 14 goes on, "He will honor and glorify Me, because He will take of (receive, draw upon) what is Mine and will reveal (declare, disclose, transmit) it to you." Verse 15 continues, "Everything that the Father has is Mine, that is what I meant when I said that He (the Spirit) will take the things that are Mine, and will reveal (declare, disclose, transmit) it to you."
All of the things that are revealed to today's Church (all of the things of truth), are revealed by the Holy Spirit. This is His dispensation to build the Church. Remember, when Jesus said these things no one knew or understood that there was to be a new covenant. Only the Holy Spirit could disclose the power of the new birth and the covenant of grace through faith and not be works or sacrifice. Only the Holy Spirit could declare a righteousness by faith in the Blood of Jesus. All of the things we now know, Jesus said, the Spirit would show us all things that are to come.
Only by understanding what the Holy Spirit says through the Word can even hope to know this new covenant. Because so many of us received what was taught by man (and not by the Spirit), we've allowed ourselves to be put back under the condemnation of the Law instead of by grace. Hebrews 9:14 (Amplified) says, "How much more surely shall the Blood of Christ, Who by virtue of (His) eternal Spirit (His Own pre-existent, divine personality) has offered Himself as an unblemished sacrifice to God, purify our consciences from dead works, and lifeless observances to serve the (ever) living God?"
Jesus and the Word are One and the same. When you honor the Word, you honor Him. And, when you honor Him, you honor the Father. To dishonor the Word, you dishonor the very sacrifice of Jesus Himself. When we try to pay for our own mistakes and shortcomings by sacrifice, condemnation, guilt, self imposed punishment and other ways, we dishonor the sacrifice of Jesus as though it wasn't enough. This dishonors God and everything that He did through Jesus. We are in a way, telling God that the old covenant was better and that can fix our own mistakes by our sacrifices.
When we declare that "I'm an old sinner saved by grace," we're declaring who we were before Jesus. Once we've received Jesus, we're no longer and "old sinner," but sons and daughters of the Most High God. You're not a sinner any longer, but you're now the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus. 2Corinthians 5:21 (Amplified) says that declaring anything else is dishonoring the very blood of Jesus as though it were not enough to cleanse you. Saying that the blood of Jesus wasn't enough to make you whole, may be the highest form of religious pride that's now in the Church. Hebrews 10:18 (Amplified) says that, "Now where there is absolute remission (forgiveness and cancellation of the penalty) of these (sins and lawbreaking) there is no longer any offering made to atone for sin."
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