Paul is going to explain our situation as Gentiles in TIME PAST:
Vs. 1…Throughout the Word of God “death” denotes separation (not cessation of life), whether physical, spiritual or eternal. According to this verse, man is spiritually separated from God. If the taproot of the family tree was Adam and he’s dead due to sin, obviously we the branches are spiritually separated as well. We’ve overstepped the boundary of God’s righteousness and fallen short of the glory of God. The moment we believe the gospel we are quickened—that is, regenerated by the Spirit, baptized into the Body of Christ and identified with His death, burial, and resurrection.
Vs. 2…As Gentiles we followed the course of this world system. Like a river, we meandered through life aimlessly fulfilling the desires of the flesh. Someone has wisely said, “Men and rivers are made crooked by the same method---taking the path of least resistance”. We were unaware that the prince of the power of the air was manipulating us through the world of money, the world of fashion, the world of entertainment, the world of sports, the world of politics, etc. Satan controls the world system through things that appeal to the flesh. This “spirit” or influence still holds sway over the children of disobedience. If this course is not altered it will lead men to hell.
Vs. 3... Notice Paul blames the Jews also for rebelling against God and His program for them. As a former blasphemer, Paul, like his countrymen, walked in the lust of the flesh. In Paul’s case he was driven by covetousness (ambition), climbing the religious ladder above many of his equals. (Gal. 1:14; I Tim. 1:13). Therefore, the Jews like the Gentiles are by nature the children of wrath. Webster defines the word nature as “the inherent character or basic constitution of a person or thing.” The nature of a boa constrictor is to squeeze its prey to death; therefore, it can never be trusted no matter how docile the reptile may seem. Although outwardly man may appear good, essentially he is morally corrupt. The nature of man is depraved.
Vs. 4-5… The doctrine of depravity says that man is as bad off as he can be, There is a big difference between being as bad as he can be and being as bad off as he can be. The doctrine of depravity has to do, not with man’s estimation of man, but rather with God’s estimation of man. I think we all agree that the natural man is “totally depraved.” However, we must not confuse “total depravity” with “total inability.” According to Romans 3:12, man is rotten to the core, as far as God is concerned.
Thankfully, God has taken the initiative to make a provision of salvation and bring mankind in contact with the gospel, which is the means through which the Spirit convicts the unsaved sinner (John 16:7-11; Eph. 6:17). But can the natural man who is dead in trespasses and sins believe the gospel? Some ask, “How can a dead person believe?” To which I would respond, “How can a dead person be disobedient?” (Eph. 2:2). Both answers require man to use his intellect and will. I reject the idea that God gives faith (belief) to an unsaved person as a gift thereby making him a Christian. If this were true, it would completely eliminate human responsibility, especially in regard to the unbeliever who would be condemned to the lake of fire for rejecting a gospel he could have never believed. The Bible declares: “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Rom. 10:17) Notice that faith comes by hearing the Word of God, not through some mysterious method of implantation.
Genesis 3 should answer the question of man’s ability to understand what God says to him in his unsaved state: Did Adam understand what God said to him in the garden after he sinned? The record is clear that he most certainly did—the Word of God pierced straight through his stony heart of flesh. God created man as an intelligent, rational being who has the capacity to make decisions. Even though this image has been marred by sin, when the Spirit convicts a soul through the gospel, man has the ability and the responsibility to believe. Can he resist if he so chooses and reject the good news? He often does (see Acts 7:51).
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)” (Eph. 2:4,5). If all are dead in trespasses and sins, then it can also be said that the love of God and His righteousness extends to all. This is a recurring theme throughout the Pauline epistles: “Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference” (Rom. 3:22). God’s gracious provision is unto “all” which clearly indicates that redemption is unlimited. (Titus 2:11; 3:5) We are not saved by a new birth; we experience the washing of regeneration (regeneration means a new beginning).
THE AGES TO COME:
Vs. 6-7… What a great statement! God has “made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” We should note that the verbs in this passage are in the present tense. As far as God is concerned we are righteous in Christ; therefore, He sees us already seated with Him in the heavenlies, as we will be in eternity. When God decrees something, it is as good as done. For instance, God told Abraham he was going to be the father of a great nation even though Abraham had no children. We are going to rule and reign with Christ over cities of angels.
What we need to do is make a practical application of this positional truth in our everyday lives. Most seem to have forgotten that our conduct and willingness to suffer for Christ will determine our reigning position with Him (II Tim. 2:11-15).
In the ages to come, God is going to show us the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness. What more could He do for us that He hasn’t already done? We are going to be displayed as the trophies of His grace. Thus, the host of heaven will glorify God through us on the basis that He has brought so many sons to glory. Angels in heaven have never sinned, therefore to get to see and know us redeemed sinners in heaven is going to glorify God.
Vs 8-9… What is said to be the gift of God? Is it salvation or faith? I believe that salvation is the gift of God. Not only does this fit the context in which the passage is set, it also harmonizes with the overall theme of Paul’s epistles. In fact, the apostle follows the same order in Romans 6:23 as he did in Ephesians 2:1,8: “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
“Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:9). If you contend that faith is the gift not salvation, then verse 9 doesn’t make sense. Surely we would never say faith is “not of works”; we would say salvation is not of works. “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Rom. 4:5).
Also note that Paul is emphasizing the “through faith” is not “not of yourselves”. Yes you must believe the gospel of the grace of God; however, “through faith” is describing the content of the gospel that saves us. Believing something about Jesus vaguely is not sufficient for salvation. The Ethiopian Eunuch was reading Isaiah 53 when Phillip stopped his chariot and helped him understand who Jesus was. The content of the Gospel is everything. Salvation can be described as right thinking about right facts.
Vs. 10… The idea of workmanship has to do with that which is made. It is the work of God to fashion us into the image of His dear Son. These works have nothing to do with earning our way to heaven. It has everything to do with growing in grace doctrine that leads to having a sound mind. According to I Cor. 3 the Lord is going to evaluate our works---of what sort are they. God has not left up to us to find a place of service for Him and get busy. He wants us to find out what He is doing in the dispensation of grace and work with Him to proclaim it.
Lordship Salvation comes in many forms. The most blatant form is the teaching that salvation requires faith plus works. This form is based on such Scripture passages as these: "Whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16); "Repent and be baptized for the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38); and "faith without works, is dead" (James 2:20). Failure to "rightly divide the word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15) has led many Bible teachers to cling to these passages more than the great Pauline texts on justification by faith without works.
A second form of Lordship Salvation states that salvation requires obedience to God. This is similar to the first view, but with a little different twist. It basically says faith is only one of many things that we are to obey, and according to this view, it isn't faith that saves you, it's obedience that saves you.
A third form is the teaching that salvation requires repentance either before, or in conjunction with faith.
A fourth example is most closely associated with the definition given above. This view states that salvation requires total submission to the Lordship of Christ. This form of the teaching embraces belief in the Gospel, but this faith must include the understanding that you are now turning your entire life over to the obedience of God and as long as you are believing in that sense, and following through by showing it with your life, then you are saved.
Lordship Salvation is a rather complicated system with all of its forms, but they all have one thing in common. They either state explicitly, or at least imply, that faith alone in the finished work of Christ is not sufficient for salvation. This is the common denominator of all forms of Lordship Salvation.
Lordship Salvation has a strong appeal for several reasons. The first reason is that its proponents claim it is Scriptural. After all, James 2:23 does say "faith without works is dead." In fact, it says it even stronger in James 2:24, "Ye see, then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith only." Well, it's right there, isn't it? "By works, a man is justified, not by faith only." The Lordship Salvationist jumps on that one and proclaims, "It's in the Word of God; it's Scriptural." Of course, what the Lordship Salvationist does not point out is that we must not only be Scriptural, we must also be dispensationally correct. It is also Scriptural to build an ark and fill it with male and female of every kind of animal, but is it dispensational to do so? No. It is Scriptural to offer animal sacrifices, but is it dispensationally correct? No, it's not. It is Scriptural to have the ability to handle poisonous snakes and not be harmed by them (and many have died trying to do so) but it is not dispensationally correct. The Book of James was not addressed to the Body of Christ. James 1:1 says, "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad." This book is clearly addressed to the twelve tribes of Israel. Is the teaching that justification is by works and not by faith only, Scriptural? Yes, it's right there in James. Is it dispensational? No, it's not addressed to us today.
Now, in all fairness, most Lordship Salvation teachers deny that they are teaching salvation by works. And yet, the problem is their doctrine opens the door to the teaching of salvation by works and can easily be misconstrued as salvation by works.
A second appeal of the Lordship Salvation teaching is that it offers a "solution" (in the minds of its proponents) to the lack of dedication in the lives of so many Christians. Lordship Salvationists use such terms as "easy believism" and "cheap grace" as the cause of the "laxidasical" attitude of many believers toward sin. This problem will be dealt with a little later where we will see that the Apostle Paul offers a better solution to carnality than the threat of eternal damnation if we do not "shape up."
The battle against Lordship Salvation is nothing new. The Apostle Paul faced it in his day, and spent a great deal of time in the defense of his message. The very first attack on the Gospel of Jesus Christ came shortly after Paul finished his first missionary journey. Paul's first missionary journey is recorded in Acts 13 and records what Paul was preaching at that time. Acts 13:28 says, "And though they found no cause of death in Him (that is, in Christ), yet desired they Pilate that He should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all that was written of Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a sepulcher, but God raised Him from the dead.” Do you see what Paul has just proclaimed? Verse 28, "they desired that He should be slain” (the death of Christ); Verse 29, "they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a sepulcher” (the burial of Christ), ("but God raised Him from the dead” (the resurrection of Christ). This is the Gospel revealed to Paul (see I Corinthians 15:1-4).
Now, notice what he says in verses 38 and 39, "Be it known unto you therefore men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; And by him all that believe are Justified from all things from which ye could not be Justified by the law of Moses.” Now, did Paul say "All that submit to the Lordship of Christ"? No! Does this mean that Paul does not want us to submit to the Lordship of Christ? Of course not; he wants us to be submissive to Christ in all things. But is submission to His Lordship the condition for being justified? No. The stated condition is, "all that believe." Believe what? What has he just told them. But then notice Paul also says, "from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
Here is justification by faith, without works. That's what Paul was preaching. Would anyone object to that? Would anyone have any problems with that message? Surely not! Yet consider what happened after Paul had returned from his first missionary journey. "And when they were come and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them and how that He had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles and there they abode long time with the disciples. And certain men which came down from Judea, taught the brethren and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses ye cannot be saved" (Acts 14:27-15:1). Who was the first person to object to this addition of circumcision? Acts 15:2 continues, "When, therefore, Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them......The Apostle Paul was the first one to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ! And no sooner had he returned home from doing so, somebody objected to it. Lordship Salvation is nothing new! There has been a battle against salvation by grace through faith alone from the time it was first proclaimed by Paul.
It is my belief that salvation under Israel's Kingdom Program has some very basic and essential differences from salvation under the Dispensation of Grace Program for the Body of Christ. Let’s note these differences and point out how they affect the "Lordship" controversy.
Lordship Salvation is actually another name for the Gospel of the Circumcision (Gal. 2). It is the Gospel that was designed for the nation of Israel, for the Kingdom program, but it is not the message for this Dispensation of Grace. Now, how did salvation operate before this Dispensation of Grace began? In order to understand this, we need to understand the covenants that were given to Israel.We find in Scripture that Israel was given two kinds of covenants. The one kind is called an unconditional covenant. It's simply a promise God makes to a group of people or a person. It has nothing to do with their response or what they do. It's an unconditional promise.
The other kind of covenant is a conditional covenant. This kind of covenant says. "Here is what I will do if you do this." A conditional covenant also says, "If you do not do this, then you will not get the blessings or benefits of this covenant."
One of the major covenants in the Bible is the covenant of promise found in Genesis 12:2,3 where God promised Abram "And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” This covenant is unconditional. God simply promised these things to Abram; it had nothing to do with what he did. Now, what did this promise basically say? Its essential message was that God was going to bless all people through Abraham's seed, the family through which Christ would come. In Genesis chapter 15, God reaffirms the covenant. Yet, Abram still had no children, and he brings this up to the Lord (vs. 2). At this, God reaffirms that Abram's seed would be as numerous as the stars of Heaven (vs. 5). Abram's response was… "And he believed in the Lord and He counted it to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6). Abram believed God even though he didn't have any children. He just believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. Now, did he do something to get that righteousness? Did he have to perform some action, fulfill any conditions? No, he just believed and it was counted to him for righteousness.
However, in Genesis chapter 17, we find that now God establishes some conditions for participating in this promise. We're going to find that there are two major conditions that have been added throughout the course of history. The first one is the covenant of circumcision. Genesis 17:4-8, "As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name be anymore called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee and I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art the stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” So far, it looks like God is simply restating what He has already said. But, in verses 9 &10, God continues, "Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee: Every man child among you shall be circumcised.” Abraham may well have thought, "Wait a minute, I thought you said that you were going to promise me this covenant and these blessings unconditionally. How is it now that you are requiring the male children to be circumcised"? How can God be adding this condition? The answer is simply this: God is not changing the promise; the promise still stands. Abraham would still be a great nation, he would still be blessed, and he would still be a blessing. The promise is still there. The added condition now regulates who gets to participate in this promise. The original promise is still unconditional. But those who get to join in and participate in this blessing could now do so only upon the condition that they be circumcised. From Genesis 17 forward (with the exception of this dispensation) to participate in the program, all male children had to be circumcised. Salvation under the covenant consisted of being identified with the people of God. And in order to be identified with the people of God according to Genesis 17, verse 14 says, "And the uncircumcised man child who's flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be - cut off from his people. He hath broken my covenant.” Now why does it say, "cut off from his people"? It is because salvation under the covenant requires being identified with the people of God. To be cut off from the people is to be cut off from the promise along with the blessing. The condition given to participate is circumcision. This is why Paul calls Peter's message the Gospel of the Circumcision: it is because circumcision was the requirement for participating in that program. This is also why in Acts 15:1, after the Apostle Paul was out preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, certain men came down from Jerusalem, Judea and said, "Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved." Why were they saying this? Didn't they know the Scriptures? Yes they did, and that's why they were saying it. They knew Scripture, therefore they knew Genesis 17 said if any were not circumcised, they were cut off from the people and were, therefore, separated from the covenant. Paul had been given a new revelation which did not require that men be circumcised to be a part of God's offer of salvation.
Now, let us consider a second amendment to the covenant. In Exodus 19 we find the Law added. In this context, Israel has just come out of Egypt. They are awaiting God's direction on what to do next. Moses went up to talk with God where He told him, "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you unto myself Now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people, for all the earth is mine” (Ex. 19:4,5). Again, some might object: "Wait a minute, Lord, I thought you unconditionally promised Abraham that his seed would become a great nation and bless the earth." Yes, that is true and that promise still stands at this point here in Exodus 19. Once again God is qualifying and limiting who can participate in the covenant. He has already required circumcision and now He is adding the Law as a requirement for participation. Again, some might ask, "Lord how can you do this? Have you gone back on your promise?" The answer is, "No," and Paul explains this in Galatians 3:17-18, "And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.” Paul is saying the Law does not change the original promise: it still stands, but the logical question is, "What is the purpose of the Law?" Paul answers in the next verse: "Wherefore, then, serveth the Law. It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator” (Gal. 3:19). Because of transgressions, God came to His people Israel and told them, the promise still stands, but if you want to be a part of it, here's what you have to do. Then He set forth the Law. What happened if an Israelite refused to keep the Law? Exodus 31:14, "Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore, for it is holy unto you. Everyone that defileth it shall surely be put to death. For whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among His people.” Here is that statement again. Remember, under the covenant, salvation is found in identifying with the people of God. To be cut off from the people, from God's people, is to be cut off from the covenant. And here he says, if anyone does not keep the Sabbath, let that soul be cut off from among His people. This is why the message of the Old Testament and of Christ and of the Twelve Apostles was the same…get back to the covenant (Luke 1:72).
Throughout Israel's wilderness wanderings, they strayed from the covenant. Deuteronomy is the second giving of the Law, forty years after the first giving of the Law. Notice what the message is in Deuteronomy 7:9-11, "Know, therefore, that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations, and repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them; He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgements, which I command thee this day, to do them.”
Another example of the importance of keeping the covenant is found in Deuteronomy 29:9. “Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.” Then in verse 20 we find what will happen to those who ignore the covenant… "The Lord will not spare him, but then the anger of the Lord and His jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the Lord shall blot out his name from under Heaven.”
An often-asked question is, "What about Gentiles during the time of the covenant? How could they be a part of God's program? Isaiah 56:6,7, "Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant. Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices and they shall be accepted upon mine altar; and mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.”
You might be thinking, Old Testament covenant salvation almost sounds like salvation by works. God keeps saying things like, "If you do this ...you must do this ... you must keep this...... Is God saying these works would save them? No! Paul explains this in Romans 9:31-32… "But Israel, which followed after the Law of righteousness, hath not attained to the Law of righteousness”. If the Israelites tried to keep the Law, and did it to the best of their ability, why didn't they attain to the law of righteousness? Paul answers in verse 32, "Because they sought it not BY FAITH, but as it were by the works of the Law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone.” What Paul is saying is that in the Old Testament, if a person kept all of the rules, all of the laws, offered the sacrifices, and yet just did it out of ritual, that wasn't good enough. He had to do it in faith. Therefore, we can conclude that under the covenant, they did have to believe, but their faith had to be demonstrated by their works. In the case of the covenant, they had to be circumcised, and they had to keep the Law. Works alone were not enough. Faith alone was not enough either, at that time. This is why James, writing to the Twelve Tribes (James 1:1) summarizes covenant salvation with these words: "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works” (James 2:17,18). This is covenant salvation: show your faith by your works. If you do not have any works, your faith is dead, useless. This is covenant salvation, and this is also Lordship Salvation. Where does Lordship Salvation get its gospel? From James and from the teaching of Christ while He was on earth as a minister of the circumcision. (Rom. 15:8)
Lordship Salvation comes in many forms. The most blatant form is the teaching that salvation requires faith plus works. This form is based on such Scripture passages as these: "Whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16); "Repent and be baptized for the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38); and "faith without works, is dead" (James 2:20). Failure to "rightly divide the word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15) has led many Bible teachers to cling to these passages more than the great Pauline texts on justification by faith without works.
A second form of Lordship Salvation states that salvation requires obedience to God. This is similar to the first view, but with a little different twist. It basically says faith is only one of many things that we are to obey, and according to this view, it isn't faith that saves you, it's obedience that saves you.
A third form is the teaching that salvation requires repentance either before, or in conjunction with faith.
A fourth example is most closely associated with the definition given above. This view states that salvation requires total submission to the Lordship of Christ. This form of the teaching embraces belief in the Gospel, but this faith must include the understanding that you are now turning your entire life over to the obedience of God and as long as you are believing in that sense, and following through by showing it with your life, then you are saved.
Lordship Salvation is a rather complicated system with all of its forms, but they all have one thing in common. They either state explicitly, or at least imply, that faith alone in the finished work of Christ is not sufficient for salvation. This is the common denominator of all forms of Lordship Salvation.
Lordship Salvation has a strong appeal for several reasons. The first reason is that its proponents claim it is Scriptural. After all, James 2:23 does say "faith without works is dead." In fact, it says it even stronger in James 2:24, "Ye see, then how that by works a man is justified and not by faith only." Well, it's right there, isn't it? "By works, a man is justified, not by faith only." The Lordship Salvationist jumps on that one and proclaims, "It's in the Word of God; it's Scriptural." Of course, what the Lordship Salvationist does not point out is that we must not only be Scriptural, we must also be dispensationally correct. It is also Scriptural to build an ark and fill it with male and female of every kind of animal, but is dispensational to do so? No. It is Scriptural to offer animal sacrifices, but is it dispensationally correct? No, it's not. It is Scriptural to have the ability to handle poisonous snakes and not be harmed by them (and many have died trying to do so) but it is not dispensationally correct. The Book of James was not addressed to the Body of Christ. James 1:1 says, "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad." This book is clearly addressed to the twelve tribes of Israel. Is the teaching that justification is by works and not by faith only, Scriptural? Yes, it's right there in James. Is it dispensational? No, it's not addressed to us today.
Now, in all fairness, most Lordship Salvation teachers deny that they are teaching salvation by works. And yet, the problem is their doctrine opens the door to the teaching of salvation by works and can easily be misconstrued as salvation by works.
A second appeal of the Lordship Salvation teaching is that it offers a "solution" (in the minds of its proponents) to the lack of dedication in the lives of so many Christians. Lordship Salvationists use such terms as "easy believism" and "cheap grace" as the cause of the "laxidasical" attitude of many believers toward sin. This problem will be dealt with a little later where we will see that the Apostle Paul offers a better solution to carnality than the threat of eternal damnation if we do not "shape up."
The battle against Lordship Salvation is nothing new. The Apostle Paul faced it in his day, and spent a great deal of time in the defense of his message. The very first attack on the Gospel of the Grace of God came shortly after Paul finished his first missionary journey. Paul's first missionary journey is recorded in Acts 13 and records what Paul was preaching at that time. Acts 13:28 says, "And though they found no cause of death in Him (that is, in Christ), yet desired they Pilate that He should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all that was written of Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a sepulcher, but God raised Him from the dead.” Do you see what Paul has just proclaimed? Verse 28, "they desired that He should be slain” (the death of Christ); Verse 29, "they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a sepulcher” (the burial of Christ), ("but God raised Him from the dead” (the resurrection of Christ). This is the Gospel revealed to Paul (see I Corinthians 15:1-4).
Now, notice what he says in verses 38 and 39, "Be it known unto you therefore men and brethren that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; And by him all that believe are Justified from all things from which ye could not be Justified by the law of Moses.” Now, did Paul say "All that submit to the Lordship of Christ"? No! Does this mean that Paul does not want us to submit to the Lordship of Christ? Of course not; he wants us to be submissive to Christ in all things. But is submission to His Lordship the condition for being justified? No. The stated condition is, "all that believe." Believe what? What has he just told them. But then notice Paul also says, "from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
Here is justification by faith, without works. That's what Paul was preaching. Would anyone object to that? Would anyone have any problems with that message? Surely not! Yet consider what happened after Paul had returned from his first missionary journey. "And when they were come and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them and how that He had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles and there they abode long time with the disciples. And certain men which came down from Judea, taught the brethren and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses ye cannot be saved" (Acts 14:27-15:1). Who was the first person to object to this addition of circumcision? Acts 15:2 continues, "When, therefore, Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them......The Apostle Paul was the first one to preach the Gospel of Grace! And no sooner had he returned home from doing so, somebody objected to it. Lordship Salvation is nothing new! There has been a battle against salvation by grace through faith alone from the time it was first proclaimed by Paul.
It is my belief that salvation under Israel's Kingdom Program has some very basic and essential differences from salvation under the Dispensation of Grace Program for the Body of Christ. Let’s note these differences and point out how they affect the "Lordship" controversy.
Lordship Salvation is actually another name for the Gospel of the Circumcision (Gal. 2). It is the Gospel that was designed for the nation of Israel, for the Kingdom program, but it is not the message for this Dispensation of Grace. Now, how did salvation operate before this Dispensation of Grace began? In order to understand this, we need to understand the covenants that were given to Israel.We find in Scripture that Israel was given two kinds of covenants. The one kind is called an unconditional covenant. It's simply a promise God makes to a group of people or a person. It has nothing to do with their response or what they do. It's an unconditional promise.
The other kind of covenant is a conditional covenant. This kind of covenant says. "Here is what I will do if you do this." A conditional covenant also says, "If you do not do this, then you will not get the blessings or benefits of this covenant."
One of the major covenants in the Bible is the covenant of promise found in Genesis 12:2,3 where God promised Abram "And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” This covenant is unconditional. God simply promised these things to Abram; it had nothing to do with what he did. Now, what did this promise basically say? Its essential message was that God was going to bless all people through Abraham's seed, the family through which Christ would come. In Genesis chapter 15, God reaffirms the covenant. Yet, Abram still had no children, and he brings this up to the Lord (vs. 2). At this, God reaffirms that Abram's seed would be as numerous as the stars of Heaven (vs. 5). Abram's response was… "And he believed in the Lord and He counted it to him for righteousness” (Gen. 15:6). Abram believed God even though he didn't have any children. He just believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. Now, did he do something to get that righteousness? Did he have to perform some action, fulfill any conditions? No, he just believed and it was counted to him for righteousness.
However, in Genesis chapter 17, we find that now God establishes some conditions for participating in this promise. We're going to find that there are two major conditions that have been added throughout the course of history. The first one is the covenant of circumcision. Genesis 17:4-8, "As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name be anymore called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee and I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art the stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” So far, it looks like God is simply restating what He has already said. But, in verses 9 & 10, God continues, "Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee: Every man child among you shall be circumcised.” Abraham may well have thought, "Wait a minute, I thought you said that you were going to promise me this covenant and these blessings unconditionally. How is it now that you are requiring the male children to be circumcised"? How can God be adding this condition? The answer is simply this: God is not changing the promise; the promise still stands. Abraham would still be a great nation, he would still be blessed, and he would still be a blessing. The promise is still there. The added condition now regulates who gets to participate in this promise. The original promise is still unconditional. But those who get to join in and participate in this blessing could now do so only upon the condition that they be circumcised. From Genesis 17 forward (with the exception of this dispensation) to participate in the program, all male children had to be circumcised. Salvation under the covenant consisted of being identified with the people of God. And in order to be identified with the people of God according to Genesis 17, verse 14 says, "And the uncircumcised man child who's flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be - cut off from his people. He hath broken my covenant.” Now why does it say, "cut off from his people"? It is because salvation under the covenant requires being identified with the people of God. To be cut off from the people is to be cut off from the promise along with the blessing. The condition given to participate is circumcision. This is why Paul calls Peter's message the Gospel of the Circumcision: it is because circumcision was the requirement for participating in that program. This is also why in Acts 15:1, after the Apostle Paul was out preaching the Gospel of Grace, certain men came down from Jerusalem, Judea and said, "Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved." Why were they saying this? Didn't they know the Scriptures? Yes they did, and that's why they were saying it. They knew Scripture, therefore they knew Genesis 17 said if any were not circumcised, they were cut off from the people and were, therefore, separated from the covenant. Paul had been given a new revelation which did not require that men be circumcised to be a part of God's offer of salvation.
Now, let us consider a second amendment to the covenant. In Exodus 19 we find the Law added. In this context, Israel has just come out of Egypt. They are awaiting God's direction on what to do next. Moses went up to talk with God where He told him, "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you unto myself Now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people, for all the earth is mine” (Ex. 19:4,5). Again, some might object: "Wait a minute, Lord, I thought you unconditionally promised Abraham that his seed would become a great nation and bless the earth." Yes, that is true and that promise still stands at this point here in Exodus 19. Once again God is qualifying and limiting who can participate in the covenant. He has already required circumcision and now He is adding the Law as a requirement for participation. Again, some might ask, "Lord how can you do this? Have you gone back on your promise?" The answer is, "No," and Paul explains this in Galatians 3:17-18, "And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.” Paul is saying the Law does not change the original promise: it still stands, but the logical question is, "What is the purpose of the Law?" Paul answers in the next verse: "Wherefore, then, serveth the Law. It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator” (Gal. 3:19). Because of transgressions, God came to His people Israel and told them, the promise still stands, but if you want to be a part of it, here's what you have to do. Then He set forth the Law. What happened if an Israelite refused to keep the Law? Exodus 31:14, "Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore, for it is holy unto you. Everyone that defileth it shall surely be put to death. For whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among His people.” Here is that statement again. Remember, under the covenant, salvation is found in identifying with the people of God. To be cut off from the people, from God's people, is to be cut off from the covenant. And here he says, if anyone does not keep the Sabbath, let that soul be cut off from among His people. This is why the message of the Old Testament and of Christ and of the Twelve Apostles was the same…get back to the covenant (Luke 1:72).
Throughout Israel's wilderness wanderings, they strayed from the covenant. Deuteronomy is the second giving of the Law, forty years after the first giving of the Law. Notice what the message is in Deuteronomy 7:9-11, "Know, therefore, that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love Him and keep His commandments to a thousand generations, and repayeth them that hate Him to their face, to destroy them; He will not be slack to him that hateth Him, He will repay him to his face. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgements, which I command thee this day, to do them.”
Another example of the importance of keeping the covenant is found in Deuteronomy 29:9. “Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.” Then in verse 20 we find what will happen to those who ignore the covenant… "The Lord will not spare him, but then the anger of the Lord and His jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the Lord shall blot out his name from under Heaven.”
An often-asked question is, "What about Gentiles during the time of the covenant? How could they be a part of God's program? Isaiah 56:6,7, "Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, every one that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant. Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices and they shall be accepted upon mine altar; and mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.”
You might be thinking, Old Testament covenant salvation almost sounds like salvation by works. God keeps saying things like, "If you do this ...you must do this ... you must keep this...... Is God saying these works would save them? No! Paul explains this in Romans 9:31-32… "But Israel, which followed after the Law of righteousness, hath not attained to the Law of righteousness”. If the Israelites tried to keep the Law, and did it to the best of their ability, why didn't they attain to the law of righteousness? Paul answers in verse 32, "Because they sought it not BY FAITH, but as it were by the works of the Law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone.” What Paul is saying is that in the Old Testament, if a person kept all of the rules, all of the laws, offered the sacrifices, and yet just did it out of ritual, that wasn't good enough. He had to do it in faith. Therefore, we can conclude that under the covenant, they did have to believe, but their faith had to be demonstrated by their works. In the case of the covenant, they had to be circumcised, and they had to keep the Law. Works alone were not enough. Faith alone was not enough either, at that time. This is why James, writing to the Twelve Tribes (James 1:1) summarizes covenant salvation with these words: "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works” (James 2:17,18). This is covenant salvation: show your faith by your works. If you do not have any works, your faith is dead, useless. This is covenant salvation, and this is also Lordship Salvation. Where does Lordship Salvation get its gospel? From James and from the teaching of Christ while He was on earth as a minister of the circumcision. (Rom. 15:8)
Vs.13-15…The phrase “but now” indicates that a very important dispensational change has taken place in God’s dealings with mankind. In time past, the Gentiles were clearly “without Christ,” BUT NOW, we who were once afar off may draw near to God by the blood of Christ. This is God’s secret purpose which He saw fit to reveal only to Paul. Today, there is a new creation—Jews and Gentiles in one Body! “For He is our peace, who hath made both one.”
“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:11-14).
This passage raises an interesting question: When will peace be brought to the earth, and by whom? First of all, when we turn in our Bibles to the gospel according to Luke, we must bear in mind that Luke’s gospel is an integral part of the prophetic Scriptures. The theme of prophecy is Christ’s reign upon the earth for a period of one thousand years. When we study Luke’s account of the birth of Christ, the nation Israel is in view. The promise to reign with Christ in the kingdom to come was given exclusively to her.
A proper understanding of verse 14 is based on verse 11, where we read “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” We need to note here the phrase “for unto you.” We must ask to whom does the “you” refer in this passage? It is a direct reference to the saved Hebrew shepherds who were keeping watch over their flock by night. They were representatives of Israel: “Unto you,” that is, Israel, a Savior is born. A Savior who would confront the sins of His people and redeem them back to Himself. But we also note that the Savior is the Christ, the long-promised Messiah who will confront the chaos of this world. He will be the King of kings and Lord of lords. It is in this context that our phrase, “peace on earth” comes into view. When the Messiah returns in His second coming to set up His kingdom, He will bring peace for the first time to this world of sin. He will overthrow the kingdoms of this world and establish His own kingdom of peace and righteousness (Rev. 11:15). This wonderful truth is confirmed for us in Isaiah 9:6 where we read these words: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, THE PRINCE of PEACE.”
Isaiah uses a phrase similar to Luke’s, “For unto us.” He was one of Israel’s major prophets. Insofar as Isaiah was a Hebrew, when he states “Unto us,” he means unto us Israelites. Next we note.…a Son is given.” The birth of this child is a reference to Christ taking on a human form that He might be born in Bethlehem’s manger. But as to the Son, He was not merely born, He was given. You see, the one who took on human form is also the eternal Son of God. From everlasting to everlasting, He is God.
But now, we are free from the law. Christ has “abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances.” (Eph. 2:15). Christ delivered us from the obligation of fulfilling the demands of the law as a condition of justification. He accomplished this by redeeming us from the curse of the law. The curse of the law was the pronouncement of “death” due to sin. But Christ who knew no sin was made a curse for us (Gal. 3:13). In other words, He died our death, freeing us from the bondage of the law. This paved the way for the creation of a “new man” (Eph. 2:15). The term “new” used here by the apostle is the Greek word kainos. This particular term does not mean something recently completed. Rather, it has the idea of new “in kind and quality—unlike anything existing before.” When the automobile made its debut at the turn of the 20th century, it replaced the horse and buggy. It was an entirely new form of transportation that never existed before. The same is true of the entity Paul calls the “new man,” not to be confused with the new nature. Jews and Gentiles make up the one “new man.” This was unheard of prior to the revelation that was committed to Paul.
Today, Christ has reconciled both in one Body. You see, God has concluded both Jews and Gentiles in unbelief that He might have mercy upon all (Rom. 11:32). Consequently, He has declared a truce today, giving His enemies an opportunity to be reconciled. But to be the beneficiary of this amnesty, we must believe the gospel to make the reconciliation complete.
Vs. 17-18…This passage seems to imply that Christ preached this message during His earthly ministry. We know this could not have been the case since this truth was hidden. The answer lies in the fact that the revelation of the joint Body was to be manifested in due time through Paul’s gospel (I Tim. 2:3-7; Titus 1:1-3). So, it is through Paul’s message that Christ is making known that Jews and Gentiles are reconciled in one Body by the Cross.
Vs.19-20… Paul’s letter to the Ephesians brings us to the very summit of the Pauline revelation. From this vantage point we are able to see various points of interest as we look out over the riches of God’s grace. Here in these two verses we learn that those who are saved in this dispensation make up a holy temple where God dwells through the Spirit. The apostle goes on to add that we are “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets.” Exactly who were these apostles and prophets? Some insist that this refers to the 12 apostles and the Old Testament prophets. But they laid the foundation, which is Christ, according to prophecy. The apostles taught, based on the teachings of the law and prophets, that Christ was the Messiah, that He was the rightful heir to the throne of David—hence, the King of Israel. Is this what we proclaim today? Surely the members of the Body of Christ are not built on this foundation. If these were the apostles and prophets of the kingdom, the order would be reversed, for in God’s Prophetic Program the prophets preceded the apostles, as seen in the gospel according to Luke: “Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute” (Luke 11:49). Who, then, were these mighty defenders of the faith that held these prominent positions in the early part of this present dispensation? I believe that these were the apostles and prophets of grace who preached Christ according to the revelation of the Mystery. Of course, Paul is the primary apostle of this dispensation, but there were those who also held this office in a secondary sense. When Paul wrote to those at Thessalonica about his ministry among them he states: “Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the APOSTLES of Christ” (I Thes. 2:6). These apostles of Christ are identified for us by the Holy Spirit as being Paul, Silas, and Timothy (I Thes. 1:1). As far as the prophets are concerned, Agabus warned Paul not to go to Jerusalem, lest he suffer the consequences (Acts 21:10-13). In Paul’s epistles the order is always the same, apostles first, followed by the prophets, for this is the order in which they were given. “And God hath set some in the Church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers” (I Cor. 12:28). “Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit” (Eph.3:5) .“And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers” (Eph. 4:11). So then, as members of the Body of Christ, we are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets of grace who proclaimed the Lord of glory. Christ is the chief cornerstone which is synonymous with the foundation. It is the point of reference from which all measurements are taken. Thus, if we want to measure up to God’s standard today, we, too, must acknowledge Paul’s apostleship and message.
Vs. 21…It is important to recognize the connections between the two programs of God. For example, the Savior who shed His blood for Israel is the same Savior who died for our sins. The Spirit who indwelt the saints at Pentecost is the same Spirit who indwells believers in the age of Grace. This helps to explain why Paul uses the metaphor of a “temple” when speaking of us collectively. “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord”. Using the diagram of the Old Testament temple as an illustration, the living temple of God basically follows the same pattern. Israel was saved under the Prophetic Program. The living stones that have been placed into this side of the structure rest on the sure foundation, which is Christ relative to His earthly ministry. This explains why Peter says to his readers: “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” (I Pet. 2:5). With the setting aside of the nation Israel in unbelief, God has temporarily discontinued the construction on this part of the building. He has, however, revealed another set of plans for a new addition to the structure.
A new masterbuilder, Paul, is summoned, through whom God reveals His secret purpose, which was hidden from ages and generations past. Consequently, Paul was very careful NOT to “build upon another man’s [Peter’s] foundation” (Rom. 15:20). Instead he pours out a new section of foundation in his epistles, which is Jesus Christ according to His heavenly ministry. “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon…For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (I Cor. 3:10,11).
Today then, God is cutting out stones from the quarry of sinful humanity, saving them by the riches of His grace and placing them into the temple. It is interesting that the term “temple” used here by the apostle in Ephesians 2 is the Greek word Naos, which refers to the sanctuary, and in this context to a specific section of it called the Holy of Holies. In this holy place dwelt the very presence of God Almighty. Only the High Priest was permitted to enter this area once a year on the Day of Atonement. Anyone else was under the sure sentence of death if they even dared to draw near. But now, through the blood of Christ, God dwells in our midst.
Vs. 22 …When Solomon constructed the temple in Jerusalem he commanded, “and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.” Solomon paid a king’s ransom to purchase the stones for his temple, but it is nothing to be compared with what it cost our Savior to purchase us from the quarry of sin. Every stone that was placed in Solomon’s temple was made ready before it was brought to the structure so that, “there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building” (I Kings 6:7). The stones were cut to such precision at the quarry that when they were brought to the site each fit perfectly into its place without a sound. In like manner, the sound of the hammer was only heard on a hill called Calvary, as they drove nails into the hands and feet of our Lord. The living stones that were chiseled from His finished work are still being slipped quietly into the temple of God. We are perfect and complete in Him. Paul further teaches us that the temple is “fitly framed together” and that we are “builded together.” This indicates that our placement in the building is a sovereign act of God. Furthermore, just as one stone rests upon another, so we too rely upon each other as believers in Christ. We are to bear one another’s burdens.
No comments:
Post a Comment