Amazing Grace : What Faith Is
Faith is persuasion. That is true both in the natural and the spiritual realm. A natural man can be persuaded in his mind to do many things, and it is a sort of faith, but the faith that saves is the persuasion of the Holy Spirit which comes to a person as he hears the gospel. As Paul said, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”[7] But as Paul also labored to explain, the word of God must be spoken by a flesh-and-blood person who is “sent” [8] — that is, someone who has the spiritual authority to proclaim the gospel. The only thing that gives a person that spiritual authority is that he has obeyed the gospel himself and is living the life that it demands.[9]
So grace draws a person near to hear, and then through hearing the gospel from a true disciple, faith comes — but not automatically. It requires something very important, and very rare, on the part of the hearer: he must be willing to do the Father’s will.[10] He must have ears to hear, which means a heart to obey.[11] Otherwise he will not submit to the spiritual authority of the one speaking; he will not receive him as coming from God.[12] He will not be persuaded, for he is in the grip of a stronger persuasion — the fear of losing his own life.[13]
That is what happened in the case of the “rich young ruler” who came asking what he must do to inherit eternal life:
Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. (Mark 10:21-22)
Although there was abundant grace at work, bringing him into the very presence of the Master, he did not receive faith from hearing the gospel, but rather dread and gloom, for he was not willing to give up his own life, in order to receive the eternal life that Yahshua offered him. He loved his life in this world.
But in the case of the 3,000 on the day of Pentecost, we see a very different story. The many other words[14] they heard that day from Peter evidently imparted faith to them, for it says they “gladly received his word[15].” Gloom did not descend on them at the thought of giving up their lives, for they were fully persuaded that this Messiah was worth dying for. Thus they were baptized into His death and received the same Spirit that had filled the ones who spoke the good news to them.[16]
Belief that Impels Obedience
The faith that came to those 3,000 caused them to believe in their hearts in this Messiah whom they had crucified,[17] that He had paid for their sins through His death, and that He had risen from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father. And what happened next? Did they all go their separate ways, having added a new dimension to their lives? No. The message they heard called them to be saved from the perverse generation they were living in.[18] The Bible doesn’t record the “many other words” Peter spoke to them that day, but we do know what the Master had commanded the apostles to do in the preaching of the gospel, which surely they were careful to obey:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:19-20)
And what was the first thing the Master had commanded them when He called them to follow Him? It was to forsake everything.[19] And lest we think that requirement applied only to the apostles, remember that after the woman broke her alabaster jar, her most precious possession, and poured out every drop of the fragrant oil upon Him, He instructed His disciples:
I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her. (Matthew 26:13)
It is doubtful that Peter would have forgotten to include this story in his many other words, considering how deeply it had affected the disciples the day it happened.[20] But regardless of the exact words Peter may have spoken, the outcome speaks for itself:
All the believers were together and had all things in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:44-47)
It was neither a coincidence nor a misunderstanding that those 3,000 new disciples all gave up everything, including their independent lives, and shared a common life together.[21] Their belief impelled[22] obedience to what they heard. It was not merely a mental assent to the fact of Yahshua’s death and resurrection. It was a total identification with Him and His people that cut them off from all past loyalties and occupations.
There is a belief that doesn’t impel obedience. The Master encountered this kind of belief on several occasions, such as:[23]
Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man. (John 2:23-25)
The words “believed” and “entrust” in this passage are actually the same word in the Greek manuscript. You could well say that they believed in Him but He didn’t believe in them, for He knew it was only a belief in their minds and not in their hearts. They admired Him, but He knew they would not obey Him at all costs, therefore He could not entrust His Holy Spirit to them.[24]
So the faith that saves produces a belief that obeys; otherwise it is not saving faith. That is exactly what the writer of James was laboring to express:
Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” You believe that God is one? You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? (James 2:17-20)
Sadly, many are so foolish as to be unwilling to recognize the futility of a faith that does not result in the works that followed the first preaching of the gospel in Acts 2:42-47 and 4:32-37. But the Master said that those who have ears to hear will bear abundant fruit — thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold — and so prove to be His disciples.[25]
[7] Romans 10:17
[8] Romans 10:14-15; Matthew 10:40; John 13:20. There is not a single example in the New Testament of a person receiving the Holy Spirit without receiving a flesh-and-blood person filled with the Holy Spirit. So it is peculiar, to say the least, that most Christians believe that a person can become a disciple by simply reading a tract and saying a prayer, all by himself.
[9] John 7:18b; Otherwise he is living a lie and can only pass on the same deceptive spirit he is in communion with, according to John 7:18a; 2 Corinthians 4:2; 1 John 2:4; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15.
[10] John 7:17
[11] Matthew 13:9,15; Luke 14:26-35
[12] Matthew 10:40; John 13:20
[13] Hebrews 2:15; Luke 9:24; John 12:25; Revelation 21:7-8
[14] Acts 2:40
[15] Acts 2:41
[16] Acts 2:38 (NKJV); Rom 6:2-5
[17] Acts 2:36
[18] Acts 2:40
[19] Mark 10:28; Luke 5:1-11; Luke 14:33
[20] Matthew 26:8,14-16
[21] Acts 4:32-35; 5:20
[22] Impel means to urge, constrain, or motivate a person to an action; to cause to move forward with force.
[23] John 8:30-44 is another vivid example of vain belief.
[24] Acts 5:32; Hebrews 5:9
[25] Matthew 13:3-9; John 15:8; John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:14-18
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6/17/2005
Amazing Grace : What Grace Is
Grace… faith… works… such common words, but what do they mean? What is grace, and how does it work? What is faith, and where does it come from? Where does it lead? What are the works that cannot save us, and the works we are saved to do? And for that matter, what is salvation, anyway? In his letter to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul was not preaching the gospel, but rather giving the disciples understanding about what had happened to them and what lay ahead of them — the process and the purpose of salvation. The gospel is found in the Gospels. The letters of Paul and the other apostles consist of instruction and correction for those who are already in salvation.[1] That is why we must look to the Gospels to find the foundation of these familiar terms Paul uses in his letters.
There is a process or a progression involved in salvation, and in the Gospels and the book of Acts there are many examples of people going through that process, or in some cases stopping short of salvation.
Grace
First comes grace, the unmerited favor of God. As it relates to salvation, grace is the working of God in a person’s life to protect him, prepare him, and bring him to the time and place where he can hear the gospel from someone who has been sent with the authority to proclaim it.[2]
It was grace to Peter that he had fished all night without catching anything, and that he happened to be cleaning his nets in that particular place where the Master wanted to teach that day, and that the Master chose his boat to speak from.[3] It was grace that caused the Master to pass by the sycamore tree where Zacchaeus was waiting, and to notice and call to him.[4] It was grace that caused the Ethiopian eunuch to happen to be passing near Philip and to be reading the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, and it was grace that caused Philip to hear from the Spirit the urging to approach the chariot and ask the eunuch whether he understood what he was reading.[5] And it was even grace to the “rich young ruler” that the Master came to teach in his town.[6]
So grace brings a person near in order to hear the good news. But what happens next depends on the one who speaks and the one who hears.
1] It is ironic that most of the popular “plans of salvation” make little use of the Gospels and much improper use of Paul’s letters. As a result, very few people have actually heard and obeyed the gospel.
[2] John 7:17-18
[3] Luke 5:1-10
[4] Luke 19:2-10
[5] Acts 8:27-39
[6] Mark 10:17-30
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6/10/2005
The Coward & The Conqueror (part 2)
Every challenge is accompanied by a reward. According to the clarity that one has, he can judge whether the reward is worth the cost. And according to that understanding, if he is honest, he can foresee whether he will be proven a Coward or a Conqueror.
Will you face the challenge?
What if it was the Son of God who set the challenge?
What if the goal is making His Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven?
What if the call is to love, just as He loved?
What if the cost is everything… yes, even your own life?
The one who only sees the goal becomes the Conqueror.
The one who conquers will inherit all things, and I will be his God and he will be my son. Revelation 21:7
The one who only sees the obstacles is the Coward.
But for the cowardly and unbelieving… their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)
First you must hear the call, the challenge…
“Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” (Mark 10:21)
“…whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:33)
“Be saved from this perverse generation.” (Acts 2:40)
The one who heard the call (by grace), understood the call (through faith), and walked away,[1] proved to be the Coward.
“But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” (Mark 10:22)
“Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.” (Acts 13:46)
He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. (Matthew 10:37-38)
The one who heard the call (by grace), understood the call (through faith), and paid the price, became the Conqueror.
Then Peter began to say to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You.”So Jesus answered and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s sake, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time —houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions – and in the age to come, eternal life.(Mark 10:28-30)
For “by grace, through faith” one is saved if he is actually saved through the faith that came by grace. To pay the price that He said to pay is not “works.” It is what the faith that came by grace would persuade you to do, lest anyone should boast.
“Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22)
So what makes the difference between the Coward and the Conqueror?
“If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself.” (John 7:17)
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[1] John 3:18,36; 12:48
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The Coward & The Conqueror
Life is easy when everything is going your way. When you are not in the heat of the testing, it is easy to have faith and confidence that you can stand in the face of whatever might come your way. Words are cheap, so they say. It’s even easy to believe in “The Cause” from the seat of comfort and security. But what if the call did come to test you to the very core of your heart, to overcome what you have never faced before? What if the most crucial challenge was set before you, one that demanded nothing less than your very life? What if it was the most consequential mission ever conceived? How would you respond?
First comes the call, the challenge. Then a qualifying criterion must be set forth, something that clearly spells out all the demands and requirements. The course has to be laid out, showing the starting qualifications, the objective to be achieved, and what it will take to endure until the very end. As the details are manifested, the candidate can begin to evaluate the cost. He can weigh all the options, the factors, and each and every possibility. He can determine whether the end result is worth the cost, to see whether he is really willing to face the challenge.
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